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Conran confirms directing A PRINCESS OF MARS to press during his SKY CAPTAIN tour!!!
Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. I know it was announced by the trades and has been a sure thing, but it just makes it that much more real that Kerry Conran himself is talking about directing A PRINCESS OF MARS to media during the press tour for SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW. Now, as a new fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs' series (I'm on CHESSMEN OF MARS, but I had to halt my John Carter adventures to brush up on my CHRONICLES OF NARNIA for some really cool reasons I'll fill you in on in the near future) and someone who has seen SKY CAPTAIN I have to say... Of all the directors who have been attached or almost attached to this project, I think that Kerry Conran feels the best. He has an understanding for pulpy adventure filmmaking that is confident, fresh and exciting. Just the kind of person John Carter needs to help him through Barsoom and into Dejah Thoris' heart. Now, if only I could get that Big Red chump to spill more on what he's got up his sleeves...
hey harry,
i'm a college journalist here in san francisco and i got the chance to interview 'sky captain' writer/director kerry conran yesterday. on top of being a fortunate geek who made a great, great debut with this film, he told us he's been hired by paramount to helm 'princess of mars', which as you know robert rodriguez dropped out of due to 'sin city'.
this sounds very promising...conran is definitely going places.
if you print this you can call me 'lingo quichocho'
thanks
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I mean I haven't seen Sky Captain or anything. But visually I look forward to it. Maybe they could make it look like the new K equivalent of Technicolor.
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I rather this dude Kerry Conran instead of tosser's like Sommers or Paul W S Anderson!!
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I cannot wait to see Tars Tarkis come to life on the big screen! All the best to Mr. Kerry Conran. This is a far-reaching and highly influential set of stories. Edgar Rice Burroughs was looked at in literary circles as a hack. The literary circles lacked vision. If you haven't read the books, hunt them down on e-bay or your local used bookstore. You will get a clear glimpse of what inspired generations of genre greats.
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Entertainment Weekly also includes the fact that Conran intends to use real sets and locations on this one, and intends to have the film done in two years. Remember when this site actually BROKE news instead of just parroting someone else's report?
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http://www.literature.org/authors/burroughs-edgar-rice/
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I think Tom Cruise can play the southern Civil War vet best. Hugh Jackman or Brad Pitt might be nice, too. Jude Law doing his Cold Mountain best would be good, too .... okay ... there are a lot that would be good as John Carter. John Carter is one of the last great pulp heroes to get their day in celluloid and they ought to do it right.
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Anyone who has read ERB's classic Martian series can tell you that Cruise could not play Carter. The character that Cruise plays in nearly every film he appears in (y'know, the one he patented back in "Top Gun") is too cocky, too over-the-top, to gung-ho. That's not John Carter. Carter spends the first half of his time on Mars dazed and confused about this civilization he's found himself in. Then he spends the rest of his time trying to survive! Cruise couldn't do that. Now, don't get me wrong, I like Tom. He's got great track record and his name on this film would really make it a BO draw; but to the purists (yes, Virginia, there really are ERB purists), it would ultimately fail. If I had to choose an "A" list actor to play Carter, it would have to be Matthew McConaughey, especially if he played it with the same southern gentlemanly style he brought to Jake Brigance in "A Time To Kill" (Carter was a soldier for the Confederacy). Overall, though, it's all going to boil down to who's schedule is going to allow for it. Cruise's seems pretty filled up right now with Spielberg's "War of the Worlds" and then Abram's "M:I3". As for Deja Thoris, there can only be one actress: Jennifer Lopez! (uh, I'm just kidding about that one folks). I just hope whoever they pick for the Princess of Mars, she's as shapely as Frank Frazetta made her. Harry, if you really ARE involved in this production, I hope you're taking notes.
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Sep 11, 2004 4:58:25 PM CDT
Hugh Jackman?? PWEEEASE More Like uhgh kacjnam. Get Billy Crudu
by clockwork taxi
BILLY CRUDUP MOTHER FUCKERS!
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I only say this because his face has kinda the right "look." but he would have to beef up a little and mature as an actor as well.
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....fucking NO! All your suggestions for John Carter suck pangolin ass. If Ben Affleck is cast, I will become a satanist for God will truly be dead. Everybody who has read the books and seen Big Fish KNOWS that Billy Crudup is the only choice for JC. You know this to be true.
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Sep 11, 2004 8:34:43 PM CDT
everytime someone suggest Affleck for a part like this an angel
by mr brownstone
1} Just for a moment imagine Affleck in the part, shirtless and doing a southern accent. 2) stop crying (with laughter) and get yourself together. 3) realize that's a good guideline to go by; If you can picture them shirtless and doing a southern accent without cringing they're right for the part.
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I could see him shirtless with an accent...anyone anyone? Maybe Matt Dammon...anyone? Cameron Diaz as Deja? Drew Barrymore perhaps? Seriously though, Cloony WOULD be good. If he could make himself look how he did in From Dusk Till Dawn.
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They're called capital letters, learn how to use them.
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John Carter: Matthew Mconnohoweveryouspellit
Dejah Thoris: SALMA FRIGGGN HAYEK -
I'm so excited to think that Barsoom is finally in capable hands. I think Kerry Conran knows what he's doing here, especially if he's going to shoot this thing outdoors. Fake deserts look stupid and we all know it.
I could see Jackman, or McConaghay(sp) if only for the accent, but lately I'm thinking Clive Owen. He's intense and he's got the right look.
Dejah Thoris ought to be unknown so the girl onscreen isn't "Catherine-Zeta-Salma-Hayek AS A Princess of Mars", but simply a new and beautiful character onscreen. The audience has to be willing to die for this woman for the film to work correctly, so avoid actresses we've seen before.
P.S: ---W E T A---. Miniatures are the way to go to give Barsoom a believable historical feel. Sky Captain looks GORGEOUS but that aesthetic doesn't belong this time----Think Lawrence of Arabia. -
Don't listen to the other suggestions here which are just getting worse and worse. Clive Owen? Jesus, you guys need to give up the freebasing. I'll say it again: Billy Crudup. He has the age, the fitness, the acting chops and the fucking look. Check out the definitive Frazetta and Michael Whelan paperback covers again. Crudup was fucking BORN to play John Carter.
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I`d rather have Huge Grant,whats with all these dumb lame ass suggestions have any of you motherfuckers ever read the books cause it sure dont look like you have ok maybe McConaughey has the right look for Carter but im hoping he`s going to be VERY busy doing Dirk Pitt for a while
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AICN had a screening of Sky Captain last night, and Conran was there. DISH!!!!!
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Billy Crudup would be good too, if he bulked up (which he undoubtedly would). wtf is freebasing? I've been reading and re-reading these books for 10 years and Princess of Mars happens to be my favorite novel of all time (and yes, I've partaken of this "serious literature" thing), so I've put some serious thought into it. Clive Owen would kick ass, and so would Jackman.
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Sep 12, 2004 12:01:32 PM CDT
Crudup look exactly like the Whelan covers, but he doesn't measu
by victor laszlo
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I usually don't get involved in these casting debates because I rarely feel too strongly about it one way or the other. The John Carter books, on the other hand, are very close to my heart and almost as formative a piece of pop culture in my life as Star Wars was. No disrespect to Clive Owen, but I don't see him as being right for the role. A bit too dull, I fear. He lacks the fierceness that JC needs, and I don't think he can capture the feel of a quintessentially American pulp fantasy adventure hero. The first time I saw Crudup in a movie I thought he'd be a perfect E.R.B. hero. He looks like he was ripped from the pages of a Joe Kubert comic. Visually perfect and a hell of an actor to boot. As for Jackman, I think he's great - but between X-Men and Van Helsing, he's just become too easily identifiable with fantasy heroes. Crudup, being a newbie in that genre, would be more convincing as an "everyman" officer encountering an alien world for the first time.
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As for "measuring up" to the Frazetta covers, I think Crudup does it better than any of the other suggestions so far. C'mon... get with me on this... ;)
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Making his lapdog toadies rely on street interviews when he's a fucking PRODUCER on a gig. Shit, Harry...throw your crew a frickin' bone. What the fuck are you afraid of? Schumacher's Revenge?
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...OK, here's my obvious casting call: John Carter - Viggo Mortenson (big surprise, eh folks?)...he already shown he can whup up a decent Suthin' accent. Deja Thoris: O yes, Salam Hayek. Tars Tarkas...uh, umm...somebody real big with four arms?
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Maybe this is a stupid question, but if it's already been reported by the trades, who cares if some kid interviewed him and he stated what the trades have already announced?
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Alright, I think you've sold me.
Well it's good to hear someone else actually putting thought into this instead of just throwing out random star names. I totally see your point about Crudup, though I've only seen a few of his films. ---I've just never seen the fierceness out of him that I've seen from Jackman or from Owen. Maybe he has it, I don't know. I'll definitly look at some more of his work, because its a damn good suggestion.
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Are you as glad as I am that Rodriguez is off this and Conran is on? I was worried as hell for a while there, [that said, SIN CITY looks killer]. Anyone else think this ought to have more in common tonally with Lawrence of Arabia & The Searchers than Sky CAptain [i.e. historical realism VS. stylized fantasy]? Hope that's the direction they take it!
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