In February we found out that producer Lionel Wigram was behind a new take on the tale of the Three Musketeers would be coming to theaters using the same methods used to successfully reinvent Sherlock Holmes with Guy Ritchie, Robert Downey Jr., and Jude Law.
Now comes word that Wigram isn’t stopping there — the producer is now developing a re-imagining of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson novel Treasure Island for Warner Brothers. The story has seen a ton of film adaptations over the years, including in 1950 with Robert Newton and Bobby Driscoll, and in 1990 with Charlton Heston and Christian Bale.
Just like with Sherlock Holmes and the Musketeers movie, there’s a kind of Armageddon/Deep Impact situation going on. Holmes has another new take on the characters with Weill Ferrell and Sacha Baron Cohen starring; Three Musketeers has a second film being directed by Paul W.S. Anderson on the way. With Treasure Island, the competition is from a studio called Ecosse, who has Niall Johnson (White Noise) working on a script for their vision of the story.
I personally just saw the 1950 film, and while I’m not sure how other performances are, it would be really tough to top the Robert Newton Long John Silver. While watching, I also thought to myself that it could be a cool new movie to make using today’s styles. Pirate movies, like Westerns, aren’t made nearly as often as they used to be, and that should be remedied immediately.
[Source: Pajiba]
How can we forget the equally fantastic Muppet Treasure Island?
Comment by Schutzenegger — April 22, 2010 @ 8:22 am