Dark Tower Gets Massive Movie and TV Adaptation
The Stephen King story gets an unprecedented treatment.
September 8, 2010
by Eric Goldman

The Dark Tower is a huge and epic series of books – so perhaps it's appropriate that it is getting a huge and epic adaptation.

Deadline is reporting that Universal Pictures and NBC Universal Television Entertainment have closed the deal to adapt the famous Stephen King series – as both a movie trilogy and a TV series, which will be developed and produced together.

As reported back in April, the team behind A Beautiful Mind and The Da Vinci Code -- Ron Howard, Akiva Goldsman and Brian Grazer -- are behind the adaptation, but it is only now being 100% confirmed that the rumored TV series is part of the deal.

The feature films will begin first, with the first TV season being used to bridge the first and second movies. Deadline notes this means that the cast of the film trilogy – including a yet to be cast big name star as the main character, Roland Deschain – will be committing to appear in the TV series as well, which is, obviously, a very unusual scenario. After the second film is released, the second season of the TV series would then focus on the younger Deschain, before the third and final film picks up with the older Deschain and finishes his story. The storylines will also be influenced the Dark Tower prequel comic book series that King helped plot.

As Deadline notes, the same sets, cast and crew could be used for the films and TV series, which will help contain costs – though this is obviously going to be a very expensive undertaking.

Goldsman has committed to writing the film and the first season of the TV series. Goldsman has recently been working in TV on Fringe, where he has been a consulting producer and written and directed several episodes. Deadline says Howard will direct the first Dark Tower film and also the first season of the series – it's unclear if that means he will direct every single episode (a rare feat in TV, especially dramas) or direct the majority of episodes.

Howard spoke to Deadline and when asked to compare what he's hoping to accomplish with Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings series, said, "What Peter did was a feat, cinematic history. The approach we're taking also stands on its own, but it's driven by the material. I love both, and like what's going on in TV. With this story, if you dedicated to one medium or another, there's the horrible risk of cheating material. The scope and scale call for a big screen budget. But if you committed only to films, you'd deny the audience the intimacy and nuance of some of these characters and a lot of cool twists and turns that make for jaw-dropping, compelling television. We've put some real time and deep thought into this, and a lot of conversations and analysis from a business standpoint, to get people to believe in this and take this leap with us. I hope audiences respond to it in a way that compels us to keep going after the first year or two of work. It's fresh territory for me, as a filmmaker."

No schedule has been announced yet for The Dark Tower but based on the plan the producers have, it seems likely it will be released over three consecutive summers, with the TV series seasons airing in-between.

Also not made 100% clear is the network the TV show will air on. NBC Universal Television Entertainment is producing, but besides the NBC network, they also have USA and Syfy as sister companies.

Source.