After Universal Studios Inc. initially approved the making of at least one feature length film adaptation of author Stephen King’s The Dark Tower Series, they pulled funding for the film because it was too risky. Ron Howard was set to direct the film, with Javier Bordem as the Gunslinger, Roland Deschain. Howard envisioned three feature length films with a two-season television series to help finish off the story.

Problems first arose several months ago when Universal began talking about trying to reduce the budget and maybe just doing one film. Negotiations continued until Universal finally decided that the endeavor was simply too uncertain to put their money behind.

The seven-book series is not very kid-friendly and the audience would not be as widespread as other projects they were considering. The story focuses on Roland Deschain’s quest to reach The Dark Tower through many struggles and setbacks.

Despite Universal’s decision to back out of this project, Howard is still dedicated to seeing King’s series come to life. As Entertainment Weekly reported on July 19, Universal’s first right of refusal is now expired, and so Howard is free to try acquire support from other studios. Howard is determined to get The Dark Tower Series to the big screen and he has not given up yet.

Neither has the author of the series, Stephen King. In an email to Entertainment Weekly he reported that he has “no ill will, and trust[s] Ron Howard to get Roland and his friends before the camera somewhere else. He’s very committed to the project.”

King does not seem too worried about this latest setback, but is instead looking toward the future.

Over the years, a large number of King’s books have made it to the big screen with varying degrees of success. Films such as The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile or The Shining did well both at the box office and with critics and Kathy Bates from Misery even managed to score an Oscar for her performance.

Other films have not fared so well, most notably, Sleepwalkers and Maximum Overdrive. Both were slammed by numerous critics for plot holes and bad acting. Additionally, they did not make very much money at the box office.

Considering the hit or miss factor to films based off of King’s books, it makes sense that Universal would be leery about not only making one movie, but dedicating large amounts of money to three films and a television series.

Spending the kind of money it takes to finish The Dark Tower film adaptation will take millions of dollars and the willingness to risk not making it back in profits. King’s series is a huge undertaking and the quality of the story certainly makes it something that a number of people would be excited to see come to life on the big screen.

Only time will tell if Howard will be able to keep his promise and find a new studio willing to take the risk.

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February’s Super Bowl featured the first sneak-peak into director Jon Favreau’s upcoming fantasy embarkment Cowboys and Aliens – an eclectic mix of conventional western and uhm… extra terrestrials?

Admittedly, when I first read that Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig were strapping on their hats and boots to fight an alien invasion on horseback – even I shook my head in disbelief. Had Hollywood really hit rock-bottom of ideas this time? Were there no remakes left to soak their creative dry-spell?

Of course, that was before I learned that ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ was in fact a successful graphic novel from Platinum Studios, controllers of the largest independent license library of comic book characters, created by the Studio’s founder Scott Mitchell Rosenberg and published in 2006. The unconventional genre-clash gained so much attention that Universal Studios and DreamWorks soon got their hands on it and next month, movie audiences will get to explore the result. It is considered the dark horse this season – “the true wild card among the summer 2011 popcorn films – a gritty cowboy tale that just happens to be interrupted by an alien invasion flick,” writes herocomplex.latimes.com.

Blockbuster filmmaker Jon Favreau has purposely put together, along with producers Ron Howard and Brian Grazer and executive producer Steven Spielberg (there he is again!), this hybrid cowboy tale in such way to avoid the obvious entrapment of comedy or camp – all considering the ‘on-the-nose’ title. According to herocomplex.latimes.com, much effort was put into the screenplay so to make the story a western first, a sci-fi second. Speaking about the universe of the movie; “The audience knows what [the aliens] are after years of Spielberg movies but the guys on the horses in the movie have no words for what they’re seeing,” explains Roberto Orci, one of the writers and producers.

The cross-franchise action has Daniel Craig starring as the stranger who stumbles into the town of Absolution with no memory of his past but with a mysterious shackle on his wrist.  Little does he know that the city is held in an iron fist by Harrison Ford’s Colonel Dolarhyde who’s cruel reign leaves no room for strangers. However, the tale of dust and true grit is abruptly interrupted when scarcely comprehensible objects attack the desolate city from the sky and abduct the stunned and helpless. Soon the hard-eyed stranger is the small town’s only hope for salvation.

Also starring is Olivia Wilde, Paul Dano and the charismatic Sam Rockwell. But it’s Ford’s turn as Absolution’s menacing Colonel which is drawing most attention in the cast, and according to an interview with the icon himself: “Ford seemed as surprised as anyone by the fact that he hadn’t starred in a cowboy movie since Jimmy Carter was in the White House.”

“For years, I’ve thought the western – as a genre – needed this guy,” said Ron Howard. “Harrison has this persona that fits the western. In a way he was a cowboy in ‘[American] Grafitti’ and ‘Star Wars’ and when you see him on screen in this setting it just feels right.”

With expectations heightening each week for phenomenal visual effects and competent acting, the ultimate clash of universes is bound to keep cine-fanatics on their toes. And think about it – is the idea that far-fetched after all? Plenty of time to make up your mind before July 29.

Image provided by cowboysandaliensmovie.com

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