Now, you have another reason to be excited about Sony Pictures‘ upcoming film adaptation of Stephen King‘s “The Dark Tower” franchise because a critically-acclaimed Hollywood A-lister has apparently been eyed to star in the film 😉
According to TheWrap, “Thor” star Idris Elba is a frontrunner to play Roland the Gunslinger in the Stephen King adaptation.
If Elba is confirmed to play in the film, he will be starring alongside Matthew McConaughey, who is currently in negotiations to play the villain of the series, Man in Black.
Supposedly, Elba was to star alongside Tom Cruise in Universal‘s film “The Mummy” reboot. However, he turned down the project last week. Insiders assumed that he was waiting for McConaughey’s talks to progress before venturing into “The Dark Tower” as both actors are eager to work together.
A few weeks ago, the “Roland the Gunslinger” role was offered to McConaughey. However, after reading the script, he realised that he is more drawn to the Man in Black character.
“The Gunslinger” will be the first book in Stephen King’s series to be adapted into the live-action film. Nikolaj Arcel will be directing it based on a screenplay written by Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Pinkner. Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, and Erica Huggins will produce it for Imagine Entertainment, who has been planning to develop “The Dark Tower” for many years. They will produce alongside Goldsman and his Weed Road banner.
Pinkner is also expected to executive produce with Modi Wiczyk of MRC, which is also developing a companion TV series that’s long been part of the adaptation plans.
Elba was recently nominated in the Golden Globes for his role in “Beasts of No Nation”. He also earned himself a role of a villainous character in the upcoming “Star Trek” film, “Star Trek Beyond“. He will also voice the characters in the upcoming Disney movies, “Finding Dory“, “Zootopia“, and “The Jungle Book“.
UPDATE (14th December, 1:19pm):
Elba recently received backlash from some of King’s fans after the report about him being eyed for the role of Roland the Gunslinger emerged online. The actor faced a similar backlash from his role as Heimdall in “Thor”, as well as the persistent rumors linking him to James Bond.
Regarding the backlash against Elba, King took to Twitter to defend the actor and reveal that he has no problem with Roland being reimagined as a black man. He said:
To me, the color of the gunslinger doesn't matter. What I care about is how fast he can draw…and that he takes care of the ka-tet.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) December 12, 2015
So, do you think Elba should play Roland the Gunslinger? Who else do you think should join the cast? Let us know in the comments box below.
