Judge Joseph Dredd, a character who has been kicking ass since writer Carlos Ezquerra and artist John Wagner introduced him in the pages of 2000 A.D. thirty-five years ago, didn't get a fair shake at cinematic representation in 1996's Judge Dredd. Now, though, a new effort to capture the Judge's authoritarian greatness is on the way, and it will hopefully wipe out the memory of Sylvester Stallone and Rob Schneider as a comedic duo. It's been a few months since we've heard anything from Dredd, but today four new images show off Karl Urban and Olivia Thirlby as judges.
News of some serious turbulence between creative figures during a film's postproduction naturally gives potential moviegoers the impression that the final product, no matter how far release it may be, could end up a crippingly flawed piece of work. So when a rumor hits that a director has been locked out of editing, the filmmakers are going to have to get out in front of that rumor to assuage the fears of their audience. Director Pete Travis and screenwriter/producer Alex Garland have done just that, issuing an official response to the story that Travis is off Dredd, the 3D science fiction actioner rebooting Judge Joseph Dredd, previously seen onscreen in the objectively objectionable Judge Dredd.
Judge Joseph Dredd, an over-the-top futuristic lawman created by writer John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra in the pages of Britain's 2000 A.D., made his big-screen debut in 1995's Judge Dredd. Director Danny Cannon has publicly aired his dissatisfaction with the much-maligned film, owing to disputes between himself, star Sylvester Stallone, and producers. An entirely new cinematic take on the character titled Dredd was supposed to do everything differently, returning to the character's roots. It looks, though, like Dredd will resemble its unloved predecessor in at least one crucial respect: a director dissatisfied with the final product. Director Pete Travis has reportedly been locked out of the editing process, with writer and producer Alex Garland taking over postproduction.
Along with Nicolas Winding Refn's stylish direction, Ryan Gosling's sweet scorpion jacket, and Albert Brooks's riveting performance, one of most praised elements of Drive has been its musical accompaniment. The score by Cliff Martinez is taut and effective, but the featured songs provide an excess of welcome electro-pop atmosphere that contributes much to what makes the film so unique. Music writer and producer Johnny Jewel produced two songs on the soundtrack, by Desire and The Chromatics, and he has revealed that he's tentatively set to re-team with both Refn and Gosling on Logan's Run, the big budget sci-fi remake in development at Warner Bros.
In 1995, the British comic book character Judge Joseph Dredd was first brought to cinematic life with Sylvester Stallone playing Mega-City One's biggest hardass. The film was not exactly what fans had hoped for since Dredd's Dredd first 2000 AD appearance in 1977. Factors including the overblown sensibility permeating every frame of film, Rob Schneider's role as a sidekick, and Stallone's codpiece helped turn Judge Dredd into a bit of a punchline, but a whole new creative team are taking on John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra's creation with Dredd. Things have been quiet on the film since production wrapped in South Africa, but today brings a new picture of Karl Urban in costume as the titular lawman.
A remake of the 1976 sci-fi cheese-fest Logan's Run has been in the works under producer Joel Silver seemingly forever, principally as a project for director Bryan Singer. And ever since The Notebook, studios have been trying to get intense, independently-oriented young actor and strapping man Ryan Gosling to star in big-budget ventures, to no avail. Well, Deadline reports that big stone is about to smash both of those birds, as Gosling has signed on to star in Logan's Run for Bronson director Nicolas Winding Refn.
Judge Dredd is coming back to the big screen, this time in the form of Karl Urban (Star Trek), who hopes to erase any lingering memories of the Sylvester Stallone version from 1995. Olivia Thirlby (Juno) will co-star, while Pete Travis (Vantage Point) directs.
Last month, "it" director of the moment Carl Rinsch (also attached to CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON and, briefly, the ALIEN prequel in development) signed on to direct the film. No script, however, was yet settled on, most likely because there's been multiple writers and drafts on the project. More often than not, the script gets more and more out of whack in these cases.
So then, a new draft must be tackled, and Warner Bros. has given Alex Garland the task. Garland has been a popular genre film writer for some years now, mostly in the service of Danny Boyle: the two worked on THE BEACH, 28 DAYS LATER and SUNSHINE together. He also most recently adapted NEVER LET ME GO for the big screen (the trailer premiered just the other day). LOGAN'S RUN is one property the studio is obviously eager to make, so it might just be that they've finally found the two guys for the job.
There's no production date scheduled yet.
Here's a quickie synopsis if you're not familiar with the material: LOGAN'S RUN is set in a future society that demands the death of everyone upon reaching a certain age. Anyone who veers from that destiny is dubbed a “runner” and is hunted by operatives known as Sandmen. Logan is a Sandman who is forced to go on the run.
Is LOGAN'S RUN finally ready to dash onto the big screen again? For years, Joel Silver and Warner Bros. have been trying to get a remake of the 1976 film (based on the 1967 novel of the same name) off the ground; Bryan Singer was attached to direct for some time, but when he dropped out because of his commitment to SUPERMAN RETURNS, the project stalled. Other directors, such as James McTeigue and Joseph Kosinski, flirted with it, but to no avail. Now things are seemingly falling into place, and perhaps for good this time.
Last month, "it" director of the moment Carl Rinsch (also attached to CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON and, briefly, the ALIEN prequel in development) signed on to direct the film. No script, however, was yet settled on, most likely because there's been multiple writers and drafts on the project. More often than not, the script gets more and more out of whack in these cases.