"Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet...
Director Marcus "Friday The 13th" Nispel will direct "Conan", based on a screenplay by writers Joshua "Sahara" Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean "Cowboys & Aliens" Donnelly, adapting Conan author Robert E. Howard's "Weird Tales" pulp magazine stories of the 1930's.
Joe Gatta and Avi Lerner of Millennium Films will produce the film with Paradox Entertainment president/CEO Fredrik Malmberg, rights holder of the Robert E. Howard estate.
Millennium is eyeing a potential franchise and R-rating for the sex/violence costume feature, budgeted in the $85 million budget range, for a shoot at Nu Image's Nu Boyana Studio in Bulgaria and in South Africa."The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films," said Lerner.
'Conan the Cimmerian' is often associated with the fantasy subgenre 'sword-and-sorcery, created by Howard in 1932. The character has since appeared in licensed books, comics, films, television programs and video games.
'Conan the Barbarian' is also the name of a Gnome Press collection of stories published in 1954, comics published by Marvel and Dark Horse, feature films and a TV series.
Nispel said the look of the film will refelect the paintings of 'Conan' artist Frank Frazetta, available in the best-selling book "Conan: The Phenomenon"."I much prefer illustrating the tales of Robert E. Howard," said Frazetta.
"As St. John is remembered for Edgar Rice Burroughs and Tarzan, I would like to be remembered for REH and Conan..."
Nu Image/Millennium Films previously partnered on "Rambo", released January 25th, 2008.
"This is a character unlike any other in the action/adventure canon, with an unlimited potential for stories that are exciting and different," said Lerner.
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