March 2016 Link Iconic author Stephen King made it official on his Twitter account that Idris Elba has been set to play the gunslinger Roland Deschain. He will square off against Matthew McConaughey, who’ll play the villainous Man in Black. Nikolaj Arcel is directing. Given all the focus on diversity, partly fueled by an inexplicable Oscar snub for Elba’s soaring performance in Beasts of No Nation, it seems worth noting this is now official. King’s tweet: It’s official: The man in black fled across the desert and the gunslinger followed. #DarkTowerMovie @McConaughey @IdrisElba Elba was in the center of discussions he might replace Daniel Craig as James Bond. Now he has a big role with franchise potential: King’s answer to Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings spanned eight volumes, and the intention here is to grow a long-running tale, if audiences spark to the first film. After all the incarnations and false starts on The Dark Tower, it now has two terrific actors with chops and swagger, going mano a mano in the magical world King has created. Producing are Weed Road’s Akiva Goldsman and Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Erica Huggins. King is also a producer. The first installment of the Dark Tower focuses on the first book in the series, The Gunslinger, establishing the relationship between Roland and young protege Jake Chambers. The next big role will be the young protege.
I know the anti-race swappers are going to have something to say about our boy Idris being cast as The Gunslinger. In my opinion this is one of those times when race swapping really shouldn't be an issue. The character isn't "known" or iconic. His race has nothing to do with the core of the story.
They're already here http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Dark...Message-Who-Don-t-Like-Idris-Elba-105537.html https://twitter.com/JoshCasey23/status/705098250894888961 https://twitter.com/ChaseS19/status/704749338614829056 https://twitter.com/againstKoop/status/704688345776058368
Oh my, the depth of emotion and betrayal. Boo hoo. King has already given Elba his stamp of approval. For every fanboy who boycotts the movie in hopes of hindering its success, the more likely an inquisitive Elba fan will purchase a ticket.
Having read Stephen King's The Gunslinger: The Dark Tower, I wondered what it would look like in film. Director Ron Howard was working on it back in 2005 but things got backed up. Money. Stephen King stated that his inspiration for the book was Chaucer I wonder if it will include the boy from another time UN this adaptation. Or will it be a white woman? We'll see...
The studio has set a new release date for The Dark Tower. The film will now open a month later on Feb. 17, 2017, according to Entertainment Weekly.
LOL! As if the Gunslinger was a historical character like Teddy Roosevelt, lol. Hell, since everyone's such a stickler for accuracy, I don't remember anyone complaining about Abraham Lincoln killing vampires...or wait? Did he really kill some?
The Gunslinger was a character in an alternate reality. In that scenario, anything is possible. Remember the shot Land Of The Lost? It took me a while to understand that it was an alternate reality. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Slayer was a blend of fact and fantasy in a graphic novel.
Just saw this on Twitter: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/katheryn-winnick-joins-stephen-king-888336 Potential IR love interest for Idris or nah?
Nope. The Gunslinger doesn't have a love interest. His focus, other than his mission is a little boy from present day Earth. He does a lot of shooting and killing according to the books.