It was probably a mistake for the guys behinds the ambitious plans to adapt Stephen King’s The Dark Tower to say they wanted to cast the lead role imminently, as it was bound to set off a wave of speculation where it’s tough to tell how firm the information is.
However it does appear that there’s some solid info behind the report, which appeared on Deadline, that Javier Bardem has now been offered the lead role of gunslinger Roland Deschain in the mammoth adaptation, which will take in three films and a limited run TV series. Indeed it’s because it’s such a gargantuan commitment that director Ron Howard and Universal are keen to get an actor tied in early in the process.
That means that with this only being an offer at this stage (negotations are yet to begin), it’s tough to tell whether things will pan out, and whether Bardem will want to make such a commitment.
In the books, Deschain is the last living member of a knightly order of gunslingers, and humanitys last hope to save a civilisation that will fall unless he finds the Dark Tower.
Oh, and just to add to the rumour mill, the NY Post says that Christian Bale is high on the list of other possible Deschains, so perhaps if Bardem doesn’t work out, Bale will be the next target.
As yet, it’s unclear when the first of The Dark Tower movies will shoot, but Akiva Goldsman is hard at work on the script.