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Excerpts from Entertainment Weekly, July 16: Return of the King - by Jeff Jensen . . King Arthur was no longer going to be the Walt Disney Co.'s Christmas 2004 tentpole. It would now be the studio's summer 2004 tentpole. Giving a director five fewer months to complete a movie is a swell way to turn his life into a living hell. For Fuqua, the consequences seemed even more dire. His entire vision for King Arthur - a $90 million-plus deconstruction of the myth of Camelot, dense with history and starring Clive Owen, Keira Knightley, and a bunch of other respectable European actors with little box office pull -- was to create a dark, moody, R-rated picture laden with brutality, perfect for an adult, wintery audience. A summer release, with a more box-office-friendly PG-13? To Fuqua that was a completely different film. "I didn't sleep for days, man," he says. "To focus after getting information like that . . ." He trails off. ~ "If (PG-13) was what they wanted to do from day one." he says, I would have designed it differently." Changes were made --- Guinevere's flirtatious manipulation of Lancelot was reined in to speed up pacing and to emphasize the Arthur-Guinevere romance. Disney and Bruckheimer also decided that thevfilm needed to lighten up. On June 16, thirteen days before Arthur's US premiere, a new comic scene was shot in which Lancelot jokes with fellow knight Bors about the latter giving his numerous children numbers for names But the most dramatic late-game fix to King Arthur had occurred three days earlier, when Owen, Knightley, and 500 extras gathered on the cliffs of Northern England to shoot a happy ending. Orginally, King Arthur ended with a funeral. ~ Bruckheimer feels badly for Fuqua - so much so that he made a deal with Disney to release Fuqua's R-rated version on DVD. Thanks, Paula |
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7/4/04 - Article in the Sunday Telegraph au. Thanks, Chris ************************************************* Blockbusters with
brains By Nick Curtis, Evening Standard Why it should be
good: Fuqua wants to take the tale back to its Dark Ages roots. Release
date: 30 July. |
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Saturday April 26th 2003 -- The Irish Independent: Hairier the better for warrior hopefuls trooping
out to play it for King Arthur Over 2,000 extras of all ages and types were needed. Casting agents had to send out an SOS for long-haired men with lots of facial hair for the 5th century medieval epic. Heeding the call, hordes of hirsute men flocked to the Ballymore Eustace resource centre to see if their flowing locks and bushy beards would win them a coveted part in the €90m action movie, produced by Hollywood's Jerry Bruckheimer. "The beautiful, clean-shaven look is obviously not 5th century and when they are made up in their costumes, they will be covered with mud and make-up, so the hairier the better," said assistant director Gail Munnelly. Looking around the room, Gail was confident the Irish castings would yield more than enough suitably hairy types. Some of the crustier hopefuls popped in during lunch from a nearby building site, while others charged up on their motorcycles.
Among them was Carlow labourer Sean Keating, looking like he could have been plucked from a Viking long-boat. With his cascading hair and towering build, he stood out immediately. Sean was fairly optimistic about his chances: "I'll do anything for a bit of craic and the biker look is obviously in vogue today." Also hoping to make the cut were experienced extras Michael and Angela Freeman from Ballymount, Co Wicklow. "Looking around us today, there seem to be lots of interesting people - none of the usual types - so we thought it would be a great experience," Angela explained. The movie will star Clive Owen as Arthur, Stephen Dillane as Merlin and Kiera Knightly as Guinevere. It will feature some 650 axe-wielding warriors and a replica of Britain's 73-mile Hadrian Wall built at Ballmore Eustace. Filming is scheduled to start on June 23 until October of this year, using locations around Kildare and Wicklow. Further castings will take place in Ardmore Studios in Bray on Monday next between noon and 8.30pm; The Factory Studio on Dublin's Barrow Street next Tuesday, April 29, and The Moat Threatre in Naas, Kildare on Wednesday, April 30. Extras will be paid €75 for a 10-hour day, with €13.50 for each hour of overtime.
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Sunday Life April
20, 2003 -- Belfast Telegraph Newspapers KEY scenes for a major new Hollywood film, on the life and times of King Arthur, could be shot in Ulster. Top producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, who has been in Dublin overseeing the shooting of a film about murdered Irish journalist, Veronica Guerin, took time out to scout possible locations, for what promises to be a blockbusting King Arthur. He said: "We have been out looking at some amazing locations in the north. "We are, of course, in the early stages of this particular project, and we haven't decided on our final line-up of sites, but at this stage we certainly haven't ruled out shooting the film in any part of Ireland, so some of the film could well be made in the north." It is expected that the bulk of the film will be shot at Ardmore Studios and in and around the Wicklow Hills. Bruckheimer is currently seeking extras for King Arthur and holding auditions in Dublin. He promises that this new version of King Arthur will be different. "It's going to be a re-telling of the tale. It actually happened much earlier than movies in the past or the English have suggested. "They changed the way it was told. Like Arthur was really Roman and the Knights of the Round Table were actually Russian and were great horsemen." Bruckheimer is anxious to get King Arthur - which will star English actor Clive Owen - underway during the summer. *************************************************************** The Mirror, April 17, 2003 A MOVIE casting agency yesterday issued a plea for men with beards and long hair to audition for new movie King Arthur. More than 1,000 extras are needed for what is expected to be the most expensive film ever made in Ireland. The makers of the Hollywood production about the legendary English king and his wizard Merlin will shoot in Kildare, Wicklow and Dublin for six months starting on June 24 [next?] year. Director Antoine Fuqua is planning on making a gritty tale of the Knights of the Round Table set between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Dark Ages. Open casting sessions will be held in Bray, Dublin, Naas and Ballymore Eustace from April 25 to April 30. A budget of 390 million has been set aside to ensure all filming of King Arthur is of the highest quality. Bourne Identity actor Clive Owen is to play King Arthur while The Hours star Stephen Dillane is to take on the role of Merlin. This is the second time a Camelot-inspired production has been filmed in Ireland. In 1980, director John Boorman made the cult Arthurian film Excalibur in Kerry. ************************************************************************ DAILY MAIL (London), April 11, 2003 *************************************************************************** Long hair and beards are back in fashion for
new King Arthur film BY By LYNNE KELLEHER Over 1,000 extras will be used in the biggest-budget film shot in this country. The movie will be filmed on location in Kildare, Wicklow and Dublin and one of the main battle scenes will be shot in Ballymore Eustace in Kildare over a six-week period. Extras will appear in the film as forest people, Picts, Saxons and villagers in a massive set being constructed in Kildare. The film-makers are planning on making a realistic and gritty tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table set between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Dark Ages. A massive set of Hadrian's Wall and fort is currently being constructed for the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced movie. Open casting sessions will be held in Bray, Dublin, Naas and Ballymore Eustace from Friday April 25th to Wednesday April 30th. Assistant director Gail Munnelly said she is expecting hundreds of people to turn up at the auditions. "We are especially looking for men with long hair and beards because it is set in the fifth century." She said they will need 650 people for one battle sequence alone which will be shot over a period of three weeks. On other days about 100 or 250 people will be needed. Filming will start in June and last until October. Bourne Identity actor Clive Owen is being tipped to play King Arthur while The Hours actor Stephen Dillane is expected to take on the role of Merlin. Training Day director Antoine Fuqua will direct the movie which is set to be a more realistic portrayal of Arthur than has previously been presented on screen. The film will focus on the history and politics of the period during which Arthur ruled - when the Roman empire collapsed and skirmishes over power broke out in outlying countries - as opposed to the mythical elements of the tale on which past Arthur films have focused. Filming will start in Ireland on June 24th on the project which originated in 2000 when Gladiator scriptwriter David Franzoni approached Bruckheimer Films with an outline. More on Ballymore Eustis - The
Neighbourhood of Dublin (See Chapter 37) |
The People -- March 30, 2003, Sunday KING CLIVE'S MOVIE CAMELOT IN IRELAND -- BY LYNNE KELLEHER Clive Owen is set to start filming the story of King Arthur in Ireland HOLLYWOOD filmmakers are set to fork out EUR90 million on shooting the epic story of mediaeval legend King Arthur in Ireland. The Disney production is set to be the biggest budget movies ever to be made in this country this summer. Hundreds of extras will be hired over the next three
weeks to appear in the film which will be shot in Dublin and Wicklow
and other locations around the country. The filmmakers are Bourne Identity actor Clive Owen has been cast as King Arthur and The Hours actor Stephen Dillane is being tipped to take on the role of Merlin in the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced take on the legend. Training Day director Antoine Fuqua will direct the movie which promises to be a gritty version of the story of the famous king and the Knights of the Round Table. Disney are aiming to produce a more realistic portrayal of Arthur than has ever been presented on screen. The film will focus on the history and politics of the period during which Arthur ruled - when the Roman empire collapsed and skirmishes over power broke out in outlying countries - as opposed to the mystical elements of the tale on which past Arthur films have focused. This version of the tale will be shot entirely in Ireland over three months. Filming is set to start in August around the east coast of the country. This is the second time a King Arthur production has injected funds into the Irish film industry. Director John Boorman put the country on the map in 1980 when he decided to shoot Excalibur in Ireland. Naoise Barry, Location Services Manager at the Irish Film Board said she was delighted the film is being made in this country. She said: "King Arthur filming in Ireland represents a major coup for the country. The Location Services unit of the Film Board are responsible for promoting Ireland as a film location. "Ireland is now getting a reputation as one of the best places in the world to film blockbuster productions." April 01, 2003 - IGN FilmForce has learned who the frontrunners are to portray several members of the Knights of the Round Table in Disney's forthcoming epic, King Arthur. You'll recall that we were also the first to report that Clive Owen will portray the title character (opposite Stephen Dillane as "Merlin"). Now we can tell you that offers have been made to the following actors: Ray Winstone (Cold Mountain, Sexy Beast, "Will Scarlet" in the Robin of Sherwood TV series) as "Bors"; Hugh Dancy (Black Hawk Down, the TV miniseries Daniel Deronda) as "Galahad"; Til Schweiger (Driven, Sea Devils and Lara Croft and the Cradle of Life: Tomb Raider 2) as "Cyrnic"; Mads Mikkelsen (Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself, Open Hearts) as "Tristram"; and Charlie Creed-Miles (Nil by Mouth, The Fifth Element) as "Ganis." The search continues for "Lancelot" and "Guinevere." According to some script pages that were recently
posted online, many of the Knights of the Round Table portrayed in King
Arthur will be Russian. Without Arthur's aid, Lancelot reveals, "we
would have perished years ago, and there would be no more Russian Knights
left to return home at all." Some of the Knights named in these
pages include Bors, Dagonet, Galahad, Jols, Horton and Gawain. The title
character is referred to by Guinevere as "Arthur, of The Knights
from the Great Wall." |
The Mirror, March 7, 2003The Mirror March 7, 2003, Friday CLIVE OWEN AND RAY WINSTONE TO STAR IN KING ARTHUR CHANCER star Clive Owen and Sexy Beast's Ray Winstone are set to star in director Antoine Fuqua's epic film King Arthur. And the movie-maker behind the Oscar-winning Training Day has promising a controversial re-telling of the legend. He says: "We're going to reinvent the legend. We're going to tell you where we believe the legend came from." The film is scheduled for release in 2004. ******************************************************************* ...He is now preparing to shoot a retelling of King Arthur starring Clive Owen from "Croupier" and, as Merlin, Stephen Dillane, now on screen as Virginia Woolf's husband in "The Hours." "It will be the Dark Ages, much grittier, much darker, before he became king." It builds to the Battle of the Saxons. He plans to start shooting in Ireland in late June and anticipates his epic will be on the scale of "Braveheart" or "Gladiator." ************************************************* Owen
claims 'Arthur' throne for Dis, Fuqua
Thu Mar 6, 2:06 AM ET -- By Josh Spector LOS
ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter) --- The Walt Disney Co. has crowned
Clive Owen as "King Arthur" and is in negotiations with fellow
British actor Stephen Dillane to take on the role of Merlin in the studio's
Jerry Bruckheimer-produced take on the medieval legend. Toronto Sun March 4, 2003 Tuesday, March 4, 2003 Tuesday
AFTER WAR IN NIGERIA -- CAMELOT! -- BYLINE: BRUCE KIRKLAND He'll jump from Tears Of The Sun's war rescue genre to the Arthurian legend later this year with English actor Clive Owen as Arthur. "I'm going to do King Arthur with Jerry Bruckheimer," says Fuqua, "and it's going to be interesting. It's quite primitive. It takes place in 400 A.D. and there are a lot of new findings about Arthur (that are to be woven into the story). It's actually going to add a lot of different twists." The film focuses on what is happening in King Arthur's Britain during the collapse of the Roman Empire. Less important will be the mystical aspects that usually figure into the story from legend. Fuqua says it will be a low-key event on the marquee. "Actually, it's all European actors -- no big-name movie stars. It's all about the film." Thank you, Chris |
All
queued to be measured and have pictures taken against a height chart
while holding up their alloted number.