Perhaps one of the most revered science fiction epics looks to be coming to the big screen, as Variety reported that Columbia has won the rights to Issac Asimov’s Foundation, and has tapped Roland Emmerich to direct. The film will be produced by Emmerich and Michael Wimer, his partner at his Centropolis production house.
The story of Foundation dates back to 1942, where a series of eight short stories by the master appeared. Asimov later developed the stories into a trilogy of novels (which collected and expanded upon the original stories): Foundation, Foundation and Empire and Second Foundation, published in 1951, 1952 and 1953, respectively. Asimov returned to the world in 1982 with Foundation’s Edge, and Foundation and Earth in 1983, and then wrote two prequels, Prelude to Foundation and Forward the Foundation in 1988 and 1993, respectively. Asimov later expanded the novels to connect to his other works, creating a coherent timeline from I, Robot to Foundation and Earth.
The original novels are the science fiction equivalent of Lord of the Rings in the eyes of many fans and genre scholars, and were based by Asimov on Gibbon’s History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, and, as Asimov admitted, pitched on the spur of the moment to legendary editor John W. Campbell.
According to Variety, the deal with Columbia and Emmerich owes something to the recent legal battle and animosity between Fox and Warner Bros. over Watchmen – the property was originally developed by Fox, and then moved to New Line, and then to Unique Pictures (made up of former heads of New Line) at Warner Bros. Given the chain of studios, Fox would have to be compensated for its development costs by Warner Bros., if the studio were to make the film. Rather than pay Fox, Warner Bros. allowed the rights on the film to lapse, thinking then, according to Variety, that it would quietly pick up the option again, this time with a clear chain of rights that left Fox out of the picture.
When it became known that the option for Foundation was once again up for grabs, Warner Bros. found itself in the midst of an auction involving many studios. WB sought to place the property at Unique Pictures with Alex Proyas directing, which pitted it against a newly re-interested (and then fighting WB on the Watchmen front) in Foundation Fox, which also placed a bid, but Columbia, seeing it as a project for Emmerich, won the auction.
There was no word on how many films Columbia/Emmerich hopes to make in the Foundation universe, although a trilogy would be the most likely outcome. That said, given that Asimov did link Foundation to virtually his entire library…Emmerich’s Stargate did spawn television series that continue today, fourteen years after the film’s 1994 premiere, so that’s a tantalizing plus. On the minus side…Emmerich has often been criticized for putting spectacle over story, and Foundation is, if anything, one of Asimov’s more cerebral works.
January 18th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Well… A least goddamned FOX didn’t get their grubby paws on this one. Yeah Rothman, I’m looking at you. Idiot. Funny though, that WB thought they’d be able let it go, then swoop it back up without having to pay FOX for their troubles. Once again, WB drops the ball.
Anyhow, I know little about Emmerich outside of the Stargate film. I didn’t care for that one, so it doesn’t fill me with much hope, but who can say? I certainly hope any adaptation(s) of Foundation turn out better than I, Robot did.
I have this strange feeling of dread similar to what some Watchmen fans are feeling about that movie. I question whether Foundation will really work as film. Either way, it won’t affect the books though. They’ll still be the classics they are, regardless of how a movie fares.
January 18th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
>>I have this strange feeling of dread similar to what some Watchmen fans are feeling about that movie. I question whether Foundation will really work as film.<<
I almost put a line in the report about how this, like Watchmen, is seen as some by being “unfilmable.” I LOVE the Foundation series with an unholy passion, but it’s not because I close my eyes and can see giant action set pieces in my head (that’s John Scalzi’s stuff) – it’s because of the richness of the world and the story.
So – I’m optimistic, but I’m always optimistic about stuff like this.
January 18th, 2009 at 4:36 pm
The Onion’s AV Club had the perfect headline for this story with “Director lined up to ruin Asimov’s Foundation.”
January 19th, 2009 at 11:48 am
As Alan Moore always points out: TV and movie adaptations don’t affect the original source material in the least. They’re all still right there, on your bookshelf, untainted by the fact that some moron tried to adapt them into another medium and failed spectacularly.
So look at it this way: It’s a crap shoot as to whether an adaptation of your favourite book or comic will be any good, with the odds generally being against that outcome. But since it’s a non-losing proposition – you still get to keep enjoying your beloved story in its original form – then the only result that’s at all interesting is the rare case where the other version works out (like, say, Frank Miller’s 300).
January 19th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Kimota94 said: “As Alan Moore always points out: TV and movie adaptations don’t affect the original source material in the least. They’re all still right there, on your bookshelf, untainted by the fact that some moron tried to adapt them into another medium and failed spectacularly.”
Philip Pullman said the same thing when people asked him about the adaptation of The Golden Compass before it came out. That film had its moments, and the casting was top-notch, but for the most part it was a colossal disappointment (changing the ending sure didn’t help). That’s OK though, because I’ll have the books to go back to. Same thing if Foundation doesn’t work out.
“…then the only result that’s at all interesting is the rare case where the other version works out (like, say, Frank Miller’s 300).”
Or Moore’s own V For Vendetta, for instance, which was great. I think Watchmen might turn out to be really good too (even if we won’t get everything that was in the book).
January 19th, 2009 at 7:36 pm
Actually, while I believe strongly in the “movies can’t ruin a book, there it is on the shelf”* idea, Alan Moore is NOT always saying it. In fact, I remember being (unusually for me) kind of annoyed with him a couple of years back for arguing against the idea and claiming that crappy movies had a true negative impact on his work.
*My earlier post was what’s known to Earth humans as a “joke.”
December 24th, 2009 at 4:19 am
@all,
Robert Rodat has been selected by Emmerich to write a coherent screenable story on the main Foundation trilogy material.
This choice might be good…
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