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| MGM/UA |
The process of getting a Red Sonja film re-adaptation off the ground has been slow to pass since 2010, until news broke last November that Millenium and Cinelou were on board and shepherding the picture into fruition. Development had also seen a revolving door of its own with directors and writers come and gone over the years, which now brings exclusive word from Deadline on Wednesday with Ashley Edward Miller (Andromeda, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, X-Men: First Class, Thor, Black Sails) now set to pen the script.
The character was originally recreated by Roy Thomas and artist Barry Windsor with partial inspiration from Robert E. Howard’s own shortstory work from the 1930s, and centers on a young girl from the Western Hyrkanian steppes who trains and sets out to seek revenge for her own rape and the murder of her family. Richard Fleischer’s 1985 adaptation with Bridgette Nielsen and co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger initially bombed critically and commerically but sustained a cult following over the years through its merchandising and a television adaptation in the 1990s.
“It’s an exciting opportunity to faithfully adapt the amazing Hyborean world Robert E. Howard created, and inject it with Sonja’s intelligence, ferocity, and fearless humanity,” he said. “I want people to love Sonja the way I love her, and walk out of the theater understanding why she’s so popular and enduring. Sonja is an icon.”
Millennium is financing the film as well as producing along with Cinelou’s Mark Canton and Courtney Solomon, in addition to Christa Campbell and Lati Grobman and Red Sonja rights holder Luke Lieberman. Miller is also reportedly penning a draft for 20th Century Fox’s remake of John Carpenter’s Big Trouble in Little China.
Joe Gatta is overseeing Red Sonja for Millennium.