Well, this is an interesting and brilliant bit of casting! After a lengthy hunt for an actor to take on the role of the lead gunslinger in the big screen adaptation of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, Luther and Beasts of No Nation star Idris Elba is the frontrunner to play Roland Deschain. That means he’ll be squaring off with Matthew McConaughey’s Man in Black!
While a deal isn’t in place just yet, recent discussions apparently saw the studio’s choices narrowed down to Elba and Javier Bardem, though it sounds like the former is the favourite.
Nikolaj Arcel is directing the long delayed adaptation, and he’s best known for helming A Royal Affair and co-writing the Swedish version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. The latest draft of The Dark Tower’s script was written by Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Pinkner.
The plan for The Dark Tower is for it to be the first in a series of movies, with a complementary TV series is also being developed by MRC. There are very big plans in place for the franchise then, and it’s easy to see moviegoers gravitating toward the prospect of seeing Elba and McConaughey facing off on the big screen; that’s just an epic confrontation!
The Dark Tower focuses on the first book in the series, The Gunslinger, establishing the relationship between Roland and young protege Jake Chambers who is next to be cast.
