Stephen King's The Dark Tower Becoming Movie Trilogy And TV Series

In a press release issued today Universal Pictures and NBC Universal Television Entertainment announced they have acquired the rights to produce three films and a television series based on the seven epic novels, short stories and comic books from Stephen King’s The Dark Tower.

The first movie along with the first season of the television series will be directed by Ron Howard. Howard will also produce the television show and all three movies with his Imagine Entertainment partner Brian Grazer and Akiva Goldsman (Weed Road Pictures). Goldsman will also be taking on the writing duties.

The first film in the trilogy will be immediately followed by a television series that will bridge the gap to the second film. After that, the TV series "will pick up allowing viewers to explore the adventures of the protagonist as a young man as a bridge to the third film and beyond."

“I’ve been waiting for the right team to bring the characters and stories in these books to film and TV viewers around the world,” said King. “Ron, Akiva, Brian along with Universal and NBC have a deep interest and passion for theThe Dark Tower series and I know that will translate into an intriguing series of films and TV shows that respect the origins and the characters in The Dark Tower that fans have come to love.”

The Dark Tower is Stephen King’s opus of seven bestselling novels with, to date, more than 30 million copies sold in 40 countries. The novels incorporate themes from multiple genres including fantasy, science fiction, horror and adventure. After the series was completed, a prequel of comic books based on one of the characters was also published.

“We are excited to have found partners at Universal who understand and embrace our approach to King’s remarkable epic,” said Howard. “By using both the scope and scale of theatrical filmmaking and the intimacy of television we hope to more comprehensively do justice to the characters, themes and amazing sequences King has given us in The Dark Tower novels. It might be the challenge of a lifetime but clearly a thrilling one to take on and explore.”

The Dark Tower has been called King's Lord of the Rings and the comparisons will certainly follow into film as well. Ron Howard spoke with Deadline earlier today and had this to add:

“What Peter did was a feat, cinematic history,” Howard told me. “The approach we’re taking also stands on its own, but it’s driven by the material. I love both, and like what’s going on in TV. With this story, if you dedicated to one medium or another, there’s the horrible risk of cheating material. The scope and scale call for a big screen budget. But if you committed only to films, you’d deny the audience the intimacy and nuance of some of these characters and a lot of cool twists and turns that make for jaw-dropping, compelling television. We’ve put some real time and deep thought into this, and a lot of conversations and analysis from a business standpoint, to get people to believe in this and take this leap with us. I hope audiences respond to it in a way that compels us to keep going after the first year or two of work. It’s fresh territory for me, as a filmmaker.”

The entire announcement can be read in our Press Release section.