(Source: www.icv2.com)
Ten months ago, I announced on this site that Paramount Studios was doing an animated adaptation of Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's 1984 novel Dragonlance: Dragons of Autumn Twilight.
For those who don't know, this was the first book in the Dragonlance trilogy: the tentpole books for Wizard of the Coast's lucrative Dragonlance books and gaming modules, and essential reading for Dungeons & Dragons afficionados.
Will Meugniot (The Real Ghostbusters, Captain Planet and the Planeteers) is directing the flick.
Paramount has now announced that the voice acting on Autumn Twilight is complete, and the movie is heading towards post-production. As it stands, the movie is scheduled for a September 2007 release, with no specific date yet released. If the movie is successful, the cast and crew will reunite to adapt the second and third books in the trilogy: Dragons of Winter Night and Dragons of Spring Dawning respectively.
Those confirmed as major characters in Dragons of Autumn Twilight (and, hopefully, the rest of the trilogy) are as follows:
- Michael Rosenbaum (best known as Lex Luthor on Smallville) is the heroic ranger Tanis Half-Elven.
- Keifer Sutherland (24) voices the pivotal role of magic user Raistlin Majere.
- Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess, Battlestar Galactica) is the barbarian cleric Goldmoon. "No lesbian subtext," as Lawless wrote in her blog (Writer's Note: "I was so hoping for that essential-to-the-plot Goldmoon, Tika and Lauriana three-way!").
- Fred Tatasciore (TMNT, God of War II) is doing double-duty: portraying the gruff dwarf Flint Fireforge and the venal Fewmaster Toede.
- Michelle Trachtenberg (Black Christmas, Ice Princess) takes on the relatively minor role (for the moment) of barmaid Tika Waylan.
- Rino Romano (Bruce Wayne/Batman in The Batman) plays warrior / Raistlin's doting older brother Caramon Majere.
- Jason Marsden (Danger Duck in Loonatics Unleashed!) is trouble-prone kender Tasslehoff Burrfoot.
- Neil Ross (The Ant Bully, Son of the Mask) portrays the seemingly absent-minded Fizban the Fabulous.
- Marc Worden (Tony Stark / Iron Man in The Invincible Iron Man) is the would-be paladin Sturm Brightblade.
- Phil Lamarr (Family Guy, Samurai Jack) is also pulling double-duty, voicing barbarian warrior Riverwind and elf prince Gilthanas
- Caroline Gelabert makes her major motion-picture debut as elf princess Lauriana.
This news has mixed implications for potential fans of the flick. September is considered a "dump" period for Hollywood (since many moviegoers are back in school), where the films that weren't considered strong enough for the lucrative summer release are placed. That's an indication that (a) Paramount isn't interested in seeing this flick succeed or (b) thinks Dragons of Autumn Twilight has little appeal outside of its D&D fanbase. To be fair, very few fantasy movies have capitalized on the renewed interest in the genre following the runaway success of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy (Eragon anyone?).
On the other hand, reader interest in Dragonlance is still strong: the first book in Weis and Hickman's latest trilogy, Dragons of the Dwarven Depths, was an instant New York Times bestseller upon its July 2006 debut. The sequel, Dragons of the Highlord Skies, hits bookshelves this July.
