Coming to fans across the globe later this year, Stephen King’s ‘The Dark Tower’ novel has finally been adapted for cinema, starring Idris Elba, Tom Taylor and Matthew McConaughey in the leading roles as The Gunslinger, Jake Chambers and The Man In Black respectively. With reports last year that the film would act as a sequel to the eight-book series rather than a pure, through-and-through adaptation however, there could be surprises around every corner, even for those who have enjoyed reading through the novels in the past. While we’ll be dealing with many of the same characters already introduced through the books, this is a different journey entirely.
Idris Elba as The Gunslinger in ‘The Dark Tower’
Taking inspiration from a multitude of different genres, it’s hard to pin down exactly what one should expect from ‘The Dark Tower’. At times it’s a dark Western, but at others there are elements of science fiction and fantasy. There’s no telling what you’re going to get in this story.
Now, the film has been delayed once again to make way for ‘The Emoji Movie’, giving that flick more time to play in theatres before ‘The Dark Tower’ likely steals away the spotlight.
Tom Taylor plays Jake Chambers in the upcoming adaptation
Originally expected to debut in February of this year, Sony Pictures decided to move the film to July to sharpen up their visual effects, rather than rushing the movie onto the big screen to make a quick buck. Now, ‘The Dark Tower’ has a US release date of August 4.
Honestly, the decision is quite a strange one. The two movies involved in seeing the date shift will likely be appealing to wholly different audiences; will ‘The Dark Tower’ fans really care much about getting their ‘Emoji Movie’ fix? That remains to be seen.
Matthew McConaughey is the mysterious Man In Black
Upon its release, the film will go up against ‘Wind River’, which stars Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen and Jon Bernthal; and thriller ‘All I See Is You’, led by Blake Lively and Jason Clarke. It should easily be the biggest box office hit of the week.
More: What To Expect From Stephen King’s ‘The Dark Tower’
‘The Dark Tower’ hits theatres in the US on August 4. A rescheduled UK premiere date has yet to be announced.
