Ciaran Hinds (Tardos Mors) talks John Carter

Steve "Frosty" Weintraub interviewed Ciaran Hinds for The Collider ~ February 25, 2010
Ciaran Hinds recently discussed his invovement with the upcoming Harry Potter and John Carter of Mars films. He plays Tardos Mors. Stanton was impressed by the imperial power that Hinds displayed in the film Rome. Hinds was impressed with Stanton and by the imagination and action in the John Carter script --  he describes it as bizarre and being full of wit, energy and drive. He has done his scenes in London but is scheduled for a day of shooting when the production moves to Utah. He suspects that Stanton will take the film in a whole new direction from Avatar. 

Have you shot John Carter of Mars yet?

Ciarán Hinds: They are shooting it at the moment. I have a small role in that. I have already shot on it for a couple of days. Then I go back to the set in March to shot for another six or eight days. I'm playing Tardos Mors, one of the leaders of Mars. I am the father of the female protagonist. She is played by Lynn Collins. Andrew Stanton is directing it. He shot Finding Nemo and Wall-E. Those wonderful films. He came to see a play that I was in at the National Theater in London. He had thought of me to play one kind of leader on Mars. It was a thrill to meet him knowing he'd made these classic films. Then he cast me in his next movie. Which has been great. He knows all about animation and computer generated effects. Now he is making a live-action film. I think it is a huge adventure for him. Goodness knows, the conundrums of actually making the film? I don't know about that stuff. It's just a great honor to be in it. To have him want me there.

Is it an all-green screen set? With everything being added in later?

Ciarán Hinds: Apparently so. It is very, very green. They have me off on another adventure in the film that I don't quite understand. And I hope I am of some use to Mr. Stanton.

More at Movie Web

---

JAMES PUREFOY (KANTOS KAN) DISCUSSES JOHN CARTER An excerpt from a Total Film interview with James Purefoy, star of the upcoming Solomon Kane. In it he discusses Kane as well as John Carter Of Mars
. . .
T: How is John Carter Of Mars going? 
P: It’s a great project. Huge. There aren’t many bona fide geniuses working in our industry but Andrew Stanton is one of them… Wall-E and Finding Nemo are extraordinary. If you only look at him in terms of his storytelling skills, that’s enough – and on top of that, look at the beauty, the soul, the heart he puts into those films. It’s staggering what he achieves. Funnily enough, I don’t have much to do in the first film. I’ve taken this basically because they’ve said, “Your part gets bigger and bigger as the films go on.” 

T: You’re playing a Red Martian named Kantos Kan, right? 
P: Yes, he’s a fighter pilot. He’s the captain of a massive naval airship so in the first film, I do a little bit of steering, a little bit of rescuing, shit like that. He’s quite flash, he has a few jokes – he’s like a naughty, sexy uncle. That’s the way I’ve been told to play it. 

T: Are you wearing a costume or a mocap suit? 
P: It’s not mocap with us [the Red Martians]. We’re humanoid, we’re in costumes, but there are other actors who are playing pure mocap characters. It's hard to talk about it because I don't really know what it's going to look like. So much of it is in Andrew's head and with his designers. We're on a real set but it’s surrounded by green screen so there’s going to be stuff out there that I have no idea what it is but I know it will be extraordinary. 

T: How would you describe your costume? 
P: Armour. [Laughs] It looks cool. It’s very Dan Dare.

---

Another Purefoy Interview ~ with Film News film news: John Carter of Mars is another pulp movie based on a novel. How far along is that in development? 

James Purefoy: We're shooting. I shot two days last week. It's going to be gigantic. 

film news: How has the success of Avatar affected it so far? 

James Purefoy: Well, it's a weird world they're creating in John Carter. It's not nearly as hi-tech. In the books, the ships that they use are powered by solar tails. So, that's a very different kind of thing, as opposed to rocket power. We don't have that level of technology; we have Martian technology on John Carter. 

I don't know what it's going to look like. It's all on a green screen.I'm reacting to stuff that Andrew is telling me. There's also some motion capture. But I don't really know, to be honest. I'm there at the studio, there's a set and beyond that it's green screen. So, it's a mixture. You have real people and then there's mo-cap, and then there's models and puppets. I loved District 9 and the mixture of what they managed to do with mo-cap and puppets and models and any available technology they could get to create that world... it was fantastic. Why Sharlto Copley wasn't nominated for an Oscar this year I'll never know. It was a genius performance. You could not see where it began and ended. I loved how my sympathy went towards him without knowing why it happened. 

---

Utah draws production of a major film
The Denver Post ~ February 9, 2009
The strange geology of Arches National Park helped Walt Disney Studios decide on Moab as a site for filming "A Princess of Mars," based on a science- fiction story written in 1912. Thanks to a century-old sci-fi novel and a modern-day rebate, Utah is looking forward to an out-of-this-world economic boost of $60 million and about 400 temporary jobs this spring.

Walt Disney Studios scouted locations in southwest Colorado last summer for the upcoming film production of "A Princess of Mars," but ultimately chose the red rocks and white sands around Moab and the strange geology southwest of Lake Powell to make what will be the largest-budget movie ever filmed in Utah. Hopeful actors, extras and crew members are swamping the Moab to Monument Valley Film Commission with resumes. Hotels are looking forward to full houses. Restaurants, caterers, rental agencies, animal wranglers and other businesses are anticipating a film windfall. About $10 million of the $60 million that will be spent in Utah will go into coffers in Grand County. Filming of the movie has begun in London and will move to Utah in the spring. More>>>

---

Explore Utah in 3-D
http://www.utah3d.net/SulpherCreek_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/DoubleArch1_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/PaysonC_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/panoramas/Dutchman_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/panoramas/GypsumSink_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/panoramas/Dragon_swf.html

---

Disney plans to film new movie in Lake Powell area
Lake Powell Chronicle ~ February 2, 2010

BIG WATER – Barsoom Pictures is setting up camp in the Lake Powell area as it prepares to film the movie “John Carter of Mars” for Disney/Pixar this spring. According to the “John Carter of Mars” official casting call from spoilertv.com, the movie will be directed by Andrew Stanton and will star Taylor Kitsch as John Carter and Willem Dafoe as Tars Tarkas.

When looking for possible places to film, location scouts for Barsoom Pictures discovered the gray shale lining of the canyons near the Grand Escalante Staircase and envisioned the area as the perfect backdrop for depicting scenes from Mars.
 

Michael Giacchino to write the score
Award winning and Oscar nominated composer, Michael Giacchino, has been confirmed for the movie. His work includes Lost, Star Trek and Up just to name a few. 

 
Disney Movie Jobs in Moab
MoabLife.com ~ January 15, 2010
Beginning in April, Disney Studios will film the science-fiction fantasy movie “John Carter of Mars” (also known as "A princess of Mars") in the Moab area. Preliminary work already is under way in London. Disney crew members scouted the world for a location resembling the reddish planet Mars. Film crews have been in Moab for more than a year, said Tara Penner, director of the Moab to Monument Valley Movie Commission.

The Disney cast and crew could pump nearly $60 million into the Moab-area economy during filming, which likely will take several months. In addition to filming the movie in eastern Utah, Disney plans to hire nearly 400 people to help with the movie in areas such as construction, security, and production and location assistance. Preference in hiring will be given to Utah residents, but residents from Western Colorado could be considered for jobs. People interested should immediately send a resume detailing previous movie experience to tara@moabcity.org.

For more details about the kind of jobs needed for the movie production, go to www.moabcity.org/filmcommission/production_directory.html.

---

Also. . . from Uni-versal Extras
"I am or I look Mediterranean: For the all action feature film John Carter of Mars we are starting to cast men and women of all ages who look Mediterranean for a variety or roles!"

---

Rock Doc lends helping hand on Disney blockbuster 
YourThanetNews.com ~ January 25, 2010
Hollywood giant Pixar has called on a Cliftonville couple to help it shoot its next blockbuster. Alasdair Bruce and his wife Kim, aka the Rock Doc team, have been advising the film crew working on John Carter of Mars, which is based on the books of Edgar Rice Burroughs. They helped out at one of the sets, a quarry in Dorset.

Director Andrew Stanton, who made some of Pixar’s best-received films such as Toy Story, Wall-E and Finding Nemo, is behind the movie. The film’s producers were keen to have the pair on set so Mr Stanton could call on their rocky knowledge and expertise in geology. They helped make sure that no damage was done to the site or to those working on location.

Dr Bruce said: “We were asked back while they did the filming to make sure all was well because it’s quite a dangerous place. 
There are a lot of loose pieces of rock and our job was to make sure no one went where they shouldn’t have been. It was health and safety meets geology, really, but good fun.”

The couple were asked to put together a report for the film but later asked along on location because of the nature of the site, which is a visually stunning spot that has been used for such TV shows such as Doctor Who, Torchwood and Blake’s Seven. “It was a very interesting experience,” said Dr Bruce. “The film has aliens called the Tharks and features Willem Defoe, among others, so perhaps we will meet some of the stars at some stage.  “It was tricky this time, though, as much of it is being done in CGI. The crew were eager to re-create the rocky landscape of Mars, called Barsoom in the Rice Borroughs (sic) books, as best they could. The film will mix live action and animation and is set to hit cinema screens in 2012.

This filming location is in the Winspit Quarry caves in Dorset, England. Quite likely this is for some of the earlier scenes where John Carter is being chased by Apache Indians and ends up in a mysterious cave. That is the starting point for him being transported to Mars. 

---

Edgar Rice Burroughs Gets a 'John Carter' Cameo
January 18, 2010
Disney released an official statement today that announced some intriguing additions to the cast and crew. Ciaran Hinds has been added in an unknown part, and Disney proto-talent Daryl Sabara has been cast as a teenage Edgar Rice Burroughs. 

John Carter travels back to Earth, where he narrates his adventures to Burroughs, who's his nephew. Young Burroughs grows up to become the famous pulp author. The use of a narrator makes sense since the Mars books are all in first person and are quite detail oriented. 

---

WALT DISNEY PICTURES' "JOHN CARTER OF MARS" 
BEGINS PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY IN LONDON
BURBANK, Calif. (January 15, 2010) - Principal photography is underway in London for Walt Disney Pictures' "JOHN CARTER OF MARS." Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton brings this captivating hero to the big screen in a stunning adventure epic set on the wounded planet of Mars, a world inhabited by warrior tribes and exotic desert beings. Based on the first of Edgar Rice Burroughs' "Barsoom Series," the film chronicles the journey of Civil-War veteran John Carter, who finds himself battling a new and mysterious war amidst a host of strange Martian inhabitants. 

Produced for Walt Disney Pictures by Jim Morris ("WALL•E," "Ratatouille") and Colin Wilson ("Avatar," "War of the Worlds"), the live action/animation film marks Academy Award®-winning director/writer Andrew Stanton's ("Finding Nemo," "WALL•E") first foray into live action. Stanton directed and co-wrote the screenplay for Disney•Pixar's "WALL•E," which earned the Academy Award and Golden Globe® for Best Animated Feature (2008); Stanton was nominated for an Oscar® for the screenplay. 

"I have been waiting my whole life to see the characters and worlds of 'John Carter of Mars' realized on the big screen," says Stanton. "It is just a wonderful bonus that I have anything to do with it."

The stellar ensemble cast is led by Taylor Kitsch (NBC'S "Friday Night Lights", "X-Men Origins: Wolverine") in the title role, Lynn Collins ("50 First Dates," "X-Men Origins: Wolverine") as the warrior princess Dejah Thoris and Oscar® nominee Willem Dafoe ("Spider-Man 3," "Shadow of a Vampire") as Martian inhabitant Tars Tarkas. The cast also includes Thomas Haden Church ("Sideways," Spider-Man 3), Polly Walker (upcoming "Clash of the Titans," "Patriot Games"), Samantha Morton ("Elizabeth: The Golden Age," "In America"), Mark Strong ("Sherlock Holmes," "Body of Lies"), Ciaran Hinds ("Munich," "There Will Be Blood"), British actor Dominic West ("300," "Chicago"), James Purefoy ("Vanity Fair," "Resident Evil") and Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad"). Daryl Sabara ("Disney's A Christmas Carol," "Spy Kids") takes the role of John Carter's teenaged nephew, Edgar Rice Burroughs.

The creative team includes Oscar®-nominated production designer Nathan Crowley ("Public Enemies," "The Dark Knight," "Batman Begins"), costume designer Mayes Rubeo ("Avatar," "Apocalypto"), cinematographer Daniel Mindel ("Star Trek," "Mission Impossible III," "Spygame") and video effects supervisor Peter Chiang ("The Reader," "The Bourne Ultimatum").

Bryan Cranston heading to 'Mars'
January 13, 2010

 "Breaking Bad" star Bryan Cranston has joined the cast of Walt Disney's "John Carter of Mars" which goes before cameras next week. 

Cranston plays a Civil War colonel who comes into conflict with Carter. 

---

Avatar Screenplay Available for Free Download from Fox
Fox Studios has made James Cameron’s original Avatar Screenplay available for free download online.  There are some pretty substantial differences, at least at the beginning, from the version that is playing in theaters.   The screenplay, for example, features a number of scenes building up Jake Sully’s backstory a bit more.  DOWNLOAD HERE: 

---

Becoming a giant green alien in John Carter of Mars
SciFi Wire
Polly Walker, who will soon co-star in Syfy's upcoming Caprica, will also appear in the live-action film adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars series, and she let us in on her preparations for the role of a four-armed, 900-year-old. giant green Martian "Thark."

"I'm going to Thark camp, so I'm going to find out," Walker said in an exclusive interview in Pasadena, Calif., on Sunday, where she was promoting Caprica. "I only start next week. I can't wait. I've got to learn the whole physicality of it. I suppose they're creating that kind of world, so I'm going to find out, but it should be cool."
"It's going to be amazing," Walker said. "I'm like a 9-and-a-half-foot green alien. She's sort of the queen bee of the tribe, and she's incredibly tough." Walker expects that part of Thark boot camp will involve learning the technical process that will transform her into Sarkoja. "I think, apart from Thark camp, I have to go be stilt-walking and things like that," Walker said. "So it's a physical process."

So far, Walker has not read any of the John Carter books yet, but she plans to before filming. "To be honest, I've not had an opportunity, just because I've been so entrenched in [Caprica], but I'm going to do my homework when I go over there, because it's iconic, isn't it?" The British actor may also have to modify her voice to play a Thark. "I don't know what my Thark accent is yet. I'm going to work on that. I think there is going to be an accent there."

---

Willem Dafoe Gears Up To Start Making John Carter
SciFi Soundtrack ~ January 6, 2010 What was the appeal in doing John Carter of Mars?
Andrew Stanton, the material, the idea that I'm going to play a 10-foot Martian Warrior. I live very much in the independent cinema world, which is great and that's where we find a lot of great filmmakers and sometimes more freedom to make personal films. But the flip side of that is, sometimes there isn't a lot of protection or care. There may be an emotional rigor, but sometimes you don't have the the technical stuff to work with. You can have lousy lighting [and] no time to prepare properly. You are very vulnerable.

When someone asks you to make a movie directed by Andrew Stanton, with Disney behind, a big tent-pole movie... I know from making Finding Nemo how these Pixar guys work. They're very thorough , they're very rigorous, they really get it. It's a real pleasure because you get so protected because they are so well researched. And you get so much help trying to make something. I think I got excited about that. I like to go back and forth, but it was time to do a big movie again.

Have you read the book?
I haven't but I'd read Princess of Mars, and I'll probably read some of the others.

Has Andrew talked to you about how they are going to film [your character's] four arms?
I saw him recently because we start in London, for studio stuff. I start next week... He showed me some samples, just so I can understand what I'm in for. Mostly about ideas about how they are going to film these creatures next to human beings. Because we do play the scenes, it's not like some people's fantasies where they put you in a room and they sample you and they go off and they do this computer magic, and no one ever plays a scene — it's not like that. We're going to play these scenes. He showed me the different variations of how they will shoot it, the kind of equipment I'll have to wear, the different times I won't have to wear certain kinds of equipment and all that.

Are you going to have to wear two extra prosthetic arms?
I'm not telling. And you know what, I can't talk that much about it, because I don't know yet. We don't even start shooting next week it's part of prep, I go to London and we do the things that we need to do to know how to start this project... I think officially production starts the 18th.

Will you be working on a special voice for the character?
We're always working on a special voice.

 

AVATAR: THE EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS CONNECTION

Director James Cameron credit ERB as a major influence and most of the rave reviews for this landmark cinema event also mention the Burroughs legacy and the debt owed to ERB's Mars, Tarzan, Venus and Earth's Core adventures. A few excerpted samples are featured below:

---

Great Expectations
The director reveals how he got Fox to greenlight his $195 million technology-driven motion picture
EW.com | Jan 15, 2007
How did you come up with this story?
Well, my inspiration is every single science fiction book I read as a kid. And a few that weren't science fiction. The Edgar Rice Burroughs books, H. Rider Haggard — the manly, jungle adventure writers. I wanted to do an old fashioned jungle adventure, just set it on another planet, and play by those rules.

Your premise reminded me a lot of the Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter, Warlord of Mars series.
It's definitely got that feeling, and I wanted to capture that feeling, but updated. To be certain, I wanted a film that could encompass all my interests, from biology, technology, the environment — a whole host of passions. But I've always had a fondness for those kind of science fiction/adventure stories, the male warrior in an exotic, alien land, overcoming physical challenges and confronting the fears of difference. Do we conquer? Exploit? Integrate? Avatar explores those issues.

---

Avatar Entry in Wikipedia
"In 1994, director James Cameron wrote a 114-page scriptment for Avatar. Cameron said his inspiration was 'every single science fiction book I read as a kid', and that he was particularly striving to update the style of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter series."

---

Hollywood North Report ~ June 25, 2009
Inspired by author Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter Of Mars fantasy book series, Avatar is set during the 22nd century on a small moon called 'Pandora', inhabited by the tribal 'Na'vi', ten foot blue humanoids that are peaceful unless attacked.

---

New Yorker ~ October 26, 2009
“With ‘Avatar,’ I thought, Forget all these chick flicks and do a classic guys’ adventure movie, something in the Edgar Rice Burroughs mold, like John Carter of Mars—a soldier goes to Mars,"

---

A monitoring of ongoing traditional media and Internet report will unearth a multitude of such references.

---

See more at our ERB / Avatar Connection Feature:
http://www.erbzine.com/mag30/3038.html

Taylor Kitsch: The New Action Hero 
Blackbook.com ~ December 22, 2009
Any day now, Taylor Kitsch will cut his hair. To transform into the title character in John Carter of Mars—Wall-E director Andrew Stanton’s first live-action feature, based on Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burrough’s sci-fi novels about a Civil War veteran’s adventures on the Red Planet—the 28-year-old actor, who plays the dreamy, brooding, beer-drinking, football-playing Tim Riggins on NBC’s cult drama Friday Night Lights, will lop off his locks for the first time since he was 19. "Hopefully, it's a 10-year job," Kitsch says of the potential franchise, which co-stars Willem Dafoe, Samantha Morton and Thomas Haden Church. 
. . . the intense preparation leading up to John Carter exceeds anything he's done before. It includes sword training, gun fighting, horseback riding and seven-hour cram sessions on the Civil War. And while learning to fence with four-armed giant green Martians might not be every actor's idea of the method, Kitsch uses physicality as entrée into psyche. "It makes it a bit easier," he says. "I have to look like this, walk like this. I have to lose this much weight. I'll know this inside out. Then I work on the mental state. . . . the stakes are incredibly high. It’s a big movie. I just have to keep my head down and go to work."

Mark Strong Talks Shape-Shifting For JOHN CARTER OF MARS CinemaBlend.com  ~ December 16, 2009
Mark Strong recently chatted with Cinemablend and revealed a bit about his character Matai Shang, the ruler of the Thems with godlike status, and his abilities:

Filming has begun in Utah, but most of Strong's part will be filmed on soundstages outside of London. And even though there's some motion-capture animation going on, he won't be part of most of it, despite the fact that his character is a shape-shifter. He wasn't spilling any plot details or anything, but his enthusiasm about working with Stanton and explanation of how his character will work seemed worth sharing. 

On Stanton:
He's a genius. He's such a good storyteller. When I met him and he showed me the storyboards, the ideas for the sets and the designs for the characters, it's just absolutely mind-blowing. I can't wait to get involved with it. I said to him, how do you feel about live action? And he said it's going to be easy. As an animator, you literally have to invent everything. The color of the background, the size of people's noses. Whereas in live action, half the stuff is given, and you can embellish the rest with CGI.

On his part:
There's some filming in Utah, but most of it is in a studio outside of London. My character doesn't actually get involved in any of the motion-capture stuff. All the stuff is live action. Although I can shift my shape (to other human beings mainly), so I have to be photographed by a 360-degree camera. I can adapt into anything. That's going to be my particular talent. 

---

JC in UK Studios
Foreign filming on British soil is booming thanks to a favourable dollar/sterling exchange rate, a tax credit that's particularly generous for Hollywood blockbusters and a strong post-production sector that can provide high-end vfx. … "John Carter of Mars" are among the U.S. projects in various stages of shooting, contributing to an estimated $1 billion-plus of inward investment in 2009... Top facility: Longcross Studios in Surrey.

~ From our UK reporter Laurence Dunn

---

Mark Strong on JOHN CARTER OF MARS Collider.com ~ December 16, 2009
Strong says he plays Matai Shang and “over the course of the 3 movies that they’re envisioning making, and I’ve seen the synopsis of the 2nd and 3rd, Matai Shang is basically John Carter’s nemesis.” He also confirms the movie is both live action and motion capture and they are filming from January to May in both London and Utah.

Collider: I actually saw Andrew Stanton when I was in London and spoke to him. He said he’s filming at Shepperton ’til April or something like that. So can you talk a little bit about…have you worked at Shepperton before? And are you looking forward to being in this crazy production?

Yeah, I mean I’ve worked at Shepperton and Pinewood. They’re the most famous British film studio lots. And Andrew wooed me with the storyboards that he had at the interview. He showed me his vision for the thing and it’s just mind-blowing and . . .  he’s a master storyteller and I think the fact that he’s been given the opportunity to direct live-action and a motion capture film together and in the light of “Avatar” knowing that these Pixar guys like to be in the vanguard of everything. . . .

I play a character called Matai Shang and he is the ruler of a group of people called the Ferns [sic] who are like the old Olympian Gods. They exist….people aren’t really sure if they exist, but basically he’s a master of the Universe. They travel ’round keeping order in the Universe. So basically he exists over and above the Martians that exist on the planet. Like I say, he’s like an Olympian God.  I mean getting to play Mati Shang Master of the Universe, it doesn’t get much better than that.

I’ve seen the synopsis of the 2nd and 3rd, basically and in the novels, Princess of Mars that Rice Burroughs wrote, Matai Shang is basically John Carter’s nemesis. So he comes into his own during the 2nd half of the current movie and then just basically gets bigger and bigger in the 2nd and 3rd. . . .  It’s extremely nerve wracking because what you have to do is understand that you’re committing to something in the future and if the first one is a huge success and they want to make the 2nd and 3rd, basically they have first call on you for a number of years.  It’s a combination of live action and motion capture (probably not 3D). 

Collider: I spoke to Andrew after the Avatar screening. . .   I think Avatar is going to influence every filmmaker who’s working in motion capture of any kind because how could it not. . . . Do you think when you saw the test stuff for John Carter did it already look like it was pushing the boundaries for you at the time?

Oh my God yeah. I mean it looks phenomenal. I mean his conception of it is extraordinary. I mean it’s "Avatar" type territory and I think the point I was making before about these Pixar’s guys are always wanting to be in the vanguard. They want to be leading from the front.  . . . But they I think Andrew said they’re in the business of giving the public what they want before they know they want it. So I can totally imagine he's gone to see "Avatar" and that’ll just set the cogs whirring in his brain and the twinkle in his eye because he'll just want to surpass it, no question.

Yeah, I mean it’ll be enormous. I think it’s something like a $200 million budget. It starts in January and I actually go through to May. I think some of it is also filming in Utah, so it’s a 5 month production based largely in London with some exterior scenes in the desert I assume in Utah. So it’s a massive production. . . .  I think the fact that it’s a science fiction movie and that it's going to spend 2 years in post and not come out 'til 2012 means that the vision for it is enormous. And as you pointed out, in the light of “Avatar”, I think they are planning on creating something extraordinary.

.
From our Barsoom and John Carter of Mars sites:

Disney's John Carter of Mars - Official Casting Call and Plot Details
The ODI ~ December 08, 2009
Star Now Casting Calls: Canada

With the major players in place, Disney is looking for actors to round out the cast of John Carter of Mars! 
Disney's live-action John Carter of Mars movie adaptation of the classic book series by Edgar Rice Burroughs was originally scheduled to begin shooting in November, but the date has been pushed back to an early 2010 start. It is still unclear why the film was delayed, but apparently the casting process is still incomplete. SpoilerTV recently listed this new casting call sheet for John Carter of Mars: 

Director: Andrew Stanton
Starring: Taylor Kitsch as John Carter, Willem Dafoe as Tars Tarkas, Lynn Collins as Dejah Thoris and Mark Strong as Matai Shang
Synopsis: A damaged civil war veteran finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars where his involvements with warring races of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity.
[STABLE BOY] 9 yrs old, Mestizo – a mixture of European and Native American or Mexican decent, no lines, 1 scene
[DIX] The storekeeper, 40’s – 50’s, built like a lumberjack/longshoreman, strong & husky, 5 lines, 1 scene
[1ST ROWDY] Late 20’s – early 30’s, rough and dirty, worn looking, 1 line, 1 scene
[2ND ROWDY] Late 20’s – early 30’s, rough and dirty, worn looking, 1 line, 1 scene
[CAVALRYMAN/SERGEANT] Early 30’s, clean cut, 2 lines, 1 scene
[US STOCKADE PRISON GUARD] Mid 20’s – early 30’s, clean cut, 4 lines, 2 scenes
[APACHE LEADER] 40’s - 60s, Native American, must speak Apache, wise and experienced with a weathered face. Multiple lines, 1 scene
[TWITCHY CORPORAL] 20’s - 30s, a shifty bad guy, not to be trusted. 1 line, 1 scene.
[YOUNG THARK WARRIOR] 20’S, tall (6’ PLUS), athletic, experience working on stilts, MOTION PICTURE CAPTURE ROLE

---

Willem Dafoe Discusses John Carter of Mars & His Tars Tarks Character
October 21, 2009
Willem Dafoe who is slated to play Tars Tarkas in Disney's John Carter of Mars recently spoke to the AICN, about his role in John Carter and revealed, that his character has four arms and is 9 feet tall.

"I've seen a lot of the designs and things, and I’ve just started to do prep work now.  We've starting doing scans and things like that, but it's going to be a real full-on.  Well, I'm nine feet tall with four arms, but, just from the scheduling, I'm going to do the stuff. They'll use my face, but they'll enhance it in a way – both after and before – in a way that I may not be recognizable. But, I'm good with that. It's particularly cool, because he's a creature, but he's got this huge range of character. And, he does cool things in the movies.

"There's a whole period where we're going to work with the language and the movement, and find out how I'm going to be nine feet tall, and all that stuff. . . like, a long period of time where we're going to go to Thark school. We're going to create our culture. So, it's going to be very cool. These guys know how to do this, and they've got great people. And, the designs and things are just mind-blowing."

---

Church, Purefoy & Strong join JC cast
September 29, 2009

Thomas Haden Church, James Purefoy and Mark Strong have joined the cast of joined "John Carter of Mars," Disney's adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs book series that Andrew Stanton is directing. Church plays Tal Hajus, an ambitious and vicious Thark warrior who is biding his time to be a ruler. Purefoy plays Kantos Kan, the captain of the Xavarian, the kingdom of Helium's grand warship. Strong is Matai Shang, the ruler of the Thems with godlike status.

The casting reveals a bit about the movie's plot, which would appear to combine elements of Burroughs' first Barsoom book, A Princess of Mars; the second, The Gods of Mars; and the third, The Warlord of Mars.

---

Lynn Collins Gets 'A Really Great Tan' 
To Become Alien Princess In 'John Carter Of Mars'
MTV MoviesBlog ~ September 24, 2009
Edgar Rice Burroughs' "John Carter of Mars," is going to start shooting in Utah as early as January of next year.  Pre-production continues to move steadily forward on the hybrid live action/CGI film. As co-star Lynn Collins told MTV's Josh Horowitz, she's already seen workups of fight sequences she'll have to film and, last week, some initial effects work kicked into gear.

"We're actually getting into some hair and makeup tests this week to see what the look is like," said Collins, who plays the humanoid Martian princess Dejah Thoris. "It's really collaborative and really creative and I'm really excited about it." The preliminary idea is not to bury Collins under prosthetics and heavy-duty makeup but to create a look that would not be out of place on a tropical island. "I think they're going more like a really great tan, like the best-tan-you-can-ever-imagine type of thing," she said. "I've yet to find it. Maybe the makeup team will be able to."

There's no word yet how the rest of the cast will end up looking. Joining Collins in "John Carter" is her "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" co-star Taylor Kitsch as the title character, a Civil War vet inexplicably transported to the Red Planet, where he stumbles upon all manner of alien adventures. "Taylor is so amazing," Collins said. "We went to Pixar and saw some of the workups of some of the fighting that we have to do. I was like, 'Oh my god, there's just no guy better for the job. He's so athletic and wonderful and such a great actor and so positive.'"

Calling her character "a priestess of science and letters," Collins extolled co-writer/director Andrew Stanton's ("WALL-E," "Finding Nemo") vision for "John Carter." "Edgar Rice Burroughs was a really smart writer, so smart that some of the stuff I can hardly wrap my head around, so that's up to Pixar to see if they can put in visually to life," the actress said, adding, "It's completely satirical and politically on point, I'd say." More>>>

---

Andrew Stanton discussed the film in the MTV Movies Blog:
"We're full bore on it right now. We're over the hump of the writing phase, and we're certainly far from rewrites. I don't want to be dissing it but it almost had an absence of a story for a feature film because it was very episodic. In its day it was a comic book. I mean, this book was written in 1912. It was the comic book you got in the time before there was such a thing as comic books. So, it was really just about the next fight, the next adventure, the next romance.

"The key was putting a story into it and creating characters that had to grow and real basic stuff that we all know a movie needs. Fortunately it's an old enough story. There isn't such huge allegiance to it that people won't mind that we muck with it a bit to hopefully amplify the essence of what made me interested in it as a young kid and hopefully will keep me interested in it as an adult. There's so much in it that can't be real. It's the perfect definition of a hybrid movie."

---

John Carter of Mars Casts Brits as Tharks and a Zodangan
Morton, West and Walker Join ERB's Mars Film
Aug 25th, 2009 ~ From the Web: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 
The cast of Disney's big budget adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars continues to grow, with the news this week that three Brits have found roles that do much to flesh out the story's rich alien mythology. Playing Sola, Tarkas' daughter who must hide her softer side from her warrior race, will be Samantha Morton (Minority Report). Polly Walker (the sexy Atia in HBO's Rome) will be playing a more typical Thark, Sarkoja, who is described as "merciless" and "tyrannical." Finally, there is Dominic West (The Wire), who will be playing Sab Than, the prince of the Zodangans who believes it is his destiny to rule Barsoom, which we know better as Mars. . . . League of Extraordinary Gentlemen actor Jason Flemyng has let slip that he could well be in line for a role in the film.
Samantha Morton ~ Dominic West ~ Polly Walker

---

Willem Dafoe cast for Tars Tarkas
Variety ~ July 15, 2009
Willem Dafoe will star alongside Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins in "John Carter of Mars," the Walt Disney Pictures fantasy epic to be directed by "Wall-E" helmer Andrew Stanton.
Dafoe will play the role of Tars Tarkas, a fierce green Martian warrior, who's unusual among his savage race for his ability to love. Tars develops an alliance with John Carter in the first film, which is based on "A Princess of Mars."

He fights battles alongside Carter through the entire series of Edgar Rice Burroughs books, so he will be hanging around for sequels.

Jim Morris and Colin Wilson are producing. Stanton wrote the script with Mark Andrews. 
More>>>

Visit the ERBzine Thark Galleries at:
http://www.erbzine.com/mag13/1390.html
See the ERB, Inc. Barsoom site at:
http://www.barsoom.com

---

John Carter of Mars is Cast
Taylor Kitsch has been cast as in the lead role in John Carter Of Mars. Canadian Kitsch played Gambit in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
Lynn Collins has joined the cast as Dejah Thoris, aka the Princess Of Mars. Collins played the Siverfox role in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
Thomas Hayden Church told Jeffrey Lyons of Reel Talk that he will also be joining the film, in what he's calling a "very dramatic role."
Kitsch ~ Collins ~ Church

Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins blast off to 'Mars'
Disney adapting Edgar Rice Burroughs book series
Hollywood Reporter ~ June 12, 2009
Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins will star in "John Carter of Mars," the adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs book series that Andrew Stanton is directing for Disney. The movie is a big step for Stanton -- who as one of Pixar's top creators directed the company's animated films "Finding Nemo" and "WALL-E" but will now helm his first live-action feature -- and Disney, which hopes the big-budget production will launch a franchise on the scale of "Pirates of the Caribbean."

"Carter" centers on a civil war veteran who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars, where his involvement with warring races of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity. Kitsch will play the title character, while Collins is playing Dejah Thoris, heir to the throne of Mars' Helium kingdom.

Stanton wrote the screenplay with Mark Andrews. Jim Morris, who produced "WALL-E," and Colin Wilson are producing "Carter," which is eyeing a start in early 2010. Brigham Taylor is overseeing for the studio.

The role of Carter was considered one of the "gets" for a young actor, and Disney has spent months meeting and testing a wide swath of names from Jon Hamm to Josh Duhamel during its search. Canadian-born Kitsch, repped by WMA and Untitled, began building buzz with his starring role on NBC's "Friday Night Lights." Before long, he was considered one of the town's next generation of leading men, especially when he booked the role of Gambit in "Wolverine." 

Collins, repped by WME and 3 Arts, had a recurring gig on HBO's "True Blood" but appeared with Kitsch in "Wolverine," which raised her profile considerably. She next stars opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt in "Uncertainty," which IFC is releasing this year. 

---

Kitsch, Collins to star in 'John Carter'
Andrew Stanton helming Disney's fantasy epic Variety.com ~ June 12, 2009
Walt Disney Pictures has set "Wolverine" stars Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins to star in "John Carter of Mars," a fantasy epic that marks the live action directorial debut of "Wall-E" helmer Andrew Stanton.

Kitsch, a member of the "Friday Night Lights" ensemble who made his screen breakthrough as Gambit in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," will play the title character, a damaged Civil War veteran who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars where his involvements with a warring race of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity.

Collins will play Dejah Thoris, the Princess of Mars. Collins worked with Kitsch in "Wolverine," playing Hugh Jackman's character's love interest Kayla Silverfox. She also co-stars in the HBO vampire drama "True Blood."

Pic will begin filming early next year. Jim Morris and Colin Wilson are producing. Stanton wrote the script with Mark Andrews.

---

Utah will be stage for Mars in new Disney Pixar film
The deal will bring millions to the state and employ nearly 400 Utahns.
The Salt Lake Tribune ~ June 12, 2009
First as the planet Vulcan and now the red rocks of Mars, Utah has become Hollywood's destination spot for depicting exotic intergalactic worlds. Disney and Pixar are expected to partly film the pulp science-fiction adventure "John Carter of Mars" in Utah from November to July 2010. Portions of the Beehive State will double as Mars, including Lake Powell (where the original "Planet of the Apes" was partially filmed), Moab, and Kane and Wayne counties. 

"It's the biggest movie we've ever used incentives on," said Utah Film Commission executive director Marshall Moore. "We haven't seen these kinds of numbers since doing a TV series for a year." The San Rafael Swell already doubled as the planet Vulcan in this year's summer blockbuster "Star Trek," but second-unit crews only shot for four days in Utah. 

Disney is scheduled to shoot in Utah for 45 days. The story, based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs science-fiction book series -- which begins with A Princess of Mars -- is about an American Civil War veteran who is transported to Mars to face a series of adventures. 

Burroughs, who was born in Chicago, was no stranger to Utah, working as a railroad police officer in Salt Lake City in 1904. 

---

Disney/Pixar to produce new film in Utah
KSL.com ~ June 11th, 2009 
SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah's new movie incentives bill has landed the state its first big-time motion picture project. 
Take the Walt Disney company, combine it with Pixar and Utah scenery, and you're going to have the movie "John Carter of Mars." It's based on a series of books about a Civil War vet transported to the Red Planet. Governor's Office of Economic Development Director Jason Perry is stoked. "This is a place where Disney will start looking as the place where they will want to do all of their films," he said. The film will bring hundreds of cast and crew members to the state during production. "This is over 400 people involved in full-time work for seven-straight months here in the State of Utah. This is going to put our film crews to work. It's really going to put us on the map as a place to film," Perry said. 

---

Chabon Revising "John Carter of Mars" Script
Kavalier and Clay Site ~ April 9, 2009
Michael Chabon: ( (pronounced “Shea as in Stadium, Bon as in Jovi”) “I’ve been hired to do some revisions to an already strong script by Andrew Stanton and Mark Andrews. I wrote my original screenplay The Martian Agent back in 1995 because I wished I could do [Edgar Rice] Burroughs's Barsoom. So this is pretty much a dream come true for me.” 

 Chabon has written some highly respected books over the years, including Wonder Boys, The Yiddish Policemen's Union and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier ? Clay, which is essential reading for any comic book fan.  Rogert Ebert, reviewing the Spider-Mansequel, said, "One of the keys to the movie's success must be the contribution of novelist Michael Chabon to the screenplay; Chabon understands in his bones what comic books are, and why."

Disney got the option rights to Burroughs' 11-volume series in 2007 after the rights lapsed at Paramount Pictures. Andrew Stanton, the writer and director of Finding Nemo and WALL-E, is set to direct. It’s expected to hit theaters in 2012.
Chabon Bio | IMDB.com

---

Disney scouts South Australia for mars landscape
The Advertiser - Adelaide ~ March 30, 2009
South Australia could form the backdrop for two of Disney's biggest forthcoming films, John Carter of Mars and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo. Senior representatives of Walt Disney Studios have scouted the state for locations for the upcoming blockbusters although no decisions have been made. John Carter of Mars is being written and directed by Andrew Stanton, who made the Oscar-winning Wall-E. Bruce Hendricks, Disney's president of physical production and producer of all three Pirates of the Caribbean movies scouted SA for locations on the weekend of March 22 and 23. John Carter of Mars, based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' classic science-fiction novel series, is scheduled to begin shooting next year.  The makers of Paramount's aborted version of the film examined filming the movie at locations near Coober Pedy in 2005. Breakaways Reserve and Moon Plain are perfect stand-ins for alien and post-apocalyptic landscapes. The area has been featured in films such as Pitch Black  (1999), Red Planet (2000) and Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (1985). SA's major drawback for large-budget films is a lack of studio space and facilities. Australia is seen as an attractive proposition for American films at present with the low value of the dollar against the greenback and the 15 percent rebate for foreign films. More. . .

Academy Awards "Wall-E" an Oscar for Animation, But Not Song, Sound or Screenplay
USNews.com ~ February 23, 2009 
Wall-E, the animated film dear to the hearts of Americans and green bloggers alike, took home only one trophy out of its record-tying six nominations last night. Director Andrew Stanton accepted the Oscar for the film in the "Best Animated Film" category, a win that came as a surprise to no one. The film was also nominated for Original Score, Original Song, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, and Original Screenplay. Its six nominations put it in company with Beauty and the Beast, which is widely considered to be the best animated film of all time.

Though the film was up against steep competition in the other categories, there was talk that Wall-E had a shot at Original Screenplay, since the film paid homage to classic Charlie Chaplin films. Because much of the film was silent, score played an important role, and composer Thomas Newman, like Kate Winslet, has been a constant nominee, but never an Oscar winner. Though Newman previously took home two Grammys for Wall-E (Best Song for a Motion Picture, and Best Arrangement), the Academy decided this was not his year.

Wall-E's song, "Down to Earth," was written by Peter Gabriel but performed during the ceremony by John Legend. It was part of a medley of the two other nominated songs from Slumdog Millionaire, and was given a Bollywood tinge by being sandwiched in between. The song, naturally, continued the sustainable message of the film - that we should conserve, appreciate our natural resources, and clean up our messes. 

Stanton's WALL-E receives many Oscar nominations

---

January 23, 2009 ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney); Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter
"Frozen River" (Sony Pictures Classics); Written by Courtney Hunt
"Happy-Go-Lucky" (Miramax); Written by Mike Leigh
"In Bruges" (Focus Features); Written by Martin McDonagh
"Milk" (Focus Features); Written by Dustin Lance Black

---

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM OF THE YEAR
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Andrew Stanton
"Bolt" (Walt Disney) Chris Williams and Byron Howard
"Kung Fu Panda" (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) John Stevenson and Mark Osborne

---

Andrew Stanton (WALL-E) is only the fourth person to score a second bid in the animated feature category, which began in 1981. 
He also earned a citation in original screenplay as one of the scribes on the film.
Stanton is currently working on his next project: John Carter of Mars based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' novels.

---

WALL-E also received nominations for:
ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES (ORIGINAL SCORE)
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Thomas Newman

---

ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES (ORIGINAL SONG)
"Down to Earth" from "WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; Lyrics by Peter Gabriel 

---

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood

---

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND MIXING
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt

WALL-E helmer Andrew Stanton talks John Carter of Mars
SciFiWire.com   ~ January 12, 2009

WALL-E director Andrew Stanton is working on a new draft of his proposed John Carter of Mars movie and is aiming for a realistic feel to the live-action movie, his first. "I'm deep into it," Stanton told SciFi Wire at the Los Angeles Film Critics Association award ceremony, where he accepted the award for best picture of 2008 for WALL-E. "I'm on my next draft of it. We're in preproduction art-wise, and we're starting to talk to actors. So it's full bore."

Stanton confirmed that Carter, based on the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, will be live-action. "Yeah, I think that's the only way," he said. "I mean, there are so many creatures and characters that half of it's going to be CG whether you want it to be [or not], just to realize some of these images that are in the book. But it will feel real. The whole thing will feel very, very believable."

We're going very authentic . . . it's such a foundational story to so many films and stories and sci-fi ideas that have come since 1912. So the trick is how to not make it seem clich? and derivative because it's such an archetype story now. I spent most of my life just being a fan of those books and being a cheerleader from the sidelines of anybody that was trying to make it. I never thought I would be lucky enough to be one of those guys associated with it, let alone helming it. I would love to break the curse.  I've surrounded myself with a couple key people that are just really smart, really talented. . . 

 It'll be a two-hour film. It's not being done by the Pixar crew. It's being done by Disney, and I'm sort of being loaned out. We're sort of using any element that we need to to make the film right.  This story of John Carter is not going to be an all-ages film. If you do the story right, there's no way you couldn't [do PG-13].

John Carter Of Mars’ To Be Live-Action, CGI Hybrid
MTV ~  January 13, 2009 
Quotes:
“It’s real. We’re full bore on it right now. We’re over the hump of the writing phase, and we’re certainly far from rewrites.”

“I don’t want to be dissing it, but it almost had an absence of a story for a feature film because it was very episodic. In its day it was a comic book. I mean, this book was written in 1912. It was the comic book you got in the time before there was such thing as comic books. So, it was really just about the next fight, the next adventure, the next romance.”

“The key was putting a story into it and creating characters that had to grow and real basic stuff that we all know a movie needs.” 

.“Fortunately it’s an old enough story. “There isn’t such huge allegiance to it that people won’t mind that we muck with it a bit to hopefully amplify the essence of what made me interested in it as a young kid and hopefully will keep me interested in it as an adult.”

“There’s so much in it that can’t be real. It’s the perfect definition of a hybrid movie utilizing both live actors and computer-based animation."

 “I know everybody wanted Hugh Jackman forever, but he’s only getting older and more exposed now, so it’s a tough call. I’m your typical filmmaker, I want to find the next best unknown.”

JOHN CARTER OF MARS info from Andrew Stanton! From the AINT IT COOL SITE ~ January 25, 2009

"I was able to attend a luncheon before the panel and sat with Tom McCarthy and Andrew Stanton. Of course John Carter of Mars had to come up. He also elaborated on the panel, but here’s what’s going on with JOHN CARTER OF MARS:

- It is live action.

- “It is huge, it is exciting, it scares the crap out of me. It’s either going to make me or break me.”

- It is NOT a Pixar movie, rather a Disney film. However Stanton’s creative team from Pixar are all still involved.

- The style is going to be very real, not highly stylized. He said that 20 some years ago that version could have been made, but since Star Wars and a whole glut of science fiction and fantasy films have ripped off giant portions of JCOM over the years the only option he sees is doing a straight up, realistic version of the story. He described it as if it was a National Geographic crew that stumbled across a preserved civilization while exploring a cave. Very real, but awe-inspiring. 

- He is not planning nor wanting to shoot it 3-D (thank God… I love James Cameron, and I think AVATAR is going to be amazing, but I’m getting tired of every big event movie being 3-D), but thinks Disney might want to push him towards it.

- Stanton has been a fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs since he was a kid, so while he won’t have the same kind of development time on this one as he had on his animated movie he looks at it as him living with the story in his brain for 40 plus years instead of the 6-8 of his animated films. 

- He has his second draft done and will be casting soon.

- John Carter WILL be a Civil War soldier."

---

Writer's Panel at 2009 Santa Barbara Film Festival. 

Ann Thompson ~ Robert Knott ~ Tom McCarthy ~Andrew Stanton ~ Dustin Lance Black

For "Wall-E" director, art mixes well with commerce Reuters ~ November 18, 2008
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - If there ever was a person meant to make a movie about a U.S. Civil War soldier from the Confederate States of America stranded on the planet Mars, it just may be Andrew Stanton, director of animated hit "Wall-E." Why?

A soldier of the confederacy was a "rebel" in the 1860s when the United States fought its war between the states, and Stanton also comes from a pack of rebels -- the filmmakers at Disney-Pixar -- whose movies like "Wall-E" have time and again defied conventional Hollywood wisdom and become smash hits. . . .

. . . "John Carter of Mars" is Stanton's next animated feature project. It is based on a story written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, best known for his "Tarzan" books. Stanton said he read "John Carter" as a boy and has been in love with it ever since. It is based on a simple idea, he said: "an ordinary person in an extraordinary world." But audiences wanting to go there will have to wait several years before the movie hits theaters. But when it does, the betting is that like "Wall-E", it, too, will be a hit. More>>>

---

New Look For Carter Of Mars?
Sci Fi Wire  | SciFiLog.com
Andrew Stanton, who is writing and directing John Carter of Mars, based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' books, told SCI FI Wire that he and co-writer Mark Andrews will be putting their own spin on the iconic story, and a Pixar manager added that the film will have a unique look as well. "I'm going to do what I remember more than what they exactly do" in the books, Stanton said cryptically in a group interview at the Emeryville, Calif., headquarters of Pixar on Sept. 25.

Stanton (WALL*E) added that he is currently deep in writing with partner Andrews, a storyboard artist at Pixar, on the script for Carter. "John Carter of Mars is what I'm writing right now with Mark Andrews," Stanton said. "Writing, it's all about writing this year."

Jim Morris, general manager at Pixar Animation, promised that the movie will not look like previous attempts to adapt the franchise for the screen. "Everything that's been out there has been an attempt to kind of capture this Deco-esque [Frank] Frazetta vision of John Carter, which I think feels old and stale," he said. "And where Stanton is going--from what we've seen so far--is very different than that. And I think that the people who really love the essence of the books will really dig it, but so will audiences in general."

Asked whether the film would be in 3-D, Morris added, "I hope not!"  It's been reported that Carter may incorporate live-action elements amid animation. Stanton's WALL*E was the first Pixar production to incorporate live action. Morris declined to discuss the matter.

"John Carter is in its very early stages, and there is much to figure out about that, so we'd be premature," Morris said. "We are looking at a variety of different approaches and techniques for that ... We're kind of a bit early in the development of that."

Morris added: "I'm sure I speak for all of the science fiction geeks, fans and aficionados when I say it's finally time to see that movie. And I, for one, am delighted that Andrew Stanton is the guy that's making the movie, because he's a story-driven guy."

---

Jon Favreau ~ LA Times Interview excerpt
Quote:
"Not involved with John Carter of Mars. Visited [Andrew] Stanton at Pixar. He's doing a great job. He will do a better job with it than I would have at that point in my career. Most importantly, after 100 years, it's finally getting made."

---

John Carter of Mars updates

---

See the official John Carter of Mars sites:
www.johncarterofmars.ca
barsoom.com
www.princessofmars.org
www.johncarterofmars.org

---

Projects in 'WALL*E' director's future are exciting
Deseret News ~ June 29, 2008
As much as I love "Finding Nemo" (2003) and loved the new movie "WALL*E" even more, it's the things in Andrew Stanton's future that really have me excited. A Pixar executive with a good track record, Stanton also co-directed "A Bug's Life" (1998) and co-wrote "Monsters, Inc." (1998) and "Toy Story 2" (1999). And his next feature will be "John Carter of Mars," a long-in-development fantasy that's based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs novels. Have I mentioned that I'm a big fan of those books? In a recent interview in Salt Lake City Stanton pooh-poohed my suggested casting of Hugh Jackman as the lead. (Stanton said Jackman is "too old," apparently forgetting the character is supposed to be a Civil War veteran.) But I was pretty intrigued by his talk about digitally animated versions of Burroughs' green-skinned, multi-armed Martians, or Tharks. Also, Stanton chuckled when I suggested Michael Clarke Duncan as the body model — or at least the voice of Carter's Martian brother-in-arms Tars Tarkas. Unfortunately, it will be at least four years until we get to see the movie. More>>>

---

Andrew Stanton discusses the John Carter project
Ain't It Cool News Interview ~ June 25, 2008
"I have been a fan of those books since I was 10, and I've watched vicariously from the sidelines as it has gone from studio to studio since I was in college in the '80s. And just as fan, wanting to see it be made, and praying to God it would be done right. I thought it was truly going to get done by Jon Favreau, and the minute it fell apart, I couldn't believe it. And the timing was just right with my schedule, and I said, "I don't know, this is crazy but I'm going to see if we can get it." And here we are. Believe me, if it doesn't fall apart for other reasons, I'm going to do it right, because I have been a huge fan of those books.

"Mark Andrews and I are writing it together; he was the head of story on RATATOUILLE and THE INCREDIBLES. We make a great combo together, and we're just spending this year writing. We've learned from the Pixar methodology: don't get distracted about how and all these things everybody else wants to ask; just make a great story and everything else wants to fall into place. So all the other specifics we aren't even going to decide upon until next year, once we have a script that we think is worth making. . . . We don't want to decide [whether the film is animated or live action] until next year. And believe me, we're not going say, "Oh, it's a Pixar film, so it's got to be G-rated." We're going to do what's right for the movie and then we'll find the right way to distribute it." More>>>

---

Andrew Stanton Out To ‘Break The Curse’ With Adaptation Of ‘John Carter Of Mars’
MTV Movies Blog ~ June 24, 2008
From Bob Clampett, to Ray Harryhausen, to Robert Rodriquez, and Jon Favreau, the list of directors who’ve wanted to make “John Carter of Mars” is a long one stretching back at least 70 years. For a long time, Andrew Stanton, who was recently confirmed to be directing an adaption of “Carter” for Pixar Animation Studios, didn’t feel like he belonged in their company. “I cared a lot that [‘Carter’] was done right, and I didn’t really care if I was the one to do it. I didn’t feel qualified,” he told MTV News.

Stanton’s assertions aren’t faux-humility. The daunting nature of the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, which center around an immortal Virginian’s adventures on the red planet, as well as the long-list of talented directors who tried and failed to bring it to the bring screen, would no doubt challenge any director. So what does Stanton have that they didn’t? Well, for one, he’s got unending reserves of talent. For another, he’s got impeccable timing. (“It fell on the floor right at that moment and I was there,” he said) And, thirdly, of course, he’s got a t-shirt. “We want to make t-shirts that say ‘break the curse’ because I don’t want to be another name on the list,” Stanton laughed. “[The project] seems to keep dropping on the floor. I’ll pick it up this time and hopefully I’ll be the one to do it right.”

For the “Wall-E” and “Finding Nemo” director, that means having no illusions about the project’s difficulty, and sticking with it despite what looks to be at least a 5 year process. “I loved those [‘John Carter’] books. I read them all from front to back all through my high school and junior high years, and just always wanted to see them realized on the screen,” Stanton insisted. “The big common denominator for me [with all my films] is: is it an idea I love so much that I would desire so badly to see on the screen that I would be willing to get out of bed for years and face it when it’s not working? [‘Carter’ shares] that common denominator.” More>>>

---

Review: Stanton's "Wall-E": An Instant Film Classic
(CNN) ~ The most consistent production unit in Hollywood just hit another home run. Over the last decade, Pixar has become a byword for quality, combining cutting-edge digital animation with depth of character, slapstick comedy and rich, engrossing storytelling that appeals equally to kids and adults. "Wall-E" has all of that and more. Written and directed by Andrew Stanton ("Finding Nemo"), it's Pixar's most ambitious movie and an instant classic.  . . . Grace, beauty, joy, laughter and love. A wonderful combination for any movie. "Wall-E" is easily the best film of the year so far. More>>>
EW.com

---

JOHN CARTER BLOG QUOTES:

---

". . . there’s been no discussion about exactly how it won’t be distributed or what moniker it will be under. Everything is going to be derived based on whatever we end up with script-wise, so this whole year is just about the script. In 2009 will be much more involved in the OK, exactly how is this going to get made? And exactly how are we going to present it? Nobody is worrying about that until there’s a script." SlashFilm.com

---

WALL*E is nothing short of a masterpiece of filmmaking. It is brilliant. I have not seen a film deal with such complex issues as humanity’s existence and the fate of the planet in such a deep and beautiful way. . . WALL*E is so fucking perfect a film. The film is very much alive; it has an organic pulse not found in many live action releases. I expected a great film, but I did not expect a masterpiece. Andrew Stanton, like Brad Bird before him, can do no wrong in my book. Andrew Stanton’s adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter Of Mars cannot arrive soon enough. 2snaps.tv

---

The blog reports that Andrew Stanton, director of Finding Nemo (2003) and the upcoming WALL-E, confirmed today  that he is currently developing an adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars, as has been rumoured for several months now. The Pixar Blog ~ June 06, 2008

---

Q: Can you talk a bit about John Carter of Mars?
AS: Well, pretty much it’s already out there. I’m definitely writing it with Mark Andrews, and that’s all we’re doing right now.
Q: Is it gonna be live-action?
AS: Everybody’s asking that, and we’re not gonna make that decision for about a year or so.  Interview in Art Of Duze

---

CONFIRMED:
- Pixar is doing the John Carter series
- The first one is probably going to be called Princess of Mars
- It is currently set to be released in theaters in 2012
- They would then continue the series, one film a year (or close to that)
- Andrew Stanton is directing
- Brad Bird is doing a live-action film, 1906, which seems to be a break from Pixar for him ~ Animation Empire

---

Pixar's 'Wall-E' rolls over competition ~ “Wall-E” blasted off at the box office Friday, earning an estimated $23.1 million and giving Disney-Pixar its best opening day ever. The critically acclaimed “Wall-E,” directed by Andrew Stanton, easily won the weekend, grossing an estimated $62.5 million from 3,992 runs. Variety ~ June 29, 2008

---

"WALL-E" wows box office
Reuters ~ June 29, 2008
LOS ANGELES -- Animation giant Pixar hit the box office jackpot once again on Sunday as its robot love story "WALL-E" snagged the No. 1 spot during its first weekend of release across North America. The movie, bolstered by near-unanimous critical praise, earned an estimated $62.5 million in its first three days, said Pixar's Walt Disney Co parent. More>>>

 

Pixar's "John Carter" Team Visits Tarzana
Pre-production for the Disney/Pixar "John Carter of Mars" film is gathering steam

Tarzana, CA: October 2, 2007
The Pixar creative team spent Tuesday morning exploring the massive Edgar Rice Burroughs archives in the ERB, Inc. offices on Ventura Blvd.  Pixar's Jim Morris (vp), Andrew Stanton (director), Mark Andrews (script) discussed the "John Carter of Mars" film project with Burroughs representatives, Danton Burroughs, Sandra Galfas and Jim Sullos. 

All six members at the meeting expressed a deep commitment to the project, acknowledging that they had been inspired by Burroughs' creations from a very early age. This is evidenced in the excitement held for the John Carter property and the plans for a film trilogy faithful to the Burroughs books. Projected release date is sometime before 2012.

Danton Burroughs presented the creative team with a wealth of resources, including art samples and books by ERB scholars such as Irwin Porges and John F. Roy. They noted that their major resource to date had been the thousands of official ERB, Inc. Webpages and Webzines.

~ Bill Hillman