Fables, a popular DC Comics series, is said to be receiving its own film adaptation. The series focuses on fairytale characters, such as Cinderalla and the Big Bad Wolf, that are kicked out of their fantastical worlds and instead live in New York City. The film version of the comic series will be directed by Nikolaj Arcel, a Danish writer/director known for his directorial work on 2012’s A Royal Affair and his contributions to the 2009 version of The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo, starring Noomi Rapace. The screenplay will be written by Jeremy Slater, who is also helping to write 2015’s The Fantastic Four reboot. Adding to the list of impressive crew members are David Heyman and Jeffrey Clifford of Heyday Films, the producers behind the Harry Potter films and movies like I Am Legend and Yes Man.
The attempts made to bring Fables into the realm of film are numerous; at one point Warner Brothers and the Jim Henson Company tried to produce the film and American Horror Story director David Semel was attached to a television adaptation of the comic series in 2006. Past failed attempts aside, the current combination of Arcel, Slater, and Heyday Films seems to be a force to be reckoned with, making the chances of a screen version of Fables highly likely.
What is less certain is the success Fables will have once it hits the big screen. Both comic adaptations and fairy tale re-tellings are immensely popular right now, but the premise hardly seems unique; one need look no further than ABC’s Once to see a myriad of fairy tale characters dropped into a real world, albeit rural, setting. Once has been very successful, but producers certainly have to be leery of audience burnout.
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