Schwarzenegger’s LEGEND OF CONAN Gets A Writer

Legend Of Conan, the film which will see Arnold Schwarzenegger return to the barbarian role that launched his career after nearly three decades, has a writer. Universal Pictures has closed a deal with World Trade Center scribe Andrea Berloff to pen the new film, which is expected to be tonally more in line with the grim and violent original 1982 film Conan The Barbarian than its more jokey 1984 sequel Conan The Destroyer.

Based on the classic character created by pulp writer Robert E Howard, the cinematic Conan franchise laid dormant for years after the poor critical reception that Destroyer received. John Milius, who directed the original Conan film, attempted to launch a sequel, King Conan: Crown Of Iron, in the early 2000s, but the script he wrote never gained any traction. A relaunch of the franchise was attempted in 2011 with Jason Momoa in title role was met with tepid reviews and box office, though it has gained a cult following among fans of the character.

Berloff is currently writing on a script for Disney that retells the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, perhaps a good swords and fantasy warmup for Conan.

While it is exciting to see Schwarzenegger returning to the role that made him famous, I am a little leery about the project as a whole. I was one of the people who really liked the 2011 Conan The Barbarian and thought that Momoa injected a bit more life into the role that Schwarzenegger played fairly stoically. But this is a hit that Schwarzenegger really needs, as his return to acting following his stint as governor of California has not yielded much success yet.

Via Deadline.