Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Clash of the Titans (2010)


On April 2 of this year, talking about the original 1981 "Clash of the Titans" I anticipated the remake in progress.

The Clash of the Titans remake began development in 2002 under producer Adam Schroeder and writers John Glenn and Travis Wright. They wanted to drop the element of the gods playing chess. Producer Basil Iwanyk revived the project in 2006 with a rewrite by Travis Beacham, a fan of the original. Lawrence Kasdan and director Stephen Norrington signed on in 2007.

But Norrington was unsure about his direction for the project, because he did not grow up with the original. Leterrier, who did, contacted Norrington through their shared agent about replacing him by June 2008. Leterrier noted the original Clash of the Titans inspired the climax of his previous film The Incredible Hulk – a battle in a burnt down courtroom with temple-like columns – and has compared modern superheroes to Greek mythology. Writers Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi reworked Kasdan's script, which had been written with an R rating in mind.

Leterrier sought Ray Harryhausen's involvement, and reunited with Hulk concept artist Aaron Sims, who had already been working on Clash of the Titans with Norrington. Sims had difficulty designing Medusa, explaining "Are they all the same snake [in her hair]? Do they look more like hair? Are they different in silhouette or in light? And how much of a human face does she have, or is it more like a snake? [...] I was working on one design, and people said 'That reminds me of Voldemort,’ because there was no nose. You have to be careful so it still looks like it's an original idea."

Filming began April 27, 2009, in London at Shepperton Studios. Filming will also take place in Wales and the Canary Islands, primarily in Tenerife, while aerial photography will be conducted in Iceland, and Ethiopia.

Filming of volcano scenes at the Harriet hole in Dinorwic Slate Quarry in Wales wrapped at the end of July. This slate quarry has also been used for locations for Willow and Street Fighter.

"Clash of the Titans" will be released on March 26, 2010.


No comments: