Clive Owen Joins Luc Besson's Sci-Fi Film VALERIAN
The Fifth Element director Luc Besson is returning to sci-fi in a big way with Valerian, his upcoming film that's set to be the most expensive movie his company EuropaCorp has ever made. (Price tag: $180 million.) The writer/director/producer took to Twitter to announce his newest cast member:
The film is based on the 1967 French comic by writer Pierre Christin and artist Jean-Claude Mézières. The story focuses on Valerian (DeHaan) and Laureline (Delevingne), agents who protect people from rogue time travelers, and if the full title holds true — Valerian and the City of 1,000 Planets — it's safe to assume the film is based on the second volume in the saga. Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
Valerian and Laureline are exploring Syrte, capital planet of a system of 1,000 worlds. Their mission is to discover whether the Syrtians could present a danger to Earth. What they find is a decaying empire led by decadent aristocrats, a population ripe for revolution, and a mysterious caste of masked wise men who discreetly pull the strings from hidden fortresses. Swept up by the winds of history, the agents of Earth will have to choose a side.
Sounds interesting, and THR says Owen is set to play a character named Commander Arün Filitt. I have no idea who that is because I haven't read the comic, but since this is a project Besson has been passionate about for years, I'm really hoping it aligns more with his earlier work than his recent stuff. As for Owen, I haven't seen him in anything since the disappointing Killer Elite back in 2011 (I don't have Cinemax, so I still haven't seen The Knick), so I'd love for him to extend his comeback to the big screen in a great movie. Let's hope this is the one.