Warner Bros. Halts ARTHUR & LANCELOT and Pushes JACK THE GIANT KILLER
Things are really not looking good for David Dobkin's Arthur & Lancelot. THR reports that Warner Bros. has taken the film off of its release calendar to fix a myriad of problems, including a ballooning budget. Kit Harrington and Joel Kinnaman were to star in this new take on the King Arthur legend, which was slated to open on March 15, 2013. There is still some hope for fans of the arthurian legend; Studio insiders say, "we are trying to make it work. It's not dead."
Arthur & Lancelot was planned as a lighthearted action pic, in the same vein as Warners' successful Sherlock Holmes. Dobkins is known for directing comedies like Wedding Crashers, so this would be a change of pace for him. The film's budget jumped from less than $100 million to $130 million, prompting Warners to ask for cuts. And while both Harrington and Kinnaman have gained strong reviews for their work on TV, they have yet to be tested on the big screen, which caused concern for WB.
Shooting was scheduled to begin in spring 2012. If the film moves forward, it may be without one of the current stars attached. Kinnaman is currently shooting AMC's The Killing and would then move onto the movie, but Harington was to shoot the movie before filming Game of Thrones in the spring. Harrington would likely be the first casualty if things take too long for Warner Bros.
The studio has also pushed back Bryan Singer's Jack the Giant Killer 3D by nine months to March 22, 2013. Rock of Ages will now fill the vacant June 15, 2012 slot. The move is a logistical one for Warner Bros. They have Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises hitting theaters in July. Pushing Giant Killer back gives the studio more time for special effects, as well as a chance to attach trailers for it to Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.