When Disney and the Weinstein brothers – founders of Miramax – parted company in a rather messy way in 2005, most people thought that would be the last time Harvey Weinstein would ever work with the House Of Mouse. However it’s now been revealed they’re teaming for a planned film version of Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl’s books.
It’s far from the first time a Fowl book has been mooted. Indeed one of the reasons we’ve haven’t had one before was due to the Weinstein-Disney break-up. Miramax owned the rights to the books, but they went to Disney when the two sides parted. However the company didn’t do much with them.
Now it’s back in motion though. The live-action feature will be based on the first and second installments in the best-selling children’s fiction series. Artemis Fowl is about a 12-year-old Artemis who is a millionaire, a genius – and above all, a criminal mastermind. But Artemis doesn’t know what he’s taken on when he kidnaps a fairy (Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit) to harness her magic to save his family. These aren’t the fairies of the bedtime stories – they’re dangerous.
Michael Goldenberg (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix) has been hired to write the screenplay, with Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal set to executive produce.
Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn commented,”Harvey is one of the preeminent producers in the industry, with impeccable taste and creative instincts. I had a wonderful time working with Harvey during my tenure at Warner Bros., and I’m very happy to continue that relationship here at Disney.”
Harvey Weinstein also had something to say: “If you would have told me five years ago I would be producing a project with Disney I would have thought you were crazy. I feel as though everything is coming full circle considering Bob De Niro and Jane Rosenthal brought me this book while I was still at Miramax and within hours I told them I wanted the rights to the film. I am thrilled to be reunited with Alan Horn who I worked with while he was at Warner Bros. and we had tremendous success with The Aviator, Starsky & Hutch and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It is also exciting to partner with friends Alan Bergman, Sean Bailey and of course Bob Iger who has been incredibly generous to me over the years. This is a special project for me because my children absolutely love this book. This story is for everyone and there is no one better than Disney to make a film that will excite people young and old.”
There’s no news on when we might see the movie.
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