Thor Director Kenneth Branagh Rumoured For Artemis Fowl

Artemis Fowl may finally be heading to the big screen, as Kenneth Branagh signs up to direct the long-awaited movie adaptation.

According to The Tracking Board, an ‘Artemis Fowl’ movie is finally going ahead… and with Kenneth Branagh at the helm, it sounds like an interesting prospect.

“Walt Disney Pictures and The Weinstein Company are finally moving forward on the seriously long-awaited ‘Artemis Fowl’ adaptation, securing the ever-surprising Kenneth Branagh to direct.”

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‘Artemis Fowl’ is based on the 2001 novel by Eoin Colfer and follows 12-year-old criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl II as he attempts to extort gold from the elusive fairy people. But this soon puts him in the sights of some of the most dangerous creatures on the planet – and thrusts poor Artemis into a fantastical world of high-tech gadgetry and mythical beings.

“Sources caution that the studio is now on the look-out for a new writer to tackle the fantasy pic, which has long been pitched as Harry Potter meets Die Hard. Julie Oh is overseeing for the Weinstein Co., while Tendo Nagenda and Jessica Virtue are shepherding for the House of Mouse. Branagh and Harvey Weinstein are producing.”

Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen ‘Artemis Fowl’ in the works…

Way back in 2001, Miramax purchased the rights to series with the intention of launching a film adaptation. Canadian director Lawrence Guterman was set to direct, but while a script had been written by 2003, original novel writer Eoin Colfer remained sceptical that it would come to pass.

Since then, the film remained stuck in development Hell for a number of years, until it was reported in 2011 that Jim Sheridan was interested in directing the long-forgotten movie. But by 2013, it transpired that Disney and Harvey Weinstein had now taken over the project…

After fourteen years, ten writers and two directors, it now looks as though ‘Artemis Fowl’ is getting another shot at the big screen. Will it actually happen this time? For now, we’ll have to wait and see.

But it’s likely to be a huge hit with the right director at the helm.

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Picture Credit: Viking Press, WENN