Interview: Matt Parker

In the latest edition of Interview, Last Resort Films president Phil Dolan sits down with Matt Parker ("Gauntlet", Depth Perception) to discuss his adaptation of the The Dark Tower series, his love of Stephen King and future projects.....

PD: The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger is now your fourth Stephen King adaptation for the studio. What draws you to his work?

MP: I've been reading his books since I was in elementary school and have often felt that his works deserve better treatment than they have often received in cinema and television.

PD: What made you want to adapt The Dark Tower series?

MP: Aside from the horrible Ron Howard-produced adaptation? I feel the series is a rich fantasy epic in the vein of The Lord of the Rings, but with a darker, more adult, edge to it. If done right, I believe the series could be held in the same regard, so I hopefully I do it justice.

PD: Given that you've become the resident Stephen King adapter, are there any other works from King you'd like to bring to the big screen?

MP: There certainly are. I don't want to tip my hand too much, but there are a couple books that were adapted long ago that I would like to attempt to remake. There are also a few things that have never been filmed before that I would like to tackle.

PD: What's next for you?

MP: Well, I'm hoping that The Gunslinger does well enough to continue adapting the series. I have also been working on a film adaptation of the comic series Y: The Last Man that I think could become a series if successful. I have also been working on a sequel to one of my most successful films, Six Billion Dollar Man. I feel like the first film was too close to the original vision of the television series, but it was lacking an element of fun. The sequel will up the comedy quite a bit while having some fun with the ridiculous mythos of the series.