Already a 1973 film, the sci-fi western is getting a reboot – as a TV series – thanks to HBO. There is some serious talent on board including: Anthony Hopkins, Evan Rachel Wood, Ed Harris, James Marsden, Thandie Newton, and Miranda Otto. See the teaser clip below and don’t hold the excited squeals.
The original 1973 film was written and directed by novelist Michael Crichton, also known for authoring Jurassic Park and The Lost World which were also developed into major motion pictures. It starred Yul Brenner, Richard Benjamin, and James Brolin; receiving healthy critical reception. The plot revolved around a theme park divided into three zones that allowed visitors to live out their fantasies using robots who could deliver virtually anything to the customers. Two guests choose to experience Westworld, a recreation of olden times, but when a malfunction occurs they are pursued by a rogue gun-slinging robot cowboy.
Hard to imagine this film was made in 1973, the trailer looks fantastic in a ridiculous kind of way. Now that HBO have their hands on it, one can expect an addictive and dark spin on the classic. Just from the teaser below we can see they’re taking it in a new direction, one more suited for the instalment nature of the small screen. HBO states it will be:
“a dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the future of sin.”
The TV show appears as though it will play out from the perspective of the robots and the nature of their existence. Evan Rachel Wood will play a robot farm girl named Delores Abernathy who is unaware her life is not real, while Anthony Hopkins will play the park’s creator, Dr. Robert Ford, in a typically chilling role we imagine. James Marsden is rumoured to play the male lead connected to Delores, with Ed Harris as the main villain, ‘man in black’.
The amount of talent on this project rivals if not betters that of TV’s dominant force Game of Thrones so it’s particularly exciting to see this production underway, especially on the back of strong source material.
The show is backed by J. J. Abrams and Bad Robot Productions and Screenwriter Jonathan Nolan, brother of Christopher whom he worked with on ‘The Prestige’ and ‘The Dark Knight’.
Have you seen the original classic and are you excited for this? What’s your favourite HBO production?