While I like to think of myself as a pretty massive Stephen King fan, there are still a handful of his novels that I have not had the pleasure of diving into just yet. One such novel is King's 1984 fantasy THE EYES OF THE DRAGON. Evidently, the novel isn't "horror" so it's been put on the back burner of my reading list, but all the same, today we have word that Hulu is developing a pilot based on the book.
IT and CHILD'S PLAY producer Seth Grahame-Smith will be exec produce along with David Katzenberg, Bill Haber, Roy Lee, and Jon Berg. Grahame-Smith is also all set writing the opening episode and serving as the showrunner. He says:
I am so excited to be working in the world of Stephen King with Hulu, which has such a terrific track record with Stephen King adaptations. The goal for this series is to feel unlike any Stephen King adaptation before, with this rich underlying source material, and the only true fantasy book he wrote that has kings and swords and princesses. We will honor the spirit of the book and the legacy.
The book takes place in the fictional realm of Delain and tells the story of power and the path of two prince brothers.
King Roland’s manipulative magician, Flagg, sees his power threatened when Queen Sasha gives birth to Peter, an heir to the throne. When the queen is pregnant with a second son, Flagg gets her midwife to mortally wound the queen and so begins his plot to dispose of the future king. Peter brings wine to his father’s bedchambers each night and Flagg poisons the potion and frames the son. The magician has meanwhile also been manipulating the younger son, Thomas, showing him secret passages where the boy can spy on his father. Thomas sees the murder of the king and the frameup of his brother but is torn when Peter is found guilty and locked in an enormous tower. After all with Peter gone, he’s king at age 12. He allows Flagg widespread power that corrupts the kingdom. Meanwhile, Peter must attempt an escape to thwart Flagg and win back the throne.
Again I haven't read this book so I cannot comment on its quality or plot. But the elevator pitch of "Stephen King's Game of Thrones" has got to be MORE than enough to get studios jumping for a hand in the pot. Plus, I missed dragons on the screen. I don't watch GOT (no reason other than being too busy at the moment) and the last dragon to kick ass was Smaug from Peter Jackson's THE HOBBIT movies (see above and hilariously below).
We'll let you know when we hear more!