I'm of the opinion that just about everything is made better by the addition of Judi Dench, and Variety reports that Disney's upcoming adaptation of Eoin Colfer's "Artemis Fowl" may benefit from Dench's involvement as she's currently in early talks to join the cast of the upcoming film.
An adaptation of the YA fantasy series has been in the works for quite a number of years, but the project finally began coming together after Disney snagged Kenneth Branagh to develop and direct the property. Irish playwright Conor McPherson will be penning the script which will tell the tale of a young criminal mastermind by the name of Artemis Fowl II. If, like me, you're completely unfamiliar with what the series is all about, let's find out a little more about it.
The fantasy series follows the brilliant and cunning 12-year-old eponymous criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl II, whose cunning plot to extort gold from the secret Fairy People puts him directly in the cross-hairs of some of the most dangerous creatures on earth. Over the series, Fowl becomes a sort of anti-hero rather than a full-fledged villain, often having to work together with the fairies to stop a slew of treacherous megalomaniacs.
It certainly sounds as though it could be interesting, as well as potentially launch a brand-new franchise for Disney, who really need a win after their Marvel Cinematic Universe and STAR WARS movies have continuously failed to acquire all the world's money. ARTEMIS FOWL will hit theaters on August 9, 2019.
Any "Artemis Fowl" fans out there who would like to venture a guess as to who Judi Dench may be playing?
This wouldn't be the first time that Judi Dench will have worked with Kenneth Branagh, as the pair will soon be appearing in MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, an adaption of Agatha Christie's novel of the same name which Branagh also directed. Dench plays Princess Dragomiroff in the upcoming film, which follows Hercule Poirot (Branagh) as he investigates the murder of an American business tycoon on a train, only to find that there are a number of passengers who could potentially be the murderer. Dun dun dun. MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS will hit theaters on November 10, 2017.