Reinventing popular franchises seems to be all the rage these days from James Bond to the Caped Crusader. Next in line will be the purple-suited comic strip hero, The Phantom with “The Phantom Legacy.”
The character was last seen on the big-screen, played by Billy Zane in 1996’s, “The Phantom.” The movie didn’t generate enough box-office cash to warrant a sequel and, while entertaining, has been largely forgotten in the wake of such superhero fare as the X-Men, Batman and Spider-Man franchises.Â
Now, it appears the Phantom will get his chance to step up and try to deliver box-office gold.  The new film will not be a sequel to the 1996 movie, according to script writer, Tim Boyle.  Instead, it will be a fresh look at the origins of the masked hero who fights evil from his jungle headquarters.
“One of the things that I always questioned about the Phantom is why the Phantom legacy keeps passing down from generation to generation,” Boyle told the Associated Press. “To me, what would be interesting is seeing the son that didn’t want to be the Phantom.”
“That to me is a far more interesting story,” Boyle said. “So that’s kind of where I focused the plot around with the father and son sort of thing — where the father is the Phantom, but the son doesn’t want to be the Phantom, and the question is … will he step up and be the man he’s destined to be? Or will he go down a different path?”Â
And while this will be a new take on the Phantom, a familiar face will be working on the movie in the role of producer Bruce Sherlock. Sherlock produced the original movie.
“It has the makings of a blockbuster,” Sherlock said. “There’s some surprises that will thrill the Phantom fans worldwide.”
The new Phantom movie will be shot down-under in Australia with a budget of just over $80 million. Production is expected to begin in the next six to nine months.
Phew!
When I saw the title, I was very worried about a Phantom Menace “special” edition.
I’m a fan of both the classic and modern comics. I think the classic comics are a better fit to being put to film. Speaking of film, the Billy Zane version left a lot to be desired, and strayed into the supernatural in a way the comics never did. The 1996 movie did not even attempt to capture the feel of the comics, and is a poor example, in my opinion, of an adaptation of the story.
The proposed father-son conflict . . . beh . . . I can see doing a movie on the origin, the building of the myth of the Ghost Who Walks, but this does not sound like something I will be pleased with. I mean, I’ll watch it just because I am a fan, but my expectations, based on the write up, are no better than what I have for Day the Earth Stood Still, Whoa! Edition.