Mar 14, 2008 | by Rodney
Spielberg to direct first TinTin, Jackson Second
Peter Jackson and Steven Speilberg have announced that their TinTin Trilogy project is well underway and they have announced their choice for directors. Each other.
Cinematical says:
As you may remember, Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson are collaborating to bring the popular Tintin series to life. Now comes the news, from a recent Andy Serkis interview, that Spielberg intends to tackle the first film and Jackson the second. No one yet knows who might be directing the third film./blockquote>I was never a fan of TinTin, but it still registered on my radar. I had no idea it had enough of a following to justify a movie with such big names behind it.Are you looking forward to this because Spielberg and Jackson are directing the first two chapters?
Or are you looking forward to it because it is a TinTin Movie?Or did you just Google TinTin to find out what it is all about?
18 Comments, Comment or Ping
Steve L.
First thought that came to mind was, “what the hell is Tin Tin?”. Then I proceeded directly to Google…Yea, no interest what so ever.
Mar 14th, 2008
shadopup
Tintin is actually super popular in Europe. It’s creator is Belgian and thus is particularly recognized amongst French speakers though the comics have been translated into many different languages. I liked the comics and the cartoons as a kid growing up in Quebec. I’m not surprised that the rest of North America has not heard much of Tintin.
Kind of reminds me of the Rain post. Never heard of him so he must not be popular…wrong (crazy popular singer/actor in South Korea). Same thing with Tintin. Maybe this blog could use another blogger who’s more aware of pop culture, actors and movies from outside of Hollywood. It could be a fun movie with nice scenery trekking around Europe.
Now as for my thoughts of a live action Tintin movie…it definitely could work but I really liked the cartoons. It does have a nice combination of adventure and silly somewhat predictable humor. Personally I’ve always liked the dog named “Snow” in English or “Milou” in French.
Mar 14th, 2008
Mozzerino
I’m really curious about this project.
Obviously because of Spielberg and Jackson, but also because of the property as well.
Tin Tin is one of the biggest and influential projects in the history of comics and I loved the books as a kid and they posses a timeless quality. In Spielberg’s hands, this will probably turn out to be a bit like ADVENTURES OF YOUNG INDY.
I hope they can turn this into exciting adventure movies without going crazy with big CGI-creatures and monsters. The comics never were about that. They were always about exotic locations, but didn’t cross over into the supernatural too much.
Tin Tin himself is a tricky part too play though. While he works in the comics, he has the tendency to come across kind of strange in life-action I suppose.
Maybe Freddie Highmore could play him. Or Daniel Radcliffe (just kidding).
I’m looking forward to this.
Mar 14th, 2008
Mozzerino
@shadopup
I second that, Tin Tin is HUGE in Europe. It’s probably a bit like THE SMURFS, who are also much more popular in the old country than in the US.
By the way, the dog was called “Struppi” in the german version.
Mar 14th, 2008
rafa1215
I hope Spielberg explains a lot about this character on the screen. A lot of us over here don’t know who/what Tin Tin is. We know the dog Rin Tin Tin but not no Tin Tin.
Mar 14th, 2008
Pancho
Tintin is not only very popular in Europe; here, in Sudamerica his fame is tremendous; In the USA, maybe is less known because the proliferation of vernacular comics, the economical protection of the industry and the prejudges to the european cultural products, but Tintin have an enormous potential to attract the fans of adventures. Further is a magnificient work of art, and maybe the most notorious comic character, beside the french Asterix and Obelix, ever created in Europe. (sorry for the possible gramatical and syntactical faults, i’m not accustomed to write in english)
Mar 14th, 2008
miles
of all the franchises to dedicate such serious talent to….
blech.
Mar 14th, 2008
Letodan
Well, As a french speaking guy from Quebec, I can say that Tintin has been a part of my childhood and even being over 30, I still enjoy those stories as much as when I was a kid. Like others have said, I think that in the french community and probably in most of Europe, it most be the most influencial comic character ever created. I still have all the Tintin books at my parents’ and everytime I go see them, at some point, I take a Tintin and start reading it, as it brings me back to my childhood!!
I don’t know if PJ or SS will succeed in bringing Tintin to life but, it has everything to work. Great characters, great humor, lots of adventure, a little of surnatural. Everything to make it work!
Mar 14th, 2008
Bishop
Djimon Honsou is directing the third…
Mar 14th, 2008
John J. Rambo
If I have to ask…what the eff is TinTin??… not a good sign. Screw this.
Mar 14th, 2008
liverpool fc
Typical north american responses from the lot of you.. “what is tintin?” Everyone across the atlantic, including south africa, knows what tintin is, and to hear that they are making a movie out of this character is siick. Maybe if you immersed yourself in stuff other than transformers you’d get an idea of what tintin is all about.. just maybe.
Mar 14th, 2008
WolfMarauder
I have read every Tintin comic that was translated into English. They’re quite genius, and my fellow Americans need to go out and read some of them immediately. It’s a very witty blend of geopolitical drama, slapstick humor, supernatural adventure, and pulp comic archetypes. They’re both funny and thrilling, and have some absolutely brilliant characters. Check them out.
Mar 14th, 2008
shadopup
Ummm, weird the last sentence of the second paragraph was suppose to be the last sentence of the last paragraph in my previous post above. That’s all I wanted to say.
Mar 14th, 2008
Slushie Man
Wow, I can’t believe the number of people who have never heard of Tin Tin. It was a cartoon on TV when I was a kid, and I remember watching it every day, and ever other kid I knew watched it just as much. I don’t know where you guys all live, but I live in Canada, don’t know if it was bigger here then in the U.S. or something, but everyone I know on the net has never heard of it but everyone I know put in the real world remembers the cartoon fondly from childhood, and it was quite huge with everyone I know. Weird.
Mar 14th, 2008
Slushie Man
“what the eff is TinTin??… not a good sign. Screw this.”
And THAT’S why we keep getting remakes and sequels and nothing new is ever tried out, is cause of attitudes like that. It’s people like you, that make the Studios put out the shit they do, and refrain from trying to be bold and new.
Mar 14th, 2008
Gerry Alanguilan
What’s that word? Self Centered? Egocentric? Perhaps a little more looking outward is required to realize that hey, a whole BIGGER world exists OUTSIDE America. It’s obvious a lot of you don’t even have a clue how huge Tintin is. And it is HUGE. Perhaps the involvement of names like Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg ought to have been a clue. Jeez.
Mar 14th, 2008
Rodney
TinTin was a french newspaper strip by Belgian artist Hergé that started in 1929. He died in 1983.
Regardless of how many countless strips this had, it was in majority a European comic strip translated from French.
Again, how is it ignorant that the majority of the North American public wouldn’t know about this? That’s right. Because of all the multitude of topics we write about on this site, we only know about Transformers.
Make all the assumptions you want about North American ignorance, but the fact remains that it was never as popular here as it was in Europe.
Jackson and Spielberg will make sure we know what it is soon.
Mar 14th, 2008
Slushie Man
Rodney, I think he was getting at that it’s ignorant to not want this made into a movie because it’s not popular in America, in reply to a guy above who said that. Not that Americans have never heard of it.
Mar 15th, 2008
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