As noted elsewhere, in all the fanfare over Marvel's upcoming
film slate, MAN-THING directed by Brett Leonard with a cast
of mostly unknowns, has received relatively little attention.
The film, produced by Artisan, Marvel Studios and Fierce
Entertainment, recently wrapped shooting, and today details
of the theatrical releases were announced.
Artisan Entertainment will bring MAN-THING, a collaboration
between Marvel Studios and Fierce Entertainment, based
on the popular Marvel Comics’ character, to theatres nationwide
on August 27, 2004. The announcement made by Marvel Studios
CEO Avi Arad, Artisan Pictures’ President of Production
Richard Saperstein, Artisan Entertainment Executive Vice
President Patrick Gunn and Fierce Entertainment’s
CEO Christopher Petzel comes as the project wraps production
ahead of schedule following an incredibly successful eight-week
shoot.
Adapted to the screen by Hans Rodionoff from the original
1970’s Marvel comic book character and directed by
Brett Leonard, MAN-THING was produced by Marvel Studios
and Fierce Entertainment in association with German equity
fund Screenland Movieworld.
Marvel’s terrifying creature of the swamp, MAN-THING
screams onto our screens in the new horror motion picture
that presents a very different kind of character to the
usual Marvel superhero. Based on the cult comic book series
that was first published in 1971, the MAN-THING is a vengeful
creature born from the evil and injustices perpetrated
against both man and nature.
“MAN-THING has been an unbelievably exciting project
for us. We have always felt that this character’s
story would translate incredibly well to the big screen
as it mixes horrifying action with a truly mesmerizing
and frightful anti-hero,” said Mr. Arad. “Brett
is seen as one of the true pioneers in the creation of
revolutionary computer-generated and mechanical effects
and we now seen first-hand why. His powerful creative vision
has helped bring this character to life in a thoroughly
compelling manner – so much that we have decided
to fast track it for release next summer, fully confident
in its worldwide appeal.”
Commented Mr. Gunn, ““Uncharacteristic of
the typical Marvel characters brought to life on the big
screen, MAN-THING brings a chilling component not previously
showcased in Marvel comic based films. We feel this film
impressively introduces MAN-THING in a manner that will
really thrill the viewing public.
MAN-THING is directed by effects pioneer Brett Leonard,
whose talents in the horror Sci-Fi genre have been proven
by motion pictures such as groundbreaking visual effects
thriller “The Lawnmower Man” and “Virtuosity” starring
Academy-Award winners Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington.
He also directed one of the most successful Imax projects
ever, the 3-D “T-Rex Back to the Cretaceous,” which
grossed over US$100 million worldwide.
Director Brett Leonard, Fierce Entertainment and Marvel
Studios assembled a truly outstanding team of professionals
in bringing MAN-THING to life. The film was shot by award-winning
Director of Photography Steve Arnold (“Terra Nova”, “La
Spagnola”). Production design was handled by Peter
Pound (storyboards for “Babe” and Alex Proyas’ “Dark
City”) and Tim Ferrier (“Farscape”),
while the substantial visual effects work is being performed
by Omnilab and Rising Sun (“The Core”, “Queen
of The Damned”). Special effects and prosthetics
work was provided by The Make-Up Effects Group (“The
Matrix” and “Babe”).
The ensemble cast include Australian icon Jack Thompson
(“Original Sin”, “Midnight in the Garden
of Good and Evil”, “Broken Arrow”), whose
breakout role in the feature film “Breaker Morant” directed
by Bruce Beresford earned him numerous accolades including
Best Supporting Actor at the Cannes Film Festival and an
AFI Award for Best Actor, and acclaimed New Zealand actor
Rawiri Paratene who excited critics around the world with
his performance in the recent independent hit “Whale
Rider”.
The cast also features newcomers Matt Le Nevez (“Garage
Days” diected by Alex Proyas), Rachel Taylor (“Natalie
Wood – Hollywood’s Last Child” by Peter
Bogdanavich), and Steve Bastoni (“The Matrix Reloaded”, “Enter
The Matrix”).
Producer Avi Arad is President and CEO of Marvel Studios.
Following the record-breaking success of the box office
smash hit, “Spider-Man” (Columbia Pictures),
and the establishment of two more proven franchises in
his first Marvel features – “Blade” (New
Line) and X-Men: The Movie (Twentieth Century Fox) - Arad
has numerous film projects based on Marvel super heroes
in various stages of development. He has aligned Marvel
with several prominent studios to produce full-feature
films including: Twentieth Century Fox (“X-Men 2”, “The
Silver Surfer”, “Fantastic Four”, “Daredevil,” and “Elektra”),
Sony Pictures (“Spider-Man 2”, “Ghost
Rider”), Universal Studios (“The Hulk”, “Namor”),
New Line (“Iron Man”), Dimension (“Werewolf
By Night”, “Dr. Strange”), Artisan Entertainment
(“The Punisher”) and Paramount (“Deathlok”).
His reputation has attracted some of Hollywood's most prestigious
directors (i.e. Sam Raimi, Ang Lee and Bryan Singer) and
writers who are helping translate the ever-popular Marvel
super heroes for the big screen.
MAN-THING was shot completely on location in Sydney, Australia.
Specific locations included Wiseman’s Ferry, Serenity
Cove Studios at Kurnell for exterior swamp scenes and Homebush
Bay where an elaborate supernatural swamp environment was
created on a sound stage.
