Showing posts with label Fables movie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fables movie. Show all posts

Thursday, May 14, 2015

Bill Willingham on the End of "Fables" and The Power of Folklore

By Nimit Malavia - front view of the wrap-around cover for the final issue of Fables


Note: Just for fun, the first image in this post is the cover for the upcoming, very last issue of Fables, while the last image is of the very first Fables cover. Throughout I've put 'in progress' sketches, some are the designs used and some are ones that were never published until the Special Edition hard covers.

Bill Willingham, creator of the long running comic series Fables, was just at the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) a couple of weekends ago, and took some time to talk to The Mary Sue about a few things, including the status of the Fables movie (as far as he knows), how it feels to be at the end of Fables and, among other things, his opinion on the power of folklore. The Mary Sue posted their interview at the beginning of the week and...
I have to share!

So here's what Bill Willingham has to say on fairy tales, mythology and folklore, via The Mary Sue (emphasis in bold is mine):
TMS: I’m always curious why certain nursery rhymes or certain fairytales–stuff that isn’t mythology–
Willingham: Well it’s folklore, and folklore is mythology told by people who stopped being impressed with you. Mythology is “oh the Gods are this and that and mysterious and exciting,” and folklore is “well I’m going to tell you the tale of the Gods, but I’ve been their housekeepers for 600 years, and I know how he used to poop his diapeys. I am not impressed.” There’s a sense of wonder, there’s a sense of justice and absurdity, but not a sense of removal, you’re right in there. This is a story that doesn’t happen to important people far away, it happened to me or my aunt. So I like that, I like the immediacy.
When I was putting Fables together, I like this idea of a hidden community, and it was either going to be mythology characters or fairy tale characters, I liked both. The origin of my love for fairytales was when I discovered that they’re folklore. You know as a kid, fairytales, I liked them but I was not in love with or that impressed by them, it was just ‘these are the things that are available.’ But then, there’s this show Bullwinkle, and within this show there’s a cartoon called “Fractured Fairytales” wherein they take fairy tales and tell them in funny, mocking ways. As a kid I assumed there were rules for everything. So I’m watching this thing about the big bad wolf or something, and I knew this was not how it went, and I expressed my outrage. My mother was there and I said “how can they do this? Aren’t they going to get in trouble? This is not how it happens!” And without knowing the term public domain, she explained the whole thing. “These are folklore, they belong to the folk.”
Folklore–the thing I love about it–is it belongs to everyone, but not in a community. It’s not like we get together and decide what we’re going to do with our ownership of this, we individually own 100% of it. Every single human being who exists. We’re all born rich with this wonderful treasure.

             


Thank you Bill! I want to cheer in response to that last part in particular.

He goes on to talk about criticism, using the "a cat can look at a king" saying, which fits well on this theme. Here he's talking about how the internet has affected expression of ideas, feedback and how that's a good thing (the middle man and gatekeepers are often cut out) and a bad thing (the lack of manners and being able to converse civilly is being shown to be seriously lacking.)

Willingham: There’s an old saying I used to love, “a cat can look at a king.” Which is, there’s no person that’s so great that the great unwashed masses are physically unable to see them, the peasant and the king still share some commonality. And now with the Internet, that is the case. What we’re trying to do is figure out the rules of life now, because the Internet has changed everything. So we’ve come up with notions and spread wacky ideas. The notion that ‘I can dress this way but you shouldn’t be looking at me,’ in my mind that’s nonsense because a cat can look at a king. Anyone can look at anyone. And yet that’s a thing we’re wrestling with now, but we’re not really wrestling with that, we’re wrestling with ‘it’s a whole new world, and we’ve lost manners along the way and we’re beginning to perceive that we need them.’ But to call them manners and etiquette and things like that is kind of old fogey, so we’re coming up with new terms...

You can read the rest of his response and ideas about the internet, and how they affect creators in the interview - definitely worth it, if you're a writer, artist or working the public in any way.

You can read the whole article HERE, which isn't at all your standard interview at all. I also really like how he talked about his approach when beginning to work with the first, and very quickly the main or key artist, Mark Buckingham on Fables. Willingham's 'version' of the Hippocratic oath, "first, tell the story", which was the golden first pass editing rule for any script or idea. I love it.
Re the Fables movie - as far as he knows, it's still happening but has had issues with the script so there's a new writer on board now (I do't know if it's the same one that was announced not long ago, or if this has happened since). Most importantly, he has great respect for the writer and is happy to see them on board. But no other new details.

                     
The Guardian also had a nice and personal summary and tribute to the end of the Fables series and Willinghams' work, which you can find HERE. Here are some extracted highlights:

By the end of this month, after 13 years of stories, Bill Willingham’s multiple award-winning series, Fables, will reach its 150th and final issue. What a long, strange, sweet, weird, sad, rambunctious, irreverent, wistful and elating ride it has been.
Besides the series itself, there have the spin-offs: the 50 issues of Jack of Fables, two volumes of Cinderella adventures, 33 issues of Fairest, The Wolf Among Us and Werewolves of the Heartland and 1001 Nights of Snowfall and Peter and Max and The Last Castle.
...The idea was so brilliantly simple it was immediately complex. In Fables, there has been a coup d’état across the realms of the imagination, orchestrated by The Adversary. The huddled masses of familiar faces – Cinderella and Snow White, Little Boy Blue and Prince Charming, the Wicked Witch and Bluebeard – find sanctuary in our world. Made glamorous by their magic, they create a safe haven for themselves in New York and an upstate hideaway for the Three Little Pigs, Chicken Little, Reynard the Fox and Tom Thumb (who’s dating Thumbelina, OMG) and all the other Fables who wouldn’t quite manage to pass themselves off as “mundanes” if you met them in Central Park.
The genius of Fables was to be as expansive as the fairytales themselves. The first few issues were a gumshoe detective mystery, with Bigby Wolf, who used to be both big and bad, trying to solve the mystery of Rose Red’s death. Then it shifted to political thriller, to comedy, to romance, to caper, to horror, to metafictional gallimaufry, to tragedy, to farce, to elegy, to slapstick.
Its success has demonstrated the resilience of fairytales themselves – I can imagine editorial meetings where they might have said “Can we really stretch Cinderella into a covert Modesty Blaize figure without the sexism? Or the Frog Prince, can he be a bit like Dostoyevsky’s Prince Myshkin? And that crazy badger, Brock – OK to make him a religious fanatic?” They stretched it and stretched it and it did not break.
I want to include more, but you really should read it in context for yourself. There's enough of a summary for those familiar with most to be reminded and enough of the plot to catch you up if you missed some of the big stuff, but it still leaves plenty to be surprised by.

If you wondered what happened to the Fairest series, that wrapped with Issue #33, concentrating on the baddest bad girl in Willingham's universe: Goldilocks. There's a great interview about it HERE.

The Fables comic series finishes in JULY this year (currently scheduled for release July 22nd) with the giant 150th - aka FINAL - issue. Here's the official write-up:
Fables final issue #150: Written by Bill Willingham, art by Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Andrew Pepoy, Mark Schultz, Gene Ha, Neal Adams and others, wraparound cover by Nimit Malavia. 
Final issue. It's the final trade paperback volume of Fables! No, wait -- it's Fables #150, the grand finale of the best-selling, award-winning comic book series! And it's also an original graphic novel in the tradition of 1001 Nights of Snowfall! Yes, it's all this and more! Join us for 150 -- that's, right, 150! -- pages of new stories starring your favorite Fables, all from the mind of Bill Willingham. It all starts with an 80-page lead story illustrated by series regulars Mark Buckingham and Steve Leialoha, plus stories illustrated by Mark Schultz, Gene Ha, Neal Adams, Andrew Pepoy and many more! 
The final bows for Boy Blue, Stinky, Lake and more in this once-in-a-lifetime issue that also features a foldout cover by Nimit Malavia that opens into a four-panel mural! It's even got metallic ink! 
160 pages, $17.99, in stores on July 22. 
Note: Fables artists featured above are: Top of post - Nimit Malavia, Joao Ruas - winged monkey versions and the 100th issue versions, James Jean - all the rest.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

"Fables" Movie Gets "Kick-Ass" (& "Stardust") Screenwriter

Snow White by James Jean front cover for the expanded edition re-release of the Fables Cover Collection
(coming Feb 2015)
Here's some news that's getting pop culture (and possibly some fairy tale) geeks excited again: Warner Bros and the Fables movie has announced they have a new screenwriter: Jane Goldman. She's known for the recent movie Kick-Ass, Stardust, two X-Men films, and has most recently worked on Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (currently in pre-production).

In pop culture terms, Kick-Ass got a lot of 'street cred' (critics either thought it was an smart and outrageous black comedy or thought it was just violent and distasteful - I haven't seen it so can't comment), so people are REALLY excited to see what she will do with Fables.

Here are some quotes from the press release interview with Producer David Heyman (best known for the Harry Potter movies and, at the moment, Paddington), care of Slash Film and Comic Book Resources:
Rose Red by James Jean
back cover for the expanded edition re-release
 the Fables Cover Collection
(coming Feb 2015)

[Arcel] did a draft, and now he’s supervising Jane, who’s doing a draft. Hoping that it’ll come in and we’ll be able to move to the next stage. All these things always take longer than you want. And ‘Fables’ is not easy, by any means, but I think it’ll be pretty great.

Heyman also spoke about what attracted him to the property:
I’m drawn to stories about outsiders, and I think the Fables are outsiders. They’re people torn from the place where they were raised, by The Adversary. They arrive in a New York City-type place, and how we’re approaching is that they’re people who are all separate, and how they ultimately have to form the community in order to survive. They’re all inhabiting their own little universes within this world. But they have to form this community, and that really appealed to me. And I just think the characters are so vivid. And I also think the farm is, again, it’s very human. That’s what I like. It’s a challenging film.
The long-running Fables comics are rapidly drawing toward their final release (I cannot quite believe it!). They're in the midst of the Happily Ever After story arc (the Finale) and issue #148  - Chapter 8 of the last story - was released today. The last story arc echoes the opening, focusing on the two female leads, Snow White and her sister Rose Red and their ongoing troubled relationship (a different take again on the meaning of Beauty and the Beast here...).

Below are the synopsis for issue #148 and the cover. (The cover appears to be the Snow White character, surrounded,or being attacked, by red roses.)
 Chapter Eight of Happily Ever After; The Last Story of Beauty and the Beast

At long last Rose Red learns the truth about her mother, her sister and herself. This is why they’re so magical. This is why all of that wild magic is affecting their lives now. And this is why one will ultimately have to kill the other. Apparently that’s what siblings in this family do. 
Plus: Terry Moore illustrates the backup feature, “The Last Story of Beauty and the Beast.”

Thursday, May 1, 2014

Tons of "Fables" News: Movie Update, Willingham Teases End Of Series Details, the Fables Game "Levels Up" + Bonus Awesome Cosplay

Bigby Wolf & Snow White of Fables, "The Wolf Among Us" video game cosplay by Saskeks-Cosplay
The Fables movie news is pretty small but very significant. Warners is now in direct competition with Disney, now that Disney has bought Marvel so the amp up on superhero movies is expected and speculated on. The big question is, since it's Warner's property: will they be doing a Wonder Woman movie? The answer is "not yet" because there are a bunch of others already in production ahead in the cue, including...
...several other movies in development unconnected to the Justice League that are based on DC superheroes and fantasy and crime titles from its Vertigo line of genre comics, said Mr. Silverman and Toby Emmerich, president of Warner’s New Line Cinema label. They include “Shazam,” “Metal Men,” “100 Bullets,” and “Fables.” (Wall Street Journal)
What does that tell you? That Warners are confident enough in how the Fables movie is going that it's been put forward as a major property, currently in active development, and that other likely-to-be-hot properties (aka Wonder Woman) are going to have to wait their turn until after Fables is complete (or at least well established in actual production).

AKA: it's very good news! At least, that's where it stands right now, anyway. These things change so quickly but for the present it's full steam ahead on another fairy tale film of major proportions. *fistpump*

And regarding the long-running, critically acclaimed, Eisner Award-winning, fan-favorite comic book series, Fables ,wrap -up (cue wailing and gnashing of teeth), here's a little teaser that came out on Monday (April 29th), care of ComicBookMovie.com and DC All Access:
In this exclusive clip from DC All Access, Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham reminisce about their long running Vertigo fantasy series and share some hints on where it's going in its final year. Plus, look for an exclusive announcement about Fables #150 and the final arc of Fables!
Did they just say "I guess there MIGHT BE A POSSIBILITY of returning to those (surviving) characters..."? I hear more fairy tale possibilities for the future care of Willingham & Co... *double fistpump!*

By the way, the images are cosplay for the TellTale Games video game Fables prequel The Wolf Among Us. The talented cosplayers are Saskeks-Cosplay team and aren't the only cosplay I've seen for the game (though their comicbook-line approach is pretty cool and unique). And you know what they say about cosplay, right? OK, I don't know what the phrase is exactly but it's akin to someone tattooing one of your characters on their body. It's considered a "level-up". 
Note: the most recent episode of The Wolf Among Us, A Crooked Mile, is getting amazing reviews. It's been called addicting and akin to The Walking Dead (which TellTale Games won Game of the Year for last year). The Wolf Among Us seemed to slump slightly with the second chapter but people are revved all over again and demanding the next chapter release dates be moved up. (I'm sure they're adding a pretty please in there somewhere... with bared fangs..)

Additional sources: HERE & HERE (and a ton of other reviews from gamers - official and amateur)

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Fables Movie Update (There's *Almost* a Script Already!)

Bigby Wolf by Jeremy Bear
Gotta love getting bonus news on the end of a completely different interview which posted yesterday (Friday) afternoon...

I Am Rogue had an exclusive interview with Producer David Heyman, who had a huge hand in bringing the Harry Potter books to the big screen and whose currently-screening project is a little film called Gravity (you may have heard of it? Sandra Bullock, George Clooney... yeah - that Gravity). His current project-in-the-works is, you guessed it, bringing Fables to the big screen*.

Here's the Fables-relevant portion of the interview:
Producer David Heyman
Finally, are you still working on the feature film adaption of author Bill Willingham’s fan-favorite comic book seriesFables? 
Heyman: I am and I’m really excited.  
It has had over 133 issues and is still going, so there is a lot of story to narrow down into one movie. How do you decide what to focus on? Are you going to just concentrate on the Big Bad Wolf’s storyline, or will it feature other popular characters like Jack Horner? 
Heyman: I think we want to bring in most certainly elements of many different characters that make up this world because it really is about a community of sorts. I’m sure Bigby will feature. We’re working with a really brilliant director in Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair). 
Are you still in the script stage? 
Heyman: Yes, we’re in the script stage. We’re waiting for a first draft now.      
So what we now know/is confirmed, is:

1) Fables is well and truly happening - for REALS Y'ALL! (OK, yes. I'm still super excited about this. Why? It's exciting stuff. Period.)
2) They have signed a director: Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair)
3) They have a writer/s, and have gone from treatment/pitch to "script stage" where a first draft is currently being written (that's a big deal - a lot of films get stuck in development and writers don't even get employed to do a first draft)
4) They have chosen their core players (at least) from the gigantic cast of Fables are it looks like Bigby (aka the Big Bad Wolf, aka Fabletown's Sheriff, aka Snow White's love interest)
5) They're going to have a decently sized cast in which characters will play their storybook roles as part of a community (as opposed to faceless/featureless background/filler casting)
6) They're leaving a lot of room open to develop a franchise with a community set-up (ie. sequels, feature stories etc) should the movie go over well
7) This movie is moving along at a good pace and if they keep on this track we could actually see a movie by sometime in 2015... (based on average successful, highly anticipated and well funded movie development)

We have yet to hear word of the next biggest priorities: art direction and casting (but you can bet your Fables collection they're being talked about in every Fables movie meeting right now.)

All sounds great to me. I may have to ramp up my Fables catch-up reading faster than I thought. (This is NOT a complaint.)

* BTW - in case you've forgotten this is being helmed by Warner Bros in conjunction with DC Entertainment. 

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

"Fables" Movie Must-Haves (According to Mark Buckingham)

Fables Cover with Snow White and Bigby Wolf
While there hasn't been any new news from the Fables movie front (yet)  - apart from at Comic-Con last week DC's Diane Nelson said "Fables is a top priority" (!)it doesn't mean it isn't being talked about, nor that some fairly qualified people aren't weighing in with their (worth more than just) two cents.

Fables artist Mark Buckingham, while acknowledging that the Fables world is very complex and has a huge variety of options in story lines and characters to concentrate on, regarding a "first" movie, he believes there are at least two "must have" characters, if the world (and franchise) is to get off on the right foot.

In talking to iO9 he said:
I think if it doesn't have Snow White and Bigby [Wolf] in it, then... [that's a problem]. They were such a core element of the first 50 issues of the story. So I think their romance, their relationship, is a really core aspect of the series. Beyond that, the beauty of Fables is it has such a rich cast, and you can really cherry-pick a lot of different aspects from it, and create a really good story, even if you don't necessarily follow the entire narrative.
He adds that he hopes director Nikolaj Arcel and whoever winds up being the cinematographer don't try to copy his art style:
I always treat these things as very different beasts. When they take a comic and decide to make a TV series or an animation or a movie, I think it's up to them to find their own voice and their own vision for how to make that translation into another medium. So for me, the excitement's going to be seeing how they interpret what we do and take it into a new and exciting direction. I'm not looking for anyone to be wedded to the comic, I think all of these things are springboards into new areas. (Edit FTNH: video of Mark saying all this at the link - though it's a little difficult to hear properly with the background chatter)
Splashpage has some important reminders to add to the mix as well:
The "Fables" universe has grown to rival that of the entire DC superhero universe, which makes sense considering that the title counts pretty much every fairy tale character created across the world in its cast—and plenty of original characters too. 
"Fables" has been running since 2002 and produced over 130 issues, not including any of its spinoff series like "Jack of Fables" and "Fairest." Pinpointing one story to tell in one film seems like a rather daunting task, especially considering that the comic's first main storyline—involving the return of the mysterious and dangerous Adversary—took about 75 issues to tell. That's a lot of story for a movie. 
No actors have been cast yet and the project is still very much in the development phase over at Warner Bros. Nikolaj Arcel ("A Royal Affair") will direct, with Jeremy Slater handling the screenplay. 
Given that there really is just so much to choose from, what would be your choice? Do you think Warner Bros will follow a growing trend of telling more male oriented fairy tales* such as those Jack or Peter & Max (though that wouldn't open the way for a franchise in quite the same way), or will they follow Issue 1 to set up the world and "cherry pick" from there?

(Gosh, you can see an almost endless possibilities of very engaging movies from this vantage!)

Personally, given that the Fables game (scroll down link to see game info) tells the prequel of Bigby Wolf, I'd be surprised if he wasn't a key player in the movie. That combined with the "first 50 issues" argument makes for a strong case for Snow & her Wolf to be the stars of a first Fables movie.

(I think we just got even more pumped for this!)


*Have you noticed Peter Pan and Neverland are popping up all over the place recently? Just an observation...

Friday, July 5, 2013

Finally! A "Fables" Film! (& What That Might Be Like) + A Fables-Prequel Game This Summer

Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich
When a savage creature known only as the Adversary conquered the fabled lands of legends and fairy tales, all of the infamous inhabitants of folklore were forced into exile. Disguised among the normal citizens of modern-day New York, these magical characters have created their own peaceful and secret society within an exclusive luxury apartment building called Fabletown. But when Snow White's party-girl sister, Rose Red, is apparently murdered, it is up to Fabletown's sheriff, a reformed and pardoned Big Bad Wolf, to determine if the killer is Bluebeard, Rose's ex-lover and notorious wife killer, or Jack, her current live-in boyfriend and former beanstalk-climber. (GeekTyrant)

Snow White – Audrey Tautou
I just missed this gigantic news as I started blogging again and didn't "re-announce" it, figuring anyone vaguely interested would have already gotten the news, done their happy dances to the embarrassment of the neighbors, yelled enthusiastic "Hell Yeah!" (and other expletives) along with iO9, pulled out all their Fables comic covers and started drooling over their own movie "look books" without any prompting from me.

BUT.

You know I couldn't ignore this completely...
(Note: None of these casting suggestions are mine. I wouldn't know where to begin!)
Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich

In case you're thinking "What is all this Fables business? What is it and why should I care?", here's a quick summary from toplessrobot:
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the comic, Fables focuses on a group of childhood fantasy book characters, from Snow White to Blackbeard, who have been exiled out of their Homelands centuries ago after a fierce battle with a foe known as the Adversary. Now the remaining fairy-tale creatures hide in present day New York City as they try to stay out of reach from said Adversary and live quiet, normal lives. Well, not completely normal.
Jack Horner – Matthew McConaughey
... So I'm just going to fuel the fire a teensy bit, having noted that one of the Fables writers (for the comic - not cited as being connected with the movie.. yet), Mark Buckingham, is going to ComicCon on behalf of DCEntertainment and will no doubt be plied with a billion questions about the movie (even if that's not what he's supposed to be there for exactly). 
Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich

I'm also (finally) posting these (amazingly good) fan made posters made back in 2011, just to give you a sense that this is something a lot of people have been wanting (very badly) for a very long time.
From YouBentMyWookie: 
An obvious fan of the series, DeviantArt user DigitalRich has created seven very awesome fan-made movie posters giving us a tease at what a “Fables” movie or cable series might look like. 
The posters are fairly well cast too and features Elisha Cuthbert, Peter Dinklage, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Henry Cavill, and Zooey Deschanel.

Note: I'm not going to go into the Fables vs Once Upon A Time thing here. Something tells me that's going to come up again really soon...

A nice summary of the initial news from CelluloidandCigarettes:
Director Nikolaj Arcel
THR reports that Warner Bros. is back to making a live-action film based on the DC Comics/Vertigo comic Fables. They have a script from Jeremy Slater who was tasked to write Fox's Fantastic Four reboot and have hired Danish director Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair - shown at left). No word on when production is expected to begin but it sounds a little more promising than other DC based projects that are stuck in limbo (The Flash, Wonder Woman, Lobo, Sgt. Rock, Suicide Squad). Harry Potter producers David Heyman and Jeffrey Clifford of Heyday Films are also involved.
Bigby Wolf – Russell Crowe
From APP.com:
Fortunately, “Fables”’ time in the spotlight has finally come, and newcomers will get a fresh chance to get in on the story from the beginning with a forthcoming film. Heyday Films, the studio behind the “Harry Potter” movies, announced recently that they are going into pre-production on a “Fables” movie. Given the scale of “Fables,” and the fact that Heyday built their reputation on an eight-part epic, it’s clear the hope is to turn “Fables” into a thriving franchise. If the adaptation is handled as well as Heyday’s last venture, that’s practically a foregone conclusion, because the strength of the source material is undeniable.
Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich
Toplessrobot also gave us a good "top 10" list of what we really should be seeing in the first film. (Because, really - you think they're going to make just ONE? How could they??) Here's a brief, excerpted recap:
10. Flycatcher And Boy Blue - These two characters turn from silly little sidekicks within the first couple of stories into a couple of the biggest heroes in the big battle that takes place later on. All I'm saying is that it would be nice if we get to see them at least once... 
9. Prince Charming's Snarky Attitude - The Prince Charming that you know and love from the fairy tales is non-existent in the Fables universe... He's a rather despicable character throughout the first few volumes, but he grows on you. Like an infection. 
Geppetto – Bryan Cranston

8. Drama on the Farms - All I really want to see is the homicidal Goldilocks and some of the other animals on the Farms try to hunt down Snow White. Without spoiling too much of the story, the revolt that happens on he Farms has a lot to do with rebuilding the relationship between the sisters Snow White and Rose Red; it's a cool little story and it shows how different and dangerous their worlds are compared to what we're used to in the children's books. Actually, all I really want to see is some of those animals, like one of the Three Bears, with a rifle in its hands. Because I've always been in favor of the right to arm bears.
Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich

7. The World Of Our Fairy Tale Exiles - The brilliant thing about the overall look for whatever sets will be made for Fables is that they can be done practically without too much effort, with the only real kind of CG we'll have to see coming from some of the animals and more mystical creatures...The comic contains very lush, detailed-yet-simple backdrops so it'll be a delight to see how those assigned to the film elaborate on the wonderful illustrations. Let me emphasize: elaborate on the wonderful illustrations! Ignore them at your peril, people. 
6. The Creatures - Since we're dealing with a flurry of mystical creatures, ranging from Shere Khan to the Three Pigs, we will have to see them at some point running around with the rest of the Fabletown folk...
Old King Cole – Robert Duvall
 To read the points in full, see examples from the graphic novels and for numbers 5 through 1 go HERE to toplessrobot and read the rest.

Myself? I want to see some of that amazing artwork, particularly by James Jean, translated well onto the big screen (I have a collection of it HERE). The covers keep drawing you back, no matter what you think of the adventures going on throughout the series, and those alone are enough to set your imagination flying with fairy tales of the edgy kind.




There's one thing that's clear, when you start to look at how a movie of Fables might look: this is no princess movie! If Once Upon A Time has soured guys on fairy tales at all (and Grimm isn't doing the trick for them) then this will help - a lot. This is definitely a not-for-kids or pixie-dust crowd project. (Gotta love how fairy tales are so versatile!)


Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich
Fan made movie poster by DigitalRich
One thing I haven't read anywhere yet is a statement from Fables creator Bill Willingham himself. I'm really curious to know what he thinks, now that it will be clear that anything Fables movie related will be worlds away from Storybrooke and the Enchanted Forest of OUAT.


Rose Red – Keira Knightley
If you're enjoying imagining the cast possibilities and rediscovering the wealth of characters available to "play" with in Willingham's world, there are a couple more line-ups HERE & HERE for you to consider (with character descriptions).

In the meantime, if you're a gamer, you have a Fables game "The Wolf Among Us" to look forward to (Willingham-approved-prequel to the comics series that may just give us some clues to the movie - maybe - see below) and, of course, anything Fables movie related that leaks from ComicCon, we'll be sure to share ASAP.


There's a write-up and first look of the Fables game HERE.
It's due out THIS SUMMER on Xbox 360, PC, Mac and PS3 (so, any minute now...).