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Star Wars' Owen, Grindhouse girl in The Thing
We've got great casting news for that upcoming prequel to John Carpenter's The Thing: Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Grindhouse, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) and Joel Edgerton (Uncle Owen in Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith) will star.
That's the news from The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision blog:
A March 15 start date in Toronto is planned.
The movie is a prequel to Carpenter's beloved 1982 sci-fi horror movie, which was based on 1951's The Thing From Another World, which in turn was based on John W. Campbell Jr.'s 1938 short story "Who Goes There?"
Matthijs Van Heijningen will direct the new movie, which was written by Battlestar Galactica's Ronald D. Moore and Eric Heisserer, who wrote the upcoming remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street.
What do you think of this pair of good-looking actors? And how about adding a woman to the story, which has always revolved around a group of men (especially one that looks like Winstead, below)?
By General Zod at 1:10 PM ON 02/08/10
i was kind of hoping for better known actors to be cast, but i'll try and keep an open mind.
lets hope some more well known actors are cast......
By Mattr0polis at 1:55 PM ON 02/08/10
Yeah, I was also hoping for better casting for this. How do you go from a badass like Kurt Russell to this? I'm a huge Star Wars fan (thus should support Owen Lars actor) but even I think this is risky.
By ecgordon at 2:34 PM ON 02/08/10
You say RDM was co-writer, but hasn't that original script been rewritten by someone else?
By Batsports at 2:39 PM ON 02/08/10
Agree with comments regarding the male lead, but not with Winstead. She has a history of sci-fi/horror movies that makes her just right for this part. The headline forces readers to think she's a nobody, but other than what's posted, there's Final Destination 3, Sky High, and Black X-mas. Plus, she was pretty good as Bruce Willis' daughter in Live Free Die Harder. If it's a prequel, pretty much everybody appears to be dead by the time Kurt Russell arrives so fairly unknown actors just might work.
By shadow at 3:05 PM ON 02/08/10
I say Megan Fox should be cast in The Thing instead of whats her fish face...Mary Elizabeth Winstead.
By ChadRo at 3:24 PM ON 02/08/10
HAHAHA - A PhD candidate??? This sounds like Uwe Bolls attempt to cast Tara Reid as a scientist in his crapfest Alone in the Dark.
By Nyarlathotep at 3:24 PM ON 02/08/10
oh what a surprise sci-fi wire deleted my comment because I spoke the truth -
well ill reiterate, this should not be made IMO. The original stands on it's own as a classic piece of sci-fi horror and the unanswered questions (i.e. the previous expedition) added mystery and intrigue to the film - and let ones own imagination come up with their own interpretation and thoughts, why does this have/need to be made ? the best horror such as Lovecraft is when things ARE left to the imagination.
The cast sounds weak and itll likely be CGI which will look by far, inferior to the previous film's realistic prosphetics and excellent organic FX.
Also, since we already know what The Thing does/can do/is capable of - it wont be anywhere near as shocking as the original carpenter classic.
I'd rather they did a completely new fil/story in a similar style personally.
By KatsuKaze at 3:24 PM ON 02/08/10
This movie just seems like a complete waste of time to make... They all died at the beginning of the original (John C's version)...
It looks like Edgeton is planning on cornering the market on acting parts of characters who die,,,
By Boog E. Nosed-Man at 4:19 PM ON 02/08/10
All I can say is, if that actress keeps dressing like she did in the pictures on this article, something will be changing shape, alright, and it ain't "The Thing" from another world! Waahhoo!!
By Goldilocks at 4:25 PM ON 02/08/10
John Carpenter's The Thing was one of the best sci-fi extravaganzas I have seen; it ranks up there with Alien & Aliens, as well as the original Charleton Heston Planet of the Apes! I am a bit nervous about a prequel, but I am hopeful, and if it is done right, then I am all for it. Looking forward to giving it a viewing, and will buy the DVD if it is any good. Hope it has good script, special effects, acting, plot, the works. Don't skimp on the budget. The only thing I didn't quite like about the original John Carpenter work was, as an animal lover, I was not keen on what happened in the flick to the dogs, but I realize they were trying to make it, well, "realistic" sci-fi"....
By praetor Shinzon II at 4:33 PM ON 02/08/10
Loved Winstead in both Live Free Die Harder and Sky High.
Could work O.K. I'll give it a chance.
By Charles at 5:11 PM ON 02/08/10
Tired of prequels...want a new story with Kurt Russell!!
By splinter at 5:51 PM ON 02/08/10
The other problem with prequels, especially horror movie prequels, is we already know how it's going to end. I suppose if the story is interesting and the movie is well executed, then the journey alone could be worth it. We'll see.
By sparrowlord01 at 6:00 PM ON 02/08/10
The 1982 flick stunk, and this is probably not going to be any better. They ought to require an intelligence test before they let these hack writers remake classics and demolish them in the name of "Re-Imagining"...
By Demon Dog at 6:43 PM ON 02/08/10
I agree with the rest of you a prequel is not needed or called for. A better movie would have been the creature making it to a larger population center. I would like to see what would happen when it was able to reproduce. At the end of JC's movie it looked like it was giving birth. Taking that concept to the next level might make a better movie than showing us what we already know. We need some new creative visions in Hollywood!
By Gozer at 7:02 PM ON 02/08/10
A prequel is such a bad idea. And will the cast speak with Norwegian accents? Oh, God, if they do, this movie will be more annoying to listen to than Fargo.
If they're going to bother spending the money on a new Thing movie, why not just do a sequel, which is what every Thing fan wants more than a prequel?
By Cheapshot at 7:05 PM ON 02/08/10
I for one would like to see where it came from. I would like to see the aliens that lived 20 million years prior, and see their whole world consumed by it.
Some cool space ships perhaps, and maybe an alien that finished transforming that could communicate.
Just a thought... I love all sci fi - new and old.
By kebgd at 7:49 PM ON 02/08/10
I don't care much for a prequal, we know what happens to the first outpost. I would rather see a continuation of the story.
By MCP-001 at 10:40 AM ON 02/09/10
Ronald Moore has a hand in this?
How many series did he run into the ground?
How does someone with no talent continue to find work?
By sensei at 1:13 PM ON 02/09/10
I hear Kurt Russell is going to make a cameo as Snake Plissken.
By wilcoy at 11:28 AM ON 02/10/10
I'm fine with the prequel as John Carpenter's "The Thing" is one of my favorite movies. Whatever they come up with as long as it isn't a remake is welcome news. As for the Hottie Mary Elizabeth Winstead being cast in the movie I'd be scarred she'd melt the Antarctic Ice caps with that body.
By Hocker The Cat at 12:11 AM ON 02/11/10
I wish I were her dress-maker, so I could "raise her hem"!
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