I can hear Samuel L. Jackson‘s voice in my head yelling “Say, ‘Bitch, be cool’! Tell that f*cking bitch to chill!” at how excited I am at the news that Sony and MRC have reached a deal to finance and produce the first film in the massive adaptation of Stephen King‘s THE DARK TOWER. Based on the first novel, “The Gunslinger”, THE DARK TOWER will be the realization of King’s magnum opus after years of false starts, most recently with Ron Howard in the director’s chair.

According to Deadline, THE DARK TOWER script comes from Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Pinkner who fully rewrote the screenplay previously in play at both Universal and Warner Bros. The greenlight on this project comes from Sony head Tom Rothman and will see Ron Howard remain as producer alongside Brian Grazer and possibly Stephen King himself.

Rothman had this to say about the project which includes the feature film and a television series.

“There are few projects out there that compare with the scope, vision, complex characters and fully drawn world that Stephen King has created with The Dark Tower. I am a giant fan. And, as Stephen himself does, we love the direction that Akiva and Jeff have taken. This is a great opportunity for a director to put his or her stamp on a cool global franchise.”

Stephen King also released a statement.

“I’m excited that The Dark Tower is finally going to appear on the screen. Those who have traveled with Roland and his friends in their search for the Dark Tower are going to have their long-held hopes fully realized. This is a brilliant and creative approach to my books.”

I have to remain cautiously optimistic about THE DARK TOWER because I have been burned before. There have been names associated with the project including Javier Bardem, Russell Crowe, and even Liam Neeson. Sony will not name any cast for the new film until a director is put in place, but the dream casting can now begin. I would love to see Christian Bale in the lead or even Hugh Jackman, but my fanboy pick will always be Bruce Campbell.

With eight novels in the main continuity of THE DARK TOWER, the series also touches dozens of standalone novels Stephen King has written over the years ranging from IT and THE STAND to ‘SALEM’S LOT and INSOMNIA. Each novel has a different feel with the first a post-apocalyptic western and later chapters invoking Romeo and Juliet, THE WIZARD OF OZ, Harry Potter, and SEVEN SAMURAI. The main story concerns Roland Deschain, the Last Gunslinger, who must find the Dark Tower, a lynchpin between all universes that has fallen under control of the evil Crimson King. Along the way he meets a boy, a drug dealer, and a woman with a split personality who join him as they fight Randall Flagg, the evil Man in Black.

There are few ways to describe THE DARK TOWER aside from epic, but it truly has something for everybody. I am more excited about the potential for the world to see this film than any other series out there. This is the closest we have come to THE DARK TOWER becoming a film and I hope it actually happens this time. Thankee-sai, Sony!