The August 19 release of Lionsgate’s 3D CONAN THE BARBARIAN marks yet another rebirth of the most legendary fictional barbarian of all time. Since his creation by writer Robert E. Howard in 1932 in a series of fantasy stories published in Weird Tales magazine, the character has evolved over eight decades through numerous licensed books, comics, films, television shows, video games and role-playing games, cementing himself in pop-culture history as a tough, masculine hero with no allegiances.

“I think the appeal of Conan is that he doesn’t conform to anybody,” explains director Marcus Nispel, who helmed two other reboots fright fans are probably familiar with: THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE and FRIDAY THE 13TH. “He’s not politically correct. He’s not living by anyone else’s moral standards. He’s a barbarian who depends on no one but himself.”

With such a pedigree, you’d think a new origin story wouldn’t be necessary, but the new film’s creators say such is not the case. “If we get Conan right, we have re-established the franchise and we can then go ahead with adaptations of the original stories,” explains producer Fredrik Malmberg, who bought the rights to the character 10 years ago and has fought to get a film made since. “First we have to get the Conan character into people’s minds. He’s a complex character, and I believe we, like [1982 film director John] Milius, had to tell some kind of origin story. Fans don’t think that’s necessary, but we still have to please the studio system and the executives and marketing. And you see, the majority of the audience will not know where Conan comes from. They never saw the Milius movie. We need to create something that today’s audience will appreciate. ‘Give the people what they want but not what they expect’ is the mantra.”

While it’s hard to deny the impact Milius’ movie had on the character’s popularity, Malmberg also acknowledges that times have changed. “We respect [that feature] for what it was, but we capture Howard’s Conan better. We really wanted this one to stand on its own. There were even a couple of actors from the original who came and wanted to do little parts, but we had to say no.”

Jason Momoa (Khal Drogo in GAME OF THRONES) took the lead role and the heavy task of portraying a cultural icon. “Jason just feels very contemporary, yet he fits the description that Howard wrote for Conan much more to me than Arnold [Schwarzenegger],” Malmberg boasts. “When you see Jason, you’ll say, ‘That’s Conan.’ Better than that walking special effect.”

Speaking of special FX, Malmberg adds that the new film will appeal to horror fans and gorehounds who are unfamiliar with the titular savage: “It’s a more gritty, realistic violence. This is a world where a sword cut is fatal and heads fly and arms get cut off. Marcus has an extreme visual knowledge. There are some scenes that will make you cringe. Then there are others where we said, ‘Maybe that’s a little too dark, and we’ll put that on the extended version.’ ”

Fright fans should be familiar with not only the film’s director, but its composer too: Tyler Bates has composed for films such as SLITHER, SEE NO EVIL, Zach Snyder’s DAWN OF THE DEAD and Rob Zombie's HALLOWEEN, HALLOWEEN II and THE DEVIL’S REJECTS. If all else fails, audiences will be treated to “dark drums that really elevate that feeling of a prehistoric, gritty, dirty world.”

The film’s 3D status shouldn’t be much of a surprise to anyone who’s attended a movie theater over the past few years, but Malmberg promises this isn’t just another ploy to put more butts in seats. “I believe 3D is really great for getting immersed in a world,” he says. “ ’Cause otherwise people say, ‘Oh, Conan, it’s a big guy with a sword,’ and that’s where it ends. But that’s not enough today; fans now are so much more sophisticated. It was Lionsgate and their marketing team who were saying, ‘We really want this to be a spectacle and big event.’ I think 3D will really work to give it depth.”

CONAN is slashing its way onto North American screens over 25 years since the barbarian’s last big-screen appearance, and Nispel believes this is a particularly opportune time to be revisiting the iconic hero. “We live in a very artificial world,” the director says. “We spend most of our day in front of computers, borrowing knowledge, borrowing real experiences. Conan gets you into a world where you still get dirt under your fingernails and where you don’t have to ask everybody for permission.” Adds Malmberg, “Conan’s a man who lives now. He’s not gonna brood over past times much. It’s a refreshing theme of barbarism vs. civilization. Many people feel it would be nice to be in control of your own destiny, because we’re all squished inside this civilization and feeling hopeless. Conan represents freedom.” 

---

News - Latest