Walden Media — 2007 Press Releases
Action-adventure fantasy, to be released by Fox-Walden on September 28, 2007, began production on February 23, 2007 in Romania
March 5, 2007
LOS ANGELES (March 5, 2007) - Production has begun on THE DARK IS RISING, an action-adventure fantasy to be released September 28, 2007 by Fox-Walden, a new joint venture between Twentieth Century Fox and Walden Media.
The film’s impressive international ensemble includes Golden Globe® Award winners Ian McShane (Deadwood) as Merriman, and Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under) as Mrs. Greythorne. Christopher Eccleston (Heroes; 28 Days Later, Gone in 60 Seconds) has been cast as The Rider and newcomer Alexander Ludwig will portray the story’s hero, Will Stanton.
Also joining the cast are, Jonathan Jackson (Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights, Insomnia) as The Walker, Amelia Warner (Aeon Flux, Quills) as Maggie, Gregory Smith (Nearing Grace, TV Series Everwood) as Max Stanton, Emma Lockhart (Batman Begins, TV Series Malcolm in the Middle) as Gwen Stanton, identical twins Gary Entin and Edmond Entin as the Stanton twins, and John Benjamin Hickey (Freedom Writers, Flags of Our Fathers) as Professor Stanton.
Based on the acclaimed novel by Susan Cooper, THE DARK IS RISING is the first film adaptation of the author’s acclaimed The Dark Is Rising Sequence. The film tells the story of Will Stanton, a young man who learns he is the last of a group of warriors who have dedicated their lives to fighting the forces of the Dark. Traveling back and forth through time, Will hunts for a series of mysterious clues and encounters forces of unimaginable evil. With the Dark once again rising, the future of the world rests in Will’s hands.
THE DARK IS RISING is directed by David L. Cunningham, best known for directing the ABC-TV miniseries, The Path to 9/11. The screenplay is by John Hodge, the Academy Award® nominated writer of Trainspotting. Hodge is known for his long-time collaboration with director Danny Boyle, beginning with 1995’s Shallow Grave, and continuing with Trainspotting, A Life Less Ordinary and The Beach.
Marc Platt (Legally Blonde, Broadway musical Wicked) is producing.
First published in 1973, The Dark Is Rising received numerous awards, including the Newbery Honor Award by the American Library Association in 1974 and the Boston Globe Book Award in 1973. It is the second in a series of five books that also includes Over Sea, Under Stone (1965), Greenwitch (1974), The Grey King (1975, winner of the 1976 Newbery Medal) and Silver on the Tree (1977). In addition to the Newbery awards, the books in the series have won numerous other awards, including two Carnegie Honor Awards in Britain and the Tir na n-Og Award of Wales for The Grey King. The Dark Is Rising Sequence has been translated into twelve languages and has been read by over 100 million readers worldwide since its publication.
About Walden Media
Walden Media specializes in entertainment that sparks imagination and engages young people in the learning process. Producing both original works and adaptations of acclaimed children's literature, Walden Media projects are enhanced by comprehensive outreach and supplemental programs for teachers, librarians, after-school groups, and parents. Walden Media is a division of Anschutz Film Group.
About Fox Filmed Entertainment
One of the world's largest producers and distributors of motion pictures, Fox Filmed Entertainment produces, acquires and distributes motion pictures throughout the world. These motion pictures are produced or acquired by the following units of FFE: Twentieth Century Fox, Fox 2000, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Animation and Fox Atomic.
