'The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen' reboot in the works

A new big screen version of The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen is in the works at 20th Century Fox.

The comic book series created by Alan Moore was previously adapted into a 2003 movie starring Sean Connery, Stuart Townsend and Jason Flemyng, which opened to poor reviews and proved to be the final film of Connery's career. Nevertheless, it grossed a respectable $179 million (£116 million) at cinemas globally from a $78 million (£51 million) budget. In 2013, Fox ordered a pilot for a TV series based on the comic book series, but the project was abandoned before casting took place.

Now a reboot movie is in the works, The Tracking Board reports, with Fox apparently planning a potential franchise based on Moore's comic books. Further details about the reboot are being kept under wraps.

Moore's original comic book series followed the adventures of a superhero ensemble featuring classic characters from literature including Mina Harker (Dracula) Allan Quatermain (King Solomon's Mines), Dr. Jekyll (Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde) and the Invisible Man (H.G. Well's The Invisible Man). It spanned 15 issues and two original graphic novels published between 1999 and 2007.

I wouldn't be surprised to find out that more people have watched Penny Dreadful than have seen the previous movie.

In 2003 Larry Cohen and Martin Poll filed a lawsuit against 20th Century Fox, claiming the company had intentionally plagiarized their script Cast of Characters. According to the BBC, the lawsuit alleged "that Mr Cohen and Mr Poll pitched the idea to Fox several times between 1993 and 1996, under the name Cast of Characters,"[11][12][13] and that Fox had solicited the comics series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen as a smoke screen.[11][12][13] It noted that the films shared public domain characters who did not appear in the comic book series.[14] Although Fox denied the allegations as "absurd nonsense",[13] the case was settled out of court, a decision Alan Moore, according to the New York Times "took ... as an especially bitter blow, believing that [he] had been denied the chance to exonerate [himself]."[15]

I'd be surprised. Penny Dreadful isn't a ratings blockbuster for Showtime, vs a movie that's been in basic cable rotation for over a decade. What really surprises me is the number of people on movie sites and on social media that like the original LOEG film.

Maybe not, but the movie was also released before the proliferation of online/digital avenues

Maybe not, but the movie was also released before the proliferation of online/digital avenues and also has pretty low scores at places like IMDB, whereas the TV show has fairly good reviews and is available all over the place (legally and illegally) for download.

...the case was settled out of court, a decision Alan Moore, according to the New York Times "took ... as an especially bitter blow, believing that [he] had been denied the chance to exonerate [himself]."

Oh God, why did he even care? No one sane thought Moore ripped those guys off.

If he was so concerned, he should have filed a defamation suit or something.

What really surprises me is the number of people on movie sites and on social media that like the original LOEG film.

I know it's only a movie, but I gave up when a submarine only slightly smaller than an aircraft carrier manages (unseen, of course) to smoothly navigate the canals of Venice.

He probably cared because they settled out of court, and to the casual observer that might seem to be a partial admission of guilt. We know better, but the average movie-goer might not.

I know, but who even cares about that?