With Hollywood running out of ideas, it’s no surprise that we’re seeing a new version of Tarzan. What is surprising is that The Legend of Tarzan is a pretty okay movie, probably the best-worst blockbuster of 2016.
Tarzan. Which one do you think of? For me, it’s the 1999 Disney film, others, the Ron Ely 1966 television series Tarzan, as well as the 1970 film, Tarzan: A Deadly Silence.
And for this generation, it’s going to be the Alexander Skarsgard version, set to release on July 1, 2016. The film, directed by David Yates and written by Stuart Beattie, Craig Brewer, John Colle, and Adam Cozad, will star a number of well known people, including Skarsgard as Tarzan, Margot Robbie as Jane Porter, as well as Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson, and Djimon Hounsou.
The story’s premise will follow Tarzan a while after he left Africa, to live on a civilized life with his wife Jane, as he lives as John Clayton III, or also called, Lord Greystroke. As he returns to Africa to serve as a trace emissary, he soon gets involved in Belgium Captain Rom’s (Waltz) deadly plot and now he must make amends and stop him before things go terribly wrong. Jackson will play George Washington Williams and Hounsou will play Chief Mbonga.
The film itself is almost twelve years in the making, as John August was asked in 2003 to make a live adaptation of the story in modern day times. The script bounced around a bit, Michael Phelps’ name was even attached to the project, and now it landed safely to premiere on its July date.