King Conan is a film that multiple creators have attempted to get off the ground. It looks as if Christopher McQuarrie is the guy who will finally pull it off. We’ve been hearing about the adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery book for a while, with Arnold Schwarzenegger set to reprise the role that he famously played in two movies in the 1980s.
Now we have an official confirmation via TheArnoldFans, who got word from Schwarzenegger and Conan Properties International‘s Fredrik Malmberg that production on King Conan will start in 2027…
“I can confirm we have a deal between CPI, Arnold, and [20th Century Studios]. Next year we are going to do ‘King Conan.’ So that is a reality now, and I am excited about it,” Malmberg said.
King Conan will follow an older version of the famous barbarian warrior, who has ruled as a king but is captured and must fight his way back to the kingdom.
Schwarzenegger sees this as a crucial film at this stage of his career, comparing it to Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven…
“The movie wouldn’t have worked after I did the first Conan because the whole idea of King Conan is that for 40 years he has been king, he is older now. He is no longer in the shape he was from his heyday, and now people are trying to take him out. He’s the king, and he gets a little bit complacent. He’s tired of the job, and he wants to move on. Look at the movie by Clint Eastwood, [‘Unforgiven’]. It will be a lot like that, but it will be with extraordinary battles.”
McQuarrie has been joined at the hip with Tom Cruise for years, working with him on multiple Mission: Impossible films, as well as Top Gun: Maverick, Jack Reacher, and more. The two are taking a creative break, and that has opened up this chance for McQuarrie to do something he never would’ve had time to otherwise.
