For years now, a feature film adaptation of the hot fantasy property ElfQuest has been floating around in limbo. Now, Variety reports that producers Stephanie Thorpe (Shelf Life) and Paula Rhodes (A Good Knight’s Quest) have secured the film rights to the cult fantasy comic book.
Created in 1978 by Wendy and Richard Pini, ElfQuest tells the story of Cutter, his tribe the Wolfriders, and their quest to find and unite the elves of the land against the threat of humans, trolls, and other creatures. The series has had a long comic book publication history, once upon a time with Marvel Comics, and more recently with DC Comics.
ElfQuest co-creator Wendy Pini commented on the acquisition:
With their deep love and understanding of the property, they represent a new direction for ElfQuest…new creative energy and new connections in the larger media.
Warner Bros. Pictures began working on a feature film adaptation of the 35-year old comic book series back in 2008, but reports state they abandoned the project for fears that it would compete with their film plans for The Hobbit.
I’ve only read a few issues of ElfQuest in my life, so all I can say is that it’s a fantasy series that has continuously bordered on publication extinction, but has always come back due to a solid fan base. It’s possible that the film will never get made, but it’s also possible that it will, and that it will draw in faithful fans and a younger fantasy-obsessed film audience.
For the uninitiated, you can read every issue of ElfQuest on its official website for free. To get an idea of where the producing pair plan to take their adaptation of the series, you can see their live action short ElfQuest: A Fan Imagining below, which they used to pitch their take on the film.
Are you an ElfQuest fan? What do you think of the news? Let us know in the comments below.
