FLASH GORDON Returns To Big Screen
The Heat Vision blog at the Hollywood Reporter has the story: 20th Century Fox has obtained the movie rights to the classic Flash Gordon comic strip.
John Davis will produce from a script by J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, who have written Star Trek 13.Davis (Chronicle, Man from U.N.C.L.E.) has been working for over a year to negotiate a deal with the Hearst Corporation, which owns the rights to the character.
Originally created in 1934 by Alex Raymond as a competitor to Buck Rogers, the strip featured Flash Gordon and his companions, Dale Arden and mad scientist Dr. Hans Zarkov, fighting the evil machinations of Ming the Merciless, tyrannical ruler of the planet Mongo. The strip ran through 2003, and was the basis for several movie serials starring Buster Crabbe, who also starred as Buck Rogers. There was also a theatrical movie released in 1980, as well as several animated adaptations throughout the years.
In 2007, the Sci Fi Channel attempted a modern-day adaptation that was met with mixed reaction.
Payne and McKay have also written a draft for the upcoming Micronauts adaptation produced by J.J. Abrams.
