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First, here's a synopsis of the comic:
When a savage creature known only as the Adversary conquered the fabled lands of legends and fairy tales, all of the infamous inhabitants of folklore were forced into exile. Disguised among the "mundys," their name for normal citizens of modern-day New York, these magical characters created their own secret society that they call Fabletown. From their exclusive luxury apartment buildings on Manhattan's Upper West Side, these creatures of legend must fight for their survival in the new world.
It's a brilliant piece of work, and ranks up there next to Y: The Last Man and Preacher for me among my favorite comics I've ever read. Willingham gives each of the characters jobs that fits their personalities - the Big Bad Wolf is the town sheriff, Snow White is the deputy mayor, etc. - and the first few issues in particular are great for people who aren't necessarily comics aficionados to be able to get into really easily.
Anyway, here's what Heyman had to say about the status of the film version:
Jane Goldman is working on a draft as we speak. Nik Arcel is attached [to direct]. He did a draft, and now he’s supervising Jane, who’s doing a draft. Hoping that it’ll come in and we’ll be able to move to the next stage. All these things always take longer than you want. And “Fables” is not easy, by any means, but I think it’ll be pretty great.
I’m drawn to stories about outsiders, and I think the Fables are outsiders. They’re people torn from the place where they were raised, by The Adversary. They arrive in a New York City-type place, and how we’re approaching is that they’re people who are all separate, and how they ultimately have to form the community in order to survive. They’re all inhabiting their own little universes within this world. But they have to form this community, and that really appealed to me. And I just think the characters are so vivid. And I also think the farm is, again, it’s very human. That’s what I like. It’s a challenging film.
It sounds like Heyman knows his stuff when it comes to the comic, and though the idea of basically creating a new origin story for these characters (by showing how they form the community, instead of starting the film with the community already formed) gives me some pause, I'm inclined to believe that the producer behind Gravity and the Harry Potter franchise will be able to produce a solid adaptation.
Are you excited that a Fables film is still in the works?
