Universal Pictures Shuts Down Javier Bardem's 'Dark Tower'

By Michael Lopez

Even movie companies seem to be feeling the sting of the recession these days. After months of development and the casting of Javier Bardem, Universal Pictures has decided not to move forward with the film adaptation of Stephen King's epic, The Dark Tower.

"Epic" is probably the key word in this equation. You see, The Dark Tower wasn't just going to be a standalone film. Producers had wanted to turn King's seven-book series into a feature film trilogy and a TV show.

Obviously keeping Javier on board for all of those projects would require a pretty pricey contract. Plus, the story of The Dark Tower involves alternate universes, wizards, and mythical creatures, which wouldn't be cheap to create in a CGI studio.

So, the official word is Universal has put the project "on hiatus." But that doesn't mean another studio won't pick it up. As we all know, Warner Bros. recently ran out of Harry Potter movies and they could be on the hunt for a new cinematic epic.

What's your favorite all-time movie epic? Sound off in the comments or @MTV3.

Tags Blogger: Michael Lopez, Javier Bardem, Movies & CineMás, Stephen King, The Dark Tower