The Lord of the Rings Producer Is Starting a New Fantasy Franchise at 82
Barrie M. Osborne, one of only three producers credited on all three original Lord of the Rings films, is launching a new fantasy franchise called Wars of the Drakons. It is his first producing job in more than a decade, and he is 82.
Wars of the Drakons: The Seer's Prophecy is written and produced by newcomer Carla Romero, with Osborne producing alongside Jeanette B. Milio and Jim Milio of Alliance Cinema. It has been in development for about six months and is conceived as the start of a franchise.
The pitch
- The world is Aerion, war-torn, where kingdoms fight with the help of Drakons — dragon-like creatures with supernatural abilities.
- The hero is Kale D'Sar, a legendary warrior and Drakon master loyal to a ruthless king.
- The turn: a Seer prophesies that the king's own daughter, Princess Kahrie, will unite the kingdoms and end his Blood Regime.
- The plot: the king moves to kill the child, and Kale joins the conspiracy to save her.
- The promise, per the producers: war, forbidden love, betrayal, magic and "spectacular Drakon battles."
Who Osborne is
He produced the Lord of the Rings trilogy with Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, and won the Best Picture Oscar for Return of the King. He also produced Face/Off and executive produced The Matrix, The Great Gatsby, The Meg and the live-action Mulan. Before that he was a production manager on Octopussy, on Kojak, and — nearly fifty years ago — on Apocalypse Now.
His most recent credit was as an executive producer on Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis, which reunited him with Coppola after that first job. This is his first hands-on producing gig since.
"I am always attracted to dramatic fantasy films spearheaded by collaborative, passionate, and committed writers and producers," Osborne said, adding he is confident the film "will attract a four-quadrant audience."
No cast, no director and no studio announced — the team says locations are still being considered. Original fantasy that is not adapted from anything is the hardest thing in the world to get financed, which is presumably why the announcement leads with the man who made Middle-earth work.