Karl Urban Says Alex Garland Directed Dredd; Comments On Possible Return to Mega-City One
If you haven’t seen the 2012 Alex Garland-penned adaptation of Dredd starring Karl Urban, then you are truly missing out. I know it looked like “slow-motion: the movie” from the trailers, but the actual film is balls-to-the-wall insanity. Highly recommended.
It is with this in mind that I jumped at the chance to read a new interview JoBlo conducted with Urban regarding all things Dredd. And as you can imagine, one of the top questions the star was asked was if he planned to return to the role of Dredd for the upcoming series “Judge Dredd: Mega-City One“.
“Wow. That’s a sweet compliment to get. In fact, there’s so much interest in that particular character and I would dearly love to have the opportunity to get in there and play that again,” Urban told the site. “There are so many wonderful stories in the 2000 A.D./Judge Dredd canon that we’d be remiss not to have the opportunity to tell them. If it were up to me personally we would have been making Dredd 2 two years ago.”
He continues: “The rights holders [Producer Brian Jenkins and Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley ] are in their process of developing their show called Mega-City One and we’ve had many discussions and the ball’s in their court. Hopefully, they get it together and are able to deliver more of what the audience wants and it would certainly be a privilege and a pleasure to be a part of it.”
He then spoke about the possibility of another actor taking on the role of Dredd.
“I mean, I could see other actors portraying him and one day that is an inevitability,” he says. “I would love to have the opportunity to play Dredd again, but if it doesn’t happen then I’m happy with the fact that we’ve made a film that has become a cult classic and that people have discovered over time.”
He then drops a HUGE bit of behind-the-scenes info which seems to suggest that writer Alex Garland directed Dredd, instead of the credited Pete Travis.
“A huge part of the success of Dredd is in fact due to Alex Garland and what a lot of people don’t realize is that Alex Garland actually directed that movie,” he says. “I just hope when people think of Alex Garland’s filmography that Dredd is the first film that he made before Ex Machina. You think about it in those terms; it goes Dredd, Ex Machina, Annihilation.”
Wow. That’s one hell of a bombshell to drop there, Dredd. I can only hope that regardless of who directed the 2012 flick, they return along with Urban for the upcoming TV series.
Are you excited about “Judge Dredd: Mega-City One”? Let us know below!
Dredd (2012) synopsis:
Mega City One is a vast, violent metropolis where felons rule the streets. The only law lies with cops called “judges,” who act as judge, jury, and executioner, and Dredd (Karl Urban) is one of the city’s most feared. One day, Dredd is partnered with Cassandra (Olivia Thirlby), a rookie with powerful psychic abilities. A report of a terrible crime sends Dredd and Cassandra to a dangerous area controlled by Ma-Ma (Lena Headey), a drug lord who will stop at nothing to protect her empire.
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