9 replies to this topic

[Mr Twilight]

Being a big fan of the Cussler books about Dirk Pitt, it's make me sad to hear no news of another movie cause I think it would be a waste of good storys not filming them. When reading the books I can almost "see" the movies in my mind. Ok, Raise the Titanic wasn't a big hit at the time but I think Sahara wasn't bad. IMO it could have followed the book closer, but as I understand it did do pretty good at box office(?) anyway.

[doublenoughtspy]

Dead and probably buried.

1) The fan base "does not exist" - read here: http://debrief.comma...showtopic=39121

2) Did well? What math are you using? It cost $130 million to make and grossed $68 million domestic ($50 mil overseas).

[mister-white]

I too loved the Sahara movie. As to my knowledge, Paramount owns the rights to three of the Dirk Pitt books, Sahara being one with Inca Gold and Atlantis Found being the other two. But, apparently Cussler didn't like the movie (probably didn't credit him the right way or something) and he's trying to block any future films. As of right now, I don't know what's going on, I remember Breck Eisner saying something about another film, but I'm not going to hold my breathe.

[Jericho_One]

Dead and probably buried.

1) The fan base "does not exist" - read here: http://debrief.comma...showtopic=39121

2) Did well? What math are you using? It cost $130 million to make and grossed $68 million domestic ($50 mil overseas).

You're right. And probably VERY WELL buried.
I'm a fan of the Dirk Pitt Adventures, and I surely would like to see this adapted into a movie series. I strongly believe that, if the job was properly done, it could attract a solid fanbase for the movies (and more bucks going in for all the parties - the merchandising possibilities are vast) and a satisfying box-office revenue.

But, alas, the two flicks featuring Dirk Pitt are two excellent examples on how NOT to handle this stuff. In Raise the Titanic, although I hold little against the casting of the late Richard Jordan as Pitt, the screenwriters did a fantastic job in cutting off the most thrilling and suspenseful sequences the book had to offer. Inviting disaster?..

With Sahara, you have a multi-million dollar project dropped on a rookie director's lap (oh if only I had a powerful father in the movie bsuiness...) - the irresponsability of this goes beyond words, and you have two cartoonish versions of Pitt and Giordino walking around for the length of the movie. Needless to talk about the script. Seriously, how can someone handle their big bucks like this?

And then there's Mr. Cussler himself. Although he deserves respect for the highly entertaining work he created, he clearly isn't the most easy-going person on the planet.
So... At least in the upcoming years, Pitt won't grace the silverscreen again.

[Ace Roberts]

You can absolutely go to the bank that there will not be another Pitt film in Clive's lifetime.

And I'll validate that statement by telling you I'm a friend of the family - so as much as all of us would love to see well-made Dirk Pitt adventures on the screen - that will not happen again anytime soon.

In the meantime - Clive and Paul's new book The Navigator just came out and Clive's first solo Western The Chase comes out in November. Here's to adventure!!

[Jericho_One]

You can absolutely go to the bank that there will not be another Pitt film in Clive's lifetime.

Yes, I was expecting that.

[Tarl_Cabot]

I really liked Sahara(felt like a fun 80's actionier) and I was hoping for more Dirk Pitt films. I liked the chemistry with MM and Steve Zahn...too bad it didn't do well. Our loss.

[Harmsway]

I love the Dirk Pitt books. But we never really had a Dirk Pitt adaptation that was worth anything.

[Jericho_One]

Well, there was a very informative article on the LA Times last December about this.
You may find it interesting to read, and understand why this was probably a doomed project from the start. In conclusion, both sides are to blame.

[HawkEye007]

I really liked Sahara(felt like a fun 80's actionier) and I was hoping for more Dirk Pitt films. I liked the chemistry with MM and Steve Zahn...too bad it didn't do well. Our loss.

I totally agree, I also really liked Sahara. Even though some story elements were changed it mostly stuck to the spirit of the book. IMO, the casting was accurate, especially for Pitt and Admiral Sandecker. I thought that MM and William H. Macy were perfect in their roles, even though MM got a little cliche at times in his action hero portrayal. I was also hoping to see more Dirk Pitt adventures, maybe even a remake of Raise The Titanic. Oh well, hope springs eternal!