David Lowery says that his version of Peter Pan is going to stick very closely to the classic story that we all now and love.
David Lowery
Lowery, who has directed Disney's latest film Pete's Dragon, is reuniting with the studio for a new adaptation of Pete Pan, which he will write as well as direct.
And the filmmaker says he wants to do a clear adaptation of the original story and has looked at the J.M Barrie play and the Disney animated film.
Speaking to Collider about the upcoming film project, the director said: "It's going to be very similar to the original. We went back and looked at the original animated film, which I hadn't seen in quite a few years. I had forgotten how short it was. It's 76 minutes, or something. And then, we read J.M. Barrie's story, which I also hadn't read in a long time. And we looked at the play that he also wrote. They're quite similar. The Disney movie was a very clear adaptation of the original.
"So, I think we can do justice to both by just telling the original story. We don't want to do anything revisionist. We don't want to do anything where we are changing what people love about it. I have zero interest in presenting an origin story for Peter Pan. We just want to stick to what is great about it, but at the same time, filter it through my perspective."
Lowery is back in the director's chair this week with Pete's Dragon, which is a remake of the 1977 film of the same name. It is the first feature film for Lowery since Ain't Them Bodies Saints back in 2013.
The movie mixes live action with animation and will be the biggest film of Lowery's directing career to date. It is also the first time that he has worked on a Disney project.
He has brought together an impressive cast as Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Karl Urban, Wes Bentley, Oakes Fegley, and Oona Laurence are all on board.
2016 has already been a great year for Disney with Captain America: Civil War, Zootropolis, The Jungle Book and Finding Dory all enjoying critical and commercial success. Four of the top five highest-grossing films of the year come from the studio.
Pete's Dragon looks set to continue that success when it hits the big screen at the end of the week. It is set to be a family film that's not to be missed.
Pete's Dragon is released 12th August.
Tagged in David Lowery