Steven Spielberg’s 2011 adaptation of Herge‘s Tintin “The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn” didn’t fully deliver the goods for Stateside audiences or critics. The ambitious mo-capture animated film couldn’t even crack $80 million in the U.S., but it was a big hit internationally, which took the movie to almost $375 million worldwide – suggesting there’s still an appetite for more. ‘The Secret of the Unicorn’ was supposed to be the first part of a trilogy of films featuring the young Belgian detective (played by Jamie Bell), but after its underwhelming performance domestically, and a very quiet aftermath, many assumed the franchise was over. Fans of the project will be happy to hear there ’s still life left in the series.
The 71-year-old Spielberg was in London this week promoting his latest film,”Ready Player One,” and he took the time to confirm [via Premiere France] that a belated ‘Tintin’ sequel is still in the works and with Peter Jackson at the helm – despite the long delay in between films.
“Peter Jackson has to do the second part,” he said. “Normally, if all goes well, he will soon start working on the script. As it takes two years of animation work on the film, I wouldn’t expect to see it be released for at least another three years. But Peter will stick with it. Tintin is not dead!”
That would mark around 10 years between each picture. The sequel would be based on two source materials, “The Adventures of Tintin: Prisoners of the Sun” and “The Seven Crystal Balls and The Temple of the Sun.” The 2011 movie did the same thing by adapting three books: “The Secret of the Unicorn,” “The Crab with the Golden Claws” and “Red Rackham’s Treasure.”
We haven’t heard from Peter Jackson since he released “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” back in 2014. But he is currently working on an ambitious project – an epic documentary of the First World War – set to premiere this October at the BFI London Film Festival. The film will use never-before-seen archival footage of the “great war,” all of which will be colorized and restored in 3D format. The next few years will be very busy for the venerable writer-director and hopefully, he’ll be back with more ‘Tintin’ sooner rather than later.