Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice was published in 1813. The novel follows the character development of Elizabeth Bennet, the book’s dynamic protagonist who learns about the consequences of hasty judgments and comes to appreciate the distinction between superficial goodness and actual goodness. But did you know that Elton John worked on a film adaptation of the novel?
Elton John’s production company was working on a film adaption of Pride and Prejudice with a twist back in 2009. It featured a predator and was going to be called “Pride and Predator”.
When Austen Meets Alien in the Pride and Predator
Over the past two decades, both Pride and Prejudice and Predator have been twisted into a variety of new forms. Gurinder Chadha’s 2004 musical Bride and Prejudice reimagined Jane Austen’s romance in Bollywood, while Alien versus Predator pitted the monster from John McTiernan’s 1987 original against Ridley Scott’s murderous horrors.
By dropping this extraterrestrial into the center of a costume drama, where he stalks and slashes to horrifying effect, it felt like a fresh and humorous way to rip apart the done-to-death Jane Austen genre.
David Furnish, Canadian Filmmaker
(Source: The Guardian)
According to reports from Entertainment Weekly, Elton John’s Rocket Pictures will produce the film called Pride and Predator.
It felt like a fresh and funny way to blow apart the done-to-death Jane Austen genre by literally dropping this alien into the middle of a costume drama, where he stalks and slashes to horrific effect.
David Furnish, Canadian Filmmaker
(Source: Entertainment Weekly)
The Making of the Very Unlikely Film Combination
Bridging two opposite genres like Pride and Prejudice and Predator does seem quite extreme. But can a gentle period drama and an alien slasher film work? Rocket pictures seem to think so. The production has signed Will Clark to direct the film. Clark is known for his short called The Amazing Trousers which was released in 2007. The filming script was to be written by Andrew Kemble and John Pape.
According to Variety, the initial test shots of the film will start in London and the soundtrack will be handled by Sir Elton John himself. Unfortunately, even if a lot of planning has been placed on the creation of this film. Years have already passed and there seems to be no progress. (Souce: Den of Geek)
How Well Did the Film Adaptation of Pride and Prejudice Do?
The Pride and Prejudice film released in 2005 had an estimated budget of $28 million. The film did well in the US and Canada with over $38 million at the box office. Worldwide, they were able to earn about $121 million.
What most people don’t know is that the 2005 version of the film was actually a remake. An older adaptation was released in 1995. According to critics, the 1995 version of the film was highly accurate, especially in terms of set design and costumes. What was missing from the 2005 version was the intricacy of Austen’s vision and its overall structure. (Source: IMDB)