Rumour has it, that Rachel Nichols (G.I. Joe, Star Trek) is going to be Tamara, Conan’s love interest in the upcoming Conan Movie. Since there haven’t been many official announcements about the casting, we have to go by the rumours flying around and see what we make of it.

Here is the casting description for Tamara:

She is 18 to 24 years old, Caucasian or Middle Eastern, open to all ethnicities; beautiful, studious, correct, a novitiate of a Greek influenced monastery. A master of martial arts, she has been trained to be the Queen’s servant, bodyguard and best friend. She and many other female bodyguards to the queen have been in hiding most of their lives because of the curse of Acheron, which would take the queen’s life to bring almost immortal power to its king. When Khalar Singh, a powerful warlord with ambitions to become the king of Acheron, storms the monastery and captures all of the novitiates, she is separated from Ilira, the one she must protect. With all of her strength and will, Tamara is determined to find and rescue her. She finds herself in league with Conan because of a mutual need to find Khalar Singh. She is not in the least intimidated by Conan’s size or grim demeanor and their alliance eventually blossoms into something that surprises them both… LEAD

Rachel Nichols certainly is a very beautiful woman. I recently rewatched G.I. Joe and I think she has the physicality that is needed for her role and the acting talent, to fill out the wide variety of emotions her character will go through.

UPDATE

Rachel Nichols officially confirmed that she is cast as Tamara.

RachelNichols1
@der_waldgeist well…he wasn’t lying…the deal is closed and i am going to be TAMARA. i am thrilled. xxx.

Desmoinesregister made their way to the training grounds of Jason Momoa, to talk to him and his family about the present situation and his preparations involved for the shoot of the Conan movie. Jason’s training started in early February, were he was enrolled in a six-week training course, to bulk up and get in shape to play the role of Conan with a bit more of muscle. He hopes to build up 10 pounds of muscle under the supervision of David Leitch, stunt performer on The Matrix and Bourne Ultimatum, before the shooting starts. Jason also did “research” with the original books instead of taking his inspiration on how to play Conan from the Arnold Schwarzenegger movies.

All in all, the interview/report seems fairly standard, but it doesn’t sound like Jason is totally hyped to play Conan, to be honest, since he says that this role is an “opportunity” for him, to play other roles. Of course, in the world of Hollywood one role is just a catapult for the next, but I would have loved to see more enthusiasm by the actor who plays such an important fantastical character as Conan in his first interview. I would have wanted to hear something in the line of “I hope this movie is going to be a big success, as I would love to grow this amazing character”. Maybe that is just his personality to play it cool and I hope he knows that playing Conan is not just an opportunity, but first and foremost a responsibility for a Legend in Fantasy.

After some days of struggle and uncertainty about some unknown secret actors still being in the race for Conan, with the slight hope for all of us to be saved from the two mediocre, third class actors, the decision is finally out. Millenium decided they go for Jason  as Conan. The pseudo-rasta wearing hawaiian model-became-actor from Stargate Atlantis.

Here are more shocking news from Latinoreview and more details on the selection of Momoa. Apparently the script rewrite (the secret rewrite) was done by Andrew Lobel, who wrote and directed a short horror film as his only work prior to rewriting the Conan script now. We will see what even the most magic hands could do to the mediocre storyline and writing quality of the last draft of the Doppenheimer script.

But the news don’t stop here. According to Latinoreview, Micky Rourke was cast as Corin, Conan’s father. While I think Rourke is a great actor, I don’t know if that choice is a wise one, because combining a hawaiian actor with Rourke will look completely out of place.

Well I hate to send you off with these horrible news into the weekend, but stay tuned for any debunking, as we will make sure to update this news instantly if that happens.

UPDATE

Here is a little example of how Momoa could look like without the beard, the dreads and with a Conan wig put on.

UPDATE 2

It has been officially confirmed by NuImages website, that Jason Momoa is cast as Conan the Cimmerian.

Paradox Entertainment sweeped their forums in an attempt to clear out some quotes and links to the October 09 version of the Doppenheimer Conan Movie screenplay. Together with the cleanup, they also posted a statement in which they tell us that a rewrite with “quite a few changes” is currently under way. Most importantly though the rumours of a Conan actor being chosen already, have been debunked.

Jay from Paradox wrote that they are even extending the casting call to the UK, to find the perfect guy for our favourite Cimmerian and there is no actor chosen yet, nor anyone they have as a clear front runner. The search continues in the US and Europe and we will see what comes off it.

Paradox is doing damage control, which is a good thing in my opinion IF it’s not just a cover up, but an honest attempt to rewrite the script to make any Howardian sense.

Over the course of the last weeks and month REH fans have been in on a coaster-ride when it comes to the movie project. It all began, when the first writing team was announced (Oppenheimer/Donelly) and because of their track record did not earn many claps from the community. Later the writer team Blackman/McCain joined the cause, both showing a real interest in the works of REH, with active participation in the conan.com boards. Together with their passion for their own project Outlander and their open approach to communication on their blog earned them some appreciation with the REH fans.

Suddenly all was turned around, when it was announced that instead of B/M the O/D script was the one that “nailed” it, against public disdain for the first leaked versions of the script. The last weeks were filled with new, very disturbing rumours, a very disturbing casting call character description and a new review of a more recent version of the O/D script which didn’t show any improvement when it came to quality or REH respect. While everyone will understand, that liberties have to be taken, there is absolutely no reason to completely change the character of the stories into an emo-rock-hero type.

Now, after a petition has made it’s round through the web, Paradox has chosen to report another detail on the production of the movie on the official Conan boards. There is another team of unnamed writers to start with yet another rewrite of the script. We will see how that turns out for us fans of quality fantasy and REH.

Here we are, after years of waiting and struggle. The plot synopsis for the new Conan Movie has been leaked out into the public by dreadcentral. As we could suspect after this ridicolous casting call this is absolutely hilarous.

Enjoy!… Or.. do it like i do, cry. (Please excuse any typo, i was laughing and crying while i am writing this )

Amidst a raging sword battle on the icy fields of Cimmeria, a child is bom, cut out of his mother’s womb by his father, CORIN. With her last breath, she names him CONAN. The young boy quickly proves himselfan innate if impulsive warrior. The young warrior is inquisitive about the outside world, and while his father tries to shield him, in time the world comes to their doorstep.

KHALAR SINGH, a powerful warlord, arrives with his band of mercenaries, demanding not gold or steel, but one woman from each bloodline. The Cimmerians refuse and a massive battle ensues. Khalar Singh winning the day through the use of black magic. Corin, knowing the battle is lost, hides Conan, at the cost of his own life. Conan, wracked by the guilt ofa survivor, vows his revenge on Khalar and his warriors. When we meet Conan again, many years later, he’s grown into a powerful and experienced warrior.

His revenge is nearly complete as he traps one of the few of Khalar`s former warriors still left alive. LUCIUS. Before killing him, Conan discovers Khalar’s location in the distant Khauran. In a hidden oasis in the desert, Khalar finds TAMARA, the last of an ancient royal line, the one person he’s been searching for the past twenty years. Tamara, unknowing of her own identity, is told to flee by her mentor, FASSIR, even as Khalar’s forces enslave or massacre the oasis’ people. Tamara escapes, and a furious Khalar sends his men scouring the countryside for her. But her path crosses Coaan’s first, and instead of setting her free he decides to use her as bait to draw Khalar out from behind his protective shield of warriors. But the plan fails and Conan and Tamara must work together to escape, an escape which first reveals a great power building inside the frightened girl.

Conan ends up on a pirate ship that Tamara’s people have commissioned to take her far from Khalar‘s grasp. Conan team of Khalar’s plan: to revive the ancient and evil empire of Acheron by sacrificing the only living heir to its throne, Tamara. Simura explains that Khalar desires the power, which now grows inside Tamara, a power, if unleashed, would once again bring all mankind under Acheron’s bloody and brutal reign. The truth of her destiny has been hidden from Tamara, for her own good, but when the treacherous pirates try to turn her over to Khalar’s forces, even Conan’s brute force is little compared to the explosion of energy unwittingly released by Tamara. In the smoldering aftermath, only Conan and Tamara are left alive.

Conan tries parting ways with Tamara, intent on his own revenge but she asks him for help getting into Khalar’s forces to rescue her people. Like Conan, Tamara can bear no more blood on her hands. Conan finally relents and they make love, not knowing that Khalar is performing a ritual, sacrificing part of his soul to create a demon to help him kill Conan. Once inside the fortress. Conan kills the massive JAILER, and Tamara finds many of her people, including Fassir, still alive. Fassir reveals he’s a traitor, turning Tamara over to her enemy. Conan falls into Khalar`s trap, forced to battle the demon he summoned.THE SHADOW OF NERGAL. Conan survives, then forces Fassir’s acolyte, BAEL, to lead him to Acheron, where Tamara is to be sacrificed. The ghosts of the ancient ruins of Aeheron come alive as the last of the royal line, Tamara, is led up to the sacrificial altar. Conan arrives and starts cutting a swath through the soldiers that block his path to her, including his main revenge target, UKAFA. Conan finds Khalar to be a tough opponent. As Tamara is about to be killed, her eyes tum black and she fully assumes the form of Queen of Acheron, and unleashes her power. After Conan kills Khalar, Tamara begs him to kill her too. so the power within her won`t rise to shed more blood. Conan reluctantly agrees and plunges a spear into her chest. They share one last kiss as she dies in his arms.

After months of dead silence and the recent reveal of the supposed shooting date, an actor from NYC has revealed the casting details on the casting call for the upcoming Conan movie. The list details the general outline of the characters and without further hassle here is the full list of information:

CONAN
Feature Film
SAG

Executive Producers: Trevor Short, Danny Dimbort, Boaz Davidson, Fredrik Malmberg
Producers: Avi Lerner, Joe Gatta, George Furla, Henry Winterstern, John Baldecchi
Production Companies: Millennium Films / Lionsgate / Paradox Entertainment
Director: Marcus Nispel
Writers: Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer, based on the writings of Robert E. Howard
Casting: Kerry Barden and Paul Schnee
Casting Associate: Allison Estrin
Casting Assistant: Rich Delia
Shoots: February 15
Location: Bulgaria

[ CONAN ]
He’s in his 20s to early 30s, Caucasian, powerfully built, broad-shouldered, sun browned skin lined with scars. Piercing blue eyes and square-cut black mane, tall. He is a savage killer that has matured into the refinement his father tried to teach him when he was young. Conan is very smart, almost inhumanly strong, and very cunning. His entire life, from the moment of his birth, has been shaped by violence. Being the last of his tribe and having to watch his father die a cruel death, he is determined avenge his peoples’ slaughter by killing all those who led the attack on the Cimmerians, including the all-powerful Khalar Singh. He is prepared to die in order to accomplish his goal. What Conan did not expect, was to find a reason to live… LEAD

[ TAMARA ]
She is 18 to 24 years old, Caucasian or Middle Eastern, open to all ethnicities; beautiful, studious, correct, a novitiate of a Greek influenced monastery. A master of martial arts, she has been trained to be the Queen’s servant, bodyguard and best friend. She and many other female bodyguards to the queen have been in hiding most of their lives because of the curse of Acheron, which would take the queen’s life to bring almost immortal power to its king. When Khalar Singh, a powerful warlord with ambitions to become the king of Acheron, storms the monastery and captures all of the novitiates, she is separated from Ilira, the one she must protect. With all of her strength and will, Tamara is determined to find and rescue her. She finds herself in league with Conan because of a mutual need to find Khalar Singh. She is not in the least intimidated by Conan’s size or grim demeanor and their alliance eventually blossoms into something that surprises them both… LEAD

[ KHALAR SINGH ]
He’s in his 40s to 50s, Asian or Middle Eastern, Central Asian, Mongol, Turkish, or Persian, open to all ethnicities; commanding in size and manner, a warlord and formidable warrior, brilliant, cruel, weathered and tanned by the many campaigns he has waged and won. He is driven in his quest to find the Queen of Acheron and has been building an empire to do so. His goal is to find the Queen whose blood will bring life to the demonic minions of Acheron while making himself king of this hellish power. With this power, Khalar will protect his legacy against the onslaught of master sorcerer, Thoth-Amon so that his weak son, Fariq may rule after his death. While riding into a Cimmerian village to recruit his old comrade, Corin, his large collection of mercenaries slaughters them to the last soul when Corin refuses to join them. The village’s only survivor was young Conan. When Khalar’s search has finally narrowed to the likely discovery of the queen at a monastery of female monks, he also learns Conan is older and hungry for revenge… LEAD

[ CORIN ]
He’s in his 30s to 40s, Caucasian, powerfully built, intelligent, graceful, master swordsman, skilled blacksmith, de facto leader of Cimmerians and Conan’s father. He resolves to answer the terrible request of his dying wife and cuts Conan out of her so she can see him. He then shoulders the burden of raising Conan, which proves to be daunting given the boy’s savage nature. Corin teaches his son the meaning of the sword: a hot blade must be cooled and tempered. When Khalar finally corners him and tortures him to death, he shows no regret nor pain, hiding his concern for his son’s safety from the eyes of the enemy. SUPPORTING

[ FARIQ ]
He’s in his 20s to early 30s, Asian or Middle Eastern, open to all ethnicities, slight of frame, piercing eyes, cruel, determined to prove to his father that he can rule the world when the time comes. But he has the mentality of a proto-goth rocker, so ruling the world will prove elusive. However, Fariq makes up for his lack of battle skills with his deft understanding of sorcery and evil determination to find the real queen of Acheron. SUPPORTING

[ ILIRA ]
She is 18 to 20 years old, Caucasian or Middle Eastern, beautiful, fun-loving, a novitiate of a Greek influenced monastery. She has been hidden away in a monastery since birth since she is the designated queen of Acheron. When Khalar Singh captures her among all of the other novitiates and start the process of killing them to find out which is the real queen, Ilira maintains her courage under unbelievably cruel circumstances. SUPPORTING

[ UKAFA ]
He’s in his 30s-40, very dark-skinned African or African American, massively framed at six-foot-five, gold-toothed, hardened by a lifetime of war, a leader of Kushite Tribemen from the savannahs of Kush. Ukafa is Khalar Singh’s second in command, jealous that Singh’s son, Fariq, will one day be warlord. He obeys his leader but plots the overthrow of his son. He is a mighty warrior and unbeatable in battle—until he comes face to face with Conan. LEAD

[ REMO ]
He’s in his 30s, any ethnicity, thin, feral, misshapen, a mysterious warrior of dark magic who travels by shadow and surprises men with a quick death. He leads a band of tracking Shadow Scouts under Khalar Singh’s employ. He can be immensely fast and devious, his soul as twisted as his body. SUPPORTING

[ FASSIR ]
He’s in his 50s, Middle Eastern, Asian, Caucasian, SUBMIT ALL ETHNICITIES, strict yet loving, learned and spiritual, an elder monk and leader of the monastery. He’s charged with the care and education of the queen, Ilira. SUPPORTING

[ LUCIUS ]
He’s in his 30s, Caucasian, handsome, proud, haughty, lethal, a leader of a Legion of Aquilonian Mercenaries. While attacking Corin and Conan in close quarters, he is thrown into a fiery forge that disfigures him for life. His self-revulsion twists him to the point that years later he takes great pleasure in torturing prisoners. SUPPORTING

[ ONE-EYED THIEF (ONE-EYED PRISONER) ]
He’s in his 20s to 30s, any ethnicity, wiry, a leader of thieves, who has had the bad luck to fall into Lucius’ grips and is being tortured by him. However, the tables are turned by Conan and this prisoner has his revenge. He later appears at Khor Khala City and offers aide to Conan as a way to pay his debt. SUPPORTING

[ ARTUS ]
He’s in his 30s, tan and swarthy, almost Gypsy-like, handsome, charming, even dashing in a gruff way, a Zamoran pirate and good friend to Conan. They have shared many adventures together and trust each other with their lives. Artus is a master of the high seas with a fast and powerful ship. He shows his mastery in strategy and hand-to-hand combat during a fierce sea battle. SUPPORTING

[ CHEREN ]
He’s in his 30s, any ethnicity, a blind archer with the mystical ability to strike down any enemy with his bow and arrow. He leads a large band of blind archers whose accuracy and cunning lends a powerful presence to Khalar’s army of mercenaries. SUPORTING

[ PICT ]
He’s in his 30s, any ethnicity or dark-complexioned Caucasian (”pict” is Latin for “painted one”) the fourth in the band of Pict Savages. He survives Conan’s onslaught and beings Khalar Singh to where the Cimmerians camp. He is promised the heads of his enemies.

[ YOUNG CONAN ]
Caucasian, tough and wiry, scary violent. At ten, he insists on joining the teenage boys entering their rites into becoming warriors. When four Picts cross his path and kill one of the boys, Conan unleashes a savagery that goes too far for a warrior. His father takes him aside and personally trains him. His father teaches him what makes a good sword but he has still much to learn what makes a good swordsman. When the Cimmerians are attacked by Khalar Singh and his mercenaries, Conan is the only survivor, the last of the Cimmerians. SUPPORTING

[ ISLENE ]
She’s in her 20s, Caucasian, beautiful, courageous, Amazonian built, pregnant with her son, Conan. She is stabbed through the belly by an Aesir Raider. Her dying request to her husband, Corin, is to take the baby from her womb before she dies so that she can see him…

[ YOUNG FARIQ ]
He’s ten years old, Asian or Middle Eastern, submit all ethnicities, Khalar Singh’s son, a sociopath in the making, one who has no qualms killing a wounded man with his own sword.

[ MARAUDER ]
He’s in his 30s to 40s, Caucasian, massively built and brutal, a stone cold killer that takes relish in the killing of the pregnant Islene. His shield bears the emblem of Thoth-Amon. However, his arrogance is his downfall as she, in turn, kills him.

[ YOUNG ARTUS ]
He’s 15 to 16 years old, Caucasian, Cimmerian, a tall muscular kid embarking on the initiation rite to become a warrior. He mocks the smaller Conan much to his regret. While on the trail, he tries to convince Conan to flee after wandering off the path into a dark pass littered with corpses hanging from trees. Young Conan saves him from the Khalar’s raid on Cimmeria. When given a chance to fight for his homeland, Artus flees to save himself.

[ THREE PICT SAVAGES ]
In their late teens, early 20s, SUBMIT ALL ETHNICITIES, large, brutish, bearded, and wild. They are on a hunting party and come across some teenage Cimmerians—heads to add to their collections. What they didn’t count on was the savagery of young Conan.

[ NARRATOR ]
A storyteller’s voice of old, VOICEOVER ONLY

Now it’s officially confirmed. The new Conan will be the old Conan revenge plot drapped in a more modern shining linnen. It seems REH fans will have to put their hopes in the second coming of Solomon Kane, to get a more faithful adaption of a Howard character. It’s really sad that Paradox had kept us hoping for so long that the new Conan Movie would not be a remake, but all the ingredients of the old movie are there… again… again not Howard, not in the least.

After a while of silence and rumours going wild on which actor would be cast to be Conan, there finally have been some news on the Conan Movie. The source of information is surprisingly not an international movie magazine, no it’s a swedish newspaper who stole some time of Fredrik Malmberg’s busy schedule to get some hints out of him.

Here are the facts that we could filter out of the interview:

• The shooting is planned to start on the 21st of February in Bulgaria
• The movie is still set to be released on Summer 2011
• The production budget is set to be at least $70 000 000
• They have been in pre production for 4 weeks now
• They are in talks with one specific actor, who is not very famous but known in the US
• While the plot will differ from the previous Conan the Barbarian, it will still be a revenge story

The shooting has obviously been pushed from August to February, by whatever reason. The budget has dropped from $100 Million to $70 Million i guess due to financial crisis and all studios not wanting to spend the big cash anymore. We will have to see what the quality of the movie will be, if they only have 6 months of pre-production for the movie, since most major historical piece movies or fantasy movies had at least a year or more to handle the massive amount of things to plan and produce.

The plot will still be a revenge story, which clearly hints at the O/D script and the whole “Conan the Barbarian” style “my parents are all dead and i will go on a lifetime of revenge”-plot kind of thing which sadly does not reflect Robert E. Howard’s Conan in the least, but we will see what kind of adjustments have been made to the October 08 version of the script that was leaked into the public.

Now on to the rumours abounding the actor they are in the talks with. Some source that is unknown has spread the rumour that US-American actor pretty-face Jared Padalecki is the present favorite pick. Make what you want of that.

Some weeks ago we started a blunt project and collected questions from the community on this blog and in the official Conan forums for an interview with Marcus Nispel, the director of the upcoming Conan movie. Even though the success of the project was not sure at start, we send it off into the aether in hope to get an answer back, from the powers that be and by Crom we got an answer!

Here is the exclusive interview with Marcus Nispel, the director of the Conan movie.

Interview with Marcus Nispel

How important is it to you to stick to the Conan character of the original REH stories?

The character of Conan is what most attracted me to this project. He is the last of the reality-based superheroes and the most unapologetic one at that. I find that refreshing in these politically correct times.

Did you read the REH Conan stories, and if so, which one is your favorite story and why?

I have no favorite story – the character is what intrigues me, following him through life.

What do you think are the predominant qualities of the Conan character?

Well, it’s all spelled out on the opening page. Conan is “a man of great mirth and great melancholy”. Though, I had to look up what “mirth” meant, I certainly dig the melancholy aspect. To me, that really sets Conan apart from other heroes.

What are your thoughts on the previous Conan films? What did you like or dislike?

The original “Conan” movie was written by two master storytellers, Oliver Stone and John Milius, giving us a tough act to follow! Their movie also features the best beheading ever in a major motion picture. Besides, perhaps “Let the Right One In”, which is another perfect example of creativity over special effects.

Like all movies they have to be understood in the context of the time they were produced. Our collective consciousness changes every generation, though and we can’t step into the same river twice. “Conan the Barbarian” was initially released in the disco era, on the heels of “Star Wars” and “The Empire Strikes Back”. The original film must have hit people like a freight train upon its release. Today is a different time entirely. As a society, we are more cynical in times of depression. We have been overfed with high gloss and contrived CG imagery and seek something we can grasp. As our consciousness has shifted, so will the image of Conan.

What guidelines for the actor who portrays Conan would you give to your casting director?

We’re not interested in doing an Arnold look-alike contest!

What are your thoughts on the REH themes (“barbarism vs civilization” and “existentialism”)

As I already said, we are all getting a little fed up with our own civilization. I’m guilty of several remakes, but am fully aware that a remake of great material does not automatically equal success. A movie like this needs to hit the zeitgeist.

In all of my movies, I am drawn to tribal behavior since I grow easily bored with the antiseptic world in which we live. I like to give people a second hand idea of what its like to have dirt under your fingernails. Most of all, I like getting dirt under my nails making it! I want to create a cathartic experience!

Are you aiming for an ‘R’ rating with this movie?

I’d love to do the x-rated version!

What do you have in mind for sword fights? More asian swirling swords, or more realistic fighting?

Conan is no Errol Flynn and there will be no “frozen moments”, but he will spar with a host of characters that fight in their unique own ways. We all know that Hyboria is an ethnically diverse world. Conan will have to adapt his style slightly to conquer them.

Will you aim to make a movie with varied pacing and different emotional moods, or a high-paced action epic?

I will include different emotional moods in a high-paced action epic. One approach need not exclude the other.

We all suspected the rumour to be well.. only a rumour, due to the fast debunking of it, by several well known and respected news sites around the globe, but now even the CEO of Paradox Entertainment Frederik Malmberg has confirmed that the casting director hasn’t even been hired yet, so no casting can take place right now.

Latinoreview had it right. We have not yet hired the casting director. And the script has been in constant work and is being worked on fram various angles until shooting starts. That is standard operating procedure.

While this clears up the rumour and fixes the fact that Kickinger really hasn’t been hired yet, it does not truly hint at him never being considered for the role so far either.

Since Paradox and Millenium both stated that the role for Conan will be searched through an open casting call – meaning theoreticly everyone can come to apply for the job… with some practical exclusions – the first thing that will happen is the official start of the casting before an actor can be chosen.

Bend you knees, flex your muscle and prepare some impressive growling and acting for the hopefully soon to be opened casting call for Conan the Cimmerian!