For years, it seemed like The Dark Tower was the one Stephen King adaptation to evade fans forever. After spending years in different stages of pre-production, with several different teams attached to it from time to time, the project is finally making its way to the big screen. Idris Elba is set to play Roland Deschain, aka The Gunslinger, and Matthew McConaughey is the villainous Man in Black in a film adaptation that also serves as the first step in bringing what King considers to be his magnum opus to life in live-action form.

Despite a recent release delay to summer 2017, the first trailer for the film is supposedly set to be released sometime around Christmas this year, which means fans may only be a few weeks away from getting their first taste at the long-awaited adaptation. There’s no word on if the release delay may have had an affect on that, though.

The first sign of a possible trailer release may have just arrived, however, with a brand new image from The Dark Tower debuting online. Discovered by Cinelinx’s Jordan Maison, the image provides the first look at The Gunslinger and the Man in Black coming face-to-face in the film. Check it out below:

New #TheDarkTower movie image! Can’t wait to see this one. Hopefully trailer is coming soon. pic.twitter.com/mB7Yvf1o74— Jordan Maison (@JordanMaison) December 8, 2016

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The image itself is unsurprisingly vague, but for The Dark Tower fans, getting to see Roland Deschain stand within inches of his most hated foe, should be more than enough to induce some chills. Elba’s unbridled fury at the Man in Black is fitting of their relationship, as is McConaughey’s seeming disinterest at it. Their rivalry is one of the more intense that King has created, and if there was only one thing that The Dark Tower movie was allowed to sell itself on – other than its mysticism and fantastical elements – the opportunity to see McConaughey and Elba play an intense cat and mouse game through multiple worlds and dimensions would be more than enough.

Directed by Nikolaj Arcel, The Dark Tower will, in addition to hopefully being a strong, capable adaptation of the King series in its own right, also be the introduction to a TV series based on the novels, with some actors from the film reprising their roles and others being replaced. Not much is known about the series yet, but if The Dark Tower ends up being the successful adaptation that Sony is hoping it will be, then it could just be the beginning of a multi-format, sprawling live-action adaptation of the series that King’s fans, and even the author himself, have been waiting years to see.

Source: Jordan Maison

  • The Dark Tower Release Date: 2017-08-04