The live-action movies based on comic book storylines or animated characters are either hugely successful or a massive disappointment as we have witnessed in the recent adaptations. It seems like we’re all set to witness another adaptation of a very popular cartoon character, as it was recently announced that Michael Caleo is allegedly working on a live-action adaptation of Popeye the Sailor Man.
Popeye the Sailor Man is getting another live-action after 40 years
Popeye is one of the most popular cartoon characters the world has ever seen and many generations grew up watching the animated series based on the popular sailor man who gained superhuman strength by eating Spinach. The character even celebrated its 95th anniversary earlier this year as it was first released in the 1929 comic Thimble Theater.
As reported by Variety, a live-action adaptation of Popeye the Sailor Man is allegedly in the works and will be brought to the big screen by Chernin Entertainment and King Features. Famous screenwriter who has written episodes for series like The Sopranos and Sexy Beast, Michael Caleo, has been named as the screenwriter for the project.
This is going to be the first live-action adaptation of Popeye in the last 40 years since the catastrophic failure of Robert Altman’s musical comedy movie, Popeye, which was released back in 1980.
Robert Altman’s Popeye was a massive critical failure on its release
A lot of things are required to go in one’s favor for the success of a movie or series. However, unfortunately, almost none of them went in favor of Robert Evans when he was trying to work on Popeye. For the lead role of Popeye, Evans initially wanted to go with Dustin Hoffman. However, when the actor asked Evans to fire Jules Feiffer as the screenwriter, he decided to part ways with Hoffman instead and the role was given to Robin Williams.
After the cast and crew of the movie were decided, Robert Altman decided to start the filming in an area called Anchor Bay of Malta. Although the area was scenically perfect for the filming, making a set in the area proved to be a production nightmare.
The production manager of the movie, Frederick Muller once opened up about the terrible filming conditions for Popeye in an interview with The Telegraph and said,
“It was the most impractical location ever. It really was just a goat track leading to a couple of fishermen’s huts. We had to quarry the mountain to build the breakwater, and create a road so that lorries could get down it.”
Popeye was a massive commercial success at the box office as it went on to gross almost $60 million against a production budget of $20 million. The movie was not much of a critical success upon its release as it largely received negative reviews, but it has received much more positive reviews over the years.
Popeye is currently available for rent on Apple TV+.
