According Breck Eisner almost two years ago he was going to helm a Flash Gordon movie which he considered his passion project and that writers Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless were preparing a second draft to turn in to the Studio. Eisner stated:
"Flash Gordon is a project I've been pursuing for years, it's a real passion of mine. The writers have been breaking story the past couple of months, and we have a couple months to go until the draft goes into Sony. Assuming they achieve everything we talked about, I think it will be a really great script.
It's not a remake of any movie that's been done before. Nothing to do with the camp of the '80s, nothing to do with the serials of the '50s. It's definitely based on the Alex Raymond strips from the '30s and '40s, told from the point of view as if he was redoing the strips today. The audience that was reading the strips back then was a very different audience that today's audience. It's an action-adventure, very dynamic, aggressive, with a really strong central character."
I quite liked everything in the past featuring Flash Gordon whether it was the 1950's TV show starring Steve Holland as the character or the classic 1980 film with Sam J. Jones.Though unfortunately the serials starring him were pretty lousy in quality even for Film Serials. Flash Gordon inspired Star Wars so I do think it's time for Flash Gordon to make a comeback because he's got a lot of potential if handled properly. Eisner seems to want to update the comic strips of the 1930's and 40's which were pretty damn awesome because they were really the first of their kind. The Space Opera genre was brand new and while characters like Buck Rogers had existed for a while, Flash Gordon was a polo player and Yale graduate and not somebody from outer space.
Director
I'm keeping Breck Eisner because this guy has a definite and clear idea of what he wants Flash Gordon to be like and I like his idea. He's got a clear vision and I would like to see that translated onto the big screen. I'd hate to see the unlikely hero cliche used in the wrong way like having Flash as more of a goof like Martin Campbell did to Hal Jordan in Green Lantern. As long as their isn't a huge amount of CGI used in the film, I'm perfectly happy with his idea.
Of course thanks to CGI, making a Flash Gordon movie could be a lot easier because creating these other worlds with CGI is easier than doing so with matte paintings like Mike Hodges' Flash Gordon did. Of course there was no alternative in 1980 but today, the film could be entirely shot on a green screen like George Lucas did with the Star Wars prequels. Sure he built some sets but mostly everything else was CGI. I have no idea of who Eisner has in mind for the role but I think I've got a great choice for Flash.
Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon has been portrayed by numerous actors over the years without one single actor that truly defines the role. Sure Buster Crabbe played the character for a while but he's largely forgotten today as is Steve Holland and that guy who played in the SciFi channel's series which was like SciFi's Smallville but much worse from what I gather. I think Ryan Gosling could play the character. Basically the only requirements for the role are muscles and Blonde hair both of which Ryan Gosling has. I'm willing to cast this guy in a lot of roles but if there's one I'd want him to play the most-it'd be Flash Gordon.
None of the actors who played the character in the past possessed very much talent and it's long been rumored that Sam J. Jones was dubbed in Post-Production of the 1980 film by a professional voice actor whose name has never been revealed because he most likely doesn't exist. If I couldn't get Gosling for the role, then I'd choose Chris Hemsworth who most definitely meets the few requirements to play the character. Plus he can actually act quite well even though the role of Thor doesn't exactly give him much range or much of a chance to prove his worth (Worth, get it?). Plus he wouldn't have to wear a wig for the role and wouldn't have to wear what seems like a heavy costume.
I really think that after all these years the role needs an actor whose performance will finally become the signature one for the character but like I said the role has been played by numerous actors bu none of them define the role.
Dale Arden
Unfortunately Dale Arden has had very little character development over the years I believe and has never gotten much of a chance to be played by a good talented actress. Sure she wasn't a damsel in distress but was more of a sidekick (my memory serves me correct) on the Flash Gordon TV show from the 1950's but in Mike Hodges' film she was at times but at times she was shown to be perfectly capable of handling herself. For the role, I choose Emma Stone. She's perfect for the role that was inspired by Dale Arden-Princess Leia. Even though she's perfect for both roles, there will never be a Star Wars remake so I want her in the Flash Gordon movie since that's the next best thing.
