As work proceeds apace on the adaptation of Philip Reeves' Mortal Engines book, producer Peter Jackson has shared the first look at the film via some concept art. Check it out below and click to see a bigger size.
While Jackson is content to simply co-write (with Fran Walsh and Phillipa Boyens) and produce this one, he's handling the directing chores to a trusted lieutenant: designer and second-unit shooter Christian Rivers.
The story takes place in a steampunk post-apocalyptic future where cities are mobile and perambulate the planet devouring each other for fuel: a system amusingly called Municipal Darwinism. The St Paul's Cathedral-topped London is the strongest of these Traction Cities, in a world where "old tech" is extremely sought after.
The first novel, Mortal Engines itself, in a very small nutshell, involves an assassination attempt within the Historians Guild; the challenging of apprentice Historian Tom Natsworthy's value system, when he gets stranded overboard his beloved London with the revenge-bent Hester Shaw; and the Terminator-ish "stalker" Shrike (Grike if you're American, where the book seres goes by the awkward title The Hungry City Chronicles) who's on their trail. Mortal Engines is followed by Predator's Gold, Infernal Devices, A Darkling Plain and the prequel Fever Crumb.
Hera Hilmar, Robert Sheehan, Ronan Raftery, Stephen Lang and Hugo Weaving are all in the cast for this one, which is aiming to hit cinemas on 14 December, 2018.
Christian Rivers Directing The Mortal Engines Film For Peter Jackson