Ursula K Le Guin's classic fantasy work has been brought to the screen in the past by Studio Ghibli, which made Tales From Earthsea in 2006. Now producer Jennifer Fox has secured the rights to all of Le Guin's Earthsea series and is planning to turn them into films.
The series comprises five novels and eight short stories set in a vast archipelago of islands in an uncharted ocean. It's a world of magic and marvels, one conjured by a civilization that is in a Bronze or Iron Age. And the emphasis is on understanding nature and each other, not trying to grab power over them.
Given the layered nature of the stories, and the prime possibilities for casting people of colour in the lead roles, Le Guin's stories would seem to be prime material for movies and TV shows, but only Ghibli has had permission until now. Le Guin gave Fox the rights to adapt the books before the author died in January.
Fox, who produced movies such as Michael Clayton and Nightcrawler, will now look for a writer to start the process. Le Guin's book The Telling is also on a track towards the screen, though remains in development.
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