Acclaimed director Peter Jackson has revealed why he chose not to step behind the camera for Mortal Engines.
Thanks to marketing efforts, one might get the impression that the fantasy adaptation Mortal Engines is a Peter Jackson directed film, however, The Lord of the Rings director is only a producer/writer. Instead, his protege Christian Rivers has taken up directing duties.
Why exactly did Jackson choose not to helm the project? Well, it has a lot to do with how tired he was after directing two Middle Earth trilogies. Speaking to Empire, the director said: “I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. I just thought I could either direct the movie in an exhausted state or I could give it to someone who is young and has a bit more energy, and simply help them.”
Are you disappointed that Jackson decided not to direct this project? We will have to wait and see which project will ultimately bring him back into the chair, although he has recently suggested that he could be set to take on his long-planned Tintin sequel.
Thousands of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, humankind has adapted and a new way of living has evolved. Gigantic moving cities now roam the Earth, ruthlessly preying upon smaller traction towns. Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan)—who hails from a Lower Tier of the great traction city of London—finds himself fighting for his own survival after he encounters the dangerous fugitive Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar). Two opposites, whose paths should never have crossed, forge an unlikely alliance that is destined to change the course of the future.
Mortal Engines is set to hit cinemas in the UK on December 8th and in the US on December 14th. Rivers directs a cast that includes Hera Hilmar (Da Vinci’s Demons), Stephen Lang (Avatar), Hugo Weaving (The Lord of the Rings), Robbie Sheehan (Fortitude), Ronan Raftery (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them), Leila George (Mother, May I Sleep With Danger?), Jihae (Mars), Colin Salmon (Limitless), Patrick Malahide (Game of Thrones) and Rege-Jean Page (Roots).
