Marvin The Martian Movie Handed To Alex Zamm, Mike Myers To Provide Voice?
I was a little surprised when a solo movie vehicle for interplanetary Looney Tune zealotMarvin the Martianwas announced but that was some time ago and since then, I assumed it was dying a slow death out in the cold. Not so, apparently andAlex Zamm, director of the upcomingBevery Hills Chihuahua 2and previously attached to aHong Kong Phooeyadaptation, has been tapped to take on directing duties.
It’s been so long since the Marvin movie was last talked about I’m a little surprised they’ve kept the original story premise. It’s a bad one too.
Here’s Peter’s version of the film’s set-up from areport in July of 2008:
The pitch is aimed at the family demographic and will be packaged as a Christmas movie. Marvin comes to Earth to destroy Christmas but becomes trapped in a gift box.
Oh, great. So he becomes some kind ofGremlins-cum-Toy Soldiersgift with a dangerous side? Does he end up learning the true meaning of Christmas? It’s going to take a lot of sincerity and a lot more skill and wit to make this one fly. Maybe Joe Dante was the director Warner Bros. really wanted, but they’d be lucky to get him to just return their calls, I’d guess, after the way he was treated onLooney Tunes Back in Action.
TheLA Timesreport thatPaul KaplanandMark Torgoveare on scripting duties. They wrote the spoofishCHiPSfilm that has been stalled since 2005 as well as episodes ofSpin CityandGeorge Lopezand, honestly, they don’t even do as much as Zamm to inspire confidence.
While no voice cast has been named, theTimesstory does evokeMike Myersas a possibility, just “one name that’s come up”. He’s as good a choice as anybody, I’m sure.
While I’m wanting them to have Marvin animated in a hand drawn style, I’m sure they won’t. I really will have a little tantrum if they decide to motion capture him, however, because that’s just not how he moves. He moves like a toon.
Even more importantly, they need to get his personality right. An off-centre Marvin would be worse than no Marvin at all.
