August 30th is shaping up to be a mighty fine day for things both enigmatic and strange, my friends. Not only is it the day that Tool is expected to release their first album in 13 years, but it's also when Netflix plans to debut THE DARK CRYSTAL: AGE OF RESISTANCE!
Helmed by Louis Leterrier (NOW YOU SEE ME, THE INCREDIBLE HULK), and based on THE DARK CRYSTAL, Jim Henson's spellbinding 1982 feature film, THE DARK CRYSTAL: AGE OF RESISTANCE tells a new epic story, set many years before the events of the movie, and realized using classic puppetry with cutting edge visual effects. The world of Thra is dying. The Crystal of Truth is at the heart of Thra, a source of untold power. But it is damaged, corrupted by the evil Skeksis, and a sickness spreads across the land. When three Gelfling uncover the horrific truth behind the power of the Skeksis, an adventure unfolds as the fires of rebellion are lit and an epic battle for the planet begins.
Netflix's new TV series, based on the film that helped put 80s fantasy cinema on the map, stars a Murderers' Row of talent, who've all assembled to help bring the world of Jim Henson back for another visually-stunning and technically-marvelous adventure. Leading the voice cast are Taron Egerton, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Nathalie Emmanuel, as Rian, Brea and Deet, three Gelfling heroes. They will be joined by Caitriona Balfe, Helena Bonham Carter, Harris Dickinson, Natalie Dormer, Eddie Izzard, Theo James, Toby Jones, Shazad Latif, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mark Strong, and Alicia Vikander as other Gelfling kin.
As for the nightmarish Skeksis: Harvey Fierstein, Mark Hamill, Ralph Ineson, Jason Isaacs, Keegan-Michael Key, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Simon Pegg, and Andy Samberg will provide the voices of the main assembly. Meanwhile, Donna Kimball will voice Aughra, with additional characters being voiced by puppeteers from the production, including Alice Dinnean, Louise Gold, Neil Sterenberg and Victor Yerrid as Hup.
Alongside today's release date confirmation, Netflix also dropped a gallery of new images from the series, which you can see for yourself below:
THE DARK CRYSTAL: AGE OF RESISTANCE is executive produced by Lisa Henson, Louis Leterrier, Halle Stanford, with co-executive producing being handled by Jeffrey Addiss & Will Matthews, Javier Grillo-Marxuach, Blanca Lista. Additionally, Ritamarie Peruggi will produce.
Straight up, I feel like I've been waiting for this since my early childhood. Jim Henson and Frank Oz's THE DARK CRYSTAL was my everything growing up, alongside films like RETURN TO OZ, LABYRINTH, THE NEVER ENDING STORY, and MONSTER SQUAD. Furthermore, I've been craving a return to practical effects and puppetry ever since CGI wrapped it's big, strong hands around the neck of modern day special effects. While I can appreciate that films must evolve with the times, it does my heart good to see that The Henson Company and Netflix still see the value in presenting something like this upcoming series. I think I speak for a lot of 80s kids when I say bring it the fuck on!
THE DARK CRYSTAL: AGE OF RESISTANCE will launch globally on Netflix beginning on August 30th.
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