Along with the oncoming tide of revisionist fairy tales comes Pan, a noir-tinged take on the often-adapted tale of Peter Pan. However, this dark drama will not center on the green tight-wearing wonderboy, but rather on Captain Hook, reconstructed as a former police detective in a tireless pursuit of a childlike kidnapper – Pan. The script by Ben Magrid was originally optioned by New Line in 2006 for an intended Guillermo del Toro project. However, that went nowhere and now Variety reports Social Capital Films in conjunction with Energy Entertainment are going ahead with Pan and have lined up Swiss director Ben Hibon to helm this alternate POV take on Peter Pan.
If you’re one of the gajillion people who saw Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 this past weekend, then you have seen Hibon’s handiwork. For while David Yates returned to helm the live-action sequences of the latest in the Potter franchise, Hibon was the director of the film’s visually compelling animated sequence: ‘The Tale of the Three Brothers.’ Admittedly, I’ve seen nothing else on Hibon’s filmography, but this last credit alone has me interested in his Pan. His animation was cryptic and reminiscent of Lotte Reiniger’s classic carefully constructed paper figures while feeling vibrant, fluid and dangerous. The fact that Hibon is being lined up for a production considered for del Toro can’t be much of a surprise to those who’ve seen HP 7.1.
Pan aims to go to shoot in Europe next fall, and casting is currently underway.
What do you think? Were you intrigued by The Deathly Hallows animated sequence? Are you interested in Pan?