Live-action remakes are really getting out of control at times. We gotta admit that when we heard there was going to be a live-action Dumbo, we got nervous. Then when we heard Tim Burton was going to direct, we were a mix of excited and scared.
Hollywood studios have had surprisingly strong success rate so far on these live-action remakes (from Cinderella to The Jungle Book to Beauty and the Beast), but with such a production-line approach to churning back up every animated classic in its catalogue, exhaustion is bound to kick in sooner or later. Right?
During this weekend’s D23 – Disney’s Fan Expo – audiences got to see a life-size sculpted model of Tim Burton’s Dumbo was wheeled onto stage – and some people are saying it’s pretty nightmare-inducing. Guess we had to expect that it would be a challenge to transform a 2D, cartoon elephant with ears double the size of its body and giant blue eyes into something vaguely realistic, but it won’t comfort those already hesitant about the project.
As for the cast of the film: Colin Farrell will play Holt Farrier, a former circus star and war-veteran who cares for the newborn elephant with giant ears, with Nico Parker and Finley Hobbins cast as his children, who discover Dumbo can fly. Danny DeVito will play the circus’ owner Max Medici, while Michael Keaton is V.A. Vandevere, the enigmatic entrepreneur who swoops in on the promise he’ll make Dumbo a star, alongside aerial artist Colette Marchant, played by Eva Green.
Dumbo is set to hit cinemas 29 March 2019.
What do you think of Dumbo’s live-action look?