Disney's much-anticipated big-screen adaptation of The Lone Ranger starring Johnny Depp has been put on hold, according to industry reports.

Deadline Hollywood said the studio had stopped pre-production over problems with reducing the movie's estimated $250m (£154m) cost.

The Social Network star Armie Hammer was set to play the masked Texas Ranger with Depp as his partner Tonto.

Filming had been due to begin in October in New Mexico.

Jerry Bruckheimer had been lined up to produce the film, with Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski also on board.

Deadline reported a source close to the film, who said producers were now discussing whether to take the project to another film studio or to continue at a later date with a lower budget.

The Lone Ranger - about a ranger battling injustice in the Old West - first aired on the radio in the US in the 1930s and became a popular TV series running from 1949 to 1957.

The movie adaptation was scheduled to be released on 21 December 2012.

I read an article about this yesterday.  The bloated $250MM budget was due to a ludicrous plot.

First off, the lead character was going to be Tonto and not the Lone Ranger.  And the whole plot was some sort of occult thing involving werewolves and lots of computer graphics.

WTF with the gratuitous computer graphics these days? They have turned the cinema into into a soulless waste of time and popcorn.  ::)

I read an article about this yesterday.  The bloated $250MM budget was due to a ludicrous plot.

First off, the lead character was going to be Tonto and not the Lone Ranger.  And the whole plot was some sort of occult thing involving werewolves and lots of computer graphics.

WTF with the gratuitous computer graphics these days? They have turned the cinema into into a soulless waste of time and popcorn.  ::)


Sounds abysmal. 

You couldn't make a Lone Ranger movie palatable to today's audiences without radically changing the character. 

Lone Ranger moral code:

No swear
No drink
No smoke
No walk with woman

I mean, the guy was as square as Roy Rogers, nah, make that Mister Rogers.  So if you want to make the movie for people over 11 years old, he's gotta get a little more badass.

Then there's Tonto.  Have to make him PC.  Where's the fun in that?

And that sill mask.  Come on!  No wonder he couldn't get laid!
:D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEEIyvl0PlM



Cat

I read an article about this yesterday.  The bloated $250MM budget was due to a ludicrous plot.

First off, the lead character was going to be Tonto and not the Lone Ranger.  And the whole plot was some sort of occult thing involving werewolves and lots of computer graphics.

WTF with the gratuitous computer graphics these days? They have turned the cinema into into a soulless waste of time and popcorn.  ::)


Maybe filmmakers and Disney are starting to get tired of their own sh*t too! This may be a good sign for better movies in the future.