Conan the Barbarian could be part of a cinematic universe, should The Legend of Conan turn out to be a successful film. It's a tough sell, but it could work with the right people behind it.
Fredrik Malmberg is the man who acquired the rights to all the creations of Robert E. Howard. These creations include the likes of Conan, Kull the Conqueror, Solomon Kane, and more. The big plan here is to combine all these characters in a single universe.
The Legend of Conan will kickstart this shared world, and Arnold Schwarzenegger is expected to reprise his role as Conan, King of the Barbarians.
These plans were put immediately into motion after Conan the Barbarian starring Jason Momoa flopped at the box office. It wasn't the most terrible movie in the world, but it wasn't good enough to warrant a sequel.
We understand that The Legend of Conan is a direct sequel to Conan the Destroyer, which is why Arnold has returned. However, we have to wonder if the choice of bringing Arnold back into the fold is a good idea. The man is 67 years old, and we doubt he is capable of carrying a whole movie such as this on his back.
Chances are, they would need to team him up with great supporting characters and give him as little dialogue as possible.
In terms of story, all we know is that it takes place 30 years into the future.
"It's 30 years after the original film, and he's facing his mortality and how a legend deals with the fact he's older, and how does he want to go out," Malmberg told Deadline.
In terms of the other characters, Kull the Conqueror was given his own film back in 2009. It was shown first in Europe, but legal issues caused delay in its release worldwide until 2012. At the time, it cost $40 million to make but could only earn $20 million at the box office.
Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 60 percent rating. Not bad.
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