Steven Spielberg remains in director’s chair for ‘Tintin’ movie

Despite rumors to the contrary Steven Spielberg, will direct the first installment of the eagerly awaited Tintin franchise.

The Adventures of Tintin  is a series of comic strips created by Belgian artist Hergé, the pen name of Georges Remi (1907–1983). The movie, which focuses on mystery-solving teen reporter Tintin and his dog Snowy, stars Thomas Sangster as the enigma-busting sleuth, alongside King Kong star Andy Serkis, who will play Tintin’s trusty sidekick Captain Haddock. Eric Stoltz is rumored to play Dr. Krospell. The series set in a painstakingly researched world closely mirroring our own, has continued as a favorite of readers and critics alike for over 70 years, with translations published in over 50 languages and more than 200 million copies of the books sold to date.

It has always been the plan for Spielberg to take on the direction of the franchise’s first film, with Lord of the Rings filmmaker Peter Jackson taking over from the Jaws legend for the subsequent sequels (a trilogy is planned). On Tuesday, a representative for Herge Studios, the Belgium based production company who hold the rights to the beloved character, said Jackson would be leading the first film, with Spielberg acting as an indirect contributor.
However, spokespeople for both filmmakers insist it is Spielberg who is in charge of the first film, due to start shooting in the fall of this year, as originally planned.

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