By Ryan Parsons | Image property of New Line CinemaThe Independent
The Golden Compass
It looks like Christian protesting might have finally won. After lashing out at The Golden Compass for its anti-religious source, those who protested have to be relieved to hear that the franchise's sequel, The Subtle Knife, has been put on ice.
What the religious protestors don't know is that they are being used as a scapegoat, as nothing would stop the creation of the sequel if the money was there.
No Golden Sequel
Though The Golden Compass did well when it comes to the worldwide box office, the fools over at New Line sold the international rights to the film before its release; meaning they were stuck with the film's meager haul of $70 million domestically. New Line, hanging their heads, has since been merged with Warner Bros.
According to The Independent, author Philip Pullman has not been contacted about a sequel nor is director Chris Weitz willing to talk about it without any studio backing.
"I know everyone would like to see a sequel and I know I'd like to see it. When the first film was in production, I was talking to the studio and to Chris Weitz and producers quite frequently. I'm sure I would be now if the sequel was in production," he said.
Weitz said yesterday he did not want talk about the project while the studio responsible for the first film was refusing to discuss the future of the trilogy.
When The Golden Compass was release last year, New Line Cinema had high hopes for the trilogy as the new The Lord of the Rings, and the sequel was due to be released by the end of 2009.
Here is the problem that I see. Forget the religious groups, as nothing is going to stop audiences from seeing a good or faithful film. Considering that millions have read the source material, the audience should have been there. The problem was that New Line shied away from the actual story to The Golden Compass -- no mention of the Bible, come on -- and effectively ruined what is a sensational book.
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