A new Tintin movie may be coming our way and this time, it's going to be in live-action. French filmmaker Patrice Leconte is currently developing a new feature based on the iconic comic series by Georges Remi, aka Hergé. Should the project move forward, it will be based on The Castafiore Emerald, which was one of the final stories in the series that was published before Remi's passing. It is also a story that manages to distinguish itself within the character's canon.

According to a new report, Patrice Leconte (The Girl on the Bridge, Man on the Train) is already quite far along in developing the live-action Tintin movie. There is no word on casting just yet, nor is there any indication as to when production could begin. However, the filmmaker still needs to finish his current movie, Maigret and the Dead Girl. Perhaps more importantly, there is an ongoing rights issue with the franchise between Paramount France and the rights holders of Tintin. That would undoubtedly need to be ironed out before any work on the proposed movie could continue.

As for the source material, The Castafiore Emerald is the twenty-first volume of The Adventures of Tintin. It was originally published between 1961 and 1962 in serialized form. In the story, Tintin and Captain Haddock happen across a community of gypsies who invite them home. This occurs just as famed opera singer Bianca Castafiore decides to visit Tintin. Chaos befalls Marlinspike Hall just as a precious emerald goes missing. What separates this story from other Tintin tales is that it is not a globetrotting adventure. It is a bit more isolated and contained. So it makes for an interesting choice, in terms of stories to adapt in the character's vast library.

This is not the only Tintin movie currently in the works. Steven Spielberg previously directed an animated feature based on the franchise, 2011's The Adventures of Tintin. It was successful enough, bringing in $373 million at the global box office, to warrant development of a sequel. The idea was to have Peter Jackson, of Lord of the Rings fame, step behind the camera for the sequel. Spielberg confirmed back in 2018 that the project was still happening but that it likely wouldn't come to fruition for at least a few years. The events of 2020 have undoubtedly further complicated whatever plans may have been in place.

The Adventures of Tintin was originally published in 1926 and ran through 1976. The books have been published in more than 70 languages across the globe with more than 200 million copies sold worldwide. This to say, there is potentially a great deal of value in Tintin as a franchise. Especially in an age when every streaming service and studio is looking for any possible competitive advantage they can muster in jockeying for eyeballs. So a live-action movie makes sense right now. We'll be sure to keep you posted as any further details on the project are made available. This news comes to us via Figaro.