Two of the best-selling novels of the 21st century will be made into two movies by the studio that released them, Variety has learned.
The film will star Robert Downey Jr., who co-wrote the first two books with his partner, Jon Favreau, and will focus on the adventures of an aspiring actor in a fictional Lone Mountain town named “The Lone Boy.”
The film, called The Lone Wolf, is set in New Mexico and is expected to be released by Warner Bros. and Legendary in late 2018.
The sequel, The Last Boy, is being produced by Favreau and the two men’s son, Jon, who is also set to direct.
The two will write the script.
“Both books are so unique, so different,” Favreau said in an interview with Variety.
“We love them so much, but we wanted to give the movies something different.”
“The Last Boys” was published in 2015 and features an original story set in the Lone Star State by Robert Galbraith and David Mitchell.
Favreau’s book was nominated for the Hugo and Nebula awards, but was eventually overshadowed by the more popular The Lone Ranger.
The Lone Boy, on the other hand, was nominated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for best novel.
“I think there’s a lot of similarities in these books,” Favres said.
“The way they’re written and the way the world of the Lone Boy is presented, and it’s very much a real place.
The way I think that’s resonated with fans and a lot people are drawn to the idea of this place.”
The Lone Girl, which was published by Penguin Group in 2018, is the story of a young girl who, after being sent off to boarding school, finds herself in the middle of a war.
The movie, starring Reese Witherspoon, is slated to release in 2018.
It is currently in production in New Zealand.
“It’s very interesting to see a film that is so different to one of the books, and that’s what we’re doing here,” said David Ellison, who co wrote the film with the same team of writers.
“And we really love the world that The Lone Girls takes place in, so it was a natural fit for us.”
The novels are also set in a different time and place.
“When you write a book about New Mexico, it’s not really like New York or LA or Los Angeles.
It’s very different,” Ellison said.
The Last Boys will focus much more on the Lone Girl’s journey, and the Lone Wolf will focus more on her life in a town called “The Town,” which will be set in California.
Both books are scheduled to hit shelves in the first quarter of 2019.
The studios have also hired a writers room, which will include writers who are currently working on other projects, and they are in talks with some major studios.
Favres and Ellison said they have worked on the movies together for about five years, and he is excited about the possibilities they have for the franchises.
“To be honest, the movies are not the same books,” Ellison joked.
“But the two of us have a really great vision of these worlds.
So we’re excited to see where this thing goes.”
