He'll be back!
First of all, King Conan: Crown of Iron has not yet been released, not will it be anytime soon, as the movie is still in pre-production. But as the rumor-mill is spinning, there are alread some nice and juicy bits of information that make the fans shiver with anticipation. The movie rights to the character have recently been snagged by Warner Brothers, and there is also talk of creative involvement on the part of the Wachovski Brothers (The Matrix). After Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer, after almost ten years of waiting, all signs indicate that Conan will be back on the big screen.
The first bit of good news is that John Milius will return to write and direct in this movie, so it will be more of a sequel to Conan 1 than Conan 2. Arnold will also be returning to reprise the role that put him on the maps of Hollywood, playing the title role of an aged King Conan. Or as Milius said:
Oh, yes -- without a doubt. It was written for him (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Its got to be him. Somebody younger will play his son but Arnold is Conan. The story follows him until he's old. Its like, King Lear.
And this is what Arnold had to say:
I just had a cigar with John Milius the other day. The project is set up at Warner Bros right now. The script is complete by John Milius. It's now up to Warner if they want to do the movie but I'm looking forward to it because I thing it's a great franchise and it's a great character to play.
As for the role of the son, rumors had both The Rock and Vin Diesel in the running, but The Rock recently said that it won't be him, so we shall have see if Diesel will play, or yet another will do the honors. Diesel himself is interested in the part and is said to be pursuing it. It was also said that Industrial Light and Magic was asked by the Conan 3 team if it was possible to electronically enhance/add muscles. So Arnold might get a body-lift...
Possible Spoiler (possibly crap):
Biggest rumor of them all however, is a description of the contents of the finished script. According to these rumors, the main plot goes thus:
Conan has fathered a son, Kon, during his adventures, and they now serve as warriors in the forces of the Aquilonian army under the command of a tribune named Gaius Metallus. But then Metallus offers Conan the Crown of the Kingdom of Zingara, but only if he will give up his son to the Emperor of Aquilonia, to be educated in warfare, philosophy, and civilization. Conan agrees and father and son remain separated for over a decade.
But the passage of time does not agree with King Conan. He grows fat and bored (see, perfect Schwarzenegger role right there), forgetting what it means to be a man and a barbarian. Kon meanwhile is trained, but earns an enemy in Fortunas, son of the Emperor. Not being able to fight Fortunas, Kon keeps quiet and learns how to take a beating, growing mean and tough.
And when Conan gets himself into trouble with the Aquilonians for making peace with their enemies, the new Emperor Fortunas decides to pay him a visit, bringing with him some of his finest troops including Kon, now a grown man. An assassination attempts against Conan fails, and so the conflict is decided in a war, which Conan loses. Now on the run, reunited with Kon, he forms his own army of warriors and allies with the enemies of Aquilonia. And so, the final battle may begin...
So, all in all, the script, if it is true, promises a return to the Conan of the first movie, making no no pretense about being anything other than a sword-wielding, ultra-macho hommage to Robert E. Howard's work. King Conan is for hard-core Conan fans. Let's hope it gets made, and lets us forget Conan the Destroyer.
Crom!
Part I: Conan the Barbarian, Part II: Conan the Destroyer
Addendum: With Conan`s, err, Arnolds recent election to the post of Californian Governor (aka Governator), chances to ever see this movie have dropped to "very unlikely". Pity, I was looking forward to it...