ICYMI: Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets is coming out in August, and as Fifth Element fans, we are super excited. Via Polygon:
Created by writer Pierre Christin and artists Jean-Claude Mézières in the 1960s as a French serial, the comics went on to have a long life in both other languages and in graphic novel formats, which are typically referred to as albums. The series wrapped up in 2010.
But it was those early years, appearing in magazines, that first captured Besson’s attention as a child. Laureline, Besson once told me, was his first love. The idea of turning the comics into a movie seemed an impossibility, so he never really gave it thought until much more recently.
DeHaan, who takes on the role of Valerian in the film, wasn’t really familiar with the source material until the movie deal came up. He said he hadn’t read the comics before, but that he’s read them since.
“I think what’s cool about the comics in general is that they kind of lend themselves to infinite possibilities and worlds and all of that,” he said. “I think Luc kind of took one of the comics and made a lot more out of it. He’s expanded upon the comics more than like the comic itself. I think there’s a lot to play with there.”
DeHaan said that while Empire of a Thousand Planets, which serves loosely as the basis for the film, isn’t his favorite, he’d be hard pressed to say which of the 22 albums, 14 of which have been translated into English, are.