Orwell’s 1984 Will Head Back to Screen

It’s been a long time since Hollywood produced a screen version of George Orwell’s 1949 classic novel 1984. And some would argue that there’s never really been a good version, though Michael Radford's version -- released without irony in 1984 -- probably came closest. With the current high interest in dystopic fiction and a production team that will include Imagine Entertainment, this has the earmarks of being the best one yet. Unfortunately, it’s going to be a while before we find out. From The Guardian:

The consortium has secured rights from Orwell's estate and is currently searching for screenwriters, so the project is at an early stage. It's not known whether Howard himself is considering a director's role.

Nineteen Eighty-Four takes place entirely in the Oceania province of Airstrip One, formerly the United Kingdom, and while the new producers are firmly US-based there is nothing at this stage to suggest that they plan to relocate the action. The blockbuster success of films such as the Harry Potter series has proved beyond doubt that American audiences are no longer – if they ever were – put off by British accents.

Despite the fact that, if you’ve read the book at all, you’ll know that the cover of the 1950 Signet paperback edition of 1984 pretty much describes a different work, we’ve chosen to run it here. After all, how often do we get to see British fiction classics dressed up as some sort of sexy noir? Killer Covers of the Week take note: we can dig up steamy covers with the best of ’em!