Artemis Fowl, the popular YA fantasy series, is finally coming to the silver screen.  Bookstr announced that the first book in the Artemis Fowl series will be made into a movie.  Sir Kenneth Branagh will be directing, and it’s rumored (but not confirmed) that Dame Judi Dench will be starring in the movie.  Given CGI technology, she could easily play either Captain Holly Short, the first female captain of LEPrecon (Lower Elements Police Recon) or the villainous pixie Opal Kobai, despite her age and height.

Sir Kenneth Branagh as Professor Gilderoy Lockhart in “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” {image via Warner Brothers}

From the description on IMDB, it sounds like the movie will be combining elements of the first and second books in the Artemis Fowl series.  There are eight books in the series so far, plus four graphic novel adaptations and one companion book, The Artemis Fowl Files.

Artemis Fowl the second, a young Irish criminal mastermind, kidnaps the fairy LEPrecon officer Holly Short for ransom to fund rescuing his father. Once a transaction is made, they go onto a hunt for the evil pixie Opal Koboi and rush to save Artemis Fowl senior from the Arctic.

Dame Judi Dench and Ali Fazal as “Victoria and Abdul” {image via BBC Films}

Artemis Fowl has been compared to Harry Potter, and many fans of one series enjoy the other.  J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books are about a nice English boy who discovers that magic is real, and he is a wizard and becomes a hero.  Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl books are about a naughty Irish boy who discovers magic is real, and figures he can make a profit with this knowledge.  He also has plans that involve the Russian Mafia, but telling more than that would be spoilers.

The movie adaptation of Artemis Fowl will be produced and distributed by Walt Disney Studios.  The official release date is August 9, 2019.  Given the content of the books, which Colfer described as “Die Hard with fairies,” the movie will probably be rated PG or possibly PG-13.

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