Who's looking forward to the 'Prince of Persia' movie?

Amanda Jes Sun, Jul 13, 2008 at 02:02 PM EST

Nope - too many white people. I mean, seriously - they couldn't find one ethnic person to fill the role. Not one, in the whole world of acting? Give me a break hollywood.

trnszworld Wed, Jun 4, 2008 at 10:58 PM EST

i vote for Zandi, David Zandi the real prince of persia.

tundercat Mon, Jun 2, 2008 at 05:13 AM EST

HIRE DAVID ZANDI, ditch Jake.

cole Sat, May 31, 2008 at 08:49 PM EST

Yeah, fire Jake and hire the real Prince of Persia, David Zandi. He is PERFECT. I can't see anyone else playing this role but him.

Amanda Fri, May 30, 2008 at 09:54 PM EST

David Zandi the real Prince of Persia should've been hired. Disney and Jerry really screwed up this great franchise.

Katz Wed, May 28, 2008 at 05:11 PM EST

This is by far the worst casting ever and I’m not alone here. By looking at the other sites I see everyone aggress.
Jake Gyllenhaal as a Persian Prince and Gemma Arterton as a Indian Princess, OH GOD PLEASE.
They had the choice of getting a real Persian Prince who looks identical to the role and has all the required skills and they give us Jake Gyllenhaal!!!!!!!!!! Both Jerry Bruckheimer and the Disney executives are either on drugs or they are completely ignorant.

mondo Tue, May 27, 2008 at 06:19 AM EST

Sweet post! There's a cool interview with the director here-

http://extrememodding.counterstrikesource.diamond-hosting.com/?p=67

dev Sat, May 24, 2008 at 10:08 PM EST

while i agree tht the actors are a terrible choice the author of this post needs to pull his head out of the 80's ass and realize tht it is 2008 and there have been 3 new prince of persia games in 3d, no more 2d sorry buddy. they are all full of story and match the plot of the movie

Leila Maria Sat, May 24, 2008 at 09:10 PM EST

Jake Gyllenhaal has been cast as the Prince of Persia. And Gemma Arteton is playing the Indian princess. WTF?

This guy is NOT the prince of persia Go here to see the one who SHOULD be...his name is Hrithik Roshan and looks more like the true prince...

http://www.housefull.in/wallpapers/hrithik-roshan/hrithik_roshan-1.jpg

OR JOHN ABRAHAM who has strong Persian roots and looks like the perfect prince! almost a duplicate of him.

http://www.gpsinfoway.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/bollywood/john-abraham/john-abraham-05.thumbnail.jpg

And this should have been Tahmina...she looks way more like Farah: http://www.parinda.com/files/storyimages/Bipasha_Basu_no_entry.jpg

Why is Hollywood so stupid and racist? They always have actual Persians or Arabs play terrorists, but when it comes to the hero or good guy, they only let famous brand namers play it. Look at how they portrayed Persians in 300. I just threw up a little in my mouth at the thought of Jake Gyllenhall playing a Persian Prince and Averton play a wannabe exotic princess....she doesn't look exotic at ALL.

And hey if you don't agree with this choice go to this website and sign this petition :

http://www.petitiononline.com/popfilm/petition.html

Please sign before July!

isisloveangel Sat, May 24, 2008 at 06:10 PM EST

anyone who doesn't agree with this casting choice please go to this petition and sign it! :) thank you!
http://www.petitiononline.com/popfilm/petition.html

princeofpersia fanboy Sat, May 24, 2008 at 03:38 PM EST

yeah, just... just kill yourself, mr. author. now.

Sat, May 24, 2008 at 01:49 PM EST

You do realize they made several prince of persia games?

The Sands of time was a big hit in 2003.

You need to do more research before you write an article.

hannah Sat, May 24, 2008 at 12:31 PM EST

OMG, a Oregon Trail movie would be awesome! But Emile Hirsh would just have to die of dysentery in the end.

Andy Brown Sat, May 24, 2008 at 09:59 AM EST

Have you ever played the sands of time series there is more of a story line that you might think. Again like other have said do a little research before posting on a topic you know nothing about.

Wrongfoot Sat, May 24, 2008 at 09:28 AM EST

What was the pre req for your job? A grade 8? Sad...

Adrian Sat, May 24, 2008 at 07:45 AM EST

People who quote your post as tongue in cheek or sarcasm has to take a look at the category selected. Since you have 'Dude, THAT'S your plot?' as a category, it meant you were pretty serious with what you were posting. I'm joining the masses and calling you ignorant.

lo fydelity Sat, May 24, 2008 at 03:56 AM EST

Brilliance at Entertainment Weekly!!!

anon Sat, May 24, 2008 at 03:07 AM EST

lurk moar simon

Bob Sat, May 24, 2008 at 02:24 AM EST

O god do some research next time.

Mad Cow Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:49 PM EST

I've always thought they should make a movie about Zelda. Link is a badass.

UseTheInternets Fri, May 23, 2008 at 07:28 PM EST

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Persia:_The_Sands_of_Time

Second result from Google search "sands of time".

Sharpless Fri, May 23, 2008 at 06:28 PM EST

Or, rather, Google *isn't* hard to operate. I is am smart.

Sharpless Fri, May 23, 2008 at 06:27 PM EST

I'm sorry, but I have to agree with the masses. There was absolutely no research done for this post, when the fact that this movie is not based on the original game is one of the most easy-to-find pieces of information you could possibly find. I haven't even touched the games, and I know better. Come on, man, put a little effort into it. Google is hard to operate.

t3hdow Fri, May 23, 2008 at 06:03 PM EST

Yikes. I didn't realize how much this blog post exploded with posters merely visiting to lambaste Simon. Between this and Kanye fanboys/fangirls openly attacking the mag after the aforementioned star's recent rant, EW had a rough month. I know a few people will reject the mag based off this alone, though I certainly wouldn't judge the quality of an entire weekly magazine, based off a flub (painful as it may be) from one of its many writers/editors. I can understand if it specializes in gaming, like Game Informer or EGM, but EW never tried to be as in depth and only focused on the very mainstream releases. It doesn't excuse Simon's rushed blog post, but don't punish the whole mag on a subject it doesn't cover as often or his tackiness.

Paul Fri, May 23, 2008 at 05:31 PM EST

Oh man, this post is an epic fail. Now I feel justified not renewing my EW subscription.

Seriously Simon - do some research before writing. Your ignorance of video games is alarming.

Are you joking? Fri, May 23, 2008 at 05:04 PM EST

All credit for the "breaking news" goes to LatinoReview. Check out their site, they break more than EW and Variety do.

They broke the Jake as Prince news on APRIL 8th!

In addition, you need to do your research, Simon.

What a joke.

Chris Fri, May 23, 2008 at 05:02 PM EST

I suppose you'll write something later on about how it was supposed to be tongue in cheek, or post a similiar comment under the guise of someone else. Either way, it's not at all funny, don't try and pass this off as a joke but fess up that you do in fact, suck at life.

Carl Fri, May 23, 2008 at 04:30 PM EST

You see, I would agree that this would be funny and humorous if the movie was actually based on the very first Prince of Persia Game. But it isnt. Fact is, the writer didnt do his research. Which means he didnt do his job. He just blabbed on about how stupid it would be to remake the first PoP game. And the fact of the matter is that it is stupid. Although the joke is on him because they were talking about a different PoP Game called "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time". Oh btw, thats also the title of the movie.

MEl Fri, May 23, 2008 at 04:16 PM EST

Umm, I think all you gamers are losing perspective, having spent too much time bathed in the glare of your gaming. Obviously this post WAS A tongue-in-cheek JOKE!!!! you know, humor. that thing that makes you laugh.

Axel Fri, May 23, 2008 at 03:46 PM EST

ROFL!!! This has to be the most stupid post I've ever read! Who hired this dumbass in first place? I know movies and videogames still move in different worlds, but come on, if you are going to write about a movie BASED on a videogame at least try researching first!! ADVERTISEMENT: NO ONE WANTS TO LOOK DUMB... WTF!!! LMAO, looks like this guy wants!

ToothFairy Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:54 PM EST

Leave Simon alone. The EW research department doesn't work on the site, just the magazine. Right, Simon?

N64iac Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:37 PM EST

http://purenintendo.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/prince-of-persia-the-two-thrones-20050920053911812.jpg
THE FIRST PICTURE RESULT IN GOOGLE FOR PRINCE OF PERSIA

Alt255 Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:28 PM EST

FAIL

fasty Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:22 PM EST

You really should do some research on your subjects for you post. I did. Google said it took .083 seconds or something. Try it.

morganfell Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:21 PM EST

You sir, deserve and award. What award I do not know because nop device invented as of today can measure the level of ignorance, stupidity, and sheer jackassery you displayed writing this article. You do not have to be a gamer, and obviously you are not, you just need to read the story you stole from Latino Review you thieving little scumbag. This is why EW is in the crapper. They hire morons like you at the flip of a switch. Suck it Trebek. Suck it hard and suck it long.

Brian Crecente Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:13 PM EST

First, you credit EW with breaking the story. It was LatinoReview. Then you go on and show a total lack of knowledge on the subject matter. Journalist my ass.

You just lost a member.

Matt Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:09 PM EST

LOL, i like how the subtitle is "Keeping an eye on popular culture" which should probably be suffixed with "and never researching our topic before spouting our useless opinions".

Ryan Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:08 PM EST

Really. Do some research. Google is your friend. There's also Wikipedia if you must.

Kal Fri, May 23, 2008 at 02:06 PM EST

are you serious dude? please tell me this is written as a joke.

adam Fri, May 23, 2008 at 01:54 PM EST

you do realize you are an idiot Simon Vozick-Levinson, right?

j.howlett Fri, May 23, 2008 at 01:52 PM EST

they made an Oregon Trail moive already. before the game even. i just saw it on the western channel not to long ago. check imdb.com, it says the movie came out in 1945.

bob Fri, May 23, 2008 at 01:34 PM EST

ahahahahahhahahahaha....journalist...ahahahhaha...sigh

NoU Fri, May 23, 2008 at 01:15 PM EST

My god you're a such a dumbass, EW ftl. It's obvious the movie is based off of the newer POP franchise that has a story line and a good one at it too, not the old barely 8 bit game from back in the day. Here's a tip - research your subject before you jump off into writing about them so you don't end up looking like a jackass to the mass again.

vash Fri, May 23, 2008 at 01:10 PM EST

Wow..you're old and outdated...there have been 2 new with a compelling story come out in the last 5 years....

Fri, May 23, 2008 at 01:09 PM EST

EW headline: PoP pundit pwned

Alex Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:27 PM EST

Prince of Persia is a great game with a pretty cool story. Gyllenhaal may not be my ideal choice - but the story is strong enough to make me care.

PS You should credit LatinoReview for breaking the story.

Simon Roberts Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:24 PM EST

I've never ever been to this website in my entire life, but a gaming news site told me you were the devil for the heinous crime of omitting to mention further titles in the Prince of Persia series. Must be true!

And now to scuttle back to my forums and complain about a particular console I don't like!

ej Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:23 PM EST

o btw are you over 60? retire please if you are

ej Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:20 PM EST

wow.....just wow...do research please, my patience is wearing thin with your ignorance (type Prince of Persia: Sands of Time in google, then play through the game stupid)

Stevo Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:20 PM EST

Wow... it's as if the author had never heard of Google or Wikipedia. How does one maintain a job like this without a basic understanding of research?

steve Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:10 PM EST

to the writer - wow, you really are an idiot. nice research?
to the guy that hired him - see above.

Harsha Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:04 PM EST

Im sorry to say this but you are THE WORST JOURNALIST I HAVE EVER COME ACROSS.
Why talk about stuff you have no clue about. The movie is based on a NEWER Prince Of Persia called POP: Sands Of Time. It has an excellent story, one that continues the plot in two more sequels.

James Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:43 AM EST

But to answer your question, I can't think of any old games that should be turned into movies... just waiting for the MGS movie now!

Brooklyn West Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:41 AM EST

If this is what comes out of Harvard these days, I shudder at the state of our learning institutions...

James Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:41 AM EST

Wow, lazy as can be with this review eh haha.
Word of advice, to avoid getting such negative comments next time, research at least a little before reviewing a game.
I'm not saying play the game, I'm sure that's too challenging for you, but a simple google or wikipedia search will give you a good general summary of the game's plot and gameplay.
Gotta admit I do feel kind of sorry for you after all these comments.

muscrat Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:36 AM EST

..At least his blog is getting hits.

JThompson Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:33 AM EST

Simon you're just as stupid as they can be. A simple google search will give you what you need. Please, there are a lot of ignorant people on the internet already, try hard to be one less. PLEASE.

P.S. Nix, no one cares. We all came from Africa, we're all Black.

jccalhoun Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:28 AM EST

There's this thing called wikipedia that is like an encyclopedia online and has entries for practically everything. You might want to think about looking up the topic of your article on wikipedia before you write about it. That's part of this "research" thing all the kids are talking about.

Chris Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:27 AM EST

I haven't ever followed EW and its "journalism," and this is further proof of why. I only wish I had your job so I could get paid to write tripe like this.

Tommo Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:26 AM EST

Bad, bad, bad, bad journalist. Just type Prince of Persia into Google and see what you find. I think your post omn the Lego Indiana Jones 'boulder' shoudl also be brought up......firstly it was Raiders of the Lost Ark not Temple of Doom (my 5 year old knows that) and secondly type Inidan Jones and Lego into Google (once again I'm telling you this for free) and see what comes up.

wes Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:18 AM EST

dude got suuurved. hahahaheha.

Are You Kidding me Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:17 AM EST

Simon Vozick-Levinson, you clearly have never paid any attention to the Prince of Persia franchise. Go play some of the recent PoP releases...you might actually find that the film's plot is taken directly from the game...go check it out, seriously. RESEARCH, BUDDY

wazoo Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:12 AM EST

Just the mention of "Oregon Trail" is bringing back horrible suffering pain from my youth.

"Aztec" was another game from the day that sucked a fat one. What a lesson in frustration that was!

Shay Fri, May 23, 2008 at 11:07 AM EST

I'm so glad someone brought up the newer Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. I didn't even know an old one existed so I started reading this post and thought the writer was nuts. I'm pretty sure that most of the press for the movie version specifies that it's based on the game's recent incarnations. How does a blogger miss that?

Ug Fri, May 23, 2008 at 10:48 AM EST

How does one so woefully ignorant about the very field he's supposed to write about get a job like this? Examine your hiring practices EW!

Rick Fri, May 23, 2008 at 10:46 AM EST

Simon, have you ever considered doing a little research before you run your mouth about something? I thought that was the first lesson in Journalism 101. The movie is being based on a new iteration of the Prince of Persia franchise that was released in 2003. Google it and you'll see that the game has a much more substantial storyline than the original game, and can hopefully deliver a more compelling movie. Remember, Simon, Google is your friend.

Allen Fri, May 23, 2008 at 08:35 AM EST

Oded Fehr would have been perfect. He'll probably be cast as the sidekick.

elly Fri, May 23, 2008 at 07:32 AM EST

an oregon trail movie? it could end with the screen going black and declaring, "you have died of dysentery". :D

i think a prince of persia movie is clearly leading the way to a gauntlet trilogy. :D "red wizard needs food, badly!" would be better dialogue than any uwe boll game adaptation!

Joe Fri, May 23, 2008 at 04:53 AM EST

I cannot believe how unresearched this blog entry was...I hate when EW pop blog writers try to be all retro "I love the 80's/90's" and the item their trying to be funny about isn't even from the 80's/90's...

superhonky Fri, May 23, 2008 at 12:03 AM EST

gyllenhall is kinda weak for this part. it shoulda been Oded Fehr! (the cool lookin long haired dude from the mummy movies) he'd be perfect for the part. as for games that should be made into movies....GOD!...OF!..WAR! and it should star....me!

Laura K. Thu, May 22, 2008 at 09:09 PM EST

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is the greatest game ever! (At least for a certain type of gamer). I'm really not sure how it'll translate to a movie, but looking forward to seeing it.
BTW, I had the original too.

Nix Thu, May 22, 2008 at 09:00 PM EST

I said this on the business blog, and I'll say it again, but maybe it's just an urban legend I'm mindlessly repeating: I always was told Persians are ethnically Caucasian, like the Aryans of India.

And I am on board for a Carmen Sandiego movie with Angelina Jolie.

AndresFranco Thu, May 22, 2008 at 08:14 PM EST

well i guess you havent played the rather newer prince of persia games goggle prince of persia sands of time,prince of persia warrior within and prince of persia the two thrones and youll see theres is more than enoguh narrative

Casting Thu, May 22, 2008 at 05:30 PM EST

Um. They could have gotten someone more Persian.

t3hdow Thu, May 22, 2008 at 04:50 PM EST

I think some of you are ragging on Simon too hard about bringing up the Prince of Persia movie. From the sound of it, he didn't know about the film until his workplace reported it. I didn't know either until reading this (which shows how much I'm regressing as a hardcore gamer). It's not like he officially stated EW is the FIRST entertainment news outlet that received the story. Although 'broke the news' is pretty misleading, saying this makes him pathetic and sad is a bit much.
With that said, Simon should have researched the topic and the franchise before blogging about it. I'm a little surprised he didn't at least know about the three PS2/Xbox installments that revived the series (i.e., Sands of Time, Warrior Within and Two Thrones). There was also a Dreamcast PoP game, but I heard it sucked and almost killed any chances of a revival until Sands of Time was released.

pirate Thu, May 22, 2008 at 04:50 PM EST

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego(best computer game--i thought so when i was a kid-oh those were the good ol days....) Angelina Jolie as Carmen Sandiego(nuff said)

Cara Thu, May 22, 2008 at 04:16 PM EST

Ahh, "Oregon Trail". That brings back memories. Namely:

"No!! Not again! I was just trying to ford the river and my stupid oxen died!! I hate this game!!!!"
and
"Man, all I really want to do is hunt."

Princey Thu, May 22, 2008 at 03:59 PM EST

Oh Simon, as others have mentioned there have been three games since the one you mentioned. All three are fun, although the first and the last are best!

paige Thu, May 22, 2008 at 03:38 PM EST

but sadly, i paid to see Milla Jovovich act like an idiot in a stupid little film called Resident Evil...

paige Thu, May 22, 2008 at 03:36 PM EST

uh duh! sands of time, dude! Ep Sato is a genius!!! (regardless if he thinks so or not) [and no im not being patronizing or condescending or whatever that word is i have no idea of]

Torin Thu, May 22, 2008 at 03:00 PM EST

I also have to agree with Bob Saget. I heard this news at Latino Review close to 2 months ago and now EW and other news outlets are claiming that they "broke the news." That's just sad and pathetic.

Torin Thu, May 22, 2008 at 02:58 PM EST

I agree with EP Sato. Simon, you really should have done a search on Prince of Persia before writing this. There have been at least 2 games that were made after the early versions that you mentioned.
I think that the movie will look amazing and have great action (most likely full of parkour stunts), but I am so disappointed (but not suprised) that Hollywood is not casting any Middle Eastern/Persians for the two lead roles. This movie could have catapulted the careers of unknown actors (especially with the rising popularity of Bollywood), but they went with a White actor playing the role of a Persian prince. Sigh.

Bob Saget Thu, May 22, 2008 at 02:56 PM EST

"I couldn't help but perk up when EW.com broke the news this week that Jake Gyllenhaal is starring in a feature-film version of classic computer game Prince of Persia." EW, I'm very dissapointed in you. This story was NOT broken by you, and to take credit for something someone else did is just poor journalism. If you read this article here (http://www.latinoreview.com/news/why-both-variety-and-the-hollywood-reporter-totally-suck-4679) you'd know better and credit the people responsible for this news story. I'm so sick and tired of other people taking credit for "breaking news stories" that are done by other people first and NOT crediting them. Shame on you!

EP Sato Thu, May 22, 2008 at 01:58 PM EST

Simon, you get a "no prize" for not researching the source material a little better.

There were several rehashed versions of Prince of Persia, including the Playstation 2 version which featured that "reverse time" power you just mentioned. So this is nothing new. It's more like "Jake Gyllenhal does a Uwe Boll styled movie".

Yo, I'd pay $12 to see a film version of Lemonade Stand starring the girl from "Little Miss Sunshine" and a David Lynch directed "Maniac Mansion" would be badder than a mofo. Finally, how about Mike Tyson as himself in "Mike Tyson's Punch out?" It'd follow a plot similar to Rocky, and would feature all the beloved eccentric boxers like "Bald Bull" and "Piston Honda". Lil Mac's story remains untold...

Vizier Thu, May 22, 2008 at 01:58 PM EST

It sounds like the movie is being based off a more recent PoP game, subtitled "The Sands of Time." In that one, you got a dagger that would allow you to rewind time for a few seconds if you fell to your death or were killed unexpectedly, and you refilled its abilities by killing enemies made out of the mystic sand. (It also made games you played immediately afterwards frustrating when you had come to rely on the time reversal to fix mistakes.) It will be interesting to see how they flesh it out into a movie.