The live-action Artemis Fowl movie is based on the first and second installments in the best-selling series, written by Eoin Colfer.
The Artemis Fowl film rights were initially purchased by Miramax in 2001. The company was then run by Harvey Weinstein and the development process saw several drafts from a succession of writers and even directors.
When Harvey Weinstein and his brother, Bob, left the company in 2005 and formed The Weinstein Co., the project then fell under the Disney banner and sat dormant for years. The project, however, was one of the titles that Harvey Weinstein would be allowed to produce as part of the separation settlement. Until he was canned from his studio. Now it is all Disney.
The Artemis Fowl screenplay was written by Michael Goldenberg, who wrote Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
For those who know nothing about the series of immensely popular books for kids, it is “about 12-year-old Artemis who is a millionaire, a genius — and above all, a criminal mastermind. But Artemis doesn’t know what he’s taken on when he kidnaps a fairy (Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit) to harness her magic to save his family. These aren’t the fairies of the bedtime stories — they’re dangerous.”
The series has more than 21 million copies in print in 44 languages worldwide.
Originally scheduled for release on May 29, 2020, the film was put on the shelf due to Wuhan coronavirus and all movie theaters in the world being closed. It was then decided that the movie would bypass theaters altogether. It debuted on Disney+ on June 12, 2020.
