Peter Jackson returns to adventure with 'Tintin'

'Lord of the Rings' filmmaker reveals work on long-awaited follow-up to Spielberg film

CANNES, FRANCE:

Peter Jackson returned to the Cannes spotlight this week not only as one of cinema's most celebrated fantasy filmmakers, but also as a director preparing to revisit another beloved adventure universe nearly 15 years after it first reached the big screen.

The New Zealand filmmaker revealed during a masterclass at the Cannes Film Festival that he is working on a new 'Tintin' film, describing it as a follow-up to Steven Spielberg's 2011 animated feature 'The Adventures of Tintin'.

"The deal was that Steven directs one and I direct another," Jackson told audiences at Cannes, where he was honoured with an honorary Palme d'Or for lifetime achievement. "So Steven did his film, then for 15 years I haven't made mine. I feel very awkward about that."

Jackson said he had continued working on the screenplay during his time at the festival, even while attending ceremonies and promotional events. "I've been working with Fran on another Tintin script. I was writing it in the hotel room here," he said, referring to his longtime creative collaborator and partner Fran Walsh.

The director said he remained deeply attached to the world of Tintin, the adventurous young reporter created by Belgian cartoonist Herge whose stories such as 'Tintin in Tibet' and 'The Blue Lotus' have remained widely read since the 1930s.

Jackson's announcement became one of the major talking points at Cannes, where the director was celebrated for a filmmaking career that transformed him from a low-budget horror filmmaker in New Zealand into one of Hollywood's most commercially successful directors.

At Tuesday's opening ceremony, American actor Elijah Wood reunited with Jackson on stage to present him with the honorary Palme d'Or before a prolonged standing ovation inside Cannes' Grand Lumiere Theatre. Jackson responded with characteristic humour, calling the honour a "stunning surprise".

Wood, who played Frodo Baggins in Jackson's 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy, said he was "far from the only person whose life has been changed by Peter Jackson". Now 64, Jackson has spent decades building a career defined by ambitious productions, large-scale visual effects and literary adaptations.

Born near Wellington in New Zealand, he developed an interest in filmmaking as a child after watching the 1933 version of 'King Kong' on television. His first films were homemade productions shot with school friends before he entered the film industry with the low-budget horror film 'Bad Taste', which later screened at Cannes and was sold internationally.

Jackson gained wider recognition with the 1994 drama 'Heavenly Creatures', starring Kate Winslet, before securing backing for 'The Lord of the Rings', a trilogy filmed entirely in New Zealand that went on to earn critical acclaim, major box office success and 17 Academy Awards. He later returned to Middle Earth with the 'Hobbit' films and also directed projects including 'King Kong' and the World War I documentary series 'They Shall Not Grow Old'.