“John Carter” is a 2012 American science fiction action-adventure film directed by Andrew Stanton, written by Stanton, Mark Andrews, and Michael Chabon, and based on “A Princess of Mars,” the first book in the Barsoom series of novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Produced by Jim Morris, Colin Wilson, and Lindsey Collins, it stars Taylor Kitsch in the title role, along with Lynn Collins, Samantha Morton, Mark Strong, Ciarán Hinds, Dominic West, James Purefoy, and Willem Dafoe. The film chronicles the first interplanetary adventure of John Carter and his attempts to mediate civil unrest amongst the warring kingdoms of Barsoom.
Several attempts to adapt the Barsoom series had been made since the 1930s by various major studios and producers. Most of these efforts ultimately stalled in development hell. In the late 2000s, Walt Disney Pictures began a concerted effort to adapt Burroughs’ works to film, after an abandoned venture in the 1980s. The project was driven by Stanton, who had pressed Disney to renew the screen rights from the Burroughs estate. Stanton became the new film’s director in 2009, marking his live-action debut after his directorial work for Disney on the Pixar animated films “Finding Nemo” and “WALL-E.” Filming began in November 2009, with principal photography underway in January 2010, wrapping seven months later in July. Michael Giacchino, who scored many Pixar films, composed the music. Like Pixar’s “Brave” that same year, the film is dedicated to the memory of Steve Jobs.
“John Carter” was released in the United States by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures on March 9, 2012, marking the centennial of the titular character’s first appearance. It was presented in Disney Digital 3-D, RealD 3D, and IMAX 3D formats. It received mixed reviews, with praise for its visuals, Giacchino’s score, and the action sequences, but criticism of the characterization and plot. Although it failed at the North American box office, it set an opening-day record in Russia and grossed $284 million worldwide.
