Nicolas Winding Refn Reportedly Working On An Adaptation Of Alejandro Jodorowsky & Moebius’ ‘The Incal’

When we caught up with Nicolas Winding Refn at the Cannes Film Festival last week, he remained coy on his future projects. This sexual thriller “I Walk With The Dead” with Carey Mulligan is “looking very good,” he’s “supposed to read a script” for “Button Man,” he’s still developing a comedy with Ryan Gosling and working on the TV series “Barbarella.” But it seems that’s not all Refn is brewing behind-the-scenes, as he’s also tackling a project conceived by his pal Alejandro Jodorowsky.

France Inter also talked with Refn on the Croisette, and while they don’t provide a direct quote, they do report that he’s working on an adaptation of Jodorowsky and Moebius‘ comic series “The Incal.” The original six book series launched in 1981 and is set in a dystopian future, detailing the battle over the powerful Incal crystal. The comic series is notable in that it followed the collapse of Jodorowsky’s “Dune,” and utilizes some of the similar designs that Moebius had created while working on the movie. (The forthcoming documentary “Jodorowsky’s Dune” goes into more detail about that, and you can read our report on that flick right here).

It would certainly make sense for Refn to be taking this on; he’s close with Jodorowsky and even dedicated “Only God Forgives” to him. However, further details on “The Incal” are scarce, and it’s not clear if this is set up at a production company or studio, or if Refn is just working on it by himself at the moment. But it’s not the first time an adaptation has been attempted, as animator Pascal Blais tried in the 1980s before the endeavor was abandoned. In 2011, he tried again but it’s not clear how far he got with it. You can see results of both those efforts below (via Films Actu).

So will “The Incal” let Refn scratch the sci-fi itch that is currently not being fulfilled by the stalled “Logan’s Run,” which his bro Ryan Gosling exited last fall? We’ll see, but it’s promising stuff.