Watch CBS News

Conan The Barbarian Returns To The Big Screen

With the release of Lionsgate's CONAN THE BARBARIAN, the world's most famous barbarian returns to the big screen, continuing a pop culture legacy that has spanned nearly eight decades and inspired generations of artists from the worlds of fiction, comic books, video games, animation, and film and television. First introduced in 1932 in a series of short stories by pulp fiction writer Robert E. Howard, Conan the Barbarian helped establish the burgeoning genre known as sword and sorcery, pre-dating the work of fantasy master J.R.R. Tolkien by twenty years. Since then, he has become a bona fide cultural icon, capturing the public imagination as an idealized vision of unbridled masculinity, a tough, imperturbable hero with no allegiances and the ability to overcome impossible odds with brute strength and a seasoned warrior's skill.

"I think the appeal of Conan is that he doesn't conform to anybody," offers director Marcus Nispel. "He's not politically correct. He's not living by anyone else's moral standards. He's a barbarian who depends on no one but himself."

The obvious first step in this endeavor was finding Conan himself – no small task considering the character's towering physicality and stoic charisma. In December 2009, the filmmakers had been actively reading actors for over a month when casting director Kerry Barden suggested Jason Momoa, fresh off of shooting HBO's upcoming "Game of Thrones."

The half-Hawaiian, half-Irish actor made his name in the globally popular "Baywatch" series, followed by extended runs on "North Shore" and "Stargate: Atlantis." Momoa was only six years old when Milius' film was released, but he remembers encountering the images of Conan created by visionary comic book artist Frank Frazetta, whose darkly sensual, lush style helped define not only the Conan comic book universe (and the film's poster) but the entire sword-and-sorcery genre.

"When you see those drawings, they just they speak to you," says Momoa. "Our goal has been to capture the hero featured in Frazetta's pictures. That was our aim."

As casting continued, the role of Tamara, Conan's accomplice and eventual love interest, went to action-veteran Rachel Nichols (STAR TREK, G.I. JOE). A novitiate of a Greek-influenced monastery and a master of martial arts, Tamara is a "pureblood," a direct descendant of the Sorcerers of Acheron whose blood will awaken the power of the Mask of Acheron. After meeting with Nispel, Nichols jumped at the chance to play a smart, capable woman who breaks the mold of typical fantasy heroines. "This is not a case of Conan doing all of the action and Tamara sitting by passively as the damsel in distress," explains Nichols. "Tamara is smart and strong and if given the choice of fight or flight she chooses to fight. She's Conan's female counterpart and she goes toe to toe with him."

Actor Stephen Lang (AVATAR) describes Khalar Zym, Conan's enemy and his father's murderer, as "the baddest warlord in all of Hyboria, whose life's work is recovering the Mask of Acheron, which will help him reclaim his dead wife and even achieve immortality. He's introduced very early in the film when Conan, still a boy, gets a real dose of what pillage is all about," Lang offers with a sly smile.

Most of Khalar's scenes with Conan involve some form of combat, so Lang spent most of his spare time in Bulgaria working out, stretching and rehearsing choreography with the stunt team. "Jason Momoa's a big dude and that presented its own challenge for me," admits Lang. "Khalar is supposed to be not only a master of swords, but also master of a double scimitar, which is a ninja's nightmare. Everything I did had to be confident and on point."

A partner in Khalar Zym's quest for absolute power is his daughter Marique, played by Rose McGowan ("Charmed," GRINDHOUSE). "Marique is half-witch, half-human," explains McGowan. Jealous of her long dead witch-mother's hold on her father, Marique is unnaturally obsessed with proving herself to him. "She's evil, but it's only to gain her father's love," suggests McGowan. "Their relationship just fascinates me. It's full of pathos, and I love what a strange twist it gives to the Conan world."

While Marique is a lethal opponent, McGowan developed a unique combat style for her character with the stunt team. "I decided Marique wasn't going to be like everybody else with a sword. I wanted her to be a bit more like a cobra. She entrances her prey and then strikes," says the actress, referring to the lethal metallic nails created for Marique by the film's prop master, Dirk Buchmann.

Even though they had no scenes together, Momoa worked closely with 13-year-old Leo Howard, who portrays Young Conan in the film's introductory sequence, in order to create the character together. Explains Momoa, "We'd look at each other, just get down the walk, how Conan's kind of like the lion, the wolf, the panther. It's the way he stalks people. The eyes and the eye brows, and Leo totally got it."
Howard, who has a first-degree black belt and is a member of the SideSwipe Performance Team, an extreme martial arts performing group, had an easier time with the fight choreography than many of the adult actors. "My scenes explain how Conan became so hard-hearted and hardcore," explains Howard. "He goes through all of this trauma when he's little and it transforms him into how he is when he's older."

Ron Perlman, known for his charismatic performances in Guillermo del Toro's HELLBOY films, lends a fierce and soulful gravity to Corin, Conan's father and the leader of their Cimmerian tribe. "The Cimmerians are a warring clan," explains Perlman. "They live in a hostile environment, one of many clans constantly vying for territorial domination. The forge, where their swords are made, is almost their church and is treated like one would treat anything that is sacred and essential for their very existence."

In addition to leading his people, Corin is charged with raising his son alone after Conan's mother, played by British actress Laila Rouass, dies in childbirth in the middle of battle. "She's a Cimmerian warrior and she's heavily pregnant and fighting as hard as anyone else," says Rouass. "Through her actions we see where Conan's determination and grit and power comes from."

Conan's only friend, Artus, is a burly Zamorian pirate played by actor Nonso Anozie. "Artus is very much a leader, but he knows when to step aside and let Conan do his thing," explains Anozie. "Artus is the only person that Conan can even begin to be slightly vulnerable with, or have a laugh with, or share a joke with. So Jason and I spent a lot of time off set together, really exploring their relationship."

CONAN THE BARBARIAN was filmed over 12 weeks on locations throughout Bulgaria, and at Nu Boyana Studios' diverse sets and stages. Production Designer August, and a crew that sometimes numbered 400, created about 60 different sets.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN is rated R.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.