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His Dark Materials producer denies HBO series will ‘attack religion’
HBO’s forthcoming His Dark Materials TV adaptation “is not an attack on religion”, the show’s executive producer has said.Jane Tranter’s comments come in the context of a backlash against the 2007 film, based on the same Philip Pullman fantasy novels, which was accused at the time of having anti-Church themes.“The religious controversy that was around the film was not relevant to the books themselves,” said Tranter, according to Variety.“Philip Pullman talks about depression, the control of information and the falsification of information….there is no direct contrast with any contemporary religious organisation.” During a panel at San Diego Comic-Con, Tranter also took the opportunity to clarify what she believes the source material’s stance on religion is.“Philip Pullman, in these books, is not attacking belief, not attacking faith, not attacking religion or the church per se,” Tranter said. “He’s attacking a particular form of control where there is a very deliberate attempt to withhold information, keep people in the dark, and not allow ideas and thinking to be free.”She added: “At any time it can be personified by an authoritarian church or organisation, and in our series it’s personified by the Magisterium, but it’s not the equivalent of any church in our world.”The hotly anticipated new adaptation stars James McAvoy, Ruth Wilson and Lin-Manuel Miranda.His Dark Materials will premiere on BBC1 in the UK later this year.
The first teaser trailer for the forthcoming TV adaption of Sir Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials series has been released.
Produced for the BBC and HBO, the series stars Logan actor Dafne Keen as the central hero Lyra, while James McAvoy plays Uncle Asriel.
Meanwhile, Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda portrays adventurer Lee Scoresby and Ruth Wilson plays the mysterious Ms Coulter.
The trailer opens with McAvoy’s character speaking to Lyra, saying: “You once asked me what evil was. There are things that you’re better off not understanding.
Sir Philip’s His Dark Materials trilogy – consisting of The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass – tells a story of a world where human souls exist outside the body in the form of animals.
The Golden Compass was adapted for film in 2007 starring Nicole Kidman but was panned by critics and was not successful enough at the box office to warrant a sequel.
His Dark Materials will be released in late 2019.
Yahoo News 
