‘John Carter’ Movie Preview: Trailer, Cast List, and Plot Details

Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins in 'John Carter'
Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins in ‘John Carter’ (Photo © Walt Disney Pictures)

Andrew Stanton makes his live-action feature film directorial debut with Disney’s sci-fi action-adventure, John Carter. Taylor Kitsch takes on the lead role in the PG-13-rated film heading to theaters on March 9, 2012.

The cast also includes Lynn Collins as Dejah Thoris, Willem Dafoe as Tars Tarkas, Samantha Morton as Sola, Mark Strong as Matai Shang, and Ciaran Hinds as Tardos Mors. Dominic West plays Sab Than, James Purefoy is Kantos Kan, Daryl Sabara is Edgar Rice Burroughs, Polly Walker is Sarkoja, Bryan Cranston is Colonel Powell, and Thomas Haden Church is Tal Hajus.

Official Synopsis: John Carter is a sweeping action-adventure set on the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars). John Carter is based on a classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, whose highly imaginative adventures served as inspiration for many filmmakers, both past and present.

The film tells the story of war-weary, former military captain John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who is inexplicably transported to Mars where he becomes reluctantly embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions amongst the inhabitants of the planet, including Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and the captivating Princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). In a world on the brink of collapse, Carter rediscovers his humanity when he realizes that the survival of Barsoom and its people rests in his hands.

John Carter Trivia, courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures:
– Edgar Rice Burroughs was born in Chicago and is best known for writing and creating Tarzan—still one of the most successful and iconic fictional creations of all time. John Carter is based on Burroughs’ first novel, A Princess of Mars.

– Academy Award–winning director/writer Andrew Stanton directed and co-wrote the screenplay for WALL-E which earned the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature of 2008. He was Oscar-nominated for the screenplay. He made his directorial debut with Finding Nemo, garnering an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay and winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film of 2003. He was one of the four screenwriters to receive an Oscar nomination in 1996 for his contribution to Toy Story, and went on to receive credit as a screenwriter on subsequent Pixar films A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo and WALL•E.

– The award-winning below-the-line team includes Production Designer Nathan Crowley, Oscar-nominated for both Dark Knight and The Prestige, and Costume Designer Mayes Rubeo, whose work is showcased in Avatar and Apocalypto.

– Michael Chabon, who won the Pulitzer Prize in Literature for his novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, is a co-writer on the screenplay.

– Award-winning composer Michael Giacchino has received numerous accolades for his work on previous Disney•Pixar films Up (Oscar winner, Best Original Score; BAFTA winner, Best Music; Golden Globe winner, Best Original Score for a Motion Picture; GRAMMY Award winner, Best Score Soundtrack Album), Ratatouille (GRAMMY Award winner, Best Score Soundtrack Album; Annie Award winner, Best Music in an Animated Feature Production; Oscar nomination, Best Original Score) and The Incredibles (Annie Award winner, Best Music in an Animated Feature Production; GRAMMY nomination, Best Score Soundtrack Album).