Peter Jackson’s ‘Mortal Engines’ Adaptation Gets a Trailer (VIDEO)

One of those epic fantasy book series I keep meaning to getting around to reading is Phillip Reeve's Mortal Engines series. Thankfully now I don't have to as Lord of the Rings' Peter Jackson is bringing them to the big screen. In fairness, he's not directing them, but they're using his name and affiliation as a producer to sell them, so the comparison is apt.

Directed by first time feature director Christian Rivers, who has worked with Jackson on most of his big films—including winning an Oscar as part of King Kong's visual effects team—Mortal Engines is an epic fantasy set in a world where entire cities roam the landscape. Despite sounding like an anime, its creator is British, so there's a healthy dose of that Tolkien-esque United Kingdom-inspired setting. Here's the official synopsis and cast list from Coming Soon...

Thousands of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, humankind has adapted and a new way of living has evolved. Gigantic moving cities now roam the Earth, ruthlessly preying upon smaller traction towns. Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan)—who hails from a Lower Tier of the great traction city of London—finds himself fighting for his own survival after he encounters the dangerous fugitive Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar). Two opposites, whose paths should never have crossed, forge an unlikely alliance that is destined to change the course of the future.

The cast for the fantasy includes Hugo Weaving (The Lord of Rings and The Hobbit trilogies),Hera Hilmar (Da Vinci’s Demons), Robbie Sheehan (Fortitude, upcoming Geostorm), South Korean singer and actress Jihae (Mars), Ronan Raftery (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them), Leila George (Mother, May I Sleep With Danger?), Patrick Malahide (Game of Thrones) and Stephen Lang (Avatar).

So there you have it. As if next Christmas weren't already jam-packed with flicks—Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse, Aquaman, Bumblebee, Mary Poppins Returns—this one opens December 18, 2018.