‘Lockwood’: Joe Cornish Reunites With ‘Attack The Block’ & ‘Scott Pilgrim’ Production Designer Marcus Rowland For Netflix Series

The Ronin can confirm that production designer Marcus Rowland has joined Lockwood, the Netflix series based on the books from author Jonathan Stroud will be directed by Joe Cornish (Attack The Block) with Edgar Wright‘s Complete Fiction producing.

Books in Stroud’s Lockwood & Co. series include The Screaming Staircase, The Dagger in The Desk, The Whispering Skull, The Hollow Boy, The Creeping Shadow, and The Empty Grave. Allowing them to make multiple seasons if they’re inclined to.

THE SCREAMING STAIRCASE – For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions. Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.Set in a city stalked by spectres, The Screaming Staircase is the first in a chilling new series full of suspense, humour and truly terrifying ghosts. Your nights will never be the same again . . .

The project was first announced back in May 2020.

Marcus Rowland is best known for collaborating with Edgar Wright on his films Shaun of The Dead, Hot Fuzz, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, The World’s End, Baby Driver, and most recently Last Night In Soho. He also worked with Cornish on his feature films Attack The Block and The Kid Who Would Be King.

This would be the production designer’s first return to television since Edgar’s series Spaced from 2004.

You might remember that Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish co-wrote the original script for Marvel’s Ant-Man before Edgar dropped-out over creative differences with the studio leading to Peyton Reed to be hired as it’s director.

Jon S. Baird Confirmed To Direct ‘Tetris’ Drama For Marv Films – Working Title Is ‘Falling Blocks’

There had been mystery surrounding what Marv Films project director Jon S. Baird (Filth, Stan & Ollie) had been attached to direct after trade reports linked to an unknown project. In July it was reported by the Daily Mail that Jon would be directing a live-action Tetris movie with British actor Taron Egerton (Kingsman 1-2, Eddie The Eagle, Rocketman) set to play video game entrepreneur Henk Rogers.  

The Ronin can now confirm the Daily Mail’s reporting that Baird is indeed attached to direct with Matthew Vaughn producing and add that film and could begin shooting this fall/winter in the United Kingdom under the working title of Falling Blocks. 

This version seems to be heading more in the period drama direction as it’ll take place in the 1980s during The Cold War. 

Russian video game developer Alexey Pajitnov created the hit Tetris, which was popularized by the Nintendo Gameboy but was embroiled in a legal battle to secure the intellectual rights. 

Taron had been previously in talks to take the leading role of Seymour in the remake of genre musical Little Shop of Horrors for Warner Bros. and director Greg Berlanti. I’m not sure what this means for Taron’s involvement with Little Shop of Horrors, which had landed tax incentives to shoot in the state of California. 

Tetris aka Falling Blocks could end up landing a release date sometime in 2021.