The live-action Eragon TV series at Disney+ is finally taking flight, as the dragon fantasy saga has officially firmed up its creative team and locked in its co-showrunners. The newly appointed group appears to be saddling up to move the project forward, four years after it was first announced as being in development – much to the delight of literary enthusiasts who had devoured the pages of Christopher Paolini’s popular young adult book series The Inheritance Cycle, as the show promises to offer a fresh adaptation of the epic story. According to Variety, Todd Harthan (High Potential) and Todd Helbing (Superman & Lois) have joined the Eragon series as co-showrunners, with Harthan set as co-creator on the show alongside the author of the original 2002 novel. All three will serve as executive producers alongside Rachel Moore and Marc Webb, the director of The Amazing Spider-Man and its 2014 sequel. Bert Salke is also executive producing via Co-Lab 21, per earlier reports. The team brings a robust blend of high-profile television experience, proven blockbuster filmmaking, and direct involvement from the fantasy novelist to ensure a faithful adaptation. The assembling of the creative team is the most significant update that the Eragon series has received for some time and, importantly, it confirms that it is still active. The project was first announced at Disney+ back in 2022, with the official logline for the show teasing combat training and epic battles, following the beloved story of the book, which sees a young farm boy named Eragon set out on a quest to overthrow an evil tyrannical ruler who establishes a reign of fear and seizes control of the magical land of Alagaësia:
“When destiny selects an ordinary teenager to become the first Dragon Rider in over a hundred years, he must forge an unbreakable bond with his dragon, master ancient magic, and challenge the mad king who destroyed the Riders.”

The ‘Eragon’ Series Is Fueled by a Fan Campaign

Ed Speleers wielding an ancient sword against a fire-breathing dragon in Eragon20th Century Studios

Eragon, the first book in The Inheritance Cycle series, has already been adapted for the screen once before. The story was infamously made into a movie and released by 20th Century Fox in 2006. It starred Ed Speleers in his debut role as the titular dragon rider, supported by an ensemble cast that included Jeremy Irons, Robert Carlyle, and Rachel Weisz. The film grossed $250 million at the worldwide box office against a $100 million budget, but it failed to impress critics and fans, who lambasted it as an unfaithful adaptation of the original novel, which, in turn, halted Stefan Fangmeier’s plans to give the remaining books the sequel treatment.

The disappointment of the feature film eventually inspired a fan campaign – fueled by the 2021 #EragonRemake hashtag, which started trending shortly after Disney announced a live-action series based on Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson books. The news prompted fans of Paolini’s saga to start a movement for a new adaptation to replace the widely panned 2006 movie and potentially redeem the franchise. It seems that Disney listened to the calls, as the company shared word of the Eragon TV series the following year. Although it hasn’t made a substantial amount of progress in the time since, fans can rest assured: it is happening.

Release Date

December 15, 2006

Runtime

103 minutes

Director

Stefen Fangmeier

Writers

Christopher Paolini, Peter Buchman