Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Kathleen Kennedy And Andy Serkis At THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: SECRET OF THE UNICORN Photocall

(L-R) Andy Serkis, Peter Jackson, Gad Elmaleh, Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy and Jamie Bell attended a Photocall of The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn at Hotel Royal Monceau Raffle today (July 19, 2011) in Paris, France. (Photo by Trago/Getty Images)

Paramount Pictures and Columbia Pictures present a 3D Motion Capture Film “The Adventures of Tintin” directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Steven Moffat and Edgar Wright & Joe Cornish. Starring Jamie Bell (“Billy Elliot,” “Defiance”) as Tintin, the intrepid young reporter whose relentless pursuit of a good story thrusts him into a world of high adventure, and Daniel Craig (“Quantum of Solace,” “Defiance”) as the nefarious Red Rackham.

The cast includes Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig, Nick Frost, Simon Pegg, Toby Jones, Mackenzie Crook, Daniel Mays and Gad Elmaleh. Based on the series of books The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé, the film is produced by Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson and Kathleen Kennedy and will be in theaters December 23, 2011.

All photos: ©2011 Getty Images for Paramount Pictures International

Peter Jackson attends Photocall of The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn at Hotel Royal Monceau Raffle on July 19, 2011 in Paris, France. (Photo by Trago/Getty Images)

Peter Jackson, Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy attend Photocall of The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn at Hotel Royal Monceau Raffle on July 19, 2011 in Paris, France. (Photo by Trago/Getty Images)

Steven Spielberg attends Photocall of The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn at Hotel Royal Monceau Raffle on July 19, 2011 in Paris, France. (Photo by Trago/Getty Images)

L-R) Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg attend Photocall of The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn at Hotel Royal Monceau Raffle on July 19, 2011 in Paris, France. (Photo by Trago/Getty Images)

“THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN”

Paramount Pictures and Columbia Pictures Present
An Amblin Entertainment
Wingnut Films
Kennedy/Marshall Production
A Steven Spielberg Film
“The Adventures of Tintin”
Executive Producers Ken Kamins Nick Rodwell Stephane Sperry
Produced by Steven Spielberg Peter Jackson Kathleen Kennedy
Screenplay by Steven Moffat, and Edgar Wright & Joe Cornish
Based on The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé
Directed by Steven Spielberg

Principal Photography Starts on ‘Tintin’ With Lead Actors and Title Announced

Paramount Pictures and Sony Pictures Entertainment announced today the start of principal photography on the 3D motion capture film ‘The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn’ directed by Steven Spielberg. Â  The companies also made the announcement that Jamie Bell had been cast as Tintin and Daniel Craig co-stars as Red Rackham, the film’s villain.

Here’s the full press release:

Paramount Pictures and Sony Pictures Entertainment have announced the start of principal production in Los Angeles on the 3D Motion Capture Film ‘The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn,’ directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Jamie Bell (‘Billy Elliot,’ ‘Defiance’) as Tintin, the intrepid young reporter whose relentless pursuit of a good story thrusts him into a world of high adventure, and Daniel Craig (‘Quantum of Solace,’ ‘Defiance’) as the nefarious Red Rackham.

Bell and Craig are joined by an international cast that includes Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Gad Elmaleh, Toby Jones and Mackenzie Crook.

‘The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn,’ from a screenplay by Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish, is produced by Spielberg, Peter Jackson and Kathleen Kennedy, is the first in the series of 3D motion capture films based on the iconic character created by Georges Remi, better known to the world by his pen name “Herge” and is due for release in 2011. Executive producers are Nick Rodwell, Stephane Sperry and Ken Kamins. Paramount Pictures will release domestically and in all English speaking territories and Asia, excluding India. Sony Pictures Releasing International will distribute the film in Continental Europe, Eastern Europe, Latin America, India and the remainder of the world.

The second feature in the series is scheduled to be directed by Jackson, with a potential for a third film as well.

Eighty years ago, Herge introduced the world to a unique cast of characters who have been embraced by readers of all ages. The Adventures of Tintin – a series of 24 books, the final unfinished adventure was published after Herge’s – death became Herge’s life’s work. The first adventure was published in 1929. Over 200 million copies have been sold worldwide. The popular series has been translated into 70 languages and still attracts thousands of new fans each year.

Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson will bring Herge’s stories to life employing state-of-the-art performance capture technology developed by Jackson’s Weta Digital.

Source: Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment