Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn Movie Update Reveals How Far Along the Apple Adaptation Really Is

Brandon Sanderson continues to keep fans in the loop when it comes to the much-anticipated Mistborn movie, and the author’s latest update reveals just how far along the Apple adaptation is. Fantasy lovers have been waiting years for Mistborn to make its way to the screen. Thanks to Apple’s massive Cosmere deal, it’s finally happening. Sanderson is heavily involved in the project, and he’s even penning the screenplay. As a result, it’s become a regular addition to his weekly Youtube updates, during which he shares what he’s working on and how it’s coming along.

In this week’s video, Sanderson confirmed he’s now 91% of the way through the Mistborn screenplay — which he notes is only a 1% difference from his prior report. He emphasized that he’s still doing a lot of work on it, however. He’s just focused on revising what’s already there, as he wants his screenplay as “tight” as it can be:

“Little bit of progress on the Mistborn screenplay this week. Not as much because I’ve been doing a lot of revisions on it, so I’m going to just move it up 1% to 91%. That doesn’t give you a good indication of how much I’ve been digging into it. [With] a screenplay, you just do a lot of drafts, a lot of revisions. And so, there are parts of this draft that have seen like 12 passes. You need to be super tight on the screenplay.”

Fortunately, even with all the revisions, Sanderson still expects to turn the script in “next month sometime.” It does sound like he’s approaching the end of the writing process, which is promising after two prior attempts to adapt the series, both of which failed to move forward. And while a 1% jump doesn’t seem like much progress on the surface, Sanderson’s comments about revisions are also great news. They suggest both the author and Apple are doing their best to do right by the fantasy story.

Brandon Sanderson’s Latest Mistborn Update Is Good News for the Long-Awaited Movie

So many rounds of revisions may take time, but they bode well for Apple’s upcoming Mistborn movie. It’s already a relief that Sanderson himself is in charge of the screenplay. Cuts and changes are par for the course with any adaptation, and he’s the right person to decide what stays and what goes. He’s clearly putting a lot of thought into the writing process on that front. During an appearance on the Very Really Good podcast, he spoke about the changes he’s making to the magic system and story that will help them translate better to film. Taking his time with such details means fans will get a more polished final product, and we can’t complain about that.

Additionally, it’s barely been six months since The Hollywood Reporter first revealed Apple was turning Mistborn into a movie. Sanderson is making good time, especially when many fantasy projects sit in development for years. This one is finally gaining the traction it deserves, and Sanderson keeps bringing us closer to seeing his cast of thieves take down the oppressive Lord Ruler on-screen. We’re still a long way from a release date, but once Sanderson’s screenplay is finished, we should be closer to other exciting updates, casting among them.

What do you think of Sanderson’s latest update? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

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