Exclusive footage from ‘Dredd’ shown at the London Film and Comic Con

Science fiction and fantasy fans attending the London Film and Comic Con over the weekend were treated to exclusive footage from the forthcoming Judge Dredd film.

The film, simply entitled Dredd, sees the 2000 AD superhero battle against Ma-Ma, the head of a terrorist organisation, who is selling a reality-altering drug called Slo-Mo which slows down the human perception of reality.

Star Trek and The Lord of the Rings actor, Karl Urban plays Judge Dredd with Juno star Olivia Thirlby as his rookie sidekick Judge Anderson. While Lena Headey takes on the role of chief antagonist Ma-Ma.

The excerpt from the film featured the superhero carrying out justice in a shopping mall and taking out a crook. The scene introduced the audience to the character of Judge Dredd and the relationship between the Judges and the citizens of Mega-City One. While most of Dredd was filmed in South Africa this particular scene was shot in an abandoned shopping centre in Colindale in London.

Along with the scene, there was a Q&A session with Urban, Producer Allon Reich, Concept Artist and Dredd artist Jock and Screenwriter and Producer Alex Garland.

Newland-born actor Urban said: “I would consider myself a long-term fan of Dredd. I started reading it when I was about 15 or 16 and so I was quite excited to go to the 1995 version of the movie. It wasn’t quite what I imagined, there were a few missed opportunities there but I still appreciated it. There are still elements about it which I enjoy, Mean Machine was really well done”.

He went on to say: “For us, as we approached this film, I found it quite handy to look at that film and to see what worked and what didn’t work. It informed me as I approached the character about choices that I ought to make and choices I didn’t want to make”.

For the entirety of the film Judge Dredd never takes off his helmet, this was done in order to give the character a sense of authenticity. Urban talked about the practicalities of this artistic decision: “Entering into a film is a challenge and this one was an extraordinary challenge, knowing that I wasn’t going to have the benefit and use of my eyes which is such a valuable asset and tool for an actor. [But] that’s the way that it should be done.”

When he was informed of the decision to keep the helmet on, he replied: “I wouldn’t be having this meeting if I read the script and he took the helmet off.”

The film is set to present a darker vision of the superhero than 1995’s Judge Dredd starring Sylvester Stallone and promises to be high-octane thrill for viewers and fans.

‘Dredd’ will be released in cinemas across the UK on 7 September

For more information about the London and Film Comic Con visit: www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com

Image credit: Neela Debnath/The Independent

Recent Posts on Arts

• Children’s Books: Recommended read – 'A Monster Calls' by Patrick Ness
• Made in Chelsea – Series 5, Episode 11: Louise plays and wins at Spencer's game
• The Returned: 'Simon' - Series 1, episode 2
• Interview with Tre Mission: Grime going global
• Something For The Weekend in London: June 14-16

• http://www.facebook.com/pevsonic David Peverley

  The only part of Judge Dredd you ever saw in the comics was the chin so logically they should have someone with the correct chin. As I said when the first (dire) film came out – the only person with a properly qualified chin is Bruce Forsyth. Might need to overdub the voice though!

• http://www.facebook.com/people/Joe-Soap/100001455228066 Joe Soap

  Chins can’t act.