Over 20 years after its release, fans ofEragonare still waiting for the fantasy novelto get a proper adaptation. Progress on Disney+’s serieshas been slowly creeping alongsince itsannouncement back in 2022, and 20th Century Fox’s 2006 film famously fell flat with brutal reviews and an underwhelming $250 million box office haul. One person who still laments how the big-screen take onChristopher Paolini’s 2002 novel panned out isGarrett Hedlund, who embodied the antihero archer Murtaugh. The original plan was for a trilogy, capturing the sweeping epic of The Inheritance Cycle from the moment Eragon and his dragon Saphira first take flight to their final confrontation with the evil King Galbatorix. If it were up to theTron: Legacystar, that franchise would’ve come to fruition given that it remains one of his most positive filmmaking experiences.
Hedlund recently joined hisTulsa Kingco-starFrank Grillofor a panel atFanX’s Atlanta Comic Convention moderated by Collider’sMaggie Lovitt, where he was asked for his thoughts onEragon,now nearly two decades removed from the film adaptation. Although he was already building a solid resume withTroyandFriday Night Lights, the adventurous feature was a big early step in his career as a potential franchise-starterbased on a beloved book. Moreover, the story is about a poor farm boy in the land of Alagaesia who begins an epic journey to restore the glory of dragon riders after finding and hatching an egg. Growing up on a farm himself, Hedlund found the role to be the latest in a line of oddly-fitting roles that related to his life in some way.
“It was just kind of in the line of these surreal things that would happen to me. When I was really, you know, my mom lived outside of Florida, North Dakota. I grew up in Minnesota, and my mom had lived in this tiny little town. Her and me and my brother, and sister sat down and watchedARiver Runs Through It, and she pointed to my older brother and said, ‘That’s you.’ She pointed to Brad [Pitt] and said, ‘That’s you.’ It meant something to me for some reason. And then, at my county fair, Faith Hill came and played when I was like 10 years old at my county fair. She brought Tim McGraw out on the stage. So my first film,Pitt was playing my cousin and my second film, Tim McGraw was playing my father.”
‘Eragon’ Created Memories Garrett Hedlund Wishes Could’ve Lasted Longer
When he was offeredEragonamid his blossoming young career, needless to say, it was about as much of a no-brainer as it could be for Hedlund. “All of a sudden, they say, ‘We’ve got this film where you come fight withJohn Malkovichand fly dragons,’ and I was like, ‘I don’t need to read a f—ing thing. This was meant to be. I have to,” he recalled. First-time directorStefen Fangmeier’s dragon-packed epic was his first taste of the power of cinema totransport viewers to wondrous worlds, while also pairing him with even more star power in the form ofJeremy Irons,Ed Speelers,Djimon Hounsou,Robert Carlyle,Rachel Weisz, and more. He spoke to the impact that experience had on him at the time as an actor just entering adulthood and shared a few memories with his castmates that stand out during his time traveling the world forEragon.
“So it’s wonderful to be in this world professionally. To be in the arts. To be in film. To be able to make films, and storytell, and help others be able to escape and be transported somewhere like I desired so much as a kid on a farm. To be able to do this and go off to places… I was 20. I turned 21, and I was in Slovakia, staying at a Best Western and playing violin every night with Jeremy Irons. And so it was a wonderful journey to… then we were shooting inside a volcano… Me and Djimon Hounsou, waiting long hours…”
Unfortunately, the journey wasn’t quite as long as he hoped, andEragonwould be seenas one of the great novel adaptation flops. Hedlund has since moved on to greener pastures, most recently includingTulsa Kingand the upcomingUnspeakable: The Murder of JonBenét Ramseyat Paramount+, but the experience of adventuring as Murtaugh remains a part of him. “It’s all from the yearbook of your life,” he said. “It makes you smile when you take other things for granted. So that journey was a wonderful one. It’sa shame we couldn’t continue on with it because it came down to cash.”
Eragonis currently available to stream on Disney+. Stay tuned here at Collider for more on the series adaptation as updates come out.
