Castlevania Dracula Begins

This information is taken directly from Wikipedia's entry on the film.

In November 2005, Crystal Sky Pictures acquired the rights to adapt the video game series for the big screen. The company attached Paul W.S. Anderson to write and direct the film adaptation, with production slated to begin in mid-2006.[10] Later in the month, Dimension Films entered negotiations with Crystal Sky for North American distribution of Castlevania. The film adaptation was estimated to have a budget of $50 million.[11] In July 2006, producer Jeremy Bolt explained that Castlevania will "integrate a Dracula origin story... with the story of the Belmonts." Bolt also said that the film would refer back to early versions of the games.[12] Director Anderson reiterated Bolt's description, adding that Dracula and Simon Belmont would be key characters in the film. Anderson also indicated that the "very lush, Romantic, Gothic look" of the 3D incarnations of the Castlevania series would be used in the film. He also expressed his hope in using the games' composer, Michiru Yamane, to score the film's soundtrack.[13]

In November 2006, Rogue Pictures replaced Dimension Films, who reneged over script differences, in handling North American distribution of Castlevania, with Crystal Sky Pictures handling international distribution. Paul W.S. Anderson described Castlevania to take place in many time periods, but primarily in 15th century Transylvania. The director and producer Jeremy Bolt had scouted locations in Hungary and Romania, with plans to build castle interiors in Budapest. Principal photography was slated to begin in spring 2007.[14]

In January 2007, director Anderson said the studio was still finalizing the film's budget, and filming would begin in fall or winter in Transylvania and Hungary. According to the director, the filming was postponed because production had desired snow on the ground for the film's forest scenes. Anderson described the locations, "It was like discovering Mordor as a real location -- epic, dramatic, and above all scary. These locations haven't been shot properly in a mainstream movie, so that is always extra exciting...to put something on camera that hasn't been seen before." The director also revealed that post-production and effects work for Castlevania would be done in London.[15]

In June 2007, Anderson conceded directing duties to Sylvain White in order to take on the project Death Race, a remake of Death Race 2000. White, who played the Castlevania video game in the early 1990s, was attracted to the prospect of filming a vampire film. White explained, "Most of the vampire films have been present or set in the future, from Blade to Underworld, and I was attracted by the chance to make a dark, epic period movie that almost has an anime feel to it." The new director, who negotiated a salary of seven figures, will rewrite the script with Anderson's assistance. The premise will involve a Transylvanian knight and his men seeking refuge in a Gothic castle. They discover that the castle is controlled by the original vampire, Vlad the Impaler. The awakening of the vampire leads to a generational clash between Vlad and the Belmont clan, who seek to defeat him. Production of Castlevania is slated to begin in late fall 2007 in South Africa and Romania. Castlevania is planned for a late 2008 release.[16] In October 2007, Anderson said that he hoped to have a script within two or three weeks before the onset of the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike. Producer Jeremy Bolt said that production was intended to begin in spring 2008.[17]

In December 2007, Rogue Pictures halted active development of Castlevania due to the writers' strike. Despite the shelfing, White remains committed to direct the film.[18]