Mark Wahlberg-Led ‘Arthur The King’ Adaptation: What We Know

Mark Wahlberg stars in the true story adaptation of an adventure racer who adopts Arthur, a stray dog tagging along during one of the epic competitions. Find out more about the film here.

• Mark Wahlberg stars in the adventure film ‘Arthur the King’
• The movie is an adaptation of the 2017 book Arthur: The Dog Who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home by Mikael Lindnord
• Based on a true story, Mark plays an adventure racer who adopts a stray dog, Arthur, during one of his epic races across some of the toughest terrains on the planet
• When Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings‘ star Simu Liu was cast, a social media scandal ensued over his past posts about co-star Mark

The upcoming Arthur the King movie starring Mark Wahlberg is expected to win fans over with its heartwarming true tale about the incredible bond between human and dog. Based on the 2017 book Arthur: The Dog Who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home by Mikael Lindnord, Mark plays an adventure racer who ends up adopting Arthur, a loveable stray dog that tags along during one of Mark’s epic competitions through some of the toughest terrains on the planet.

While the film was given the green light in 2019 and production has reportedly wrapped, according to Deadline, a rating has yet to be given to what appears to be a family-friendly flick. In the meantime, HollywoodLife took a deep dive into the action-adventure thriller. Here’s everything we know so far about Arthur the King, including cast, plot, filming details and more!

Where and When to Watch

The anticipation for this movie keeps growing as the release date has yet to be revealed! At the virtual Cannes market in 2020, Lionsgate was originally set to handle domestic distribution after Paramount Players exited, per Deadline. Lionsgate bowed out as well. The production companies still attached are Tucker Tooley Entertainment, Atmosphere Entertainment, Closest to the Hole Productions and Leverage Communications, according to the news source.

With the hopes of a release, in-theater or streaming, in 2023, Arthur the King could potentially be considered for next year’s awards season, including the Oscars. Perhaps the adventure flick earns a bit of recognition for its production values, as the film is likely to use gorgeous locations and some CGI elements, as dog-centric movies often do.

Cast and Crew

Mark Walhberg

Mark will be taking on the lead role of Arthur the Dog, playing Swedish racing captain Lindnord, who meets and befriends a wounded stray dog during a 400-mile race through the Ecuadoran jungle. Linlord, his team and Arthur the dog battle through some of the world’s toughest environments during the competition. While he has yet to discuss the film on social media, Mark is certainly keeping in shape for an adventure-type production, as seen on his Instagram.

Simu Liu

In December 2020, Simu Liu, the star of Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, joined the cast. Simu’s character is named “Liam,” however, there is little else known about the role.

Nathalie Emmanuel

Nathalie Emmanuel, the actress who played Missandei on the HBO series Game of Thrones, is attached to the project, according to IMDB. There is also little known about the role, including the name, and she has yet to mention it on her Instagram.

Who is the Creative Team

Originally, Baltasar Kormakur, an Icelandic director who directed Idris Elba in Beast, was tapped to helm the production, according to Deadline. After he exited due to scheduling conflicts, Simon Cellan Jones, a British artist, stepped in as director.

Screenwriting duties for the adaptation were taken over by Michael Brandt, who last wrote Overdrive and The Double. 

Tucker Tooley, Mark Canton, Courtney Solomon, Tessa Tooley, Mark Wahlberg and Stephen Levinson are the producers, with Dorothy Canton, Michael Brandt and author Mikael Lindnord executive producing.

Plot Information

As discussed, the movie is an adaptation of the 2017 book Arthur: The Dog Who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home, with the plot following closely to Mikael Lindlord’s true story of an adventure racer adopting a stray dog who joined the racer’s team in an epic adventure.

Filming Details

Details have been kept tightly under wraps regarding the filming details. While the movie reportedly went into production in late 2020 and has wrapped principal photography, little else is known. Even the locations are a big mystery, which certainly plays an important role in the storytelling, as the tale follows outrageous adventures across some of the roughest terrain in the world.

Simu’s Social Media Drama

After Simu was cast alongside Mark Wahlberg in 2020, the Marvel star deleted old Twitter posts in which he slammed Mark for a 1988 incident in which Mark was convicted for assaulting two Vietnamese men, according to IndieWire. When fans deemed him a hypocrite for working with Mark, Simu took to his Instagram to defend erasing the post in a since-deleted post, saying it was a “gesture of professionalism,” and an invitation to positive change, per the outlet.

“Obviously it’d be pretty weird to go to work with that tweet still up.” Simu continued, per IndieWire. “I meant what I said in the moment; I was very angry hearing about what happened. But that doesn’t mean I don’t think there’s room to grow and work together to find an opportunity to educate and do some good, which I’m excited to do in addition to shooting the movie.”

HollywoodLife will continue to update you on Arthur the King as more news come out!