A 1980s fantasy classic makes its comeback with “Willow” on Disney+

When the fantasy film “Willow” was released in 1988, it was not the box-office hit its makers had hoped to be.

This was despite the fact that the story about a small-sized hero who rescues the magical baby Elora from the evil queen and experiences all kinds of adventures along the way was penned by “Star Wars” creator George Lucas.

It was only in the following years that “Willow”, starring Warwick Davis, Val Kilmer and Joanne Whalley, became a great success on video – as a VHS tape to buy or rent from the video store – and went on to become a cult film.

Now, 34 years later, the story is being continued as a TV series.

British actor Warwick Davis (52), known from the “Star Wars” films and the “Harry Potter” series, once again takes on the title role.

“It’s a dream come true in a sense, not only for me, but obviously for fans who have been shouting at me in the street,” he told dpa. “Not rude things, polite things, saying, ‘all right, when are we going to see a sequel to Willow? We love that movie. I grew up watching it!'”

After George Lucas was sceptical about a sequel, there came a lucky coincidence. “Willow” director Ron Howard and Davis, who played a supporting role, worked together again on the film “Solo – A Star Wars Story”. Davis: “I was there kind of playing weasel with long hair, looking very much like an older version of Willow.”

Howard introduced him to screenwriter Jonathan Kasdan, who is a big “Willow” fan. “Between the three of us, I just chatted about, you know, making more Willow and I would tell them how popular I felt the film was amongst fans, how many fans there were all over the world,” Davis said.

So the three – Howard, Davis and Kasdan, began to put the sequel together. With the support of the influential “Star Wars” producer Kathleen Kennedy, the project finally landed at the streaming service Disney+ – with Kasdan as showrunner, Howard as producer and the good will of Lucas.

The eight-part series continues the Willow story some 20 years later. Although all evil should have been defeated with the death of Queen Bavmorda, dark visions plague Willow. One day, a group of youngsters knock on his door in need of his support…

Not much more will be divulged here, because the first episode of “Willow” already has a surprise in store.

From the cast of the original film, Warwick Davis is joined by Joanne Whalley as Sorsha and Kevin Pollack as Rool. Val Kilmer, who lost his voice after a serious bout with throat cancer, does not take part.

“We were extremely sorry not to have him (Val Kilmer) involved physically with the project,” Davis said.

Tony Revolori (“Grand Budapest Hotel”), Erin Kellyman (also “Solo – A Star Wars Story”) and Christian Slater (“Mr. Robot”) are the best-known faces of the very diverse cast.

The TV series is dark in places and maybe a bit frightening for younger viewers. Visually, it cannot keep up with the charm of the cinema film, while the plot – with its nasty monsters, a dark vision, a planned forced wedding and a secret lesbian love story – can feel confusing and overloaded with so many characters at the beginning. But this is remedied when the aged Willow appears for the first time.

“There’s a fundamental emotional feeling of seeing Warwick Davis back in his cloak and costume that’s just so powerfu,” the 43-year-old Kasdan, who grew up in the film industry as the son of Hollywood veteran Lawrence Kasdan (“Raiders of the Lost Ark”, “Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back”), told dpa.

Nostalgia is an important factor, he adds. “It brings you back to something you feel you’ve lost that you can’t help but feel you’ve lost if you’re a grownup. And that is really palpable in the show, in the culture right now. It’s something that you can’t deny.”

He’s hoping to thrill the many “Willow” fans from back then, but he’s wary: “There’s also a burden on something like this to move it forward and to be as exciting and interesting as possible in a landscape where there’s a lot of places you can go for fantasy. And we tried to do that.”

Whether Kasdan, Davis and Co. have succeeded will be shown in the coming weeks. A new “Willow” episode will be streamed every Wednesday.