A Whitewashed Earthsea – How the Sci Fi Channel wrecked my books. By Ursula K. Le Guin

December 16, 2004 | Movie Review, News | By: Mark VandeWettering

Slate is running a scathing article by science fiction author Ursula K. Le Guin. Apparently a movie with a title similar to some of her books is running on the Sci Fi channel, and she’s not enormously happy about it.

Comments

Comment from mneptok
Time 12/16/2004 at 1:45 pm

When I sold the rights to Earthsea a few years ago, my contract gave me the standard status of “consultant”—which means whatever the producers want it to mean, almost always little or nothing. My agency could not improve this clause.

Which begs the question, “Then why did she sign it?”

Two words: Cha-Ching!

Comment from Julian
Time 12/16/2004 at 4:49 pm

I find it weird that her major gripe with the TV series is the race issue – I certainly don’t recall that it was a big deal in the books. I didn’t bother watching the miniseries, but I can easily imagine they butchered it for any number of other reasons that seem more important. This is after all the same channel that proudly makes low budget schlock such as Frankenfish (which for some reason my Tivo decided I should watch). Shouldn’t she be attacking it on more important things on, say, wooden acting, or general adherence to plot?

Anyways, I thought the Earthsea trilogy (or “cycle” now..) was overrated (other than the first book). However, her book “The Dispossessed” on the other hand is one of the pieces of science fiction I’ve read.

Comment from Julian
Time 12/16/2004 at 4:51 pm

My previous comment dropped the word “best” somewhere in front of “science fiction”. It’s been a long week.

Comment from mneptok
Time 12/16/2004 at 5:51 pm

Quite right, Mark. She signed her rights away to get the cash, and is now complaining that the people to whom she gave the rights didn’t do exactly as she wished.

This strikes me rather like a prostitute complaining a patron didn’t snuggle with her after they did the nasty. And yeah, I’m harsh. 🙂

Comment from Cam
Time 12/19/2004 at 7:06 pm

Well — she did say that she had been promised a “consultant” role, and that she was led to understand that an entirely different person would be writing the script. Obviously she was misled as to how involved a “consultant” would actually be. She’s not the first, and won’t be the last, but I hardly think blaming the victim of the system (however well-entrenched this system) here is appropriate.