Posted in: Netflix, TV | Tagged: conan, netflix

Netflix Let Conan The Barbarian Series Rights Lapse: Robert Rodriguez

Speaking with Joe Rogan, writer/director Robert Rodriguez revealed that Netflix let the series rights to Conan the Barbarian lapse.

Published Tue, 29 Apr 2025 10:37:07 -0500

by Ray Flook

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It was back in September 2020 when the news first hit that Netflix was developing a series based on Robert E. Howard's iconic sword-and-sorcery character Conan. Set to stem from Fredrik Malmberg and Mark Wheeler's Pathfinder Media, the series was set to be the first project under the deal between Netflix and Conan Properties International (owned by Malmberg's Cabinet Entertainment). Under the terms of the deal, the streaming service would have the exclusive option to access rights to the Conan literary library and develop works across television and film (both live-action and animated). Malmberg and Wheeler were set as executive producers, with a search underway for a writer/showrunner to oversee the series and a director to take the helm. As we inch closer to the five-year anniversary of the news, writer and director Robert Rodriguez had an update to share – and it wasn't a promising one.

During his recent interview with Joe Rogan, Rodriguez shared his interest in a trilogy of new films that would cover "Conan the Thief, Conan the Buccaneer and Mercenary, and Conan the King," even discussing the project with James Cameron. But when the word came down that Netflix had snagged the rights for a live-action and/or animated series adaptation, Rodriguez added that he pitched his vision of how a series could work. Unfortunately, according to the writer/director, the possibility is no longer in play because the streamer let the rights expire. "Netflix had it. I went and pitched it to them. And they then… they let the rights lapse. Sometimes it's too much baggage for a character," Rodriguez shared about an undertaking that would've had a whole lot of fans overanalyzing every aspect of the production. In terms of how Conan has been brought to life in the past, Rodriguez gives Jason Momoa his flowers for his 2011 portrayal of the character – while adding, "No one has captured the spirit of Conan from the books yet."

In 1932, Howard introduced Conan the Barbarian (aka the Cimmerian) in a series of short stories published in Weird Tales magazine. His epic sword-and-sorcery tales would go on to inspire a righteous amount of spinoffs, adaptations, and merchandising for over three-quarters of a century: comic books, novels, feature films, television series, video games, collectibles, toys, and a ton more. On the big screen, Arnold Schwarzenegger would go on to immortalize the character in 1982's Conan the Barbarian and 1984 sequel Conan the Destroyer. Mamoa took on the title role in 2011's Conan the Barbarian reboot (produced by Malmberg). On the small screen, animated series Conan the Adventurer and spinoff Conan and the Young Warriors ran from 1992-94, with the live-action syndicated series Conan the Adventurer premiering in 1997 with Ralf Möller as the lead.

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