Sorbo Writer's Blog

Kevin Sorbo made his cinematic feature film debut in 1997 with the sword and sorcery fantasy, “Kull the Conqueror,” an adaptation of author Robert E. Howard’s Conan novel, The Hour of the Dragon, penned by screenwriter Charles Edward Pogue.

Our friend Rhonda from Georgia offers this fantastic review accompanied by Malena’s and Loli’s exceptional artwork. Many thanks to all who contributed to this story!

“Kull the Conqueror” was Kevin’s first feature film during the “Hercules” days. It was originally planned to be the third “Conan” movie, but Arnold Schwarzenegger passed on it and it was rewritten for the Kull character that was created by Robert E. Howard (also the creator of Conan).

Kull is a warrior from Atlantis, training to hopefully become a member of the King’s Army. Soon, he finds himself in the middle of a battle between the king and his men after the king had killed his own son. He manages to stop the battle and warns the king that his blood would be spilled if he insisted on continuing the fight. The fight did continue, and Kull mortally wounds the king. With his final breath, the king makes Kull his successor. Taligaro, commander of the King’s army (played by Thomas Ian Griffith), demands that Kull give him the crown, but Kull refuses.

Kull is introduced to the ladies in his new harem, one of whom he already knows – Zareta, a beautiful fortune teller (played by Karina Lombard), who had once read the tarot cards for him and foretold that Kull would become a king by the hand of a king, and now it had happened.

Kull has made many enemies, including Taligaro, since taking the throne, and so to overthrow him, they resurrect an ancient sorceress named Akivasha (played by Tia Carrere). She was at one time the witch queen of the lost city of Acheron. She uses her power to trick Kull into marrying her then she betrays him. Zaretta had already foretold that the fate of Kull’s kingdom would be found within a kiss, but not the kind he was expecting. To save his kingdom, Kull had to find the Breath of Valka, which he did not believe existed. With help from Zareta and her brother, the priest Ascalante (played by Native American actor Litefoot) Kull fulfills his destiny and destroys the evil witch queen.

Kevin did a great job playing Kull and had a very good supporting cast surrounding him. The movie is available on DVD, if you haven’t seen it yet. If you love him in “Hercules,” you’ll definitely love him in “Kull.”

A few notes about the making of the film: It was shot in various cities in Slovakia and Croatia, thus creating the ancient atmosphere of Kull’s time. The film was not without problems, most notably, Kevin being stung by a sea urchin, injuring his foot badly. The timing of the theatrical premiere was not the best, either, for a couple of reasons: (1) It was the weekend of Labor Day and (2) It was the same weekend Princess Di was killed and many folks stayed home to watch the T.V. coverage of that tragedy. It has been said that Kevin’s grueling workouts in preparation for “Kull” and his filming schedule for the movie may have led to the life-threatening illness that landed him in the hospital just days after the premiere; however, this was never confirmed.

Kevin himself has said more than once that the film would have been better had they stuck to the original script, which would have produced an R-rated film. However, the producers wanted to draw in the audience that was watching Kevin as Hercules on T.V., which was mainly youngsters, so the film ended up being rated PG-13. While it didn’t do very well at the box office, the DVD sold well. In any effect, it was good for Kevin’s first attempt at a lead role in a major motion picture.

I would also recommend that you get the soundtrack CD and the tie-in novel. Both are available through Amazon.com.

Kevin’s movies:

http://www.allmovieportal.com/b/kevinsorbo.html