Wētā Workshop is excited to dive into the world of Thra and create premium collectibles for the prequel series, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, which tells a new story, set many years before the events of the 1982 movie.
Wētā Workshop is excited to dive into the world of Thra and create premium collectibles for the prequel series, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, which tells a new story, set many years before the events of the 1982 movie.
No more dangerous creature in Thra existed than the hunter, skekMal. Feared by even his own kind, he came seldom to the Castle of the Crystal where the Skeksis ruled. skekMal sought a life prowling beneath open skies rather than rot with his kind in the darkening palace.
His was the way of restless pursuit; he stalked the trackless depths of the Endless Forest and other wilds with a relentless, predatory zeal. Once marked as prey, none evaded the keen senses of the Hunter, who took grizzly trophies from his victims to adorn and armour his towering frame. While the other Skeksis withered, the Hunter was strong and fast, sustained by his ravenous appetite for pursuit and conquest.
SkekMal’s counterpart was the urRu, urVa, the Archer, who alone could stand against him. As skilled as the archer was with his bow, skekMal’s weapons of choice were cruel, curving blades wielded in each of his four claws.
Contracted by skekSil, skekMal’s last hunt saw him chase down the fugitive Gelfling Rian, who had until then eluded the Chamberlain’s grasp and seen him fall from the Emperor’s grace. It was a perilous bargain skekSil made at great need, for the Hunter suffered no treachery and would take his perceived due no matter what, be it from Gelfling or sly and oily customer.
The three different sized circular bases across our 1:6 scale Dark Crystal range represent the Three Suns in the skies of Thra; the dying sun, rose sun, and great sun. Familiar iconography from the floor of the Crystal Chamber are featured around the outside. Spy the symbols of the UrSkek, which have since been appropriated as signs of discord and Skeksis aggression.
These collectibles were a dream to art direct. I feel like a Skeksis sitting at the banquet table, ready to feast on the amazing opportunities before me. There is so much to choose from!
Please note: images are of a pre-production prototype. Each sculpture is hand painted and minor variations will occur.
OUR DARK CRYSTAL COLLECTIBLES
So rich and visionary was Jim Henson’s 1982 passion project that it inspired dreamers across the creative arts, including a whole generation of film effects artists now working at Wētā Workshop. Released at a time when many of our crew were young and beginning to explore their own creative energies, The Dark Crystal was an eye-opener: it was possible to bring imaginary worlds to life, and it could be a career! For years, those of us who had fallen in love with this world hoped that someday Thra might return to our screens. Thanks to Netflix, it has, and now we have the chance to express our fandom by creating super faithful, highly detailed collectible figures and prop replicas from The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.
And this is just the beginning! More Dark Crystal collectibles are coming soon.