Produced and co-written by Lloyd Webber and directed by Joel Schumacher, it stars Gerard Butler in the title role, with Emmy.
Not surprisingly Phantom made it to the big screen in this adaptation but Starlight did not. The Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 musical romantic drama film based on Andrew Lloyd Webber 's 1986 musical of the same name, which in turn is based on the 1910 French novel Le Fantme de l'Opra by Gaston Leroux. Andrew Lloyd Webber admits that although he does not regret doing the show he should have marketed it as a "Disney kiddie ride sort of a thing" a special effects extravaganza just for kids, to be performed at amusement parks exclusively, not a serious big budget Broadway musical for the masses where it would be compared to much more critically acclaimed Webber shows like Jesus Christ Superstar Evita Joseph and Phantom.
But where Phantom got positive reviews and is mostly considered a classic Starlight was slammed by the critics some who say though it was a hit it is one of the worst Broadway and London theater productions of all time focusing as it does on people dressed up like trains and roller skating and featuring a sporting event like race replete with monitors. Rossum will perform the role of opera singer Christine Daae, whose voice is reminiscent of that of the Phantom, in a movie from Really Useful Films due out in July.
This theatrical production premiered in London in 1985-6, the same year Andrew Lloyd Webber rolled out Starlight Express, an adaptation of the Thomas the Tank Engine novels (with all character and place names changed when the rights deal fell through).