New material in 'Hitchhiker' movie

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy movie is to include new material devised by Douglas Adams himself.

Speaking to SCI FI Wire, producer Robbie Stamp said: "There's brand, new stuff, which Douglas created. There's a brand new character called Humma Kavula, who plays a sort of pivotal role there in the middle of the movie, ... and he's the character being played by John Malkovich."

The new character was defeated by Zaphod Beeblebrox in the election to become president of the galaxy. Stamp went on: "He's clever, whereas Zaphod is stupid and charismatic. ... He's now a missionary ... or a high priest of a cult that believes we were all sneezed into existence by the Great Green Arkleseizure that's waiting for the coming of the Great White Handkerchief. ... It's very Douglas."

The producer explained that some of the material from the Guide itself had to be cut out for cinematic reasons. He explained: "we ... had to cut ... some of the more discursive elements in the guide. Where the book will take one and a half [or] two pages to sort of do a wonderful ... peregrination around a subject or an issue, we just obviously can't do that [in the film]. ... And so the Guide entries are necessarily much shorter. ... But they're there, and they're recognisable, and it's Douglas' words. And everybody, I think, will be very pleased to see and feel how much of the Guide is there."