Certain things just make sense together: chocolate and peanut butter, Batman and Robin, Game of Thrones and wanton murder to name a few. When it comes to the comic books of Garth Ennis, the dynamic duo of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg is becoming an increasingly delightful combination. Hot on the heels of their forthcoming TV adaptation of Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s Preacher for AMC is the news that Rogen and Goldberg will also be adapting Ennis’ ultraviolent superhero saga The Boys for Cinemax.
According to Deadline, the comic book series will be developed by Rogen, Goldberg, and Supernatural creator Eric Kripke, with Kripke also writing the script. Rogen and Goldberg, who directed the Preacher pilot, are set to direct The Boys too. For those not familar with The Boys, it was a creator-owned series from Garth Ennis and artist Darick Robertson that ran for 72 issues between 2006 and 2012. Originally published by Wildstorm and later by Dynamite Entertainment, The Boys followed an elite group of superpowered CIA agents known as “The Boys,” whose job was to monitor the superhero community and make sure they don’t get out of line.
In this world, though, many superheroes embraced the darker side of their celebrity status, which resulted in irresponsible and dangerous behavior that threatened the safety of the world rather than ensure it. With its extreme violence, over-the-top sexuality, wanton drug use, and all other manner of explicit subject matter, it was a profoundly anti-superhero superhero comic that did not shy away from any sort of cultural taboo.
This isn’t the first time that Hollywood has tried to bring The Boys to a larger audience. In 2008, Columbia Pictures optioned the comic for a feature film adaptation with Aeon Flux writers Matt Manfredi and Phil Hay attached. The Big Short director Adam McKay boarded the project to direct in 2010. After Columbia let its option expire, Paramount picked up the rights, but ultimately nothing seems to have come of it. Given that this comic would make my stomach churn on a monthly basis, I’m more than a little shocked to see it move forward at long last.
Considering how terrific the pilot for Preacher is (get excited for May 22, people) and its new home on Cinemax, this is great news for fans of The Boys who were concerned about how a show like this would fare on basic cable. In recent years, Cinemax has really stepped up its own original programming game with hard-hitting series like Banshee and The Knick, as well as its own forthcoming adaptation of Robert Kirkman and Paul Azaceta’s creepy-cool horror comic Outcast. My one hope is that Goldberg and Rogen can leverage their Paul connection to get Simon Pegg on the show as Wee Hughie, a character that was modeled in the actor’s likeness. Considering all these unlikely comics are finally making their way to the screen, it doesn’t seem like too much to ask.
What do you think of this news? Who should star in The Boys TV series? Let me know in the comments below.
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HT: Deadline
Image:Â Dynamite Entertainment
