There wasn’t a bigger name in comics in the 1990s than Todd McFarlane whose work for Marvel on Spider-Man propelled him to superstardom. His star grew even brighter with his co-founding of the creator-owned publisher Image Comics, where he premiered one of his greatest creations, Spawn, a horror-driven take on the superhero genre about an undead assassin who is forced to become an agent of retribution on behalf of the devil. It was very dark, very grim, and showcased McFarlane’s knack for drawing elegantly repugnant characters. Now, 25 years after the character’s creation, McFarlane will write and direct a new feature film adaptation through Blumhouse.
According to The Wrap, the announcement came from McFarlane’s Facebook on Friday. Blumhouse founder Jason Blum said, “Having worked with many visionary directors, I think Todd’s unique artistic talents will only add to his role as director of this film.” Blumhouse is the home of low-budget, high-concept genre films that have proved insanely popular in recent years, including M. Night Shyamalan’s Split, the Purge films, and Jordan Peele’s critically acclaimed debut film, Get Out.
Spawn has been on our screens before, of course, but not for 20 years. The year 1997 was particularly momentous for the fan-favorite character, with both a critically lauded animated series on HBO–which won an Emmy Award in 1999–and a widely derided live-action movie starring Michael Jai White, John Leguizamo as Clown, and Martin Sheen as Jason Wynn. Full of that cheesy mid-’90s CGI, the movie was unfortunately made during a bad age for comic book flicks.
The fact that McFarlane is directing the film as well as writing it is interesting, but if anyone knows the character it’s him. Given Blumhouse’s history of hits, and the balancing act of trying to create such an expansive comic book universe on the studio’s traditionally pretty limited budget, it’ll definitely be a movie to follow in the coming months.
Let us know your thoughts on Todd McFarlane making his directorial debut in the comments below!
Images: New Line Cinema/HBO
Kyle Anderson is the Associate Editor for Nerdist. He writes the weekly look at weird or obscure films in Schlock & Awe. Follow him on Twitter!
