The long-in-development reboot of Spawn continues to trudge forward with a new writer coming on board. Spawn is based on Todd McFarlane’s comic book of the same name, which first debuted in 1992. It follows a highly skilled assassin, Al Simmons, who is murdered by his backstabbing partner only to end up in hell where he makes a deal with the devil, Malebolgia, to return to his family on Earth. Simmons is then imbued with the power of a Hellspawn, a warrior meant to lead Malebolgia’s army, and sent back to Earth with a fractured memory and an unrecognizable appearance. The success of the comic series saw the property quickly optioned for a feature film.
The first and currently only live-action film, simply titled Spawn, was released in 1997. It starred Martin Sheen, John Leguizamo, and Michael Jai White, in one of his first major roles, as Spawn. The film followed the same general plot as the comics, but its dark subject matter felt hindered by a PG-13 rating. Critics and audiences weren’t impressed by the film, and while it managed a reasonable box office return, any chance of a sequel died with the reviews. However, McFarlane is determined to get the character back on the big screen, and he wants to get it right this time, as he is attached to direct the reboot. Spawn has been at Blumhouse Productions under the guidance of Jason Blum since 2017, yet it seems stuck in production hell, even with announced talent like Jamie Foxx and Jeremy Renner involved. Though, that may be about to change.
According to THR, the Spawn reboot is going through another behind-the-scenes shakeup with a new writer being brought in to work on the script. Brian Tucker, whose sole feature film writing credit belongs to 2013’s Broken City, has been tapped to write the script. Broken City, which starred Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe, earned less than stellar reviews before failing to recoup its budget at the box office. Still, while Tucker’s resume may not seem awe-inspiring, he was clearly able to impress the producers.
With the addition of Tucker, the Spawn reboot seems to be getting a new lease on life. A mere few weeks ago, Blum even stated that the Spawn script was taking time to get right, which was clearly the impetus in hiring Tucker. However, it’s hard to say where all the pieces of the production fit at this juncture, as Foxx and Renner being cast in the film was announced so long ago that their level of involvement, if any, is unknown. Though McFarlane seems to have a clear vision of the hard R-rated film he wants to make.
Source: THR
About The Author
