Very few comic creators get the chance to see three distinct adaptations of their work hit the big screen over a 20-year period. But soon, Mike Mignola will join these ranks with Hellboy: The Crooked Man, an upcoming film from Millennium Media that was announced less than a month ago. The project has already made considerable headway in the early stages of production. Many fans still aren’t sold on the idea of another reboot featuring Mignola’s iconic character, especially since the last one didn’t go over so well. However, Mignola himself believes the new movie will stand out for one very important reason.
Unlike previous Hellboy installments, Mignola has a more hands-on role with The Crooked Man’s development as co-writer of the screenplay with Christopher Golden. But Mignola still hasn’t met the film’s star, Jack Kesy, who was officially cast as Hellboy earlier this month. That’s a prime example of how fast the production is moving along. Fortunately, it sounds like Mignola has the utmost faith in the reboot’s producers. In fact, the same can be said of his relationship with director Brian Taylor, whom Mignola revealed is adding his own ideas to the script to give the film more of a horror vibe. And yes, this will ultimately lead to an R-rating.
“His intention is to make a horror movie, so that’ll be nice–that’ll be interesting,” confirmed Mignola. “I read the new draft of the screenplay yesterday, and yes, it is definitely R. It’s the first Hellboy script that I read and I went, ‘Oh, it’s a horror movie,’ which is what I wanted. Taylor does not have a reputation as a horror movie director. But, so far, we’ve had two horror movie directors make Hellboy movies and we’ve never gotten a horror movie.”
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Additionally, Mignola explained why his Crooked Man story is the best one to adapt. Aside from featuring traditional horror elements like witches and devils, it also has a much narrower scope.
“For years, we’ve been saying, if you’re going to make a Hellboy movie, make it small,” said Mignola. “And the perfect story to do that with is my personal favorite, The Crooked Man. I think it’s one of the best things I’ve ever written. It’s beautifully illustrated by Richard Corben, and it’s a solid story that doesn’t involve a million different characters. Everybody actually agreed from the very beginning, ‘Yes, we want to do that one.’ Budget-wise, it’s good because it’s a lower budget kind of a story. It’s not the Hellboy origin. It’s not Hellboy saving the world. It’s not huge. It’s a subtle, dark, little folk horror story.”
Millennium hasn’t announced a release date for Hellboy: The Crooked Man.
Do you think the reboot will fulfill Mignola’s promise of a true Hellboy horror movie? Let us know in the comment section below!
Recommended Reading: Hellboy Omnibus Volume 1: Seed of Destruction
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