The Internet was shaken this summer when it was announced that not only would Blumhouse Productions be producing the Spawn movie reboot, but it would be directed by the creator himself, Todd McFarlane. Now, head of Blumhouse, Jason Blum, has sounded off on the choice to have McFarlane direct — and he’s pretty sure it’s a good idea.
“I think he’s gonna do a great job,” Blum said. “Being a director encompasses a lot of different skills, but one of the most important skills is you have to be a great manager. You’re kind of a General of this army that you have to lead into battle every day, and he does that in his life every day running McFarlane Enterprises. So I think that translates to directing in a lot of ways. We’ve had a great back-and-forth around developing the script. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think he could do a great job, but we’ll see. I have a good feeling about it.”
Asked how the duo plans to translate McFarlane’s unique brand of art to the big-screen on a low budget, Blum said, “That’s a good question. One of the things is we’re keeping the scope of the script relatively contained, so that’s the biggest way. I think the other way is he and I aren’t paying ourselves any money out of the budget nor will any of the actors, so that’s another way. We’re using our usual tricks!”
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“Having worked with many visionary directors, I think Todd’s unique artistic talents will only add to his role as director of this film,” Blum said in a previous statement.
Announced back in July, the Spawn movie reboot comes from a script by McFarlane; it will reportedly be R-rated.
The original Spawn movie, which starred Michael Jai White and John Leguizamo, came out in 1997 and was the title character’s big-screen debut. While the film was moderately successful financially, it received negative reviews from critics and holds an 18% on Rotten Tomatoes. McFarlane has said several times that the new film would be different from other superhero movies and fall into the horror/suspense genre.
Spawn #1 was published in May 1992. The series recounts the story of Albert Francis Simmons, a CIA operative who is recruited into the shadowy world of covert operations. Simmons is murdered by one of his squad mates on a mission and is sent to Hell because of his murderous life choices. In Hell, Simmons is contracted by the demonic Malebolgia to become a Hellspawn, the foot troops of the fiery dimension.