A Sub-Mariner story for the 14 people out there who will care about it.
By Burbanked on May 15, 2007 in Development Heck, Movies | 3,185 views |
Of course it shouldn’t be considered “news” that Hollywood will ride the superhero movie trend like a rented pony until the poor beast is dirty, broken and dead. The catalog of superheroes is vast and deep and certainly represents our own brand of modern-day pop culture mythology – but does that mean that every hero, famous and obscure, really requires silver screen treatment?
Superhero Hype ran a quick rumor piece yesterday that actor David Boreanaz – best known for his stint as Angel on the long-running Buffy series that a bunch of people liked, as well as his own new show Bones – may be up for the role of Namor in the upcoming Sub-Mariner movie currently in development by the guy who bemediocred the Terminator franchise, Jonathan Mostow.
To be honest, I thought that Ghost Rider was a bit of an obscure superhero property, and Box Office Mojo currently lists that movie as having grossed about $225 million worldwide. That’s okay, I suppose – not exactly blockbustery but respectable – but that movie was universally savaged by critics and fans alike. Why is Hollywood dipping so deeply into the superhero backwaters for these characters?
According to IMDB, there are a handful of superhero movies still in development for the next couple of years. Of those, I’d personally classify the following as “outside the mainstream”:
And to that list I’d add the more well-known but – in my opinion – equally ill-advised cinematic plans for Wonder Woman, Captain America, another *yawn* Wolverine, and Shazam!.
Don’t get me wrong – I grew up on comics like a lot of film geeks and I’ve read all of those characters above with the exception of Iron Fist, Deathlok and Gatchaman. But isn’t this starting to reek of genre overload? Can there truly be fresh and innovative stories to tell – to a mass moviegoing audience – for all of these superheroes?
I mean, really. Who exactly is clamoring for a Namor movie? I mean, besides Jonathan Mostow?
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Rob | May 15, 2007 | Reply
Thor (along with Iron Man and Captain America and Ant Man) sets them up for an Avengers movie.
Yeah, Ant Man. In the list of obscure, I think Ant Man should be listed — when I started reading comics, I always confused him with the Atom.
Deathlok could be a good horror movie if they did it right. You have to make the moviegoers see themselves trapped in Deathlok’s place — someone not allowed to die, forced to follow orders he finds wrong, appearance and stench horrifying to loved ones…it’s essentially a scientific zombie with the zombie fighting back and getting revenge on its creators.
Of course, I doubt they’ll get Deathlok correct….
Adam Ross | May 15, 2007 | Reply
I think Green Lantern would translate well to the screen, because his powers are kind of hokey-looking by naturee, and the whole “haha! my powers are magical!” is easier to sell to audiences than “hoho! the wonders of radiation gave me these powers!”
Ray | May 16, 2007 | Reply
Dumb … every last one of these properties is dumb.
Well, except for Gatchaman, which can be marketed to the many, many people with fond memories of “Battle of the Planets.”
A character like Sub-Mariner sounds like a cheesy, second-rate character that was invented in the twenties before actual science and believability seeped into the medium.
Pooman | May 25, 2007 | Reply
David Boreanaz? (sp)
noooo. sub-mariner needs to be leen and athletic, you know, so he can swim in a slipstream. not a big meathook like Angel.