It’s been nearly a decade of waiting for a new Spawn movie. Back in 2017, character creator Todd McFarlane revealed a completed script for a reboot of the franchise. He’s got a deal in place with Blumhouse to make it. Various writers have come and gone. Big actors have been attached, including Jamie Foxx. So, why the heck hasn’t it happened yet? McFarlane has offered up an honest answer.
Speaking with Revenge Of at San Diego Comic-Con McFarlane said bluntly, “I keep rejecting the script.” The host then asked if they were close to making it happen. McFarlane plainly said “no.” Speaking further, he explained that the writers he’s been working with haven’t delivered a script that is up to his standard.
“We need writers who will work with me. I am tired of giving my ideas away, sitting back waiting, and then they just hand it [over], and I read the script, and within 10 pages I go, ‘No, it’s off base.’ I need somebody that will work with me every day.”
This probably explains why we haven’t heard who is directing the new Spawn movie yet. At one point, McFarlane was supposed to direct it himself but that idea fell by the wayside. Meanwhile, writers including Matt Nixon, Malcolm Spellman (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) and Scott Silver (Joker) have all had their hands in the script. That script, despite the talent, hasn’t been good enough for McFarlane.
Their version of the script was titled King Spawn, based on the spin-off comic as part of the Spawn Universe launched by Image Comics several years back. Speaking to Popverse in a separate interview, McFarlane reiterated his intention to make it more of a horror movie, now inspired by recent box office hits such as Obsession and Backrooms.
“Things like Obsession and Backrooms. And even a new one recently, Leviticus; there’s a vibe to those movies that, to me, is some of the stuff I’ve been saying for 10 years about Spawn. We don’t have to have a ton of special effects. We don’t have to have a ton of blowing up…Why would we try and do that at a fraction of the price? Why don’t we lean into what Spawn can be as a character that Captain America and Superman can’t be? What they can’t be is dark. I mean, I’m talking serious dark, not Dark Knight, Batman dark. I’m talking f*****g dark.”
There’s no clear indication as to how this movie will make its way out of development hell. Blumhouse has a lot of resources and they’ve tapped A-list talent. Ultimately though, this whole thing runs through McFarlane. If he’s not happy, it’s not happening. And it’s very clear that he’s not happy yet.
The Spawn movie doesn’t currently have a release date but stay tuned.
What do you think? Is the Spawn reboot ever actually happening? Who would you like to see in the director’s chair? Join in on the conversation over on Facebook or Instagram!
