Are comic books all about getting a movie deal now? Is Hollywood corrupting the concept of comic books? Or is the Hollywood factor helping the comic book industry get back to it’s former glory days of the early 90’s before the comic book industry bubble popped? It seems that every time I turn around there is another headline in the Hollywood trades that another studio has picked up the rights to a comic book series or graphic novel.
The latest example of Hollywood jumping in on the comic book/graphic novel experience is coming from the two Hollywood studios. The first is Columbia Pictures as they have announced intentions to make the Preacher series from the 90’s and they already have Sam Mendes on board to direct it as well. The Preacher is the story of a preacher from Texas who is possessed by “Genesis” an entity that has incredible super powers who goes on a journey across the country with a drunk Irish vampire and an ex girlfriend team up to look for an absentee God. This series went on for five years so there is a lot of great material there that hopefully Sam Mendes can put into a solid movie production.
The other news of a Hollywood studio picking up the rights to a graphic novel is Universal studios. Villains this story I really like, it’s told from the perspective of the super hero villain. It follows a young man who discovers that his neighbor is a retired bad guy in hiding and decides that instead of turning him in he want to black mail him into teaching him how to be a super hero villain. Of course he will get a lot more lessons on being a villain then he was planning on.
Both projects have the potential to be great movies even series if they do them right. Just the excitement that is building around The Watchmen and all the sneak peak clips they have released goes to show you the potential for comic book movies now a days. I would not have thought 15 years ago when the comic book bubble popped that we would be at this point with Hollywood fueling the comeback of the comic book industry. I guess movie technology has finally caught up to the imaginations of comic book artists and I for one am thankful, waiting patiently for the release of The Watchmen!!!! 
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