J. Michael Straczynski to adapt Valiant’s Shadowman for the big screen

Valiant Entertainment is teaming up with producer Sean Daniels (THE MUMMY) and screenwriter J. Michael Straczynski to bring their comic property SHADOWMAN to the big screen.  The character has been around for a good while, being one of the key players in the Valiant universe back in it’s heyday of the ’90’s, and is about to debut in a new series with the recently relaunched company.  The gothic superhero tale revolves around a jazz musician in New Orleans who receives special demon-fighting powers after barely surviving an encounter with one.

Here’s the synopsis:

The forces of darkness are determined to claim New Orleans as their own, and Jack Boniface must accept the legacy he was born to uphold, in order to stop them. As Shadowman, Jack is about to become the only thing that stands between his city and an army of unspeakable monstrosities from beyond the night. He must pay a high price and master his new abilities before Master Darque brings down the wall between reality and the eldritch darkness of the Deadside.

Straczynski is no stranger to comic-to-film adaptations, having already worked on THOR, as well as a number of genre pics like NINJA ASSASSIN and UNDERWORLD: AWAKENING.  “Shadowman is a character who lives in a unique world that mixes the modern world with that which is most ancient within us,” says Straczynski. “The New Orleans vibe and history, and the struggle to find a balance with the personality within him, is a perfect dramatic vehicle. We’ve already finished the outline and there’s a lot of action, much of it unique to what Shadowman can do…but at the core of it, there’s a strong character, world and mythology that can be explored across multiple subsequent films. This is gonna be fun.”

I’m pretty excited that Valiant is getting its due.  I read nearly all their comics back in the day and am reading all the newly relaunched titles, which are some of the best-produced books on the market.  It feels like they’re on the right track and could very well be poised to stake a claim in the comic-to-film market.

“Shadowman is the first in a large slate of film projects that we are developing and funding internally at Valiant. Between Sean’s evidenced track record and Joe’s creative genius, we are very enthused about building a potential franchise here,” says Valiant CEO Jason Kothari.

No word on a planned release as this is in development, but it’s to note that Sony is also developing the Valiant property BLOODSHOT, which was penned by Jeff Wadlow, director of KICK ASS 2: BALLS TO THE WALL.  More as both of these develop.