Jeff Katz knows that it’s the geek who shall inherit the earth.
After spending time in the development and production trenches at Fox and New Line, nudging along genre projects like FREDDY vs. JASON, SNAKES ON A PLANE, SHOOT ‘EM UP and X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE, he’s busting out with his own label called American Original.
Katz has teamed with comic house Top Cow (“The Darkness”, “Wanted”, “Witchblade”) and calls the new endeavor a “nerd machine.” American Original will be a two-headed monster — its own comic division will publish titles for the production arm to develop into films, TV shows or games. And since creating potential properties is essentially helping keep non-Marvel/DC comic publishers alive (and Hollywood stocked with properties to adapt), that would seem a prudent business plan.
With luck, having a fellow geek shepherding the material will keep it from being too diluted by the typical Hollywood “moviemaking by committee” process. Katz (himself an occasional comic writer) will share ownership of the properties with the creators, and believes that “the future of entertainment is a future built on niches. [The fanboy] audience is expanding and is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the new entertainment model.” And who would know better than one of us?
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