Todd McFarlane’s plans for a Spawn reboot have hit just about every hurdle imaginable since the project was announced more than five years ago. But earlier this week, he began teasing that a major update concerning the film would be shared in the coming days. Now, the news has finally been revealed. The Hollywood Reporter confirms that McFarlane is adding some fresh talent to the reboot’s screenwriting team, with Scott Silver, Malcolm Spellman, and Matt Mixon taking a new pass at the script.
Neither Silver nor Spellman are strangers to the comic book realm. In 2019, Silver co-wrote the script for WB’s Joker movie starring Joaquin Phoenix, which earned him and director Todd Phillips an Oscar nod for Best Adapted Screenplay. Silver and Phillips also penned the film’s upcoming sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux, which arrives in 2024. Meanwhile, Spellman previously served as the head writer for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney+. After the series ended its six-episode run last year, he signed on to write Captain America: New World Order alongside fellow TFATWS scribe Dalan Musson. That film will also hit theaters in 2024 as part of Phase 5 of the MCU.
“I grew up in Berkeley, which is a comic book city,” said Spellman in a new statement. “Todd McFarlane’s Spawn character was always one of my favorites — a Black superhero that was no bulls**t, he was cool and dealt with modern issues. Myself, Matt Mixon, and Scott Silver are pledged to honoring what Todd started and what Spawn is at its core, delivering something that’s relevant and edgy and unlike any other superhero movie out there.”
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However, Mixon has fewer credits to his name than either of his new collaborators. His first feature, a documentary titled Yesterday Was Everything, was released in 2017. Since then, he has written and directed two short films. Mixon also recently co-directed another doc, The Milwaukee Project, which will reportedly bow sometime this year.
McFarlane began plotting Spawn’s return to the big screen in 2017 with Blumhouse coming aboard as a producer. Originally, McFarlane intended to write and direct the movie himself. But it seems like navigating the politics of the film industry proved to be more of a challenging task than he bargained for. This latest development is actually the first bit of Spawn news we’ve heard since last summer, when Brian Tucker signed on to rewrite the script. But now McFarlane says the bigger names could lead to an expanded budget. He might also let someone else fill the director’s chair this time.
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“If we’ve got an A-list actor, A-list producers, A-list writers, then do you want to shoot for A-list directors, A-list cinematographers?” said McFarlane. “The answer is, ‘of course.’ Let’s keep the momentum going.”
Despite the long road to production, Jamie Foxx remains attached to play Al Simmons/Spawn in the film. But Jeremy Renner, who signed on to play Twitch Williams in 2018, is less of a sure thing these days. Apparently, it all boils down to the quality of the new draft. The film is still on the lookout for a studio partner as well.
Are you excited to see what these new writers will bring to the Spawn reboot? Let us know in the comment section below!
Recommended Reading: Spawn: Origins Volume 1
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