Welcome back to The Rundown, our daily breakdown on comic news stories we missed from the previous day. Have a link to share? Email our team at rundown@multiversitycomics.com.
In case you missed it, “Flash” and “Gotham by Gaslight” writer Brian Augustyn passed away Tuesday at the age of 67, and Archie announced a new Editor-in-Chief and a crossover with Riverdale.
and Brad Simpson
– Writer Cullen Bunn will helm Titan’s newest “Bloodborne” series. Bunn joins regular artist Piotr Kowalski and colorist Brad Simpson, with the first arc focusing on a “cruel and unusual epidemic” sweeping Yharnam. Bunn takes over from Ales Kot, whose previous run on the property lasted four volumes. “Bloodborne” #1 hits shelves on May 7 as part of Free Comic Book Day.
– Peter David and Alan Robinson will reunite 1991’s New Fantastic Four in a new series, fittingly titled “New Fantastic Four.” The series picks up after Walt Simonson and Arthur Adams’s “Fantastic Four” #347, which saw Spider-Man, Wolverine, Ghost Rider, and the Hulk take over from Marvel’s First Family. While David is a name familiar to Marvel fans thanks to his “Incredible Hulk” and “X-Force” runs, this will be Alan Robinson’s debut at the publisher. “New Fantastic Four” #1 hits shelves on May 25.
– A new teaser reveals the voice cast for Amazon Prime Video’s upcoming miniseries The Boys Presents: Diabolical. The eight-episode anthology series will feature the vocals of Awkwafina, Kenan Thompson, Giancarlo Esposito, and Kevin Smith among others. Christian Slater narrates the teaser. Each episode will feature a unique animation style, as well as scripts from a variety of guest writers, including original comic co-creator Garth Ennis, and Awkwafina. All episodes will be available for streaming starting March 4.
– Omar Mora and Mauricio Alvarez’s “The Unearthians” will be represented by KDMG for any future live-action adaptations. The sci-if/vampire epic will be the latest addition to the company’s catalogue of original IPs looking to be adapted. KDMG has a working relationship with multiple networks and streaming services, which Mora is excited to begin pitching to. “I love our story a lot,” he says of the prospective new TV series. “It’s a new take in vampirism, where they come from, and what happens when they interact with extraterrestrial beings. I can’t wait to see it in action and share it with the world.”
– TOON Books, the leading publisher of easy-to-read graphic novels for young readers, has been acquired by by Astra Publishing House, making it the seventh imprint to join Astra for Young Readers. “TOON has established a reputation as the foremost publisher of comics for early readers,” Astra president and CFO Leying Jiang said of the acquisition. “And with its graphic novels for middle graders, it rounds out the offerings from ABFYR’s very distinguished children’s book imprints in a most organic way.”
– Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment’s Suicide Squad game has been delayed until 2023. Bloomberg states the delay was a result of development problems caused by the pandemic; it follows a number of other adaptions from the publisher, including new Harry Potter, Batman, and LEGO Star Wars titles, that were originally intended for release in 2021. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is the latest video game from Rocksteady Studios, whose last release was 2016’s Batman: Arkham VR.
– AMC has revealed the cast for their latest Walking Dead spin-off, Tales of the Walking Dead. Anthony Edwards, Parker Posey, Terry Crews, Poppy Liu, and Jillian Bell will be featured in the upcoming anthology series. Each episode will focus on either a new or established character within the TWD universe. The show is set to premiere this summer on AMC and AMC+.
– Roxane Gay will adapt her graphic novel “The Banks” as a TV series for New Regency and TKO Studios. The comic, written by Gay with art by Ming Doyle, follows a family of thieves avenging a lost loved one, and was originally meant to be adapted as a film at Macro Studios.
– Finally, Invisible City creator and Rio director Carlos Saldanha will direct Iemanjá – Ocean’s Goddess for Warner Bros. and the Brazil-based Ventre Studio. The film is planned as the first in a superhero franchise, and will draw heavily from Brazil’s Candomblé mythology. “Wonder Woman” and “Justice League” artist Ivan Reis has been tapped as an associate producer, and will oversee the creative visual identity of the film. “My mother was [a] Mãe de Santo and I grew up in a house linked to Candomblé,” Reis says of the project. “And I know that Iemanjá is already known and revered throughout the country, and using her mythology to influence the creation of a world of superheroes is something that I can barely wait to see come true.” Filming is scheduled to begin in 2023.
