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, novelist Darin Strauss will make his comics debut with “Olivia Twist,” the newest miniseries from Berger Books. We also spoke to Hope Larson about her latest graphic novel, “All Summer Long.”
– We’re leading off with a big ol’ SPOILER for The Walking Dead, so SKIP AHEAD if you want to avoid it. Contract negotiations are underway for the upcoming season, and some outlets are reporting that lead actor Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes himself) will exit the show by the end of it. Norman Reedus, who plays Daryl, will reportedly become the main lead under a new $20 million contract. The show has gone through some drastic changes recently with Chandler Riggs (Carl Grimes) exiting last season, and Lauren Cohan (Maggie Rhee) only appearing in 6 episodes of this upcoming ninth season.
– The Spawn reboot (and Todd McFarlane’s directorial debut) has found its Al Simmons in Jamie Foxx. The actor was the first choice for the role according to McFarlane, “…when I was writing this script, you sort of plug people in, and he was my visual guy and I never let go of him.” The role was previously played by Michael Jai White in the 1997 film. McFarlane had been attempting to relaunch the live-action franchise for years, before deciding to helm his own low-budget version at Blumhouse Productions (Get Out). No release date has been announced yet.
– Panel Syndicate has announced their latest pay-what-you-want digital series, “Glacier City.” “Copperhead” writer Jay Faerber, artist Michael Montenat, colorist Simon Gough, and letterer Thomas Mauer have created a crime story that centers around the only cop in a secluded Alaskan town. Unlike other series from the site, this initial chapter is a “pilot” issue, with more issues dependent on how the pilot does. It’s available now.
– The National Cartoonist Society announced their annual divisional awards over the weekend, including awards to “Monstress” Vol. 2 in Comic Books, “My Favorite Thing is Monsters” in Graphic Novels, and John Allison’s “Bad Machinery” in Online Comics — Long Form. Many other awards covering the gamut of art and animation were also given out.
– Speaking of awards, the nominations for the 2018 Joe Shuster Awards, “Canada’s national award that honours and raises the awareness of Canadians that create, self-publish and sell comic books, digital comics and graphic novels,” have been announced. The awards will be given out at the 2018 Montreal Comic Con, taking place July 6-8 at the Palais des congrès in Montreal.
– Netflix and IDW are in final negotiations to pick up the Locke & Key series, two months after Hulu passed on Andy Muschietti’s pilot for the show. Netflix will reportedly redevelop the show, shooting a new first episode and recasting two of the Locke child actors. Muschietti, who is busy directing IT: Chapter Two, will remain on the project as executive producer.
– After sixth months in jail on trumped up charges, and three months of waiting for his passport to be approved, cartoonist Ramón Esono Ebalé is finally out of Equatorial Guinea. He is currently staying with friends in Madrid. Ebalé was arrested on counterfeiting charges in September of last year, after releasing cartoons critical of the government.
– StarWars.com revealed there will be an all-ages graphic novel adaptation of Solo: A Star Wars Story in November, written by Alessandro Ferrari with art by Roberto Santillo. Ferrari also wrote the all-ages graphic novel adaptations of the previous three films, which were published by IDW.
– It looks like James Asmus is now the writer of the upcoming “Transformers: Bumblebee — Win If You Dare” OGN from IDW. The book was previously listed on Amazon as being written by Chris Sims and Chad Bowers. Marcelo Ferreira remains the solicited artist. The OGN will be released on September 18.
– Bandai Namco and Ganboarion released the first gameplay trailer for One Piece: World Seeker, the first open-world video game based on the popular manga. The game is a brand new story in the “One Piece” world from the character Luffy’s point of view. No release date has been announced yet, but more details can be expected at the next E3.
– Avengers: Infinity War has passed the $1.9 billion mark for worldwide box office in its first month of release. Its current domestic total of $626.4 million is good enough to make it the sixth-biggest grosser of all time (passing Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Avengers).
