Comics
FX Giving “Y: The Last Man” New Life!
Much like “Locke and Key”, another comic adaptation that’s been in development hell is the excellent “Y: The Last Man”, a post-apocalyptic pandemic series that takes place in a world in which all men — except for one — are dead.
New hope comes in new via Variety, who reports that FX has ordered a pilot based on the comic series! The team behind it is impressive.
Michael Green (“American Gods,” “Blade Runner 2049,” “Logan”) and Aida Mashaka Croal (“Luke Cage,” “Turn”) are set to serve as co-showrunners on the project, and will executive produce alongside Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson of Color Force (“American Crime Story,” “Pose,” “The Hunger Games”) and Brian K. Vaughan. Melina Matsoukas (“Insecure,” “Master of None,” “Beyonce: Formation”) will direct the pilot and also serve as an executive producer.
Beginning in 2002, the comic book series — by Vaughn and Pia Guerra and published by DC Comics — ran for 60 issues. It received three Eisner Awards, the top honor in the comic-book industry, as well as the first Hugo Award for best graphic story. It explores gender, race, class, and survival.
“Y: The Last Man” has a long development history, with the rights first being acquired by New Line for a potential feature film more than a decade ago. As recently as 2013, Dan Trachtenberg had been tapped to direct a film adaptation that never came to fruition. After New Line’s rights lapsed, FX began work on a series adaptation that has been in development for more than two years.
The supernatural world of Korean folk horror movie Exhuma grows larger with the arrival of prequel spinoff webtoon Maengjong this weekend, Variety reports today.
Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.
The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.
The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”
Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.
“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”
“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”
Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”
The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.
You must be logged in to post a comment.