Comics
HBO Makes Major “Watchmen” Casting Announcement
This morning we talked a little bit about Damon Lindelof‘s plans for his adaptation of the popular “Watchman” series. Now, HBO has revealed several cast members, which include “The Leftovers” alum Regina King (pictured below), as well as Don Johnson (“Miami Vice”, The Vault, The Book Club), Tim Blake Nelson (Monster), Louis Gossett Jr. (Roots), Adelaide Clemens (“Rectify”) and Andrew Howard (“Bad”, “Outpost”).
Written by Lindelof based on Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ iconic limited comic series, “Watchmen” is considered a dark satirical and dystopian take on the superhero genre.
Set in an alternate history where “superheroes” are treated as outlaws, Watchmen embraces the nostalgia of the original groundbreaking graphic novel while attempting to break new ground of its own.
Details of the cast’s roles are unfortunately being kept under wraps, though Deadline shares some ideas. King is believed to be playing Angela Abraham, while Howard is said to be playing Red Scare.
Lindelof also executive produces with Nicole Kassell, who directs the pilot, and Tom Spezialy.
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.
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