Comics

Jared Leto Could Star as ‘Bloodshot’!

Published

7 years ago

July 26, 2017

I don’t understand why people hate Jared Leto so much. The dude is a phenomenal actor who gave it all up to pursue a music career with his brother. After struggling to make a living as a top artist, Leno returned to acting in order to help finance his love of music. HE WON AN OSCAR. Fight Club, Requiem for a Dream, Panic Room, AMERICAN PSYCHO…and he was a ridiculously good Joker in Suicide Squad. What more could you ask for? For me, I’m stoked that he’s starring in Blade Runner 2049, and am elated that we may see him as the star of Bloodshot, which will be directed by Dave Wilson who is partnered with Deadpool‘s Tim Miller’s at Blur Studios.

This is the second film from a five-picture deal that was the result of a deal between Beverly Hills-based DMG and Valiant, reports Deadline. Sony acquired the Bloodshot series from Valiant back in 2012. The first in the series was Harbinger. It could be the beginning of a powerful franchise for both Sony and Leto.

Leto will see if a deal can be worked out to star as Bloodshot’s protagonist is Angelo Mortalli, a ruthless killer for the mob who is set up by the family and framed for a murder. He instead goes into Witness Protection but is betrayed by an FBI agent guarding him, kidnapped and forcibly subjected to an experimental program in which his body is injected with microscopic computers called nanites. They erase his brain and rebuild it and his body to be a weapon with superhuman strength and healing powers. The character was created by Kevin Van Hook, Don Perlin, and Bob Layton in 1992.

Sequels are planned for both Harbinger and Bloodshot before the title characters meet in Harbinger Wars, which is based on Valiant’s 2013 comic book crossover.

Comics

‘The Toxic Avenger’ Returns with Cover Artwork for First Issue of New Comic Book Series [Exclusive]

Published

1 month ago

May 13, 2024

John Squires

With a remake on the way and a new 4K restoration of the original classic now streaming, it’s a good time to be a fan of Troma’s The Toxic Avenger. Additionally, Matt Bors — the founder of The Nib and a political cartoonist who has twice been named a Pulitzer Prize finalist —and acclaimed artist Fred Harper (Snelson) are collaborating on an all-new 5-issue comic book series starring the satirical superhero of the Troma Films cult classic films!

TOXIC AVENGER #1 will land in stores on October 9, 2024.

While you wait, you can exclusively check out the issue #1 cover art from Fred Harper below, along with a set of emojis designed by Harper for the extremely online teens of Tromaville.

“The Toxic Avenger delivers what Troma fans want,” said AHOY Comics Editor-in-Chief Tom Peyer. “The series has violent action, gross mutations, bursting pustules, eye-popping visuals, and trenchant humor.”

“If there was ever a superhuman hero for these toxic, miserable times, Toxie is the one!” said Lloyd Kaufman. “Only AHOY Comics and Bors & Harper could pull this off…er…mop this up! Toxie and the Troma Team can’t wait ‘til you read -no, experience – the art and stories that the Toxic Avenger Comic Book will explode in your brain, your soul, and your heart. Above all, remember – Toxie loves you and so do I.”

“This series will combine elements of the original films with the Toxic Crusaders cartoon and characters in familiar ways, updated to tell a story of environmental devastation, corporate control, and social media mutation,” said Bors. “The Toxic Avenger is first and foremost an environmental satire, one about a small town and its unremarkable people trapped and transformed by circumstances they don’t control. The story Fred Harper and I are telling is about people frustrated by authorities telling them not to worry about their life, that things are fine, even as their dog mutates in front of their eyes. And at its core it is about a powerless boy, Melvin, who finds out he can be incredibly strong, hideously mutated, well-admired, and incredibly heroic… but still ultimately powerless over human behavior.”

In The Toxic Avenger, teenager Melvin Junko helps run his parent’s junkyard in Tromaville, a small town in New Jersey where nothing much ever happens — until an ill-timed train derailment of toxic waste transforms Melvin into a hideously deformed creature of superhuman size and strength: the Toxic Avenger!

Under a media blackout imposed by Biohazard Solutions (BS) and their PR-spewing Chairwoman Lindsay Flick, Melvin emerges as a hero fighting against BS and the mutated threats that keep popping up around Tromaville.

Eventually Melvin uncovers a vast conspiracy more far-reaching than he could have ever imagined — but he knows if everyone is simply made aware of the crisis, they’ll act to stop it. Right?