Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns Getting An Animated Release

Ordinarily, straight-to-DVD releases get a bad rap. It's understandable, considering they're frequently terrible. But now and again, certain works end up in the DVD pile simply because there's not enough of an audience to warrant a wide release, no matter how solid the material itself might be. Animated comic book adaptations are perhaps the most frequent victim of this widespread lack of interest, but by now, all involved are used to the treatment and plan budgets accordingly. That was the case with Watchmen's Black Freighter a few years back, and it'll be the case with the upcoming animated Batman.

Almost a year ago, we found out Frank Miller's Batman origin story, Year One, was heading into production for a straight-to-DVD animated release. Now comes the word, according to Bleeding Cool, that it'll be followed in short order by The Dark Knight Returns. Not be confused with Christopher Nolan's upcoming Dark Knight Rises, it should ultimately remain close to the graphic novel it's based on, though that won't be officially confirmed until a director and a screenwriter are found for the project.

There are still no release dates for Year One or The Dark Knight Returns, but word is production has begun on the former and will soon commence on the later. Stay tuned for more details as they become available.

Mack Rawden
Editor In Chief

Mack Rawden is the Editor-In-Chief of CinemaBlend. He first started working at the publication as a writer back in 2007 and has held various jobs at the site in the time since including Managing Editor, Pop Culture Editor and Staff Writer. He now splits his time between working on CinemaBlend’s user experience, helping to plan the site’s editorial direction and writing passionate articles about niche entertainment topics he’s into. He graduated from Indiana University with a degree in English (go Hoosiers!) and has been interviewed and quoted in a variety of publications including Digiday. Enthusiastic about Clue, case-of-the-week mysteries, a great wrestling promo and cookies at Disney World. Less enthusiastic about the pricing structure of cable, loud noises and Tuesdays.