We live in an era defined by cinematic universes, but not every comic book fan falls neatly into the Marvel or DC camp. Some people want something a little more off-kilter, and that's exactly what the Valiant line of comics provides. For those of you hoping to see a film franchise based on the Valiant universe, you're in luck. After a series of delays and alterations to its slate, the Valiant cinematic universe will soon press forward.
A report from The Wrap indicates that Sony will finally move forward with its brand new cinematic universe based on Valiant Comics. According to the report, the studio will commence production on a cohesive cinematic universe beginning with Harbinger, which is expected to hit theaters in late 2017 or early 2018. After Harbinger, the studio will follow up with the long-awaited Bloodshot movie, which is expected to land a year after the initial Harbinger film.
However, while we've long expected the Valiant Comics to make their way to the silver screen, this current release schedule represents a change from Sony's original plan. As we originally reported, Sony had initially intended to bring Bloodshot to the silver screen first, but now it appears that the studio wants to start with Harbinger and move to Bloodshot next. As part of the five-film plan, these franchises will eventually culminate in a Harbinger Wars team-up film, in a fashion not dissimilar to Marvel's Phase 1 slate.
For those of you who don't know much about the Valiant Universe, allow us to give you a little backstory. Harbinger follows a young teenage boy by the name of Peter Stanchek who has been gifted (or cursed, depending on your point of view) with telekinetic abilities. By contrast, the Bloodshot comic line centers on a soldier saved from the brink of death by nanotechnology, who uses the newfound abilities endowed by his cutting edge modifications to hunt down "Harbingers" like Peter. It's a perfect blend of sci-fi and fantasy that's really unlike anything currently available from other major franchises.
Not much information has come forward beyond those two initial films, but there's quite a bit of source material for Sony to mine in the next few years. The Valiant Universe is one of the deepest, most interwoven fictional universes out there, and it wouldn't be surprising to see franchises made out of comic book lines like Geomancer, Psi Lords, or even Turok: Dinosaur Hunter. There are literally dozens of Valiant comics to choose from to fill out the remaining three films on the Sony slate, all of which are strong choices.
CinemaBlend will keep you up to date with any and all relevant details related to the upcoming Valiant cinematic universe as more information becomes available to us. If Sony adheres to this new production schedule, then we can likely expect the Harbinger movie to hit theaters sometime within the next two years. Stay tuned for more details!
