It's no secret that superhero movies are everywhere. With three shared universes currently competing for box office dominance, you can't turn a corner without a new superheroic blockbuster hitting theaters. As such, critics and moviegoers alike are in constant fear of superhero fatigue, where the genre will become so saturated and predictable that it's no longer entertaining. Plenty of superhero flicks have tried to break the mold in response, especially 20th Century Fox's Deadpool franchise and the upcoming New Mutants movie. One comic book franchise that operates separately from the rest is Hellboy, which is rebooting next year starring Stranger Things' David Harbour. But Hellboy creator and screenwriter Mike Mignola thinks that the upcoming reboot will be quite different from any comic book movie, saying:
I believe the new movie will feel even less like a regular superhero thing. The idea with this one was to make it play much less like a superhero film, to downplay the superhero elements even more than del Toro did. This one is much more folklore/mythology/horror, and not 'big team rushing into to do battle with whatever kind of stuff.'
While still featuring a superpowered protagonist and evil villain, Hellboy sounds like its going to be quite a departure from the comic book movies we've seen over the past few years. And since there are already so many comic properties currently in existence, this is probably for the best.
Mike Mignola's comments to io9 point out what makes Hellboy such a fresh and exciting concept in the first place. The big red guy factors more into the supernatural and mythological world, and therefore occupies very different space than the likes of Superman or Spider-Man. Hellboy is part demon, and often faces off against the likes of magic users and mythological creatures. Therefore, its movies aren't going for realism or grit the way the DCEU or MCU might.
The use of magic as a concept is one that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has only begun to explore. Doctor Strange opened up the door for this type of macguffin, but its largely unused in any of the major shared universes. As such, there is certainly room for Hellboy to arrive and bring something new and exciting to the genre.
Stepping away from the original Guillermo del Toro films, the new Hellboy movie will reintroduce the character to the mainstream. Milla Jovovich will battle the hero as the Blood Queen, and the cast is also rounded out by Daniel Dae Kim (after some controversy), Ian McShane, and Sasha Lane. Hellboy's story and how much of his origin will be reveled is a mystery, as is everything except that he's attempting to save mankind from The Blood Queen.
Hellboy will arrive in theaters on January 11, 2019. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
