Ever since they roared onto the scene with inspiring patriotic zeal, tight loincloths and abs that ripple like a field of Athenian barley, the Spartans of 300 have taken hold in the popular imagination. The original movie catapulted both director Zack Snyder and star Gerard Butler into a higher league when it grossed a surprising $456 million worldwide. It also made “comic book movie” an even more popular term among Hollywood studios—300 showed that a film didn’t have to be based on Batman to make a mint—and made Frank Miller a movie icon.

Ever since, there’s been talk of a sequel, with creator Miller on board, and Snyder saying “Wow that would be cool.” But a sequel has already seemed very unlikely because—spoilers!—not too much of the original cast survived to make one. The word “prequel” was frequently invoked—and Miller found that ide to his liking, writing and drawing a comics prequel called XERXES which is due some day from Dark Horse. The exact subject matter remains vague, although Miller has promised that the story will cover a longer span of time and include naval battles, gods, and, hopefully, lots more abs.

But against all odds, a sequel has emerged, which, last we heard, was called 300: BATTLE OF ARTEMISIA because XERXES sounds too darned weird. (Every time we hear the title, all we can think of is the controversial life of painter Artemisia Gentileschi.) And it’s inching a teeny bit closer to reality with the very first casting whisper: Sullivan Stapleton is reported to be in talks to star. Noam Murro is set to direct from a script by Kurt Johnstad and Snyder.

Stapleton is currently seen in the TV show Strike Back, and he hails from Australia which is good, because men from Australia are thought to be manly, like Spartans.

But will he be able to provide the razor-sharp ridged abdominals that every 300 movie requires?

Verdict: Potential but he’ll need a lot of time in the gym to get in Spartan shape!

In just two minutes, this summer’s Amazing Spider-Man has gone from an afterthought to the Batman/Avengers slugfest to a “Hey that looks great!’ Even if it is one of those “I just saw the whole movie!” trailers, it certainly conveys all the elements of a successful superhero movie: a wise-cracking hero, a winsome love interest, a villain with a transatlantic accent, and an authority figure determined to take our hero down—in this case Denis Leary as Gwen Stacy’s policeman dad, George.

It’s nice to see that Peter Parker has recovered from that whole Facebook thing—Andrew Garfield’s Spidey is much more the loosy-goosy webslinger of the ’80s on—with a little bit of torment thrown in, of course.

Our only quibble—the word “begins” at the end. Spider-Man, the movie franchise, is already in full throttle. While many have questioned the need for a reboot this soon, the trailer makes it look like an entertaining film, even if it isn’t quite necessary from anything but a studio viewpoint.

To the donation button, Batgirl: WONDER WOMEN! The Untold Story of American Superheroines is a documentary by Kristy Guevara-Flanagan and Kelcey Edwards that examines the evolution of Wonder Woman and other kick-ass heroines, with a look at “how popular representations of powerful women often reflect society’s anxieties about women’s liberation.”

The film was already funded on Kickstarter but it’s been selected for the SXSW Film Festival, (the only comics-themed movie to make the cut) and it needs a little bit more polishing in post to get to the finish line.

The description sounds fascinating; among those interviewed: Gloria Steinem. Shelby Knox, Lynda Carter, Lindsay Wagner, and punk rock star Kathleen Hanna. The evolving perception of what’s allowable in female heroism and the history of Wonder Woman alone should make for a very thoughtful film. With the rise of geek girl fandom, it couldn’t be more timely.

And here’s the complete getting the gang together AVENGERS trailer.

Straight from the Super Bowl, the extended version of the John Carter spot.

By Todd Allen

Last night, I had occasion to take in a preview of Daniel Radcliffe’s first adult film vehicle (no, I’m not counting “My Boy Jack” towards that).  ”The Lady in Black” is adapted (somewhat creatively, I gather) from the 1983 Susan Hill novel by director James Watkins and screenwriter Jane Goodman (who Beat readers will likely remember from Kick Ass, X-Men: First Class and Stardust).  No more wizards and spells for Radcliffe as he finds himself in over his head dealing with a vengeful spirit.

While this is a horror movie, at it’s heart, The Woman in Black is a date movie.  This is a carefully constructed and highly manipulative film.  You have all sorts of female demographic appeals strewn about the film: poor, sad widowed Daniel Radcliffe — struggling to look after his son.  Lots of children in danger.  A Gothic old haunted house that’s cut off every day when the road to it floods.  Lifetime Movie Network, take me away!

Except, for all that demographic targeting, this is actually a really scary movie.  Watkins uses every manipulative trick in the book to make you jump.  Music setting the creepy mood?  Check.  Sudden noise out of nowhere?  Double check.  Cut to something suddenly appearing?  Triple check.  Watkins is incredibly effective playing the usual suspense games.  You _are_ going to jump several times during this movie.  You’ll know that something’s about to happen.  You (about half the time) have an approximate idea what’s going to happen.  And you still jump.  That there is skill.

The plot, in very broad strokes is that lawyer Radcliffe, still not handling the loss of his wife very well and half an inch from losing his job, is sent out to settle the affairs of a country estate whose owner has recently died.  Nobody in the town wants him there.  The local solicitor tries to send him home.  And there’s something in that isolated old estate.  Something malevolent that doesn’t like children.

In terms of cast, this is the Daniel Radcliffe show.  There is no co-star.  Ciarán Hinds probably has the most screen time, aside from Radcliffe and does well enough as a skeptic whose fallen victim to the occult happening and doesn’t really want to admit it.  No, this is about Radcliffe slowly realizing that there’s a reason all the locals are afraid of that old estate and anyone who goes there.  Radcliffe pulls it off well enough.

I have mixed feeling about this film.  Yes, I jumped a few times, but I resented that it felt like I was being led around by my nose while jumping.  It felt a little on the cheesy side at times.  I’m not the natural market for children in danger movies and some of that emotional manipulation didn’t do it for me.  I also did not at all care for the ending, half of which you see coming and half of which… Lifetime Movie Network.  I’m torn between giving it a rental or a theater nod for horror lovers.

On the other hand, if you need a date movie — if you need a movie that’s creepy as all get out, will make your date jump and will make your date cling to you — yeah, this is a REALLY good movie to take your date to for that.

AMC, History Channel, Spike—every TV network that ever wanted to do a “Comic Book Idol” TV show—here is the comic book life captured in its most primal and dramatic: people arguing about cover design in front of overstuffed bookcases and furnishings mingled from antiques and plastic storage boxes from Target. Yes, this is the life.

Or more accurately a documentary about the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, the already near-legendary academy where scribblers enter and come out comickers two years later. The film is directed by documentarians Josh Melrod and Tara Wray, who previously made Manhattan, Kansas, and was funded on Kickstarter.

The clip features an array of comics superstars including Chris Ware, Lynda Barry, Art Spiegelman, Françoise Mouly, Scott McCloud, Jason Lutes, and James Sturm but we’re putting money on our own Jen Vaughn as the breakout star. We’re also intrigued by the big fellow in the suspenders who appears in all the CCS videos—he is legend.

Word on the street is that the documentary will debut at SXSW—and then find a place in our hearts for all time.

More info at the website and Facebook.

¶ Oh yeah, Tyrion, Daenerys, Jon Snow—all your favorites who are still alive are coming back April 1.

¶ THE DARK KNIGHT RISES’sTom Hardy admits that wearing the Bane mask is not fun, but he’s okay with that:

Speaking at the premiere of his latest film, This Means War, Tom said: “Bane’s mask is tight, actually. I got used to it, but you get used to anything really, in time.”

…”I didn’t get into a dark place at all. A lot of dark characters are easy to have distance from, it’s something I feel comfortable with, I suppose.”

Comfortable enough to speak clearly? We’ll see.

¶ Aw. Make-up master/actor Tom Savini is campaigning to play arch-villain The Governor of The Walking Dead, partly because he looks just like the character.

John Hawkes (below)was pretty awesome in WINTER’S BONE; he would also be a good Governor.

¶ Albert Torres has been tapped to write the BEN 10 movie. Torres previously wrote HENRY POOLE IS HERE, about a guy who goes to a house to die, so it’s all….connected.

¶ The movie version of Alex Robinson’sTOO COOL TO BE FORGOTTEN has writers: Rocky Russo and Jeremy Sosenko (MOVIE 43). The movie is at Red Crown Prods. and Likely Story—the latter you will recall, is actually a partner of publisher Top Shelf, with a first-look deal—this is the first fruit of that alliance. The story concerns a man who transports back to his 15-year-old self.

A sequel to the well-received X-MEN: FIRST CLASS has been greenlit with Matthew Vaughn once again to direct, Deadline reports. Simon Kinberg has written a script and Bryan Singer will produce. Everyone expects Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy to reprise their roles as Magneto and Professor X, but no one has officially been signed yet. And given Fassbender’s recent roles, maybe we’ll get to see little Magneto, too.

Still, Vaughn’s coming on board is good news. Although flawed—it was more a collection of character story arcs than an overall driving narrative—and anachronistic—the miniskirt wasn’t invented until 1964, no matter how cute Jennifer Lawrence looked in one—X-MEN FIRST CLASS was easily the brainiest superhero movie of recent vintage, and Vaughn has generally elicited some of the best acting from his young talented casts in both XMFC and KICK-ASS. So more Matthew Vaughn—yay!

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Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

George Santayana, The Life of Reason, Volume I: Reason in Common Sense

Over thirty-five years ago, a major comics company was set to release a Hollywood blockbuster based on one of their most popular characters.  The original creators had been forgotten by the public, forced into near poverty while that company made millions of dollars in profits.  It took a publicity campaign by comics professionals to persuade that publisher to acknowledge their proper credit, and to pay a stipend to those creators.

Today, history repeats itself once more.  This time, the company is Marvel Comics.  The creator: Gary Friedrich, who has filed a copyright lawsuit against Marvel to reclaim his creation Ghost Rider.  Daniel Best reports on the current state of the suit, which was recently decided in Marvel’s favor.

What makes it unsettling is this:

As per the courts instructions Friedrich has to account for any and all money that he has received, “…relating to the gross and net amount derived from Plaintiffs’ sale of goods bearing the Ghost Rider image, likeness, or Marvel trademark.” This means that Friedrich has to account for every cent each and every time he sold a print at a convention or any other item to anyone, that has the Ghost Rider image or name on it, and he has to account to all of the defendants in the case, and there’s quite a few of those, including, but not limited to, Marvel Defendants, Movie Defendants, Hasbro, Inc. and Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. If the defendants don’t like, or don’t agree with, the numbers that Friedrich supplies then they can, and probably will, ask for a deposition whereby they can question him, under oath. It was no secret that Friedrich commissioned artists such as Herb Trimpe, Arthur Suydam and others to draw Ghost Rider images which were then sold as prints over the years. If you bought one thinking you were helping Gary, well, that cash will most likely end up in Marvels pockets. This amount will be factored into any damages that the defendants can claim from Friedrich, all of which will be bundled up neatly into a final judgement so the case can then proceed to the appeal stage.

What makes this worse: Gary Friedrich is currently unemployed from his corporate courier job (Joe Shuster was a deliveryman with failing eyesight, Jerry Siegel a file clerk when they could no longer make a living making comics).    Friedrich also has health issues, which make it difficult for him to travel to attend any settlement conferences.  In the attorney’s letter to the judge asking for a teleconference (denied by the judge), the law firm states that they are already owed $100,000 in legal fees for this case.

This lawsuit was first filed when the original Ghost Rider movie was released in 2007.  That movie grossed $228,738,393 worldwide. With licensing of ancillary products, Marvel made quite a bit of money.  On February 17, 2012, the sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance will be released.

Marvel could do the right thing and settle the case, which they won, by offering an equitable settlement, an annual stipend, perhaps even some sort of consulting role.  Would they?  It’s unlikely.  (For every Dave Cockrum, there’s a Marv Wolfman.)  Could a media campaign geared towards embarrassing Marvel, Sony, and a certain celebrity comics fan starring in the movie help convince Marvel to Do What Is Right? I don’t know… but it would be fun to find out!

To every comics creator who has Worked For Hire, and has sat behind a table in Artists Alley: you may one day be forced into an accounting not unlike the metaphorical Final Judgment, although much more painful.  Every fan sketch you draw, every print you sell, of a copyrighted and trademarked corporate character could and probably will be used to numerate damages awarded to that company.

The first result under Google image search for CON SKETCH

Yes, that’s the sleeping tiger in the room when comics creators rant and rave over swipe artists and plagiarists:  EVERYONE who draws a character they do not own is engaged in some sort of illegality.  Most companies allow this to happen, partly because actual licensing is problematic, partly because it would be bad publicity to enforce, partly because it encourages creators to show up at cons and participate in corporate-sponsored publicity (panels, booth signings, media interviews).  That “paper tiger” you think is harmless… well, paper can be quite nasty, as the courts prove every day.  Don’t think it could happen to you?  What if a giant corporation wanted to punish an artist?  A simple copyright/trademark infringement suit is all it takes.  Grab a few sketches sold on eBay, or pay a kid to purchase a sketch at a con (just like those underage buyers of cigarettes and beer) with a “father” making a video with his smartphone , and the case is quite simple.  No need to negotiate a settlement… you ruin the creator with court fees, an audit not unlike one from the IRS, and awarded damages.  AND they cannot ever draw those characters ever again.  If the company is really devious, they issue the artist’s work as legitimate merchandise, then cause more heartache when a fan asks the artist to sign the poster/print/book.

Then the company “encourages” other artists to join the official “bullpen” at conventions, an “Artists Alley” which is part of that company’s booth.  The artist gets a free table, airfare, hotel, and money from sketches; the company gets an artist who draws every hour of the con, which brings people to the booth, plus they sell con-exclusive blank-cover variants for a premium which the artist then sketches on!  (Or they sell trades!)  Convention organizers probably make more from selling corporate space than from Artists Alley tables, so they wouldn’t care.  They would probably encourage this, as the publisher would then supplement the guest list which the convention could then publicize.

Sound crazy?  Boom! Studios does this quite frequently.  Amy Mebberson sketched hundreds of Muppet covers at conventions when she was a Muppets comics artist.  Boom’s Disney comics artists did the same thing.  If I remember correctly, the special comic cost $5, the sketch $10.  It was beneficial to both artist and publisher, as the artist had greater visibility at the publisher’s booth, while the publisher was able to sell more comics and trade collections.  (Not unlike an author signing at a bookstore, except that the artist sits behind the table for hours each day.)

Creators, keep a detailed paper trail.  Keep a journal, especially when creating new characters.  At conventions, have an assistant note what is commissioned and for what amount (and report it as income… you don’t want an IRS audit as a result of not reporting income discovered from the court ruling!)  Copyright is also important, and quite simple and inexpensive to file.  Know not only what you need to know, but also what could happen.

Because history repeats itself, forcing us to do it over and over until we get it right.

[Hat tip to Stephen Bissette's Facebook page.]

Okay so that Allie McAmazon version of Wonder Woman didn’t work out as a TV pilot. Despite being re-elevated to Trinity Status as one of DC’s big three, Wonder Woman is still languishing in the development purgatory that so many DC characters seem to swim around in. But how’s this for an electrifying concept for Diana: a film directed by DRIVE’s kinetic stylist Nicholas Winding Refn and starring-MMA fighter-turned-actor Gina Carano.

Wow, now didn’t that make you jump up and shout “2012!” Refn’s movie was a great character piece, a twisted noir view of LA, a hipster retro fest, AND an edge of your seat action film. All traits that could make an amazing comic book adaptation.

Admittedly, this is just a pipe dream concocted by Page 6. Now it is TRUE that Refn once said his dream project was Wonder Woman, but the minute he said that every sheet had him making the movie, forcing him to say that “rumors has spiraled out of control.” Aw. Spiraling rumor sad face.

Christina Hendricks, who had a brief but electrifying role in DRIVE, was of course tapped as Wonder Woman before everything got shot down.

Carano is known for dishing out punishment in the MMA but just starred in Steven Soderbergh’s HAYWIRE, to good notices, and even claims that we have a new action star:

Soderbergh, who has a long history of working well with non-actors in his films, took the fighter he saw on screen, and along with screenwriter Lem Dobbs (who also penned Soderbergh’s Kafka and The Limey), created a celluloid persona that reflected what he saw in her already: a tough, self-assured and prodigiously talented physical performer. He just made her a mercenary doing black-ops work for the government rather than a cage fighter.

Wonder Woman played by an athlete and not a model? How great would that be?

She can even do her own demure version of the brokeback pose.

Anyway this is all gossip column rumor, so just file it away in your secret screening room of the imagination.

[In a world where every comics-to-movie project gets endlessly covered, SAVE THE DATE has pretty much flown under the radar -- but then it's an indie movie created by an indie cartoonist and not based specifically on a comics property. The film, based on ideas from indie cartoonist stalwart Jeffrey Brown, follows two sisters -- one about to get married, the other just broken up with her boyfriend, and how they approach love and commitment. Directed by Mike Mohan ("One Too Many Mornings") from a script by Mohan, Jeffrey Brown and Egan Reich, the movie debuts this weekend at Sundance and has already gotten some buzz behind it. It stars Lizzy Caplan (True Blood, 127 Hours), as the single sister (who happens to be a cartoonist), Alison Brie (Mad Men, Scream 4) as the sister about to get married, Martin Starr (Mad Love, Adventureland) and Geoffrey Arend.

Brown is best known for his quiet autobiographical comics such as Clumsy, Unlikely and Small Moments, as well as his more humorous books like Incredible Change-bots, a take on the transformers. We caught up with him as he was getting ready for the film's Sundance premiere this Sunday on January 22nd.]

THE BEAT: It seems like any comic book related movie gets covered to death and yet for years you’ve been saying “Oh I have this movie coming out” but it’s been very under the radar.

JEFFREY BROWN: It’s not based on any comic, so I think that makes the difference.

THE BEAT: I know you have been doing a little press, but I’ll kick off with the question everyone will ask: How did you get to make a movie?

A: In 2006 I heard from Jordan Horowitz, who most recently produced The Kids Are All Right with Gilbert Films. He liked my books and wondered if I had any interest in doing film adaptation or thought about writing for film. Back in high school I had been interested in sketch and comedy and had vague film and TV aspirations, but I ended up drawing instead. So I thought this would be a nice opportunity. I came up with an idea loosely inspired by my situation with my then girlfriend now wife, taking some other cues from other people I knew and meshing things together. The basic story is two sisters, one who is breaking up with a guy and then dating someone new while the other sister is getting married and, not having second thoughts exactly, but questioning things.

We went back and forth writing that and eventually I put a treatment together, but the way I structure my comics doesn’t really translate to film. Additionally, I didn’t really have the experience or maybe even the motivation at the time, to figure out how to write a screenplay in terms of the formal requirements. Jordan put me together with Egan Reich who is a playwright and screenwriter. We developed it into a full story that would work for film

Jordan had met Joe Swanberg, a director here in Chicago and part of the Mumblecore movement. He’s actually a comics fan and knew my work. It seemed like of one those confluences that this could work. After Joe came on, we had had everything set, they’d cast the film and were scouting locations, and then everything all fell apart at the last minute.

THE BEAT: Just in that classic Hollywood way?

JB: Yeah, this person’s schedule is all of a sudden not lining up and this or that. I thought well, that was a nice experiment. Then this other director Mike Mohan found out that the screenplay was without a director. Mike is also a comics fan who specifically likes my work. He and his wife, as a wedding gift to each other, had each unbeknownst to each other, commissioned me to do a drawing.

THE BEAT: Ha! So you know all along and they didn’t?

JB: Mike emailed me first and I said yes. Then his wife emailed and I said oh my gosh. [MacDonald laughs] I thought, Can I do this, should I? Take both their money? Is that weird? Were they going to feel ripped off that they were getting the same thing? I just kept them different. They both wanted a comic and I directed him towards one that was the state of their relationship and hers was how they met.

THE BEAT: What did they do when they found out?

JB: I think they were both just speechless. There’s a photo of it her sister sent me — they are sitting there looking with their jaws dropping. [general laughter]

Anyway, when Mike approached Jordan — he had just had his first indie feature that premiered at Sundance. Egan and I thought let’s inject some new blood and get it going.

THE BEAT: How long did this all take?

JB: 2008 is when were originally filming. Mike came on board at the end of 2010. They started casting it mid-2011. By that point, after the first time, I decided not to get my hopes up to avoid disappointment. And then I get an email in May with “Okay this is the cast” and I’m looking at these people and go “Really?!??” It felt very different this time.

THE BEAT: I know some of the cast are indie faves, so it’s getting some excitement.

JB: It’s a strange experience to see thing you wrote and you have in your head how you would say them, or how your vision of this character would say them, and the actors have an entirely different takes. It adds a lot of depth to what was there.

I visited the set for a few days the week after Comic-Con and thought, yeah these are really good actors and it’s just that weird mind-bending thing where you think “But this is stuff that I wrote!”

THE BEAT: You did artwork for the movie also?

JB: Lizzy Caplan’s character in the film does little drawings from life and autobio comics, and artwork for her boyfriend’s band. So I did all the artwork that the band uses for t-shirts and tote bags they sell. I also filled up a small sketchbook that’s used as Lizzy’s book in the film. Some of those drawings I did as pencils so she’s inking them. And she has an art show so I did finished versions of the ones in the sketchbook. Also some will be in the opening credits.

THE BEAT: Now through this whole torturous Hollywood process, do you feel like it remained a Jeffrey Brown movie? Do you feel that it’s still something that you created even with all the extra hands?

JB: Yeah. The basic story is all mine and the characters all came from the same place. What I had in mind, the emotional beats of the story and the ideas that I wanted to get at about these two sisters in different places and getting frustrated with each other — one ending this really involved relationship and starting a new exciting relationship and all the drama that can come with that. All the things I was trying to get at with the original idea were there.

Mike said when he was writing his draft he just had my books stacked up next to him and whenever he hit a rough part, he would look through my books. I’m very fortunate that everyone who came on seemed to be on the same page.

THE BEAT: Your work is divided into two parts: your heavily autobiographical stuff and then more genre stuff like Big Head or Change-Bots. You haven’t done much that was fictional but not fantastic have you?

JB: No, not in comics and really not outside of comics. When I do fiction I don’t know if it’s easier or I’m more comfortable, but it tends to be more humorous ideas. I have fewer rules for myself. Part of the origin of the story is that how my relationship with my wife began is a story I wanted to tell in full detail in comics. But I didn’t feel like it was a story that would add enough or do things differently enough for me. To do it in film seemed like the easy way to get away from that.

THE BEAT: Is the character the sister is marrying based on you?

JB: Initially, but then what happened is all the character got mixed. My wife does have a sister and she’s a little older and hasn’t settled down. Whereas we have a five-year-old now. Just thinking about that contrast in terms of personality. The sister in the movie is a random mass of different aspects of people. Some of me gets transferred on to Lizzy Caplan’s character, aspects of my wife get transferred to the character that would be me. Everyone got mixed up in the end.

THE BEAT: Are you looking forward to going to Sundance and all that own wackiness? From what I hear, what Comic-Con is to nerds, Sundance is for indie films only with fun snow.

JB: I don’t know! I think having gone to Comic-Con as many years as I have, even if I don’t know exactly how crazy Sundance is going to be, I’m at least psychologically prepared. It’s going to be overwhelming but that’s the other advantage for me. It’s something that I can do as half-tourist whereas for Mike and Jordan, it’s a big huge business trip.

THE BEAT: Did anything surprise you about what worked as a movie?

JB: The biggest thing for me was things that I really wanted to be in there that were left out.

THE BEAT: Yeah, murder your darlings!

JB: And there are things that I really wanted still in there. It’s still something I could learn from again, knowing that with my comics, usually my autographical books are much more based on gut feelings and emotions. There’s only a little bit of intellectualizing in terms of how I order things or how I place things next to each other. With film it’s much more what’s going to make the movie work for an audience that’s going to sit there, a different experience in terms of how the audience participates in the story. The way my comics work I thought has always been more along the lines of poetry than anything narrative and [laughs] a collection of poetry doesn’t really translate to film.

I think if anything it gives me more confidence in approaching fiction later. I’m working on an autobiographical book now which is about fatherhood and religion and this is the last subject that I want to approach through autobiography. It’s a book that’s taking a lot longer, partly because the working process is much different because it’s in full color. And the subject matter is more difficult than other things I’ve dealt with.

THE BEAT: Why?

JB: Well, my father is a minister so for me it’s a very delicate ground to walk to deal with these feelings, and being an atheist but still wanting to respect my parents. Well — um, I want people to read it.

THE BEAT: I guess reading between the lines, it sounds like the relationships with your father and your son are ongoing, so it might be little bit of a tricky road to walk.

A: Yeah. I’m also doing a book about Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker as a four-year-old, which is the flip side of fatherhood…and of religion too, I guess. [general laughter] It’s much lighter, a collection of gag comics and one-page strips. It’s a mix of stereotypical father son things with being a new dad and some Star Warsy things. references.

THE BEAT: I imagine this must have “parody” stamped on the cover.

JB: It’s an official Lucasfilm release.

THE BEAT: Oh, so they got the official blessing? Congrats on that.

JB: Well, I grew up with Star Wars, it was just fun to do.

THE BEAT: You’ve been getting into animation, you did painting, you teach, so you already had some multi-media stuff going on. Is it hard to keep it all going?

JB: I hoped the Top Shelf book would be done by the end of October and here it is January and I’m only a little over halfway done. I may be having to readjust those expectations about how much work I can do. The other thing that’s hard is pushing back the projects that I’d really like to do for myself that aren’t as commercially viable. It’s trying to balance doing whatever I want but also make enough money from it so I don’t have to get a day job again.

THE BEAT: Which for every cartoonist is a struggle.

JB: My wife works fulltime so that helps. Our son is in preschool so I get a decent amount of time. And then I just sleep less. [laughs]

THE BEAT: You say the father and religion book might be the last autobio subject you look at for a long time?

JB: In terms of book length stories. For FCBD I’m going to sign at Quimby’s and I think I’m going to do a free mini comics for it and one of the stories is a shorter autobio story about my best friend in elementary school and how our friendship ended, which involved renting the Lord of the Rings animated movie.

I’m going to do more Change-bots—I have the basic plot for the third book. And I do want to try doing some fiction. I have this story that I’m not sure exactly what I want it to be. It could be a science fiction-y near future sf story. It could be a superhero thing but I’m not sure exactly sure what I want it to be yet. I also have this idea for a kids book about dinosaurs. I have my little notebook with 20 or 30 projects. I’ve always liked horror films so I have some ideas on that I might work on at some point.

THE BEAT: Here’s the other question everyone will ask, so I’ll ask it. Do you feel like you want to do more in movies?

JB: Yeah, I do, but one of the things that was great about this film was that I could be really involved but it didn’t take over my life. I don’t see myself as being a director or the sole writer, but I think it’s good place to collaborate for me. But I think drawing my comics is my first love.

The long batted-about Hack/Slash movie, based on the Tim Seeley/Stefano Caselli comic of the same name, now has a new helmer attached: Marcus Nispel, whose previous slashing and hacking efforts include the disappointing Conan movies, PATHFINDER, and outings in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Friday the 13th franchises.

The comics, once published by Devil’s Due but since moved to Image, concerns Cassie Hack, a mass murder survivor who goes around killing other mass murderers — all in an over the top horror movie style and while dressed in schoolgirl fetish style.

So yeah, this would seem to be soundly in Nispel’s roundhouse.

EW’s Spring/Summer movie preview issue is out, and DARK KNIGHT RISES is on the cover. And some new photos are inside!

Hm, this Bane cat is going to be pretty scary, eh?

What do you think — some lucky slobs already have their tickets to sold-out midnight IMAX screenings. Do you wish you could join them?

Looks like we might not get that “New Manhattan” live-action version of AKIRA after all. I know you’re all crying. Maybe Warner Bros. knows that too, as they shut down the Vancouver production office:

The project, which has been through several incarnations, is being shut down in the face of casting, script and budget issues. The production offices in Vancouver are being closed, with below-the-line talent and crew told to stop working. “Everybody is being sent home,” according to an insider.

Producers, who include Appian Way’s Jennifer Kiloran Davisson and Mad Chance’s Andrew Lazar, will hunker down with director Jaume Collet-Serra for the next two weeks to iron out the script. It is unclear if Harry Potter scribe Steve Kloves, who did a pricey rewrite on the project a year ago, will be brought in to help out.

But all is not lost, Deadline reports.

What’s the problem? Akira sounds not a lot different than what has happened at the studio to the films Arthur & Lancelot and Legendary Pictures’ big-budget film Paradise Lost. I’ve even heard turbulence on the 300 prequel Xerxes. Basically, the studio is scrutinizing everything. Akira, which was bought years ago and put on a fast track when Albert Hughes was going to direct it. While reports indicate Warner Bros has problems with budget, I’m told that’s not really the issue. The studio suddenly wanted changes made to the script, the most recent draft of which came from David James Kelly. They will quickly set a high-end writer to do a polish and then Warner Bros will have to a final decision to make. Director Jaume Collet-Serra’s version already came down from $150 million that Hughes planned to spent to about $90 million, so this is more about creative than budget, or it could be that the studio is getting cold feet about making a pricey movie with a young cast and not huge stars.

So maybe a budget trim would get this back on track. Wouldn’t that be great?

Ugh, really this is another one of those comic book ideas — like Watchmen and Superman and Wonder Woman — that Warner just boots around for years and years. Perhaps the best idea is just to let someone who really has a passion for the film make it…if you can’t find that, maybe studio shuffling isn’t the answer. Radical thinking, I know.