Hellboy was originally a larger-than-life fantasy creature created for Dark Horse comics in 1993 by artist and writer Mike Mignola. Through the years, the Lovecraftian superhero found immense success in printed publications, starring in over fifty tales that not only involve himself fighting against other mystical beings such as sorceresses and Satan himself, but also teaming up on occasion with a non-government agency called the B.P.R.D that defends the world from hostile paranormal entities. With new epic collections being released even thirty years after his origin, Hellboy remains strongly relevant in an ever-changing comic book landscape. On the other hand, the World Destroyer has a questionable track record regarding theatrical release adaptations.

In 2004, Guillermo del Toro wrote and directed the first of three Hellboy theatrical productions. This is where Ron Perlman would first step into the role of the demonic do-gooder. With the movie doing well financially and critically, a sequel was planned and produced. Hellboy II: The Golden Army was released on July 11th, 2008, and it was even more successful than its predecessor, with box office numbers doubling the overall budget. Since The Golden Army seemed to conclude that chapter, a reboot was released over ten years later in 2019, once again titled Hellboy. With neither the original writer nor actor returning and the third film having to fight against heavy hitters like Avengers: Endgame and Shazam, this entry became one of the biggest movie flops of 2019 with an abysmal score on Rotten Tomatoes and only five million dollars returning in revenue. Hopefully, the saga of Hellboy will be redeemed, though, as director Brian Taylor (best known for the Crank franchise starring Jason Statham) is helming a new project starring the Dark Horse deity called Hellboy: The Crooked Man. Related: Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre Character Posters Reveal Jason Statham as a Super Spy

Hellboy: The Crooked Man - The Plot

Hellboy ready for battle
Dark Horse Comics

Retelling a fan-favorite storyline of the same name originally published from July 2008 to September 2008, the movie version of The Crooked Man finds Hellboy as he befriends an ex-witch named Tom Ferell while traveling through the Appalachian mountains. Determined to take his deceased father’s body, which has been magically transformed into a horse carcass, to a church that is precariously stationed within the dominion of a devil, the duo also have to battle deformed cannibals that are hidden in coal mines, demonic, savage animals and the mysterious, always changing in appearance, Crooked Man whose actual name is Jeremiah Witkins. Mr. Witkins was executed for illegal war profiteering long ago but has escaped Hell and plans to permanently reside on Earth.

Unlike the previous live-action iterations, hardcore comic book fans immediately note that this version will be more faithful to Hellboy’s printed world and loyal to the characters portrayed within the colorized panels. Even though we can only assume The Crooked Man film adaptation closely follows the original comic saga, the script was written and finalized with mentorship by Dark Horse Comics senior author Chris Golden (the creator behind numerous Buffy The Vampire Slayer and X-Men tie-in comics too). Related: The 10 Biggest Changes Comic Book Movies Made to the Source Material

Hellboy: The Crooked Man - The Cast & Crew

Hellboy running
Lionsgate

Even though the exclusive report from Deadline about the upcoming movie does state that negotiations with potential cast members are in the final stages, no real names have been confirmed or denied. Having previously been connected to the most recent and terribly received live-action take on Hellboy, considering he played the main character; it would be in David Harbour’s best interest to stay away from the role.

We have a lot of information regarding the behind-the-scenes crew concerning Hellboy: The Crooked Man. Besides Mr. Taylor directing, an American film company called Millennium Media, which has owned the film rights to the Dark Horse comic hero since 2018, will be crafting the picture. Millennium is best known for franchises like The Hitman’s Bodyguard starring Selma Hayek, and The Expendables, starring Sylvester Stallone. Since filming begins next month in Bulgaria, Nu Boyana Studios will be collaborating with Campbell Grobman Films to make this long-awaited vision a reality.

As you can tell, hopes are already high toward Hellboy: The Crooked Man, potentially signaling a strong rebirth for the character. With that being the case, many notable figures have already put their names in the hat toward the management side. Jeffrey Greenstein, Les Weldon, Jonathan Yunger, Yariv Lerner, and Rob Van Norden from Millennium Media, and Mike Richardson from Dark Horse Entertainment have taken production roles. Tanner Mobley, Boaz Davidson, Trevor Short, and Avi Lerner from Millennium Media as well as Lati Grobman and Christa Campbell from Campbell Grobman Films will be executive producers. Sam Schulte will participate on behalf of Millennium Media. Among all these various names, Mike Mignola himself will also oversee the making of this faithful Hellboy retelling.

Release Date

At the time of writing, no announcement has been made regarding a release date for Hellboy: The Crooked Man. However, an official statement shouldn't be too far away, considering that the cast is close to completion and production will start next month.

Everything Else We Know

David Harbour as Hellboy
Lionsgate

An important distinction to make with Millenium Media’s press release is that with the hopeful success of Hellboy: The Crooked Man, the company can produce an entire new slate of movies revolving around the iconic character and his fantasy world. Not only that, but the president of Millenium is explicitly telling potential distributors that this will be the first in a series of films that will show a much different Hellboy than we've previously known. As a result, fans should not only be excited that this will be a different take on the hero but also that the overall response to this movie will indicate more Hellboy stories on the big screen.