Script Issues Delay ‘Spawn’ Reboot

Fans will have to wait a bit longer to once again see “Spawn” on the big screen. The reboot of Todd McFarlane’s 1997 cult-classic starring Michael Jai White and John Leguizamo has been the talk of the town since the artist announced its adaptation in early 2015, but it all died down due to several problems.

IGN, who reported on producer Jason Blum’s interview with Abu Dhabi Culture, said that the live-action reboot is “still not quite ready,” citing that the film’s R-rated script taking “a completely new direction.”

“The script has got to be right. There is a real desire, you have Jamie Foxx and Spawn and Todd McFarlane and like ‘You’ve just gotta make the movie!

I think I’ve probably frustrated Todd a little bit and I’ve just said, like, we don’t just have to make the movie, you know we have to make the right movie, with the right script,” said Blum.

Blum’s comment took on the same stride when McFarlane was asked the same question back in July of last year. According to Cinema Blend, McFarlane cited monetary and creative issues as reasons for the delay.

“The money’s sitting on the sidelines ready to go. I just need to get everyone that wants to put in money to shake their heads to the same script.

As you can imagine, everyone has a slightly different version of it in their head. You just go and trying to appease a handful of people while not giving in to what it is that I’m trying to do myself. Because if I have to change it too much, I’ll just walk away from it all,” said McFarlane.

Blum also pointed out the recent situation about racial discrimination and bias in the United States as a stumbling block in making the right script considering it should be done “carefully and thoughtfully.”

White’s portrayal of Al Simmons made him the first African-American to play a major comic book superhero in a major motion picture.

Still, Blum and McFarlane are positive that they’re indeed making a new “Spawn” movie. McFarlane said in a separate interview that they are “full steam ahead” despite the COVID-19 pandemic, while Blum is still keeping his hopes up that all of them would agree on a script.

“We are actually kind of re-tackling… we’re going down a different direction with the story that we had in the past, but we are not going to make the movie until that script is great. But one of these days it will be great and we will make it,” said Blum.