According to Bloody-Disgusting, Channing Tatum (G.I. Joe, Step Up) has been cast in the latest comic book-cum-movie, The Darkness. The film is to be directed by The Pang Brothers, who were responsible for the original Asian version of The Eye and Bangkok Dangerous (both the original and the English language remake).
The Darkness comic series was created by Marc Silvestri, Garth Ennis and David Wohl, under the banner of Top Cow/Image. It follows Jackie Estacado, a hitman who “was targeted for assassination by the don of the New York mafia, ‘Uncle’ Paulie. He finds his body possessed by ‘the Darkness,’ a malevolent spirit that has inhabited his family for several generations, with the benefit of giving Jackie supernatural powers that feed off the dark.”
Apparently Dimension paid a six-figure sum to develop The Darkness back in 2004, originally hoping for a release in 2008. Needless to say that year has passed and we’ve had no Darkness movie, so either that deal fell through or this version that Tatum has been cast in is the same as the 2004 one.
My first thought when looking at the Darkness artwork and reading the basic plot is that it’s got the same feel as The Crow (also first a comic then made into several movies), mixed with Spawn to some extent. The initial run of the comic involved Jackie Estacado first discovering his powers to manifest shadow creatures, only to become embroiled in two wars: a war between mobs, and a war between the forces of the dark and the luminescent army of “The Angelus” (see pic below). The film will likely follow a similar vein.
Late last year it was reported that a Crow reboot is on the way, so I think it’d be wise for The Pang Brothers to distance The Darkness as far as possible from that movie to avoid confusion from the general movie going public who don’t understand the subtle differences between comic book anti-heroes.
The Darkness comic artwork
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Night & Day: The Darkness vs. The Angelus
I really don’t see why Channing Tatum keeps getting so much work. In my opinion he’s not the best of actors (to say the least), and has managed to make a career out of his pretty boy looks (ironically enough, he played Pretty Boy Floyd in this summer’s Public Enemies) and with Step Up, his dancing ability. I think we’ll all agree, even for a comic book movie, that acting skills are far more important than good looks.
Or am I way off?…
What do you think about Channing Tatum (apparently) being cast in The Darkness comic book adaptation? Are you a fan of the comic, and if so is Tatum a good fit for the lead role?
The Darkness is currently in the development stages and doesn’t have a release date as of yet.
Source: Bloody-Disgusting
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