With Kick-Ass 2 now in theaters (read our review), fans have had a chance to reconnect with Kick-Ass and Hit-Girl in their battle against the maniacal Chris D'Amico, a.k.a., The Motherf*cker. If you haven't seen the film, please be warned:
[MAJOR KICK-ASS 2 SPOILERS FOLLOW!]
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The mid-credits scene of Kick-Ass 2 reveals that The Motherf*ckr - thought to have been consumed by a shark during his climatic battle with Kick-Ass - is still alive and kicking. Well, maybe not kicking, as Chris D'Amico (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) is left severely mutilated with no arms or legs. However, in interviews with Kick-Ass 2 writer/director Jeff Wadlow and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, we learned that the fate of The Motherf*cker originally took a very different turn - not just in the film, but in the comic book as well.
In the Kick-Ass 2 comic, The Motherf*cker's reign of terror in Times Square ends with him mortally wounded, but alive - much like in the movie. However, Wadlow revealed that series creator Mark Millar originally had the villain die at the end of the second volume of the comics - a decision Wadlow objected to, due to the popularity of Mintz-Plasse's portrayal of the character in the film universe. With a Kick-Ass 3 comic series on the way, and a feature-film conceivably in the cards to follow, Wadlow is keeping his eye on the sanctity of the franchise:
Jeff Wadlow: ...Mark was finishing the comic book as I was writing the script, I read all his scripts but they were still drawing it and he was still planning the Hit-Girl spinoff. Initially - I don’t think I’ve ever told anyone this before - I saw an early outline and Chris completely died at the end of 'Kick-Ass 2.' I emailed Mark and asked, ‘what are you doing?! You can’t kill Chris. Aren’t you thinking of a third one? Weren’t we talking about a third movie we can't do it without Chris - he’s a corner of the triangle.’ Mark was like, ‘no he’s such a bad guy, he’s gotta die.’ And I said, ‘no, no, no, no figure it out. You can punish him for being bad, maybe he loses his legs or something like that - but he’s gotta be alive in the end.'
The saga of Kick-Ass has always been a curious one; ever since the first volume was adapted into a cult-hit film, there has been a clear synergistic link between the development of the books and the films - much in the same way that the success of the 300 movie adaptation "inspired" creator Frank Miller to write a second volume of the comic, which in turn serves as the source material behind the upcoming sequel film, 300: Rise of an Empire.
Ever since comic book movies became 'the new blockbusters,' comic books have undergone a curious transformation. Once a haven of creative freedom and innovation, the demands of supporting tentpole film franchises has given most of the major properties a slick corporate-minded makeover (see: DC's "New 52" or Marvel's "Marvel NOW!" reboots). Kick-Ass is clearly no different - but the question is: Are you okay with the Hollywood influencing the direction of comics, or should the two be completely separate sandboxes?
Well, there is one group that will undoubtedly be happy with the new multi-platform mentality of comic book creators: working actors. Take, for instance, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, who was very vocal in his support of the 'Save The Motherf*cker' campaign Wadlow started:
Christopher Mintz-Plasse: Thank you Jeff, thank you. If there is a third one, thank you.
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Kick-Ass 2 is now in theaters. Be sure to check out more of our coverage of the film.