Well, it's official - Hellboy is rising from the fiery pits of hell to give us another movie. While some will be disappointed to hear that it won't be a direct continuation of 2008's Hellboy: The Golden Army, nor will Guillermo del Toro and Ron Pearlman be returning, others will just be relieved that the popular superhero is returning at all. Not only is the new Hellboy already cast with Stranger Things actor David Harbour in the titular role, but director Neil Marshall will reportedly be taking the franchise in a whole new direction with an anticipated R-rating.
From dueling vampires to taking down Nazis, defeating Baba Yaga or even battling Rasputin, the Hellboy comic books have given us some 24 years of particularly dark material to paw over. As the no-nonsense demon with a rock for a right hand prepares to sucker punch his way back into cinemas, we ask why a controversial R-rating could be the godsend that Hellboy needs.
While R-rated comic book movies are in vogue right now, more adult takes on comic books have historically been much more lackluster. Earlier endeavors like the Blade movies, Punisher, and Punisher: War Zone all failed to win over critics, and more modern takes saw similar struggles. Watchmen and 300 had a mixed reception (although they will likely live on with a cult following), while Sin City and Kick Ass were both well received, only for each of them to flounder with their follow-ups, A Dame to Kill For and Kick-Ass 2. After the success of Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies (mostly), Bryan Singer's X-Men, Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, and a tsunami of fresh Marvel movies, general convention determined that PG-13 was the sweet spot. However, if you look at the more current trend of comic book films that have nabbed an R-rating, we are in something of a resurgence.
First, let's look at some recent winners, of wich there's several. In 2016, Deadpool was met with rave reviews from critics and fans alike, becoming the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. After that, James Mangold gave us the gritty Logan, which showed us that the craving for R-rated superheroes went above and beyond over the top violence, gross-out gags, and lots of cussing. Elsewhere, the loose adaptation of Mark Millar's The Secret Service became the bloodthirsty Kingsman film, which looks set to continue its praise with an equally violent sequel in Kingsman: The Golden Circle. If you are planning on creating a violent comic book movie that is faithful to its roots, now seems like as good a time as any to tool up and start rolling.
Secondly, the director attached to the new Hellboy is Neil Marshall - a man who really needs no introduction. With experience in many genres from horror to fantasy to sci-fi, Marshall has all the credentials to bring us a proper adaptation of Hellboy. His work on HBO's Game of Thrones - in particular, the Season 2 finale 'Blackwater' - shows that he can definitely craft iconic large-scale action scenes, so you only imagine what it would look like for him to take Hellboy down into the depths of actual hell on the big screen? It was a concept that Del Toro toyed with, but never really got to fully explore.
Elsewhere, Marshall's hand as director of creature features like Dog Solider and The Descent mean that horror is also an easy genre for him to tackle. As for those worrying that he can't give us all the violence and gore we deserve, Marshall is also responsible for episodes of Hannibal and Westworld - both of which aren't exactly light on the adult material. In fact, Marshall's Westworld episode, 'The Stray,' was dubbed one of the most violent from the premiere season but was praised for its bold storytelling.
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Then there is the hype surrounding Hellboy in general. Sure, some people will be devastated that we are losing Guillermo del Toro AND Ron Perlman, but hitting a reset button could be a good thing. Remember that it has been some nine years since we last left the franchise, but a new Hellboy can still ride on the coattails of the first two films while reinventing itself for a new audience. If you remember the finale of The Golden Army, it ended with the cliffhanger that Liz was pregnant. Presumably, a third film would've picked up that plotline and basically been a rehash of Shrek the Third where a grouchy Perlman dealt with parenthood. Following some demon babies and relationship strife isn't exactly R-rated gold, and you could even argue that it would have made for a lackluster third entry to the trilogy. Besides, Del Toro and Perlman already specified "100% the sequel will not happen" months ago.
There was always a feeling that Del Toro's films never quite went far enough. They did dabble in elements of mild horror and violence, but it was ultimately a somewhat family-friendly adaptation of the source material. Admittedly Del Toro was constrained by the series rating, but who didn't want to hear Perlman drop an F-bomb every now and then? If you go back and read Mike Mignola's comic book series, Hellboy is steeped in graphic scenes and buckets of gore. The very first issue takes the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense into the bowels of a rotting house to battle zombies and lizard creatures - it was pure gothic horror that is crying out for a film adaptation. Then we have the story of Hellboy himself. Actually named Anung Un Rama, and the spawn of demon Azzael, Hellboy's destined purpose is to literally to rain destruction on Earth, a plot that was only hinted at in the previous films.
Regardless of the rating, there is certainly an appetite for Hellboy and it is a thrill to hear that the character is finally being rescued from the brink of development hell. There is no denying that it will be an uphill struggle to shed the image of Perlman and Del Toro, but with Mignola also seemingly on board, who is better to steer an R-rated Hellboy in the right direction? Clearly, Mignola had a vision for his character all those years ago, and it is only right for the franchise to eventually take a darker route. Details are still thin on the ground to when Hellboy is ready to fist-bump back into our lives with his giant hand, but with a director and lead actor already attached, so don't expect to be left in purgatory for too long.