The world of comics has taken the film and television industry by storm over the past 20-plus years. More and more comics have been adapted for Hollywood and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down.
Our third round of optioned comics features books from Image Comics, IDW Publishing, Aftershock Comics and more. We recommend you read theses comics and be sure to check out Volume 1 and Volume 2.
Additionally, check out our list of comics we feel should be optioned for the screen.
Geiger
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Gary Frank
Optioned by: Paramount Studios
Industry heavyweights Geoff Johns (Superman, Green Lantern, Batman: Three Jokers) and Gary Frank (Superman, Supergirl, The Incredible Hulk) of DC’s Doomsday Clock re-team for what will be one of the most anticipated new series of 2021 in the forthcoming Geiger. This mind blowing new series will take local comic shops by storm in April from Image Comics.
Who are the scavengers of a dying earth? Geiger is set in the years since a nuclear war ravaged the planet, desperate outlaws battle for survival in a world of radioactive chaos. Out past the poisoned wasteland lives a man even the Nightcrawlers and Organ People fear. Some name him Joe Glow, others call him The Meltdown Man. But his name…is Geiger
In October 2022 it was announced that Justin Simien and Johns will adapt Geiger for television at Paramount.
Earthdivers
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Writer: Stephen Graham Jones
Artist: Davide Gianfelice
Optioned by: 20th Century Studios
New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones makes his ongoing comics debut with Earthdivers!
The year is 2112, and it’s the apocalypse exactly as expected: rivers receding, oceans rising, civilization crumbling. Humanity has given up hope, except for a group of outcast Indigenous survivors who have discovered a time travel portal in a cave in the middle of the desert and figured out where the world took a sharp turn for the worst: America. Convinced that the only way to save the world is to rewrite its past, they send one of their own on a bloody, one-way mission back to 1492 to kill Christopher Columbus before he reaches the so-called New World. But taking down an icon is no easy task, and his actions could prove devastating for his friends in the future.
In August 2022, Jones said during an interview that Earthdivers has been optioned by 20th Century Studios.
Rogues’ Gallery
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Hannah Rose May
Artist: Justin Mason
Optioned by: Radical Act
Writer Hannah Rose May makes her comic debut with rising-star artist Justin Mason for an all-new series with Declan Shalvey.
The Purge meets Scream in a home invasion thriller that follows disenfranchised TV superhero actress Maisie Wade as she is terrorized by an unhinged group of intruders cosplaying her day job’s archvillains. If Maisie is going to survive the night, she’ll need to be the hero she has come to despise.
In September 2022, Don Cheadle‘s production company This Radical Act announced they are adapting Rogues’ Gallery into a television series.
Night of the Ghoul
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Francesco Francavilla
Optioned by: 20th Century Studios
Shot in 1936, Night of the Ghoul by writer/director T.F. Merritt was meant to sit beside Frankenstein and Dracula as an instant classic…But the legendary film never made it to the silver screen. Just before editing was finished, a mysterious studio fire destroyed the footage and killed the cast and crew celebrating at the wrap party.
Forest Inman is a horror film obsessive who digitizes old films for the famed Aurora movie studio. When Forest stumbles across a seemingly forgotten canister of footage, he just might have discovered the remnants of the lost classic Night of the Ghoul. This discovery sends Forest on a dark odyssey, where he’s warned by a mysterious old man that the film’s ghoul is far more than a work of fiction: it’s a very real monster who plans to kill him.
In October 2022, 20th Century Studios optioned Night of the Ghoul one day prior to the issue going on sale.
Destroyer Duck
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Angel Medina
Optioned by: Err Productions
Destroyer Duck was an anthology comic book published by Eclipse Comics in 1982, as well as the title of its primary story, written by Steve Gerber and featuring artwork by Jack Kirby and Alfredo Alcala.
In November 2021, the film and TV rights for Destroyer Duck were acquired by Err Productions for animated development.
Nocterra
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artists: Tony S. Daniel, Tomeu Morey
Optioned by: Netflix
Ten years after the world is plunged into an everlasting night that turns all living creatures into monstrous shades, the only way to survive is to stay close to artificial light. Enter Valentina “Val” Riggs, a skilled ferryman who transports people and goods along deadly unlit roads with her heavily illuminated eighteen wheeler.
In August 2021, Snyder confirmed a Nocterra TV deal has been reached with writer Roberto Patino (DMZ, Westworld) attached to produce for Netflix.
Canto
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Writer: David M. Booher
Artist: Drew Zucker
Optioned by: Westbrook Studios
Canto’s adventure begins! Enslaved for generations, Canto’s people once had hearts. Now they have clocks. When slavers damage a little tin girl’s clock beyond repair, Canto must brave his strange and fantastic world to bring back her heart. Can he overcome the dangers that await to save the one he loves?
In March 2021, Deadline reported Jada Smith and Will Smith’s Westbrook Studios optioned the rights to Canto for an animated feature film.
Ex-Machina
Publisher: WildStorm
Writer: Brian K. Vaughn
Artist: Tony Harris
Optioned by: Legendary Entertainment
Ex-Machina focuses on story of civil engineer Mitchell Hundred, alternating between the past and the present. The plot is centred on Hundred’s current life as the mayor of New York City, with flashbacks to his prior life as “The Great Machine”, the world’s first and only super hero. Hundred has the ability to communicate directly with machines, which he used to prevent the fall of the second tower in the 9/11 attacks.
In January 2020, Legendary Entertainment announced they will adapt Ex-Machina into a feature film.
We Live
Publisher: Aftershock Comics
Writers: Roy Miranda, Inaki Miranda
Artist: Inaki Miranda
Optioned by: Rumored for Netflix
The year is 2084 and the world has changed. Wracked by calamities and crawling with monsters, the last remaining humans face a dangerous existence.
And now, the Earth has been sent a message from the deepest reaches of space – a dark countdown to the extinction of all humanity. But there is hope! Five thousand children will be rescued by these mysterious message-senders.
This is the journey of Hototo, one of the lucky five thousand – but only if his teenage sister, Tala, can safely deliver him to the nearest Beacon before time runs out.
We Live is a world of violence and beauty, a unique tale of the apocalypse as told by Inaki Miranda (Catwoman, Batman Beyond) and Roy Miranda, that invites both dread and hope.
Although not official, in October 2022 Inaki Miranda teased a yet-to-be-named Netflix announcement via their social media.
A Calculated Man
Publisher: Aftershock Comics
Writer: Paul Tobin
Artist: Alberto Alburquerque
Optioned by: Hulu
A verifiable math genius, Jack Beans used to run the numbers for the Pinafore crime family, until one day he ran them too well and concluded that the only way out of this life was in a cas-ket or Witness Protection. So, he turned state’s evidence and ran.
Now, the Pinafores are out to end their favorite accountant. Little do they know that Jack’s skills with math and his perfect memory have made him a better killer than they ever could have re-alized. What follows is a journey full of murder, mayhem and mathematics. Writer Paul Tobin (Bunny Mask, My Date With Monsters) and artist Alberto Albuquerque (The Amazing Spider-Man, Savage Sword) unleash a master of math on a mission to eliminate a criminal empire for good.
In May 2022, Aftershock announced A Calculated Man had been optioned for a series on Hulu.
