By Mark Millar’s Millarworld comics are about to hit Netflix in a big way over the coming years as the streaming company tries to replace its Marvel content with something else now that Disney is taking it. They scooped up Millarworld in August of 2017 and now the ball is really rolling as they’re pairing the star of one of their biggest hits with hot-as-hell director Chris McKay to bring Millar’s Reborn to the big screen. Given the success Bullock and Netflix had with Birdbox tossing her into another high concept project seems pretty obvious, and I love how unique the idea here is.
The fantasy/sci-fi comic on which the movie will be based focuses on 80-year-old Bonnie Black, who dies and is reborn in a young body in the land of Adystria, where monsters be. All her deceased friends and family are there, and the only person she can’t find is her husband so, as all good adventurers do, she heads out on a quest. I haven’t read the comic but it sounds like an interesting take on the afterlife that involves dragons. Dragons are always a good thing.
It will be interesting to see what McKay brings to the film as his only major work to be released is The Lego Batman Movie. The guy is basically on fire for unreleased films, though, as he’s been attached to a Johnny Quest movie, the beleaguered Nightwing film, and even more beleaguered Dungeons & Dragons movie. It’s not really clear which of these films he’ll be making first but given the development hell some of them are in we may see Reborn before any of the others.
My big concern overall is that Reborn actually sounds more like something that should be turned into a TV series. Fantasy worlds are so hard to unpack in the span of a single movie, and one that needs to set up its characters in the real world before even diving into the fantasy world needs even more room to breathe. Millar is reportedly heavily involved with the projects at Netflix so I’m guessing he knows what’s best or can steer this to work but I’ve sat through too many condensed fantasy stories in theaters to not have doubt creep into my head.
Sandra Bullock and Chris McKay Team for Netflix Comic Book Movie ‘Reborn’ [THR]
