Summit Entertainment has officially moved the release date for its Hellboy movie reboot back to April 2019. The Hellboy comic book character was created by Mike Mignola in the early 1990s and eventually made the jump to the big screen under Guillermo del Toro's direction in 2004. While del Toro's 2008 sequel Hellboy II: The Golden Army was both better-received critically and grossed more at the box office than its predecessor, it wasn't lucrative enough to convince studio heads to sign off on the filmmaker's vision for an even more expensive and darker conclusion to his trilogy.
As such, one thing led to another and the decision was made to reboot the Hellboy films instead, with Stranger Things' David Harbour taking over for Ron Perlman as the good-natured demonic superhero otherwise known as "Big Red". Neil Marshall (The Descent, Centurion) is helming this new movie and, as his previous directorial efforts would suggest, will take a decidedly darker and more supernatural horror-tinged approach to the franchise than del Toro did - one that's expected to earn the film an R rating, no less.
Related: 2019 Will Have the Most Superhero Movies Ever Released
Summit has now shifted Hellboy back from its previous January 11, 2019 theatrical release date to an April 12 launch that same year. Seeing as the film has yet to begin its official marketing campaign, this move will (if nothing else) give Summit more time to build hype for Marshall's reboot than it would've had with its original January date. Mignola and Harbour are both slated to attend the Hellboy New York Comic Con panel next week and there's still a fair chance that they will bring the first trailer with them, even after this release date change.
As it stands, Hellboy will open directly against Robert Downey Jr.'s Voyage of Doctor Dolittle retelling during its opening weekend next spring. Moreover, the film will arrive on the scene a week after both DC's superhero action-comedy Shazam! and the Stephen King movie remake Pet Sematary debut in theaters. Considering that Hellboy's competition will actually be more intense next April than it (arguably) would've been on its previous January date, this move could be taken as a sign of confidence in the film on Summit's part.
With a promising choice of director and star, plus a supporting cast that includes fan-favorites like Ian McShane (Deadwood, American Gods) and Milla Jovovich as the villainous Blood Queen, the Hellboy reboot has a good deal working in its favor right now. Hopefully, the actual movie will likewise prove to be worth the extended wait.
MORE: Every Hellboy Reboot Update You Need to Know
Source: Summit Entertainment
from ScreenRant - Feed https://ift.tt/2Dw5jnJ
0 Comments