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Brett Ratner Helming Youngblood Comic Adaptation

by Alex Billington
February 8, 2009

Reliance Big Entertainment, the Indian company that just screwed over DreamWorks' funding, has acquired rights to Rob Liefeld's graphic novel Youngblood and has hired Brett Ratner, of Red Dragon, X-Men 3, and the Rush Hour series, to direct the adaptation. RBE paid an excessive mid six figures for the rights and has fast-tracked the project. Youngblood, first published by Image Comics in 1992, is about a superhero team sanctioned and overseen by the US government. "Most of the great graphic novels are gone, and Youngblood is one of the few comic books left with tentpole potential," Ratner told Variety.

The members of Youngblood include Shaft, a former FBI agent and archer whose bow uses magnets to propel its arrow instead of a string; Badrock, a teenager transformed into a living block of stone; Vogue, a Russian fashion model with purple-and-chalk-white skin; and Chapel, a government assassin. "It was a real personal passion project for me, and a lot of people wanted (Youngblood), but the amazing thing about the guys at Reliance is the speed with which they're able to move." No writer has been announced nor has a deal with a studio been arranged, so it will still take a few more months for this project to come together.

Anyone else got that sick feeling that we're going to see a nasty combination of Fantastic Four and X-Men 3 with this adaptation? To be honest, I know nothing about Youngblood, but as cool as it sounds and as good as it may be, I've got a feeling Ratner is going to screw it up as bad as he did X-Men 3. Thoughts?

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CSpuppydog

This man needs to just quit..
Fuelbot

A thought -- how about coming up with a new superhero idea instead of raping every comic book on the market? That's just me tho.
http://www.theaterhopper.com Tom Brazelton

AH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!! Ratner + Liefeld = Shit sandwich. These two hacks deserve each other!
J.White

This is a sign studios are getting desperate, very desperate for comic movies. 3-4 more years of comic movies and in a sad way they will be done. Movies like this are coffin nails.
Berko

What really let Xmen3 down was the writing. The story and script absolutely sucked and I dont think Ratner can be held 100% accountable for the entire shitstorm.
Jimbo Slims

Tentpole potential? Maybe for 11 yr old boys, 13 years ago.
Kyle Peterson

Hopefully like everything else attached to Liefeld's name this will never, ever get made.
http://evilnik.blog.com evilnik

looking at how the things are going, they will get into a tie up with FOX ... so that tom rothman can mastrubate to this
SKD

"Reliance Big Entertainment, the Indian company that just screwed over DreamWorks' funding" Alex do you even understand business???? The Reliance deal ALWAYS asked for DWK to match their level of funding before the deal went through. It is Spielberg who is screwing over everyone by being such a greedy bastard and now screwing over Universal even after all they have done for him. If Reliance (and Disney) for that matter had a clue they would both get out of working with Spielberg cos that guy only cares about making money for himself and only himself. Paramount are VERY lucky that Spielberg and Snider left them - it was a great deal for DWK but they got too greedy ditched Paramount and are now feeling the strain. And to those of you that are defending Spielberg don't you think its funny how a man worth many billions wont even get his own company to finance Tintin? And how a man who is screwing over Universal cos they cant stump up the $150m he needs yet still demands $50m a year from them for Theme Park royalties? Mark my words DWK will either be dead or a niche production company within 5 years. Jeffrey Katzenberg was very wise to remove DWK Animation from DWK and now even Geffen is trying to distance himself from the company - that tells you everything you need to know.
Fisherr

No thank you.
TCox

The comic book in the pic above is probably the last comic I bought as a teen. I still have it (in plastic, of course). I see nothing but bad things happening with Ratner directing. After X-Men III, I lost any hope that he could make a good comic book movie, and I blame Bryan Singer for leaving it to him. Superman Returns sucked too. Youngblood was a pretty cool comic, but I can't see it getting much attention in theaters. I love comic book movies as much as anyone, but there's just too many being made. Not all have the potential to be The Dark Knight. As a matter of fact; none do.
Omega728

"Most of the great graphic novels are gone, and Youngblood is one of the few comic books left with tentpole potential," Ratner told Variety. Please!!!!!!!! Does this guy even read comics? Well at least this idea and Youngblood (Liefeld) has one thing in common...... no originality.
joe

This is only going to stunt the growth of comic books gaining legitimacy.
harlem shake

i agree with numer 1
max

No idea what that comic is to be honest.. Wonder why all these comic movies are being done now :/ Getting tired of them.
Luis M

Woo... way to plagiarize Wikipedia word for word.
Jim

Yeah, this is a bottom of the barrel franchise. I wouldn't be surprised if this goes straight to DVD if it ever gets made.
dac_fan

Any comicbook movie is a good thing. I have Youngblood number 1, doese anyone know if its worth anything?
http://www.youtube.com/snears Nick Sears

How do these guys keep getting hired?? You'd think with the economic crunch they'd hire an up-and-coming director. Feels like the overall fanbase opinion never gets heard from the upper tier of production companies. whateverrrr
Jimbo Slims

I agree with #13. Dac_fan: All those comics from the nineties aren't worth much of anything b/c their sales schemes don't add up in the supply-demand equation. There were WAY too many crappy comics and there is absolutely no demand for them or their ilk today. At least by anyone worth a damn. The beauty of using graphic novels for films is easy to see - compelling, risk taking writers have teamed w/ artists' visions for the past century, giving film-makers and fans what they've been looking for: imaginative romps of informed, intelligent fantasy that's both generally appealing a broad audience, and specifically appealing to fans. Youngblood is neither, even if you made a cartoon of it. See: WildC.A.T.S. No graphic novels? Even if Image is his boundary of taste there are plenty of better choices (ALL of which the RATT should STAY AWAY FROM). How about the MAXX? Even Pitt is more appealing. The Infinite Horizon (award winning take on the Odyssey, retold after the Iraq war). Rattner is only providing fodder for us all to demand he cease and desist making movies altogether. I sincerely hope he cooperates.
Jimbo Slims

Correction: Infinite Horizon is Eisner NOMINATED.
http://ckinfinite.blogspot.com/ CMK

Really? Someone took at look at everything that Rob L. ripped off of every other comic book from Marvel and DC, read it, and said: "Yeah, this is a good idea." Wow. Man, I don't know how Rob Liefeld does it, but he must have a snake charmer's tongue. Amazing. The comic (and the art in it, ugh) is crummy. Not worth a read. A movie based on it? I don't see why.
zetsu

no,someone stop this man now he fucked up x-men 3 he will fuck up another comic book movie.thank you brett wanker i mean brett ratner.(i would rather see spawn reboot,wildcats & wetworks movies instead.)
http://www.crabby.com crabby

What a F%@king idiot. Tentpole potential. Youngblood sucks as a comic. The only thing good about this comic is the art, not the writting. Most of the comics were barely readable. He just wasted his money
Ajax

I hope all of the characters don't have crazy squinty eyes like in the comics. Please donate to fight Youngbloods disease.
bladerunnerF1

Kill me now.
Ross

The only thing good about the book, was that Chapel killed Al Simmons (aka) Spawn. I wonder if they'll hint at that, if it even gets made....
Mike @ Paramount

Source? I see quotes from Variety and Wikipedia
lando

wow...that book was crappy when it came out! Studios picking crappy comics to make movies are going to kill the chances of the better books!! crappy comic = crappy movie