While critics point out superhero fatigue as the reason for many of the recent Marvel films not being hits at the box office, shows like Invincible, that bring fresh flavor to the genre, are still accepted by audiences. The show recently aired its second season to critical acclaim.
Based on the comics by Robert Kirkman, the animated series was strictly aimed at adults who were fans of the superhero franchise. However, Skybound Entertainment CEO David Alpert mentioned that they had pitched a live-action film of the franchise even before the MCU but were rejected due to one stupid reason.
Why Was The Invincible Live-Action Film Rejected By Studios?
The Invincible animated series is one of the few superhero hero shows that does not shy away from its brutality and is aimed at an adult audience. Much like the comic by Robert Kirkman, the show follows Nolan Grayson and his son Mark as they protect the world as superheroes.
The series was reportedly first pitched as a film in 2017 by filmmakers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (who also executive produced The Boys), the comic book was eventually adapted into an animated series with Skybound Entertainment joining to co-produce the show. As of 2023, the live-action film is still in development (via Comic Book).
However, the comic was reportedly pitched as a live-action film 20 years ago but was rejected due to one reason. According to Skybound Entertainment CEO David Alpert, the pitch predated the MCU and the idea was to bring in different superheroes together. But the studio they pitched to had some issues. Alpert said (via Dexerto),
The funny thing is, we had originally put this together as a movie almost 20 years ago… I’ll leave the studio’s name out, and the executive’s names out. They came to us, and this is pre-MCU, and they said to us, ‘Listen, that’s amazing, but we’ve done our market research out there and audiences don’t want to see more than one superhero on screen at the same time.’
With the success of films like Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame, which was the highest-grossing film of all time for a limited period, the studio could not have been more wrong and fans would have received an Invincible film 20 years ago.
Invincible Makers Wanted To Aim The Series At Adult Audiences
Robert Kirkman’s comic book series Invincible may start out as a coming-of-age story of a superhero but it tackles various themes that are aimed at more mature audiences. The makers of the animated series reportedly wanted to stay true to the essence of the comics while also keeping the art style reminiscent of children’s animated shows.
Skybound Entertainment CEO David Alpert mentioned that after the Avengers films, they wanted to create a new lane where they could thrive and hence chose this style. He said,
There’s no hour-long animation, there’s no drama. So the idea of being like, ‘Hey, what if we did a show that really looked like that after-school show that we all grew up with, but we treated the characters seriously and was R-rated’? We’re going to punch people in the half. We’re ripping people’s heads off. We’re, going to beat them upside their heads with their arms.
Alpert also mentioned that they were discouraged by many to keep it PG-13 or to make it a half-hour episode, but they were adamant about presenting it the way they intended.
Invincible is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
