With every new trailer or image of the new Hellboy: The Crooked Man, fans seem to miss actor Ron Pearlman in Guillermo Del Toro’s Hellboy even more. The latest image of Jack Kesy’s iteration of the Dark Horse comics character seems to have irked fans again.
The upcoming film is based on creator Mike Mignola’s limited series of the same name and the comic-book writer has reportedly co-written the screenplay. This is the second reboot of the franchise in the last five years as David Harbour played the previous iteration of the antihero in the panned 2019 film Hellboy.
Fans Hate The New Hellboy Image From Jack Kesy’s The Crooked Man
Mike Mignola’s Hellboy has just had the worst luck. Despite landing incredible talent like Guillermo Del Toro and Ron Pearlman in the early 2004’s Hellboy and its sequel, the third film in the franchise never got made and in 2019, the makers rebooted it with David Harbour.
However, Harbour’s Hellboy was heavily panned by critics and fans alike, and the franchise seemed to have gotten yet another reboot within five years. The upcoming film Hellboy: The Crooked Man stars Jack Kesy as the titular half-demon in an adaptation of one of the character’s most beloved stories. Mignola has reportedly co-written the script.
Despite the creator’s involvement as a producer and screenwriter, the new film has not impressed fans. The trailer from earlier this month received much flack for its low-budget feels and now the latest image of Kesy in the role has fans going crazy.
The film has also raked controversy for allegedly using AI to create art and CGI for the visuals, which many fans feel could have been avoided (via The Credits). However, these reports have been denied by the makers.
Hellboy Creator Believes The Crooked Man Is The Best Of The Franchise
While the reactions to the latest Hellboy: The Crooked Man image seem to be polarizing, with many leaning towards disaster, the creator of the character Mike Mignola is reportedly confident about the film. Positioned as a folk-horror film, The Crooked Man is an adaptation of Mignola’s own comic book storyline that is a cult classic.
Mignola mentioned in an interview with Variety that when he read the screenplay for the film, he felt like it was a genuine horror film, unlike the previous iterations. He said,
For years, we’ve been saying, if you’re going to make a Hellboy movie, make it small. And the perfect story to do that with is my personal favorite, ‘The Crooked Man.’ I think it’s one of the best things I’ve ever written. It’s beautifully illustrated by Richard Corben, and it’s a solid story that doesn’t involve a million different characters. Everybody actually agreed from the very beginning, ‘Yes, we want to do that one.’
While fans are worried that the low budget of the film is its weakness, the creator seems to think it is a strength and has praised director Brian Taylor’s vision.
