Spawn Reboot Nearing "Make Or Break" Development Stage

The Spawn reboot is nearing the "make or break" point of its development, says director Todd McFarlane. Based on the comic book by McFarlane, the 1997 superhero film follows a murdered marine (played by Michael Jai White) who is resurrected as the reluctant leader of Hell's army. A follow-up film has been stuck in development hell for years, though McFarlane remains attached as director with Jamie Foxx set to star. However, development was significantly stalled by the COVID-19 pandemic, and then the dual WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

Now, the Spawn reboot is nearing the "make or break" point of its development, says McFarlane. In an interview with ComicBook.com, the comic book creator said he is giving Hollywood one last chance to make the Spawn movie happen before going to outside investors. However, McFarlane is confident that Jason Blum, who is attached as a producer, can get a deal done within the traditional Hollywood system. Read his full comments below:

2024 is gonna be my make or break anyways, right? Either I'm gonna give Hollywood the best chance to do it and, if not, I've got plenty of outside investors waiting. So I'm trying to see if we can make the right deal within the norm of the Hollywood structure. If not, there have been plenty of examples, actually, a couple big ones last year, where people went outside the normal channels and succeeded. And people have done this before with independent movies: you make your movie and you just find a distributor. That one, I could do in a heartbeat.

Fingers crossed, I'm gonna give as much of an effort to those that live within the confines of it. Obviously, Jason Blum is one of the better ones at getting things done. They tell me I get to read the script this month, so the email's going out this week to remind them that they promised me that. Something's gotta happen, something's gonna happen, I just know myself. Something's gonna happen because if I can't figure it out inside, I'll figure it out outside. I just know myself. But, hopefully, we can figure out a deal that keeps all the parties that have been involved over the years involved.

Will The Spawn Reboot Ever Happen?

The Spawn reboot has been stuck in development hell since 1998, though McFarlane took over in 2007 and began reworking it as a new adaptation of the character. He has vowed to make the project happen, even if he has to finance it with his own money. In 2009, McFarlane started writing the script for a new Spawn movie that would be R-rated. He finished the script in 2016, and once Blumhouse became involved, McFarlane became attached as director. However, screenwriters Scott Silver, Malcolm Spellman, and Matthew Mixon were eventually hired to rewrite McFarlane's screenplay.

The writers were only 30 pages away from finishing the script before the WGA strike forced them to stop. They have since resumed work, but for now, McFarlane is still waiting for the script to be finished. Once it is, it will be shopped around Hollywood for buyers and hopefully receive funding. If not, McFarlane has outside investors waiting to finance the Spawn reboot. This is a possible path since, last year, a Red Sonja reboot was successfully developed with a more independent approach, proving it's possible to bring beloved comic book characters to life outside the conventional studio system.

The Spawn reboot is seemingly still targeting a release date in 2025.