Netflix Buys Mark Millar’s Comic Book Company ‘Millarworld’
I’m sure some of you will be going “Oh my god, that’s amazing!” whilst other will be somewhat nonplussed thinking “Who’s this Mark Millar guy?” For those of you in the latter category, he’s the man behind ‘Kick-Ass’, ‘Kingsman’, and wrote a lot of the Marvel storylines which were used as the basis for the films… This is major news.
“This is only the third time in history a major comic book company has been purchased at this level,” commented Millar on the acquisition. “I’m so in love with what Netflix is doing and excited by their plans. Netflix is the future and Millarworld couldn’t have a better home.”
Netflix are describing the acquisition as “a natural progression” in the company’s effort to work directly with prolific and skilled creators and to acquire intellectual property and ownership of stories featuring compelling characters and timeless, interwoven fictional worlds. And there are a LOT of those fictional worlds for them to play in, as you can see in the video they released below.
Dreams were how we got started. pic.twitter.com/t19VKE50CM
— Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) August 7, 2017
You might notice missing from that line up are ‘Kick-Ass’, and ‘Kingsman’, I suspect due to the rights having already been sold on to other film companies. It still leaves Netflix with a lot to work with – ‘Jupiter’s Legacy’, ‘Chrononauts’, and ‘Superior’ have me particularly excited.
“As creator and re-inventor of some of the most memorable stories and characters in recent history, ranging from Marvel’s The Avengers to Millarworld’s Kick-Ass, Kingsman, Wanted and Reborn franchises, Mark is as close as you can get to a modern day Stan Lee,” said Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos. “We can’t wait to harness the creative power of Millarworld to Netflix and start a new era in global storytelling.”
Millar, who runs Millarworld with his wife Lucy Millar, is one of the most consistent hitmakers in the graphic novel and comics world. In his eight years at Marvel, he developed the comic books and story arcs that inspired the first ‘Avengers’ movie, ‘Captain America: Civil War’, and ‘Logan’ (Wolverine), which collectively grossed over $3 billion in worldwide box office. Since Millarworld was started, the company and its co-creators have given birth to eighteen published character worlds, of which three, ‘Wanted’, ‘Kick-Ass’ and ‘Kingsman’, have yielded theatrical films that together have grossed nearly $1 billion in global box office.
“Mark has created a next-generation comics universe, full of indelible characters living in situations people around the world can identify easily with,” added Sarandos. “We look forward to creating new Netflix Originals from several existing franchises as well as new super-hero, anti-hero, fantasy, sci-fi and horror stories Mark and his team will continue to create and publish.”
So expect a LOT more comic book related content coming to Netflix in the not too distant future!
