Already getting pumped for the arrival of Vin Diesel's new cinematic universe?
We've gone and rounded up the best rumors and spoilers the internet has to offer.
These are just some of the leaked details surrounding the Bloodshot movie.
According to Geeks WorldWide, the new Bloodshot is going to be something of a take on the
classic revenge tale.
Vin Diesel plays Ray Garrison, a Marine who, after he and his wife are murdered, is resurrected
as a super-soldier.
When Garrison's erased memories return, he sets out to exact revenge on the man responsible
for his and his wife's deaths.
Bloodshot is based on a comic book from publisher Valiant Comics, which may explain why at first
glance the character seems reminiscent of other comic heroes who have been adapted to
the big screen, such as Deadpool, Winter Soldier, and Wolverine.
But former editor-in-chief of Valiant and co-creator of the character Bob Layton assured
Deadline in 2018 that this is a unique project.
He insisted that he and Bloodshot writer Kevin VanHook:
"...worked very, very hard to give Bloodshot a voice that was very different from those
other characters."
Layton also said Bloodshot's filmmakers have approached the film with the understanding
that audiences know comic films.
He explained,
"The filmmakers are embracing the current movie-going audience's knowledge of comic
book storytelling and have produced something very fresh and subversive to the genre."
At the beginning of 2018, DMG Entertainment, the $6 billion media company which co-produced
2012's Looper and 2013's Iron Man 3, took full control of Valiant Entertainment.
DMG founder Dan Mintz announced:
"Our priority is to build upon Valiant's vast universe of characters from a filmmaker's
perspective.
I'm excited to immerse Valiant's fans well beyond the stories we tell cinematically,
from publishing to gaming to theme parks and beyond."
DMG and Valiant originally set up a partnership deal in 2015, which included plans for both
film and television.
So it isn't surprising that Bloodshot is tabbed as only the beginning of a future franchise
for the company.
Deadline reported that DMG, Valiant, and Sony had made plans for a five-film series that
would include Valiant's Bloodshot and Harbinger, as well as a shared crossover film called
Harbinger Wars.
In a 2017 interview with Den of Geek, newly tapped Bloodshot screenwriter Eric Heisserer
spoke on the importance of not relying on related films or sequels when approaching
a franchise film.
Heisserer, who's also been hired to write the Harbinger script, said he wanted to focus
on the films as though they were self-contained stories.
He dished:
"My goal was to make a great Harbinger script and a great Bloodshot script, and if audiences
love those stories, and we were honored enough to come back and revisit those characters,
great."
In his interview with Deadline, Bob Layton expanded on the idea that Bloodshot wouldn't
just be another comic franchise film, saying,
"They're really focusing on Vin's character and it really seems to be a more character-driven
movie, rather than just a lot of big explosions…"
Explaining how comics films tend to rely too heavily on third act fight scenes, Layton
said the key to a good superhero film is to keep the focus on the character, as opposed
to making it a, quote, "giant roller coaster ride."
In July 2018, sources told Key Collector Comics that two villains would appear in Bloodshot.
The first to be identified was the computer-obsessed Ax, who made his debut in Harbinger #3.
His thirst for technology would eventually lead him to seek out Bloodshot in order to
steal his nanite-enhanced blood.
The Wrap reported that Fantastic Four's Toby Kebbell would be playing the character.
At the same time, The Wrap confirmed that Game of Thrones actor Johannes Haukur Johannesson
had been added to the cast as a second villain, although who exactly he would be playing was
still unknown.
According to IMDb, however, Johannesson is listed as portraying a character named Nick
Baris.
Since it's been established that the film's premise will differ from the comics, it's
still hard to say who exactly Nick Baris is in the Bloodshot universe.
When The Wrap first reported that Vin Diesel was in talks to star in Bloodshot in January
2018, the film had been described as an
"R-rated take on the comic adaptation that will be tonally and aesthetically influenced
by high-concept, sci-fi blockbusters of the late '80s including Robocop, Terminator, and
Total Recall."
That R rating seemed to mean that Bloodshot would be following in the footsteps of other
recent, non-traditional comic films like Logan and Deadpool.
"That does it!
Oh!
Canada, that's not good."
More recently, however, it's looked as though Bloodshot could potentially be going for a
PG-13 rating.
As noted by DiscussingFilm, which shared the film's first full synopsis in March 2019,
a PG-13 rating would allow Sony to reach a wider audience, as well as a "consistent wider
market" for the studio's planned Valiant Cinematic Universe.
Since the character is known for its "hard R" persona, the decision to give the movie
a more family-friendly edge may wind up backfiring for Sony.
For fans familiar with the Bloodshot comic series, Ray Garrison's look is pretty unmistakable;
pale skin, black hair, red eyes.
He also has a penchant for running around without a shirt on.
So when Vin Diesel posted the first image from the film to his Instagram account in
January 2019, it wasn't exactly what fans were expecting.
The image, which shows a pretty regular-looking Diesel in a camouflage jacket, aviator shades,
and without any hair, is a far cry from the Bloodshot of the comics.
Diesel captioned the pic:
"Ray Garrison is a central character in the Valiant Comic Universe…And for me personally,
one of the [most] complex characters I have been fortunate enough to play.
Hope to make you proud…#BLOODSHOT"
Of course, it's entirely possible that this first image is of Ray before his forced nanite
procedure, and that in the coming months we'll be able to see more of the character from
Valiant's pages.
But it's certainly a start.
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