Attack the Block filmmaker Joe Cornish has signed on to write and direct a feature adaptation of Mark Millar‘s space hero comic Starlight for 20th Century Studios.Deadline reports that Cornish‘s longtime collaborator Nira Park — who would make a great studio head one day — will now produce alongside Simon Kinberg and Audrey Chon of Genre Films, while Brian Dukes will oversee the long-gestating project for the studio.Goran Parlov drew the comic book, which was published in 2014 by Image Comics. It has been described by Millar as both “Flash Gordon meets The Dark Knight Returns” and “Buzz Lightyear meets Unforgiven,” as the story follows a space hero named Duke McQueen who saved the universe 35 years ago, but when he came back to Earth, no one believed his fantastic stories. Now an aging family man, he finds himself called back to the skies for one last adventure when his old rocket ship shows up.
Gary Whitta (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) had been tapped to adapt the book back in 2014, but Cornish will be starting from scratch. Though I haven’t read Starlight myself, I dig the above description, and I’ve greatly enjoyed past adaptations of his work, which range from Kick-Ass and Wanted to the Kingsman movies.
Like most people, I’m a huge fan of Cornish‘s feature debut, Attack the Block, which launched future Star Wars hero John Boyega, and I also really liked his 2019 fantasy film The Kid Who Would Be King. Plus, Cornish has a writing credit on the single-best Marvel movie — Ant-Man.
Cornish is notoriously picky about the projects he gets involved, so the fact that he wants to tackle Starlight is exciting and based on the description of the comic, it’s a project that seems right up his alley. I’m eager to see who he casts as Duke McQueen, who has the kind of name that hit movies — and even franchises — are made of.
via Collider