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Hellboy: The Crooked Man Director Brian Taylor Explains Why The Movie Is A Classic Horror
Director Brian Taylor has unveiled a distinct vision for his upcoming film, Hellboy: The Crooked Man, promising a departure from previous cinematic iterations of the iconic comic book character.
Director Brian Taylor recently shared how his take on Hellboy: The Crooked Man differs from Guillermo del Toro's previous portrayals of the beloved comic book character. As fans were able to grasp from the first coupling of trailers that have been released, the film takes quite a turn towards the darker side of things; however, Taylor asserts his version grounds itself in horror. As he explained in an interview with GamesRadar+ during San Diego Comic-Con, "It's a horror story, it's a horror film – it's very simple," which sums everything up regarding his approach.
Taylor explained that he approached this adaptation in the same way he would a Stephen King story: true to the original text, to bring the material alive as honestly and passionately as humanly possible. He hoped the fans of the original comic book would receive this faithful interpretation warmly, as, from what early responses were received from those who had seen the teasers, it seemed overwhelmingly positive, with many recognizing a strong connection to the source material.
One of the more prominent features of Taylor's vision was that The Crooked Man had to stand on its own, separate from previous Hellboy adaptations. He remembered there had already been three live-action movies: Hellboy in 2004, its sequel The Golden Army in 2008, and a reboot in 2019; so Taylor was bent on clearly establishing another different story. I knew we weren't gonna be referential to the other films at all. They're their own thing, they're great, but this is not a space opera, right? It's a folklore story, it's contained," he explained. Not trying to overcomplicate things, as recently done by modern cinema, Taylor instead aimed to create something aesthetically beautiful and simple in the form of folk horror.
Speaking to EW at the same event, Taylor said of fan love for del Toro's films, "They have a ton of love." But he also made it clear that his film would stick more closely to the original source material. He made it known that he wasn't going to be influenced by previous versions, saying neither he nor any of his team revisited the older films. Instead, they really worked on capturing the feel of Mike Mignola's original comic books, which he called remarkable genre and folk horror works.
More controversially, Taylor said that no one had really adapted Hellboy properly from the comic books—until now. He said even Mike Mignola, the comic book writer and artist, was keyed up to see his creation realized in this new, much more personal folk horror adaptation. Taylor described Hellboy as more intimate, expressing that if one is going to stretch the use of the word "grounded" to associate it with a movie having a horned protagonist, then it would be this one.
Taylor directed, and the screenplay for Hellboy: The Crooked Man was done by Mike Mignola along with Christopher Golden. Jack Kesy joins to play the titular character Hellboy. Others in the cast include Adeline Rudolph, Jefferson White, Leah McNamara, Joseph Marcell, Hannah Margetson, and Martin Bassindale as the Crooked Man. The film is still bereft of a locked-in release date, although it will hit theaters later this year, touting its take on the Hellboy legend.
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