Sony's Vin Diesel-led 'Bloodshot' could help Valiant Comics make a mark in 2020 despite competition from Marvel and DC
If you thought Marvel and DC are the only ones with impressive superheroes in their stables, think again. Sure, they might be the top dogs of the comic book industry but they've got plenty of competition from rival companies like Dark Horse, Image and Valiant.
Unfortunately, none of those other companies seem to have managed to make the transition from page to screen as effectively but that could all change when Sony's 'Bloodshot' movie comes out in 2020. Vin Diesel will be starring in the film as Ray Garrison/Bloodshot, a Valiant Comics character created in 1992 by Kevin VanHook, Don Perlin and Bob Layton.
He's a nanite-powered supersoldier who is basically like a mix between the Wolverine and the Punisher. The movie's screenplay is being penned by Jeff Wadlow and Eric Heisserer, best known for scripting 'Arrival' and the Netflix horror film 'Bird Box'.
'John Wick' directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch were initially supposed to helm the project but they eventually decided to step down. The project will now be directed by Dave Wilson, who you may know as the director behind the 'Love, Death, and Robots' episode 'Sonnie's Edge'.
'Bloodshot' could potentially put Valiant on the map but it's going to take a while before the company can build up a movie universe on the scale of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Extended Universe. To make matters more difficult, though Sony did intend to build up a universe of Valiant movies, the studio has now given up the rights for Valiant's 'Harbinger' to Paramount.
The 'Harbinger' comics follow a group of superpowered teens who go up against an evil corporation that wants to exploit their abilities. Sony's original plan was to do two 'Bloodshot' films and two 'Harbinger' films before doing a 'Harbinger Wars' crossover film bringing the two together. That plan is now effectively off the table since Bloodshot is the only Valiant property Sony has access to anymore.
While they may be coming into the game with a severe handicap thanks to the studio situation, Valiant Comics are no strangers to being the underdog. Though they did quite well in the '90s, Valiant went through a bit of a bad patch in the 2000s before being relaunched under new management in 2012.
Since the relaunch, referred to as The Summer of Valiant, the publisher has returned to the forefront of the comic book industry with several critically and popularly acclaimed titles. They may not be household names like their competitors over at Marvel and DC, but Valiant still has some really cool characters who could help them carve out a niche in the industry. A lot depends on how well the 'Bloodshot' movie does at the box office but considering the creative team and the cast, we'd say Valiant has a fighting chance.
'Bloodshot' will arrive in theaters February 21, 2020.