Disney’s Studio division is rebooting the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, based on the acclaimed comic book franchise created by author Alan Moore and artist Kevin O’Neill, at 20th Century Studios.
Revolutionary Road and Red Sparrow writer, Justin Haythe has been tapped to write the screenplay for the film, which is being developed as an original feature for the Disney-owned Hulu. Don Murphy, who produced Twentieth’s original adaptation of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen in 2003, is back as a producer on the new iteration. Joining him is producing partner Susan Montford as well as Erwin Stoff of 3 Arts Entertainment.
Released in 2003, The critically panned film starred Sean Connery, Naseeruddin Shah, Peta Wilson, Tony Curran, Stuart Townsend, Shane West, Jason Flemyng, and Richard Roxburgh. It was the final live-action acting role for Connery before his retirement in 2006. The film was set in the late 19th century. It features an assortment of fictional literary characters appropriate to the period who act as Victorian-era superheroes. It draws on the works of Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, Bram Stoker, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H. Rider Haggard, Ian Fleming, Herman Melville, Oscar Wilde, Robert Louis Stevenson, Edgar Allan Poe, Gaston Leroux, Mark Twain, albeit all adapted for the film.
It received generally unfavorable reviews but was financially successful, grossing over $179 million worldwide in theaters, and earning rental revenue of $48.6 million and DVD sales (as of 2003) of $36.4 million, against its $78 million budget.
20th Century Studios has since tried multiple times to reboot the franchise including developing a female-centric take as well as a pilot for a series take. Neither of which ever took off. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Haythe and company are returning to the core comic books for their take and expect this to spawn a new franchise for Hulu.
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