Marvel Epic Comic Dreadstar Is Headed To The Big Screen

With the majority of superhero movies coming from the genre’s “big four” studios, Marvel, Warner Bros., Fox, and Sony, it’s easy to forget that some properties are still free agents, able to leap tall production houses in a single bound. One such character is Dreadstar, who will now be receiving the big screen treatment courtesy of Benderspink and Illuminati Entertainment.

Dreadstar was a cult favorite in the 1980’s and was created by comics veteran Jim Starlin, who left his mark in the 70’s and 80’s on a series of comic books, including Iron Man, Captain Marvel, and Warlock. He co-created Thanos, and is the man responsible for Drax the Destroyer and Gamora, who will be making their own big screen debuts later this year in Guardians of the Galaxy. 

Dreadstar first appeared in Epic Illustrated, a Marvel Comics magazine, before gaining enough popularity to garner his own series, which launched Marvel’s Epic imprint. THR broke the story about the big-screen adaptation, and describes the comic as follows:

Dreadstar told the adventures of Vanth Dreadstar, the last survivor of the Milky Way Galaxy who is torn between two powerful and evil empires, the Monarch and the Church of The Instrumentality. He is aided in his battles by a motley crew of survivors, a mystic by the name of Syzygy Darklock, a telepath named Willow and a cat-man called Oedi.

J.C. Spink (The Hangover trilogy, We’re The Millers) will produce along with Ford Lytle Gilmore. Spink calls Dreadstar one of his favorite science fiction stories growing up (second only to Star Wars), so he’ll be likely to seek an adaptation that lives up to his own expectations. At this point in time, there’s no screenwriter in place, so put this film on the backburner for now as it could take a while for things to start moving forward.

Tell us, if you read Dreadstar in the 80’s, do you think it will make for a good film? Let us know in the comments below!