David Harbour Shares His Approach To A Comic Book Accurate Hellboy

David Harbour Hellboy

Ahead of the film’s release next month, David Harbour shared his approach to bringing a comic book accurate Hellboy to life.

Hellboy is set to return to theaters soon, but not with Ron Perlman under the red makeup. Stranger Things star David Harbour has now taken up the mantle of the Dark Horse character in the upcoming reboot. 2019’s Hellboy is said to be more comic book accurate to Mike Mignola’s original work with the creator co-writing the script. During a set visit, JoBlo asked David Harbour about creator Mike Mignola’s involvement with the reboot:

“We talked a lot early on when I was sort of working on it. And I would just like text him kind of all the time, just like random questions. He told me that he talked a lot about his dad, that Hellboy was a combination of him and his dad, that his dad was sort of this working class, I forget what actual job he had, but some like longshoreman type guy. And so, this sort of rugged kind of job mentality was very much his dad. But the humor of Hellboy was much more Mike. Mike is like a weird kind of funny dude, like I am a weird, funny dude.”

David Harbour went on to talk about how the role differed to playing Chief Hopper on Stranger Things:

“So yeah, and then I would get into—because the funny thing about a comic is you have a framework or a structure where characters are doing things, they’re taking actions and you’re sort of like—it’s almost like ballet or something. Like you’re thrust into a framework of like, I am hitting these things, right? Like Hellboy looks a certain way, he sounds a certain way. It’s not something where when I read something like Chief Hopper on the page, I’m able to interpretively give you that. We don’t have a Chief Hopper comic, right?”

It seems David Harbour dived deep into the comics to nail the character:

“But with Hellboy, we have a comic. And so, he does certain things. He has certain gestures. He has certain looks. And I was very—studied like, all the comics and I have a whole book with just certain things that he does, just like jaw things that he does and different gestures and different ways he moves his body, ways he carries himself and stuff. And so, part of my job was to have that framework structure, but then for me to go deeper and to go into—I sort of approached it from the outside in, which is something I kind of rarely do, but it was very broadening as an artist for me, because now you have a framework and now you have to go back in and you have to find these things, where they’re justified sort of in a person’s psyche. Even though he’s a demon, I have to consider him human. He’s half-human, but I have to consider him psychologically like a human, right?”

Are you excited for the upcoming reboot? Do you think David Harbour be as good as Ron Perlman? Sound off in the comments below!

Based on the graphic novels by Mike Mignola, Hellboy, caught between the worlds of the supernatural and human, battles an ancient sorceress bent on revenge.

Directed by Neil Marshall from a script co-written by character creator Mike Mignola, Andrew Cosby, and Christopher Golden, the film stars David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane, Daniel Dae Kim, and Sasha Lane.

Hellboy will be released in theaters on April 12, 2019.

Source: JoBlo

Suicide Squad Characters That Can Appear In The James Gunn Sequel

James Gunn is directing The Suicide Squad for Warner Bros. but that comes at a cost.

When the first Suicide Squad was about to hit theaters DC fans were completely ecstatic. The trailers looked great and the feel of the movie was much different than the darkness that preceded it in Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. This movie was expected to be one of DC’s biggest hits and it turned out to be one of the biggest let-downs of all time.

Suicide Squad was bad and its reviews reflected that. It was one of the only movies I’ve ever been upset at and it made me want to leave the theater. A sequel was announced because the film did well at the box office, going through a number of drafts until James Gunn was brought on to write it. With James Gunn now officially set to direct The Suicide Squad, it looks like the film will be a bit of a soft reboot.

Last night was a bit of a DC maelstrom of news. We got the release dates and official titles of Matt Reeves’ The Batman and James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad. Both movies will be hitting theaters in Summer 2021. Throughout all of the chaos a small tidbit surfaced about The Suicide Squad: the James Gunn-directed film will be some sort of relaunch with new characters and actors. Here are the characters I think James Gunn should introduce in his Suicide Squad movie.

Amanda Waller

Warner Bros. and DC may want to reboot Suicide Squad, but it would be seriously dumb for them to recast Amanda Waller. Viola Davis was one of the saving graces of the first film and bringing her back is the smart thing to do. Amanda Waller is the one that puts the group together and she shouldn’t be changed due to a new director.

Black Manta

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II made his debut as Black Manta in Aquaman and he didn’t get much screen time. The Suicide Squad is the best place for Black Manta to receive some character development and for audiences to see him grow as a villain. Black Manta is a main squad member in the New 52 and I think James Gunn could do the character justice.

Deadshot

Another bright spot from the first film: Will Smith as Floyd Lawton, a.k.a. Deadshot. Will Smith is one of the most famous actors of all time and throughout every review of Suicide Squad his character shines. His charisma and screen presence dominated the film. Not bringing Smith back would be sabotaging the sequel as fans will expect the actor to return following his great performance.

Deathstroke

Joe Manganiello made his debut as Deathstroke in the post-credits scene of Justice League. His character wasn’t as eager for a team-up as Lex Luthor, but we could see the assassin enroll in the Suicide Squad. It could be great for Manganiello as his Deathstroke film has been put on the back-burner.

Killer Frost

This character is unlikely to show up in The Suicide Squad as she’s being heavily utilized in The Flash series on The CW. But, if James Gunn does get his hands on Killer Frost, I guarantee the character will not be a complete shitshow like in the series. Hopefully the director can make Killer Frost as villainous as possible.

Poison Ivy

Poison Ivy will definitely return to the big screen. Pamela Isley made her big screen debut in Batman & Robin with Uma Thurman playing the character and while that film is so campily terrible, fans are looking forward to a modern take on the iconic DC Comics villain. Poison Ivy is rumored to be part of a Gotham City Sirens film and a rumored Birds of Prey versus The Gotham City Siren project. Ivy could definitely make her DC Extended Universe debut in The Suicide Squad and then return for more movies.

King Shark

King Shark was supposed to be in the first Suicide Squad, but ultimately didn’t make the cut. The concept art of the character shows the cold-blooded amphibious mutant in a Hawaiian shirt looking like a totally monstrous shark. If James Gunn does decide to utilize this character it would be fun to see what he does on screen.

Bronze Tiger

Bronze Tiger was heavily featured in the first half of Arrow season 7. He was a major help to Oliver Queen during his tenure in prison. But Arrow hasn’t done a very accurate version of Bronze Tiger and The Suicide Squad could be the first place we get to see Ben Turner really let loose.

Bane

Bane is an interesting choice to join The Suicide Squad. He is a member in the comics and even the first film had some concept art featuring his mask. Fans are clamoring for Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista to join the film as the iconic Batman villain, having the actor reunite with James Gunn.

Cheetah

Kristen Wiig will make her debut as infamous Wonder Woman villain Cheetah in 2020’s Wonder Woman 1984. Maybe after the film, Cheetah gets locked up by A.R.G.U.S. and joins the Squad in present day. It would be great to see Wiig’s character be explored more in future films.

Ryden Scarnato

Ryden Scarnato

Ryden's affection for all things DC, Marvel, and Star Wars has led him to entertainment journalism at Heroic Hollywood as a News Editor.