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Margot Robbie, Booksmart director Olivia Wilde, and Poor Things screenwriter Tony McNamara are teaming up... to bring a Rob Liefeld comic to the big screen

Forget Deadpool, Avengelyne might be Rob Liefeld's greatest contribution to cinema

Published on Tue Apr 30 2024

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We’re calling it now: Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld’s Avengelyne will be at the very least one of the more interesting comic book movies hitting theaters in the next few years, with Warner Bros currently in the process of closing a deal to bring the character to the big screen.

For those who weren’t around in the 1990s when the character made her debut — she appeared in two solo-series from Liefeld’s Maximum Press, as well as a number of spin-offs and crossovers, before moving to Awesome Entertainment, Avatar Press, and ultimately Image Comics in following years — Avengelyne is a fallen angel banished from Heaven and sent to Earth to continue her mission fighting demons and pushing the apocalypse off ever further. (It was the 1990s; that kind of thing happened a lot back then.)

Perhaps fittingly for a comic inspired in part by an actress — Cathy Christian, who was known in the 1990s as a model for promotional Vampirella appearances — there have been multiple attempts to bring Avengelyne to the screen; Gina Carano was behind an effort in 2013, with A Beautiful Mind and Batman Forever screenwriter (and current Star Trek executive producer) Akiva Goldsman marshaling an entirely separate attempt three years later.

What makes the new version so fascinating is the talent attached: according to Deadline, Margot Robbie is executive producing and packaging the project through her LuckyChap shingle, and is interested in the title role, while Booksmart and Don’t Worry Darling’s Olivia Wilde is attached as director. Perhaps most thrilling for your humble writer, Poor Things and The Great writer Tony McNamara is also attached to handle the screenplay.

With that kind of creative line-up, it’s clear to see why Warner Bros wants onboard — if nothing else, it’s almost guaranteed to be unlike any other comic book movie it’ll be surrounded by.

In a statement to Variety, Liefeld said, “This incredibly humbling journey to bring Avengelyne to life onscreen started through my relationship with super-producer Simon Kinberg who told me he had a perfect fit for the material and asked me to trust him. Next thing I’m meeting with Margot Robbie and Olivia Wilde and the connection was electric! They told me that they wanted Tony McNamara to write it, and after a pair of meetings Tony is onboard and things could not be more exciting. It’s all a result of Margot, Olivia and Simon working their magic to assemble this incredible team of creatives, all intent on creating a cinematic experience like no other!”

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Graeme McMillan: Popverse Editor Graeme McMillan (he/him) has been writing about comics, culture, and comics culture on the internet for close to two decades at this point, which is terrifying to admit. He completely understands if you have problems understanding his accent.