Superhero films have never been more popular than they are now, and soon it won’t just be Marvel and DC leading the game. Last month, it was revealed that Valiant Entertainment has teamed up with DMG Entertainment for a partnership deal that includes theatrical films for their characters. Now it’s been announced that Valiant signed a five-movie deal with Sony Pictures, and the first properties they’re bringing to the big screen are Bloodshot and Harbinger.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, both properties will receive two feature films each before coming together for a fifth film titled Harbinger Wars, inspired by their 2013 comic book crossover. Bloodshot, which is aimed for release in 2017, will be directed John Wick duo David Leitch and Chad Stahelski, written by Jeff Wadlow and Eric Heisserer, and executive produced by Matthew Vaughn and Jason Kothari. No release date or director has been announced for Harbinger, but there are several other Valiant properties in development, including Shadowman and Archer & Armstrong. All five films will be produced by Valiant CEO Dinesh Shamdasani and the Fast and Furious franchise’s Neal H. Moritz and Toby Jaffe. Andrea Giannetti will oversee the projects for Sony.
Sony isn’t new to the superhero game, having produced the first five Spider-Man movies and the two Ghost Rider films. While the studio is still working with Marvel on Spider-Man, these Valiant characters are their opportunity to jump back into the world of superheroes on their own. Although a Bloodshot film was first announced back in 2012 under Sony’s Columbia Pictures, there was no follow-up on its progress afterwards. Now that it’s back in development, this brings the count of live-action superhero films hitting theaters in 2017 to eight.
Bloodshot is about a soldier who is injected with nanotechnology and given superpowers. After performing dangerous missions for a secret government agency, he discovers that his memories have been wiped so many times that he doesn’t remember who he used to be. Harbinger follows a group of teenagers who are outcasts of society due to their special abilities. Typically each Harbinger only has one gift, like telekinesis or teleportation, but a select few have the full range of psionic powers.
These properties will kick off Valiant’s cinematic universe, and if those other films in development get off the ground, it could grow to be as big as Marvel and DC’s, though it will take longer to get general moviegoers familiar with their properties. As cool as these characters are, they don’t have the legacy of heroes like Batman and Spider-Man. Either way, audiences will have now have more choices for their superhero movies beyond The Big Two, so get ready for Bloodshot, Harbinger, and Harbinger Wars to usher in a new world of superhero action on the big screen.
