It's no secret that comic book movies are everywhere. Between the Marvel Cinematic Universe, DC Extended Universe, and X-Men franchise, there is no shortage of superheroic adventures hitting theaters. But every studio wants to get in on the action, and as such reboots are on the table. Case in point: the upcoming Hellboy movie starring Stranger Things' David Harbour. None of the original actors are returning for this iteration, including Doug Jones' Abe Sapien. It's unclear if the fan favorite character will pop up in the next movie or a possible sequel, although the actor has some sage advice for whoever eventually takes the mantle of the blue guy.
If and when Abe Sapien does enter the storyline in subsequent movies, I honestly would not have any advice for anyone besides have patience with the make-up, but otherwise make the character your own. And, also, anytime you take on a comic book character you must know your source material. The fans depend on it, the fans will want to ask you about it. It's an injustice to the fans of the source material if you don't know it going in. And it will help inspire you performance on film if you know the comic books that you're coming from.
The man definitely has a point. In addition to encouraging future actors to play with his signature Hellboy character, The Shape of Water star Doug Jones also wants the next Abe Sapien to properly research the character.
Doug Jones' comments to Screen Rant show the actor truly understands the comic book fans. Aside form his work in both Hellboy movies, Jones also played the Silver Surfer in Fantastic Four's 2007 sequel. It sounds like in both projects Jones was careful to do plenty of research, reading up on the source material that he's adapting onto the silver screen. Neither Silver Surfer nor Abe Sapien had previously been seen in live-action, so the pressure was on to deliver an informed performance that comic book fans would be proud of. While Rise of the Silver Surfer was pretty disastrous, you have to respect Jones' work ethic and respect for the genre.
It should be interesting to see how the new Hellboy separates itself from the originals. Guillermo del Toro's franchise was only a few years ago, so the pressure it on to deliver something unique that perhaps improves upon the original two movies. While David Harbour is playing the title character and Ian McShane is the new Trevor Bruttenholm, many of the characters are not being used in the reboot. This includes Abe Sapien, as well as Selma Blair's Liz Sherman. The upcoming blockbuster will focus on mystical villains, hopefully crafting something unique in the process.
Hellboy will arrive in theaters January 11, 2019. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
