While Red Sonja may not be one of the more well-known comic book characters, she does have the distinction of having already led her own movie. 12 years after she debuted in the pages of 1973's Conan the Barbarian #23 at Marvel Comics, the character was played by Brigette Nielsen on the big screen, and since the start of the decade, there have been numerous attempts to get Red Sonja back in theaters. The latest update is that X-Men director Bryan Singer is being eyed to direct the Red Sonja reboot for Millennium Pictures.
Nearly a year after Millennium announced its renewed efforts to finance and produce a new Red Sonja movie, THR dropped the news that Bryan Singer is in negotiations to helm this big return. Sources who spoke to the outlet said Millennium is would pay Singer "top dollar" for this job, and it is described as a "step toward rehabilitating the director's image" following the controversy that's surrounded him. Of course, Singer already has plenty of experience when it comes to comic book adaptations, as he's directed four of the main X-Men movies and Superman Returns.
Within the last year, Bryan Singer has been a controversial figure on two fronts. In December 2017, three years after Singer was accused of sexually assaulting a minor in the late 1990s, the director was sued by a man claiming that Singer raped him in 2003. Then there was Singer's time on the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, which ended when he was fired from the production after Thanksgiving break last year. It was reported that Singer had failed to return to set after the break, which Singer attributed to having to help one of his parents as they dealt with health problems. However, sources stated that Singer had also frequently shown up late to the Bohemian Rhapsody set and clashed with star Rami Malek multiple times. Eddie the Eagle's Dexter Fletcher ended up replacing Singer, although the latter will still be credited as director. In any case, Millennium believes that Singer is the right person to tackle Red Sonja, although it remains to be seen if a deal will be finalized.
Although Red Sonja started out as a Marvel Comics creation, in recent years she's been fighting the forces of evil within the pages of Dynamite Comics. When the movie reboot was announced back in 2010, Robert Rodriguez and Rose McGowan were attached to direct and star, respectively, but those plans later fell through. X-Men: First Class' Ashley Miller is writing the Red Sonja screenplay, and Millennium is hoping that by bringing in the same audience that enjoyed Wonder Woman, this will launch a franchise.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates on how Red Sonja is developing, but for now, feel free to look through our 2018 release schedule to plan your trips to the theater for the rest of the year accordingly.
