JOHN WICK Scribe Set to Develop a Film Adaptation of the Horror Manga HELLSING
Derek Kolstad, the writer behind the John Wick film series, is set to developing a live-action feature film adaptation of the Japanese action-horror manga Hellsing. The project is being produced for Amazon Studios.
The manga was written and illustrated by Kouta Hirano and the story reimagines Dracula as Alucard, “a special agent bound to The Hellsing Organization, under the leadership of Integra Hellsing, great-granddaughter of Abraham Van Hellsing, to aid them in their mission to protect England and the world from vampires, ghouls, and other supernatural threats. The manga also focuses on Hellsing’s newest recruit, a female ex-police officer named Seras Victoria.”
Kolstad said in a statement:
“Ever since my brother introduced me to the Hellsing manga and anime some years ago, I’ve been obsessed with adapting it. And when Mike Callaghan and his team managed to secure the rights to then partner us up with Brian Kavanaugh-Jones and Amazon, I mean -damn, dude- this is a dream.”
Callaghan added:
“I’ve always loved the vampire genre, especially when a creator is able to put their own unique spin on it, so when Derek introduced me to Alucard and the Hellsing Organization, I knew we had something special in that tradition. Kouta Hirano’s gonzo reimagining of the Dracula-Van Helsing mythology is an exhilarating, quirky mashup of action and horror that’s unlike anything we’ve seen before. We are incredibly excited to partner with Brian and Fred at Automatik and that Amazon is on board to help us bring the wit and madness of ‘Hellsing’ to life on screen.”
Kavanaugh-Jones went on to say:
“Derek is an exceptional writer and we are so excited to partner with him on what he does very best – building rich mythology filled with iconic characters.”
Producer Jason Lust then said:
“I’m truly excited to work with this stellar team together with Amazon to realize a post-modern reinterpretation of the Dracula character that flips him on his head in an inventive and compelling way.”
Hellsing has the makings of a great action horror film, and it’ll be cool to see how it all comes together as it’s being developed.
Source: Deadline