You could argue that, even with three previous films (including one reboot), that we have yet to see a comic book accurate “Hellboy” film. That doesn’t mean the previous ones are terrible–there is serious love for Guillermo del Toro’s first two–but it looks like “Hellboy: The Crooked Man” might be our first attempt at what a comic book-accurate ‘Hellboy’ film would look like.
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As seen in the trailer, “Hellboy: The Crooked Man” takes place in the ‘50s and follows the story of the BPRD as they’re tasked with taking on a supernatural evil known as the Crooked Man. The film is based on a comic book story from ‘Hellboy’ creator Mike Mignola. And it looks like the film is finally leaning into the heavy horror roots of the source material. The film stars Jack Kesy as Hellboy and is directed by Brian Taylor.
Previous attempts at making a ‘Hellboy’ film were either too focused on fantasy (del Toro’s vision) or too try-hard superhero-y (the David Harbour-led reboot). While ‘The Crooked Man’ clearly doesn’t have the same budget that those other ones did, this might be worth checking out just to see what a more horror-focused ‘Hellboy’ film would look like.
“Hellboy: The Crooked Man” is “coming soon,” but it’ll arrive for sure in 2024. You can watch the new trailer below.
Here’s the synopsis:
In the 1950s, Rookie BPRD agent Bobbie Jo Song is tasked with delivering a spider to the BPRD, but must seek Hellboy’s help when things go awry. Together, they travel to Appalachia to take on the Crooked Man, who has been sent back to Earth to collect souls for the devil.