Two years afterHBO and Zack Snydertried to make aWatchmenTV series work, the network is starting over from scratch. The cable giant has brought onThe Leftoverscreator Damon Lindelof to develop a new TV series based on the iconic graphic novel created by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. Zack Snyder, who directed the 2009 big screen adaptation ofWatchmen, is no longer involved in this project.
Varietyreports that thisWatchmenTV series will be completely independent of theWatchmen TV seriesthat HBO and Zack Snyder were previously developing. While the cable network eventually did confirm that discussions were under way to bring this graphic novel to life on HBO, the series never came to fruition. Even then in 2015, this potential series was seen as a smart move by many, since HBO’s hit fantasy seriesGame of Throneswill come to an end in the next few years, and a violent comic book adaptation like this would likely appeal to the same audience that tunes into GoT every week.
AWatchmenseries would also give HBO its firstsuperhero TV show, in a day and age where superheroes are commonplace on the small screen. The CW has found success with four hit DC Comics shows,Arrow,The Flash,Legends of TomorrowandSupergirl, withBlack Lightningcoming next season. Fox will bring backGothamfor a fourth season this fall, while NBC debuted the seriesPowerless, which features other DC characters. Netflix will debutThe Defendersthis year, after airing hit showsDaredevil,Jessica Jones,Luke CageandIron Fist, while ABC also represents the Marvel Cinematic Universe on the small screen withAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D.returning for its fifth season this coming fall alongside the new seriesInhumans. FX has also found success with theX-MenTV seriesLegion, with Hulu recently picking upThe Runawaysand Freeform picking upNew WarriorsandCloak and Dagger. Bringing one of the most iconic comic books in history to HBO would certainly help the network stay competitive among a TV landscape chocked full of costumed heroes.
The original 12-issue series was originally published in 1986, and collected in a 1987 trade paperback novel, which was set in a world where the presence of costumed heroes had altered the course of time, with America winning the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon’s presidency stretching into the 1980s. The Watchmen were a group of beloved heroes in the 1970s, including Doctor Manhattan, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre, Rorschach and The Comedian, but after superheroes grew unpopular, the Keene Act of 1977 outlawed costumed heroes, which forced the Watchmen into retirement. After The Comedian was murdered, these heroes reunite again to uncover a vast conspiracy with wide-ranging implications.Watchmenwas listed on Time Magazine’s 100 Best Novels of All Time, the onlygraphic novelincluded on the list.
While he is best known for co-creatingLostand creating HBO’sThe Leftovers, which just ended its three-season run last week,Damon Lindelofis a die-hardWatchmenfan, who has often spoke in interviews about Zack Snyder’sWatchmenmovie. While the movie had no shortage of hype, with a talented cast including Jackie Earle Haley, Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Patrick Wilson, the movie only earned $107.5 million domestically and $185.3 million worldwide, from a $130 million budget. Given the immense size and scope of the graphic novel, aWatchmenTV series may be the most authentic way to bring this iconic story to life yet.
