13 Broken Comic Book Movie Franchises (And How To Fix Them)

12. Jonah Hex

Like The Spirit, Jonah Hex is a property that, whilst well known to comic book readers, is less familiar to the casual movie-goer, which is perhaps partly why the film adaptation failed. In many ways the 2009 adaptation had a lot going for it - at least in terms of marketability - despite the erratic plot, and "Wild Wild West Meets Ghost Rider" visual aesthetic, if this version was released today, it would no doubt fair better than the $10 million it managed to earn at the box office, mostly because of the Fassbender-factor, who was only on the cusp of his hot-property status at the time of release. The film remains a confused mess and it is hard to envision a continuation or reboot being sanctioned after the heavy losses it incurred. But even despite that apparent impediment, Hex is still an interesting character and is a lot more than just DC's rent-a-cowboy. One way the property could survive and thrive is via a character focussed portrayal, which strips back the visual extravagances and produces a gritty and tighter western, with a contained central arena - or in other words the Dredd Approach. In all probability this simply won't be the case and the failure of properties like Jonah Hex and The Spirit may see a hesitation to green-light lesser known comics for the foreseeable future. There is nothing to say Hex wont show up again in the DC cinematic universe, but it could be a long wait.