Thanks to
MTV we now have some further news regarding
Adam McKay's (The Other Guys, Step Brothers) adaptation of Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson's
The Boys- pretty much the complete antithesis to that other upcoming adapted post-Superhero/anti-Superhero 'Powers' in terms of tone (though of course linked by subject). MTV has been talking to the Anchorman director (at the Comedy Awards), and has confirmed that the adaptation of the controversial comic is only in the formative stages right now:
I'm writing completely on my own on that, so it's taking twice as long as it should. I am actually in the home stretch. I have about two weeks left on this draft and we're going to try and get it made. It's looking pretty cool. I'm excited about it.
But more importantly, McKay also confirmed that despite the slow progress so far, he has already sat down with some prominent actors:
I've sat with some people. I really like the idea of Russell Crowe for Butcher... We met and had kind of an interesting meeting.
And not only did McKay drop that Crowe-bomb- he also confirmed something that fans of the comic property would no doubt have been wondering about since the adaptation was first announced:
Everyone knows Simon Pegg can take Hughie if he wants. I don't know what his schedule is like, though.
This was always going to be a hard sell, regardless of who McKay mentions for the roles, and thankfully the director isn't quite deluded enough to ignore that fact, while retaining his sense of humour:
You really have to wait until the draft is done to get serious about it, plus it's like a $100 million, Rated-R, anti-superhero movie, so we have to see who bites on it... I'm going Disney #1, or Nickelodeon.
Crowe's not the worst shout in the world for Billy Butcher, since his down-time demeanor isn't that far off that of the character, though I have already stated that I'd quite like to see someone like
Vinnie Jones in the role, as it would be in line with the comedic feel of the comic. And Simon Pegg is about as obvious a choice as you're ever likely to meet, since the character of Wee Hughie is actually based on him. Anyway, time will tell whether The Boys is a saleable enough property for that $100m budget (as it does not have studio representation), but it is good to note that McKay is making some serious inroads already.