Another year, another reminder from Todd McFarlane that Spawn is still up for a reboot.  Originally adapted into a live-action feature way back in 1997 before comic book movies were welcomed into theaters with open arms (even as comics themselves were enjoying an uptick in popularity), the McFarlane creation proved a worthy adversary to long-established heroes and anti-heroes from Marvel and DC.  However, as the two comics-publishing giants continue to see cinematic success in the new millennium, Image Comics' properties have yet to catch fire.  McFarlane hopes to change this with a film reboot, but instead of a superhero slant, he's aiming for a horror/thriller (?).  Hit the jump for more.

The Gate reports

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(via Heat Vision) that McFarlane is busy trying to tie up loose ends in his planned Spawn reboot in order to get the picture off the ground starting some time next year.  He's been teasing this for a number of years now.  Why the delay, you ask?

"The thing that keeps slowing it down is that the negotiation I’ve done is I write, produce, direct, but I’ve got to push a lot of my other endeavors off to the side so I can just get tunnel vision on it. Everybody at my company is now going, ‘We’ve got to find Todd the time to finish all this.’"

Although this would likely slate the film for a release in the crowded movie market of 2015, McFarlane has a different take on Spawn that would distance it, wisely or not, from the superhero market:

"I think it's a quick shoot. It's not going to be a giant budget with a lot of special effects, it’s going to be more of a horror movie and a thriller movie, not a superhero one. I’ve got so many people phoning now that I’ve got to get it done. I’ve made some promises to people this year."

As for casting, I certainly have some dream actors I'd like to see take on the mantle of Al Simmons/Spawn (as do most fans, I presume), but McFarlane hasn't confirmed any specifics:

"We've had some big names […] come into the office and go, 'We want to be in it.' Sometimes they give me their pitch, I give them my pitch, I go, 'We can get in it, this is how it goes,' and so those types of actors–Academy Award guys–they’re going, 'As soon as that scripts done, we’re going.' So once we get this thing done, we’ll get it off the ground with some big names."

So where are we at, exactly?

"[The producers] want me to deliver the script by the end of the year, which would basically mean we'd be shooting next year. So, that's the goal right now."

For those of you who are interested in hearing straight from McFarlane himself, especially as it concerns his toy line, watch the following video interview (via The Gate):

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Image via Image Comics