DC Announces New Comics For SUPERMAN '78 with Christopher Reeves and BATMAN '89 with Michael Keaton
If you're a fan of Christopher Reeves’ 1978 film Superman and Michael Keaton’s 1989 film Batman, you’ll be happy to learn that the stories for these versions of these movie characters will continue in two new DC Digital First series.
Superman ‘78 will come from writer Rob Venditti and artist Wilfredo Torres. Batman ‘89 is being developed by screenwriter Sam Hamm and artist Joe Quinones. Here are the official details that have been shared so far:
Beginning in July 2021, decades after both Richard Donner’s Superman: The Movie and Tim Burton’s Batman introduced generations of fans to silver screen versions of DC’s Man of Steel and the World’s Greatest Detective, DC is returning to these beloved properties to tell new stories set within these worlds with the publication of a series of Superman ’78 and Batman ’89 comic books. Writer Rob Venditti and artist Wilfredo Torres will capture imaginations in Superman ’78 while screenwriter Sam Hamm and artist Joe Quinones will immerse readers into Batman ’89.
Continuing the twisted adventures of DC’s Dark Knight from Tim Burton's seminal classic Batman movies, Batman ’89 brings in screenwriter Sam Hamm (Batman, Batman Returns) and artist Joe Quinones (Dial H for Hero) to pull on a number of threads left dangling by the prolific director. The gothic mentality behind the world, while still rooted in a sense of realism, helped inform many of DC’s global fans’ first impressions on the Dark Knight's Gotham. In the new Batman ’89 comic, Hamm and Quinones will help usher in the return of Selina Kyle/Catwoman and will debut a new Robin! Plus, Quinones has a vision for Harvey Dent/Two-Face that is as close to movie magic as a comic can get!
And in the vein of DC’s plans for Batman ’89, Rob Venditti (Hawkman) and Wilfredo Torres (Batman ’66) will collaborate on Superman ’78 to tell stories set within the world Richard Donner and Christopher Reeve created in Superman: The Movie. In Superman ’78, bystanders are surprised and delighted by Superman’s abilities, and Lois Lane doesn’t (yet!) know that Clark Kent is secretly Superman. The sheer thrill of seeing a man fly, leap, or stop a bullet will be reflected in this environment where Superman has just been introduced! Inspired by Donner’s classic, timeless style of superhero storytelling, in Superman ’78 Venditti and Torres will show fans that a man can truly fly.
Superman ’78 and Batman ’89 will debut with six digital chapters of each new series on July 27th. That will be followed by new chapters of each comic book for the six weeks that immediately follow. The twelve chapters of each new series will also publish as six printed comics between August and October and as hardcover collections in October (Batman ’89) and November (Superman ’78).
