WATCHMEN Artist Dave Gibbons Says The HBO Series is " What The Fans Need, Not What They Want"
Damon Lindelof has made it very clear that the new Watchmen series coming to HBO is not and adaptation of the graphic novel. It will tell a new story set in the same universe and expand on that. Lindelof previously explained that "Watchmen embraces the nostalgia of the original groundbreaking graphic novel while attempting to break new ground of its own."
Watchmen artist Dave Gibbons recently opened up about the series and sheds some light on what we should expect. He seems to love what Lindelof is doing with the series and tells Deadline that vision for the property is "exciting, entertaining, and absolutely worthwhile."
He goes on to note that the plan is for the series to "subvert the basic idea of what it means to be a superhero." He then makes an interesting comment regarding the series could end up being "what the fans need, not what they want."
That’s an interesting statement. For the most part, fans seems to like the direction that Lindelof is taking the series. I don’t think hardcore fans want to see a direct adaptation of the graphic novel. I personally want to see what Lindelof is doing with this series.
When talking about the new characters that will fill the story, Lindelof said:
"Some of the characters will be unknown. New faces. New masks to cover them. We also intend to revisit the past century of Costumed Adventuring through a surprising yet familiar set of eyes…and it is here we will be taking our greatest risks."
He also added:
This story will be set in the world its creators painstakingly built…but in the tradition of the work that inspired it, this new story must be original. It has to vibrate with the seismic unpredictability of its own tectonic plates. It must ask new questions and explore the world through a fresh lens. Most importantly, it must be contemporary. The Old Testament was specific to the Eighties of Reagan and Thatcher and Gorbachev. Ours needs to resonate with the frequency of Trump and May and Putin and the horse that he rides around on, shirtless. And speaking of Horsemen, The End of the World is off the table…which means the heroes and villains–as if the two are distinguishable–are playing for different stakes entirely.
The cast for the series includes Regina King, Jeremy Irons, Don Johnson, Tim Blake Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Adelaide Clemens, Andrew Howard, Tom Mison, Frances Fisher, Jacob Ming-Trent, Sara Vickers, Dylan Schombing, Lily Rose Smith, and Adelynn Spoon.
Lindelof wrote and is executive producing the series and Nicole Kassell will direct and also executive produce. It will premiere sometime in 2019.