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Sam Raimi Contemplates Bringing Back Darkman

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Just as his classic horror movie series returns in the form of TV show ‘Ash Vs Evil Dead,’ filmmaker Sam Raimi admits he has considered reviving another of his signature properties.

Speaking to Shock Till You Drop, Raimi says he would be keen to revive ‘Darkman,’ his gothic superhero character originally played by Liam Neeson in 1990.

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Asked whether he would want to revisit ‘Darkman,’ the director says, “Yes, but not personally, not as a director, maybe as a producer, to bring that character back. I’ve always wanted to. Maybe one day we will.

“… I like the character and it is an interesting mix of ‘Phantom of the Opera’ and ‘The Shadow’ and whatever else, and I’d love to get back into that.”

Raimi’s fourth feature film as a director, ‘Darkman’ was also his first mainstream hit, topping the US box office on release. Though an original story not based on an existing comic book, the film has been cited as an early precursor of the comic book movie boom.

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Raimi had hoped to make a movie of vintage comic/pulp serial character The Shadow, but was unable to secure the rights, and so instead devised an original tale about Dr Peyton Westlake (Neeson), a scientist working on synthetic skin, who is attacked and left for dead by gangsters.

Hideously burned and left for dead, Westlake uses his synthetic skin to disguise himself as others in a plot for revenge.

As well as helping Liam Neeson on his way to leading man status, ‘Darkman’ launched Raimi into the Hollywood big leagues. As well as third ‘Evil Dead’ film ‘Army of Darkness,’ the 1990s would see Raimi go on to direct western ‘The Quick and the Dead,’ crime drama ‘A Simple Plan’ and Kevin Costner baseball movie ‘For Love of the Game,’ before going supernova with ‘Spider-Man’ in the 2000s.

‘Darkman’ also spawned two direct-to-video sequels, plus video games, comics, and an aborted TV spin-off.

Picture Credit: Universal