Hero Nation Index: Swamp Thing, James Wan, Wes Craven, Guillermo del Toro

Hero Nation is the new hub for Deadlines sci-fi, horror, fantasy, superhero, and animation coverage. And the article youre reading now is theHero Nation Index, a weekly roundup of news, rumors, tidbits, and happenings in Comic-Con culture, which is dominating Hollywoods attention in unprecedented fashion. TODAY: A SPECIAL ALL-SWAMP THING EDITION

THAT THING YOU DO: The ambitious new Swamp Thing series premiered Friday on the DC Universe streaming site with a intriguing blend of the characters 1971 horror comics roots (which began in a House of Secrets classic by Len Wein & Berni Wrightson), the sublimely mind-bending 1980s mythology revamp by Alan Moore, and the supernaturally unnerving sensibilities of James Wan (Saw, Insidious, The Conjuring), the shows high-profile executive producer. Check out the intense trailer for the new series above. The show joins the intense Titans and the truly bizarre Doom Patrol on the streaming site.

ALL THINGS, GREAT AND SMALL : This latest screen version of the tragic bog creature extends the characters Hollywood story which is a surprisingly long story already. The transmogrified scientist reached the big screen twice (Swamp Thing in 1982 and The Return of the Swamp Thing in 1989) and then became a TV transplant with a barely remembered Saturday morning cartoon (1991) and then came USA Network and its rubber-suit revival for the live-action series that aired 72 episodes (1990-1993). The series was unique in its time as a modern-day tale of shambling Southern horror that adapted an award-winning comic-book brand. Later, it would be matched in those attributes when AMCs The Walking Dead began its historic lurch into television history.

MISSING THINGS: The Swamp Things big-screen legacy is like a Florida sinkhole. You measure its importance by whats missing and the size of the depression that follows it. The 1982 Embassy Pictures film was directed by Wes Craven but it was far less influential than the signature work he delivered two years later (A Nightmare on Elm Street). It cost a mere $3 million to make and it has a cheesy rubber costume to prove it didnt splurge. Some fans viewed the Swamp Thing films as an early cinematic crime committed against the comics work of writer Alan Moore but if so they were mere misdemeanors compared to felony failings of A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. I remember talking with Guillermo del Toro (not long after he wrapped the first Hellboy film) about Swamp Thing and he spoke in awed tones about the gravitas of the source material. “That one is up there, its a Holy Grail-level,” del Toro said. Time will tell if Wan and the DC Universe series have a real-deal version of truly complicated character or a Grail fail that dies on the vine. The first episode had some true great moments and touches in it, so theres no reason for anything but optimism at this point.

FORGOTTEN THINGS? PART 1: The same actor who portrayed the title character in Wes Cravens Swamp Thing in 1982 reprised the role for the 1989 sequel and all three seasons of the USA Network series. Can you name him? You can find the answer below.

ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER: The most fascinating thing about the Swamp Thing films of the 1980s is what they reveal about the Warner Bros. approach to DC Comics properties over the two decades after Superman, the landmark 1978 hit that introduced the concept of a superhero blockbuster.

Before that Christopher Reeve classic there had been just two feature films based on DC Comics properties. Superman and the Mole Men in 1950 (with George Reeves) and Batman in 1966 (with Adam West) and both were tie-ins to prominent television productions. Take a look at the list of DC-based feature films (live action and animated) that followed the mega-success of Superman, which was the highest-grossing Warner release in studio history up to that point.

1. 1978 Superman
2. 1980 Superman II
3. 1982 Swamp Thing
4. 1983 Superman III
5. 1984 Supergirl
6. 1987 Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
7. 1989 The Return of Swamp Thing
8. 1989 Batman
9. 1992 Batman Returns
10. 1993 Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
11. 1995 Batman Forever
12. 1997 Batman & Robin
13. 1997 Steel
14. 2002 Road to Perdition
15. 2004 Catwoman
16. 2005 Constantine
17. 2005 V For Vendetta
18. 2005 History of Violence
19. 2005 Batman Begins
20. 2006 Superman Returns
21. 2008 The Dark Knight

Thats 21 films in 30 years. Seven of them are Team Metropolis (five Superman films, Steel and Supergirl) and eight are Team Gotham (seven Batman films and Catwoman). Notice that Swamp Thing was just the second DC character to earn a sequel (following Superman and beating Batman by two years). Amazingly, only three title characters on that long list were even able to earn their way back to the screen in a sequel, prequel, or remake: Superman, Batman, and, yep, Swamp Thing. By that measure, Swamp Thing is a pioneering DC franchise player – the surprising B-movie brand that for decades ranked right up their with DCs A-liRead More – Source