The Environmentally Safe SWAMP THING Thread

[Secret Fawful]

So with discussion going around a bit again on the possibility of a Swamp Thing movie, I decided to make a topic for discussion on casting, story, directors, etc.

So, Swamp Thing on the big screen: discuss.

 

[Lord]

They should distance themselves from the Wes Craven film by following Alan Moore's run and making the swamp thing a monster instead of a human, and using more of that great athmosphere from his comics

 

[DarkSovereignty]

I'd love a southern gothic type vibe for a swamp thing movie.

 

[Lord]

They could make it scary and beautiful

 

[Keyser Soze]

I think Swamp Thing is one of the best properties DC has that there isn't in some stage of active movie development. On clips from the old movies/TV shows or whatever on Youtube, you'll have people who don't even know he's a comic character saying Swamp Thing is overdue another shot at the big screen.

I think between the films, the TV show, the cartoon and the toys, Swamp Thing has a cultural awareness amongst people of a certain age that surpasses many of his more "iconic" superhero contemporaries in the DCU. And by taking the work of Alan Moore as a cue, there's material to make a really deep, powerful movie that could surprise even fans of the original series, much like what happened with the new Batman films.

I actually quite enjoyed Wes Craven's original film. It had great location shooting, and some atmospheric directing, and Ray Wise made a good Alec Holland. But once we actually got to see Swamp Thing, it fell apart. It wasn't just a guy in a rubber suit, it was a guy in a really bad rubber suit. If ever there was a character who could really benefit from the advances of CGI/motion capture technology, it's Swamp Thing.

 

[Lord]

They could play with Swamp Thing's memories of thinking he used to be human but later have a twist in the end of him actually being a monster with Holland's memories

 

[Keyser Soze]

They could play with Swamp Thing's memories of thinking he used to be human but later have a twist in the end of him actually being a monster with Holland's memories

I'd probalby play it as an origin film, with a bit of tweaking. I'd have the shady Sunderland Corporation be the villains of the film, possibly with Jason Woodrue in the mix as an "independent consultant" as well. In the first act you have Sunderland heavies trying to get Alec's restorative formula and failing, and them resorting to offing Holland, and later his wife too.

Then we get Swamp Thing emerging from the deep, and picking off the various Sunderland figures who have settled in the swamp to try and continue Holland's research. This could result in a second-act sequence where Sunderland bring in the big guns and heavy weaponry to blitz the swamp and supposedly take Swamp Thing down. From there you segue into an adaptation of The Anatomy Lesson. Enter Woodrue as an expert brought in to perform an autopsy on Swamp Thing, concluding he is most definitely not Alec Holland. Swamp Thing himself discovers this news, and he wipes out Sunderland and makes his escape back to the swamp, suffering an existential crisis.

Your third act involves some kind of climactic showdown between Swamp Thing and Woodrue (who has given himself plant-based powers through a bastardisation of Holland's formula). And you through Abby Arcane into the mix somehow. Perhaps rewrite her as a militant eco warrior wanting to bring down Sunderland for their nefarious, environment-crushing practices, and Swamp Thing saves her at some point and they form a connection. Throw in some ominous references to her having an uncle people only speak of in hushed tones, and you have fodder for a sequel.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Here's the excerpt from the interview with Michael Uslan that has renewed whisperings of a Swamp Thing movie:


Now, I wanted to ask you about the Swamp Thing rumors. I know you produced the television series. What is going on with bringing Swamp Thing back to the big screen?

Michael E. Uslan: I really can't tell you. That is something you'll have to get from the good folks at Warner Bros. or DC. The last thing I'd want to do is pull the rug out from underneath that in terms of anything they want to announce or say.

SOURCE: MovieWeb


The comment doesn't have much substance, and there isn't really much to read into it. But one thing that struck me was that Uslan didn't say "No, there are no plans" or even "No comment." He said he couldn't tell us, because he didn't want to undermine any announcements from Warner Bros/DC. To me, that suggests that Swamp Thing could be in some stage of development once more.

 

[HighFivingMF]

I want Swamp Thing and Animal Man more than any other hero who has yet to receive a movie, save The Flash.

 

[Keyser Soze]

It's funny, I got Roots of the Swamp Thing for my birthday today, collecting the original Len Wein/Bernie Wrightson stories. I read the first chapter, and I have to say, though there is a bit of purple prose here and there, for the most part this origin story is still great, and has aged better than the 1980s Swamp Thing movie. I wouldn't mind them revisiting this in a future adaptation, while also incorporating elements of Moore's run.

 

[Comics N' Toons]

i would adore a Swamp Thing film and everything that Keyser Soze said in post 7 sounds very well thought out. That would be a film I could watch over and over.


I've only read the Moore stuff. Keyser's ideas sound very good.

 

[CrimsonMist]

There's a Swamp Thing script written by Len Wein from the early 2000s i believe that tried to capture both his and Moore's material in one film. And it was really, really bad. It's full of piss-poor one liners, half-assed logic and some other terrible dialogue. It felt very generic and very typical of Hollywood Summer blockbusters. It was nothing special.

Trying to split the Wein/Wrightson stuff and the Alan Moore stuff into one film doesn't work in my opinion. The gradual build from plant-man to elemental god is what works better, I think. The first film is about a man who rises from the swamps as a man who thinks he's covered in muck. The second film deals with the muckman finding out there's no hope for a cure because he's really a plant who thinks it's a man. The third film deals with Swamp Thing coming to terms as an elemental being and embraces his role as an elemental god and champion of the green.

I think doing all of that in one film is doing so at the expense of the emotional weight of the character. Swamp Thing should be EPIC.

 

[Comics N' Toons]

What Crimson said makes sense as well. You don't want the film to become a bloated Hollywood monster of a failure like a few superhero films that I shall not mention

 

[Keyser Soze]

I don't think the problem is including too much material for a single film. Alec Holland dying, rising as Swamp Thing, realising he's not Alec Holland after all, and coming to terms with that, is a nice, meaty character arc for a 2 hour film, and perfectly managable. Then you get to explore deeper ideas in the sequel, like the pull of abandoning his humanity and filling his destiny as an elemental VS the desire to pursue his blossoming love for Abby.

The problem, therefore, isn't one of content, but rather of tone. This should not be a summer action blockbuster. It should be placed very much within the horror genre. The Shining was once described as "the first epic horror movie." And I think that's a term I could see applied to a Swamp Thing film series: epic horror.

 

[Dark Knight]

They could play with Swamp Thing's memories of thinking he used to be human but later have a twist in the end of him actually being a monster with Holland's memories

Hmm....that would be an interesting take on it.

Guillermo Del Toro should be the one New Line/WB/DCE looks to hire to direct the Swamp Thing movie!

 

[Keyser Soze]

Hmm....that would be an interesting take on it.

Guillermo Del Toro should be the one New Line/WB/DCE looks to hire to direct the Swamp Thing movie!

Isn't Guillermo Del Toro contracted to Disney for the next 200 years?

 

[TruerToTheCore]

I'd prefer the original Len Wein version, more tragic. Although that doesn't mean they couldn't integrate some of the later (Moore) stuff.

 

[Keyser Soze]

I'd prefer the original Len Wein version, more tragic. Although that doesn't mean they couldn't integrate some of the later (Moore) stuff.

This brings up something I've been considering: in the current Swamp Thing relaunch being written by Scott Snyder, it seems they are retconning Moore's retcon, and restoring things to a scenario where Swamp Thing is going to be Alec Holland underneath all the muck rather than just a plant with Holland's memories. So perhaps a movie will stick to that set-up.

 

[Peyton Westlake]

Started this in 2005, but I do agree Swampy should be a DC character give consideration.
http://forums., but I superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=184753

 

[Lord]

This brings up something I've been considering: in the current Swamp Thing relaunch being written by Scott Snyder, it seems they are retconning Moore's retcon, and restoring things to a scenario where Swamp Thing is going to be Alec Holland underneath all the muck rather than just a plant with Holland's memories. So perhaps a movie will stick to that set-up.

Seems like it wasn't, but the real Holland is alive now, i think that a movie where he discovers that he isn't Holland in the end could be interesting, and a big twist too, A new tv show wouldn't be bad either

 

[Silvermoth]

You know who I think would be an amazing swamp thing? Forrest Whitaker. He has such a peaceful way about him but an intensity too.

He's the voice I hear when I read Alan moore's swamp thing

 

[MrsKent26]

They could make it scary and beautiful

I've never seen any Swamp Thing movies, but even I would watch a movie about something that looks this cool.

 

[Silvermoth]

Swamp thing would be a fantastic way for Warner brothers to shift gears post superman versus batman to prove that they can also make a quality, lovely, exciting film not just dark and dumb

 

[Vortigern99]

I side with those who want to see the various aspects of the character split into separate films. The first movie would be the pulp horror battle of the monsters that Wein and Wrightson created -- relatively simple action/horror film. The sequel would then deepen the material as the Moore/Bissette incarnation did, with the third film delving into the "Elemental God" territory of recent years. Each iteration of the character merits its own distinct installment in the franchise.

 

[Silvermoth]

That's a cool idea actually