Zack Snyder, the director known for such films as 300 and Man of Steel, and who is currently finishing Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, is speaking with HBO about bringing a TV show based on Watchmen to the network. Snyder also directed the film version of Watchmen in 2009. Few details are known at this point about the project, but sources for Collider have confirmed both parties’ interest.
It is unknown if this series would be based on the original Watchmen comic (which the film was also based on) from Alan Moore in 1986-1987, the Before Watchmen prequel series that began in 2012, or perhaps would even be an entirely original production based in that universe. Watchmen takes place in an alternate universe 1980s, where superheroes are commonplace. All of these superheroes are ordinary people in costumes, except for one: Dr. Manhattan. Gaining his powers from a scientific experiment gone awry, Dr. Manhattan uses his godlike abilities to leverage the power of the United States over the Soviet Union, specifically in dominating the Vietnam War. It was a revolutionary comic, exploring a variety of mature themes and helping sculpt the comic industry into being taken more seriously in the literary landscape.
HBO may be looking to get their next big hit lined up. Even though there are many successful shows on HBO, such as Girls, Veep, Silicon Valley, and True Detective, their true draw is the smash hit Game of Thrones. Although it is still going strong, HBO will most likely want another show for the action-starved audience to get sucked into before Game of Thrones wraps its story in the next few seasons. A series based in the Watchmen universe would be fundamentally different than Game of Thrones, but could scratch a lot of the same itches that the high-concept fantasy series does. Murky loyalties, dark subject matter, occasional wicked sense of humor, some supernatural elements, and of course plenty of violence and sex. If the show does move forward, don’t be surprised to see plenty of “I watch the Watchmen” merchandise. I’ll take my royalties check now, HBO.
Even though this is all in very early stages, do you like the sound of an HBO Watchmen show? Who would you want to see cast as Nite Owl, Rorschach, Dr. Manhattan, and Silk Spectre? Would you rather see it flesh out the Before Watchmen series, or expand on the world of the aged superheroes from the original Watchmen comics? Let us know!
