Although the initial reaction to Hellboy being rebooted has been somewhat mixed, fans of the series will no doubt be pleased by how Neil Marshall is going to attempt his own adaptation.

In an interview on the Post Mortem with Mick Garris podcast, Marshall explained what he wants his version of Hellboy - titled Hellboy: Rise Of The Blood Queen - to look and feel like in comparison to Gullermo Del Toro's version. "We’ve been granted permission to do it R-rated, which for me is just like taking the cuffs off. It’s like, OK, so now we can just make the movie we want to make. Nobody’s going to stop us. So, that’s the main (difference). And I’m sure, obviously, the success of things like Deadpool and Logan have not hurt that cause. But, also, when you go back the original material, it is kind of bloody, so I’m going to embrace that.”

Marshall went on, explaining that he plans to use CGI sparingly and use practical, in-camera effects whenever he can. Keep in mind, Marshall has a huge amount of experience working with practical effects and the like. He directed the famous Battle of the Blackwater episode of Game of Thrones, and more recently, the Battle of Castle Black episode. Marshall also directed '00s horror The Descent, which was heavy on practical effects, and the Apocalypto-meets-Rome chase thriller Centurion with Michael Fassbender and Olga Kurlyenko.

"It’s definitely going to be as practical as we can possibly make it. I love to do stuff in camera whenever I possibly can, and use CG as the amazing tool that it is, to enhance or expand upon the world, but not to use it to replace reality, when you can do it (for) real."

Hellboy and Hellboy 2: The Golden Army were both rated PG-13, which didn't necessarily make them bad films or anything, but it did certainly limit them in where they were able to take the story and how it'd play out. As Marshall points out, the success of Deadpool and Logan has meant that studios are willing to take a chance on making more adult films - and Hellboy definitely goes to some dark places.

No release date has been set for Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen.

 

Via Post Mortem w/ Mick Garris