Having made many rounds throughout C2E2’s convention floor, I can attest that there was a lot of love for Garth Ennis and Jacen Burrows’ series, CROSSED, on display. Sure, there were a lot more Ghostbusters walking around, but I saw more than a few fans shuffling about with their faces “crossed” with red paint or wearing the masks Avatar Press was handing out. One of the publisher’s announcements at the show concerned a movie adaption of CROSSED being fast-tracked by Kevin Spacey’s Trigger St. Productions. Similar to KICK-ASS’ business model, they’re raising independent financing with a screenplay that Ennis is actually writing. While THE BOYS and PREACHER have been in development for years, this looks like it might be making it to theaters first. And I’m sure that, just like KICK-ASS needed to, they’re rising their own money because the content’s surely going to be too edgy for any studio to approve.
CROSSED is a twist on the zombie Apocalypse story. It follows a pack of survivors on the run from an army of maniacs. These aren’t the undead, though, but infected humans whose inhibitions have been totally eroded, making them indulge in their most perverse impulses. If you’ve read anything from Avatar Press, you’ll know that no punches have been pulled.
As a personal aside, I’d like to mention that I got to meet Garth Ennis while I was at the show and let him know what an influence his work has had on my own writing. He was a real class act. He’d just got done with a very long signing, but still took out some out to talk to me. I hope this willlbe the first of many projects to get him wider notice in the whole entertainment continuum.
-- Tom Pinchuk is the writer of UNIMAGINABLE for Arcana Comics and HYBRID BASTARDS! for Archaia. Pre-order the HYBRID BASTARDS! hardcover now on Amazon.com.