'Hellboy' reboot news: Movie production looks to be headed for Lionsgate

Promotional picture of "Hellboy."Facebook/hellboymovie

The "Hellboy" reboot looks to be going as planned as shooting is slated to start later in fall. David Harbour of "Stranger Things" fame is set to star as the superhero based on Mike Mignola's comics series creation.

The reboot is in final negotiations with Lionsgate which is best known for "The Hunger Games" series and the "Saw" franchise. The new movie will be titled "Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen" which has attached Neil Marshall to direct. Some of Marshall's notable TV credits include "Game of Thrones," "Hannibal," and "West World." His directed movies include "The Descent," "Centurion," and "Doomsday."

Marshall expressed in a recent interview with Mick Garris of the Post Mortem Podcast that he's not afraid to make an adult "Hellboy" movie if the story calls for it.

"We can make the movie we want to make. It's not like I'm going to force it to be R-rated, but if it happens to come out that way, just because of my own sensibilities, then fine. And nobody's going to stop us," he explained.

According to BoxOfficeMojo, with the success of the R-Rated "Deadpool" which went on to make $783 million worldwide on a $58 million budget, Marshall has reason to take things in a different direction.

The first two productions of "Hellboy" received PG-13 ratings and were managed by different companies. "Hellboy" was produced by Revolution Studios and distributed by Sony Pictures back in 2004, while "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" was produced and released by Universal four years later.

The earlier films were written and directed by Guillermo del Toro who wanted to helm a third "Hellboy" movie but was shelved because of budget constraints. Since then, producers had waited for a reboot of the franchise instead.

"Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen" will start shooting in September and is expected to get a 2018 release date soon.