Netflix has become thePet Semataryof box office flops in recent years, somehow having the power to bring huge audiences to forgotten, panned, and ignored movies that didn’t get a fair crack of the whip on their original release. One such movie is the 2019 reboot ofHellboy, starring David Harbour in the titular role, which discovered a new life on Netflix that directorNeil Marshallhas been pleasantly surprised by.
Hellboy Reboot
AsHellboygears up for its latest reboot attempt inHellboy: The Crooked Man, Marshall spoke toScreenRantabout the recent success of his version of the comic book character thanks to Netflix, and the love being shown to it that was missing fromits disastrous box office release in 2019. While the director noted thatHellboywill “never be my favorite film,” he was happy that people have been able to discover it on streaming in a way they didn’t in movie theaters. He said:
“I have seen the trailer [for The Crooked Man], but I think it would be be unfair of me to pass any kind of comments on somebody else’s version of Hellboy at this stage, given all the s–t that I got for it. [Laughs] I think it’s great that it’s finding an audience, that my one is finding an audience now. I was in Spain last weekend for a film festival, and they screened Hellboy there in Spanish, and the audience loved it. I had lots of people coming up and saying they wanted my autograph and signing Hellboy stuff. So, I guess it’s building a fan base over time. It’ll never be my favorite film of my body of work, but I’m glad that people like it, for sure. I mean, as a filmmaker, it’s difficult to disassociate the experience of making it with the finished product. But, you know, if people see the finished product and take it at face value, and they enjoy it, great for them. I’m very happy.”
Hellboy: The Crooked Man is Already Dividing Opinion
While many Hellboy fans will stand byRon Perlman being “their Hellboy”thanks to his role in Guillermo del Toro’s movies based on the franchise, that kind of thing doesn’t usually bode well for those who follow in their footsteps. That was true of David Harbour’s take on the character, and nowThe Crooked Manis already drawing some very outspoken views based on just the trailer alone.
Starring Jack Kesy in the title role, the initial reactions to the first teaser for the September release were not exactly positive. Many asked, with all seriousness, if the movie was meant to look like a bad fan film, while others simply went straight for direct comparisons with both del Toro and Marshall’s versions. While the new take on the franchiseleans into the horror aspects of the Hellboy comics, and the R-rated certificate that comes with it, there are a lot of fans who need to be won over. With creator Mike Mignola onboard, you would assume that the film will be faithful to the source material. That could go a long way to redeeming the feature in many eyes. However, that is something we won’t see happen untilHellboy: The Crooked Manis released on June 23, 2025.
