Todd McFarlane understands that his directorial debut of Spawn will need to get every little detail right, and that begins with the all important phase of pre-production. As his team and the studio earmark locations, the comic book creator told the press that he needs New York City to be the central location - or at least pass off to the audience that that is the case.
Speaking with Comicbook.com this week, McFarlane admitted that he cannot afford to shoot all of his scenes in the Big Apple, forcing his cast and crew to go on the road across the country. Wanting to create a violent R-rated adaptation that is worth the price of admission, McFarlane is adamant that the setting is the first piece of the puzzle.
Detroit, Cleveland and Toronto on Spawn 2018 Tour Schedule
With filming said to be getting underway in February of 2018, McFarlane is looking to make the aesthetic as true to the comics as possible. If it is not going to be New York for real, he will find the next best thing.
"There are different places that give incentives for you to come and shoot the movies there," he explained. "So, we're going to be looking at all those given that, you know we're not going to have a big budget, so we're going to want to stretch it as far as we can, right. And so, but, at the same time given that this world takes place in New York, we're going to have to be in a place that can be somewhat convincing at times, especially for some exterior shots... though my guess, I'll probably have to do a couple pick up shots actually here in New York City, but you know, so, you're looking at places like Detroit, and Cleveland and, I'm Canadian, Toronto."
New Spawn Movie Needs a Grunge Look and Feel
As the DCEU attempt to go for a lighter tone to mimic the success of Marvel, McFarlane is unashamedly striving for a dark title that will push the boundaries. So don't expect too many set pieces in Times Square, but scenes placed in dingy corners hidden in the shadows.
"I think those are spots you can shoot and there are areas that you can do convincing New York stock especially given you know I'm not down in the stories built around Wall Street. I don't need those buildings. It's in sort of the grungier parts of town so I can find that at in other places. So, we're going to evaluate all that so cause, again, if you save $100,000 here, $200,000 here, half a million dollars here, it may allow you to do another trick or go get another actor or something. you're basically just moving the financial pieces around to get the most bang for your buck and we're going to do all that."
The filmmaker would go a step further this week on social media, giving fans a first glance at a portion of the screenplay. The screenshot is not of the highest quality, but it offers a short glimpse into the character Twitch and an interaction with Danny.
SNEAK PEEK at SPAWN MOVIE script:
Here is a tease of a (partial) early scene from the latest SPAWN Movie script. Will be getting you some big news soon!!@ImageComics #spawn pic.twitter.com/yZUWVhVqFa
— Todd McFarlane (@Todd_McFarlane) November 24, 2017
Source: Comicbook.com
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