One of the hallmarks of Marvel's Epic line in the 1980s, Jim Starlin's “Dreadstar,” has been optioned for the big screen by Benderspink and Illuminati Entertainment.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, J.C. Spink of Benderspink is a fan of the creator-owned comic and pursued the rights when he found out they were available. Spink will produce with Illuminati”s Ford Lytle Gilmore.
Vanth Dreadstar was introduced in “Epic Illustrated #3” as a part of Starlin's long-running “Metamorphosis Odyssey,” which was told in the magazine series, two graphic novels and eventually a “Dreadstar” ongoing series from Marvel's Epic Comics that was written and drawn by Starlin. After 26 issues, the comic moved to First Comics, and Peter David and Angel Medina took over as the creative team with issue #41. In the 1990s, Malibu Comics' Bravura imprint released a six-issue “Dreadstar” miniseries. Collections of the series have been published by Slave Labor Graphics and Dynamite Entertainment.
In the comics, Dreadstar is the sole survivor of the Milky Way galaxy and leads a ragtag group that includes the cyborg sorcerer Syzygy Darklock, catman Oedi and Willow, a blind cybernetic telepath, as they become involved in an intergalactic war between the Church of The Instrumentality and the Monarchy.
“Dreadstar” isn't the first Starlin creation to make it to film, as it follows Thanos, who appeared in “The Avengers,” and Drax the Destroyer and Gamora, who will appear in this summer's “Guardians of the Galaxy.”