The Lost Boys was a landmark of ’80s horror, released at a time when the two Coreys were forces to be reckoned with at the box office and big hair was the name of the game. Despite bringing in $32 million at the box office on a budget of $8.5 million, a sequel didn”t emerge until 2008, when the direct-to-DVD followup The Lost Boys: The Tribe (starring original cast member Corey Feldman, with a cameo by the late Corey Haim) was released to withering reviews but impressive numbers, with nearly $6 million in sales for Warner Premiere. That was followed by 2010″s The Lost Boys: The Thirst, also starring Feldman.
Here”s the thing: I doubt many fans of the first movie consider the two direct-to-DVD followups to be worthy successors to the Joel Schumacher-directed original, which was critically well-received at the time and remains a beloved title to this day. Here”s another thing: they”re never going to get the sequel they wanted…at least not in movie form. Haim died in 2010, Feldman is…I”m not sure where, and I doubt most of the rest of the cast would have any interest in reprising their roles (though don't quote me on that).
So if we can”t have a movie sequel that lives up to its predecessor, how about a comic book sequel? It”s an interesting idea that Vertigo is testing out with a new Lost Boys series set to hit shelves on October 12, which will serve as a direct followup to the vampire classic and feature the surviving characters from the first movie. Written by Tim Seeley (Grayson, Nightwing, Hack/Slash) with art by Scott Godlewski and Patricia Mulvihill (The Dark & Bloody) and covers by Tony Harris, the series “promises to deliver a gruesome and stylish return to the bloody boardwalks and big hair of 1987,” according to Variety.
Here”s the plotline:
In the new miniseries, Santa Carla, California, is on edge. The eccentric coastal town and haven for the undead was finally returning to “normal” after its last supernatural scuffle left the local vampire coven”s leader dead and gave newcomers Michael and Sam Emerson a housewarming both violent and bizarre. Now the brothers must once again team up with militant vampire hunters Edgar and Allan Frog as a new gang of ruthless, stunning, life-sucking nightcrawlers known as the Blood Belles emerges from the aftermath to collect Michael”s love interest and their lost sister, Star.
“I saw The Lost Boys at a formative time in my life, when a VHS, a VCR and a summer afternoon were a perfect escape into a crazy world of biker vampires with mullets and monster-fighting hippy grandpas,” Seeley told Variety. “The Lost Boys was one of my entry points into the horror genre, and I”ve been fascinated ever since. Getting the chance to write a sequel to the film, featuring the original characters, and getting to work with Scott, Patricia and Tony is truly a high point in my comic book-making career.”
I like the idea of a comic book sequel that adheres to the look and style of the original movie, and it sounds like the team that”s bringing it together has a real understanding of what made the first film work. In a perfect world, we”d have a Lost Boys movie sequel that was able to recapture the magic of its predecessor. But as the trials and tribulations of the two Coreys make plain, our world is far from perfect. For the world as it is, the Vertigo series is going to have to be good enough.
You can check out some Variety-exclusive artwork from the first issue over at their website.