With Netflix buying Millarworld it seems as if their first order of business is to create a new comic and Mark Millar has just announced that it will be called ‘The Magic Order,’ a world hidden just under the surface of our own full of forbidden magic that no one knows about! For what appears to be centuries, an order of five magical families have turned back the darkness and kept humanity safe. The largest of the enemies of mankind have long been defeated and now while they still guard us in our sleep, something new has come to the table and is picking off these families one at a time.
Sounds like something creative that could also be adapted to a Netflix series. In the book Millar has teamed up with the artist Olivier Coipel who worked closely on Marvel event books such as the “House of M” and “Siege” runs.
For the plot itself, Millar wanted to create something magical that could actually be related to by a mass audience. He feels that fantasy often can lose that personal connection to many who are more able to wrap their mind around superheroes than magic:
“Fantasy I think can be off-putting for people because it’s often missing a human angle, a realistic hook that makes it open to anyone. So my idea with The Magic Order was to take something that’s essentially about a secret order of good wizards who got rid of all the bad things hundreds of years ago, but live quietly among us now with blue-collar jobs and ordinary domestic lives. They have this secret life, but to the outside world it’s all very normal and it makes the idea look more like The Sopranos than Lord of the Rings.”
Being part of Millarworld doesn’t mean that this is going to be a light hearted piece of fantasy, as one could guess. In fact, the way he puts it:
“It’s all about accessibility, and the big idea here is that these are the guys who keep the world as rational and normal as it feels to us now. These guys are out there cracking heads in the shadows so we can all sleep safely in our beds at night. That’s the deal and the ancient promise they made to mankind: five families across the world who take care of things whenever they’re needed. It’s R-rated adult fantasy. Something for the kids who grew up 10 or 20 years ago loving all-ages fantasy in cinema, but now wanting something a little tastier.”
He is very excited to be working with Olivier on the art for it as he’s “been trying to get him for almost 10 years” and thankfully “Netflix is very persuasive” so he was finally able to make it happen. As to the chances of us seeing this comic end up on everyone’s favorite streaming service?
“Millarworld was always, first and foremost, a comic book company, but since we sold to Netflix it’s obviously become something that crosses all media. If something was turned into a movie, that was a lovely novelty in the past, whereas now when I’m creating stories as a member of staff, I need to keep my eye on the whole picture. We’re thinking of these as movies and TV shows, and the ones we feel would be great for comics will also appear as comic books.”
That one wasn’t really a straight answer but it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if many of the new content from Millarworld going forward might end up with a movie or series option on the network. I have no doubt with their losing of Marvel that the idea of capitalizing on this creative genius for new shows was a major selling point for them.
Are you looking forward to checking out ‘The Magic Order’ when it is released? Will Network be planning on making either a movie or television show out of it as well? Share your thoughts below!
Source: Entertainment Weekly
