In comic circles, the Oscar-winning John Ridley (’12 Years a Slave’) is best known for his comic ‘American Way’ and now he is bringing the work to the big screen with Blumhouse! Ridley will write and direct an adaptation of ‘The American Way: Those Above and Those Below’ which was released in 2017.
Ridley initially released the ‘American Way’ series in 2006 through DC’s imprint Wildstorm with Georges Jeanty tackling the art. The original series was set in 1962 which would make one think that the time frame could open up years of stories to be told for a franchise. However, the comic sequel, which the film is being based on, takes place in the 70s which would make the classic tales hard to shoehorn into future stories. At the very least, the most recent run of the comic is still an ongoing series and flashbacks to the older stories could still make an appearance to flesh out the movie’s plot.
The idea of ‘American Way’ is much in line with ‘Watchmen’ in that it is a socially conscious book about superheroes. The latest run has superheroes fall out of favor in public opinion and while most of them have retired by this point, one man still battles against evil in the open: Jason Fisher who is known as the New American. Fisher now sees his old partners working on both sides of the law which will only make his work even harder in the current social and political atmosphere.
It is unclear if the film will definitely be following the comic and take place in the 70s or be set in modern times. The idea is that New American was still trying to save communities while the nation was split over civil rights. This could easily be transitioned into our current era.
Are you looking forward to checking out ‘American Way’ on the big screen? Do you feel that Ridley will change the time period of his work or keep it grounded in the 70s? Who would you like to see cast in the leading role? Share your thoughts below!
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
