Cinematic Universes are becoming the norm in when it comes to blockbuster movies, thanks to the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the semi-success of the DC Extended Universe. Now, Valiant Entertainment wants a piece of that pie. Partnering with Sony, Valiant plans to produce and release five movies based on its most popular characters starting with Harbinger and Bloodshot, ultimately leading to a cumulative Harbinger Wars movie.

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News has been thin since these plans were initially announced, until earlier today when it was revealed that Vin Diesel is in talks to take on the role of Bloodshot.

This potential casting seems to have come out of nowhere, especially when you look at the wishlist Valiant and Sony had put together for the character previously. Oscar Isaac, James McAvoy, Jaky Gyllenhaal, Nicholas Hoult and Mark Wahlberg were all pegged as potential actors for the role, with Diesel nowhere to be seen. But, he's a household name who just so happened to be the highest-grossing actor of 2017. It certainly seems like Valiant and Sony aren't holding back when it comes to thrusting Bloodshot into the limelight.

Who is Bloodshot?

First appearing in Rai #0 in November 1992, Bloodshot was created by Kevin Van Hook and Yvel Guichet, and named by David Chlystek. A mortally-wounded soldier, Bloodshot received his regeneration and meta-morphing abilities after having microscopic nanites injected into his blood. His memory is wiped clean, over and over again, but that doesn't stop him from attempting to learn his real identity, find out who did this to him, and make them pay.

Project Rising Spirit is the organization that subjected Bloodshot to its experiments. It had attempted to create super soldiers for decades, finally becoming extremely effective in World War II. The first wave of these soldiers were pretty much expendable, and the "Bloodshot" program was refined over the years until the version Diesel is in talks to portray was created.

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The real identity of Bloodshot has been toyed about with quite a lot over the years. In some books, the hero was said to be one Angelo Mortalli - a young gun who was quickly climbing the ranks in a New York City crime syndicate. Eventually, it's revealed that he was somebody named Raymond Garrison before he was Mortalli. It's a Jason Bourne-esque plot point that could work wonderfully on the big screen, particularly if presented as R-rated sci-fi, which Valiant and Sony plan to do.

But First...

Bloodshot is set to appear in live-action prior to the self-titled movie, though. Jason David Frank, best known as Tommy Oliver, the Green and White Power Ranger, will tackle the role in an upcoming web series entitled Ninjak Vs. Valiant Universe The product of Valiant Digital and Bat in the Sun, the series is set to debut sometime during 2018 and will feature a number of major characters from Valiant Comics.


Although an R-rated Bloodshot was originally targeted for release in 2017, Sony has since staked out 2019. Dave Wilson, Deadpool director Tim Miller’s partner in Blur Studios, is attached to direct from a script by Eric Heisserer (Arrival).