Todd McFarlane is a legend of the modern age of comics. His contributions to Marvel and DC, the creation of Spawn, and helping establish Image Comics, have cemented his place in the history books. Although he has dabbled in almost every creative medium including toys, video games, music, and TV, McFarlane has been laser-focused over the past few years on getting a Spawn reboot on the big screen. However, this time around his plan is a lot more ambitious, as he wrote the script and plans to direct the film as well.

While at first many thought his dream of keeping full creative-control of his character on-screen was far-fetched, the fact that successful producer Jason Blum and Academy Award-winning actor Jamie Foxx have signed on for the ride is proving McFarlane knows what he is doing. CBR got the chance to speak with the outspoken creator recently and he was not only generous with his time, but was also very open about his views on superhero films and where Spawn fits into the genre in 2018. Not to mention, he drops major hints about what we can expect from this new version of Spawn and how the comics will line up with the film.

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CBR: Why do you think its important to have different iterations of Spawn for different mediums — comic books, animation, live action, video game — as well as different eras?

Todd McFarlane: I think there is two components to it: 1) Acknowledging that the character has been around for 27 years. I think that in and of itself sort of warrants not repeating the same tricks. Just to be clear, when I speak about change, I’m not saying change is better or worse. I’m just saying, at times I think it’s necessary. Then, you leave the audience to decide if they like it better or worse.

And then, 2) a component here that I don’t think many people are factoring in, is that the person that is in charge of Spawn 27 later, is the same person who was in charge of it 27 years ago. So, I believe with every fibre in my body that if Stan Lee created Spider-Man was still writing him 30-40 years later, it wouldn’t be the same Spider-Man. The reason I say that is because it’s hard creatively to keep doing the same thing over and over. The way that comic books work, and let’s just play out this example, Stan does Spider-Man for forty issues and then eventually moves on. Then the next writer comes along, in this case Roy Thomas, and he pays homage to what Stan did out of reverence. He does it for forty or fifty issues, and then he moves onto something else, and then you get Len Wein. The next thing you know, it’s been three or four decades and we’re sort of recirculating a lot of the same stuff…not exclusively, but we’re doing it. It’s just the nature of our business.

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When I let people sometimes write Spawn, their first instinct is to go, “Oh, I’m going to basically redo the first 25 issues of Spawn because that’s what Spawn is.” Instead of saying, “Hey, this is a continuum, I’ll pick up on the continuum.” That’s a long-winded way of saying, I’ve been with this guy for 27 years just as far as publication. I created him when I was 16, so it’s been a lot longer…it’s been 40 years. Just for my own sanity, I have to evolve him. Now, I’ll leave the “evolved him for the better or worse” to the audience.

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So, will we recognize this Spawn?

We’ve got 286 issues and various miniseries for me to draw from, and almost everything I’m about to do has been peppered in those pages. I’m just taking bits and pieces and creating this new recipe that will be the film version of him. Is it the animation version? No. Is it the comic book version? No. Is it the video game version? No, no, no. It’s this new, modern, 27 years-old character, movie version of him.

Give us one issue that you pulled something from.

There’s a couple I can point to, but then it would give away a couple surprises. People will just go read and go, “Okay, I know what’s coming.” So, just let me say, throughout the 27 years, Spawn has made his presence know in a wide variety of ways. I don’t know that Superman is overly dramatic about how he walks on stage when he’s about to do his dance. He’s just there. He just kind of flies in and is like, I’m here. Spawn has been a lot more varied in his introduction to the bad guys. Let me put it that way. Instead of him coming through the front door, he’s going to be coming through some back doors.

What will make this new Spawn film different than other superheroes movies?

RELATED: Spawn Reboot Definitely Isn’t an Origin Story, McFarlane Says

The thing that Spawn will enable me to do that will be slightly different than what some of the other superhero movies do — and I’m not saying it’s better or worse — is that a lot of the other heroes do the proper thing. There’s the bad guy, we’ve got to stop him, put him in handcuffs, take him to jail, and hope he never does it again. That’s the civil way to do it.

My guy is not concerned about any of that. My guy is just concerned about one thing, trying to stop evil in its tracks. And if that means it’s a little harsher than what others do, and it may even cause some pain for the bad guys, he’s not really concerned with that part of the equation. I can do that because I’m not trying to sell toys and t-shirts as part of the overall process here.

A lot of the big budget movies have this big merchandising arm to them, which is fantastic. These are billion dollar models and so, of course, nobody should be deviating from them because they’re proven. But I’m not using the same model, so I can’t try to do the same thing. If I’m not concerned about selling backpacks and keychains and toys to a bunch of 8-10 year-olds, then I think I’m a little more centered than some of the other characters owned by big corporations. So, I go okay, if this is harsh and it scares the shit out of an 8 year-old, I’m not that concerned because I’m not worried if they’re going to buy the toy. So, I’m just doing a creepy R-rated movie that I assume most people going to it are 17 or older. I’m going to tell a story that I think that audience will find interesting.

You’ve stated that you are not interested in doing Spawn’s origin story again. So, I’ve got to ask, is this even still Al Simmons?

RELATED: New Spawn Animated Series Could Follow Movie

Yeah, it’s still my same guy. He’s evolved since around #250, and it’s going to climax in issue #300. Which, coincidentally, might sync up a little bit with the movie. Who knows. But there’s been an evolution going on between #250-#300 that’s not obvious. By the time we get to #300, we are going to have a sort of new version of Spawn, in terms of power, presence, attitude -- all of the above. The first 250 issues, he was just learning the game and now he knows the playbook. And now it’s like, “Ah, that’s how this works. Okay. Time to now turn the tables.”

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Out of Jamie Foxx’s filmography, is there any specific role or roles that you feel prove he's the right person to play Spawn?

I’m not looking for a role, per se. I’m looking for these moments where I go, “That’s it!” So I can then turn it back on the actor and go — I’ve had these conversations with actors — “Do you remember this scene?” And then I ask, “Do you think you can channel that again?” Jamie has had those scattered throughout his career. I would say to anybody that has any reservations about him playing Spawn, go watch Django Unchained. And then, if you just want to see his skill set, go watch Ray. There is a guy who absorbed another human being.

The Kingdom definitely has some parallels to Al Simmons' life.

Right, same thing. There’s stuff in there where you just go, “Damn.” I’ve been looking at actors, and not necessarily the way they’re deliver their lines, but just the way they move on screen, and their attitude, and all of that. That is way more interesting, to me. I assume they’re going to deliver their lines, but I’m going, “What are they doing with their bodies while delivering them?” I’ve seen it out of Jamie and I’ve seen “the look.” There’s a couple times I’m going to need Jamie to give “the look.”

You’ve talked quite a bit about how this film is going to keep Spawn in the shadows and that it will be more about the anticipation of seeing him. So, how do you get a star like Jamie Foxx to sign on for a film where we will hardly see his face -- or the rest of him, for that matter?

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Yeah, I might have to ask him that sometime... seriously. He took a big, giant leap of faith knowing that he is not going to be on screen on all the time à la Captain America, Spider-Man, Iron Man. My sell to him was always, I think we’re starting a franchise. And the way I’ve written it, whoever steps into the role of Spawn — in this case Jamie — I think they can do the role for the next 25 years, because it is not a physicality role, it’s an acting role.

At some point — and we’ve seen it with Batman — they have to rotate the bodies because there always has to be a young, good looking person who can jump over walls. As awesome as Robert Downey Jr. is, at some point he is going to age out. Hemsworth is going to age out. They’re all going to age out. So, I go, “I think I have an idea in which you [Jamie] won’t age out. That means instead of thinking about it as one movie and how much screen time is in one movie, let’s look at it in the cumulative as it becomes an ongoing franchise and you can be the guy in that role for a long, long time.”

Now, did Jamie give any weight to any of that? I don’t know. I don’t know, ultimately, what his final reasoning was to sign on. But Jamie has read the script. He knows exactly what he’s stepping into.

You’ve created a number of different characters. So, if Spawn does well, what would be another one you would like to turn into a feature film?

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Well, lets go back. One of things I’m hoping is that Venom works. I’ve got my fingers crossed, big time because if Venom works then we get to put “From the co-creator of Venom and the producer of Get Out comes…” at the beginning of all our trailers. And all of sudden people will go, “I liked Get Out, that was an awesome movie! And I just saw Venom last month. The people involved with that are doing another movie?” I mean, BOOM! I don’t control what will or won’t happen with Venom, but I am rooting for that thing to work.

In regards to other projects and properties, I think the Spawn universe is littered with characters that I can plant seeds [about] and we could go off into their stories. I did a book called Savior, I would like to do something with that, for sure. I’ve been in Hollywood pitching and I tell them, “I’ve got a list. I’m not necessarily inclined to pitch all of this to you right now though.” I’ll wait until Spawn comes out, because, all of a sudden, all of this will have way more value.

I probably have a list of 24 ideas, ranging from dark, ugly stuff that would match Spawn, all the way down to kids stuff that could be a Pixar movie. Some of them are based on my toy properties. They’re not necessarily all comic book. Then there’s some ideas I’ve just never put into comic book form.

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Did Sony consult you at all about the Venom movie?

No. Nope.

If they did ask your advice, what would it be?

I know what my advice would be, but I don’t know if anybody has the stomach for it. It would go like this, if you’re going to do an R-rated movie, scare the shit out of them. I don’t know that they are going to go there. Hopefully there’s some creepy moments and some scary stuff, but Venom is still, in a round about way, has tendrils to the Marvel Universe. I don’t know how brave any studio can get with the characters. Although, I have to say, you had Deadpool’s R [rating] and I wouldn’t consider that R except for the F bombs, then you get Logan, and now I’m hoping things like New Mutants and Venom push it even further. And for sure, Spawn is.

Here’s a big “What If.” What if Sony distributes Spawn? Then is it possible that in the future Sony could have a crossover with Venom and Spawn? It’s possible. So, I will be presenting that possibility to the Sony executives when we get ready.

Wow, that would be crazy!

RELATED: Spawn: Expect 'Dark' McFarlane & Stan Lee Cameos In the Reboot

My conversation with them would be, why wouldn’t you? Here’s what I know. Let’s say Venom is huge — I hope it is — then no matter who distributes Spawn, the first thing you will see in every trailer will be, “From the co-creator of Venom.” So, then my question to Sony is, why would you let one of your competitors use that line, given that it was your effort that made Venom work? Your money that made Venom work? Your marketing that made Venom work? I think it’s worth asking, then, what happens if they both work? And then what happens ten years down the line, when they want to do a Spawn/Venom crossover and they get the guy who helped create both those characters to direct it? Might be kind of cool.

Your friend Stan Lee had been going through a lot in the last couple years, is his cameo in Spawn still a possibility?

We’ve talked about it over the years. So, once we get close [to filming], I might have to revisit that conversation and see if he was just kidding me, or if he even has the energy. When we get closer, I’ll ask him. I’ll go, “Hey, I can set something up here in L.A. We can shoot it in two hours. Are you interested?” We’ll see.