Matthew Vaughn Reveals A Surprise Superhero Reboot On The Way
At the moment, director Matthew Vaughn is promoting the latest entry in one of his most successful film properties, the "Kingsman" franchise. While critics don't appear to be taking kindly to "The King's Man," few could argue with the franchise's staying power after the 2014 release of "Kingsman: The Secret Service" (via IMDb). In addition to introducing most of the world to Taron Egerton for the first time, the film granted Vaughn another hit in the so-called "Millarverse", the catch-all phrase for film and television productions that originate from the comic books of writer Mark Millar.
Vaughn first explored this world in 2010 with the release of "Kick-Ass" (via IMDb), which blew audiences away with its bloody violence, excessive swearing and general, all-around crudeness. While some objected to the use of such language by a then-13-year-old Chloe Grace Moretz (via Digital Spy), the film's worldwide box office haul didn't seem to mind, earning more than $96 million on a $30 million budget (via Box Office Mojo). Sadly, the second film in the franchise (which was not directed by Vaughn) did not prove nearly as successful during its 2013 release, earning only $60 million on a similar budget (via Box Office Mojo). The franchise has sadly been dormant ever since.
However, in a recent interview with ComicBook.com, Vaughn teased an upcoming return to a corner of the "Millarverse" fans of "Kick-Ass" know well.
Matthew Vaughn expects a reboot of Kick-Ass to kick ass
In a recent interview with Chris Killian of ComicBook.com, Vaughn confirmed that he has high expectations for a reboot of "Kick-Ass," just as soon as he can secure the rights of the franchise once more. "It's so f***ing nuts that I can't talk about it," Vaughn told Killian. "But we've got that ready to go. All the rights revert back in two years and then we're going to reboot it where people will be like, 'He is insane.'" Vaughn refused to say whether the upcoming reboot will include the same cast members as the first two films, new iterations of those characters, or an entirely new set of characters.
However, Vaughn went on to detail his reasons for calling the upcoming iteration a reboot rather than "Kick-Ass 3," saying, "Because I think the clue is in the title. I think Kick-Ass ... it became a new type of genre." Vaughn further explained that the "Kick-Ass" reboot will be unlike anything "anyone could be imagining" and said that he is "going to need one very, very brave actor or actress to play the new Kick-Ass because it will scare the sh*t out of them."
2010's "Kick-Ass" starred Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Dave Lizewski (aka Kick-Ass), Chloe Grace Moretz as Mindy Macready (aka Hit-Girl), and Nicolas Cage as Damon Macready (aka Big Daddy) (via IMDb). Taylor-Johnson and Moretz both returned for the film's sequel. In a 2014 interview, Moretz blamed the poor performance of "Kick-Ass 2" on "piracy" and said that she believes she is done playing Hit-Girl because of it. In a more recent interview with Jimmy Fallon, Moretz appeared at least open to the idea, but said she'd only be interested if everyone returned, specifically naming Taylor-Johnson as a requirement.