Todd McFarlane’s long-awaited Spawn movie will be R-rated and the first draft of its "badass" script is already complete

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Spawn creator Todd McFarlane says Hollywood needs to make more R-rated comic book movies

Michael Jai White as Al Simmons in Spawn (1997)
(Image credit: New Line Cinema)

Spawn creator Todd MacFarlane says the script for the live-action feature-length adaptation is complete – and with an R-rating in tow.

"The first draft of the screenplay is done. There's an R-rated script that exists. We have been waiting a long time. We've created a script that creates its own version of Spawn for the screen," McFarlane shared during a panel at San Diego Comic-Con. The next step is finding a director for the long-awaited pic. "They have been true to my spirit. They delivered a badass movie script."

"We need to do R-rated Hollywood comic movies," McFarlane added, noting that he was inspired by Deadpool and Wolverine and Joker: Folie a Deux. The first live-action Spawn movie hit theaters in 1997 and was given a toned-down PG-13 rating – which was confusing for fans (much like myself) given that the comic is more or less known for its ultra-violence – and received largely negative reviews.

Lauren Milici
Lauren Milici
Senior Entertainment Writer

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ based in New York City. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.