While Invincible Season 2 has been and gone, the subversive superhero show is far from over, with a live-action movie in development — here’s what we know, from any release date rumors to cast speculation and more.
At the start of 2021, you’d be hard-pressed to find people who were familiar with Invincible, Robert Kirkman’s brutal Image Comics series. However, Prime Video’s adaptation hit screens in March of that year, and it was an extraordinary success, attracting rave reviews and an immediately obsessed audience with its subversive superhero story and host of strong characters.
The show follows Mark Grayson, a 17-year-old high schooler who begins his transformation into a superhero under the watchful eye of Omni-Man, his father and the most powerful being on Earth. While he wants to be a friendly neighborhood, all-seeing, all-helping hero, he struggles to balance his everyday responsibilities and his corrosive relationship with his dad, especially as the truth of his origins come to light.
While Invincible Season 3 is on the way (and potentially Seasons 4 and 5 down the line), right now we’re more interested in the live-action Invincible movie.
Is there an Invincible movie release date?
Sadly, the Invincible movie doesn’t have a release date right now.
News of a film adaptation first emerged via The Hollywood Reporter in 2017, with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg attached to write, direct, and produce the movie. Kirkman will also serve as a producer via Skybound Entertainment’s first-look deal with Universal Pictures.
“For nearly a decade I’ve had to endure the ‘what about Invincible?’ question as fans have watched The Walking Dead grow into the multimedia monstrosity it has become over the years,” Kirkman said in his original statement.
“The answer was always that we were waiting for the right team to partner with. That team has arrived! The esteemed misters Goldberg and Rogen have proven themselves to be top-notch directors with a keen collective eye for stunning visuals after slumming it by writing hit after juggernaut hit.”
After the show’s debut in 2021, Kirkman confirmed the movie was still in development, but updates have been few and far between. Earlier this year, in an interview with Comic Book to mark Invincible’s 20th anniversary, Kirkman reaffirmed: “We’re very much still working on [the movie].
“Sometimes movies take a little bit longer. I think it’s safe to say, if anything, the show has just helped that immensely. People are very excited about that movie potential at Universal. So we’re riding that excitement and trying to push things forward as quickly as possible.”
More recently, Kirkman said the project had been stalled due to the now-resolved writers’ and actors’ strikes, while showing support for the industry action. Prior to Season 2’s release, Kirkman gave an update on the Invincible film during an interview with Variety. “Still in the script development stage. I think once we get the script to where it needs to be, I think we’ll be in a good place, and can move fairly quickly after that,” he said.
“But all of the factors that I just discussed are things that we’re thinking about: how does this feel new? How does this feel different? How is this going to feel like something that’s special? Those are very tall orders. We also need to find a way to play off the animated series, but also differentiate ourselves and give the movie a reason for existing. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done. But we’re hopeful.”
Invincible movie cast: Who’d be in it?
There’s no official cast details for the Invincible movie right now.
There’s a good reason for this: nobody has been cast, to our knowledge, as the film is still in early development. And the lineup won’t be the same as the Invincible series’ voice cast. So, fans have shared their own ideas of who could take on each role.
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Since a live action Invincible has been in the works for a while, I think Jon Hamm as Omni Man would be Damn good pic.twitter.com/pMCMoI1Kjc
— Plathanos 🐝 🇩🇴 (@SavinTheBees) April 15, 2021
Steven Yeun voices Mark in the series, and while he’s pitch-perfect for the character, he’s too old in real life to play him in live-action. The common consensus is that the role should be given to a young newcomer or rising star, while the surrounding supporting roles could be played by bigger names.
Aka, Omni-Man needs a heavy hitter. JK Simmons is near-irreplaceable, and if he didn’t want to reprise his role in the movie, it’d be a tough suit to fill. However, there are a few options: Jon Hamm would be an excellent choice, as would Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Pine, Kyle Chandler, or David Harbour.
We’ll update this space as soon as we know more.
Invincible movie plot: What would it be about?
We don’t have any official plot details, but we’re expecting the Invincible movie to cover similar ground to Season 1: Mark getting to grips with his powers and coming to blows with Omni-Man.
Upon the film’s first announcement, Kirkman said: “Invincible‘s surprising, edgy, shocking, and oftentimes blood-soaked story couldn’t be in more capable hands. With the team of Rogen, Goldberg and Universal, I’m very confident this will be another superhero movie, in a long line of superhero movies that continues to prove that it’s a viable, thrilling genre that will keep people coming to the cinema for years to come.”
Rogen and Goldberg added: “No matter how much damage it causes our bodies, minds, and our most intimate relationships with those we love, we will not rest until Invincible is as great a movie as it deserves to be.”
The film won’t be a straight live-action copy of the show’s plot. “There will definitely be some significant differences between the movie and the television show. People will easily be able to tell them apart… we’re definitely working to make sure that the two can exist and complement each other,” Kirkman earlier said, as per EW.
Earlier this year, Rogen spoke to Comic Book for The Super Mario Bros Movie and discussed how the Invincible series has influenced their outlook on the project. “There was a live-action ‘take’ that was different from the animated ‘take,’ as it were. And then the animated show came out that was very faithful to the comic and was incredibly popular,” he explained.
“At that point, it seemed like maybe doing a live-action take that was good but very different would be weird, and maybe not acknowledging the things that people liked about the animated version. Then in our heads, the live-action ‘take’ seemed more like it should feel like a live-action adaptation of the cartoon, which is a direct adaptation of the comic.”
Is there an Invincible movie trailer?
No, there’s no trailer for the Invincible movie right now. You can check out the Season 2 teaser below:
How to watch Invincible
Invincible Seasons 1-2 are available to stream on Prime Video now.
For more on Invincible, check out our ending explainer for Season 2 Part 2 and the one big mistake the latest chapter made. You can also find all of the best new TV shows heading to streaming this month.
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