DreamWorks has obtained the film rights to the Oni Press comicbook series THE DAMNED and COURTNEY CRUMRIN, to be produced by Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald, reports VARIETY. Both projects will be touted at Comic-Con, which gets under way today in San Diego.
COURTNEY CRUMRIN is a series of 12 comicbooks compiled into three graphic novels, written and illustrated by Ted Naifeh. It revolves around a misfit girl who moves with her social-climbing parents into her uncle's spooky mansion. While her parents posture for position in their new, swanky neighborhood, the oddly charming girl finds magic in her uncle's library.
A fourth novel, COURTNEY CRUMRIN AND THE FIRE-THIEF'S TALE, is due out on Aug. 15, 2007.
THE DAMNED is a horror-noir comicbook series that first hit the stands last fall, and has been compiled into a five-part graphic novel that's set to hit the stands July 27.
Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt pen the gangster thriller with a supernatural twist, featuring two rival gangs who must join forces to defeat a pack of demons, their new common enemy, just arrived in their city.
Closed on Mondays' Eric Gitter is also producing the projects via Closed on Mondays Ent., the film production arm of Oni Press, a leading independent comicbook and graphic novel publisher.
Lisa Gitter, Steven V. Scavelli and Joe Nozemack will co-produce the two projects for DreamWorks, with Peter Schwerin as exec producer.
Alisa Tager brought in the projects to Parkes/MacDonald, which is based at DreamWorks. Parkes and MacDonald have turned a film profit from the comicbook world, bringing the MEN IN BLACK franchise to the bigscreen. Other producing credits include CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, THE RING, ROAD TO PERDITION and GLADIATOR, plus the upcoming THE KITE RUNNER and Tim Burton's SWEENEY TODD, starring Johnny Depp.
