Having tackled a Marvel staple with X-Men: The Last Stand, director Bret Ratner (Red Dragon, Rush Hour 1-3) has been tapped by Paramount Pictures to helm a big-screen adaptation of Valiant Comics’ Harbinger series. The live-action feature about a team of super-powered teenage outcasts may be branded under the MTV Films banner. Ratner will produce with Alexandra Milchan and Jay Stern. Valiant Ent. CEO Jason Kothari and chief creative officer Dinesh Shamdasani will co-produce.
Created by former Marvel editor-in-chief Jim Shooter, the Harbinger comic book series debuted in 1992 and sold over five million copies during its run. Among its legions of fans was Ratner, who enjoyed helming the last film in the X-Men series and wanted to originate a superhero movie franchise of his own.
Valiant Comics which developed a large following in the 1990s. At its peak, the publisher gained a market share identical to DC Comics and was named Publisher of the Year. It was sold to video game company Acclaim Ent. in 1994 for $65 million and has sold 80 million comic books and eight million video games.
Kothari’s group bought the Valiant library from Acclaim last year and formed Valiant Ent., a privately financed company which is relaunching Valiant Comics. The company signed with William Morris Agency to make film and television deals for the various comic franchises.
