''Dylan Dog'' is an Italian

horror comics Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the ...

series created by Tiziano Sclavi and published by

Sergio Bonelli Editore Sergio Bonelli Editore (formerly CEPIM and other names) is a publishing house of Italian comics founded in 1940 by Giulio Chio (2015–present). It takes its name from its former president, comic book writer Sergio Bonelli (1932–2011), son of G ...

since 1986. The series features the eponymous character, a paranormal investigator who takes on cases involving supernatural elements such as ghosts, demons, vampires, undeads, werewolves and other creatures, but also horrifying sociopathic criminals and serial killers. It subverts the traditional horror genre with a vein of surrealism and an anti-bourgeois rhetoric. Dylan is supported mainly by his sidekick Groucho (a

Groucho Marx Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer who performed in films and vaudeville on television, radio, and the stage. He is considered one of America's greatest comed ...

lookalike) who adds humour to Dylan's sombre temperament. The series is primarily set in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

where the protagonist lives, though he occasionally travels elsewhere.

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, manga and Artist's book, art book publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon, by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, O ...

has published the English version of ''Dylan Dog'' in the United States in 1999, 2002 and 2009; a new edition was published by Epicenter Comics as of 2017. Sergio Bonelli Editore also released a limited English variant edition in 2018. The series has sold over 60 million copies worldwide, and is the second best-selling comic book in Italy after the ''

Tex Tex, TeX, TEX, may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tex (nickname), a list of people and fictional characters with the nickname * Tex Earnhardt (1930–2020), U.S. businessman * Joe Tex (1933–1982), stage name of American soul singer ...

'' series, another publication by Sergio Bonelli Editore, with over 120,000 copies sold each month. The film '' Cemetery Man'' (original title: ''Dellamorte Dellamore'', 1994) starring

Rupert Everett Rupert James Hector Everett (; born 29 May 1959) is an English actor. He first came to public attention in 1981 when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film '' Another Country'' (1984) as a gay pupil at an English public scho ...

, was loosely based on the comics, but its main reference was Tiziano Sclavi's novel ''Dellamorte Dellamore''. A direct American film adaptation, '' Dylan Dog: Dead of Night'', starring Brandon Routh, was instead released in 2011, although it was significantly different from the source material. , a television series based on the comics was also in development.

Publication history

Dylan Dog was created by Tiziano Sclavi, a comics and novel writer, while the graphic representation of the character was elaborated mainly by Angelo Stano, who was its first cover artist too, taking the inspiration from the English actor

, as he saw in the movie '' Another Country''. The character was named for poet

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer, whose works include the poems " Do not go gentle into that good night" and " And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Un ...

, while his surname derives from "''Dog figlio di...''", the Italian title of Mickey Spillane's 1972 book "''Erection Set''", which was the provisional name Scalvi gave to his characters during the creation phase of his books before completing them. ''Dylan Dog'' series debuted in October 1986 with a comic book entitled "L'alba dei morti viventi" ("Dawn of the Living Dead"), plotted and scripted by Tiziano Sclavi and illustrated by Angelo Stano; it proved to be a huge publishing success in the years to come. May 2003 saw the publication of Issue 200, entitled "Il numero duecento" ("The Number Two-Hundred"), plotted and scripted by Paola Barbato and drawn by Bruno Brindisi. In August 2011, the series has reached the number 300, entitled "Ritratto di famiglia" ("Family Portrait").

Annuals

In August 1987 a special annual release was added to the monthly series, called ''Numero Speciale'' (''Special Issue''), with one story longer than usual and, in addition, small extra books on various horror-related subjects. Another annual release was added in March 1991, ''L'almanacco della paura'' ("The Almanac of Fear"): together with Dylan Dog stories, it includes articles and curiosities about film, literature, and other topics, all related to the horror theme. January 1993 saw the appearance of a new annual book, the ''Dylan Dog Gigante'' ("Giant-Size Dylan Dog"), so called because it was much larger than the monthly book and because it contained more stories. ''Dylan Dog maxi'' came out in July 1998. This was another annual release that collected together three previously unpublished stories.

Specials

In October 1990 an irregularly numbered issue came out: ''Dylan Dog e Martin Mystère – Ultima Fermata: l'incubo!'' (''Dylan Dog and Martin Mystère – Last Stop: Nightmare!''). It presented an unpublished story in which the nightmare investigator teamed up with another famous Bonelli character,

Martin Mystère ''Martin Mystère'' is an Italian comic book whose protagonist is Martin Mystère. Created by writer Alfredo Castelli and artist Giancarlo Alessandrini, it was first published in Italy by Sergio Bonelli Editore in 1982. Dark Horse Comics has ...

. Alfredo Castelli and Tiziano Sclavi wrote and plotted this story, and Angelo Stano did the drawings. The story had a sequel in 1992.

Reprints

The first reprint series came out in July 1990, the second in June 1991, and the third in June 1996, this time called ''Collezione Book'' (''Collection Book''); in October 2006 the bi-monthly reprint ''Grande ristampa'' was released. February 1997 saw the release of the ''Super Book'', a tri-monthly release that reprinted the special annual issues that had come out ten years before.

Dylan Dog Color Fest

In August 2007, a new annual was released. Containing 4 new stories, the new comic book was called "Dylan Dog Color Fest" because it contained only stories full colored and not black and white like the regular series. In 2010 it became bi-annual (coming out in April and August every year). By 2016, each album would contain 3 colored stories – even though some albums also contain one individual story – and it would get published each number every three months. In November 2018, the 27th album will be released.

Colored issues

''Dylan Dog'' (like all Sergio Bonelli comic books) is printed in black and white. However, there are some issues that came out full colored to celebrate certain anniversaries. These include numbers that are multiple of 100, decade anniversaries of the series and other rare occasions. The first full colored issue was # 100, titled "La storia di Dylan Dog" ("The Story of Dylan Dog"), which told the final chapter of the adventure of Dylan. It was written by Tiziano Sclavi with drawings by Angel Stano. Color issue 121, "Finché morte non vi separi" (Till Death Do Us Part) celebrated the 10th birthday. Issue number 200 "Il Numero 200" ("The Number 200"), written by Paola Barbato with art by Bruno Brindisi, was also full colored and was the "sequel" of number 121 and the "prequel" of the very first issue ("Dawn of the Living Dead"). It tells what happened after Dylan's wife dies and how he became the "nightmare investigator". Issue 241 and 242 celebrated the 20th birthday of the series. Also in color was Sclavi and Brindisi's #250, "Ascensore per l'inferno" (literally "Elevator to Hell"). The next full colored issue would be #300, "Ritratto di famiglia" ("Family Picture"). Other coloured issues are number #131 "Quando cadono le stelle" ("When the Stars Fall", only final pages not in black and white), #224 "In nome del padre" (In Father's Name), #350 "Lacrime di pietra" ("Tears of Stone"), #361 "Mater Dolorosa" and #375 "Nel Mistero" ("To Mystery"), which celebrates the return of Tiziano Sclavi in writing the script.

Characterisation

Dylan Dog is a penniless "nightmare investigator" ("L'indagatore dell'incubo") who defies the whole preceding horror tradition with a vein of

surrealism Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

and an anti-

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and Aristocracy (class), aristocracy. They are tradition ...

rhetoric. His clothes are one of his defining characteristics: he always dresses the same way, in a red shirt, black jacket, and blue jeans; he bought twelve identical outfits after the death of his lover Lillie Connolly. Even during the worst weather, he never wears an overcoat or even carries an umbrella, since, according to him, an overcoat "would ruin his look", and he thinks that an umbrella is a "useless invention. Especially when it doesn't rain." One of the principal supporting characters in the series is his assistant (or rather, comic relief), Groucho, a punning double of

. Another supporting character is Inspector Bloch, who was his superior when he worked at

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

and remains his father figure (in fact he calls Dylan "Old boy") even after Dylan struck out on his own to become a private investigator specializing in the supernatural. Dylan lives with Groucho at 7 Craven Road in a cluttered apartment with a doorbell that screams. His hobbies include playing the

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

(he only knows to play Devil's Trill, but plays it often) and constructing a

model ship Ship models or model ships are scale models of ships. They can range in size from 1/6000 scale wargaming miniatures to large vessels capable of holding people. Ship modeling is a craft as old as shipbuilding itself, stretching back to ancient ...

which he apparently never manages to finish; he has many

phobias The English language, English suffixes -phobia, -phobic, -phobe (from Ancient Greek, Greek φόβος ''phobos'', "fear") occur in technical usage in psychiatry to construct words that describe irrational, abnormal, unwarranted, persistent, o ...

, including claustrophobia, fear of bats and

acrophobia Acrophobia, also known as hypsophobia, is an extreme or irrational fear or phobia of heights, especially when one is not particularly high up. It belongs to a category of specific phobias, called space and motion discomfort, that share similar ...

. Dylan is also particularly susceptible to

motion sickness Motion sickness occurs due to a difference between actual and expected motion. Symptoms commonly include nausea, vomiting, cold sweat, headache, dizziness, tiredness, loss of appetite, and increased salivation. Complications may rarely include ...

, which is one of the reasons why he rarely travels, and anyway never by plane. Once an alcoholic, he now never drinks. He is a vegetarian and

animal rights Animal rights is the philosophy according to which many or all Animal consciousness, sentient animals have Moral patienthood, moral worth independent of their Utilitarianism, utility to humans, and that their most basic interests—such as ...

supporter. Dylan cares little for many aspects of modern life. He hates cellphones and to record his memories, he still uses a feather-pen and an inkpot. Naturally, he loves literature (poetry in particular), music (his tastes range from classical to heavy metal), and horror films. Though perpetually penniless, he does not seem to be interested in money. In fact, the usual first piece of advice he gives to numerous clients who have found themselves in his study over the years is to go to a psychiatrist or psychologist. He does not believe in coincidences. He is also a hopeless romantic who loves and loses a new woman in nearly every issue. In fact, in a majority of his cases, his clients are women, with whom he often has a sexual relationship.

Setting

The series is mainly set in London, where the protagonist lives, though he occasionally travels elsewhere, such as imaginary realms such as "La zona del crepuscolo" (Twilight Zone). His address is 7 Craven Road, London, in reference to director

Wes Craven Wesley Earl Craven (August 2, 1939 – August 30, 2015) was an American film director, screenwriter and producer. Amongst his Wes Craven filmography, prolific filmography, Craven worked primarily in the Horror film, horror genre, particularly sla ...

. The Cafe at 7 Craven Road, Paddington, London, was renamed Cafe Dylan Dog in 2013. In 2012, the cafe offered "Dylan Dog Meal" with beef or pork included, even though Dylan himself is a vegetarian.

Supporting characters

* Inspector Bloch, Dylan's superior when he worked at

, remained his friend and father figure even after our hero quit the force. Bloch and Dylan often help out in each other's cases. Bloch is more rational and grounded than Dylan and often disregards

supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

explanations. He is an old but competent officer who dreams of retirement. Though Dylan causes enough trouble on his own, Bloch is also plagued by his hapless underling, Jenkins, whom he constantly threatens to sentence to a life of directing traffic. His graphic representation was inspired by English actor Robert Morley and is named for crime, horror and science fiction author

Robert Bloch Robert Albert Bloch (; April 5, 1917September 23, 1994) was an American fiction writer, primarily of crime fiction, crime, psychological horror fiction, horror and Fantasy Fiction, fantasy, much of which has been dramatized for radio, cinema and ...

. * Groucho was a

impersonator whose character became his permanent personality. Now he lives and works with Dylan Dog as his professional

sidekick A sidekick is a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. Origins The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of ...

. Like his famous namesake, Groucho enjoys cracking puns and women, though he does not share his employer's luck with the ladies. Groucho's goofy, off-beat personality helps temper Dylan's moodiness. He also reminds his boss when their finances are in dire straits (almost always), shows up with a

pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...

in the nick of time and throws it in Dylan's hand right on time, and makes tea. At some point in every issue Groucho makes one or two jokes that annoy Dylan and the person listening to the joke (often a client of Dylan's). An example: "...once, I had a dog which could utter its own name. It was named Woof." * Lord H.G Wells is an eccentric inventor who helps Dylan in some of his cases. Named after the author

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English writer, prolific in many genres. He wrote more than fifty novels and dozens of short stories. His non-fiction output included works of social commentary, politics, hist ...

Crossovers

Some crossover stories combining Dylan Dog with characters from different comics were published, including, with '' Martin Mystere'', '' Mister No'', '' Ken Parker'', ''

Nathan Never ''Nathan Never'' is a black-and-white, science fiction Italian comics, Italian comic book, published monthly in Italy since 1991 by Sergio Bonelli Editore. It is written by Michele Medda, Antonio Serra (comics), Antonio Serra and Bepi Vigna. Art ...

'', and '' Dampyr''. In October 2019, DC Comics and Sergio Bonelli Editori announced a crossover series between Dylan Dog and

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

. Issue #0 of the crossover, titled "''Relazioni pericolose''" ("Dangerous liaisons"), script by Roberto Recchioni with art by Gigi Cavenago and Werther Dell'Edera, was published in December 2019. As well as Batman, the series heavily features

John Constantine John Constantine (), also known as Hellblazer, is an antihero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, and John Totleben, and first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985). I ...

. It was published in English by

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

on 12 March 2024.

Cultural influence

Italian author

Umberto Eco Umberto Eco (5 January 1932 – 19 February 2016) was an Italian Medieval studies, medievalist, philosopher, Semiotics, semiotician, novelist, cultural critic, and political and social commentator. In English, he is best known for his popular ...

said: "I can read the Bible,

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...

, or ''Dylan Dog'' for several days without being bored."

Sales

''Dylan Dog'' is the second most widely sold comic book in Italy (the first one is another publication of Sergio Bonelli Editore, ''

''): including both reprints and new stories, it sells over 120,000 copies each month. As of 2017, the series has sold over 60 million copies worldwide. The series is also published in Croatia by Ludens, in Serbia by Veseli Četvrtak and Expik Publications, in North Macedonia by M-comics, in Denmark by Shadow Zone Media, in the Netherlands by Silvester, in Poland by Tore, in Spain by Aleta Ediciones, in Sweden by Ades Media, in Turkey by Rodeo and Hoz Comics, in Greece by Mamouth Comix, Jemma Press and Mikros Iros Publications and in Mexico by

Panini Comics Panini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, which also produces collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy. The company publishes comic books in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, France, Germany, Hungary ...

English translation

American publisher

released an English translation of a selection of ''Dylan Dog'' stories in 1999. This six-issue miniseries was later completed by a one-shot released in 2002. To avoid legal complications regarding Groucho Marx's estate, the art was altered so that Groucho no longer sports the Marx brother's signature moustache, and was renamed "Felix". Every cover in the six-issue mini featured art by American comics artist

Mike Mignola Michael Mignola (; born September 16, 1960) is an American comic book writer best known for creating ''Hellboy'' for Dark Horse Comics, part of a Hellboy Universe, shared universe of titles including ''B.P.R.D.'', ''Abe Sapien'', ''Lobster Johns ...

. As of 2016, Epicenter Comics published a new English version of some Dylan Dog stories. In 2018 and 2019, Sergio Bonelli Editore published a limited English variant edition.

published the

/Dylan Dog crossover series in March 2024.

Dark Horse

Six-Issue miniseries

* Dylan Dog No. 1 (March 1999) – Translated from "L'alba dei morti viventi" ("Dawn of the Living Dead"; Italian edition n°1, 1986) * Dylan Dog No. 2 (April 1999) – Translated from "Johnny Freak" (Italian edition n°81, 1993) * Dylan Dog No. 3 (late April 1999) – Translated from "Memorie dall'invisibile" ("Memories of an Invisible Man"; Italian edition n°19, 1988). * Dylan Dog No. 4 (June 1999) – Translated from "il ritorno del mostro" ("The Monster Returns"; Italian edition n°8, 1987). * Dylan Dog No. 5 (July 1999) – Translated from "Morgana" in (Italian edition n°25, 1988). * Dylan Dog No. 6 (August 1999) – Translated from "Dopo mezzanotte" ("After Midnight"; Italian edition n°26, 1988).

One-shot

* ''Dylan Dog : Zed'' (November 2002) – Translated from "Zed" (Italian edition n° 84)

Collected edition

A 680-page volume, ''Dylan Dog Casefiles'', was released in 2009 (), to tie in with the movie '' Dylan Dog: Dead of Night''. It reprinted the seven stories Dark Horse previously released. This volume also includes cover art by

Epicenter Comics

*''Dylan Dog: Mater Morbi'' (July 2016) *''Dylan Dog: Mater Dolorosa'' (November 2017) *''Dylan Dog: The Long Goodbye'' (May 2018) *''Dylan Dog: Chess of Death'' (October 2018)

Bonelli's variant edition

*''Dylan Dog: Dawn of the Living Dead'' (November 2018) *''Dylan Dog: After Midnight'' (November 2018) *''Dylan Dog: The Ghost of Anna Never'' (March 2019) *''Dylan Dog: Through the Looking-Glass'' (March 2019)

DC Comics

*''Batman/Dylan Dog #1'' (12 March 2024) *''Batman/Dylan Dog #2'' (9 April 2024) *''Batman/Dylan Dog #3'' (4 May 2024)

Covers

The covers of the first 41 issues are by Claudio Villa, those of issues 42 to 361 were created by Angelo Stano. No. 362 had a completely white cover, therefore without an illustrator, while from issue 363 they are by Gigi Cavenago with the exception of issues no. 418-419-420 in which the front cover is by Fabrizio De Tommaso and the back cover is by Gigi Cavenago. From no. 421 the covers are entrusted to illustrators Gianluca and Raul Cestaro.

Awards

*2000: Nominated for the "Favourite comic" Eagle Award *2008: Nominated for the "Favourite European Comics" Eagle Award *2012: "Favourite European Comics" – Winner Eagle Award

Adaptations

Films

''Cemetery Man''

In 1994 Italian director

Michele Soavi Michele Soavi, sometimes known as Michael Soavi (born 3 July 1957)Baldassarre, Angela (1999) "The Great Dictators: Interviews with Filmmakers of Italian Descent", Guernica Editions, is an Italian filmmaker, actor, and screenwriter best known f ...

directed the film '' Dellamorte Dellamore'' (known abroad as '' Cemetery Man'' or ''Of Death and Love''), with a screenplay written by Giovanni Romoli and based on Tiziano Sclavi's similarly titled novel. Francesco Dellamorte (his mother's surname was Dellamore) – a sort of Italian

alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I") means an alternate Self (psychology), self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original Personality psychology, personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other ...

for Dylan Dog – appears for the first time in the third special issue of Dylan Dog, ''Orrore nero'' (''Black Horror''), released July 1989, in which he met the Nightmare Detective, but Sclavi's novel was written before the special issue. Francesco Dellamorte also appears in a short (comic book) sequel to Orrore nero, entitled ' (''Falling stars''), where Dylan, Groucho, Francesco and Gnaghi are walking together during saint Lawrence's night, watching shooting stars and talking about life and death. English actor

, who inspired Dylan Dog's design, played the protagonist, Francesco Dellamorte, while Italian model and actress Anna Falchi played the female lead. Although having Everett in the main role, the Dylan Dog character did not appear in the movie.

''Dylan Dog: Dead of Night''

Kevin Munroe Kevin Andrew Munroe (born October 26, 1972) is a Canadian filmmaker and animator. He is known for directing the animated films ''TMNT (film), TMNT'' (2007) and ''Ratchet & Clank (film), Ratchet & Clank'' (2016). Career Munroe has done extensiv ...

has directed '' Dylan Dog: Dead of Night'', an official American film adaptation of Dylan Dog starring actor Brandon Routh as the title character. Differences between the comic result in the film being set in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

instead of London, the character of Groucho being replaced by an un-dead sidekick called Marcus due to issues for the production to acquire the rights to use the

name and style, another difference is Dylan Dog's Volkswagen Beetle being black with a white hood instead of the opposite like in the comic. The film also appears to be much lighter in tone and more action-oriented, lacking the surreal feeling, the black humour and the melancholy of the comic book, and the Dylan character is portrayed like more of a scientist-adventurer in the vein of

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise consisting of five films and a prequel television series, along with games, comics, and tie-in novels, that depicts the adventures of Indiana Jones (character), Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, ...

, rather than the romantic loner he is in the comics. Accordingly, Dylan's physical appearance changes to that of a muscular action hero rather than the slightly built in the comics. It was originally going to premiere on

Halloween Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...

2010 in Italy but was since pushed back to a 29 April 2011 release. The film has been produced by the independent company Platinum Studios.

Television series

A television series based on the comics, produced by

James Wan James Wan (born 26 February 1977) is an Australian filmmaker. He has primarily worked in the horror fiction, horror genre as the co-creator of the ''Saw (franchise), Saw'' and Insidious (film series), ''Insidious'' franchises and the creator of ...

and his production company

Atomic Monster Atomic Monster is an American film and television production company, founded in 2014 by James Wan. The company has produced ''The Conjuring'' Universe, ''Mortal Kombat'', ''Malignant'' and '' M3GAN''. Overview James Wan founded Atomic Monster ...

, was announced by Sergio Bonelli Editore in August 2018. In December 2022, Wan stated that the series was still in development, and that he was also working with the publishing house to find investors. On 2 June 2023, Michele Masiero, editorial director of Sergio Bonelli Editore, said that the series will be faithful to the comics, and that they were preparing the casting.