Hellboy is a 2019 comic book/superhero film directed by Neil Marshall, starring David Harbour, Milla Jovovich and Ian McShane, and based upon the Dark Horse comic book series Hellboy by Mike Mignola, in particular the eight issue miniseries The Wild Hunt. It serves as a cinematic reboot to the Hellboy franchise, having no relation to the previous two films directed by Guillermo del Toro.
In the film, Hellboy battles the evil Blood Queen, an ancient medieval sorceress who seeks to unleash a demonic plague upon England.
Although critics found the film left much to be desired,[1] it was nonetheless well welcomed by fans of the comics. Fans praised the performances (particularly Harbour and Jovovich), visuals, action sequences, musical score, and dark humor.
Plot[]
In the Dark Ages, the evil Blood Queen Vivienne Nimue unleashes a plague on England until King Arthur stops her with the aid of Ganeida, a member of her coven. Arthur uses Excalibur to dismember Nimue and hides her remains across England.
In present day Tijuana, Mexico, paranormal investigator Hellboy reluctantly kills missing B.P.R.D. agent Esteban Ruiz, whose mission got him turned into a vampire. After hearing Ruiz's dying words that the end is coming, Hellboy is brought back to the B.P.R.D. in Colorado. He is assigned by B.P.R.D. leader Trevor Bruttenholm, his adoptive human father, to assist the Osiris Club in their hunt for three giants. Hellboy is informed by the club's seer Lady Hatton that Bruttenholm was meant to kill him when he first came into the world as the result of the Nazis' Project Ragnarok. Meanwhile, the boar-like fairy Gruagach is advised by the witch Baba Yaga to retrieve the pieces of Nimue, so she may grant his wish for revenge against Hellboy.
During the hunt, Hellboy is betrayed and nearly killed by the hunters before they are ambushed by the giants. Barely conscious, Hellboy manages to defeat the giants before being rescued by a young woman. Hellboy awakens in the woman's flat and recognizes her as Alice Monaghan, a medium he once rescued from fairies as a baby. Sending a SWAT team to retrieve Hellboy, Bruttenholm relays that Nimue's remains have been taken and the last piece is at the Osiris Club. They are introduced to M11 agent Ben Daimio, and Hellboy and Alice join the team headed to the club. Finding the club slaughtered, Alice channels Hatton's spirit, who reveals that Nimue seeks Hellboy to cause the apocalypse. Nimue's arm is taken by Gruagach, and Nimue distracts Hellboy by appealing to his frustrations, allowing Gruagach to escape. Hellboy reveals that Gruagach is a changeling who took baby Alice's place before Hellboy branded him with iron and forced him to return Alice. Gruagach hates Hellboy for taking his chance to be human.
Daimio takes them to M11 headquarters before secretly acquiring a special bullet to kill Hellboy. After an argument with Bruttenholm about his adoption, Hellboy leaves before being magically transported to Baba Yaga's house. Having shot out Baba Yaga's right eye, Hellboy is talked into giving up one of his eyes for the location where Nimue plans to restore herself. Hellboy reneges on the deal and in anger, she curses him to lose a loved one. On the way to Nimue's location at Pendleton, Daimio reveals to Alice that he was the sole survivor of a jaguar attack.
The group arrives after Nimue's full resurrection and kills her coven with the exception of Ganeida. Nimue poisons Alice and flees with Gruagach; Ganeida directs Hellboy to the resting place of the wizard Merlin to save Alice. Hellboy and Daimio excavate Merlin's still-living body, and Merlin cures Alice before putting her and Daimio to sleep. Merlin tells Hellboy that he is a descendant of King Arthur through his mother, who was spirited to Hell by his father. When offered Excalibur, Hellboy refuses it after a vision of himself causing the apocalypse. Merlin, having exhausted his magic, disintegrates.
The trio return to London to find the M11 staff dead and Bruttenholm missing. They follow Nimue to St Paul's Cathedral, and Hellboy fights an empowered Gruagach aided by Daimio in his jaguar form. Nimue kills Gruagach, and knocks Hellboy into Arthur's hidden tomb that holds Excalibur. Hellboy initially refuses to pull the sword, but reneges when Nimue kills Bruttenholm. The sword's removal opens a portal to Hell from which demons emerge and attack London. Alice channels Bruttenholm's spirit to dissuade Hellboy and he decapitates Nimue, throwing her head into the closing portal after the demons are sent back to hell. Hellboy and Bruttenholm exchange farewells, and Daimio discards the special bullet.
Six months later, the trio raid a cult club where they find the water tank of Abe Sapien. In a mid-credits scene, Hellboy is consoled at Bruttenholm's grave by the ghost of his hero Lobster Johnson. In a post-credits scene, Baba Yaga enlists an unseen force to seek out Hellboy with the promise of allowing him to finally die.
Cast[]
- David Harbour as Anung Un Rama / Hellboy
- Milla Jovovich as Vivienne Nimue / Blood Queen
- Ian McShane as Trevor Bruttenholm
- Sasha Lane as Alice Monaghan
- Daniel Dae Kim as Benjamin Daimio
- Thomas Haden Church as Lobster Johnson
- Douglas Tait as Gruagach
- Stephen Graham as the voice of Gruagach
- Sophie Okonedo as Lady Hatton
- Penelope Mitchell as Ganeida
- Alistair Petrie as Lord Adam Glaren
- Troy James as Baba Yaga
- Emma Tate as the voice of Baba Yaga
- Mark Stanley as King Arthur
- Brian Gleeson as Merlin
- Laila Morse as B.P.R.D. Employee
- Mario de la Rosa as Agent Esteban Ruiz / Camazotz
- Atanas Srebrev as Agent Madison
- Dawn Sherrer as Agent Strode
- Ashley Edner as Agent Taylor
- Markos Rounthwaite as Grigori Rasputin
Production[]
Development[]
In 2014, Hellboy creator Mike Mignola began work with writer Andrew Cosby on the story for a new film. The project was initially intended as a sequel to Guillermo del Toro's films Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army, which starred Ron Perlman as the title character. Del Toro was offered a producer credit, but declined, wishing instead to direct his own script for Hellboy III, and Perlman refused to return without del Toro's involvement. When Neil Marshall joined, it was decided that the new film would instead be a reboot. Marshall signed on to direct the film due to not making a feature film in nine years and also being initially intrigued by the horror pitch. In May 2017, Mignola announced on his personal Facebook page that the reboot, then titled Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen, would be directed by Marshall and star David Harbour as the eponymous character. Mignola also stated that the film would have an R-rating. At the time, it was targeted for a 2018 release. Andrew Cosby had stated that the film would be a "darker, more gruesome version of Hellboy". Harbour further elaborated on the film's R-rating, "This movie is gory, I mean it's like a horror movie. There's a lot of blood in it. It's brutal."
Mignola said that he would have minimal involvement with the reboot, acting more as a "co-executive producer" and without participating in pre-production or design, stating, "When the decision was made to do another movie, I got involved, basically saying, 'If you're going to do that story, don't do this, or that, change this, and that.' I helped to steer it. Christopher Golden and I did write a couple of drafts of the screenplay and got it on track, and then the decision was made to do a reboot." In August 2017, the film dropped the subtitle Rise of the Blood Queen and was re-titled simply Hellboy.
Writing[]
When the project was announced, it was revealed that Mignola had written early drafts with Andrew Cosby and Christopher Golden, and that Mignola would develop a new draft with Aron Eli Coleite. On the tone of the film, Cosby stated, "Neil said from the very beginning that he wanted to walk a razor's edge between horror and comic book movie, which was music to my ears, because that's what I was shooting for in the script, and precisely what Mignola does so well with the comics." Mignola confirmed that the film draws inspiration from Darkness Calls, The Wild Hunt, and The Storm and The Fury, but also pulls "bits and pieces from other stories", such as Hellboy in Mexico. Mignola did not want to make another origin story, feeling that del Toro had already succeeded with that story. Mignola felt the three-book arc gave the filmmakers an "entryway" back into the world of Hellboy and allowed them to expand beyond the comic. A poster with final credits revealed Cosby retained sole screenwriter credit.
Creature design[]
Makeup designer Joel Harlow wanted to make the monsters and settings of Hellboy "believable within the context of the world they inhabit". The design team attempted not to reference the designs of the del Toro films and took inspiration from the comics. Harlow attempted to stay faithful to the source material and consulted with Mignola on any new designs to make sure they matched the tone of the comics. Harlow added Harbour's facial features into the initial Hellboy maquette sculpt to capture his likeness into the character. Harlow felt Harbour's Hellboy gave an "imposing presence" after the makeup and body suit were applied.
For the horned version of Hellboy, Harlow chose to make that version an "amped up" design of the regular horned Hellboy, stating, "We gave him a larger jaw, a heavier brow, a more vibrant yellow eye look, larger teeth and, of course, extremely large horns." Harlow wanted "real-world representations" of the horned version by adding scars, feeling they made Hellboy feel gritty, and were appropriate for an R-rated version of the character. The decision for a lack of a top-knot was due to this version of Hellboy being portrayed younger than the comic iteration. For the creatures of Hell, Harlow wanted them to look different from the film's other beasts, stating, "Their look is entirely nonhuman and very frightening. It's a glimpse into a world of beings that do not follow the anatomical laws of anything terrestrial."
Casting[]
David Harbour was the first actor to be cast for the film, in the role of Hellboy. In August 2017, Ian McShane was added as Trevor Bruttenholm. On August 8, 2017, Milla Jovovich was cast as the main antagonist, the Blood Queen. In November 2018, it was revealed that Thomas Haden Church had a role in the film as vigilante Lobster Johnson.
Casting controversy[]
On August 21, 2017, The Hollywood Reporter[2] announced Ed Skrein was joining the film in the role of Major Ben Daimio. Given the character's Japanese heritage, the casting of a white British man in the role was met with accusations of whitewashing. On August 28, Skrein dropped out of the film, issuing the following statement[3]:
Last week it was announced that I would be playing Major Ben Daimio in the upcoming HELLBOY reboot. I accepted the role unaware that the character in the original comics was of mixed Asian heritage. There has been intense conversation and understandable upset since that announcement, and I must do what I feel is right.
It is clear that representing this character in a culturally accurate way holds significance for people, and that to neglect this responsibility would continue a worrying tendency to obscure ethnic minority stories and voices in the Arts. I feel it is important to honour and respect that. Therefore I have decided to step down so the role can be cast appropriately.
Representation of ethnic diversity is important, especially to me as I have a mixed heritage family. It is our responsibility to make moral decisions in difficult times and to give voice to inclusivity. It is my hope that one day these discussions will become less necessary and that we can help make representation in the Arts a reality.
I am sad to leave Hellboy but if this decision brings us closer to that day, it is worth it. I hope it makes a difference.
Lionsgate issued their own statement a few hours later:[4]
Ed came to us and felt very strongly about this. We fully support his unselfish decision. It was not our intent to be insensitive to issues of authenticity and ethnicity, and we will look to recast the part with an actor more consistent with the character in the source material.
Filming[]
Hellboy began principal production in September 2017 and filmed in the United Kingdom and Bulgaria. Filming wrapped on December 27, 2017.
Music[]
The soundtrack is composed by Benjamin Wallfisch. The first trailer featured a cover version of "Mony Mony" by Billy Idol while the second trailer featured a cover version of “Smoke on the Water" by 2WEI.
Gallery[]
Posters[]
Character posters[]
Trailers[]
References[]
External links[]
- Hellboy at IMdB.com