20th Century Fox Announces 'Irredeemable,' a New Superhero Film Outside of the Marvel Franchise

20th Century Fox, the film studio famously known for producing the films of the X-Men franchise, is reportedly venturing into unknown waters with their newly announced superhero film, Irredeemable. Fans of the superhero genre know well enough that Fox currently has X-Men: Apocalypse premiering in a few weeks, but no one expected 20th Century Fox to venture outside of Marvel territory for an all new superhero universe with the announcement of Irredeemable.

A Report By Deadline Confirms The Announcement Of Irredeemable In Production

In a report to Deadline, 20th Century Fox have confirmed their intention to produce Irredeemable, a new superhero film based on the series by Boom! Comics. The comics center around the former superhero Plutonian, who decides to maniacally slaughter all human beings that don't follow his rule.

A superhero group known as The Paradigm, former teammates of Plutonian, are tasked with defeating the once pure hero despite not holding the power to restrain him. In light of Plutonian assuming dominant control over Earth, the Paradigm have no other option than to ask the help of a supervillain in order to stop him. The Irredeemable comic book series ran for a total of 36 issues, beginning in 2009.

Superheroes Outside Of Marvel Are Definitely Marketable

The idea seems smart on Fox's behalf. 20th Century Fox are currently looking at their list of Marvel properties, and likely only see the benefit of the X-Men franchise as a profitable title property to invest in. But with their acquisition of Boom! Comics' Irredeemable series, Fox now have a whole new comic book universe to dive into and to use as source material for future superhero films.

There's also the interesting concept of a hero gone bad. We've seen villains and heroes in films from both DC and Marvel, but we haven't seen a hero akin to Superman becoming a maniacal villain (The Joker placed aside). With the Irredeemable film now in pre-production, we get the opportunity to witness a truly evil villain who still has the possibility of being redeemed at some point.

There'll definitely be a heavy emphasis on the atrocities created by Plutonian in Irredeemable, but there'll be more intrigue to see the villain attempt to redeem himself; i.e. Hancock (2008). Unless the character of Plutonian himself is irredeemable, and the focal point of the film centers on other aspects from the comic-book, particularly the heroes who have to ally to defeat the once protector of Earth, Plutonian.

What We Know Of Irredeemable So Far

There's no release date yet slated for Irredeemable, but it's safe to assume that the film will be made within the next two years. Adam McKay has already been attached to direct the new, superhero film. Along with Tommy Wirkola, the writer of the Irredeemable comic-book series, penning the script for the cinematic adaption himself. Having both a writer and director attached to a film doesn't confirm the film will be made, but it's definitely a positive step in that direction.

What do you think? Is 20th Century Fox making the right move by investing comic-book properties outside of Marvel? Or should Fox reconsider the options of a shared Marvel universe, before opening up a whole new universe of superheroes? Have any thoughts, leave them in the comment section below. Follow me at moviepilot.com/paulswall.

Irredeemable will be directed by Adam McKay, and written by Tommy Wirkola. The Irredeemable comic-book series can be bought online at BOOM! Studios.