J.G. Jones takes a page out of his graphic novel, "Wanted"
(Credit: Top Cow)
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Such changes are common in Hollywood, but in this case the original was not a film at all. "Wanted" began as a comic book created by artist J.G. Jones and Scottish writer Mark Millar back in 2003. [Check out images from the book.]
Despite Hollywood’s love affair with comics, Jones didn’t really expect Wanted to become a movie, even as Millar was asking him to draw the characters to look like specific actors. "I'm sort of the Eeyore of comics," says Jones, whose art has appeared in Marvel and DC series like "52," "Black Widow," "Marvel Boy" and "Y: The Last Man." "I never expect anything good to happen until it does."
Currently drawing the high-profile DC Comics series "Final Crisis," Jones talked about the story behind "Wanted" and what it's like to be a comic-book artist in comic-book crazy Hollywood.
What made you want to draw comics?
I was trying to be a painter in the city and working part-time jobs to support my painting habit. I was working at the Brooklyn paper and a couple of friends there were into comic books. I started reading them again, hadn't really read them since I was a kid, and got into them again. I said "you know what, this painting thing is not working out, why don't I try this crazy comic book gig?"
How did "Wanted" come about?
Mark had been doing work over at Marvel, and he and I were kind of spit balling around doing a Marvel book. He said, "I have these four projects I want to do independently, would you like to do one of them?" I looked at the descriptions and "Wanted" was the only one that was interesting to me.
Were the resemblances of Wesley and Fox to Eminem and Halle Berry intentional?
They were very intentional. I hope I don't get sued! Mark has the artist base his characters on actors. He pretends he's making a movie.
How much involvement did you and Mark have in making the actual movie?
Mark [had] a little more than me. I was off working on DC [Comics] projects at the time. Universal paid us quite nicely for the property so we could go away and they could make the movie.
What did you think when Angelina Jolie was cast as Fox?
I decided that Universal was serious at that point, and not just looking for something else to trot out in the dead of winter, into the movie graveyard. When Angelina came on, I knew it was going to be a summer blockbuster. But I think the most inspired casting was the Wesley character. [James McAvoy] is really a terrific actor. I think people are going to go expecting to see an Angelina Jolie movie and they're going to be surprised.
How do you feel about the changes to the story?
I'm really pleased with the changes. There are so many comic book in-jokes in the book that wouldn't make sense for a general audience. And I think having costumed characters that are unknown to the general public is a hard sell, especially when it's an R-rated movie. Everyone knows who Spider-Man and Superman are. So it was a good idea to get rid of the costumes and just focus on the core story, which the director did. He actually shot scenes directly out of the book, from looking at the scenes that I drew.
Did you visit the set?
I went out to Chicago one night when they were shooting the big car-chase scene under the elevated track. It was watching people stand around for about five hours to shoot 15 seconds of footage. But everybody on the set couldn't have been nicer to me. It was a terrific visit.
Now that the film is almost out, how would you describe your Hollywood experience?
All positive, so far.
No stalkers?
Hey, I'm just a comic book artist! They don't care about me.
Has the experience sparked any interest to follow in the footsteps of Frank Miller and really get into showbiz?
I would love to. I have a number of things that I've been wanting to work on for years. And if I could sell a couple of them, that'd be great. But like I said, I'm the Eeyore of comics, I never expect it until it happens.
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