Last month, it was reported that Mark Hamill would finally be getting the chance to launch a pet project onto the screen, turning his comic book miniseries The Black Pearl into a film. But he couldn't say too much because his backers wanted to make the big announcement at Cannes
Fast-forward to now and Variety brings word that he'll be spending a thrifty $7 million to see the title brought to life in live-action. The plot finds a troubled individual named Luther Drake who, spurred by tabloid media reporting, slips on a costume and becomes a vigilante.
It’s been an interesting journey for the Pearl, which actually started life 14 years ago as a script, but became a comic book when Hamill was frustrated by years of empty development.
"We started getting interest from some pretty big producers a while ago," Hamill blabs of the title. "But then it started to take on a life of its own where it became this huge mega budget comic book movie. This was the exact opposite of what we wanted to do."
Now, with a script by Hamill, comic co-writer Eric Johnson and The Fighter’s Paul Tamsay, he can finally get to work on what he hopes will be a hard-edged, dark thriller.
There’s no word on casting yet.