A piece of news that flew under the radar a little at DC Fandome was the relaunch of Milestone Comics, the minority-focused comics line which was the home to series such as Blood Syndicate, Hardware, and Static. It’s the latter character who really broke out in a kid-friendly way with the Static Shock animated series, and recently we learned that a new live-action film was in development at Warner Bros. Now we know Michael B. Jordan, who knows a thing or two about black superhero projects, has attached himself to it as a producer.
Jordan confirmed his involvement in a Static Shock movie on Twitter, posting an image of the first Static comic book with some gleeful emojis. He joins Django Unchained producer and Black Panther comic writer Reginald Hudlin, who is also penning the Static Shock digital series and graphic novel.
⚡️? pic.twitter.com/GKdIJOxck0
— Michael B. Jordan (@michaelb4jordan) October 17, 2020
Hudlin was also involved in a live-action Static series that very nearly starred Jaden Smith, but the project went nowhere.
Here’s what Jordan said to THR in a statement…
“I’m proud to be a part of building a new universe centered around black superheroes; our community deserves that. Outlier Society is committed to bringing to life diverse comic book content across all platforms and we are excited to partner with Reggie and Warner Bros on this initial step.”
Static aka Virgil Hawkins was created in 1993 and appeared in the first issue of his comic published by Milestone Comics. Like many Milestone characters, Static’s origin is a twist on the Marvel formula. Virgil comes in contact with a radioactive substance (ala Spider-Man, Daredevil, etc.) that gives him electricity-based powers. The character will return in Hudlin’s graphic novel and digital series in February 2021.
Jordan’s involvement is interesting because he tends to take roles in the projects he produces through his Outlier Society banner. That includes films such as Without Remorse, Just Mercy, and the superhero Netflix series Raising Dion. If this were a decade ago we would be talking about Jordan in the role of Static, but now we have to assume he’ll pick a different role for himself, perhaps Virgil’s father Robert Hawkins?