EXCLUSIVE: Netflix is turning Mark Millar’s Jupiter’s Legacy series into a universe spanning an anthology franchise. The streamer has set a live-action adaptation of Supercrooks, which delves into the story of Millarworld’s super-villains, as the next installment of the Jupiter’s Legacy saga.
Meanwhile, Jupiter’s Legacy will not continue as an ongoing series. With Netflix and Millar going in a different creative direction with the IP and the talent options soon expiring, the streamer has opted to let the high-profile cast — led by Josh Duhamel, Leslie Bibb and Ben Daniels — out of their commitments to the show.
“We’re confident we’ll return to it later,” Millar said of Jupiter’s Legacy, which could come back in a different iteration, sources said.
Netflix has an anime series adaptation of Supercrooks, the superpowered heist comic about eight supervillains written by Millar and drawn by Leinil Francis Yu, which will be released later this year. It will get a sneak peak at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival this month.
While there are characters in the comics that cross over between Supercrooks and Jupiter’s Legacy, the live-action Supercrooks adaptation is in early stages, so it is unclear whether characters from Season 1 of Jupiter’s Legacy would migrate to it.
Supercrooks is described as a return to the world of Jupiter’s Legacy with a ragtag gang of supervillains, con artists, petty thieves and leg-breakers who band together for the heist of the century and the most outrageous crime story you’ve ever seen in your life. Crime pays, and they’re going to prove it. Some people just want to have the time of their lives and make a little dirty money while they’re doing it. If the superheroes get in the way, they’re going to be spitting teeth.
“I’m really proud of what the team achieved with Jupiter’s Legacy and the amazing work everyone did on that origin season,” Millar said. “I’ve been asked a lot about what we’re planning next with this world, and the answer is to see what the supervillains are getting up to. I’ve always loved crime stories, from Scorsese to Tarantino, and supervillains are always the most fun part of any superhero story. To do something exclusively focused on the villains they fight just feels incredibly fresh as we explore what it’s like to be a bad guy in a world crawling with good guys who want to put you in jail.
“Jupiter’s Legacy is a vast and rich space with lots of characters to mine, and so I’m happy to share that our next step here is a live-action version of the Supercrooks comic I created with Leinil Francis Yu a few years back,” Millar added. “Given where we’re going next, we’ve made the tough call of letting our incredible cast out of their show commitment as we continue to thoughtfully develop all realms of the Jupiter’s Legacy saga. We’re confident we’ll return to it later and just want to say thanks to you guys for your continued support and to the cast and crew who made this look so great.”
Netflix in 2017 acquired Millarworld, the comic book publishing powerhouse founded by Millar, creator of such iconic characters and stories as Kick-Ass, Kingsman and Old Man Logan. It was the streamer’s first acquisition, aimed at developing multiple films and TV series, starting with the live-action Jupiter’s Legacy and followed by the anime Supercrooks.
Netflix remains high on the IP, with Millar working on an expansive TV slate that also includes The Magic Order, American Jesus, Empress, Huck, Sharkey the Bounty Hunter and Prodigy.