When it comes to naming the worst comic book adaptations, biggest failed reboots, or most unnecessary reinventions of a popular property of the modern era, 2019’s Hellboy should never be too far away from the forefront of all three conversations.
Guillermo del Toro’s first two fantasy blockbuster both drew strong reviews from critics, performed admirably on home video, and cultivated a sizeable fanbase, but they didn’t quite make enough money compared to the rest of the flashy superhero spectaculars out there, which plunged his trilogy-closing chapter into a developmental hell it could never escape from.
Instead, horror veteran Neil Marshall inherited the IP, cast David Harbour in the title role, and positively stunk the joint out. Hellboy V2.0 barely recouped its $50 million budget at the box office, wound up with a disastrous Rotten Tomatoes score, and found the leading man calling Green Lantern star Ryan Reynolds on opening weekend to ask for advice in handling a colossal bomb.
And yet, the several supporters of the film appear to have congregated in one place, where they’re lavishing the abject failure with the faintest of praise.
Any plans for a franchise were unsurprisingly nixed, but the danger of a reboot, retread, or fresh coat of paint is always lurking just around the corner. It almost certainly won’t hail from del Toro and Ron Perlman, which means it’s probably best to consign Hellboy as a whole to the cinematic scrapheap for the foreseeable future. We got two great flicks and a steaming garbage fire, so that’ll do.