Spawn actor Michael Jai White reveals Todd McFarlane’s bizarre reboot idea

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Back in 1997, Michaell Jai White headlined the live-action adaptation of Todd McFarlane's popular comic book, Spawn. The film wasn't well-received by critics and fans alike and the box office also suffered due to the lukewarm reception. In the years since the film's release, McFarlane has been determined to make a reboot of Spawn happen, and it appears that it's still in the works with Jamie Foxx attached to star. Michael Jai White isn't involved with the new reboot but he has been privy to some of the ideas planned for the movie and the actor revealed during a talk with "CBR.com" that some of the ideas were downright bizarre.

"[McFarlane has] been trying to get a new movie up and going for 23 years so I don't know. [Laughs] The last time I saw him, he was telling me about his idea of Spawn being ethereal fog that you don't see, like Jaws, and he strikes and you never see him and I'm like 'Okay, good luck with that!' Personally, I wish him well, that would be a major investment."

Todd McFarlane appears to be leading the charge as a writer and director of the Spawn reboot but White is a bit skeptical of the idea of McFarlane directing the film:

"I don't know Todd to be a director at all. It's kind of like Stan Lee: He created the character but he doesn't direct him and I guess somebody would have to pony up a lot of money for Todd McFarlane to direct for his first time directing this movie idea that he has. I've heard about Jamie Foxx starring in it and wish them well. I don't know, maybe it continues because this is what people like to hear from Todd McFarlane. He can get attention by promising another Spawn; I don't get it."

If McFarlane does go with the idea that White once heard of, it would be a bit silly to cast a big name like Jamie Foxx and have him never fully showing up and keeping him in the shadows. This could very well be an early idea that has since been scrapped but it is an interesting insight inside the mind of McFarlane, who seems to be a one-person hyped machine when it comes to teasing what's next in the Spawn universe. We've been hearing about the Spawn reboot for a while now but nothing truly concrete has materialized from it. McFarlane and Jason Blum, who is behind the film via his Blumhouse Productions banner, insist that the film is still in development but the pandemic has put things a bit on pause for the time being. 

What do YOU think of McFarlane's reboot idea that he disclosed to Michael Jai White? Do YOU think that idea has since been scrapped?