Ava DuVernay’s Forthcoming DC Film New Gods Adds Comic Book Writer Tom King

Ava DuVernay has announced that acclaimed comic book writer Tom King will co-author the script for her forthcoming DC Comics film adaptation, New Gods.

DuVernay announced the writer’s attachment to the project in a tweet late Wednesday afternoon, writing: “Hey [Tom King]. Ready to write NEW GODS, buddy?”

Hey ?@TomKingTK?. Ready to write NEW GODS, buddy? A. pic.twitter.com/FFpLDt75mm

— Ava DuVernay (@ava) May 29, 2019

King, who currently pens DC’s Batman and just finished Heroes in Crisis, has a strong connection to the New Gods universe, a saga created by comic book legend and Captain America co-creator Jack Kirby. King revived Mister Miracle, one of the three core Fourth World comic book series (of which New Gods is a part), in 2017 alongside artist Mitch Gerads for a 12-issue limited series, which featured several recurring New Gods characters and expanded on Kirby’s original vision for the series.

The extensive Fourth World mythology follows a battle between good and evil in the midst of a conflict between two alien planets, New Genesis and Apokolips. Many of the characters recurring in the Fourth World series have made appearances in Justice League, Superman and Batman comics.

THR confirmed DuVernay’s attachment to the project in March of last year.

New Gods will be DuVernay’s first shot at bringing a comic book series to life, after passing on directing Marvel’s Black Panther in 2015, and King’s first venture into screenwriting.

No further details of the film’s plot, cast or release date have been revealed, but it’s safe to say that the adaptation is in good hands. DuVernay seems to be a genuine fan of the series, having gushed about Mister Miracle character Big Barda in a 2017 tweet, and King—well—wrote the damn thing.

Check out Paste’s 2017 interview with Duvernay and Transparent creator Jill Soloway here.