Almost 15 years have passed since Zack Snyder took his first steps into the world of superheroes withWatchmen, the adaptation of Alan Moore’s popular story brought to the pages of comics alongside Dave Gibbons and John Higgins. However, it is still considered one of the best adaptations of the genre in all of history.
Following a style similar to the one seen onThe Boystoday,Watchmenshows a world where superheroes occupy a very different place than what movies and series usually show.Watchmenis set in a world where superheroes are illegal. However, one of them, Rorschach, is still actively acting in the shadows.
One day, a former superhero is murdered and Rorschach begins to investigate what happened, gathering his former colleagues to warn them of a possible conspiracy against them in the middle of a world crisis because of the Cold War.
Watchmenstarred Jackie Earle Haley, Patrick Wilson, Malin Åkerman, Billy Crudup, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Matthew Goode, Stephen McHattie, and Carla Gugino. The film was revolutionary, just like the comic, not only because of its story, but also because of the dark vision that Snyder gave it, something that he later applied to the so-calledSnyderverse.
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In 2019, HBO broughtWatchmenback to the screen in the form of a series, which also had a great impact but did not manage to go beyond a single season. Just like the show, the movie did not have the recognition that it would perhaps achieve today with the superhero genre being one of the most popular in the world of cinema and television.
However, beyond the fact that it did not become a great franchise, Patrick Wilson believes thatWatchmenpaved the way for other great productions like the MCU, as he confessedin an interview with ReelBlend:
“Watchmen is the only movie of mine that I have watched front to back since a premiere — that movie is awesome. I just wanted to look at it as an older guy, as a filmmaker. I knew Zack was ahead of the curve. It’s weird to say that audiences weren’t ready for it. But you need a movie like that. You need movies to go so dark that then Avengers can go so light. I do believe in that.”
Wilson recently made his directorial debut onInsidious 5, and will soon return to the world of superheroes as Orm inAquaman and the Lost Kingdom. On this occasion, after having been the main villain of the first part, he must ally with Jason Momoa’s Arthur Curry to save Atlantis, and they will face Black Manta together, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who in fact was also part ofWatchmenin the series.
HBO’sWatchmenalso starred Regina King, Don Johnson, Tim Blake Nelson, Andrew Howard, Jacob Ming-Trent, Tom Mison, Sara Vickers, Dylan Schombing, Louis Gossett Jr. and Jeremy Irons.
