Director for a live action The Phantom TV Series announced
- Stephen East
- 12 minutes ago
- 2 min read
King Features President CJ Kettler has released a statement to Variety announcing Reginald Hudlin as Director and Producer of The Phantom live action TV series.
“The development of a live-action series for the iconic comic strip “The Phantom” marks a pivotal expansion to meet the current cultural zeitgeist for this brand. By partnering with award-nominated director Reginald Hudlin, who possesses a deep reverence for the comic industry and source material itself, we are confident this adaptation will meet the high expectations of both longtime and new fans globally.”
Reginald Hudlin has had a long career in the entertainment industry as a writer, director and producer. He first sat in the director's chair for 1990's award winning movie "House Party" which Reginald also wrote. He followed this up in 1992, directing the movie Boomerang starring Eddie Murphy. His most recent movie was another Eddie Murphy project, the 2023 Christmas film Candy Cane Lane.
In the years between, Reginald has carved out a career championing the lives of notable contributors to American culture such as actor Sidney Poitier, music executive Clarence Avant and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. He has also directed a number of episodes of popular TV shows such as The Office, Modern Family, Bones and New Girl.
As a producer, Reginald has been involved in movies such as 2012's Django Unchained, a number of TV series like The Boondocks, as well as TV specials including the NAACP Image Awards since 2013, the 2016 88th Academy Awards and, from 2020-2022, the Primetime Emmy Awards.
Reginald is also no stranger to comic books. In 2004 he co-authored, with Aaron McGruder, Birth of a Nation: A Comic Novel. This was followed by a notable run on Black Panther between 2005 and 2017 as well as the comic tie-in to the movie Django Unchained and some work on Spider-Man.
With such an extensive CV as this, the phans here at Chronicle Chamber are very excited with this latest announcement. Chronicle Chamber have been anticipating a live action TV series for some time now with a number of tid bits filtering out over the past couple of years. However, this announcement really adds substance to rumour mill that has existed around the project for some time.
With The Phantom's ongoing popularity in Australia, Sweden and India and burgeoning growth across Europe, North and South America with the release of new comics, it seems like an ideal time for The Phantom TV series to finally see the light of day. With over 90 years of history to draw from, renown creators from around the world, and a phan base chomping at the bit to see their hero on the screen, we wish Reginald all the best in bringing The Phantom to life on the screen once more.
Happy Phantoming!
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