Moon Knight season 1 may have just concluded, but Oscar Isaac isn’t done with the world of comic books. On May 4, independent publisher Legendary Comics announced Head Wounds: Sparrow, an original graphic novel developed by the Dune and Moon Knight actor to be published in collaboration with Rocketship Entertainment will be published on August 9, 2022.
Described as “supernatural neo-noir,” the project was first announced in July 2020 with an eye toward a live-action project of some kind produced by Legendary’s film division and Isaac’s production company Mad Gene.
The new announcement did not mention a live-action component.
Legendary also released a motion graphic trailer (above) for the OGN narrated by Isaac along with first look at pages from the OGN (below), and launched a Kickstarter campaign to “enhance the fan and reading experience.”
Head Wounds: Sparrow will be written by New York Times best-selling author and Injustice scribe Brian Buccellato and drawn by Black Bolt artist and Eisner winner Christian Ward. The story, which is developed by Isaac and Jason Spire but created by Robert Johnson and John Alvey, follows a crooked Louisiana detective by the name of Leo Guidry who happens to look a lot like Isaac.
(opens in new tab)
After a traumatic event affects Leo, his eyes are opened to a world of literal angels and demons battling for the soul of humanity. As the story progresses, Leo will have to decide whether he can take on his own inner demons to fight off the real ones that surround him.
“I think there is something about this particular medium that allows such incredible world-building and allows you to really express and juxtapose ideas that you can’t in other mediums,” says Isaac.
Legendary Comics’s senior vice president and publisher Robert Napton added that he “was immediately hooked by the mixture of grounded ’70s cinema themes and fantastical elements.”
Here’s a look at those pages:
Image 1 of 3
Image 1 of 3
Image 1 of 3
Image 1 of 3
As originally announced, Head Wounds: Sparrow is based on the real-life experiences of a childhood friend of Isaac and Alvey, Bob Johnson.
“When diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma and as a way to cope, Johnson turned to his passion of writing and created the character of Leo,” Legendary explained in the 2020 announcement. “Inspired by a dream, Johnson conceived the supernatural affliction that haunts Leo throughout the story and forces him to face his own past trauma and lack of empathy.”
As of this writing, the Kickstarter for Head Wounds: Sparrow sits at nearly half of the way funded, despite having only been open for a few hours. You can head over to the graphic novel’s Kickstarter page now to see what packages they offer for backers.
Want to know more about Oscar Isaac’s character on Moon Knight? Check out Newsarama’s explanation of the mysterious Jake Lockley.