Robert Kirkman Signs Deal With Amazon


Following the news that Mark Millar sold Millarverse to Netflix we get word of another streaming service courting a comic creator. Robert Kirkman has signed a first look deal with Amazon to bring Skybound comics to Amazon’s Prime Streaming Service.

From Variety
“The Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman has inked an overall deal with Amazon, while Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment has signed a first-look deal with the streamer, Variety has learned.
Kirkman and Skybound will develop television projects to debut exclusively on Prime Video. Skybound Entertainment’s co-presidents of film and television, Bryan and Sean Furst, will oversee the Amazon project slate in conjunction with Kirkman and Skybound co-founder David Alpert.
“Robert is a gifted storyteller who shares our passion for elevated genre storytelling that pushes boundaries,” said Sharon Tal Yguado, head of event series for Amazon Studios. “Robert and the team at Skybound are some of the most innovative and fearless creatives in the business. Together, we plan to explore immersive worlds and bold ideas for Prime Video.”
Kirkman is best known for creating “The Walking Dead” comic book series, which was adapted into the megahit AMC series that will debut its eighth season this October. The series is the highest-rated basic cable drama of all time and is the number one show on television in the key 18-49 demo. A companion series, “Fear the Walking Dead,” launched on AMC in 2015. He also adapted his comic book series “Outcast” into a series starring Patrick Fugit, among several other film and television projects.
“At Skybound Entertainment we strive to tell the best stories in the most unique and creative ways in an effort to always break new ground,” said Kirkman. “A forward thinking company like Amazon is the perfect home for us. Their new foray into genre fiction has us at peak optimism for what can be accomplished during this unprecedented partnership. Sharon Tal Yguado has been an instrumental force in the success of ‘Walking Dead’ and ‘Outcast’ from day one. Being able to not only continue that relationship, but also expand it into new territory with the vast resources of Amazon, means great things are ahead for myself, David Alpert, Skybound and fans of awesome entertainment. Look out world, here we come!”
Skybound Entertainment currently has a number of different film projects in development including properties for their two-year first look deal with Universal. The company also recently announced its expansion with the opening of Skybound North, a Vancouver-based production division. Skybound North is led by former LucasFilm Animation executive, Catherine Winder.

37 thoughts on “Robert Kirkman Signs Deal With Amazon”

    1. Lol. Hoping it will bring Clone back into the picture, Thief of Thieves, Dead Body Road, Witch Doctor, or any of the many other books they have put out.

      1. You know, Thief of Thieves series got better after Kirkman stopped writing it and handed it over. I did stop reading it though around issue 30 or 31, reading list was just too bid and it just didn’t make the cut.

  1. Skybound publishes through Image. Kirkman is not taking Image to Amazon, just the properties published through the Skybound division of Image. That doesn’t include many titles such as Saga and God Country. Redneck does fall into Skybound, so hoping to see that. That would probably get me to lift my personal boycott of Amazon.

  2. This is just a deal with Skybound, not Image Comics as a whole. That gives options on Redneck, Witch Doctor, Clone, Manifest Destiny, Thief of Thieves, Extremety, Green Valley, Birthright, Kill the Minotaur, Demonic, Dead Body Road, Battle Pope, Science Dog, Ghosted, Horizon, and maybe 1 or 2 other titles. All of these shows are doable, the non-sci-fi ones that don’t require effects the most likely to happen first because of budgeting.
    Invincible was already optioned under a separate deal earlier this Summer by Seth Rogen’s company, and, as much as I am dying to see it translated to visual media, I believe the deal on Saga with Skybound seems to be limited to merchandise and other licensing.
    My question is: is this why Season 2 of Outcast was delayed release in the US? It’s already released in Europe from what I hear, and I can’t see Cinemax sleeping on its release without cause. Sharon Tal Yguado seems to have spearheaded this Amazon deal, and she was apparently influential in Outcast’s media deal coming to fruition. Hopefully she worked something out and maybe we see both seasons released simultaneously on Prime. That would be sweet!

    1. I didn’t know it wasn’t released in the states yet. I’ve watched all of season 2 but I stream my tv. Buy a hacked Apple TV 4 off eBay it will be the best $160 you can spend

      1. You can run it with your normal iTunes account apps and everything with no problems. Every so often the kodi will purge its build but only took a YouTube video to figure it out and fix it. So now I know how to add all kinds of different builds like an avengers or Xmen themed build. My loading screen becomes a little spinning cap America shield its pretty cool.

  3. Since there’s no comments on the SpiderGwen post let me say I really wish they would drop the whole tongue body zipper. Take away that full body zipper monstrosity and the character design would be fine.

    1. When Spidey got the black suit he didn’t have a tongue coming out his crotch, I don’t get why it’s got to be so radically different for Gwen.

    2. I with you on the design of the suit, not really a fan of it. They should have used the same design from the Guardians var.

  4. All I have that may benefit from this is a few standard cover kill the Minotaur as well as 1 ashcan B&W cover and then 1 standard redneck and 1 B&W incentive redneck cover.
    It seems the prices are already high for these comics whereas I picked up load stuff of Millar stuff for face value or less….
    Also my opinion between the two stories…..
    Amazon has a far lower subscription base than Netflix so a lot less people are likely to see them (you must consider when looking at Amazon prime subscription numbers that a lot, if not most, have the service for free next day delivery or music whereas all of Netflix’s subscribers are purely there for the tv shows and films.
    As such I think investing in Millar comics is a better strategy than Kirkman.
    I also prefer Millar’s work to Kirkman’s. Walking dead aside, which in fairness is awesome, his other stuff is good but not amazing.
    I’m already picturing Reborn, jupiters legacy, huck and nemesis as awesome adult centric shows and even possibly a show that incorporates characters from different storylines.
    Anthony, with all these things / film announcements…. any news on Replica?

    1. Actually, following on from end of my last comment, is there are news or thoughts on the below titles in regards to them being made into tv shows / films:
      Replica
      Descender
      Disciples
      Southern bastards

      1. Southern Bastards is still in the works according to Jason Aaron. It is coming eventually. Sadly a lot of these take time. Some never make it. Options expire.

      2. Southern Bastards was optioned by FX Network, and Descender was optioned as a movie by Sony, both back in 2015. They are both stuck in developmental purgatory for the time being, it seems. With these mega deals going through for Millarworld and Skybound, the Boom! And Darkhorae deals that happened recently, and then Disney starting their own streaming service, I’m sure a lot of these deals and new options are being examined and readdressed by networks and companies. Hopefully it’s lights a fire under some asses to initiate production on some of these optioned properties.

    2. Not yet and it is driving me nuts. I expected an announcement coming out at SDCC from what I had heard. The original rumor started out a long time ago when I talked to Aftershock Publisher Joe Pruett. He was telling me they were working hard on getting a tv or movie deal. Flash forward a bit and I am talking to a creator and was told a network was picked and a deal was going to be announced. It hasn’t yet so I imagine the paperwork is still being signed.

  5. My LCS has some 9.8 CGC Rednecks available. I just pulled the trigger and got 2 of them. I finally got of to the LCS after 2 months and got some new goodies. Will share with u guys on Wednesday.

  6. yeah these things take a long time.
    I have a close friend who is now quite a major camera man working in Hollywood.
    He was saying how many films get binned even once they started shooting them.
    I’m hoping that descender and disciples get done as I have a few CGC 9.8 rare covers for them as well as the second rarest Southern Bastards #1 cover in CGC 9.8.
    I only started investing in comics in June and the first one I bought was an Omega Men #3 (first app Lobo) in a CGC 9.6.
    So ultimately my most exciting moment will be when they make the Lobo film they’ve been talking about…..
    Anthony dude thanks again for your efforts! Being a nube to this, of all the blogs and websites I’ve seen your’s has been the one I follow most closely and has educated me the most…. so again, thanks!

  7. Welcome, Karl. This is indeed a great forum. Anthony, the other contributors, and the community are all really stand-up. Cheers, fellow nerds!

  8. I am mind-boggled as to how we have heard absolutely nothing about “Outcast” Season 2 being released in the US. It was released overseas back in March, but here we are in mid August and Cinemax won’t even say When it will be back here!

      1. Yeah season 2 finished over here “across the pond” back in June.
        It is weird but I’m not complaining as usually we have to wait longer than you guys do for just about everything… lol

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