Tom Cruise has decided it's his turn to get in on the comic book action -- and he's teaming up with Sam Raimi to do it. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the duo is setting up the DC/Wildstorm comic series Sleeper at Warner Bros. At this point, Raimi is only producing, but Cruise is hoping to star. Penned by Ed Brubaker, Sleeper was a 12-issue series set in the Wildstorm universe, which means it steers clear of all those heroic crossovers. (It actually involves a villain created by Alan Moore, though, which should be a terrific selling point.) It centers on Holden Carver, a man who was fused with an alien artifact that makes him impervious to pain, and allows him to pass that torment onto whoever he touches. Being a sensitive sort, Carver wants to get rid of his powers -- but tough luck, he's working undercover in the Tao criminal organization. There's a Departed-like twist that leaves Carver stranded within the organization -- but he falls in love with one member, Miss Misery, while befriending another, the cuddly Genocide Jones. All the while he's torn between the work he's doing, his powers, and his relationships with unsavory people.
Sleeper has been embroiled in complicated rights issues, having been set up at several different studios over the years. Warner Bros, post-Watchmen lawsuit, is being extra careful to make everything black and white this time -- and Cruise's interest has already spurred the detangling process. (Which is kind of funny, if you remember the rumors that he was in the running to play Oxymandias -- and Adrian's fascination with how Alexander the Great undid a complicated knot. Wheels within wheels!)
I know there's some Sleeper fans out there -- it's one of those quiet, but well received books that never get enough attention. How do you feel about Cruise playing the lead?
1. No! No, no, no, no, no, no, NO!
Posted at 10:11AM on Aug 19th 2008 by Ramble