Joe Kelly might not be a household name, but his work certainly is.
As part of Man of Action Entertainment, he’s a co-creator of the blockbuster Cartoon Network series “Ben 10” as well as “Mega Man,” coming later this year to Cartoon Network.
In the world of comics, he’s had critically acclaimed runs featuring iconic characters like Superman, the X-Men, and the Justice League. Did you see the “Deadpool” movie? Kelly’s 30-plus issue run with the anti-hero in the late-‘90s is responsible for a lot of that characterization.
With “I Kill Giants,” hitting theaters and on demand this Friday, Kelly conquers the world of film. The fantasy drama, for which Kelly wrote the screenplay, follows a young girl named Barbara (Madison Wolfe) who escapes into a fantasy world where she battles giants. But her reality is much more complicated. The movie is based on the Kelly’s 2009 graphic novel from Man of Action/Image Comics, illustrated by Ken Niimura.
amNewYork spoke with Kelly about the film, “Deadpool” and more.
What does “I Kill Giants” mean to you?
I mean, “I Kill Giants” from its inception has been very, very close to my heart. It’s as much of a passion project as anybody gets in their lifetime. It was inspired by actual things happening in my life, family members. Barbara’s character sort of inspired by a version of my own daughter. Kind of from the second that it was cooked up — I never ever do this — I told my wife after I wrote up the outline, I was like, “This is going to be a good one.” I normally don’t do that. And she’s like, “What do you mean?” I was like, “This is going to be the one. Like this is going to get to the next level.” Because right after I wrote the graphic novel, I immediately wrote it as a screenplay just for myself. I couldn’t get it out of my head. It’s always been really precious to me. Luckily everybody who’s been involved since the book came out, in the creation of the film, has really understood that and respected that. The experience of bringing it to the screen has been a really wonderful collaboration. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience with everybody I worked with.
How does the screenplay you wrote compare to the one for the film?
Oh, it was such an early draft. … It was more of a direct, super strict adaptation. But in a funny way they kind of developed each other because I showed the screenplay to a friend of mine who liked the sort of same stuff that I did. She gave me a bunch of notes. And then those notes not only influenced the screenplay but went into the comic itself. Because it took a while before I met Ken. So I was developing the script for quite a while. So the notes flowed back and forth into each version. And then once the book came out, a sort of tweaked version was sent to the producers at 1492. … Then once we knew our budget and production then there were all sort of other changes.
It’s been about a decade, has the book’s meaning or anything changed for you?
Well, yeah, the amazing thing about “Giants,” partly having lived with it for so long … a lot of the milestones that are involved in both putting out the comic book and filming the movie coincided with things in my life that were really very, very unexpected. As the book as being published – like literally coming out — my father passes. That was a complete coincidence. And then when we started filming the movie, I found out my oldest childhood friend was ill. Not that every time something good has happened with “Giants,” something bad has happened in my life, but the emotional resonance of that story vibrates through into my real life.
Can you talk about how Madison fits into your view of the character?
Oh my gosh. She’s a powerhouse. The casting agent found … I think it was 500 tapes. I mean they went through a lot of auditions. I was lucky enough to only kind of come in for the last 25 or 30. And Anders had already made his choice. I saw the tapes that were left and Madison just leapt out. There was something about her energy and her intensity and her ability to be funny. She’s a really charming young lady.
How does it feel to see “Deadpool” being so celebrated on the big screen?
Oh, it’s great. You know “Deadpool” is one of the cornerstones of my career. And I’m thrilled that they did such a great job getting the spirit of the character and really presenting it in a way that appealed to such a broad audience. It’s so much fun to see. … And then seeing like Blind Al (who Joe co-created) on screen—it’s definitely like a little jewel in the crown of glorious things that have happened in my writing career.
