Zak Penn Writing Comic for Avatar Press

Comic fans should be well aware of Zak Penn. He broke into screenwriting at the age of 23 with a script for Last Action Hero. He parlayed that success into being one of the big writers on numerous superhero films, including The Avengers, X2: X-Men United, X-Men: The Last Stand, Elektra and The Incredible Hulk. Granted, a couple of those films left something to be desired, but you can't really pin all their shortcomings on Penn (no pun intended).

Regardless, the man is quite the prolific writer, with a propensity for superhero tales. What comes next then, having done so many big-name movies? A six-issue miniseries called Hero Worship, launching in July and featuring art by Michael DiPascale. The series will be aided creatively by Scott Murphy.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled about Zak Penn bringing his debut comic project to Avatar,” says publisher William Christensen. “Zak is an incredibly gifted and inventive writer, and Hero Worship is a fresh perspective on the entire genre. It’s slick and innovative, taking risks like every great Avatar title should. Let the other Brand-X companies tell the same-old, ‘Guy-in-Tights-Punches-Another-Guy-in-Tights’ stories; here at Avatar, Zak’s got the freedom to blow all the doors off their hinges.”

Hero Worship introduces the ultimate celebrity--an indestructible superhero called Zenith--and the rabid fans that worship him. Those adoring admirers follow every disaster, trying to speculate where they can catch a glimpse of him at the rist of their own health. It's sort of like papparazzi, only in this case one of the stalkers develops powers of his own.

Full press release and a wraparound variant cover below.

Blockbuster Superhero Film Writer Pens His Very First Comic

Avatar Press proudly announces that the Zak Penn, the accomplished screenwriter with a half dozen superhero film credits under his belt, will launch his first-ever comic book series, Hero Worship, in July 2012. The six-issue miniseries will be co-written by Scott Murphy (screenwriter of Star Wars: The Clone Wars) and feature artwork by Michael DiPascale.

Hero Worship introduces the ultimate celebrity, an indestructible superhero called Zenith, and the rabid fans that worship him. These legions of adoring admirers follow every disaster, trying to speculate where they can catch a glimpse of their modern messiah – even risking their own lives in the process. But what happens when one fan’s unhealthy obsession leads to the development of powers all his own?

“We couldn’t be more thrilled about Zak Penn bringing his debut comic project to Avatar,” says publisher William Christensen. “Zak is an incredibly gifted and inventive writer, and Hero Worship is a fresh perspective on the entire genre. It’s slick and innovative, taking risks like every great Avatar title should. Let the other Brand-X companies tell the same-old, ‘Guy-in-Tights-Punches-Another-Guy-in-Tights’ stories; here at Avatar, Zak’s got the freedom to blow all the doors off their hinges.”

Zak Penn began his career as a screenwriter when selling his first script, Last Action Hero, at the age of twenty-three. Since then, Penn’s name has become synonymous with big-budget superhero films, predominantly those based on Marvel Comics characters: The Avengers, X2: X-Men United, X-Men: The Last Stand, Elektra, and The Incredible Hulk. His first foray into television, the critically acclaimed Alphas, debuted in July 2011 on the cable channel Syfy and is set to enter its second season shortly.

Penn is joined in this creative venture by Scott Murphy, a writing partner whose work on Star Wars: The Clone Wars provides the perfect frame of reference for working with iconic characters. The series’ luscious, painted art style is provided by Michael DiPascale, whose artwork has long graced the front covers of Avatar Press (and sister company Boundless Comics) publications, including Lady Death, War Goddess, Crossed, and Night of the Living Dead, among others.

Avatar Press is a groundbreaking independent publishing company which produces a wide variety of cutting-edge comic books, graphic novels, and original web content. Their high-quality publications include the work of such industry luminaries as Garth Ennis (Crossed, Chronicles of Wormwood), Warren Ellis (Freakangels), David Lapham (Caligula, Crossed: Psychopath), and Alan Moore (Neonomicon). They also produce a diverse range of licensed projects including the classic zombie epic Night of the Living Dead and George RR Martin’s Fevre Dream. Their Boundless Comics imprint publishes Brian Pulido’s original Lady Death and Mike Wolfer’s reimagining of the classic femme fatales Pandora, Hellina, and Widow in the series War Goddess.