Universal has released the movie trailer for the big screen adaptation of Mark Millar’s graphic novel Wanted.
Aside from the terrible dialogue, Angelina Jolie’s overuse of eye makeup, and easily comparisons to The Matrix (read: many consumers will call this a Matrix ripoff), the trailer features a few interesting action moments. But all in all, I was expecting more for acclaimed visual director Timur Bekmambetov, who is best known as the creator of the Night Watch series. This Wanted trailer will be attached to American Gangster on Friday, but watch it now below.
Based on the Mark Millar graphic novel, Wanted follows a young man (James McAvoy) who finds out his long lost father is an assassin. And when his father is murdered, the son is recruited into his father’s old organization and trained by a man named Sloan (Morgan Freeman) to follow in his dad’s footsteps. Angelina Jolie, Terence Stamp and Common also star.
The trailer can also be viewed in High Definition on Yahoo! Movies. Wanted hits theaters on March 28th 2008.
October 30th, 2007 at 10:24 pm
I hope this film is a breath of fresh air for the action genre..the trailer looks good do u think this movie will spawn sequels like the night watch series ?
October 31st, 2007 at 3:14 am
Wow, Timur really likes to use red cars in his films
October 31st, 2007 at 6:22 am
Although it looks alright, I don’t find this as a “must see” movie.
October 31st, 2007 at 6:52 am
This movie is five years too late for me. Nothing impresses me anymore.
October 31st, 2007 at 7:16 am
Yawn.
October 31st, 2007 at 8:51 am
Wow… Matrix comparisons easy indeed.
October 31st, 2007 at 2:19 pm
Bah. If they made it like the graphic novel not a righteous assassian society movie it would be sweet. I don’t have high hopes for this movie :(
October 31st, 2007 at 2:21 pm
seem’s pretty meh, far from matrixy imo… if any shoot em up movie with slowmo and funny camera angles means it compares to the matrix then by all means base your comparisons.
But the matrix was more like a goth satire without the clown makup
October 31st, 2007 at 2:25 pm
There is no point in this movie being made. The thing that was amazing about this comic is that it was ULTRA violent. The characters freely talk about raping and killing whoever they want (and they do). There is even a scene where a person walks into a police station and kills everyone (if I recall correctly). Unless this is an NC17 film they won’t be able to do the comic justice.
October 31st, 2007 at 3:24 pm
This movie is a BASTARDIZATION of the comic and pretty much only uses HALF of the comics plot. Theres no point in calling it Wanted. Everything appealing about Wanted was that the father of the main character was a master assasin of SUPERHEROS and that Superheros were killed in droves by the father and the organization since they are a group of the most dangerous SUPERVILLAINS. YOu take out the superhero element and you have a stale concept that barely resembles the original comic. Thanks Hollywood and more importantly, thanks Top Cow for ruining a great comic.
October 31st, 2007 at 3:41 pm
This does seem a bit like an Anti-Matrix,,,the matrix was a philisophical treatise covering the slavery of the corporate world, concepts of god, of freedom, of everything…..the matrix was about freeing your mind…the action was just a shell for the message, this film looks to be more about preditory society, control as a good thing etc….the comparison falls flat, and it doesnt appear to have all that much of a soul to it….compareing this to the matrix is quite a large diss to the matrix…but of corse thats just from the trailer…it could have something going for it….wish takashi miike had directed it though… heh
October 31st, 2007 at 4:00 pm
Josh is right the movie barely resembles the comic.
October 31st, 2007 at 4:00 pm
I dunno the comic was based on an interesting premise but ultimately it was unsatisfying. I’m interested to see how the filmatists have interpreted it. Certainly visually it looks great, can’t say I get the Matrix comparisons though apart from that one scene with the bullet. Jolie seems perfect for The Fox it’s just a shame they seem to have dropped Rictus as the villain.
October 31st, 2007 at 4:38 pm
I watched the trailer and I saw no mention to loveable characters like “Shithead” a man who turned himself into a shit golem. Nor did I see any HINT of “Fuckwit” who is basiaclly a clone of that worlds Superman. Only with Downs Syndrome. Its really sad because the original story was pretty good. This just looks like, well what everyone else has said. Them just using the name and bits and pieces of the original plot to try to bring in a few more dollars.
October 31st, 2007 at 5:28 pm
Matrix is a rip-off of Ghost in the Shell
October 31st, 2007 at 6:47 pm
The Matrix was a rip-off of Dark City, which is probably a rip-off from something else.
October 31st, 2007 at 8:27 pm
So if I’ve never ever in my life even HEARD of the comic, it is highly likely that I will enjoy this movie, right? WAH WAH Stop crying about the comic. You KNOW you’re gonna go see it anyway. How many D&D fans went and saw the D&D movie, even after seeing the god-awful trailers? How many Venom fans complained about Spiderman 3 ruining the storyline of the Venom character in the comic, but went and saw it anyway?
I rest my case. Stop whining, because we all know you’ll go pay your $10 for the tickets and go see it (or spend the day downloading it with uTorrent…).
October 31st, 2007 at 8:57 pm
Despite the fact that this movie has Angelina Jolie in it, it looks SUPER intriguing. As an ardent studier of philosophy, I just hope that the rest of the movie will be as full of profound phrases, and that they didn’t just put it all in the preview.
As for the Matrix-ish-ness accusations - definitely not valid. The Matrix was all about freeing your mind and everything, whereas this is a movie that begins with a meaningless world - and then shows how man can create his own significance by consciously and purposefully LIVING, instead of just existing. This is a story about existential man, living in a nihilistic universe.
October 31st, 2007 at 9:07 pm
I don’t really see why it would be called a “Matrix ripoff”…. just because it has big action scenes with interesting camera work? I didn’t see a single kung-fu style fight sequence, nor any black leather/latex clad characters….no robots nor alternate realities and philosophy…
If anything the next to last shot wear he’s shooting a bunch of people reminded me vaguely of the gun kattas from Equilibrium.
October 31st, 2007 at 11:51 pm
I don’t usually find myself saying this (I’m not so big on most commercial hollywood films), but oddly enough I’m actually interested in this film.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:17 am
WTF.
I should just stop there……no…just can’t
I hope you enjoy the fat check for sellingthe idea of what is an awesome Graphic Novel to become this piece of shit excuse for a movie. nuff fucking said.
November 1st, 2007 at 3:03 am
Well.. I’ve never read the comic either, but this is just frickin lame.. Rightous assassins..? Bullcrap.
Calling what the caracters in the trailers say profound is like saying my last shit was philosophical, and I can guaranty you there was nothing imaterial about my last crap..
A gang of assassins may make sense in one context, but when you take the story out of that context you are left with.. well.. shit like this. If it hadn’t been for Freeman and Jolie, this would have been a straight to DVD..
November 1st, 2007 at 3:57 am
Where the hell is the guy made of shit?!?!?!?!?!?!?
This is a bastardization of the comic! It’ll be just like the Superman movies… The hero (or antihero in this case, if the core story is left intact) and none of the cool, flashy villians.
Makes me want to dig out the comics though, it was a great read.
November 1st, 2007 at 8:40 am
This is just another example of the inability of Hollywood to understand that when you adopt a graphic novel into a movie, the material is already written for you. The reason that fans want to see a graphic novel made into a film is that they loved the material. Fans don’t need it to be “spiced up” or changed. I know that studios will say that they want to make it easier to understand for people that didn’t read the comic. I say screw those people. If you’re going to make a movie based on fan reaction then keep it what made them fans in the first place. I went to see 30 Days of Night with the slim hope that they had actually kept the material somewhat true to the book. Once again I was proved correct in my assumption that Hollywood doesn’t know how to keep their hands off something that wasn’t broken to begin with.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:04 pm
LOL, I’m probably gonna be the only in this blog who says “I liked it, and will be watching it”
Matrix-like ? mmm .. No, unless you take in count the slow-motion.. but that would make 300 Matrix-like as well right ? just cus of the slow-motion ?
I liked it, and will be waiting for it.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:43 pm
can’t believe i’m commentin. just wanted to say to all the negative comment writers. get a life. you dont like dont watch it. if the trailer wasnt good for ya, why continue thinkin bout it and thinking up somethin to write boutit on this site? idiots. and angelina jolie’s great. love her work and what she stands for. and for all the wankers, go grab a comic book n jack off somewhere.
November 1st, 2007 at 1:24 pm
c’mon, of course this is capitalizing on the success of the matrix…your everyday loser, chained to his cubicle yet meant for bigger things? Check. Seemingly all-knowing black man who is the leader of a secret society? Check. Action-packed well-dressed white chick who slowly falls in love with said loser? Check Check Check. Whatever. I’m still going to see it.
November 1st, 2007 at 3:24 pm
This is dreadful. They took everything that was quirky and cool from the comic book Wanted and out popped this piece of drek.
November 1st, 2007 at 3:58 pm
This looks terrible - I mean, the where is the plot point about supervillians ruling the world and hoping between the various other planets in the multiverse to rip off their technology while maintaining the status quo of their own domain?
I want to see that version of the movie - not Mr & Mrs Smith meets Lucky Number Slevin! I want to see Wesley taking on the other branches of the Fraternity - I want to see Richter and Shithead and the Puppet Master and all the other characters that made the comic book series great.
Unless the movie takes the piss out of the action film genre then it’s missed the point - that was one of the critical and beautifully subverssive parts of Millar’s work. Although to be honest he’s just become a massive sell out recently, even since he was asked to do Ultimate X-Men - in fact, is he taking it up the butt from Wesley I wonder???
I for one will not be paying money to see this either at the cinema or on DVD…and Angelina Jolie is soooooo wrong to play the Fox - I’d have gone with Halle Berry personally.
I’ve never had such an adverse reaction to a trailer in my life…
November 1st, 2007 at 5:22 pm
Looks better than the matrix.
November 1st, 2007 at 6:40 pm
I was kind of sorry to see that this turned into a watered-down run of the mill action movie, and nothing more. Sure, it looks like a cool action movie. Fine. But it’s not OK to call it “Wanted”.
November 3rd, 2007 at 11:55 pm
Is it an action movie or a sci-fi movie? The trailer lets me a little bit perplex.
November 4th, 2007 at 6:33 pm
this is nothing like the comic. If you dont see this as a “must see movie” then pick up the graphic novel because i guarantee that it is a “must read”, however, after reading the comic, you might be disappointed in the movie.
November 4th, 2007 at 7:24 pm
Wanted the comic book was a sweet orgy of action and violence . To make and exact movie would be impossible . i mean i loved fuckwit and shithead but im not really into paying ten dollars to watch a walking pile of shit …..so lets give this movie a chance . now if it sucks i’ll be the first to promote the bootleg copies lol
November 5th, 2007 at 11:20 am
I like this and wil be seeing it. I don’t read comics books, so I can’t for sure or not that this was like the books.
As for being like the Matrix. I see some similarities, but I wouldn’t call it a rip-off. The guy who hates his office job, maybe, but who doesn’t? And the bullets in slow motion, well, if that is ripping off the Matrix, I guess more than one film is guilty.
I’ll go and see this film and Angelina is an added bonus.
November 5th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
Angelina looks otherworldly in this.
So.
Damn.
Hot.
November 9th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
Hollywood once more shows that the can not make a great comic into a good movie. its seems to me that the are not going to have any of the SUPERVILLAINS dressed up. thats why hollywood cant get these kinds of flims right. they keep trying to make comic flims look real.Odds are i will see this movie, all i can hope for is that the doll master is in it. do you think they will end it like the Graphic Novel
November 17th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
I’m excited!!! >.
November 18th, 2007 at 6:33 pm
I don’t plan on seeing this movie. It has, however, sparked my intrest in the comic. While I have not read the original work I plan to. I an respect what the fans of the comic are saying. It’s like taking Lord of the Rings and turning it into 300. Hollywood really needs to try and stay true to the sorce material.
November 21st, 2007 at 10:04 am
Love the comic. One of the only series I picked up couple years back. When I heard a movie was being made I was stoked.
True this film strips out the super hero and villain aspect and concentrates on the assassin part only and at first I was a bit dissappointed. But after thinking about it, do you really think a character called ” sh*thead” and “f***wit” are going to be taken seriously in film format? Some things read better in comic book form than in film. I will keep my mind open and anxiously await the opening of this film in March.
November 22nd, 2007 at 12:20 pm
This movie looks way more like the movie Equilibrium than the Matrix.
If you’ve never seen Equilibrium, I highly recommend you watch it. Or at least read a synopsis about it. It’s a really badass movie. =]
November 28th, 2007 at 4:59 pm
Big disappointment. I loved the graphic novel and, on hearing of the film, was really excited. The trailer shows a seemingly completely different story, even the characters don’t seem to have the same personalities. It’s not that I mind them making a rubbish film. When it comes around, I probably will end up seeing it, and there is an outside chance that it might be an enjoyable action romp, but that is completely beside the point. it’s the fact that it’s got the ‘Wanted’ Name slapped on the front of it that makes it so much harder for me to ignore what it is and what it could have been.
Name it something like ‘Guns and stuff’, change the names of the characters and leave ‘Wanted’ for when someone decides to make a real version.
December 13th, 2007 at 9:12 am
The Fox’s Character was originally designed around Halle Berry, I am surprised She was never chosen for the part. Even that I am surprised she never sued Image Comics for the use of her image. But I guess she must be honoured by it. Angelina Jolie is just wrong for the part, I think all that have read the comic will still associate Halle for the part of the Fox, And what of Marshell Mathers III! as Wesley. ?????
Anyway Halle is the true Fox
December 14th, 2007 at 1:33 pm
Chrissy Boy, I think Catwoman pretty much ruined any chance she might ever have of playing a slinky supervillain ever again.
December 14th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Catwoman is Catwoman, there are expectations that have past from one person to another who have played the Catwoman and what the fans want of her to continue that genre. Wanted is new, it was based on her looks, and it would and should be a different side, to seeing her play a super villian blowing a hole in some ones head in a bar. Plus the sex.
Remember it always comes down to the script and how great or Sh#t it is.
Don’t forget X-men and how sexy cool she was in Die another day.
December 16th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
Common everyone,
I’m just as much a fan boy as the next guy, but how are you going to sit there and expect a direct adaptation of this comic to the screen. Awesome it may be, but a world secretly run by costumed supervillians who rewrite the fabric of time with a machine that looks like the empire state building….? Sounds like crap movie material, but fuck did I love reading it. Some things are best left on the page. At least they are trying to get what they can from the material at hand. Let your mind wander to new possibilities for the story line, isn’t that what enjoying comics is all about?
December 21st, 2007 at 11:28 am
Fuck this stupid piece of shit excuse for a movie!!!!!!!!! Eminem (who sucks) should have been Wesley, Hailey Berry should be Fox and a fucking midget for the professor (I think that was his name)!!!!!!!!!! That’s who was drawn to play those parts. READ THE GOD DAMN COMIC!!!!!!!!! It was awesome! You will hate this movie when you do and be as pissed as I am about how much they seemed to change the story. Club of assasins playing with their wangs?? No super villians, dead super heros, retards, midgits, shit monsters, alternate worlds, and jabbs at mainstream comics? God bless Frank Miller for having the balls to not let Holly”up the ass”wood take a fat steaming dump on his visions. FUCK THE REST OF YOU SELL OUTS!!!!!!
December 21st, 2007 at 12:46 pm
Hey Matt,
Good use of the word fuck. At long last a literary genius such as yourself has come along and let us all know what a bunch of sell outs we are. I was hoping someone would set me straight soon, I wasn’t sure how to decide on what I like. But now that you are here…. hallelujah! You are right, how could hollywood change a story that is completely based in fantasy? Don’t they have any respect for the creative process…. or is that what they are in the middle of???
All of you that have a problem with this film, pull your heads out of your asses and remember that it is just a movie.
December 21st, 2007 at 1:20 pm
“God bless Frank Miller for having the balls to not let Hollyâ€up the assâ€wood take a fat steaming dump on his visions.”
yeah right, the guy who got his RoboCop script chopped into two crappy flicks, let them add subplots to his 300 graphic novel that were both artistically incorrect with his story as well as historically invalid, allowed RR to tweek his Sin City stories to make thm more “Hollywood”, is still having his Dark Knight Returns cut apart, chewed up, and spit back out into various versions of the Batman films and now is working on raping Will Eisner’s Spirit comics into a walking crapfest? Miller is not the great defender of Comic Book adaptions. Alan Moore is the man. He wants them to stop making his comics into shitty movies! He wants comics to be accepted as thier own artform that does not need to be coddled by Hollywood movie rapists to feel valid. He now has his name taken off movies based on his work and gives his share of money to the artists. That is a man that knows the best adaptation of a Comic Book is a Comic Book!
December 21st, 2007 at 6:31 pm
I was going through my full set of Wanted Comics,,, Its making me think why did they not do the same with Witchblade. Turn it nt a fuckin movie which they said they would.
December 21st, 2007 at 9:20 pm
Witchblade was a turd TV show but OK comic. It did become an anime which I haven’t seem yet. Alan Moore is the man. Hopefully Watchmen will be good. Read 300 and some Sin City! The movies were the closest things to the source material i’ve ever seen. Frank was pissed about the whole Robo Crap thing (the 1st was a great film). That’s why he took so long to get back into movies. He had nothing to do with Batman except in the begining which was all thrown out thanks to Nolan and the other douches that took it over (it was still great). Know what the fuck you are talking about before you post. Look up the G4 Icons on Miller and see what I mean. I agree that comics are comics but if they are going to make them movies (and they will) would they at least try to keep the stories right. Add what you want and take out some but keep the core material. FUUUUUCK FUCKIDY FUCK FUCK BY THE POWER OF GRAYSKULL I HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE YOUR MOMS ALL WHORES WHO WILL LICK MY BALLS!!!!!! If they screw up the new HE-MAN i’ll be really angry. They did it once and I haven’t been right since.
January 8th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
I’m excited!!!!!!!!! just because Angelina Jolie is in the movie am going to see it.
January 18th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
ok this looks so stupid why call it wanted when its nothing like the comic book COME ON I mean the comic book is ultra violent and they kill people for fun I mean theres a guy called shit head who is made of 666 of the worst supervillians like ed gein hitler and a puond of jeffery dommer without theres charecters this movie is going to be shit
January 21st, 2008 at 8:49 pm
I’m afraid I really have to comment on all this. I read Wanted, the original comic series and it was fascinating and spectacularly different. I too am very disappointed in what the movie version appears to be. Sure, maybe Fuckwit and Shithead could have been left out. But the basic concept of the world run by victorious super villians is the intriguing thing. Without that, its just another shoot em up with some special effects. I may still go see it…or just wait for it to show up on BluRay. Tragic. It could have been so very interesting. And by the way, The Fox character looked just like Halle Berry in the comics. Either they got Angelina just for her name, or Halle refused to do it. or both.
January 23rd, 2008 at 2:37 pm
I had heard that the movie adaptation of Wanted was going to be very, very different that the source material, but damn… outside of the title and two lead characters, there’s practically nothing that resembles the original comic. And to the people saying “shut up, you’ll still pay 10 bucks to go see it in the theater so stop complaining”, actually, no, I won’t be paying to see this in the theaters. Not just because it’s nowhere near faithful to the source material, but also because it frankly looks like a stale, terrible retread of every stupid action movie that has a “very deep and profound message”. In other words, this movie will likely be so bad it could be a part of the lovable feces-golem Shithead.
February 3rd, 2008 at 11:49 pm
bullshit movie…reasons follow…
graphic novel was not “sweet”, or “totally awesome”, it was a great read, which is why neither phrases apply. anyone who mentions angelina jolie being hot, well thats redundant…id like to add that i would never pay to see a movie based on that fact, thats really sad that most people actually will. the plot has de-evolved from something fresh and satirical, (at least in the comic reading world) to a half hatched hollywood fuck up…again. Its easier to get away with messing with a concept like superman thats been around ages and the timelessness of the characters allows more changes that can be pawned off as “directorial vision”, however a story encapsulated in one graphic novel cannot be fucked with. you have to stick to the content. duh. anyway, its nothing like the comic, sans the title and the character names, i will see it for the sake of not being bored that night. Millar, congrats on the sucess, writers need the money so whatever call him a sellout but you or i would sell this shit in a heartbeat.
February 5th, 2008 at 1:29 am
yeah they did this already. it was called ‘the matrix’. the similarities in the trailers alone are staggering.
February 5th, 2008 at 4:44 am
theo, you mean that movie called “The Matrix” that was stolen from Grant Morrison’s series ‘The Invisibles’?
February 17th, 2008 at 1:26 am
Here’s how they will be punished for screwing the fans of the comic: we’re going to download the DVD screener from bittorrent sites and NOT go see this in the theater.
February 28th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Totally agree with Matt . Was hoping that those actors would have had those parts . Wanted without super villains is not going to be the film the comic fans wanted to see . Why do they keep on doing this ?
March 9th, 2008 at 11:43 pm
I think this movie has a very good plot.
I personally would like to be in the front seats during its premier.
-armine
June 2nd, 2008 at 5:26 pm
oh my gosh i cant wait till this movie is out i wana c it SOOO made n i like all the Characters in it ! cant wait!!
June 26th, 2008 at 6:16 am
the flim looks good
June 27th, 2008 at 9:57 pm
The film has:
100% Blood on the walls.
0% Actor play
Did not known Mark Millar’s novell but the movie was a big crap.
Rush in camera and 1/2 sec scenes to give you the sense of action or the sense of cheap special effects. It seems the camera is moving not the scene.
3 bullet effects repeated all over the movie. Same splashing
nonsense blood you can see it in any 2007 FPS computer game.
The movie quality matches Hollywood latest releases form the last 1 year or so.
June 28th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
Wow, I saw no comparison between the Matrix and this movie. It more reminded me of Fight Club meets Sin City (there were moments where the scenes looked like pages of a graphic novel). I really enjoyed watching the movie and thought it was great. I left feeling a little bit pathetic but it made me think in the end, what am I doing? I think people who are dissapointed didn’t really catch the point. I will say it again THIS MOVIE HAS NOTHING IN COMMON WITH THE MATRIX BESIDES IT HAS GUNS AND A FEW SLOW MOTION SCENES. If it were a rip off of ANYTHING it would be fight club with the narration and the main character’s whole attitude turn around.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:40 am
wow i just got back from the movie and angelina’s knockers were fantastic in this movie. i still cant walk straight. thats by far much better than any stupid a@$ comic. and i dont agree with marius. this movie was fantastic. did you go to film school marius cuz i dont think you know what your talking about.
July 9th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
Greate movie no dout ist realy coool car man dam seriouse wacth now hurry up…………………
July 16th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Love it! well at least the fact that Angelina is kissing a younge dude and all the matrix free your mind and achieve what your mind i set to believe it was a good movie no doubt and no oscar yeepie.