DC Comics' Xero Movie To Be Produced By Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson, Hopes To Kick Off A Franchise
50 Cent, A.K.A. Curtis Jackson, is getting into the superhero movie world in a pretty interesting way. The rapper/actor/entrepreneur has optioned the rights to writer Christopher Priest's "Xerø," which was originally published by DC Comics, and he'll produce the movie adaptation through his G Unit Film & Television production company. What's more, the goal is to turn this into a full-fledged franchise, not just a single film. What else is new?
As reported by Deadline, the film(s) will be based on Priest and CrissCross's series of the same name. "Xerø" originally ran from May of 1997 to June of 1998, making for a relatively short run as far as mainstream comics go. Needless to say, this is a pretty obscure character, albeit one from a highly influential author. Priest was the first Black writer to do work for both Marvel and DC Comics, penning characters such as "Spider-Man," "Green Lantern," and "Deadpool" along the way. His run on "Black Panther" is particularly well regarded and remains highly influential. A logline for the film was included in the report, which reads as follows:
The film follows a Black government assassin who weaponizes invisibility by disguising himself as a white man to blend anonymously into the exotic Casino Royale haunts of the international elite. Spanning the gulf between that and the disenfranchised city streets of East St. Louis, Illinois, Trane Walker is a man living in two worlds but taking ownership of neither. Xero tells the story of his moral awakening and the life-and-death perils it presents.
Jackson had this to say about it:
"There's no one better than Christopher Priest to bring G-Unit Film & Television into the world of comic book superheroes. Watch as we build Xero into a franchise alongside Christopher and Color Farm Media. I can't wait for the world to meet Trane Walker in an all new way."
Another superhero franchise hopeful
It is no secret that every studio and streaming service in Hollywood is looking for a superhero franchise, and they are hard to come by. "Xerø" represents a unique opportunity, in that it was published by DC, one of the biggest names in the game, yet the rights were able to be secured by Jackson and his producing partners, giving someone other than Warner Bros. a crack at it. Speaking of the producing partners, Erika Alexander and Ben Arnon are set to produce for Color Farm, alongside Joseph Illidge, CEO of the new production and publishing company Illuminous.
Priest said the following of the potential franchise based on his creation:
"Xero depicts a slow-moving car wreck at the intersection of race and class. The commonality of struggle represented by the life experiences of Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson, G-Unit Film & Television and Color Farm assure a broad depth of first-hand appreciation for that delicate balance. It's exciting to be working together to create this new world."
There is no word yet on how soon the first planned film will enter production, who is writing the script, who will direct, or where the project will end up, be it at a streaming service or studio. All of this to say, it seems like this one is in the very early stages. That being said, one can only hope they will try to craft a good movie first and foremost rather than attempting to set up a whole universe in the hopes that further installments are a foregone conclusion.
For what it's worth, 50 Cent has had quite the production career in Hollywood, having starred in and produced "Power" for Starz, which resulted in a whole shared universe of spin-off shows. Some of his acting credits include "Den of Thieves" and "Escape Plan." We'll be sure to keep you posted as further "Xerø" updates come our way.