Mark Millar Reveals New Black Female Lead For Kick-Ass Ongoing

Mark Millar is returning to the Kick-Ass franchise that birthed multiple mini-series and two Hollywood films.

He's bringing in some new blood this time, though, with a new African American female lead, and he's excited to take the character in new directions (via THR).

"Comics is not short of white males aged around 30; that demographic seems pretty well catered for in popular culture," Millar said. "I don't think many blonde white guys around 30 feel under-represented when they pick up comic or watch a movie. Being older or younger or female or African-American just seems more interesting to me as a writer because this character is quite unique and opens up story possibilities that hasn't been tried in almost eighty years of superhero fiction. This woman has a completely different take on Kick-Ass."

Kick-Ass: The New Girl will not only feature a new lead but will take place in a new location and with an all-new supporting cast. Millar likes the rotating hero theme, and that extends to this new iteration as well.

"Kick-Ass is like James Bond or Doctor Who where with a new face and a new situation and it suddenly feels very exciting. Every four volumes or so I want a different person in the mask. Sometimes it might even only last a single volume or even a single issue."

Millar has kept his slate awfully full in both comics work and film adaptations, but after three years, both he and co-creator John Romita Jr. missed the universe and decided to launch a new ongoing series.

"I really just missed Kick-Ass. It was a funny book because it was about a guy who had no powers, no gadgets and wasn't very good and yet it was massive. We had two movies in our first five years, games merchandise and so on. It's been three years and Johnny and I both just really missed the concept. It's fun to write and after all the fantasy and space opera and vast budget superheroes it's actually been amazing to get into something grounded again."

Alongside the Millar and Romita Jr. helmed Kick-Ass, Hit-Girl will also be getting a new ongoing, courtesy of Millar and Rafael Albuquerque. Millar will write the first arc for Hit-Girl, with writer Daniel Way taking over afterwards. Both new series will debut in January.