Brian Michael Bendis Announces Fortune & Glory Sequel

beJessica Jones and Miles Morales co-creator Brian Michael Bendis revealed today that he will be releasing a sequel to his beloved graphic novel Fortune & Glory, and that it will be exclusive to the Jinxworld Substack newsletter. The new comic, Fortune & Glory: The Musical, is a continuation of the original story, which is a fictionalized, comedic version of his own early life and career as an indie comics creator in Hollywood. Fortune & Glory: The Musical will bring together Peabody award winner Bendis and cartoonist Bill Walko, with colors by Wes Dzioba and lettering by Josh Reed, to tackle the stranger-than-fiction events behind the curtain of the pre-production of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.

In the midst of the unprecedented success of Brian Michael Bendis's character-defining run on Ultimate Spider-Man, and the box office record-breaking Spider-Man films, the writer received a phone call that no one could have predicted. Spidey was going to Broadway, and Bendis was being tapped to collaborate with rock royalty to help the webslinger "find his voice" on stage. Could he overcome his own ignorance about musicals, or would he exit stage left before production began?

"Years ago I did an autobiographical graphic novel called Fortune and Glory," Bendis said in a statement. "It was about my earliest adventures in Hollywood as an independent comics creator. I neeeeever thought I would have crazier stories to tell. Then I got a call to write the now infamous Spider-Man Broadway musical. It didn't go great. This is that story." 

Fortune & Glory: The Musical will be available exclusively to subscribers of Bendis's Jinxworld newsletter, which in addition offers subscribers a multi-media Creation, which builds upon the lessons taught in his best-selling textbook, Words and Pictures, and The Masterclass, a twice-monthly Zoom class taught by Bendis himself, alongside occasional guest lecturers and more! 

Additionally, the original Fortune & Glory returns in an all-new edition from Dark Horse Comics on April 5, in a comprehensive trade paperback edition that includes the complete story from the original three-issue miniseries and features an introduction from comics and animation legend Paul Dini as well as a wealth of promotional art and interviews straight from Bendis' archives. Written and illustrated by Bendis and colored by Matthew Wilson.

Here's the official synopsis for the original: "Fortune & Glory is his hilarious autobiographical account of Hollywood development hell, as a hungry young cartoonist takes his first step into the shark-filled swimming pool that is the motion picture industry."