Kieron Gillen to Write ‘Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt’ For Dynamite

Dynamite Entertainment announced yesterday that they will launch a new series with superstar writer Kieron Gillen (Star Wars, The Wicked + Divine) and artist Caspar Wijngaard (Limbo) as the publisher brings iconic character Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt back into action this winter!

Peter Cannon, the orphaned son of an American medical team, was raised in a Himalayan lamasery, where his parents had sacrificed their lives combating the dreaded Black Plague! After attaining the highest degree of mental and physical perfection, he was entrusted with the knowledge of the ancient scrolls that bore the secret writings of past generations of wise men.

“I’ve been away from the genre for a few years,” said Gillen in a statement. “This is me refreshed, grinning and more than a little bit angry. I want to try things. I want to have fun. Hell, we’ve created a whole new supporting cast of heroes for this series because we wanted to. I wanted to do a state of the art, state of the superheroic nation, and Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt is it. High adventure, big ideals, epic destruction, heroism, despair, and nine-panel grids.”

Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt debuted in January of 1966 through Charlton Comics. In 2012, Dynamite Entertainment resurrected the character in a self-titled series written by Steve Darnall and Alex Ross, drawn by Jonathan Lau.

[Start Gallery Call-to-Action Key=7602]”We’ve been working on this with Kieron for a good long while and he’s really leaning into the character and concepts that put him in mind to write the series for us,” said Joseph Rybandt, Editorial Director for Dynamite Entertainment. “And we’re letting him have free reign to work his particular talents on this book and it’s going to be one of our most talked-about series in 2019.”

Gillen’s first graphic novel, Phonogram (with artist/co-creator Jamie McKelvie), was published through Image Comics in 2006, the same year as Dynamite’s founding. Gillen’s work on Marvel’s The Uncanny X-Men, Thor, and Young Avengers garnered his mainstream success, but his ongoing gods-as-popstar series with longtime collaborators Jamie McKelvie and Matt Wilson The Wicked + The Divine launched to both critical and commercial success.

“There’s a fascinating duality to Peter Cannon, and I’ve noticed that Kieron has a duality of his own, which really comes across in the writing of this book. There’s more going on here than just what’s happening on the page, and I’m very excited to see people’s response to the book,​” said senior editor Matt Idelson.

“He’s a strikingly ambitious, notably smart artist, with a writer’s creative brain. The word ‘collaboration’ is key,” said series artist Caspar Wijngaard. “I have written this in an ornate and structured clockwork style, but knowing Caspar would be drawing it, also left room for lots of collaboration and additive ideas.”

“Kieron is, in my opinion, one of the smartest writers in the industry today. Who else to write the series of The World’s Smartest Man! His pitch was simply fantastic, he’s really done his research. Peter Cannon comes from the silver age of comics, the age of the heroic pantheon, and he’s one of my all-time favorite characters,” said Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher of Dynamite Entertainment. “We are giving Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt the respect he deserves by bringing aboard the most dynamic creative team possible, with Kieron leading the charge.”

The first issue of Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt delivers a wide selection of cover variants, providing fans and retailers a chance to collect the whole set! The cover artwork features the talents of Sean Phillips (Criminal), Dave McCaig (American Vampire), Butcher Billy (Barbarella), Paulina Ganucheau (Zodiac Starforce) and Casper Wijngaard (Angelic) respectively. Additionally, an Atlas Edition will also be available for fans wishing to have their issue signed by writer Kieron Gillen!

Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt #1 will be solicited in Diamond Comic Distributors’ November 2018 Previews catalog, the premier source of merchandise for the comic book specialty market, and slated for release in January 2019.