When Hellboy returns to the big screen once again, audiences can safely expect a completely unique take on the title character.
Videos by ComicBook.com
David Harbour, who will be playing the fan-favorite antihero in the upcoming Hellboy reboot, recently addressed what new elements he will bring to the role. As Harbour explained, the task of following in the footsteps of Ron Perlman – who previously played Hellboy in two cult-classic films – is causing him to approach the character in an entirely new way.
“It’s unique and odd.” Harbour explained in an interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. “There are things that I’m gonna do that are different. Hellboy is the same character from the comics and from what Ron did, there are certain things that are the same thing, but I do think that—I don’t know, there’s a different approach because I sort of highlight different things, I think, than Ron does.”
According to Harbour, one element of that approach will be the sort of hyper-masculine identity that the character has.
“Ron sort of embraces this machismo in himself and in Hellboy, and I really like it and it’s super fun and it’s a super fun performance. But I think Hellboy has a certain psycho dynamic, where occasionally he has to prove that he’s the lion, has to roar, and I think he struggles with his own masculinity. But I don’t think he needs that as much as maybe those other movies. I have a bit of a different take on his capability or his slickness. I sort of think that for me he’s a little less skilled at constructing that persona.”
The Harbour-led Hellboy reboot – which will also feature performances from Ian McShane, Milla Jovovich, and Deadpool‘s Ed Skrein – does not currently have a release date.
The new Hellboy film will be a total reboot that is not connected to the previous two films, Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Guillermo del Toro, the director of those previous films, and star Ron Perlman are not involved. Both del Toro and Perlman had been campaigning to shoot a third Hellboy movie, but those negotiations reportedly fell through when del Toro and the Producers could not reach a compromise over the sequel’s budget.
