As Black Mass Hits Theaters, Its Writer Announces A New Graphic Novel

Mark Mallouk, co-writer of this weekend's Johnny Depp-starring drama Black Mass, announced this week that he will write Sunflower, an original graphic novel to be distributed by the 451 Media Group.

Sunflower will be released ahead of 451 Media's current slate of original titles, which will debut at this year's New York Comic Con in October. 451 Media's titles will be distributed through both traditional publishing and a new interactive online platform.

Sunflower introduces us to C.J., a woman living in isolation, whose life was destroyed with the murder of her husband and daughter. A decade after their murders she receives a postcard in the mail with only a single word – Sunflower. And now C.J. will do whatever it takes to get her daughter back.

"During the production of Black Mass I started to think of creating a story that mirrored the same intensity and themes of guilt, grief and obsession but from a woman's P.O.V.," said Mallouk. "To put it quite simply, I wanted to write a story with a female lead that didn't need to be rescued by a man and didn't spend her entire existence worrying about whether a man liked her or not".

Following its world premier at this year's Venice Film Festival, Black Mass was praised at the Telluride Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival and is certified fresh at Rotten Tomatoes.

Mallouk, who is repped by UTA, is currently writing the screenplay on the Calabrese mob family based on Kurt Calabrese's life rights for Black Label Media. He is also executive producer of Everest, A Walk Among The Tombstones and Rush.

You can check out the official solicitation text below and more information here.

Ten years ago CJ's husband and nine year-old daughter were murdered off a desert highway near the California/Arizona border. Since that day, CJ can feel only two things – paralyzing shame for not being with her family and quiet fury that the perpetrators were never found. CJ should have been there to defend her family. CJ should have been there to die with her family. And, in the decade since, she might as well have been dead. Until the day a letter arrives. There's no return address, only one word in the letter. It simply reads: 'Sunflower'. CJ's daughter is alive. And now so is CJ. And she will stop at nothing to get her daughter back.

Written by: Mark Mallouk
Adapted by: Andi Ewington
Illustrator: Lee Carter
Editor in Chief: David Forrest