12. SNOWPIERCER


The 2013 film Snowpiercer was received with critical acclaim, but general audiences actively ignored it once it came out in theaters. Based on the French graphic novel Le Transperceneige, the movie starring Chris Evans only found its footing later as viewers caught up to it on streaming services such as Netflix.
Because Snowpiercer tells a story that was so well-received by critics, TNT decided to order a TV series based on the comic book that is meant to capture the level of commercial success that the movie didn’t seem to find. Josh Friedman, who is better known as a writer in the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles television show, will be TNT’s Snowpiercer showrunner. Also attached to the project are Hamilton’s Daveed Diggs, Requiem For A Dream’s Jennifer Connelly, and Frances Ha’s Mickey Sumner.


11. BLACK LIGHTNING


The CW is getting yet another DC Comics-based TV series in 2018: Black Lightning.
Jefferson Pierce is an Olympic decathlete from the Southside of Metropolis who decided to fight crime under the name Black Lightning. He has the physical strength and endurance of a great athlete, but is also capable of shooting lightning bolts and ionizing the atmosphere. In the comics, Jefferson has had two daughters: Anissa Pierce (who would later become the superhero Thunder) and Jennifer Pierce (who later became the Justice League superhero Lightning).
Even though this series will join The CW’s lineup of superhero shows that consists of Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl, it is not believed that Black Lightning will be part of the Arrowverse – at least not initially.


10. WATCHMEN


The Watchmen graphic novel was brilliantly adapted as a live-action film by director Zack Snyder in 2009, following the success of the 2005 cinematic adaptation of V For Vendetta. Most recently, however, it was announced that Watchmen would get the TV series treatment, and that it would air on HBO.
Spearheading the project is Damon Lindelof, who is known for writing Lost, The Leftovers, Prometheus, and Star Trek Into Darkness. As HBO is desperately looking for a blockbuster TV series to succeed Game of Thrones – which is ending soon – Watchmen seems to be a property on which the premium cable network is willing to bet.
Zack Snyder, who directed the Watchmen film, was briefly attached to the TV series but is no longer part of its production team.


9. THE TICK


Besides HBO, Amazon Prime Video is also getting involved in comic book-based TV shows. The online retailer’s streaming service arm will adapt The Tick comic book series into a television show with ten episodes. While the pilot premiered in 2016, the rest of the first season is only coming out in August of 2017.
The Tick’s premise is mostly a spoof of comic book superheroes. The title character is mostly powerless but pretty insane, and has a former accountant named Arthur as a sidekick. Fox aired a TV show based on The Tick between 1994 and 1996. After that, the character was adapted in a short-lived live-action series (also on Fox) featuring Patrick Warburton as Tick.
Amazon’s take on The Tick features Peter Serafinowicz as the title character.


8. Y: THE LAST MAN


FX has been enjoying major critical success with Legion, and now the network is on its way to introducing a second comic book-based TV show to its lineup: Y: The Last Man.
Created by Brian K. Vaughan – also responsible for the comics Ex Machina and Runaways – and Pia Guerra, Y: The Last Man was published in 2002 by Vertigo and became one of the most critically-acclaimed comic books of the last decade. The series is set in a post-apocalyptic world and follows the young man Yorick Brown and his monkey Ampersand, who are the last male mammals alive on Earth.
According to the most recent reports, Michael Green will be the showrunner in FX’s adaptation of Y: The Last Man. He previously created the NBC television show Kings and worked on Everwood, Smallville, Sex and the City, and Heroes. Additionally, Michael is the co-showrunner with Bryan Fuller for American Gods.