Deathstalker, the camp 1983 sword-and-sorcery movie that was responsible for a whole generation of teenage boys hitting puberty, is being adapted as a comic series.
THR reports that Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash and Vault Comics have teamed up for the project, which will also have involvement from Shout! Studios. Tim Seeley, co-creator of horror comic Hack/Slash and DC’s Grayson, is writing the comic, with Jim Terry handling the artwork (the duo previously teamed for Vault's Western vampire comic, West of Sundown).
“Our Deathstalker is a reimagining of that fine specimen of ’80s sword and sorcery,” Slash said in a statement. “With fantasy, you get a little of everything: horror, magic, sex, thrills, blood, guts, swords and weirdness. You know — all those things you can’t look away from. And that’s what we’re bringing.”
Damian Wassel, Vault’s CEO, added: “The whole idea of this project is to balance nostalgia for the so-bad-it’s-good fantasy filmmaking of the 1980s with the storytelling sensibilities of our time.”
Deathstalker was basically a Conan the Barbarian knock off that achieved cult status over the years thanks to its tongue-in-cheek tone, awesome poster art by fantasy illustrator Boris Vallejo, some decent fantasy action/violence, and a heathy does of naked flesh.
It starred Rick Hill as the titular warrior along with Playboy model Barbi Benton and Lana Clarkson, who would go on to become a sword-and-sorcery mainstay before being shot dead by record producer Phil Spector in 2003.
The original movie spawned three sequels, which got progressively worse as they went, but are still worth checking out as long as you know what to expect going in.
“I’m a child of the ’80s. I remember when my dad bought our first VCR in 1982. And I remember the slew of weird and imaginative sword and sorcery VHS tapes that followed,” said Seeley. “Deathstalker has been near and dear to my heart since I was completely disturbed and aroused by it at a far-too-young age.”
Said Terry, “Being young at the birth of the VHS explosion was magic, and it felt like a time when folks were telling incredibly imaginative stories with limited resources — that charm and creativity would be hard to re-create today, but it’s a thrill to bask in that energy with Deathstalker.”
The comic is set to launch in October with a Kickstarter campaign for a deluxe, oversized hardcover edition, and will also be available in 2024 in both single-issue comic book and trade paperback formats.