Spawn (comics)

Spawn is a fictional superhero appearing in a monthly comic book of the same name published by American company Image Comics. Created by Todd McFarlane, the character first appeared in Spawn #1 (May 1992). Spawn was ranked 60th on Wizard magazine's list of the Top 200 Comic Book Characters of All Time, 50th on Empire magazine's list of The 50 Greatest Comic Book Characters, and 36th on IGN's 2011 Top 100 Comic Book Heroes.[1]

Spawn
Spawn
Art by Todd McFarlane
Publication information
PublisherImage Comics
First appearanceSpawn #1
(May 1992)
Created byTodd McFarlane
In-story information
Alter egoAlbert Francis "Al" Simmons
SpeciesHellspawn
Human (formerly)
Team affiliationsCIA
United States Marine Corps
Force Reconnaissance
Notable aliasesThe One, Hellspawn, Ken Kurobawa, Spawny
Abilities

The series has spin off several other comics, including Angela, Curse of the Spawn, Sam & Twitch, and the Japanese manga Shadows of Spawn. Spawn was adapted into a 1997 feature film and portrayed by Michael Jai White, an HBO animated series lasting from 1997 until 1999, a series of action figures whose high level of detail made McFarlane Toys known in the toy industry, and a reboot film starring Jamie Foxx and Jeremy Renner.[2] The character also appears in annual compilations, miniseries specials written by guest authors and artists, and numerous crossover storylines in other comic books.

Publication history
Prototype version of the character, which McFarlane drew in his teens

Todd McFarlane began drawing as a hobby at an early age, and created the character Spawn when he was 16, spending "countless hours" perfecting the appearance of each component of the character's visual design.[3]

Spawn enjoyed considerable popularity upon its initial release in the 1990s. Comic book collecting was enjoying a marked upswing at the time, fueled by the speculator boom looking for the next hot book that would jump in value after its release.[4] McFarlane had enjoyed superstar status among comic fans with his work on Spider-Man, which had featured McFarlane's name prominently as both writer and artist. McFarlane's subsequent break with Marvel and the formation of Image Comics was seen by many as a sea-change event, changing the very way in which comics were produced. Wizard, in May 2008, rated "The Launch of Image Comics" as #1 in the list of events that rocked the Comic Industry from 1991 to 2008.[5]

The first issue of Spawn was very popular with sales of 1.7 million copies.[6] During Spawn's second year of publication, Wizard noted that "The top dog at Image is undoubtedly Todd McFarlane's Spawn, which, without the added marketing push of fancy covers, polybagged issues, or card inserts has become the best-selling comic on a consistent basis that is currently being published."[7] Sales slumped around the time of Spawn #25, but by Spawn #45 it was again a consistently strong seller.[8]

The popularity of the franchise peaked with the 1997 Spawn feature film, the pre-release publicity for which helped make Spawn the top selling comic book for May 1997;[8] in addition, the spin-off Curse of the Spawn #9 came in at fifth best-selling for the same month.[9] However, the film was only a mild commercial success and failed to start a film franchise based on the character. A 2008 issue, Spawn #174, ranked 99th best-selling comic of the month with retail orders of 22,667.[10] In October 2008, issue #185, which marked both a new creative direction and Todd McFarlane's return to the book, sold out at the distribution level and received a second printing.[11] By issue #191 in May 2009, with estimated sales of 19,803 copies, Spawn had dropped below Top 100 titles sold monthly to comic shops as reported by Diamond Comic Distributors.[12] As of September 2010, Spawn was ranked at #115 in the top 300 sales figures chart reported by Diamond Comic Distributors.[13] On the day of its release in 2011, issue #200 sold out. This issue featured work by Greg Capullo, David Finch, Michael Golden, Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld, Marc Silvestri, Danny Miki, and Ashley Wood. A second printing was released the next month.[14] It received a negative review from IGN.[15]

Spawn began a resurgence in popularity as the title approached its 300th issue, with the title once again becoming a fixture in Diamond's Top 100. This 300th issue also made Spawn the longest-running independent comic book series of all time.[16]

Fictional character biography

Origin

Albert Francis Simmons was born in Detroit, Michigan. He is the second eldest of three children (Marc, Albert, and Richard) born to Bernard Simmons- a traveling salesman- and Esther Simmons- a devil worshipper. Simmons is a highly intelligent and physically strong Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Marine Corps. He later joins the United States Secret Service and becomes a highly decorated member. This leads to his recruitment to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Once in the CIA, Simmons joins the U.S. Security Group- an umbrella agency encompassing the CIA, the NSA, and the NSC- commanded by Director Jason Wynn, and becomes a highly capable assassin.

After being murdered during a mission in Botswana when Director Wynn hires Simmons' friend and partner, Bruce Stinson (codename Chapel), to kill him, Simmons is sent to Hell due to his life as an assassin.[17][18][19] Making a deal with the devil, known as Malebolgia, Simmons agrees to become a Hellspawn and serve Malebolgia if he is allowed to see his wife, Wanda, one last time. Malebolgia agrees, and returns Simmons to the living realm, but stripped of nearly all his memories, with a badly burned body, and a demonic guardian, named the Violator.[20]

After his death and subsequent rebirth, Simmons- now Spawn- arrives on Earth in a daze, off-balance and disoriented. With only vague recollections of his past and how he came to be, he only knew his name, 'Al Simmons,' and that he died, but nothing else.

Occasionally experiencing painful flashbacks, he eventually remembers his deal with Malebolgia, but can't remember his wife's name in order to return to her.

Using CIA files, he tracks down his wife to find her married to his former best friend, Terry, with a daughter named Cyan,[18] and realizes that five years have passed since his death.

Spawn soon runs into a fellow Hellspawn who informs him that his powers are fueled by Necroplasm, and once they are fully depleted, he will return to Hell.

Not wanting to return to Hell, Spawn attempts to find a new purpose in life, while using as little power as possible. Spawn is thrust into several antihero adventures where he takes down street gangs and organized crime in New York City in a brutal fashion. Battling against Italian mobsters and later eventually killing a serial murderer and pedophile, Billy Kincaid, Spawn finds a new purpose in stopping evil.

Early history

In his early battles, Spawn faces street thugs and gangs, becoming a dark and brutal antihero, culminating in the brutal murder of a pedophile and child murderer named Billy Kincaid. As a result, he gains the attention of the detective duo of Sam Burke and Twitch Williams. It is around this time that Spawn becomes "King of Rat City", a gathering of alleys where bums and the homeless live. There he meets the bum Cogliostro, who seems to know much more about Spawn than he first lets on, and becomes his mentor.

Spawn is also hunted by the warrior angel, Angela, who hunts Hellspawns for sport,[18] and battles the cyborg mob enforcer Overt-Kill. This confrontation almost kills Spawn, but he is able to emerge victoriously. He is again hunted by Angela and fights the angelic warrior, Anti-Spawn a.k.a. the Redeemer, who was, in fact, Jason Wynn.[18]

First metamorphosis

After a confrontation with the Redeemer, Spawn's suit mutates and becomes more advanced. Its new cape and chains were able to shapeshift into different things to confuse his opponents. The cape now looked slightly torn, and the costume had lost its red glow, having evolved to what is now black and white. Spawn's boots and gloves had also changed, having been replaced with spikes. Spawn used his new equipment to slash off the Redeemer's hand and defeat him. Spawn thought that the battle was over until he met someone more powerful than The Redeemer known as the Freak. Spawn fought with the Freak but was caught unaware by the Freak's ability to create nightmares, which he did to torture Spawn with his past. During the battle, a creature appearing to have the original appearance of Spawn fights other beings and creatures and knocks out Spawn. When Spawn awakens, the creature tells him that ever since the metamorphosis, the suit will feed off of souls. Spawn later finds himself in New York City. He would fight with The Curse, meet Harry Houdini who taught him about magic, and also meet Batman.

After this, Tony Twist sends a reprogrammed Overt-Kill after Terry, blaming him for the recent attacks on the mob, and Spawn is forced to reveal his identity while saving his friend. However, it is a well-placed shot from Twitch Williams that brings down Overt-Kill. He would later bring back his friend Bobby after he was killed in another fight with Chapel. Spawn would be a part of Angela's trial and later traveled to the South and had an encounter with the KKK and an abusive father of two boys. When he returned to New York, he was attacked by a new Redeemer. This caused his costume to evolve and defeat the Redeemer with its new-found power. After another encounter with the Curse, the suit began to go wild, and, after saving Terry from cancer, sent him to Hell, but Malebolgia sent him back with full control of the suit.

Spawn wears a living symbiotic costume, Leetha of the 7th House of K (also known as K7-Leetha). While wearing it, the host assumes a dominant role over his suit. His shroud, spikes, chains, and skulls are all part of an organism bonded to his central nervous system that will protect Spawn even if he is unconscious.[18]

War of Heaven and Hell

Battle for life

As Spawn struggled to find a way to get rid of Hell's control and regain control, he noticed that the attacks were coming from both Heaven and Hell. Due to increasing attacks, Spawn began to lose himself to evil. However, thanks to the arrival of the Heap, an emissary of the Greenworld, he was able to regain his goal. Greenworld is a dimension whose power was equal to both Heaven's and Hell's, which Spawn had never faced before. They gave new powers to Spawn so he could better understand the world and its people,[18] which allowed him to overcome the worst from both Heaven and Hell. Though these powers were not really known, they seem to give control of all the elements around the world.

It was around this time that Spawn battled the powerful god Urizen. Spawn once stopped a cult from summoning Urizen, but this time he had been summoned by two gate opener demons named Ab and Zab. Urizen was causing massive destruction to the world and after losing a battle to him, Spawn came back and used his new abilities to make the Earth itself swallow Urizen and imprison him.[18]

It was explained that the Greenworld had no interest in the war of Heaven and Hell, but was getting frustrated with the destruction that it brought. This caused Earth "pain", and later Spawn became aware of it. Spawn did not change his powers though, but rather, "listened" to the Earth, until being attacked by Urizen. After recovering, Spawn learns that the Greenworld had imbued him with a gift, which he uses to contain Urizen by splitting the ground and imprisoning him inside the earth.[18]

After his battle, Spawn learned that Malebolgia had caused Urizen's release in an attempt to start Armageddon and conquer the forces of Heaven. Spawn and Angela then journeyed to Hell to stop him. During the battle, Angela managed to mortally wound Malebolgia but gets killed by him in retaliation. Consumed with anger, Spawn takes Malebolgia's head.[18]

King of Hell

Upon killing Malebolgia, Spawn learns that Hell's throne is rightfully his, offered to him by the demon Mammon. Though he refuses the offer, Spawn eventually deliberates with his teacher Cog and decides to turn Hell into a new paradise. During this act, Cog reveals that he is, in reality, the biblical Cain, who was the first person to go to Hell, having murdered his own brother in envy. His true goal had always been to take over Hell and use a Hellspawn to do it. Having betrayed Spawn, Cog took the throne for himself, but gave his former student his human form back, a parting gift.[18]

After returning, he meets a young Wiccan named Nyx. With her help, he regains his suit, though he remains weaker than before due to still having a human form. However, Mammon tricks and betrays Nyx and usurps her control over Spawn's union with his suit, removing all of Spawn's past memories in the process. With no memory, Spawn wanders the Earth, and during this time releases a group of angels who are called the Forgotten and take no sides in the war between Heaven and Hell. He discovers that Mammon is a member of the Fallen who was sent to Hell.

Spawn in Armageddon

Spawn regains his memories thanks to the power of the Greenworld. His suit also evolves once more and now it seems one with his body, but as time progresses, he begins to hate himself. Both Heaven and Hell have rejected him and he now stays in an abandoned warehouse as maggots and other insects crawl inside his body as he wonders what he should do. His first thought is to return to the Dead Zone, although it and a Hellspawn wouldn't be welcomed. Immediately upon entering, Spawn is confronted by the Disciple, who promptly greets him by tearing his brain out and throwing his heart into the Greenworld whilst Spawn's body is thrown to Hell. Spawn is then captured and tortured by Mammon so he can understand the secrets inside him.[18]

When Spawn's heart fell to the Greenworld, a soul was freed, as all the souls that died within the hour Al died went into the Spawn suit (thus why Malebolgia could not control Spawn). Chris meets with his mother once more like the Man of Miracles instructed him and then he travels to hell along with Sam Burke and Twitch Williams to rescue Spawn from Mammon. Spawn escapes and when he returns to Earth, signs of Armageddon begin to appear; Spawn begins looking for a way to stop it. Spawn discovers that Wanda's twin children are responsible. He stops them from killing their entire family but is unable to destroy them. Zera reveals that Jake is God and Katie is Satan.

Spawn finds out that the Mother removed them of their powers and positions and sent them to Earth due to their hatred of each other and constant fighting. She tells him he cannot stop Armageddon, but he has the potential to be elevated to the power of a god and preserve the human race.

He has to eat a piece of Forbidden Fruit from the Garden of Eden to gain such power. She tells Spawn he must prove himself first and has to fight against The Disciple. It is revealed that there are 12 Disciples, each one representing one of Jesus’. His power is also weakened as a demon is never to enter the Garden and it has taken the form of a counter starting at 9:9:9:9. However, with guidance from Cyan, he defeats all the Disciples except for the last, Judas, who Cyan tells him not to kill. Judas then stabs him in the heart, but the Mother gives Spawn a piece of the fruit and resurrects him. He gains a more angelic form and greater power.

He returns to Earth, finding it destroyed by the Four Horsemen and all the humans dead and angels and demons in their place, waiting to fight in the final battle. After defeating Zera, he finds dead warriors of Heaven; one of them is Granny Blake, having been betrayed by her faith. Spawn then battles the forces of Satan and God. He uses all the power given to him by the Mother to destroy the forces of Heaven and Hell and even all humanity. He has stopped Armageddon by taking away their armies; he is then killed by the two who then fight alone on Earth.

However, Spawn comes back and, by opening himself to the power of the Mother, resurrects everyone with the knowledge of what happened. He left God and Satan to fight in their own little world and closed the doors to Heaven, Hell, and Earth. He asked to be turned into a human again by the Mother but later asked to once again become a Hellspawn when he remembered that, prior to his first death as Al Simmons, he had actually beaten Wanda to cause her to miscarry their child so that he could focus on his "work", causing him to conclude that he had always been a monster and did not deserve to try and be human again.

Back in the mortal world

New Clown

After a series of odd murders, Spawn finds that the Clown has come back, possessing the body of a man named Barney Saunders. It was revealed that Saunders was having an affair with a woman named Wilma Barbara and got trapped in a garbage chute when he was trying to hide from her husband. He was there for some time until Spawn destroyed and remade the world. He was rescued by the Clown so he could use his body for himself. He then brought out the dark urges inside the tenants of an apartment building and used this to form a doorway to Hell to bring back his brothers. However, before he could form a portal, Wilma showed up and his love for her allowed Saunders to take back control. He then intended to close the portal by going through it, but he took Wilma with him due to being angry over her leaving him in the chute.

Zera reappeared; only her head survived and she was suspended in a jar. Spawn was summoned by a voodoo priestess named Mambo Suzanne. Zera was attempting to take over Nyx's body and fight Spawn, but she was killed when Suzanne used their fighting as a distraction and threw her head into the streets where it was eaten by demon dogs. Nyx was freed and she and Spawn became friends again.

Ab and Zab create a hell where visitors are forced to view their deepest fears due to demons called sin eaters that feed on guilt from the visitors, then making them face the evil that they had ever done. A woman who was in the house both had delusions of their fear caused by the sin eaters. They fed on the guilt, giving them more power when Spawn confronted Ab and Zab. He was faced with his own sin against Wanda and his unborn child. Spawn was unable to break free from the guilt and was slowly fed on by a sin eater. When Nyx interfered, he was able to break the sin eater illusion. Nyx realized that he was getting more powerful. Spawn breaks all the others illusions; then he comes across one he learns is Albert Simmons' brother, Richard, who was going through his worst sin Spawn who was still not yet recovering from all those memories as Albert Simmons.

Spawn decides to allow Richard to feel his sins. It is realized that it was Mammon (as Mr. Malefick) that put an influence on Albert Simmons and taught him to torture and murder small animals, attempting to make him become a servant who would feel no pity in taking a being's life. Malefick had also influenced Richard Simmons to take drugs and introduced him to the drug dealer Weasel. It was only Marc Simmons who was able to save himself from Mammon but was unable to help the others. Richard Simmons' delusion of his past climaxed with him stabbing and injuring Weasel with a knife that was given to him by Mammon while intoxicated on drugs. Richard calls his brothers to help him save the drug dealer's life and Albert Simmons, not wanting his brothers getting in the crime, decides instead of calling an ambulance, pulls the knife from Weasel's body and kills him with it. Mammon appears, sending the brothers home while he hides the drug dealer's body.

Nyx and Spawn then kill the last sin eater and Spawn discovers that Richard cannot remember their parents due to a spell placed by Mammon; Spawn goes to find out about them. He finds their home under a spell placed by Mammon, keeping them there for years. His mother is not shocked by his form, but his father is. It was revealed his mother planned with Mammon to create a Hellspawn stronger than the others, but his father was grief-stricken that he couldn't stop her. He is then given a journal by his father that his mother prevented him from seeing. It revealed that his ancestor came across a Hellspawn in the past known as the Gunslinger Spawn.

Spawn at his prime

The comic series during the continuation from the last issue Spawn was left helpless and at a little weakened against his enemy Erskine's psychic powers, and although Spawn had psychic powers of his own he was in trouble due to Erskine's creation of a tentacle creature that had the ability to impale his enemies. This creature also showed the features of Mammon that was coaxing. Nyx had come out of nowhere to stab the creature with a sword, but not killing the creature just stunning it to get its attention, but it was a mistake by Nyx only making herself the creature's target. Next, she uses her telepathic powers to contact Marc Simmons, asking him to shoot Erskine. Erskine retaliates and ceases Marc's attack and accidentally grabbed the trigger of Marc's special gun causing the creature to disappear, while Spawn and Nyx go to the hospital where Erskine is.

Spawn is given an opportunity of whether or not whether he should cause Erskine's death. This threatens to Spawn to enter the bubble dome, a dimension if Erskine does not reveal the location of Mammon, who Spawn believed was causing the attacks. Mammon then appears only to complicate the situation and make things worse by allowing Erskine to complete his last murder, by using a devastating psychic projection of a strange woman to attack the last victim. After all that had happened Mammon confesses that it was him who taught Erskine how to use his powers. Which been shown in his recent killing. Erskine tries to commit suicide leaving behind his possessions of the doctor who he was taken care of after he was brought to the hospital. Spawn continues to attack Mammon, and ask what Mammon wanted from him. Mammon tells him that he was a special being with great divine powers.

Later a man wakes in a mortuary with no memory of who he is. Soon some doctors working on him discover he is alive and panic only to be killed by someone in a robe. The person was previously seen with Mammon and is revealed to be Morana. Severin is the man's name and he finds that he is one of the first species of vampires called the Vrykolakas. However, he wants to die and Morana promises him death in return for his help. While Marc, Nyx and Spawn talk Severin appears defeats Marc and Nyx and bites Spawn to transfer his vampirism. He retreats back to Morana hoping for death but is cursed to have to go over his last few moments repeatedly for all time.

It is revealed Cyan has been experiencing horrid visions mostly of her mother covered in blood and even Spawn's current torment. Severin's attack has caused Spawn to battle the suit in his mind. It tells him it was always in control not Al. It tells him of its anger of relinquishing his godlike powers and that Wanda had been having affairs before his death. The two fight in Spawn's mind him in his human form as the suit tells him Wanda never wanted his child soon Al gives in and gets up. Meanwhile, Mammon with Morana and his adopted mother and father Lucian and Daciana as they prepare for the next step in their plans. Cyan is having more visions that cause her to be scared of Spawn and after seeing her door in blood she opens it to find Spawn asking if he's going to kill her mom. Luckily Granny had warned Cyan and she used a knife with the old shoelace she got from Spawn to send Spawn into an illusionary world to talk to Wanda non-violently.

Morana

There, he speaks with Wanda while they ride on a boat in a lake. He says he wanted to move on but can't. Wanda wonders if he could go if she forgave him. She says she cannot forgive Al for the death of their child, but that she still loves the man inside him. Spawn tries to take out Cyan's knife, but only pulls out his wedding ring and somehow suppresses the suit. Soon, Cyan and Nyx show up, and they get to the shore only for K7-Leetha to appear and take over Nyx. It says it has been working with Mammon from the start to build Spawn and in return would get to live on freely on earth. Now controlled by the K7, Nyx tries to kill Cyan and Wanda but is halted by Mammon, who promises even more power if K7 still obeys his wishes. The entire group goes to a castle, where Mammon says his plan to make a perfect Hellspawn. He wanted the Rapture to occur so that Satan, God, and Malebolgia would be gone, and then revealed his perfect Hellspawn was Al and Wanda's miscarried child: Morana. He chose those two due to the fact that both their families have been filled with Spawns' from previous times.

After washing herself in the virgin's blood, Morana is now fully mature. She bonds with the uniform and gets ready to consume her parents' souls. With none of the most powerful magic being usable, Cyan taps into her powers and goes to the future. She talks with an old woman who gives her a message for Al. Returning, she has Spawn summon the last twelve (but most powerful) members of the Legion. They are beaten by Morana one by one. Mammon insults Al, and in turn, he disowns Morana, enraging her, which gives Cyan the chance to tell Nyx a spell to trap Mammon and Morana. It works, both demons are sealed away, and the others return home, save Al, who jumped into another dimension to be reborn as a weapon against both heaven and hell.

Endgame

Spawn passes Vickie through that reality and is soon ready to enter the human dimension. He makes his way to a certain point in the alleys (probably the spot he first returned from hell) and then blows off his head. Meanwhile, a man under the name Jim Downing, who is without his memories and is healing (unusually fast) at a hospital, wakes up. He seems to know Spawn, as he was thinking about him before his awakening. A janitor tries to make money off Jim's story and calls a lawyer. The lawyer then calls someone else and tells the janitor not to go to the papers, after which the lawyer commits suicide. Soon, a thug is paid to capture Jim. While he is talking to a nurse who prayed for his recovery, the thug attacks with a flaming skull. Jim flees while the thug causes a massive amount of damage to the hospital. Soon, the thug catches up to Jim, but Jim transforms into Spawn, kills his attacker, then escapes the burning hospital back in human form, eventually being taken in by firefighters.

He is later transported to another hospital with other patients. He later leaves and reunites with his previous nurse Sara. After remembering his first transformation, he begins to turn again. He calls to Sara but leaves before she can see him. Meanwhile, a reporter begins to ask questions about what happened at the hospital. Wandering the city Jim is attacked and effortlessly kills his would-be killers. This draws the attention of Sam and Twitch, who recognize the chaos as something Spawn may do.

After again reuniting with Sara and telling him about his transformation, he then wanders off again, only to run into Wanda Blake, Al Simmons' ex-wife. She recognizes Jim as the form Al took when he originally came back to earth, and she realizes he is a Spawn like Al.

On her advice, he travels to Rat City and finds Spawn's throne, where Spawn ruled, and is met by an angel. He ends up fighting the angel, who calls him a traitor during the fight. Fearing the angel has done something to Sara, he beats the angel and leaves. Jim finds out that a man was asking questions about him, later finding out the man was working from another man named Gilbert Sanchez.

The angel Spawn beat is later attacked by Clown who removes her wings. When Spawn returns he sees the angel both powerless and insane and is surprised to find Freak and later Violator himself. Despite Freak's warnings Clown begins to deceive Jim and informs him that his suit is a living being but then vanishes. Clown later allows himself to be arrested by Sam and Twitch to meet the leader of a vampire group to attempt to form a unity between the leader, Clown, and Spawn.

Gilbert Sanchez is later killed by other mob members for his information on the new Spawn. Spawn attempts to learn more about him, but after being assaulted uses his powers on his attacker. Jim later finds the man who had been asking Sara questions. He tracks to his family's home which is suddenly bombed killing everyone inside but Spawn. He is later able to find more mob members and questions them further and then finishing them when he's done.

Resurrection

In Resurrection, Spawn is revived and is later told by God in dog form that Wanda had died and is now trapped in Hell where Al must rescue her. It is also shown that he wasn't abusive towards his wife and had an unborn son instead of a daughter as it was a false memory made by the demons to get him to commit suicide. He later fights Satan and saves his wife. God and Satan were no longer twins due to the Man of Miracles being sold to Marvel and thus was retconned out of existence with God being based on a variation on the traditional Abrahamic story of Creation alongside Satan's origins being based on that as well though Mother of Existence does show up in 297. After saving Wanda from Satan she goes to Heaven and Spawn continues to protect the people in Wanda's memory from the forces of both Heaven and Hell as well as any supernatural threats.

Alternative versions

Spawn Kills Everyone

Spawn appears as a chibi version of himself.

Hellspawn

A version of Spawn in an alternative route after defeating Malebolgia.

Shadows of Spawn

In this version Ken Kurobawa takes up the mantle with Al being referenced.

Adventures of Spawn

Spawn appears as Spawn X where it is lighter than previous versions.

Characters
Main article: List of Spawn characters

Spin-offs and crossovers
Violator (1994)
A three-issue miniseries written by Alan Moore with art by Bart Sears which focused on the conflict between Violator/Clown and Tony Twist and also featured Spawn.
Angela miniseries (1994–1995)
In 1994 and 1995, a three-issue Angela limited series was published, written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Greg Capullo. The series along with Angela's one-shot were later reprinted in a trade paperback (ISBN 1-887279-09-1), which, as of 2005, is out-of-print.[21]
Angela & Aria

A crossover between Angela & Aria.

Angela & Glory

A crossover between Angela and Glory.

Celestine

About Celestine the angel from the Violator vs Badrock series in this two-shot series.

Violator vs Badrock (1995)

A four-issue miniseries released in 1995 written by Alan Moore. Drawn by Brian Denham. Ink by Jonathan Sibal & Danny Miki.

Spawn: Blood Feud (1995)

A four-issue miniseries released in 1995 written by Alan Moore. Drawn by Tony Daniel. Ink by Kevin Conrad.

Spawn The Impaler (1996)

A three-issue miniseries released in October 1996, inspired by the story of the Wallachian voivode Vlad Țepeș. Written by Mike Grell with art by Rob Prior.

Medieval Spawn / Witchblade (1996)
A three-issue miniseries were written by Garth Ennis. Medieval Spawn and the wielder of the Witchblade team up against Lord Cardinale, wielder of the Darkness.
Curse of the Spawn (1996–1999)
The first long-term monthly spinoff series. Consisted of a number of story arcs centered on supporting characters from the main series, such as a future Hellspawn during the Apocalypse or Sam & Twitch. Aimed at an older demographic than the main series and significantly darker in tone, with more disturbing visuals and themes. 29 issues.
Spawn: The Dark Ages (1999–2001)
This series focused on Lord Covenant, a 12th Century knight killed in a holy crusade far from his homeland, who returns to Earth as a Hellspawn. As a plague of violence and turmoil cover the English countryside, the Dark Knight must choose whether to align himself with the innocent inhabitants of the once-thriving kingdom or with the malevolent forces of evil and corruption. The series ran for 28 issues. Issues 15–28 featured writer Steve Niles and artist Nat Jones.
Spawn: Fan Edition

A three issue mini-series centered around the Norse hellspawn Nordak.

Spawn: Blood and Shadows (1999)
A Spawn prestige-format one-shot released in 1999. Written by Paul Jenkins with art by Ashley Wood.
Cy-Gor (1999)
A six-issue spinoff miniseries.
Spawn: The Undead (1999–2000)
This series concentrates on Al Simmons. Unlike the original Spawn series, it was self-contained, single-issue stories. Written by Paul Jenkins it lasted 9 issues.
Sam & Twitch (1999–2004) +
A spin-off series following the criminal investigations of detectives Sam Burke and Twitch Williams. 26 issues.
Case Files: Sam & Twitch (2003–2006)
Cotinuation of Sam & Twitch. 25 issues.
Sam & Twitch: The Writer (2010)
A four-issue miniseries.
Hellspawn (2000–2003)
A relatively avant-garde spin-off comic inspired by Spawn. Darker and more atmospheric than Spawn, Hellspawn frequently dealt with the disturbing subject matter. It originally featured writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Ashley Wood. It ran 16 issues.
Spawn: Simony (2003)
One-Shot. Published in 2003 by Semic of France, McFarlane allowed the creators (Jean-François Porchero and Alex Nikolavitch) to create an original Spawn tale without using Image comics.
Shadows of Spawn (2005–2006)
Recently released on American shores are three graphic novel compilations of the Spawn manga, known as Shadows of Spawn.
Spawn Toys

a nine-issue series of one-shots focus on Spawn toys.

Spawn: Architects of Fear (2011)
A prestige format one-shot released in February 2008. Written by Arthur Claire with artwork by Aleksi Briclot.
Spawn: Blood and Salvation
A prestige-format one-shot that concludes the story of Daniel Llanso, the Hellspawn featured in the first four issues of Curse of the Spawn.
The Adventures of Spawn
Cover of Spawn/Batman Polish edition. Art by Kiko Taganashi and Todd McFarlane.
At the San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) '06 it was announced that a new take on the Spawn mythos was in the works. This new Spawn story is known as The Adventures of Spawn and as stated by Jon Goff, a moderator on the Spawn.com Message Board and McFarlane employee, it is a re-imagining of the Spawn story that is essentially a "What If?" universe that hearkens back to classic kid-friendly Saturday morning cartoons. The story takes place in a webcomic format and has been tied into the action figure world through McFarlane Toys' Spawn Series 30.
Misery
An upcoming series centered around Cyan Fitzgerald and her titular alter-ego.
Spawn-Witchblade
A four Issue mini-series centered in medieval times focusing on the Medieval Spawn and the wielder of the Witchblade of that time. A sequel to the 1993 series.
Sam and Twitch True Detectives

An eight-part mini-series focusing on Sam and Twitch which would tie in with the upcoming film.

Spawn: Resurrection

A one-shot that takes place around the same time as Spawn 250 explaining how Al returned.

Spawn Kills Everyone

A one-shot focusing on a chibi Spawn killing everyone.

Spawn Kills Everyone Too!

A four-part mini-series sequel to the one-shot Spawn Kills Everyone.

Dispute with Neil Gaiman

In 1993, McFarlane contracted Neil Gaiman to write Spawn #9. While doing so, Gaiman introduced the characters Cogliostro, Angela, and Medieval Spawn. All three characters were designed and co-created by Todd McFarlane and continued to be featured in the series after Gaiman's involvement, and some had tie-ins with McFarlane's toy company. Cogliostro had a prominent role in the live-action movie in 1997. McFarlane had agreed that Gaiman was a co-creator of the characters and paid him royalties for reprints, graphic novels, and action figures.[22] After a few years, he ceased the payment of royalties and gave Gaiman notice that he owned all rights to the characters, citing the copyright notice from #9 and claimed that Gaiman's work had been work-for-hire and that McFarlane was the sole owner.[23]

In 2002, Gaiman filed suit against McFarlane and, in response, McFarlane counter-sued. Gaiman had partnered with Marvel Comics to form Marvels and Miracles, LLC, which bankrolled the lawsuit.[22] The main goal was to determine the issue of ownership for another character Gaiman felt he had a stake in, Miracleman, which at the time McFarlane was believed to hold a sizable stake in after his buyout of the assets of Eclipse Comics. This issue was thrown out. Instead, the court chose to rule on the breach of contract issue, the rights of ownership and the copyrightability of the characters from Spawn #9. Several arguments were presented by McFarlane and all were rejected, leading to a sizable judgment against McFarlane and Image Comics.[22] The matter went to appeal and the judgment was upheld in a 2003 decision.[21][23]

Gaiman's rights as co-creator and co-owner of Cogliostro, Angela, and Medieval Spawn were acknowledged.[23] The court's view was that Gaiman and McFarlane's collaboration led to each contributing half of the work.[23] Gaiman wrote the story while McFarlane illustrated the character; because of this, each held a 50% stake in the characters. Issue 9 was reprinted for the first time since the lawsuit was filed in the hardcover edition of Spawn Origins: Volume 1. In a reprint collection of the first twelve issues of Spawn, the contentious issue (along with Dave Sim's #10, featuring copyrighted character Cerebus) was excluded, but both issues have been reprinted in the hardcover and deluxe editions of Spawn Origins Collection: Volume 1, and the black & white softcover omnibus Spawn Compendium 1, collecting Spawn issues #1–50. In 2012, McFarlane and Gaiman settled their dispute,[24] and Gaiman was given full ownership of the character Angela.[25] Gaiman, in turn, sold all rights to the character to Marvel Comics.[26]

Tony Twist suit

Todd McFarlane created a mob enforcer character named "Antonio 'Tony Twist' Twistelli", who McFarlane acknowledged was named after hockey player Tony Twist. Twist won a $15 million verdict in 2004 when a St. Louis, Missouri, jury found Todd McFarlane Productions had profited from Twist's likeness.[27] The verdict was upheld after two appeals in June 2006, but the two later settled out of court for $5 million.[28]

Creative teams

Collected editions

Many issues of Spawn have been gathered together in various trade paperbacks collections since the mid-nineties. The original US and UK trade releases contain issue 9, but not 10 (Cerebus' appearance).

US releases

Each containing four to five issues, the original Spawn trade paperbacks started in 1995 under a different trade cover design, going up to three volumes only. After the live-action 1997 movie, a new trade cover design was created, with Brent Ashe providing new covers for Books 1–7, and Ashley Wood for Books 8–12. These reissues were retitled with subtitles. The sequential trades stopped after Book 12, but several new volumes appeared in 2006–2008, collecting various story arcs. Beginning in 2009, a new series of volumes was released, collecting the "Endgame" storyline. From 2015–2019, with "Resurrection", "Satan Saga Wars", "Hell on Earth", "Dark Horror", and "Enemy of The State" volumes, the trade paperbacks have started in sequential order again collecting issues #251–290.

  • Book 1, "Beginnings", 1–5
  • Book 2, "Dark Discoveries", 6–9, 11
  • Book 3, "Book 3", 12–15
  • Book 4, "Book 4", 16–20
  • Book 5, "Death and Rebirth", 21–25
  • Book 6, "Pathway to Judgement", 26–30
  • Book 7, "Deadman's Touch", 31–34
  • Book 8, "Betrayal of Blood", 35–38
  • Book 9, "Urban Jungle", 39–42
  • Book 10, "Vengeance of the Dead", 43–47
  • Book 11, "Crossroads", 48–50 (50 is double-sized)
  • Book 12, "Immortality", 51–54
  • Spawn: Capital Collection (January 1993) – contains issues 1–3 (note: this was a limited edition hardcover exclusively available from Capital City Distribution, and only 1200 copies were made)
  • Spawn: The Armageddon Collection Part 1 – contains issues 150–155
  • Spawn: The Armageddon Collection Part 2 – contains issues 156–164
  • Spawn: The Complete Armageddon Collection – contains issues 150–164
  • Spawn: New Flesh Collection (December 2007) – contains issues 166–169, plus a short story from Image Holiday Special 2005
    (note: Issue #165 wasn't included because it features the story of Mandarin Spawn)
  • Spawn: Neo Noir – contains issues 170–175
  • Spawn: EndGame Volume 1 (June 2009) – contains issues 185–190, with some altered artwork
  • Spawn: EndGame Volume 2 (April 2010) – contains issues 191–196, with some altered artwork
  • Spawn: EndGame Collection (January 2011) – combines Endgame Vol 1 and 2 (issues 185–196 with some altered artwork)
  • Spawn: New Beginnings Volume 1 (July 2011) – contains issues 201–206.
  • Spawn: New Beginnings Volume 2 (March 2012) – contains issues 207–212.
  • Spawn: Resurrection (November 2015) – contains Spawn: Resurrection #1 and issues 251–255.
  • Spawn: Satan Saga Wars (June 21, 2016) – collects SPAWN #256–262
  • Spawn: Hell on Earth (September 20, 2017) – collects SPAWN #263–275
  • Spawn: Dark Horror (April 23, 2019) – collects SPAWN #276–283
  • Spawn: Enemy of The State (August 21, 2019) – collects SPAWN #284-290
  • Spawn: Vengeance (May 27, 2020) – collects SPAWN #291-297

Spawn Collection

In 2005 the entire Spawn series began to appear in massive trade paperback releases under the title Spawn Collection, each containing (with the exception of Volume 1) approximately twenty issues. Released after the Gaiman lawsuit, these editions do not contain either Issue 9 (featuring the first appearance of Angela and Cogliostro, both created by Neil Gaiman) or Issue 10 (featuring Dave Sim's Cerebus).

Spawn Collection Volumes 1 and 2 were published in both hardcover and trade paperback formats, while Volume 3 onward were only released as trade paperbacks. As of 2009, Spawn Collection Volume 1 is currently out of print, with its fourth printing released in June 2007. In 2009 it was announced that the Spawn Collection would end with Volume 6, to be replaced by a new TBP format that includes soft- and hardcover versions, reprinting the entire Spawn series from the early issues once again (Spawn Origins Collection, see below).

  • Spawn Collection Volume 1 – contains issues 1–8, 11–12 (December 2005)
  • Spawn Collection Volume 2 – contains issues 13–33 (July 2006)
  • Spawn Collection Volume 3 – contains issues 34–54 (March 2007)
  • Spawn Collection Volume 4 – contains issues 55–75 (September 2007)
  • Spawn Collection Volume 5 – contains issues 76–95 (April 2008)
  • Spawn Collection Volume 6 – contains issues 96–116 (August 2008)

Spawn Collection Volume 1 was ranked 17 in the top 100 graphic novels for December 2005 period, with pre-order sales of 3,227.[37]

Spawn Compendium

In 2012, in celebration of Image Comics' then 20 years as a publisher and Spawn being one of their longest running titles, Spawn Compendium was released, reprinting Spawn issues #1–50 at 1136 pages in black and white, though this volume does not collect the issues' covers. The book went to a second printing in March 2016.

  • Spawn Compendium 1 – collects Spawn issues #1–50 in black and white

Spawn Origins Collection

In 2009, a line of newly redesigned and reformatted trade paperbacks was announced, replacing the Spawn Collection line (see above) and once again collecting the early issues of Spawn. These new trades feature new cover art by Greg Capullo, recreating classic Spawn covers. In addition to the 6 issue trade paperbacks, this line features three oversized 12–13 issue hardcovers, and two large 25-issue limited slipcased deluxe editions (which come in both a standard edition and a signed and numbered edition limited to 500 copies). The 12-issue hardcover edition of Volume One was the first to reprint both Issues 9 and 10, and the 25-issue deluxe editions did as well. Spawn Origins Collection Volume 20 trade paperback was the final volume released in 2014, collecting issues #117–122.

In May 2019, a new edition of Spawn Origins Collection Volume 1 TPB (6th printing) was published at the low cover price of US$9.99.[38][39] The book went back to press again for a seventh printing a few months later in September 2019.

  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 1 – collects issues #1–6 (May 2009) (sixth printing released in May 2019 at US$9.99 cover price) (seventh printing released in September 2019)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 2 – collects issues #7–9, 11–14 (July 2009)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 3 – collects issues #15–20 (December 2009)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 4 – collects issues #21–26 (January 2010)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 5 – collects issues #27–32 (May 2010)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 6 – collects issues #33–38 (July 2010)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 7 – collects issues #39–44 (September 2010)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 8 – collects issues #45–50 (November 2010)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 9 – collects issues #51–56 (February 2011)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 10 – collects issues #57–62 (March 2011)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 11 – collects issues #63–68 (June 2011)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 12 – collects issues #69–74 (September 2011)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 13 – collects issues #75–80 (January 2012)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 14 – collects issues #81–86 (March 2012)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 15 – collects issues #87–92 (June 2012)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 16 – collects issues #93–98 (September 2012)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 17 – collects issues #99–104 (February 2013)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 18 – collects issues #105–110 (May 2013)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 19 – collects issues #111–116 (September 2013)
  • Spawn Origins Collection Volume 20 – collects issues #117–122 (February 2014)

Deluxe Edition
  • Spawn Origins Collection: Deluxe Edition Volume 1 – collects issues #1–25
  • Spawn Origins Collection: Deluxe Edition Volume 2 – collects issues #26–50
  • Spawn Origins Collection: Deluxe Edition Volume 3 – collects issues #51–75
  • Spawn Origins Collection: Deluxe Edition Volume 4 – collects issues #76–100[40]

Hardcover Edition
Title Material collected Pages Publication date ISBN
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 1 Spawn #1–12 300 March 30, 2010 978-1607061533
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 2 Spawn #13–25 328 November 2, 2010 978-1607062288
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 3 Spawn #26–37 328 March 8, 2011 978-1607062370
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 4 Spawn #38–50 325 September 27, 2011 978-1607064374
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 5 Spawn #51–62 325 January 3, 2012 978-1607062431
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 6 Spawn #63–75 325 May 1, 2012 978-1607065302
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 7 Spawn #76–87 320 September 18, 2012 978-1607065869
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 8 Spawn #88–100 368 April 9, 2013 978-1607066750
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 9 Spawn #101–112 384 September 10, 2013 978-1607067764
Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 10[41] Spawn #113–125 352 October 11, 2016 978-1632159069

UK releases

These releases were originally published in fifteen 5–6–issue volumes in the UK by Titan Books, with titles named by religious theme. The following books contained original series issues 1–82, with the exception of the previously mentioned Issue 10.

  • Creation – contains issues 1–5
  • Evolution – contains issues 6–9 and 11
  • Revelation – contains issues 12–15
  • Escalation – contains issues 16–20
  • Confrontation – contains issues 21–25
  • Retribution – contains issues 26–30
  • Transformation – contains issues 31–36
  • Abduction – contains issues 37–42
  • Sanction – contains issues 43–48
  • Damnation – contains issues 49–53
  • Corruption – contains issues 54–58
  • Devastation – contains issues 59–64
  • Termination – contains issues 65–70
  • Resurrection – contains issues 71–76
  • Ascension – contains issues 77–82

South African releases

Originally published by a South African publisher named Battle Axe Press in the early 1990s. Only the first 10 issues were published due to legal matters. The comic book prints were released on standard paper as opposed to the original glossy paper from Image comics.

Spanish releases

Published by Planeta DeAgostini / Planeta Cómic.

1 - Deuda con el Diablo (#140-144) - December 2005

2 - Aullido (#145-150) - December 2005

3 - La Promesa (#151-157) - December 2006

4 - Destruccion (#158-162) - April 2007

5 - Los que Oyen Voces (#163-168) - April 2008

6 - Tres Hermanos (#169-173) - January 2010

7 - El Monstruo de la Burbuja (#174-178) - May 2010

8 - La Batalla Interior (#179-184) - May 2010

9 - Fin del Juego 1 (#185-190) - July 2010

10 - Fin del Juego 2 (#191-196) - September 2010

11 - Spawn Resurrección (Spawn Resurrection, Spawn #251-255) - September 2017

Brazilian releases

In the year of 1996 was published by Editora Abril Jovem the first 150 numbers of Spawn. There was other magazine named "A Maldição do Spawn" collecting only the first 12 numbers of Curse of Spawn. The arc 'Twist of Fate' was named "A Caçada ao Poderoso Chefão" (like 'The Hunt for the Powerful Kingpin') collecting the numbers 17, 18 and 19 of Curse of Spawn. There was too others mini-series magazines like Angela, Violator, Spawn Bible, Blood Feud, and the two encounters with Batman. This run of publications ended in the year of 2005.

In the meantime, in the year of 2001, another publisher called Pandora Books released the edition named "Witchblade: Era das Trevas" (like 'The Dark Ages') with the encounter with the character Medieval Spawn.

In the year of 2006 to 2008 Spawn changed the publisher (after 10 years of Editora Abril Jovem) and went to Editora Pixel Media. They released from the issue number 151 to 178. Besides that, they released on the format of trade paperback the edition of Spawn Armageddon, Spawn Godslayer and the first two editions of Spawn Origin.

In the year of 2012 Spawn was released on the format of a special trade paperback by the publisher HQ Maniacs Editora (a.k.a HQM), named "Spawn: Herança Maldita" (like 'Damn Inheritance' or 'Bad Seed' too), collecting numbers 179 to 184.

In the beginning of year 2019 Todd McFarlane himself confirmed at social media that a new Brazilian publisher named New Order Editora will release Spawn from the number 251 to 255 and the special "Spawn: Resurrection".

Spin-off trade paperback collections

Several Spawn-related mini-series have been collected in trade paperback editions.

  • Angela (later retitled Spawn: Angela's Hunt) – collects Neil Gaiman's Angela issues 1–3 and the 1995 one-shot.
  • Spawn: Bloodfeud – collects Spawn: Bloodfeud 1–4 ISBN 1840231173
  • Hellspawn: The Ashley Wood Collection – collects Hellspawn issues 1–10, replaces pages from issue 10 originally drawn by Ben Templesmith with new art by Ashley Wood[42]
  • Spawn: The Undead – collects Spawn: The Undead issues 1–9
  • Medieval Spawn/Witchblade – collects Medieval Spawn/Witchblade 1–3 ISBN 188727944X
  • Sam & Twitch Book 1: Udaku – collects 1–8 of the Sam and Twitch spin off.
  • Sam & Twitch: The Brian Michael Bendis Collection 1 – collects issues 1–9
  • Sam & Twitch: The Brian Michael Bendis Collection 2 – collects issues 10–19
  • Sam & Twitch: The Writer ISBN 1607062275
  • Violator vs. Badrock – collects Alan Moore's crossover miniseries issues 1–4
  • Shadows of Spawn Collection – collects the Spawn manga ISBN 1582406588
  • Spawn: Book of the Dead ISBN 160706149X Released in both hardcover and softcover editions
  • Alan Moore: Wild Worlds – collects Spawn/Wild C.A.T.S 1–4 ISBN 1401213790

One-shot editions
  • Spawn: Blood and Shadows ISBN 1582401098
  • Spawn: Blood and Salvation ISBN 1582401144
  • Spawn: Simony ISBN 1582403651
  • Spawn: Architects of Fear ISBN 1582408386
  • Spawn: The Movie ISBN 1887279814
  • Spawn: The Book Of Souls ASIN: B0039ODNQW
  • Spawn: Bible ASIN: B001M0G3NK
  • Spawn Adult Coloring Book
  • Spawn: Godslayer
  • Spawn/Batman ISBN 1582400199
  • Batman/Spawn: War Devil ISBN 1563891441
  • Spawn & Batman: Inner Demons (Unreleased)
  • Spawn/Savage Dragon: Newsstand edition of Savage Dragon issue 30
  • Angela Special
  • Angela/Glory
  • Glory/Angela
  • Glory/Celestine
  • Aria-Angela Blank & Noir

Spin-off hardcover collection

A few Spawn-related mini-series have been collected in HC editions.

  • Spawn: The Dark Ages Complete Collection – collects Issues 1–28 ISBN 1607066866
  • Hellspawn: Complete Collection – collects Issues 1–16 ISBN 1607061554
  • Sam & Twitch: Complete Collection Volume 1 – collects Issues 1–12 ISBN 1607062402
  • Sam& Twitch : Complete Collection Volume 2 – collects Issues 13–24 ISBN 1607062429

Curse of the Spawn

Most of the Curse of the Spawn – spin-off series has been collected in trade paperback editions.

  • Curse of the Spawn: Book 1: Sacrifice of the Soul – issues 1–4
  • Curse of the Spawn: Book 2: Blood and Sutures – issues 5–8
  • Curse of the Spawn: Book 3: Shades of Grey – issues 9–11, 29
  • Curse of the Spawn: Book 4: Lost Values – issues 12–14, 22
  • The Best of Curse of the Spawn – contains issues 1–8, 12–16 and 20–29 without the coloring

In other media

Television
  • Spawn made his animated debut in the HBO Todd McFarlane's Spawn in which Spawn is voiced by Keith David.[43] The series won two Emmys (one in 1998 and another in 1999) and two Golden Reel Awards (1998/1999).[44]
  • In 2019, McFarlane revealed that there will be two animated shows based on the character, one for kids and the other for adults.[45]

Film
  • In 1997, a film adaptation featured Michael Jai White as Spawn.[46] As a result, White became the first African American to portray a major comic book superhero in a major motion picture.[47]
  • In early 2015, Todd McFarlane announced a new Spawn adaptation for the big screen.[48] In February 2016 McFarlane confirmed he had completed the script for the film with a larger-than-normal page count because he's "putting in details for myself" in conjunction with his hopes to direct.[49] In July 2017, it was officially confirmed that McFarlane would direct the film, which is being produced under Jason Blum's production company Blumhouse.[50] In May 2018, it was reported that Jamie Foxx would portray the title character.[51] In July 2018, the working title was revealed to be Tony Dynamite.[52] In November 2019, the film restarted development due to the financial success of the R-rated comic book film Joker.[53][54]
  • Spawn appears in Ready Player One. He appears as an avatar fighting the Sixers on Planet Doom during the final battle.[55]

Video games

Spawn has starred in several video games:

Merchandising
  • At the time of the release of the live action film, Spawn appeared in several commercials for Taco Bell.
  • In 1994 McFarlane Toys released the first line of Spawn toys ever produced, in later years the series would include alternate timeframes and different takes on the classic characters with toyline series.[57]

Music

References in other works

Spawn has also been referenced or parodied in other forms of media, including:

  • Spawn appeared in the Robot Chicken episode "Celebutard Mountain" voiced by Adam Talbot. The episode features a violin battle between Spawn and Malebolgia where Spawn performs a parody of the Charlie Daniels song "The Devil Went Down to Georgia". Malebolgia wins the battle despite being a terrible violinist and Spawn is subsequently enslaved.
  • In The Powerpuff Girls episode "Super Zeroes", the main characters appear as superheroines that parody different comic book characters. Buttercup appears in a likeness of Spawn, the character being known as "Spore" in their universe. Her appearance is dark with a large cape and green eyes, and she gives herself the name "Mange". Even a parody of Malebolgia appears, giving her powers.
  • A villain who appeared in the show World of Quest named General Ogun has a strong resemblance to Spawn.
gollark: Or learn to program. I think basically everyone is *capable* of it.
gollark: I'm also not entirely sure why you would want, specifically, a command to view your capacitor bank's stored energy, and not a graph or % value or something.
gollark: If you want, for some bizarre reason, a way to run commands like `getrf`, you'll have to program your own program for that using the lower-level component APIs.
gollark: Roughly. Something like that.
gollark: You *can*, however, open the Lua prompt, and if the capacitor is connected somehow, do, I don't know, `component.capacitor.getEnergyStored()`.

See also
  • List of Spawn villains

References
  1. "IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes: (40–21)". IGN. May 5, 2011
  2. Nama, Adilifu (1 October 2011). Super Black: American Pop Culture and Black Superheroes. University of Texas Press. p. 136. ISBN 978-0-292-74252-9.
  3. McFarlane, Todd (November 2012). The Art of Todd McFarlane: The Devil's in the Details. Todd McFarlane Productions/Image Comics.
  4. Miller, John Jackson. "X-Men #1, One Piece, and world records", The Comics Chronicles, November 16, 2010.
  5. Rossen, Jake (May 2008). "50 Events That Rocked Comics". Wizard Magazine #200.
  6. "Todd McFarlane – Complete Biography". Spawn.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-21. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  7. "Wizard Market Watch". Wizard (22). June 1993. pp. 134–5.
  8. Pearson, Lars (August 1997). "Spawn's Scorching". Wizard (72). p. 141.
  9. "Wizard Top 100". Wizard (72). August 1997. p. 142.
  10. "Top 300 Comics Actual—January 2008". icv2.com. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  11. "McFarlane-Portacio Spawn Sells Out". Newsarama.com. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  12. "Comic Book Sales Figures for April 2009". Newsarama.com. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  13. "Monthly Comics Book Sales–September 2010". comichron.com. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  14. "Spawn #200 Sells Out in One Day". Comic Book Resources. 2011-01-13. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  15. "Spawn #200 – Review". IGN. 2011-01-12. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  16. "Monthly Comics Book Sales–May 2018". comichron.com. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  17. Nelson, Victoria (8 May 2012). Gothicka: Vampire Heroes, Human Gods, and the New Supernatural. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. pp. 103–104. ISBN 978-0-674-06540-6.
  18. M. Keith Booker, ed. (2010). Encyclopedia of Comic Books and Graphic Novels. ABC-CLIO. pp. 583–585. ISBN 978-0-313-35746-6.
  19. Boyd, Todd (30 October 2008). African Americans and Popular Culture [3 volumes]. ABC-CLIO. p. 174. ISBN 978-0-313-06408-1.
  20. Duncan, Randy; Smith, Matthew J. (January 2013). Icons of the American Comic Book: From Captain America to Wonder Woman. ABC-CLIO. p. 503. ISBN 978-0-313-39923-7.
  21. Wagner, Hank; Golden, Christopher; Bissette, Stephen R. (28 October 2008). Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman. St. Martin's Press. pp. 239–252. ISBN 978-1-4299-6178-3.
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  26. Johnson, Rich. "Marvel Owns Angela – But No, Karen Gillan Won't Be Playing Her In Guardians Of The Galaxy". BleedingCool. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  27. CBC Arts (2004-12-20). "Todd McFarlane Productions files for bankruptcy". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  28. "Appeals court upholds $15M verdict for Twist". Stlouis.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  29. "[EXCLUSIVE!] McFARLANE REUNITES WITH 'SPAWN'". Archived from the original on 2008-06-07. Retrieved 2017-01-12.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  30. "The Pro Logs Extra: Will Carlton". ComicBuzz. 2012-03-21. Archived from the original on 2012-05-11. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  31. "Jonathan David Goff". Comic Book DB. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  32. "Paul Jenkins". Comic Book DB. 1965-12-06. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
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  34. "Spawn (1992) #32". Comic Book DB. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  35. "June 2010". MaggieThompson.com. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
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  38. https://imagecomics.com/comics/releases/spawn-origins-vol-1
  39. https://www.amazon.com/Spawn-Origins-1-New-Printing/dp/1534313893/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_1?keywords=Spawn%3A+Origins+Volume+1+%28New+Printing%29&qid=1557382570&s=books&sr=1-1-fkmrnull
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  41. "Spawn: Origins Collection, Book 10 HC | Releases". Image Comics. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  42. "Hellspawn Collection | Spawn Comic Books". SpawnWorld. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  43. "Spawn Voice | Behind The Voice Actors". behindthevoiceactors.com. December 18, 2019. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources.
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