The Valiant Entertainment Group has taken back the movie rights to a film based on its Harbinger character and plans to develop the film in-house.  It appears that Valiant, at the urging of Chairman Peter Cuneo, who was a former CEO of Marvel, is attempting to follow the Marvel Studios’ method of developing its own properties for the big screen.

 

Variety reports the Valiant is retrieving the stalled Harbinger property that Paramount optioned back in 2008 (see "'Harbinger' Acquired by Paramount").  According to Variety, Valiant has also tapped Texas Chainsaw Massacre scribe Stephen Susco to pen the adaptation.  Susco had been working at Paramount with director Brett Ratner on the Harbinger project, and Valiant is hoping that Ratner will helm the Harbinger film.

 

According to Variety, one of the major reasons that Paramount did not go forward with the project was the fear of Watchmen-like lawsuits arising from the tangled history of the Harbinger property, which was originally created by Jim Shooter and which has passed through numerous hands since the demise of the original Valiant Comics, leading Paramount’s lawyers to think that rights issues could create problems for the studio.

 

Harbinger has been a mainstay of the revived Valiant Comics lineup, and the property obviously will play a major role in Valiant’s upcoming Harbinger Wars crossover event (see "'Harbinger' Wars Debuts in April").