Matthew Fox (Lost, Party of Five) is in negotiations with Warner Bros. to star in an adaptation of the Oni Press graphic novel, Billy Smoke written by B.Clay Moore (Hawaiian Dick, The Leading Man) and illustrated by Eric Kim, according to Variety. If you are wondering why you haven’t seen a Billy Smoke comic or graphic novel, it is because this saga about a hitman looking for redemption after a botched job won’t be published by Oni until 2009.

Warner Bros. also has the rights to two other Oni properties, Maintenance and Whiteout.  The film version of Greg Rucka’s Whiteout is due to be released in October.

New Line Cinema optioned B. Clay Moore's Hawaiian Dick in 2004 and renewed its rights in 2006.  Also in 2006 Moore’s The Leading Man was optioned by Universal, one of numerous Oni projects set up at various studios (see “Oni Press and 60Frames”).