The minds behind the highly acclaimed Netflix animated series Love, Death & Robots are hard at work bringing another animated project to the streamer, this time a feature film called The Goon based on Eric Powell’s comics of the same name.
The animated feature will be co-helmed by Love, Death & Robots directors Tim Miller and Oscar winner Patrick Osborne. They are also writing along with comics creator Eric Powell.
At the SDCC’s directors panel in July 2022, Miller said he has been developing The Goon for 12 years and after making Love, Death & Robots, he made a point to bring The Goon to the streamer.
Jenno Topping, David Fincher, Jeff Fowler, Mike Richardson, and Peter Chernin serve as producers.
Miller and his Blur Studio raised $441,000 in a Kickstarter campaign to get The Goon underway and they recently reached their goal.
Here’s a little early footage of The Goon published back in 2010:
Since it got funded, updates were few and far between. A notable update came in March 2019 with Eric Powell telling Polygon after being asked about the status of the movie, saying:
“Not that I can speak of at the moment, but it’s still going. It’s still very much alive. It’s been a long process that I’ve had to deal with, but we are still very much alive and kicking. Hopefully we’ll get to tell people more soon.”
The latest update posted on July 23, 2022, on the Kickstarter reads:
As you read in the last update we had a set back with the Disney / Fox merger… but since then we’ve never stopped trying to move the Goon forward on other avenues. And one of those has finally led us to….
NETFLIX!
It’s a great place for adult animation and we have long enjoyed a terrific relationship them because of LOVE, DEATH + ROBOTS. They’re excellent people who love animation and we’re excited the Goon has found a home there.
ALSO, I’m personally THRILLED to introduce myself, Patrick Osborne, as the newest member of the Goon Movie team and the new captain at the helm! Working with team at Blur on Love Death and Robots directing Exit Strategies was a joy, and I can’t wait to work with Tim, Jeff, and Eric to make something special. I’ve loved the The Goon for a long time. There is no series of comics out there like it and I can’t wait to make it an equally singular film. Eric and I have already started digging in. We’re laser focused on shaping the script into something great – true to the comics – something like no one’s ever seen on screen before.
Here’s everything else we know about Netflix’s The Goon:
What’s the plot of The Goon?
The Goon comic is about a hulking orphan raised by his aunt, a strong woman for a carnival. When a gangster, Labrazio, guns down the aunt, the goon kills the gangster and takes over the operation.
Who is the voice cast in The Goon?
Pictures: Getty Images
The titular character of The Goon will be voiced by Clancy Brown, whose voice roles include such projects as SpongeBob, Detroit: Become Human, Invincible, Marvel’s What If? and many more.
Brown will be joined by Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti, whose notable roles include Cinderella Man, Sideways, 12 Years a Slave, and more. Giamatti will voice Franky in The Goon. Both were on board the project for years before the movie moved to Netflix. Giamatti is voicing the character of Franky.
The pair notably appeared together in Showtime’s Billions.
Paul Giamatti and Clancy Brown in HBO’s Billions
What’s the production status of The Goon?
Netflix’s The Goon is still in early development.
According to Tim Miller, the comic’s creator Eric Powell was working on the script with Osborne as of July 2022. Needless to say, there’s still quite a bit to do.
Blur Studio is behind the movie and is behind eight episodes of Netflix’s Emmy-winning Love, Death and Robots including the following episodes:
- Sonnie’s Edge (Volume 1 – Episode 1)
- Suits (Volume 1 – Episode 4)
- Shape-Shifters (Volume 1 – Episode 10)
- Ice Age (Volume 1 – Episode 16) – Collaboration with Digic Pictures and Atomic Fiction
- Pop Squad (Volume 2 – Episode 3)
- Life Hutch (Volume 2 – Episode 7)
- The Drowned Giant (Volume 2 – Episode 8)
- Bad Travelling (Volume 3 – Episode 2)
- Swarm (Volume 3 – Episode 6)
What’s the Netflix release date for The Goon?
Netflix hasn’t announced any dates for The Goon, but considering its very early development stage and how long animation generally takes, we can probably expect only a 2024 release date.
