When you walk into David Maisel’s Los Angeles office, the first thing you see is a statue of Iron Man, one of the most recognizable superheroes in the world. Hanging on the wall above him is an illustration of a furry faced character named Grell, a hero far fewer people recognize, but who is getting the spotlight this week at San Diego Comic-Con.
Iron Man represents Maisel’s past as the founding chairman of Marvel Studios, where he had the idea for characters such as Iron Man, Captain America and Thor to live in a shared cinematic universe. Grell represents his future at Mythos Studios, where he is plotting a new cinematic universe called Ekos that will feature not just Grell, but potentially hundreds of other characters.
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Just as Iron Man made a splash at San Diego Comic-Con in 2007 with a panel for Marvel Studios’ first movie, Maisel is banking on the convention to boost Ekos, a universe inspired by the art and creations of late artist Michael Turner and writer Geoff Johns.
Maisel’s Mythos Studios and Aspen Comics (which he has a stake in) are using Comic-Con as a launchpad for Ekos Vol. 1, a roughly 128-page graphic novel that will lay the groundwork for the new universe that will eventually jump to film and TV. The graphic novel begins as a Kickstarter launching Sept. 10, ahead of the book’s November release, though the Kickstarter prelaunch page is live starting today.
Grell is a key part of this universe, and art of the character will adorn more than 250 access portals that Comic-Con attendees must use to enter the convention. It’s among the highest profile real estate at the convention. Maisel is aware of how Comic-Con can help a character’s profile.
“When I announced Iron Man as our first movie, more people thought it was a triathlon — not a superhero — and many people in Hollywood knew it had been in development for years at New Line — and never made it out of that stage,” says Maisel of doubts people had when he announced Iron Man in 2005, two years before its triumphant Comic-Con panel.
He is aware that many people since Marvel have tried (and failed) to launch shared universes, but hopes for an open mind, given his track record at Marvel.
Ekos Vol. 1 takes inspiration from the works of Turner and Johns, who introduced Grell in 2003. Turner, who died in 2008, created titles such as Fathom and Soulfire, and while his characters did not interact in the comics, they will in the Ekos universe. Maisel conceived of the idea for the story, which is under wraps for now, though he describes it as “Avatar meets Spider-Verse,” and says it will explore the wonders of Earth.
“It’s a fresh story,” says Maisel, noting readers won’t need prior knowledge going into it. “But it’s also inspired by the art and creations of Michael Turner.”
He also teases something unique for Grell’s powers, which were not spelled out by Turner or Johns’ original work in 2003, when the character appeared in just a few pages of comics.
“They are not the obvious ones. It looks like he’s super strong. He has wings,” says the executive. “But I hit on something that I think is timely for today’s world and will be surprising for people.”
The creative team on Ekos Vol. 1 include colorist Peter Steigerwald (Civil War, Fathom, Soulfire), writer J.T. Krul (Soulfire) and artist Alex Konat (Fathom). Cover artists include Joe Quesada, Alex Ross, J. Scott Campbell, David Mack, Jerome Opeña and more.
Mythos and Aspen will have one of the largest booths at Comic-Con, and will also host a panel on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Room 4 to give audiences a taste of what’s to come.
Maisel, who exited Marvel after orchestrating its sale to Disney in 2009, has spent a career independently financing movies based off of massive IP, and then partnering with studios for distribution. He spearheaded that strategy with Marvel Studios’ early film slate, and repeated it for 2016’s The Angry Birds Movie. While he is considering going the independent financing route for Ekos, he also intends to talk with potential studio and streaming partners after the graphic novel launches, and would be open to making these projects with a partner.
Though Maisel has moved on from Marvel, it’s never far from his thoughts, and he looks for parallels between his former life and his current one, which is why his office is full of Michael Turner’s characters and Marvel heroes.
“They argue with each other about which one is cooler,” Maisel jokes of the Grell and Iron Man living close together in his office.
When he was at Marvel, Turner drew a famous variant cover to the blockbuster miniseries Civil War. Maisel, who is a collector of Turner’s work, commissioned an homage to that cover — but with Turner characters rather than Marvel heroes. Fans who sign up for updates on the Kickstarter will get a digital copy of that artwork, and a Comic-Con exclusive poster will be available at the Aspen/Mythos booth at Comic-Con for those who sign up for the Kickstarter prelaunch page.
Maisel acknowledges that it’s harder than ever to launch a successful media franchise, which is why he has taken his time to figure out the best approach. The answer, he believes, involves animation, which is having a resurgence, not just with the Spider-Verse movies, but with projects like Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4 helping save the summer box office.
“It was hard when we did Iron Man, but there wasn’t streaming to compete with, there wasn’t Marvel to compete with, and there wasn’t as much social media and shortform content,” says Maisel. “The bar is high. And I had to be patient to figure this out.”
