DAVID GOYER

DAVID GOYER
The following is an e-mail interview with DAVID GOYER, who has been co-writing the hot JSA book with Geoff Johns, and has worked on Starman with James Robinson, but is probably best-known for his screenplay for Blade, the excellent Wesley Snipes film adaptated from the Marvel comic book. This interview was conducted on January 10, 2000.
DOUG WILKINSON: Have you been reading comics since you were a kid? What other influences did you have growing up?
DAVID GOYER: I've been reading comics since I was eight or nine. I was a rabid collector up through college and I still read quite a few titles. Moore was a huge influence, as was Grant Morrison, Miller, all the usual suspects.
DOUG WILKINSON: You currently co-write JSA with Geoff Johns. Do you have any other projects in the works?
DAVID GOYER: As for other comic projects, I am committed to doing JSA through #25. Beyond that, we'll have to see. I don't have a lot of extra time, as my screenwriting/producing is really my primary livelihood.
DOUG WILKINSON: At one time writers would start out writing comics in the hopes that their work would get recognized and they could move into writing novels, television, or motion picture screenplays. Lately, however, the movement seems to be going the other direction. James Robinson, Bob Gale, Greg Rucka, Kevin Smith, and yourself are just a few examples of writers who have moved from other mediums into comics. What were your motivations for doing so, and why do you think it's a growing trend?
DAVID GOYER: I moved into comics for the fun of it. I've always been a fan, but never really thought seriously about writing them. It's kind of a fluke that I ended up inheriting the JSA as I really was a neophyte in the comicbook business. I don't think it's a movement, per se, simpy that a few notable people have done it.
DOUG WILKINSON: Probably your most recognizable project to date was the Blade movie screenplay for Marvel. With more and more comic characters being licensed to movies and television projects, fans and critics are becoming extremely critical of such projects. How do you react to this criticism, and do you think it's justified?
DAVID GOYER: I think the criticism fans have given most comicbooks movies is justified. There haven't been very many good ones at all. Since Batman and The Crow, there have been a glut of comicbook characters that have been licensed for film and television, but few will ever make it to the screen. It's still in vogue right now. Companies are buying up properties with no real knowledge of what they are buying. Aside from a few iconic characters (Superman, Batman, Spiderman, the Hulk) most of the comicbook characters don't have a wide enough recognition factor to be valuable in and of themselves. So, if you're working with a character like Blade (who didn't have a large recognition factor beyond the comic world), what you look for is a good premise--something that is easily translatable. Blade was. It was a simple, elegant concept.
DOUG WILKINSON: Rumor has it that you are currently working on a script for a Dr. Strange movie. Is this true, and are there any other projects currently in the works that you'd like us to know about?
DAVID GOYER: I wrote the script for Dr. Strange a few years agao. Columbia lost the rights, but then re-purchased them when a new regime took power. At this point, I probably won't have much to do with the project. I'm trying to take a break from comicbook adaptations (aside from Blade 2, which I've already written).
DOUG WILKINSON: What , if any, are the biggest differences between writing screenplays and comics, and which do you prefer?
DAVID GOYER: In comic writing, you get to call the shots, literally. You determine whether a panel is a wide shot, close-up, etc. In a way, comics are like movie storyboards. It's actually good practice for directing, which is something I hope to segue into this year.
DOUG WILKINSON: Most of your comic-related projects to date have dealt with Golden Age characters or derivations thereof. Is there a reason you are so deeply involved with Golden Age characters, and what other characters would you like to play with in the future?
DAVID GOYER: The fact that I'm involved with Golden Age characters is purely a fluke. I never had a particular yen for them per se, I just do my research. I tend to like unusual, off the beaten path characters, like Scarab and Stalker, for instance--these were both my suggestions. At first, James thought I was insane, but gradually he warmed up to the idea. I also like pulling in characters from other books, hence Mordru's inclusion. There is no one character I am specifically interested in working on in the future. It changes from month to month.
DOUG WILKINSON: Are there any talents you have a great desire to work with in the future?
DAVID GOYER: I would love to do more work with Michael Lark. I'd also like to do something with Alan Davis beyond the wonderful covers he's been doing with us. I thought The Nail was excellent.