Watchmen Comic Now on the Big Screen 2009

Watchmen is one of the most widely read graphic novels in history. And now after two decades it will be coming to the big screens. Sources say the filmmakers are delivering an R-rated movie. An adult movie that is not going to soften the novels violent, political or sexual content.

Watchmen for those of you who don't know is a twelve issue comic book limited series that was written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons and John Higgins. It was published by DC Comics as a monthly limited series from the years 1986 to 1987 and later on it was republished as a trade paperback. Watchmen is the only graphic novel to have won the Hugo Award and the only graphic novel to appear on Time's list of "100 Best English-Language Novels."

The comic is set in the year 1985 in the United States, yet with an alternate history. A history in which it is the norm for costume adventurers to wander the streets. Where the United States is very close to a nuclear war with the Soviet Union. It's a story based on past and present heroes and superheroes and an event which surrounds the mysterious death of one of their own.

On October 5, 2005 DC released Absolute Watchmen which was an oversized, slipcased hardcover edition of Watchmen in DC's Absolute edition series for its upcoming 20th anniversary. The edition featured restored and recolored art by John Higgins under the diretion of Dave Gibbons. A regular hardcover edition will be released on November 4, 2008. DC announced back in August of 2008, because of high demand from consumers after watching the Watchmen film's teaser trailer the company has printed more then a million copies of the trade collection.

In the year of 1987 Mayfair Games created two adventure modules which included Who Watches the Watchmen? and Taking out the Trash. DC direct also wanted to produce a line of Watchmen action figures but the production was canceled. DC Comics did release a limited edition badge set that featured the characters and images from the Watchmen series. It was said that the badge set created friction between the writer Moore and publisher DC Comics, but DC comics stated the badge set was promotional items and not merchandising and they did not have to pay Moore or Gibbons any royalties.

Warner Bros. stated back in June of 2006 that Zack Snyder would be directing a film adaptation of Watchmen and will be set to realease on March 6, 2009. The cast will include Patrick Wilson, Malin Akerman, Jackie Earle Haley,Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.