With Fox's
Kingsman: The Secret Service hitting retailers on Blu-ray, DVD and digital HD earlier this week, and following on the heels of my earlier
interview with Kingsman co-creator and illustrator Dave Gibbons, I thought I would start the weekend off right by sharing my interview with Mark Millar, Kingsman co-creator and writer. Millar has had several of his comics adapted to the big screen, including
Kick-Ass and Marvel's upcoming
Civil War. Millar is a Scottish comic book writer and is known for his work on such titles as
The Authority, The Ultimates, Marvel Knights Spider-Man, Ultimate Fantastic Four and more.
Special thanks go out to CBM's Josh Wilding. He was originally scheduled to conduct the interview, but it fell into my lap due to scheduling conflicts. Many of the questions came from his intended interview.
JS (CBM): What's it been like to see the movie become such a massive hit?
MM: You can only hope for the best, just cross your fingers and hope it works OK.
This was the second time Matthew Vaughn has adapted one of your comics; How was it getting the gang back together?
I Don't think there really has been a week in the last 7-8 years when we haven’t spoken 3-4 times. We have fun working together always socializing and having a blast together.
How involved were you with the movie from a creative standpoint?
I like to make sure I am part of the whole process, so I like to be involved with casting to looking at set design I think it's very important because you want the best possible people around you snd I feel very lucky with the adaptations so far.
There were some changes made from the comic book in the movie. Is that something that ever bothers you?
It was something we discussed at length beforehand . Matthew and Jane were against the two leads being related they were uncle and nephew and Matthew suggested it would be simpler if he became a friend to the family instead one of the family. I think it was a good choice for the movie it worked well.
The church scene has to be one of the most incredible sequences in a movie. What was your favorite moment>
I love the bar fight with Colin taking on the thugs. I came to love this pumped up Colin. I also loved the opening scene with Mark Hamill that’s so exciting because it’s Mark Hamill and that came about because I am massive Star Wars fan.
How excited were you when you found out Mark Hamill had been cast>
Matthew and I were hugging ourselves with excitement because Luke Skywalker was going to be in the same credits as us.
When are we going to start seeing you do Stan Lee-like cameos in your films?
I think it would be 50 years before I get a cameo like Stan Lee.
The entire cast was fantastic but is there one particular person who stands out for you?
Taron Egerton. I love the fact that he could hold his own, and thinking this kid is going to be around for the next 50 years. It felt like watching Dr. Who for the first time and seeing Sean Connery.
Your work has influenced the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a big way; how excited are you to see Captain America: Civil War next year? And are there any moments in particular you like to see them adapt?
I'm actually as excited that the Russo Brothers are directing it as I am they are adapting my Civil War book. The fight scene between Captain America and Iron Man is going to be interesting. I think to see them actually physically go one-on-one with each other is exciting.
Hugh Jackman recently announced that the Wolverine 3 will be his final time as the character. Would you like to see him stick around for Old Man Logan?
I would like to see Hugh Jackman do Wolverine until he is 120 years old. I loved Hugh Jackman from the second I saw him in X-Men. I thought this guy is amazing. You have to remember we had 15 maybe 20 years of terrible Comic Book Movies before that. I was blown away with X-Men and Hugh Jackman was the star of the show and have loved him ever since.
Where do you get your inspiration?
From whatever is happening around me at the time. When I wrote Civil War, America was at war with itself the red states and the blue states when nobody seemed to be getting along. An ideological argument between two people who are the good guys.
Kingsman: The Secret Service is now available on Blu-ray, DVD and digital HD.
A phenomenal cast, including Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson and Michael Caine, lead this action-packed spy-thriller about a street kid recruited into a group of covert agents.