COMICS: Alan Moore Rejects Offer For Watchmen Rights In Exchange For Work On Sequels!

COMICS: Alan Moore Rejects Offer For Watchmen Rights In Exchange For Work On Sequels!

Alan Moore has revealed that he rejected an offer from DC to return the rights to Watchmen in exchange for prequels and sequels featuring the characters...

News
By JoshWilding - Jul 22, 2010 09:07 AM EST
Filed Under: Watchmen
Source: Underwire

The legendary comic book writer who last year demanded removal of his name from the Watchmen movie adaptation, and even refused royalties, has now spoken out about DC approaching him with the offer of the rights of the characters in exchange for further work on the characters.

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"They offered me the rights to Watchmen back, if I would agree to some dopey prequels and sequels," Moore told Underwire in a recent interview. "So I just told them that if they said that 10 years ago, when I asked them for that, then yeah it might have worked."

"But these days I don't want Watchmen back. Certainly, I don't want it back under those kinds of terms."

"I don’t even have a copy of Watchmen in the house anymore", he went on to reveal indicating that his feud with the company wont be coming to an end anytime soon. "The comics world has lots of unpleasant connections, when I think back over it, many of them to do with Watchmen. I’m pretty much out of comics now. I really want nothing to do with it."



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AngelAragiel
AngelAragiel - 7/22/2010, 9:35 AM
Oh please WB don't frick with the watchmen story it's just fine the way it is.
McLovin
McLovin - 7/22/2010, 9:40 AM
what a sad, sad day ...
TheUnknown
TheUnknown - 7/22/2010, 9:41 AM
he really did get screwed by DC years ago
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 7/22/2010, 9:51 AM
THE GUY IS A BRILLIANT STORYTELLER WHO GOT EFFED TOO MANY TIMES TOTHE POINT HE'S SAID "FORGET THIS, IM OVER IT". IF YOU WANNA CONTINUE SOMETHING THATS ONLY MEANT AS A "SINGULAR GOOD AS IT IS AND STANDS ALONE" STORY, IT WON'T WORK BECAUSE SOME THINGS ARE JUST DESTINED TO BE MEANT AS A ONCE IN A LIFE TIME THING. DON'T TRY IT, IT'S NOT GONNA WORK AND THE MASTER WHO WROTE IT KNOWS IT.
Brashlight
Brashlight - 7/22/2010, 9:59 AM
Yeah, this guy got screwed but he is also very bitter. if he didn't like the end product of the movies based on his creation he shouldn't have sold the rights without being able to have a part in the creative process. yes the man was screwed but the blame is partly his too.
fanboiii
fanboiii - 7/22/2010, 10:00 AM
@Brashlight He was screwed over way before the Watchmen movie.

DC has enough on their plate.
Superzero
Superzero - 7/22/2010, 10:00 AM
After the abortion that was "LoEG" I can understand his spite towards hollywood incarnations of his work...BUT a part of me can't understand why he would HATE the "Watchmen" movie. Of the 4 graphic novels he wrote that were turned into movies, "Watchmen", is head and shoulders above ALL of them in every way possible. Not only that but the "Watchmen" movie itself was a gushing love letter to the source material from the director. Yes, some things were excluded and the ended was "changed" but what is left is IMHO, one of the BEST comic book based movies OF ALL TIME. I know this a subject that splits us down the middle, and I know that Alan Moore is notorious for hating anything having to do with turning his books into movies...BUT I can't see how he could NOT appreciate and least A LITTLE BIT the FANtastic job Snyder did with "Watchmen".
All that shite said, I'm totally stoked that DC is touching "Watchmen" in comic form. Back when the book came out, jebus I'm old, I was a kid and totally wanted more story. Now 25 years later, I like it where it is. Nice little article Josh.
Superzero
Superzero - 7/22/2010, 10:02 AM
duh, I mean NOT touching "Watchmen" in comic form...lol
Shaman
Shaman - 7/22/2010, 10:03 AM
Don't take the money, don't take the job, don't mop the spilled milk, keep the sour smell in the air and leave that stick in your ass. In the past yes, you were screwed. But now you're just screwin' yourself.

I'm not saying that Watchmen should get prequels and sequels, but he's just being a big baby about all of this. As if DC broke his wooden toy plane decades ago and he's still sittin' and poutin' in the sand box, refusing the bags of money DC's offering him to buy himself a new and better toy plane. Grow up, Moore.
fanboiii
fanboiii - 7/22/2010, 10:04 AM
@Superzero Being indifferent isn't hate

@Shaman Accepting money he doesn't agree with would be mature? He doesn't want or need the money. That's his right. Watchmen was his creation. Why should he be forced to keep working on Watchmen prequels/sequels that don't have any artistic basis?

He's not going to be like Frank Miller and write a prequel just to make another movie.
superdog
superdog - 7/22/2010, 10:04 AM
people shouldnt carry around so much anger and resentment. its not healthy.
Superzero
Superzero - 7/22/2010, 10:12 AM
@fanboii
I was using that term in general. And he's not really indifferent...many times he has expressed loathing towards hollywood, and I certainly understand his position. When "V for Vendetta" was coming out the producer said that Moore said he approved of the film, which he did not say at all. He was involved with "From Hell" to an extent but the "V" debacle is what prompted him to walk away from all of the adaptations.
BigbyBadWolf
BigbyBadWolf - 7/22/2010, 10:15 AM
That is the main problem with incredibly talented people. They become very egotistical and self centered. Moore is a great writer! He is creative, his dialog flows well, and he knows how to tell an entertaining story. But he is a major jerk. I can understand wanting to protect your writing. It's like your baby. But I have to agree with Brashlight. He did a lot of this to himself. If he didn't like the way LOEG was treated, stop selling the rights! I'm not positive, but pretty sure he still held the rights to From Hell and possibly V for Vendetta. There is no need to be that hateful about everything! Dude! Get off your high horse! The view is much better down here with the rest of us. You know. Your FANS!
fanboiii
fanboiii - 7/22/2010, 10:15 AM
How's he being bitter? He wrote Watchmen a long time ago. It's silly to expect him to still be interested in expanding the Watchmen world after all these years. Artists don't cling to old ideas.

@Superzero Well, I remember him wishing the Watchmen movie well. He wasn't hateful at all towards it. He just didn't want to be involved.
Hellmont
Hellmont - 7/22/2010, 10:18 AM
Hey if he doesnt need the money and the work isnt fulfilling then there is no point in doing something you are not passionate about.
Sparrowsabre7
Sparrowsabre7 - 7/22/2010, 10:19 AM
He may have been screwed over but I still find him unbearably pretentious.
Shaman
Shaman - 7/22/2010, 10:19 AM
fanboiii- The only reason why he's not accepting this is because he has a grudge, period. It's not because he doesn't agree with making prequels and sequels to Watchmen. He's just being anal. Why doesn't he accept money or credit from this franchise? Give me one good reason why not. Because he doesn't agree with it? With what? DC is acknowledging him as a great writer that created a great franchise. What's wrong with taking that money? What, he feels he doesn't deserve it? After doing all that work at making it great in the first place? No, he has no other reason than spite. And THAT is NOT being mature. He didn't wish the movie well at all, he freakin' boycotted it out of spite. Why wouldn't he have a piece of his own hard work at home if it wasn't for anything else than spite? "Artist don't cling to old ideas" but they sure do cling to grudges.

BigbyBadWolf- I second that comment entirely!!!
JoshWilding
JoshWilding - 7/22/2010, 10:21 AM
On the one hand, I can sort of understand why he's bitter about the whole situation but on the other I think he just needs to move on! I agree that unless it was Moore who wrote a sequel or prequel, Watchmen needs to be left alone, but his refusal last year to have anything to do with the movie was just plain childish IMO!

In fact, I pretty much completely agree with Shaman and BigbyBadWolf on this subject! :)
scambune
scambune - 7/22/2010, 10:21 AM
love this guy.
Dynamo
Dynamo - 7/22/2010, 10:23 AM
Words of a man whose been [frick]ed over by the system many times over.
moffattbooks
moffattbooks - 7/22/2010, 10:24 AM
artist do evolve and it's his right NOT to make sequels or prequels...we're just the fans. DC is like any other company that does hits and misses. So if he doesn't want to write any more in the Watchmen universe, that's entirely up to him.
fanboiii
fanboiii - 7/22/2010, 10:26 AM
@Shaman Why do you assume it's a grudge instead of him just not being passionate about the Watchmen world anymore? He doesn't accept money or wants his name on movie adaptations because it's not really his work. He's not removing his name from the comic books he wrote.

Some people want to hate on him just because he won't do their bidding. It's his choice and he's not hurting anyone. How's any of that bitter or pretentious? If he was really bitter, he'd try to stop any adaptations from being made. Instead, he just steps aside. I see nothing wrong with that.
Superzero
Superzero - 7/22/2010, 10:34 AM
I'm GLAD "Watchmen" is staying as is. I have it in single issue form that I bought when they came out, the world does NOT to be expanded upon because all of the character arcs are finished. An artist doesn't cling to old ideas but they DO expand upon them. I mean, how many sequels are there to LoEG? LoEG itself is an always changing story with many characters to draw from. Now it wouldn't be too hard to come up with some half assed idea for a sequel to "Watchmen" here's a start:
"It's New York 25 years after the "Alien Attack". The city has gradually slipped back into crime and despair. A new Rorschach emerges from the dirty alleyways to bring his own brand of justice back to the city. The new Rorschach draws a retired Nite-Owl and Silk Specter II back to the city they left. They reluctantly decided to help the new Rorschach (maybe a woman this time out?)in her (!) war on crime. Eventually the trio draws the support of the city the way they did during the "Golden Age" of the 40's and 50's...but someone watching from the shadows has other plans...
See? Not too hard at all! Does it suck? Could go either way. Point is it will NEVER, EVER, have the impact or worth that the original did. Some cover songs are just as good as the originals, Joe Cocker's version of The Beatle's "With a little Help from My Friends" comes to mind. At the same time does anyone remember when Avril Lavine covered "Fuel" by Metallica???
CorndogBurglar
CorndogBurglar - 7/22/2010, 10:34 AM
@ fanboii

you make sense, but the thing that gets me is that he claims that he NEVER watches any of the movies based off his comics. that sounds kinda bitter to me, man, lol.
Sparrowsabre7
Sparrowsabre7 - 7/22/2010, 10:36 AM
He may have been screwed over but I still find him unbearably pretentious.
fanboiii
fanboiii - 7/22/2010, 10:42 AM
@CorndogBurglar Yeah, that is a little bitter. I would at least be curious at some point. But, his stories are already movies in his head so any adaptation could never be as good.

It's kind of like asking the creators of Last Airbender to watch M. Night's movie. LOL
Denn1s
Denn1s - 7/22/2010, 10:47 AM
that's a shame. i would love to see a prequel before the team falls apart. a team up of rorsharch and night owl against the underboss. like the video game 'the end is nigh'. although watchmen is content as it is.
marvel72
marvel72 - 7/22/2010, 10:50 AM
warner brothers don't [frick] with the watchmen,you end being hated like fox films i mean fux films.
LEEE777
LEEE777 - 7/22/2010, 10:54 AM
WATCHMEN is a one off!

Btw, no way has MOORE not seen the movie!

; P
Shaman
Shaman - 7/22/2010, 11:01 AM
fanboiii- Dude, i seriously couldn't care less about prequels and sequels to Watchmen. The LAST thing i want is for him to do my bidding. That was not the point of my comment at all. My point was that he refuses even CREDIT for his work, let alone a paycheck he RIGHTFULLY deserves. You say he doesn't have his name removed from the comics but he refuses to have his name attached to the "entire" franchise(that includes anything but the comic) when he created it in the first place. He can't even stand having a copy of it at home! How's that not being bitter? And he states publically that he boycotts movies made from his work. Why doesn't he "try to stop any adaptations from being made"? Cause he CAN'T. He sold the rights and is bitter that they are being used in other ways than what he'd have prefered. He KNOWS that he's powerless and decides to do the next most immature thing possible, pout and boycott in protest. If that's not being bitter, than they severly need to change it's definition.
Superzero
Superzero - 7/22/2010, 11:02 AM
@LEEE777

I agree. I can't see him not digging it at LEAST a little bit though...
Duhdaduh
Duhdaduh - 7/22/2010, 11:07 AM
damn DC!! you keep trying to milk all the money u can get outta Watchmen, keep it the way it is before the well dries up!
im 100% behind alan moore on this, even if he is a drugged up, overly pretentious bastard
Suffertree
Suffertree - 7/22/2010, 11:28 AM
I think he secretly loves the movie.
Siolentvex
Siolentvex - 7/22/2010, 11:38 AM
Sounds like he is enjoying his freedom.
peterparker420
peterparker420 - 7/22/2010, 12:01 PM
He comes off as a big douche..I really don't like
him anymore..watchmen was a brilliant, ya, but does he have to come off as this kind of recluse, who could give two sh!t's about his OWN work..I for one am GLAD he's out of comics..he NEVER liked comics in the first place..Leave the COMIC writting to people who actually
LOVE to write comics!

just because he DID NOT take royalties doesn't make him a SAINT..What is he suppose to get a metal for that? please..MOVE ON! It's not the 80's anymore!
CorndogBurglar
CorndogBurglar - 7/22/2010, 12:43 PM
@ fanboii

i know right?? haha, it would drive me crazy. if it was me, i would HAVE to watch them.
Luigi
Luigi - 7/22/2010, 12:48 PM
I know he is brilliant and he is a legend but boo [frick]ing hoo. He'd probably be working as a security guard if it wasn't for the comics.
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