Hollywood might borrow from comics on a regular basis, but there’s no shortage of the reverse happening, with everyone from Predator to RoboCop getting comic books. Under companies like Dark Horse, IDW Publishing, and Dynamite Entertainment, some of the greatest movies ever made have been translated into comics.
Movie-based comics often go overlooked, in no small part due to the fact that they simply don’t reach the audience for which they’re intended. With some stories dating back decades under companies like Marvel, every moviegoer should look to see if their favorite film has a forgotten and underrated comic.
Die Hard’s John McClane Was Given An Origin Story
Originally based on Roderick Thorp’s novel Nothing Lasts Forever, Die Hard became an ’80s sensation when it cast Bruce Willis in the role of John McClane in 1988. Telling the story of an NYPD cop saving partygoers from a band of thieves, it completely reshaped the one-man army sub-genre.
After the release of the fourth movie, Boom! Studios turned to comic book icon Howard Chaykin to explore the early years of McClane as a rookie cop. Throughout Die Hard: Year One, Chaykin wrote McClane into pivotal chapters in New York’s criminal past, including the infamous Summer of Sam.
A miniseries made for fans of the original and with a healthy dose of neo-Noir, the title made for a much better last impression on Die Hard fans than the disastrous fifth movie ever could.
Escape From New York Turned Snake Plissken Into a Fugitive
Before working together on The Thing, John Carpenter and Kurt Russell teamed up for Escape From New York. Set in a dystopic America during World War III, it follows mercenary Snake Plissken on a mission into the city-prison of New York to rescue the President of the United States from criminals.
With a literal ticking time bomb implanted in him if he fails, the antihero sets out to find the head of state and escape with a tape that’s vital to government operations. Ignoring the Carpenter derided Escape From LA, Boom! Studios gave the film its own sequel, picking up right where the first film ended.
With the war continuing around him, the fugitive Snake sets off for a series of adventures through the changed landscape of America, taking on enemy mercenaries, Russian troops, and whatever stands in his way.
Hellraiser Brings Gruesome Horror to Boom! Studios
In 1987, Clive Barker adapted his novel The Hellbound Heart to the big screen in Hellraiser. Telling the story of Kirsty Cotton as she comes to realize her undead uncle is feasting on the lives of the living, it made cenobites like Pinhead icons of horror.
Unfortunately, the franchise is surprisingly packed full of abysmal sequels, with there actually being more impressive continuations in comics than on the big screen.
Hardcore Hellraiser fans are no doubt aware of the comics, but the wider horror community might be excited to learn Pinhead has countless appearances in print. Perhaps the best part of these stories is how the lore of Hell and the cenobites is expanded upon, exploring dark origins and the secrets of the underworld.
Django Unchained Teamed Up With a Pulp Legend
Since Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino has been known for his ability to revive and reinvent genres. In 2012, he brought that talent to the Western when he created Django Unchained. A love-letter to old-school Spaghetti Westerns, he cast Jamie Foxx in the role of Django, a formerly-enslaved man who becomes a bounty hunter under the mentorship of King Schultz.
Becoming one of the highest-grossing Westerns ever, Tarantino followed up his movie with a crossover sequel that paired his gunslinger with none other than Zorro. Setting out to liberate native people from ruthless slavers, the miniseries played on some of the same themes of The Mask of Zorro, casting Diego de la Vega as Django’s latest mentor.
George Miller Gave Mad Max a Comic Book Universe
In 1979, George Miller changed sci-fi action forever when he gave the world Mad Max, casting Mel Gibson as a hardened cop in an Australia teetering on the brink of collapse. Over the years, he continued expanding his world through sequels like Road Warrior and Fury Road. When the latter rolled around, he used print to fill in the blanks.
What his biggest fans missed were the comic books Miller himself wrote, teaming up with artists like Mark Sexton and Mico Lathouris to expand the story surrounding the 2015 sequel. Published under DC’s Vertigo imprint, the series boasts some of the best art in print at the time, and is a must-read companion piece for perhaps the greatest action film ever made.
Event Horizon: Dark Descent is a Nightmarish Prequel
1997’s Event Horizon tells the story of a starship sent to recover the lost experimental warp ship Event Horizon years after its disappearance. When they board it, they find the dismembered remains of the ship’s crew.
This eventually leads to the realization that the craft entered a hellish dimension and brought something sinister back with it. Despite bombing at the box office, the film went on to earn cult status.
Fans had to wait almost twenty-eight years for it, but 2025’s Event Horizon: Dark Descent did a great job of exploring everything that made the original film so terrifying. Without the budget restraints of the movie, creative team Christian Ward and Tristan Jones have been able to give form to the horrific entities that plagued Miller, Weir, and the others.
Big Trouble in Little China Explores Old Man Jack Burton
Big Trouble in Little China marked the third John Carpenter/Kurt Russell collaboration, as it cast the star in the role of trucker Jack Burton. When his friend’s fiancée is kidnapped by a mysterious cult in Chinatown, he aids in rescuing her in a story that can best be described as the urban action version of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
What many Jack Burton fans don’t know is that there’s so much more in comics. Boom! Studios, with story input from John Carpenter, released several continuations of Burton’s story, including the beloved Old Man Jack.
Here, the story of the hero in his older age is explored as he finds a surprising ally in Lo Pan, as they join forces to try and save the world from a greater evil.
John Wick’s Early Life Was Explored By Dynamite Entertainment
In 2014, Chad Stahelski and Keanu Reeves completely shifted the action genre in Hollywood when they made the sleeper hit John Wick. A neo-Noir revenge flick about an assassin coming out of retirement to avenge his dog, it quickly garnered praise from audiences of all stripes.
After it became clear the film was a cultural phenomenon, Dynamite Entertainment teamed up with Greg Pak and Giovanni Valetta to explore his past. With three sequels, a spin-off, and a planned TV series, it’s safe to say the success of John Wick has only grown in the years since.
For the comic book, fans were given a thrilling origin story in a sense, focusing on Wick’s entry into the world of covert assassins and secret societies.
Darkman Was Destined to be a Comic Book Superhero
After making his Evil Dead movies, Sam Raimi continued his exploration of horror with 1990’s Darkman. Telling the story of Peyton Westlake, a scientist burned in an attack who uses synthetic skin masks to impersonate his enemies, it gave viewers a grim revenge tale.
Serving as a gangster movie, sci-fi, and action, the film was a surreal psychological thriller, and it’s hard to deny that Darkman felt like a “superhero” from the title alone. Not only does Darkman have a thrilling solo series from Kurt Busiek and Javier Saltares, but he also found a fantastic crossover with Ash Williams in Darkman vs Army of Darkness.
A character who felt destined for comics from the beginning, Westlake’s story feels like a mash-up of HG Wells sci-fi horror, Universal Monsters, and film Noir.
The Dollars Trilogy Was Continued By Dynamite Entertainment
In 1965, Sergio Leone changed the face of Westerns when he cast Clint Eastwood in the role of the Man With No Name for A Fistful of Dollars. After The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ended with Blondie riding off with a fortune of Confederate gold, the story seemed settled for decades.
That changed when Dynamite Entertainment tasked writer Christos Gage and artist Wellington Diaz with giving fans a sequel. Dynamite’s Man With No Name series picks up after Blondie left Tuco, now making him a fugitive to both the Union and Confederates.
Expanding the lore behind the Dollars Trilogy in a way that enriches The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, The Man With No Name proved Dynamite to be one of the best publishers for Western fans.