DF Interview: Marc Guggenheim promises espionage intrigue in the ‘Too Dead To Die’ OGN

By Byron Brewer

In the 1980s, Simon Cross was America’s top super-spy. In Too Dead To Die, he faces down today’s very different world and a past that has come back to haunt him, forcing him out of retirement for one final adventure.

The writer/artist team of Marc Guggenheim and Howard Chaykin (Blade, Wolverine) reunites for an original graphic novel in the forthcoming Too Dead To Die. This all-new story promises classic spy novel suspense and is set to hit shelves from Image Comics this December. Whose espionage-loving motor wouldn’t be revved by the mention of these two comics creators? I sat down with my friend Marc Guggenheim to discuss the OGN.


Byron Brewer: Marc, Coronavirus and the pandemic affected all of us in many ways. Tell readers how this was instrumental in your coming graphic novel, Too Dead To Die.



Marc Guggenheim: Well, I locked the sound mix on my first directing efforts (Legends of Tomorrow, Episode 514) and the next day was lockdown. The shutting down of all production meant that I was able to focus on writing things that I wouldn’t otherwise have had time to work on. Among those projects was a push back into creator-owned comics. I had had the idea for what became Too Dead To Die for several years, but never had the time to actually work on it. Suddenly, I did.



Byron: And before we get to the book proper (well, kinda), relate the very ironic/amusing story of how artist and frequent collaborator (Blade, Wolverine) Howard Chaykin got involved with the OGN.



Marc Guggenheim: Howard and I had worked together on four projects previously: Blade, Wolverine, a four-page story for an anti-bullying special, and an unpublished eight-page Spirit story. Like I said, what became Too Dead To Die was something I’d been kicking around in my head for a number of years. The pandemic gave me a chance to finally work on it. I just started writing the first issue. This was, obviously, before I knew it would take the form of a graphic novel. But halfway through writing those first twentysomething pages, I realized I was picturing Howard’s art in my head as I wrote. When I finished the script, I sent Howard an email -- we’ve kept in touch over the years -- and asked if he had any interest in reading it. He said he did and evidently he liked what he read, because we were suddenly off to the races.



Byron: Introduce us to Simon Cross. Who was he, who is he, what challenges does life hold for him today?



Marc Guggenheim: I like to describe Cross as a super-spy who is as close to James Bond as I could get without being sued. He’s basically America’s answer to James Bond: Like Bond, he likes women and the finer things in life, but being American, he’s more coarse. He’s less proper. He has a tendency to break the rules. I don’t think he takes orders as well as Bond does.

I’m using the present tense here, but the truth is that that’s all in the past for Cross. When we meet him, he’s in his seventies and long since retired from the field. He has a collection of medications that have been prescribed to manage all the conditions decades of hard living have left him with. His liver is a mess. His back is in shambles. He has STDs. He’s basically falling apart when we meet him.


Byron: Talk a little about Cross’ world in the 1980s. And did you or Howard do any research for the period?



Marc Guggenheim: Howard and I both lived through the Eighties, so I don’t think either of us felt an overwhelming need to do too much research on that score. In any case, the majority of the graphic novel unfolds in the 21st Century. Although there is a prose short story in the graphic novel that’s set in the Eighties which I had to do a fair amount of research for. All I can say is, thank God for Google. It’s truly amazing how many specific facts are right at your fingertips.



Byron: Can you let us know about any important characters aside from Cross in the book, maybe introduce a few of them here?



Marc Guggenheim: The most significant co-star is Cross’ daughter, Lily. As more than one character points out, it’s statistically impossible for Cross to have had sex with so many women without siring at least one child. That’s Lily. But the important thing to know about her is that she’s no damsel. She’s smart and formidable and has her own point of view on things. At the same time, I worked hard to avoid the expected cliché of her having resentment towards her father which Cross has to overcome. Their relationship is much more nuanced -- in fact, Lily’s surname is Nuance -- than that.

There’s also Olivia Goodlay, who was a former co-worker of Cross’ and, yes, a former lover. Today, however, she’s a Director at the CIA. I was interested in seeing how a two-dimensional “Bond girl” would grow and change over time. Her interactions with Cross are among my favorite in the graphic novel. She’s got his number and has no compunctions about giving him the business.


Byron: Can you give readers an elevator pitch for the book (without spoilers, of course). And what sort of difficulties does a former 1980s Cold War superspy have operating in the 21st century?



Marc Guggenheim: The elevator pitch is that Simon Cross was America’s preeminent super-spy in the 1980s. But it’s now 2022 and the world has passed him by. All his heroism and sacrifices have been forgotten. He never settled down. He lives a rather sad and lonely existence. But all that changes the day he learns that one of his many assignations produced a daughter. The fact that she’s in danger draws him out of retirement for one final adventure.



Byron: Discuss your collaboration(s) with Howard in depth. Your story about how he got with this graphic novel says a lot about you guys as a creative team.



Marc Guggenheim: When I write a comic, I’m always seeing the art in my head as I go. With Too Dead To Die, I was seeing Howard’s art in my mind’s eye, as I mentioned. What’s interesting, however, is that I often don’t see Howard’s layouts -- how the art is arranged on the page -- and that’s actually an aspect of Howard’s art that he doesn’t get enough credit for, in my opinion. The way he’ll arrange close ups or tight shots of characters’ faces in panels that are confined to the left or right side of the page -- leaving the middle of the page for wide or action shots -- is really rather ingenious. And wholly original. It’s the most quintessentially “Chaykin” thing about Howard’s art, but nobody notices because his style -- his voice as an artist -- is so wonderfully specific. When you look at a piece of Howard’s art, you have no doubt who drew it.

Also, just by the design of the cover of the OGN, I get the feeling this may NOT be the last time we see or hear of Simon Cross OR the team of Guggenheim/Chaykin. Do we have more Simon coming to our lives in the future?
Well, to quote the title of Sean Connery’s last turn as James Bond, Never Say Never Again, I’d say “never say never.” I love working with Howard and I believe the feeling is mutual. And, yes, the story is built such that there can be sequels and prequels. It all depends on the success of the OGN, to be honest. In success, all things are possible. At the moment, I’m working on the screenplay for a feature film adaptation of Too Dead To Die -- Howard and I sold the rights recently to a major Hollywood studio. In my perfect world, we’d publish a follow-up OGN -- which, I promise, will not be called 2 Dead 2 Die -- contemporaneously with the release of the movie. But you never know what fate has in store…


Byron: Marc, I know you are active in all types of media, everything from comics to the screens big and small. What projects to you have coming, inside or outside comics, that you can tell readers about?



Marc Guggenheim: “That [I] can tell readers about” is the key phrase in that question. For the past few months, I’ve been writing a weekly newsletter -- LegalDispatch -- on Substack (marcguggenheim.substack.com) and I feel like many editions are just a laundry list of project codenames because I haven’t gotten the greenlight to talk publicly about them.

In terms of television, I’m just in the development phase on several projects. These days, a show can take four years between conception and streaming, so I’ve buckled in for what I know will be a long process on all of these. It’s not like the old days where you would pitch in June, shoot the pilot in March, and be on the air in October, unfortunately.
Right now, most of my public-facing (i.e., announced) work is in the comic book space. The trade paperback edition of Last Flight Out, the pre-apocalypse father/daughter story I published through Dark Horse, hit comic book stores on November 16. The week after saw publication of the first trade collection of Star Wars: Han Solo & Chewbacca on November 23. That same day, we dropped Star Wars: Revelations -- a really ambitious 40-page one-shot which previews events that are happening across the Star Wars line in 2023. Speaking of 2023, on January 25, we’ll release another OGN through Dark Horse called Fragmentation, which I describe as “what if Christopher Nolan directed a family drama?”
Like I said, LegalDispatch is the place to go for teases of all my heretofore unannounced projects, including Project Artery which will be animated. I also talk a lot about the state of the entertainment industry and how it’s been contracting of late -- which probably seems strange given how busy I am, but it’s a strange time…

Dynamic Forces would like to thank Marc Guggenheim for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer our questions. The Too Dead To Die OGN from Image Comics is slated to be on sale on December 14th!



For more news and up-to-date announcements, join us here at Dynamic Forces, www.dynamicforces.com/htmlfiles/, “LIKE” us on Facebook, www.facebook.com/dynamicforcesinc, and follow us on Twitter, www.twitter.com/dynamicforces.

There is a major movie franchise out there that is not going by its original name and it’s thanks to the star. When screenwriter Derek Kolstad finished what would become is most popular film, he was inspired by revenge-thrillers with one-word titles like Payback and Shooter. He dubbed his film, Scorn. The problem came when the star of the film went out and talked about it, he always referred to it by the lead character’s name rather than the title. After a while, the studio realized that their star, Keanu Reeves, had done millions of dollars worth of brand recognition for the name John Wick… they decided to go with it and renamed the film. Why Reeves did this is unknown, but Kolstad has since admitted that John Wick is a better franchise name, saying, “I can’t imagine it being Scorn now.” Was this an intentional thing on Reeves’ part or just a happy coincidence? We may never know. 

If you check the major Hollywood sites like Deadline and Variety, they’ll tell you that October 2025 has been the lowest box office take in almost 30 years. It sits currently at $440 million with a few days left to add. In 1998 the box office did $455 million, which this month should just creep past. By comparison October 2018 did $832 million with just three films: Venom, A Star is Born and Halloween, taking in $481 million. But last year, October only took in $478 million showing the decreasing trend. Adding to the decline is the fact that no major releases were scheduled for this weekend because of the Halloween holiday. And what was put into theaters the whole month really didn’t get people’s attention. Tron: Ares was the highest profile film and that hasn’t even broken $70 million in its four weeks in theaters.   When you look at numbers like that, it’s hard not to think about what might have been. There was a big budget film slated for release this month, a film that got delayed and delayed and hasn’t even started filming. A film that finally has a finished script and is set to release in October of 2027… that of course is Matt Reeves’ The Batman Part 2. One of the most anticipated films currently in production, the sequel to the 2022 hit, bolstered also by the fan favorite HBO series The Penguin, would easily match and likely succeed the success of the first film. The Batman opened on March 4, 2022 and ended that month with $338 million domestically.  It was originally scheduled to be released October 3rd, looking at that release date, this year there really wasn’t any big film put in its place. The film would’ve done better than the first and that amount would’ve driven 2025 towards the top of the list, maybe even surpassing 2018. Ah, what could’ve been. 

DC Studios has potentially taken a significant step by filing for a trademark for a film titled "Salvation Run." A move that isn’t too surprising since the Salvation planet and the idea of using it as a prison for meta humans was introduced in the season finale of Peacemaker season 2. But the filing does indicate just how big this idea could be for the DCU. "Salvation Run" is a storyline from DC Comics that originally ran in the late 2000s. The story centers on the mass exile of some of DC's most notorious villains to a hostile alien world, forcing them to band together for survival. It was a concept originally pitched to DC by Game of Thrones writer George R.R. Martin. The trademark filing by DC Studios suggests that the company is considering developing "Salvation Run" into a feature film. While trademark filings do not guarantee that a film will be produced, they often indicate serious intent or early-stage development. The filing protects the title and concept, ensuring that DC Studios retains exclusive rights as plans evolve. Should "Salvation Run" move forward, it could introduce a fresh dynamic to DC's film slate. Instead of focusing on heroes, this story would shine a spotlight on villains, possibly expanding character development and offering audiences new perspectives on well-known antagonists. It also opens opportunities for ensemble casting, complex storytelling, and connections to other DC properties. 

For many MCU fans, there has been concerns about when or even if Jeremy Renner would be returning to the role of Clint Barton aka the Avenger Hawkeye. Renner first portrayed the archer in 2011’s Thor and returned in 2012’s The Avengers. He has been popping up as the character in various films and even his own Disney+ series that had been rumored to be getting a second season. And then came New Year’s Day 2023 and a horrific snowplow accident where the actor sustained over 30 broken bones, including a shattered leg, broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and a punctured lung. Renner has made a miraculous recovery and has returned to working on projects like Mayor of Kingstown and Wake Up Dead Man… but his future in the MCU is still unclear. Earlier this year Renner gave fans a disappointing update when he revealed that Marvel had talked to him about returning for season two but only offered him half of what he made for season one, which he turned down. None of this was looking good, even with two Avengers movies on the horizon. Shift to now where Renner is out doing various interviews and talking about the character again. He spoke of how Clint Barton has repeatedly tried to retire but keeps coming back and how he believes that it will continue that way until the character is killed off. He also said of the Hawkeye series specifically, "We got to where we’re trying to do the second season. And I think I’ll get strong enough to be able to do it. And we’ll work it out. It’s gonna be great." He was also asked by another Avenger actor, Brie Larson, if he would be returning for Avengers: Doomsday, to which he said “no” and then turned it back on her asking, “Are you?” The whole thing was done very playfully. And even if he doesn’t return for Doomsday, there’s always Secret Wars a year later. 

The highly anticipated Marvel series, Fantastic Four: First Steps, is set to make its debut on Disney+. Fans of Marvel’s first family have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of this new adaptation, which promises to bring fresh storytelling and exciting action to the beloved characters of Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm. The film, which was directed by WandaVision’s Matt Shakman, will be available for streaming starting November 5th. The Fantastic Four have long been favorites among comic book readers, and with Marvel Studios now handling the property after the luke-warm reception of the first two Fox films and the universally hated reboot. First Steps is not a retelling of the origin story but rather moves on to the team having been well established after four years and dealing with their greatest threat, the world-devourer Galactus. The new cast includes Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn as the quartet of heroes along with Ralph Ineson, Julia Garner, Paul Walter Hauser, Sarah Niles, Mark Gatis and Natasha Lyonne. The film did moderately well in theaters, taking in a worldwide box office total of $521M and an 86% critic’s score on Rotten Tomatoes.   

When James Gunn and Peter Safran were announced as the new co-heads of DC Studios, they put out a list of projects as part of their first phase called Gods & Monsters. And while some of those projects like Creature Commandos, Superman and Lanterns have moved forward, one of the projects seems to be stalled. That would be the DCU version of Batman in an announced The Brave and The Bold project. This is a different Batman from the one Robert Pattinson portrays in the Matt Reeves films and would be a bit older and paired with his son Damian as the current Robin. Andy Muschietti, the director of The Flash, has been attached to the project the entire time and appears to still be in line to helm the project. But in the last week we’ve gotten the first movement on the project in a while. First Gunn said in various interviews that the project is still in the work and has changed some since the initial announcement, but he didn’t go into any specific details. Then Muschietti and his producing partner and sister Barbara were asked about the project while at the premier of their new series Welcome to Derry, and IT prequel story. When asked if they were still doing the film, Barbara said, “The intention is yes, but we can’t talk about it.” Andy added, “We have to wait a few, a couple of months to start talking about it.” But then realizing he may have said too much: “I screwed it already.” This is leading fans to speculate that an announcement is imminent and that we may finally learn who will be donning the cowl opposite David Corenswet’s Superman.    

Though we have yet to see season two of the Percy Jackson series, season three is adding Kate McKinnon, known for her energetic performances and comedic brilliance on “Saturday Night Live,” as the goddess Aphrodite. McKinnon brings her unique charm and wit to the role, promising an exciting new take on the goddess of love and beauty. Aphrodite is one of the most famous figures from Greek mythology. She is the goddess of love, beauty, desire, and passion. Ancient Greeks believed Aphrodite had the power to inspire love and attraction in gods and mortals alike. According to myth, she was born from the sea foam and emerged fully grown, captivating all who saw her. Aphrodite’s stories often involve her relationships with gods like Ares and mortal heroes, and she played a key role in the legendary events leading up to the Trojan War, most notably by awarding the golden apple to Paris. With Kate McKinnon stepping into the role, viewers can expect a fresh, humorous, and dynamic portrayal of Aphrodite. Besides her time on SNL, McKinnon has been in various movies including the 2016 reboot of Ghostbusters and the 2023 mega-hit Barbie. 

In an interesting turn of events, someone posted an image of the wrap gift for the upcoming Lanterns series, showing a baseball hat with the Green Lantern symbol and in the center of that symbol, a series of concentric circles. That person then commented that the modified logo could be indicating an involvement of The Centre, the main antagonist in Darwyn Cooke’s celebrated DC: The New Frontier series. That post was then removed by Warner Bros… In completely unrelated coincidence, have you read The New Frontier? Let me tell you about The Centre, a metaphysical, almost Lovecraftian presence, embodying existential dread and posing a challenge unlike any other faced by the world’s greatest superheroes. The Centre made its debut in "DC: The New Frontier" (2004), a miniseries that bridges the gap between the Golden Age and Silver Age of superheroes. In this alternate history, The Centre is portrayed as an ancient, primordial being that predates humanity itself. It is described as the very source of life on Earth, a sentient landmass that witnessed the rise and fall of prehistoric creatures and eventually grew to despise humanity, whom it perceives as a threat to the planet’s balance. The Centre is not a conventional villain. It is a massive, floating island with psychic and reality-altering abilities. Its consciousness spans across its entire form, making it nearly impossible to attack or reason with in any traditional sense. The Centre’s powers include: <!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Telepathy: The Centre can communicate with and manipulate the minds of others, sending visions, inducing madness, or telepathically broadcasting its intentions. <!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Physical Invulnerability: Its immense size and composition make it resistant to most forms of attack, even those from the world’s strongest superheroes. <!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Creation of Monsters: The Centre spawns various mutated and monstrous creatures to defend itself and attack humanity. <!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Levitation and Flight: It can float above the Earth, moving with intention and purpose. In "DC: The New Frontier," The Centre’s appearance catalyzes the unification of the DC universe’s heroes, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and The Flash. Realizing that The Centre’s power is too great for any single hero to face alone, they join forces, combining their unique abilities and intellects in a coordinated assault. This is basically the precursor for the Justice League and would be an interesting story to loosely adapt if you were, say, building a new cohesive universe. 

Rian Johnson, the acclaimed writer-director behind the “Knives Out” franchise, has made headlines with his latest entry, “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.” Johnson has openly described this third film as the closest the series has come to emulating the classic structure of an Agatha Christie novel—a deliberate shift from the subversive approaches of “Knives Out” and “Glass Onion.” At the Deadline Contenders London event, Johnson explained that “Wake Up Dead Man” adopts a “more traditional murder mystery structure,” echoing the formula Christie perfected. In his words: “This is how most Agatha Christie books work, where in the first act you meet all the suspects, you meet the protagonist, who’s not the detective. Then the murder happens, and the detective shows up.” This marks a departure from the previous films, which played with audience expectations—solving the murder early in “Knives Out,” and presenting a deceptively simple case in “Glass Onion.” In “Wake Up Dead Man,” Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc returns to tackle a darker, more gothic mystery, set in a remote stone church and featuring religious intrigue. The film’s protagonist, played by Josh O’Connor, is a priest who becomes Blanc’s sidekick, further grounding the story in classic whodunnit territory. Johnson also cited inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe, aiming for a “grounded, gothic tone” that predates Christie’s work. With the release of “Wake Up Dead Man,” Johnson completes his two-film deal with Netflix. So, what’s next? Johnson has confirmed that he will be taking a break from the “Knives Out” series to focus on an original project. “I’m writing right now, [but] it’s not one of these [Knives Out] films. It’s just something completely different, an original thing. I actually feel very energized after making this one [Wake Up Dead Man], but this is three in a row. It’s probably healthy to see other people.” He hasn’t revealed details about this new project or whether it will be with Netflix, but he’s made it clear that he wants to explore a different genre. Johnson’s creative philosophy is to “empty the well and then start from scratch,” ensuring each new film is a fresh challenge. Despite the break, Johnson remains enthusiastic about returning to the world of Benoit Blanc. He’s stated that as long as Daniel Craig is interested and audiences are engaged, he’d be happy to keep making “Knives Out” mysteries for life. Producer Ram Bergman echoed this, saying future installments are possible, but for now, the focus is on Johnson’s original script.

The Season 2 finale of Peacemaker has left fans with mixed feelings and a lot of speculation for the future. Known for its irreverent humor, brutal action, and surprising depth, the closing episode focused more on wrapping up emotional drama but also planted significant seeds for the future of the DC Universe (DCU). This was done through the introduction of Checkmate and Salvation, signaling the long-term direction for the first phase of the new universe. Checkmate, for those unfamiliar with DC Comics lore, is a covert intelligence agency known for operating in the shadows, often handling threats that are too dangerous or politically sensitive for public superhero teams. They first appeared in Action Comics #598, created by Paul Kupperberg and Steve Erwin. While in the comics, the organization is created by Amanda Waller, in the HBO Max series, it is founded by Amanda’s daughter, Leota Adebayo and the rest of the 11th Street Kids using the drug money that Vigilante had been saving. Their arrival marks a significant turning point, suggesting that future seasons—and perhaps other DCU projects—will explore the complex world of espionage, betrayal, and secret wars within the superhero community. Salvation in the comics is a prison planet where Waller and Rick Flag started sending metahumans too powerful to be held in regular prisons. This was introduced in the Salvation Run comic series, originally pitched by George R.R. Martin, written by Bill Willingham and Lilah Sturges and drawn by a variety of artists including Sean Chen and Joe Bennet. This lead into the Final Crisis event which had Darkseid coming to Earth. In the series, Salvation is an alternate reality discovered through the Quantum Unfolding Chamber that appears to be Earth-like and ideal for Flag and Lex Luthor’s plan for a place to send Metahumans. The season ends with Chris Smith aka Peacemaker, forced into Salvation by Argus and left to fend for himself. These introductions show that James Gunn overall plan for Gods & Monsters, the first phase of the DCU, is going to loosely adapt Salvation Run and may lead us to a version of Final Crisis. Even though there is a cliffhanger ending, Gunn has said that there are no immediate plans for a third season of Peacemaker, but he’s promised that these characters will be seen again soon, and the existence of Salvation will playout over all of the DCU including the upcoming Lanterns series and the 2027 film Man of Tomorrow. Reaction to the finale has been mixed with some fans disappointed with the lack of action nor any big cameo that many had speculated. Other fans though appreciated the emotional catharsis achieved by the characters and the new direction which included a few members of Argus, specifically Sasha Bordeaux, Langston Feury and Judo Master, becoming members of Checkmate along with the 11th Street Kids. Where and how we’ll see this story continue has yet to be announced.