Rewind: As 'V' Hits The Big Screen, Alan Moore Fanatics Watch — And Wait - Movie News Story

Arguably the most lauded name behind "V for Vendetta" — an ambitious, futuristic tale of totalitarianism and rebellion — doesn't belong to the film's stars Hugo Weaving, Natalie Portman or John Hurt or even to its writers/producers, the Wachowski Brothers. The honor belongs instead to Alan Moore, the award-winning author of the '80s comic book series on which the upcoming film is based. The irony here is that Moore neither has nor wants anything to do with "V" — or with any other movie versions of his comics work.

Considering what's come thus far from such adaptations, we can't blame him.

Moore burst onto the comics scene in the early 1980s, first bringing his literary sensibility to books such as "Warrior" and "2000 AD" in his native England. Moore then moved on to DC Comics, where he reinvented "Swamp Thing" as an elemental force of nature rather than simply a human-turned-muck monster. From there, through use of cinematic writing techniques, non-linear storytelling and mature themes, Moore managed to bring fresh perspective to sometimes stale superheroes such as Superman, Batman and Green Lantern. But it was his groundbreaking 1986 series "Watchmen" (with artist Dave Gibbons) that turned the entire concept of superhero comics on its head, earning Hugo, Kirby and Eisner Awards (within the comics and sci-fi world) as well as a ranking among Time Magazine's 100 best novels of the past 75 years, cementing Moore's position as comicdom's greatest writer.

In "Watchmen," all non-government-sanctioned superheroes are outlawed, Richard Nixon is still president in 1985 and the threat of nuclear war with Russia weighs heavily on the nation. Deconstructing the traditional comic-book mythos, Moore posits the psychological, social, economical, political, sexual and moral ramifications of how the real world would cope with super-powered vigilantes — and vice versa. It's a vastly complex, multi-layered 300-plus page narrative that takes full advantage of comics' inherent and unique storytelling techniques. From the beginning, it seemed to be unfilmable. But that never stops Hollywood.

From as early as 1989, "Watchmen" has been in various stages of movie development. At first, Terry Gilliam was slated to direct. If any filmmaker has the proper twisted vision to adapt "Watchmen," it's the director of "12 Monkeys" and "Brazil," but after numerous failed attempts to develop a workable screenplay, Gilliam realized it was a Quixotic effort at best and abandoned the project (although anyone who's seen "Lost in La Mancha" knows it wouldn't be his last fight against the odds). Producers, however, are rarely known for bowing to collective creative wisdom, so the property has continued to bounce around Hollywood. At one point, "Requiem for a Dream" writer/director Darren Aronofsky was going to make "Watchmen," but the proposed budget proved too large for anyone to hazard a green light.

More recently, Warner Bros. (sister company to DC Comics, the publisher of "Watchmen") is supposed to be developing a screenplay adapted by "X-Men" co-writer David Hayter, and "V" director James McTeigue has expressed interest in helming.