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Man-Thing (film)
Encyclopedia
Man-Thing is a 2005 straight to video then telefilm, directed by Brett Leonard
and featuring the Marvel Comics
creature created by Stan Lee
, Roy Thomas
and Gerry Conway
. The plot is based loosely on a storyline by Steve Gerber
, who wrote the most well-known series of Man-Thing
comics.
Agents of an oil tycoon vanish while exploring a swamp marked for drilling. The local sheriff investigates and faces a Seminole legend come to life: Man-Thing, a shambling swamp-monster whose touch burns those who feel fear.
The film appeared on the Sci Fi Channel
in 2005 under the Sci Fi Pictures label. It starred Matthew Le Nevez
, Rachael Taylor
, and Jack Thompson
.
Among these are moving the setting from the Florida
Everglades
to Louisiana
(though the film was actually made in Australia
), and changing the creature's powers from burning those who "know fear" to being able to manipulate the swamp's vegetation. The movie character is also represented in a significantly more antagonistic light than the comic-book version. Man-Thing's former identity remained Ted Sallis, though in the film he is portrayed as a Native American
shaman instead of a scientist
. Consequently, the Man-Thing's origin is somewhat different, though the Nexus of All Realities is still involved. Additionally, in a tip-of-the-hat to the original comics series, major characters are named after Man-Thing authors Mike Ploog
, Steve Gerber
and Val Mayerik
.
The movie was released in U.S. on DVD shortly afterwards. In 2007, it was also released as a 2-DVD special edition in several European Union countries.
Brett Leonard
Brett Leonard is an American film director, producer and music video director specializing in the science-fiction and horror genres. A few of his films such as The Lawnmower Man and Virtuosity feature groundbreaking computer animation and visual effects...
and featuring the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
creature created by Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
, Roy Thomas
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...
and Gerry Conway
Gerry Conway
Gerard F. "Gerry" Conway is an American writer of comic books and television shows. He is known for co-creating the Marvel Comics vigilante The Punisher and scripting the death of the character Gwen Stacy during his long run on The Amazing Spider-Man...
. The plot is based loosely on a storyline by Steve Gerber
Steve Gerber
Stephen Ross "Steve" Gerber was an American comic book writer best known as co-creator of the satiric Marvel Comics character Howard the Duck....
, who wrote the most well-known series of Man-Thing
Man-Thing
The Man-Thing is a fictional character, a monster in publications from Marvel Comics. Created by writers Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, and Gerry Conway and artist Gray Morrow, the character first appeared in Savage Tales #1 , and went on to be featured in various titles and in his own series, including...
comics.
Agents of an oil tycoon vanish while exploring a swamp marked for drilling. The local sheriff investigates and faces a Seminole legend come to life: Man-Thing, a shambling swamp-monster whose touch burns those who feel fear.
The film appeared on the Sci Fi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (United States)
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
in 2005 under the Sci Fi Pictures label. It starred Matthew Le Nevez
Matthew Le Nevez
Matthew Le Nevez is an award-winning Australian actor.-Early life :Le Nevez was born in Canberra in 1978 and attended The French-Australian School, Telopea Park School and St Edmund's College, Canberra before accepted into NIDA aged 17...
, Rachael Taylor
Rachael Taylor
Rachael Taylor is an Australian actress and model. She made her leading role debut in the short-lived Australian program headLand. She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in the films Transformers, Shutter, and Splinterheads.-Personal life:Taylor was born in Launceston, Tasmania, the...
, and Jack Thompson
Jack Thompson (actor)
Jack Thompson, AM is an Australian actor and one of the major figures of Australian cinema. He was educated at University of Queensland, before embarking on his acting career. In 2002, he was made an honorary member of the Australian Cinematographers Society...
.
Plot
The movie changed much of the source material.Ted Sallis, was attempting to recreate the Super-Soldier Serum that created Captain America. However, he was betrayed by his lover, Ellen Brandt, and Sallis had to flee from A.I.M. agents, who saw their potential of such a formula for their own evil ends. He injects himself with the serum, but after crashing in a swamp and apparently drowning is transformed into a swamp creature through a combination of his formula and, as later explained, magical forces extant in the area. Sallis' mind was apparently lost, although on rare occasions he could briefly return to consciousness within his monstrous form, and even to his human form such as when he fought Ben Grimm, who took the appropriation of his own nickname a little too personally.Among these are moving the setting from the Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
Everglades
Everglades
The Everglades are subtropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee...
to Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
(though the film was actually made in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
), and changing the creature's powers from burning those who "know fear" to being able to manipulate the swamp's vegetation. The movie character is also represented in a significantly more antagonistic light than the comic-book version. Man-Thing's former identity remained Ted Sallis, though in the film he is portrayed as a Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
shaman instead of a scientist
Scientist
A scientist in a broad sense is one engaging in a systematic activity to acquire knowledge. In a more restricted sense, a scientist is an individual who uses the scientific method. The person may be an expert in one or more areas of science. This article focuses on the more restricted use of the word...
. Consequently, the Man-Thing's origin is somewhat different, though the Nexus of All Realities is still involved. Additionally, in a tip-of-the-hat to the original comics series, major characters are named after Man-Thing authors Mike Ploog
Mike Ploog
Michael G. Ploog is an American storyboard and comic book artist, and a visual designer for movies....
, Steve Gerber
Steve Gerber
Stephen Ross "Steve" Gerber was an American comic book writer best known as co-creator of the satiric Marvel Comics character Howard the Duck....
and Val Mayerik
Val Mayerik
Val Mayerik is an American comic-book and commercial artist, best known as co-creator of Marvel Comics' satiric character Howard the Duck.-Early life and career:...
.
Cast
- Matthew Le NevezMatthew Le NevezMatthew Le Nevez is an award-winning Australian actor.-Early life :Le Nevez was born in Canberra in 1978 and attended The French-Australian School, Telopea Park School and St Edmund's College, Canberra before accepted into NIDA aged 17...
as Sheriff Kyle Williams - Rachael TaylorRachael TaylorRachael Taylor is an Australian actress and model. She made her leading role debut in the short-lived Australian program headLand. She then made the transition to Hollywood, appearing in the films Transformers, Shutter, and Splinterheads.-Personal life:Taylor was born in Launceston, Tasmania, the...
as Teri Elizabeth Richards - Jack ThompsonJack Thompson (actor)Jack Thompson, AM is an Australian actor and one of the major figures of Australian cinema. He was educated at University of Queensland, before embarking on his acting career. In 2002, he was made an honorary member of the Australian Cinematographers Society...
as Frederic Schist - Rawiri ParateneRawiri Paratene-Biography:Born in Hokianga, Paratene is from the Maori iwi of Nga Puhi. Paratene has appeared in a large number of television, stage and film roles. He is also a theatrical director and writer for film, television and theatre...
as Pete Horn - Alex O'LoughlinAlex O'LoughlinAlex O'Loughlin is an Australian actor, currently starring in CBS's Hawaii Five-0 as Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett. His best known earlier roles include Kevin Hiatt in The Shield, Mick St. John in Moonlight, Dr. Andy Yablonski in Three Rivers, and Stan in The Back-up Plan...
as Deputy Eric Fraser - Steve BastoniSteve BastoniSteve Bastoni is an Italian Australian actor. He is best known for his role in Police Rescue as Constable Yannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos and as Steve Parker in Neighbours.-Television:...
as Rene LaRoque - Robert MammoneRobert MammoneRobert Mammone is an Australian actor who has many television and film credits.-Filmography:* Sons and Daughters * All the Way * Embassy * The Crossing...
as Mike Ploog - Pat ThompsonPatrick ThompsonHugh Patrick Thompson, known as Patrick Thompson, is a British Conservative Party politician. Educated at Felsted School and Cambridge University...
as Jake Schist - William Zappa as Steve Gerber
- John BatchelorJohn Batchelor (Australian actor)John David Batchelor is an Australian television and film actor. He is most known for portraying Chief Petty Officer Marine Technical / Chief Engineer Andy 'Charge' Thorpe on the Australian drama series Sea Patrol, and Peeto in the Australian feature film Red Dog.-Career:Beside portraing Andy...
as Wayne Thibadeaux - Ian BlissIan BlissIan Bliss is an Australian actor, best known for his role as Bane in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, for which he was chosen by the Wachowski Brothers because of his accurate impersonation of Hugo Weaving , and also his partial resemblance to Weaving...
as Rodney Thibadeaux - Brett LeonardBrett LeonardBrett Leonard is an American film director, producer and music video director specializing in the science-fiction and horror genres. A few of his films such as The Lawnmower Man and Virtuosity feature groundbreaking computer animation and visual effects...
as Val Mayerick - Imogen BaileyImogen BaileyImogen Bailey is an Australian model, actress and singer. She is currently based in Sydney and is best known for her role on the long-running Australian soap Neighbours as Nicola West.-Modeling:...
as Sarah - James CoyneJames CoyneJames Elliott Coyne, BCL, BA was the second Governor of the Bank of Canada, from 1955 to 1961, succeeding Graham Towers. During his time in office, he had a much-publicized debate with Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, a debate often referred to as the "Coyne Affair" .-Life and career:Coyne was...
as Billy James - Cheryl Craig as Michele
- Gary Waddell as Cajun Pilot
- Xoqui PesceAndrea LeonAndrea Leon is an Australian film actress, model and writer who's best known as the star of the Spanish soap opera La Ley del silencio , as well as such Hollywood films as Man-Thing , Hood of Horror and 2001 Maniacs: Field of Screams .-Early life:Andrea Leon was born and raised in Sydney,...
as Nurse - Conan Stevens as Man-ThingMan-ThingThe Man-Thing is a fictional character, a monster in publications from Marvel Comics. Created by writers Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, and Gerry Conway and artist Gray Morrow, the character first appeared in Savage Tales #1 , and went on to be featured in various titles and in his own series, including...
- Shannon Leonard as School boy
Production
The film was originally intended for a 2004 video release, then upgraded to a theatrical release for Halloween to capitalize on the rising popularity of superhero-based films. Marvel did not think the film would be bankable in a domestic release, and put it back to video in the U.S., but did release it internationally. The movie was later released as a "Sci-Fi Original" on the Sci Fi Channel in 2005.The movie was released in U.S. on DVD shortly afterwards. In 2007, it was also released as a 2-DVD special edition in several European Union countries.