Kickass Theron Atomic Blonde a Comic Book Movie!

Charlize Theron has a movie opening in July that’s been getting a lot of buzz recently because they just dropped the following restricted (red-band) trailer:

She’s a sexy spy in this action thriller, and the Atomic Blonde trailer is heavy on fight scenes and girl/girl sex to get the adrenaline pumping. Also in the movie are John Goodman, Toby Jones, Sofia Boutella, and James McAvoy, so some big names there. It’s directed by David Leitch, whose John Wick has been highly appreciated by action movie fans.

The trailer has her mission as finding out who’s killing agents; the description says she’s “sent alone into Berlin to deliver a priceless dossier out of the destabilized city”. Whichever, it’s all just an excuse for an edgier female take on James Bond.

What I hadn’t realized was that this movie is based on the Oni Press graphic novel The Coldest City, written by Antony Johnston and drawn by Sam Hart. Kurt Johnstad (300) wrote the screenplay for the movie. The graphic novel was set in 1989, at the close of the Cold War, and it sounds like they’re keeping the period setting.

So did they change the title (which is better, I think) to disconnect a bit from the comic book source or just to focus more on Theron’s starring role (she’s also producing)? This movie likely has appeal to an audience beyond those seeking out comic adaptations.