Danny McBride to Be a Comic Villain's Henchman

Last year, few people really knew who Danny McBride was. It's actually kind of sweet to search back through our archives for photos, and see our Erik Davis predicting that he'd be a household name after Tropic Thunder. One season of Eastbound and Down and several movies later, McBride is the toast of the town. Look for no further proof than this -- he's getting a comic book movie.

Variety reports that Warner Bros has nabbed Adam Beechen and Manny Bello's graphic novel Hench as a starring vehicle for McBride, who will also be penning the script with his Eastbound collaborator Shawn Hartwell. It's the story of Mike Fulton, an ex-jock who lacks a lot of career options. Desperate to feed his wife and kid and make ends meet, he opts for a criminal lifestyle -- and not just any criminal career, but one doing the bidding of supervillains. Fulton is the anonymous muscle who you don't even notice until he gets his ass kicked by Superman and Batman.

This is just the kind of "real world" comic property I was hoping we'd see more of after Watchmen. You couldn't find a better part for McBride either, as he's got a knack for those thuggish types who you find yourself laughing at and sympathizing with. This will be one to watch out for, especially if they can rack up a good ensemble cast for all the heroes and villains that populate it.