Super Scribe

Following the critically acclaimed Stardust, screenwriter Jane Goldman has teamed up once again with director Matthew Vaughn for an adaptation of comic book Kick-Ass. And her involvement went further than just writing the script…

Kick-Ass is the story of a normal teenager who decides to don a costume to fight crime.

• How did you get involved in the project?
Matthew and I were involved early on, before the comic was even written. Mark [Millar] had actually only just started writing the comic and he was so excited about the way it was taking shape that he asked me to put him in touch with Matthew Vaughn. He thought it was something [Vaughn] might like to direct, and he was right! [Millar] had the first issue written, a fairly written next three issues and just the arc beyond that.

• How do you adapt a story that hasn’t been completely written?
It became a very symbiotic relationship. We pretty much had our structure and our character arcs and everything nailed down before [Millar] finished. He just kept us updated and we just kept him updated. It’s such a strong and compelling concept, and I was so excited about exploring the idea of a character who is a genuinely young everyman, not a cartoon geek. A regular kid who likes to read comic books with a teenage sensibility.

If you look at a typical superhero movie, there is never any mention of superheroes being a form of entertainment. [Kick- Ass] takes place in a world where all the people who want to be superheroes are influenced by the same superheroes we’ve all grown up with. You have Big Daddy who is clearly influenced by Adam West’s Batman, but his costume is more influenced by modern Batman.

• So is Kick-Ass a hero or just a vigilante?
In his mind he’s a superhero! But what defines a genuine superhero is their superpowers. And he obviously does not have superpowers. Certainly society would regard him as a vigilante. I have respect for him as a character, and if he were a real person I think I would be touched by his misguided notion he was a superhero.
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This article continues in movieScope Magazine, Issue 16 (March/ April 2010)