Matthew Price, Features Editor
Comic book hero lights up director
‘Ghost Rider' blazes from ink to screen to DVD
Comic book hero lights up director
By Matthew Price
Published: June 22, 2007
Director Mark Steven Johnson couldn't be happier with the box-office reception afforded to his film adaptation of the Marvel Comics hero "Ghost Rider,” now on DVD. Johnson said he was pleased that a character like Ghost Rider, not really known outside of the comics niche market, could open at No. 1.
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"I was really happy that we did so well, that the film was so successful,” he said in a recent phone interview. "It was No. 1 three weeks in a row, I think, and everywhere that it came out.”
In the film, Ghost Rider is the devil's bounty hunter. When the devil's son escapes from hell, the devil seeks the best rider in the world to bring him back. Stunt rider
Johnny Blaze (
Nicolas Cage) makes a deal with the devil to save someone he loves — but that deal doesn't go as planned.
Despite going down to the wire to finish special effects, Johnson said he was pleased with the key Ghost Rider computer-generated sequences.
"There's a couple moments in the movie — like the transformation; (Ghost Rider) going off the roof; the desert ride, him and the Old West Ghost Rider ...
Sam Elliott, tearing through the desert side by side — that I think are really pretty fantastic.”
More information about the efforts of the animators is showcased on the DVD release.
"I really wanted to show people the hard work of the animators, the visual-effects artists,” Johnson said. "Because our lead character is a CGI creation, that'll be really interesting for people to see how it's done,” Johnson said.
Johnson said while "Ghost Rider 2” is being discussed, he's not currently writing a script and doesn't know if he'll be involved. He did say there are plenty of opportunities to revisit the Ghost Rider character, either with Cage or with another actor.
"That's the great thing about the character, it is about a deal with the devil,” Johnson said. "I'm the biggest Nic Cage fan in the world, so I'd love to see him back to do another one. But if he didn't, or if they decided to go ahead and do the
Danny Ketch story line, with somebody else, it can still be passed down.”
Danny Ketch became the Ghost Rider in the 1990 series written by
Howard Mackie with art by
Javier Saltares and Mark Texiera that Johnson said were among his favorite "Ghost Rider” comics.
"I love that stuff; there was some really cool stuff with Scarecrow. Some really scary stuff, you know?” Johnson said. Scarecrow was at one point considered a possible villain for the "Ghost Rider” film, but that idea was discarded when it was discovered that "Batman Begins” was using
DC Comics' Scarecrow character.
"That's the difficult thing with Ghost Rider. It's tough to come up with villains for him that look cooler than he does. Usually your villain is a bigger bada-- than your hero, to make your hero an underdog, but ... (Ghost Rider is) pretty much the most bada-- looking thing ever, so it's hard to make him an underdog.”
Johnson said he drew the look of the film "Ghost Rider” from the 1990s series.
"I love the look of the Danny Ketch-era stuff, as you can see from the movie. The Ghost Rider really came from those drawings. I think to do the whole spikes-and-chains thing was from that.”
Johnson said another aspect he introduced to the film to make the character an underdog was to make the Ghost Rider only come out at night.
"That's why I put the ticking clock of the sun, that it was nocturnal — that's what made him vulnerable in the film,” Johnson said. "Flaming skull doesn't look as good in the daylight.”
Next week: Johnson talks about the planned
HBO series "Preacher.”
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