With the franchise undergoing multiple incarnations, original Hellboy actor Doug Jones says he is open to a Spider-Man: No Way Home-style crossover in the future. Guillermo del Toro first brought Mike Mignola's comics to life in 2004 with Ron Perlman leading the cast of the well-received adaptation alongside Jones as the amphibious psychic Abe Sapien and Selma Blair as the pyroknietic Liz Sherman. The group would reunite for Hellboy II: The Golden Age, which similarly scored largely positive reviews and was a modest box office success.
SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY
Despite plans for a third installment, the rights to the comic book franchise eventually landed in Lionsgate's laps, resulting in the 2019 Hellboy reboot with David Harbour starring as the titular character. The film went on to score largely negative reviews from critics and audiences alike, resulting in a box office disappointment and canceling plans for the future. In spite of this, one Hellboy star his thoughts on how to expand the franchise.
While speaking exclusively with Screen Rant to discuss his Hocus Pocus 2 return, Doug Jones shared his thoughts on the future of the Hellboy franchise. Expressing his doubts over returning after the franchise reboot, the original Abe Sapien actor was asked about the possibility of a Spider-Man: No Way Home-style crossover, confirming his interest in the concept. See what Jones said below:
Which was a great scene, if we can find a way to mash up our universes, I would love it.
Given del Toro's Hellboy movies were largely PG-13 focused, while Neil Marshall's 2019 aimed for an R rating, finding a way to bridge the differing tones does seem like a unique task to try and undertake. However, with Spider-Man: No Way Home showing how to effectively blend a variety of tones that satisfies a variety of franchise fanbases, it doesn't seem entirely impossible for Perlman and Harbour's universes to crossover in the future. Additionally, with the Marvel Cinematic Universe threequel offering some closure for Andrew Garfield's webslinger, at the very least, a Hellboy crossover with both Perlman and Harbour could properly close the book on one of the two's depictions of the character.
With the Harbour-led Hellboy reboot performing poorly, many have written off his version of the Dark Horse Comics character and the future of the franchise has subsequently been left in doubt. In spite of this, Perlman and Harbour have frequently expressed their interests in reprising their roles in potential sequels, alongside Jones, making the latter's openness to a Spider-Man: No Way Home-style crossover an intriguing idea for fans of the franchise. Audiences can revisit Perlman's original film and Harbour's Hellboy streaming on HBO Max now.