So, Solomon Kane is a character created by Robert E. Howard (you know, the guy who created a little character named CONAN?).  He’s a 17th century Puritan who wanders the Earth vanquishing evil in all its forms.  You know, kind of like David Carradine in Kung Fu, or Sam Jackson in Pulp Fiction.  Howard wrote a decent number of Kane stories, starting with the story “Red Shadows.”

A Solomon Kane film has been in the works for quite a while, since back in 2001 when Christopher Lambert was offered the role.  Back in 2006, Michael Bassett, writer/director of Wilderness and Deathwatch (both really good DTV flicks), was named as the man behind the Solomon Kane movie, and that the cast would be filled with some great actors – James Purefoy (Rome), Max Von Sydow (do you really need to be told what he’s been in?), Rachel Hurd-Wood (Peter Pan, Perfume), and Pete Postlethwaite (In the Name of the Father). According to wikipedia,

The movie tells the origins of Solomon Kane and is hoped to be the first of a trilogy of movies. When the story opens Kane is a mercenary of Queen Elizabeth I fighting in Africa, but after an encounter with a demon, The Reaper, he realizes he must seek redemption or have his soul damned to Hell. He returns to England and lives a life of peace, converting to puritanism, but soon the doings of an evil sorcerer upset his plans and he must take up arms again.

Principal photography wrapped up last year, and on the director’s blog last week, we got our first actual image from the movie of the titular Kane.  Still no release date announced, and it sounds like it’s still being pieced together, but we’ll definitely be keeping our eyes on this project.  Kane’s a great character and, with a promising director and the right storyline, this film could kick all kinds of booty.

Find out more about Solomon Kane in the collected works!