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Todd McFarlane has never been one to hold back an idea, but that's not to say the Spawn creator and Image Comics legend doesn't also learn from previous experience. For example, as McFarlane is currently working on upcoming film King Spawn with horror studio Blumhouse, he's taking lessons from the very first time his demonic superhero appeared on the big screen, in the Michael Jai White-starring Spawn film from 1997.

Popverse recently sat down with McFarlane to talk about his toy and comic book empire (originally slated for a 2025 release, but unslated as of now), and we couldn't help but ask about the character with whom he is most associated. As the discussion went on, we got into the nitty-gritty of McFarlane's past experience seeing Spawn on screen, and what lessons he was taking from it heading into the future.

"The biggest piece of information," McFarlane says, "Was that after the movie came out, it opened up to about $20 million, which today would be about a $45 million opening. [The producers] came to me, and they said that 76% of the people who went were over the age of 14. That told me that even if we could get another movie out three years later, which we didn't, the vast majority of people would be 17 or older, meaning they could go to an R-rated movie."

Keep in mind - those hypothetical 17-year-olds of the year 2000 would be 42 now, a fact that is not lost on the legendary artist and action figure designer.

"It hasn't been three years," McFarlane continues, "It's been about 30 years now. So, even if you were a zygote, you could go to an R-rated movie today. I know my audience. My audience isn't young kids. My audience has grown up with the brand and with the character. This movie, when we get it done, has to be an R-rated movie that basically is true to what the character is all about."

Yes, the days of PG-13 Spawn movies seem to be well behind us, a fact we'll all probably see manifest once Blumhouse releases King Spawn (hopefully soon!) in theaters. In the meantime, folks looking for a mature take on Spawn can watch the animated HBO series, currently streaming on Max.

Need more? Watch the full Todd McFarlane AMA from NYCC 2024's Retailer Day right here.