Many fans of The Walking Dead already know Jay Bonansinga. Bonansinga, an American horror author, is the brilliant and dark mind behind some of The Walking Dead books including Descent, Return to Woodbury, and Rise of the Governor. That last one has a special place in our hearts for a totally not obvious reason.
Our very own Governor, Captain Kyle was able to interview the charismatic author about his latest project. And just like his other work, this collaboration is just as iconic. Jay Bonansinga has been tapped to develop unpublished stories from the late great Stan Lee!
Bonansinga says he was approached by Stan Lee’s agent, Susan Crawford, about working on one of his unpublished projects.
“You know, you might be, you may be the guy I’ve been looking for, for years to work on one of Stan’s unpublished superhero premises,” Bonansinga recalls Crawford saying to him. Like any fandom fan would react, Jay Bonansinga was excited!
You’re probably imagining what kind of collaboration comes from a master of horror and the godfather of comic books. The answer is “The Devil’s Quintet.” According to the author, “The Devil’s Quintet” is about 5 skilled individuals who are given superpowers from the Devil. Yes, you read that correctly, they get their powers from Satan. Now bestowed with powers from the dark lord, these heroes will have to learn to do good with their “evil” abilities.
Bonansinga described the story as “timely,” with themes reflecting the world we live in today.
Bonansinga said that Stan Lee had always seen this story as a series of novels and not comic books due to its dark nature. He said that Lee had given him a few pages with the basic premise and outline, but he was ultimately given creative freedom to take these characters to their full potential.
When Lee passed away on November 12, 2018, Bonansinga naturally assumed the project would end. “What? No! This thing is more valuable than ever,” Crawford told him. As one of Stan Lee’s last projects before passing, the work on “The Devil’s Quintet,” continued.
Jay says that one of his biggest challenges was developing the Devil. “It’s like writing a story about Santa Claus[…] it’s a bobblehead. The Devil has been done to death. No pun intended,” said Bonansinga. But he said he is really proud of the version of the Devil he came up with for this story.
The first book for the series has been completed, with Bonansinga contracted to do more. Book one will be available in 2022.
He hinted that there are talks of the books becoming a TV series. “The Devil’s Quintet,” is under Stan Lee’s Pow Entertainment and thus not included or related to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Though if Disney wanted to, we are sure they could find the money to get it.
When asked if there will be any other unpublished works by Stan Lee being unearthed for him to work on, Jay Bonansinga said, “I don’t know for sure but…” It’s important to note that he may have winked while talking.
Jay Bonansinga has a new book coming out called “St. Oswald,” which will be in book stores and online this upcoming April! You can stay up to date with Jay on his Twitter.
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Watch the full interview here:
