Jessica Chastain is finally taking on a comic role – although this may not be immediately familiar to all readers.
According to Deadline, the Oscar-nominated star of “The Help” and “Zero Dark Thirty” will play the lead role in “Painkiller Jane” and will also produce the film.
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Created by comic book legends Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada, Painkiller Jane is an adult title that centers on NYPD officer Jane Vasko, who is nearly killed while working undercover for the mafia.
Through this experience, she somehow gains superhuman regenerative powers (à la Wolverine/Deadpool), which Jane later uses as a vigilante crime fighter.
Although Palmiotti and Quesada are most associated with Marvel, Painkiller Jane was first published as a miniseries for Event Comics in 1995. The character now appears in comics published by Dynamite.
“Painkiller Jane” was already seen in a television film in 2005 with Emmanuelle Vaugier in the leading role; later, “Terminator 3” actress Kristanna Loken took over the role in a short-lived series on SyFy (then still called Sci-Fi Channel).
In 2014, it was announced that Jen and Sylvia Soska, creators of the 2012 cult hit American Mary, would direct a big-screen version of Painkiller Jane. However, reports of the film today make no mention of the Soska sisters, and the directors themselves have not commented on whether or not they are still working together.
Chastain was close to accepting a role in a comic book movie in Iron Man 3, but then declined due to scheduling conflicts. There were also rumors that she was a candidate for the role of Captain Marvel before Brie Larson was cast in the role.
Chastain will produce “Painkiller Jane” alongside Stephen L’Heureux, while creator Palmiotti will serve as an executive producer.
Photo credit: WENN, Dynamite Publishing
