Watchmen Revealed

If you aren't a geek, you may not have heard of Alan Moore's (V For Vendetta) legendary graphic novel, Watchmen, and you may not know that hot-shot filmmaker Zach Snyder (300) is currently shooting the epic tale of realistic superheroes. This will be one of the biggest movies of next year. Since the first images were released today, here's a little Watchmen primer for those unfamiliar with the characters. (Click on the pics for bigger versions, or on their names to see what they looked like in the graphic novel).

The Nite Owl - (played by Patrick Wilson)This is the "Batman" of the Watchmen universe, which is set in an alternate 1980's. The Nite Owl in the graphic novel is an idealistic ex-hero who's forced into coming out of retirement by a series of gruesome murders. Someone is apparently trying to kill all of the former superheroes, a group called the Minutemen.

Rorschach - (played by Jackie Earle Haley)This is the disturbed sociopathic investigator, the only remaining vigilante in the 1980's, who's trying to track down the murderer of the former Minutemen. He's based on classic private eye characters like Dick Tracy and The Question. His name comes from his creepy ink-blot mask.

Ozymandias - (played by Matthew Goode)When forced out of vigilantism by the Keene Act, Adrian Veidt decided to cash in on his fame and founded a corporate empire based on his celebrity image. He's well-known to be the smartest man in the world, and took his name from the Greek word for Ramesses II of Egypt.

The Comedian - (played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan)
A cynical, sarcastic veteran of the Vietnam War, this munitions expert became government property after the Keene Act made vigilantism illegal. Now he does whatever they tell him to, and gets paid quite well.

The Silk Spectre - (played by Malin Ackerman)This Olympic-level athlete and skilled fighter is romantically involved with the character below.

Doctor Manhattan - (played by Billy Crudup)(No image released yet)

The main reason why the Watchmen universe is different from ours, this physicist was caught in a nuclear accident that granted him god-like powers, and allowed him to transform history and technology.

The graphic novel is one of Damon Lindelof (Lost) and Neil Gaiman's (my favorite novelist) greatest influences. A film adaptation has been in the works since the real 1980's but the project fell apart over and over. Several directors have been attached at one point or another, including Paul Greenglass (the Bourne movies), Terry Gilliam (Brazil), and Darren Aronofsky (The Fountain).