Johnson spent over a year crafting the script for Ghost Rider, which draws its character and storyline from multiple versions of the comic-book series. The Ghost Rider comic-book franchise started in the 1940s as a western-themed series about a gun-slinging horseman, and was later purchased by Marvel and re-invented in the 1970s as a supernatural story centering on motorcycle stunt rider Johnny Blaze. The property was revitalised again in the 1990s, again with a new lead character.
De Luca explains, "There was a certain amount of license because of the two incarnations of the comic book itself: the '70s version that I collected and remember, and then the '90s version. It changed so many times over the years that we were able to cherry-pick the parts we liked best."
What most intrigued the filmmakers -- in addition to the Ghost Rider -- were the villains against whom he faces off. Not just fighting evil, Johnny Blaze is fighting the Devil himself, the very being that gave him his powers. According to De Luca, the fact that Johnny’s motivation and main antagonists come from the comic books was a welcome guiding hand for the filmmakers. "Blackheart and Mephistopheles are from the comic book; the reason and way that Johnny makes the deal and Roxanne are all pretty much the same. It is a fairly faithful adaptation, even though the comic book itself changed storylines over the years."
Also read: Riding With The Devil, Ghost Rider in pix
Advertisement
