Waiting for 'Invincible' Season 3? Check Out This Image Comics Cult Classic From the '90s

Thanks to Tubi, you can kick 2025 off with some horror-tinged superhero action - for free. Spawn, the 1997 live-action adaptation of Todd McFarlane's comic book antihero, is coming to the free, ad-supported streamer next month. It debuts on Tubi on January 1, 2025.

Before Invincible was a twinkle in Robert Kirkman's eye, Image Comics was the hottest thing in the American comic book industry in the 1990s: a new publishing company founded by ex-Marvel and DC artists who created their own creator-owned superhero books. The most successful book coming out of that launch came from McFarlane, an artist and writer coming off popular runs on Amazing Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk. McFarlane's hellish hero muscled his way into pop culture the way no creator-owned superhero had done before; in addition to the 1997 film, Spawn also had an animated series that ran for three seasons on HBO, and an extensive line of action figures produced by McFarlane's own toy company. The comic runs to this day, and is still co-written by McFarlane.

What Is 'Spawn' About?

Directed by Mark A.Z. Dippé, Spawn follows Al Simmons (Michael Jai White), a CIA agent who gets betrayed and murdered by his superior, Jason Wynn (Martin Sheen), and Wynn's right-hand woman, Jessica Priest (Melinda Clarke). Sent to Hell, Simmons is returned to life by the demonic Malebolgia (Frank Welker) as Spawn (short for "Hellspawn"), a super-powered soldier in the demon's diabolical army. He's supervised by the grotesque Clown (an unrecognizable and extremely committed John Leguizamo); the Clown is also in league with Wynn, who's become an arms dealer. All Simmons really wants is to reunite with his wife Wanda (Theresa Randle) and their baby daughter Cyan - but unfortunately for him, he still looks like a charred corpse underneath his costume. Meanwhile, he's going to need the help of Cogliostro (Nicol Williamson), another thrall of Malebolgia's who broke free of his demonic corruption, to stop Clown and Wynn before they can unleash Hell on Earth.

Since Spawn's 1997 release to critical disdain and decent box office receipts, McFarlane has attempted to get a new Spawn movie off the ground. Jason Blum is producing the film for Blumhouse, and the studio is currently looking for a director for the project. Jamie Foxx was previously attached to star as Spawn, with Jeremy Renner to play Spawn's police ally, Detective Twitch Williams.

Spawn will be available to stream on Tubi starting on January 1, 2025. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.

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