Kevin Smith's 'Green Hornet' Movie -- Coming to a Comic Book Store Near You

As Seth Rogen toils away at getting the Green Hornet up on the big screen, it's worth remembering that Kevin Smith previously took at shot at the gig.

In fact, he got as far as writing the script before pulling the plug.

Recently, Smith has been getting involved in more comic book writing (and trying to do a better job at getting issues out in a timely manner). He got his latest series -- a three-issue Batman arc -- out on time and he has plans for a 12-issue Batman series (with a planned six-month break midway through).

On his blog, Smith said he also was offered an opportunity to write for Green Hornet.

"Nick Barrucci over at Dynamite Entertainment dropped me an e-mail a few weeks back to tell me that, in addition to the 'Lone Ranger,' 'Battlestar Galactica' and 'Red Sonja' comics he publishes, he’d just been granted the rights to publish comics featuring the Green Hornet and Kato," Smith wrote.

According to Smith, he was offered the chance to write an arc for the series.

"Citing the movie I’m in the midst of making -- 'A Couple of Dicks' -- and [the upcoming Batman series], I declined. 'As much as I’d love to,' I wrote back. 'Right now, I can’t make the time to write a Green Hornet story.' Then, I remembered that I’d written a Hornet story once before…," Smith wrote.

Smith said the comic book series won't be "a straight-up adaptation of the 'Green Hornet' movie script" but that it will "take its cues from that script -- just as that script took its cues from all the source material available (radio, TV, comics)."

Smith said the comics will be "about as close as I’ll get to making that 'Green Hornet' flick I walked away from directing all those years ago."

Smith also noted that the series will have no connection to the movie Rogen is working on.

"Had Seth and I ever talked about our respective 'Hornet' scripts on the set of 'Zack and Miri Make a Porno,' believe me, I’d have co-opted/stolen his ideas and incorporated them into the comic," Smith wrote. "But we kinda treated 'Hornet' like an ex-girlfriend of mine that he was currently [sleeping with] ... the less said, the better. No, the only connection we’ll have to Seth’s flick is the fact that we’re a comic, and Seth reads comics (lots, people)."

Smith said the story will cover the passing of the torch from Britt Reid to his son, Britt Jr.

"And while we haven’t landed an interior artist yet, some stellar talent has signed-on to provide us with covers: John Cassaday, Jae Lee, David Finch, and a newcomer name of Ross…," he wrote.

And, as luck would have it, Smith included a sketch of Green Hornet by Alex Ross (above left).