Spawn is a superhero film based on the Image Comics character of the same name. The film was release on August 1, 1997. Directed by Mark A.Z. Dippé, the film stars Michael Jai White in the title role, alongside John Leguizamo, Martin Sheen, Theresa Randle, D. B. Sweeney, and Nicol Williamson in his final film role.
The film depicts the origin story of the title character, a murdered US Marine who is resurrected as the reluctant leader of Hell’s army. Spawn is one of the first films to feature an African American actor portraying a major comic book superhero. The film was released in the United States on August 1, 1997.
It received generally negative reviews and grossed $87.9 million worldwide against a production budget between $40, 45 million.
Spawn: The Album was released in July 29, 1997 and featured popular rock and metal group of bands at the time including: Metallica, Korn, Slayer, Marilyn Manson, Stabbing Westward, Filter, Soul Coughing and Silverchair in collaborations with well-known electronica / techno producers such as The Crystal Method, Roni Size, The Prodigy, DJ Greyboy, Atari Teenage Riot, Moby, Orbital and 808 State.
A similar concept was previously implemented on the rock/hip hop-infused Judgment Night soundtrack, and later, on the Blade II soundtrack, forming a trilogy of genre-blending soundtracks produced by Happy Walters.
The album debuted at #7 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for 25 weeks. The album is certified Gold for selling over 500,000 copies in America.
The US version of the album features different cover art and the bonus track This Is Not A Dream by Morphine and Apollo 440. The Australian and Japanese versions, besides the bonus track, feature cover art based on images in Spawn #39 and a marquee of Spawn: In the Demon’s Hand.
The Japanese version contains a third disk with three remixes. The McFarlane Collector’s Club made an LP release available to its members, featuring the standard album art and a translucent red vinyl disc. In 2017 a 20th Anniversary edition was released with a translucent blue vinyl disc.
“It was a bit rushed,” declared The Prodigy‘s Liam Howlett of their collaboration with Rage Against the Machine. “I did it in three days when I usually need a week.” In addition, Moby was originally slated to collaborate with industrial rock band Gravity Kills (titled Suffocating).
Although he only contributed some samples and keyboard lines to the track, ultimately, he instead chose the final track with Butthole Surfers.
The Gravity Kills track would later be leaked online. Spawn is one of the first films to feature an African American actor portraying a major comic book superhero. Although preceded by other black superhero films such as The Meteor Man (1993), Spawn was the first to be based on a major comic book.
Steel, starring basketball player Shaquille O’Neal based on a DC character, was also released later in the same month as Spawn. Writing in 2018, Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail was critical of the fact that Michael Jai White was barely seen, and his face hidden by a mask or prosthetics.
Unlike Blade (1998) which came later and was promoted based on the popularity of action star Wesley Snipes and happened to be based on a comic, Spawn was promoted based on the popularity of the McFarlane comic.
Tracklist:
- (Can’t You) Trip Like I Do – (The Crystal Method and Filter)
- Long Hard Road Out of Hell (Marilyn Manson and Sneaker Pimps)
- Satan (Orbital and Kirk Hammett)
- Kick the P.A. (Korn and The Dust Brothers)
- Tiny Rubberband (Butthole Surfers and Moby
- For Whom the Bell Tolls (The Irony of It All) (Metallica and DJ Spooky)
- Torn Apart (Stabbing Westward and Josh Wink)
- Skin Up Pin Up (Mansun and 808 State)
- One Man Army (The Prodigy and Tom Morello)
- Spawn (Silverchair and Vitro)
- T-4 Strain (Henry Rollins and Goldie)
- Familiar (Incubus and DJ Greyboy)
- No Remorse (I Wanna Die) (Slayer and Atari Teenage Riot)
- A Plane Scraped Its Belly on a Sooty Yellow Moon (Soul Coughing and Roni Size)
US limited edition bonus track - This Is Not a Dream (The UK Mix) (Morphine and Apollo 440)
Australian edition bonus tracks - This Is Not a Dream (The UK Mix)
