Hot Shot of the Week Companion Feature
Ten Questions About Booster Gold for Jeff Katz
Jeff Katz is the co-writer, along with Geoff Johns, of DC Comics’ Booster Gold.
Besides Booster Gold, Katz’s comics experience has been limited to movie-related properties; a one-shot called The Wicked West and Freddy Vs. Jason Vs. Ash, which he wrote after having produced the Freddy Vs. Jason movie for New Line Cinema. Currently, Katz is a producer for 20th Century Fox, and is working on projects like X-Men Origins: Wolverine and The A-Team.
Comic Related (Russell Burlingame reporting): I sought you out on Comic Book DB, and it made me wonder: How did The Wicked West happen, and do you feel like an off-brand book with no expectations really prepared you for taking on a licensing behemoth like Freddy Vs. Jason Vs. Ash or a high-expectations book like Booster Gold?
Jeff Katz: I had no idea there was a comic book database, so clearly I need to check that out right away. The Wicked West was a very fortunate accident for me. I'd gotten to know the great Robert Tinnell over the course of my time at New Line. We'd had a few meetings and I was a big fan of The Wicked West as a potential movie idea. Bob and I just clicked right away and he was very supportive of my desire to do some work in comics. Spinning out of that, Bob gave me the chance to contribute to his anthology. It was something I jumped at. Flashing forward, it served me nicely in that it was something Geoff Johns could use to show DC I knew and understood how to write for the medium. While I'd say nothing could really prepare you for something like Booster Gold, Wicked West was certainly a key breakthrough for me and helped me get my feet wet before diving in full bore. Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash was something I was uniquely prepared for as I was the exec on Freddy vs. Jason and Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash started as a "dream movie" in my head.
CR: How did you originally meet Geoff Johns?
JK: Geoff and I first met for coffee after the Super Bowl in, I think, 2001. It was the Patriots/Rams Super Bowl. We just hit it off right away. It ended up that our parents knew each other well for a period in Detroit before I was ever born. In fact, they were at my older brother's bris. Neither Geoff nor I had a clue about this until we were underway with Booster Gold, oddly enough. It was just one of those odd coincidences. But we became friends very quickly and kept in touch over the years and I'm eternally grateful for the door he opened for me into this field. He's helped me live a dream and fulfill a lifelong passion.
CR: Geoff has already let slip that he's leaving the title--were you planning on sticking around after he's gone, or is that a good jumping-off point for you as well?
JK: I'm not sure I'm allowed to comment on this at this point. I'm going to continue doing comics but as to what the future holds, let’s just say "no comment."
CR: How does writing a monthly in-universe comic compare to your day job? Obviously there's a ton more money at play in the movies but here, you've got the keys to some pretty fancy cars as far as DC and the fans are concerned.
JK: I have been so incredibly fortunate. I love both my jobs for very different reasons. The beauty of comics compared to film is that it's much more freeing creatively. There's no budget to follow. No P&L [profit and loss] targets to hit. It's you and your imagination and the sky is the limit. I've found it to be a tremendous release. I don't do it for the money. I do it because I love it and live to tell stories. In many ways, the films I work on are very much in the spirit of the comics I have loved. I'm a fan of genre pictures and that's the stuff I love to make. Freddy vs. Jason, Snakes on a Plane, Shoot ‘Em Up on down to Wolverine and A-Team - they're all in keeping tonally with comics in their own ways (Wolverine obviously very literally). I literally learned to read on comic books and I think that's colored my taste in films greatly. I like making an audience smile, clap and laugh and scream. I love provoking emotion. I love comic violence. All of these traits are things I learned in my formative years and are highly influenced by the comic medium. To play in the DC sandbox is a thrill for me. As a guy who grew up on Booster Gold, to be plotting such a key period in his evolution is an honor and a tremendous privilege. I love making films and don't think I'll ever stop. But at the same time, writing comics has been a real blast for me and, actually, has had positive impacts on my day job as well. I'd like to think that I'll spend the rest of my life doing both film and comics going forward as much as time allows. Ideally at least one comic project a year; more if possible.
CR: Jurgens' original series was always a light book, but it was still pretty straightforward superhero fare--and the same can be said for the way Geoff handled the character in 52. Whose idea was it to embrace the fun of the Giffen-DeMatteis interpretation of Booster?
JK: I'm not sure any one of us can take credit here, but I'm very proud that the book has been so free with the humor aspect. It was important to me personally. I think it's something Geoff has appreciated doing as well after doing these major events like 52 and Infinite Crisis. I grew up on that JLI run and it was a major part of my youth. Booster Gold, to me, should always be at least a little funny. And I'm generally a pretty snarky and sarcastic guy so to write the Booster and Skeets interaction was something that fit me like a glove. I think there was a mutual sense that the stakes for Booster were going to be major, so that weight would be there regardless. That allowed us to play with his image and situation in humorous ways while retaining a real sense of danger and stakes. I'm really very appreciative that fans have responded to the tone of the book the way they have. I'm hopeful it means "fun" won't be a four letter word in comics quite as much as it's been in recent years. A great story should touch all your emotions. That's the beauty of the character Dan Jurgens created. There's pathos there. This clown cries very real tears.
CR: As a big fan of the series myself, I've always wondered how the work is balanced between you, Geoff and Dan. Care to hold back the curtain a little bit, or are you going to keep it more private like the 52 crew did?
JK: It started with Geoff and I in a room together, sharing a computer and working side-by-side. Since then we've evolved to where we'll sit down to dinner and plot our 22 pages. Then divvy them up, eleven pages each. We each have certain things we like to do more than others but it's been a pretty even handed balance thus far. We really haven't had any serious issues. It's been a pleasure all around. Once the scripts are turned in, Jurgens typically delivers an inspired twist or two, such as Skeets riding the horse in #3. That's one of my favorite comic panels ever. I'm proud to have my name on that issue, even though that beat was all Dan Jurgens. I'm still a fan at heart. I'm a mark for this business. So to work alongside guys like Geoff, Dan and Norm is a real thrill for me. I've just been so fortunate to be a part of this and it's something I'm proud to have played a role in.
CR: You've indicated that you've got another project--I think it was for Marvel--in the works now. How much of a comics workload do you see yourself as being able to maintain given that it's not your main job?
JK: It's tricky. The folks at 20th Century Fox have been incredibly supportive of my side gig. Technically speaking, I'm contractually able to do a comic book a month. However, the realities of my day job make that a real challenge. I'm writing, in fact, from a hotel room in Sydney, Australia. I came out, slightly spur of the moment, as we're in production on Wolverine. I was in New Zealand a few weeks back as well. With A-Team probably lining up to go after we wrap Wolverine, it's going to be a busy year professionally. Yet, I truly love writing comics. I'm deeply honored to be a part of this community and the Booster Gold experience, especially the fan response, has only strengthened that. So it's something I intend to fight to hold on to. As I said earlier, I'd like to be doing at least one comic project a year. At least a mini or something. I've got a few things lining up as we speak and hope to be announcing a few projects shortly. I've got a creator-owned concept that I think is going to be pretty controversial and am getting that together. I've also been lucky enough to have publishers and artists reaching out to me, so I'm putting a few things together off of those opportunities as well. There's also another slightly obscure DC character I'm very, very interested in playing with and I've got an A+ level artist down to do that with me, so hopefully that will come together as well. There's a story there that I want to tell badly, even though I'd be biting the hand that feeds me a little bit. It's a balancing act to be sure, but I'm loathe to give up my comic career anytime soon. I feel like it's just starting. In some ways, these jobs compliment and feed off each other nicely. I'm really an incredibly lucky guy and am just very thankful to get these awesome opportunities.
CR: How tight a leash does DC keep you guys on when it comes to tampering in events that have already happened? I mean, it's a time-travel book, and obviously between Ted and The Killing Joke and Zero Hour, you've been playing with some really loaded guns. No pun intended.
JK: That's where having Geoff involved pays real dividends. He's done such a first rate job for them over the past several years. So I think there's a trust factor when it comes to him. As a result we really have gotten a lot of freedom to tell the stories we want to tell the way we want to tell them. I'm fully aware of what a unique situation I walked into for my first job with a major publisher. Geoff speaks softly but his track record enables him to carry a big stick. As a result, we've been able to touch on all the concepts we originally set out to do. All told, DC has been really supportive of our work on Booster Gold. It's guys with professional track records like Geoff and Dan that enable us to do this so freely. I'll ride their coattails all day!
CR: How much of the chalkboard is agonized over and how much of it is just thrown in there? Do you guys see the massive message board threads dedicated to speculation whenever the boards appear?
JK: We don't put anything on there lightly. Sure, maybe there are some red herrings to be had, but a lot of it is rooted deeply in things that are going to be happening or that we'd like to make happen personally. I get a huge kick out of the fan response to each chalkboard and I'd imagine that it's something that will continue to play a role going forward. Rip Hunter knows all, man. He's one badass brainiac.
CR: I'm a huge fan of Sun Devils. Maybe the only one, but we'll leave that be for now. Are there actual plans to use those characters in Booster Gold or was that bit on the chalkboard a swerve?
JK: A "swerve?" Did I just catch you using a pro wrestling term? I'll "no comment" their actual future role in the DCU but I suppose I can reveal that Rik Sunn is really a secret member of the Time Stealers. He's also fighting Big Show at Wrestlemania.
Click here to check out Booster Gold #7
and our Hot Shot of the Week Review
Ten Question About Booster Gold #7 With Dan Jurgens
Page last updated on March 22, 2008