Watching the cast joyously react to the first trailer was uplifting, and a testament to how much they care about this series. It breaks my heart to see a group of actors so passionate about a series that has been largely abandoned by the studio that created it. Disney and Marvel Studios have done very little to promote the series, which airs in less than three months.
According to Comicbook.com, the Marvel branding was removed from the series in order to distance the series from the rest of the MCU, due to the frightening nature of Helstrom. This strikes me as a sad, pathetic excuse to avoid marketing the series, especially when you consider that Kevin Feige himself confirmed that Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse Of Madness will feature horror elements.
The Comicbook.com report also claims that the series will garner a TV-MA rating, though no official TV Parental Guidelines rating has been revealed as of now. It’s also worth noting that while the popular opinion within the Marvel fandom is that Helstrom, Daredevil, Agent Carter, and the rest of the Pre-Disney+ TV shows are not part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, factually speaking, they are all MCU canon.
In fact, while speaking with Comicbook.com after the Helstrom panel, Elizabeth Marvel expressed interest in seeing her character crossover with Black Panther, so either Marvel Studios is misleading members of it’s cast and crew, or this series does take place within the MCU.
The Inspiration and Relationships Behind Helstrom
After discussing the on-set hauntings which occurred at allegedly haunted hospital which is seen in the trailer, Paul Zbyszewski talked about one of his biggest inspirations in creating the TV show.
In Marvel Spotlight #13, there’s this one specific panel in an issue written by Gary Friedrich, penciled by Herb Trimpe, and Herb drew this panel where its Daimon Hellstrom in his full on red cape and his pentagram on his bare chest. He’s in his mother’s library, and his mother has passed. He’s reading her diary and sort of learning his origin story through this book that his mother wrote.
In this panel, he’s sitting there and there’s tears streaming down his face. I looked at that and I went, I kind of know all I need to know about this entire story in that panel. Even though there’s crazy fire, supernatural, and all the cool Marvel of it all, it was rooted in emotion and emotion I can understand. So I gravitated to that and went, I think I know what’s going on here. That’s what pulled me into it.
Next, Laura Prudom asked Tom Austen and Sydney Lemmon to shed some light on the complicated nature of Ana and Daimon’s sibling relationship. They talked about how they are in many ways, the closest members of their extended family, but also the furthest apart due to their childhood separation. Tom Austen then went on that revealed that Daimon Helstrom cannot fly, which led to the question of “What abilities do Daimon and Ana possess?”
Showrunner Paul Zbyszewski explained that “…They have different abilities that you saw a trace of in the trailer, and if you do your homework in the comics, you can get a hint of what they can do, there’s a little bit of easter egg material there. They can manipulate energy in different ways, let’s put it that way.”
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Another fascinating tidbit from the panel was Robert Wisdom and Zbyszweski’s explanation of the Caretaker character. Wisdom spoke saying, “when we start our story, there is a new element in my life that is in a strange sense just as grounding even though I’m tending, and it’s through her that I earned the nickname Caretaker”. Zybszewski went further, explaining that “we reinvented Caretaker quite a bit from the comics…”
While I am extremely excited to see Robert Wisdom’s take on the classic character and think that he’s the perfect choice to follow up Sam Elliot’s performance as Caretaker in the Ghost Rider movie. The comments above troubled me. While I have no problem with them reinventing Caretaker, it does mean that the chances of seeing Robbie Reyes in Helstrom are substantially diminished.
Many fans, including myself hope to see Gabriel Luna’s Ghost Rider appear in Helstrom, and that possibility was plausible for two reasons.
Firstly, as previously mentioned, the cancelled Ghost Rider series was originally part of the “Adventure Into Fear” banner alongside Helstrom. Secondly, Caretaker is classically a Ghost Rider character, and therefore his inclusion made a Robbie Reyes appearance much more likely. Now that we know this Caretaker has been reinvented as a guardian of an unnamed woman (I assume it’s Ana) and gets his title through that route. As opposed to being the caretaker of the occult and specifically the Spirits of Vengeance, it seems less likely that Ghost Rider will appear.
As the panel came to a close, Tom Austen and Paul Zybszewski left us with two exciting teases. The showrunner promised that the series is packed with Easter eggs for fans of the Son Of Satan comics, and the leading actor teased a massive change in status quo approximately halfway through the season.
The whole panel was packed with fascinating insight into the series, and well worth your time if you enjoy horror or the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We hope you enjoyed our breakdown of the highlights, and we look forward to covering future Helstrom developments as they arise.
Are you excited for Helstrom? Do you think Robbie Reyes will appear? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or on our social media.
KEEP READING: THE FIRST LOOK AT MARVEL’S HELSTROM HAS ARRIVED
