David Henrie as Tommy Zhou?

After a two year wait, Platinum Studios Inc. has announced that they are now developing a big screen adaptation of Fred Van Lente’s graphic novel, “The Weapon.” Scott Rosenberg, the CEO of Platinum Studios and producer of Cowboys & Aliens, will also act as producer on the film.

Fred Van Lente’s work has already made the leap from comics to the big screen with “Cowboy & Aliens” and has worked on instant classics such as the, “Marvel Zombies” series.

The Weapon is about a Chinese-American martial arts buff, Tommy Zhou, who has invented a means to create solid objects out of light. To promote this invention, he crafts a superhero identity based on a Chinese legend that his grandfather passed down to him. This unwittingly prompts a millennium-old assassin cult known as the Lin Kuie; Forest Demons; to go after Zhou as they are convinced he’s unlocked ancient Chinese mystical techniques that they want for themselves.

My first reaction to reading this comic was, “Hey! An Asian comic character that doesn’t chauffeur rich people around.” This was immediately to be replaced with, “Wait… Isn’t this Green Lantern’s power set?” This was basically Kato; the Green Hornet’s sidekick; turned into Tony Stark a.k.a. Iron Man, inventing a Green Lantern ring prototype.

In true Hollywood fashion, the lead character role will be rewritten and has already been slated to go to David Henrie of Disney Channel’s, “Wizards of Waverly Place” who doesn’t look remotely Asian.

If this is anything like the movie, Avatar: The Last Airbender; true to it’s name because there will be no theatrical sequel; the assassin cult will also be replaced with a cast of swarthy; which somehow makes them evil; non-Asian extremists.

Here’s hoping that Marvel Zombies gets made into a movie instead.