Comics Publisher Aspen Signs With Benderspink

EXCLUSIVE: Entertainment shingle Aspen Comics has signed with management and production company Benderspink. The comic book publisher, founded in 2003 by artist Michael Turner, Frank Mastromauro and Peter Steigerwald, has had properties optioned for the screen before and partnered with Gale Anne Hurd’s Valhalla Entertainment on comics The Scourge and Dead Man’s Run. Now it’s looking to expand the reach of its IP, which includes best-selling titles Fathom and Soulfire.

“We are starting to rep comic companies because every one outside of DC and Marvel seem to be underutilized,” said JC Spink, who’ll lead Aspen’s Benderspink team alongside Head of Management Jake Wagner and Scott Stoops.

Stoops has been wooing Aspen since 2013’s Comic-Con, where the company feted the 15th anniversary of its popular Fathom series, about a young woman who discovers she belongs to an ancient aquatic race that can control water. That comic was optioned by Fox Atomic a few years back with Megan Fox attached to star, but with rights having reverted to Aspen, it’s one of the powerhouse properties in the publisher’s arsenal.

Aspen’s recent new titles include Executive Assistant: Iris, Lola XOXO, and Shrugged. Their intergalactic sci-fi series The Zoo Hunters hit shelves this month.