VOODOO CHILD Comic Book - Nicolas Cage & Weston

Cage and son work comic 'Voodoo
There aren't many bigger comic book geeks in Hollywood than Nicolas Cage. After all, the guy has a tattoo of Ghost Rider on his arm. But when executives at Virgin Comics approached the actor about starting his own line of books, Cage shrugged. "I said I didn't have any ideas, but I told them my son might," Cage says. So Cage and his 16-year-old son, Weston, brainstormed an idea that would become Voodoo Child, a six-issue illustrated series that hits shelves July 11 and marks one of the first launched by an A-list actor. Hollywood directors long have been fans of comic books. Those who have written Marvel and DC stories for years include Kevin Smith, Bryan Singer and Joss Whedon.

Voodoo Child is different because it's "more spiritual than, say, a Superman or a Batman," Cage says. "That's always been more effective because there's more believability to it." The stories will be rooted in some real-world scenarios. Set in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, Voodoo Child tells the story of Gabriel Moore, a child murdered in the antebellum South by secessionist soldiers. Just before dying, the boy puts a voodoo curse on his soul, leaving him in a netherworld to cope with gang violence and abductions in the modern-day city. Weston says he had tinkered with the idea since seeing hurricane damage in New Orleans, where he and his father lived part time for years. "He has been drawing comics since he was 3. He was a natural to do it," says Cage, who is overseeing the story lines and working with X-Men writer Mike Carey. The artist is Dean Ruben Hyrapiet.

The comic is the latest from India-based Virgin Comics, the brainchild of writer Deepak Chopra, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and entrepreneur Richard Branson. The company hopes to challenge titans Marvel and DC by marketing largely to Asia and infusing the story lines with Eastern mythology. The comics will be available in U.S. shops. New Orleans has a multicultural history that has earned worldwide attention since the hurricane, Weston says. "Bad things seem to happen to great cities. And there are a lot of stories that deserve to be told from there," he says. Could a movie be far behind? "I think it would be a natural movie," Cage says. "Though I don't think I or Weston could play" Gabriel, a mixed-race child. "I picture someone like Lenny Kravitz when he was 12 or 13."

CAGE TEAMS UP WITH SON FOR NEW COMIC BOOK SERIES
Actor NICOLAS CAGE is teaming up with his teenage son to launch their own line of comic books. The Ghost Rider star and 16-year-old Weston Cage are releasing their six-issue illustrated series Voodoo Child through Virgin Comics on 11 July (07). When renowned comic fan Cage senior was approached with the idea of starting his own animated series books, he suggested his own son come on board. Cage recalls, "I said I didn't have any ideas, but I told them my son might. He has been drawing comics since he was three. He was a natural to do it." Voodoo Child is set in New Orleans, Louisiana in the aftermath of 2005's Hurricane Katrina, and follows a detective as he investigates the disappearance of several young girls. The title character is Gabriel Moore, a child murdered by secessionist soldiers in the 19th century, who is resurrected by a voodoo priest.