Kevin Smith to Write The Green Hornet, Batman

Kevin Smith is returning to comics – in two ways.

According to Entertainment Weekly’ Popwatch column, Smith will be writing a new Batman miniseries as well as Green Hornet for Dynamite Entertainment.

Yes, Smith’s attachment to the Green Hornet does stir memories. The miniseries for Dynamite will be based on Smith’s screenplay for the unproduced Green Hornet movie that he wrote in 2004. “It's the Hornet movie I'd make if I was making it today,” Smith told EW.com. “And there's no better time to do that than before Seth Rogen and Michel Gondry's version defines the character for the mainstream.”

Alex Ross, John Cassaday, Jae Lee and David Finch are on board as cover artists, while the interior artists for The Green Hornet is yet to be named.

In terms of Batman, Smith’s 12-issue miniseries – split into two six-part volumes – is called The Widening Gyre, and will see a new Smith-created hero for the DC Universe, who will then launch in a new, bi-monthly series written by Smith. The Widening Gyre #1-#6 will ship monthly, followed by a six-month break, and then issues #7-#12 will ship, all in order to prevent delays. Smith reports that the first six issues, and the first issue’s art, by Batman: Cacophony’s Walt Flanagan is already done. The Widening Gyre arrives in shops in August, with The Green Hornet coming later in 2009.

Check back shortly for a chat with Alex Ross on his designs for the Green Hornet.