Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison MBE (born 31 January 1960)[1] is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, humanist philosophy and countercultural leanings. Morrison has written extensively for the American comic book publisher DC Comics, penning lengthy runs on Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, Action Comics, and The Green Lantern as well as the graphic novels Arkham Asylum, JLA: Earth 2, and Wonder Woman: Earth One, the meta-series Seven Soldiers and The Multiversity, the mini-series DC One Million and Final Crisis, both of which served as centrepieces for the eponymous company-wide crossover storylines, and the maxi-series All-Star Superman. Morrison's best known DC work is the seven-year Batman storyline which started in the Batman ongoing series and continued through Final Crisis, Batman and Robin, Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne and two volumes of Batman Incorporated. They also co-created the DC character Damian Wayne.
Grant Morrison | |
---|---|
Born | Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom | 31 January 1960
Nationality | Scottish |
Area(s) | Writer |
Notable works | |
Awards |
|
grantmorrison |
Morrison's creator-owned work, the bulk of which was published through DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, includes Flex Mentallo and We3 with Scottish artist Frank Quitely, Seaguy with artist Cameron Stewart, The Filth with Chris Weston, and the three-volume series The Invisibles. At Marvel, Morrison wrote a three-year run on New X-Men and created Marvel Boy for the publisher's Marvel Knights imprint.
Between 2016 and 2018, Morrison served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Heavy Metal magazine.
Morrison's work has drawn critical acclaim. They have won numerous awards, including Eisner, Harvey, and Inkpot awards. In 2012, Morrison was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to film and literature.
Early life
Grant Morrison was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1960. They were educated at Allan Glen's School[2] where their first portfolio of art was rejected by their careers guidance teacher, who encouraged them to work in a bank. Their first published works were Gideon Stargrave strips for Near Myths in 1978 (when they were about 17),[3] one of the first British alternative comics. Their work appeared in four of the five issues of Near Myths[4] and they were suitably encouraged to find more comic work. This included a weekly comic strip, Captain Clyde, an unemployed superhero based in Glasgow, for The Govan Press, a local newspaper, plus various issues of DC Thomson's Starblazer, the science fiction counterpart to that company's Commando title.
Career
1980s
Morrison spent much of the early 1980s touring and recording with their band The Mixers, occasionally writing Starblazer for D. C. Thomson and contributing to various UK indie titles. In 1982, Morrison submitted a proposal involving the Justice League of America and Jack Kirby's New Gods entitled Second Coming to DC Comics, but it was not commissioned. After writing The Liberators for Dez Skinn's Warrior in 1985, Morrison started work for Marvel UK the following year. There they wrote comic strips for Doctor Who Magazine, the final one a collaboration with a then-teenage Bryan Hitch, as well as a run on the Zoids strip in Spider-Man and Zoids. 1986 also saw publication of Morrison's first of several two- or three-page Future Shocks for 2000 AD.
Morrison's first continuing serial began in 2000 AD in 1987,[4] when they and Steve Yeowell created Zenith.
Morrison's work on Zenith brought them to the attention of DC Comics, who asked Morrison to work for them. They accepted Morrison's proposals for Animal Man,[5] a little-known character from DC's past whose most notable recent appearance was a cameo in the Crisis on Infinite Earths limited series, and for a 48-page Batman one-shot that would eventually become Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth.
Animal Man put Morrison in line with the "British Invasion" of American comics,[6][7] along with such writers as Neil Gaiman, Peter Milligan, Jamie Delano, and Alan Moore, who had launched the "invasion" with his work on Swamp Thing.[8]
After impressing with Animal Man, Morrison was asked to take over Doom Patrol, starting their surreal take on the superhero genre with issue No. 19 in 1989.[9] Morrison's Doom Patrol introduced concepts such as dadaism and the writings of Jorge Luis Borges into the first several issues.[10] DC published Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth in 1989 as a 128-page graphic novel painted by Dave McKean.[11] Comics historian Les Daniels observed in 1995 that "Arkham Asylum was an unprecedented success, selling 182,166 copies in hardcover and another 85,047 in paperback."[12]
While working for DC Comics in America, Morrison kept contributing to British indie titles, writing St. Swithin's Day for Trident Comics. St. Swithin's Day's anti-Margaret Thatcher themes proved controversial, provoking a small tabloid press reaction and a complaint from Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) Teddy Taylor.[13] The controversy continued with the publication of The New Adventures of Hitler in Scottish music and lifestyle magazine Cut in 1989, due to its use of Adolf Hitler as its lead character.[14] The strip, unfinished when Cut folded, was reprinted and completed in Fleetway's 2000 AD spin-off title Crisis.
Two plays staged by Oxygen House at the Edinburgh Fringe had scripts by Morrison.[15] Red King Rising (1989) concerned an imagined relationship between Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell. The other, Depravity (1990) concerned the British occultist Aleister Crowley. The plays won between them a Fringe First Award, the Independent Theatre Award for 1989 and the Evening Standard Award for New Drama.[16]
1990s
Morrison returned to Batman with the "Gothic" story arc in issues 6–10 of the Batman title Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight.[17] The early 1990s saw Morrison revamping Kid Eternity for DC with artist Duncan Fegredo, and Dan Dare, with artist Rian Hughes. Morrison coloured Dare's bright future with Thatcherism in Fleetway's Revolver.[18]
In 1991 Morrison wrote Bible John-A Forensic Meditation for Fleetway's Crisis, based on an analysis of possible motivations for the crimes of the serial killer Bible John. Covering similar themes to Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell's From Hell,[19] the work utilised cut-up techniques, a Ouija board and collage rather than conventional panels to tell the story.[20]
In 1993 Morrison, fellow Glaswegian comic writer Mark Millar and John Smith were asked to reinvigorate 2000 AD for an eight-week run called "The Summer Offensive". Morrison wrote Judge Dredd and Really and Truly, and co-wrote the controversial Big Dave with Millar.[21]
DC Comics launched its Vertigo imprint in 1993, publishing several of Morrison's creator-owned projects, such as the steampunk mini-series Sebastian O and the graphic novel The Mystery Play. 1995 saw the release of Kill Your Boyfriend, with artist Philip Bond, originally published as a Vertigo Voices one-shot. In 1996 Morrison wrote Flex Mentallo, a Doom Patrol spin-off with art by Frank Quitely,[22] and returned briefly to DC Universe superheroics with the short-lived Aztek, co-written with Mark Millar.[23]
In 1996, Morrison was given the Justice League of America to revamp as JLA,[24] a comic book that gathered the "Big Seven" superheroes of the DC universe into one team. This run was hugely popular and returned the title to best-selling status.[25] Morrison wrote several issues of The Flash with Mark Millar, as well as DC's crossover event of 1998, the four-issue mini-series DC One Million,[26] in addition to plotting many of the multiple crossovers.
With the three volumes of the creator-owned The Invisibles, Morrison started their largest and possibly most important work.[27] The Invisibles combined political, pop- and sub-cultural references. Tapping into pre-millennial tension, the work was influenced by the writings of Robert Anton Wilson, Aleister Crowley and William Burroughs, and Morrison's practice of chaos magic in Thee Temple ov Psychick Youth.[28][29] In 1998 Morrison published the prose piece "I'm A Policeman" in Sarah Champion's millennial short story collection Disco 2000; though no explicit connection to The Invisibles is made, there are strong thematic links between the two works.[30] At DisinfoCon in 1999, Morrison said that much of the content in The Invisibles was information given to them by aliens that abducted them in Kathmandu, who told them to spread this information to the world via a comic book. They later clarified that the experience they labelled as the "Alien Abduction Experience in Kathmandu" had nothing to do with aliens or abduction, but that there was an experience that they had in Kathmandu that The Invisibles is an attempt to explain.[31] The title was not a huge commercial hit to start with. (Morrison actually asked their readers to participate in a "wankathon" while concentrating on a magical symbol, or sigil, in an effort to boost sales).[32] When the title was relaunched with volume two, the characters relocated to America. Volume three appeared with issue numbers counting down, signalling an intention to conclude the series with the turn of the new millennium in 2000. Due to the title shipping late, its final issue did not ship until April 2000.[4]
The 1999 film The Matrix has numerous elements which have been attributed by critics to the influence of Morrison's The Invisibles.[33] Morrison was immediately struck by the similarities to their own work upon first seeing the film.[34][35]
2000s
In 2000, Morrison's graphic novel JLA: Earth 2 was released with art by Frank Quitely.[36] It was Morrison's last mainstream work for DC for a while, as they moved to Marvel Comics. While at Marvel, Morrison wrote the six-part Marvel Boy series,[37][38] and Fantastic Four: 1234, their take on another major superhero team. In July 2001, they began writing the main X-Men title, renamed New X-Men for their run, with Quitely providing much of the art.[39][40] Again, Morrison's revamping of a major superhero team proved to be a commercial success, with the title jumping to the No. 1 sales spot[41] and established Morrison as the kind of creator whose name on a title would guarantee sales.[42] Their penultimate arc "Planet X" depicted the villain Magneto infiltrating and defeating the X-Men in the guise of new character Xorn and developing an addiction to the power-enhancing drug "Kick".[43][44]
In 2002, Morrison launched their next creator-owned project at Vertigo: The Filth, drawn by Chris Weston and Gary Erskine, a 13-part mini-series.[45][46] That same year, Morrison sold the screenplay Sleepless Knights to DreamWorks with Guillermo del Toro attached to direct.[47][48] Around the same time, Morrison was working on the script for the sequel to the Marvel Boy mini-series,[49] but the project ultimately failed to materialize.[50][51] In 2004, Vertigo published three Morrison mini-series. Seaguy, We3,[52] and Vimanarama. Morrison returned to the JLA with the first story in a new anthology series, JLA Classified.
In 2005 Morrison wrote Seven Soldiers,[53] which featured the Manhattan Guardian, Mister Miracle, Klarion the Witch Boy, Bulleteer, Frankenstein, Zatanna and Shining Knight. The series consists of seven interlinked four-issue mini-series with two "bookend" volumes – 30 issues in all. Dan DiDio, the editorial vice president of DC Comics, was impressed with Morrison's ideas for revitalising many of DC's redundant characters. Giving them the unofficial title of "revamp guy", DiDio asked them to assist in sorting out the DC Universe in the wake of the Infinite Crisis.[54] Morrison was one of the writers on 52,[55] a year-long weekly comic book series that started in May 2006 and concluded in May 2007.[4]
Starting in November 2005, DC published All-Star Superman,[56] a twelve-issue story arc by Morrison and Frank Quitely. Not so much a revamp or reboot of Superman, the series presents an out-of-continuity "iconic" Superman for new readers. All-Star Superman won the Eisner Award for Best New Series in 2006, the Best Continuing Series Eisner Award in 2007 and several Eagle Awards in the UK. It won three Harvey Awards in 2008 and the Eisner Award for Best Continuing Series in 2009.[57] In the same year, Morrison and Quitely worked on pop star Robbie Williams' album Intensive Care, providing intricate Tarot card designs for the packaging and cover of the CD.[58]
Morrison provided outline story and script work for two video games, Battlestar Galactica (2003) and Predator: Concrete Jungle (2005), both by Vivendi Universal.[16] In 2006, New Line Cinema optioned We3 as a film project with Morrison attached as screenwriter.[59][60] The following year, Morrison wrote the adaptation of the video game Area 51 home console game[61] for Paramount in development with CFP Productions producing.
In 2006 Morrison was voted as the No. 2 favourite comic book writer of all time by Comic Book Resources.[27] That same year, Morrison began writing Batman for DC with issue No. 655,[62] reintroducing the character of Damian Wayne and signalling the beginning of a seven-year-long run on the character across multiple titles. They wrote relaunches of The Authority and Wildcats,[63] with the art of Gene Ha and Jim Lee respectively, for DC's Wildstorm imprint. WildC.A.T.S. went on hiatus after one issue, The Authority was discontinued after two. The scheduling of The Authority conflicted with 52 and Morrison was unhappy with the reviews: "And then I saw the reviews on issue one and I just thought 'fuck this'.".[64] It eventually concluded without Morrison's involvement in Keith Giffen's The Authority: The Lost Year.
At the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con, DC Comics announced that Morrison would write Final Crisis, a seven-issue mini-series slated to appear in 2008 with J. G. Jones handling the art.[65] Morrison announced that 2008 would see publication of the follow-up to 2004's Seaguy called Seaguy 2: The Slaves of Mickey Eye, the second part of a planned three part series.[66][67]
At the 2008 New York Comic Con, Morrison announced they would be working with Virgin Comics to produce "webisodes" (short animated stories) based on the Mahābhārata; it would not be a direct translation but, "Like the Beatles took Indian music and tried to make psychedelic sounds... I'm trying to convert Indian storytelling to a western style for people raised on movies, comics, and video games."[68] In August 2009, Morrison and Frank Quitely launched the Batman and Robin series.[69]
2010s
Batman No. 700 (Aug. 2010) saw the return of Morrison to the title and a collaboration with an art team that consisted of Tony Daniel, Frank Quitely, Andy Kubert, and David Finch. The separate stories tied together to illustrate that the legacy of Batman is unending, and will survive into the future.[70] At San Diego Comic-Con International 2010 it was announced that Grant Morrison would be leaving Batman and Robin with No. 16 and launching a new series entitled Batman Incorporated with revolving artists starting with Yanick Paquette.[71] A more team-oriented Batman book inspired by the Batman: The Brave and the Bold animated series,[72][73] Batman Incorporated builds on Morrison's work dating back to "Batman and Son" and Final Crisis, with Bruce Wayne creating an international Batman franchise all over the world. The series suffered from slow scheduling and was ended after eight issues while the DC Universe was rebooted in 2011; to bridge the gap a prestige book was released that featured two issues together along with a synopsis that recapped the story so far. In mid-2012, a second volume of the comic was launched with Chris Burnham on artwork, scheduled for 12 issues.[74][75] Morrison left the Batman titles in 2013. They killed the Damian Wayne character in Batman Incorporated No. 8 (April 2013)[76] and their final issue was No. 13 (Sept. 2013).[77]
Morrison returned to creator-owned work in 2010 with the eight issue Vertigo series Joe the Barbarian, launched in January with artist Sean Murphy.[78] Originally a six issue series, Morrison felt that the story would benefit from an extra two issues. The titular Joe is a diabetic young boy who begins to hallucinate a fantasy world populated with his toys and other fantasy characters when he stops taking his medication.[79]
Following the closure of Virgin Comics, Dynamite Entertainment and Liquid Comics announced a partnership to publish a hardcover of illustrated scripts of Grant Morrison's Mahābhārata-based, animated project 18 Days with illustrations by artist Mukesh Singh, that was released in August 2010.[80][81] They are the subject of a feature-length documentary titled Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods. The documentary features extensive interviews with Morrison as well as a number of comic artists, editors and professionals they have worked closely with.[82] Talking with Gods was produced by Sequart Organization and was released in 2010 at the San Diego Comic Con.[83]
Another 2010 project was Bonnyroad, a science fiction television series pitched by Morrison to the BBC Morrison pitched with director Paul McGuigan and Stephen Fry.[84]
In June 2011, as part of DC Comics' massive revamp of its entire superhero line, Morrison was announced as the writer on the new Action Comics No. 1, teaming with artist Rags Morales, marking Morrison's return to the Superman character after the end of All Star Superman.[85]
In July 2011, Morrison's analysis of superheroes, Supergods: Our World in the Age of the Superhero, was published by Random House Spiegel & Grau in the United States and Jonathan Cape in the UK.[86]
Morrison has written a screenplay for a film entitled Sinatoro.[87] In 2011 they worked on the screenplay Dinosaurs vs Aliens for Sam Worthington's production company, Full Clip Production, and said they planned to work with them again on a screenplay based on the 2000 AD story "Rogue Trooper".[88]
Morrison was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to film and literature.[89]
In September 2012, Morrison published their first ever Image Comics creator-owned work: Happy! with Darick Robertson. In the same month, MorrisonCon was held at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas). This small-scale convention, curated by Morrison, featured a number of comics industry guests, including Robert Kirkman, Darick Robertson, Jason Aaron, Jim Lee, Gerard Way, Jonathan Hickman, Frank Quitely, J. H. Williams III, and Chris Burnham.[90]
In September 2014, as part of Legendary Comics' big foray into the industry, Morrison launched another key creator-owned book: Annihilator with Frazer Iving. A six-issue mini-series, Annihilator was informed by the writings of Thomas Ligotti, and other nihilistic philosophers, and played with the idea of the satanic archetype.[91] A work of cosmic horror, it stars a monstrous Hollywood screenwriter named Ray Spass in his attempts to finish the script for the next tentpole blockbuster, while coming into contact with the character he's writing about: the diabolical Max Nomax, The Devil himself.[92]
In February 2015, Morrison's second Image project ever launched in the creator-owned title Nameless, with frequent collaborator Chris Burnham.[93] A tale of apocalyptic cosmic horror, Nameless sought to approach the genre from a new lens, with different influences, rather than lean to its iconic founder H.P Lovecraft, drawing on everything from the Tarot to The Qlippoth.
In November 2015, Morrison began their biggest creator-owned project of the decade, collaborating with BOOM! Studios for the very first time to do Klaus with Dan Mora and Ed Dukeshire.[94] Set around revamping Santa Claus as a sprawling superhero saga, it's proven to be Morrison's longest creator-owned work, one they've returned to every year since to do a story in.
Morrison's The Multiversity project for DC was published in 2014 and 2015. A metaseries of nine one-shots set in some of the 52 worlds in the DC Multiverse,[95][96] it included the main Multiversity title which involves the return of President Calvin Ellis, the black Superman from Earth 23 originally seen in Action Comics vol. 2 No. 9, which was the framing for the whole series.[97] Other issues include The Society of Super-Heroes a pulp version of the DC characters;[98] The Just – set on a world of celebrity youngsters;[99] Pax Americana, drawn by Frank Quitely,[100][101] Thunder World – a Captain Marvel book;[102] the Multiversity Guidebook;[103] Mastermen – which includes a fascist version of the Justice League.[104] and Ultra Comics.[105]
In 2016, Morrison became editor-in-chief of the comics anthology Heavy Metal. Their involvement lasted until 2018. During the period, they penned such strips as Industria, The Rise and Fall of Empires, both with frequent collaborator and old friend Rian Hughes. Other strips included The Smile of the Absent Cat with artist Gerhard, as well as Mythopia, Beachhead, Option 3, Nihilophilia, Ten Sounds That Represent a Kind of Person: A Historical Parody, The House of Heart's Desire, and Beyond the Word and the Fool, with many others. Morrison also penned several editorials for the magazine during this period, whilst writing occasional prose stories for Ahoy Comics backup features.
In 2017, Morrison co-created the Syfy TV series Happy!, which starred Christopher Meloni and Patton Oswalt. It commenced its second season in 2019.[106]
In November 2018, Morrison and artist Liam Sharp launched a new Green Lantern comic entitled The Green Lantern for DC Comics.[107] Following the success of the first season of The Green Lantern, a second season was announced, to be published in 2020[108] but beforehand there was a Blackstars mini-series dealing with the ending of Season One, launched in November 2019.[109]
2020s
"Season Two" of Morrison's Green Lantern series with Liam Sharp began in 2020 and completed in March 2021 alongside the release of their third and final volume of the Wonder Woman: Earth One series.[110]
Morrison co-created and worked as a writer and producer on the 2020 TV series Brave New World for the Peacock Streaming Service, having developed it for adaptation.[111]
In early 2021, it was announced that a new comic called Proctor Valley Road would be released, developed by Morrison in partnership with NBCUniversal. NBCUniversal's UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, will also adapt the series for television.[112] The first issue was published by Boom! Studios in March 2021.[113]
In March 2021 it was announced that Morrison would write a four issue series entitled Superman and The Authority, illustrated by Mikel Janin, to be published by DC in late 2021.[114]
In a 2022 newsletter, Morrison revealed they had pitched ideas for Series 8 of Doctor Who to series showrunner Steven Moffat. These included a story featuring a child version of the Doctor, as well as a new potential villain. None were commissioned, though the BBC offered to buy the rights to Morrison's villains. (The latter declined).[115] Later that year, Morrison published Luda, their debut prose novel.[116]
Personal life
In a 2011 interview, Morrison stated that they and their wife Kristan had no children. When asked if they regretted this, Morrison replied, "Slightly but I don't know. Every time I think of it I think of the reality of it. I really like kids and I get on with them and it's that aspect of it but I see people with actual kids. The trauma and the trouble. And if I'm worried that my cat is sick it's the thought of everyday worrying about a kid would be even more hellish."[117][118]
Morrison uses singular they pronouns.[119][120] In a 2020 interview with Mondo2000, Morrison mentioned that they "had been non-binary, cross-dressing, 'gender queer'", from the age of 10 years old, "but the available terms for what I was doing and how I felt were few and far between".[121] Speaking later of the article, Morrison said that they hated being perceived as only recently coming out: "I'm 62 years old — I had my sexuality shit figured out a long time ago!"[120] Morrison has said that while they never requested they/them pronouns, they have nevertheless come to accept them as a "badge of honor."[120]
Morrison later said they rejected labels and that "I said that if I had been doing now what I was doing back in the 1990s I would be viewed as non-binary or gender queer. Suddenly it was taken up by the fan press and I was awarded the label 'they/them'. I never asked for it. I come from a generation where that just doesn't matter, even being labelled at all is anathema to me. I can't live in a box. I'm going to let down anyone who sticks a label on me. It will drop off quite naturally."[122]
Awards
Bibliography
Appearances as a comics character
Grant Morrison first appeared as a comics character in cameos in Animal Man Nos. 11 and 14. They made a full appearance at the end of issue No. 25 in 1990, and spent most of issue No. 26 in a lengthy conversation with the comic's title character. The character appeared the next year in Suicide Squad No. 58, written by John Ostrander, as a character named Writer who was one of several minor characters killed in one of the series' trademark suicide missions.[124][125]
They were depicted in an issue of Simpsons Comics, fighting with fellow X-Men writer Mark Millar.[126]
In Morrison's 2005–2006 Seven Soldiers miniseries and its tie-ins, Morrison appears as the renegade member of eight "reality engineers" and transforms into Silver Age character Zor, then back into a character resembling Morrison in a magician's costume, though with dark hair and a beard. After the renegade's defeat, Morrison, wearing a DC Comics-logo tie clip, becomes the narrator for the final chapter.[127]
The miniseries Tales of the Unexpected features Morrison along with their 52 co-writers Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka and Mark Waid.[128][129]
In Darwyn Cooke's DC: The New Frontier, Morrison was the physical model for Captain Cold.[130]
Acting
Morrison also appeared as themself in the ninth episode of the fourth season of Titans, entitled “Dude, Where’s my Gar?”[131][132]
Adaptations of Morrison's work
Year | Title | Notes |
---|---|---|
2010 | Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths | Animated film Based on JLA: Earth 2 |
2011 | All-Star Superman | Animated film Based on All-Star Superman |
2014 | Son of Batman | Animated film Based on Batman and Son |
2017–2019 | Happy! | Live-action series Based on Happy! |
2019–present | Doom Patrol | Live-action series Based on Doom Patrol |
References
- Miller, John Jackson (10 June 2005). "Comics Industry Birthdays". Comics Buyer's Guide. Iola, Wisconsin. Archived from the original on 18 February 2011.
- "Interview: Grant Morrison, comic book writer". The Scotsman. Edinburgh, Scotland. 24 July 2011. Archived from the original on 11 April 2016.
- "DC Comics Grant Morrison interview". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- Grant Morrison at the Grand Comics Database
- Manning, Matthew K. (2010). "1980s". In Dolan, Hannah (ed.). DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 234. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9.
Writer Grant Morrison was about to go where no writer had gone before: into the pages of [their] own comic book.
- Salkowitz, Rob (2012). Comic-Con and the Business of Pop Culture. New York, New York: McGraw Hill. p. 66. ISBN 9780071797023.
- Irvine, Alex (2008). "Animal Man". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). The Vertigo Encyclopedia. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-7566-4122-1. OCLC 213309015.
- Wolk, Douglas (17 December 2003). "Please, Sir, I Want Some Moore – The lazy British genius who transformed American comics". Slate. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
[Alan Moore's] commercial breakthrough came in 1983, when he took over Saga of the Swamp Thing...his success led directly to American comics' 'British invasion' of writers, notably Neil Gaiman (The Sandman), Grant Morrison, Garth Ennis, and Warren Ellis, all of whom have made much of his castoffs.
- Manning "1980s" in Dolan, p. 239: "Writer Grant Morrison decided to lend [their] unique talents to the Doom Patrol, and the team would never be the same again."
- Maddox, Mike (February 1990). "Grant Morrison Interview". Amazing Heroes. Seattle, Washington: Fantagraphics Books (176).
- Manning "1980s" in Dolan, p. 240: "A thinking man's horror story, Arkham Asylum marked Grant Morrison's first work on the mythos of Batman, a character [they] would return to time and time again."
- Daniels, Les (1995). "A Novel Approach". DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes. New York, New York: Bulfinch Press. ISBN 0821220764.
- Darnall, Steve (March 1994). "What's Buried in Grant's Tomb?". Hero Illustrated. Warrior Publications (9).
- Singer, Marc (2012). Grant Morrison: Combining the Worlds of Contemporary Comics. University Press of Mississippi. p. 40. ISBN 978-1617031366.
- "Grant Morrison – Non-Comics Bibliography". Deep Space Transmissions. 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
- "Biography". Grant Morrison – The Official Website. 2013. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
- Manning, Matthew K. (2014). "1990s". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). Batman: A Visual History. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 186. ISBN 978-1465424563.
Grant Morrison stepped up to the plate to pen [Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight's] next five-issue storyline, illustrated by Klaus Janson.
- Singer, p. 36
- Rosa, Miguel. "Grant Morrison 'Bible John'". Rations. Archived from the original on 31 October 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
- Singer, p. 96–97
- Singer, p. 51
- Smith, Zack (6 November 2008). "Before All Star – Grant Morrison on Kill Your Boyfriend". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 26 June 2013.
- Manning "1990s" in Dolan, p. 275: "In April [1996], writers Grant Morrison and Mark Millar introduced Aztek in a self-titled ongoing series that ran for a mere ten brilliant issues."
- Manning "1990s" in Dolan, p. 278: "JLA No. 1 hit the stands, enthralling readers with its compelling, fast-paced story by writer Grant Morrison, and showcasing the art of talented relative newcomer Howard Porter."
- Manning "1990s" in Dolan, p. 278: "Renewed as one of DC's most popular titles, JLA ran for 125 issues before its next relaunch. Earning countless spin-off miniseries and specials, the Justice League reclaimed its place atop DC's hit titles list."
- Manning "1990s" in Dolan, p. 285: "Grant Morrison headed back to the future with the crossover event DC One Million, a glimpse into the future world of the 853rd century."
- Cronin, Brian (20 October 2006). "CBR's #2 & #1 All Time Favorite Writer". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011.
- Irvine "The Invisibles" in Dougall (2008), pp. 92–97
- Neighly, Patrick & Kereth Cowe-Spigai. Anarchy for the Masses: The Disinformation Guide to the Invisibles. New York: Disinformation, 2003.
- "Annotations [And We're All Policeman]". Barbelith. n.d. Archived from the original on 18 November 2000. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
- "Barbelith Interviews: An Interview with Grant Morrison (page 4)". Barbelith. Archived from the original on 20 May 2004. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- "Barbelith Interviews: An Interview with Grant Morrison (page 9)". Barbelith. Archived from the original on 20 May 2004. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- "Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods". Grantmorrisonmovie.com.
- Morrison, Grant (2011). Supergods: Our World in the Age of the Superhero. London: Random House/Jonathan Cape. p. 315.
- Meaney, Patrick (2011). Our Sentence Is Up: Seeing Grant Morrison's the Invisibles. Sequart. p. 344. ISBN 978-1466347809.
- Cowsill, Alan "2000s" in Dolan, p. 295: "Writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely brought the Crime Syndicate of America back to DC continuity in JLA: Earth 2."
- Manning, Matthew K. (2008). "2000s". In Gilbert, Laura (ed.). Marvel Chronicle A Year by Year History. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 301. ISBN 978-0756641238.
Writer Grant Morrison and artist J. G. Jones introduced a new Marvel Boy in this six-issue Marvel Knights miniseries.
- Ellis, Warren (9 June 2000). "Come in Alone No. 28". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 10 April 2008.
- Manning "2000s" in Gilbert (2008), p. 306: "Renaming the X-Men comic New X-Men, Morrison ignored the convoluted plot threads that had seemed to plague the X-family of books for years, and instead focused on the original idea of a mutant school run out of Charles Xavier's mansion."
- Callahan, Timothy (16 November 2009). "21st Century Mutant Chic: Grant Morrison's X-Men". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 27 February 2010. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- "May 2001 Comic Book Sales Figures". The Comics Chronicle. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- Deppey, Dirk (August–September 2004). "X-Men... Retreat!". The Comics Journal. Seattle, Washington: Fantagraphics Books (262). Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
While longtime readers of this magazine have heard Morrison's name on any number of occasions, it's worth noting that the renowned writer was anything but a surefire guarantor of increased sales prior to his run on New X-Men.
- Ellis, Jonathan (2004). "Grant Morrison: Master & Commander". Popimage.com. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2006.
- Ness, Alex (5 September 2005). "A Chat About Craft With Grant Morrison". Pop Thought. Archived from the original on 21 December 2005. Retrieved 17 September 2006.
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 306: "Even by writer Grant Morrison's standards, The Filth was wonderfully strange."
- Irvine "Filth" in Dougal, p. 83
- Brodesser, Claude (4 June 2002). "D'Works pages 'Knights'". Variety. Archived from the original on 13 June 2002.
- Vineyard, Jennifer (12 December 2008). "Grant Morrison And Guillermo Del Toro's 'Sleepless Knights' Movie: Put To Bed?". MTV.com. Archived from the original on 14 December 2008.
- Doran, Michael (7 June 2002). "GRANT 3, X2: Grant Morrison Part 3". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 22 June 2002.
- Brady, Matt (11 August 2003). "Inside Morrison's Head: Leaving Marvel Vimanarama, & More". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 16 August 2003.
- Lima, Hector (7 August 2003). "Catching Up With Professor M: Talking with Grant Morrison". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 1 October 2003.
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 314: "Writer Grant Morrison and longtime artistic collaborator Frank Quitely presented one of the year's most touching and original stories in WE3."
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 319: "Grant Morrison's imagining of the Seven Soldiers of Victory was one of DC's most adventurous titles."
- "Grant Morrison on Being the DCU Revamp Guy". Newsarama. 20 June 2005. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008.
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 325: "The title was masterminded by writers Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid, with Keith Giffen providing art breakdowns."
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 324: "Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely unveiled one of the most original and well-received Superman series for years as they combined high-concept science-fiction elements with classic Silver Age concepts in his All Star Superman series."
- "2000s Eisner Award Recipients". San Diego Comic-Con International. 2014. Archived from the original on 29 March 2014. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
- Morrison, Grant (2011). Supergods – Our World in the Age of the Superhero. Jonathan Cape. p. 395. ISBN 9780224089968.
- New Line takes on We3 killer cuties, Variety, June 7, 2005
- "Grant Morrison — The Beat". pwbeat.publishersweekly.com.
- "Grant Morrison Goes Hollywood". Chud.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 326: "The first story arc of Grant Morrison's award-winning run on Batman, 'Batman and Son' set the standard for what was to follow for the Dark Knight and introduced elements that would later prove to be vitally important."
- Morse, Ben (13 October 2006). "Fall Preview: Wildcats". Wizard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 27 October 2006.
- Burlingame, Russell (19 April 2008). "NYCC '08: The Grant Morrison Panel". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008.
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 334: "Grant Morrison's most ambitious epic for DC affected the whole of the DC Universe and was the end result of years of careful planning."
- Renaud, Jeffrey (17 April 2008). "All Star Grant Morrison III: Superman". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 19 April 2008.
- Renaud, Jeffrey (20 March 2009). "Morrison on the Return of Seaguy!". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 22 March 2009.
- Tramountanas, George (18 April 2008). "NYCC: Virgin Comics Announces Grant Morrison Webisodes". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 30 April 2008.
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 338: "Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely teamed up once again to unleash a new Dynamic Duo on Gotham City."
- Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 342: "Written by Grant Morrison with art by Tony S. Daniel, Andy Kubert, Frank Quitely, [David] Finch, and Richard Friend, this milestone issue of Batman featured an all-star roster of talent."
- Manning "2010s" in Dougall (2014), p. 317
- Mahadeo, Kevin (23 July 2010). "CCI: Batman The Return". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 25 July 2010. Retrieved 26 October 2010. Archive requires scrolldown.
- George, Richard (23 July 2010). "SDCC 10: The Corporate Batman". IGN. Archived from the original on 18 February 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- Cronin, Brian (6 June 2011). "Batman Inc. to Return in 2012!". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011.
- Manning "2010s" in Dougall (2014), p. 327: "After a brief hiatus, this Grant Morrison-written series returned, drawn by Chris Burnham."
- Manning "2010s" in Dougall (2014), p. 334: "Batman's son Damian was brutally murdered by the criminal forces led by the boy's own mother, Talia al Ghul."
- Manning "2010s" in Dougall (2014), p. 338: "In the finale to writer Grant Morrison's tenure on the Batman titles, the threat of Leviathan came to an end"
- O'Shea, Tim (18 January 2010). "Talking Comics with Tim: Sean Murphy". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 21 January 2010.
- Melrose, Kevin (5 June 2009). "An early glimpse of Morrison and Murphy's Joe the Barbarian". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 8 June 2009.
- "Morrison Spends 18 Days with Dynamite" (Press release). Comic Book Resources. 25 March 2010. Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- Brownfield, Troy (31 May 2010). "Grant Morrison Wages War Using Indian Mythology for 18 Days". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 8 June 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- "Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods". Grantmorrisonmovie.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- Thil, Scott (30 November 2009). "Counterculture Comics Hero Grant Morrison Gets a Biopic". Wired. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
- Tucker, Ken (26 May 2010). "Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne: An interview with writer Grant Morrison". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- Hyde, David (10 June 2011). "History Happens Now". DC Comics. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013.
- Page, Benedicte (18 June 2009). "Cape swoops for superhero". The Bookseller. Archived from the original on 2 June 2013.
- Marshall, Rick (10 November 2010). "Grant Morrison on the American Myth And Psychedelic Adventure Of 'Sinatoro'". MTV. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
- Lyons, Beverley (3 October 2011). "Monster Success: Top comic writer Grant Morrison set to turn their novel Dinosaurs vs Aliens into a movie". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
Indeed, after he's put the finishing touches to the Dinosaurs vs Aliens script, a prolific Grant is creating a movie adaptation for Sam Worthington's company. Called Rogue Trooper, the project is based on a character from the popular British comic book series 2000AD.
- "No. 60173". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 2012. p. 19.
- Campbell, Josie (5 October 2012). "MorrisonCon Wrap-Up: Fans Experience Magic, Religion, Comics and Grant Morrison". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 13 November 2012.
- "Grant Morrison Interview for Legendary Comics' Annihilator". Collider. 11 September 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- "Morrison Explains Why he's Bringing "Annihilator" To Earth". CBR. 27 August 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- "First look: Grant Morrison and Chris Burnham's horror comic 'Nameless'". EW.com. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- "EXCLUSIVE: Grant Morrison Tells 'Santa Claus: Year One' in "Klaus"". CBR. 29 June 2015. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- "Glasgow Comic Con 2012 – Day 1". Comics Anonymous. 1 July 2012. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Archive requires scrolldown.
- Renaud, Jeffrey (6 May 2009). "Grant Morrison's Multiversity". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009.
- Rogers, Vaneta (21 August 2014). "Vivisecting Multiversity With Ivan Reis & Joe Prado". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014.
- Rogers, Vaneta (18 September 2014). "Vivisecting Multiversity: Chris Sprouse On The Society of Super-Heroes". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 20 October 2014.
- Rogers, Vaneta (23 October 2014). "Vivisecting DC's The Multiversity: Ben Oliver Helps Us Dissect The Just". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014.
The third issue in the series featured visuals by Ben Oliver.
- Rogers, Vaneta (20 November 2014). "Frank Quitely on Pax Americana: 'Subsequent Readings Will Reward You'". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 22 November 2014.
- Uzumeri, David (10 December 2014). "The Multiversity Annotations, Part 4: Pax Americana – 'Not The Peace of the Grave or the Security of the Slave'". ComicsAlliance. Archived from the original on 14 August 2015.
The fourth issue of the series, 'Pax Americana' with art by Frank Quitely, colors by Nathan Fairbairn and letters by Rob Leigh, is probably the most widely anticipated of the series, and certainly the most-hyped.
- Rogers, Vaneta (18 December 2014). "Cameron Stewart Brings Back Captain Marvel For The Multiversity: Thunderworld". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 14 September 2015.
Readers were introduced to the Earth-5 version of Captain Marvel while also being treated to a reunion of Morrison and [their] frequent collaborator, artist Cameron Stewart.
- Rogers, Vaneta (29 January 2015). "Vivisecting The Multiversity Guidebook". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 14 September 2015.
With this week's release of The Multiversity Guidebook, Grant Morrison has supplemented [their] already mind-bending epic story with a map to the DC Multiverse.
- Rogers, Vaneta (3 March 2015). "Vivisecting Multiversity: Jim Lee on Mastermen". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 8 September 2015.
- Rogers, Vaneta (27 March 2015). "Vivisecting Multiversity: Doug Mahnke on Ultra Comics". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 14 September 2015.
In this week's world-hopping Ultra Comics chapter of Grant Morrison's The Multiversity, artist Doug Mahnke helped the writer define Earth 33 – the supposed "real" world, yet one that's clearly re-focused through the writer's mind-bending lens.
- Baxter, Joseph; Longo, Chris (16 January 2019). "Happy! Season 2 Release Date, Trailer Cast, and More". Den of Geek. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
- Rogers, Vaneta (31 July 2018). "Grant Morrison & Liam Sharp's Green Lantern Team-Up Caused by Universe 'Conspiring'". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 1 August 2018.
- Babos, John (2 October 2019). "DC Comics Universe & Green Lantern #12 Spoilers & Review: Series Finale Sets Up Green Lantern: Blackstars Darkstars Series & Green Lantern Season Two?!". Inside Pulse. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- "Grant Morrison Rewrites Reality in 'Green Lantern: Blackstars'". DC. 14 August 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
- March 2021, Grant DeArmitt 25 (25 March 2021). "Grant Morrison's vision for Diana comes full circle with Wonder Woman: Earth One finale". Newsarama. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- Petski, Denise (11 August 2016). "'Brave New World' To Be Adapted By Grant Morrison & Brian Taylor For Syfy". Deadline Hollywood.
- Johnston, Rich (14 December 2020). "Grant Morrison, Alex Child, NBCUniversal Create Proctor Valley Road". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
- PixTest (4 February 2021). "Proctor Valley Road #1 First Look". BOOM! Studios. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- "Amazon Listing Teases Superman Leading The Authority This Winter". CBR. 23 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- "Grant Morrison Plans to Replace Russell T Davies on Doctor Who". 15 June 2022.
- Bertlatsky, Noah (2 September 2022). "Review: Comics icon Grant Morrison's debut novel is a marvel of Oedipal camp". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
- Melrose, Kevin (15 June 2012). "Grant Morrison honored by Queen Elizabeth II". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 30 April 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2012.
- Hiatt, Brian (22 August 2011). "Grant Morrison on the Death of Comics". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
- Townsend, Amber (5 November 2020). "The Green Lantern Writer Grant Morrison Comes Out as Non-Binary". CBR.com. Archived from the original on 18 March 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- Hiatt, Brian (14 June 2022). "Exclusive: Comic-Book Superstar Grant Morrison Channeled John Lennon. Hear the Song They Wrote". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
- Goffman, Ken (26 October 2020). "Grant Morrison Surveys the Situation In "The Age of Horus"". Mondo 2000. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
- "Batman writer indulges his drag addiction in seedy 'Gasglow'". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
- "Inkpot Award". Comic-Con International: San Diego. 6 December 2012.
- Cronin, Brian (19 August 2011). "Comic Book Legends Revealed #328". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 22 October 2013.
- Sims, Chris (14 May 2015). "On The Cheap: Suicide Squad #58, The Issue Where John Ostrander, Kim Yale And Geof Isherwood Kill Grant Morrison". ComicsAlliance. Archived from the original on 23 July 2017.
- Bellavia, Rand (29 April 2016). "Cromulent Words: Nine Times Grant Morrison Appeared in Comics – Major Spoilers – Comic Book Reviews, News, Previews, and Podcasts". Major Spoilers. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
- "Seven Unknown Men". Barbelith. Archived from the original on 1 May 2005. Retrieved 22 January 2007.
- Azzarello, Brian (w), Chiang, Cliff (p), Chiang, Cliff (i). "Architecture & Morality, Part Eight" Tales of the Unexpected, no. 8 (July 2007).
- "Tales of the Unexpected No. 8". Grand Comics Database.
- Cooke, Darwyn (2004). DC The New Frontier. Burbank, CA: DC Comics. p. 119. ISBN 978-1-4012-6378-2.
- Mitovich, Matt Webb (20 April 2023). "Titans Recap: When Beast Boy Met [Spoiler]…. — What Was Your Favorite Cameo, in the Flesh or Otherwise?". TVLine. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
- "Titans Just Had the Most Perfect Grant Morrison Cameo Possible". CBR. 20 April 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
Further reading
- Disinformation: The Complete Series Disc 2: DisinfoCon. (1999) Speech by Grant Morrison. Distr. Ryko Distribution.
- Morrison, Grant (2003) "Pop magic!" in Book of Lies, pp. 16–25 ISBN 0-9713942-7-X
- Callahan, Timothy (2007) Grant Morrison: The Early Years. Masters of the Medium. Sequart Research & Literacy Organization. ISBN 978-0-615-21215-9
- Meaney, Patrick (2009) Our Sentence is Up: Seeing the Invisibles. Sequart.com. ISBN 978-0-578-03233-7
- Meaney, Patrick (2010) Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods. Documentary film.
- Singer, Marc (2012) Grant Morrison: Combining the Worlds of Contemporary Comics Archived 5 September 2018 at the Wayback Machine. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-61703-136-6
- Greene, Darragh; Roddy, Kate (eds.) (2015) Grant Morrison and the Superhero Renaissance: Critical Essays. McFarland & Co. ISBN 978-0-7864-7810-1
- Greene, Darragh (2020) "'Who Is That Knocking on Your Door?': Authorship, Print, and the Multimodal Comics of Grant Morrison in the Digital Age", in The Birth and Death of the Author, ed. by Andrew J. Power (London: Routledge), pp. 156–172 ISBN 9781138311169
External links
- Official website
- Grant Morrison at IMDb
- Grant Morrison at the Grand Comics Database
- Grant Morrison at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Grant Morrison at Barney
- Grant Morrison at Curlie
- Grant Morrison at Library of Congress, with 165 library catalogue records