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Writer's pictureByron O'Neal

Creator Spotlight: Cullen Bunn — The Comics King of Horror



WHO IS CULLEN BUNN?

Cullen Bunn is a New York Times bestselling writer of comics and prose.

WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT HIM?

Whether working entirely within the Horror genre or adding a darker shade to his superhero work, nobody writes horror like Cullen. He’s written a ton – while a bulk of his work has been writing superheroes for The Big 2 (Marvel & DC), his more terrifying works tend to be by Oni Press or under other publishers’ banners.

WHAT DOES HE LIKE TO WRITE?

We all have different tastes in horror, and different things that scare us. Cullen doesn’t like the horror that focuses on torture. He prefers folk horror, Lovecraftian horror and “terror from beyond the stars.” His favorite scary movies? Alien and The Thing (the latter of which is not a preference shared by his wife, Cindy). In his writing, Bunn loves playing with the concept of futility and having characters fight against something that may well be a lost cause.

CULLEN BUNN TRIVIA

  • At around 3 or 4, he performed on stage as the World’s Youngest Hypnotist with his father

  • Once, he fought a cougar

  • Recently launched a YouTube channel, Missouri Swagger, with fellow comics writer, Dennis Hopeless

  • Grew up in rural North Carolina, but now lives in Springfield, Missouri

CHECK OUT SOME OF HIS HORROR TITLES

Magneto

Severely depowered after the events of AvX, Magneto ventures off on his own, taking out enemies of mutantkind in this dark, noir-influenced story starring the Master of Magnetism.

The Empty Man

It started with a few individuals. It looked like a sickness. Hallucinations. Fits of rage. Masochism. Catatonia, suicides and simply dropping dead. No cure or medicine to help the symptoms. As more cases arise and cults form worshipping “The Empty Man” disease, the FBI & CDC struggle to solve the mystery of where it’s coming from and how to fix it.

Regression

What if reincarnation is real, and a past version of you was so evil, he could effect your waking life through hallucinations? Adrian discovers that and more as he descends into madness and mystery in this violent, psychological thriller.

Harrow County

Part rural witchcraft story and part fairytale, this is the story of a witch who realizes her power and her dark destiny…and does everything she can to stop it from happening. Painted in beautiful, haunted watercolor.

The Unsound

A classic psychological thriller exploring reality and sanity within the walls of a psychiatric hospital and its strange, dangerous patients.

Dark Ark

Back in the days of Noah and his Ark, a sorcerer has also been tasked to build an ark and save the dragons, vampires and other more insidious creatures of the world. This is the tale of the Dark Ark, filled to the brim with monsters, murder and mistrust.

Wolf Moon

When the werewolf’s curse moves to a different person with each phase of the moon, it can be difficult to hunt a werewolf. But sometimes, you have to do it anyway. Here’s what happens next.

Cold Spots

While a supernaturally cold winter looms, a man seeks to find his estranged wife and daughter, who have gone missing. Meanwhile, his daughter’s presence seems to precede the appearance of ghosts who freeze their victims to death. How is it all connected? Will Dan find his family and help keep them safe from the restless dead?

Bone Parish

There’s a killer new drug on the market and it’s made from corpses. Called “Ash,” it delivers more than a high: it makes people actually experience other lives. But there’s a deadly catch…

ALSO CHECK OUT HIS NON-HORROR WORKS:

X-Men: Blue

The teenage, original five X-Men are stuck in their own future, unable to get back to their time, and none of them are happy with what their futures hold. Part coming-of-age story and part coming-to-terms tale, it’s a fantastic run where the X-Men do what they do best: trying to stop the future from happening and growing along the way.

The Sixth Gun

A western, Civil War era tale about the search for six revolvers loaded with dark magic, the Confederate General hunting for them, and the gunslinger who stands in his way.

Metro

A recently successfully Kickstarted “Dark, urban fantasy” graphic novel with Brian Quinn & Walt Flanagan about a recently undead man with a secret. It promises not to pull any punches!

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