5 Celebrities Who Wrote Comics & Were Actually Good

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Many celebrities have ventured into creating comic books, and surprisingly, some have made excellent ones. These creators aren’t aiming to compete with industry giants like Marvel and DC; they’re simply passionate fans who want to share stories they love. What’s exciting is that these celebrity-created comics often offer fresh, unique narratives compared to mainstream publishers. Occasionally, a celebrity even gets the chance to write for Marvel or DC and performs exceptionally well.

Here are five celebrities who successfully ventured into writing comic books, delivering some truly impressive stories.

5) Tom Morello – Orchid

Tom Morello is best known as the guitarist for Rage Against the Machine, but he also hosts a weekly radio show where he shares music and talks about issues he cares about. He brought that same passion for social commentary to his comic book series, Orchid. Working with Dark Horse Comics, Morello crafted a large-scale fantasy story set in a troubled future.

This comic, originally published in 2011, follows a sex worker who discovers she’s destined for something greater than the life society has assigned her. The story is set in a divided world where the rich live in luxury above, and the poor struggle to survive below, hunted by a new, dangerous creature. It falls to this young woman to lead the fight against a brutal class conflict, and Morello crafts a powerful story about the pursuit of social justice.

4) Keanu Reeves – BRZRKR

Keanu Reeves created his own comic book, BRZRKR, which offers a different experience than Tom Morello’s work focused on social justice. Reeves’ comic is geared towards fans of action and stories like John Wick. The series, with artwork by Ron Garney, centers on a character named B – short for Berzerker – an immortal being who is half-god and half-human.

This comic features a character who’s lived for over 80,000 years, battling and surviving throughout history. Now, he undertakes incredibly dangerous missions for the U.S. government – missions no ordinary person could handle. The 12-part series was originally funded through a successful Kickstarter campaign and published by Boom! Studios. There’s been interest in adapting the story into both live-action and animated shows, and several spin-off comics expanding the BRZRKR universe have also been released.

3) Kevin Smith – Daredevil: Guardian Devil

Throughout his career, Kevin Smith has written comics for various publishers, including those based on his popular View Askewniverse. He’s worked with both Marvel and DC, and his work often sparks debate. While some projects, like Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do and Batman: Cacophony, received negative reviews, he’s also been praised for his runs on titles like Green Arrow (DC) and Green Hornet (Dynamite).

Kevin Smith is best known for his work on the Daredevil comic book, having written two storylines for the character. Though his Daredevil/Bullseye: The Target was well-received, his Guardian Devil is considered his greatest achievement. This story centers on Daredevil grappling with a complex situation: a woman gives birth, and the child could be either the Messiah or the Antichrist, creating a conflict with Daredevil’s Catholic faith. With art by Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti, it’s a truly remarkable story.

2) Brian Posehn – Deadpool

Brian Posehn wasn’t just a casual contributor to the world of comics; he became a consistent writer, working on many issues featuring a major Marvel character. He and Gerry Duggan notably teamed up to write Deadpool when Marvel launched its Marvel NOW! initiative, with Tony Moore providing the initial artwork.

This wasn’t a quick project. Writer Joe Posehn contributed to the Deadpool comic for 45 issues, beginning in 2012. That’s a significant run, enough to be compiled into eight collected volumes. Posehn’s comedic style was a great fit for Deadpool, and many fans consider this era to feature some of the character’s strongest writing. The storyline also connected to the major event comics Axis and Original Sin.

1) Gerard Way – The Umbrella Academy

Gerard Way, the frontman of the band My Chemical Romance, is arguably the most successful celebrity to create comic books. He teamed up with artist Gabriel Ba to create The Umbrella Academy, a series published by Dark Horse Comics. The story centers around a world where 43 babies were unexpectedly born to women who hadn’t been pregnant, and all of them developed superpowers. Sir Reginald Hargreeves adopted seven of these children and trained them to become a superhero team.

The story centers around a group of adult siblings who have grown apart, complicated by the death of one of them. When another sibling, Reginald, unexpectedly dies, the others reunite to investigate, and discover they must work together to prevent a looming apocalypse. The comic series, which ran for 21 issues and spawned seven spin-offs, became incredibly popular and was later adapted into a Netflix show.

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2026-01-17 01:40