Lakeshore Entertainment, which produced the Underworld movies, has tapped Watchmen screenwriter David Hayter to pen the adaptation of the Luna Brother’s The Sword published by Image Comics.  Lakeshore picked up the rights to The Sword in February and hopes to turn the four-volume graphic novel series into an Underworld-like movie franchise.  The modestly budgeted Underworld films have earned more than $460 million worldwide and Lakeshore is anxious to create another hit series.  Production on the first film based on The Sword is slated to begin in 2014.
 
The Sword follows the adventures of a paraplegic college student who discovers an ancient sword among her family’s possessions after the rest of her family has been wiped out by a trio of beings with massive powers.  The mystical sword not only restores the girl’s ability to walk, but confers great powers on her as she sets off on a quest to avenge her family.
 
According to The Wrap, it was Hayter’s experience in adapting "the multifaceted, beloved characters of graphic novels to mainstream audiences" that made him Lakeshore’s first choice to adapt The Sword.