Frank Miller, the acclaimed creator behind "The Dark Knight Returns" and "300," is currently experiencing a highly productive phase in his career, working on new projects and revisiting established franchises through his own publishing company, Frank Miller Presents. During a roundtable interview at the Lucca Comics & Games Festival in Italy, Miller shared updates on "Sin City: Blood & Dust" and "Invasive Species," and reflected on his recent involvement with "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."
Sin City Returns with a Wild West Prequel
After a significant gap since his last "Sin City" stories, Miller is nearing completion on "Sin City: Blood & Dust." This new graphic novel serves as a prequel, set in the Wild West era, and details the founding of Basin City. Unlike many of his current projects, Miller is handling both the writing and art for "Blood & Dust" himself. He estimates that he has drawn approximately two-thirds of the book and expects the remaining work to progress quickly, though a definitive release date has not yet been set.
Miller described the project as a departure from previous "Sin City" narratives, stating, "If you're going to take a break from a series for a long time, you might as well come back with a very different one."
Sci-Fi Horror in Invasive Species
Another project Miller expressed significant enthusiasm for is "Invasive Species," a new science-fiction comic from Dark Horse Comics. Announced at SDCC 2026, the book pairs Miller with artist Ryan Benjamin and colorist Alex Sinclair. Miller revealed that the story was conceived during the COVID-19 pandemic and draws inspiration from 1950s alien invasion films like "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." However, "Invasive Species" reframes the invasion narrative, focusing on a microscopic biological threat rather than extraterrestrial spacecraft.
"It's a project I conceived during the height of the COVID pandemic where everyone was afraid to sneeze within a hundred yards of anybody else," Miller explained. "I thought what perfect metaphor for our times. And so I made up a story where we were being invaded not by a bunch of spaceships, but by a virus, by little aliens that got inside, came in our ears."
A Long-Awaited TMNT Contribution
Miller's influence on the original "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is well-documented, making his recent contribution to "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" #300 a notable event. Miller was among several artists invited to create a cover for the milestone issue.
"They were kids when they were doing it in their clunky black-and-white comic," Miller said of the franchise's creators. "No one dreamed they would turn out to have this amazing property... So when they asked, I said, 'Sure.' I mean, they were big fans of mine and I thought that this will be fun."
When asked about his favorite Turtle, Miller cited Michelangelo, drawing a parallel to the Renaissance artist and the Sistine Chapel ceiling, which he considers "one of the best comic book pages I've ever seen."
Directorial Aspirations
Reflecting on his past directorial work on "Sin City" and "The Spirit," Miller expressed a continued interest in filmmaking. "Sure. Yeah. I mean, come on," he stated when asked about returning to directing. "It's an amazing field. It's an amazing form and it's like nothing else in the world."