‘The Legend of Kingdom Come’ World Premiere at Music Box Theatre

The interpedently produced documentary ‘The Legend of Kingdom Come‘ with Alex Ross’ team made its world premiere at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago on May 10. Ross decided to go local with the documentary about his work with Mark Waid on 1996’s timeless DC miniseries Kingdom Come as an artist that studied and grew in the Windy City. Superman and DC comic fans like the Superman Museum from Metropolis, Illinois were in attendance to see the documentary by local director Remsy Atassi. Ross himself was not in attendance.

The lobby before showtime featured a green Kryptonite-themed drink at the bar and pictures with cosplayer Michael Byrnes as a very convincing Superman from Kingdom Come. Our review for The Legend of Kingdom Come can be viewed here, but the B-roll shots of Chicago and Ross and his team talking about the comic book and local art scene back then hit much closer to home –literally. The film is all about Ross’ life as a creative, the creation of Kingdom Come within the comic book age of the 90s, its influence on the industry, and lots of great inside information on its production you wouldn’t find anywhere else.

What made the event truly special was a Q&A session lead by John Siuntres of the Word Balloon Podcast (who had also worked on the film) with Sal Abbinanti (leader of Ross’ team) and Remsy Atassi about their making and release of the documentary. According to Abbinanti, there were plans to get it in the hands of a streaming service, but no deals were favorable. So, they would end up releasing The Legend of Kingdom Come on their own.

“I came into meeting these guys almost ten years ago, more as a filmmaker. Alex was doing a gallery and we were doing pieces that accompanied that. Immediately, as a creative person, you see Alex’s work and it jumps off the page, it’s outstanding,” said Atassi.

Abbinanti also discussed the evolution of the film and how it began as a documentary about Ross some years before COVID before eventually becoming about the legacy of Kingdom Come –the work that he is most known for. Several of the film clips and interviews such as the interview with Ross’ dad (the influence for the character of Norman McCay) which was filmed before his passing in 2020-2021.

“I said ‘it has to be about the art.’ And, I knew we had something because of how much I believed how great his stuff was. I also knew that we had to find a narrative that kind of pushed it to we weren’t making a film just for comic fans,” said Abbinanti.

Abbinanti also detailed one of the first times he met Ross by modeling for the older Billy Batson of Kingdom Come. To this day, he still manages Ross and his team through their art exhibits and convention appearances.

“I grew up with comics and read some comics. But this was another level to my deep understanding through that lens now,” said Atassi.

After ‘The Legend Of Kingdom Come’ Premiere, attendees were treated to free commemorative posters featuring Kingdom Come Superman and the change to buy the film on DVD and Blu-ray. The Legend of Kingdom Come is out now in physical media and will be available digitally soon.