Jay Baruchel joins Toronto comics publisher Chapterhouse Publishing
Actor and filmmaker Jay Baruchel is bringing his talents to Canada's comics scene, joining Toronto's Chapterhouse Publishing as part-owner, chief creative officer and investor.
Baruchel owns part of the company alongside founder and CEO Fadi Hakim. Since launching in 2015, Chapterhouse Publishing has become the home of characters like Captain Canuck — created by Richard Comely and Ron Leishman in 1975 — and The Pitiful Human-Lizard by Jason Loo.
Baruchel says he first got in touch with Hakim to talk about making movies about Canadian superheroes.
"What started with a conversation about bringing Captain Canuck to the big screen very quickly evolved into my asking Fadi if I could invest in Chapterhouse," says Jay.
"This was the kind of thing we'd talk and dream about as Canadian kids — a home grown Canadian extended comic book universe. This was both an adventure and holy mission, and one I knew I had to be a part of."
As chief creative officer, Baruchel will be overseeing the Chapterhouse verse's expansion, writing some comics and producing, writing and directing animated and live-action projects.
The How to Train Your Dragon and This Is the End star recently co-wrote Captain Canuck: Year One alongside Kalman Andrasofszky, which will lead off a short series. He also made his feature film directorial debut with Goon: Last of the Enforcers this year.
Baruchel was a Canada Reads panellist in 2013, defending Two Solitudes by Hugh MacLennan.