Film An
Æon Flux Hollywood adaptation, which was released in the United States on December 2, 2005, starring
Charlize Theron, provoked controversy among
Æon Flux fans over initial reports that the film adaptation seemed to bear little resemblance to the original full-length animated series or the
Liquid Television shorts, as no one involved with the original television series had a role in the making of the film. While it does take a number of major liberties with the character and concept of the series (such as making the character of Una into Æon's sister and giving Trevor a brother who plays a major role), the film also incorporates characters, themes, gadgets, and even specific scenes as featured in the television version, most notably a reenactment of the television show's most iconic image: Æon trapping a fly in her eyelashes. The film became a critical and
box office flop. The creator of
Æon Flux, Peter Chung, gave an interview to the "Monican Spies" community on
LiveJournal in 2006. He was asked many questions about Æon Flux and her
universe, including how he really felt about the movie. Chung called the movie "a
travesty", relating that its public screening made him feel "helpless, humiliated, and sad". He described his primary objection to the film as being its portrayal of the Æon and Trevor characters and their re-imagined history and relationship. Chung went on to state, "Ms. Flux does not actually appear in the movie."
Comics A "
graphic novel" called
Æon Flux: The Herodotus File, which actually consisted of an assortment of false documents from the world of
Æon Flux and a short story-board-style sequence described as "security camera footage" rather than a comic strip story, was published in 1995. In it, authors Mark Mars and Eric Singer provided vague explanations of some of the show's setting and
backstory, including how Trevor and Æon met. One hint suggested in the series, and confirmed by Mars and Singer in the graphic novel, is the character's
foot fetish modeling; it is suggested that she augments her income posing barefoot for magazines devoted to the fetish. The graphic novel fell out of print in the years that followed the show's conclusion, but it was temporarily re-issued in 2005, with new cover art, to tie in with the movie. As another tie-in to the movie,
Dark Horse Comics published a four-issue
comic book mini-series, collected as a
trade paperback and written and drawn by Mike Kennedy and Timothy Green III, who based their work upon the film versions of the
Æon Flux characters. Although the characters and situations were based on the newer movie versions, the penciling technique deliberately emulated Peter Chung's unique style from the TV series.
Pepsi commercial Though not directly connected to the series, a live-action/animated
Diet Pepsi commercial titled "Something Wrong?" was directed by Peter Chung and starred
Malcolm McDowell as a Trevor Goodchild-like character and
Cindy Crawford as an Æon Flux-like character. It was made for
Super Bowl XXX in 1996, but was pulled and later aired for broadcast exclusive to MTV. "Something Wrong?" is available online at
YouTube.
Video games Released 2005 game To coincide with the release of the 2005 film,
Majesco Entertainment and developer
Terminal Reality released a
video game adaptation on
Xbox and
PlayStation 2. While primarily based on the film, elements from both the movie and the television series are included, as the game sets out to be something of a
canonical link between the two, although the Æon character in the game is modeled only after Theron and is also voiced by her.
Unfinished 1996 game A game based on the original animated series was announced on April 9, 1996 for the
PlayStation. The game, which was loosely based on "
The Demiurge" episode, was being developed by
Cryo Interactive and published by
Viacom New Media. The game first made an appearance at
E3 that same year, with
Æon Flux creator
Peter Chung on hand to promote it, and commercial advertising was even included in the 1996
VHS release of the animated series. A developer build of it was leaked, and pictures of this build can be found on various websites. Viacom New Media would merge with
Virgin Interactive midway through the game's development. The merger ultimately led to the cancellation of Viacom's in-development games, leaving Cryo without the rights to use the
Æon Flux property. In mid-1997, the
Æon Flux video game rights were acquired by
GT Interactive. The game's assets were then reworked into the 1997 title
Pax Corpus after being stripped of all copyrighted association with
Æon Flux.
Pax Corpus does retain obvious similarities to the original animated series, e.g. parts of the plot are similar to the episode "The Demiurge" and the female protagonist wears a purple and black outfit.
Unfinished 2000 game Another failed attempt would be made by
The Collective some time around the year 2000, and was to be published by
GT Interactive. It was using a then-current version of the
Unreal Engine, and appeared to be a 3D third-person action title similar to The Collective's previous title,
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Fallen. At some point during development, the game was cancelled and the project vanished, leaving only a few work-in-progress screenshots as evidence of its existence.
Live-action television reboot In June 2018, it was reported that a live-action television reboot is in works at MTV with
Jeff Davis and
Gale Anne Hurd as executive producers. In September 2021, it was reported that a live-action television reboot is in works at
Paramount+, under a new overall deal that Davis has signed with
MTV Entertainment Studios. Davis will serve as showrunner and direct the pilot. In early 2023, Davis reported the first two episodes had been written, which he planned to direct. ==References==