Kevin Smith Partners With Legendao On ‘KillRoy Was Here’ NFT Release – Deadline

EXCLUSIVE: Filmmaker Kevin Smith (Clerks) and his producers Jordan Monsanto of SmodCo and David Shapiro of Semkhor have partnered with Secret Network’s Legendao to launch NFTs of their horror anthology, KillRoy Was Here. Smith’s film will be the first in history released in this format, expanding the possibilities of what NFTs can provide in a quickly evolving entertainment business.

The film directed by Smith, from his and Andy McElfresh’s script, is a throwback anthology horror pic featuring a creature that kills evil adults at the behest of victimized kids. The movie itself—along with exclusive content from the film, behind-the-scenes footage, and a commentary track—will be launched as a 5,555-piece generative art NFT collection on Secret Network’s primary NFT minting platform, Legendao, which will collaborate with Semkhor and Curio, the premier NFT platform for entertainment brands, to produce the KillRoy Was Here collection.

This NFT release comes on the heels of SCRT Labs’ Tarantino NFT collaboration with filmmaker Quentin Tarantino back in January. Buyers of the KillRoy Was Here NFT will have exclusive ownership of one-of-a-kind KillRoy art and other aforementioned materials surrounding the film, as well as viewing access to the pic itself, which will be unavailable to anyone without the special “crypto key” the NFT provides. More uniquely, the KillRoy NFT offers the opportunity for art collectors to become artistic collaborators in creating the sequel to the film.

“When you buy the KillRoy NFT, you get exclusive access to the movie. But more importantly, the specific version of KillRoy you get is YOUR KillRoy to do with whatever you want: Make your own movie, turn it into a cartoon, license him for lunchboxes!” said Smith. “We started the story, now YOU get to continue it with your very own version of our titular character! And along with a brand new chapter I’ll shoot next year, the shorts and animation that the KillRoy NFT owners create with their own KillRoy’s will make up the bulk of our sequel anthology. The KillRoy NFT offers an exciting and unique opportunity to go from art collector to collaborating artist!”

Secret Network, the first blockchain with data privacy by default for smart contracts, allows users to build and use applications that are both permissionless and privacy-preserving. This unique functionality protects users, secures applications and unlocks hundreds of never-before-possible use cases for Web3.

“This release is made possible by Secret Network’s Legendao NFT technology, which ensures that the NFT content can only be accessed by the owner themselves,” said Guy Zyskind, CEO of SCRT Labs, which powers Legendao and Secret Network. “It opens the door for distributing all kinds of digital content as NFTs: Movies, TV shows, music – anything – can be reshaped for Web3.”

Secret Network’s Legendao platform is building its legacy as the hub for high-quality NFT drops and as a trailblazer in the industry. Top-tier artists, brands and creators can launch their own NFT projects on Legendao, with the NFTs employing Secret Network’s novel data-privacy technology, such that only their owners can decrypt their contents and, should they choose, share them with others. This combination of public and private metadata will revolutionize the future of NFTs for creators and owners alike.

“Digital sharing and streaming no doubt revolutionized the entertainment industry, but they also caused piracy issues and profit loss for creators,” added Zyskind. “Through partnerships like ours with Smith and Tarantino, Legendao can work alongside creators to develop projects that they can share without losing ownership. It’s clear that NFTs are the future of digital content distribution – giving creators more control over their work and a closer connection to their fanbases.”

Smith’s NFT launch will take place on the Legendao platform in the second quarter of this year. More information on the project can be found here. Smith is represented by Artists First, Mosaic, WME and attorney Jackie Eckhouse of Sloss Eckhouse Dasti Haynes LawCo; McElfresh by manager Andrew D. Tenenbaum.