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Your 3-minute, pre-reboot primer on 'The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'

Iconic heroes assemble on the cover for "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Volume One"

With "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" now in line for a second movie adaptation -- the acclaimed graphic novel having been first published in 1999 -- brush up on its 18th-century roots and Fox's previous attempts to make it a screen-based success.

-- Past histories --

The adventurers that comprised the League, a Victorian association that lasted two series and a half dozen further tales, were drawn from several iconic stories from the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Commissioned by British intelligence, chief instigator Mina Harker (of "Dracula," 1897) recruited a band of capable fellows charged with preventing the British Empire from being rent asunder.

Joining her in her initial quests were game hunter Allan Quartermain ("King Solomon's Mines," 1885), the secretive Dr. Henry Jekyll ("Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde," 1886), the Invisible Man (1897) and Jules Verne's seafaring Captain Nemo (1870-).

-- Eclectic cast --

Plundering public domain fiction enabled graphic novelist Alan Moore to have some imaginative fun with "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen"; a sprawling cast of supporting characters was testament to that, with readers finding background references to books, TV shows and films scattered throughout.

Its ensemble cast ready-made, Fox obtained the film rights for 2003's "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," but it received a mixed reception.

-- First film --

Heroine Mina Harker (Peta Wilson of "La Femme Nikita") made way for Sean Connery's Quatermain as main character in a storyline that diverged significantly from the original. Other adjustments followed: With Moore's text focusing on British fiction, new characters were added in -- Oscar Wilde's Dorian Gray and Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer -- while difficulties were encountered elsewhere in obtaining permission for Fu Manchu and the Invisible Man.

Alterations such as these upset many fans in the process, a troubled production contributed to its negative critical reception and director Stephen Norrington has stayed well away from the limelight since, but the film made good money in theaters -- $179.2m on a $78m budget.

-- Other adventures --

More recently, Fox dabbled with an unaired TV series pilot in 2013, and now a rebooted film is on the cards, with Variety naming senior production personnel in a May 26 report.

In terms of superhero movies, Fox is already handling Marvel's "The Fantastic Four," "X-Men: Apocalypse," "Deadpool" and "Gambit," among others. A revitalized "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" could allow it to expand the genre's historical scope with something new when Warner Bros and Disney-owned Marvel are going head to head.