Just a day after the mature readers title arrived in stores, DC has cancelled all future issues of The Red Hood by Gretchen Felker-Martin, Jeff Spokes and Becca Carey.
DC told retailers that they were cancelling orders for issues #2 and #3, which were already solicited, and they will credit retailers for all invoiced copies of Red Hood #1, “inclusive of copies that may have already been sold.” The first issue was still available on the digital comics platform Comixology when I checked earlier this morning, but it appears to be no longer available.
The publisher issued a statement on the cancellation:
“At DC Comics, we place the highest value on our creators and community and affirm the right to peaceful, individual expression of personal viewpoints. Posts or public comments that can be viewed as promoting hostility or violence are inconsistent with DC’s standards of conduct.”
The cancellation follows writer Gretchen Felker-Martin’s BlueSky account being suspended yesterday. The author, whose novels include Manhunt and Cuckoo, had posted comments about the death of the controversial conservative activist Charlie Kirk on the platform, according to The Beat:
Felker-Martin’s suspension and the Red Hood cancellation received both support and criticism from many on the platform. The Kirk posts, however, may not have been the only reason for the series’ cancellation. Any post that could be viewed as supporting unrest or hostility would violate DC’s social media policy, and the author was often outspoken on BlueSky (and previously on Twitter).
If you haven’t picked up the issue and were hoping to check it out, now would be a good time to visit your retailer; a quick look at eBay shows copies of the first (and now only) issue of Red Hood going for above cover price.
The ongoing mature readers title was announced last June. “Red Hood is the in-continuity story Jason Todd fans have been waiting for,” said DC editor Arianna Turturro at the time. “It delivers high-stakes action, a gripping mystery, and raw, unapologetic storytelling. Every element of the book highlights the core aspects of Jason’s character—his difficulties with personal connections, his badass training, his brooding hotness, and his violent approach to heroism. Which means he’ll be killing people—a lot. Let me repeat myself: this is the story Jason Todd fans have been waiting for.”
Update: The Comics Journal has spoken to Felker-Martin about the cancellation, who shared that she had conversations with DC about the tone of her social media posts prior to the Charlie Kirk posts.