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Founded by Ross Richie in 2005.1
History
2000s
Ross Richie and Andrew Cosby had been working in Hollywood with Dave Elliott and Garry Leach in 2004 to revive 1980s comic book publishing house Atomeka Press. While working with Atomeka, Richie cut a deal with Keith Giffen and J. M. DeMatteis to publish their series Hero Squared, with the Hero Squared X-Tra Sized Special one-shot.
They went on to found Boom! together in 2005. They had been helping to option comic book projects as producers, and working to develop them into films with the studios, but became increasingly frustrated with what they felt was the "tights and capes" focus of most mainstream comics companies. When Giffen was featured as a guest at the Los Angeles Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention, he persuaded Richie to start his own outfit, Boom!.
Boom!'s first publication was Zombie Tales #1, a horror zombie anthology, released under the Boom! and Atomeka Press logos on June 29, 2005. The first edition was published by Atomeka, but released after Richie had left the company to start Boom! Studios. Giffen and DeMatteis imported their Hero Squared series from Atomeka to Boom! and Hero Squared became the very first Boom! comic book sold solely under the Boom! logo. shipping July 27, 2005.
During this time in its history, Boom! focused on publishing an array of original series created by a slew of industry veterans: Giffen worked on Hero Squared, Planetary Brigade, 10, Jeremiah Harm, and the Tales titles like Zombie Tales and Cthulhu Tales. DeMatteis collaborated with Giffen on Hero Squared and Planetary Brigade and brought his own series, The Stardust Kid, with Mike Ploog, over from Image Comics. Mike Mignola and Troy Nixey's Oni Press series Jenny Finn migrated to Boom! and finally completed its story. Eisner Award winner Dave Johnson created covers for Zombie Tales and Cthulhu Tales. Joe Casey created The Black Plague while Rafael Albuquerque's first American work debuted in The Savage Brothers.
In 2006, Boom! moved into licensing for the first time with the debut of Games Workshop series Warhammer 40,000: Damnation Crusade, based on the tabletop miniature wargame. In 2007, Boom! published Steven Grant's crime/action comic 2 Guns which Cosby and Ritchie co-produced for Universal Studios in 2013.
At the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con, Boom! announced plans to launch its first imprint, a new line of comics for children originally announced with the name Zoom!, but when the imprint launched in 2009, the imprint debuted as Boom! Kids. Boom! also signed a deal with Pixar to produce comic books based on their properties and secured newsstand distribution. The first included The Muppet Show by Roger Langridge and The Incredibles: Family Matters by Mark Waid and artist Marcio Takara. In February 2011, Boom! re-branded Boom! Kids as KaBOOM!, re-focusing the imprint to be appealing to all ages rather than only children.
Also, during the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con, Boom! announced the appointment of Mark Waid as Editor-in-Chief. This role would eventually grow to Chief Creative Officer in August 2010 before his eventual return to freelance work in December of that year. While in these leadership roles, Waid also created multiple successful titles, including Irredeemable in 2009, which became Boom!'s longest-running series at that time, lasting 37 issues, and a sister book Incorruptible.
2010s
Former Managing Editor Matt Gagnon was promoted to Editor-in-Chief in July 2010.
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At the beginning of 2013, the company launched its #WeAreBoom! campaign, spotlighting a philosophy that Boom! isn't just composed of its writers, artists, and staff but also of the fans that read its comics and the retailers that sell them. In June 2013, Boom! acquired Archaia Studios Press, merging it into Boom! and retaining it as a stand-alone imprint. In October 2013, Boom! signed a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox giving Fox the right of first refusal to develop any Boom! comic properties into a film or TV series, and Boom! would get first-dollar gross on any profits. As a publisher of creator-owned works, that share would be split between Boom! and the creator(s) of the adapted work.
In January 2015, Boom! launched "Push Comics Forward", a public relations campaign aimed at generating a discussion about how comic book publishing can become more inclusive and diverse.
In June 2017, 20th Century Fox purchased a minority stake in Boom! Studios, valued at $10 million. The Walt Disney Company inherited Fox's stake in Boom! Studios after Disney acquired 21st Century Fox's assets on March 20, 2019.
2020s
In April 2020, Boom! Studios established a first-look deal with Netflix. In July 2024, it was reported that Penguin Random House had agreed to acquire Boom! Studios from The Walt Disney Company under its Random House division. The acquisition was completed on September 17, 2024.
Originals
Originals under the Boom! banner explore a wide variety of genres from YA science fiction, like in The Woods by James Tynion IV and Michael Dialynas, to horror/action like in the thriller Day Men, which racked up "Best Inker" and "Best Cover Artist" Harvey Awards nominations for series artist Brian Stelfreeze and sold to Universal Pictures as a movie. Crime noir period piece Hit garnered Harvey Awards nominations for "Best Continuing or Limited Series" and "Best Inker" for artist Vanesa R. Del Rey and George Pérez's series for Boom!, Sirens, is a multi-genre action piece that goes from fantasy to western to science fiction. Pulp science fiction mini-series Six Gun Gorilla, written by Si Spurrier and drawn by Jeff Stokely, was nominated for multiple Harvey Awards including "Best Artist" and "Most Promising New Talent" and "Best New Series". Boom! also published an original series from Clive Barker entitled Next Testament.
Boom! generally does not focus on superhero material but has published some titles, including Grace Randolph's Supurbia. Two of its original series, Irredeemable and Suicide Risk, have gathered accolades. Mark Waid's series Irredeemable ran for 37 issues, received several Harvey and Eisner award nominations, and spawned a sister series called Incorruptible which ran 30 issues. Mike Carey's series Suicide Risk received nominations for "Best New Series" and "Best Single Issue or Story".
In 2013, Boom! also teamed up with Say Anything singer Max Bemis to publish his first limited mini-series about a bipolar hero called Polarity. Fox optioned the right to create this story into a TV series. In 2014, they announced an ongoing series written by Bemis called Evil Empire, which ended after 12 issues.
In October 2020, Boom! published BRZRKR, a comic book series created and written by Keanu Reeves and Matt Kindt and drawn by Ron Garney. The comic follows an immortal warrior, known as Berzerker, as he fights his way through the ages.
Originals
Boom! Box was launched in 2013 by editor Shannon Watters. Boom! Box's first title was The Midas Flesh from Ryan North, Shelli Paroline, and Braden Lamb, the same team behind Boom!'s Adventure Time comic. It followed this series up with Lumberjanes from Watters, ND Stevenson, Grace Ellis, and artist Gus Allen. Originally published as a mini-series, Lumberjanes was a big enough hit to become an ongoing, ultimately running for 75 issues and a one-shot finale, with spin-off comics consisting of 3 original graphic novels and 4 annual one-shot specials. Since issue 18, all Lumberjanes comic books are written by Watters and Kat Leyh. Other Boom! Box series include Teen Dog by Jake Lawrence, Giant Days by John Allison and Max Sarin, and a Cyanide & Happiness collection, Punching Zoo.
An eight-issue miniseries named The Backstagers ran from August 2016 to March 2017. It was written by James Tynion IV and illustrated by Rian Sygh.
A 12-issue miniseries named Jonesy ran from February 2016 to April 2017. It was written by Sam Humphries and illustrated by Caitlyn Rose Boyle.
A 12-issue miniseries named By Night ran from June 2018 to June 2019. It was written by John Allison and illustrated by Christine Larsen.
A four-issue miniseries named Welcome to Wanderland ran from September 2018 to February 2019. It was written by Jacqueline Ball illustrations by Maddi Gonzalez.
There are 4 one-shot issues based on Lumberjanes. In 2015, Beyond Bay Leaf was released, and features Faith Erin Hicks and Rosemary Valero-O'Connell. In 2016, Making the Ghost of It was released, and features Kelly Thompson, Jen Wang, Savanna Ganucheau, and Christine Norrie. In 2017, Faire and Square was released, and features Holly Black, Gaby Epstein, Marina Julia, and cover artist Ru Xu. In 2018, A Midnight Summer's Scheme was released, and features Nicole Andelfinger, Maddi Gonzalez, Brittney Williams, and cover artist Natacha Bustos.
A three-issue graphic novel miniseries called Nuclear Winter was released in May 2018, January 2019, and September 2019. It is written and illustrated by Caroline Breault, who is credited as Cab.
A four-issue miniseries named Slam! ran from November 2016 to February 2017. It was written by Pamela Ribon and illustrated by Veronica Fish. A sequel miniseries called Slam! The Next Jam ran in late 2017. It was written by Ribon and illustrated by Marina Julia, featuring covers by Fish.
An ongoing series called Fence was first released in November 2017. It is written by C. S. Pacat and illustrated by Johanna the Mad. Since Issue 7, the covers are done by Hamlet Machine.
A four-issue miniseries called Dodge City ran from March 2018 to June 2018. It is written by Josh Trujillo and illustrated by Cara McGee.
A graphic novel called Hollow based on "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" that was published in 2022.
Originals
"The Show Must Go On" — collecting uncollected Roger Langridge series including "Fred the Clown" material as well as "Mugwump" strips. (October 2011)
From Wikipedia’s article on Boom! Studios, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4