New York Comic Con started this morning and the first announcement has found its way off the show floor and on to our site. Stan Lee, the man who co-created everyone from Spider-Man to The X-Men has just announced his next big comic book project. His is partnering up with 1821 Comics to create the first book of a three book deal.

Will it be Mutants? Will it be aliens? No. It will be Shakespeare. He’s working on Romeo and Juliet: The War, a futuristic, stylized retelling of the Shakespeare tale, with story by Lee and Terry Douglas, and artwork by Skan Srisuwan. It will be published next spring.

Two groups of superhuman soldiers turn the Empire of Verona into the most powerful territory on earth. The Montagues (powerful cyborgs made of artificial DNA) team with the Capulets (genetically enhanced humans with super speed and agility) to destroy all threats to Verona. When they succeed, they turn on one another in a race for total dominance. In this volatile backdrop, a young Monague boy and Capulet girl fall in love and plan to marry in secret.

The 1821 Comics start-up is being backed by entrepreneurs Paris Kasidokostas Latsis and Terry Douglas, who will be at Comic Com today with POW! partners Lee and Gill Champion to announce the project and unveil artwork for Romeo and Juliet: The War. Here’s a peek, courtesy of Deadline.

Source: Deadline