Phillip Kennedy Johnson, highly regarded across the comics industry for his enthralling work at major studios featuring The Hulk, Batman & Robin, Superman and many more, has signed a multi-year contract to write comics exclusively for Marvel, effective January 2026.
The announcement comes as Marvel prepares to release the next chapter in Johnson’s ongoing run of The Hulk comics – Infernal Hulk – which arrives on shelves this Wednesday.
“My friends at Marvel have been ideal collaborators, and I’m extremely honored and excited that they’ve asked me to play such a bigger role in the company,” Johnson said. “Now that our Incredible Hulk run is kicking off its second act with Infernal Hulk #1, and with the other mind-blowing projects we’re putting together for 2026 and 2027, it felt like the time to make Marvel my comics home for a while.”
Johnson has amassed an impressive portfolio of popular comics titles since breaking into the industry in 2015, most recently continuing his acclaimed run on fan-favorites The Incredible Hulk for Marvel and Batman & Robin for DC. He is best known for his acclaimed work on Superman and Action Comics, Marvel’s Alien, Green Lantern: War Journal and Hellhunters. He is writer and co-creator of DC Black Label’s The Fellspyre Chronicles, BOOM! Studios’ Crocodile Black, Last Sons of America and Warlords of Appalachia, and has also been published with Archaia, IDW, Aftershock, Dynamite, and Scout Comics. He currently teaches Creative Writing at The Joe Kubert School.
Born in Iowa and raised in Kentucky, Johnson is a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University and the University of North Texas – with a Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree in Music. He is recently retired from the United States Army after more than two decades of service. Outside of writing, Johnson is an active musician in the Washington, DC/Baltimore area, having served as trumpet player with The U.S. Army Field Band of Washington, DC from 2005 to 2025, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, the Moscow Ballet, the Dallas Opera, Washington Symphonic Brass, and more.
Infernal Hulk picks up after Hulk’s epic rematch with the Eldest, the powerful first-born child of the Mother of Horrors, from October’s Incredible Hulk #30. The Eldest’s long-seeded plan comes to fruition as it uses the power of the Strongest There Is to usher in a new Age of Monsters, unleashing a dark destiny for the entire Marvel Universe and declaring war for its very soul.
“The Hulk story we’re building up to is the most ambitious thing I’ve written to date, and the titles we’re planning for 2026 and 2027 are legitimate dream projects for me,” Johnson explained. “My son, who learned to love reading from the same old ripped-up Marvel, DC and Gold Key Comics that I used to read, gave me his unreserved blessing to do this, and that was all the advice I needed. To him, to all my other readers, and to my fellow comic fans: I promise, I won’t let you down.”
While Johnson officially joins Marvel exclusively starting in January, he will finish his current runs for other publishers, including his heralded writings for Batman & Robin and Adventures of Superman: Book of El for DC.
“I’m as close as ever with all the awesome people at DC, and my current runs on Batman & Robin and Adventures of Superman: Book of El will continue through their planned conclusions next year,” Johnson said. “Comics are about making cool stuff with your friends, and I hope my DC fans check out what we’ve got coming at Marvel. I’m still getting better at this gig, and I CANNOT WAIT to show you what we’re building at Marvel right now.”
