My Chemical Romance Go '80s For 'Watchmen,' Say No To 'New Moon'

'A lot of people would say that a vampire movie would fit, but I would disagree,' Gerard Way says of 'Twilight' sequel.

By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias.

By now, everyone is probably aware that My Chemical Romance are fairly gigantic comic book fans.

But if the Eisner Award-winning series penned by frontman Gerard Way or the Halloween-themed Batman strip his brother Mikey wrote weren't proof enough of this, check out Gerard's train of thought for MCR's punked-up take on Bob Dylan's "Desolation Row," which closes out Zack Snyder's upcoming "Watchmen" film:

"We were on the Projekt Revolution [Tour], and I got a call on my phone. Somebody had put Zack through to me, and he was immediately excited. And so we started talking [about the song], and he said, 'Well, what are you thinking?' because originally he said 'Let's just have a 10-minute version that goes through the whole credits.' And I was originally cool with it," Way told MTV News. "But since the story [of 'Watchmen'] takes place in an alternate early '80s, I wanted to make the song a product of that era. And there's a lot of gangs in 'Watchmen,' there's a couple bands [mentioned], like Pale Horse, and you never know what those bands sound like, but I'm assuming it sounds like early '80s punk or late-'70s punk. ... And he said, 'That sounds perfect.' "

And that dedication to "Watchmen" didn't end with MCR's version of the song. When it came time to shoot the "Desolation Row" video, Way and the guys took it one step further, decking themselves out like a skuzzy punk act from the "Watchmen" '80s — complete with deathly pallors and black eyes.

"I just wanted to look pale. Not gothy pale, but, like, sick. I thought a punk band from the early '80s should probably look sick, they should look kind of ill," he laughed. "And the black eye, I figured bands back then got into a lot more fights than they do these days. All those bands like to fight; we don't like to fight."

So, after knocking it out of the park with "Desolation Row," are My Chem looking at a second career (after, you know, being in a rock band) scoring films? Given their former, rather vampirish past, they seem naturals for "Twilight" sequel "New Moon."

"I don't think so," Way said. "We're very choosy. ... There were a few films that we didn't do the song for because it didn't fit. I guess a lot of people would say that a vampire movie would fit, but I would disagree with that these days. Even since Black Parade, I would kind of disagree with that. I don't know if we'd be interested in that."

We've got the biggest exclusives from tomorrow's blockbusters today. Check out MTV's "Spoilers" on Saturday, February 21, at 8 p.m., for a first look at "Watchmen."

My Chemical Romance Want To Sing About Lemonade On 'Yo Gabba Gabba!'

'I have this secret desire to do a children's show,' frontman Gerard Way reveals.

By James Montgomery.

Gerard Way wants you to know that My Chemical Romance are an American band — and proud of it. He'd also like you to know that becoming a father isn't changing his focus on that first fact.

Back in May, Way and his wife — Mindless Self Indulgence bassist Lyn-Z — welcomed their first child, a daughter named Bandit. In the months leading up to the birth, Way wondered aloud how his daughter's arrival would impact the lyrics he was writing for MCR's new album, saying, "That's going to be in my head. ... There's no way that stuff won't affect what you're doing. I think if it doesn't, it's kind of lame."

Well, as it turns out, he might have been over-thinking things.

"[When] we had the baby, it's this crazy thing. It's the most amazing thing, and what it alters is you have someone new in your life to love and share things with and protect and all this amazing stuff," Way told MTV News. "But literally the next morning, I woke up and I still felt like me. I mean, I felt like I had something really awesome in my life, besides my wife, but it hasn't changed any of the direction of where it was heading before she was born. And I think [Bandit] would appreciate that."

And if she doesn't, well, she'll most certainly appreciate Way's other musical plan, one that involves My Chemical Romance collaborating with DJ Lance Rock, Muno, Foofa and the rest of the kid-friendly "Yo Gabba Gabba!" gang. After all, just because he isn't letting fatherhood change his focus within MCR, doesn't mean he can't branch out a bit.

"That will absolutely happen. I have this secret desire to do a children's show, and then I saw 'Yo Gabba,' and I was like, 'Oh, this is genius. This is better than anything I could've come up with,' " Way laughed. "I watched [Devo mastermind] Mark Mothersbaugh draw a puppy, and I was like, 'This is the best thing I've ever seen.' I'm really aiming to get [My Chem] to perform a song about lemonade on 'Yo Gabba.' ... I'm cooking this lemonade song up in my head as we speak."