"Thief" revolves around Conrad Paulson, who wants to get out of the stealing biz so he can reunite with his estranged wife and son, but in the meantime vows to only steal from other thieves. The comic debuted on February 8 and sold out that same day; the third issue of "Thief" was released today.
AMC announced Kirkman and "Walking Dead" producers David Alpert and Chic Eglee will adapt the Image Comics/Skybound comic. Eglee, a former executive producer for Showtime's "Dexter," will serve as the "Thief of Thieves" showrunner if the project goes to series.
Alpert and Eglee worked with Kirkman on the first season of "The Walking Dead." Alpert was an executive producer on the recently-concluded second season of the show, while Eglee is an executive producer on FX's upcoming drama "Powers," based on the Image comic book series about homicide detectives who investigate cases involving superheroes and supervillains.
"Much like 'The Walking Dead' brought horror to television in a unique and groundbreaking way, I feel 'Thief of Thieves' can do the same thing for heist stories, showing the humanity of all the characters, including the criminals," Kirkman said in a statement.
"AMC recognizes the limitless ideas generated by the comic industry. Their dedication to bringing 'The Walking Dead' to life as a TV show has been key to its success and I'm excited about the potential of 'Thief of Thieves' to reach similar levels of success."
Alpert added, "It's incredibly exciting to put the band back together with Robert, Chic and AMC; it just feels great."
Kirkman, who launched the Skybound imprint at Image Comics, held four of the top spots on the New York Times bestseller list for graphic novels in 2011.
"Working with AMC has been a tremendously positive experience and I'm looking forward to continuing and strengthening our relationships there," Kirkman added. "And I can't neglect to mention I've been dying to work with Chic again since we wrapped on 'The Walking Dead' Season One."