Our weekly round up of the latest stories from the world of screen superheroes, including Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Black Panther, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Man of Steel, Justice League, Arrow, The Wolverine, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Daredevil, Chronicle 2, Hellboy 3, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Ultimate Spider-Man, Teen Titans Go! and more….
There’s now less than two weeks to go until Phase Two of the Marvel Cinematic Universe gets underway in the UK with the release of Iron Man 3 – which, according Fandango, is the most anticipated movie of the summer, leading a top ten ahead of Star Trek Into Darkness, The Great Gatsby, Fast & Furious 6, The Hangover Part III, Man of Steel, Despicable Me 2, The Lone Ranger, World War Z and Monsters University (I’m guessing Superman fans might have something to say about a 7th placed finish for Man of Steel). Nevertheless, Marvel’s marketing machine continues to bombard us with promotional material, including a teaser for new footage set to screen during Sunday’s MTV Movie Awards [see here], a behind-the-scenes video [see here], a Stark Industries tech video [see here] and a couple of new TV spots and cast and crew featurette which includes comments from cast members Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark), Gwyneth Paltrow (Pepper Potts), Don Cheadle (James Rhodes), Ben Kingsley (The Mandarin), Rebecca Hall (Maya Hansen), Jon Favreau (Happy Hogan) and Guy Pearce (Aldrich Killian) [see here]. We’ll have our review of Iron Man 3 up on the site this coming week, so stay tuned…
…Speaking of Iron Man 3, British filmmaker Edgar Wright has teased the possibility of some kind of Ant-Man crossover (presumably in the form of a mid or post-credits sequence) by revealing that aside from his upcoming comedy The World’s End, he’s filmed a “single shot” from one of this summer’s movies. ***Potential Spoilers*** Although much of the recent talk about Iron Man 3’s post credits sequence(s) has revolved around Guardians of the Galaxy, there had been earlier rumours that Wang Xueqi’s Dr. Wu would turn out to be Chen Lu – a.k.a. Radioactive Man – setting him up as the villain for 2015’s Ant-Man. Of course, it’s all speculation at the moment, but it wouldn’t be much of a surprise to see Marvel using Iron Man 3 to tease both Guardians and Ant-Man, seeing as both are unestablished in the MCU, and don’t have anywhere near the same kind of name recognition as the rest of Marvel’s upcoming slate…
…We’re set to get our first look at Chris Hemsworth’s second solo outing as the God of Thunder when the first trailer for Thor: The Dark World debuts with Iron Man 3, and a description of said trailer has popped up online after it was shown at the Disney Consumer Show 2013 in Mexico City, while Tom Hiddleston has suggested that Thor 2 will follow Marvel’s traditional release pattern of hitting UK shores slightly earlier than North America, with the Alan Taylor (Game of Thrones) directed sequel likely to open here in October…
…Looking to next year’s Marvel offerings, and the first official behind-the-scenes image from Captain America: The Winter Soldier has arrived online featuring Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers, while Marvel has also released a brief official synopsis for the sequel: “Captain America: The Winter Soldier will pick-up where Marvel’s The Avengers left off, as Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world and teams up with Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow, to battle a powerful yet shadowy enemy in present-day Washington, D.C.” Filming is currently underway on Captain America 2 under Community directors Anthony and Joe Russo, with a cast that includes Marvel veterans Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes / The Winter Soldier), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Cobie Smulders (Agent Maria Hill), Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter), Toby Jones (Arnim Zola) and Maximiliano Hernandez (Agent Jasper Sitwell), while newcomers to the MCU include Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker) as Sam Wilson / Falcon, Emily VanCamp (Revenge) as Sharon Carter / Agent 13, Frank Grillo (Zero Dark Thirty) as Brock Rumlow / Crossbones, George St-Pierre (Death Warrior) as Georges Batroc / Batroc the Leaper and screen legend Robert Redford as S.H.I.E.L.D. chief Alexander Pierce…
…Captain America: The First Avenger scribes Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have contributed to both Thor: The Dark World and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and the screenwriting duo offered a few thoughts about both films and how they differ in terms of tone and genre, as well as touching upon the wider implications of both movies on the MCU – and more specifically, Joss Whedon’s 2015 sequel, The Avengers 2: “More often than not, when you’re thing of the movies as a whole, it’s ‘What do you want the state of the world to be when Avengers 2 kicks off?’ It’s never like, Cap has to put down a briefcase so the Hulk can pick it up. It’s never that specific. It’s sort of like, “Where do you want loyalties to lie when that movie opens?” See what else Markus and McFeely had to say here…
…Sticking with the The Avengers 2 for a moment and it would seem that Marvel could be looking to introduce the King of Wakanda to the roster of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes – at least, according to Kick-Ass 2 start Morris Chestnut. Posting on Twitter, Chestnut suggested that Black Panther is set to feature in the 2015 sequel ahead of a potential solo movie, hinting that he was in the frame for what’s sure to be a highly-sought after role. Obviously, if it is true that Black Panther is being lined up to debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, then Chestnut wouldn’t have done himself any favours by splashing it all over Twitter, and sure enough the actor issued a denial a couple of days later, pinning the blame for the tweets on ‘The MCCamp’ and stating that he’s “NOT in talks about this project with Marvel.” So, it appears we have two possible scenarios here: a) either Camp Chestnut were trying to drum up support for their man on the off chance that the Black Panther role might come up at some point in the future and it’s back-fired, or b) Marvel were about to offer Chestnut the biggest part of his career, he couldn’t contain his excitement, foolishly decided to drop a huge reveal on Twitter, and now they’re just sending him – or Camp Chestnut – straight to voicemail…
…Although we’re yet to hear whether ABC has picked up Joss Whedon’s S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot for a full season order, the network has announced a change of title for the proposed series to Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., as well as releasing an official synopsis: “Fresh from his role in the summer’s box office smash MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS, Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) returns to the worldwide law enforcement organization S.H.I.E.L.D. He puts together a small, highly trained, team of Agents to tackle the cases that haven’t been classified yet, the new, the strange and the unknown. That team consists of straight arrow Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), an expert in combat and espionage; pilot and martial artist Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen); and brilliant if socially awkward scientists Agent Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker) and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge). They’ll be joined by civilian new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). Prepare for an epic adventure that showcases the hope and wonder of the human spirit. This is a world of Super Heroes, aliens and the unusual – of action, spectacle and world spanning stories. The show will speak to the human condition through the lens of our very human, non-powered S.H.I.E.L.D agents – that together we are greater than we are apart, and that we can make a difference in the world.” So, new casting, new title, new synopsis – seems a sure fire bet that this one’s getting picked up…
…Now, from one shared universe to a potential other -; I’m talking of course about the impending return of ‘The World’s Greatest Supehero’ in Zack Snyder’s upcoming reboot Man of Steel. As we await the arrival of the third trailer – which is expected to drop on Sunday evening – Warner Bros. has ramped up its promotional efforts this past week, delivering the first TV spot, as well as a selection of new images via the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, including shots of Superman (Henry Cavill), General Zod (Michael Shannon), Jor-El (Russell Crowe), Lois Lane (Amy Adams), Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner), Martha Kent (Diane Lane), Perry White (Laurence Fishburne) and Faora (Antje Traue). Included in the issue were some interesting comments from the cast and crew, including details on the relationship between Superman and Zod and confirmation that Kryptonite is absent from the film; be sure to check out Martin Deer’s Man of Steel round up for comments and opinion on all the latest Superman news, which you can read here…
…Perhaps the biggest talking point from EW’s Man of Steel coverage was the comments from Warner Bros. president Jeff Robinov, who discussed the hotly-anticipated reboot in terms of being a launching pad for a shared DC movie universe: “I think you’ll see that, going forward, anything can live in this world. [Christopher Nolan’s] Batman was deliberately and smartly positioned as a stand-alone. The world they lived in was very isolated without any knowledge of any other superheroes. What Zack and Chris have done with this film is allow you to really introduce other characters into the same world.” Robinov also confirmed that talk of Christopher Nolan extending his DC involvement post-The Dark Knight Rises by serving as producer on the long-rumoured Justice League movie were incorrect, but he did go on to tease movement on a DC movie universe, stating that: “We’ll announce something in the next several weeks that will hopefully position the DC characters and the movies we’re going to be making…”
…Obviously, it remains to be seen whether WB’s big announcement will concern Justice League, or perhaps a new batch of solo movies, but a rumour has emerged this week claiming that the studio has hired Sons of Anarchy and Pacific Rim star Charlie Hunnam – or rather, his likeness – in order to create some concept art for Justice League; unfortunately, no one has seen said concept art, so it’s probably best to take this one with a pinch of salt for the time being…
…We might be in the dark about Warner’s feature film plans for its DC properties, but on the small screen the producers of The CW’s Arrow are pushing full steam ahead with preparations for a second season. During an interview with Collider, executive Producer Marc Guggenheim offered some details about the remaining season one episodes as well as hinting at future storylines and the introduction of additional heroes and villains from the DC universe, while MTV Geek grabbed a few comments from stars Stephen Amell (Oliver Queen), Willa Holland (Thea Queen) and Colin Donnell (Tommy Merlyn). Arrow is currently on a break and returns to The CW on April 24th…
…With Hugh Jackman set to make his sixth X-Men outing this summer in The Wolverine, the actor is already gearing up for his seventh (!) appearance in next year’s mutant epic X-Men: Days of Future Past, and he’s spoken a little about his preparations for the Bryan Singer-directed sequel: “They told me the idea and, at the time, it was Matthew Vaughn [directing]. Instantly, I knew it was a winner. It just felt like everything was coming full circle. However, I must admit my stomach and my mind were like, ‘Oh no.’ I owe, in a way, everything to Bryan. The first film I did in America was X-Men. Wolverine is a character I’ve loved playing and I can’t believe it’s going to be my seventh time playing it. It just blows me away. It not only feels like the right kind of project, it actually is so exciting that we’ll all be back together again. I don’t want to give away too much but I’m really excited not only to reunite with all those great actors but also to work with some of the other ones.” Jackman is set to be joined in the reunion by a host of X-Men veterans including Patrick Stewart (Professor X), Ian McKellen (Magneto), Halle Berry (Storm), Ellen Page (Kitty Pryde), Anna Paquin (Rogue), Shawn Ashmore (Iceman), Daniel Cudmore (Colossus), James McAvoy (Professor X), Michael Fassbender (Magneto), Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique) and Nicholas Hoult (Beast), and filming is set to get underway this coming week…
…While Fox is moving full steam ahead with its X-Men properties (and Josh Trank’s The Fantastic Four), the studio was less successful with its attempt to reboot Daredevil; despite a last gasp effort from Joe Carnahan (The A-Team) to step in as a replacement for original director David Slade (The Twilight Saga: Eclipse), the rights to the Man Without Fear reverted back to Marvel last year, and now Slade has given us an idea of what he had planned for the reboot before he decided to leave the project to helm the pilot for the TV series Hannibal: “[I saw Daredevil as] really complex and exciting. t was complicated [Laughs], and in the most unimaginable Fox way possible. I was really, really excited about it . . . It’s funny, I remember Joe Carnahan went after it hard when the rights were about to go. He cut together that thing that was great and exciting, but it was kind of sad, in a way, because everything in that trailer we had attempted to do [Laughs]. Every single thing… It’s in the 70s, Kingpin is going through New York dealing with the Irish mafia, and there’s Daredevil in the yellow suit. It was all there! You know, it’s a big studio film and it’s tougher…there are certain people who are really good at that, and I hope to be really good at that. I will continue to try my best…”
…Fox also seems to be struggling with its plans for a sequel to last year’s box office hit Chronicle; earlier this year we heard from John Landis (father of Chronicle screenwriter Max Landis), who suggested that the studio were unhappy with his son’s script for Chronicle 2. However, Max has now provided us with an update, playing down talk of any animosity between himself and Fox and stating that the sequel is still going ahead: “Chronicle 2 is in an interesting place right now. It’s moving along. There was this whole announcement that they wanted to just do the same thing again because my father said that. My father is not involved in Chronicle 2. He doesn’t know the process. It was not his place to say that. The truth is when you have a movie that was as successful as Chronicle was, it’s not as quick of a process. There are a lot more voices coming in and saying ‘This is what the sequel should be’ because there’s a bigger expectation and a bigger fear of failure. And that’s really what’s going on with Chronicle 2. Josh [Trank] is directing Fantastic Four. I’m doing a hundred other movies. Chronicle 2 has become this question of ‘How do we all make a movie that we all respect?’ And that’s true to what Chronicle is. There’s no one at the studio who wants to make a bad movie. They all want to make a good movie just as much as I do. We’re not fighting. The report came out that they didn’t like my script. They liked my script. It’s just a really dark script. The question is more of ‘How do we all compromise to get something we want?’ And that’s an incredibly slow process…”
…After reports circulated this week suggesting that Hellboy creator Mike Mignola was against the long-rumoured third instalment from Pacific Rim director Guillermo del Toro, Mignola has taken to Facebook to set the record straight: “There are a couple articles out floating around out there right now that sort of make it sound like I don’t want a third movie made or even implying that somehow I might in some way stopping a third one from being made–That’s just stupid. I have no idea why these things are popping up now. I’m asked all the time if a third film is in the works and I always say there isn’t–Because there isn’t. Simple as that. Of course I would be thrilled to see a third one made. I know Ron would like to do it and I think if ANYONE could talk Universal into it it would be del Toro. After #2 someone at the studio assured me that they would NEVER make a third and that was the last contact I had with anyone at Universal. That was a long time ago and things change and I do hope things will change, but who knows. Certainly it all has nothing to do with me. The fate of a third film is entirely somewhere between del Toro and Universal.” Sadly, with del Toro prepping the star-studded Crimson Peak, not to mention his planned Justice League Dark adaptation Dark Universe and the already announced Pacific Rim 2, it’s looking increasingly likely that Hellboy 3 will never see the light of day…
…It’s been another quiet seven days on The Amazing Spider-Man 2 front, although naturally director Marc Webb has continued to supply his daily dose of tweets, which this week included a shot of an NYPD officer who’s made the foolish mistake of confronting Electro, while some fairly unrevealing set photos have emerged from a ‘Time Square’ set depicting what we can only assume to be more damage caused by Jamie Foxx’s bad guy (or one of the other fifty or so villains in the cast)…
…Until we get to see more of Andrew Garfield and company on set, Spider-Man fans have little choice but to get their fix from Disney XD’s Ultimate Spider-Man; take a look at a clip from this weekend’s episode, which sees Spidey, Nova, White Tiger and Luke Cage heading into space to rescue J. Jonah Jameson’s son John, only to encounter a bizarre threat waiting for them on the surface of the moon…
…Those adolescent superheroes the Teen Titans are set to make their return this month as Cartoon Network debuts the animated comedy series Teen Titans Go! as part of its DC Nation programming block, and Complex has debuted a first look at the opening credits, which features a new version of the original theme tune remixed by DJ Mix Master Mike. Teen Titans Go! premieres in North America on Tuesday, April 23rd before moving to a regular Saturday morning slot on DC Nation from April 27th…
…And finally, Flickering Myth’s ‘Comic Book Movie Month’ has continued with Luke Owen revisiting Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in The Avengers: One Year On, while a few superhero films have featured in our ongoing countdown of the Greatest Comic Book Movies, including Superman II at #19, Hellboy II: The Golden Army at #18 and Kick-Ass at #16. You can keep up with our full countdown here.
Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen – Available now via Amazon.co.uk
