In this special pre-SDCC edition of The Week in Spandex, we look at Suicide Squad, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Batman, Supergirl, Constantine, Gotham, Powerless, The LEGO Batman Movie, Thor: Ragnarok, Captain America: Civil War, Luke Cage and more…
With the San Diego Comic-Con International kicking off across the Pond today, we’re expecting the customary flood of superhero news, and will be posting a special SDCC edition of The Week in Spandex this coming Monday (or maybe Tuesday, if it takes that long). And so, here’s a quick and abridged round up off all the superhero news since the last regular Saturday edition of TWIS…
…First up is Suicide Squad, which will be showcased as part of Warner Bros.’ big panel on Saturday ahead of its impending release; before then, the studio has given us some new footage to sink our teeth into courtesy of character trailers for Will Smith’s Deadpool [watch it here], Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn [see here] and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller [see here], and we’ve also heard from costume designer Kate Hawley, who revealed that Harley Quinn’s classic court jester suit was made for the film, and could feature. Meanwhile, any young UK fans who were looking forward to the movie may be disappointed to hear that the BBFC has granted it a 15 certificate for “sustained threat and moderate violence”…
…Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition made its way onto Blu-ray in the States yesterday; be sure to check out Tai Freligh’s review of the film and the bonus content here, while Warner Bros. has released a featurette which takes us behind the scenes of the big fight between Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight and Henry Cavill’s Man of Steel [behind], as well as a video exploring Batman’s arsenal [watch it here]. And, to coincide with the home-entertainment release, the folks at Screen Junkies have also given the Honest Trailer treatment to the Zack Snyder-directed DC blockbuster, and you can watch that here…
…Get your pinch of salt at the ready, as we have a new rumour about Ben Affleck’s solo Batman movie, with a report emerging this week which suggests the film will see The Dark Knight locked away in Arkham; I’m skeptical, especially given that Affleck is yet to complete the script, but it certainly does tie in with the previous rumour claiming that “most” of Batman’s Rogue Gallery will make an appearance…
…That leads in to a rather juicy rumour about The Dark Knight potentially joining up with the rest of the DC universe as part of The CW’s Arrowverse. Apparently, The CW has been in touch with Fox about licensing the character (Fox have the rights due to Gotham), but it’s looking rather expensive, and the cost may prove too much unless the Caped Crusader can feature as a series regular across Supergirl, Arrow, The Flash and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, much like the deals signed by John Barrowman and Wentworth Miller. It’s also said that Supergirl will look to introduce the characters of Batwoman and Oracle, while John Wesley Shipp (Jay Garrick) and Matt Ryan (John Constantine) are wanted for Arrowverse-wide series regular deals, and Constantine may even get a new series to fill out the rest of The CW’s week with a Friday night slot…
…In a few other DCTV-related bits and pieces, a new poster has arrived online for the upcoming DC workplace comedy Powerless, former The Walking Dead star Benedict Samuel has nabbed the role of The Mad Hatter in season three of Gotham, LEGO has unveiled its San Diego Comic-Con exclusive Atom minifigure from DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, and we’ve got a couple of copies of Supergirl: The Complete First Season up for grabs in our latest giveaway…
…Suicide Squad and Wonder Woman will take centre stage during Warner’s SDCC panel, but they’ll also be joined by The LEGO Batman Movie, and this week saw the release of a promo featuring Will Arnett’s Caped Crusader announcing his appearance [watch it here], while Arnett has also been speaking in depth about The LEGO Movie spinoff, and you can read his comments here…
…Moving on to Marvel now and director Taika Waititi has been talking about Thor: Ragnarok, and the creative freedom he’s being afforded on the Phase Three threequel: “It’s hard to say what the movie is because it’s changing. The plot has changed and the script has changed. There are buddy elements to it between Thor and the Hulk, but who knows what the final movie will look like. This movie really celebrates that group of misfits who are on the run. There was something exciting about it and I wanted my movie to be exciting and fun. Watching everyone run amok on screen and enjoying themselves is what I wanted to make going into it. I feel like a guest in Marvel’s universe but with the creative freedom to do what I want. I think this is the most different Marvel movie to date and one of the biggest.” Be sure to read the rest of his comments here, where he talks about diversifying his cast with the addition of Creed star Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie…
…Illustrator Andy Park has debuted some concept art from this year’s Captain America: Civil War showing Spider-Man during his battle with Giant-Man [see here], and Marvel has also unveiled its Captain America 75th anniversary bronze statue, which will be on display in San Diego before making its way to Cap’s birthplace of Brooklyn [take a look here]. Meanwhile, fans attending SDCC will also be able to get their hands on some exclusive Mondo artwork for Captain America: The First Avenger and Ant-Man [see here]…
…Marvel and Netflix host their Luke Cage panel at Comic-Con tomorrow, and to whet our appetites a Joe Quesada-illustrated first poster has arrived online [see here] along with a new image of Mike Colter’s Power Man suited and booted [see here]. And in other Defenders news, Hot Toys has released a promotional image for its 1/6th scale Daredevil collectible figure based on Charlie Cox’s Man Without Fear [see here]…
…20th Century Fox might not be showing off any of its upcoming X-verse projects at Comic-Con, but fans will be able to get their hands on a limited edition Deadpool DVD signed by Ryan Reynolds, while anyone pre-ordering X-Men: Apocalypse will also get themselves a copy of the above Dazzler album artwork, while stocks last of course…
…Well, that’s about it. Now for all the Comic-Con goodies! Stay tuned here at Flickering Myth as we’ll be bringing you as much coverage as humanly possible, and do let us know your thoughts on all of the news coming out of San Diego.
Gary Collinson is a writer and lecturer from the North East of England. He is the editor-in-chief of FlickeringMyth.com and the author of Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen.
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