…Moving on to the Marvel Cinematic Universe now and with production on Doctor Strange continuing in Nepal, this week has brought us a couple of new set photos featuring Benedict Cumberbatch’s Dr. Stephen Strange alongside a first look at Chiwetel Ejiofor as Baron Mordo, which you can check out here. Meanwhile, there have also been a couple of casting additions, with Amy Landecker (Transparent) and Scott Adkins (The Expendables 2) signing on to the Phase Three franchise launcher in as-yet-unrevealed roles…
…Ant-Man director Peyton Reed has revealed that he’s in final negotiations with Marvel about returning for the 2018 sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp, as well as talking about the significance of The Wasp’s inclusion in the title: “I think one of the appealing things about coming back for a sequel is to be able to build it from the ground up this time. Also, [there’s] stuff that we clearly set up in the first movie that we want to pay off and have fun with in the second movie. Since we know the origins, we can go in some weird, unique and different territory. [The title] just happened to be organic for the characters of Ant-Man and Wasp. It worked. Her last line in the movie — ‘It’s about damn time’ — [is] very much about her specific character and arc in that movie, but it is absolutely about a larger thing. It’s about damn time: We’re going to have a fully realized, very very complicated hero in the next movie who happens to be a woman…”
…In other Ant-Man and the Wasp news, Adam McKay has said that he’s open to returning to script the sequel, while Michael Douglas has revealed that he’s in talks with Marvel about a potential return as Hank Pym: “I just got a call recently – they want to negotiate for a sequel and I thought ‘That’s great!’. Hopefully, I won’t have to carry quite as much expositional dialogue as the first one but I had a wonderful time doing it. Just a great, great time. The cast was fantastic. Paul, Evangeline, Michael Pena – I’m sure he’ll be back. If they can scrape Corey Stoll off the wall, I’m sure they’ll want him too – he’s such a good villain. And Peyton too. It was a lovely experience, so you know, I welcome it. I chuckle about being involved with a movie that already has a release date in 2018… It’s hard to conceive of that, but it’s all good, all the way around, it’s all good…”
…Ahead of the home-entertainment release of Ant-Man this month, a couple of Blu-ray featurettes have arrived online which explore the fight between Ant-Man and Falcon and the creation of the ‘Macroverse’ [see here], while illustrator Andy Park has also posted a couple of alternate costume designs for the shrinking superhero [see here]…
…According to rumours, it looks like Marvel is looking to introduce its first female villain to the big screen side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with a rumour emerging this week suggesting that either Amora the Enchantress or Hela, Queen of the Dead is set to make an appearance in 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok…
…Sienna Miller has become the latest actress to throw her hat into the ring for the role of Carol Danvers in Captain Marvel, even though she has no idea who the character is: “[I’d be interested] if it was a good script. I’m not someone who read a lot of comics and I don’t really know that world particularly well, but it would be quite fun. For my kid, as well…”
…With Jessica Jones set to arrive on Netflix this coming Friday, Luke Owen has been binge-watching the first seven episodes of the series, posting an article on ‘7 Things We Learned from the First Half of Jessica Jones‘, while Marvel has also released a brand new trailer [see here], a new promo image of Krysten Ritter’s Jessica [see here], and a poster featuring Jessica and the villain Kilgrave [see here]…
…In other Marvel TV news, we’ve got a promo and batch of images for this coming Tuesday’s eighth episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., entitled ‘Many Heads, One Tail’ [see here and here], while you can also read Danny Hale’s review of the previous episode ‘Chaos Theory’ here…
…Over at Disney XD and you can take a look at a clip from tonight’s episode of the Guardians of the Galaxy animated series ‘Hitchin’ a Ride’ here, while we’ve also got a clip from Tuesday’s animated special LEGO Marvel Super Heroes: Avengers Reassembled, which you can watch here…
…Turning to Fox’s Marvel properties now and former MMA star Gina Carano has been speaking about her role as Angel Dust in February’s Deadpool movie, while Simon Kinberg has revealed that the second trailer for the X-Men spinoff is set to arrive this December, as well as discussing how the movie fits in with the X-Men timeline: “It takes place within the X-Men universe and references that universe. It’s not the same time period as our past tense X-Men movies, like First Class, Days of Future Past, and Apocalypse take place in the past and Deadpool takes place in the present, but it acknowledges everything that’s happened in those other movies and the universe, and like you said Colossus is in it and other characters from the X-Men world…”
…December will also bring us the first trailer for X-Men: Apocalypse, with Simon Kinberg confirming that it is set to be attached to the hugely-anticipated blockbuster Star Wars: The Force Awakens; meanwhile, Kinberg also talks a little about the movie, and how it will serve as the culmination of the First Class‘trilogy’, as well as introducing a younger generation of mutants: ““I’m super happy with it. We are in the edit working on it, working on the first cut of the film. But it’s really exciting. I’ve said this before and I feel it even more having seen the movie cut together: I do think it will be the biggest of the X-Men films just in terms of the scale and the scope of the movie, and even more the emotional stakes and scope of the film. It has a level of drama and emotion, for all of the characters—I think going into it I assumed this would be the culmination in many ways of this little trilogy we were telling for young Erik, Charles, Mystique, and Beast but I think what was surprising over the span of photography and now into post as well is just how resonant the young Jean, Scott, and Storm stories are too. So I think the movie feels very balanced between—I don’t wanna call them the older generation because they were the younger generation, but the generation of the X-Men from the last few films and the new generation…”
…It looks like Fox has finally found its replacement for Gambit, with Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow) in final talks with the studio about replacing Rupert Wyatt on the Channing Tatum headlined Gambit movie. As yet, there’s be no word on its release date being shifted, with the film still slated to arrive in October 2016…
…Toby Kebbel has broken his silence on this year’s superhero flop Fantastic Four, stating that: “I was disappointed, but the fans aren’t wrong. The fans want what they want to see and if they don’t get satisfaction, they let you know. I appreciate that as a performer. My job is to come in and perform as best I can, and hopefully be directed in that path, and I felt like I was. I felt like the film was going to go well. It didn’t turn out that the fans felt that way, so their reaction is honest, I can only appreciate honesty. I don’t know if I learned anything from [playing] Doom apart from perhaps when I see something I don’t agree with, to voice that immediately. I think it’s important. As an actor, you’re conscious that your career is at stake with each job, especially on these larger productions. A film like that comes out, and I’m being sent maybe four scripts in a week, and those scripts go to zero when it doesn’t come out successful, so that actively affects my career. I think it’s vitally important that if there’s a problem on set, that it’s voiced and we solve it there and I think that collaboration is very important. Not to say that didn’t happen on set, but the collaboration is vital and if we don’t do that, then we suffer…”
…Ant-Man director Peyton Reed – who was previously attached to a Fantastic Four movie prior to the 2005 film – also chipped in with his thoughts on the big screen incarnations of Marvel’s First Family: “Fantastic Four in the comics was always the pinnacle of Marvel, the crown jewel — they were the first family of Marvel Comics. The two existing versions did massive pendulum swings from each other. One was very pitched toward younger kids and very broad, and the second was a much darker version of it. I just personally feel like they have not gotten the tone right. And man, it’s a bummer. I think the tone has got to be one of optimism, and you’ve got to take it seriously. I think they haven’t really gotten Mr. Fantastic’s powers right visually on screen. I think there’s some really badass ways to make that [character] work. I just know there’s a great Fantastic Four movie to be had. I’m convinced that it can work…”
…NBC has released a promo for next Thursday’s midseason finale of Heroes Reborn, entitled ’11:53 to Odessa’ [watch it on our YouTube channel here], while you can also check out Tai Freligh’s review of episode eight ‘June 13 Part Two’ here…
…And finally, it has been announced this week that Sony has snapped up the rights to The Flying Man and is developing a feature based upon the acclaimed sci-fi superhero short, which revolves around a vigilante superhero enacting justice as seen through the eyes of a man about to commit a crime. You can watch the short film here.
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.
