In this edition of The Week in Spandex, we look at Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel Zombies, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Inhumans, The Defenders, Jessica Jones, Daredevil, The Punisher, New Warriors, Cloak & Dagger, X-Men, Deadpool 2, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Man of Steel, Gotham, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, Powerless, Gotham, Batman and Harley Quinn, Invincible and more…
Marvel Studios will launch its first superhero movie of 2017 in just a few short weeks, and so as you’d expect the marketing push for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is running wild at the moment. As well as confirmation of its PG-13 rating Stateside – for “intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and for some language” – this week has sen the release of a batch of new stills and behind-the-scenes images [see here], a selection of banners featuring Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Rocket and Groot [see here], a new TV spot entitled ‘The Hits Keep Coming’ [see here], a set photo of Drax covered in slime [see here], a Chinese poster [see here], and a LEGO remake of the final trailer [watch it here]…
…In other Guardians-related news, director James Gunn discusses his brother Sean Gunn’s on set motion capture work as Rocket Raccoon, Chris Pratt and Michael Rooker talked about Star-Lord and Yondu’s relationship, and Yondu’s thoughts on Kurt Russell’s Ego the Living Planet, and details on Sylvester Stallone’s mystery role as an “important” Marvel character have seemingly been revealed –find out who he is likely playing here…
…Spider-Man: Homecoming is also fast approaching, and this week has brought us some new behind-the-scenes images [see them here and here], along with a description of the opening scene and details of Spidey’s Jarvis-like AI and Tony Stark’s level of involvement in the film. Meanwhile, Tom Holland has revealed that he’d like to have seen Jason Momoa taking on the role of Kraven the Hunter prior to his casting as Aquaman in the DCEU, while producer Amy Pascal has revealed that it’s unlikely we’ll be seen Norman Osborn / Green Goblin in the MCU reboot of Spider-Man as they are attempting to avoid repeating what’s already came before in the studio’s previous versions of the web-slinger…
…As production continues on Avengers: Infinity War, some new set photos emerged showing Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch on location in Edinburgh [see here], while Karen Gillan shared a behind-the-scenes image of herself in full Nebula make-up alongside Stan Lee (presumably there to shoot his cameo) [see here] and Scarlett Johansson talked about how Black Widow is likely to react to the Guardians of the Galaxy: “Somebody said to me the other day, they were like: ‘Is Black Widow ready for the Guardians of the Galaxy?’” said Johansson. “The last time aliens descended on New York I think my character was like, ‘Alright, I’ve seen it all. I’m good.’ So I don’t even think like a talking tree will faze her at this point. As long as it feels true to me, then this conversation with another character is fine — even if it’s a tree. But certainly, reading the script, the universe has expanded to a point where it just… It’s like incomprehensible at this point. I’m just like, ‘Okay, this is all happening…’”
…Chris Evans has been speaking more about his potential future as Captain America, putting the ball firmly in Marvel’s court: “I’d be lying if I said [moving on] wouldn’t be hard for me. But the passing of time and the passing of torches is part of the experience. Nothing lasts forever. There’s a beauty in that departure, even if it can be sad at times. It’s also joyful. I’ve had a great run. Superheroes are reinventable entities, like Batman or even James Bond. These movies find new incarnations and new ways to tell the story. I am all for it. However they want to proceed after Avengers 4, it’s really up to them. I walk away with no regrets and endlessly thankful…”
…During a promotional interview for his new film Free Fire, British filmmaker Ben Wheatley was asked if he had any interest in taking on a Marvel movie, responding that while it wasn’t necessarily part of his plan, he could be tempted by Marvel Zombies: “I dunno. I don’t really know how those things work. Marvel Zombies hasn’t been done which is what I’m interested in. Maybe that’s a bit too niche. Marvel’s interesting in that it’s kind of a hybrid of cinema and television. A very, very expensive TV show that you buy a pass for every three months…”
…Moving on to the small screen now and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. returned for the remainder of its fourth season this past Tuesday; you can read Danny Hale’s review of ‘What If…’ here, while we’ve also got a selection of new posters and a first-look image of Madame Hydra [see here], a promo, poster and clip for this coming Tuesday’s seventeenth episode ‘Identity and Change’ [see here and here], and a batch of promotional images for the following week’s episode ‘No Regrets’ [see here]…
…ABC also released the first official synopsis for its upcoming Inhumans series ahead of its premiere this September, which reads: “After the Royal Family of Inhumans is splintered by a military coup, they barely escape to Hawaii where their surprising interactions with the lush world and humanity around them may prove to not only save them, but Earth itself…”
…Netflix dropped some big Marvel news this week, releasing a brief viral teaser for The Defenders which sees Daredevil (Charlie Cox), Luke Cage (Mike Colter), Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) and Iron Fist (Finn Jones) riding in an elevator together and reveals that the series will premiere on the streaming service on August 18th; watch the teaser here…
…Netflix has also announced that production on the second season of Jessica Jones has got underway this week in New York City, as well as announcing that Janet McTeer (Tumbleweed) has joined in the cast in a mystery role as someone who has had an enormous impact on Jessica’s life. Meanwhile, Charlie Cox has also confirmed that season three of Daredevil will begin filming later this year, while we also got a few new set photos from The Punisher featuring Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle looking battered and bruised…
…Squirrel Girl is officially heading to the small screen, with Freeform placing a ten-episode order for the half-hour comedy series New Warriors, which is expected to air next year. “Marvel’s New Warriors have always been fan favorites and now particularly with the addition of Squirrel Girl, they are Marvel Television favorites as well,” added Marvel’s Head of Television and Executive Producer Jeph Loeb. “After the amazing experience we’ve had with Freeform on Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger we can’t think of a better place for our young heroes.” As well as ordering New Warriors, it was also confirmed that Freeform’s first Marvel series Cloak & Dagger will enjoy a ten-episode run…
…Click below to continue on for X-Men, Deadpool 2, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Man of Steel, Gotham, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, Powerless, Gotham, Batman and Harley Quinn, Invincible and more…
