In this edition of The Week in Spandex, we look at Thor: Ragnarok, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Animated Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, Black Widow, The Defenders, The Punisher, Jessica Jones, New Warriors, Deadpool 2, Gifted, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Black Adam, Shazam, Green Lantern Corps, Gotham City Sirens, The Batman, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Gotham, Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, Black Lightning, Powerless, Young Justice, The LEGO Batman Movie, Flashpoint, Watchmen and more…
Marvel Studios hit us with a huge surprise this week, dropping the very first trailer and poster for director Taika Waititi’s Phase Three threequel Thor: Ragnarok, and as I’m sure most of you will agree – it was rather fantastic indeed (so much so that The Flickering Myth Reaction to the trailer is probably the most positive its ever been – read our writers’ thoughts here). The trailer proved to be a huge hit online too, racking up a whopping 136 million views in its first 24 hours, setting a new record both for Marvel Studios and Disney (although that Disney record may not last very long after yesterday’s first trailer for Star Wars: The Last Jedi)…
…Following on from the Ragnarok trailer, more rumour/speculation surfaced that Cate Blanchett’s villain Hela will take on the role of Death in next year’s Avengers: Infinity War. And, on the subject of the big superhero epic, we also got some new set video showing Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch in action, and you can watch that here…
…With the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 fast approaching (less than two weeks UK fans!), Marvel has released a new poster and Chinese trailer and international posters and behind-the-scenes images from the hotly-anticipated sequel, while Vin Diesel has spoken about the challenges of voicing Groot, Kurt Russell has revealed that he doesn’t share any scenes with his Tango & Cash co-star Sylvester Stallone, and Hot Toys has unveiled a batch of promotional images for its 1/6th scale Star-Lord collectible figure…
…Next up after Guardians Vol. 2 is Spider-Man: Homecoming, and this week has brought us some new promo posters featuring Spider-Man and the Vulture, while some screenshots from footage shown in Tokyo have confirmed that the Daily Bugle will get a mention in the film (the same source is also reporting that Angourie Rice is portraying Gwen Stacy rather than Betty Brant), and Tom Holland discussed Spidey’s suit upgrades and gizmos, stating that: “My favorite gizmo that the suit has — there’s a very funny sequence in the movie because of something that he can do with his vision in the suit. He can sort of alter what he sees and how he sees things, and it’s really funny to see. It’s almost like the first time that you play a video game and the controls are all funny, and it’s really funny seeing him look like a badass, but inside panic and really … not know what to do…”
…Sticking with Spider-Man and Sony has announced the first casting for its 2018 animated feature, with The Get Down‘s Shameik Moore set to voice Miles Morales and Ray Donovan‘s Liev Schreiber cast as the villain, whose identity is being kept under wraps…
…The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 director Marc Webb has reflected on his time with the web-slinger, stating that: “It’s hard for me to think about it, in terms of regrets. There are so many things that I’m proud of. There was an ambition with the second movie, in particular. The idea that it’s a superhero that can’t save everybody is something that I’m really proud of. I’m really proud of the ambition of that because it’s an important message, and I believe in that. I believe in what we were after. They’re really, really difficult movies to make. They’re complex in ways that people don’t fully understand. They weren’t disasters. But in terms of regrets, I don’t think of it in those terms. I felt really, really fortunate to have that opportunity. That’s a whole other long, in-depth conversation that I probably shouldn’t have publicly. I loved everybody involved. I really did. I didn’t have an adversarial relationship with the studio, at all. There were a lot of very smart people. These are just incredibly complicated movies to make. I am proud of them, in many ways, and I stand by them. I’m certainly not a victim, in that situation…”
…Brie Larson has been speaking about her upcoming role as Captain Marvel, discussing her interpretation of Carol Danvers and the character’s motivations and abilities: “To be fair, there are a lot of iterations of her, so there’s going to be some people there who think this isn’t right,” said Larson. “She’s a believer in truth and justice and she is a bridge between Earth and space. She’s fighting between the flaws that are within her and all this good that she wants to try and spread and make the world a better place. She can also fly and shoot things out of her hands. And she’s really funny…”
…While Captain Marvel will (finally) mark Marvel’s first female-led superhero movie, Chris Evans believes it’s only a matter of time before Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow gets her own solo movie: “It would really just clean up, wouldn’t it? Scarlett is so good at everything she does. She’s played such a crucial part in the other films. She always makes her presence so felt—even when there are 50 different superheroes running around onscreen. I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens at some point in the future. I’m sure Scarlett would be open to it…”
…Turning to the small screen and you can read Danny Hale’s review of Tuesday’s episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ‘Identity and Change’ here, while also also have a promo and clip from this week’s ‘No Regrets’ [see here and here], along with a synopsis for the following episode ‘All the Madame’s Men’ [see here]. Meanwhile, a report this week has suggested that it’s probable that ABC will give Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. a renewal for season five, while executive producer Jed Whedon has downplayed the possibility of a crossover with the network’s upcoming Inhumans TV series: “Without being able to say anything really about that show, it will have its own world, just as we tried to start our own world. Whether or not there’s a crossover, we will see. Everything is connected, and that’s fun to play with. But the point of our show is to be our show, and we want our fans to be rewarded for watching it without having to watch everything else…”
…In other Inhumans news, it has been announced this week that Chad James Buchanan (Star, Glee, Jane the Virgin) has joined the cast of the show, although his role is being kept under wraps…
…Following on from last week’s premiere reveal date, Marvel has now released a promotional poster for The Defenders which was created by Joe Quesada as a gift for the cast and crew, while some set photos have surfaced showing Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock in his classic Daredevil costume…
…Speaking of classic costumes, the latest set photos from the Daredevil spinoff The Punisher have given us a look at Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle kitted out with his iconic skull logo; check them out here…
…With filming underway on the second season of Jessica Jones, a rumoured casting breakdown has arrived online for four new characters who are said to be joining Krysten Ritter’s Jessica in season two of the Netflix show…
…After placing a series order for New Warriors earlier this month, Freeform’s Karey Burke has revealed that the network is keen to explore solo spinoff possibilities for the team: “The characters they’ve chosen [for New Warriors] are all really singular and could each carry the show that they’re on. They’re bound together as a band of underdogs for as long as we choose with this show but it’s conceptually tailor-made for spinoffs…”
…Click below to continue on for Deadpool 2, Gifted, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Black Adam, Shazam, Green Lantern Corps, Gotham City Sirens, The Batman, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Gotham, Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, Black Lightning, Powerless, Young Justice, The LEGO Batman Movie, Flashpoint, Watchmen and more…
