Batman V Superman images previewed in Entertainment Weekly

The paperweight that thinks it is a magazine Entertainment Weekly has premiered some interesting images from the upcoming ‘dukeroo’ between the iconic heroes Batman and Superman. The new images depict the civilian identities of Batman and Wonder Woman (Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince) as well as a fully coiffed Lex Luthor and more.

While I viewed the Man of Steel as a decidedly strong step in the wrong direction, taking the colorful world of DC Comics into a world of muted grays and blues… I want this movie
to be a success.

I also want that Batman V Superman tee director Snyder can spotted wearing on set.

Directed by Zack Snyder with a script by Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice stars Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Jesse Eisenberg and is scheduled for release on March 25th, 2016.

Superman: The Man of Steel full trailer

The last son of a doomed planet, sent to Earth by his parents hoping that he could escape their fate, Superman possesses powers far beyond mortal humans and has vowed to use them to protect the innocent, right that which is wrong and uphold a high moral code. Superman is the dream of the depression era, a hero who can stand up for the little guy in the face of adversity. Over the decades since his creation, his abilities and background have become more influenced by fantasy and science fiction. He can emit heat rays from his eyes, freeze the very air with his breath, see through any barrier (except for lead), bend time as easily as steel and fly faster than any man made craft into unknown dimensions.

After being adapted as a highly successful radio show, animated feature and TV program, Warner Bros. has attempted to adapt Superman for the big screen several times. Next year Superman will be making his biggest leap of all into a realm that he should dominate, the modern motion picture. Movie goers adore Batman, are excited over Spider-Man, wait with baited breath for the next Iron Man, Thor and Captain America flick… but Superman is the biggest and the best of them all.

But will Chris Nolan and Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel movie place Superman atop the pile of superheroic icons that crowd the screen?

Of course most fans of superheroes in film are familiar with the Richard Donner Superman film. His movie in many ways introduced the character to audiences who thought of him as a childhood novelty. Over the course of the three sequels that followed Donner’s movie, the reputation of Superman faded into unintentional comedy. Not long ago, Bryan Singer directed his homage to Donner’s film (and a special Superman II director’s cut that was closer to Donner’s vision was released on DVD). Singer’s film had plenty of skill and heart, but brought nothing new to the table aside from the idea that Superman was a a deadbeat father (awkward). Even so, it’s a good film, but it could have been a GREAT one. Work on a sequel which would introduce Brainiac fell through as a legal battle with the heirs of Superman creator Jerry Seigel got heated.

Comic book creators Mark Waid, Grant Morrison and Mark Millar (and thankfully not Kevin Smith) were brought in to pitch ideas about how to properly revamp Superman, but the studio was handed an ultimatum from the courts in 2009 to go into production by 2011 or pay the Seigel estate.

Desperate to make up for lost time, Warner Bros. contacted Chris Nolan and David Goyer to spearhead a new approach to Superman. The notion was that Nolan would prep the film for the as-yet undecided director. Zack Snyder was drafted for the director’s chair in 2010. Snyder has two visually compelling comic book movies to his service, Frank Miller’s 300 and Watchmen. Composer Hans Zimmer, who was responsible for scoring the Chris Nolan Dark Knight Trilogy will be lending his services to Man of Steel.

The film stars Henry Cavill as Superman and Michael Shannon as the evil General Zod (from the highly popular Superman II) who no doubt leads an armada of spacecraft in an attack on the Earth (seen in the trailer). The theme of the film seems to be to find the humanity in the hero, as emphasized by the emotional scenes where a young Clark Kent wrestles over helping others or remaining a recluse.

To date, the publicity material has given a dark and moody feel to the Superman franchise that fans are unfamiliar with. In fact, this is precisely what many (myself included) were worried about when Nolan, Goyer and Snyder were announced as the architects of this 21st Century version of Superman. The character has been around since 1938 and is viewed by most (if not all) as the epitome of the superhero. However, that concept has gone through many revisions in the past 20 odd years and continues to change with the times. Compare the Richard Donner Superman of 1978 to the X-Men of 2000 and you can witness the studio’s dedication to sell the legitimacy and realism of the superhero to a sophisticated audience. Then you have projects like Blade and the Punisher which hammer the character into an accepted genre. Most recently, Marvel’s Avengers has shown that the superhero film is actually its own genre (at last), so the trepidation to create such a movie should be a thing of the past.

So… why are we seeing a version of Superman who looks more like Batman? Perhaps these are just early glimpses and the finished product will embrace the fantastic origins of Superman. We can but hope.

Superman: The Man of Steel has a 14th of June 2013 premiere date.

Marvel to 20th Century FOX ‘I’ll give you one Daredevil for all of the Fantastic Four’

No matter how much you may want it to be false, the 2005 Daredevil movie was a huge hit for 20th Century Fox (I kinda regard it as a guilty pleasure, but i have problems). The only major stumbling block in proceeding into a sequel was that Ben Affleck was not interested in donning the red leather duds again. 20th Century Fox has been working on revamping the character for the hot comic book movie market, but the movie has been in something of a development hell for ages. But the clock is ticking on the film rights and if the movie is not in the can soon, they will revert back to Marvel.

In a bizarre twist of fate, Marvel is reportedly offering Fox more time to make the DD flick in exchange for the Fantastic Four universe, including the Silver Surfer and Galactus. Could this be the beginning stages of a Fantastic Four reboot?

Or is horn-head on his way back to the House of Ideas (along with the recently re-acquired Punisher)?

All day similar outlets such as this one have been citing a Variety article that states with time running out for 20th Century Fox to retain the film rights for Dardevil, they literally have to start shooting the movie by 10/10/12 before the rights go back to Disney/Marvel Studios. However, their sources are saying that a deal may be struck between Fox chairman Tom Rothman and Marvel to extendDaredevil’s time at Fox beyond the cutoff date. Marvel is offering to give Fox an extension to get its Daredevil reboot in production in exchange for the rights to use characters from the Fantastic Four , including Galactus and the Silver Surfer, who would no doubt be included in future Marvel “Phase Two” movies. The article goes on to report, Fox is in discussions with Joe Carnahan to direct what’s been described as a “Frank Miller-esque, hardcore 70s thriller” take on blind Hell’s Kitchen superhero Matt Murdock — a vision that would deviate from Disney/Marvel’s family-friendly tone. Carnahan has yet to receive an official offer, though multiple sources tell Variety that he’s the choice.

While the exchange doesn’t seem like that far-fetched of an idea, consider this article from Deadline, it seems that Fox may just let Daredevil go back to Marvel:

Reports that Fox and Marvel Studios are going to do some horse-trading with its Fantastic Four franchise to keep Daredevil in the fold were being strenuously denied by studio insiders.

Those insiders said that with Josh Trank aboard to direct, Fantastic Four is a big priority and the studio would be crazy to give away a cornerstone villain. Especially when the studio is very lukewarm about rebooting Daredevil, which focuses on blind lawyer Matt Murdock and his emergence as a crime fighter powered by heightened sensory perception. While Joe Carnahan has come to the studio with a take, it sounds like Fox is ready to let it revert to Disney-owned Marvel, unless Disney is interested in co-financing. That is what the current talks are really about, insiders said.

I believe the latter article is a little more plausible.

–via comics-x-aminer

Fantastic Four re-boot on its way from Chronicle director Josh Trank

The first family of comics, the Fantastic Four was born out of Stan Lee’s frustration as a writer and the steady decline of sales on the science fiction and monster books peddled at street corners by his publisher. Lee’s wife suggested that since things were going down fast anyway, why not write a comic the way he always wanted to? He had nothing to lose, after all.

Despite the superhero boom of the 1940’s, the genre had fallen out of vogue, supplanted by talking animals and humorous titles starring Dobie Gillis and Jerry Lewis. This was largely due in part to the witch hunt started by Fredric Wertham who pinned the degradation of youth to comic books. It hit the medium hard and the Comics Code Authority limited the creativity of the artists and writers. That is, until what is regarded as the Silver Age of comics exploded. In DC Comics, this was reflected by the relaunch of the Flash, across the street at what would become Marvel Comics, it was the arrival of the Fantastic Four.

Dubbed as ‘heroes with problems’ the FF struggled with the bills, finding a parking spot and escaping the press while battling world-threatening entities. It’s common practice now, but at the time the standard practice was to portray superheroes as lantern-jawed do-gooders without a sliver of personality. In sharp contrast, the Marvel superheroes were all personality!

A mixture of science fantasy and superheroics, the Fantastic Four were explorers of the strange and wonderful, themselves transformed into freaks by weird cosmic rays. The unique quality that remains a hallmark of the FF is that they are a family. They argue and disagree, but there is a bond that cannot be broken within the team that makes them special. Artist/writer Jack Kirby is also a large part of the success of the Fantastic Four as his signature style left an indelible mark on comics. The collaboration of Lee and Kirby on the FF is legendary and shaped the future of modern comic books for generations.

Throughout the many years, there have been several different creative teams on the Fantastic Four and different lineups as well (my personal favorites include the John Byrne run and the current Jonathan Hickman series). There have also been cartoons and a pair of motion pictures (unless you count the Roger Corman one and that makes three).

Unlike most, I hardly damn the two Fantastic Four movies as awful, they are lacking some superb quality that should have been evident on screen. Seriously, these movies should have had all the impact of The Avengers and the end result felt thrown together in places, mostly in the portrayal of Doctor Doom. However, the family dynamic, hokey humor and action were well displayed and Michael Chiklis as the Thing was inspired while future Captain America Chris Evans as Johnny Storm nearly stole the show. However, Jessica Alba and Ioan Gruffudd had zero chemistry as Sue Storm and Reed Richards and that’s inexcusable.

Since the Avengers is the third highest grissing movie in the history of film… 20th Century Fox want to give it another try. As Chris Evans stated after the second FF, the films were not major hits but it showed audiences and the studio that such a movie could be done.

Maybe third time is the charm?

‘Chronicle’ director picked for ‘Fantastic Four’ reboot
Via Movies MSN.com
July 12, 2012, 11:15 AM EST
By Brent Lang
TheWrap
Twentieth Century Fox has tapped Josh Trank to spruce up its “Fantastic Four” franchise, a studio spokeswoman told TheWrap.

2004’s “Fantastic Four” (©Twentieth Century Fox)
The 28-year-old director made a big splash last spring with his low-budget feature “Chronicle,” a found-footage film that tracked three high school students with telekinetic abilities.

Made for a mere $12 million (roughly the cost of the bagel and cream cheese budget on “Rise of the Silver Surfer”), “Chronicle” racked up strong critical reviews and $126.6 million at the worldwide box office.

It appears that Fox is taking a page from Warner Bros. and Sony’s strategies for Spider-Man and Batman, by taking an up-and-coming director without a lot of big-budget experience and allowing him to find the heart in a comic book franchise. The first two “Fantastic Four” movies were financially successful, earning over $600 million globally, but the consensus among many fans and critics was that they were loud and dumb.

The Fantastic Four are a superpowered family who routinely save the world but also have to grapple with infighting and jealousy. Now it’s up to Trank to discover the spark that makes them sizzle.

Plans for Captain America and other Avengers post 2012 revealed

I have refrained from posting rumors on Marvel Studios movie news as much of it is very flimsy and based more on what fans want to see than what is actually being produced. But I have collected here some news that I think is worth your time.

May 4th is fast approaching and a special few will be seeing the Avengers movie earlier in select preview screenings. Already, news is circulating on what we can expect to follow the highly anticipated blockbuster. Of all this Summer’s movies, the Avengers has the most pressure on succeeding. I’m actually more excited about The Amazing Spider-Man, but like the comic book version, the Avengers should deliver more bang for your buck by combining four established properties and folding in two relatively new ones.

Think you’re a big enough comic book fan? How about seeing a marathon of all five movies Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger, with the midnight showing of The Avengers rounding out the day as the sixth movie. Yes, six comic book movies in one day… I dunno if even I have done that. AMC theaters across the country sold out the event and at $40 a pop, it was quite a bargain… but imagine what that cinema will smell like by the time Joe Johnston’s Captain America starts.

Assuming that the Avengers gets as much press after it is released than it has for the last two years, Marvel Studios has many ideas on what can follow.

Captain America 2 now has an unusual release date of April 4, 2014. According to the internet rumor mill, it will likely be directed by Joe Johnston which means that the plans he had for a Winter Soldier story line will get junked in favor of some other ideas. There are so many possibilities including the introduction of the Falcon, A.I.M. or Baron Zemo… the options are almost endless.

Marvel and the Walt Disney Studios have announced a release date for Marvel Studios’ sequel to the blockbuster “Captain America: The First Avenger” on April 4, 2014. The second installment will pick-up where the highly anticipated “Marvel’s The Avengers” (May 4, 2012) leaves off, as Steve Rogers continues his affiliation with Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D., and struggles to embrace his role in the modern world.
Chris Evans is currently filming “Snow Piercer” and will

More on Marvel.com

Other Avengers films?

"I dunno... what do you wanna do?"

Of course the third Iron Man film directed by Kiss Kiss Bang Bang’s Shane Black is on its way and a second Thor movie is also in the works(Thor 2 is opening Nov. 15, 2013 and Iron Man 3 is hitting theatres on May 3, 2013), but what next?

There is also an increase in rumors surrounding a Black Widow and Hawkeye solo film or maybe a team-up (not a bad idea). The pair have several similarities and are being featured in the comics and cartoons to a much greater degree. Black Widow is also the focus of the latest trailer… as if we need more trailers for the Avengers.
The Avengers trailer ‘Black Widow interrogation’

If nothing else, the Black Widow and Hawkeye work together in the fantastic Secret Avengers series. The bowman has received heightened attention from Marvel and with such a recognizable name as Jeremy Renner starring as the character, they’d be foolish to not capitalize on him. I’m less of a fan of ScarJo’s frankly wooden Black Widow, but she still has her fans and the skin-tight black catsuit doesn’t hurt.

Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) dash from the crashed Quinjet

I have also heard the very unusual but highly welcome mention of another Hulk movie. As the jade giant is featured so much in the trailers, this is very possible and perhaps Marvel Studios can finally work its magic and create a movie that everyone including the fans and corporate executives are happy with.

With the advent of better special effects and the added clout of Marvel superheroes in film, the Incredible Hulk deserves another chance.

More as it comes.

New Thor TV spot establishes shared Marvel Universe

Since the days of Marvel’s Silver Age, the shared quality of the Marvel Universe has been a major selling point for readers. Opening an issue of the Fantastic Four to see Spider-Man looking for work or even Iron Man appearing in the latest Hulk comic was a real thrill as it cemented in place that these characters all lived in the same reality, something that DC Comics only rarely reflected when their heroes co-starred in their Brave and the Bold series.

It wasn’t just that Iron Man, Hulk, Spider-Man, Thor, Daredevil and Captain America all existed in the same world, but they had opinions on each other and reacted to the other hero’s style and personality. The Fantastic Four’s Thing was constantly harangued by hate mail asking who would win in a fight, him or the Hulk while Spider-Man was regarded largely as a loose cannon by the entire super powered community (except for Sue Storm who was sure a kind and clever person his underneath the webbed mask.

While many of Marvel’s most popular characters are still tied up in legal red tape (such as the X-Men, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and Daredevil) that restrict Marvel Entertainment from using them, it is interesting (and yes, exciting in a nerdy way) to see Iron Man, Hulk and Thor all mentioned on screen in a studio trailer.

(Trailer via TheDailyBlam)

Captain America movie in pre-production

FilmJournal has some very exciting news about the upcoming Captain America: The First Avenger film!

“We’re in prep,” Johnston says. “Rick Heinrichs is production-designing and we’re set up down in Manhattan Beach [California]. It’s the part of the process that I love the most,” he enthuses. “We have eight or ten really talented artists, and we all just sit around all day and draw pictures and say, ‘Hey, wouldn’t it be cool if we could do this?’ It’s that phase of the production where money doesn’t matter: ‘Let’s put all the greatest stuff up on the wall and [then later] see what we can afford.'” The film, he says at this early stage, will begin “in 1942, 1943” during World War II. “The stuff in the ’60s and ’70s [comic books] we’re sort of avoiding. We’re going back to the ’40s, and then forward to what they’re doing with Captain America now.”

For a character dating all the way back to WWII, there is a lot that one can do with this comic book hero. During the 1940’s, he was a national icon synonymous with patriotism and the war effort. When he was revived in the 1960’s he was a man out of time, confused by the world he was brought into yet desperately needed to ‘fight the good fight.’

In the Ultimates universe, the myth was modernized, placing Cap’s revival in a contemporary setting rather than the swinging 60’s. However, the recent Captain America series by Ed Brubaker in many ways has taken a more sophisticated and complex approach in modernizing the character and his place in the world. The Eisner Award-winning series starts with the star spangled Avenger in the midst of a world wide state of terror very similar to our own reality. The series has taken many twists and turns since then (including the death of the first Captain America Steve Rogers and his succession by his former sidekick Bucky Barnes), but it is an excellent inspiration for Johnston’s feature film.

Check back for more as it comes in.

Marvel Movies: Spider-Man in trouble, X-Men back to basics

X-Men: First Class

The original X-Men-Beast, Angel, Cyclops, Ice Man and MarvelGirl

Director Bryan Singer is heading back to his comic book starlets, the X-Men and the plan is to give the mighty mutant movie machine the prequel treatment. The official description of the film tentatively entitled ‘X-Men: First Class’ is:

The story is still in the early stages of development but will deal with the first meeting of Charles Xavier and Magneto and involve the creation of the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning, the school masquerading as the headquarters of the X-Men.

As I have pointed out in the past, the story as of now is that this film will have neither Patrick Stewart nor Ian McKellan as Professor X and Magneto. The idea is to show the two characters as they build their relationship and eventually the School for Gifted Youngsters. X-Men: First Class will likely follow the next Wolverine film will adapt the Frank Miller/Chris Claremont mini-series.

No release date has been announced yet for X-Men: First Class.

Spider-Man 4

This Spider-Man is playing for keeps!

While there is movement for the mutants at 20th Century Fox, trouble is brewing for New York’s favorite webhead. Rumor has it that after Sam Raimi had finally made up his mind about using the Vulture as the next villain in Spider-Man 4 (with actor John Malkovich possibly cast as the winged menace), Sony put the kibosh on the idea and the film is now in a holding pattern. Vulture was intended for Spider-Man 3, with the villain making a jailbreak along with Sandman. The idea was mooted after Sony forced Venom on Raimi and… well.. we all know how that went.

The problem here is that while Spider-Man 3 was the least in keeping with Raimi’s artistic vision, it made lots and lots of money at the box office and DVD sales. This is causing Sony to think that they know best and Raimi is being forced into a place that he does not want to be. This could mean that either Spider-Man 4 will be another situation where Raimi is pushed into a corner where he has to do whatever the studio says or that Raimi will step out of the director’s chair and leave someone else to this mess.

Whatever the case, the May 2011 release date stands.

Ant Man

One of the founding members of the Avengers and capable of commanding the largest force of insects in the world, Ant Man is one of the earliest superheroes in Marvel Comics’ long history. Created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in a short Tales to Astonish story, the character of Hank Pym was initially a one-off scientist who suddenly found himself living amongst the very ants that he studied. In time he graduated to the rank of founding member of the Avengers where rubbed shoulders with the mighty Thor, invincible Iron Man, incredible Hulk and shield-swinging Captain America.

Despite the high prestige that Ant Man has enjoyed, he remains a relatively obscure superhero. That said, he is dominating the comic book/movie rumor mill as Entertainment Weekly theorized a Pixar-helmed Ant Man film in the near-future. As of yet there has been no substance to this supposition and since Pixar is booked up with several projects for the foreseeable future, I doubt that there will be any more news to come of this rumor.

Recently Edgar Wright (co-creator of Spaced, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz) signed on to direct a feature film adaptation of Ant Man with plans to use both the original Ant Man Hank Pym and his successor Scott Lang as the miniature marvel. While the film would have some comedic elements, Wright emphasized that it would not be a spoof. However, the film has become rather locked in stasis with only a statement from Marvel Entertainment President Kevin Feige acting as evidence that it is in development at all.

(update- Edgar Wright and Kevin Feige confirm that Pixar is NOT developing Ant Man)

Hank Pym

Hank Pym- the original Ant Man

The version of Ant Man that is most familiar is the first, Dr Hank Pym. A brilliant scientist who becomes ensnared in his own invention, Pym is reduced to the size of an ant and only barely survives the experience. This was back when Marvel was still Timely Publications and printed mainly sci-fi and horror comics. With the move to the long underwear superhero concept, Pym was re-introduced as the crime-fighter called Ant Man.

The comic book was full of ingenious inventions such as a ‘human rocket’-style mortar that launched Pym into the air. A mound of ants would assemble itself at his destination to cushion his impact upon arrival. Utilizing twin gas cannisters stored on his belt to reduce and return him to regular height, Ant Man retained his full strength and mass when he was ant-sized. As the comic book progressed, Pym encountered a young socialite named Janet Van Dyne who reminded him of his departed wife, killed in Russia for defecting to the US. Mutating Van Dyne so that she too shrunk and grew wings and antennae from her body, he christened her the Wasp. Now a duo, the pair of adventurers shared the spotlight in Tales to Astonish as they ascended to top billing.

After joining the Avengers, Pym continued to work on his formula to the point where he could not only shrink down to Ant Man but also grow to the towering Giant Man. This experimentation had its set-backs, once stalling Pym in his giant form, leading to a third persona called Goliath. A mixture of Reed Richards-level genius and raw power, Pym quickly became his worst enemy when his research took over his life. The creation of the awesome and terrifying Ultron in his Long Island lab nearly destroyed both the Avengers and Pym’s sanity, leading to his drop from visibility in the superhero world.

Swapping his identity a fourth time, Pym resurfaced as Yellow Jacket, a macho and self-confident hero who possessed the guts needed to propose to Janet Van Dyne leading to one of the weirdest in-costume weddings I’ve ever seen.

Desperately attempting to fit in with the big players, Pym lost his cool and struck his wife, leading to one of the most high-profile cases of spousal abuse in comics to date. Kicked out of the Avengers, Pym dropped from the public eye and returned to his role of scientist. Hank Pym has since resumed superheroic duty as the leader of the Mighty Avengers, calling himself the Wasp in order to pay homage to his departed wife Janet Van Dyne (the guy has really lousy luck in love) and now has such ability over dimensions that he has housed the Avengers in a pocket ‘Pym Universe.’

Scott Lang

Electronics expert Scott Lang stole the abandoned Ant Man gear in order to help his ailing daughter Cassie. Upon returning the gear, Pym decided that Lang should keep it and continue to uphold the Ant Man legacy. A talented superhero, Lang seemed to take to the career with greater success than Dr. Pym. Serving alongside the Avengers, Lang built up friendships with Hawkeye in taking down the Taskmaster. Assisting Tony Stark during his search and destroy mission of the Armor Wars, Lang was as useful in costume as he was out when he acted as a technician and consultant. Even to the point of filling in for resident egghead Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four, it seemed that the second Ant Man had found the acceptance in the superhero world that Pym had longed for.

Near the end of the third volume of the Avengers, Lang butted heads with Jack of Hearts, a hero who was forced to spend half of his life in a chamber designed to seep away his excess power. The pair never saw eye to eye and in truth were probably too much alike. In his last adventure, Jack of Hearts sacrificed himself to save Lang’s daughter, finally ending the long-standing feud. One of the many casualties of the Avengers Disassembled disaster caused by the Scarlet Witch, Lang was killed when Jack of Hearts returned to Earth and exploded on the Avengers mansion lawn.

Scott Lang’s daughter Cassie is the latest hero to carry the size-changing mantle as Stature in the Mighty Avengers under Hank Pym.

Eric O’Grady

A low-ranking agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., Eric O’Grady stole a massively revamped and re-tooled version of the Ant Man costume. Looking more like the Tony Stark-designed Spider-Man armor, the latest version of Ant Man has a rocket pack and retractable spider-like robotic limbs. Using his abilities for money and stalking curvaceous superheroes such as Ms Marvel, O’Grady is far from superhero material. The star of the Robert Kirkman (creator of Image Comics’ Invincible and writer of the Marvel MAX Destroyer series) Iredeemable Ant Man series, the latest version of Ant Man is a lewd con man driven more by personal gain than saving lives.

After the events of the Civil War, O’Grady joined the recruits of Camp Hammond where he traded barbs at the deceased Ant Man Scott Lang’s expense with the Taskmaster. Despite his numerous shortcomings, O’Grady proved instrumental in thwarting the Skrull’s attempt to use the Intiative’s resources as a weapon. This unfortunately led to O’Grady being recommended to Norman Osborn’s private task group, the Thunderbolts where he his main goal is bedding team leader Black Widow (Yelena Belova). O’Grady is able to shrink to ant-size, making him ideal for covert ops, but lacks the training necessary to command insects… not that he really cares.

__________________________________________

With the Ant Man movie tentatively slated for 2012, there is still a lot of time where things can change. Perhaps Wright will step down as director and maybe… just maybe… Pixar will produce. But frankly I doubt it. A founding Avenger, a reformed criminal or a depraved opportunist, there are many directions that an Ant Man movie can go in.

We’ll just have to wait and see.

Recommended reading:

Essential  Ant Man
Avengers: World Trust
Irredeemable Ant Man

Rogen’s Green Hornet a go… really

Green Hornet (2010)

Green Hornet and actor Seth Rogen

Columbia Pictures has officially announced that the adaptation of the former radio adventure star the Green Hornet is about to start filming. The cast includes Seth Rogen as the crime fighter Green Hornet, Jay Chou as Kato (the part made famous by Bruce Lee), Edward James Olmos (probably as DA Scanlon in league with the Green Hornet), Cameron Diaz (as secretary Lenore Case), Tom Wilkinson and David Harbour. Nic Cage is in talks about playing a newly created super villain to battle the emerald-clad hero.

Green Hornet (Van Williams) and Kato (Bruce Lee)

I had written about the history of Green Hornet and the film as being in production over two years ago here, as well as my reluctance to accept that Rogen was the right guy to make a film based on this pulp hero. I’ve read that the movie has been in production for 10 years… which makes me very worried about how this character will be treated in the upcoming movie adaptation.

A Green Hornet Primer

His origins in the age of radio adventure in 1936, the Green Hornet exploded on the small screen in the William Dozier TV series in 1966. Released in conjunction with the campy Batman series, many viewers were no doubt confused by the serious nature of the Green Hornet causing it to be canceled after only one year on the air.

A straight-forward pulp only slightly modernized for the swinging 60’s, the program followed the adventures of the scourge of the underworld and public enemy number one of the police, the Green Hornet. Secretly newspaper publisher and socialite Britt Reid, the Green Hornet fought crime with the assistance of his manservant and martial artist Kato along with the assistance of District Attorney Scanlon. Prowling the streets of San Francisco in the rollinf arsenal called the Black Beauty (this thing was a TANK, the Batmobile had nothing on this car), his Hornet’s sting capable of stun rays and emmitting knock-out gas, the Green Hornet often played both sides of villain and hero in order to keep the criminal element in check.

Dashing and handsome Van Williams caused many a female viewer to swoon while Bruce Lee’s dynamic kung fu mesmerized absolutely everyone. The signature tune and fight sequences kept viewers comong back for more but not enough to keep the program on the air. An overseas sensation, the Green Hornet was aired in Bruce Lees’s home of Hong Kong as ‘The Kato Show.’ An enduring program, the Green Hornet may not have been a smash when it was on the air but it is responsible for making enough of an impact that it is still remembered to this day.

Green Hornet Tribute

New film not a comedy… really

With director Michael Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) on board, I honestly cannot say that I know where this film is headed. Rogen has gone on record as stating that his Green Hornet will not be a comedy despite the fact that the chubby comedic actor cuts an unlikely action hero. I’m reminded of the rumors of a Batman movie starring Bill Murray… but at least that is an actor with some range. Rogen… I’m not so sure. The new version of the Black Beauty was on display at this year’s San Diego Comic Con (which confused me to no end since it looks exactly like the old one), revealed by Rogen as a publicity stunt to promote the upcoming film.

Developments are still far too early to make any serious judgements on this movie. In fact it has only just been firmly established that it is definitely going to happen. The film is set for release December 17, 2010.