Comic Book Movies: Hollywood's New Westerns (1 Viewer)

[Rocky F]

"Using several resources that include the Marvel Comics lore, along with the more recent Weapon X graphic novels by Frank Miller, "Wolverine" mixes action with an origin story about how Logan emerged from a barbaric experiment as an indestructible mutant with retractable razor-sharp claws."

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111...goryid=13&cs=1

Does Variety even have a fact checker? "more recent Weapon X graphic novels by Frank Miller?" Frank Miller drew one Wolverine miniseries 25 years ago, which was written by Chris Claremont, but because he's hot in Hollywood right now, Variety drops his name in the article with totally bogus info.
Oh well, a little off topic but I had to rant.

 

[Chuck Mayer]

Now I'm actually excited for Wolverine (I skipped X3, if someone wants to gauge my current interest). Terry, didn't they already tentatively have a director? Who, frankly, sucked? I guess Fox is happy with Rendition, to hand a tentpole hero film to a "indie talent". I think it's thrilling news. The more of these directors they try, the happier I get. This might also be due to Jackman producing.

Anyways...great news!

 

[Paul_Scott]

they should title this Wolverine 4, and go back and re-title the X-men movies Wolverine 1-3, since that's basically what they were anyway.

 

[TerryRL]

Chuck, Fox execs were "in talks" with several directors including D.J. Caruso (fresh from "Disturbia" being a surprise hit) and Len Wiseman (on the heels of taking the studio's fourth Die Hard flick past the $100 million mark), but ultimately it seems to have been star/co-executive producer Hugh Jackman who had a big hand in getting the studio to take a chance on Gavin Hood.

Studio execs have said to have been "wowed" by Hood's upcoming movie "Rendition" (which stars Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, and Meryl Streep). Rumor has it, the reaction the execs had to the early cut of "Rendition" gave everyone confidence that Hood could handle a big "Hollywood" movie like "Wolverine".

I had heard the studio was really close to a deal with Wiseman, but ultimately wanted him back for a fifth Die Hard movie. With the success of that movie, Wiseman now sees himself in demand on various studio lots. Expect him to sign a fat deal for his next movie, whatever it may end up being.

As for Hood, the studio is extremely confident that his name adds a certain prestige to the project (he won the Best Foreign-Language Film Oscar for his genius flick "Tsotsi"), as well as the hope that he'll bring the movie in very fast and on (or under) budget since the studio is bound and determined to have this one ready for a 2008 release.

I think its a great move by the studio and I'm pulling for Hood to deliver a really solid movie. The success of the "Wolverine" and "Magneto" spinoffs will play a major hand in whether or not Fox attempts anymore spinoffs for other X-Men characters, on top of pulling the trigger on a fourth X-Men movie somewhere down the line.

 

[TerryRL]

WB is bringing "Jonah Hex" to the big screen.
http://www.superherohype.com/news.php?id=6050

New Line is moving ahead with its "Y: The Last Man" project as well.
http://www.superherohype.com/news.php?id=6049

 

[Andy Sheets]

Newsarama reported that the team behind Crank is doing this one. Personally, I think they should have let Joe Lansdale have a crack at the script.

 

[TerryRL]

That would've been a solid choice. Lansdale's "Showdown" episode (which featured Hex) from the Batman animated show remains one of my favorites from the series. My biggest fear with "Jonah Hex" is that its going to end up being no better than "Ghost Rider".

With D.J. Caruso set to helm "Y: The Last Man", rumors are already circulating that Shia LaBeouf will be taking the lead. The two last worked together on the surprise hit "Distrubia".

 

[TerryRL]

The Collinder and Latino Review sites are reporting that Oscar-winning director George Miller (the 'Mad Max' trilogy, "Babe", "Happy Feet") is being eyed by WB to helm the JLA ("Justice League of America") feature. If this does turn out to be the case, I think its a great choice and I'd be really amped to see Miller's take on the material.

Collinder goes on to report that the movie will feature Batman, Superman, the Flash, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman. With this movie WB is (obviously) hoping to spin Flash, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman off into their own film franchises should the movie prove to be a big hit. There are also rumors that one of the heroes may end up getting killed in the first movie.

Of course, these should be classified as only rumor at this point, but there is a great deal of movement on the JLA feature. There is still some debate on whether or not JLA will hit theaters before Bryan Singer's next Superman flick, but Brandon Routh (as well as Christian Bale) are slated to appear in the JLA flick.

Looks like team-up flicks are the next wave of big budget superhero movies. We so far have JLA, "The Avengers", "Super Max", and "Teen Titans" to look forward to within the next few years.

 

[Andy Sheets]

Matthew Vaughn to direct Thor. This one will be especially interesting to follow - lots of possible directions to sift through, lots of ways to screw up


The writer did a recent interview in which he basically confirmed that he would be using Lansdale's comics material as his basis.

 

[Cassy_w]

GHOST RIDER was a travesty. FF2 was terrible beyond words. Spider-Man 3 was a big bummer.

I hope IRON MAN reverses the trend.

 

[JonZ]

Regarding Thor, this article is very optimistic, even calling the script brilliant.
My concern is what will be cut for budget reasons.....

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/33633

 

[Jose Martinez]

So which studio has the rights to Thor?

 

[Jason Seaver]

Marvel is doing Thor in-house, with Paramount distributing.

 

[TerryRL]

With "Justice League", DC hopes to put a dent into the current dominance Marvel has in feature film projects (that became hits). The scoreboard of comic book/superhero flicks that performed well at the box office (earning north of the $70 million mark domestically) made by the rival comic companies currently (1978-Present)...

DC
"Superman: The Movie" (1978)
"Superman II" (1981)
"Batman" (1989)
"Batman Returns" (1992)
"Batman Forever" (1995)
"Batman & Robin" (1997)
"Constantine" (2005)
"Batman Begins" (2005)
"V for Vendetta" (2006)
"Superman Returns" (2006)

MARVEL
"Blade" (1998)
"X-Men" (2000)
"Blade II" (2002)
"Spider-Man" (2002)
"Daredevil" (2003)
"X2: X-Men United" (2003)
"Hulk" (2003)
"Spider-Man 2" (2004)
"Fantastic Four" (2005)
"X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006)
"Ghost Rider" (2007)
"Spider-Man 3" (2007)
"Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" (2007)

If "Justice League" is a big hit, it could spawn as many as four other potential franchises for DC and WB. "Aquaman", "The Flash", "Green Lantern", and "Wonder Woman" could end up seeing the light of day as would-be blockbuster movie series. DC also has "Shazam!" (with the likelihood of The Rock starring) and "Teen Titans" also getting ready for their big screen incarnations.

As for Marvel, they have the 'X-Men Origin' series of films getting ready to go before cameras. The first two films will focus on Wolverine and Magneto, and if both are big hits expect to see more 'Origin' flicks going before cameras for Fox, as well as the possibility for another 'X-Men' movie focusing on the younger team members (i.e. Iceman, Kitty Pryde, Colossus, Angel, and Gambit).

"Iron Man" (Paramount) and "The Incredible Hulk" (Universal) will hit theaters next summer, with "Thor" (Paramount) following in 2009 or 2010. The next trilogy of Spidey flicks is expected to begin in the summer of 2010. "Captain America" could end up being seen in two franchise launching properties with his own movie as well as "The Avengers", which Paramount hopes will fill that void left by 'X-Men'. One of these two projects should hit theaters in 2010.

UPCOMING DC
"The Dark Knight" (2008)
"The Green Hornet" (2009
"Justice League" (2009)
"Shazam!" (2009)
"The Spirit" (2009)
"Watchmen" (2009)
"Superman: The Man of Steel" (2010)
"Teen Titans" (2010)
"Batman: Shadow of the Bat" (rumored title/2011)

DC IN-DEVELOPMENT BUT NO DATES
"Justice League 2"
"Justice League 3"
"Aquaman"
"The Flash"
"Green Lantern"
"The Losers"
"Ronin"
"Wonder Woman"
"Y: The Last Man"

UPCOMING MARVEL
"Iron Man" (2008)
"The Incredible Hulk" (2008)
"Punisher: War Zone" (2009)
"Thor" (2009)
"X-Men Origins: Wolverine" (2009)
"X-Men Origins: Magneto" (2009)
"The Amazing Spider-Man" (rumored title/2010)
"Namor: The Sub-Mariner" (2010)

MARVEL IN-DEVELOPMENT BUT NO DATES
"Ant-Man"
"The Avengers"
"Black Panther"
"Captain America"
"Fantastic Four 3"
"Ghost Rider 2"
"Hulk 3"
"Iron Fist"
"Iron Man 2"
"Luke Cage"
"Nick Fury"
"Silver Surfer"
"The Spectacular Spider-Man" (rumored title)
"Web of Spider-Man" (rumored title)

 

[Andy Sheets]

What happened to Edgar Wright's Ant-Man? I have to admit, the more I think about it, the more that one's the superhero flick in which I'm most interested.

 

[TerryRL]

I totally forgot to add it.

Anywho, I had heard rumors that Wright was having budget issues with the studio and ordered some script revisions. The movie will be very much an action/adventure flick, but with healthy doses of comedy throughout.

Everyone involved is hoping to get this one off the ground "soon", but it may not begin shooting until after the strike is over.

 

[JonZ]

Concerning the JL movie, a casting session happened recently,with the main focus being on finding The Flash and Wonder Woman.

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/34488

 

[TerryRL]

Expect WB to make an announcement very soon regarding the cast. Rumors suggest that the full cast will be revealed within the next few weeks. Director George Miller has seen virtually every twentysomething (and a handful of thirtysomethings) actor and actress in Tinseltown for the various roles in the movie.

JL is expected to begin shooting in February.

 

[TerryRL]

DC and WB are full steam ahead with their plans to use "Justice League" as a launching pad for other superhero franchises. Last week it was announced that director David Dobkin ("Shanghai Knights", "Wedding Crashers", "Fred Claus") will be helming the upcoming "Flash" feature. The film will be a direct spin-off from JL.

Today, Variety revealed that television director Greg Berlanti ("Brothers & Sisters", "Dawson's Creek", "Dirty Sexy Money", "Everwood", and "Jack & Bobby") will be helming the upcoming "Green Lantern" feature, which will also likely be a direct spin-off from JL. Berlanti will also co-write the script with Marc Guggenheim (co-writer for ABC's popular "Brothers & Sisters") and Michael Green (co-executive producer of NBC's hit series "Heroes"). Don't be surprised if DC and WB soon have directors attached to a "Wonder Woman" feature as well.

"Justice League" will be the first of a trilogy of JL adventures that will introduce new heroes each outing. DC and WB are also currently looking for writers for the upcoming "Superman: The Man of Steel" adventure as well, which may or may not be directed by Bryan Singer.

Word-around-the-campfire is that WB wants to do with Superman what Universal is doing with Hulk (i.e. start a new franchise separate from the previous film).

 

[TerryRL]

An official announcement for the full cast is expected next week, but here is who WB is believed to have hired thus far.

Adam Brody as Wally West/The Flash #2

Common as Jon Stewart/Green Lantern

Scott Porter as Clark Kent/Superman

Teresa Palmer as Talia al Guhl

Rumor has it that Michael Gough will be reprising the role of the loyal butler Alfred from the two Tim Burton 'Batman' flicks. Many now believe Michael Keaton will return as Batman. I seriously doubt this since WB wants every member of the team to be "twentysomething" so they can appear in future installments.

Next week expect to find out who Oscar-winner George Miller cast in the roles of Aquaman, Batman, The Flash #1 (Barry Allen), Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, and villain Maxwell Lord. We should also hear who Miller hired to fill the role of Iris Allen as well (Barry's wife).

Nothing will be official until the announcement next week, but this is where we stand so far. The movie begins shooting this spring and will hit theaters in the summer of 2009.