The Latest in Comic Book News

This is almost becoming a daily thing.  We've seen the reports of the other ladies in talks for a female role in Spider-Man 4.  Rachel McAdams said she knew nothing about the rumor involving her.  Yesterday there was talk of Julia Stiles had talked to the casting company involved with the movie.  Now it's time to throw Anne Hathaway into the mix.
 
We'll always have rumors but that doesn't mean there isn't any truth to these.  All that is being said is these ladies have been "in talks."  Part of me does wonder if Sony is just trying to collect their phone numbers, if you know what I mean.  This bit of news comes courtesy of Nikki Finke.  She has some incredible sources and was the one to break the Chris Hemsworth/Thor news.  I'm pretty sure she broke another bit of news but it escapes me at the moment.
 
What her sources tell her is that the producers have approached Hathaway to star in the film.  The question is, for what role?  Are we still talking about Black Cat?  That's never been officially confirmed but it looks likely that Black Cat will appear.  Could Hathaway pull off the role of Black Cat?  I would say she's better suited for the role that Julia Stiles is.  I kind of hate to admit but I just recently saw Get Smart on HBO and she did do a somewhat action-type role.  Question is, what would she look like with white hair?  Probably something like the image to the right.  Hopefully not as pale.
 
We'll see if someone else's name pops up later today or tomorrow.  Again, there's no word that she was approached for Black Cat or if Black Cat is definitely in the movie.  We'll just have to wait and see.  What do you think about Hathaway in Spider-Man 4?

Early last week we heard the news and rumor that Rachel McAdams was a possible contender to play Black Cat in Spider-Man 4.  A couple days later there was talk that actress Romola Garai auditioned for something.  Then we found out that Rachel McAdams apparently didn't know anything about the Black Cat rumor.  The current rumor flying around is Julia Stiles may be a contender.
 
UGO has discovered that Julia Stiles met with a New York casting company to talk about appearing in Spider-Man 4.  There hasn't been any specific details revealed but the speculation points to Stiles playing Black Cat.
 
I wasn't totally sold on McAdams playing Black Cat and I'm almost less convinced Stiles should.  Sure it would be a good career move for her (as pointed out by the UGO writer).  She hasn't had an active lead role like this before and could put her more into the spotlight.  That's also the problem I have, she hasn't done something like this before.  I'm not saying that by not appearing in an action/superhero role would rule her out.  She just doesn't seem like a good fit for Felicia Hardy in my opinion.  If you asked me who I thought would be a better fit, I couldn't really tell you.  Perhaps there isn't a need to have an established actress for the role.  I understand why Sony would want that but no one immediately comes to mind.  For now, I hope this is simply another rumor or perhaps she is trying out for another role.  What are your thoughts?

It's been a while sine we've had any juicy comic book movie rumors.  Mania.com has reported that based on "reliable sources," Rachel McAdams has met with producers for a "major role" in Spider-Man 4.  They're saying that she's a top contender to play Felicia Hardy, aka Black Cat.  How reliable is this?  It's hard to say.  Mania hasn't been known to fabricate news stories for the sake of getting attention.  Felicia Hardy/Black Cat would make purrrr-fect sense.  We've seen the fan-made teaser posters for some time.  Black Cat is a character I think most of us would love to see.  It could add to the Peter Parker problems that he usually faces.  Also, if it takes time away from Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane, I know a few people that would be happy with that.
 
The question still remains who will be the main villain and how many will we have.  Sam Raimi has said he understands that too many is a problem.  We've heard the rumors that perhaps this will be the movie that will have Lizard as the main bad guy.  While Black Cat started out as a sort of villain, she could always walk that fine line between hero and villain.
 
Until we get official confirmation, take this as you will.  My fingers are crossed that we do see Felicia in the movie.  Would McAdams do well as Black Cat?  I'm not sure.  You might recognize her from The Time Traveler's Wife, The Notebook and the upcoming Sherlock Holmes.  I think she could maybe pull it off.  What are your thoughts?  Too good to be true?

Yesterday Market Saw posted on their blog page an 'exclusive' bit of information concerning the future of the Star Wars movies and also 3-D movies.  
 
The big piece is that George Lucas is getting ready to unleash a NEW trilogy of movies upon us.  Not just new movies but new movies in 3-D.  This is a separate notion from the current live action television show (set in between Episodes III & IV).  Apparently Lucas is still considering converting the original films from 2-D to 3-D.  The rumor is Lucas now wants three new movies that he would produce and not direct.  
 
It gets better.  Who would Lucas want to direct these movies?  How about Steven Spielberg?  Along with Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola was mentioned as a possible director for a future film.
 
Now let's think about all of this.  Logistically, how feasible is all of this?  There has been talk of doing 9 and even 12 films in the Star Wars franchise.  Those rumblings were eventually put to rest.  Lucas had stated that after Episode III, he wanted to move on to other things.  I think the problem was he was always so actively involved with his creations.  If another trilogy were to be made, where would it fall in the Star Wars timeline?  As much as I'd love for more movies, I just find it hard to believe this.

We all know that Guy Ritchie is on board for bringing LOBO to the big screen.  Apparently the script is being worked on and they're looking to start filming next year.  The big question is, who could or should play Lobo?  Comics2Film asked one of their sources if there were plans to get a body builder or wrestler to capture Lobo's physique.  They were told that while Lobo has to look a certain way, the actor doesn't necessarily have to.
 
What?  Does this mean that Lobo will be CGI?  Thinking about that brings back flashbacks to the jello-Hulk in Ang Lee's 'movie.'
 
They go on the mention that it could be makeup along with CGI enhancements like in Hellboy.
 
The next question is do you need a big-name actor or just get someone that can act the role?  According to this source, one name keeps popping up.  Clancy Brown.  
 
Do you think Clancy Brown could be right for the role?  What about the previously mentioned Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Comedian from Watchmen)?  Should it be some big dude with muscles?  All CGI? 

It seems weird how the comic book/superhero movies attract the strangest casting rumors.  Just yesterday I posted on Jackie Earle Haley possibly playing Sinestro.  Another rumor that's been flying around this weekend (also coming from AICN) puts Rober DeNiro and Jude Law up for some roles in the Thor movie.  
 
As far as I know, Thor, Odin and Loki have all been cast.  What other major characters could they possibly be up for?  Perhaps it would just be cameos.  The way this rumor started was actor Matthias Schweighöfer (Valkyrie, Red Baron) let it slip in the German edition of Gentlemen's Quarterly.  He says he's up for a role and that DeNiro and Law have already been cast.
 
I believe this is just a big double whopper of a rumor.  Now the question is, can you fault everyone (including myself) for posting this?  New casting news is golden stuff.  The problem with rumors is trying to figure out what could possibly be true and what is made up or mistaken bits of information.  If Gentlemen's Quarterly did report this, how can we ignore it?  I don't really see this as being factual but...you never know.  Apparently Geek Tyrant has already debunked this rumor but there hasn't been any official denial (or confirmation).  I would think that if Matthias Schweighöfer is up for a role (what role could that possible be?), I would think there'd be major nondisclosure clauses signed before even trying out.
 
Do you like movie rumors?  Are they fun to speculate over or do they get you upset?  IF they were cast, what characters do you think they could play?

Here's a bit of news that came out the other day.  AICN has reported a "pretty reliable" rumor from a source that is working on the film.  Martin Campbell is working on finalizing the rest of the cast for the Green Lantern movie (we saw the casting call sheet HERE).  According to the source, Jackie Earle Haley is at the top of the list to play the role of Sinestro.  Haley, as you should know, played Rorschach in the Watchmen movie and will be playing Freddy Krueger in the A Nightmare On Elm Street reboot.  Haley will also be playing the role of "Guerrero" on the Human Target TV show in 2010.
 
Sinestro will have to be played by someone that could help carry the movie.  Sinestro is a character that shouldn't be taken lightly.  Having Jackie Earle Haley play the role could just work.  Since this is still in the rumor stage, all we can do is cross our fingers for now and hope for the best.
 
AICN also mentioned that it looks like the Superman cameo could also happen if DC can get their legal issues straight (the idea of a Superman cameo has been mentioned almost a year ago).  Having another DC character in the movie could help to solidify their 'superhero' universe if they plan on taking any ques from Marvel.  I'm fine with that as long as it makes sense and doesn't overshadow the main characters in the movie.
 
What do you think about Jackie Earle Haley as Sinestro?  Does this get you more excited about the Green Lantern movie?
 

Update:

Apparently Jackie Earle Haley himself has debunked this rumor.  At the Scream Awards he mentioned that he's been hearing about this but doesn't know anything about a role for the movie.  Maybe this could put the idea into the casting director's mind?

  I am unsure of just how much of this I believe and I admit I am reluctant over the news. According to a report from comicbookmovie.com; R&B/pop singer Beyonce will play the role of Wonder Woman in an upcoming film. in a recent press conference the R&B star announced that she would be taking on the role of the iconic comic book character and she has already met with screenwriters Stuart Beatti and David Elliot (GI Joe: Rise of Cobra) as well as director John Moore (Max Payne). If everything goes as planned, filming should start mid 2010 and would be released in late 2011.

News of the pop singer taking on the role of the iconic super-heroine has been circling the web this morning, yet all articles cite one source. I for one am a bit reluctant to believe that comicbookmovie.com were the only ones present at the press conference, which is why I am not taking this very seriously. In the event that the rumors are in fact true, the question remains why would Warner Brothers get the guys that wrote GI Joe to write their Wonder Woman film? How do you guys feel about the prospect of Beyonce as Wonder Woman? If you could get anyone to write and direct the upcoming film, who would it be?

Mark Millar has done some big things at Marvel.  Civil War, Old Man Logan and even Ultimates have all been big successes for Millar and Marvel.  Bleeding Cool reported on Millar's posting at his Millarworld forums:

I’m basically wanting to borrow the family car for a little while, take it on the scariest ride ever and hopefully hand it back in one piece.

Hopefully the fact that this has the potential to be bigger than Civil War will convince him. Here’s hoping as I love this. I just have that crazy good feeling about it when you know you’re onto something big. I knew we had it with Old Man Logan, Kick-Ass and Ultimates and I smell it here. This has the potential to be absolutely crazy.

Apparently Millar is scheduled to meet with Joe Quesada about this today.  It sounds as if Millar is pumping this up himself.  But if he's that confident in his idea, why not?  That kind of enthusiasm is what all writers should have.  Who wants to hear a writer say they're going to do something that will turn out "okay."  The real question is, what could this "family car" be that he wants to borrow?

Back in the beginning of July, Edgar Wright mentioned he still wants to get the Ant-Man movie made.  He is currently working on the Scott Pilgrim movie.  Apparently last week Entertainment Weekly reported that since Disney has bought Marvel, Pixar is interested in making an Ant-Man movie.  Let's pause and think about that for a moment...
 
Okay, ready?  What do you think about the potential of this happening?  Would this be a good thing or a bad thing?  Ant-Man has been talked about for so long.  Because he's not an upper tier character, he's always going to be placed on the back burner.  If Pixar really does want to make this movie, would it change the direction that Edgar Wright had planned?  He had mentioned that his intentions were to make this an action movie with bits of comedy mixed in.  If Pixar ends up making it, would they use his script and ideas or come up with their own?  Would it be changed to be a more family friendly movie?  Would Pixar even want to do this?
 
As mentioned by Rich Johnston, Pixar is known for making their own products.  It's never been their goal to take someone else's property to make a movie.  I just don't see this being the same movie if it was a CG-made movie.  Has Pixar decided to change their philosophy?  Will they decide to make a movie that isn't mainly geared towards kids?  While I'd love to see an Ant-Man movie made, I really can't say if this would be the way I'd want to see it.  I would be curious to see what Pixar could do with Ant-Man but I have to admit part of me would be a little scared.  This is basically one of the fears that a lot of people had after it was announced that Disney bought Marvel.  We do want to see the characters we enjoy made into movies.  We just don't want them all turned into kiddie versions all the time.
 
Since I am completely on the fence over this, what are your thoughts?  Pixar did a great job with The Incredibles.  Would a Pixar-made Ant-Man movie be just as cool?  Would you rather have a CG-made Ant-Man movie made sooner or wait for the live-action version (that might not ever get made)?  If Pixar did make this, I'm pretty sure we can rule out Eric O'Grady being under the ant-helmet.