Screen Rant » thor

Thor: Idris Elba Joins Cast & First Set Report

Kofi Outlaw — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:05:14 +0000

The big-screen adaptation of Marvel’s Thor keeps on making headlines, as today we have news of another choice actor being added to the already impressive cast, as well as unofficial first reports from the Thor set being tweet by some top names over at Marvel.

First the casting news: Thor has added British actor Idris Elba (The Wire, The Office) to the lineup. Elba has reportedly been cast as Heimdall (see pic above), the guardian of the Norse gods who watches over the BiFrost Bridge, a mystical bridge that serves as the link between the realms of Asgard (god-world) and Midgard (Earth).

I love Idris Elba, so this is good news for me and considering that the man is a fast-rising star in the industry, the name/face recognition can only be good for Thor. It seems as though Elba is also trying to stack some serious fanboy cred – the actor is also currently starring in an adaption of DC Comics’ The Losers, alongside Jeffery Dean Morgan (Watchmen) and Zoe Saldana (Avatar). Smart career moves…

With Thor, Elba joins a cast that already includes Stuart Townsend, Ray Stevenson and Tadanobu Asano as The Warriors Three, Chris Hemsworth (Star Trek) as Thor, Natalie Portman as Thor’s human love interest, Jane Foster, Anthony Hopkins as Thor’s father, Odin, Stellan Skarsgård, Colm Feore, Jamie Alexander as Asgardian warrior/love interest, Sif and Tom Hiddleston as Thor’s half-brother/nemesis, Loki.

This cast is almost scary good. Speaks to the level of respect held for Branagh, no doubt.

Speaking of which, Marvel’s Joe Quesada (Editor-In-Chief) and Brian Michael Bendis (Writer, New Avengers) have been letting tweets fly about just how awesome Thor is shaping up to be.

From Quesada’s Twitter page:

I could listen to Branagh talk about Thor all day long. Cast is in place, sets are being built and screenplay is brilliant. Marveldom rules!

And from Bendis’ Twitter page:

Thor movie meeting with Ken branagh was over the top amazing. Visited the sets! I was in Odin’s chamber!…U should get in line for the Thor movie today. Just saying.

Ok so it’s not much of an “official” set report, but it’s pretty freaking cool, nonetheless. Bendis also had this to say to G4 back in October:

“’Thor’ is an extravaganza…The artwork is unbelievable… They flew us all here because Kenneth Branagh wanted to tell us his ‘Thor’ movie and he pitched it live. It was Shakespearean and went on for hours.”

“He wasn’t high-selling it…He is an actor and he just sold it. I looked to Joe [Quesada] and went ‘Isn’t this fun?’ When he was done, we were like ‘Great! You should do that!’

At this point, considering the cast, the praise from the people who would know and the level of prestige attached to his filmography, I can only deduce that Kenneth Branagh is going to truly do something EPIC with Thor. Can’t wait.

How do you feel about Idris Elba being added to the cast (let the “black Norse god” jokes commence…)? How about the first geekgasms from the set?

Thor thunders into theaters on May 20, 2011.

Sources: THR, Twitter & G4

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Stan Lee Talks More About ‘Thor’ Cameo

Scott Miller — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:45:16 +0000

Given his history of cameos, (Iron Man, Spider-Man, Hulk, X-Men, Daredevil, etc.) it’s not exactly shocking that Lee will be getting one in Thor. Here’s what the George Washington of Marvel Comics said to MTV about meeting with the film’s director, four-time Academy Award nominee, Kenneth Branagh:

“I had lunch with Branagh, [who's] the nicest guy in the world as well as the most talented… months ago, when he was first starting on the movie, he said he would get a cameo for me.”

There ya have it. In case you’re insane and want to know exactly when Stan Lee will appear in the background of the film selling hot dogs or whatever, he had this to say to those dogged MTV folks when pressed for details:

“I think he has more important things to think of at the moment with the movie — like who he’s casting in it and how he’s going to film it… But I’m sure they’ll have something for me.”

Lee, Jack Kirby and Larry Lieber are credited with creating the characters in Thor for Marvel Comics, while Ashley Miller, Mark Protosevich and Zack Stentz wrote the screenplay for the film. Miller and Stentz have written for Fringe and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, while Protosevich penned the scripts for I Am Legend and Cell. Thor will star Natalie Portman (who could forget her quirky and endearing turn in Garden State?), Chris Hemsworth (who played a doomed but valiant George Kirk in the beginning of the most recent Star Trek flick) and Anthony Hopkins (who hasn’t needed a past work reference since 1991).

I’m excited to see what a director who’s handled Hamlet and Henry V to great critical acclaim can do with a comic-to-film adaptation. Speaking of the Prince of Denmark, if you haven’t seen Branagh’s version of Hamlet then shame on you. Watch it and you’ll never need to see another film reprisal (and it may show what he has to bring to the table of Thor). Henry V, now that I think about it, isn’t all that dissimilar from Thor either… Both stories follow mighty warriors, at least…

If you want to hear Lee talk about his cameo first-hand – you’re in luck! MTV has shared it with us!

Do you think with his pedigree, Branagh will add depth and dimension to the film? And where do you see Stan Lee fitting into all this?

Thor will roll in on May 20th, 2011.

Source: MTV

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Thor’s Warriors Three Confirmed

Kofi Outlaw — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:01:39 +0000

There’s been a lot of rumor and speculation about which actors would be playing the famous “Warriors Three” in Kenneth Branagh’s upcoming adaptation of Marvel Comic’s Thor. Names ranging from Dominic Cooper to Robert De Niro and Jude Law were once thought to be hovering over the roles of Thor’s buddies in battle, and in the last few hours there’s been rumored word that actors Stuart Townsend (Queen of the Damned), Ray Stevenson (Punisher: War Zone) and Tadanobu Asano (The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi) were going to be playing the trio.

Now we have word direct from Marvel News confirming that indeed, Townsend, Stevenson and Asano are the official picks to play The Warriors Three. So who will be playing whom? Keep reading to find out…

Here’s the breakdown:

The Warriors Three (see header pic above) consist of (clockwise L-R) Fandral, Valstagg and Hogun. Fandral will be played by Townsend, Volstagg by Stevenson and Hogun by Asano. Here’s a quick look at the three actors:

Townsend, Stevenson and Asano.

I know they have to get Stevenson in the big, burly, bearded makeup of Volstagg before he’ll totally ‘look the part,’ but as far as the casting: I think that once again Thor has hit the mark.

So individually it seems like we’ve got some good matches – but how will the three actors gel together onscreen? The Warriors Three are both pretty comical in their banter AND kick-ass in battle – with the exception of Valstagg, who was something of a coward, usually stumbling into victory on luck. Of course, the film could go with the more modern version of Volstagg, who is much more fearless. We’ll see.

So there you have it, The Warriors Three. I for one am good with this.

Townsend, Stevenson and Asano join a cast that includes Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Natalie Portman as the human love interest, Jane Foster, Anthony Hopkins as Thor’s father, Odin, Stellan Skarsgård, Colm Feore, Jamie Alexander as Asgardian warrior/love interest Sif and Tom Hiddleston as Thor’s half-brother/nemesis, Loki.

Sweet cast, sweet director (Branagh) and what is sure to be a sweet script. On my list of upcoming Marvel movies, Thor just keeps on climbing toward top. I can’t wait for the first trailer to bring the thunder…

What do you think about the actors cast as The Warriors Three? Is Thor looking better and better to you, or what?

Thor is slated to hit theaters on May 20, 2011 (not soon enough!)

Source: Marvel News

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Thor Updates: Production Schedule

Rob Keyes — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:51:10 +0000

After the major announcement two weeks ago of Sir Anthony Hopkins signing on to Thor as the title character’s father, Odin, we now have most of the principal characters cast, albeit with a few secrets yet to be revealed.

According to Production Weekly’s Twitter postings, the next Marvel Studios solo character film is nearing the start of principal photography and they’ve hammered down the shooting locations. Check out the details below.

Filming on Marvel’s “Thor” is scheduled to begin in LA mid-January, then move to Santa Fe, New Mexico from March till late-April.

Not only is it great news that my most anticipated Marvel character film is well on its way, but this means that next summer we’ll likely get a Marvel panel presentation (and footage!) for Thor at San Diego Comic-Con. That’s something that I cannot miss, similar to this year’s awesome Iron Man 2 panel which was easily one of the top presentations of the event.

With all of these great and highly positive Thor announcements over the last several months, I still wonder when we’re going to start seeing that for Thor’s Earthbound buddy, Steve Rogers. We still haven’t heard any casting updates on The First Avenger: Captain America but the film is set to release also in summer, 2011 (Along with other major comic book properties Green Lantern, Spider-Man 4 and possibly another X-Men film).

The last we did hear on the Cap front was from Marvel Chief Joe Quesada who revealed that they have a short “wishlist” of actors they want to portray the star-spangled Avenger. Perhaps we’ll get another major announcement over the holiday season?

The film is helmed by Kenneth Branagh and stars Chris Hemsworth as Thor alongside Stellan Skarsgård, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Jaimie Alexander, Colm Feore, and… Stan Lee!

Are you excited knowing that the God of Thunder is coming soon?

Stay tuned for more Thor goodies here at Screen Rant!

Thor opens in theaters May 20, 2011 and I’ll be there. The First Avenger: Captain America is scheduled to open July 22, 2011,

Source: Production Weekly

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Sir Anthony Hopkins Cast as Odin in Thor!?

Rob Keyes — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:20:06 +0000

I guess those rumors of Brian Blessed playing Odin in Marvel Studios’ upcoming Thor movie aren’t coming to fruition. Who needs him when you have a knighted Oscar winner in Sir Anthony Hopkins!

That’s right folks, director Kenneth Branagh as added another huge name and talented actor to his cast of awesomeness. I am pumped.

This movie was already my most anticipated of Marvel’s upcoming slate of solo films leading up to The Avengers, here’s just on more big reason to be excited.

Unlike the rumors of big names like Robert De Niro and Jude Law joining the cast of Thor, this star is confirmed to be in negotiations for the role. Also joining the cast earlier this month is the talented Stellan Skarsgård in addition to the report of Dominic Cooper possibly playing Fandral. If you’re a fan of the Thor comics, Fandral the Dashing is one of “The Warrior’s Three” and his involvement would likely confirm the trio of Asgardian heroes to be in the film as well.

Odin of course is the ruler of Asgard and father of the lead, Thor, the God of Thunder.

It looks like this ensemble cast is coming together very well and I couldn’t be happier with the selections thus far. Starring as Thor is Chris Hemsworth and joining him alongside Mr. Skarsgård are Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Jaimie Alexander, Colm Feore, and… Stan Lee!

What do you think of Anthony Hopkins as Odin?

Stay tuned to Screen Rant for more Marvel news as it comes!

Thor opens in theaters May 20, 2011 and I’ll be there.

Source: Variety

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How Iron Man & Thor Can Play Together In The Avengers

Rob Keyes — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:47:26 +0000

Over the last several months, we’ve heard many industry folk chime in the Marvel Studio’s plan of bringing together their superstar superheroes into one shared project, the most ambitious project in comic book movie history: The Avengers.

From Matthew Vaughn (the original director attached to Thor) admitting his desire to helm The Avengers, Incredible Hulk director Louis Leterrier’s idea of a four-part series of Avengers films to writer Zak Penn’s fear that the epic team-up project is so complicated that it may “suck.” There’s been plenty of talk from the folks behind the cameras about Marvel’s on-screen future, but what about the characters?

One question for the filmmakers has been to figure out how Jon Favreau’s tech-based Iron Man can work together with the mystical Asgardian God of Thunder, Thor? It’s easy in the comic books, but how will they adapt it into live-action and have it make sense? Marvel comic writer Brian Michael Bendis knows it can work – check out his thoughts on The Avengers after the jump.

Brian Bendis is one of the biggest names in the comics industry and is one of the folks responsible for the creation of the Ultimate Marvel Universe. MTV had a chance to speak to the artist and writer and get his thoughts on The Avengers film.

“My advice is, has been, and will be, that much like the comics, you look at movies like the ‘Oceans’ movies that have all these different flavors, you put the flavors together and you cook ‘em… It absolutely can be done.

Look at ‘The Great Escape’ or other movies that have all these big elements to them, and even elements that don’t seem that they would fit can rub up against each other in a very excellent way… They really can create something you wouldn’t even imagine you had before.”

Bendis explained that by bringing in different types of characters to form unexpected teams or partnerships, you can often get something special and amazing out of it. It’s one of his favorite parts of writing team-up books like New Avengers and he gave an example of the relationship formed between Spider-Man and Luke Cage in the books.

“Having read the ‘Captain America’ movie script and the ‘Thor’ movie scripts and ‘Iron Man 2′ and everything, and seeing them all develop, nothing is more exciting to me than the ‘Avengers’ movie… It’s absolutely going to be something better than— different than—anything we’ve seen before.

I think the challenge is absolutely there… It’s an immense amount of work, but the payoff will be gigantic.”

I hope it all plays out right and everyone wins in the end. They’re really banking on Captain America and Thor’s solo outings not only winning over the fans, but bringing in a hefty profit. They can’t really have a weak link bringing down the team (in more ways than one) but I’m confident that because it’s in the hands of Marvel themselves as opposed to another studio, that we’ll all have our wishes come true.

Click to continue reading about Iron Man 2 cameos and The Avengers…

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Dominic Cooper To Play Fandral In Thor?

Rob Keyes — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 02:17:55 +0000

Kyle Buchanan at Movieline interviewed actor Dominic Cooper (The Duchess, Mamma Mia!) not long ago and managed to scoop some interesting information from him about Kenneth Branagh’s upcoming Marvel Studios film based on Marvel’s God of Thunder.

Towards the end of the interview, while talking about the possibility of Mamma Mia! 2, Buchanan noticed Thor script sides beside him and directly asked him if he had auditioned for a role in the Thor movie. After a pause, Cooper revealed that he “kind of” did and questioned back if the interviewer knew of any good Thor roles for him.

Having read what was on the top page (upside down), Buchanan wittingly replied “Fandral, maybe?”

This generated a bit of humor as Cooper looked down at the script sides and said, “You know! You’re looking at these very confidential pages!”

Buchanan then said “I can read upside down, Dominic” to which Cooper laughingly replied “It says “confidential,” Kyle!”

This happened a few weeks ago and no official announcements have been made regarding the character of Fandral or actors Cooper, De Niro or Law. So, we’re still waiting on quite a few Asgardian characters it seems.

Fandral the Dashing, in the Marvel Comics, is a classic romantic swashbuckler. As an Asgardian warrior and adventurer, he is an ally of Thor and has helped combat the evil set forth for Loki on numerous occasions, defending Asgard as a loyal hero.

If Fandral is a character to be featured in the Thor film, we will no doubt also see “The Warrior’s Three,” the group made up of Fandral, alongside Hogun and Volstagg. These characters were invented by Marvel and unlike Thor, are not part of the Norse mythology that this segment of the Marvel Universe is based on.

Might the Warrior’s Three represent the characters that Jude Law and Robert De Niro also play? What about Stellan Skarsgård’s character, which is still secret?

What do you think of who’s playing who?

Thor is hits theaters May 20, 2011.

Source: Movieline

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Stan Lee Talks Iron Man 2 & Thor Cameos

Paul Young — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 23:18:49 +0000

Is there anybody that doesn’t know or respect Stan “The Man” Lee, the official godfather of comics? The octogenarian artist is responsible to bringing many of the comic superheroes that readers have come to love and that movie audiences are now becoming familiar with as well. One of the fun points in the each of the Marvel films is a “Where’s Waldo?” style game that is played with Stan Lee standing in for Waldo.

Starting way back in 2000 with X-Men, he’s appeared in majority of the Marvel Comics-based movies. The one he was most notably missing from is this summer’s blockbuster (financially) X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Steve at Collider had a great interview with him at Scream Fest, where Stan explains that he likes doing the cameos but that they weren’t his idea and doesn’t do them if he has to travel far. Since Wolverine was filmed in Australia, that would explain his absence.

In the upcoming Iron Man sequel, Lee says director Jon Favreau called him up and said “put on these thick black glasses and these suspenders; you’re playing Larry King.” Watch the entire interview after the jump.

Well I for one think having Stan Lee as Odin in Thor would have been cool; maybe not the right casting choice, but still cool in a geeky way. Someone on YouTube has put together all of Lee’s cameos in a video that you can watch below. One thing you will notice is a progression from background cameos to speaking parts and more foreground cameos.

Does anyone remember Stan’s cameo during the television show The Incredible Hulk? He was a juror during a trial with Dr. Bruce Banner on the witness stand. One thing leads to another and Banner “hulks” out and Stan shows up in the scene a couple of times. Unless I’m mistaken, this might have been his first cameo. Watch below scene at YouTube here.

I also love the way Stan Lee is so approachable and friendly. He truly looks and acts like a grown up geek that is just having the time of his life. I can understand a bit of his frustration though about going to Comic Con. He probably wants to just walk around and visit the booths and see what all the young artists have to offer and where the future of comics is heading; but because he has a very recognizable face, that’s hard for him to do.

That being said, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of anyone complaining that he was a rude jerk to them for asking for an autograph or posing for a picture. In fact, our own Rob Keyes got to chat with him at an after-party during this summer’s San Diego Comic-Con and had nothing but great things to see about him. I’m not sure who has the bigger smile -- Stan or Rob.

What do you think Stan Lee’s cameo will be in Thor and do you enjoy looking for them in the Marvel films?

Source: Collider

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Jude Law & Robert De Niro Join Thor Cast?

Rob Keyes — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 12:59:52 +0000

In last two weeks there have been a few additional announcements made for Marvel Studios’ upcoming Thor film. We learned that Stellan Skarsgård, father of Thor candidate Alexander Skarsgård, was cast into the movie but he had to remain tight-lipped about who he was playing. Following that, a pair of open casting calls surfaced that asked for a college student and a bunch of large “fearless” warriors.

So, if you weren’t excited about the cast so far which also includes Chris Hemsworth as the title character, Tom Hiddleston as his nemesis, Natalie Portman, Jaimie Alexander, Colm Feore and possibly Brian Blessed as Odin, you might be more excited now with the following two names possibly added to the cast.

According to actor Matthias Schweighöfer (Valkyrie) in an interview for the German edition of GQ, he reveals that he’s in the running for a role in Thor but that Jude Law and Robert De Niro have also already been cast. Yes, De Niro and Jude Law in one of the next Marvel Superhero epics…

There’s no word on who any of them would play, keeping with the secrecy we’ve seen surrounding many of the characters and the story of the film. Even when they asked Stellan Skarsgård to join, they did so without giving him a script to which he said no unless he got to read one. So, he eventually received a coded script that allows only one printing.

With many of the key characters cast, it’s anyone’s guess as to who Feore, Skarsgård, De Niro, Law and Schweighöfer would play but one thing’s for sure – director Kenneth Branagh sure has an eye for talent, most of which that have a Shakespearean background to match his own.

At first glance, I found it slightly weird to think of these two as part of the cast, but the more I think about it, the more I dig it. They’re both big names and both will help draw in more moviegoers. As for Law, I’m happy to see him back in the limelight now that he’s older. With his role as Watson in Sherlock Holmes this December and now a role in Thor, he’s back big time. De Niro in this movie may be tougher pill to swallow but it’s very believable considering he and Kenneth Branagh worked together on Frankenstein back in the day – Branagh directed that as well and they both acted in it.

What do you think of the possible cast of Thor now? Who do you think these actors could be playing in the film?

Thor begins production next year with a release date of May 20, 2011.

Source: AICN, Ultimate Thor Art by Alex Chun

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Thor Open Casting Call: Want To Go To Asgard?

Rob Keyes — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:38:59 +0000

Of the upcoming slate of solo superhero films in development at Marvel Studios, Thor is the one I’m most excited to see. I believe there’s an opportunity to create something unique and special with this character on screen. Knowing who’s involved and what it will lead to with cross-overs to the other Marvel solo titles and the eventual Avengers team-up film, makes me overjoyed with excitement and anticipation.

Every news item we’ve heard about the project from casting updates, meeting reports and first-hand accounts of the behind-the-scenes happenings have been greatly positive. Many of the key roles have been filled in recent months, including this week’s announcement of Stellan Skarsgård joining the cast. Now, official open casting calls are being announced for small parts in the Thor movie.

The filmmakers are on the hunt for (Asgardian?) warriors and a college student named Marcy Lewis. The latter further confirms that we’ll definitely be seeing at least some Earth-based scenes in the Thor movie, something we first knew for sure upon the casting of Natalie Portman as Jane Foster. Foster plays Donald Blake’s (human) love interest in early Thor comics.

Here are the two casting casting calls released by Marvel Studios.

[WARRIORS]

A fearless warrior race, where size, strength and ferocity define a member’s rank in both the social and military hierarchy. Warriors born in this society face the harshest ecological conditions imaginable and thrive in environments where lesser creatures, including humans, quickly perishes. Theirs is a world created to cull weakness from the universe to ensure their supreme sovereignty spreads across the stars. MUST BE 6′2 OR TALLER, NO BODYBUILDER TYPES. SAG ROLE BUT NO LINES. MUST BE COMFORTABLE WEARING PROSTHETICS.

[MARCY LEWIS]

(20) Is a college student. Aloof, jaded beyond her years, she thought her internship with scientist Kate Spelling would be an easy 6 college credits. However, she’s been stuck for months in this small New Mexico town and relegated to a wide range of unglamorous activities. Kate has been particularly hard on Marcy, making it her personal project to see that Marcy lives up to her potential. Marcy deals with her situation both by using subtle irony and by being an overt wiseass.

Are you a member of the SAG and fit these descriptions? I don’t. What do you draw from these casting calls?

Thor stars Chris Hemsworth as the title character along with a stellar supporting cast including Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Colm Feore, Brian Blessed, Stellan Skarsgård and Jaimie Alexander. It is directed by Kenneth Branagh and is set to begin production next year with a release date of May 20, 2011.

Source: SpoilerTV

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Stellan Skarsgård Joins Thor

Rob Keyes — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:25:16 +0000

Swedish-born Stellan Skarsgård (Pirates of the Caribbean 2 & 3, Angels & Demons) has been added to the cast of Marvel Studios’ Thor film.

Skarsgård joins Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Natalie Portman (Jane Foster), Jaimie Alexander (Sif), Colm Feore and Brian Blessed (Odin).

The actor says he cannot reveal who he’s playing in the film, as with Colm Feore whom we only know will be playing some sort of villain.

The 58 year old actor was initially asked to join the Thor cast without being given a chance to read the script. This was due to Marvel’s efforts to keep plot details secure and secret but that wouldn’t work for Skarsgård.

“They wanted me to sign without reading the script. That I refused to do. Then they sent one to me that was so coded that I could only print one copy.”

What’s ironic about all of this is the fact that Stellan’s son, Alexander Skarsgård (True Blood) was a lead candidate to play the titular role of Thor in this film until Mr. Hemsworth nabbed that spot. He must be jealous of his father now.

Stellan Skarsgård as Cerdic in King Arthur

Kenneth Branagh’s project is coming together well and I am impressed and excited about the cast so far. He continues to add strong talent and actors that fall in line with his Shakespearean roots. Mr. Skarsgård is not new to playing roles in period pieces, having played important characters in King Arthur, Beowulf and Grendel and Pirates of the Caribbean.

What do you think of the cast so far and of Stellan Skarsgård’s addition?

Thor begins production next Spring and hits theaters on May 20, 2011.

Source: Ystads Allehanda (via The Geek Files)

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Poster Friday: New Moon, Caprica, The Crazies & More!

Rob Keyes — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 07:07:42 +0000

Happy Friday everyone! For our first Friday of October 2009, we’ve again gathered the latest posters to come out for this week’s poster round-up.

Screen Rant’s wall this week now includes new one-sheets for The Princess and the Frog, Caprica, The Crazies, The Mechanic, Stone, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, Saw VI, The Twilight Saga’s New Moon and Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant.

In addition to that we have two bonus posters from two major upcoming films that you need to check out! Also, there’s some very creative road sign parody posters of classic films, as well as some older and strange looking posters from Ghana.

Let’s get to it.

To start, here’s another new poster for The Princess and the Frog that looks nearly identical to last week’s The Princess and the Frog poster except for the blue background. Again, note the classic and beautifully hand-drawn art for Disney’s next addition to its 2D library:

Source: IGN

The Princess and the Frog opens December 11, 2009.

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Thor Movie-Based Game In Development

Anthony Ocasio — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:29:22 +0000

Two years ago, Sega signed a deal with Marvel to develop games based on their superhero movies. Since then, we have seen the release of Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Out of the three games that accompanied the film releases, two were horrible (Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk) and one was average (X-Men Origins: Wolverine). Not surprisingly, Sega published two of the three games. I’ll let you figure out which ones they were. (cough – the crappy ones – cough).

With Iron Man 2, Captain America and Thor on the books for both Marvel and Sega, does that mean we, the audience, can look forward to more mediocre games from the fallen Sonic creator or is there a silver lining? Perhaps!

Two days ago, internal Sony documents leaked out on the internet (via Sega’s FTP site) and provided a bevy of information for any parties interested. From confidential meeting notes, plans on launching a PS2 emulator for the PS3, to the release date of their new motion sensing controller (March in Japan); everything seemed to be there. Buried deep within the document held one short, but interesting note.

“Thor
SCEA would like a look at the code soon.”

While that might now seem unimportant, the fact that SCEA (Sony Computer Entertainment of America) is requesting a look at the code means that they’re in the midst of development of the game. With the film not expected until 2011, this gives Sega all the time they would need to develop and test this game and should produce a higher quality game compared to their previous efforts. While 2 years might not sound like a lot of time, the production schedule for the first Iron Man game was listed at 18 months.

Still, I’m cautious with Sega now a-days as they have not had the track record for producing top quality titles. Add that to the rule that games based on movies are almost always horrible and it’s not boding well for Thor.

Still, I’ll give it a chance. Who doesn’t love hitting things with a hammer?

Look for the Thor, movie and game, in 2011.

(I would just like to note that I went this entire post without making any form of MC Hammer reference.)

Source: Edge [via: MTV]

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Thor Cast Adds New Love Interest, New Villain

Kofi Outlaw — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 14:16:29 +0000

The Hollywood Reporter has released the names of two actors who have been added to the cast of Disney/Marvel’s upcoming film adaptation of Thor, which is being directed by the acclaimed Kenneth Branagh and stars Chris Hemsworth (Star Trek) as the titular hero and Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Thor’s nefarious half-brother.

The latest casting news is that actress Jaimie Alexander (Kyle XY) will be playing the role of Sif, a female warrior from the mystical realm of Asgard (land of the Norse gods), who is also one of Thor’s love interests. The other name released was that of Colm Feore (24), who will be playing a yet-unnamed villain in the film.

If you haven’t yet heard what’s in store for the big screen adaptation of Thor, here’s a quick synopsis:

The Mighty Thor is a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down from the mystical realm of Asgard to Earth and is forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

Alexander’s character, Sif, has been the focus of a couple of casting rumors; at one point it was being whispered that actress Jessica Biel was being eyed for the role. Just by the synopsis given above, we can extrapolate that Alexander’s Sif will be Thor’s lover at the start of the film (while The God of Thunder is still happily at home in Asgard). Once Thor is cast down to Earth, we already know his heart will wander toward human nurse Jane Foster, played by Natalie Portman. Cat-fight to ensue.

What’s really got me scratching my head, though, is the question of which “villain” Feore is playing. The man is a great character actor and can be very maniacal when he wants to be – but who do they have him playing (Malekith? Pluto? Seth)? I would totally believe Loki if that part weren’t already cast… Guess I’m just not familiar enough with the Thor mythology to figure it out.

Help from our readers?

Thor is slated to strike theaters on May 20, 2011.

Source: Hollywood Reporter & Leaders Lair

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Jack Kirby’s Estate Sues Disney/Marvel

Paul Young — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:49:41 +0000

In a move the reeks of opportunism and greed, Jack Kirby’s Estate (a.k.a. his family) have hired Intellectual Property Lawyer Marc Toberoff to sue Disney/Marvel, Sony, Universal, 20^th Century Fox and Paramount Pictures in an attempt to reclaim copyright ownership of the characters their late father Jacob Kurtzberg created. You may know his name better as Jack Kirby and you are most familiar with his iconic and highly popular comic book creations, The Fantastic Four, Captain America, the X-Men, Iron Man, Thor, The Hulk and The Silver Surfer.

Thanks to the guys over /Film for sharing this with us and to Rich Johnston at Bleeding Cool and Nikki Finke at Deadline Hollywod who seem to have gotten the drop on this breaking news. This is not the first lawsuit we’ve seen involving a comic book creator’s estate vs. the current owner and publisher; Just recently we reported and discussed WB/DC’s fight with the heirs of Jerry Siegel and Jerry Schuster over the rights to Superman.

The Siegel/Shuster heirs have been successful in their legal pursuit to some degree; they now have full access to Superman’s origins with many thanks going to their superstar lawyer (you guessed it) Marc Toberoff. What they are going to do with the just the origins of Superman remains a mystery to me, because after the countless retellings of Superman’s beginnings, I’m pretty sure we weren’t going to see that story again anytime soon.

Back to Jack Kirby: His Estate is currently suing and sending termination of copyrights notifications to each of the big studios that have involvement with any of characters Kirby created. The rest of this article is background information on Jack Kirby and my own observations and opinions. I am not a copyright lawyer, nor do I claim to have extensive background knowledge on U.S. Copyright Laws; so if you see something I misinterpreted, please enlighten me.

This isn’t the first time Kirby and Marvel haven’t seen eye to eye on things. In a very detailed account over at The Comic Journal, Marvel was in a major dispute with Kirby during much of the 80s, regarding his work from the 60s and 70s. At the end of the day (and after Will Eisner got involved), Marvel reluctantly agreed to give Kirby back 1900 pages of his work. That seems like a lot, but it’s actually less than 25% of what Kirby had done.

Kirby was the first illustrator hired when Jerry Iger and Will Eisner formed Eisner & Iger Studios in the 1930s. Until 1978, when the copyright laws were changed, most if not all of the comic creators hired artists under a “work-for-hire arrangement”. In other words: artists didn’t own the rights to whatever they were paid to draw. The same thing is still done today in other business models – electronics and programming are two of the biggest examples.

When a programmer working for Microsoft writes a new program and it turns into the major code behind a new piece of Microsoft software, that programmer doesn’t own the rights to his code. He was paid by Microsoft to write it and has already been fairly compensated for his time and effort. He doesn’t have the right to sue once that program starts making millions of dollars, just because he is jealous.

I don’t claim to know the copyright laws inside and out, but to me it would seem pretty simple: If Jack Kirby was hired under those aforementioned circumstances, then any characters he created should not be his to own. Sure, he will always get “creative credit” for coming up with them in the first place, but it’s not like he thought them up in his garage and then Marvel came along and stole them in the night. From what I understand, Kirby was paid fairly to create those Marvel characters and without the company publishing his work, he would not have gotten them off the ground. Of course the reverse could be (and likely will be) argued – that Kirby created the most iconic characters in Marvel’s repertoire and without him they would have died a slow comic death.

(Head to pg. 2 to help answer the question, “Why Now?”)

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So Disney Bought Marvel… What Does It All Mean?

Paul Young — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 02:24:08 +0000

To quote the late Queen of Blues, Dinah Washington, “What a Difference a Day Makes.” Just recently all anyone was talking about in the movie industry was whether The Final Destination was in indeed final and if Rob Zombie was done butchering horror films (to answer that last question, NO, he’s trying to tackle The Blob next – and I’m not referring to my first girlfriend from high school). But here we are, just a scant twenty-four hours later and the biggest fish in the marketing sea has just eaten the biggest fish in the comic book sea.

Of course, I’m talking about the news that Walt Disney Co. acquired Marvel Comics, Inc. for the meager sum of $4 billion dollars. It’s a great deal of money, and I don’t care what the nay-sayers out there gripe about, if I owned a prospering business and a mega-company offered to buy me out for an exuberant amount of money, I’d sell too. Heck, I’d go buy a special pen just to sign the papers! Anyone who says otherwise just isn’t being honest with themselves.

Disney C.E.O Roger Iger

Let me start by saying that like most of you, I too thought this was pretty much the end of hardcore Marvel comics, films and cartoons. Disney isn’t exactly synonymous with violence, so at first I can see how this would be a cause for concern. Read this quote from Disney chairman Robert Iger:

“We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation.”

Wait – that didn’t make you put down the Rolaids yet? Try this one:

“The acquisition of Marvel offers us a similar opportunity to advance our strategy to build a business that is stronger than the sum of its parts.”

Still nothing? Well on the conference call with investors shortly after the announcement, Iger said, “I think there’s a phrase, if it ain’t broke.” This is nothing new to anyone familiar with Disney’s business practices. They did not spend this much money just to ruin what they bought. Saying that just because Disney now owns our favorite comic book superheroes it will water them down and ruin them, is like saying you would go out and buy a Rolls Royce and then paint it to look like an ice cream truck just to sell ice cream to kids. Much like the aforementioned high school girlfriend – that’s just plain crazy; and if anything can be said about Disney, it’s that they are not EVER crazy when it comes to a business decision. Want to know the real reason they bought Marvel? Read this statement:

“We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation. The acquisition of Marvel offers us a similar opportunity to advance our strategy and to build a business that is stronger than the sum of its parts. [These shows are] right in the wheelhouse for boys.”

Disney has always struggled to find its place in the world when it came to reaching the teen/young teen male audience. It’s no wonder, because shows like Hannah Montana, The Jonas Brothers and every freakin’ princess movie ever made is geared and marketed towards girls of every age. Disney finally started trying to hit the boy demographic when it started up the TV channel Disney XD, which already shows 20 shows from Marvel’s arsenal, but it was having trouble finding an audience with its current lineup of characters. I don’t think they have that problem anymore. Now, with more than 5,000 characters to choose from, Disney can now move forward with some interesting shows.

Let’s go through a list of possible new ideas Disney could be kicking around:

TV Shows

Besides the obvious fact that we could see many new cartoons on the Disney channel, let’s not forget that Disney purchased ABC a few years back and has had much success with its lineup of shows – or have you forgotten about Lost? This same argument about watered down, kid-friendly, ponies, rainbows and flowers nonsense was floating around back then too. I don’t hear too many people saying that now.

Imagine if you will no more Marvel origin movies in theaters. All of them are now shown on TV running on a regular series and the movies can now focus on just being pure bad ass-ness fun. Does an origin story really need two hours to be told properly or could it just be done in forty-five minute segments over the course of a TV season? Keep the major characters in theaters, Avengers, Thor, Iron Man and such, but now audiences would get the chance to see more of the Marvel Universe and appreciate and enjoy lesser known characters like some many hardcore fans already do. It would also give those lesser characters a chance to build an audience that would potentially follow them to theaters.

Continue Reading ‘So Disney Bought Marvel: What Does It All Mean?’

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Disney Buys Marvel

Paul Young — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:44:45 +0000

OK, so just a few minutes ago Twitter literally exploded with news of a major financial announcement: according to The Associated Press, The Walt Disney Co. will acquire Marvel Entertainment Inc., for $4 billion in cash and stock.

Woah! If you ever wondered how much the Marvel Universe is worth, I think you just found out.

Under the deal Disney will now control and own 5,000 Marvel characters, including Iron Man and Spider-Man. If Marvel shareholders approve the deal, they will receive $30 per share and will also receive .745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own. Both the Disney and Marvel board of directors have approved the deal, but it still has to go through an anti-trust review. I don’t see there being any problem with the anti-trust review nor do I see the marvel shareholders turning up their noses to such a fantastic offer. Most likely, later this week, we should see final word on the resolution of this agreement.

Said Ike Perlmutter, Marvel’s Chief Executive Officer:

“Disney is the perfect home for Marvel`s fantastic library of characters given
its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses…This is an unparalleled
opportunity for Marvel to build upon its vibrant brand and character properties
by accessing Disney`s tremendous global organization and infrastructure around
the world.”

So what does this mean to comic books fans? Well, it could be both very good and very bad at the same time. Let’s look at some quick pros and cons shall we?

Pro – Disney is a universal name with pockets so deep that God’s hand would have a hard time reaching the bottom. Marvel is no slouch either in the household name department – but let’s face it, they are no Disney. All that extra money, means way more marketing and increased traffic within the theme parks (sorry Universal but looks like you might lose the X-Men characters in your parades.)

Con – With movies like Iron Man 2, Spider-man 4, The Incredible Hulk 2, Thor , The Avengers and Captain America on the horizon, what does this mean for their development? Iron Man 2 is already in full swing so I doubt we see any type of delay with that one, but with no other pre-production or principle photography under way on some other films, could we see some eventual delay(s)?

Pro – On the flip side, with Disney having such deep pockets, that means much more available funds to push MORE movies into production. It’s not like Disney is buying Marvel because they were threatened by Marvel’s market share and were trying to buy out the competition. No, Disney bought Marvel to use the property rights, not sit on them. This could mean we start seeing Marvel characters pushed into multiple forms of media. More cartoons, more comics, more live action TV shows and definitely more movies.

Con – We could find ourselves over-saturated with watered down superheroes, quickly written scripts and under produced adaptation that are Disney is just looking to make a quick buck with. They are, after all, trying to re-coup $4 billion dollars of investment. It is distinctly possible that quality could suffer. Hopefully that won’t be the case, because whether Disney knows it or not, they are now under intense scrutiny from one of these largest, if not the largest, fan base in the world.

There are plenty of other pros and cons and we may discuss them in detail later today but for now we thought the news was worthy enough to get to you quickly.

What do you think of this mega-acquisition of Marvel by Disney? Does it make you as apprehensive as me for the future or elated that we may have an enormous opportunity to see more comic films in the future?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Screen Rant will keep you updated as news come out.

[UPDATE: For our analysis of what this could mean for future Marvel movies (and TV shows) check out our follow-up: So Disney Bought Marvel - What Does It All Mean?]

Source: The Globe and Mail

Disney Marvel Logo: Spoiler TV

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Matthew Vaughn Wants to Direct The Avengers

Rob Keyes — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 03:35:51 +0000

Matthew Vaughn, director and producer of the upcoming rated-R comic book adaptation, Kick-Ass, really wants to helm Marvel Studio’s The Avengers movie.

Vaughn, if you remember, was director of X-Men: The Last Stand… for a short while anyway. After he took over for Bryan Singer, he quickly left which opened to door for Brett Ratner to direct the project which in my mind, is the absolute worst of the four X-Men movies.

Looking forward instead of back though, Vaughn now has directed three feature films: Layer Cake, Stardust and now Kick-Ass (which quickly earned itself an American distributor after premiering footage at San Diego Comic-Con.) Now, he wants to do another superhero flick…

In speaking with MTV, he revealed the following desires of his:

“[I'd] love to do ‘The Avengers,’ and Superman… I think it would be great to reinvent Superman.”

Vaughn was attached to direct the Thor solo movie before his contract expired and Branagh was hired to helm the project. The script he and partner Mark Protosevich had written was apparently loved by Marvel Studios but it demanded an insanely high budget that he needed to cut in half (apparently from $300 Million to $150 million).

As for Superman, the current rumor out there is that James McTeigue may direct with the Wachowski Bros. supporting as producers.

On that note, Vaughn also spoke about another Marvel project that he wanted to direct a few years back.

“I was desperate to do ‘Iron Man’ about 8 years ago, and everyone was like, ‘Iron Man, no one will go watch that,’… Cut to now, and it’s a huge hit.”

“I grew up watching superhero films, so I want to make superhero films,”

I admire his passion for the genre and I’m willing to give him control over one of the major Marvel feature films in development. At least that would give him his chance to finally direct the Thor character and hit on his dream of directing Iron Man.

Would you light Vaughn to direct the Superman reboot or The Avengers?

The Avengers is currently scheduled to open May 4, 2012.

Source: MTV

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Marvel’s Avengers According to Louis Leterrier

Rob Keyes — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 02:45:01 +0000

Louis Leterrier, the director behind last year’s The Incredible Hulk, made a lot of headlines in and around the time of its release by hinting at a Captain America cameo in the film as an “easter egg” that never really met our expectations. Now he’s at it again, this time talking about the major upcoming Marvel films, what he knows about them, what he’d like to work on, and what he’d like to do with The Avengers, given the chance.

In a Clash of the Titans set interview, LA Times journalist, Geoff Boucher, sat down with Letterier who wasn’t shy about revealing some of his ideas and thoughts on the upcoming slate of films in development at Marvel Studios. We’ve taken the best bits to discuss and share with you, and then we share what we think could be done with the eagerly anticipated Marvel team-up adventure.

Besides bringing the big Green man back to the silver screen, Leterrier also directed Transporter 2 and is currently working on the Clash of the Titans remake, which stars Sam Worthington (Terminator Salvation, James Cameron’s Avatar). On set for the production of this movie, the cast and director conducted the usual interviews for the press where interview, Geoff Boucher extracted some great tidbits from the Paris-born director.

Only a part of the complete interview has been made available for the moment and luckily, it’s the segment that we’re most interested with: The superhero movie stuff! It begins with talk about the Hulk franchise where Leterrier was asked about his interest in working on the sequel to The Incredible Hulk that Marvel may be interested in developing in the future.

His answer was surprisingly “no.” He explained that he’s contracted to do another film with Marvel and says that when he’s done with Clash of the Titans, he’ll go to Marvel and say “Guys you need me? Is there something I can do?”

From Marvel’s perspective, I’d imagine they’d want him to do the sequel since he already started the rebooted franchise and did a solid job of it. From Leterrier’s perspective though, the movie was surrounded by controversy about Norton’s creative differences with the studio as well as challenges during production. And while it performed decently at the box-office, it wasn’t what some expected and it barely beat out Ang Lee’s version in terms of financial results.

“Hulk was such a challenge. It was to reboot something and follow [the Ang Lee-directed 2003 “Hulk”] movie that was absolutely adored by part of the fan population and then absolutely hated by another part. It was complicated for me. I wasn’t sure what to do with that history. I did my Hulk but it was not easy. If I do another Hulk film it will always be compared to the Ang Lee thing, and my first one … if I come back I’d love to do another superhero, something different that I can really put my touch on.”

So, if Leterrier does direct another Marvel flick, and if it’s not a Hulk sequel… then what could it be?

Of course, The Avengers is brought up next. And of course Leterrier says he’d love to do it.

Here’s where it gets interesting. After explaining some of the films he would and would not like to do (he would have liked to do Iron Man, Captain America and a different Fantastic Four movie but didn’t want to do Thor, even though he’s a fan of the latest Thor comics), he went on to talk about the Captain America movie and his ultimate dream project…

Click to Continue Reading ‘Marvel’s Avengers According to Louis Leterrier’

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Comic-Con: Avengers Roster & Future Marvel Movies

Rob Keyes — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 03:17:36 +0000

Marvel Studios had a big presence at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday by providing fans with one of the most entertaining panels of the event. That presentation was of course, for Jon Favreau’s Iron Man 2, which he delivered to the loyal Hall H residents in full force.

Screen Rant master Vic and I attended the Iron Man 2 panel and were treated to something amazing. But we’ve already talked about that and while you wait for the trailer we saw to eventually come online, you may be wondering what updates there have been for the other more distant films in Marvel’s production queue.

Find the latest on the Avengers team-up film and other Marvel films in development after the jump.

After the panel, more Marvel movie goodies were revealed in some roundtable interviews where Vic was involved. Participating in the interviews were key cast members Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle and Scarlett Johansson, as well as director Jon Favreau and Marvel President of Production, Kevin Feige.

Feige had the most interesting things to say about the Iron Man sequel and the Avengers movie.

According to Feige, Iron Man 2 is not about cramming in too many characters, the cardinal sin of a sequel. He emphasizes that it’s totally Tony Stark’s story and that it’s going to weave into Thor’s story and Steve Rogers’ story and that it already is in Nick Fury’s and SHIELD. This is about Tony Stark glibly declaring “I am Iron Man” and what that means for him and those around him.

Any character franchise that launches must stand on its own two feet. They have to do the same thing with Thor and Captain America so that when the Avengers movie comes, it’s not just a team movie but has characters that you already care about, understand and empathize with.

If a sequel to The Incredible Hulk is ever made, Feige says it will be after the Avengers. I hope by then Marvel is able to increase their feature film financing capacity to be able to produce four big-budget blockbusters a year. Until that happens, I think Hulk is lower priority than other characters who are more worthy of sequels or origins movies.

On that note, later in the roundtable, Feige explained that after the writers strike, Marvel is back on schedule for two films a year (having none this year and only one next year in Iron Man 2). Feige re-iterated that the less the films cost, the more profit they make and the more films they can make.

As for Ed Norton playing Bruce Banner in Avengers, there’s a “chance” according to Feige, but he didn’t sound very positive. For continuity reasons and to really strengthen Marvel’s impact with this film, I personally find it important the Norton have a role in the movie. The Hulk along with Captain America, Iron Man and Thor are key to me and I think those four should comprise the core of the film and its title roster.

In planning Iron Man 2, Feige explained that they were interested in the villains that would enhance Tony’s character. Justin Hammer is who Stark was before he was ambushed in Afghanistan, the other side of his personality is the inventor/grease monkey side and that is represented by Whiplash. Feige says that it’s fun taking a character no one thinks much of and making him cool (Whiplash).

Feige reveals that at the start of the film, Stark is quite pleased with himself, but over the course of the film the stresses of being Iron Man will be demonstrated and become a crucial part of the story.

What other characters could we see in the future? Well, Kevin’s favorites are Dr Strange, Ant-Man, Black Panther and Iron Fist. All of which, without coincidence, have long been speculated as future Marvel movies in development. He also says that he’d like to break into the cosmic part of the Marvel Universe more (Thor will touch on this).

What kind of Thor can we expect? The Kirby/Stan Lee/Simonson Thor. In the Thor film, it’s based in the scientific, not fantasy – it’s simply science we just don’t yet understand or know about.

Head to the following page for more info and updates on the characters we’re likely to see in the Avengers.

Click to continue reading ‘Comic-Con: Avengers Roster & Future Marvel Movies’

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