Author: Wade Gum

Warren Ellis Leaving ‘Thunderbolts’

Warren Ellis Leaving ‘Thunderbolts’

Newsarama reports that Warren Ellis will be leaving Marvel’s Thunderbolts with issue #121.

Ellis spoke about his decision to leave the title on his Whitechapel message board:

It’s as simple as this — if I don’t own it, I’m not going to spend my life on it. Joe Quesada and Dan Buckley know that, they’re fine with that, and they hire me on that understanding.

Or, if you like: you can only paint someone else’s house for so long before you start thinking that it might be nice to own your own house one day.

I’m okay with painting other people’s houses for short periods, because I’m good at it and it pays well and on nice days it’s fun. But I never ever confuse painting a house for owning that house. And if I spent every waking hour painting other people’s houses, I wouldn’t be able to build houses of my own.

The more creators who only took on housepainting as a part-time gig, the healthier this medium would be.

Christos Gage will take over writing duties on the title with #122, beginning a four-part tie-in to Secret Invasion.

 

New Shots of Iron Monger from ‘Iron Man’ Released

New Shots of Iron Monger from ‘Iron Man’ Released

Yahoo Movies has three new pictures of the Iron Monger in action. The Iron Monger is the gigantic metallic villain that ol’ shellhead is forced to do battle with in the upcoming Iron Man movie.

Judging by the size of the Iron Monger, it certainly seems that Tony Stark will have his work cut out for him. Then again, does bigger always equal better? Is it the size of the armor or how you use it?

Iron Man hits theaters on May 2. The film is directed by Jon Favreau and stars Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeff Bridges.

‘Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow” Trailer Debuts

‘Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow” Trailer Debuts

Marvel has released the trailer for the upcoming Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow animated movie. The film follows the children of the original Avengers, who are forced to take up the mantles of their parents in order to battle Ultron and save the world.

A release date for the direct-to-DVD film has not yet been announced, but it is believed the film will debut in the second half of 2008.

Viewers can see a high-resolution version of the trailer at Marvel’s website.

 

Thomas Sangster to Star in ‘Tintin’

Thomas Sangster to Star in ‘Tintin’

The role of the titular character in the upcoming Tintin films has been filled.

The adventure-seeking reporter will be played by 17-year-old Thomas Sangster, a London born actor who appeared in Love Actually and Nanny McPhee.Sangster joins Andy Serkis on the film, who has already been cast as Captain Haddock.

Directors Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson are collaborating on the upcoming Tintin trilogy, which will employ motion capture technology. Spielberg is scheduled to direct the first film in the series, which begins principle photography in September 2008.

 

(via Daily Mail)

 

Pictures of Snake Eyes from ‘G.I. Joe’ Film Revealed

Pictures of Snake Eyes from ‘G.I. Joe’ Film Revealed

Paramount Pictures has released two photos from the upcoming G.I. Joe movie featuring everyone’s favorite mute ninja, Snake Eyes. Full sized versions of the pictures can be found at Superhero Hype.

Fans hoping that the characters in the film will resemble their comic book and cartoon counterparts should be pleased with the classic look that good old Snake Eyes is sporting.

Snake Eyes will reportedly have a large role in the upcoming film. In a recent interview, director Stephen Sommers gave some details about what Snake Eyes will be up to in the movie: 

"He’s the world’s greatest ninja, but he’s also next-generation. He’s not afraid to use a sword one second, and a split-second later he’s pulling out his Glock," Sommers told USA Today. "His chief nemesis is arguably the world’s other great ninja, Storm Shadow. The two grew up together, were blood brothers and now are mortal enemies."

G.I. Joe is scheduled to be released on August 7, 2009. The film stars Ray Park as Snake Eyes, as well as Dennis Quaid, Sienna Miller, Marlon Wayans, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Arnold Vosloo and Christopher Eccleston.

Matthew Vaughn to Direct ‘Kick-Ass’ Movie

Matthew Vaughn to Direct ‘Kick-Ass’ Movie

Mark Millar’s Kick-Ass hasn’t even released its second issue and it’s already supposedly headed to the big screen courtesy of Matthew Vaughn, the director of Layer Cake and Stardust.

Vaughn, who was attached to X-Men: The Last Stand before Brett Ratner took over and who is currently attached to the film adaptation of Thor, will be writing and directing the adaptation of Millar’s latest. Joining him on writing duties will be Jane Goldman, his partner on the Stardust script.

Kick-Ass is the story of 15-year old Dave Lizewski, a dweeby kid who decides to take on the mantle of a superhero despite having absolutely no powers or combat training. Predictably, he gets the crap knocked out of him regularly. The series features art by John Romita Jr. and is published by Marvel’s ICON imprint.

(via AICN)

Michael Cera in Negotiations to Star in ‘Scott Pilgrim’s Little Life’

Michael Cera in Negotiations to Star in ‘Scott Pilgrim’s Little Life’

Scott Pilgrim is an awkward nerd who spends most of his days rocking out, making video game references and battling his new girlfriend’s evil ex-boyfriends.

What better to play Pilgrim than Michael Cera, who has made his name playing awkard nerds in Arrested Development, Superbad and Juno?

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Cera is in final negotiations with Universal Studios to play the titular character in Scott Pilgrim’s Little Life.

The film is being written and directed by Edgar Wright, the director of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, who is also attached to Marvel’s Ant Man movie. The film is based on Bryan Lee O’Malley’s popular series of Scott Pilgrim graphic novels, published by Oni Press.

 

(via SHH)

Iron Man and Wolverine Animated Shows Coming to Nicktoons Network

Iron Man and Wolverine Animated Shows Coming to Nicktoons Network

Iron Man and Wolverine are no strangers when it comes to animation. Both of them have been the stars of animated programs in the past and now both of of them will get a chance to return to the medium thanks to the new popularity afforded to them by upcoming big-budget, live-action films.

Wolverine and the X-Men and Iron Man: The Animated Series will debut in the early part of 2009 with 26 half-hour episodes each on Nicktoons Network.

The plot of Wolverine and the X-Men is as follows:

The story begins as an explosive event shatters the lives of the X-Men and takes away their mentor, Professor X. The beaten heroes, including Beast, Storm, Cyclops and Nightcrawler, walk away from it all but then they are given a rare glimpse into the future, where they see a world in utter ruin … ruled by giant destructive robots. They discover the world has spiraled out of control because the X-Men have given up. So now the most legendary of all X-Men, Wolverine, must take the lead on the ultimate mission — to prevent the world’s destruction — while fending off enemies Magneto and The Brotherhood.

As for Iron Man’s show, the plot roughly follows that of the comics, just with Tony Stark as a teenager instead of a middle-aged alcoholic:

Tony Stark, heir to a billion-dollar corporation, lives a life of luxury, free to pursue his chief interests — seeking extreme thrills, solving scientific mysteries and creating mind-boggling inventions. But everything goes horribly wrong when a tragic accident robs Tony of his father and nearly costs him his own life. Now dependent on his own impressive technology for survival and dedicated to battling corruption, Tony must reconcile the pressure of teenage life with the duties of a Super Hero. Inside his remarkable invention, Tony Stark is geared for high-speed flight, high-tech battles and high-octane adventure! He is Iron Man.

Will a new generation of children tune into to the action packed adventures of Iron Man and Wolverine or will they stick to their precious little anime programs? Only time will tell in this battle to capture young minds and advertising dollars.

 

(via SHH)

Kristen Kreuk to Briefly Return for Eighth Season of ‘Smallville’

Kristen Kreuk to Briefly Return for Eighth Season of ‘Smallville’

ComicMix previously reported that Smallville will be returning for an eighth season on The CW Network, but how many members of the principle cast will stay on board? Michael Rosenbaum (Lex Luthor) has already stated he won’t be returning for any future seasons and now Kristen Kreuk is scaling back her involvement with the show.

Kreuk posted a message on her Facebook account detailing her involvement with Season Eight:

So, I thought I would give those of you curious about Smallville a brief debrief. I am in Bangkok for a few more months. So, no shooting of the Ville for me. I will return for a undetermined, although small, number of episodes in season 8.

I am not really opening up the floor for lots of discussion, because it is not really the place for it. Obviously I have loved my time on the show, but I am equally as thrilled to move on to new endeavors. One of which is very dear to me, and that is GBD [Girls By Design]. So thank you all for your really fabulous support and passion!!! I hope this clears up most of the questions…

At this rate, the eighth season of the show will only feature Clark and Chloe. In other words, it will be a great season.

(via Krypton Site)

‘Manhunter’ to Return in June

‘Manhunter’ to Return in June

DC Comics’ Manhunter was originally cancelled with issue #25 in 2006. After an outpouring of protest from fans, DC resurrected the series for five more issues with the promise of more if the five were successful.

The series did well enough to extend its life, but the hiatus between issue #30 and #31 has been prolonged to say the least. In the meantime, Kate Spencer has been hanging out with the girls from Birds of Prey.

Following up on our DC Nation panel report, the long wait for Manhunter fans is finally over, as the title will resume shipping in June. Marc Andreyko returns as writer with Michael Gaydos serving as artist.

The recent solicitation for the first issue hints at a few of the new situations Kate Spencer will be getting into when Manhunter resumes:

Los Angeles is Manhunter’s town — so when Kate Spencer learns of the disappearance of hundreds of women along the Mexican border, she’s on the case both as law-breaking D.A. and costumed vigilante.

Meanwhile, Kate’s bloodline tie to the JSA returns to haunt her — and it looks like her sidekick’s most notorious supervillain ex-boss is doing the same to him.

Exclusive pages from the forthcoming issue can be viewed at Newsarama.