Black Widow Confirmed For Marvel's CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

The directing duo The Russo Brothers have confirmed during an interview in China that they're indeed bringing back Black Widow for Captain America: Civil War revealing Scarlett Johansson is apart of the cast. An aspect that had yet to be made official by either Marvel or the actress.

I had some concerns that Scarlett Johansson's participation as the lead in Rupert Sanders' Ghost In The Shell could conflict with her taking a role in Civil War. However, this was cleared-up when the release date for Shell was confirmed by Disney for April 2017 giving the actress plenty of time to do both movies. Luckily, both projects are under the Disney umbrella which is likely the reason it's worked-out for Scarlett.

As it stands the cast officially includes Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Scarlett Johansson and Daniel Bruhl in a mysterious role. The assumption being that Daniel could be playing a villain the film which could be Baron Zemo, Baron Mordo or someone else entirely.

Check out the interview with the Russo Brothers below.



If you didn't already know Marvel and Chris Evans are huge in China and the country I'm sure is dying to see more of Captain America.

China's film market has been boosting many films international box office recently, mainly due to the country opening-up theatres to show more western films than previously. It's a market you'll be seeing studios leaning towards setting-up more promotional events and even could reflect a greater representation in the films.

Marvel actually partnered with a Chinese film company for Iron Man 3 which had a Chinese cut of the film that included scenes western audiences never saw.

Chris is also currently the face of Activision's promotional campaign for their China-only game Call of Duty Online. Evans taking the role of the "Hollywood action hero" in the game's very funny live-action trailer.

Badass Digest was the first to suggest her return, while people like myself were a bit concerned she might not make it out of Avengers: Age of Ultron alive. We know in the Ultimates comics Natasha does die and her fate could be paralleled in the films as well. It's looking like she'll be around for a little longer and we're happy to see that since Marvel has a limited amount of female badasses at the moment.

Digest also stated that Cap's lineup of his team is said to include War Machine, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch and The Vision, Falcon and Black Widow. That's not leaving too many people signing-up to side with Stark in this conflict.

I'll be curious to see if Captain Marvel is also apart of the film since it's been suggested she could be on Team Cap at the end of Age of Ultron.

I have my own sneaking suspicions that Ant-Man and Wasp will also be in the film, and could be apart of Team Stark since he doesn't seem to have really anyone and his side at the moment.

Fans disappointed that Black Widow wasn't getting her solo movie should take solace that she'll likely have her origins and solo adventures explored in most of the films she'll be apart of as a supporting character.

An incarnation of a Black Widow film did exist at one time with X-Men and Watchmen writer David Hayter set to write and direct the feature. David even named his daughter after Natasha when she was born during it's development.

This was way before Emily Blunt and Scarlett Johansson were in the mix for the role.

Marvel would partner with Lionsgate on the project, who had handled the two Punisher movies. The two characters were eventually paired-up in the animated feature Avengers Confidential: Black Widow And Punisher.

After the disastrous receptions from Fox's Elektra and Warner Bros' Catwoman, Lionsgate pumped the breaks and pretty much ditched the project entirely fearing that audiences had completely rejected female superheroes and not that the quality of those films were lacking.

This move would be echoed in Hollywood as many studios slowed-down/halted any superhero movies with female leads. It was only just in 2014 that major studios announced plans to make films like Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel as tentpole features. Funny, since it's likely both those films will end-up having budgets twice or triple the size of Hayter's Widow film which was considered a risky amount of money at the time.

Later on, a writer was tasked to update Hayter's script that was Guardians of The Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman. She's come out and said that her contributions were years ago, and had really nothing to the do with the project currently. I have to assume this was likely around the time of Iron Man 2 and the shooting of Avengers, since there was a lot of talk of developing a spin-off around that time.

Kevin Feige, has suggested Marvel currently doesn't have plans to pursue a film focusing on the character but she is integral as a supporting member of the cast for the Phase Three lineup which will be launched by Civil War.

It's possible that the Black Widow film and it's concepts have been folded into Age of Ultron and Civil War. As Marvel has done this previously with their in-development Nick Fury movie which the studio had been considering on making post-Iron Man.

Instead, elements of that film which was basically a cinematic take of the comic Nick Fury Vs S.H.I.E.L.D.  was combined with Ed Brubaker's Winter Soldier comics for the Captain America sequel. The Nick Fury film essentially has vanished and will likely not be happening any time soon. We could see the material from a Black Widow film used to bulk-up other Marvel films which might be the reason behind Kevin Feige's statements hinting she is more useful as a supporting character.

In the two trailers for Age of Ultron we clearly see some flashbacks to Natasha's Russian past, with a shot of her being experimented-on and hints to her past as a ballerina.

Are you excited for more Black Widow?


SOURCE: LATINOREVIEW

Live-Action GHOST IN THE SHELL Movie Lands Spring 2017 Release Date

Disney has lined-up a bunch of new release dates which includes their adaptation of the manga turned anime film/series Ghost In The Shell. The film directed by Snow White And The Huntsman's Rupert Sanders is now set for an April 14th, 2017.

It will be coming out a week after Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim 2.

The manga, anime and series focuses on a covert Japanese police force Section 9, who is mostly made-up of cyborg cops that tackle cyber crime and terrorists in the year 2029.



We actually haven't learned what Disney's plans for their film version of the movie. It's extremely possible that the film could indeed still be set in Japan and take many cues from it's source material.

Scarlett Johansson (Her, Lost In Translation, Under The Skin) has been previously been cast as the film's lead as The Major. This is after a reported $10M offer from the studio to take the role after they passed on Margot Robbie (Wolf of Wall Street, Tarzan, Suicide Squad).

Other sources claim the studio were also looking at Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Lawrence for the role.

This is seemingly a role in Scarlett's wheelhouse with action roles in films such as Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Solider, The Island and last summer's huge success story with Luc Besson's Lucy.

A French film set in Taiwan and France with a mostly foreign supporting cast with a budget of $40M but earning $459M worldwide at the box office.

The film went head-to-head with Dwayne Johnson's Hercules it's opening weekend in the U.S. and managed to squash it. Proving Scarlett is ready to evolve to action heroine, even if Marvel isn't about to give her a Black Widow film.

Her addition to the cast is considered somewhat to controversial to some. Yet, it's unknown what direction the film is going and that is highlighted by the studio not releasing an official synopsis for the film. People are being quick-on-the-draw to claim whitewashing but that's far from the case so far.

Let's be a bit more open-minded.

I personally don't see it that way considering The Major's body is a robotic shell and ethnicity doesn't really come into play here. It's possible the manufacturing company could dictate what her robotic "shell" will look like.

Who is to say the company making the bodies isn't from the west or that in fact The Major is from Japan but has a western background?

It's possible that Scarlett's version of The Major was born or raised in Japan. There is a growing group of western immigrants flooding into Japan. An influx of foreigners do live in Japan a lot of people are ignoring this fact. The increase is due to the alarming birth rate decline as the country has one of the lowest in the world. An aspect that isn't really reflected in the Japanese film industry.

There could be a point where the Japanese will be minority in their own country if they can't get their birth rates up.

Having some non-Japanese on a police force is going to be common place in the future, which is the film's setting since it's 14 years in the future.

I'd also like to point-out that Major's shell does have blue eyes in the original anime film.

I am against Americanizing the film entirely but also open to some slight changes that are likely going to happen when Disney and Hollywood get's involved.

We didn't lose our minds when Edge of Tomorrow changed Tom Cruise's character from Japanese to American or Emily Blunt's Rita from American to British from the original book All You Need Is Kill. That film ended-up becoming a badass adaptation.

Ghost In The Shell is a completely different property than Akira, which is hugely a Japanese story and even has a Japanese title. Shell is slightly different identity and allows for a bit more wiggle-room for a cinematic re-imagining than Akira does.

A science fiction story that mimics fears of too much military power, war mongering and looming nuclear threats to a civilian population. Warner Bros. handling of the film was serious whitewash treatment on all fronts.

The studio searched for actors and actresses about twenty of them for the major roles in the film. Looking at only white actors for roles, not just for one role but all of them.

The location was being moved from Neo Tokyo to Manhattan. Seemingly muting the nuclear holocaust themes that were linked to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. An extremely Japanese aspect essential to the film's story, psyche and identity.

They were even changing a majority of the Japanese names to give them a western spin. Something we don't expect will be the case with the characters in Shell.

I'm also in the belief that since they are hunting international cyber and artificial intelligence terrorists in a global community. We should be seeing an international task-force to combat it but based out of Japan.

Having Scarlett surrounded by a large and talented Japanese cast similar to films like Black Rain and The Wolverine is also very likely. I still believe we're going to be getting a Japanese centric film but it being lead by Scarlett Johansson

I'm not entirely convinced Rupert Sanders is the best director for the job but he did an excellent job on the live-action ads for Halo 3: ODST. Gathering more emotion than the entire runtime of Huntsman. There is some expectation he could bring that edge to Shell. 



We'll being seeing a huge push by the creators to get the word out about the property. As a new untitled anime film is on it's way this summer from the creative team behind the prequel Ghost In The Shell: Arise. I assume the film will eventually make it's way to Netflix like Arise.

They've also developed a first-person shooter game Ghost In The Shell First Connection that looks beyond cool with may land Stateside at some point before the live-action film. I'm hoping the film mixes the design artwork from the original manga/film with this new game.



SOURCE: DISNEY/DREAMWORKS

Scarlett Johansson Confirmed As The Major In Rupert Sanders' GHOST IN THE SHELL Movie

Variety is confirming that Scarlett Johansson has indeed has taken the lead role of The Major in Rupert Sanders' (Snow White And The Huntsman) Ghost In The Shell adaptation. The film is based on the wildly popular anime film and series, which was adapted from a manga. A new first-person-shooter game is also in development, so the franchise has been hinting all media market points. Steven Spielberg who originally obtained the film rights is still listed as a producer, which is good news.

The story revolves on a futuristic Japanese secret police unit of augmented humans and cyborgs. Who are tasked to fight technology based crimes and terrorism with extreme force. Scarlett's character The Major, is a key team leader in the unit.

The actress isn't a stranger to Japan or Asia, as her first breakout role was in Sophia Coppola's Tokyo-set Lost In Translation opposite Bill Murray. Also recently, shooting in Taiwan for Lucy (speaking Korean in the film) and shot in South Korea for Age of Ultron. The understanding is that the film should and will be still set in Japan. As we haven't heard otherwise, considering Scarlett's history with shooting in Asian countries. The assumption is they will be shooting on location in Japan. I have zero doubts we could even see her speaking Japanese in the film.

However, Hollywood has whitewashed and Americanized manga/anime properties before. Warner Bros. famously tried to limit the Japanese influence in their Akira film, looking at all white actors for the leads. Along with moving the setting to Manhattan and not Neo Tokyo. I'm sure this sort of information will be released once the film is officially greenlit.

Scarlett's rise is in-part thanks to her widely beloved role as Marvel's Black Widow in Iron Man 2, Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron. Over the summer her breakout French-produced action hit Lucy made $458.8M on a budget of $40M. Proving the actress has international awareness, not to menion beating Dwayne Johnson's Hercules (a film budgeted over $100M) it's opening weekend (the two films opened the same weekend). The international take in Russia, China and other Asian markets prove that audiences can handle an American actress in a foreign setting.

It's been reported by Deadline the actress was offered $10M for the role. Which would she her acting quote sky-rocket for future film contacts. It's doubtful the notoriously stingy Marvel Studios would be willing to pay her $10M a film, if she only has a supporting role in the cinematic universe. Robert Downey Jr. has figured-out a way to get paid $50M an appearance, but Scarlett isn't as essential to the MCU as Robert is at the moment.

Kevin Feige has since axed all talk about developing a Black Widow spin-off movie, and has confirmed her place is as a supporting character. I'm still unsure if Widow will come out of Age of Ultron alive, as this sort of talk gives the impression they could kill her off before having to draw-up a new and very expensive contract. This looks to be a smart power move on the part of Scarlett who is quickly becoming equally known for her action hero status as her dramatic and indie projects.








SOURCE: VARIETY

Why Paul Rudd And Evangeline Lilly Are Likely Joining The Cast Of CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

It was revealed this week, it's possible the real reason between the split of Marvel and Edgar Wright on the Ant-Man production. The likelihood was due the connectivity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to Edgar's existing script. It's believed that Wright was keen on keeping his characters within his film, along keeping out references and characters from other films. Basically, he wanted to make a Marvel film set-apart from every single Marvel movie since Iron Man. I could see how that would cause massive tension between Edgar and the studio.

I'm unsure if the huge connection between Hank Pym and S.H.I.E.L.D., which is now a key plot point of the film was the main problem or only part of it. It's been confirmed that Agent Carter and Howard Stark will be appearing in the film, to connect Pym to the early days of S.H.I.E.L.D. It's possible he didn't want his film to be a cog in the Avengers machine, which is why they've been kept out of the Avengers films. There's only so long that Marvel could have played that game with Edgar.

We know that this could have been the main reason why both Ant-Man and Wasp were held-back in both Avengers (early storyboards confirm Widow replaced Wasp) and Age of Ultron. The tiny heroes being founding members of the team, along with Pym creating Ultron it all seemed fishy to exclude them from both films. I have a feeling the reason was Edgar wanted to tell the origins within his film, which kept getting delayed due to Wright's other projects and constant script revisions. Now, with Wright out of the picture it looks like at least one of the Ant-Man stories connected to the Avengers can be explored in Captain America: Civil War.

In the comics Hank Pym had a huge role within the Civil War storyline, training meta-human recruits at Camp Hammond. Something I believe was already teased with set photos from Age of Ultron. I wouldn't be overly shocked to see Scott Lang played by Paul Rudd, actually take over this persona along with Pym's daughter Hope played by Evangeline Lilly. Pym used both the personas of Yellow Jacket (will be seen in Ant-Man) and Giant-Man in the Ultimates, so it's possible these could show-up in the films too. We might finally have some heroic characters joining Team Stark.

It should be considered that we've come to expect crossovers with these films, and this Captain America sequel is our last chance for an Avengers-type story until the cosmic epic Infinity War. It's also odd that while we'll be seeing a Guardians sequel, Marvel didn't even mention an Ant-Man sequel as a possibility. Since the cast signed multiple-film contracts it's expected they will appear in a bunch of different movies, without a sequel announced we have to assume they'll show-up in other Marvel movies.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS!!! 

You might be saying to yourselves, hey we've already have plenty of people returning for this Captain America sequel. To tell you the truth, Civil War's story lends itself to a massive cast and we could end-up seeing something even bigger than we've seen previously with Avengers installments. It's also possible Black Panther might be the only new character getting his origin told in the film, leaving enough room for established characters to mingle.

That's unless Marvel does indeed feel the need to include Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel into the lineup. We've heard that Danvers could be a member of Team Cap at the end of Age of Ultron. Again, this film can handle a huge sprawling cast.

The only two that make sense at the moment are Maria Hill who is revealed to be working for Stark Industries at the end of Winter Soldier. Along with Stark's super-science buddy Bruce Banner, who will likely take the side of his best friend. If rumors are to believed via BadassDigest Cap's side will include pretty much everyone else from Age of Ultron. Such as Hawkeye, War Machine, The Vision, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch and even possibly Captain Marvel.

I'm leaving-out both Thor and Black Widow, because we haven't heard how these two could be factoring into the film, it's possible the ending to Age of Ultron will actually explain their fates. I'm actually unsure if Widow survives this installment, due to exclusion in Civil War casting talk.

Not to mention possibly lining-up a starring role in Ghost In The Shell, which will likely keep her out of the production. Her death in Age of Ultron, might also explain why talk of a Black Widow film has been essentially erased lately from the spin-off table. Even when Feige talked about the Widow film recently, he referred to it as a prequel, a clue to Natasha's fate?

I'm sort of thinking Hulk or Ultron ends-up killing Black Widow in Age of Ultron, this shocking event might be enough to spark Civil War. Banner lost control on the helicarrier in Avengers and almost killed Widow once before. Let's not forget Natasha was killed by a team member in the Ultimates comics, and those comics have been influencing these films a lot. She's been revealed to the world and her death could see the government react with the Superhero Registration Act, headed-up by Tony Stark.

If by the hands of Hulk it could also lead to his Planet Hulk banishment that's been rumored for ages now. Pym (or Scott/Hope) might take the place of Dr. Reed Richards in the Illuminati lineup. Since, we'll likely have Doctor Strange, Black Panther and Black Bolt established around Infinity War's release.

In the case of Thor, Age of Ultron reshoots are said to include Idris Elba's Heimdall and Tom Hiddleston's Loki, will likely see Thor too busy with Asgardian affairs to worry about the conflict back on Midgard. I assume these scenes are being shot to setup the events of Thor: Ragnarok, which could be happening during Civil War. The assumption is that Guardians of The Galaxy 2 and Ragnarok, will be planting seeds if not entire plot points for Infinity War Part 1.

Basically, Scott and Hope could fill the void if both Natasha and Thor are being left on the sidelines for this movie. Leading up to the massive all-out galactic threat in Infinity War. It could also be revealed that either Pym, Scott or Hope are secretly Skrulls taking the form of the heroes to spy for Thanos. We've talked about his connection to the Skulls previously, and how Secret Invasion could have Thanos behind it.

Marvel Pulls A Fake-Out And Announces CAPTAIN MARVEL Movie For 2018

Another huge Phase Three announcement was that Captain Marvel is coming July 2018, and she will indeed be Carol Danvers. The comic reboot of the character has been one of the more popular female titles and the super-powered heroine has long been championed to join the Marvel cinematic universe. Marvel's Kevin Feige confirmed that the film has been in development at the studio just as long as Doctor Strange.

"This film has been in the works almost as long as Doctor Strange or Guardians of the Galaxy before it came out, and one of the key things was figuring out what we wanted to do with it. Her adventures are very earthbound, but her powers are based in the cosmic realm.”


Like I've stated dozens of times, Marvel has a draft already in place. However, a new writer and director aren't ready to be announced. Production on the film more than likely won't begin until 2017, they the studio has plenty of time to find a director. There are already rumblings she'll have a cameo in Age of Ultron, this announcement will likely keep that rumor kicking until it's confirmed or debunked in May.

I'm still placing a huge bet we'll be seeing former Black Widow actress Emily Blunt as Carol Danvers in 2018. My hunches have payed-off recently with Chadwick Boseman confirmed for Black Panther and Benedict Cumberbatch the frontrunner for Doctor Strange. Hopefully, this casting support for Blunt get's the Marvel stamp of approval as well. The actress best known for kick-ass roles in Edge of Tomorrow and Looper, has been linked for the role since 2012.



SOURCE: MARVEL 

Scarlett Johansson Wanted Badly For GHOST IN THE SHELL, Studio Offers Actress $10M

While Marvel Studios sleeps on the opportunity to make a Black Widow franchise. Other studios are taking advantage of Scarlett Johansson's rising action stardom. Lucy recently broke $400 million worldwide, beating the huge budgeted Hercules on opening weekend domestically. Even though, the French production cost $40 million to make.

Dreamworks wants Johansson baldy for their adaptation of the manga/anime Ghost In The Shell. Deadline reports the studio is offering the lead role, along with a $10 million payday. Margot Robbie was originally linked for the role, but could take a lead in Suicide Squad instead. An offer she would unlikely be getting from Marvel Studios. Her contract with Marvel is coming to an end, and it's unlikely the studio will want to re-up her contract. Knowing she would be asking for more money, and possibly her own feature.

Director Rupert Sanders (Snow White And The Hunstman, Live-Action Halo Commercials) has been tapped to direct Shell, and could become a launching-point for a very cool female-driven action franchise.







SOURCE: DEADLINE

Robert Downey Jr Weighs-In On BLACK WIDOW, HAWKEYE And HULK Movies

Robert Downey Jr. is in a cool position, as he's signed-on to reprise the role of Tony Stark one more time in Avengers 3. The third installment isn't due until 2018-2019. Meaning, the elder statesman of the Marvel cinematic universe isn't going anywhere for some time. Allowing him to be outspoken about Marvel chatter concerning rumors and future projects. Speaking to USAToday, Robert did just that addressing Marvel's delay in announcing a Black Widow spin-off film.

The delay has sparked a bit of criticism, not having a female superhero officially announced as part of Marvel's future releases. Even more so, in the wake of the female Spider-Man spin-off at Sony and unofficially Warner Bros. solo Wonder Woman movie. Robert simply states the obvious and rational question, "doesn't Scarlett deserve a break?"

“Look, I think that the interesting thing particularly after [Guardians of the Galaxy] with Zoe [Saldana], even from the first Iron Man where Pepper was kind of this really – to me the Iron Man franchise would never have taken off without [Gwyneth] Paltrow. There’s something about her that grounded the story. She’s not your typical lady in a superhero movie, and then by Iron Man 3 she’s swallowing serums and putting on suits and kicking [butt] and all that stuff. It would be kind of more appropriate for a character that already was like a Black Widow [to lead a movie]. It just seems like whatever Scarlett does people want to go see it.” 

He makes some valid-points. Scarlett has played Black Widow in four movies, and could be expected to be apart of future projects. We all understand the demand for her own solo adventure. But it's really up to her when she wants to go back to making films, as a new mother. I think we can all respect that, even if it might delay production on a solo outing for a couple of years.

Oddly enough, Robert continues the discussion by pondering solo movies for both Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). The latter we've been hearing for sometime development on a new Hulk film, going back to 2012. Indestructible Hulk and Planet Hulk story theories have been circling for a couple of years. Ruffalo and Joss Whedon teased in Avengers press tour, that two could work together on developing a new film (Whedon possibly writing the script).

“The funny thing is honestly at this point everyone deserves a franchise. I think Jeremy Renner is — when folks see the Avengers: Age of Ultron he’s just a rockstar, a badass. And Ruffalo is pumped. He does great (work). I’d like to hear them talk even more seriously about a Hulk franchise, because that’s been one of the toughest ones to get right. But I’m sure that my parent company is feeling expansive and and bold after the summer they’ve had.”

Again, we hear from RDJ how impressive Jeremy's role in Avengers: Age of Ultron will be, hyping-up the character even more. It's possible Clint Barton could have an equally strong role in Captain America 3 as well. Originally, filmmakers wanted and wrote Barton into The Winter Soldier. Renner had to decline due to other projects. I've been under the impression that Renner could lead a West Coast Avengers film. That's if Marvel indeed plans on splinting the main group into two teams. Which is already rumored for Age of Ultron, leading up to the events of Civil War. Finally, giving Hawkeye more of a main character role than previous movies.


SOURCE: USATODAY

Listen-Up Marvel, Neil Marshall Wants To Direct That BLACK WIDOW Spin-Off

British director Neil Marshall has made a career making fun B-movies, from Dog Soldiers to the more serious cult horror hit The Descent. He's also known for having strong female characters in his projects, his last two films having been more female-driven (Centurion and Doomsday) than his peers. Neil is responsible for two of the big event episodes of Game of Thrones as well, directing episodes Blackwater and The Watchers On The Wall. Easily, the two more action-heavy episodes of the series.

The director's next project will be a sequel to the classic tale of King Kong entitled Skull Island: Blood of The King, set 25 years after the original events. He recently directed the pilot episode of NBC's Constantine, which is based on the DC comic series Hellblazer. That might be the only comic book property the director is willing to dip-his-toes-in with, as he tells VanityFair that he'd take a shot at making a Black Widow film. Explaining why he believes the super-spy would work as a feature film.

I would love to do a Black Widow movie. That’s perfect, I would love to do that. That character is really interesting, she doesn’t have any superpowers, she just has extraordinary skills, and the world that she comes from, being this ex-K.G.B. assassin, I find that really fascinating, yeah.

As it stands, Marvel has quieted their talk of a Widow spin-off. So much so, that Kevin Feige has basically stated Natasha is more valuable as a supporting character. This does make sense, considering she has helped-out three Marvel franchises (Iron Man, Avengers, Captain America). We know that screenwriter Nicole Perlman (Guardians of The Galaxy) confirmed herself, that she did work on a new script treatment back in 2010/2011. Resurrecting the previous incarnation that was setup at Lionsgate back in 2008 by writer-director David Hayter (Watchmen, X2, X-Men).  New development on the project is currently unknown, and is considered in limbo. It's assumed that Marvel might put resources towards a Ms Marvel/Captain Marvel movie first.

Scarlett has proven herself as a box office draw this summer with Lucy opening number one (beating Dwayne Johnson's Hercules which opened the same weekend), and her character appearing in huge box office installments are definitely helping awareness/demand. The character's mysterious past concerning the events in Budapest and Osaka could be fun to explore, but being left as a mystery might be better too. Also, Scarlett's recent pregnancy could slow-down her action roles for next little while.



While we'd prefer a female director handling the female hero films at Marvel Studios, I don't think we should automatically dismiss Neil from the running. Considering a majority of his films are female-positive and has given solid roles to women in his previous work. He could also be the next Russo Brothers or even James Gunn, with a little help from Marvel. Plus, we already know that the studio people are fans of Game of Thrones, since they ended-up hiring Alan Taylor to direct Thor: The Dark World.

SOURCE: VANITYFAIR 

Marvel Isn't Making A Female Superhero Film Anytime Soon, Could There Be A Reason For The Delay?

We've been hearing (from Kevin Feige and Scarlett Johansson) for years that a Black Widow solo spin-off movie was coming in the future. More recently, Guardians of The Galaxy's Nicole Perlman had scripted a new draft for the resurrected project (originally given the axe by Lionsgate back in 2008). I've also been hearing from fellow bloggers that Carol Danvers (Ms Marvel/Captain Marvel) will indeed appear in Avengers: Age of Ultron.  Joss Whedon confirmed to HeyUGuys that we would see a fourth female lead in Age of Ultron. So, where is our announcement concerning a female superhero film from Marvel?

Marvel's Kevin Feige has finally come out and commented on the status of a female-driven movie at the studio. The statements via ComicBookResources includes the realization of the demand, but also points-out they might not be ready for that film to be put into production. Feige mentions other new franchises being their current focus, but they might have something else up their sleeves.

“I think it comes down to timing, which is what I’ve sort of always said, and it comes down to us being able to tell the right story. I very much believe in doing it. I very much believe that it’s unfair to say, ‘People don’t want to see movies with female heroes,’ then list five movies that were not very good, therefore, people didn’t go to the movies because they weren’t good movies, versus [because] they were female leads. And they don’t mention ‘Hunger Games,’ ‘Frozen,’ ‘Divergent.’ You can go back to ‘Kill Bill’ or ‘Aliens.’ These are all female-led movies. It can certainly be done. I hope we do it sooner rather than later.”

“But we find ourselves in the very strange position of managing more franchises than most people have — which is a very, very good thing and we don’t take for granted, but is a challenging thing. You may notice from those release dates, we have three for 2017. And that’s because just the timing worked on what was sort of gearing up. But it does mean you have to put one franchise on hold for three or four years in order to introduce a new one? I don’t know. Those are the kinds of chess matches we’re playing right now.”


We've seen a large upswing in female casting in recent Marvel films, so we should also point that out as well. Guardians, Winter Soldier, Iron Man 3 and Age of Ultron have a great number of female leads/supporting characters, who are more than just love-interests or eye-candy. Finally giving us a taste of female villains, mentors and fellow heroes. Feige sites hugely-successful female-led projects like Frozen, Aliens, Hunger Games and Kill Bill, as examples of successes, but also mentions the stigma from previous unsuccessful comic book adaptations. He gives the impression that they understand the demand, but just don't have anything to put out in theatres. This could be another reason why the studio didn't make title announcements for a majority of the new release dates. Because, they are still mulling-over which "new" franchises should come next. Inhumans (another cosmic team film with two major female leads) and possibly Black Panther are on-deck for the studio.

The level of development for both Black Widow and Ms Marvel, have never been made public. Trades have sited that the studio is working a Ms Marvel script, but it's writer and it's stage of development hasn't been revealed (it could still be in the extremely early stages). They could still be trying to outline stories for these characters, for their own feature films.

It's extremely difficult for writers of Widow, since they keep using her as secondary leads in films like Winter Soldier, Age of Ultron and likely Captain America 3. Adding updates from other scripts that feature her, mean that rewrites would be needed on a regular basis. Making it a very complex problem to give her own film, when she's getting strong character development and exposure as a supporting character/secondary lead. A prequel sounds like a way to break away from the tropes of the recent/future films.

Another reason for delaying a Black Widow film, is that Marvel could be thinking of killing-off Natasha in Age of Ultron or future films. In the Ultimate comics (MCU is inspired by these stories), she is revealed to be a traitor and is killed by Hawkeye, when it's revealed she was also responsible for the death of Barton's family. They've well-established her as a character with a dark-streak, and Whedon is known for manipulating are feelings for characters. Joss has teased that major characters could get bumped-off in the sequel.

They could be delaying for another reason, they want to focus on a superpowered heroine. Widow is great, but Carol Danvers (or Kamala Khan) has actual powers and could have more spectacle in a solo outing. Not to mention involving the cosmic-side of the MCU, something that could come in waves post-Guardians. First, placing her in Age of Ultron (I assume giving her origin there), then having larger roles in future films (Guardians 2?), leading to her own spin-off. A similar way Marvel ramped-up Natasha's role in the MCU.

The studio will be upping the yearly releases to three starting in 2017, so this could lead to more new films getting released. This move could lead to projects like a female-driven film fast-tracked.

We Need More Women Directing Comic Book Projects, How About Jane Goldman And Jovanka Vuckovic?

Yesterday, it was confirmed that Roberto Orci had been chosen to direct Star Trek 3. A screenwriter many believe is sub-par for the job, and is said to have forced his way into the director's chair. By blocking other candidates from even being considered, and bullying Paramount. It's beyond shocking that the studio would be even willing to consider a director with zero experience to spearhead a project that could be costing them north of $150 million in production costs. Orci was involved with television for decades, but it never occurred to him to direct an episode of the shows he was running/producing or writing for. The cons outweigh the pros, anyway you cut it, no matter what trolling screenwriter Max Landis (turned budding director?) will have you believe. 

This whole debacle was a slap in the face of budding directors and more the norm, female directors. 

It was pointed out that the highest budgeted film a woman directed was Kathryn Bigelow's K-19, which twelve years ago and cost $100 million. That's almost the cost for a large studio comedy film these days. The studio system doesn't even consider women for this high-profile projects, and if they do a reason if found to remove them. It's also a bit insulting to always fall-back to Bigelow as the only female director, because there are many hardworking ladies in the industry, they just aren't given the exposure she is. 

Marvel Studios famously hired Patty Jenkins (Monster, The Killing) to originally direct Thor: The Dark World, only a month or so after her announcement she left the production. The studio siting "creative differences", and Patty sounded unfazed by the whole experience. Jenkins would have made history as the first female director to make a mainstream studio comic book movie. Of course, Lexi Alexander being our first lady of Marvel, directing the brutally-fun Punisher: War Zone. Marvel missed their mark, while movies like Captain America: The Winter Soldier proved they can be equal, when it comes to on-screen characters. There's still hope that Jenkins could return to the franchise to direct Thor 3, since Alan Taylor will be busy with his Terminator trilogy.

There are already three female-driven comic book projects coming down the line. Marvel's Jessica Jones series on Netflix and their feature adaptation of Captain Marvel (the Black Widow movie now in limbo) which is in script development. Even Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment is coming to their senses, and have Gal Gadot contracted to make a Wonder Woman movie. The latter is more up-in-the-air, as Gal has to complete filming Batman Vs Superman and Justice League before anything is announced. 

My hope is that filmmakers like Patty and Michelle MacLaren (The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad) land the directing gigs on these female-driven projects. Let's face it's about time, and these projects are tailor-made for them to direct. I've already mentioned how perfect Michelle would be for the Wonder Woman movie. However, there are two ladies I'd love to see also get into the mix. 

Jane Goldman (Stardust, The Woman In Black, The Debt, Pinocchio, Nonplayer, Miss Peregrine, Dan Leno And The Lighthouse Golem) is best known as a screenwriter, and the sometimes writing partner of director Matthew Vaughn. Her comic book writing credits include The Secret Service, Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class and X-Men: Days of Future Past. I have to assume she might also get involved with scripting for other comic film projects such as Superior, Golden Age and Bloodshot.

Seeing Jane make the jump to director feels more natural than Roberto Orci or Mark Millar becoming directors. If we're going to talk about writers who deserve shots to become features directors, Jane is good place to start. There are a couple projects I think Jane would be excellent for, working closely with Matthew Vaughn on so many productions. She obviously has the vision needed to handle such a task.

The first is, Ed Brubaker's Velvet. This comic is actually very new but it takes and interesting concept, which would be perfect for film adaptation. Brubaker has describe this comic as, "what if Moneypenny was accused of killing James Bond". Considering Goldman has already written the spy genre with The Secret Service, and nailed the action-side in her Kick-Ass/X-Men scripts, she'd be perfect to also adapt the work. Brubaker is coming-off massive success with his Winter Soldier comic saga being a major influence on the recent Captain America sequel, and the third installment. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are also adapting his comic Sleeper for the big screen. It's only a matter of time before Velvet makes the studio rounds. 

Goldman also has a knack for the supernatural and superpower side of the genre. Which could make her a prime candidate to direct Dark Universe/Justice League Dark. A project which Guillermo del Toro is hatching/producing with Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment, that explores the horror-side of the DCU. It's very possible that del Toro, like with many other projects he's producing will hand this off to another director. Jane could help with the script and could even make the film on a lower budget, guaranteeing that she and del Toro would get more creative freedom with their vision. 

The film would consist of a group of heroes with supernatural powers (not unlike the X-Men but with a horror edge), which would include John Constantine, The Spectre, Swamp Thing, Zatanna, Deadman and others. She's proven she can handle large-scale superhero narrative with First Class and Days of Future Past. Not to mention the supernatural element with movies like Stardust and The Woman In 
Black.

Speaking of team films, there's one that we've been waiting for ages which is BPRD. The Hellboy spin-off that's been mentioned almost as many times as the now-dead Hellboy 3. It's still a viable film as there are plenty of team members yet to be explored, and could be made without Hellboy in a lead role. 

I'd also totally be onboard to see her tackle Captain Marvel or if Marvel Studios ever resurrected the Black Widow movie. There are more than a few sources claiming that Ms. Marvel/Captain Marvel will be introduced in Avengers: Age of Ultron. We've been hearing for months that Marvel is ramping-up development on her solo film, with a script being penned by an unknown writer. Guardians of The Galaxy writer Nicole Perlman recently rewrote a new Widow script, which is completely different than the original film David Hayter (Watchmen, X-Men, X2) was attached to write-direct ten years ago.

Another lady that would flourish in this genre would be Jovanka Vuckovic. A Canadian horror director and of Rue Morgue fame. Her credits include The Captured Bird which was produced by Guillermo del Toro, and the all-female horror anthology XX. Variety just reported that Jovanka would make her feature directorial debut with an adaptation of Clive Barker's Jacqueline Ess with Lena Headey (Dredd, 300, Game of Thrones) in the lead role. A project that surely will get a lot of attention.  

While Goldman is not currently on Twitter, Jovanka is. During some exchanges on Twitter she mentioned being a fan of Mike Mignola's Baltimore, as I suggested she would be perfect for it. New Regency once tried to adapt the comic into a feature with David S. Goyer (Blade, Man of Steel) set to write-direct, but the studio passed with the rights reverting back to Migola and others. 

Considering her connections to Guillermo del Toro, it wouldn't be hard to imagine her being able to reach out to Mike Mignola or vise-versa. Legendary Pictures is now in the business of Guillermo del Toro working with him on Pacific Rim and Crimson Peak, which has now partnered with Universal Pictures. Universal was the studio that helped get the first two Hellboy movies made, also part of the comic universe of Mike Mignola. 

She also mentions a huge passion for Preacher. Luckily, for her Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg are showrunning/writing the project for television. The pair are responsible for films such as Superbad, Pineapple Express, The Interview and This Is The End. Their work on apocalyptic comedy This Is The End is basically a great example of what Preacher could be. The series will air on AMC, the network that has given us The Walking Dead, one of the most successful comic-to-television adaptations ever made. The duo are also directors, but let's hope they give others, such as Vuckovic a couple of episodes to direct.

"Preacher" follows Reverend Jesse Custer, a tough Texas preacher who has lost his faith, has learned that God has left Heaven and abandoned His responsibilities. He finds himself the only person capable of tracking God down, demanding answers, and making Him answer for His dereliction of duty. Accompanying Jesse on his journey is his former girlfriend and a friendly vampire who seems to prefer a pint in the pub to the blood of the innocent. On his tail is one of the most iconic bad guys in print – an immortal, unstoppable killing machine named the Saint of Killers – a western lone gunman archetype whose sole purpose is to hunt and kill Jesse.

It's our duty in the fan community to voice our distain to what Hollywood is doing, with this genre. We know there are talented female directors, and we all want to see female-driven films. Keep repeating these ideas and maybe the studios will finally get it into their heads, it will work. 

AGE OF ULTRON SET PHOTOS: Chris Evans And Black Widow Stunt Double Sport New Costumes

Chris Evans has finally joined the production of Avengers: Age of Ultron, as he was spotted on the set in South Korea. Evans was sporting a new costume with the Avengers logo. Scarlett Johansson hasn't showed-up but her stunt double was riding on a motorcycle and was also wearing an updated costume.

Marvel's Kevin Feige Talks DAREDEVIL, PUNISHER, ANT-MAN, AGE OF ULTRON, DOCTOR STRANGE And Hints At PHASE THREE Announcement At SDCC14

Marvel's Kevin Feige is the face of Marvel Studios. So, when he drops hints and talks about future films we should take notice. He recently made the press rounds during the London premiere of Thor: The Dark World. Kevin gives his thoughts on the recent Ant-Man casting rumors (via HuffingtonPost) and the fate of Daredevil and The Punisher (via BleedingCool). What James Spader's performance as Ultron will entail for Avengers: Age of Ultron (via HuffingtonPost). When we can expect Doctor Strange (via Movies), a female heroine getting a film and the rest of the Phase Three lineup to be announced.

"Well, sometimes it's because we are legitimately talking, and sometimes it's just because he's a prominent actor out there now. And lots of rumors surround prominent actors..."Well, nothing is true yet. I like Paul Rudd, too." 

“We’re trying to figure out what to do with Daredevil now. Punisher could show up at one point. You know, once we get characters back into the Marvel fold we don’t want to do something right away, we want to do the smart thing at the smart time.”

"Well, I think it will be more than a voice role -- we'll be capturing his face and his body to create a whole performance. He's a very unique and incredibly exciting and unpredictable actor. And Ultron in the comics is a robot, but what's cool about him in the comics -- and certainly how Joss Whedon is interpreting him for the movie -- is that he is much more than just a robot. That he's infused with much character. And I don't want to say too much, but you can imagine James Spader will be very dynamic in his portrayal of this character....[Laughs] We did not hire James Spader to do a robot voice."

“Doc Strange, as I’ve been saying for years, is a movie I believe we should make — we’re just figuring out how to make it a great movie. It is in active development right now,” Feige told us. “Whether that’s one of the movies we announce for 2016 or 2017, we have to see. I think it’ll be the middle of next year before we announce officially what the post Ant-Man films will be."

"I know we have numerous exciting female heroes, whether none of them are currently slated, some of them are in development -- frankly, you can look at what Jane Foster does in [Thor: The Dark World], look at Pepper Potts literally saving the day and defeating the bad guy in Iron Man 3, and I'd say we already have great female heroes that are showcased and play major roles in our universe now. Captain America: The Winter Soldier, as you will see, features Black Widow in her biggest role yet in any of our films. In terms of a solo standalone female hero, I'm not sure when that will be. We make two movies a year, we've planned through 2015 and we have some ideas of what we're doing in 2016 and 2017, so we'll see what happens."

At the moment Marvel hasn't made any official announcements concerning the rest of the Phase Three releases besides Ant-Man in July 2015. However, there are a few new characters they've been trying to put together for their own films such as Doctor Strange, Inhumans, Black Panther, Heroes For Hire (or solo films for Luke Cage/Iron First), Ms. Marvel, Black Widow and possibly a new Hulk installment.

Strange and Black Panther have scripts in place which led to lots of casting rumors concerning both projects. Names like Viggo Mortenson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Javier Bardem, Benedict Cumberbatch and Joel Edgerton have been linked over the last couple of years/months. I personally like the idea of having Tom Hanks (recently is campaigning for any superhero role) take the role which is expected to become the Tony Stark of Phase Three. Since Marvel has a tendency to consider Disney alumni and Oscar caliber actors, Hanks seems like a solid candidate. Plus, it wouldn't hurt to give some age to the character. Panther on the other hand has had a overwhelming amount of actors interested in the role. Two of them have been apart the MCU,  The Dark World's Idris Elba and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. Not to mention Guardians of The Galaxy's Djimon Hounsou who is among many favorites for the role. Along with others being linked or fan favorites such as Chadwick Boseman (42), Nate Parker (Non-Stop, Red Tails), Chitwetel Ejiofor (Children of Men, Serenity, 12 Years A Slave, American Gangster), David Oyelowo (The Butler, Planet of The Apes, Reacher), Aldis Hodge (Leverage) and Morris Chestnut (Kick-Ass 2, Nurse Jackie). It seems likely that both films are strong contenders for Phase Three.

The trades previously reported that Ms. Marvel has a script in development over at Marvel. Along with rumblings that Emily Blunt (Looper, Escape From Tomorrow) and Ruth Wilson (Luther, Lone Ranger) were in the running for the role. Even Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica, Riddick) tossed her hat in the ring for the part a few weeks back. We've heard Joss Whedon talk disliking the Carol Danvers incarnation of the character. So it's possible the studio could be going another route with her instead. Marvel recently bought Spawn's Angela and added her to books Age of Ultron and Guardians of The Galaxy. This combined with a new Ms. Marvel comic book on the way led BleedingCool to speculate that Angela could be the new Ms. Marvel. Allowing the character to exist without connections to The Kree and having defined/limited powers. While still having cosmic connections to The Guardians and even possibly Ultron. It's quite possible that Marvel could even move forward with Nicole Perlman's (Guardians of The Galaxy) script for the Black Widow film. Since Johansson's character will be getting a lot more screen time thanks to Winter Soldier and Age of Ultron.

Inhumans has been gathering steam for sometime and at one point was competing with Guardians of The Galaxy as the second last release in Phase Two, before Avengers: Age of Ultron. There is talk the film is going to be the MCU's version of the X-Men with Inhumans possibly replacing mutants. There is also talk of taking influence from Game of Thrones having warring factions within the world of Ihumans. Some speculation that Vin Diesel's real Marvel role could be that of Black Bolt and taking Groot in Guardians was just to get his foot in the door. Besides a script there isn't else much in place with the film but there is chatter it's further along in development than most suspect.

The Hulk was obviously the breakout character in The Avengers and around it's release there was talk that a new film could be on it's way. Joss Whedon and Mark Ruffalo talked about putting it together, with Joss considering writing it. Since then there had been rumblings that stories such as Planet Hulk (Hulk is banished to a warring planet which is populated with aliens as strong as he is) and Indestructible Hulk (Hulk is apart of S.H.I.E.L.D and is s hero rather than a fugitive) could be source material for a new string of movies. There's even a new cartoon Hulk And The Agents of S.M.A.S.H. which could be easily help influence a film. Instead of having Banner on the run making him the primary hero.

Gentle Giant's Black Widow Statue From CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER Gives Us The First Look At The New Costume

CAPTAIN AMERICA 2 SET PHOTOS: Cap, Widow, Nick Fury, Maria Hill And First Look At Villain Winter Soldier

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER Set Images With Chris Evans And Scarlett Johansson, Confirms New Agent Rogers Costume

Is Black Widow The Secondary Lead In CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER?

Marvel has been trying for years to put together a Black Widow movie. It started when the project was at Lionsgate but that would eventually go into limbo after Catwoman and Elektra bombed. Widow would be played by Scarlett Johansson in Iron Man 2 which fuelled talk of a new spin-off. A new script was penned by Nicole Perlman who wrote the original draft of Guardians of The Galaxy but seems like it's still in development.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier will include her and from this synopsis gives the impression that Natasha will have a larger role than previous Marvel films. It could actually be more of a secondary lead, as she's rumored to have connections with the shadowy enemies (her Russian employers?) and will be partnering up with Rogers to battle them. It's possible Widow having her character get more of a spotlight might mean her spin-off is right around the corner.

"Captain America: The Winter Soldier” will pick-up where “Marvel’s The Avengers” left off, as Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world and teams up with Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow, to battle a powerful yet shadowy enemy in present-day Washington, D.C."

Nick Fury's WWII Past To Be Explored In CAPTAIN AMERICA THE WINTER SOLDIER?

We've been hearing that Captain America: The Winter Soldier would indeed have a giant S.H.I.E.L.D. presence Following the events of The Avengers the film would be a political thriller centered around S.H.I.E.L.D. This being supported with the additions of Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow and Jackson's Fury. Anthony Mackie was cast as Sam Wilson (The Falcon) who is the modern side-kick of Captain America and also a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent in the Ultimates. It's expected that there will be more character development for supporting roles.

There are rumors that Widow's violent Russian past (hinted to in Avengers) and her connections to Winter Soldier would be explored in the film. Nick Fury's character might be getting more development than previously seen too. ComingSoon and MTV has word from Samuel L. Jackson dropping hints how Fury could be used in the film confirming it's a big role. He doesn't give details but gives the impression that elements from the Nick Fury film will likely be folded into Winter Soldier. Sam even mentions Nick's WWII past which could mean the infinity formula will be explained which had been rumored for The First Avenger. That could mean surviving Howling Commandos might be returning as well. Considering Winter Soldier is involved anything could be possible. Neal McDonough had been going around saying Dum Dum Dugan was coming back.

“Everybody likes a franchise character. Bruce (Willis) had his and Sylvester Stallone had Rocky, so I like coming back to Nick Fury. Nick Fury's a great guy. I think a lot of people know that. I know him as something else because I've been alive longer than most of the fans that watch the movies so I know Nick Fury as the World War II veteran and all that stuff. It might be interesting to do one day but we find out little bits and pieces about Nick and we're going into 'Captain America 2' in late March.” 

"It's a full-on role, from the original script that I read. It's a full-on S.H.I.E.L.D. operation in 'Captain America. But I don't know — I'm meeting with the directors this week to see what happens."