Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts Confirming METAL GEAR SOLID Shooting After KONG: SKULL ISLAND?

Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts is about to begin shooting on Legendary's King Kong prequel Kong: Skull Island. He posted a tweet that suggested he was ready to tackle the massive production. Also mentioning that he was coming after Solid Snake next. Which is referring to his other massive project the Metal Gear Solid film setup over at Sony. We've had confirmation of sorts that Jordan is indeed our director along with David Goyer (Blade, Batman Begins, Call of Duty Black Ops 1-2) tackling the script.

A production date hasn't been announced but it sounds like things are coming together quicker than expected. Having Goyer write the adaptation of the popular video game series is actually a perfect match, considering he helped write two massive hit installments of the Call of Duty game franchise. One of the biggest problems with video game adaptations is they tend to cling onto fan service or nods, rather than focusing on a good story and cinematic experience. The hope from films like Metal Gear, Mass Effect, Assassin's Creed and Splinter Cell, is that studios will finally figure-out how to adapt this rich source material.

Goodbye burn center & 2014. Goodbye beard. Hello 2015. King Kong, I'm coming for you. Solid Snake, you're next. pic.twitter.com/JGIqWp67QJ
— Jordan Vogt-Roberts (@VogtRoberts) December 31, 2014

SOURCE: TWITTER

Will Warner Bros. Make David Goyer's DEATHSTROKE Movie After SUICIDE SQUAD?

It was recently rumored that Deathstroke will somehow be apart of the character lineup in David Ayer's Suicide Squad. While we still need more solid confirmation, the prospect does make a lot of sense all things considering. What makes me think Warner Bros. would want to include Deathstroke in Suicide Squad?

First-off, it was reported last year by BleedingCool that David Goyer was going to produce a bunch of DC Comics movies which included Suicide Squad and Deathstroke films. We don't know for sure if Goyer is still attached to either project, but it's very likely he was involved with the latter because he was going to write it. Deathstroke feels like a character that Goyer could really make a great script for, I don't think fans would complain about the body-count or gritty tone.

Second, Deathstroke is a current member of the new team in the comics. Harley Quinn only joined the ranks in 2011, but will be the female lead of the film. They could be including anyone slightly affiliated to group that are well known to fans. Warner Bros. might be looking for the most recognizable characters, since this isn't the original lineup from the Justin Marks script (Joker and Harley Quinn were never included in the original script). I'm sure Ayer's rewrites could see a couple of additions or swaps to the final character lineup (could Slade replace Rick Flagg?).

Third, the Marvel model for setting-up future films is a bit more Easter Egg-like, but having a character in the film before their solo adventure sounds about right for the DC Comics model. Remember, we'll see Wonder Woman, Aquaman and Cyborg in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice before they get their own movies. Deathstroke is still a relatively obscure character to general audiences, having him tag-along in Suicide Squad could definitely boost international awareness.

That said, what makes me believe that David Goyer would be or should be involved with this project?

Goyer is still in very good favor with Warner Bros., no matter what fans seem to think is going-on behind the scenes. He's still getting a writing and producing credits on Batman v Superman, even with Chris Terrio's rewrites to the original script (which I assume was apart of Affleck's contract, to have script approval). David is also writing-producing their NBC series Constantine and is involved with Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Sandman film writing the film's story. Godzilla's script had a rewrite from Goyer as well. It's possible that the Justice League script will include elements from the work Goyer contributed before Chris Terrio came onboard.

Last year he signed a three-year deal with the studio according to Deadline. The assumption that he would help godfather lesser known DC Comics film and TV properties for Warner Bros. It's led to him setting-up a Krypton prequel series at SyFy. His previous film development deals like Deathstroke would be alive and well, just not apart of the main release lineup.

Thinking that having Goyer's scripts rewritten is some sort of insult towards, goes to show fandom doesn't understand how the industry works. Many of Goyer's scripts have been rewritten or reworked for the screen, none of this has really effected his work relationships with studios.

Having written films like Blade and Dark Knight Trilogy/Man of Steel, Goyer understands all types of cinematic comic book worlds. Blade becoming the first Marvel success story, it's often forgotten the R-rated film was a hit two years before X-Men. Goyer is never credited for starting this genre, but he should. I could see Goyer doing for DC's Slade, what he did for Marvel's Blade. Turning him into a badass anti-hero, and one we might actually root for. Since, we've only seen him as a straight-up villain. Funny, since New Line Cinema (apart of Warner Bros.) was the home of Blade just until recently.



David also wrote the two Call of Duty: Black Ops games, two of the most successful games ever made. The first one selling 26.2 million copies and it's sequel earning over a billion within the first fifteen days. Those games show he has the chops to explore Slade's world of black ops soldiers and mercenaries. Sony announced him as writing their Metal Gear Solid adaptation, which has the director of Kong: Skull Island attached. Another intense military focused film which is another reason why Goyer staying-on as producer or writing the Deathstroke script might be a good idea.

What do you think? Should Warner Bros. pursue a Deathstroke film and keep David Goyer involved in some capacity?

GODZILLA Sequel In The Works On The Heels Of Franchise's Biggest Domestic Opening Ever

It's a huge weekend of successes for Legendary's Godzilla reboot. The film has the 2nd largest opening weekend of 2014 at $93 million (estimated), edging out The Amazing Spider-Man 2. A giant win for the project considering, it was an uphill battle since the terrible impression the 1998 American left on audiences. The studio has been vindicated and along with that is of course talk of seuqels.

Deadline reports that Legendary and it's old partner Warner Bros. will be working together on the next installment of the Godzilla franchise. The two companies recently parted-ways, with Legendary making a new distribution deal with Universal. Let's hope they come up with a better title than Godzilla 2, maybe something like Godzilla Vs (place iconic/new kaiju monster here). I would assume that director Gareth Edwards will be asked to return, considering how the look of the film seems to have won over a lot of people. On the other hand, there were so many screenwriters on the first installment. Max Borenstein and Dave Callaham were the main writers, along with David Goyer and Frank Darabont contributing to it as well. I kinda hope they stick to one or two writers next time, but that's going to be unlikely.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

UPDATE: Warner Bros. Confirms Zack Snyder Will Direct JUSTICE LEAGUE, Could It Be Released Against Another Marvel Film In 2017?

TheWallStreetJournal was able to speak with producer Greg Silverman about the future of DC film properties at Warner Bros. Silverman finally has confirmed that Justice League is happening, and will be directed by Zack Snyder (Watchmen, 300, Dawn of The Dead) . Zack previously directed Man of Steel and it's sort-of sequel Batman Vs Superman, the latter is also confirmed to be the precursor to the events of the Justice League movie. They also confirm that the film will begin production after Batman Vs Superman, I assume the studio won't be making any other DC films before then. Silverman also hints to a release date possibly around 2018 at the earliest. A script is still being put together, I believe last we heard David Goyer was still working on it.

Confirming the studio’s plans for a movie based on its iconic super-team for the first time, Warner Bros. president of worldwide production Greg Silverman said the studio has set plans to make a “Justice League” movie.

Like “Man of Steel” and its follow-up, which starts production next month, “Justice League” will be directed by Zack Snyder. Henry Cavill is expected to return as Superman, along with Ben Affleck and Gal Gadot, who play Batman and Wonder Woman, respectively, in 2016’s “Man of Steel” sequel tentatively titled “Batman vs. Superman.”

“It will be a further expansion of this universe,” said Mr. Silverman. “’Superman vs Batman’ will lead into ‘Justice League.’”

A script is still in development and Warner has not set a release date, though the movie is unlikely to come out before 2018.

Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck and Gal Gadot are confirmed as well, it's unknown if supporting actors from Snyder's other two DCU installments will have roles. Ray Fisher was revealed to be playing Cyborg in BVS, which is easy to assume he'll also be apart of the Justice League lineup.

There have been rumors that actors such as Jason Momoa (Aquaman?) and Dwayne Johnson (Green Lantern?) have been in talks to possibly join the lineup as well.

There had been talk from LatinoReview that the studio was considering filming the projects back-to-back, similar to how the Matrix sequels and the Hobbit originally was expected to shoot (both WB productions). Nothing says that Snyder will ramp-up production directly afterwards this upcoming film is completed principle photography. However, it's still early and Warner Bros. could move quickly to set a flag for a release date in 2018.

Batman Vs Superman will eventually get an official title by the time of it's release on May 6th, 2016.


UPDATE: LatinoReview has a small bit of information to add, they are hearing the rumored release date of May 5th, 2017. Oddly enough, another release date set-aside for another unnamed Marvel Studio film. It's possible this could be the date of Doctor Strange, Thor 3 or another in-development project. If true, it sounds like DC is making a play for Marvel's comfy May release dates.

UPDATE #2: THR has confirmed LatinoReviews previous scoop that Batman Vs Superman and Justice League will indeed be shot back-to-back by director Zack Snyder. They are also hearing a possible release in 2017 as well.


SOURCE: WSJ

Gal Gadot Confirmed For WONDER WOMAN In BATMAN VS SUPERMAN And Callan Mulvey Wanted For Villain

Variety has confirmed that Fast And Furious actress Gal Gadot has landed the female lead in Batman Vs Superman. Her character in the film will indeed be Wonder Woman. Director and co-writer Zack Snyder even commented on her addition to the cast. Gadot was up against actresses Jaimie Alexander, Elodie Yung and Olga Kurylenko. The film is aiming for a July 17th, 2015 release date. It will be interesting to see if this leads to Gal getting her own solo film eventually.

“Wonder Woman is arguably one of the most powerful female characters of all time and a fan favorite in the DC Universe. Not only is Gal an amazing actress, but she also has that magical quality that makes her perfect for the role. We look forward to audiences discovering Gal in the first feature film incarnation of this beloved character.”

Warner Bros. is also looking at Aussie actor Callan Mulvey for the villain role. They don't name the villain but Lex Luthor has been mentioned a few times. Callan's credits include 300: Rise of An Empire, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Zero Dark Thirty and The Hunter.

SOURCE: Variety 

BATMAN VS SUPERMAN Will Shoot In Toronto And Detroit

We have our new Batman with Ben Affleck, now comes the location of the production. Forbes reports that the film will shoot scenes in Toronto, I assume using stages at Pinewood Studios. Along with Zack Snyder confirming to Empire that Detroit/Michigan (stepping in for Vancouver) would be doubling for Gotham City and Metropolis. It's an exciting development with production expected to begin next year with a July 2015 release date.

“Detroit is a great example of a quintessential American city, and I know it will make the perfect backdrop for our movie,” says Snyder. “Detroit and the entire state of Michigan have been fantastic collaborators, and we are looking forward to working together on this film.”

Ben Affleck Officially The New Bruce Wayne/Batman For SUPERMAN VS BATMAN, Will He Direct The New BATMAN Films?

WB has officially announced that Ben Affleck (The Town, Argo, Runner Runner) will be taking over the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman for Zack Snyder's Superman Vs. Batman (World's Finest?) which has the release date of July 17th 2015. The deal will likely include Ben being apart of the Justice League film and his own string of Batman films. It's currently unknown if Affleck will be writing or directing the new Batman films along with starring.

RUMOR: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Scott Adkins, Mark Strong And Bryan Cranston In The Mix For SUPERMAN VS BATMAN?

Apparently, Watchmen actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan is now in the mix for Batman according to ThinkMcflyThink. Matthew Goode, another Watchmen alumni had been linked for Superman Vs Batman as well. Jeffrey had been previously linked for the role of Lobo (rumored for Justice League) and even a possible Watchmen spin-off focusing on The Comedian. He even spoke to MovieHole about being involved with a Dark Knight Returns film back in 2009.

"I've heard Zack mention he'd like to do it in the media a few times recently. I'd love to see myself in that role. I don't think [Warner] will do it at the moment, not with what The Dark Knight is doing. But the studio loves Zack, and if Watchmen does as well as we hope it does, you never know, he might get a crack at this thing."

British action star/stuntman Scott Adkins (Expendables 2) might be in the mix as well. The martial artist has been campaigning for the part for a while now and seemingly has met with Warner Bros./ Zack Snyder about it. His Twitter account has posted a confirmation of sorts and included an image of Scott as the Caped Crusader. We've been hearing that the director wants a convincing fighter/scrapper for the role and Scott has some serious action chops. Then again, take this as a strong rumor.

There is also word (via LatinoReview & DigitalSpy) that both Mark Strong (Welcome To The Punch, Kick-Ass) and Bryan Cranston (Drive, Godzilla, Breaking Bad) are being considered for the villainous role of Lex Luthor. Strong had a bit part in The Green Lantern but has played a slew of awesome bad guys. Cranston has been making a splash over at WB which could help him land the iconic part. I also wouldn't be shocked if they're were considering re-casting Commissioner Jim Gordon with Bryan.

A New Batch Of Set Photos From GODZILLA

WB Fast-Tracking MAN OF STEEL 2 With Zack Snyder And David Goyer Returning, Goyer Also Confirmed To Be Writing JUSTICE LEAGUE

Deadline reports that Warner Bros. is very eager to start production on the next Man of Steel film. The studio is officially moving forward with the sequel. Director Zack Snyder and screenwriter David S. Goyer are confirmed for the sequel. Goyer seemingly is undertaking the DCU as he was apart of Nolan's Batman trilogy, a possible Man of Steel trilogy and was finally confirmed for writing the Justice League script for WB. After Will Beall's JL draft was scrapped. It's sounding like the studio is investing some serious cash in locking up Goyer and Snyder for their Superman franchise. Snyder has already hinted to that a Man of Steel sequel would happen before Justice League. Giving a little more weight to the recent talk that MOS 2 would be coming out in 2014 with JL in 2015.

Look … completely hypothetically, I feel like you need to get Superman a little further down the road, I think, before you can do a Justice League movie.

David was recently quoted via CosmicBookNews on the Man of Steel red carpet giving the impression he's involved and the film could rival The Avengers.

They’ve got a little kryptonite pellet embedded in my heart and if I say anything it will explode, but I would be a very rich man for all the times I was asked that question. It all depends on how the [Man of Steel] does. I would love to see a Justice League film, absolutely. Put the Avengers on notice.

Sally Hawkins Joins The Cast Of GODZILLA

Deadline reports that British actress Sally Hawkins (Layer Cake, Happy Go-Lucky, Submarine, Never Let Me Go) best known for comedic/dramatic roles has taken a role in Legendary Pictures' Godzilla reboot which is currently shooting in Vancouver, Canada. Sally will play a scientist alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Ken Watanabe, David Strathairn, Brian Cranston and Juliette Binoche.

FIRST LOOK: Aaron Johnson On The Set Of GODZILLA

David Goyer Confirms The Studio Wanted DiCaprio To Play The Riddler In 'DARK KNIGHT RISES'

Here's a bit of interesting insight into the behind the scenes process of making The Dark Knight Rises as screenwriter David S. Goyer talks to Empire via BatmanNews. David reveals that studio executives at Warner Bros. were already talking about a sequel at The Dark Knight premiere. The studio wanted  Leonardo DiCaprio play a Nolanized version of The Riddler in the next film. Of course this didn't happen but it's another fun "what-if?" moment from the franchise.

“it’s gonna be The Riddler, and we want it to be Leonardo DiCaprio…”.

It confirms previous reports that Inception co-stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hardy and DiCaprio had been competing for the Riddler. Not to mention strings of casting rumors linked to the role. Nolan might have tried to fit him into early drafts only to give him the axe and make way for Bane. In the early days of Rises' development Michael Caine and Gary Oldman had teased on red carpets the Riddler would be the villain which might have come from studio people not Nolan.

You never know what the future of Batman holds. If Nolanites want this franchise to keep going it would be in good hands with someone like Wally Pfister taking over directing duties from Nolan. Bale has stated that if Nolan handed him a script he'd love to make another film just for the challenge. I'd love to see Jonah and Chris stay on as writers while continuing to work on their original projects as well.

New Godzilla Movie Gets Another Writer

While Legendary Pictures hired Gareth Edwards (Monsters) to direct their new Godzilla film they didn't have an official writer. There was word that David S. Goyer (Man of Steel, Blade, Dark Knight Rises) and David Callaham were working on a drafts. Now there is confirmation from HeatVision that newcomer Max Borenstein will now work on the script.

Michael Shannon Officially Playing Zod In Zack Snyder's Man Of Steel

Warner Bros. has finally announced the villain for Zack Snyder's Superman reboot which is now officially titled Man of Steel. Michael Shannon is set to play General Zod and is likely to steal the show. Shannon has been known as a character actor taking smaller roles but came into his own recently with his performance in the first season of HBO's Boardwalk Empire. It's still unknown if Lex Luthor, General Sam Lane or Metallo will also be involved in the film but at least we know Zod is for sure now. Shannon joins an impressive cast that includes Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Diane Lane and Kevin Costner.

RUMOR: General Sam Lane & Metallo Villains Of Superman Reboot?

Yet another crop of possible villains have crept online via ComicBookMovie. This time it's General Sam Lane the father of Lois Lane (Amy Adams) and the military created villain Metallo. General Sam Lane sees Superman as a threat to national security and discovers that kryptonite is a powerful resource using it power Metallo's robotic suit. It seems a little too similar to the plot points of The Incredible Hulk but it might be the best way to ground the character giving a limit to his powers.

Previously there had been concept artwork for the J.J. Abrams/Brett Ratner version of Superman before Bryan Singer came in. One piece of the art has what appears to be the Metallo suit firing off missiles possibly containing kryptonite.

Amy Adams Will Be Lois Lane In Superman: Man of Steel!

HeroComplex has the exclusive that Amy Adams (The Fighter) will play Lois Lane in Zack Snyder's Superman: Man of Steel. Adams is an interesting choice as the feisty redhead has been Oscar nominated three times. It's a massive step up from the previous Lois who had been played by Kate Bosworth.

It was recently mentioned that Superman could be shooting on location in Chicago in August. There has also been talk from Zack that this could be his most realistic film including Dawn of The Dead. This could mean that this very well could be the most grounded take on Superman we've ever seen. I wouldn't be shocked to see his powers given a limit and the threats more real world.

Kevin Costner Is Officially Pa Kent In Superman: Man of Steel

Warner Bros. has officially announced that Kevin Costner will play Jonathan "Pa" Kent the adopted father of Clark Kent in Zack Snyder's Superman. Costner is third cast member that has joined the superhero reboot. Diane Lane will play his wife Ma Kent and Henry Cavill as Clark/Superman.

Viggo Mortensen Could Play The Villain In Superman

HeatVision reports that Viggo Mortensen is a person of interest to play the villain in Zack Snyder's Superman. Viggo is currently in talks to join Snow White & The Huntsman but that deal hasn't been signed just yet. I'll be curious to see if Christopher Nolan and Snyder are able to win him over to take the role. Vision believes the role is of General Zod famously played by Terrence Stamp in Superman II. Henry Cavill is the soul actor that has been cast so far but it's expected as the summer gets closer we'll be hearing more official news.

RUMOR: Mailn Akerman In The Running For Lois Lane?

ComicBookMovie has posted a rumor that Mailn Akerman could be up for the role of Lois Lane in Zack Snyder's Superman. It seems possible as they've got their Clark Kent/Superman (Henry Cavill) that they would move on to casting the rest of the film.

If true Akerman has a good shot as she's worked with both the studio and Synder on Watchmen previously. HeatVision recently confirmed rumors that Mailn's Watchmen co-star Matthew Goode had been a top choice to play Superman. It's very likely that Snyder could round out the cast with actors he's worked with before.