Joss Whedon Criticizes Lack Of Female Superhero Films; Could He Make CAPTAIN MARVEL?

Feminist filmmaker Joss Whedon has been a pioneer for female genre material ever since creating the breakout character Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Spending most of his career opening doors for actresses/female characters to be taken serious as leads of genre television series and feature films.

Even playing in the sandbox of my female-led franchise with his script for Alien Resurrection writing for the iconic genre character Ellen Ripley.

In an interview with Digital Spy he calls out Hollywood's "stupid people" blocking female-led comic book films. Also, pointing to fact Fox has access to the best female Marvel characters which isn't leaving Marvel Studios with much to work with. He would know since he wrote for the X-Men comics.

"It's a phenomenon in the industry that we call 'stupid people'," Whedon said. "There is genuine, recalcitrant, intractable sexism, and old-fashioned quiet misogyny that goes on. 

"You hear 'Oh, [female superheroes] don't work because of these two bad ones that were made eight years ago', there's always an excuse." 

"Hunger Games is a different structure and aesthetic to a certain extent, but these narratives where people are bigger than life and they're in these terrible, heightened circumstances, it's all part of the same genre," he said. 

"Marvel is in a position of making a statement simply by making [a female-led] movie, which I think would be a good thing to do. "But it has to be a good movie, it has to be a good character, and most of the best characters in Marvel are owned by Fox, let's face it!" 

Fox has yet to announce development a female driven superhero film since Elektra bombed.

Although, there has been talk from X-Men producers Lauren Shuler Donner and Simon Kinberg being interested in making Kitty Pryde and Mystique films but it's all been talk so far.

Whedon knows only too well what studio suits think of female superhero projects, Warner Bros. took an axe to his Wonder Woman film which had Cobie Smulders attached to star.

The studio is finally moving forward with a new adaptation with Breaking Bad's Michelle MacLaren and Gal Gadot in the titular role.

Joss would later gravitate towards Marvel and give us The Avengers, the big daddy of the comic book film genre.

Developing Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow into a total badass which was expanded upon in Captain America: Civil War. Not to mention giving Cobie a second-shot at the genre playing S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Maria Hill which has led to both becoming big supporting players in the cinematic universe.

When he was set on making it's sequel Age of Ultron he did all he could to add more female characters into the already cast heavy film. Giving us Godzilla's Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlett Witch and Marco Polo's Claudia Kim as a scientist friend of Tony Stark.

He's all about talking about Hollywood making these female comic book films but will he end-up making one of his own?

These new statements sound like there is a bit of a fire in Whedon to possibly tackle the genre, we'd all love to see him prove his point.

Joss was in attendance at the big Marvel event in October which he seemed really only there to help support Ultron. However, since he's already talking about leaving the Avengers franchise he could have been there for other motives.

This was the first official reveal that Marvel was making Captain Marvel and even was bold enough to set the release date for July 2017. If you've seen footage from the event people went apeshit when the film's title card was revealed.

Kevin Feige would go on stating the film had been in-development almost as long as Guardians and Doctor Strange, adding that news of a writer and director was coming soon.

Some speculate we'll hear the announcement around the time of the release of Age of Ultron, as production would likely have to begin sometime in 2016.

The Whedon link to Carol Danvers goes back a while when he first stated he hated the character, and then in an interview with HeyUGuys over the summer did a 180 on that previous statement.

Rumors of Danvers casting started back in 2012 around the time Whedon was developing the untitled sequel's early outline. The talk at the time was that the role would appear in the second film.

Since then we've been hearing that she might be in the film after all with a possible cameo at the end of the film, we'll know for sure if Carol is in the film come May.

Talk of the development on the solo film hit the trades about a year ago it was suggested the script was being written in-house at Marvel Studios.

Meaning that an outsider hadn't been hired to write it, giving us the impression it was either someone like Guardian's Nicole Perlman (who was apart of their screenwriting program) or an existing writer at the studio, which points towards a female centric writer like Joss Whedon.

Whedon is more than capable to handle this kind of material and it would allow him to move into a different aspect of the Marvel universe as Kevin has stated her adventures are indeed set in the comic universe.

I'm sure the big question during Age of Ultron's press tour will be, is Joss Whedon going to write or direct Captain Marvel?




SOURCE: DIGITAL SPY

Cedric Nicolas-Troyan Is The New Director Of THE HUNTSMAN Sequel

The Hollywood Reporter is confirming that Universal has found a replacement for director Frank Darabont who left The Huntsman over creative differences. A new director has been found and Cedric Nicolas-Troyan has been named.

Cedric was second-unit director on Snow White And The Hunstman and Joe Roth's Maleficent, Joe will be producing The Huntsman. He also worked on the visual effects on films such as The Ring, Pirates of The Caribbean: The Curse of The Black Pearl/Dead Man's Chest and Snow White. The new director was attached to direct Summit's remake of The Highlander.

The film is said to be centred around Chris Hemsworth's Eric The Hunstman and not Snow White, Kristen Stewart isn't expected to return for the sequel.

Eric is tasked on returning the magic mirror when it goes missing. The main antagonist of the film is the Snow Queen, who is out for revenge after the death of her sister Raveena played by Charlize Theron.

As previously reported Emily Blunt is in negotiations with the studio for the role of the villainess Snow Queen.

Theron is said to be reprising the role of Raveena, possibly in flashbacks.





SOURCE: THR

Emily Blunt Could Star Opposite Chris Hemsworth In THE HUNTSMAN

Emily Blunt is returning to the world of fairytales as The Wrap reports she is in negotiations to play the new villain in Unversal's sequel to Snow White And The Huntsman, titled The Huntsman.

Blunt has previously been involved with genre in films such as Gulliver's Travels and Disney's musical Into The Woods. We don't often see the actress portray villains so this could be an interesting character for Emily.

The Wrap also adds that director Frank Darabont (Godzilla, The Mist, The Walking Dead) has exited the project this week citing creative differences. A shame, since we loved what Frank did with both The Walking Dead and The Mist. He also penned the recent draft of the script which had previous worked done by Craig Mazin and Evan Spiliotopoulos

Having both Chris Hemsworth and now possibly Emily Blunt attached as the film's leads it shouldn't be hard to find a new director for the sequel.

The sequel is said to be focusing on Chris Hemsworth's character Eric, and likely won't see the return of Kristen Stewart in any major way while Charlize Theron is expected to reprise her role.

Blunt's character is said to be the evil Snow Queen, sister to Charlize Theron's Ravenna, who was killed in the last film. The Snow Queen is looking to avenge Raveena's death, while Hemworth's Eric The Huntsman is on a mission to find the magic mirror which has been stolen.

The Huntsman's release date has been scheduled for April 22, 2016 which suggests production will begin extremely soon.

This along with last summer's Edge of Tomorrow could help boost Emily's status as an action star seeing her moving into more adventure focused roles in the future.

Carol Danvers is that you?

There's been a huge fan campaign to see Emily Blunt take the role of Carol Danvers in Marvel's Captain Marvel film.

Mainly, due to a rumor back in 2012 from a British paper that purposed the actress was in the mix to play the character Ms Marvel in Avengers 2.

The demand to see her in the role started gathering steam when she took on badass roles in films like Looper and basically playing a character similar to Danvers in Edge of Tomorrow.

You might remember that Emily Bunt was originally cast as Black Widow in Iron Man 2 but had to exit due to Fox pulling her out of the project to take a role in Gulliver's Travels instead. She would go-on to test for the Peggy Carter role in Captain America: The First Avenger but would turn down the role as well.

Since then, it's been somewhat confirmed that a draft of the shooting script for Avengers: Age of Ultron included a cameo from Carol Danvers. Slightly boosting the expectation Carol will indeed make her first appearance in the Avengers sequel.

However, it's unknown if the studio has or will shoot that scene.

We've seen Marvel previously setup future solo films with Chadwick Boseman getting a co-starring role in Captain America: Civil War before his own film Black Panther is released in 2017.

His character's kingdom of Wakanda is said to have an important role to play within Age of Ultron as well.

It's extremely possible that Marvel Studios could cast someone in the role before landing a director for Captain Marvel. Which would help setup her character within the cinematic universe before her solo debut in July 2018.

There are even recent rumors suggesting she'll be apart of the lineup in Avengers: Infinity War Part 1, which is due out months before her solo adventure. Feeding more speculation her origins will likely be told sometime before the events of Infinity War.

I would even go as far to consider Carol Danvers could be apart of Civil War in a minor way as well, that's if she ends up getting her cameo in Age of Ultron. Also, it not interfering with her involvement with The Huntsman production possibly shooting later-on in the year during reshoots or pick-ups.

During interviews for Into The Woods Blunt finally commented (via Screen Crush) on the campaign to see her take the Captain Marvel role. She went on to suggest it's all rumors and no offer had been made. However, seemed interested in the role if the character was a right fit for her.

"I think, it’s always for me, it’s always about—and now, more so—what am I putting out there? What would be interesting for me and what would be interesting for people to see. So, if it’s an awesome part, it doesn’t matter if it’s a Marvel movie or a tiny movie, I’d be up for it."

"That’s huge. How awesome. I love this. No one has actually called me about it, so, we’ll hold our breath. [Laughs] I don’t know if I’ll get the call ever if I pitch it should be a musical."

Emily blunt has some serious connections to Marvel Studios alumni.

Blunt, Hemswoth and Evans laughing it up!

She recently worked three Marvel actors in the Mexican cartel thriller Sicario. That cast includes Josh Brolin (Thanos), Benicio Del Toro (The Collector) and Maximiliano Hernández (Agent Sitwell).

Another huge Marvel connection comes from her role in director Joe Johnston's (Captain America: The First Avenger) The Wolfman starring opposite Del Toro again but also Anthony Hopkins (Odin) and Hugo Weaving (The Red Skull).

In The Young Victoria, she worked with Paul Bettany (Jarvis and Vision) and Thomas Kretschmann (Baron Wolfgang Strucker).

Emily has also worked with Chris Pratt (Star-Lord) in the Five-Year Engagement and Anthony Mackie (Falcon) in The Adjustment Bureau.

Including Chris Hemsworth (Thor) in The Huntsman, she will have worked with around ten Marvel Studios actors.

Also, check out this image of Emily being extremely chummy with Chris Hemsworth and Captain America's Chris Evans at the Critic's Choice Awards.

Come on, you can't tell me she wouldn't fit-in right alongside that group of actors.








SOURCE: THEWRAP

Emily Blunt Finally Talks About CAPTAIN MARVEL And How Likely Is Joss Whedon Directing?

While promoting her new Disney musical Into The Woods, Emily Blunt spoke to ScreenCrush who brought-up the Captain Marvel role. Seemingly unfamiliar with both the character and her fan-favorite status. This isn't a new phenomena, actors such as Paul Rudd and Benedict Cumberbatch have played dumb in-front of reporters. When questioned about the possibility of playing Marvel heroes. This is the first time Emily has ever been asked about the character directly, so she can very easily pretend to have no knowledge of her.

It might be a bit harder to come-off ignorant of the character the next time she is asked about her. I'm sure it'll end up start becoming "it's all, rumor man". That said, she could be generally unaware of the character. Yet, that feels off to me since her husband tested for Captain America and she was cast as Black Widow. You'd think she would have more of an awareness to what the studio is up to, even more so since the Phase Three news was in every trade and news outlet.




This is the entire interview with ScreenCrush, enjoy!

Are you aware of the Internet buzz surrounding you playing Captain Marvel?

Somebody told me about it this morning! I knew because my brother told me.

People want you to play Captain Marvel.

Which is kind of amazing.

You were in ‘Looper’ and ‘Edge of Tomorrow,’ you have that cred now.

I know. What’s she like, though? I don’t know anything about her. What’s it like, this character?

She’s great.

Cool. Is she fun? Or is she just like, straight…

No, she’s witty and strong. That’s why people keep bringing your name up. They don’t want a boring actor. A lot of personality.

Oh, cool.

I think people really liked what they saw in ‘Edge of Tomorrow.’

But it’s not the same type of character?

No. It’s weird I’m explaining this to you...

I know. Someone told me this morning, my brother, actually. They call it fan casting?

Yes.

Which is lovely. It’s my favorite kind of casting! I wish it was always like that.

Sometimes fan casting works.

Which would be cool.

Maybe they can make ‘Captain Marvel’ a musical now that you’ve done ‘Into the Woods.’

[Laughs] ‘Captain Musical Marvel.’ Let’s just call Marvel about that right now. We’ll call Kevin Feige about that. “Kevin Feige, we have one hell of an idea.” Yeah.

“Only if it’s a musical will you get your dream casting.”

Exactly.

But in seriousness, it does appeal to you?

I think, it’s always for me, it’s always about—and now, more so—what am I putting out there? What would be interesting for me and what would be interesting for people to see. So, if it’s an awesome part, it doesn’t matter if it’s a Marvel movie or a tiny movie, I’d be up for it.

You’d be a hero for every 10-year-old girl out there right now.

Really? Then that’s huge.

There’s no Marvel female superhero who has her own movie yet.

That’s huge. How awesome. I love this. No one has actually called me about it, so, we’ll hold our breath. [Laughs] I don’t know if I’ll get the call ever if I pitch it should be a musical.

Blunt talked to New York Magazine in March 2012 and her reluctancy to be involved with supporting Marvel roles like Peggy Carter. Sort of echoing what Jessica Chastain has said about passing on Iron Man 3. Perhaps, giving the impression what kind of comic book role she would be interested in playing.

"Usually the female parts in a superhero film feel thankless: She's the pill girlfriend while the guys are whizzing around saving the world," offered Blunt. "I didn't do the other ones because the part wasn't very good or the timing wasn't right, but I'm open to any kind of genre if the part is great and fun and different and a challenge in some way." 

"I would love to do a comic-book movie or a science-fiction film that would scare the bejesus out of me," she continued. "Maybe I need to be James Bond! I just did 'Looper,' because it's so original and breathtakingly cool. The time-travel aspect is just a backdrop to visit this heightened world, where you're atoning for something and attempting to be more than you've been."

Here's my case that Marvel wants Blunt for the role of Danvers.

We've been hearing Emily Blunt's name rumored for Carol Danvers since TheDailyMail (known for breaking Bond news) first linked her and actress Ruth Wilson for the role in Avengers 2. That happened to be back in October 2012, around the same time the studio was putting together ideas for the sequel. Before it's ultimate announcement next July at SDCC13 as Avengers: Age of Ultron. This is also around the same time that talk of a Black Widow spin-off slowly winded-down.

Funny, since we've been hearing from trusted sites and sources that there was a Ms Marvel cameo in the final Age of Ultron script. Which could still play-out at the end of Age of Ultron, unless Marvel axes the nod completely, seemingly the practice when these things leak. Basically, it was predicted back in 2012 that Danvers could be showing-up in Avengers 2, and it might actually happen. Shocking!

To those naysayers, this might be the reason why we never heard other names in the mix since that original rumor. It's extremely possible that Marvel took in consideration that Blunt was forced out of the Black Widow role by 20th Century Fox. Emily also tested for the role of Peggy Carter but passed on the character. We assume because the role wasn't meaty enough for her at the time, and it's quite possible in late 2012 Marvel put her on a candidate list for Carol Danvers. The studio is known to put actors on wish-lists without their knowledge.

A trade report in 2013 confirmed that a draft for Captain Marvel existed. It's possible that Marvel's screenwriting program developed an outline in-house and it's perhaps how they've been able to keep the development hush-hush. Kevin Feige stated that a Captain Marvel film had been in development at the studio almost as long as Doctor Strange, which could be true. Since the in-house script program wouldn't have revealed writers and what scripts they were working on. There are a pile of these scripts with unnamed titles and writers in their offices.

Some claim it was way too early for Marvel to consider casting for the role, which is kind of stupid if you ask me. Marvel is known for introducing characters in other installments, other than their solo adventures. Black Panther being a prime example, as he'll be first seen in costume in Captain America: Civil War and will get his own film in 2017. Marvel had been looking at actors for Panther for years before they announced Chadwick Boseman. I have a suspicion that Danvers might also have a role to play in Civil War as well.

Why would Marvel cast an actor before a director is even attached? It's likely a simple answer, they have a director already lined-up (Feige said we'll hear a director before casting) or they always knew they wanted Emily for the role (hence name on the top of their list). Due to her previous casting as Black Widow in Iron Man 2. I'm sure this was done without the awareness of Blunt, but they could have promised her another role in the future.

So who could they have in mind to direct? A bit of speculation on my part, but I have a sneaking feeling that Joss Whedon might be person behind this film. Clearly, early development took place behind closed-doors and Kevin Feige seemingly hints a director might be already chosen. We already know that The Russo Brothers are apparently wanted to direct the two Infinity War installments. Where does this leave Whedon if he's not making Avengers anymore?

That's a question a lot of people haven't been asking, automatically thinking he's done with Marvel (even though he has talked about writing a new Hulk film). Joss did show-up to that Phase Three announcement at the El Capitan, odd since none of his films are apart of that slate. I think it would be sort of odd that he would show-up just for his sneak peek. I'm sure he wanted to hear the fan reaction just as much as Feige did. What if he was directing one of those announced films?


Joss is known for writing strong female characters and already has a working relationship with Kevin Feige/Marvel. It wouldn't be hard to imagine Marvel insisting Whedon develop the film. He did plan on writing-directing Wonder Woman for Warner Bros. It would eventually get killed, and he would move on to Avengers instead. That potential for a female-driven superhero story could be refocused with a film like Captain Marvel. We've heard some interesting things from Whedon about the character. However, a recent interview with HeyUGuys gave some insight he or Marvel may have cracked the character. This eventually became true as the solo film is expected to come out July 2018. Whedon is known for keeping his mouth shut about scripts, and is the kind of writer to keep a secret Marvel script from scoopers.

If Joss Whedon is making Captain Marvel why are they waiting until 2018 to release it? I think we know the answer to this as well, he's going to be fucking exhausted once he's completed with the press rounds for Age of Ultron. It also might have to do with the overall release plans of Marvel and not just Joss possibly wanting to make more indie films. Whedon went straight into shooting A Much Ado About Nothing right after the Avengers release, that could happen again taking up a good chunk of his time. Having him tackle a smaller production would also give him enough time to put together the best script possible. I'm not excluding the idea that we'll see her possibly in both Age of Ultron and Civil War too.



SOURCE: SCREENCRUSH

Natalie Dormer And Mackenzie Davis Would Make Excellent CAPTAIN MARVEL Candidates

A majority of the Marvel movie fan community cheered when the studio announced plans to release a Captain Marvel movie in 2018. She's one of the most recognizable female superheroes and has slowly grown a huge fan-base named The Carol Corps., whose presence is active in most genre conventions overwhelming with their impressive cosplay turnout. Kevin Feige promised an announcement concerning a writer and director, before news of who will play her but that hasn't stopped us from creating casting wish-lists.

For months we've been talking about candidates such as Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow, Looper, Five-Year Engagement), Jessica Chastain (A Violent Year, The Martian, Zero Dark Thirty, Crimson Peak, Mama, Interstellar) , Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl, Jack Reacher, World's End, Die Another Day), and Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica, Riddick). Who would all make excellent additions for the running. However, I'm not entirely sure how these ladies would actually feel about the commitment needed to be apart of the Marvel universe.

The Captain Marvel contract would likely include a five-to-nine picture deal. Wouldn't be shocked to see her heavily involved with Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War Part I, Inhumans and Avengers: Infinity War Part II. Not to mention future roles in Phase Four films. This is the sort of thing has scared off some talented actors in the past. Joaquin Phoenix has passed on both Bruce Banner and Stephen Strange roles because of this aspect. Actors such as Chris Pratt, Paul Rudd and Chadwick Boseman were in positions where they could make a giant string of Marvel movies. I'm unsure if some of these ladies would be willing to give-up future projects due to these Marvel movies. This might not be a huge issue for the likes of Katee Sackhoff, for others this could dip into their prospect of working with highly acclaimed actors, writers and directors.

I've been shocked how many Captain Marvel casting lists have been including Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence. While talented, will likely have her X-Men contract re-upped very soon at 20th Century Fox. Jennifer might be slowly winding-down her Hunger Games franchise, but the X-Men franchise is growing and moving forward. The studio will need the key actors like her for their future plans to work.

 Hugh Jackman has talked at length about retiring as Wolverine. A move that will likely take place after James Mangold's The Wolverine 2. I expect to see Fox double-down on contracts for Lawrence, Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy. Giving them incentives to stick-around for another trilogy. As X-Men Apocalypse will complete the trilogy started by Matthew Vaughn's First Class. Including Lawrence in Carol Danvers casting lists isn't just lazy it's ignorant to the power and money Fox is willing to throw around.

Yes, Hunger Games is ending but it will also see her the face of a multi-billion dollar franchise. I don't think Fox will let that go, considering they've gone out of their way to mess with the X-Men timeline. Turning her character Mystique from villain to heroine, something obviously done to keep Lawrence's Raven in a heroic light. Let's not forget that the studio has teased giving Mystique her own solo film. I don't think that's something they've put out there for shits-and-giggles. That character is most likely to get her own spin-off. Considering Sony, Marvel and Warner Bros. are moving forward with female-driven superhero films, Fox will likely follow suit as well. Fox isn't afraid to pay actors what they need to stick around, they used to give Sigourney Weaver huge amounts to make more Alien movies.

The studio also seemingly gives the cast a bit of breathing-room between installments, something RDJ,  Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans have been dreaming about for a while now.

We know that Marvel is known for demanding huge commitments of their actors, something that could hurt Jennifer's indie roots and awards-level productions. The young actress is still attaching herself to Oscar level work, even after winning for Silver Linings Playbook. Notice how her co-star Bradley Cooper was only willing to commit to voice acting for Rocket Raccoon? Yeah, Jennifer Lawrence signing-on for Captain Marvel is a huge stretch. Sticking with Fox's X-Men franchise, will keep her profile in the spotlight while allowing her the time to make the more artsy dramas we're used to her making. We've seen how Marvel can scare-off talented actors with these contracts. Joaquin Phoenix turned down both Bruce Banner and Stephen Strange roles over these demands from the studio. It's hard to believe Jennifer Lawrence is viable candidate with all this possibly putting up walls.

However, two actresses we haven't really been talking about could make a huge impact on the Marvel cinematic universe, while also being able to commit to their crazy lengthy contracts. Those names are Natalie Dormer and newcomer Mackenzie Davis. Two ladies who I haven't really seen mentioned previously to Marvel's announcement that Carol Danvers is getting her own film in July 2018.

Natalie Dormer (Rush, Counselor, Fades, Silk, Tudors, The Girl Who Invented Kissing) might have had a cameo in Captain America: The First Avenger, but that really shouldn't completely destroy her chances for a role. Previously, we've heard Idris Elba campaigning for roles like Luke Cage, Black Panther and Blade. Let's not forget that Elba also had a role in Ghost Rider: Spirt of Vengeance and Chris Evans was in Fantastic Four before he was Captain America.

Since Dormer's role as the flirty soldier, could easily be the grandmother of Carol Danvers. Marvel has never shied away from family legacy, Stark and Carter are excellent examples of this.

She's all over genre work and is making a name for herself as the best walk-on character actress. Her profile has been recently increased thanks in-part to her role in Game of Thrones and Hunger Games franchises. Natalie is and extremely hard worker and goes quickly from project to project. It's the type of work ethic that might be a perfect fit for Marvel's notorious contracts.

Canadian actress Mackenzie Davis (That Awakward Moment, What If) is quickly gathering steam as a newcomer, taking roles in the AMC series Halt And Catch Fire and Ridley Scott's The Martian. She's placing herself in an array of different genres. Something that echoes what we saw with Chris Hemsworth before he landed Thor.

It also doesn't hurt that she has worked or will work with Marvel alumni Sebastian Stan (Captain America 1-2), Lee Pace (Guardians of The Galaxy), Scoot McNairy (All Hail The King), Michael Pena (Ant-Man), Patton Oswalt (Agents of SHIELD), Shea Whigham (Agent Cater), Michael B. Jordan (Fantastic Four) and Miles Teller (Fantastic Four). The actress is a prime candidate for one of Marvel's lengthly contracts, which would likely see her committed to five-nine films.


Do you think Marvel is going to be able to wrangle a high-profile actress or will they go with someone under the radar?

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 

Marvel Studios Needs To Consider Jane Goldman For CAPTAIN MARVEL

While Marvel is still playing the marketing-game of when to announce the rest of their Phase 3 and Phase 4 lineups. Warner Bros. and Sony have planted release dates for their female-led superhero projects. Warners aiming to release Wonder Woman in July 2017 and Sony giving their in-development Spider-Man spin-off (Spider-Woman/Black Cat?) a to-be-determined slot sometime in 2016.

Marvel's Kevin Feige has insisted in recent interviews there is active development on a Captain Marvel movie. The studio isn't seemingly ready to commit or announce this to the public officially. Behind closed doors we know that Marvel is developing the film, but it's unknown when they'll reveal their plans for it. Bloggers who have got a hold of the shooting script for Age of Ultron, have mentioned a cameo for her in the final scenes. It's possible the leak may cause the studio to cut the scene entirely, but rumor is it hasn't even been shot yet. I assume because they haven't hired/announced the actress for the role.

We know at the moment the Black Widow film is in limbo, and Scarlett Johansson might agree to join Warner Bros./Dreamworks Ghost In The Shell franchise. The project would spawn sequels if successful, the material lends itself to be serialized. Not giving Marvel much room if they did decide to make the Widow film happen. As her contract with Marvel expires soon, and her new contract with Shell (a reported $10M offer) could be a problem. This adds further fuel to the talk Marvel is going with Captain Marvel instead of a Black Widow movie.

I suggested earlier this week that Marvel would be smart to release Captain Marvel in their slot for November 2017. Mainly, because that month has served well for the Hunger Games franchise and could support a bigger film before the holiday event films in December. This would give over a year of room between Doctor Strange and Captain Marvel, should Marvel decide to make this a priority.

While I've been giving out many casting suggestions for the film. Emily Blunt being previously linked for the role and sounds like a safe bet. Blunt was original cast as Black Widow, exited Iron Man 2 and ever since Marvel has been trying to find a role for her.

In all the casting talk and bitching about the lack of announcements from Marvel. I don't think many are actually talking about who should actually write or direct this project. When Lexi Alexander suggested Jane Goldman to direct WB's Wonder Woman, I totally agreed. I've mentioned Jane for smaller comic book projects, but never for the big ones. Shockingly, it dawned on me that Jane could very well make an amazing Captain Marvel film too.

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 Kingsman: 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. A seasoned writer of genre material, and has written some excellent female characters. The only thing that makes me lean toward Danvers over Diana, is Jane's humor and playful action scenes. I'm not actually sure the serious tone of the new DC Comics cinematic universe would be a good fit for her.

Besides writing a ton of scripts for comic book movies she lives with a comic book writer/creator. British television host Jonathan Ross is Jane's husband, and is well-known in the comic book community. He's created comics such as The Revenger,  Golden Age and Turf. I'm this shared interest is what's helped them both stay so creative. Ross' amazing BBC documentary Searching For Steve Ditko is still one of my favorite things ever covered about the community. With Doctor Strange about shoot at Marvel, I recommend learning a bit about one of the character's co-creators.

Goldman actually has a love and passion for comic book material. This is one of the key reasons why Joss Whedon's Avengers and James Gunn's Guardians of The Galaxy have made such splashes with audiences. They respect and also understand the original material. This is sort of why I believe she's a solid fit for a project at Marvel Studios. Sometimes when hired-guns are brought-in you can tell they don't really get the characters or even the world they are set in. Moving forward it would be nice to see Marvel tapping more people who are actually obsessed with their comics to make their movies.

We've seen that the better Marvel films have the directors also contributing as writers as well. I've been hearing for a while that Marvel is keen on having future directors being able to juggle both getting behind the camera, and also contributing to the script. Doctor Strange's Scott Derrickson might not end-up with writing credits on the film, but is an accomplished screenwriter and will have likely been working closely with Jon Spaihts (Prometheus, The Mummy). The Russo Brothers are also working hard with Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely to get Captain America 3 on the level of Winter Soldier and Avengers installments. Having Jane work together with another talented writer could echo her relationship with Matthew Vaughn.

The trades have reported that a Captain Marvel script exits over at Marvel, but we don't know who actually wrote it. It's rumored Guardians' Nicole Perlman may have written an early Captain Marvel outline for Marvel at some point. Marvel is known for using their writer's program to get early outlines, and then sending these off to potential directors/writers. The thought of a collaboration between Jane Goldman and Nicole Perlman is too good not to consider. Plus, having two female writers on one project would correct a lot of potential blunders, before they even happen.

Seeing Jane make the jump to director feels more natural than Roberto Orci, Frank Miller, Mark Millar or David S. Goyer. If, we're going to talk about writers who deserve shots to become features directors, Jane is good place to start. Working closely with director Matthew Vaughn on Stardust, Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class and Kingsman. Obviously, she has the vision and passion needed to handle such a task, which you can clearly see with her writing. Jane's also been able to adapt novels into solid screenplays, so another reason why she would be a great choice.

WTF? Marvel Considering Removing Captain Marvel Cameo In AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON?

Marvel's unwillingness to include a lead female superhero, is going even further than we originally thought. BadassDigest is hearing from a source, that Marvel Studios is getting "cold-feet" concerning the long-rumored Captain Marvel cameo in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Reliable bloggers had confirmed her appearance in the final script, was only a brief cameo. Now it seems that the studio is re-thinking how they want to introduce audiences to the character. Believing a cold cameo (I expect a cameo similar to Hawkeye's in Thor) might not be in their best interest, or the best way to approach her.

MCU update: sources tell me Marvel is getting cold feet about Captain Marvel in AGE OF ULTRON. They're not sure they want to intro her cold.
— Devin Faraci (@devincf) August 28, 2014

I can understand the problem with a forced-cameo, fans want whatever we can get our hands-on. However, the problem could be that Marvel hasn't locked-down an actress for the role. Contracts are a tricky thing and the studio has become a little more secretive concerning their casting. We know that actresses such as Emily Blunt (Looper, Edge of Tomorrow) and Ruth Wilson (Luther, Lone Ranger) have been linked, but nothing says they're still in the mix. Devin from BAD confirms that the scene in question hasn't been shot. They have until May to decide what to do, but it's likely the entire cameo could be cut from the film.

Rumblings from inside Marvel, point to them developing a Captain Marvel feature film. Kevin Feige recently confirmed to IGN that active development on both Black Panther and Captain Marvel is currently underway at the studio. He also mentioned the reasoning behind this development, was massive fan interest in seeing these characters get their own films, a major understatement.

It's hard to understand why Marvel wouldn't want to include Danvers' origin, considering the new rumored mantra currently at Marvel is "no origins" for their solo films. Setting her up for own film via Age of Ultron, still seems like a smart move to gather awareness for the heroine. Although, zero awareness prior to the marketing blitz for Guardians of The Galaxy, didn't hurt it's box office numbers.

SOURCE: BADASSDIGEST

Marvel's Kevin Feige Finally Confirms Active Development On CAPTAIN MARVEL And BLACK PANTHER Movies

It looks like we all missed-out on the coolest tidbit of information about Marvel's upcoming projects, that Marvel's Kevin Feige briefly mentioned to IGN at SDCC. He was asked point-blank about Black Panther and Captain Marvel movies. In which Kevin replied in a much more positive way, than previously when asked about the projects. It's the first time Feige has confirmed development on a Captain Marvel film, which I've been talking about being in development for months now.

"There both characters that we like..development work has been done on it, and it continues to be done on...and certainly the public.. It's the question I get asked more than anything else...More than Iron Man 4, more than Avengers 3, and that's sort of the first-time that's ever happened to us...So I think that makes a difference, I think that's something we have to pay attention to."

He was asked if public opinion or online demands fuel Marvel's choices to what to make next. Kevin reaffirmed that they have their plans set out in advanced (likely by phases), and that fans attitudes change frequently. While stating Black Panther and Captain Marvel might be exceptions to this. It's also extremely possible that Marvel has been keeping plans in-house for the moment, and wanted to see Guardians success before moving forward with similar "risky" projects.

"But in this particular case, I think it's a groundswell, and I think it means something substantial." 

It's sort of a big-deal for this to happen, considering we have Marvel about to release their 11th film in May. None of the films have included female or non-white solo leads. Having Marvel's most recognizable female and black superheroes in theatres is something fans have been demanding since Avengers. It could change the landscape of the genre, and open-doors to actors/characters which might have been ignored for tentpole potential.

I have a feeling we'll see a bit of diversity casting when it comes to Jessica Jones, Iron Fist and Luke Cage. However, making the jump to the big-screen, might ruffle the feathers of the studio dinosaurs, who have been blocking the change-up. Warner Bros. has both Aquaman and possible Wonder Woman films in development, which won't have the typical white-male lead. Sony is actually the first of the new wave to announce development on a female-driven Spider-Man spin-off coming in 2017. The likelyhood is that film will focus on Felicia Hardy aka Black Cat. Kevin might be saying it's fan demand, but it's also pressure coming from competing studios.

As it stands now Marvel has two in-house scripts for both Panther and Captain Marvel. Both characters are expected to be hinted-to in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Not unlike Doctor Strange's Stephen Strange in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The former project has a draft by Mark Bailey, which Marvel seemingly likes but could eventually get extensive rewrites. The latter has a script, which is rumored to have been written by Guardians of The Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman.

It was told to me that the Captain Marvel script was written in-house (as usual), and by someone who has already produced scripts for the studio. Nicole also wrote an updated draft for the Black Widow script while being apart of Marvel's screenwriting program. It's actually unknown how many scripts Marvel had her working on, because Marvel hasn't made that information public. Considering both Guardians and Widow are female-heavy scripts, it would make sense that Perlman would at least get a shot at Captain Marvel. Perlman is also one of the best known writers from the program, and one of the few that has actually earned writing credit for her work.

Speaking of casting, we haven't heard much in the way of T'Challa, since LatinoReview first revealed Chadwick Boseman (Gods of Egypt, 42, Get On Up) as a strong candidate back in May 2013. Boseman himself has been coy, but recently stated.."Ahhh, I don’t know anything about that…Until the contract is signed, I don’t know". It's not definitive, but sounds like the usual runaround answers actors talking with Marvel would be expected to say. Chadwick is charismatic and charming as hell, and would make one hell of a Black Panther.

The only source concerning the casting of Captain Marvel goes all the back to October 2012, which comes from the DailyMail (usually right when it comes to Bond news). They said that both Emily Blunt (Looper, Edge of Tomorrow) and Ruth Wilson (Lone Ranger, Luther) were the main candidates for the role of Ms Marvel, at the time was linked for Avengers 2. Since then, we've got confirmation that Ms Marvel indeed appears in the Age of Ultron script, and could make a cameo in the sequel. Interesting enough, Joss Whedon confirmed to HeyUGuys a fourth major female lead in Age of Ultron, which some have assume is actually Ms Marvel/Captain Marvel.

It would make sense that Emily Blunt would be in the mix for this role, considering she was forced out of the Black Widow role in Iron Man 2, because of a contract with 20th Century Fox. She's been since linked to a few other Marvel roles including Peggy Carter in Captain America: The First Avenger. I assume that she could become Marvel's go-to actress to head-up this franchise. We've seen her play badasses in both Looper and Edge of Tomorrow, which the latter seemed like a test-reel for a campaign to play Captain Marvel. I wouldn't rule out Ruth Wilson considering she's closely worked with both Thor alumni Tom Hiddleston and Idris Elba, but Blunt is currently my favorite for the role.



If I had to guess release dates, I would place Black Panther for either May or November 2017 (since we don't have a non-sequel announced for 2017, but have a cosmic one with GOTG2 and Thor 3 will take the Avengers-era spot), and Captain Marvel for a release in 2018 (since that year doesn't have either a cosmic film or new character). We can't be sure what Marvel's ultimate plan is until they make it official, but it sounds like Captain Marvel could be our next cosmic franchise and Panther our next new Earthbound hero.



SOURCE: IGN

CAPTAIN MARVEL Movie Apart Of Marvel's Phase Four Plans?

We've been hearing a lot of Captain Marvel talk in the last couple of months, and her possible addition to the Marvel cinematic universe. Carol Danvers has the potential to be a leading super powered heroine, who doesn't have a villainous origin. Having a troubled past is something that Black Widow and Gamora both have in common. It would be nice to finally see a lead female character shake-off the love-interest cliche and given level footing with the rest of The Avengers. It's been rumored for over a year that Danvers would be joining the Avengers ranks for Age of Ultron. The size of the role (Carol Danvers/Warbird/Ms Marvel/Captain Marvel?) has never been explained or revealed.

I started taking the news seriously when TheDailyMail reported, that Ruth Wilson and Emily Blunt were candidates for the role, back in the fall of 2012. This was the same source that recently confirmed Paul Bettany would be playing Vision in Avengers: Age of Ultron. I have solid reason to believe these two might actually be the ladies truly in the running for the role. I know this might disappoint all the folks who were fan-casting Yvonne Strahovski and Alice Eve.

Emily Blunt has a notorious history with Marvel, originally signing-on to play Black Widow (Johansson set to play Scarlet Witch) in Iron Man 2, only to have Fox call-up her contract for Gulliver's Travels. Scarlet Johansson would fill-in for Emily, and has been the female face of the Marvel films ever since. This wasn't the only role offered to Blunt, she turned down the part of Peggy Carter in Captain America: The First Avenger (which went to Ruth's co-star Hayley Atwell from the series The Prisoner) and possibly Gamora (rumored only) in Guardians. If I had to guess why, the roles weren't large enough for her commit that much time. The Marvel contracts are quite lengthly, usually anywhere from three to six films.

Emily has been kicking-ass in her recent films Looper and Edge of Tomorrow, the latter has her killing a bunch of aliens. She's proven the ability to play strong and complex characters, which means she could easily support a Marvel franchise on her own. Having a well-known actress in the role of Danvers, is sort of a must, as Marvel can't gamble with hiring talent on a project like this. It's go big or go home.

Ruth Wilson had recently taken two high-profile Disney roles in films Saving Mr. Banks and The Lone Ranger. Not to mention, previously co-starring with Marvel actors Idris Elba in the amazing series Luther, and with Tom Hiddleston in short-lived series Suburban Shootout. I love Ruth Wilson to-death, but I'd rather see her take a different role in the MCU. Considering her working relationship with two Thor actors, seeing her play Amora The Enchantress or Brunhilde The Valkyrie in Thor 3 would be sublime. That said, Blunt has a track record of turning down Marvel roles and it could be up for grabs, if Emily walks again.

Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica, Riddick) teased that she might have been in the mix for the role, but it's possible her commitments to the horrible sounding ExpendaBelles might exclude her participation in the film. Let's not forget that Ruth and Emily, have been in the mix since 2012. It's quite possible Katee's "meeting" with Marvel was for something else entirely, non-Avengers related. I wouldn't rule out something like Inhumans, which is being compared to a mix of X-Men meets Game of Thrones. A property better suited for Sackhoff, as a team-based project is in her wheelhouse. Then again, I wouldn't be upset if she actually turns out to be in the running.

Joss Whedon would comment on using Ms Marvel, cutting down the character and teasing Tigra with a joke instead. Around the same time he was talking up the villainous twins Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, hard to allow fans time to support Scarlet, if he was talking up Danvers (possibly a character with a smaller part in the film) as well. Let's not forget, Fox was going to include the mutant siblings in X-Men Days of Future Past. Joss needed to establish the twins as major players in the film. He's also not going to give everything away in an interview, keeping important elements and characters of the sequel a surprise. Baron Wolfgang von Strucker and Vision were recently revealed, which we weren't expecting to be added to the cast.


Whedon is supposed to be a "champion" of leading female characters, however, we don't have a franchise led by one (team-ups don't count). This is on the heels of Ant-Man (Wasp's inclusion only rumor at this point) kicking-off Phase Three in 2015. Along with mostly male-dominated projects like Doctor Strange, Inhumans, Black Panther and new Hulk film waiting inline for their own release dates. Yes, we have Jessica Jones finally getting her due, but that's television darling. Marvel could very well edge-out Warner Bros. by releasing a Captain Marvel film, before the studio can get their shit together to release Justice League or a solo Wonder Woman film. But, adding Carol to Age of Ultron makes sense and given the problems Joss has with her, he has the ability to fix those issues and create the cinematic version of that character.

Going even further than just a cameo, a rumor started circling that Marvel was strongly considering a Ms Marvel/Captain Marvel movie. We would later hear from THR, that Marvel Studios was working on a Captain Marvel script with an unnamed writer. I would assume it was coming from Nicole Perlman (Black Widow, Guardians of The Galaxy), who is apart of the Marvel screenwriters program (THR refers to the program). Perlman has a tendency to write the studio's female focused scripts (usually under the radar) and she is likely the writer spearheading the Captain Marvel script for Marvel.

There are plenty of entry points for Carol to get her powers, Age of Ultron is one and the Guardians of The Galaxy (or the sequel) is another. Ronan The Accuser (played by Lee Pace), a high-level member of the Kree Empire and will be seen in Guardians of The Galaxy, in the service of Thanos. I don't doubt that by the end of Guardians or even in the second film (expected for Phase Three), they could interact with Earth and it might involve Danvers (comic cannon suggests she'll get her powers by involvement of The Kree). The Kree connection would make things very tempting, to have her gain her powers within that franchise. It wouldn't hurt having another female team member either, it would also be a way to bridge Guardians and Avengers worlds without the need of Tony Stark.

Phase Three is quickly filling up with Ant-Man, Captain America 3, Thor 3 and possibly Guardians of The Galaxy 2 taking up the spots. There is still the expectation Marvel "might" make room for Doctor Strange. This means that Captain Marvel won't be ready until Phase Four. The Phase One characters will have their trilogies wrapped-up at this point, giving the new wave of heroes a chance to finally get their solo flicks released.

RUMOR: Ms Marvel Next Addition To AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON?

We've been getting a bunch of new additions to the cast of Avengers: Age of Ultron, which include James Spader (Ultron), Aaron Johnson (Quicksilver), Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch), Thomas Kretschmann (Baron Wolfgang von Strucker) and Paul Bettany (The Vision). LatinoReview says that there is one more character to be added to the movie, and it's one that's been long rumored for the sequel. Ms Marvel or whatever they end up calling her, is apparently the next character that will be cast in the film.

Finally, we could get a superpowered female character among the main cast, something lacking in the MCU. One of the trades reported a while back, that Marvel is developing a Ms Marvel script, which could mean they intend the character to have her own franchise in the future.

There have been a couple of actresses linked for the role over the last year or so, they include Emily Blunt (Looper, Edge of Tomorrow), Ruth Wilson (Saving Mr. Banks, Luther, Lone Ranger) and Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica, Riddick). Katee hinted to a meeting with Marvel a while back, which may or may not be for Age of Ultron. She went on to tell SchmoesKnow her thoughts on Marvel's female characters. I would like to think if Katee was offered Age of Ultron, she would take it over the horrible sounding ExpendaBelles. We've seen Katee's Riddick co-stars Vin Diesel and Dave Bautista land major roles in Guardians of The Galaxy, it's possible Marvel casting really digs the movie. 

“There’s obviously a drumbeat that is banging louder and louder that we want a female lead superhero,” he says. ”… [W]e have strong female characters in our films from Black Widow to Pepper Potts to Peggy Carter and you never know. Maybe there’s an offshoot film with one of them. Or Captain Marvel, you know?”

"It's hard," he says. "because we have a small group at Marvel. We do two films a year. To get those two films done and to do them right takes a lot of work and manpower. And female-power, obviously. To add a third film and to just put it in the slate right now is difficult. We have these next three, four, five films coming out and that's what we're really concentrating on."

SOURCE: LATINOREVIEW