More Details on Marvel's 'Black Panther'; No Solo Movies for Black Widow or Hulk

Have you had time to come down off the high from Marvel's announcements today? Basically, the studio revealed their complete Phase Three lineup and their release dates, official titles, and so forth. They also revealed Chadwick Boseman would be starring in a Black Panther movie, that a Captain Marvel film had been confirmed, and so much more it's probably best you just go here and read the whole thing. There are still a few minor details left to cover, though, mostly provided by Marvel Studios' chatty chief, Kevin Feige.

First up is Black Panther, which will arrive in 2017, thus beating Warner Bros.' Cyborg film by a good three years and becoming the first prominent superhero film since Blade to feature an African-American lead. We can expect to see Black Panther appear first in Captain America: Civil War and play a major role for all of Phase 3 and beyond. Deadline says Marvel has locked in Boseman for a 5-picture deal, which is pretty much par for the course. As for who else could be working on the film? None other than Reginald Hudlin, producer on Django Unchained and director of two of my all-time favorite comedies, House Party and The Great White Hype. Hudlin wrote a meaningful but ultimately terrible run of Black Panther comics some years back, following on the heels of writer Christopher Priest's amazing 5-year stretch which truly redefined the character.

Marvel is finally giving fans the female-led superhero film they've been asking for, and it will feature Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel. Danvers is a soldier born and bred, beginning as a pilot in the Air Force (one of her numerous superhero codenames was Warbird) and rising to the ranks of NASA security chief. She eventually encountered the Kree alien Mar-Vell aka the original Captain Marvel. A freak accident caused her to become a Kree/human hybrid, granting her the powers of flight, super strength, invulnerability, and energy projection. Feige says it will be through her that we'll see a merging of Marvel's cosmic and earthbound stories.

So if Captain Marvel is getting her own film, what about Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow? Or Mark Ruffalo's Hulk? With so many new characters being introduced, is there room for some of the original and extremely popular gang to get their own solo franchises? Well, not anytime soon...

Feige: "Well, frankly, as I said in the presentation, it’s about bringing new characters to the screen. Black Widow couldn’t be more important as an Avenger, herself. Like Hulk, the Avengers films will be the films where they play a primary role. Her part in Avengers: Age of Ultron is very very big, and further develops and further enhances her character. The plans that we have for her throughout the rest of the Avengers saga is very very big, and lynchpin, in fact, to those films. So instead of taking her out there, or instead of doing a prequel, which we haven’t done yet, continuing the forward momentum and the continuity of the cinematic universe. Of which Widow is a key, key part."

Same goes for the Hulk...

Feige: "Well, I wouldn’t say he’s absent from the timeline, I’d say Hulk is going to appear in many of those movies, particularly all those Avengers movies leading up to 2019 and Infinity War. Mark Ruffalo is on board for all those films, and we’re excited to bring him to those films. What happens with a standalone Hulk film? I’ll only say what I would have said about Black Panther last week or Captain Marvel the week before that, or Doctor Strange the week before that, or Guardians of the Galaxy two years ago, or Ant-Man ten years ago: we’ll see. We’d love to do it, we’d love to find the place to put it, but right now, Hulk will be appearing, with his friends, in their films."

Basically, today was the Marvel presentation we were hoping to see three months ago at Comic-Con. Better late than never. [/Film]

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Robert Downey Jr. Supports 'Black Widow' Movie, Says "Everyone Deserves a Franchise"

The clamoring for Marvel to finally get off their butts and have a female-led solo franchise seems to be at an all-time high. I say "seems" because the Internet is pretty hard to gauge when it comes to things like this. Often times fans get into an uproar over something they supposedly want, then fail to support it once it's been made available, and that's especially true when it comes to comic book or pop culture-based movies. But with everyone from Joss Whedon to Marvel's Kevin Feige saying a female-driven film should and will happen eventually, that only makes the crowd get more vocal. So what about when Marvel's golden boy Robert Downey Jr. calls for a Black Widow movie? Will that be the push it needs to finally happen?

In a conversation with USA Today, Downey expressed his support for a Black Widow movie starring his Iron Man 2 and The Avengers co-star Scarlett Johannson. But, in typical Downey fashion he took this as an opportunity to get all of his buddies a little extra cashola in their pockets...

RDJ: "Look, I think that the interesting thing particularly after 'Guardians' with Zoe (Saldana), (or) 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.

Downey has stood up for his Avengers co-stars in the past in an effort to make sure Marvel doesn't short change them contractually. And here he takes a shot at getting everybody their own solo franchise to play around in, including guys like Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner...

RDJ: "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...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."

There have been rumblings of a Black Widow movie ever since her appearance in Iron Man 2, but the winds seem to be blowing in the direction of a Captain Marvel film happening first.  Widow has probably had more exposure than any other Avenger after she played a major part in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. She's certainly popular enough and chances are she will get her own movie at some point. The same probably goes for the Hulk, but not so sure about Hawkeye.

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Comic-Con: Captain America and Black Widow Posters for 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'

As expected when Marvel released Avengers: Age of Ultron Comic-Con posters featuring Scarlet Witch and Iron Man, they turned out to be just the first of many. Now it's Black Widow and Captain America jumping into the war against Ultron (James Spader) and his army of "legionnaires". I expect there will be more of these, probably each day until Marvel's panel on Saturday.

Avengers: Age of Ultron opens May 1st 2015.

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4 Minute Extended Preview of 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier'

We are now less than a month away from what is promising to be the crown jewel of the Marvel stable Captain America: The Winter Soldier hits on April 4th here in the states but we have for you today a 4 minute extended preview. The preview is basically an extension of the scene we've seen in every preview thus far, Cap, Widow, and their team getting ready for an assault and Cap jumping out of the plane without a chute. We find out in this clip that the team is there to take out some pirates who've taken hostage aboard a merchant vessel. What follows gives us the best look yet at Cap as a true leader. The Avengers didn't really give us enough of that for my taste, but we see here that he's settled into the role and can command with the best of them. Oh, yeah, also ScarJo still looks incredibly good in tight leather. Described by many as a 70's espionage thriller, The Winter Soldier definitely guarantee's some major changes in the Marvel universe...for those unfamiliar, the events in the comic book Winter Soldier storyline were the catalyst for the epic Civil War storyline where heroes had to choose sides when the government decides that costumed heroes should give up their secret sides and register or be declared outlaws. The biggest thing that matches up here is the exclusion of Nick Fury from S.H.I.E.L.D., and for the record no, I don't think Fury is actually dead as the trailers will lead you to believe. I'm fairly certain that we will find out, probably in post-credits, that what we see if mearly Fury faking his death so he can split from SHIELD. This raises a ton of other questions, most notably with regard to Chris Evans announcing a break from acting after his current contract expires, Marvel's Civil War ended with the death of Steve Rodgers...could we be approaching that?

Check out the trailer below and let us know what you think

Captain America: The Winter Soldier hits US theaters on April 4th, 2014

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New international promos for 'The Avengers' featuring Black Widow, Nick Fury, and Iron Man

It makes sense for Disney and Marvel to hype the hell out of The Avengers across the globe, given the international make-up of the team. Black Widow(Scarlett Johansson) hails from Russia, and Thor's hometown is.....well, he's Norse in nature even if Asgard is technically in another world. To help promote the May 4th release of Marvel's biggest superhero movie yet, DisneyXD has released a handful of new promos featuring the sexy Black Widow kickin' ass and snappin' off huracanranas like a lucha libre star, and also Nick Fury(Samuel L. Jackson) and Iron Man(Robert Downey Jr.). All three feature snippets of old footage from other Marvel films mixed in with some never-before-seen stuff from The Avengers. Check those out below....

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Actually cool photos from 'The Avengers'; Scarlett Johansson to return for 'Iron Man 3'

It's a double whammy for fans of The Avengers and Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow(and who isn't a fan of her, really?). Not only do we have that rarest of things, a batch of photos from the film that are worth posting, but also news that says Black Widow will be appearing in Iron Man 3. 

The info comes from Feature Film Casting, who are reporting on a casting call for primary actors and extras for the Wilmington, NC shoot beginning on May 21st 2012 and ending on September 7th. Along with the obvious return of Robert Downey Jr., the report mentions Johansson, Don Cheadle as War Machine, and Gwyneth Paltrow's Pepper Potts as those returning for the film. What about Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan? The former Iron Man director's name isn't mentioned, but his relationship with Disney isn't terrible so don't be surprise if he pops up for a cameo.

With Shane Black(Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) directing, any details we've heard about the potential plot have been rumors. Black compared it to a Tom Clancy style thriller, while recent reports say the story will revolve around Tony Stark's use of nanobots to battle a souped up enemy. Iron Man 3 is the first post-Avengers film in the Marvel canon, opening next year on May 3rd.

Below you'll find a handful of new images from The Avengers, including a couple that are sweet enough to make me break my rule of not posting anymore of these....

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Superhero Update: Hiddleston reveals The Avengers plot? Black Widow, Hawkeye solo films?

Tom Hiddleston has been a little elusive when it comes to what role Loki will play in Joss Whedon's The Avengers. Oh heck, let's just say it. He's been downright misleading, even at one point saying that Loki won't appear at all. The trickster God is going to have his hands full with his brother come this weekend when Thor finally hits theaters, but Loki's role in The Avengers has been a mystery. We know he'll be in it, and for months the speculation has been that he'll use the power of the Cosmic Cube(discovered in Captain America: The First Avenger) to summon the warlike alien race The Skrulls to attack the earth. This would be the catalyzing event that brings The Avengers together.

Well Vulture recently had a sit down with the Brit actor, who gives the impression that not only will Loki be in the thick of the Avengers action, he might be ready to take the supergroup on all by himself...

Hiddleston: Well, I think it was a plan from the get-go, but it wasn’t really dead-set until near the end of Thor. What was wonderful is that about four days after I wrapped on Thor, I went out for a cup of tea with Joss Whedon. We sat down at two o’clock in the afternoon, and we were still sitting there at six o’clock. He said, “Listen, you’ve lived with this guy for six months. I want you to spill the beans and tell me all of his dark secrets. Who is this guy? Why is he who he is?” Ken had already shown him a rough cut of the film, and mercifully, everything I had done accorded with Joss’s idea of the character, too. I’m really so flattered that Marvel and Josh think I can take them all on. In Avengers, it’s going to be me versus seven of them, and I say “Good luck to them,” frankly.
 
That statement can be seen a number of ways. It could mean the Skrull storyline is very much in play, or it could mean something totally different. I'm sure we'll find out soon enough. Personally I love the idea of the Skrulls showing up, because their shapeshifting powers should cause a hell of a lot of confusion in the Avengers ranks, leading to some tense moments.


One thing I'm getting really worried about is superhero overload. There are too many superhero comics out there already(although most don't last long), and I don't want there to be so many movies that I start ignoring them too.  The Avengers will no doubt be the launch pad for a number of potential spinoffs, and according to Marvel Films chatty prez, Kevin Feige, Hawkeye(Jeremy Renner) and Black Widow(Scarlett Johansson) are the leading candidates for solo projects. This isn't anything new as we've heard about a potential Black Widow film since back when Iron Man 2 was shooting, but with Feige's backing you can all but take it to the bank.

Feige also revealed to The Playlist that Marvel will be introducing their next crop of films, likely for 2013 and beyond, later this summer. Whether that will be at Comic-Con in July remains to be seen. The question is which films will he announce? Black Panther actually has a screenwriter attached to it in Mark Bailey, while Doctor Strange has been mentioned more than once as well. And let's not forget Edgar Wright's slow moving Ant-Man pic. It could be any or all of them, or none at all. Personally I'm hoping for Runaways.

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Hate to Be Blunt, but Make Way for Scarlett as the Black Widow!

Entertainment Weekly is reporting that none other than Scarlett Johannson is now in the running to play the Black Widow in the Iron Man sequel due out next year. The role was previously believed to be offered to The Devil Wears Prada star, Emily Blunt.

Emily Blunt is a nice choice, she's sexy as hell and can act her ass off. But she's no ScoJo, sorry. The Black Widow needs to be unbelievably hot, and Scarlett has that in spades. Honestly, who would you rather see in tight, black leather? Exactly. My only beef with Scarlett is that when roles demand she be sexy, she has an annoying habit of clearly trying to act like a sexy chick. You can see her calculating her every move, as if she's trying to figure out what works and what doesn't. But if anything, the Black Widow is almost comically sexy. She's almost similar in a way to the role Scarlett played so well in The Spirit, only the Widow knows she can kill you in a thousand different ways. She should be able to handle the role with ease.

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