Cinema Royale Marvel Movies Special!

Gah! Did you see what Marvel did yesterday!?!? Black Panther! Captain Marvel! Captain America: Civil War! Avengers: Infinity War! Inhumans! And that's not even the half of what they revealed, and we're going to talk about all of it! What does all of this mean for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe? We'll be joined by Jeff Lyles of Lyles' Movie Files to try and wrap our brains around all of it, and you're encouraged to call-in and join us! How are we going to fit all of this into an hour??

Listen to the show below, and "Like" Cinema Royale here!!

Read More

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]

Read More

Marvel Announces 'Black Panther'; Two-Part 'Avengers: Infinity War'; 'Captain Marvel'; 'Inhumans' and More

This is how you fire back in a big way. After Warner Bros. floored everybody last week by announcing an impressive run of films featuring their stable of DC Comics superheroes, it was up to Marvel to retaliate in kind. And boy, did they ever. Today they held a special press event that was expected to have at least one major announcement, and instead it had about a dozen. Let's just jump right in because this is going to take awhile.

One major complaint has been that Warner Bros. beat Marvel to the punch on female and minority-led solo projects, but that's no longer an issue as they've announced both a Captain Marvel film and one for Black Panther. Captain Marvel, which will indeed be the Carol Danvers version as previously rumored, will open July 6th 2018. Black Panther, who apparently will play a major role in the future, will be played by 42 and Get On Up star, Chadwick Boseman, as many had speculated months back. It's a great pick as Boseman is young, a rising star, athletic, and has the charisma to play the King of Wakanda. That film arrives on November 3rd 2017. Marvel also confirmed Inhumans, which centers on the Royal Family of moon-dwelling aliens led by Black Bolt, for November 2nd 2017. Doctor Strange, which many had thought would arrive in July 2016, will instead appear in theaters on November 4th 2016, with Scott Derrickson directing and presumably Benedict Cumberbatch, although Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige neglected to confirm that yet.

So let's talk about sequels because there are plenty. Guardians of the Galaxy 2 has been shuffled to May 5th 2017, with James Gunn and the original cast all to return. The third Thor film is titled Thor: Ragnarok, hitting theaters on July 28th 2017. So what's a Ragnarok? Well, two different versions of Ragnarok exist. One version is a clone of Thor, designed by Tony Stark, that goes crazy during the Civil War event. The other is the apocalyptic "end of days" for the entire Norse line of heroes, and with Chris Hemsworth's contract expiring soon this could mean Thor's end is approaching. The same goes for Captain America 3, which is now titled Captain America: Civil War, and maintains its May 6th 2016 date. The Civil War storyline, which pits heroes vs. heroes, begins the path to Cap's eventual death. Does that mean it will happen on screen? Is the torch about to be passed to the Winter Soldier or possible Falcon? Only time will tell.

And the big one that confirms previous reports of the third Avengers film being split into two, Marvel announced the two part Avengers: Infinity War, with the first chapter on May 4th 2018 and the next May 3rd 2019. Without going too deep into specifics, it's basically a gigantic war that involves basically the entire Marvel Universe, the villain Thanos, and the all-powerful Infinity Gauntlet. The pieces of the Gauntlet have played a key role in nearly every Marvel film, and this would be the culmination of all of those storylines. It would also be an easy way to incorporate the Guardians of the Galaxy, and possibly bring in other spacebound heroes like Adam Warlock and Nova.

Phew! That's a lot to take in. Best to just sit back and mull all of this over for now, because I suspect Marvel is done with any major news for a very long time. Check out promo art and logos below!

Read More

Avengers Roster will Change After 'Age of Ultron', and it May Include Captain Marvel

There are always a ton of rumors swirling around every Marvel project, but lately Avengers: Age of Ultron has been the frequent target, especially now that the mystery surrounding Doctor Strange is over. With today's Marvel press event looming on the horizon, there's some buzz building around what happens after 'Age of Ultron', and it looks like the team is going to undergo significant changes.

A couple of weeks ago a story surfaced that we may see the Avengers lineup altered in the near future, with Tony Stark leading a new team of heroes in Avengers 3. In an interview with Buzzfeed, Marvel chief Kevin Feige seems to confirm it, likening the change to the team's ever-evolving roster in the comics.

Feige: “The Avengers films, ideally, in the grand plan are always big, giant linchpins. It’s like as it was in publishing, when each of the characters would go on their own adventures and then occasionally team up for a big, 12-issue mega-event. Then they would go back into their own comics, and be changed from whatever that event was. I envision the same thing occurring after this movie, because the [Avengers] roster is altered by the finale of this film.”

So that leaves open the question of who could be this brand new team of Avengers alongside Iron Man? It probably makes sense to include Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Paul Rudd's Ant-Man, and maybe even Don Cheadle as War Machine. Could the Guardians of the Galaxy find their way to Earth and help out in the fight, as has been rumored in the past? And what about Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver?

All possibilities, but there's one more character who could be involved and that is Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel. She's been brought up a lot over the years with some thinking she would have been part of the first Avengers film, and with DC confirming a Wonder Woman solo film now would be the time for Marvel to do the same with their top female superhero...or at least the character they want to be their top female superhero. The truth is the Captain Marvel comic doesn't sell very well (then again, most comics don't), but Bleeding Cool says it won't be cancelled because editorial are under the impression she will appear in Avengers: Age of Ultron and that could boost sales.  Hardly a confirmation, but we know the Marvel Comics staff are mostly kept in the loop on these things. They could be on to something here.

Avengers: Age of Ultron opens May 1st 2015.

Read More

Katee Sackhoff Teases Marvel Meeting and "Super Secret" Role

As the grim and tough Starbuck on Battlestar Galactica, Katee Sackhoff is someone many expect to be suited up for a superhero role at some point. She's been rumored for various parts in the past, including Captain Marvel, a character many expect to be appear in Marvel's Phase Three, and has previously had meetings with them which we didn't seem to amount to anything. Or perhaps maybe they did? Sackhoff is at it again, and over the last few days she's been talking about a meeting she has with Stan Lee about a "super secret job". While that is certainly interesting, it's the photo clues she's been tweeting from the set that are of real interest.

I'm wearing red leather to my meeting with @TheRealStanLee today, sorta just seemed appropriate.
— Katee Sackhoff (@kateesackhoff) July 29, 2014

Headed out for day one of a super secret job....I will send photo clues throughout the next 3 days! Clue #1 pic.twitter.com/1mVRmQKNmE
— Katee Sackhoff (@kateesackhoff) August 2, 2014

Clue #2 pic.twitter.com/giXoQB8y3W
— Katee Sackhoff (@kateesackhoff) August 3, 2014

Sackhoff seems to be getting fitted for some kind of mask or headgear in the second image, while in the third she's sporting a little red and yellow leather. Does all of this equate to her being Captain Marvel or some other comic book character? The last time rumors like this cropped it didn't turn out as we thought, and she ended up starring with Guardians of the Galaxy co-stars Vin Diesel and Dave Bautista in Riddick. Perhaps they helped convince Marvel to push ahead with Sackhoff as their next female superhero? But when I think "red leather" and Marvel heroes Captain Marvel isn't the first one that springs to mind. Elektra does. So does Spider-Woman.

Read More

WB and Marvel Studios Reveal Movie Release Schedule

It's good to be a comic book fan. Especially if you're someone who loves comic books brought to the big screen. Never mind the dregs like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen or even The Spirit, the vast majority of funnybook based movies have been winners over the last few years. With that said, the 2010 and 2011 release dates released by WB and Marvel yesterday should be enough to have all of us superhero giddy with excitement.

Warner Bros. has set a release date of August 6, 2010 for the Josh Brolin starring Jonah Hex, about the scarred cowboy anti-hero. John Malkovich is slated to co-star as his archnemesis, Turnbull. The long awaited Green Lantern, directed by Martin Campbell, has a release date of December 17, 2010 just in time for Christmas. Seems like an odd time for a superhero movie to me. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows pt. 2 is set to drop on July 15, 2011.

Marvel Studios has no less than four major comic book franchises set to take over theaters in the next two years. Here's hoping they stop fuckin' around and get some of these people signed. But as it stands right now, the highly anticipated sequel to Iron Man is set for May 7, 2010. No word on Mickey Rourke or who's playing the Black Widow as of now. The Kenneth Branagh directed Thor, about the Asgardian Thunder god, is set for July 16, 2010, only two months after Iron Man 2. The First Avenger: Captain America is set to sling it's shield on May 6, 2011. And what has to be a highly tentative date right now, The Avengers film is set for July 15, 2011.

Ok, Thor is set to drop a mere two months after Iron Man 2, which if both those dates hold firm, will essentially assure Marvel's dominance over the film market for that year. Jonah Hex, which comes out a month after Thor, might be the victim of comic book movie fatigue at that point. I just don't see there being enough room in people's minds for a little known character after such high profile superhero films. Also, take a look at 2011. Harry Potter and the Avengers are right now headed for a might vs. magic showdown. There's no way this schedule stands for these two films. One of these studios is going to have to cave in and move their release date up or down a few weeks. Marvel and WB are gonna have to play a little game of chicken to see who finally balks here, and I for one am very interesed in finding out who it is. My guess is Marvel will inevitably be forced to move The Avengers back a few months, maybe into 2012, but we shall see.

Read More

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.

Read More