Our weekly round-up of all the latest superhero news and talking points, including Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Aquaman, Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, Batman: Assault on Akrham, Constantine, Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Inhumans, Captain America 3, Luke Cage, Big Hero 6, The Sinister Six, Powers, Henchmen and more….
We’ll kick things off this week with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and as filming continues on the Zack Snyder-directed superhero ensemble a few more set photos have arrived online from Detroit, showing Ben Affleck’s Bruce Wayne [see images here and video here], as well as our first look at returning Man of Steel star Amy Adams as Lois Lane [see here]. Meanwhile, executive producer Michael E. Uslan dismissed the rumour that Affleck’s Batman would be in his 50s, revealing that he is in fact mid-40s in the film, while Affleck himself took a moment to once again address the controversy and negative fan reaction to his casting, stating that: “Before I took the role, Warner Bros. gave me a bunch of past reactions to casting and said, “Are you sure you want to get into this? This is part and parcel of these movies now. There’s a lot of active fans with a lot of opinions.” To me, having been through a certain amount of that, it doesn’t really… Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. I wouldn’t have taken the part if I didn’t trust my instincts in terms of the filmmaking. I think Chris Terrio wrote a terrific script. Zack Snyder’s a great visual director. And there’s an interesting take. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think I could do it. I have the benefit of a lot of that understanding. But also, everyone is entitled to their opinion… It’s great that people do care that much. They want to see the movie that much. And it is incumbent on you to honor the story. There are the Greek myths and these are the American myths. The American myths are these superheroes. People care about ‘em a lot. And it’s incumbent on you to do a good job and make it as excellent as you possibly can. At the end of the day, the movie’s all that matters…”
…Sticking with Batman v Superman for a moment and some potential plot details have surfaced online via Geek Tyrant, backed up by Badass Digest (that’s the same Badass Digest whose “scoop” about Affleck being in his 50s has just been shot down – so take from that what you will); according to an extra on the film, BvS will start as the battle between Superman and General Zod from Man of Steel comes to an end and Batman/Bruce Wayne is attempting to make his way to the Wayne tower in Metropolis. A scene has also reportedly been shot which sees Batman breaking into LexCorp in order to steal some kryptonite, where he discovers that Luthor has got his hands on Zod’s corpse, which is part of Lex’s master plan to defeat Superman. The report goes on to imply that Luthor will be using Zod’s body to create Doomsday, who has pretty much been rumoured as a villain since the film was first announced…
…During a promotional interview for her new film The November Man, Ukranian actress Olga Kurylenko (Oblivion) has spoken briefly about losing out on the role of Wonder Woman in Dawn of Justice to Gal Gadot: “If I could have been [Wonder Woman]? Well, because, everyone was saying that it was a possibility. It did cross my mind. But it’s fine, you know. There are many other roles. I am very happy for the girl that’s got the part. I am looking forward to seeing it…”
…Despite the fact that former Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa has once again dismissed the speculation that he’s set to play Aquaman in Batman v Superman and Justice League (which appears to be one of the worst kept secrets in Hollywood), it seems Warner Bros. is pressing on with its plans to bring the Atlantean to the big screen. This week it has been reported that two different writers – Kurt Johnstad (300) and Will Beall (Gangster Squad) – to pen different drafts for an Aquaman solo movie, with the studio then looking to pick one to develop further. In terms of Beall, this isn’t his first DC project, having penned a script for Justice League which WB rejected, although it’s certainly plausible that they were impressed by his handling of Arthur Curry…
…Whether Aquaman does make an appearance in Batman v Superman or not, the character is set to be the focus of the next DC Universe Animated Original Movies release Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, and this week has given us a first look featurette for the direct-to-video movie, which is set for release early next year and sees Matt Lanter (Star Wars: The Clone Wars) voicing Aquaman alongside returning Justice League: War stars Jason O’Mara (Batman), Shemar Moore (Cyborg), Christopher Gorham (the Flash) and Sean Astin (Shazam) and new additions Nathan Fillion (Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox) as Green Lantern, Rosario Dawson (Sin City: A Dame to Kill For) as Wonder Woman, Jerry O’Connell (The Batman) as Superman, Sam Witwer (Star Wars: The Clone Wars) as Orm and Sumalee Montano (Beware the Batman) as Mera…
…This week has also seen the arrival of the third and final DC Universe Animated Original Movies release of the year in Batman: Assault on Arkham; you can read Anghus Houvouras’ review of the movie here, and click here to check out two clips from the film featuring The Suicide Squad…
…On the small screen, NBC’s Constantine has found its Papa Midnite, with Michael James Shaw signing on to play the voodoo king of New Orleans, who is described as “a formidable magical adversary for demon hunter John Constantine… though with evil forces rising on Earth, they might have to hug it out and become uneasy allies sooner than later.” Shaw joins a cast that includes Matt Ryan (Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior) as John Constantine, Angelica Celaya (Burn Notice) as Zed, Harold Perrineau (Lost) as Manny and Charles Halford (True Detective) as Chas Chandler…
…Click below to continue onto the next page for Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Inhumans, Captain America 3, Luke Cage, Big Hero 6, The Sinister Six, Powers, Henchmen and more…
Originally published August 16, 2014. Updated March 19, 2020.
