Our weekly round-up of the latest news and talking points from the world of screen superheroes, including Avengers: Age of Ultron, Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Ant-Man, Captain America: Civil War, Thor: The Dark World, Doctor Strange, Iron Man 4, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Big Hero 6, The Fantastic Four, X-Men: Apocalypse, Spider-Man, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Gotham, The Flash, Arrow, Constantine, LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League and more….
We’ll kick off this edition of The Week in Spandex with Marvel Studios, and this week has brought us an extended trailer for the next instalment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Joss Whedon’s hotly-anticipated sequel Avengers: Age of Ultron. You can watch the extended trailer here, while the behind-the-scenes Age of Ultron featurette from the Blu-ray release of Guardians of the Galaxy has also arrived online, and we’ve got that for you here…
…And speaking of Guardians of the Galaxy and its upcoming home-entertainment release, this week has given us a Blu-ray trailer and deleted scene featuring Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Nebula (Karen Gillen) [see here], along with a couple of sneak peeks of the special features [see here and here]…
…During the Guardians promotional rounds, director James Gunn has spoken briefly about 2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy 2, and whether he needs to tie the film into the following year’s Avengers: Infinity War: “I don’t feel beholden to that stuff at all. I think it’s really about the Guardians and what they are doing. We’re not subservient to the Avengers. Guardians 2 is not a movie that’s made to move toward Infinity War. It’s something that’s made to move toward future cosmic movies, so I don’t feel that that is something that affects me that much…”
…Gunn also shared his thoughts on Warner Bros.’ DC movie slate: “[I’m not sure] if it’s interesting or not. The truth is, it’s a list of titles, and if they’re done well they’ll be good, if they aren’t, they won’t be good. But I think we have a little bit more of an idea of what we’re getting with Marvel. I mean, we know the actors, we know the characters — we’ve seen movies with these characters. You have some idea of what’s going on already. We’ve told a big part of the story. With DC, they haven’t told the story yet…”
…Michael Douglas has wrapped on Marvel’s Ant-Man, posting a photo from the set of the film with his stunt double, while a spy photo has arrived online showing Corey Stoll (The Strain) as the villain Darren Cross, along with some alleged concept art of his character in the Yellowjacket suit…
…2016’s Captain America: Civil War has found (one of) its villain(s), with Rush star Daniel Bruhl signing on for an as-yet-unrevealed role in the Joe and Anthony Russo-directed sequel. Bruhl joins fellow newcomer Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther) in the cast alongside Chris Evans (Captain America) and Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), while Sebastian Stan (The Winter Soldier), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Anthony Mackie (Falcon) and Frank Grillo (Crossbones) are all expected to feature as well…
…Idris Elba got himself in Joss Whedon’s bad books a couple of weeks ago when he revealed that he’d shot a scene for Avengers: Age of Ultron with Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Tom Hiddleston (Loki), and he’s probably not made too many friends at Marvel with his latest comments about his experience on Thor: The Dark World: “I’m actually falling down from a spaceship, so they had to put me in [a] harness in this green-screen studio. And in between takes I was there, fake hair stuck on to my head with glue, this f***ing helmet, while they reset. And I’m thinking: ’24 hours ago, I was Mandela’. When I walked into the set the extras called me Madiba. I was literally walking in the man’s boots. [Within] six months, the crew, we were all so in love with this film we had made. I was him. I was Mandela, practically. Then there I was, in this stupid harness with this wig and this sword and these contact lenses. It ripped my heart out…”
…Although he’s reportedly no longer in contention, Joaquin Phoenix has briefly addressed the rumours that linked him to the role of Stephen Strange in Marvel’s Doctor Strange: “I can’t talk about it. I’ve met on all sorts of movies throughout the years. What seems appealing about some of them is the idea of pushing myself in a way that’s out of my comfort zone. But really, it’s what I’m always looking for—good characters, big ideas and a passionate filmmaker. If those things line up with any kind of movie, I have interest in it… There’s only one movie I regret saying no to—except the person who ended up doing it was so good and was absolutely meant to do it, so I don’t have any regrets. I’m not going to say which one, but it was a really big hit. It’s getting to the point where they’re making some pretty decent movies. I thought Iron Man was fantastic…”
…Before Marvel’s big Phase Three announcement, Robert Downey Jr. joked that he’d be willing to reprise the role of Tony Stark in Iron Man 4 if his good buddy Mel Gibson would direct, and now Mad Mel has thrown his hat in the ring, stating that: “I’m pretty good at directing, I think I got some statues for it. I think I can do it. I think I’m a better director than actor…I hope somebody gives me an argument on that..”
…This week saw rumour specialists Latino-Review offering up a new report suggesting that Sony was looking to revive the Spider-Man franchise by developing a solo movie based around the early years of Aunt May. Thrilling stuff, I’m sure you’ll agree (or maybe not, if the reaction on our Facebook page was anything to go by!), but it seems there’s no truth to the story, at least if you believe Sony, who shot it down by calling the report “a silly rumour [with] no validity whatsoever…”
…On the small screen, Hayley Atwell’s Peggy Carter returns to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. this coming Tuesday for the eighth episode of season two, entitled ‘The Things We Bury’, and we’ve got a first-look image of Peggy here, along with a promo which you can watch here…
…Disney unleashed the final superhero movie of the year in the States this past Friday, with the animated Big Hero 6 fending off competition from Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar to top the U.S. box office with an opening weekend of $56.2 million, as well as pulling in an extra $24 million from international markets. By close of play on Thursday, the film had amassed $96.6 million globally, although has only opened in a handful of foreign markets and looks to be another solid hit for the Mouse House. Read Robert Kojder’s ★★★★★ review of Big Hero 6 here…
…Click below to continue on for The Fantastic Four, X-Men: Apocalypse, Spider-Man, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Gotham, The Flash, Arrow, Constantine, LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League and more…
Originally published November 15, 2014. Updated February 28, 2020.
