Last night, if you weren’t distracted by baseball or football, you might have heard something from the northeastern part of this great country that sounded a little bit like the shriek of a schoolgirl.
Actually, it was a shriek, from not schoolgirls, but rather fangirls. And fanboys. And just fans in general. Why would millions of fans squeal in communal delight? The answer is simple:
That’s right friends and neighbors, the fan favorite, Agent Phil Coulson has become the first confirmed member of Joss Whedon’s upcoming ABC pilot, S.H.I.E.L.D.
The reaction to Agent Coulson’s death in The Avengers was one of heartbreak. All around the world people huddled together in comfort for the loss of a character who was beloved from his first appearance in 2008’s Iron Man. He was probably most loved by the man who portrayed him, Clark Gregg. Gregg is a self-professed geek and lover of comics and of course, Agent Coulson. So you can only imagine how it felt to sit at the Marvel panel during the New York Comic-Con and watch an “In Memoriam” tribute video to the character. Reports are that Gregg was actually moved to tears. Can’t say that I blame him.
A video of Joss Whedon started playing, saying that they had always wanted Gregg as “part of the Marvel Universe… even after his death,” and as if sent by the angels himself, Kevin Feige entered, wearing a shirt that read “Coulson Lives” and announced that Gregg would indeed be reprising the role of Agent Coulson in S.H.I.E.L.D.
Why is this such big news? Well it’s always fun to hear about our favorite characters that we all believe have died, only for them to come back to life, or find out they never died in the first place. But I think with Coulson it’s a little bit more than that. I think it’s because he is one of us. He’s a fan. Watching him meet Captain America and having that awestruck look on his face, I don’t think there’s many people who, when meeting their heroes, wouldn’t have the same reaction. Then to watch him “die” trying to protect his hero and company, I mean come on, who wouldn’t want to go out like that?
On top of that, after the massive success of The Avengers with Joss Whedon at the helm, it is exciting just to hear any news about the new show. Geeks have experienced both the highs and the lows of Whedon television shows. On one hand you’ve got the success of Buffy the Vampire Slayerand Angel, on the other hand you’ve got the great losses of Dollhouse and of course, Firefly. So when news comes out like this, a major character in a wildly successful movie blockbuster is part of the cast of the TV show, we just hold our breaths and hope that it’s enough to convince the network to stick with it.
So there you have it- Agent Coulson lives to see another day. Are you excited as I am?
Emily Blunt? Ruth Wilson? — according to Bleeding Cool, either one of these lovely leading ladies could be up for the role of Ms. Marvel in the next Avengers movie.
Welcome back to the Hero Express, your one-stop sometimes SPOILER filled shop through the top five stories in comic based Film & TV news!
Chris Hemsworth & Jaimie Alexander on set of Thor 2: The Dark World!
When I first heard that Alan Taylor (Game Of Thrones, Rome) was going to direct Thor: The Dark World I like many others were hoping that he would add some of the realism of his previous work to the project. The images below do not disappoint, and coincides with Alan Taylor’s previous thoughts on a “more tangible” and “more organic feel” for Asgard. These set pics certainly show a part of the grand scale he is going for.
There are a lot more images in the slideshow at the bottom of the page.. We also have the official plot description for Thor: The Dark World:
Exploring Thor’s relationship with the Asgardian all-father Odin, as well earthbound companion Jane Foster, “Thor: The Dark World” follows the God of Thunder to The Nine Realms beyond Asgard and earth. And as his evil half-brother, Loki, returns for Asgardian justice, a new threat rises. Also rejoining Thor are his fellow Asgardians, Lady Sif, gatekeeper Heimdall and Warriors Three, as they encounter mythical Norse creatures among evildoers.
“Thor: The Dark World” stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Christopher Eccleston, Jaimie Alexander, Zachary Levi, Tadanobu Asano, Stellan Skarsgard, Ray Stevenson, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Rene Russo, with Alice Krige & Kat Dennings. And Alan Taylor (“Game of Thrones”) takes over directorial duties from Kenneth Branagh, who helmed the first “Thor” film. From a screenplay by Don Payne and Robert Rodat, “Thor: The Dark World” is set for release on November 8, 2013.
Drew Goddard Wants a Marvel Movie… But Who Doesn’t?
The Cabin in the Woods director has recently shown interest in directing a Marvel film if the opportunity arises. This isn’t necessarily the most shocking news because I and every other nerd around would kill for that opportunity. But considering some of his powerful friends (Damon Lindelof, J.J. Abrams, Spielberg, Joss Whedon) and the success of this years The Cabin in the Woods, his interest in a Marvel film could very easily turn into something serious.
“What Marvel character would I not love to get on? That’s an easier question to answer. I would love any of it and I love Marvel, Joss and what they’re doing. It’s all about finding the right fit. Directing…in order to do your job right, you have to find ways to make it personal, and if we can find the right fit, then I would love to do it.”
Thanos Confirmed For Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers 2
Filming on Iron Man 3 is underway and coming out next year, production on Thor: The Dark World has started filming in England as we just told you, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier is set to start production next March. That will mean Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers 2 will be the final two films of the Phase Two line-up. Edgar Wright’s Ant-Man should be able to come to production next year …hopefully.
This ugly mug above from what we can gather will be in both The Avengers 2 and Guardians of the Galaxy. Whether that is a small cameo or the main villain is yet to be revealed. My theory at this point is that Thanos will be a small cameo in GotG where we get a first taste of Marvel’s space opera which has been talked about in the Marvel Cinematic Universe before, but I think the main villain will be someone else. The Avengers 2 will probably have the big scary Thanos as a threat to be dealt with by Earths Mightiest Heroes. Just my theory as to what direction they will be taking the Phase Two and where Thanos will play into that.
Feige has all but said Thanos is in the movie.
Now we learn that not only will the Mad Titan Thanos be featured in the Guardians of the Galaxy movie — but The Avengers 2 as well.
We previously reported that Thanos creator Jim Starlin was in talks with Marvel about “something,” with it theorized that it was over the rights to Thanos.
Now, a Cosmic Book News regular, Armand Rock, has confirmed through Jim Starlin that Thanos will be in the Guardians of the Galaxy movie and The Avengers 2.
You know Max Landis, the Chronicle writer and son of the great John Landis (The guy who has done pretty much everything). It looks like he will be getting a new TV Show on Fox. Vigilant will also be produced by Howard Gordon (24, Homeland), and is a police drama featuring a crime fighting vigilante. On Monday, it was revealed that Fox has officially picked up the show.
The basic premise of Vigilant is this: a 20-year old, female “social outcast” becomes a vigilante in order to take down criminals and corrupt police officers. Before bringing up the failure that was The Cape, know that Landis doesn’t think of Vigilant as a superhero show. “Vigilant comes at the whole equation of what a “vigilante” in a very different way, the writer recently tweeted. “It has more in common with The Wire than Smallville.” Several tweets like the one quoted were posted by Landis in the wake of the Fox announcement hoping to convince everyone that his show won’t simply be a superhero tale.
I really liked Chronicle and the way Landis represented the human side of the character. I hope he brings this skill of character development to the small screen with him. The show has great potential but also comes with some competition this year from a couple of potential superhero based shows like Joss Whedon’s S.H.I.E.L.D. and FX’s long in production Powers. Then there is the fact that it is being produced by Fox, which I don’t have a problem with but I do worry that they may just cancel if it doesn’t instantly become a hit.
Kick Ass 2 Set Photos: Jim Carrey, Donald Faison, and Bad Touching?
Well, we have yet another anticipated super hero film with a butt load of Kick-Ass 2 set photos (Butt, ass…Okay, not my best work). But still we get to see the main cast and finally get to see what all the new additions look like. Noticeably we have Doctor Gravity, Mother Russia and Colonel Stars.
Why is Hit-Girl kissing Kick-Ass?Donald Faison as Doctor GravityOlga Kurkulina as Mother Russia
Joss Whedon, come on down! You’ve just been chosen to continue on the path of greatness and while adding to your god-like status amongst the human population! According to several news sources, ranging from the Hollywood Reporter, EW.com, Newsrama etc., Joss Whedon is back in the saddle as your writer and director for Marvel’s The Avengers 2.
In the deal, Mr. Joss “I Own The World, Bow Before My Awesomeness” Whedon, signs a deal with Marvel Studios that keeps in the fold through the end of June 2015. In that, he will cover his duties as director and writer for The Avengers 2, as well as helping develop a live action series for ABC and, according to the Marvel Studios’ press release, “will also contribute creatively to the next phase of Marvel’s cinematic universe.” Basically, as I have read it, he will take the Jon Favreau role in making sure that the universe that Marvel Studios has cultivated will be ushered into the next set of movies, culminating in The Avengers 2 movie. You can bet that the TV show will deal in the Avengers universe and it is safe to say that it is NOT the Guillermo del Toro Hulk series being developed for ABC apparently. Excited much? Yessir. Let us face it, Joss Whedon knows his characters and his television. While not successful all the time in terms of nielsen ratings, his television shows always are great and at least will cater to the cult crowds and die hard geeks his drops his wisdom on. Plus if it’s set in the Marvel Universe, umm, insta-hit?
A live feed from the Whedon household after the deal
From a Hollywood perspective, this should be zero surprise of course. The Avengers has made 1.5 BILLION worldwide. A large part is because not only the commercial acclaim of putting together the most brilliant way to market your movie (uhh, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger? Yeah, those were basically marketing teasers for that movie, profitable ones too at the very least), but the critical acclaim that got people coming back for more. The onus on Whedon and Marvel was making sure the characters were enjoyable to watch and developed to where they both electrified the screen individually AND as a team. Whedon solidified the Marvel Studio’s universe in this movie because he made sure this ambitious project did not implode like a dying star. With egos and sheer enormous size of this project, this could have been an unmitigated disaster with everything that was going on but instead, Mr. Firefly himself controlled the movie and its stars (and the future of this universe) and made sure the next several movies are events flicks that people of all walks and sizes will need to see.
So let’s recap, this will be Joss Whedon’s universe for the next three years and with Iron Man 3 for May 3rd, 2013; Thor: The Dark World in November 8th, 2013; Captain America: The Winter Soldier for April 4th, 2013; Guardians of the Galaxy launching on August 1st, 2014; with possibly Edgar Wright’s Ant-Man figuring into the equation too, this will probably confirm Avengers 2 hitting theaters in 2015, right when the contract ends. Not too mention the TV show that, crossing my fingers and just a hypothetical guess, will probably be S.H.I.E.L.D. related? Excited? You know it baby. So much that this ScarJo pic will be used to match the badassness of this news.
Grizzly Bomb 