Sci-Fi Movies Sunday: Transformers, Avatar, Marvel Movies, Clash of Titans, GI Joe, Harry Potter + more June 7, 2009
by Rosario T. Calabria , Filed under: Sci-Fi , trackback
For our weekly wrapup of genre movie news we start off with a ton of new info, images and video from Transformers 2, but that is not all. There is a lot of new info about Avatar and the upcoming Marvel movies, including Thor and Iron Man 2. And we have new previews and images, including Clash of the Titans, GI Joe and the next Harry Potter and Ice Age movies.
MOVIE NEWS
Michael Bay Presents T2 Footage + Interviews With Shia LeBeouf
"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" director Michael Bay was at Botcon last week where he screened a special preview of the film for those in attendance. Here are some excerpts of what he said [SPOILERS]:
The footage started with John Turturro and Sam’s roomate in the middle of a construction zone looking on to a group of construction vehicles surround them. The constructicons were revealed when Mixmasters Decepticon symbol is shown and Scavenger begins to transform. At the same time the other constructicons move closer to form Devastator!!!
…
Rampage and Bumblebee fight ferociously with Bumblebee getting the better of Rampage when Ravage enters the fray. Using his hip cannons he blasts Bee and jumps on his back. Bumblebee then forces Rampage to the ground when Rampage lunges for Sam and takes Ravage and terrors him apart piece by piece.
Head on over to seibertron for the full rundown. In other news, star Shia LeBeouf was featured in two recent interviews, one in Wizard’s July issue (featuring Megan Fox on the cover). Here’s an excerpt on how they incorporated his real-life hand injury (the issue is on newsstands and comic book stores now, but you can view the entire article at Transformers Live Action Movie Blog):
"Well, Sam actually injures his hand in the midst of transit. Basically, you got people falling out of the sky in the middle of a transportation called the Space Bridge, which was written in the script before my injury ever happened. You don’t spend much time on it; you don’t dwell on it. It’s dealt with the way that injuries have been dealt with before [during film productions]."
There’s another interview with LaBeouf in Famous Magazine. Here’s an excerpt on LaBeouf’s thoughts on director Michael Bay:
“Mike has been better this time, he’s more comfortable and he’s doing different stuff,” says LaBeouf, looking buff but for the cast on his broken hand, during an interview in Los Angeles last autumn. “It’s wild to watch Mike grow up and to acknowledge it. Every filmmaker, every movie out, something changes. You either gain something or you lose something, and I think this time Mike has gained a lot. I also think working with Steven is really transforming Mike. His preparation is very different on this one than it was on the first one.”
Head on over to Cineplex.com to read the rest of the interview. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" hits theaters on June 24, 2009. Also here is the final poster [Empire]
The Fallen concept art [TFG2 via seibertron]
TV Spot: Destiny
Marvel Chief Talks Upcoming Slate + Incredible Hulk Appearance
Marvel Studios’ president of production Kevin Feige talked last week with Superhero Fix about the studio’s upcoming film slate, which includes "The Avengers", "Thor", "Ant-Man", "Doctor Strange" and "The First Avenger: Captain America". Feige revealed that The Incredible Hulk will make his next appearance in "The Avengers", when that film hits theaters on May 4, 2012:
"It will have been four years since he was in a movie by that point. By 2012. I’d like to see him in it. I’m not being coy. We’re just starting the story. I was on the phone with Zak Penn this morning. He’s coming in next week and he’s going to work on the outline this summer. It’s so intertwined with what we’re doing before it. I almost wanted to get done with production on Iron Man 2, and the scripts to Thor and The First Avenger: Captain America well underway, before we even started The Avengers."
Feige is quick to note that an appearance by The Incredible Hulk in another Marvel film doesn’t rule out the character’s appearance in a third stand-alone film: "Now at least we can talk about Hulk being onscreen and Hulk being in a movie. I think we can go to something that isn’t a surreal experience and is more a Marvel movie experience. It can tie into and be a part of this Marvel Cinema Universe that I’ve talked about." There’s much more at the link, but here’s a bit on "The Avengers":
"I think The Avengers is going to have it’s own vibe. It’ll have a different tone than the other Marvel movies. It is about saving the world, because there’s no other reason for characters that powerful to band together. I think the scope and the scale will feel like a much bigger thing. Like Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Whatever you had seen, whether Starscream was your favorite character or Megatron is your favorite character or Soundwave is your favorite character, you’re going to see the experience of that epic thing coming together. I think it’ll be the same thing with The Avengers."
Promotional material from the Licensing Show, featuring Iron Man 2, Thor, The First Avenger: Captain America, The Avengers [AICN]
Different Aspect Ratios for Avatar 2-D and 3-D; Runtime News + more
James Cameron took part in a Q&A session at the Santa Monica Aero Theatre last Friday night and revealed that the 2-D and 3-D versions of "Avatar" (December 18, 2009) will be released in different aspect ratios. [via MarketSaw]
The 2D and 3D versions of Avatar will have different aspect ratios. The 3D version will be the full 16 x 9 ratio in which the movie was shot (Cameron explains how the extra screen height benefits 3D). A 2D cinemascope ratio version will be extracted from this 16 x 9 footage for 2D theatrical exhibition and 3D exhibition on screens which can’t handle 16 x 9.
Cameron also, of course, offered some of his thoughts about the film:
“It’s great to be back in the saddle making a movie- and making a movie that I know – win, lose, or draw, whether it’s a good film or not, I know there’s going to be images in this film we’re making right now that are going to Blow. People. Away…They’ll be like, ‘what the f#ck?”…cause we say that when we see the shots coming back from WETA Digital. They sent us a shot last week, and I said, ‘this is ridiculous!’ So, I don’t know if it’s gonna add up to be a great film, but I already feel proud that there’s some cool stuff in it.”
Head on over to MarketSaw to listen to the full 43-minute Q&A. In related news, various sources have picked up on Film Crew T-Shirts’ scoop that the runtime of the film will be 189 minutes. /Film followed up with "Avatar" producer John Landau at the Ubisoft booth during E3 and Landau confirmed that the film’s runtime is "definitely over two and a half hours." Closing out this week’s "Avatar" news, you can check out a nice rundown of E3 event over at HitFix (or watch Cameron’s presentation below); and BBC has an interview with the film’s aforementioned producer, John Landau, which you can check out here.
New shots of the Heavy Loader–from E3 [more at Collider]
Avatar (Video Game) Stills [one more here, courtesy Ubisoft]
James Cameron E3 Presentation on Avatar Game
Kenneth Branagh Discusses Thor + Loki (Tom Hiddleston) Speaks
"Thor" director Kenneth Branagh chatted with MTV about the stories being considered for the film:
“I think that ['Thor' stories] go through golden patches and purple patches and everyone has personal favorites,” Branagh said. “The recent runs have been marvelous. The J. Michael Straczynski run has been a tremendous achievement.”
“But I’ve also been reading way back, reading classic, vintage runs as well,” added Branagh. “There are many Thors and many accounts of the stories across nearly 50 years of the comics. We look to raid from the best.”
Meanwhile Tom Hiddleston, who was recently cast as Loki, spoke with The Daily Mail about his role in the project [via IGN]:
"Loki’s like a comic book version of Edmund in King Lear, but nastier," Hiddleston explained. "Loki’s skilled in black magic and sorcery. He’s a shape-shifter and has all sorts of super powers from the dark arts. He can turn clouds into dragons, things like that."
"Ken wants Loki to have a lean and hungry look, like Cassius in Julius Caesar. Physically, he can’t be posing as Thor."
Meanwhile, British actor Brian Blessed has reportedly been cast in the film as the character Odin. Odin is the father of Thor and his half-brother Loki.
First look at Clash of the Titans
Speaking of mythical heroes, check out a first look at official shots of Sam Worthington from the upcoming remake of "Clash of the Titans"[SCI FI Wire--higher resolution shots at ComingSoon.net]
Terminator 5 In Present-Day London?
It’s still way too early to be discussing a "Terminator Salvation" follow-up, especially when the film isn’t burning up the box office as noted above (although numbers still aren’t in from the majority of international markets), however, the plan still remains for a three-picture arc and Bleeding Cool is reporting that the fifth film may be set in present-day (2011) London. Here’s their scoop:
I hear from industry sources that yet-to-be-named Terminator 5, the sequel to Terminator: Salvation, will be set in London in the year 2011, with a time-travelling John Connor (Christian Bale).
Del Toro Updates The Hobbit
Before heading back to New Zealand for prep work on the two "Hobbit" films, Guillermo del Toro made a stop in Los Angeles last week to promote the first book of his vampire trilogy "The Strain". Del Toro took some time from the event to talk to reporters about the "Hobbit" films and revealed that writing is still underway on both screenplays: "We’re working on it still," del Toro said. "I think it will be finished when the DVD comes out." The stay over in the U.S. will be his final appearance for a while, as he plans to spend several years in New Zealand: "This is my last trip," he said. "I’m going to go [there for] three years." "The Hobbit" hits theaters in 2012.
Reitman On Ghostbusters 3 + New Site & Images + more
"Ghostbusters" director Ivan Reitman says that now is the right time for the long-awaited "Ghostbusters 3":
"We’re going to get a screenplay in a short time," Reitman said Wednesday night. "We’re going to see how it is. There’s something in the zeitgeist of the world right now that it feels appropriate. There are some very talented people writing the screenplay. All of our fingers are crossed."
"I actually think the combination of both the Blu-ray release and the new game sort of awakened the thirst of at least the creators of the movie to start to rethink it more seriously, the possibility of a sequel. It’s something that’s been sort of dormant in our minds, really, for the last 10 years or so, and there have been two things that sort of told us, "Wow, people still seem to be really interested in this story, and the characters in this story." More importantly, it sort of reawakened the joy of working on this film in both iterations."
Reitman also confirmed past reports about the story, telling reporters that the film will likely be about passing the torch from the original cast to a new generation:
"Yeah, I think that is part of the story that we’re working on right now. We’ll see how it turns out. One of the reasons there’s not Ghostbusters 18 right now is that we’re basically this family that all have an equal voice in something. The studio is one of five equal voices. The studio would have liked to have made a bunch of them, and we’ve been really quite selective. Frankly, any of us can kill it."
Read the rest of the interview at SCI FI Wire. While we await further developments on "Ghostbusters 3", we can relive the past. The official Ghostbusters website has launched with new games, galleries and auditions, including a never-before-seen batch of images. Check out a few below, and head on over to Ghostbusters.com to experience the rest of the site. [via i09]
NEW IMAGES
Astro Boy
Promotional material [IGN]
Gamer [more at MovieWeb]
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra [/Film--more at IGN]
Gatchaman
Promotional material [IGN]
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince [SnitchSeeker]
How to Train Your Dragon
Promotional material from the Licensing Show [AICN]
Iron Man 2
Promotional banner from the Licensing Show [AICN]
Jonah Hex
First look at Josh Brolin [one more at Lainey Gossip (via SCI FI Wire)]
Oobermind
Promotional material from the Licensing Show [AICN]
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World
Poster from the Licensing Show [AICN]
Spider-Man 4
Promotional poster from the Licensing Show [AICN]
The Twilight Saga: New Moon [one more at Twilight Sweden via SpoilersTV-Movies]
Twist Magazine Promo Poster [via SpoilerTV-Movies]
First look at Dakota Fanning–from the set [Shockya]
NEW VIDEOS
The Final Destination
Trailer
G-Force
Featurette: "3-D Action"
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
TV Spot
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
TV Spot
Four more promos: 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 || 6
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Clip
Moon
Clip: Where Are We Now?
Five more clips: 1 || 2 || 3|| 4 || 5
Interview with Director Duncan Jones
REC²
Second trailer
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World
Video Blog #7
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Behind-the-scenes clip
MOVIE BITES
- As part of Universal Studios’ deal with Hasbro, the studio has announced that their big-screen adaptation of "Stretch Armstrong" has been given a release date of April 15, 2011. The project is being produced by Academy Award-winning producer Brian Grazer. [/Film]
- Robert Rodriguez, producer of the upcoming "Predator" project, has reportedly reached out to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s camp to get his involvement in the film. Thus far they haven’t received a response back. [MovieHole]
- Dimension Films has brought writer Dan Milano ("Robot Chicken") on board to write the script for "Short Circuit", the studio’s upcoming remake of the 1986 film. [Variety]
- Last week Robert Rodriguez turned down the opportunity to direct Universal’s remake of the 1968 classic "Barbarella", but the project may get off the ground regardless. Robert Luketic ("Monster-in-Law", "Legally Blonde") is in talks with Dino De Laurentiis’ company — who owns the rights to the original property — to develop the project with a different studio. [EW]
- Ridley Scott has announced that he, his brother Tony and his son Luke are developing a Web video series called "Purefold" consisting of a series of 5-10 minute shorts. The project is set in futuristic setting similar to Ridley Scott’s 1982 film "Blade Runner" but it won’t make use of any characters or situations from that film. [SCI FI Wire]
- Columbia Pictures has hired Kurt Wimmer to write the studio’s "contemporized adaptation" of the hit 1990 film "Total Recall". [THR]
- "Twilight" won five awards at last week’s "MTV Movie Awards": best movie, best fight, best kiss, breakthrough make performance (Robert Pattinson) and female performance (Kristen Stewart). Heath Ledger won for his role as the Joker in "The Dark Knight".
- With Universal’s adaptation of the video game "Bioshock" likely to shoot outside the United States due to budgetary issues, Gore Verbinski may not be able to direct. [Los Angeles Times]
- Ryan Reynolds ("Deadpool") revealed that two old Deadpool characters, Ajax and Black Tom, are being considered for the project… [MTV]
- …In a separate extensive interview, Reynolds suggests that it’s unlikely the project will tie-in to "X-Men Origins: Wolverine": "There’s that little teaser at the end, but for the most part, I can’t imagine that they’d tie it in with the film too closely." [IGN]
- "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" is now casting for three new characters, including vampire Riley and the two siblings, Seth and Leah Clearwater. [On The Fix]
- James Cameron, Zack Snyder and Gore Verbinski have all signed on to direct segments of "Heavy Metal", along with David Fincher. [Film School Rejects]
- According to layout supervisor Charlie Ramos, "Planet 51" is heavily influenced by movies such as "Aliens", "Forbidden Planet" and "The Day the Earth Stood Still": "I remember watching them. … Jason and the Argonauts and things like that, … those movies, the technology wasn’t there, but the fantasy, it really kind of awoke something in you." [SCI FI Wire]
- Peter Jackson will make his first ever appearance to this year’s San Diego Comic-Con (July 24th) in support of "District 9" which hits theaters on August 14th. While the full schedule is still unknown, James Cameron is said to be contemplating presenting footage of "Avatar" while Summit Entertainment’s ‘New Moon’ will likely feature heavily at the convention. [NY Times]
- "Spider-Man 4" producer Todd Black says that Kirsten Dunst is now definitely aboard the project. Black also shot down the rumor that Morbius would be the villain while hinting that the actual villain plays an integral part to New York City. [NY Post]
- "X-Men" and "X2: X-Men United" director Bryan Singer reveals in a new interview that he regrets not staying on to finish the trilogy with 2006’s "X-Men: The Last Stand" (directed by Brett Ratner) and adds that he may be interested in directing the proposed spin-off "X-Men Origins: Magneto". On "Superman Returns", which he helmed in 2006, he says he doesn’t believe it likely he’ll direct another installment in that franchise. [Conventry Telegraph]
- Duncan Jones, director of the upcoming sci-fi drama "Moon" starring Sam Rockwell, discusses what it was like to direct the limited budget ($5M) release and more in an interview with SCI FI Wire.
- "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood" will clock in at a runtime of just over 2 and a half hours (153 minutes). [Dark Horizons]
- Mickey Rourke will be speaking some Russian in his role as the villain Ivan/Whiplash in Jon Favreau’s "Iron Man 2". [The Guardian]
MISC VIDEOS
Iron Man 2
Director Jon Favreau on the Jimmy Fallon show
Star Wars: The Old Republic (Video Game)
Trailer
Loading ...
