The Week In Geek: Thor 2, Marvel Short Films, Twilight Zone Biopic and More!
Thor 2 Is A Go
The first news item of the week has got to be the biggest no-brainer as well. Marvel Studios has announced that Thor 2 is officially a go for summer 2013, July 26th to be precise. This means Thor will be debuting only a few months after Iron Man 3. What is mildly surprising is that Marvel is replacing Kenneth Branagh as director. I remember when there were rumors that Jon Favreau was going to be replaced for Iron Man 2, and fandom went crazy, saying Marvel Studios was being too cheap (and let’s face it, they are totally cheap-o’s, otherwise we would have seen Terence Howard reprise his role as Rhodey/War Machine and had Edward Norton come back as Bruce Banner for Avengers) No one seems to be having that reaction this time for some reason. Personally, I thought a lot of what Branagh brought to Thor was what made it work; he knew how to handle all that Asgardian drama and played it like Shakespeare, and is responsible for the genius casting of Tom Hiddleston as Loki. I wish he was coming back, but since he’s not I at least hope Marvel replaces him with someone interesting at least. Of course Chris Hemsworth will be back as Thor, but it remains to be seen whether Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins will be back, even thought they are contracted to return. They are big enough stars to both weasel their way out of any contracts like that though if they want to badly enough.
Marvel Short Films
Speaking of Marvel Studios, an old rumor has resurfaced this week; apparently Marvel Studios are moving forward on short films featuring their B list characters, with the connective tissue once again being S.H.I.E.L.D Agent Coulson, played by actor Clark Gregg. Supposedly, the first two short films will feature on the DVD releases for Thor and Captain America this Fall, although if that were true we would probably have heard about what they were and who was in them already. More likely they are planning on having these short films play in front of Iron Man 3 and Thor 2 during their theatrical runs. I would bet that whoever these characters are that end up in their short films, they are likely candidates for a potential Avengers sequel. It would be an ideal way to set up a Ms. Marvel or a Wonder Man or any other character who would never be able to get his or her own feature film, and use those films to introduce the world to them.
Harrison Ford Calls Shia LaBeouf “A Fucking Idiot”
The man most geeks worship calls out the man most geeks hate. Remember last year, when Shia came out and pretty much said what everyone was already thinking, that Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a total turd? No? Well, here’s the quote to refresh your memory:
“I feel like I dropped the ball on the legacy that people loved and cherished. If I was going to do it twice, my career was over. So this was fight-or-flight for me.You get to monkey-swinging and things like that and you can blame it on the writer and you can blame it on Steven Spielberg. But the actor’s job is to make it come alive and make it work, and I couldn’t do it. So that’s my fault. Simple. I think the audience is pretty intelligent. I think they know when you’ve made … I think if you don’t acknowledge it, then why do they trust you the next time you’re promoting a movie?“
Ouch. Well, not like he’s wrong. Personally, I admire the guy for being so honest. So what does Harrison think of all this?
“I think I told him he was a fucking idiot. As an actor, I think it’s my obligation to support the film without making a complete ass of myself. Shia is ambitious, attentive, and talented—and he’s learning how to deal with a situation which is very unique and difficult.“
As far as I’m concerned, if Shia’s outspoken attitude has killed the chances for Indiana Jones 5, then I think we all owe him a thank you card.
Twilight Zone Creator Gets A Biopic
Writer Stanley Weiser (co-writer of Wall Street) has been tasked to write a film about Rod Serling, the man most famous for creating and hosting the seminal sci-fi/fantasy television classic The Twilight Zone. Serling’s widow Carol Serling is producing the film as well, so this should be considered as much of an “authorized” biography as you could get with the subject being dead. Serling was synonymous with the show he created and hosted (and wrote a huge amount of episodes for) which ran for five seasons starting in 1959. The Twilight Zone was decades ahead of its time. Although the show went off the air a good decade before I was born, the re-runs aired perpetually in syndication well into the 90’s. Everyone grew up having a favorite episode, or have that one episode that just creeped them the fuck out. Sadly, today almost anyone under the age of 25 has not even heard of the show beyond the pop culture reference of the title and theme song and the theme park ride at Disneyworld/Disneyland. If a movie about Serling’s life rings more attention to the show he created, then I am all for it. Because every generation deserves to be creeped out by Talky Tina, or discover themselves that To Serve Man is a cook book.
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New DC Universe San Diego Comic Con Protest
Forget the Westboro Baptist Church at Comic Con (although they’ll be there) the go-to protest at San Diego this year is going to be the protest against the new DC Universe launching in September. Oh yes, it is happening folks. The official San Diego Comic Con 2011: DC Original Characters Protest Walk! Is happening on Saturday, July 23rd at 3-4 P.M. For all of you angry that DC is changing shit you have loved for years, you can now go out on the street and give DC and Warner Brothers exactly what they want…lots of free fucking publicity.
Look, I’m not too crazy about this new DCU that seems firmly set in like 1995 or something. I feel like I’ve been called to the back office at DC, asked to please have a seat and told “Thank you for your years, no…decades of service. Sadly, we are moving on in a new direction without you. Please clear out your desk.” I hate that Superman looks like he’s wearing armor (who needs armor LESS than Superman??) and that my beloved Wonder Woman is wearing black pants with silver trim to her costume instead of gold, while Geoff Johns’ favorite characters have had their looks virtually unchanged. But this protest will do nothing and is just stupid. I expect a lot of cosplayers in their forties looking extremely silly.
