Christ, I hope not…

Source - Newsarama.com

Talking to the Los Angeles Times the singer/actress said, “I want to do a superhero movie and what would be better than Wonder Woman? It would be great. And it would be a very bold choice. A black Wonder Woman would be a powerful thing. It’s time for that, right?”

Well, at least she’s hitting the obvious nail on the head. A re-casting of Wonder Woman from her Greek roots to a darker tone would be a major shift for a comic book to film adaptation (rumors about Will Smith playing Captain America notwithstanding). To date, all the major characters who have crossed over have retained their look from the comics, and yes, by look, we mean skin color. Back-up characters and supporting cast have been changed here and there, such as Michael Clark Duncan as Kingpin in Daredevil, but casting an African American as Wonder Woman would be a major departure for DC Comics and Warner Bros., who are notoriously protective of their top three characters, Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman…

As for the real possibility of seeing Beyonce on screen as Wonder Woman? It’s very hard to say - Wonder Woman is becoming the Holy Grail of comic book to film adaptations, and has been stuck in various stages of development hell for years. Most notable among the efforts was Joss Whedon taking a spin at the Amazon Princess, but even he had to back off when he wasn’t able to deliver a script that captured the attention of executives at Warner Bros. Beyonce’s interest - if she’s serious - she is, after all, busily promoting her new album, and is currently working any and every angle to get her name in the press - could perhaps be enough to muscle the project back on to the active list for the studio, who recently said they are revising how they work with and view the DC Comics properties.

Recently, Australian actress Megan Gale was pegged to star as Wonder Woman in the planned Justice League ensemble film which was to bring together all of DC’s top-tier heroes. Plans for that film appear to have been put to rest – thankfully, in the eyes of many fans.

At Warner’s, the potential film is under the care of Producer Joel Silver who has said he’s looking for a way to make it work.

Here’s the thing, skin color and continuity aside, I would be more concerned about “Beyonce’s” acting ability. I mean, I’m not going to snap a judgement here, so maybe someone who saw Dreamgirls could let me know, but I don’t see her being a good enough actress to headline a movie, much less the WONDER WOMAN movie. Personally, I don’t see this happening, but you never know.

Samuel L. Jackson has announced that  he is going to star in a feature as Nick Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in 2009. Jackson has also confirmed he is contracted to appear as Fury in Iron Man 2, Captain America, Thor and the nerdgasm that will be The Avengers. We can all expect the yelling of dialogue that only can be delivered by the Sam Jackson.

“I should kinda pass through Iron Man 2, Captain America, Thor - all those things - and eventually get to that Avengers space, yeah. They sorta gave me a master plan about how they want it to work… (But) I’ll do every movie they wanna do. I’m down.”

Marvel has kept details of the Nick Fury feature under lock and key but rumor has it it will involve snakes on a Helicarrier.

MTV caught up with Sam Raimi and talked to him a little about Dunst, the possibility of shooting two movies simultaneously, and villains. Here’s a little clip and you can check out the full interview here.

“Now things are about to get hard yet again for Raimi, as he’s making plans to continue the cinematic tale of Peter Parker. “I’m really excited about Spider-Man, and I’m hoping to direct it,” he cautioned. “I don’t have a script yet, but production would start probably by March of 2010, I’m guessing. It sounds like a long time away, but we need a script first, and a lot of pre-production has to take place.”

The filmmaking legend also revealed to us that there is a lot of truth behind rumors that he might shoot the next two “Spider-Man” films at the same time. “That had been talked about,” he said, deferring to the head of his studio. “It’s Amy Pascal’s decision. I don’t think it has been decided yet, and she’s the one that’s really going to make that decision; I’m really curious myself.”"

According to latinoreview.com rumors are swirling about that WB is courting Ryan Gosling (The Notebook, Lars and the Real Girl, Half Nelson) to wear the infamous green ring. This is coming from a supposed “reliable” source within WB. As with any rumor, take this with a grain of salt until there’s an official announcement…

The Green Lantern movie is aiming to begin shooting in Spring 2009.

So, what do all you bots out there think?

Mike Mignola's Hellboy

Hellboy as must watch TV? I think I’d set my internal alarms to show up for that. Still only an early stage rumor, but fun to imagine what could be. Would they stick with Ron Perlman? or do they get someone new for the TV version? I admit I didn’t realize that Perlman is closing in on 60 years old. He looks fantastic, and the makeup helps, but would he want to do heavy makeup on a daily basis? He also just started up on the “Sons of Anarchy” series for FX. We’ll monitor things and keep you posted.

MTv Splash Page is reporting that Will Smith may be the new Cap, according to actor Derek Luke:

When Marvel announced that “Captain America” was making its way to the big-screen, fans everywhere began speculating who would be donning the famous red-white-and-blue tights. Nothing has been heard since, but during an MTV News interview regarding his role in “Miracle at St. Anna,” actor Derek Luke let slip that a very prominent - and surprising - face could be the star of Marvel Studios’ next blockbuster film.

“I heard they offered Will Smith ‘Captain America,’” said Luke, adding that the intriguing casting rumor “just shows you how times have changed.”

While this word through the Hollywood grapevine is nothing more than a rumor at this point, it should be noted that Marvel hasn’t shied away from changing up the race - and gender - of established characters in recent years. Upon kicking off his celebrated take on “The Ultimates” (Marvel’s re-imagining of their classic superteam The Avengers), Mark Millar changed S.H.I.E.L.D. head honcho Nick Fury from a crew-cut, cigar-chomping, middle-aged white man to, well… Sam Jackson.

Looks like another rumor to add to the mill! What are your thoughts on this possible direction?

UPDATE: Aintitcool is reporting from multiple sources that this is total bullshit and Derek Luke has no idea what the hell he’s talking about.  Good news, indeed.

There has apparently been an update since my last post about Angelina Jolie interested in being Catwoman in the next Nolan Batman Film if they write the character in.

Imdb is reporting the following:

Angelina Jolie has been asking for advice on taking the role of Catwoman from an unlikely source - porn star Tera Patrick.

The Lara Croft star is said to be keen to sign up for the part if the Catwoman character is resurrected in a future Batman sequel by Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan.

Jolie has even been tipped for the role by Julie Newmar - who played the original feline villain in the 1960s Batman TV series.

And the sexy star has been discussing her possible portrayal of the character with porn star pal Patrick, who is a huge fan of the role, according to New York gossip column PageSix.

A source tells the publication, “They are friends and keep in touch via e-mail. She and Angie have a girl-talk thing going.

“After seeing reports that she’ll land the lead role, Jolie asked Patrick what she thought. Tera had such insights into the role that Jolie cracked, ‘You should do it!’ “

Now, I would like to point out that at this point, this is just a rumor that is running wild. There has yet to be any confirmation of this. Also, there is no third film yet. Period. There’s no script, there is no contract for a director, there is not even a story yet.  And while I doubt that Warner Bros. wouldn’t do a 3rd movie after The Dark Knight has surpassed the $400 Million mark to become the 3rd highest grossing domestic movie of all time,  they haven’t even began working on it… take all of these with a grain of salt.

When I was at the Comic Con I had the pleasure of bumping into everyone’s favorite Jhonen Vasquez. When asked “so, what do you have in the works?” he responded “oh, well, I’m working on a graphic novel… about robots… and stuff.”I was more than enthused. I’m a robot, most of the other writers are robots, or are pretending to be, and we love stories about robots. So, what will the “stuff” be? Filler Bunnies, homicidal maniacs and aborted fetuses? Sure, why not; but what will the other things be? Peanut butter and jelly sandwich pornography, Mickey Rourke, obnoxious goth posers, etcetera, etcetera. One can only hope that this project will see the light of day if our dear Jhonen V can pry himself away from WoW, rectally eating puppies and engaging in acts of necrophilia.Feel free to check out Jhonen Vasquez’s website http://www.questionsleep.com.Become tainted by his perverse thoughts on his Live Journal.And feel free to stalk him on his Twitter! He loves his stalkers!

Hey everyone, just wanted to point you to a great article newsarama.com did that you can check out here. In the article, they discuss the realistic chances that the third installment of the new Batman franchise will be based on Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. They really explore a lot of hints and ideas in depth, it’s certainly worth the read!

I’m sure most of you Halo fans remember a while back when there was a lot of speculation about a Halo movie; there were even some people and a studio attached to the project: FOX/UNIVERSAL, Peter Jackson, Neil Blomkamp, with the script by Garland and rewritten by DB Weiss. I’m also sure that most of you are well aware that this project is now dead, everyone previously attached has picked up and moved on to other projects.

But yesterday latinoreview.com broke the story that while the previous incarnation of a Halo Movie is dead, there is another version floating around that is very much alive, with concept art and all. The script has been written by Stuart Beattie (Pirates of the Caribbean, Collateral, Derailed, 30 Days of Night, & Australia as well as the upcoming G.I. Joe and Spy Hunter movies) and is based on the Halo novel The Fall of Reach. Now, I love the Halo games as much as the next guy, but I haven’t gone as far to read any of the Halo fiction, but here is a summary of the 2001 novel from amazon.com:

“As the bloody Human-Covenant War rages on Halo, the fate of humankind may rest with one warrior, the lone SPARTAN survivor of another legendary battle . . . the desperate, take-no-prisoners struggle that led humanity to Halo–the fall of the planet Reach. Now, brought to life for the first time, here is the full story of that glorious, doomed conflict.

While the brutal Covenant juggernaut sweeps inexorably through space, intent on wiping out humankind, only one stronghold remains–the planet Reach. Practically on Earth’s doorstep, it is the last military fortress to defy the onslaught. But the personnel here have another, higher priority: to prevent the Covenant from discovering the location of Earth.

Outnumbered and outgunned, the soldiers seem to have little chance against the Covenant, but Reach holds a closely guarded secret. It is the training ground for the very first “super soldiers.” Code-named SPARTANs, these highly advanced warriors, specially bioengineered and technologically augmented, are the best in the universe–quiet, professional, and deadly.

Now, as the ferocious Covenant attack begins, a handful of SPARTANs stand ready to wage ultimate war. They will kill, they will be destroyed, but they will never surrender. And at least one of them–the SPARTAN known as Master Chief–will live to fight another day on a mysterious and ancient, artificial world called Halo. . . .”

Latinoreview.com claims that this is legit and that they have gotten their hands on 5 pieces of concept art by conceptual artist Kasra Farahani (Wolf Man, Hancock, Spider-Man 3) that they will be debuting every Monday for the next 5 weeks (including this last Monday) so be sure to keep checking in over the next four weeks to check out more concept art!

As far as this bot’s feelings towards a Halo movie? Eh. Could be good, could suck, no one really knows. Maybe if this actually gets picked up and has a director and studio attached to it I may have feelings one way or the other, but until then this is all speculation. Check out the concept art below and click the picture for a bigger version!