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"The First Avenger: Captain America" director Joe Johnston spoke about casting Steve Rogers earlier this month, saying that a casting decision was "weeks away." Well, weeks have passed, February is almost over and it appears the role has been narrowed down to five.

According to Deadline Hollywood, the five front-runners for the role of Captain America are Chace Crawford ("Gossip Girl"), John Krasinski ("The Office"), Scott Porter ("Friday Night Lights"), Mike Vogel ("Cloverfield") and Michael Cassidy ("Smallville").

All five actors have reportedly agreed to test deals with Johnston and Marvel Studios. Garrett Hedlund ("Tron Legacy") was allegedly sought for the part, but the actor has not reached a deal to test for the role. Additionally, Deadline reports that whoever lands Captain America must sign for nine other options, including potential sequels to "The First Avenger." Read more...

Tags captain america, Chace Crawford, Garrett Hedlund, John Krasinski, Michael Cassidy, Mike Vogel, Scott Porter, the first avenger captain america

There are a few actors out there who regularly pop up in our reader polls and Secret Identity casting columns as potential casting options for Superman, Captain America, and other prominent superhero movie roles. One of those actors is "Mad Men" star Jon Hamm, who has the distinction of not only being a favorite among readers and the Splash Page team, but also of having his name tossed around by various creators and filmmakers, too.

Along with receiving a fair share of fan support to play Superman, Green Lantern, and Captain America, comics-friendly filmmaker Kevin Smith raved to MTV News back in October that Hamm would make a great Superman or Batman. "Fear Agent" creators Rick Remender and Tony Moore also said Hamm is at the top of their list of actors who could bring sci-fi cowboy Heath Hudson to the big screen. Heck, we even suggested him for a role in a "Herbie: The Fat Fury" movie.

When MTV News caught up with Hamm last month, we ran down the long list of superheroes that fans want him to play. Here's what he had to say about it:

"Well, it's interesting. I'm a huge comic book fan, first of all," Hamm told MTV News. "I've collected them, I've read them since I was a kid. I am a big fan of the classic comics and also the darker ones that have sort of predominated in the last 10-15 years." Read more...

Tags jon hamm, Video

Both "Shutter Island" the movie by Martin Scorsese and "Shutter Island" the novel by Dennis Lehane got some positive micro-reviews in today's Twitter Report, and the opinions came from comics names I trust, too — namely Jhonen Vasquez and Kazu Kibuishi. I tried to find something from someone who'd read "Shutter Island" the graphic novel, but the trifecta went uncompleted.

Meanwhile in Vancouver, you probably know the Olympics are still going on. What you might not know, however, is that "Y: The Last Man" artist Pia Guerra has been hanging a protest sign up in her window to mark the occasion. There's a TwitPic link below that you can check out along with news about Stan Lee's upcoming sketch for FunnyOrDie.com, which "Spider-Man" actor got recognized at a CVS, and which artist appreciates the Chicago-based hot dog joint Hot Doug's as much as I do.

It's all in the Twitter Report for February 24, 2010. Read more...

Tags dave gibbons, gene ha, ivan brandon, jhonen vasquez, kazu kibuishi, Michael Papajohn, Pia Guerra, stan lee, Todd McFarlane, Twitter Report

With less than three months before the release of director Jon Favreau's "Iron Man 2", actress Anya Monzikova has come forward to talk about her role in the much anticipated sequel.

During an interview with Film Reviews 2 Go, Monzikova said "My character's name is Rebekah [and] it's a small part in the film… but in a really fun scene."

Monzikova is a model and actress who has appeared in "Deal or No Deal" and in "The Surrogates." She was also the model for the character Jonanna Dark in the video game "Perfect Dark Zero." Monzikova's Russian heritage — and her fluency in the language — led to an additional position on the set of "Iron Man 2." Read more...

Tags Anya Monzikova, iron man 2

While the release of "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of The Unicorn" is over a year away, director Steven Spielberg is already speaking out about the advanced motion capture technology — recently featured in "Avatar" — that allowed him to digitally recreate the look of the original "Tintin" comics by Hergé on the silver screen.

"I just adored it,“ said Spielberg during an interview with the Los Angeles Times. “It made me more like a painter than ever before. I got a chance to do so many jobs that I don’t often do as a director. You get to paint with this device that puts you into a virtual world, and allows you to make your shots and block all the actors with a small hand-held device only three times as large as an Xbox game controller.”

Spielberg also elaborated on the reason he and producer Peter Jackson decided to use digital animation to adapt "Tintin" instead of simply shooting the story as a live action film. “It was based on my respect for the art of Hergé and wanting to get as close to that art as I could." Read more...

Tags steven spielberg, Tintin

Despite the attachment of director D.J. Caruso and the rumored involvement of "Transformers" actor Shia LaBeouf, "Y: The Last Man" still has a ways to go before its big-screen debut.

In 2008, Caruso admitted that adapting the comic books has proven "really tough," while LaBeouf cast some doubt on his own attachment to the project just last year. But that doesn't mean you have to sit around waiting for the film to get made while all the men in the world drop dead — at the very least, you can wait with some interesting reading material.

Over the weekend, io9 linked to an early draft of "Y: The Last Man" written by Brian K. Vaughan himself. While the script is no longer available at My PDF Scripts, other online venues have posted Vaughan's draft, a screenplay that makes some significant departures from the source material.

So, what's our slightly spoiler-filled take on the screenplay? Read more...

Tags brian k. vaughan, y: the last man

FROM MULTIPLAYER: Warner Bros, knowing a good thing when they see one, has decided to buy a majority stake in Rocksteady Studios. You undoubtedly know Rocksteady's work as the developer of last year's Game of the Year (at least according to me), "Batman: Arkham Asylum."

Continue reading 'Batman: Arkham Asylum' Developer Bought By Warner Bros. at MultiplayerBlog.MTV.com.

Tags batman: arkham asylum

"Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths," the latest animated feature from Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment, hits shelves today and pits Superman, Batman, Green Lantern and the rest of the Justice League against their alternate-Earth counterparts, The Crime Syndicate.

Along with the full-length feature, "Crisis On Two Earths" also features the first in DC's new line of animated shorts introducing lesser-known DC characters — in this case, a dark tale that puts the spotlight on DC's white-skinned, green-cloaked "Spectre." There's also a short featurette on "Batman: Under the Hood," the next original DC animated feature to hit shelves, and several episodes of the "Justice League" animated series.

Based on a script by Dwayne McDuffie, a writer of both "Justice League" comics and the "Justice League Unlimited" animated series, "Crisis on Two Earths" is co-directed by Sam Liu ("Planet Hulk," "Superman/Batman: Public Enemies") and Lauren Montgomery ("Green Lantern: First Flight," "Wonder Woman"). This review is based on the "Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths" Blu-Ray Special Edition. Read more...

Tags Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, Review

Comic book scribe Grant Morrison is teaming up with "Push" director Paul McGuigan for a currently untitled television series to be filmed in Scotland, according to McGuigan himself.

In an interview with Live For Films, McGuigan revealed that he's developing a seven episode television thriller alongside Morrison and actor Stephen Fry, who comic book fans will remember as talk show host Gordon Deitrich in "V for Vendetta."

"It takes place over seven days around an event that happens in Scotland," said the "Push" filmmaker. "It's a modern take on an old fable or fairy story. If you know [Grant's] work you might have an idea of what it will be like. It's like Twin Peaks meets Brigadoon! It's off the wall and smart but in a watchable commercial way. It's still in the early stages but I'm very excited about it." Read more...

Tags deathlok, grant morrison, paul mcguigan, stephen fry

Wrestling icon Shad Gaspard isn't just campaigning for a part in Marcus Nispel's upcoming "Conan" movie — he's already tried out for a role.

The WWE wrestler recently revealed that he's auditioned for the part of Ukafa, a vicious warrior that stands in the way of Jason Momoa's Conan. Although an official casting announcement has yet to be made, Gaspard reached out to MTV News to talk about his experience in auditioning for the "Conan" villain.

In our exclusive interview, Gaspard spoke about his take on the character of Ukafa, his experience meeting Jason Momoa, and other comic book characters he'd like to play. Read more...

Tags conan, Shad Gaspard