Splash Page ›

by Matt Adler

"Captain America: The First Avenger" made its star-spangled debut in theaters this past weekend, completing the introduction of the characters who will form the core of next year’s "Avengers." Like Iron Man, Hulk, and Thor before him, Captain America hails from a long comic tradition, but in his case, that history stretches back a full seven decades to the early years of the Second World War, giving those working on the film an even deeper well of stories to draw upon.

As a service to you, our readers, we’re delving into that rich history to show you just where the movie folks came up with the elements that went into this latest Marvel blockbuster. If you haven't seen the film yet, consider this your SPOILER WARNING!

Read more...

Tags Captain America: The First Avenger

By Ryan J. Downey

San Diego Comic-Con is Christmas for Splash Page movie news. So we understand if you missed a few things from all of our coverage over the weekend. Collected here for you like a brand new trade paperback are five of the biggest stories from MTV News' mammoth coverage of the 2011 'Con:

5. Playing Cat & Mouse With A "Dark Knight Rises" Villain
No, Anne Hathaway wasn't here to dodge our questions about Catwoman, but we cornered Tom Hardy and made our best effort to get him to talk about his role as Bane in "The Dark Knight Rises" and what ensued was a cat and mouse game worthy of the sultry whip-cracker herself.

Read more...

Tags sdcc 2011

One of the most anticipated panels at this past weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con 2011 featured an early look at next year’s “The Amazing Spider-Man.” With the debut of multiple scenes from the film and an appearance by the movie’s star, Andrew Garfield, fans lucky enough to secure a seat in Comic-Con’s legendarily-packed Hall H were treated to something truly special.

Based on Marvel Comics’ Spider-Man, the 2012 movie will be a reboot of the franchise, coming off three successful films helmed by director Sam Raimi. While some hardcore fans of that earlier trilogy have expressed trepidations about the character’s new costume and whether a reboot is even necessary, one thing everyone seems to agree on is that Garfield, with his elongated, thin frame, will make for a Spider-Man that is much truer to the original vision of the high school nerd-turned-superhero, than Tobey Maguire’s relatively thicker physique.

In a discussion with MTV News, Garfield, who is not just the star of the movie, but a huge fan himself, described what it is like to step into such an iconic, beloved role and the pressure that comes with it.

Read more...

Tags andrew garfield, emma stone, Rhys Ifans, the amazing spider-man

It wouldn't be San Diego Comic-Con without the stalking of a run-in with fanboy favorite, Joss Whedon. I was lucky enough to chat with the man, the myth, the legend at Entertainment Weekly's star-studded Comic-Con Celebration Saturday night.

Naturally I brought up that little movie, "The Avengers" he's working on, and the fact that during our recent chats with cast members Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans and Tom Hiddleston his actors had nothing but praise for their director.

Read more...

Tags Comic-Con, joss whedon

by Whit Shaw

It’s always fun to delve into a celebrity’s past and look at what they used to wear, how they used to act, and to discover how much the times have changed. It’s even more fun to sit with them as they watch videos of their younger selves, a look of mortification and embarrassment spreading across their faces.

Such was the case when we sat down with Chris Evans, who starred in this weekend's box-office breakout "Captain America." Before we tortured Chris with videos of his past, however, we asked him what he thinks of the publicity aspect that comes with being an actor.

Read more...

Tags Captain America: The First Avenger

"The Avengers" skipped out on having a Hall H presence at San Diego Comic-Con this year, but that doesn't mean that Earth's Mightiest Heroes were totally absent from the big show.

Last week, we brought you a first look at two new "Avengers" posters that premiered at Comic-Con (one of which introduced us to Captain America's new costume). Now, the rest of the team has assembled, and it's time to catch your first look at "The Avengers" in all of their glory.

Read more...

Tags the avengers

San Diego Comic-Con is now just a memory for 2011, but post-show tweets continued from everyone who wasn't passed out on a redeye flight last night. Jon Favreau and Olivia Wilde sounded satisfied with the reception "Cowboys and Aliens" got, and Joe Hill compared Harrison Ford's performance in the film to "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

In TV news, Marvel acknowledged that "AKA Jessica Jones" is in development for ABC. Brian Michael Bendis refused to say any more, though, being that he's busy with "Powers" goings on in Chicago. Check out what he did say, as well as whose cosplay impressed Gail Simone at SDCC down below.

I'm @brianwarmoth, and this is your Twitter Report for July 25, 2011. Read more...

Tags brian michael bendis, gail simone, joe hill, jon favreau, mark sable, mike oeming, olivia wilde, simon pegg, Twitter Report

By Ryan J. Downey

Face front, True Believers! Unable to attend San Diego Comic-Con this year? We've got you covered. What follows is a list of our five favorite things that were revealed at this year's event.

5. ThunderCats: Season 1 hour-long special premiere!
We posted an extra long look at the Season 1 premiere of the brand new "ThunderCats" series and Comic-Con attendees were treated to the first showing of the entire thing!

The reboot of the popular '80s series about the adventures of a group of catlike heroes led by Lion-O will begin airing half-hour-long episodes following next week's televised premiere of the hour-long special, which was shown in advance in San Diego. If more studios and creative types get into the spirit of showing entire programs like "ThunderCats" and "Batman: Year One" at Comic-Con, we certainly won't complain about it. Joss Whedon, Chris Nolan ... we're talking to you!

Read more...

Tags batman: year one, Comic-Con, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, sdcc 2011, the amazing spider-man, The Walking Dead, thundercats

FROM MTV NEWS: Plenty of fans were surprised when news broke that the release date for Zack Snyder's Superman reboot, "Man of Steel," was pushed back six months to June 14, 2013 — but none more so than the would-be superhero himself, Henry Cavill.

"They broke it to me gently," he told MTV News on Saturday (July 23) at San Diego Comic-Con. "I was just told the other day. It's OK, it's nothing to do with me. That's stuff which I have no control over. I just focus on the character and do my job."

Speaking of stepping into the shoes of the iconic superhero — or tights, rather — Cavill said he's "prepared enough" but anxious to start production. "I'm really raring to go," he said. "It's exciting, humbling, and about time to get started."

Of course, Cavill couldn't divulge many details about the upcoming shoot or what his fellow cast members may or may not be doing in the film, but he did provide a delightful anecdote about his first meeting with co-star Russell Crowe (who is playing his father, Jor-El).

Read the rest of the story at MTV News

Tags Henry Cavill, man of steel, sdcc 2011

As excited as we are for Shane Black's fresh take on the further adventures of Tony Stark and Co. in "Iron Man 3," there is still a part of us that wonders what Jon Favreau's film might have looked like.

When MTV News caught up with the "Iron Man" and "Iron Man 2" helmer yesterday during our San Diego Comic-Con live stream, we asked him to share a few words about what might have been.

"Mandarin was in drafts right up until the [first] movie got green lit," Favreau revealed of his plans to include the infamous Asian warlord in his films. "It was in the first film and then Mandarin, who's a famous villain, we had references to in the second film. When I first came to Comic-Con with 'Iron Man,' before we had started filming or cast Robert [Downey Jr.], I had mentioned that 'The Avengers' would be the only logical third film," he said. "I think that's the opportunity here. Now they're doing it, it's exciting, I haven't seen the footage yet but that footage is out there in the trailer, [it's exciting] just to see all of them together on screen."

Favreau went on to say that while he's as excited as anyone to see "Avengers" the looming question is whether mainstream audiences will embrace the film and the universe as quickly as the comic-book fans are likely to do.

"['The Avengers'] changes the whole identity of [Marvel films]," he said. "It's going to have to evolve anyway, you can't keep the stories personal and small if you want to have the whole Marvel Universe, and we'll see if what works in the comic books translates to a film, and if the audiences who aren't fans of the comic books could accept that or if it makes their brains hurt."

Do you hope to see Mandarin in Black's "Iron Man 3?" Tell us in the comments or on Twitter!