If Avengers: Age of Ultron didn't kill you (or, in Joss Whedon's case, perhaps push you off Twitter), then maybe it made you want to see a Black Widow solo movie. Don't get too excited, because a leaked email from Marvel CEO Ike Perlmutter has revealed he's very against a female-led superhero movie. Well, now we know why it's going to take until 2018 to get Marvel's first solo female superhero flick. While we wait, here's the highlights of the last seven days' worth of superhero movie news.
If the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron made you want to see the new team in action sooner rather than later, Marvel has your back. The studio announced today that Captain America: Civil War will feature all of Earth's Mightiest Heroes v2, and all but Thor and Hulk of the original team, as well. But don't worry—there'll also be appearances by Ant-Man and Black Panther. Sorry, Hawkeye. You thought you'd retired, but that really didn't last long.
Why this is super: Who didn't want more Avengers after Age of Ultron? Sure, Marvel's taking that desire very literally, but you can't pretend you're not a little excited by the prospect of seeing 10 superheroes on screen together at the same time. And Martin Freeman!
Following the hire of Benedict Cumberbatch late last year to anchor 2016's Doctor Strange, Marvel announced this week it was bringing Sherlock's sidekick to the Marvel Universe as well. Martin Freeman will play a role in next year's third Captain America movie, although Marvel isn't saying just what role yet. (There is, however, a rumor going around that he'll be playing a US government agent named Everett Ross, who is an expert on Wakanda.)
Why this is super: There's no denying that Freeman is great—just watch the Fargo TV show, Sherlock, The Office, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, or even the otherwise-actor-proof The Hobbit to see that—and he'll be a worthwhile addition to anything... even the increasingly-full sounding Civil War.
Before the release of X-Men: Days of Future Past last summer, it was revealed that an entire subplot had been excised in the editing room. Bad news for Anna Paquin, who was at the center of the plot and pretty much ended up cut from the movie as a result. There's a happy ending to this story, however; director Bryan Singer has revealed that an extended cut of the movie, restoring the sequence in its entirety, will be released this summer:
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Why this is super: Days of Future Past ended up being far more fun than most (if not all) expected, so the prospect of seeing even more of it isn't a bad one. Plus, if this is a success, it might convince Marvel to release the original, 3-plus-hour cut of Avengers: Age of Ultron at some point. Oh, and about that...
Joss Whedon opened up to British movie magazine Empire about what was cut from the second Avengers movie. For example, the scene with Thor in the pool with the visions? There was more of that that might have helped it make sense. The dream sequences? More of those. Entire characters were pulled out of the movie, including Loki (in a sequence shot, but left unused), Spider-Man, and Captain Marvel, both of whom were supposed to show up in the final sequence but were nixed by executives. The production, Whedon said, "got really unpleasant."
Why this is super: Don't get us wrong; the cuts made to the film aren't super in and of themselves, but it's interesting to find out what didn't make it in the film, and also that there is a potential version out there in which the scenes that seemed out of nowhere might have more context. Given the sizable box office for the movie this past weekend, Marvel has to know that there's an audience out there for an extended cut, right?
The slow but constant stream of updates on the Sony/Marvel reboot of the cinematic Spider-Man continued this week with a leaked list of possible directors for the reboot, which included *Pitch Perfect'*s Jason Moore, *50/50'*s Jonathan Levine, *Napoleon Dynamite'*s Jared Hess, *St. Vincent'*s Ted Melfi, and the partnership of John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein. The same report also predicted three or four movies in the next sequence, all of which would cover a year of Peter Parker's high school career.
Why this is super: It looks as if Sony and Marvel are definitely focusing on comedy directors for the reboot, which suggests that the wise-cracking, lighter side of the character (relatively ignored by previous movies) will be the focus of what's to come. Rather that than plots about the secret reason his parents died. (Sorry, Andrew Garfield; you were great in the role, but you really had some bad material to work from.)
While America was watching Age of Ultron this weekend, director David Ayer decided to reveal the look of his Suicide Squad characters via Twitter:
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
From left to right, that's Slipknot, Captain Boomerang, Enchantress (and kneeling, Katana), Rick Flag, Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Killer Croc, and El Diablo. Ayer followed that tweet with a closer look at Deadshot, complete with face mask:
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Why this is super: Suicide Squad continues to be a comic that splits opinions between hardcore fans and everyone else, with the unusual fact that it's the hardcore fans that seem more down on it than the others. We, however, like both of the preview pics and look forward to the movie itself, but we're contrarian that way. Feel free to tell us why we're wrong in the comments.
