Holly Hunter teases Elastigirl’s crucial role in Incredibles 2. Jon Watts will return for the Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel. Marc Guggenheim teases a familiar face for Firestorm’s replacement on Legends of Tomorrow. Plus new looks at the latest Robin Hood reboot, as well as the returns of iZombie and The X-Files. Spoilers now!
Image: The New Teen Titans #1 cover art by George Pérez and Dick Giordano.
The Phantom Tollbooth
Matt Shakman has been hired to direct Tristar’s hybrid/live-action adaptation of The Phantom Tollbooth, the 1961 Norton Juster fantasy novel about a young boy who travels to magical kingdoms through a mysterious tollbooth that appears in his room. [Deadline]
The Incredibles 2
Bob Odenkirk refused to admit he’s playing a villain in a recent interview with Cinema Blend:
I’m not going to wreck that. … I would ruin my part of the movie if I told you, if I answered that question. That is exactly the question I’m not allowed to answer. So think about that. Think about that.
Meanwhile, a photo from Entertainment Weekly reveals the sequel begins where the first ends, with the family about to take on the Underminer. Speaking to the magazine, Elastigirl actress Holly Hunter said the sequel will focus more on her desire to return to the superhero life outside of the immediate necessity of saving her husband in the first film:
Helen’s appetite for adventure comes to the fore. Whereas before, she was driven to become Mrs. Incredible out of necessity, where she went into it to save her husband, I think this time she really meets her own ambition head-on. The ambition of being an adventure is something that we get to explore.
Spider-Man: Homecoming 2
Kevin Feige confirmed Jon Watts will return to direct the sequel at the Comic-Con Experience in Brazil.
Kevin Feige acabou de confirmar em um vídeo exibido no painel da Marvel na #CCXP17 que Jon Watts será o diretor da sequência de ‘Homem-Aranha: De Volta ao Lar’. #MarvelNaCCXP pic.twitter.com/M5FCs0tVdN
— Tom Holland Brasil (@tomhollandbr) December 9, 2017
In related news, Omega Underground has uncovered an audition tape for the sequel, featuring a French actress auditioning for the role of Gwen Stacy – reimagined here as a foreign exchange student.
Venom
Speaking of Brazil’s Comic-Con Experience, Comicbook.com reports Tom Hardy confirmed the film is based on the Lethal Protector miniseries at the convention.
New Mutants
Josh Boone posted a photo of the cast on Instagram, featuring a Lockheed hand puppet.
Tomb Raider
Coming Soon has a new poster of Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft, who hasn’t been given a neck extension this time.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
In a recent interview with Metro, Mark Hamill revealed he wishes Disney was more receptive to George Lucas’s original outlines for episodes 7, 8 and 9.
What I wish is that they had been more accepting of his guidance and advice. Because he had an outline for ‘7,’ ‘8,’ and ‘9’. And it is vastly different to what they have done.
But then again, I don’t want to be an old stick in the mud. There were the originals. There’s the prequels. But that’s all George. And now we have the next generation. And as far as I can see they are more popular than ever.
Elsewhere, Ren & Rey pose dramatically in separate posters from artist Matt Ferguson on Twitter.
Robin Hood
Entertainment Weekly has our first look at Taron Egerton as Robin Hood, Eve Hewsen as Maid Marian, and Jamie Foxx as Little John.
Devil’s Gate
IFC Midnight has released a trailer for a new monster movie starring Milo Ventimiglia, Shawn Ashmore and Jonathan Frakes.
Titans
That Hashtag Show has unearthed a casting call for “Ruth Gibbs” – given that the role is for a recurring character who could become an ongoing regular in the show’s second season, it’s likely that “Ruth” is a potential Teen Titan – and perhaps even a placeholder for Donna Troy.
[RUTH GIBBS] Female, 20s, Caucasian or Latina or Middle Eastern, or ethnically ambiguous. Confident and kick arse. Educated. RECURRING GUEST STAR THIS SEASON WITH AN OPTION FOR SERIES REGULAR NEXT SEASON.
Legends of Tomorrow
In a recent interview with Comicbook.com, Marc Guggenheim revealed there are plans to replace Firestorm aboard the Waverider with a “previously established character from the Arrowverse”.
We do have a plan for how to replace Firestorm on the bridge, and it’s a really cool one. It’s one we’re really excited about. There’s really like two empty chairs on the Waverider. So we do have a game plan. We’ve always had a game plan. I just can’t talk about the game plan. The CW publicity will determine when we get to unleash that bit of news… It’s a returning… It’s a previously established character from the Arrowverse.
Relatedly, Guggenheim also stated that both Blue Beetle and Booster Gold have been considered to join the Arrowverse in some capacity.
I will say, both those characters [Booster Gold and Blue Beetle] are characters we’ve talked about. Originally Ray Palmer, who was introduced on Arrow, he was supposed to be Ted Kord and we went another way. So, you know, Booster and Blue Beetle, all the ‘B’ characters really, we’re always talking about but nothing I can announce or speak to at the moment.
Arrow
Meanwhile, at ACE Comic Con, Guggenheim told a fan to “never rule out” a crossover with the forthcoming Titans.
Great question, again, above my pay grade. I will say this, the one thing I’ve learned is ‘never say never.’ I could not begin to tell you how often we say to each other, ‘We never thought any of this was going to happen. We never thought we’d see all these characters. We never thought there’d be a universe.’ So, never say never, but in terms of which characters be on which shows, what’s part of the universe, above my paygrade and probably that’s a good thing.
Stranger Things
Speaking with TV Guide, David Harbour stated, “you probably won’t get [season three]” until 2019.
I mean, one of the things that’s annoying for fans is that it takes us a long time to do them. Like, you probably won’t get [Season 3] until sometime in 2019. But also part of the thing is, like any good thing, [The Duffer Brothers] need time. And those guys work so hard. I mean, they just sit in their apartment and write for 12, 14 hours a day.
Lucifer
According to TV Line, Jillian Rose Reed will guest-star in an upcoming episode as Cece, “the quirky, bubbly and exceptionally-devoted personal assistant of a massive pop star – who also happens to be her best friend whose orbit she has lived in for years”.
The X-Files
Scully reaches out to Skinner in the latest trailer for season 11.
In related news, TV Line reached out to David Duchovny about an upcoming episode written by Darin Morgan the outlet reports is “utterly bananas”.
What I personally love in [Darin’s episodes] is that he hates Mulder. He’s always trying to make Mulder an imbecile and the butt of every joke. It’s very difficult to figure out how to play Mulder in those episodes because he’s such an arse, and I feel pressure to find that place where I can service how funny it is and still keep Mulder Mulder. It’s a bit of a pressure cooker for me because I love Darin and I want his episodes to have integrity. I don’t want it to just be this goofy thing like, ‘Oh, we’re not The X-Files this week. We’re winking. It’s not really Mulder.’ I want it to be more than that.
iZombie
TV Line has the first official image from season four – depicting Liz after eating the brain of a snooty, Maggie Smith-esque dowager. Reportedly, this happens in the second episode of the season.
The Terror
Finally, AMC has released a quick teaser for their upcoming miniseries about a monster stalking the HMS Terror.
Banner art by Jim Cooke.