Christopher Nolan says Man of Steel is not exactly like The Dark Knight Trilogy but starring Superman. Nolan is the Executive Producer of the Superman reboot. Zach Snyder is directing. Nolan tells The Playlist.
“Well, somewhat,” he said when asked if Superman fits into the brand of standalone superhero universe we’ve come to know from him. “But I wouldn’t want people to think we’re doing for Superman what we did for Batman.”
“It’s very much Zack’s film and I think people are going to love what he’s done,” he continued. “I think it’s really remarkable to take on that character. Superman is a completely different character than Batman. So you can’t in anyway use the same template. But David Goyer had this, I thought, brilliant way to make Superman relatable and relevant for his audience. Zack has built on that and I think it’s incredible what he’s putting together. He’s got a lot of finishing to do on that. Superman is the biggest comic book character of them all and he needs the biggest possible movie version which is what Zack’s doing. It’s really something.”
Jonathan Hickman launches Earth’s Mightiest Heroes into a new era this week with a brand new Avengers #1 with Jerome Opena. The team will be bigger than ever packed with old favorites, new recruits and brand new characters. Hickman tells Marvel.com how he assembled his powerhouse new team.
“Well, it all starts with Iron Man and Captain America, with Tony and Steve. They can smell it in the air. They sense in the same way that we in our everyday lives know that something is not right with society. We know that things aren’t functioning properly. We have an impending sense that it’s possible that calamity is right around the corner. It’s a very real thing in society right now. Whether that’s a result of too much dystopian fiction, whether that’s a result of too many horror movies, or whether that’s financial calamity, whatever it is, it’s a very real thing in society, and this book very much starts with that: the idea that very bad things are on the horizon. As a result, they begin constructing a failsafe against that, and what happens is it is triggered, and that means they have to assemble the Avengers World.
They enact the Avengers World scenario where they have to gather all the guys together. That’s kind of the first three issues, the inciting incident and the team-has-assembled kind of deal, and then we back off for three issues and we reintroduce some of the newer characters, and then we have another three-issue arc after that where the whole team is together again, and then we have three issues after that where it’s more an introduction to the other characters again, the ones that we haven’t visited yet. Anyway, it’s kind of a way to keep the velocity of the book up and at the same time introduce everyone that people may not be familiar with or brand-new characters that the readers don’t know anything about. Again, all of that is leading to something further down the road.”
Avengers #5 courtesy Marvel
Hickman is pushing for more female heroes and explains his goal to build a team reflecting greater diversity.
“I would say sometimes it’s hard and sometimes it’s very very easy. I think that there are certain characters that are obvious and easy choices. I think Captain Marvel right now is an easy and obvious choice, because she’s not only popular but well-loved and everybody understands how important of a character that is. When I do something like add Smasher, which is now a human female, to the cast, obviously what I did is I took what was a traditionally male character and I made it a female character. The reason why I did that is because I needed a character that fit that type, that fit that scale, and by that what I mean is a quote unquote “cosmic” character, and on top of that I needed a way to tie that character into the Earth as opposed to being an alien or whatever, and so I made the changes there. But yes, it’s much more difficult than it should be because the vast majority of Marvel characters are white male super heroes. Part of our job is to protect that IP and move it forward. We always try new things, and we fail a lot, and sometimes we succeed. The hope is that our successes outweigh our failures. ”
Avengers #3 courtesy Marvel
Hickman revealed which characters are surprising him now that he’s writing them:
“I wish I didn’t have a propensity for falling in love with bad guys so much. [Laughs] I do that. I don’t know why I’m surprised by it, but of course that’s happening. I really like writing Iron Man a lot. I like writing Bruce Banner a lot. It’s not going to mean anything to anybody yet, but I like writing Smasher a lot. I love writing Sam and Roberto, Sunspot and Cannonball. Shang-Chi is a lot of fun. It’s just a cool cast.
Part of the thing, we even say it in the second issue, is these guys have been together six hours. What kind of teamwork could we possibly expect, right? It’s something that they kind of grow into. Right now everybody’s nice and happy and getting along, but everybody’s still trying to figure out where they stand and all that kind of stuff. Beyond the first big thing that happens, where I’m at in writing the book I’m doing the second big thing right now. Dealing with that has been much more difficult because they’re having to work together. So they haven’t found it yet. I haven’t found it yet, but we’ll get there.”
What’s your favorite Avengers roster? Here are mine.
All-New X-Men #3 The original five X-Men have been brought from the past into there present day. How will Cyclops react to his younger past self?
Avengers #1 Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are “going large” under new creative team Jonathan Hickman (Fantastic Four, FF, SHIELD, Manhattan Projects) and Jerome Opena (Uncanny X-Force) Who will answer the call when Captain America expands the team roster to take on threats around the globe and into space.
Hawkeye #5 Caught on tape! A hero’s shocking act. Can the Avenging Archer recover “the tape” before the revelation changes his status with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes? Will Kate Bishop’s masquerade among a who’s who of Marvel villains backfire on her?
Hellboy in Hell #1 Hellboy is dead and facing familiar faces in Hell in a brand new story written and drawn by Mike Mignola!
Kevin Keller #1 “Oh My!” Kevin and Jughead go on a quest to find Star Trek legend George Takei for a school assignment but the famous actor has a big surprise planned for the Riverdale High gang!
The Dark Knight Rises one sheet courtesy Warner Brothers
It’s hard to believe the Christian Bale as Batman era is over. You can now watch The Dark Knight Rises in your own home. Christopher Nolan’s final chapter of his brooding Batman trilogy features a broken Bruce Wayne, a terrorist with ties to the first Batman film and a seductive cat burglar who inspires and betrays the Dark Knight. I would love to see Anne Hathaway and Michael Caine nominated for their amazing performances. Christopher Nolan and his entire team of artists deserve every accolade and award possible. No matter how award season turns out – he will have the eternal love of comic book fans.
The Dark Knight Trilogy collects Christopher Nolan’s entire epic: Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Superhero films will never be the same.
The Dark Knight Rises teaser poster courtesy Warner Brothers
If you want to read a compelling story that inspired The Dark Knight Rises then check out Batman: No Man’s Land.
In The Dark Knight Rises Gotham City is cut off from the rest of the world and under siege from criminal factions thanks to Bane. In the comic books an earthquake rocks Gotham City in Cataclysm. The governor declares the city uninhabitable and orders everyone to leave. Those left behind in No Man’s Land are caught in the turf war between Gotham’s biggest and new crime lords. Batman and his family (Catwoman, Robin, Batgirl, Nighwing) are the only protection for those stranded.
The big difference in the comic book storyline is Bane is on a mission for Superman villain Lex Luthor. The Joker plays a critical role in the finale of the crossover in a showdown that affects Commissioner Gordon. This storyline featured many top writers (Chuck Dixon, Greg Rucka, Dennis O’Neill) at the top of their game.
courtesy Warner Brothers
Anne Hathaway won huge praise from director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale for her performance as Selena Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan even said Hathaway’s Selena Kyle deserved the opportunity to star in a Catwoman solo film. Bale reportedly said that Hathaway “has the toughest job on the film because the Catwoman role has been defined previously.”
Catwoman: Nine Lives of Femme Fatale Poster by Brian Bolland courtesy DC Comics
Catwoman is one of the most iconic female characters in comic book history. I was inspired to collect some of Catwoman’s greatest “cuts” as the world waits to see how Christopher Nolan and Anne Hathaway will portray her in The Dark Knight Rises.
Television: As a little kid I raced off the school bus so I didn’t miss a moment of the Batman television show. I loved Julie Newmar as Catwoman. The dramatic purrs on words were part of the show’s camp but Newmar embodied the conflicted bad girl you hope would change her ways for Batman. Eartha Kitt only played Catwoman three times but what an impression. Kitt played Catwoman with a harder, dangerous edge. That cat would do a lot worse than scratch!
Movies: Michelle Pfeifer’s Catwoman was a deadly kitten with a whip in Batman Returns. Tim Burton’s origin for Selina was very different from the comic books but Pfeiffer made it work. This secretary turned feminist avenger was a deadly mix of empowerment and sex appeal.
Comics: Bob Kane created The Cat as a socialite turned catburglar villain for Batman. Selina Kyle developed into an antihero with love/hate romantic relationship with Batman. In the 1990’s writers took Selina’s character into dark territory. Modern creators interpretted her disguise and life of crime as a response to a history of abuse. Selina became an avenger of women on the streets of Gotham City.
Catwoman: The Dark End of the Street courtesy DC Comics
The Dark End of the Street, Crooked Little Town, Relentless, and Wild Ride show Catwoman as a vigilante antihero in modern crime noir tales. During this era Selina takes in an ex-hooker and junkie as a protogee in her war on crime. The look in these collections are similar to the style Anne Hathaway has in photos on the set of The Dark Knight Rises.
Trail of the Catwoman marked Selina’s return to her infamous persona after a long absence with a new costume. Selina hunts a serial killer targetting the streetwalkers of Gotham City.
When in Rome is Catwoman versus the Falcone crime family. This is a sexier colorful tale of the cat burglar on a mysterious adventure in Italy.
Hush is one of my all time favorite Batman epics. The Dark Knight and Catwoman’s twisted relationship is at this most romantic and intense during this year long mystery in which a new villian uses Batman’s greatest enemies as pawns in a mind twisting game. Jim Lee’s Catwoman is perfect.
Cover Run: The DC Comics Art of Adam Hughes courtesy DC Comics
I have to give Adam Hughes praise for his portraits of Catwoman. Cover Run includes many of his iconic DC covers starring the femme fatale.
Now the wait begins for the actor who will portray Batman in a future Justice League film but no one will forget Christian Bale and the daring vision of Christopher Nolan.
After the global box-office domination of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes it really is an Avengers world! Avengers World is the first arc of Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opena’s relaunch of the series. The team will expand its roster, scale and scope.
“The premise of the book is that the Avengers need to get bigger, and they need to be able to handle not [just] global threats in the sense of there’s a revolution in Latveria that Doctor Doom is leading and it could spill over into all of Europe—what I mean [is] there are threats to the entirety of the planet is kind of the scale of what we are talking about. And so, that’s where we start. We’re moving towards Avengers Universe, where you see why you need a team with Hulk and Hyperion and Thor and all of these incredibly powerful characters. You see why the team has to be constructed that way, because of the stuff that we’re building towards. Again, the point of this is not your typical kind of international events that require the Avengers to globe-trotting and all that kind of stuff. We start out bigger than that and grow from there. [Laughs] That’s the best way I can describe it in abstract,” Hickman explains on Marvel.com.
Avengers #1 is out this week! Don’t forget New Mutants fans – Sunspot and Cannonball are joining the team too!
Superman under arrest? Warner Brothers revealed a brand new poster of Man of Steel. The Last Son of Krypton (played by Henry Cavill) is seen in handcuffs and escorted by a military unit.
What does it mean? Will the new Man of Steel trailer seen with The Hobbit reveal more?
In past DC Comics storylines – the public and government have turned against “metahumans” or maybe General Zod’s actions in the film are so destructive Earth turns against all Kryptonians.
Marvel reveals Dane DeHaan has joined the cast of the Amazing Spider-Man sequel. Director Marc Webb tweeted he’s cast the star as Harry Osborn.
Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone return. Jamie Foxx and Shailene Woodley are joining the film. The sequel is set for release on May 2, 2014. DeHaan was so menacing and tragic as the mutated teen in Chronicle and is currently appearing in Lincoln.
Harry Osborn is Peter Parker’s best friend in high school and son of Norman Osborn (aka Green Goblin) who will becomes the second Green Goblin.
