Murphy's Multiverse

Category: News

  • ‘Hawkeye’ Artist On Marvel Studios Poster Homage: “Start paying”

    ‘Hawkeye’ Artist On Marvel Studios Poster Homage: “Start paying”

    One of the more unfortunate realities surrounding the billion-dollar franchise that is the MCU is the startling truth that a lot of the people who create the comics that serve as the MCU’s foundation rarely receive worthwhile compensation from the powers that adapt their work.

    Famed Hawkeye artist David Aja is joining a growing list of creators who have expressed frustration over this issue that seemingly continues to be unrectified behind the scenes. Last night, a brand new poster for the Hawkeye series was revealed, paying homage to one of the iconic posters Aja drew for his seminal Hawkeye run with Matt Fraction. Aja had this to say about Marvel Studios’ recreation of his work:

    David Aja‘s artwork on his run with Matt Fraction is arguably the most important selling point of that run. From his distinct minimalist covers to the inventive visual storytelling methods he brought to the table, there’s no doubt that the book wouldn’t be the classic it is without his touch.

    Winter Soldier creator Ed Brubaker recently made waves over complaints he made regarding the issue in light of Marvel Studios building a very lucrative franchise based on his work. The check Marvel Studios allegedly gave Brubaker for adapting the Winter Soldier story was a lot lower than the royalties he received for his 1-second cameo in the movie. Howver, according to Brubaker, Marvel has since reached out to him, likely due to the high publicity of his comments, with the hopes of amending the issue.

    The issue is a highly complicated one, given how all the work-for-hire contracts that a lot of these creators signed were drafted at a time when comic adaptations weren’t the world’s hottest commodity. Still, in an era where the studios are making billions off these people’s work, reasonable compensation should not be an issue. We hope Aja and more creators get compensated for their contributions to the MCU.

  • Tom Holland Hints at a Mystery Character in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Tom Holland Hints at a Mystery Character in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Empire Magazine’s coverage of Spider-Man: No Way Home has been full of interesting quotes but none to date are going to cause as much of a conversation as this one. While discussing his time on the Spider threequel, Tom Holland described “one of the coolest scenes” he’s ever shot and noted that he shared the scene with Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau and an unnamed actor.

    The scene, as described by Holland, includes his Peter Parker sitting at a table with his Aunt May, Happy Hogan and the unrevealed character discussing what it’s like to be a superhero. Given Holland’s hesitancy to reveal anymore info about the scene, it’s pretty clear he’s not talking about Doctor Strange, meaning Holland is confirming that there are some “surprises” still in store for the audience.

    For close to a year now, the worst kept secret in Hollywood has been that the film would see characters from the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield Spider-films enter the MCU, including those versions of Peter/Spidey. The first trailer showed us Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock and hinted at Willem Dafoe’s Goblin and Emprire’s coverage has mentioned the multiversal nature of the new film, so it’s easy to imagine the scene Holland described being one in which an older Parker (Maguire or Garfield) sits down to discuss the superhero business. Such a conversation would be a fantastic time to have a philosophical discussion about the interpretation of the Uncle Ben’s advice and provide an opportunity for one of the other Spideys to shine.

    With a new trailer expected sometime soon, maybe we’ll get answers to some of these questions…then again, maybe Sony will just keep us guessing until Spider-Man: No Way Home hits theaters on December 17th.

    Source: Empire Magazine

  • First Look at a New, Out-of-this-World Logo for ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’

    First Look at a New, Out-of-this-World Logo for ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’

    Production on Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania has been ongoing for several months now and very little has been revealed from the set…until now. Last night, we got our first look at an all-new, all-different logo for the film. As you can see below, the new logo includes some very stylized, alien-like text for the subtitle.

    We know that a Variant of Jonathan Majors He Who Remains will be in the film, so the text could be a reference to his 31st century origins; on the other hand, we also have plenty of reason to believe a portion of the film will take place in the Quantum Realm, a dimension that’s to date only been explored by Janet van Dyne, so it’s possible that the text could be a reference to some of its residents. Of course, it’s also entirely possible that it was just a pretty cool looking logo. Regardless, we might have to wait quite some time before we find out as Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania isn’t set to hit theaters until July 28, 2023.

    Source: Twitter

  • Mysterious ‘What If…?’ Supreme Leader Funko Pop Turns Out to Be Transformed Doctor Strange

    Mysterious ‘What If…?’ Supreme Leader Funko Pop Turns Out to Be Transformed Doctor Strange

    We’ve had quite some fun trying to decipher who exactly was the Funko Pop titled “Supreme Leader.” At first, we believed it was What If..?‘s Ultron given his new status and ownership of the Infinity Stones. Yet, it turned out he was simply given the name “Infinity Ultron” before getting released. So, we’ve been wondering who the mysterious and unannounced New York Comic Con Funko might end up being. Finally, the wait is over, as we got our first look at the character and it is actually Doctor Strange Supreme, but the version possessed by the different beasts and demons he’s absorbed.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CVbP3GgJL5z/?utm_medium=copy_link

    It’s a great addition to the quite diverse line-up of Funko’s for the Disney+ series. What If…?‘s anthology approach did open up the doors for some creative releases. Of course, the most popular and available Funko Pops involved the zombie episode. There’s something fun about the fact that Marvel Studios added these horror staples into the mostly family-friendly franchise.

    We recently saw the zombified version of Captain America appear in Avengers Campus. It makes you wonder if they’ll go all out and include the transformed Doctor Strange at some point. It would make for an imposing addition during Halloween to see Strange mid-transformation, as he tries to find someone at the park to help him return back to normal. It makes you wish you were at the campus during the season of horror to see what they’ll try out.

    Source: Instagram

  • ‘Dune’ Becomes Denis Villeneuve’s Best Domestic Opening with $40.1M

    ‘Dune’ Becomes Denis Villeneuve’s Best Domestic Opening with $40.1M

    As we were going into the weekend, early Thursday numbers were hinting at Dune managing a $30M+ opening in the domestic office. All eyes were on Denis Villeneuve‘s next epic to see if the space opera could make a big splash at the box office. Especially if you consider that it’s also available on HBO Max. Well, the weekend is coming to a close and it garnered around $40M. As such, the film is Warner Bros.’s best box office performer with an HBO release. Not just that, Dune marks Villeneuve‘s best opening ever in the domestic market.

    https://twitter.com/frankpallotta/status/1452288582048178192

    These numbers are a great showcase for its potential staying power at the box office, especially as it’s the biggest debut for Warner Bros. all year. So, it’s definitely a safe bet to think that they would be interested in exploring a sequel entry in the franchise, as it’s also what this film openly sets up at the end. Recently, WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff pretty much confirmed that they’re banking on a sequel. So, these numbers might be that extra push to fast-track the project.

    Villeneuve has shared that it’s a passion project. So, it’s always great to see it pay off for him to further explore Arrakis and more of Frank Herbert‘s iconic novels. The film also might’ve given IMAX cinemas an extra push, as it’s the biggest opening for the cinema format since the pandemic started with $9M. It’ll be interesting to see if it holds steady over Halloween and then against Eternals in November.

    Source: Twitter, Variety, Twitter (BO), Twitter (IMAX)

  • Steven Caple Jr. Shares New Look at Optimus Prime As Production Wraps on ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts’

    Steven Caple Jr. Shares New Look at Optimus Prime As Production Wraps on ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts’

    All eyes have been on the new entry in the Transformers franchise. The subtitle Rise of the Beasts promises a very different take on the characters we’ve seen in cinemas so far. We’ll get to explore many different factions of the famous alien robots and director Steven Caple Jr. has been actively giving us a good look at their production. He shared a look at the Autobots and Decepticons earlier this month but remains coy on the Predacons and Terrorcons who are rumored to appear in the series. Now, as production wraps up, he shared a new look at Optimus Prime’s truck design in the film.

    It feels like production started just recently. So, it’s always a surprise when they share the announcement that production has wrapped up. Caple Jr. has been great at actively sharing from the production, as it offers some insight into what we can expect. The designs seem closer to that what we saw in the Bumblebee film, which was one of the standout aspects of that film. In the film’s opening, we see the blocker designs from the classic cartoons and toy lines. Of course, it still had some elements from Michael Bay‘s run to keep the complexity of what is beneath their exterior.

    Source: Twitter

  • New Leaked ‘Ms. Marvel’ Promo Art Confirms No Embiggening for Disney+ Series

    New Leaked ‘Ms. Marvel’ Promo Art Confirms No Embiggening for Disney+ Series

    There’ve been countless rumors of Ms. Marvel’s new abilities in the upcoming Disney+ series. It seemed like Marvel Studios was trying to reinvent her character and add a new element to what she is capable of. Then suddenly our first artwork hit the web teasing a very different ability set. Yet, we still believed she might utilize her Embiggening from the comics alongside this new ability. Well, a new promo art has leaked online showcasing that the large fist we know from the comics will get replaced by these purple-esque constructs. Check them out here as provided by Twitter user @Ben_vlbd.

    It’s strange to think they’d stick to many of their characters’ origins but change that of Ms. Marvel so drastically. Either they are trying to bring her character closer to her namesake inspiration, or they are setting up a bigger transformation down the line. Her Inhuman lineage plays a key factor in her character, especially as she overcomes the challenges of being a Muslim-American teenager. Here’s hoping a trailer might give us more insight into this change.

    There’s also the strange Easter egg teasing the arrival of Maximus from the Inhuman royal family in the first sizzle reel from last year’s Disney’s Investors Day. Who knows if they are reshooting some aspects of the series, as it’s currently the first Disney+ series to face a delay. We received actual footage of the series long before Hawkeye, but it somehow got pushed back into 2022. Here’s hoping we find out more at Novembers’ Disney+ Day which will tease the MCU’s future.

    Source: Twitter

  • Upcoming Marvel Studios Animation Projects to Explore 2D Art Styles

    Upcoming Marvel Studios Animation Projects to Explore 2D Art Styles

    Ever since we’ve heard that Marvel Studios might expand its animation department, it opened up the floodgates of how they might tackle future projects. What If…? was our gateway into that very mission with its 3D style that brought iconic actors from previous projects to life. Of course, as they expand it opened up the question of how Marvel Studios may approach future animation projects. Would they stick to the one established in the Disney+ series, or might they take a unique take with each project? Well, a new job listing might give us a better hint at an upcoming project.

    What If...? | Disney+ Originals

    Disney and Marvel Studios are actively seeking a 2D/3D FX Designer. What makes this listing interesting is that there’s a strong emphasis on 2D FX work throughout, such as asking to showcase hand-drawn 2D FX abilities, general design work, and general familiarity with 2D animation principles as well as high-end anime 2DFX style. It’s great to see that Marvel Studios isn’t being restrictive to a specific type of animation. It’s one of the advantages of this new venture, as every artist can add their own distinctive style. So far, the only other animation style we heard of was for the upcoming I Am Groot Disney+ series, which supposedly is going for a photo-real 3D style.

    Of course, the implication of familiarity with anime animation is noteworthy but doesn’t mean we’ll get a One Piece or Naruto-styled series. Series like the Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles utilized specific animation queues popularized in Japan to bring its action to life. It’s also generally become a trend to make use of its stylized approach to animation in the West. Some classic examples would be Teen Titans, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Samurai Jack, and even Marvel’s own Ultimate Spider-Man. So, it’s not uncommon for the popular genre to be part of 2D artists portfolio in the West nowadays.

    The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes! Season 2 Ep. 8 - Clip 1 - YouTube

    This isn’t comparable to Star Wars: Visions, which included actual Japanese anime studios to develop its episodes. Yet, there’s always a chance that kind of cooperation is in the cards eventually for other Disney projects. They most likely simply are trying to find talented artists in the industry that have intimate knowledge of the different genres of 2D animation that are currently popular.

    Source: Disney Careers

  • Kevin Feige Calls Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus “Perfect Casting”

    Kevin Feige Calls Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus “Perfect Casting”

    It was in April when Alfred Molina simply confirmed his involvement with Spider-Man: No Way Home. There were countless rumors and theories regarding the return and the actor seemed quite happy to share the information. It was a surprising turn of events, as Marvel studios might be one of the most secretive companies in the industry with strict NDAs. Yet, his open confirmation may have also led to his inclusion in the first trailer, as he signals the beginning of the multiverse.

    In the latest issue by Empire, we’ll finally get some coverage on No Way Home, as we inch closer to his December release. In it, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige briefly teased the upcoming film and how Alfred Molina was “perfect casting” that they never could replicate. As such, entering the multiverse was the perfect way to avoid that issue and bring the actor back in to tackle the role one last time. As he put it:

    I remember having discussions with Amy Pascal years ago. Do we want to revisit villains we’ve seen before?’ No, let’s do Vulture, and Mysterio, and characters we haven’t brought to the screen before. But I remember thinking, ‘How would you even do Doc Ock again?’, because Alfred Molina is perfect casting. If you ever brought him back, it would have to be him somehow.

    Of course, Molina’s take on the character has become an important icon in cinematic villainy. Still, we’ve seen countless versions of the character since that added their own spin. A personal favorite is Scott David Menville‘s interpretation in 2018’s Spider-Man game. There’s also Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’s reinterpretation of the character Olivia Octavius, who was brought to life by the always incredible Kathryn Hahn. So, there are opportunities to expand the character from a live-action perspective, but Molina‘s return feels like a perfect final send-off for the character and the franchises that came before.

    Source: Empire

  • ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ To Be the Franchise’s ‘Avengers: Endgame’

    ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ To Be the Franchise’s ‘Avengers: Endgame’

    It’s crazy to think that the current version of Spider-Man on the silver screen came from a conversation between Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige and Sony’s Amy Pascal. A discussion that ended with a sandwich being flung his way led to a brand new trilogy that’s about to break open the cinematic multiverse as we know it. The return of Alfred Molina as Doc Ock and potentially more iconic faces from the franchise’s long history to appear. So, it’s not a surprise for director Jon Watts to compare it to the recent franchise juggernaut of the MCU, Avengers: Endgame.

    We’re definitely trying to be ambitious. It’s ‘Spider-Man: Endgame’,” he says, laughing, but seemingly not joking. Part of that ambition?

    Jon Watts

    In the same interview, Tom Holland also shared his excitement when he initially made the pitch for the upcoming third entry to include actors from former Spider-Man films. In a way, he believed it was only a joke reference and that it would never happen or get pulled off.

    When I was first pitched the idea, I was like, ‘Wow, that would be awesome if we could pull it off’. But there’s just no way it’s going to work. You’re just not going to be able to get everyone to do what they need to do. It’s just not going to happen.’ But it did happen. And it’s crazy.

    Tom Holland

    It’s certainly insane to think we’re about to enter the multiverse in a big way. With Sony announcing two new Marvel films for 2023, it makes you wonder if they’ll build upon whatever No Way Home sets up. Venom: Let There Be Carnage did tease a potential connection and it might just be the beginning for Holland‘s Spider-Man into the vast multiverse.

    Source: Empire