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‘ARMOR WARS’ Finds its Head Writer in Yassir Lester

It looks like the Armor Wars series has finally found its head writer, as Deadline reports that the Don Cheadle-led project has added Yassir Lester to pen the Disney+ series. The project is still in early development with no director attached to the project currently. Kevin Feige will once again produce the project, as he does with every entry in the franchise. Lester has worked with Cheadle in the Showtime series Black Monday and he made a very promising pitch that has the executives and its main star quite excited.

Armor Wars will continue the Iron Man franchise in an unconventional way. As Tony predicted, it took another ten years before they would catch up with his technology. The time has come and his worst nightmare became a reality, someone got their hands on his tech. There’s also a good chance that the upcoming Ironheart series will tie into it, as Riri Williams builds the most advanced suit since Tony’s armor. She will make her debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which might even build upon what we can expect from the Disney+ series.

It’s long overdue that Cheadle‘s War Machine gets a series, and it’ll be interesting to see how it builds upon his past journeys. We don’t know if he might even take over the mantle of Iron Man, as he did in the comics. Tony Stark is known to have passed away during the battle with Thanos, but his appearance could create an interesting dynamic. Yet, it would be better to see him carry on his own mantle to not live in the shadow of the man that gave him the armor.

Source: Deadline

August 20, 2021
‘ETERNALS’ Funko Pop Revealed Including a Jumbo-Sized Celestial Funko

Just an hour ago, the first Eternals Funko Pop found its way online. It looks like Marvel didn’t waste any time, and the rest got shared by Yahoo. It’s quite an extensive list of Funkos that includes our main cast and the main antagonist, Kro. He’s not the only Deviant in the list, as the four-legged one got included as a GameStop exclusive. The highlight is a jumbo-sized one of their creators, the Celestials, who we saw in the latest trailer towering from the camera’s perspective. Sadly, it looks like the second Celestial showcased is not getting a Funko, but this is just the first wave.

Overall, the designs are unique even among Marvel’s usual fare. Curiously, these Funkos offer a better look at the Deviants, who seem to share a very similar visual with light green feet. Their bodies seem like intertwined tentacles, which might even get a story reason. The film is taking a unique direction from the original comics. So, we might be in for quite a few surprises once the film arrives this November.

The Celestial is definitely a highlight. It looks like it might be the same one we saw in Guardians of the Galaxy but without the giant armor. Perhaps we only truly meet these creators of the galaxy in an opening sequence, which sets us up for the story. Even the Funko Pop tries to highlight their very otherworldly designs and it’s sad we don’t get the green Celestial teased in the trailer as well. It would make for a great collection, but who knows if we’ll get more in the future.

Source: Twitter, Yahoo

August 20, 2021
‘THE MARVELS’ Production Heading to Tropea, Italy

It looks like The Marvel‘s production is going to Italy, as the governor of Tropea, Giovanni Macrì announced that the film will be heading to the Italian town to shoot a scene for the film. It’ll start production there on August 27th but no end date has been announced. They also don’t go into detail about who will be involved with the shoot, as it’s also uncertain if what they are filming will take place in this town, or it might even become the background for an alien planet.

Tropea is a resort located in the province of Vibo Valentiana in Calabria. It even won the “most beautiful village in Italy” award back in 2021. Now what is interesting is that there’s a lot of history surrounding the city, as the location is where Hercules returned after finishing his labors. The Marvel universe is no stranger to the Greek half-god, and it would be unexpected if he appears in the film.

Yet, there’s also the possibility that it connects to Nick Fury. Perhaps he is there on vacation after traveling through space for some time. At the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home, we see him enjoying a fake beach on a holodeck before revealing he’s on a ship with Skrulls. Perhaps he got tired of it and wanted to enjoy the real thing before meeting back up with Carol. We know Samuel L. Jackson is returning for the film. We’ll see once the film releases, but it’s nice to see Marvel Studios expanding their filming locations.

Source: Gazzetta del Sud, Italy 24 News

August 20, 2021
‘ETERNALS’: First Look at Sersi Funko Pop Leaks

Eternals just released its second and final trailer, giving us another look at
Chloé Zhao‘s century-spanning superhero epic. The film is set to introduce a wide array of new heroes to the MCU. With so many new characters on their way, a wave of Funko products is almost inevitable, especially for a movie of this scale.

A while back we reported on a leaked release list from Funko that included info on upcoming waves of Pops for Marvel, including pops for Wandavision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and of course Eternals. A new leak for the upcoming wave of Funko Pops! for Marvel’s Eternals has given us our very first look at one of the figures in that wave, Gemma Chan’s Sersi.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CSzIUH2MnyB/

The figure features Sersi in her traditional Eternals garb and looks to be holding a piece of wood. She’s in the process of using her matter manipulation abilities on it. There currently is no release date that has been set for this or the rest of the wave. With the film’s release steadily approaching, merch and marketing should start rolling out for the film in the coming months.

The list that first featured the leaks surrounding the wave of Eternals figures did not disclose names but did reveal there would be fifteen figures in the first wave. They’ll be joined by a 10″ figure. It’s not hard to tell most of the wave will be made up of the core members of the team like Ikaris, Phastos, Ajak, Makkari, Gilgamesh, Kingo, Sprite, and Druig with the 10″ figure most likely Arishem The Judge who seems to play a larger role in this film.

Source: Instgram

August 20, 2021
Nia DaCosta Teases That ‘THE MARVELS’ is Very Different From ‘CAPTAIN MARVEL’

Just recently, we learned that the sequel to 2019’s Captain Marvel has started production. We still don’t know where the story exactly picks up, but we did get the confirmation that Carol Danvers won’t be the only holder of the Marvel title. She’ll be joined by WandaVision‘s Monica Rambeau and the newest member of the Marvel family, Kamala Khan.

There’s the potential we might see many more heroes join the fray, as Samuel L. Jackson hinted at his appearance in the film, which might tie into the Disney+ Secret Invasion series. The project will see a new direction alongside its new director, Nia DaCosta. She’s worked on the recent Candyman film and she offered a tease of what we can expect for the upcoming film. She even highlights it’ll be “a very different beast” from the previous entry in the franchise, as it focuses on a specific theme.

But I am obsessed with how we all deal with our pain and trauma, and there’s some of that in the story.
Nia DaCosta

The theme strongly matches with the first seeds set when we were introduced to Teyonah Parris‘ Rambeau. We find out her mother, Maria Rambeau, passed away during the events of the snap. When Captain Marvel was named, she seemed openly upset at hearing her name. So, there might be a clash between two of our heroes. Monica gained superhuman abilities in WandaVision, which might make her a formidable foe in the series but her abilities are quite distinct.

We don’t know if the series might also dive into the Kree-Skrull War storyline from the comics or is also a side story for Secret Invasion. There’s a lot of potentials and the theme will add a new layer to this story moving forward. It’ll be interesting to explore Carol Danvers in the modern-day after witnessing what she has gone through, especially with her solo story taking place in the 90s. There’s a lot we might not know about her journey since outside of taking on Thanos in Avengers: Endgame.

Source: Total Film

August 20, 2021
Tony Leung Talks Turning Wenwu into More Than Just a Villain in ‘SHANG-CHI’

Tony Leung will bring the real Mandarin to life in the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings film. He’s the ruler of the Ten Rings organization and the father of the film’s titular hero. The famous Chinese actor has worked in the industry for four decades, but the upcoming film will be his true debut in a Hollywood production. Given the controversial backstory to Shang-Chi’s father in the comics, the racist depiction of Fu Manchu, Marvel Studios created a new character to take on that role to reinvent the understanding of this character. In an interview with Elle, the actor discusses how it’s his first take on a villainous character, but highlights that he wanted to explore Wenwu as a character.

When [Marvel] offered me the role, what they wanted was for me to create a brand new Mandarin, so I got to develop my character along with the filming. I’ve never approached Wenwu from a villain’s standpoint. Rather, I tried to explore the reasons that led him to become who he is. He’s a man with a history, who craves to be loved. He is also human, and he has a family. As I read [the script], I began to consider the many reasons why he’d turn out the way he is — a sociopath, a narcissist, a bigot.
Tony Leung

Of course, the big selling point for joining the project was its importance to representation for Asian’s in Hollywood. He goes on to confirm that the only reason he decided to join the project was after sitting down with director Destin Daniel Cretton, who pitched the character’s many layers.

I accepted it because of the director. It just felt right. Plus, this is something I’ve never done before, to play an Asian supervillain. A chance to do something for Asia. I thought, why not?
Tony Leung

His inclusion is a strong statement of what Shang-Chi stands for. It’s not only Marvel’s first Asian superhero but also a strong step forward for representation. Leung‘s mastery of subtlety adds to those layers that Cretton is trying to bring to life. We’re only a little over a week away until the film finally releases and it’ll be exciting to see the father-son dynamic between him and Simu Liu on screen.

Source: Elle

August 20, 2021
EXCLUSIVE: ‘SHANG-CHI’s Meng’er Zhang Shares She Accidentally Punched Simu Liu in the Face

Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings will be Marvel Studios’ first foray into a martial arts-based film. It’ll follow the story of our titular hero as he has to face his past, as his father Wenwu, the leader of the mysterious organization the Ten Rings, calls upon his return. At one point during his journey, he’ll also meet his estranged sister, Xialing. Our very own Anthony Canton III got a chance to sit down and talk with the actress Meng’er Zhang, who took on the role to play opposite of Simu Liu. She offered some insight into what it was like acting opposite of Liu and revealed she accidentally punched him during the shoot.

My favorite on-set memory is: I punched Simu in the face. I mean that was the first fight scene between us and it was really nervous, because eventhough we trained a thousand times those movements, but it was the very first time for me, so I was really scared to really throw a punch to him. But he was really encouraging it: ‘Yeah, just go for it. It’s okay, you cannot hurt me!’ So I just got into my character and went for it. And I didn’t mean to punch him, but I did. But I have to say, it felt good.
Meng’er Zhang

She also highlights how she sees Simu Liu as a real brother, and how natural their chemistry was on- and off-screen. It also was interesting to play alongside Tony Leung as the father figure, whose performance truly brought the character of Wenwu to life. The film will focus primarily on this dynamic and it’s promising to hear how much fun they had bringing these characters to life. Here’s hoping we have a long future ahead of Meng’er Zhang and Simu Liu. Just for Liu’s sake, he hopefully won’t have to endure a new accidental punch in each production.

August 19, 2021
Don’t Expect a New ‘AVENGERS’ Film Anytime Soon

It’s been a tradition throughout the first three phases for everyone to include at least one Avengers film. The third phase broke that by expanding with a two-parter as Infinity War would truly find its inclusion in Endgame. This year, we’ve finally entered the franchise’s fourth phase, but there’s no assembly on the horizon.

While it seems impossible to top the previous entry, it seemed like they wouldn’t leave out the big culmination franchise from the equation. IN an interview with Collider, Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige offered some insight into why we havenÄt gotten any announcement on a new Avengers film.

I think we want there to be a reasonable amount of time from the Endgame to start a new saga, which is already underway and already started. And then you need time, as you did in Phase 1, to build that saga before you start bringing everyone together.

It makes a lot of sense to take a break, as we’re in a reset for the franchise. Most of the big players that pushed it initially have left the franchise and we’re only really beginning to prepare a new generation of heroes. It’s unclear if we’ll even get a straight-forward Avengers film, or they might venture out with multiple teams. Perhaps it’s time to introduce the West Coast Avengers alongside the Young Avengers.

The clear focus for the fourth phase also seems to be on crossovers, as we see various characters joining others films. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness will include Wanda in a larger role. Thor: Love and Thunder will see our titular hero joined by Guardians in his latest adventure. Just recently, the new character of Riri Williams, who will get a Disney+ show later down the line, will make their premiere in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever first. So, we might even see an Avengers film until Phase 4 or even 5 if they continue to set up for the new saga.

Source: Collider

August 19, 2021
‘LOKI’ Season 2 May Not Begin Production Until 2023 as New Director Search Starts Soon

The world was quite surprised when director Kate Herron revealed she wasn’t returning for Loki‘s second season after being the one to pitch the show. While it seems most of the team will remain, it was strange to think that a new director would take over the project just as it got announced. Still, Marvel Studios has taken a very unconventional route with its Disney+ series by establishing them similar to film production.

So, it’s not too uncommon for franchises to take a new direction under the supervision of a new director. Thor: Ragnarok proved that very point. There hasn’t been any information on it and we were left wondering when we might expect the second season. Luckily, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige offered an update on the series in an interview with Collider. In it, he stated that:

It is underway. We’re developing it as we speak. The hope is that much of the same team will return. Kate is going on to bigger and better things, so the director search will begin shortly.
Kevin Feige

The CEO did point out he wasn’t trying to be evasive, as they can’t currently pinpoint when it might enter production. He hints that they are “not sure exactly where it falls between next year and the year after.” It’s a strong hint that the second season might not enter production until 2023, as highlighted by Collider, and it’s hard to say if the series will release in that same year.

The ending teased the arrival of Kang the Conqueror, who will appear in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. So, it might act as a continuation to that series, as Loki tries to find his place in this new version of the Time Variance Authority. Once Marvel Studios announces the new director we might have a better idea of when production might start.

Source: Collider

August 19, 2021
Kevin Feige Confirms Riri Williams Debut in ‘BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER’

It looks like we finally have the confirmation that Dominique Thorne‘s Riri Williams will make her debut ahead of her Disney+ series Ironheart. In an interview with ComicBook.com, the head of Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige, confirmed that she will appear in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. He also hints that she’ll jump from this production to the Disney+ series after finishing it.

We’re shooting Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, right now, and the character of Riri Williams, you will meet in Black Panther 2 first. She started shooting, I think, this week before her Ironheart series

Her inclusion makes a lot of sense, as the character has built up quite a friendship with Shuri in the comics. We also heard a few months ago that they are filming at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she builds her first armor. Perhaps this version of the character gets some help with developing the suit with the help of Wakandan technology. It also highlights how Abominations’ appearance in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and her inclusion in this Black Panther sequel is a way for Marvel Studios to cut on some costs.

If the designs and first rigging work are done in a big-budget film, it’s easier to give them the film quality in an ongoing series. So, we might see her don the suit either during the film or in a post-credit sequence. We don’t know how large her role might be, but she could become an emotional anchor for Shuri, who seems to be the most likely candidate to take on the mantle passed down from T’Challa. We’ll see if the trailer offers a glimpse of her role, or if they keep it for later.

Source: Comic Book

August 19, 2021