Tag: Marvel Studios

  • Lou Taylor Pucci Joins the Cast of ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    Lou Taylor Pucci Joins the Cast of ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    Physical actor Lou Taylor Pucci has joined the cast of Marvel Studios’ Daredevil: Born Again. The news comes courtesy of Deadline with the outlet stating the actor’s role remains under wraps.

    Production on the series continues in New York. Most recently, fans were treated to photos of Jon Bernthal‘s Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, on set alongside the Man Without Fear. Other set photos have also confirmed the casting of Jeremy Earl, who is said to be playing Cole North in the upcoming series.

    Along with starring in Apple TV+’s Physical, the actor has also starred appeared in Younger, American Horror Story, You, and You’re the Worst. On the feature side, Pucci has appeared in the 2013 Evil Dead remake, Moon Manor, and Ex-Husbands.

    Source: Deadline

  • Marvel Studios Launces Viral Campaign for ‘The Fantastic Four’ Featuring the Future Foundation

    Marvel Studios Launces Viral Campaign for ‘The Fantastic Four’ Featuring the Future Foundation

    Known for years for their intense secrecy around their projects, Marvel Studios seems to be taking an all-new, all-different approach with The Fantastic Four. After first revealing the film’s cast alongside an updated logo and release date on Valentine’s Day, the studio is celebrating “4-4 Day” (April 4th) with a little viral fun.

    The official Marvel Studios Twitter account shared a new piece of concept art for the film featuring the Human Torch along with a link to Marvel.com/Fantastic Four.

    Once at the link, you’re greeted by H.E.R.B.I.E. and clever 404 “PAGE NOT FOUND” error. Upon closer inspection, a QR code can be seen inside H.E.R.B.I.E. which leads a new page with a Future Foundation logo at the top. There, 5 comics can be found which are likely key issues in which hints about the film’s plot could be found.

    The issues involve the FF’s first appearance and their fight against Mole Man, the three-issue arc that introduced Galactus and the Silver Surfer and Mark Russell’s 2021 Fantastic Four: Life Story #1 which detailed the team’s adventures in the 1960s.

    Given yesterday’s news that Julia Garner had joined the cast as a version of the Silver Surfer, the three-issue arc all but confirms the long-standing rumors that the film would feature the team taking on Galactus. And if it wasn’t clear yet, the inclusion of Life Story confirms the ’60s setting of the film.

    Additionally, the inclusion of the Future Foundation in the viral campaign adds credence to the rumors that Franklin and Valeria Richards will be included in the film. The Future Foundation was created by Reed Richards as a way to help shape the future of science by helping young people learn to think creatively. The Richards’ children were two of the Foundation’s many members.

    We’ll continue to keep an eye on Marvel to see if they have more in store on April 4!

    Sources: Twitter, Marvel.com

  • ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Set Photos Confirm a Pair of Spoilery Plot Rumors

    ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Set Photos Confirm a Pair of Spoilery Plot Rumors

    If it seems as though Daredevil: Born Again has been filming forever, it’s because it has. After starting principal photography in New York City in early 2023, the pause button was pressed on the series when the SAG and WGA strikes shut down productions across the board. Disney took that time to overhaul the show, bringing in a showrunner and new directors. The new creative team’s decision to make Born Again a continuation of Netflix’s Daredevil led to the canonization of that series and the return of a pair of actors who had originally been left out of the series. Once filming resumed in NYC, another returning actor, Wilson Bethel, was captured on set but shortly thereafter, things slowed down a bit as production moved out of the public eye.

    That all changed as the calendar turned to April as photos and videos from the set captured Jon Bernthal‘s return, The Punisher and Daredevil in action together and a surprising new character from a very recent run on Marvel Comics Daredevil. Additional photos from the bountiful Brooklyn set revealed an interesting detail that ultimately confirms two spoilery plot points from the series. Read on at your own peril…

    Some of the longest-standing rumors about the plot of Daredevil: Born Again center on Wilson Fisk running for and becoming the Mayor of New York City. Additionally, a hefty part of Fisk’s campaign was rumored to revolve around an anti-vigilante initiative, set to clean up the streets. That would mean characters like The Punisher, Daredevil and, yes, Spider-Man, find themselves on the wrong side of Fisk’s agenda in Daredevil: Born Again. A closer look at some details from videos and photos from last night’s Brooklyn set seem to confirm all of the above.

    Set photos of Jeremy Earl’s character, reportedly Cole North, showed him sporting not only a Punisher logo on his tactical gear but also some small patches on his sleeves. Upon closer inspection, those patches indicate that North and other personnel on the set are part of Mayor Fisk’s Anti-Vigilante Task Force.

    That means it is almost a certainty that Daredevil and Punisher find themselves under fire from the Anti-Vigilante Task Force in the video from the same set. Given how long the series has been back in production, it’s possible that this is footage from the finale of Season 1, Part 1 which could end with the heroes in a bit of a pickle and with Mayor Fisk looking every bit the hero for “cleaning up the streets of New York.” In the comics, Fisk used a new iteration of the Thunderbolts as his task force; it looks as though the version set to be seen in Daredevil: Born Again may be a bit more mundane.

    Daredevil: Born Again is currently in production and has no release date.

  • BTS Photos Reveal a Surprising Addition to the Cast of ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    BTS Photos Reveal a Surprising Addition to the Cast of ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    After a bit of a hiatus from filming in public, production on Daredevil: Born Again has returned to the streets of Brooklyn. Getting back on the streets of New York City means that there are plenty of cameras ready to capture the behind-the-scenes action and a recent scene provided plenty of that. In addition to the return of Jon Bernthal fully decked out as The Punisher and working alongside Daredevil, Splash News shared some photos of actor Jeremy Earl as a character who was previously not revealed to be part of the series.

    In a pair of photos from the Brooklyn set, Earl (Chicago P.D.) is seen on set and is reportedly playing Cole North.

    In the pages of Marvel Comics, North is an NYPD Detective who first appeared in 2019 during Chip Zdarsky’s Daredevil run. Originally introduced as an antagonist to Daredevil and part of Mayor Wilson Fisk’s anti-vigilante task force, North ultimately became an ally to The Man Without Fear…but only after shooting him.

    If that same arc is planned for him in Daredevil: Born Again, it’ll be interesting to see how he gets there. Long-standing rumors about the series indicated that Frank Castle’s arc in the series would include him going up against dirty cops who had co-opted The Punisher logo, which Earl’s character is sporting in the set photos. Should North end up as an ally to Daredevil, he’ll first have to survive his interaction with Frank, who is rumored to be none-too-pleased about the type of officers who are using his logo.

    Daredevil: Born Again is currently in production. No official word has been given about its release.

  • “See You Around Red”: Set Leaks Show Daredevil and The Punisher Back in Action Together in ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    “See You Around Red”: Set Leaks Show Daredevil and The Punisher Back in Action Together in ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    With Jon Bernthal recently spotted on the New York City set of Daredevil: Born Again, it was only a matter of time before he was caught in action as Frank Castle. That time has come and not only has Bernthal been photographed fully decked out as The Punisher, he’s also in action with his old friend Matt Murdock!

    Courtesy of Splash News come a couple of new behind-the-scenes looks at filming on the streets of Brooklyn. The first shows a bloody Castle complete with his Punisher logo front and center on his tactical gear.

    Next, an interesting set video shows Castle and a suited-up Matt Murdock working together. While the context of the video isn’t entirely clear, it seems as though the duo may be under fire both from rifles and some sort of sonic emitter. That sort of weapon would be the type of thing deployed against Daredevil only by someone who was aware of his uniquely keen senses.

    Filming on what is believed to be the first part of Season 1 of Daredevil: Born Again has been back underway in New York City for some time and, as expected, has produced quite a few looks at what to expect from the series. As of now, there’s been no word from Disney as to when to expect it to hit Disney Plus; however, before strikes stopped production last Summer, it was slated to release in early 2025.

  • ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Set Photo Provides First Look at Jon Bernthal’s Beat Up Punisher

    ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Set Photo Provides First Look at Jon Bernthal’s Beat Up Punisher

    After providing a plethora of photos once production resumed a couple of months ago, things have been pretty quiet on the set of Daredevil: Born Again. It turns out the Easter Bunny was hiding a surprise for everyone.

    Thougj we’re just sharing it today, Jon Bernthal was spotted in New York on Friday, March 29th, during a break from filming.

    IG user littlepandapit was lucky enough to snap an ussie with Bernthal and while there’s not much to see, it’s clear Frank’s a bit scraped up. From the looks of it, hels either been in a big brawl where someone tried to choke him or he had a spicy little sesh with Karen Page.

    Daredevil: Born Again current has no official release date but was believed to be headed for a 2025 release before strikes and a creative overhaul paused production on the series.

  • ‘X-Men ’97’: “Fire Made Flesh” Ending Explained

    ‘X-Men ’97’: “Fire Made Flesh” Ending Explained

    Like its predecessor, X-Men: The Animated Series, X-Men ’97 will likely never be criticized for moving too slowly. The original Fox series often moved quickly through popular arcs lifted from Chris Claremont‘s Uncanny X-Men and the third episode in ’97 followed suit in its adaptation of Inferno.

    Published in 1989, Inferno was a line-wide crossover event for Marvel Comics. Told throughout more than 30 issues of mutant (Uncanny X-Men, X-Factor, New Mutants, X-Terminators and Excalibur) and non-mutant (Avengers, Cloak and Dagger, Daredevil, Fantastic Four, Power Pack and 3 different Spider-Man books) titles, Inferno focused on Illyana Rasputin’s transformation into the Darkchylde and the origin story of the Goblin Queen, Madelyne Pryor.

    For “Fire Made Flesh”,  X-Men ’97 showrunner Beau DeMayo opted to do quite a bit of trimming and use the episode to resolve the clone Jean story while also setting Bishop and Nathan Summers on their path to a dark future. However, the final scene of the episode, which was set entirely apart from the main event, hints at another classic Claremont arc being adapted beginning with Episode 4.

    After losing her powers and setting out on her own at the end of “Mutant Liberation Begins”, Storm finds herself alone in Tequila Mockingbird, a dive bar somewhere in Texas. As the Weather Witch watches the weather report, a slim and sharply mustachioed stranger approaches her and introduces himself as Forge, “an old friend of Charles Xavier.” Indeed Forge appeared in 10 episodes of X-Men: The Animated Series, half of which involved the wonderful timey-wimey stuff that is part and parcel of the X-Men experience. However, the timing of his latest appearance suggests that he’ll have an all-new, all-different role in X-Men ’97 that will be based on Claremont’s run on Uncanny.

    It’s no secret that Storm was one of Claremont’s favorite characters. Claremont was the first writer to recognize her true potential and begin developing her as a character. Much like in “Mutant Liberation Begins”, Storm lost her mutant powers after having been shot with a Neutralizer. In Uncanny X-Men #186, Storm began working with Forge to recover and, in the process, fell in love with the alpha-level technopath. Titled Lifedeath, the issue and and its follow-ups are well-revered as one of the great love stories in the pages of the X-Men’s extensive history. For those peeking ahead, Episode 4 of X-Men ’97 is titled “Motendo/Lifedeath-Part 1.” Yeah, the next episode is going to include Mojo but did you know it’s also going to explore one of the more intimate stories ever told about Storm?

    While even those with passing knowledge of the comics know that Ororo was once married to T’Challa and was the Queen of Wakanda; however, few know about her romance with Forge. Fewer yet know that Forge, the mutant Maker, designed the Neutralizer that robbed the goddess of her powers. Given the raging popularity of X-Men ’97, it seems as though a whole new generation of people are about to find out and begin to understand why legions of ’90s kids adore Storm. Outside of Logan and Jean Grey, not many mutants have undergone the type of emotional development in the pages of Marvel Comics as Ororo has. Given Episode 4 is only Part 1 of Lifedeath, it seems as though DeMayo and crew intend to go against the X-Men: TAS grain to take their time and give the goddess her just desserts.

  • Mon Dieu! ‘Deadpool and Wolverine’ Rumored to Have Another Ace Up Its Sleeve

    Mon Dieu! ‘Deadpool and Wolverine’ Rumored to Have Another Ace Up Its Sleeve

    Deadpool and Wolverine may be Marvel Studios only theatrical release in 2024 but it’s definitely playing for keeps. The upcoming film, which is largely set in the Void introduced in Season 1 of Loki, will feature Variants of Deadpool and some familiar X-Men villains from Fox’s retired franchise. It’s also rumored to feature cameos from heroes and their Variants from across the Multiverse, including those who have appeared on film before and those who have not. Now, a new rumor suggests an X-Men Variant from an unproduced film will be making an appearance and hoping to make his momma proud.

    Following a social media interaction between Hugh Jackman and Channing Tatum, social media leaker GWGST claimed that Tatum, who was cast as Remy LeBeau in Fox’s unproduced Gambit film will make an appearance as dat thieving Swamp Rat in Deadpool and Wolverine.

    Written into X-Men canon in 1990, Gambit’s popularity skyrocketed following his inclusion in X-Men: The Animated Series which gave the character a large role and a larger-than-life personality. According to the rumor, Tatum’s Gambit will be sporting the familiar comic-accurate/TAS-accurate suit complete with the signature trench coat.

    Though it’ll be Tatum’s first time bringing the charming Cajun to life, it’s not the first appearance of the character in a CBM. Taylor Kitsch portrayed Remy in 2009’s atrocious X-Men Origins: Wolverine when Tatum was unavailable to fill the role. Ironically, Tatum’s Gambit–which had directors Gore Verbinski, Doug Lyman and Rupert Wyatt attached to direct at different times in development–was killed by Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox, which will almost certainly provide some fertile ground for jokiness around how the character ended up in the Void, non? C’est la vie, mon ami.

    Deadpool and Wolverine hits theaters July 26th.

  • ‘Eyes of Wakanda’ Confirmed as Sacred Timeline Canon, May Feature an Iron Fist

    ‘Eyes of Wakanda’ Confirmed as Sacred Timeline Canon, May Feature an Iron Fist

    With praise gushing forth from all corners of the internet for X-Men ’97, Marvel Animation finds itself in the catbird seat. Following an improved second season of What If…?, X-Men ’97 is the first of three animated series slated to stream on Disney Plus in 2024 and has fans buzzing about the possibility that Marvel Studios May not be dead after all.

    Though no release date has been revealed yet, Eyes of Wakanda has already caught the attention of fans. First announced at the What If…? Season 2 premiere, the animated series produced by Ryan Coogler will tell the story of “brave warriors” who “throughout Wakandan history have been tasked to travel the world retrieving dangerous vibranium artifacts.” Other than that, little was know about the show but that’s changed now thanks to Marvel exec Brad Winderbaum.

    In am interview with Men’s Health, Winderbaum revealed quite a bit of new information about the series, including where it fits into the sometimes confusing Multiversal continuity. According to Winderbaum, Eyes of Wakanda “fits right into our sacred MCU timeline continuity.” Winderbaum also confirmed that the series had been directed by Todd Harris which also seems to have confirmed an interesting rumor about the series.

    In 2022, we learned that Harris was creating an animated series about “a secret society of humanoid aliens living on earth dispatches a team of spies across the world to collect a series of missing artifacts that threaten to influence mankind…” and that the series would feature a Mandarin-speaking character named “Jin.” The strong similarities between the official description of Eyes of Wakanda and the original description of Harris‘ show are obvious and further information about Jin seems to mesh nicely with a very interesting rumor about Eyes of Wakanda.

    Scooper CWGST shared a rumor that Eyes of Wakanda would introduce an Iron Fist by the name of Janora, an original character created just for the show, who would be working with a Wakanda named Basha. This lines up nicely with the information we shared in 2022 that indicated “Jin” was a “Chinese warrior” and “perhaps the best trained martial artist in the world.” Her story begins, it seems, when another character named “Bosco” steals one of the series’ MacGuffin artifacts. Connect the dots and it sounds like Basha may head to K’un Lun to retrieve some type of Vibranium artifact and then find himself at odds with Janora.

    Though we can’t confirm the connection, combined with our old Connecting Imaginary Dots piece,the new information seems to support the rumor that Eyes of Wakanda will feature an Iron Fist. Should it all work out, that Iron Fist will show up in the third episode of the series, as per the original information. Either way, it sounds like Eyes of Wakanda is lining up to be a blast!

    Source: Men’s Health

  • REVIEW: ‘X-Men ’97’

    REVIEW: ‘X-Men ’97’

    It’s been said that nostalgia is a hell of a drug. The sentimental longing for an overidealized past can all but rewrite reality within our minds, amplifying our perception of the emotional impact of past experiences and manifesting something that never truly existed in the way we remember it. It’s a road we’ve all traveled and the longer we stay on it, the further we get from the true nature of the original experience. Unlike fortune, nostalgia’s no fickle wench: it provides exactly what we want it to every time.

    Revisiting that imaginary hallowed ground simply reinforces whatever good feeling we’re searching for and is the source of every grumpy old man telling a young buck that “they don’t make them like they used to.” However, as it turns out, they do indeed make them like they used to and, every so often, even better. Marvel Animation’s X-Men ’97 stands as an exemplar of how studios can revisit known and even beloved quantities while finding something that may not have been there originally. Whether you grew up with X-Men: The Animated Series or have never seen an episode of the ’90s classic, X-Men ’97 is about to become your favorite Saturday morning cartoon.

    (L-R): Jubilee (voiced by Holly Chou), Morph (voiced by JP Karliak), Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd), Storm (voiced by Alison Sealy-Smith), Cyclops (voiced by Ray Chase), Rogue (voiced by Lenore Zann), Jean Grey (voiced by Jennifer Hale), Gambit (voiced by AJ LaCascio), Bishop (voiced by Isaac Robinson-Smith), and Beast (voiced by George Buza) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.

    Give Marvel Studios mad props. They smartly leaned heavily into ’90s nostalgia in promoting X-Men ’97, adeptly using the dope theme song from X-Men: The Animated Series and some sweet old-school posters to provide O.G. fans with a phat dopamine rush that reminded them just how off the hook chillin’ on Saturday mornings used to be. Back in the day, X-Men: The Animated Series was the bomb…or was it? Nostalgia is a hell of a drug.

    For a nearly unquantifiable portion of a generation, X-Men: The Animated Series was the gateway drug into the uncanny world of mutant heroes and villains created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Over 76 episodes, the series–heavily inspired by Chris Claremont’s work with the characters in the pages of Marvel Comics–became a frenetic highlight reel of the X-Men’s greatest hits. Without ever reading an X-Men comic, fans of the show could name a dozen X-Men, define an Omega mutant and summarize some of Marvel Comics’ greatest X-Men runs. Just as Claremont’s life-saving run on the Uncanny X-Men concluded, X-Men: The Animated Series cemented the characters in the era’s zeitgeist. The serendipitous multimedia symbiosis of page and animation no doubt led Fox to the inevitable conclusion that the X-Men would be a hit on the big screen and thus, the X-Men became embedded in pop culture, where they have firmly remained over 30 years later. But if the first three episodes of X-Men ’97 reveal anything, they reveal just how weak our minds can be when challenged by the nostalgia for better days.

    (L-R): Beast (voiced by George Buza), Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd), Morph (voiced by JP Karliak), Bishop (voiced by Isaac Robinson-Smith), Rogue (voiced by Lenore Zann), Gambit (voiced by AJ LoCascio), Storm (voiced by Alison Sealy-Smith), Cyclops (voiced by Ray Chase) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.

    If you believe yourself a fan of X-Men: The Animated Series, challenge yourself to a modern-day rewatch. Unlike the finest of wines, the series struggles to mature with its audience, limited not only by the technology of its time but also by the sensibilities of an era gone by. And that’s just fine and totally fair…however, as Marvel Animation rolls out a brand new series set in that bygone era, it absolutely needs to be fit enough to survive the onslaught of modern fans. Showrunner Beau DeMayo aggressively relieves the evolutionary force of selective pressure by slightly changing the DNA of the series to favorably adapt to the modern environment in which it will be judged. What emerges is a new generation more fit than its predecessor on nearly every measurable standard.

    X-Men ’97 veraciously maintains the feverish pace of its progenitor. The first three episodes of the season cover more than 20 issues of Claremont’s run on Uncanny and resolve an eight-month line-wide comic run in 30 minutes. However, it’s here where a reflective member of the audience should stop, drop and roll back into common sense: regardless of your modern sensibilities, X-Men: The Animated Series was created to entertain children. In this sense, compared to offerings such as Teen Titans Go!, X-Men ’97 is much more Hawthorne than Hemingway.

    (L-R): Beast (voiced by George Buza), Rogue (voiced by Lenore Zann), Morph (voiced by JP Karliak), Cyclops (voiced by Ray Chase), Wolverine (voiced by Cal Dodd), Gambit (voiced by AJ LoCascio), and Bishop (voiced by Isaac Robinson-Smith) in Marvel Animation’s X-MEN ’97. Photo courtesy of Marvel Animation. © 2024 MARVEL.

    The first three episodes offer plenty of rawhide upon which to chew. Is Marvel Animation starting up its own connected universe? The Daily Bugle provides plenty of opportunities to believe so. Despite the statement that X-Men ’97 is doing its own thing, does the appearance of WHiH News portend some connection to the live-action MCU and the Multiverse Saga? When dealing with the timey-wimey concepts that are part and parcel of the X-Men, could the crazy sumbitches at Marvel Studios be planning to capitalize on nostalgia in a way ’90s kids could never have dreamt of by bringing the team that brought X-Men into pop culture back into pop culture in an all-new, all-different millennium?

    As of March 2024, there are no answers to those questions; however, in an ever-expanding wilderness of superhero projects, the fitness of X-Men ’97 is not dependent on the audience’s familiarity with the MCU. Should you have watched all 76 episodes of X-Men: The Animated Series once, twice or nonce, you’ll find yourself fully engaged in the story of Cyclops, Jean and the team as they learn to move forward in the absence of Charles Xavier who, by the way, “died” in Season 5, Episode 10 of X-Men: The Animated Series which aired in 1996. Yet somehow, some way, DeMayo and his writers’ room have found common ground for those who saw Charles “die” with those who only know who Charles is from Logan or Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. As Marvel Studios rightfully finds itself under fire, X-Men ’97 could ironically raise the roof of what fans consider as the shit while still being enjoyable for trifling busters.