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Comic News Roundup – October 2009 – Week 1

Comic News Roundup – October 2009 – Week 1

Will Marc Toberoff be the last superhero standing?
Toberoff is representing the children of Jack Kirby, has been engaged in closed-door mediation sessions to settle the the estate of Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel and DC Comics and Warner Bros. dispute and also represents the estate of Joe Shuster. In 2004, Toberoff started up a production company called Intellectual Properties Worldwide, dedicated to licensing branded Intellectual Property. He has always stressed to us that he separates his legal work from his business ventures, but he’s admitted that he’d be pleased if his clients — after reclaiming rights — came to him to explore their next steps.

Byung-Hun Lee to Start Filming G.I. JOE 2 by Years’ End
Byung-Hun Lee, or as G.I. Joe fans know him, Storm Shadow, is said to start filming the sequel to this summers’ blockbuster hit as early as the end of this year and through 2010 says a Korean news source as reported by his management company BH Entertainment.

First Look at the Features and Box Art for WATCHMEN – THE ULTIMATE CUT
“The Ultimate Cut” has the “Tales of the Black Freighter” animated short film woven into the Director’s Cut.  This new cut will also have two new commentaries from Director Zach Snyder and Illustrator Dave Gibbons.  According to the sellsheet, the Ultimate Cut runs 3 hours and 35 minutes. The sellsheet also mentions that there will be over two hours of bonus content including 4 featurettes and the “Watchmen” Video Journals. The set will also include the short feature “Under the Hood”

Columbia revs up second ‘Ghost Rider’
David Goyer is in talks to pen the film
David Goyer is in early talks to create the story and supervise writers for a film expected to once again star Nicolas Cage. Through a spokesperson, Goyer said he hadn’t signed on yet. But plans are already under way to base the sequel on a “Ghost Rider” script written years ago by Goyer, whose superhero work includes hit screen transfers of DC’s “Batman Begins” and Marvel’s “Blade” franchise. The original “Ghost Rider” was scripted by director Mark Steven Johnson.

Platinum, Krantz to take a ‘Chance’
Graphic novel set for live-action adaptation
Platinum Studios has joined forces with producer Tony Krantz to develop a live-action feature from Platinum Studios graphic novel “Mal Chance,” with Scott Murphy to adapt. “Mal Chance” tells the story of Lola, part of an ancient clan of assassins targeted for death by a powerful gangster. Her only recourse is to bring down the gangster’s entire operation with the help of an honest FBI agent who is unaware of her true identity.

Alan Cumming is keeping his fingers crossed about ‘Spider-Man’ musical
When his CAA agents warned the producers that their client would walk if he did not receive a retainer check by messenger that day, lo and behold, one materialized faster than you could say, well, “itsy-bitsy spider.” “I have very good agents, it seems,” said Cumming, adding that the news of the shutdown had taken everyone by surprise. “Mentally, you go from thinking, ‘I’m going to be doing this for a year’ to ‘Oh, maybe that’s not going to happen after all.’”

DreamWorks eyes ‘Xombie’ pitch
Zombie cop project from scribe Will Beall
The studio is in negotiations to buy “Xombie,” a pitch about a zombie who is also a policeman, from cop-turned-scribe Will Beall, with Kurtzman and Orci in talks to produce. “Xombie” is based on a Devil’s Due comic book by James Farr, itself based on his online animated series. Farr’s creation centers on a zombie cop named Dirge who attempts to saves humanity’s remnants, particularly a young girl named Zoe, from evil zombies.

Two more cast in ‘Thor’
Jaimie Alexander, Colm Feore join Marvel adaptation
Alexander is playing Sif, a skilled Asgardian warrior who can hold her own against any man. She also is one of Thor’s loves. Feore’s character is shrouded in mystery though it is known to be a villain. The movie’s story centers on Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions re-ignite an ancient war. As punishment, Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans. Once here, he learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends dark forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

New “Popeye” Movie in Development
Marvel head Avi Arad secured the rights to “Popeye,” in hopes of rebooting that franchise as well. But he won’t go down the same path that the 1980 film, starring Robin Williams, did. He is instead planning to make it a CGI animated feature.

Ron Howard on his first comic-book film project: ‘This is new territory for me’
Ron Howard is planning a big-budget adaptation of “The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft,” based on the Image Comics series. “It very cleverly uses H.P. Lovecraft in a fictional way, but there’s some loose biographical elements. But it certainly has the flavor and the tone of Lovecraft,” Howard told me during an interview for an upcoming story on a different topic. “The character is a very young Lovecraft.”

Venom movie takes the next oozing step toward reality
Zombieland co-writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick have been tasked with penning the project. Wernick confirmed that the project is still moving forward and the writing team has turned the script in to the suits at Sony. “We’ve written two drafts of Venom, and the studio has it, and they’re pushing forward in whatever ways they push forward,” Wernick told SCI FI Wire in an exclusive interview.

‘Shutter Island’ To Receive Graphic Novel Adaptation Alongside Leonardo DiCaprio Film
Tokyopop will publish a full-color, 128-page graphic novel adaptation of “Shutter Island” based on the novel by Dennis Lehane. The comic was originally adapted for French publisher Casterman by artist Christian de Metter. The Tokyopop-released English translation will hit shelves on January 5, 2010, with the Martin Scorsese-directed movie heading to theaters one month later on February 19.

Lynn Collins Gets ‘A Really Great Tan’ To Become Alien Princess In ‘John Carter Of Mars’
The preliminary idea is not to bury Collins under prosthetics and heavy-duty makeup but to create a look that would not be out of place on a tropical island. “I think they’re going more like a really great tan, like the best-tan-you-can-ever-imagine type of thing,” she said. “I’ve yet to find it. Maybe the makeup team will be able to.”

Kevin Conroy Returns as Batman
You’d be surprised, actually, how many people follow animation and how attuned they are to who does what voices. I always assumed this was a completely anonymous job, and I’m always surprised. At Macy’s in New York one time, someone just walked up to me and said, “Aren’t you Kevin Conroy?” I thought it was someone I might have known. He said, “You’re Batman.” I said, “How did you know that?” And he said, “Oh, everybody knows who plays Batman.” So I’m always amazed when someone recognizes me.

Michael Cera On The Light Bulbs, Air Horns & Secret Lists Of ‘Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World’
“It’s a lot like the graphic novel,” he explained. “It’s going to look like how the graphic novel looks.” Cera also added that the series’ creator came up with a very unique way to get the actors inside their characters’ heads. “[O' Malley] gave everyone a sheet of 10 things about their character that only we were supposed to know,” he explained. “It was really cool.”

Bits and Pieces

The Fine Print

This is by no means meant to be a comprehensive roundup of the entire weeks’ news. All stories are chosen by me for no other reason than that they got my attention and might capture yours. If something you think is more important chime in on the feedback; we’d love to hear comments and have a conversation about it.

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About The Author

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Scott is an art director, writer and comics creator living in Los Angeles. He has been a pop culture maven from a very young age. His very first job was as a manager of a comic book store. He spent several years working in a video store, and yes, we are talking VHS tapes. A student of literature and Writing, he brings his obsessive love of comic book trivia, movie history and science fiction/fantasy writing to bear on the work he does for CoolShite.

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