According to Ain’t It Cool News, Kick-Ass 2 is officially greenlit. The official word is said to come from none other than Mark Millar himself. Apparently, Mr. Millar was on Radio 5 in the UK when he let out the good news. This, he said, was due to the smashing success of DVD sales for the first title.

Matthew Vaughn, the director of Kick-Ass, is currently working on X-Men: First Class. So, we probably won’t see this film until 2012-ish. This is all assuming the same director and crew will be working on the sequel, which is highly likely, yet not official. Stay tuned.

While we’ll have to wait till much later in the year to see the full version, the first Teaser Trailer for the animated “Atomic Robo” movie was released over the weekend. The short trailer is animated by The Fictory and looks beautiful while offering quick looks at the world and characters of ‘Last Stop’. We’ve embedded the trailer for you below.

[Via Comics Alliance]

Marvel Studios is picking the ball up on the Iron Fist project by hiring screenwriter Rich Wilkes. Wilkes is best known for the first XXX film starring Vin Diesel.

Iron Fist has been around since 1974 and was created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane. The story’s main character, Daniel Rand, is a martial arts expert with the power of the Iron Fist, which he earned by defeating a dragon known as Shou-Lao. After winning the battle, he plunged his hands into the heart of the beast, thereby being granted with the abilities of the Iron Fist.

Iron Fist has been in movie limbo since 2000, when actor Ray Park was set to star as the films lead role. It’s good to see that the acquisition of Marvel by Disney didn’t destroy the prospects of the film. Much like Runaways and Ant-Man, Iron First looks to be distributed by Disney.

source: Deadline.com

In an interesting turn of events, Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Mad Men star and Emmy nominated actress January Jones has taken over the role of Emma Frost in Matthew Vaughn’s “X-Men: First Class”. When we last reported on this, actress Alice Eve had apparently gotten the role of the infamous White Queen, but this exclusive report from Deadline seems to confirm otherwise, saying:

While speculative reports had Alice Eve playing that role, no deal was concluded.

This has me incredibly excited! I thought that Eve was a good fit for the role, but as an avid “Mad Men” watcher, I can confidently say that January Jones can NAIL the cold tone that Emma needs. The report also states that Zoe Kravitz will play Angel and Jason Flemyng will play Nightcrawler’s father, Azazel.

“X-Men: First Class” also stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult, Jennifer Lawrence, Caleb Landry Jones, Lucas Till, Edi Gathegi, Kevin Bacon, Rose Byrne, and Oliver Platt. The movie is due out next summer and starts production in London in just a few weeks, on August 23.

Heavy Metal Publishing’s Last Man Standing was just picked up for the big screen by Paramount.  This is huge seeing as it debuted only a few weeks ago at San Diego Comic Con.  The popular graphic novel will be extended into a comic book by the house of Eastman.  You can read more about the deal and the novel at Slashfilm.

Feast your eyes on this!  Today, Comicbookmovie.com has revealed the first image of Kilowog, who will be appearing in the Green Lantern movie. Kilowog is a member of the Green Lantern Corps. and has the duty of training the newest recruits.  He was also a genetic scientist on his home planet of Bolovax Vik, as you can clearly tell by his generic scientist-like appearance! (hold for laughs) So, as the release date gets closer, be prepared to see new images of the various and colorful characters of the film.

It’s been a busy couple of months for the Green Lantern franchise, and things don’t look to slow down anytime soon.  We’ve got a myriad of news relating to Emerald Crusader’s appearance in both the sliver screen and your home screen. Let’s start with the Green Lantern film news, which you can read after the jump!

Our first bit of news is that filming on the Green Lantern movie has officially wrapped, per this tweet from Geoff Johns. I’m guessing that most of the work ahead of the crew is the special effects work, which will include the planet of Oa, the aliens, and the Green Lantern suit itself. Hopefully, we’ll be getting a trailer of some sort soon.

We’ve also got a lot of information on the future of the Green Lantern film franchise. Screen Rant states that Warner Brothers has hired Michael Goldenberg to write the script for the second Green Lantern movie. Goldenberg was responsible for a rewrite on the current Green Lantern movie, and will work off of ideas for a sequel that were formulated by Greg Berlanti, Michael Green and Marc Guggenheim, all of which played a role in the script for the first movie. As Screen Rant says, ‘. . . the actual speed at which DCE/WB is moving forward with their development of Green Lantern 2 does suggest a level of confidence that you don’t necessarily see in the increasingly fickle world of Hollywood these days.’

On the animated side of things, ComicsAlliance reports that the upcoming Green Lantern animated series will be CGI instead of hand animation and will feature a Red Lantern. The report also states that the series will feature Hal Jordan as the main character and will also feature Kilowog as one of the supporting characters. It also won’t tie in to the movie at all and will probably be set in its own continuity.

What do you think of these developments? Sound off in our comments!

Late last week, it was officially confirmed that Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s Icon comic series “Nemesis” had been optioned for a movie and that it would be helmed by “Top Gun” director, Tony Scott. Bleeding Cool had the exclusive scoop, which Deadline Hollywood later confirmed. For those unaware, “Nemesis” is published through Marvel’s creator-owned Icon Comics line, and focuses on a Batman like millionaire who commits crime instead of fighting against it.  The series is half way through it’s four issue run. Mark Millar’s work is quite the hot item in Hollywood right now, as “Nemesis” is now the third Mark Millar creator-owned series to see a comic to movie adaption (the other two being “Wanted” and “Kick-Ass”). Millar posted the following on his personal message board:

Bryan Hitch and I would reference Tony on a weekly basis when we were doing The Ultimates. Our dream was an Ultimates movie with Scott directing because he can do the character work and the intensity, but also handle scale and action like practically no other. The idea of a him helming a superhero movie had us giddy and here he is directing the one Steve McNiven and I created.

I haven’t been that impressed with Nemesis so far, but we are only at the half way point in the series, so there’s much room for improvement. I’ve quite enjoyed the movie adaptations of “Wanted” and “Kick-Ass”, so hopefully “Nemesis” can continue their success. What do you think?

Warner Home Video’s “DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection” will hit shelves this November and will feature the previously released shorts focusing on “The Spectre” and “Jonah Hex,” as well as the upcoming “Green Arrow” short. The collection will also contain a brand new, original short featuring Superman, Captain Marvel, and Black Adam. The voice cast for the animated short includes Jerry O’Connell as Captain Marvel, with George Newbern as Superman, Arnold Vosloo as Black Adam, and versed actor James Garner as The Wizard.

See the official press release after the jump…

SUPERMAN/SHAZAM! THE RETURN OF BLACK ADAM ANCHORS DC SHOWCASE ORIGINAL SHORTS COLLECTION

THE SPECTRE, JONAH HEX, GREEN ARROW INCLUDED ON COMPILATION DUE NOV. 9 FROM WARNER HOME VIDEO

BURBANK, CA (August 5, 2010) – Warner Premiere, DC Entertainment, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Home Video have expanded the realm of superhero storytelling beyond the popular DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movies with the introduction of the DC Showcase, a series of animated shorts featuring characters from the celebrated DC Comics vault. On November 9, 2010, Warner Home Video will distribute the DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection, the first quartet of animated adventures featuring the never-before-seen Superman/Shazam!
The Return of Black Adam, as a Special Edition Blu-Ray™ for $29.99
(SRP) and single disc DVD for $19.98 (SRP).

DC Showcase animated shorts initially appeared as special bonus content on the 2010 slate of DC Universe Animated Original Movies. The 10- to 12-minute films include The Spectre, Jonah Hex and Green Arrow. All three titles will be presented in extended formats along with the first-ever release of Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam.

In Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam, Clark Kent’s latest interview subject is street kid Billy Batson. What Clark doesn’t know is that Billy is more than a feisty kid with a lot of heart – he has been chosen by an ancient wizard to represent the good of man as the World’s Mightiest Mortal just by invoking the name of the wizard, “Shazam!” Billy’s powers come none-too-soon, as he also discovers he’s being pursued by a centuries’ old, murderous villain, Black Adam – a foe so powerful, even Superman can’t stop him alone. The all-star cast of Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam is led by Jerry O’Connell (Crossing Jordan) as Captain Marvel, George Newbern reprising his Justice League role as Superman, Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy) as Black Adam and two-time Emmy Award® winner James Garner (8 Simple Rules) as The Wizard.

Bruce Timm (Superman Doomsday) is executive producer and Joaquim Dos Santos (Justice League, Avatar: The Last Airbender) is director of the first series of DC Showcase titles. Michael Jelenic (Wonder Woman) wrote the 22-minute script.

Other shorts included on the DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection:

The Spectre – A detective story with an ethereal twist featuring an otherworldly character. The short is written by Steve Niles (30 Days of Night), and the voice cast includes Gary Cole (Entourage) and Alyssa Milano (Charmed).

Jonah Hex – The tough-as-nails bounty hunter always gets his man – until someone else gets to him first – in this case a murderous madam who wants to steal more than just his bounty from Jonah Hex. Based on a story from the award-winning Jonah Hex comic series, and scripted by world-renowned author Joe Lansdale. The voice cast is led by Thomas Jane (Hung), Linda Hamilton (The Terminator), Michelle Trachtenberg (Mercy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Michael Rooker (Days of Thunder).

Green Arrow – At the Star City International Airport to pick up his girlfriend, Oliver Queen is forced into action as Green Arrow to protect the 10-year-old Princess of Vlatava from his old nemesis Merlyn the Magnificent and the League of Assassins. Greg Weisman (Young Justice) pens this action-packed tale, which features the voices of Neal McDonough (Desperate Housewives) as the title character and Malcolm McDowell (Entourage) as his foe.

“The DC Showcase once again combines the respective creative talents of DC Comics, Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Home Video to provide fans with vivid, new experiences alongside characters from within the vast resources of DC Comics,” said Matt Bierman, Senior Vice President Production, Warner Premiere.

“The DC Showcase allows us to expand the DC Universe with short stories based on intriguing characters – from a 1940s comics sensation like The Spectre to a creation of the 1970s like Jonah Hex – just begging to be presented to a very worthy fan base,” said Geoff Johns, Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment.

“Whereas DC Universe films have given fans the broad strokes of superhero entertainment, we know devout comics fans will enjoy seeing the characters in the DC Showcase come to animated life – some for the very first time – and we believe this presentation will open a window for new viewers to experience these unique, textured heroes and villains,” said Amit Desai, WHV Vice President of Family, Animation & Sports Marketing.

DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection 1-Disc Special Edition DVD features more than 1 hour of exciting extra content, including:
• Four animation shorts (est. 62 min)
• Four additional bonus TV series episodes handpicked by Bruce Timm

DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection Blu-Ray™ features more than 2
1/2 hours of exciting extra content, including:
• Four animation shorts (est. 62 min)
• Commentaries by renowned writers Steve Niles, Joe Lansdale, Greg
Weisman and Michael Jelenic
• Four additional bonus TV series episodes handpicked by Bruce Timm
• Digital copy online of the shorts

“DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection” hits shelves November 9.

Via MTV Splash Page

It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything about a possible film adaptation of Brian K. Vaughan’s “Y: The Last Man.” First news of the film adaptation broke back in 2008 when director D.J. Caruso spoke of casting Shia LaBeouf as the story’s protagonist, Yorrick Brown. But with a script written by Vaughan himself, pre-production for Caruso become rather slow and Shia LaBeouf’s involvement with the film became an on-again, off-again uncertainty.

Recently, MTV News caught up with D.J. Caruso on the set of his upcoming film and got a small update on the status of “Y: The Last Man.”

“It’s still in active development at New Line. I’m still kind of loosely attached. We’ve taken about four cracks at the screenplay. It’s been a really tough one, only because there’s so much that you cover and trying to narrow it down is a problem.”

He went on to point out that differing beliefs on the breakdown of the story had a lot to do with the film’s stalled status. Caruso’s vision of the film(s) is that of a three-part saga. However, this has clashed with the studio’s solo film plans.

Caruso states,

“My problem that I have with New Line is, they’re good people, but I felt you had to make this film as a trilogy,” he said. “I felt that you really had to deal with books one through four on their own. And I think there was a different philosophy there. They really wanted to cover a lot more ground in one film, which I didn’t think would make for a great movie. I thought you’d be cramming too much into one movie. So that’s where we left off,” continued Caruso. “Maybe when I get back from shooting ‘I Am Number Four’ we’ll try to get back into it. I really do love that project, so I hope we can make something work out. That’s been the problem. I think we’ve all felt the same frustration about it.”

For those unfamiliar with the series, “Y: The Last Man” follows the adventures of magician Yorrick Brown who is the last human male on Earth after something kills every organism with a Y chromosome, expect for Yorrick and his pet monkey, Ampersand.

I hope that the film can get back into development soon and get made (hopefully into  Caruso’s planned trilogy). ”Y: The Last Man” is a great comic series and would make for an amazing film series as well.