Future of Marvel Movies

[Convoy]

Didn't see this posted yet


Turning his attention to the slate of up to 10 films (which could include sequels) that Marvel will self-finance and distribute through Paramount, Arad named Captain America, Nick Fury, Dr. Strange, Black Panther (“a big, big, big deal”) and Ant-Man (“a Honey I Shrunk the Superhero kind of story”) as part of the possible production slate.

On Captain America, Arad says Marvel has a writer (and the script will take some time as it has to be a “masterpiece”) and someone in mind to star and direct. Arad called him Marvel’s second most famous character by name after Spider-Man, and called the project a “man out of time” story, about someone “looking at our world through the eyes of someone who thought the perfect world was small-town America.”

Marvel is "very close" to striking a deal for an Iron Man" movie, and Arad described its development as a “war” with co-producers New Line Cinema. He also promised an announcement in a few weeks announcing Nick Cassavetes as the writer, who he said as unique emotional attachment to Iron Man's alter ego, Tony Stark, due to Cassavetes relationship with his father, a legendary filmmaker in his own right, John Cassavetes.

Finally, Arad played round robin on a number of other possibilities. Nick Fury ("I'm going back in time. I'm going back to the classic on this. It's about him; it's about S.H.I.E.L.D."); Thor ("We are feverishly working on Thor. It's a vast 'Lord of the Rings' sort of universe"); Deathlok ("There is an actor, a very big star, that we want to do it, and we'll talk to him within a month"); Namor, which he compared to Jurassic Park; and Black Widow (“It's going to be 'X-Men' writer David Hayter's directorial debut”.)

More at

http://www.newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=36416

[blackdragon6]

interesting.........

[GUYANATHUGG]

Cool, good to see John Singleton's name linked with Luke Cage.

[artemisboy]

Why is it that Marvel and Avi Arad never talk about Werewolf By Night anymore?

- Peter

[blackdragon6]

Cool, good to see John Singleton's name linked with Luke Cage.
uh huh...........

[HomerJay]

Good to see that they're taking their time to get Captain America right. Arad is right, it has the potential to be one of the best comic-book flicks ever made. It could either be a rushed & brainless action-adventure, or a thoughtful deconstruction of patriotism and what it means today vs. what it meant to the "greatest generation".

[DDM]

Good to see that they're taking their time to get Captain America right. Arad is right, it has the potential to be one of the best comic-book flicks ever made. It could either be a rushed & brainless action-adventure, or a thoughtful deconstruction of patriotism and what it means today vs. what it meant to the "greatest generation".

The media indealizes WWII because the media then was pro-war. However, Vietnam changed the mainstream media into anti-war & remains so to this day. The mainstream media would rather report about about military acting wrong & overemphazising different aspects about how "bad" the military is as the media turns terrorists into victims. Patriotism has not changed one bit. The media lens, Hollywood, & the mainstream media has changed & remains out of touch with the real world.

[Guts/Batman]

It would be interesting to see the Red Skull's character on the big screen, given he is one of the biggest hardcore nazi's in all of comicdom.

[HomerJay]

The media indealizes WWII because the media then was pro-war. However, Vietnam changed the mainstream media into anti-war & remains so to this day. The mainstream media would rather report about about military acting wrong & overemphazising different aspects about how "bad" the military is as the media turns terrorists into victims. Patriotism has not changed one bit. The media lens, Hollywood, & the mainstream media has changed & remains out of touch with the real world.

Well, that's kinda what I meant...

[Steve]

It would be interesting to see the Red Skull's character on the big screen, given he is one of the biggest hardcore nazi's in all of comicdom.
And lets not make him Italian!

[Guts/Batman]

And lets not make him Italian!


Lol. I'm not a cap reader but I have some experience with him from Spidey comics. I say, you go all the way with his character or just forget doing him.

I just hope they don't aim "Captain America" at a family audience because that's what doomed Norman Osborne's character IMO.

[ragnarok_2012]

And lets not make him Italian!

And then the Red Skull cuts off his own hand....

[Taltos]

I want to see cameos in Marvel movies. Wouldnt it be cool if Spiderman III started with Spidey fighting back to back with Cap America? Generally I would like to see an isolated fight including pre-exisiting characters. It would open Audience up to the idea of the Marvel universe, not to mention show people how badass Spiderman is. Maybe they should show him soloing the X-Men. :D

[StoneGold]

Lol. I'm not a cap reader but I have some experience with him from Spidey comics. I say, you go all the way with his character or just forget doing him.

I just hope they don't aim "Captain America" at a family audience because that's what doomed Norman Osborne's character IMO.
Norman committed mass murder in that movie. He was a delusional MPD who was also an alcoholic. Hell, he was a hell of a lot more violent than the Lee/Dikto version. He told his son to bang MJ and then get rid of her. Nice family you've got.


Serious, what you're bitching about is his costume, not any family friendliness. "Get what you want, then broom her" ain't exactly g rated, dig?

[StoneGold]

You want to know the worst part of the teenage Italian Red Skull? All the dumbass changed they made to the character were pretty bad, but the one actually pretty good change they made, and they totally wasted it. Skull being a failed prototype for Cap, and the skull face was a side effect of the failure? That was actually a brilliant way to make Skull Cap's fighting equal, explain the whole skull face thing, good stuff. But then they had him just be kind of uglier at the end of the movie.

Seriously, if they do make a new Cap movie, the Skull being a Super Soldier prototype is actually a pretty decent and logical alteration that could help the story flow a lot better.

[Guts/Batman]

Norman committed mass murder in that movie. He was a delusional MPD who was also an alcoholic. Hell, he was a hell of a lot more violent than the Lee/Dikto version. He told his son to bang MJ and then get rid of her. Nice family you've got.


Serious, what you're bitching about is his costume, not any family friendliness. "Get what you want, then broom her" ain't exactly g rated, dig?


I guess I don't remember that. It's been awhile since I've seen the flick.

[tangentman]

The media indealizes WWII because the media then was pro-war. However, Vietnam changed the mainstream media into anti-war & remains so to this day. The mainstream media would rather report about about military acting wrong & overemphazising different aspects about how "bad" the military is as the media turns terrorists into victims. Patriotism has not changed one bit. The media lens, Hollywood, & the mainstream media has changed & remains out of touch with the real world.

I think that you're over-looking certain realities of those wars and their portrayals by the media, DDM. WWII was aided by a massive amount of propaganda in the name of a good cause. People saw cartoons, comic books, news reports, and films glorifying the Allied cause and rallying them in support of the war effort. OTOH, the news media of the 1960s unapologetically showed the war AS IT HAPPENED, bringing an unsanitized version into living rooms of average American families. These folks saw the blood and violence that happened in Southeast Asia. War lost it's attractive and heroic face during Vietnam.

[Magneto_X]

It seems the universe can only let only let Marvel or DC make good movies. How the tides are turning.

I thought Daredevil was pretty good, btw. Blade: Trinity was a complete clusterf*ck.

If they go ahead with X3 right now they're only going to shoot themsleves in the foot.
You'd think they'd have learnt from Spiderman, Blade and X-men 1 & 2(s).

[Rachel Grey]

Yeah, I'm worried about X3 :(

I'll go to see it, but I'm desperately hoping that somebody manages a miracle and actually makes it a decent film. :(

[Trystenn]

It seems the universe can only let only let Marvel or DC make good movies. How the tides are turning.

I thought Daredevil was pretty good, btw. Blade: Trinity was a complete clusterf*ck.

If they go ahead with X3 right now they're only going to shoot themsleves in the foot.
You'd think they'd have learnt from Spiderman, Blade and X-men 1 & 2(s).
Well cmon lets not be too hasty, the X movies have actually gotten better, the second was way better than the first, and i have high hopes for this new one.

[The Fury]

If they go ahead with X3 right now they're only going to shoot themsleves in the foot.
You'd think they'd have learnt from Spiderman, Blade and X-men 1 & 2(s).
I don't get your thinking of this.

Spider-man 1 and 2 Blade and X-men 1 and 2 were all good movies, and they made money, so did DD and Hulk and Punisher and Blade 2, they made money. As long as Marvel will make money from the movie then they will make them.


X-men 3 has been a rollercoaster of stuff recently, Singer leaving, questions over Marsden's part (which are now sorted out, even if I hear it's a stupidly small part), Nightcralwer no longer being it in. I worry for it, but they aren't stupid, if they can't get what they want to make the movie they will delay it a bit. I don't mind, just mena that a graphically better movie will come out. Although I don't think Storm should be in the movie (Berry taking up the budget).


I am looking forward to see how many of these Movies will turn out. ghost Rider is already being made and looks promissing, with Nic Cage as a big name behind it. Ironman, Deathlok and Dr. Strange being the one's I like the sound of.

[Magneto_X]

Fury, what bothers me about X3 is that the guy in charge has a serious mad-on to kill the franchise. He was one of the main reasons Singer left in the first place.

From what I've heard about the plot is it will be a retread of X2....and the Pheonix storyline will be severely messed with....in a *bad* way. :(

The current director will be Brett Ratner. While he is competent he far from the best guy to handle X-men, IMO. There's Proyas, Fincher, Terry Gilliam etc

[Magneto_X]

Spider-man 1 and 2 Blade and X-men 1 and 2 were all good movies, and they made money, so did DD and Hulk and Punisher and Blade 2, they made money. As long as Marvel will make money from the movie then they will make them.


Blade 1 & 2's quality didn't stop Blade:Trinity from killing the franchise. :(

[DarkSoldier]

I want to see cameos in Marvel movies. Wouldnt it be cool if Spiderman III started with Spidey fighting back to back with Cap America?
The problem with that is if different studios get the movie rights; because Sony got Spider-Man, and 20th Century Fox got Daredevil, Fox couldn't have Ben Urich reporting for the Daily Bugle.

[The Fury]

Fury, what bothers me about X3 is that the guy in charge has a serious mad-on to kill the franchise. He was one of the main reasons Singer left in the first place.

From what I've heard about the plot is it will be a retread of X2....and the Pheonix storyline will be severely messed with....in a *bad* way. :(

The current director will be Brett Ratner. While he is competent he far from the best guy to handle X-men, IMO. There's Proyas, Fincher, Terry Gilliam etc
I get ya, and yeah things have been messed about wiht, but I'm not expecting the whole Phoenix plot to be the same as the original in the comics. Obviously things are change enough already. As most Comic movie seem to be doing, they are adaptions but not a precise copy of a story in the books.

Look at DD or League of Extra..Gentlemen.

but I get where your comming from, and while you might see all these changes and messing abouts with a bad thing, I would like to see where they are going. They can make the movie, I'll see it, then decide whether it's good or not.

I mean a lot of people really didn't like Hulk, but I did.

[Magneto_X]

Fury, changing the Pheonix saga doesn't bother me. Butching it just to kill off actors/main characters that have jumped ship since Singer left (not for artistic reasons) is what worries me.

They had an article about this at Aint It Cool News a few weeks ago.

It's headed for Blade:Trinity crappiness. :(

[The Fury]

Fury, changing the Pheonix saga doesn't bother me. Butching it just to kill off actors/main characters that have jumped ship since Singer left (not for artistic reasons) is what worries me.

They had an article about this at Aint It Cool News a few weeks ago.

It's headed for Blade:Trinity crappiness. :(
AiCN? OK.


Singer is the where the problems started, I guess. Why they don't just wait till he's finished making Superman (which from what I've seen looks crap), and invite him back to make the movie. But no acotrs have jumped ship, everyone is still comming back. They've just had director problems.

But I still don't think it will be bad. With the same writers and all.

[Magneto_X]

Marsden is in the new Superman movie. Singer only left in the first place because the producer (who wasn't directly in the X-men film hierachy) was pissing him off while he was making those movies. Aparently Singer got a better offer at WB and jumped ship----this infuriated Fox, who wants X3 to go head-to-head with his next film (Superman Returns). That's why they want X3 done so quickly.

[The Joker]

A Captain America film has all the potential in the world to become a great film for Marvel. Hopefully it wont get screwed up. And I agree with StoneGold, The Red Skull being a prototype, a failed one at that, for Captain America was a good idea by the low budgeted 21st century "Captain America" film. The idea of him being Italian was just horrid though.

Hopefully we wont get two horrible Captain America movies. :mad:

[hugh45]

When they do the 1st Cap movie,of course Red Skull will be in the
1st,they have to deal w/the racism thing in America,which would be
perfect,because of what the Red Skull represents.

If the 1st is good,they have to have the terrorist story line.IMHO they
should start from 911 like the comic book.

[Guts/Batman]

I'm not too impressed by Marvel's list of movies so far. To be fair, most of DC's recent movies weren't a ton better (though I have yet to see Constantine).

DD, X-Men, Spider-Man, Blade: Trinity, and Elektra disappointed me. X-2 was very average. Spider-Man 2, Blade 1 & 2 were good to very good.

X-3 sounds like it will be a heaping pile of you know what. I'm not holding a ton of hope for FF (though I am hoping it will be in the SM2, B! and B2 class)

[Magneto_X]

Guts:

Agreed. FF looks like another Catwoman. Most of the posters on message boards (here or movie board[Rotten Tomatoes, AICN, Chud etc]) think it'll be awful.

[The Joker]

Well when Tim Story was announced as the director of FF, I lost all hope.

Not looking forward to that movie one bit.

[Magneto_X]

Hopefully when the next FF movie is made (who knows how long if it bombs) they'll get an actress like Naomi Watts as Sue Storm, instead of a flavor-of-the-month "babe".

[Slappy san]

A Captain America film has all the potential in the world to become a great film for Marvel. Hopefully it wont get screwed up. And I agree with StoneGold, The Red Skull being a prototype, a failed one at that, for Captain America was a good idea by the low budgeted 21st century "Captain America" film. The idea of him being Italian was just horrid though.

Hopefully we wont get two horrible Captain America movies. :mad:

Two?












..............

[The Joker]

Two?












..............

Yeah, you know. We've already had one bad Cap movie. We certainly dont need another. :mad:

[Slappy san]

Yeah, you know. We've already had one bad Cap movie. We certainly dont need another. :mad:

I know I've seen more than one.

[The Joker]

I know I've seen more than one.

You must be referring to those horrible late 70's tv movies.

Yuck.

[Slappy san]

You must be referring to those horrible late 70's tv movies.

Yuck.

Well..they are movies too.

[DennyK]

The Captain America movie should be set during WWII.

[Slappy san]

The Captain America movie should be set during WWII.

Or atleast open like The Ultimates.

[The Joker]

Well..they are movies too.

Yeah. I guess so.

I just try to forget about them.

[Guts/Batman]

Yeah. I guess so.

I just try to forget about them.

Just like "Catwoman". lol

[KenK]

Why are people so convinced FF will be another Catwoman? Aside from DOOM, what is there about that movie that it's not faithful to the comics? How can you look at Human Torch and say, "oh crap, that sucks."? I swear, I think some people just want to see the movie fail for the sake of failing.

[Magneto_X]

Why are people so convinced FF will be another Catwoman? Aside from DOOM, what is there about that movie that it's not faithful to the comics? How can you look at Human Torch and say, "oh crap, that sucks."? I swear, I think some people just want to see the movie fail for the sake of failing.

Actually Torch is the only character that looks impressive and stays fairly true to the character. The actor really got it.

Read the threads: "Dr.Doom in FF Movie", "Fantastic 4 Movie Has Been Cast",
"Fantastic Four Movie - Production Notes And Pictures", "Jessica Alba Is The Invisible Woman", "Casting The Fantastic Four: The One-Stop, Mega-Merged Thread", "Wow And I Thought The New Fantastic Four Movie Was Bad Before... (Doom Pic)", "FF Convention Trailer", "Well The Fantastic Four Movie Trailer Is Up", "The Fantastic Four International Trailer" & "OT: Latest FF Trailer".

Every one of these thread are at the TV/Movie Forum, except the last which is at the Hellboy Forum.

Does that help?

[blackdragon6]

i'm just pissed they screwed up the blade franchise.yeah it was ending anyway but it deserves better.

[Magneto_X]

Why did the want Blade to only have a trilogy anyway? If a franchise (like Blade) has enough potential it shouldn't only have a predetermined amount of films.

Friday the 13th/Halloween/Jaws have had more then 3 movies and all of these franchises are creatively bankrupt next to comic-based franchises. Hell, Batman just got his fifth movie this year. If bats has that staying power Blade (or Spiderman or X-men etc) should have a shot.

[Neil]

Turning his attention to the slate of up to 10 films (which could include sequels) that Marvel will self-finance and distribute through Paramount, Arad named Captain America, Nick Fury, Dr. Strange, Black Panther (“a big, big, big deal”) and Ant-Man (“a Honey I Shrunk the Superhero kind of story”) as part of the possible production slate.
Here's the thing - Captain America, Nick Fury, Dr. Strange... Great ideas! Great, great, great! Black Panther. Done right, sure.

Ant-Man? I'm not saying that with someone with a vision it couldn't be done, but why would you be shopping that around as one of your big potential properties. This just seems like a bad sign of how they're looking at their properties to me.

[KenK]

Why did the want Blade to only have a trilogy anyway? If a franchise (like Blade) has enough potential it shouldn't only have a predetermined amount of films.

Friday the 13th/Halloween/Jaws have had more then 3 movies and all of these franchises are creatively bankrupt next to comic-based franchises. Hell, Batman just got his fifth movie this year. If bats has that staying power Blade (or Spiderman or X-men etc) should have a shot.

Well, while I love that you share my love of Blade in movie form, most would argue, and I'd be inclined to agree, that Batman's a far more established institution in not just comics, but pop culture in general, than Blade. One of the problems with Blade continuing for, say longer than a decade, would be the fact that Wesley Snipes just embodies that character perfectly. Seeing anyone else in the role, I don't know if they could bring the same energy and intensity that Snipes brought. A lot of his personality is in movie Blade. In the case of Batman, we're on our fourth actor to play Batman in a feature film(fifth if you count Adam West). To say nothing of the fact that Bale is about a decade younger than Keaton was when he started the Batman films. By virtue, Bale should be able to do bat-films til he's at least 40. Of course I'd advise against doing any more roles like the Machinist, since some doctors say should drastic weight losses and gains can seriously wreck your health in the long run. Whatever he's at now, he should probably stay in a tight range if he plans on doing more than say two Bat-sequels.

My problem with Trinity is that Goyer just screwed up. I'm sure people will blame Snipes, who, to some degree has a reputation for being an a$$hole, but the bottom line is, he made New Line money, and they should have honored his position as one of the film's producers. On Goyer's end, he just did a lot of things storywise in Blade Trinity that didn't make a lick of sense! The film's narrative structure was fundamentally flawed, and the characters were not only underdeveloped, some were downright annoying. It just seemed like he was spoofing the franchise more than anything. The vampires always look like vampires, Hannibal's ALWAYS cracking a joke, etc.

[KenK]

Here's the thing - Captain America, Nick Fury, Dr. Strange... Great ideas! Great, great, great! Black Panther. Done right, sure.

Ant-Man? I'm not saying that with someone with a vision it couldn't be done, but why would you be shopping that around as one of your big potential properties. This just seems like a bad sign of how they're looking at their properties to me.

Marvel and the studios they're dealing with are hoping for another Blade, taking a no-name property, making it for cheap and figuring it can still make a profit even if it's not a hundred million dollar blockbuster. Which is funny, because it seems like New Line never really pushed the franchise like other comic films. And promotion for Blade Trinity was non-existent.

[Guts/Batman]

Friday the 13th/Halloween/Jaws have had more then 3 movies and all of these franchises are creatively bankrupt next to comic-based franchises. Hell, Batman just got his fifth movie this year. If bats has that staying power Blade (or Spiderman or X-men etc) should have a shot.

The Jaws quadrilogy should have been at most 2 momovies instead of 4. The others had a reason to still make movies with what the movies were.

[cactusmaac]

Marvel and the studios they're dealing with are hoping for another Blade, taking a no-name property, making it for cheap and figuring it can still make a profit even if it's not a hundred million dollar blockbuster. Which is funny, because it seems like New Line never really pushed the franchise like other comic films. And promotion for Blade Trinity was non-existent.

That's strange.

I remember seeing a hell of a lot more publicity and TV spots for Trinity than I did for Batman Begins in the UK.

[KenK]

That's strange.

I remember seeing a hell of a lot more publicity and TV spots for Trinity than I did for Batman Begins in the UK.

The first time many saw a tv spot here in the states, was less than two weeks before the movie came out. On top of that, New Line released it the same weekend as Ocean's Twelve!!!

[Neil]

Marvel and the studios they're dealing with are hoping for another Blade, taking a no-name property, making it for cheap and figuring it can still make a profit even if it's not a hundred million dollar blockbuster. Which is funny, because it seems like New Line never really pushed the franchise like other comic films. And promotion for Blade Trinity was non-existent.
Well, I think it's safe to say that Ant-Man is unlikely to have that same quality. The fact is, Blade and Blade II are largely tributes to David Goyer and Wesley Snipes having a genuine affection for the character.

If I suspected there were creators out there with the same affection for Ant-Man looking to create something from it, I could be optimistic. As Marvel picking an obscure character to foist on studios as fully of potential, it's just desperate.

As to Blade: Trinity, I think there were a lot of fingers pushing a lot of agendas and ended up building a mess. I think New Line did kind of drop the ball once it was done because they knew it was basically never going to take off.

[Magneto_X]

The fact is, Blade and Blade II are largely tributes to David Goyer and Wesley Snipes having a genuine affection for the character.


Having good directors also helped. Del Toro & Norrington both had the chops to make Blade fit into their different styles.

[Neil]

Having good directors also helped. Del Toro & Norrington both had the chops to make Blade fit into their different styles.
There's truth to this. Norrington has a keen visual sense and Blade was definitely helped by this. I think his story and pacing sense is not very good, and even Blade suffers from this, but is held up by the visuals as well as the tightness of the script and Snipes's commanding performance.

David Goyer is a talented writer, but an inexperienced director. I think with Blade: Trinity he tried to bite off too much. I think he could have done a fine enough job with a tighter script, like, say, one of the one for Blade. But because they were somewhat commited to the idea of a trilogy, he tried to fill Blade: Trinity with everything but the kitchen sink, as the saying goes.

A truly talented director, like Del Toro, would have told him to pitch much of what was there and tighten it up, and I'm sure come up with something much more successful from that material.

[Magneto_X]

There's truth to this. Norrington has a keen visual sense and Blade was definitely helped by this. I think his story and pacing sense is not very good, and even Blade suffers from this, but is held up by the visuals as well as the tightness of the script and Snipes's commanding performance.

David Goyer is a talented writer, but an inexperienced director. I think with Blade: Trinity he tried to bite off too much. I think he could have done a fine enough job with a tighter script, like, say, one of the one for Blade. But because they were somewhat commited to the idea of a trilogy, he tried to fill Blade: Trinity with everything but the kitchen sink, as the saying goes.

A truly talented director, like Del Toro, would have told him to pitch much of what was there and tighten it up, and I'm sure come up with something much more successful from that material.

I agree. Goyer, while a good writer. needs to discipline himself or needs powerful editors/directors to get rid of the "fat" in his projects and say "no" whenever he wants to use a bad idea.

For instance, Hannibal could have worked if he only had about 3-5 jokes (and the *best* jokes only) and been serious the rest of the time. Instead Hannibal wouldn't shut up for five seconds and his lame jokes just took me out of the film. Blade isn't a frickin comedy!

I wanted to punch Hannibal myself after the first twenity minutes he got so annoying.

At least in Terminator 3 they made the comedy work most of the time.

[Guts/Batman]

I agree. Goyer, while a good writer. needs to discipline himself or needs powerful editors/directors to get rid of the "fat" in his projects and say "no" whenever he wants to use a bad idea.

For instance, Hannibal could have worked if he only had about 3-5 jokes (and the *best* jokes only) and been serious the rest of the time. Instead Hannibal wouldn't shut up for five seconds and his lame jokes just took me out of the film. Blade isn't a frickin comedy!

I wanted to punch Hannibal myself after the first twenity minutes he got so annoying.

At least in Terminator 3 they made the comedy work most of the time.

I didn't mind Hannibal being a walking one liner. But I would hardly say that his constantly telling jokes wouldn't put it into the "comedy" column. I found the movie entrtaining (as I do most of the time with the exceptions of Zoolander, Love Actually and other romantic comedies)

And one of my favorite sayings nowadays. "Just because you have the ability to do, doesn't make it a good idea."

Here's an idea to chew on: Could the reason that this wasn't a dark, violent movie because Blade was now a household name attempting to hit with a younger fan base while #1 and 2 was when it wasn't a household name trying to find it's niche in the movie market?

I agree it should have stuck with the darkness and the violence but I can see why it didn't.

I personally, have the same complaint about Spider-Man. I wanted to see a darker, more sick and sadistic Green Goblin but sadly did not probably because it was aimed at the family crowd.

Oh well.

[Magneto_X]

I didn't mind Hannibal being a walking one liner. But I would hardly say that his constantly telling jokes wouldn't put it into the "comedy" column. I found the movie entrtaining (as I do most of the time with the exceptions of Zoolander, Love Actually and other romantic comedies)

And one of my favorite sayings nowadays. "Just because you have the ability to do, doesn't make it a good idea."

Here's an idea to chew on: Could the reason that this wasn't a dark, violent movie because Blade was now a household name attempting to hit with a younger fan base while #1 and 2 was when it wasn't a household name trying to find it's niche in the movie market?

I agree it should have stuck with the darkness and the violence but I can see why it didn't.

I personally, have the same complaint about Spider-Man. I wanted to see a darker, more sick and sadistic Green Goblin but sadly did not probably because it was aimed at the family crowd.

Oh well.

Unlike Spiderman, Blade isn't a franchise that works unless it's R-rated. Not only does it fit better with an adult audience but it has proven *twice* that it can still be a powerhouse at the box office without trying to appeal to the kiddies.

This tactic has already destroyed Robocop and Batman. Why would it work with Blade?

[Guts/Batman]

Unlike Spiderman, Blade isn't a franchise that works unless it's R-rated. Not only does it fit better with an adult audience but it has proven *twice* that it can still be a powerhouse at the box office without trying to appeal to the kiddies.

This tactic has already destroyed Robocop and Batman. Why would it work with Blade?

It wouldn't. I agree with that it has been proven twice that it can. I dunno why they thought it would work.

But I don't think producers see it that way. Most producers probably see dollar signs and don't see the damage they are doing in terms of quality to the movie. They got your $8. They don't care after that. They know they will sell hundreds of thousands of dvds. They got more of your money.

Directors yes are directing the movie but they can only do it if the producer oks the stuff, right? Sometimes it is out of the directors hands and sometimes it's not.

I'm not knowledgable enough about the scripts and stuff so I'm not sure if i would put it on the shoulders of the producers or the director for Blade Trinity.

Why people mess with success is the million dollar question for just about everything that fails.

[Neil]

A couple of points here...

Here's my guess as to what happened... Goyer, having been comitted by New Line, Wesley Snipes or some idea of his own, had this as the final movie in a Blade Trilogy. Not a bad idea in itself.

So, he goes to work fitting all the rest of the bits of "Tomb of Dracula" he wants to get in... Hannibal King, Dracula -- some peculiar variation on Rachel Van Helsing (are her rights attached to something else?). New Line sees Hannibal King and Abigail Whistler as potential spin-offs... Hey, get in good by not dipping into the Blade well too many times, get some younger, good looking white kids who can continue to bring in the bucks from the basic idea! Great!

Now they have potential spin-off characters and need hip actors, they get Ryan Reynolds, they humor up the character a bit to fit his persona. They want to beef up those characters for later movies, so the Blade character suffers. It ends up being a mess of not really being a Blade movie, not really being the spin-off itself, not really being dark, not really being light, because everyone wants it to be more things than it could accomplish on its own.

I suppose some of that, but its based on what I've heard and it all fits.

Messing with success? Well, it's complicated. You want to mess with it a little, here and there, to keep it from getting stale. You want to do more of what really works and less of what doesn't quite, but then you need to actually know which are which. Sometimes the mistakes are obvious, but then we have a further perspective, we're the ones who just kind of know what we want not a person trying desperately to make sure they deliver what we want... while maybe bringing in a few others... Plus we're usually blessed with hindsight, seeing the final product that didn't work and explaining why instead of piecing together a new product that works enough like the last but has something to claim as its own.

That said, there have been too many big ugly mistakes in this arena.

[Magneto_X]

Sounds believable to me, Neil.

[KenK]

I agree. Goyer, while a good writer. needs to discipline himself or needs powerful editors/directors to get rid of the "fat" in his projects and say "no" whenever he wants to use a bad idea.

For instance, Hannibal could have worked if he only had about 3-5 jokes (and the *best* jokes only) and been serious the rest of the time. Instead Hannibal wouldn't shut up for five seconds and his lame jokes just took me out of the film. Blade isn't a frickin comedy!

I wanted to punch Hannibal myself after the first twenity minutes he got so annoying.

At least in Terminator 3 they made the comedy work most of the time.

See, I never had a problem with the inclusion of King and Abigail, but the execution of the characters was ridiculously off-base. Aside from Abigail saying she's Whistler's daughter, there's no real reflection on that fact. Then you've got King and yeah, the jokes continue too long after he's ceased to be funny.

[Slappy san]

I remember reading that Goyer had a totally different idea in mind for III. Something where the world was overrun with Vampires (ala I Am Legend?).

It sure would have made a much better movie.

[CHEYENNE-BLACKBIRD]

A couple of points here...

Here's my guess as to what happened... Goyer, having been comitted by New Line, Wesley Snipes or some idea of his own, had this as the final movie in a Blade Trilogy. Not a bad idea in itself.

So, he goes to work fitting all the rest of the bits of "Tomb of Dracula" he wants to get in... Hannibal King, Dracula -- some peculiar variation on Rachel Van Helsing (are her rights attached to something else?). New Line sees Hannibal King and Abigail Whistler as potential spin-offs... Hey, get in good by not dipping into the Blade well too many times, get some younger, good looking white kids who can continue to bring in the bucks from the basic idea! Great!

Now they have potential spin-off characters and need hip actors, they get Ryan Reynolds, they humor up the character a bit to fit his persona. They want to beef up those characters for later movies, so the Blade character suffers. It ends up being a mess of not really being a Blade movie, not really being the spin-off itself, not really being dark, not really being light, because everyone wants it to be more things than it could accomplish on its own.

I suppose some of that, but its based on what I've heard and it all fits.

Messing with success? Well, it's complicated. You want to mess with it a little, here and there, to keep it from getting stale. You want to do more of what really works and less of what doesn't quite, but then you need to actually know which are which. Sometimes the mistakes are obvious, but then we have a further perspective, we're the ones who just kind of know what we want not a person trying desperately to make sure they deliver what we want... while maybe bringing in a few others... Plus we're usually blessed with hindsight, seeing the final product that didn't work and explaining why instead of piecing together a new product that works enough like the last but has something to claim as its own.

That said, there have been too many big ugly mistakes in this arena.thats does sum it up...................

[KenK]

I remember reading that Goyer had a totally different idea in mind for III. Something where the world was overrun with Vampires (ala I Am Legend?).

It sure would have made a much better movie.

Goyer couldn't handle the far more straightforward plot of Trinity, you really think he could have handled that first concept? Something like that would have had to be a lot more epic in scope.

[Guts/Batman]

Goyer couldn't handle the far more straightforward plot of Trinity, you really think he could have handled that first concept? Something like that would have had to be a lot more epic in scope.

And doable in 1 movie? Well, believably as well?

[Slappy san]

Goyer couldn't handle the far more straightforward plot of Trinity, you really think he could have handled that first concept? Something like that would have had to be a lot more epic in scope.

Who said he'd even be directing it.

[Gabe99]

From /film:
Columbia is Definitely Rolling Forward With Ghost Rider 2; Daredevil and Silver Surfer Projects Confirmed (http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/09/23/columbia-is-definitely-rolling-forward-with-ghost-rider-2-daredevil-and-silver-surfer-projects-confirmed/)


From Variety:
Ghost Rider Latest Marvel Movie to Rev (http://weblogs.variety.com/bfdealmemo/2009/09/ghost-rider-latest-marvel-movie-to-rev.html)



Fox is: rebooting “Fantastic Four” with “Green Lantern” scribe Michael Green and producer Akiva Goldsman; mobilizing a “Wolverine” sequel and several “X-Men” spinoffs; is quietly developing a new version of “Daredevil” and working on a Silver Surfer film. Sony recently set James Vanderbilt to write the fifth and sixth installments of “Spider-Man,” and Universal continues work on “Sub-Mariner.” Paramount continues as distributor for “Iron Man 2” and several others expected to include “Thor” and “Captain America.”

[StoneGold]

Goyer couldn't handle the far more straightforward plot of Trinity, you really think he could have handled that first concept? Something like that would have had to be a lot more epic in scope.

Sometimes going the big route is easier. Besides, it just becomes Vampire Star Wars. Problem is, Trinity was the Vampire Apocalypse concept minus the Vampire Apocalypse. So you get the scrappy band of rebels who recruit Blade, but minus the whole rebels thing, and without the same level of consequence, and with it mostly being just more of the same.

[Gabe99]

Venom

From Heat Vision:
'Venom' to be written and possibly directed by Gary Ross (http://www.heatvisionblog.com/2009/10/venom-gary-ross-writing-directing.html)


Gary Ross is writing “Venom,” Columbia’s “Spider-Man” spinoff based on one of the villains from “Spider-Man 3,” as a potential directing vehicle. Ross is already writing “Spider-Man 4” for the studio.

In the comics, Venom is a gooey alien parasite that bonds with Peter Parker and later his newsroom rival, among other people, becoming one of more popular villains in "Spider-Man’s" rogue gallery.

Topher Grace portrayed the character in the 2007 movie, which ended with both the human and the alien symbiote apparently destroyed in an explosion.

The studio had no comment on Grace’s involvement nor on Ross writing the project.

Avi Arad and Marvel are producing the movie.

Ross, repped by CAA, hasn’t directed a movie since 2003’s “Seabiscuit.”

From IGN:
Venom Likes Seabiscuit (http://movies.ign.com/articles/103/1032950p1.html)


From MTV:
'Spider-Man 4' Screenwriter To Rewrite And Direct 'Venom' Movie? (http://splashpage.mtv.com/2009/10/07/spider-man-4-screenwriter-to-rewrite-and-direct-venom-spin-off/)


From Variety:
Ross To Helm "Venom" (http://weblogs.variety.com/bfdealmemo/2009/10/ross-to-helm-venom-.html)


The relationship between Columbia Pictures and Gary Ross that began with his rewrite on “Spider-Man 4” is taking a “Venom”-ous turn.

I am hearing that the studio is in talks with Ross to helm the Spidey-spinoff “Venom,” and rewrite the script.

Ross will begin writing the script as soon as he completes the “Spider-Man” film.

While Venom showed up in the last Spidey installment, the intention is to start from scratch. Topher Grace played him in the last picture but the role will likely be recast.

Developing…


I don't like the idea of Venom as "anti-hero". I'd rather see him as the brain eating villain.

[Gabe99]

He wants to do another X-MEN movie!
I'm down for that. The first one was good. Part two was great!
Give him another shot FOX.

source: THR (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i30e7feb16ddb0207ec91e06b9521cbc4)

[Gabe99]

From Collider:
Screenwriters J. Michael Straczynski and Matthew Sand on BROTHERS IN ARMS, FORBIDDEN PLANET, SHATTERED UNION, RED STAR, SILVER SURFER, WWZ, and LENSMEN (http://www.collider.com/2009/11/22/screenwriters-j-michael-straczynski-and-matthew-sand-on-brothers-in-arms-forbidden-planet-shattered-union-red-star-silver-surfer-wwz-lensmen/)


Q: Is your Silver Surfer draft dead?

JMS: What happened was when FF2 didn’t do as well as they hoped it would do, it caused them to call into question a Silver Surfer movie. The script that I wrote picked up right where FF2 left off. So if they do a Silver Surfer film down the road, it’ll have to be its own separate things.

Q: Fans thought the tone wasn’t right. Was yours geared at children?

JMS: It was definitely adult fare. I wanted to tell the origin of the Surfer and get into that whole thing.