Looking forward to a shirtless Mickey Rourke brandishing whips (no, it’s not Another “Another 9 1/2 Weeks”)? “Iron Man 2” will be upon us in a few weeks and if you haven’t already picked up your Iron Man slurpee from 7-11 (what is it with RDJ and 7-11?) there’s still time! Oh and if you’re wondering if there will be an Easter egg after the film’s credits similar to the first film’s Samuel L. Jackson, Nick Fury cameo, screenwriter Justin Theroux might have a potential spoiler for you (the answer is yes, but he won’t reveal its details).
Speaking of “Iron Man 2,” Marvel head Kevin Feige says the possibility of a spin-off film for Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow character is, “definitely, possible.” You know what’s also possible. Pigs flying. Don’t bet the farm or even five bucks on that one happening.
Wondering if Nick Fury and his Howling Commandos are going to make it into Marvel’s “The First Avenger: Captain America”? Do you even care? CHUD has some details here.
How is Samuel L. Jackson’s character so youthful even though he was around in WWII? Simple, an anti-aging serum called the Infinity Formula (hey, it’s comics, give ’em a break). Either that or it’s just Jackson’s great skin. Do you realize he’s 61 years old?
Working our way down the Marvel totem poll, Comingsoon.net recently caught up with the studios the aforementioned President of Production Kevin Feige to discuss filmmaker Edgar Wright’s”Ant-Man.” According to Feige, “Edgar was in L.A. last week, we sat down, and we started working on a calendar of when to get him back into it once he finishes promoting ‘Scott Pilgrim,’ so I think towards the end of this year, early next year we’d start looking at early prep for that, but certainly for a release date after ‘The Avengers.’ ” This could all be wishful thinking on Feige’s part as the last time we reported on Wright, it was to confirm his two picture deal with Working Title (that he still has yet to fulfill, mind you). Feige also went on to confirm the rumors that Marvel is looking to pump money into some of their lesser properties. Color us tickled for Dazzler.
David Koepp, the writer behind “Spider-Man,” “War of the Worlds” and “Angels and Demons” is waiting for the go-ahead to polish the “Men in Black 3” script. According to Entertainment Weekly if he fulfills his end of the bargain, we could see Will Smith in this tired retread as early as next summer. Remember this? *Snore*
“Avatar” makes green on blue! (How Variety did that sound?). Smurfs on steroids sets a single day Blue Ray record, shattering the original set by “The Dark Knight,” even though James Cameron has bragged up and down that the film will contain zero extras. We don’t get that at all, but we also didn’t get the popularity of “Avatar.” No accounting for taste it seems.
In actual exciting news… Deadline reports that the 2nd season of HBO’s hilarious “Eastbound & Down” will have Kenny Powers (former pitcher and esteemed author of: “I’m Fucking, In. You’re Fucking Out.”) traveling to Mexico to play ball for a Mexican club team. Ana de la Reguera (“Nacho Libre,” “Cop Out”) and Michael Pena (who worked with show creator Jody Hill in “Observe and Report”) will star alongside Danny McBride’s Powers, whom we last saw driving away from the love of his life and family after his deal with the Tampa Bay Ray’s fell through
THR reports that Steven Conrad, the writer of “The Pursuit of Happyness” will be tackling the long in gestation “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” for Fox. No directer is currently attached to the film based on the James Thurber 1939 short story that may or may not star Sacha Baron Cohen (though seems doubtful now as SBC is setting up more of his own projects).
Production Weekly tweets James Wan (“Saw,” “Dead Silence”) is currently filming his supernatural thriller “The Astral” in Los Angeles, starring two solid actors, Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson, who must be in need of a paycheck. Whether or not this film being made is the scariest thing about it remains to be seen. P.W. also reports: Danny Trejo & Vinnie Jones are attached to Tammi Sutton’s outlaw biker (naturally) indie “Welcome to Graveland,” filming is planed to begin in July.
Latino Review has published a photo of what might be the turtle design for the new live-action “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” We here at the Playlist are a tad skeptical on this one, as it was submitted by an “anonymous dude.” The design is cool, but it could just be a fan’s rendering. Who knows, even it’s legit, it’s not like we’re dying for a new TMNT movie, but in case you care. Lol, we were right. It was fan made and LR was duped.
Hard rock. Water. Air. Fire. No it’s not a new Earth album. It’s the latest trailer for M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Last Airbender.” The trailer, like the two before it seems to be missing the beloved Nickelodeon show’s sense of humor. Can’t wait to see how Shymalan finds his way into this one, probably casting himself as an all important wizard who’s prophecy will help the young airbender, ala “Lady in the Water.”