Why are superheroes fighting each other? Will the Joker be appropriately scary? And most importantly of all, will the cinematic Aquaman be declaring things to be outrageous at the top of his voice whenever possible? This week, answers were given to each of these questions, although whether or not they're the answers you're looking for remains to be seen. As ever, here are the highlights of the last week's superhero movie news.
Ever conscious of cross-promotional activities, recently Jared Leto used a post-screening Q&A for his movie Artifact as the opportunity to promote his Suicide Squad role, according to reports. Addressing a fan in a Batman shirt, he unveiled his Joker laugh publicly, before telling the fan, "You're really brave. I can't wait for you to see [Suicide Squad]—they're going to lock me away in a box after this movie comes out."
Why this is super: Really, who doesn't find the prospect of Leto locked in a box to be an excit—wait, I mean, isn't it great that he's so excited about the role that he's dropping random teases at public appearances?
*The Flash'*s Robbie Amell has a superhero movie dream. He revealed it during an appearance at Salt Lake Comic Con this past weekend: He wants to play Terry McGinnis in a live-action Batman Beyond movie. "I am a huge fan of that idea," he said, suggesting that producers should "make it like a $30 million movie. Don't do like a $200 million blockbuster, do a dark, gritty version of Batman Beyond. The visual effects have come so far that you don't need $200 million to show the technology that they have. Make it a nice, grounded character piece." That's ... actually not a bad idea.
Why this is super: The idea of bringing the animated series to the big screen isn't a new one, and it actually seems like an interesting place to take the franchise after the Christopher Nolan movies. Of course, Ben Affleck showing up as yet another Bruce Wayne all but guarantees that it'll never happen. Of course, maybe there's a CW series in there somewhere. It could be like Minority Report, only with Batman ... and good.
Also at SLCC, Chris Evans revealed why the superheroes are fighting each other in Captain America: Civil War, as well as which side he'd be on if he wasn't playing Cap. It's all about governmental intervention over superhero-ing. "Tony actually thinks we should be signing these accords and reporting to somebody and Cap, who's always been a company man and has always been a soldier, actually doesn't trust anymore. Given what happened in Cap 2, I think he kind of feels the safest hands are his own," Evans explained, adding, "I think I agree with Tony in a way, and I do agree that to make this work, you do need to surrender to the group." What kind of resolve is that, Steve Rogers?
Why this is super: It's looking as if the MacGuffin of the movie follows the lead of the comic book series relatively faithfully, even if Evans isn't quite getting into the selling of his character's position thing as much as he probably should. (Does this mean Robert Downey Jr. is going to come out as standing with Cap, even though his character is on the opposite side? Just imagine the press junket punch-ups!)
Wondering what Professor X is going to be doing in the third Wolverine movie? Hugh Jackman just spilled some beans to Collider about that very thing: "I think it's a really important relationship but I want to see signs of that quasi-father/son sort of relationship that has not been seen before, and sides of particularly Professor X that have not been seen before," the actor explained. But Jackman did want fans to know that Xavier's appearance isn't a done deal just yet. "I'll be really honest with you, the actual script in its full form we're up to about Page 60," he said. "Obviously there's a treatment, so it's not fully done yet, we're not fully there."
Why this is super: Given that the comic book Wolverine is actually older than Xavier, the idea of them having a father-son relationship seems particularly amusing, but it does at least sound as if Jackman et al have plans to do something more with these characters than we've already seen ... and if that means we have an overly emotional final appearance by both characters, that's hardly the most unwelcome idea.
If you've been hoping that, unlikely as it may seem, Jason Momoa will be playing Aquaman as a happy-go-lucky guy who talks to fishes and hangs out with octopi—well, bad news. "I think he is meaner now and upset," Momoa told the Robot's Voice website. "Look at what has been done to our oceans. That's his world that has been polluted."
Why this is super: While dark Aquaman is perfectly in keeping with everything else we've seen in the Man of Steel universe to date, it's a little sad that we're being robbed of the chance to see Momoa offer up his own rendition of the song of heroism. I mean, this is the hero we deserve, right?
