‘Justice’ footage highlights humor
‘Aliens’ 30 yrs
SAN DIEGO, July 24, (AP): After “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” put the launch of the DC/ Warner Bros universe on shaky ground, the studio came back swinging at Comic-Con Saturday armed with movie stars, brand new footage and a sense of humor.
The 6,500-some fans in Hall H got a glimpse of never-before-seen footage from the superhero all-star film “Justice League “from director Zack Snyder, as well as the actionpacked first trailer for “Wonder Woman ,” starring Gal Gadot.
Snyder and the cast flew in from London to tease “Justice League,” which is currently in production and not set to hit theaters until November 2017.
The lively “Justice League” footage highlights Bruce Wayne’s recruitment of what will be the Justice League team, including The Flash (Ezra Miller), Cyborg (Ray Fisher) and Aquaman (Jason Momoa). Ben Affleck, who plays Bruce Wayne/Batman, hyped the film with his fellow cast mates, including Gadot and Superman actor Henry Cavill — putting to bed any lingering suspicions that his character was actually killed off for good at the end of “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”
Affleck
Lighter
The lighter touch in the “Justice League” reel is likely a direct response to the widespread criticism of the self-seriousness of “Batman v Superman,” and will be a pivotal moment for the studio in bringing together all of the personalities that they hope will also stand on their own, much like Marvel and Disney have done with “The Avengers.” Warner Bros. has 10 films pegged to the interconnected universe over the next few years including “Suicide Squad,” which comes out next month, “Wonder Woman,” “Aquaman,” “The Flash,” and the stand alone “Batman” film, which Affleck is directing and starring in.
To kick things off, Affleck was joined on stage by all of his fellow directors David Ayer (“Suicide Squad”), Patty Jenkins (“Wonder Woman”), James Wan (“Aquaman”), Rick Famuyiwa (“The Flash”) and Snyder.
“DC is the foundation of what we all know about comic books and heroes. To have my voice be a part of that is really exciting,” Famuyiwa said.
Wan, who made his name in horror films like the “Saw” and “Conjuring” films said that he’d be bringing some of that sensibility to “Aquaman” as well.
Neither Wan nor Famuyiwa had any footage to show, since “The Flash” and “Aquaman” don’t come out until 2018, but fans did get a first look at director Patty Jenkins’ “Wonder Woman ,” which highlights the romance and World War I-era adventure of Diana Prince’s origins. The movie comes out in June of 2017 and will be the first time the iconic superhero has had her own film in her 75-year history.
“Knowing how many people care so much for this character ... it was important to portray (her) in a way everyone can relate,” Gadot said, seated alongside co-stars Chris Pine and Connie Neilsen, who plays her mother. Audiences first met Gadot’s “Wonder Woman” in “Batman v Superman.”
The baddies of “Suicide Squad,” out Aug 5, took the stage too, including stars Will Smith, Margot Robbie and Jared Leto.
“This is not a movie about good versus evil,” Smith said. “This is a movie about bad versus evil.”
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Filmmaker James Cameron and Hollywood star Sigourney Weaver were surprised by a fan proposing to his girlfriend as they celebrated the 30th anniversary of sci-fi classic “Aliens” on Saturday.
The pair were swapping nostalgia and behind-the-scenes anecdotes at San Diego Comic-Con when the man got down on one knee during the audience Q&A section and popped the question.
The lucky lady said yes, prompting Cameron, 61, to remark: “May you be happy and have many spawn.”
Cameron and Weaver, 66, were joined by other cast members including Lance Henriksen, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser and Bill Paxton as well as producer Gale Anne Hurd.
The panel was asked for details of progress on an upcoming fifth “Alien” film to be made by “District 9” and “Elysium” director Neill Blomkamp.
Although it has not been officially announced, Blomkamp himself has given interviews confirming that he plans at least one sequel with Weaver in the lead role.