There are more behind-the-scenes videos of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and World War Z. Joss Whedon explains how Guardians of the Galaxy will be like Star Wars: by trying not to be like Star Wars. Plus a Riddick banner and a new glimpse of Neill Blonkamp's Elysium. Spoilers!
Top image from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Man of Steel
Producer Deborah Snyder talks some more about the movie's approach to Superman:
He's straightforward and he's Superman. I think that's what's ironic about this particular film, making him more like us, and not necessarily seeing that character in that way before. I think people expect action and spectacle and all of this kind of stuff, but to see him struggle, and to see him confront issues that are more human issues, to see him lost and vulnerable in that way is not how he has really been portrayed in film — I know the comics have gone a lot further in different places, but if you're not a comic book fan, if you're a member of the general audience, I don't think you've ever seen this character this way. And I think that's what makes it different — that's your entry into him.
This feels sort of like the right time for a portrait of Superman where there are more shades of grey, as opposed to previous interpretations where audiences and filmmakers really projected their ideals upon the character. Do you think this story has cultural relevance or comments on where we are right now?
Look at our Smallville — look at small towns all over. It's not as idealistic as it has been portrayed before. Look at the state of newspapers — we hint at that [Lois Lane] goes and takes her story to the Internet. I think we are making a commentary on real life. Our film is ingrained in our world today, and our world isn't as idealistic as it once was.
There's more at the link. [Comic Book Resources]
Elsewhere, Deborah Snyder discusses Lois Lane and Amy Adams's performance:
Listen, I think Zack, in all the films he has these really strong women that… Sometimes we're making commentary about women's roles in society, sometimes it's very blatant. But I think the vision for Lois was always for her to be more proactive. On the surface in the past she's been this hard-hitting reporter but she's still always being rescued, and also we wanted her to be smart and you wanted to see that she was smart and proactive. I always say she saves him as much as he saves [her]. She saves him emotionally.
And physically!
And physically! She has a big role and we've not seen that before. Zack built on that. It was in the script initially but I know that was something that he built on as we went along in the process... [Amy Adams is] like this amazing actor. We knew it wasn't about the acting but we wanted to see just [her and Henry Cavill] together because there is that chemistry. There is that… Their relationship really has to work. Really, Zack wanted to just get in a room with the two of them and see what it was going to be like and how their dynamic would be. We didn't show it to anyone. It wasn't like we showed it to the studio. It was more for him being able to see that with them.
Again, there's more at the link. [Crave Online]
And here's a TV spot.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Here's a Cleveland set video depicting a chase sequence.
Guardians of the Galaxy
Joss Whedon, who just so happens to be Marvel Studios's creative consultant, explains why James Gunn is the perfect writer-director for this project:
I've talked to them about the story from the beginning, and the different drafts. One of the questions they asked me was "What do you think of James Gunn?" And I giggled like a school girl because I was like, "Oh, this movie is going to work."... When it comes to this, for me, my only piece of advice has been: I want to hear more of James. Let's pull out the formula. Give me more James. Make it weirder. The only way to achieve that "Star Wars" vibe is not to chase it — is to try to be an original universe and have all the fun and do all the stuff. And James is... he's perfect for that because even I said, "A raccoon?" And James's thing was, "Here's the deal. It's about the raccoon. This is why I love it: because of the raccoon and the tree." And I'm like, "Okay, that's the guy you need."
Elysium
Here's the first TV spot for District 9 director Neil Blomkamp's hard sci-fi epic.
Riddick
Here's a new banner. [Shock Till You Drop]
World War Z
Here's a bunch of behind-the-scenes B-roll footage.
Frankenstein
The Frankenstein project that stars Harry Potter's Daniel Radcliffe as Igor, is written by Chronicle's Max Landis, and is directed by Sherlock's Paul McGuigan has reportedly set a release date for October 17, 2014. [@ERCboxoffice]
The Purge 2
Producer Jason Blum has tweeted that a sequel to the Ethan Hawke and Lena Headey-starring dystopian film is in development. Whatever such a sequel's artistic merits might be, it's hard to argue with a $34 million opening weekend on a $3 million budget, so, sure, why not? [Deadline]
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Joss Whedon says he hopes to be as involved with the series as his schedule will allow:
I'll be as hands on [with Agents of SHIELD] as I can. I've stocked it with writers that I know and respect and trust because, obviously, I have this other film that I have to make. It's going to be on a case by case but I'll be in every story, every cut and all of that stuff.
Elsewhere, he talks more about the show's overarching goals:
There's always the struggle between spectacle and a TV budget. What attracted me to "S.H.I.E.L.D." were the gadgets. But after the gadgets was humanity: The idea that there is an underside, a darker side, a more human context. Phil Coulson always represented the everyman, the schlemiel in the world of the fabulous or the mighty, gods and billionaires and legends. And that's what the show is for, it's for those people who, as remarkable as they may be, are not the supers, are not A-list.
What are the rest of us worth when there are people that are so extraordinary? That's a human story. We hired actors that I am so excited to welcome into our universe, and they're extraordinary, and they're going to bring so much to it. That's what I'm giving people every week; those actors, their stories, and the stories that they encounter. I know that we all share the same sensibility in terms of what makes it Marvel, what makes it that universe. I never worry about what the fanboys think because the fanboy is thinking it up.
The Vampire Diaries
Showrunner Julie Plec discusses what's ahead in season five:
"[There's] college, Paul Wesley playing two characters, a human Katherine... My god, like how great. Like the first time she catches a cold, how friggin' pissed is she going to be? You know, a new relationship with Damon and Elena trying to make it work and a villain in their midst that they don't know is a villain in the beginning. And Jeremy having to go back to school! Like what the hell cover story is that going to be? They had a memorial service for the kid, there were flyers! I think that there's going to be some great new characters and a great new world with the college thing. And some great romance and a pretty cool mythology in terms of Silas and the mystery of his past."
Plec also discusses the difficulty of writing compelling character deaths on a show full of immortal characters:
"We believe that death needs to have real stakes. But it wasn't until we created the ghost story and the idea of the Other Side that we started getting more of a glimpse of the people we had loved... And we debated a lot, and I go back and forth as a storyteller wanting to avoid breaking down the stakes of the story. If anyone can come back at any time, then you're really diminishing the power and the stakes. But on the flip side of that, losing a beloved character on a TV show, you feel a grief. There's a really powerful grief that comes attached to that. And sometimes I think we make the decision that it's okay to sort of break a rule and diminish the stakes after the fact because the joy of seeing this person is equally as powerful as having lost them."
[Zimbio]
Warehouse 13
Here's a promo and a sneak peek for the next episode, "What Matters Most."
Teen Wolf
Here's a promo for the next episode and third overall, "Fireflies." A short synopsis is below. [KSiteTV]
Boyd and Cora are under the influence of the full moon; Scott and Derek seek help from an unlikely ally.
And here's the description for the following episode, "Unleashed":
Scott tries to keep Isaac from confronting the twins in school; Stiles tries to prove his theory about the killings.
Teen Titans Go!
Cartoon Network has renewed the show for a second season. [TV Guide]
Additional reporting by Amanda Yesilbas and Charlie Jane Anders.