Marvel https://comicbook.com/marvel/feed/rss/ Tue, 01 Aug 2023 10:54:31 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Marvel RSS Generator X-Men: Did Marvel Really Need Another Mutant Massacre? https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/x-men-fall-krakoa-hellfire-gala-marvel-mutant-massacres-explained/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 22:15:00 +0000 Kofi Outlaw ad10b9d2-f442-47f6-a42f-ed2770fc1385

Marvel just dealt mutants another genocidal blow, as revealed in X-Men: Hellfire Gala (2023). SPOILERS FOLLOW: This year's gala thrown by the mutant nation of Krakoa was set to carry on the annual tradition of selecting and debuting the latest X-Men team roster; instead, the mutant-hating organization ORCHIS crashed the party, finally launching a strike they'd been planning since Krakoa started.

ORCHIS (and old X-Men AI foe, Nimrod) murdered most of the new X-Men team, and either maimed, crippled, or killed quite a few of the most powerful veterans. Professor X was captured and coerced into making nearly all mutants leave Earth - seemingly transporting them to their deaths. ORCHIS's latest has reset the X-Men's status quo to one where a desperate few are fighting to survive - but is it really the change fans needed at this point?

Marvel Loves A Mutant Massacre

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(Photo: Marvel Comics)

The ORCHIS Mutant Massacre isn't the first time Marvel's mutants have faced near-extinction. Going back to the alternate future of "Days of Future Past," where Sentinels hunted down mutants to near-extinction, there have been stories both iconic (Mr. Sinister's Morlock Massacre - the first X-Men crossover event - or M-Day/House of M) and infamous (New X-Men's Genoshan Mutant Massacre) about just how dark times get for mutants, when humanity's (or other enemies') bloodlust surges.

Admittedly, mutant massacres have always been a questionable trope of the X-Men Universe, allowing creators an easy "out," for reducing mutants' presence in the franchise, and then bringing them back in an entirely new status quo. This time it arguably hits very differently, though. The Krakoa Era of X-Men has been one of the longest-lasting creative runs with the characters (four years), not to mention one of the most revolutionary and immersive.

The Krakoa Massacre Hits Different

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(Photo: Marvel Comics)

With "House of X" and "Powers of X," writer Jonathan Hickman introduced an entirely new take on mutant culture, history, and how mutant powers were used. The Krakoa experiment (welcoming both "good" and "evil" mutants into the mutant nation) sparked intrigue as different factions built and schemed around Krakoa's Quiet Council government. The new world order that Hickman built into X-men inspired Marvel Comics creators to revise Hickman's original (shorter) timetable for a three-act plan for Krakoa's rise and fall; just building out the new X-Men Universe and all the characters and stories it touched kept Marvel busy for at least three years.

The point here is that there was clearly a lot of fun to be had with the Krakoa Era of X-Men, and even though the various comics and storylines were a hit-or-miss mix, the high points really resonated with fans - as did certain ideas, characters, and overarching story ideas that Hickman and co. put in place.

That's why a lot of Marvel fans are feeling like this Krakoa Mutant Massacre is something akin to a chess player simply swiping the game pieces off the board in the middle of an intricate game. Granted, the story is still unfolding, but it feels like Hellfire Gala (2023) really did signal the end of the Krakoa Era as we knew it, along with all the deeper and more challenging themes and stories of trying to create, maintain and protect all facets of a sovereign nation, in the midst of a superhero universe, all while trying to avoid and/or change numerous timelines leading to extinction.

The run-and-gun survival stories of the X-Men have their own proud legacies, and the upcoming "Fall of X" could turn out to be another one. But once again taking Earth's mutant population down, the X-Men franchise has lost one of the most intriguing story hooks it's had in years, and a whole lot of originality with it.

X-Men comics are on sale at Marvel.

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Amazing Spider-Man Writer Teases Spider-Man Hunting Kraven https://comicbook.com/comics/news/amazing-spider-man-writer-zeb-wells-spider-man-33-kraven-the-hunter/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 16:40:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo 44b5d909-b3a5-401d-8fca-e154084e732d

The hunter is becoming the hunted in The Amazing Spider-Man. Decades after Sergei Kravinoff took his life in Kraven's Last Hunt, Kraven returned in The Grim Hunt when the Kravinoffs clan -- his wife, Sasha, and his children, Anastasia and Alexei Kravinoff -- resurrected Sergei to kill his archenemy, Spider-Man. Cursed with "unlife" unless he dies by Spider-Man's hand, Kraven once again set his sights on the wall-crawler in the six-part "Hunted" arc in Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 5. Sergei's "Great Hunt" ended with his second death breaking the curse -- not by Spider-Man, but by Sergei's cloned offspring, the Last Son of Kraven.

But in September's Amazing Spider-Man #33 -- from writer Zeb Wells and artist Patrick Gleason, with a cover by John Romita Jr. -- Kraven is once again tangled in Spider-Man's web. Recently revealed cover art shows Spider-Man, clad in his classic '80s black-and-white costume, stalking his prey on the streets of New York.

"There's a lot of history between Spider-Man and Kraven. Something happens in Spider-Man's life that puts him in a bad mood, and he decides that he's going to get revenge on Kraven and hunt him down," Wells teased during Marvel Comics' panel at San Diego Comic-Con. "So it's a fun reversal of the usual [dynamic], and it's fun to see Spider-Man get some revenge for Kraven's Last Hunt."

The special over-sized issue Amazing Spider-Man #31 (on stands August 9th) sets up the "big Spider-Event" of Wells and Romita's second year on Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 6, according to Marvel, and will feature more preludes and glimpses of some of the biggest unannounced Spider-projects to come. Amazing Spider-Man #32 (on sale August 23rd) teams Kraven with the Queen Goblin before "Spider-Man's First Hunt" begins in Amazing Spider-Man #33 (on sale September 6th).

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(Photo: Marvel Comics)

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #33

ZEB WELLS (W) o PATRICK GLEASON (A)

Cover by JOHN ROMITA JR.

SPIDER-MAN'S FIRST HUNT!

o The hunter is now the prey.

o Can Kraven survive?

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #34

ZEB WELLS (W) o PATRICK GLEASON (A)

SPIDER-MAN'S HUNT CONTINUES!

o Who is Peter's next victim?

o The penultimate chapter of a story you'll never forget!

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Loki Season 2: What is Timeslipping? X-Men Connection Explained https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/loki-season-2-timeslipping-x-men-connection-explained/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 16:15:00 +0000 Liam Crowley a8dc20a6-0d1e-469d-9e57-0fbbc1d1fd6e

Loki Season 2 is just over three months away. As revealed by the sophomore installment's first trailer, Loki Season 2 will pick up where the widely-praised Season 1 finale left off. Last fans saw, the Time Variance Authority was under the control of a tyrannical Kang the Conqueror variant, a domino effect that was set in motion when Sylvie killed He Who Remains. Beyond being tasked with mopping up that murderous mess, Loki and Mobius also have to solve the titular trickster's new condition: timeslipping. Early in the trailer, Loki unpromptly travels both forward and backward in time.

What is Timeslipping?

Loki is seen glitching in and out of the TVA offices, which Ke Huy Quan's OB identifies as the god of mischief undergoing timeslipping, a process that should be impossible in TVA HQ. Not only that, but to OB's knowledge, there is no defined solution to timeslipping.

Timeslipping's Marvel Comics Origins

While this verb is new to Marvel vocabulary, the noun base of the word has comic ties. On the page, Timeslip is actually the name of a time-traveling character.

Introduced in 1995, Rina Patel is a mutant that possesses a variety of enhanced abilities, most notably powers related to time-manipulation. Patel can switch her current consciousness to any point in her past or future life. Patel can time travel in a traditional sense as well.

She would eventually take on the name of Timeslip in regards to her superhero endeavors. Timeslip unites with the young adult team known as the New Warriors and goes on to play a role in major Marvel Comics storylines like Civil War, Avengers: The Initiative, and Decimation.

How Timeslipping Could Bring the X-Men Into the MCU

Considering the TVA operate outside of space and time, it is possible that "timeslipping" is a term that they adopted from Rina Patel herself. Even though she has not been introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe's present timeline, there is a possibility that the TVA already knows about her from either an alternate universe or a future time period.

Beyond that, Loki Season 2 appears to have at least some connectivity to Deadpool 3. The Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman team-up project has been long-rumored to be a time travel story that involves the TVA in some capacity. While Reynolds's Deadpool and Jackman's Wolverine are the only mutants from the Fox X-Men franchise confirmed to be in Deadpool 3, rumblings have hinted at a full mutant ensemble appearing in the threequel. Timeslip is a character that has not yet been adapted for live-action, but she could serve as the gateway to getting the X-Men in the MCU.

Loki Season 2 premieres on October 6th, streaming on Disney+.

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Marvel's X-Men Preview Teases Kitty Pryde's Return as Shadowkat https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/marvel-x-men-25-comic-kitty-kate-pryde-shadowkat-costume/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 16:04:00 +0000 Kofi Outlaw d68463d5-a6da-4894-a8ee-ae45978cc8e7

Marvel has released a new X-Men preview that teases the return of Kitty Pryde in her new "Shadowkat" persona, which will debut in X-Men #25. (SPOILERS) After the latest Mutant Massacre carried out by the ORCHIS organization during the 2023 Hellfire Gala, the mutant nation of Krakoa has been nearly wiped out, and the surviving members of the X-Men are scattered.

Last we saw Kate Pryde, she had escaped with Emma Frost and a few other key figures from Krakoa. However, Kitty's longtime problem of not being able to use Krakoan warp gates suddenly took a reversal, when a gate she was leaning against suddenly activated and she ended up falling into a whole squad of ORCHIS agents that are occupying the Krakoan embassy in Jerusalem, Israel.

From the preview pages of X-Men #25 that Marvel has released, it's looking like part of the immediate fallout of the ORCHIS Mutant Massacre will see Kitty having to get herself out of a sticky situation trapped behind enemy lines. That kind of trial will require Kitty to leave the pirate persona behind and get back to her ninja ways!

As the preview pages remind us, the classic Kitty Pryde and Wolverine limited series saw Kitty train with Wolverine's ninja mentor Ogun - a side of herself that is still very much intact. With Kitty being one of the most powerful and dangerous mutants still at large, she'll need her fiercest persona to handle ORCHIS.

X-Men fans can't help but notice that this "Shadowkat" persona looks very much in line with her "Age of Apocalypse" timeline persona. As a leader of the "Generation Next" team of young mutant heroes, Kitty had her own Wolverine claws and a much more ruthless ninja persona. It was one of the most badass versions of "Shadowcat" that we've seen - but this looks like it could be another one.

Check out the official details of X-Men #25 below:

X-Men #25

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(Photo: Marvel Comics)

Now, as a new X-Men team finds their way through their darkest hour...SHADOWKAT emerges!

THE FALL. She's been known as Kitty, Sprite, Ariel, Red Queen and Captain Kate. Now, as a new X-Men team finds their way through their darkest hour...SHADOWKAT emerges!

Written by: Gerry Duggan
Art by: Stefano Caselli, Marte Gracia
Cover by: Joshua Cassara, Alex Sinclair
Page Count: 52 Pages
Release Date: August 2, 2023

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(Photo: Marvel Comics)
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Loki Season 2 Trailer Hints at Mobius Getting His Jet Ski https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/loki-season-2-trailer-mobius-jet-ski/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 15:38:00 +0000 Liam Crowley 3458cb4d-02a7-4e12-bbfb-bb2efc5b89d2

Marvel Studios' resident trickster is back for more. Loki Season 2 has officially debuted its first trailer, giving fans their first look at a multitude of new characters while also reintroducing some familiar faces. Among those recognizable roles are Tom Hiddleston's Loki and Owen Wilson's Mobius. Loki and Mobius operate as the show's primary leads, with Mobius helping the god of mischief navigate this constantly evolving world of branching timelines and nexus events. While Mobius began as no more than a borderline-robotic Time Variance Authority agent, the back half of Loki Season 1 reveals that Mobius has an origin story of his own.

Part of that origin appears tied to jet skis. Mobius's TVA desk includes copies of Wake, a magazine filled with pictures of the water-based vehicle. Mobius explains to Loki that his fascination with jet skis stems from the fact that they are the perfect combination of form and function and his dream is to own one one day.

Mobius's Jet Ski Dream Coming True in Loki Season 2?

The first trailer for Loki Season 2 features Tom Hiddleston's titular trickster "timeslipping" into different periods both in the past and future. Among the places he timeslips to is a dealership called "Piranha Powersports."

The brief shot of Piranha Powersports shows Loki standing in front of two jet skis as he looks around his new location perplexed.

Considering Loki's facial expression, it's unlikely that he deliberately chose this spot, but the coincidence could be the spark that eventually ignites into Mobius taking a jet ski to the waters. Most trailers for Marvel Disney+ shows feature footage from early in the season. It's possible that this moment comes at the beginning of Loki Season 2 and serves as a reminder to Loki about Mobius's dream, which will then be revisited come the end of the season.

Loki Season 2 premieres on October 6th, streaming on Disney+.

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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Marvel's Loki Season 2 Unveils New Plot Details and Poster https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/loki-season-2-trailer-synopsis-poster-cast-marvel-disney-plus/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 15:00:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo a7bec35f-c7a8-4ac2-aa5f-010e7af2dd30

The timeline is running out in Loki season 2. On Monday, Marvel Studios started the countdown to the new season with a trailer and poster following the reveal of the October 6th premiere date. After last season ended on a cliffhanger -- the timeline-traversing Loki (Tom Hiddleston) wound up in a different reality lorded over by Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors), the consequence of Loki variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) killing He Who Remains (Majors) in his Citadel at the End of Time -- the clock is ticking on the God of Mischief. Loki is "time-slipping," glitching in and out of reality as he's "pulled through time, between the past and the present."

The official logline: "Loki Season 2 picks up in the aftermath of the shocking season finale when Loki finds himself in a battle for the soul of the Time Variance Authority. Along with Mobius, Hunter B-15, and a team of new and returning characters, Loki navigates an ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous Multiverse in search of Sylvie, Judge Renslayer, Miss Minutes, and the truth of what it means to possess free will and glorious purpose."

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A poster shows a multiverse of differently-dressed Lokis in a literal race against time, along with new looks at Mobius (Owen Wilson), Sylvie, Judge Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), Time Variance Authority Agent Hunter B-15 (Wunmi Mosaku), and TVA tech agent OB (Ke Huy Quan).

Eugene Cordero, Rafael Casal, Tara Strong, Kate Dickie, Liz Carr, Neil Ellice, and Jonathan Majors also star. Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead (Marvel's Moon Knight), Dan Deleeuw (second unit director, Avengers: Endgame and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania), and Kasra Farahani (Tilt) directed episodes. Eric Martin (Rick and Morty) serves as head writer, replacing Michael Waldron; Waldron is executive producer along with Martin, Kevin Feige, Stephen Broussard, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Kevin R. Wright, Benson & Moorhead, and Hiddleston.

"[Fans] are gonna be in for a real treat because the show is bolder and more surreal [in Loki season 2]," Mbatha-Raw told Entertainment Tonight. "And in many ways, goes to some bigger, bolder places than season 1, which is really exciting."

Marvel's Loki season 2 is streaming October 6th on Disney+.

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LEGO Captain America Shield Replica Set Is About to Drop https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/lego-captain-america-shield-replica-set-august-1st/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 14:35:00 +0000 Sean Fallon e55d5c25-883f-49b0-8d96-4528676ad638 lego-captain-america-shield-set.jpg

It's the beginning of a new month, and that means there are loads of new LEGO sets to get your hands on. One of the biggest releases for August 2023 is this model of Captain America's shield as it appeared in the MCU. At 3128-pieces, it promises to be a fun and challenging build for adults. When complete, a display piece measuring 18.5 in. (47 cm) in diameter will be your reward.

The 76262 Marvel Captain America Shield LEGO set also includes a Captain America minifigure holding a shield and Thor's hammer, Mj?lnir. it will be in-stock starting tonight, July 31st / August 1st at 9pm PT / 12am ET right here at the LEGO Shop priced at $199.99. Additional Marvel-themed LEGO releases that will launch at that time include the following:

Note that you can find all of the upcoming releases for August 1st here in the "Coming Soon" section. After the launch, they will shift here in the "Available Now" section. You can take advantage of LEGO VIP offers by signing up for a free account right here.

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Speaking of Captain America, the next film in the franchise is dubbed Captain America: Brave New World, and it is slated to hit theaters on August 26th 2024. Comicbook.com's Phase Zero podcast spoke to Captain America 4 producer Nate Moore about what's next for Sam Wilson. The executive gestured toward some very key differences between Steve Rogers and the new Captain America as Phase 4 and 5 build the ramp toward The Multiverse Saga.

Buy the Captain America Shield set at the LEGO Shop

"I think, [Sam's] not Steve Rogers and I think that's a good thing," Brave New World producer Nate Moore previously told us during the podcast. "Because to me, this new Cap is Rocky. He's going to be the underdog in any situation. He's not a super soldier. He's not a hundred years old. He doesn't have the Avengers. What happens with this guy who announces publicly kind of, without the support, 'I'm new Captain America.' What happens next?"

Who's all in Captain America 4?

In addition to Anthony Mackie returning as the eponymous Avenger in Captain America: Brave New World, other returning actors include Liv Tyler (Betty Ross), Tim Blake Nelson (The Leader), Carl Lumbly (Isaiah Bradley), and Danny Ramirez (Joaquin Torres). Shira Haas is making her Marvel Cinematic Universe debut as the iconic Marvel comics character Sabra in the film while Harrison Ford is playing Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross in the place of the late William Hurt. Captain America: Brave New World is being directed by Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox).

"The first day was so intimidating," Mackie recently revealed to Inverse about working with Ford. "I was so f*cking nervous I couldn't remember my lines. He's Harrison f*cking Ford. There is this aura about him. But he dispels that really quickly because he's such a cool guy. He's everything a movie star should be. He would say, 'Let's shoot this piece of sh*t.' And everybody was like, 'Yeah, let's shoot this sh*t.'" Mackie can't go into specifics about his scenes with Ford, but he notes that there are plenty of them. "We spent a good bit of time together. Ross and Cap have always had that relationship, where they were friends and they respected each other, but they always bumped heads. That's their relationship in the storyline."

Captain America: Brave New World is currently scheduled to hit theaters on August 26, 2024.

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Andrew Garfield on The Amazing Spider-Man Franchise: "The Story Never Ends." https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/andrew-garfield-amazing-spider-man-story-never-ends/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 14:24:00 +0000 Liam Crowley afd68589-6846-4358-adc5-8b5fdf4a141c

Even nearly two years removed from Spider-Man: No Way Home, fans are still clamoring for Andrew Garfield to complete his unfinished Peter Parker trilogy. The British actor starred as Spider-Man in two theatrical films in 2011 and 2014, distinguishing itself from the Tobey Maguire movies by branding as The Amazing Spider-Man. 2014's The Amazing Spider-Man 2 received mixed reviews from critics and underperformed by Spidey standards at the box office, leading Sony Pictures to scrapping its future plans for Garfield, opting to join forces with Marvel Studios to reboot the character once again, this time with Tom Holland in the lead.

Garfield got his closure in No Way Home when he returned as his Peter Parker. While footage from his universe was never shown, Garfield's Spider-Man alluded to how he changed following Gwen Stacy's death in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Following some motivational speak and a web-slinging team-up later, Garfield's Spider-Man returned to his universe.

Garfield Sparks Hope Regarding The Amazing Spider-Man 3

In a new quote from the official Spider-Man: No Way Home art book, Andrew Garfield has teased that his Peter Parker's story is continuing no matter what future productions hold.

"The story never ends, whether we film it or not. There's a story happening in a universe somewhere," Garfield said (h/t Spider-Man News). "There's endless potential with this character and all the different iterations. So, yeah, he's definitely out there doing something."

That continuing story exists with a renewed purpose, as Garfield believes Spider-Man: No Way Home redeemed his Peter.

"It's changed his life," Garfield continued. "He's going back knowing that he has brothers. He's going back in re-inspired to follow his destiny, his calling - the purpose of his life. By catching MJ, he got to make up for a terrible tragedy that he tried to avoid in his world.

"If he hadn't been in Peter 1's world, then it's possible MJ may have met the same fate as Gwen. His presence was a purpose presence in that regard. And I think he's going back with a mind blown about the cosmos and the universe and string theory and multiple dimensionality. He's going back incredibly reinvigorated."

Will The Amazing Spider-Man 3 Happen?

While Garfield will be questioned about The Amazing Spider-Man 3 until the end of time. it does not seem to be in the cards logistically right now. Sony Pictures has plenty of Spidey-related content in the pipeline, with Kraven The Hunter and Madame Web both set to release next year. Venom 3 and a fourth Tom Holland-led Spider-Man film are also in early development. Sony is partnering with Prime Video for a Spider-Man Noir project as well, and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse is also on the way.

That said, Sandman actor Thomas Haden Church recently told ComicBook.com that he has heard rumors about Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire working on a fourth Spider-Man movie. If that rumor comes to fruition, it could open the door even further for Sony to also revisit Garfield's franchise.

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Loki Season 2 Trailer Reveals First Look at Ke Huy Quan in the MCU https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/loki-season-2-trailer-first-look-ke-huy-quan-mcu/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 13:59:00 +0000 Liam Crowley 60a2eea1-9c78-4fab-b98d-0f67ea62eb9e

Marvel Studios's time crime drama is back. The post-credits scene of Loki Season 1 back in July 2021 revealed that Tom Hiddleston and company would be back for a sophomore installment. Principal photography on Loki Season 2 began in June 2022 and extended until last fall, with filming officially wrapping this past October. While details surrounding Loki Season 2's plot have been kept close to the vest, it has been known that the next batch of episodes will deal with the consequences of Sylvie killing He Who Remains and therefore sending the Sacred Timeline into a sprawling mess of branches.

Fans got a better sense of where the narrative is going in the Loki Season 2 trailer. The fresh footage revealed that the titular god of mischief is suffering from "timeslipping," an issue that sends him both backwards and forwards in time without any control. Loki and Mobius are told this news by a new character portrayed by a familiar face.

Ke Huy Quan Makes MCU Debut

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has gained another Academy Award winner. Everything Everywhere All At Once star Ke Huy Quan makes his MCU debut as OB, a maintenance man for the Time Variance Authority.

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(Photo: Marvel Studios)

While OB's intellect seems tapped in to all facets of the TVA, he does not necessarily hold all the answers. After identifying Loki's issue as timeslipping, he confesses that he does not have a solution for it.

His dialogue in the trailer was brief, but his "great to see you again" remarks to Mobius indicates that the two have worked together before. It's worth noting that the Mobius seen in the trailer is essentially a factory reset version of Owen Wilson's character, as he has no memory of who Loki is at the end of Season 1. This could mean that Mobius and OB's relationship is a byproduct of this new timeline created by He Who Remains's murder.

Loki Season 2 premieres on October 6th, streaming on Disney+.

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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Marvel's Loki Season 2 Trailer Reveals Miss Minutes Variant https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/loki-season-2-trailer-miss-minutes-variant-tara-strong-victor-timely-kang/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 13:50:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo 399f7c07-7f3a-48ae-a496-732b6785ef80

Loki season 2 premieres October 6th -- and the clock is ticking on the God of Mischief. Marvel Studios on Monday released the first trailer for the new season of the Disney+ series, revealing that the variant Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is "time-slipping": glitching in and out of timelines as he's pulled between the past and the present. And as shown in the second post-credits scene at the end of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Loki and ex-Time Variance Authority Agent Mobius (Owen Wilson) wind up in the time of Victor Timely (Jonathan Majors) -- the alias of Kang the Conqueror.

"Time is everything," the inventor told his audience in the Victorian era. "It shapes our lives. But perhaps, we can shape it." Like his multiverse-traversing self from the 31st century, Victor Timely has his own Miss Minutes (voiced by Tara Strong): an old-timey, black-and-white version of the holographic TVA mascot clock.

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(Photo: Marvel Studios)

"I think it's so fun because initially, we have Miss Minutes [as] kind of our introduction to the TVA. She was almost like our Mr. DNA from Jurassic Park, in that she was explaining: who are the TVA? How does the world work? What are the rules? And I think that was fun in itself," Kate Herron, who directed Loki season 1, said in a previous interview of the anthropomorphized clock who speaks with a Southern twang. "But then I think we found, as we were developing the stories more, we just kept wanting to bring her back and spend more time with her because she's such fun."

Loki Season 2 "picks up in the aftermath of the shocking season finale when Loki finds himself in a battle for the soul of the Time Variance Authority," per the official synopsis. "Along with Mobius, Hunter B-15, and a team of new and returning characters, Loki navigates an ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous Multiverse in search of Sylvie, Judge Renslayer, Miss Minutes, and the truth of what it means to possess free will and glorious purpose."

Along with the returning cast members -- Hiddleston as Loki, Wilson as Mobius M. Mobius, Strong as Miss Minutes, Sophia Di Martino as Sylvie, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Judge Renslayer, and Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15 -- season 2 features MCU newcomers Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once) as Ouroboros, a.k.a. "OB," and Rafael Casal (Blindspotting), Kate Dickie (Star Wars: Visions), and Liz Carr (The OA) in undisclosed roles.

Marvel's Loki season 2 premieres October 6th on Disney+. Sign up for Disney+ here.

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Loki Season 2 Trailer Released by Marvel https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/loki-season-2-trailer-marvel/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 13:23:00 +0000 Jamie Lovett 4fa1572e-6b24-4fd2-bf09-5d43e681c9e0

Marvel Studios has released a new trailer for Loki Season 2, the second season of its Disney+ series chronicling Loki's redemptive, multiversal adventures after his death in Avengers: Infinity War and escape from time in Avengers: Endgame. After meeting and allowing Sylvie to kill He Who Remains (Jonathan Majors), a variant of Kang who had been preserving the Sacred Timeline through the Time Variance Authority (TVA), Loki must now reckon with a version of the multiverse that has been rewritten. Marvel previously released a teaser poster for Loki Season 2 that also teased the return of Miss Minutes (voiced by Tara Strong), and several Loki variants.

You can watch the new Loki Season 2 trailer above. Loki Season 2 premieres on Disney+ in October.

More Mobius in Loki Season 2

Owen Wilson's TVA agent Mobius M. Mobius became a fan-favorite in Loki Season 1. Speaking to ComicBook.com in a pre-strike interview, Wilson teased lots more Mobius to come in Loki Season 2.

"I thought I would have a good time but I really enjoyed it," Wilson says of his time on the first season of the show. "I've been lucky working on a million movies and always having a good time but on that one, I had a really great time and that continued on Season Two. Maybe even moreso because we were filming in London and being there at Pinewood but yeah, [his story] just goes deeper."

Loki Season 2 release date

According to Marvel Studios' official synopsis, "Loki Season 2 picks up in the aftermath of the shocking season finale when Loki finds himself in a battle for the soul of the Time Variance Authority. Along with Mobius, Hunter B-15 and a team of new and returning characters, Loki navigates an ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous multiverse in search of Sylvie, Judge Renslayer, Miss Minutes and the truth of what it means to possess free will and glorious purpose."

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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Marvel Preview Shows Return of X-Men Character Thought Dead https://comicbook.com/comics/news/astonishing-iceman-1-preview-released-marvel/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 04:07:00 +0000 Adam Barnhardt 797f1b57-4137-4c12-a4cc-7167b4e6ff65
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Carnage Kills Multiverse Venoms in Marvel's Death of the Venomverse #1 Preview https://comicbook.com/comics/news/marvel-death-of-the-venomverse-issue-1-preview-carnage-venom-symbiotes-multiverse/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 03:50:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo f0011a66-1cd6-40f8-81b9-b4dd0138ea7b
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Doctor Strange Is Sent to War In New Marvel Preview https://comicbook.com/comics/news/doctor-strange-6-review-jed-mackay-preview-released/ Sun, 30 Jul 2023 23:56:00 +0000 Adam Barnhardt 37ab7862-626b-4879-8a95-71042f478c1b
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New Marvel Spider-Man Preview Teases Ben Reilly's Future https://comicbook.com/comics/news/amazing-spider-man-annual-2023-ben-reilly-future-teased/ Sun, 30 Jul 2023 23:02:00 +0000 Adam Barnhardt f00fdd72-c482-4de0-a998-b3b586a7e115
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Adam Driver Reportedly Passed On Marvel's Fantastic Four Role https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/adam-driver-reportedly-passed-on-marvels-fantastic-four-role-reed-richards-mcu/ Sun, 30 Jul 2023 17:07:00 +0000 Jamie Jirak b7ff3311-b57a-439f-9941-0efd025e748a

Earlier this month, the actor's guild SAG-AFTRA officially went on strike, which means actors are currently on the picket lines calling for better residuals and much more. Not only have most film and television productions halted due to the strike, but actors can't promote their films, and casting for future projects is currently on hold. Marvel fans have been eagerly awaiting news of Marvel Studios' Fantastic Four movie for quite some time, but you shouldn't expect to learn who is playing the core four until the strike is over. There have been many rumors over the last couple of years, but it remains one of the biggest question marks of the franchise. For a while, there have been rumors that Star Wars sequel alum Adam Driver would be playing the MCU's Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, but a recent report claims the actor passed on the role.

According to The Hot Mic podcast with John Rocha and Jeff Sneider, Driver passed on Fantastic Four early in the casting process. "This contradicts some stuff some we've put out there in the past, but...this comes from someone apparently working on the Fantastic Four movie," Sneider said in their latest episode (via ComingSoon). "They said that Adam Driver was never really engaged in this. They sent Adam Driver the script a while back and he said that he couldn't connect with the character on the page, and he passed very early on."

Which Actors Are Rumored To Star in Fantastic Four?

There have been many names mentioned for the upcoming Fantastic Four film, which is expected to be directed by WandaVision's Matt Shakman. For a long time, fans have suggested real-life couple John Krasinski and Emily Blunt as Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman/Sue Storm, but it doesn't look like Kransinski will be playing the role again and Blunt has expressed disinterest in joining the MCU.

Rumors have included stars such as Stranger Things Season 4 breakout, Joseph Quinn, as Human Torch as well as You star Penn Badgley as Mr. Fantastic. Other names include DCEU and Barbie star Margot Robbie as Sue Storm, Killing Eve star Jodie Comer as Sue Storm, and even That '70s Show alum Mila Kunis as a gender-swapped The Thing. The list goes on and on, and yet no names have been confirmed for the film. Another actor that has popped up in the rumor mill is Vanessa Kirby, who recently spoke to ComicBook.com about possibly playing Sue Storm during an interview for Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One.

"It would be an honor," Kirby shared. That doesn't tell us much, but it isn't a denial or an outright claim of ignorance, and it does suggest she'd be game to play Sue Storm if the opportunity arose.

Who do you want to see play the Fantastic Four? Tell us in the comments!

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Marvel's Spider-Man 2 Gets Stunning Sixth Scale Figure https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/marvels-spider-man-2-black-costume-sixth-scale-figure-hot-toys-ps5/ Sun, 30 Jul 2023 16:09:00 +0000 Marc Deschamps 6d441d0e-f361-4ef0-bd0c-a30517221cd0

In Marvel's Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker will ditch his familiar red and blue costume for a black Symbiote suit that should be familiar to fans of the comics, films, and cartoons. The PlayStation 5 game is still a few months away from release, but Hot Toys has already revealed a stunning figure based on Peter Parker's black costume. The figure comes with a ton of accessories, and Sideshow Collectibles even has an exclusive head featuring Spider-Man's normal mask mid-transformation, as the Symbiote surrounds it. The bad news is the figure will set fans back a cool $305 before taxes and shipping.

An image of the Hot Toys Sixth Scale Peter Parker (Black Costume) figure can be found below. Readers interested in pre-ordering it can do so right here.

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(Photo: Hot Toys)

From everything shown thus far, it seems Marvel's Spider-Man 2 will loosely adapt elements of the Venom saga. Peter will start out as the one wearing the Symbiote suit, but will abandon it at some point in the game after it starts making him increasingly aggressive (which we've seen in footage). Eventually the Symbiote will find a new host, though PlayStation and Insomniac Games have yet to officially reveal who will become the game's Venom. While Marvel's Spider-Man 2 will feature several villains (including Kraven and the Lizard), Venom seems to be the primary one, just as Doctor Octopus was in the first game.

Obviously, this is a pretty penny to spend on a figure, especially when there are already a lot of cool tie-in items for Marvel's Spider-Man 2. Console covers and a special DualSense controller based on the game both went up for pre-order a few days ago, though the Console Covers quickly sold out. Of course, there's also the game's collector's edition, which features a statue of Peter and Miles fighting Venom. With all of these cool items, most fans are going to have to be picky about which ones they pre-order!

Do you plan on snagging this figure? Are you planning to pick-up Marvel's Spider-Man 2 when it releases on October 20th? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!

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Marvel Reveals Fantastic Four's The Thing as Venom in New Preview https://comicbook.com/comics/news/the-thing-venom-suit-symbiote-what-if-dark-venom-1-preview/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 23:59:00 +0000 Adam Barnhardt 282e4f16-6a9d-4a7d-8b50-032686da9f1c
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Secret Invasion Director Reveals the Two Things Marvel Told Him To Set Up for the MCU https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-director-two-things-marvel-told-set-up-mcu/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 22:50:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 733f00b5-42da-4835-93fb-b000d9b68e19

Secret Invasion has finally been released in full on Disney+, and while it definitely wasn't the best series that Marvel Studios released, it set up a lot of things that could become problematic for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel Studios released the series to mixed reviews, and by the time the series wrapped up all of its episodes, it had the worst rating for one of their series on the review aggregation site, Rotten Tomatoes. Secret Invasion does a lot of controversial things, but it mostly sets up The Marvels, which comes out later this year, and the upcoming Don Cheadle-led Armor Wars movie. It seems that Marvel Studios was mostly hands-off with the project but had two requests for director Ali Selim. In a new interview with TheWrap, Selim reveals that the higher-ups at the studios wanted two very specific things done to Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and James 'Rhodey' Rhodes (Cheadle) so that they could set up their next big appearances in the MCU.

"I didn't feel any constraints. All I was told is, Fury's got to go up. That was it," Selim revealed to the trade. "So we just had to have Fury go up at the end, and it would be great if Rhodey -- if his legs didn't work. And that's it."

What was Secret Invasion About?

Secret Invasion sets its focus on MCU veterans Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Talos (Mendelsohn) as they handle an invasion of shape-shifting Skrulls who have infiltrated all aspects of life on Earth. Other MCU alumni that show up in the series will include Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill, Cheadle as James "Rhodey" Rhodes / War Machine, and Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross. New cast members will include Emilia Clarke, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Olivia Colman, Carmen Ejogo, Christopher McDonald, Dermot Mulroney, and Killian Scott. The series will be written and executive produced by Kyle Bradstreet, and directed by Thomas Bezucha and Ali Selim.

All episodes of Secret Invasion are exclusively streaming on Disney+. Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on Secret Invasion and the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we learn them!

What do you think about the Secret Invasion director's comments? Are you satisfied with the series or do you thin it could have been better? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Marvel Announces Secret Wars: Battleworld https://comicbook.com/comics/news/marvel-super-heroes-secret-wars-battleworld-comic-series/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 22:03:00 +0000 Jamie Lovett ab7585a1-9ff6-4a59-b8ea-433d0eebd4b6

Marvel is returning to Battleworld for the 40th anniversary of the classic Secret Wars series. Created by Jim Shooter, Mike Zeck, and Bob Layton and first published by Marvel in 1984, the original Secret Wars pit Marvel's heroes and villains against the seemingly omnipotent Beyonder, setting the bar for decades of Marvel event series that followed. Marvel will celebrate that legacy with the four-issue Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars: Battleworld, beginning in November. As announced at San Diego Comic-Con, former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Tom DeFalco, who worked as the editor overseeing the first Secret Wars, returns to Marvel to write the series, joined by artist Pat Oliffe.

Secret Wars: Battleworld will reveal secrets from the first Secret Wars event, including "revelations beyond the Beyonder's true motives, shocking appearances by characters that you didn't even know fought in the Secret Wars, and more." With Marvel heroes Spider-Man and the Human Torch cast in the lead roles, Secret Wars: Battleworld is designed to fit within Marvel continuity and between the pages of the original Marvel Comics event. Here's the synopsis from Marvel:

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(Photo: Giuseppe Camuncoli, Marvel Comics)

"The mysteries of the Secret Wars deepen! Get ready for an all-new cataclysmic battle from when Spider-Man first got his alien costume and a mysterious being called the Beyonder assembled super heroes and villains from Earth to do battle on a patchwork planet. Witness now an untold adventure set during the original Secret Wars!

"Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars set the standard for Marvel Comics events (as well as action figures and the characters existing at the forefront of pop culture), and this new story will at last reveal some secret connections and missing characters going back to the original series! What secret test are the Beyonders conducting...and how will Spider-Man, the Human Torch and the whole cast determine the fate of the universe? (PLUS: Surprise super villain appearances inside!)"

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(Photo: Pat Oliffe, Marvel Comics)
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(Photo: Francesco Mobili, Marvel Comics)

In a press release, DeFalco says, "Pat Olliffe and I were handed a daunting creative challenge. We were asked to do a sequel/new tale of a classic Marvel story that first saw print 40 years ago and created ripples that are still felt throughout the universe today. Since we share a kinship with a certain web-swinger (and his family), we were also compelled to do a story that ripped to his core and defined his unique place in the Marvel Universe while examining the budding relationship with his new black costume. With the aid of editors Mark Basso and Drew Baumgartner, Pat and I constructed a tale that we believe has repercussions for today's readers and creative ripples that we hope will still be felt 40 years from now."

Editor Mark Basso adds, "The original Secret Wars was so multi-dimensional, it's been thrilling to add new dimensions to the saga! While the new story fully stands alone, I can tease that the connection to the original Secret Wars goes even further than just the comics pages...Old-school fans will know what I'm talking about...!"

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(Photo: Ryan Stegman, Marvel Comics)
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(Photo: Todd Nauck, Marvel Comics)

Secret Wars: Battleworld #1 goes on sale on November 22nd. See covers to the issue, including an homage variant by Ryan Stegman, the first in a series of connecting covers by Todd Nauck, and a cover by Olliffe above.

MARVEL SUPER HEROES SECRET WARS: BATTLEWORLD #1 (OF 4)

  • Written by TOM DEFALCO
  • Art by PAT OLLIFFE
  • Cover by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI
  • Variant Cover by PAT OLLIFFE
  • Variant Cover by FRANCESCO MOBILI
  • Homage Variant Cover by RYAN STEGMAN
  • Virgin Homage Variant Cover by RYAN STEGMAN
  • Connecting Variant Cover by TODD NAUCK
  • On Sale 11/22
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Secret Invasion Director Comments on Major Characters' MCU Returns https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-director-comments-on-major-characters-mcu-returns/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 20:45:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 3b32ae65-974c-4978-b4b8-22bdcd72f4fa

Marvel Studios finally wrapped up their latest miniseries this week with the big finale of Secret Invasion arriving on Disney+, and fans are kind of confused about what happens. Secret Invasion was released to mixed reviews, but by the time the series ended, it had the worst score for a Marvel Studios project ever on Rotten Tomatoes. It's pretty clear that fans are facing Marvel fatigue, and the studio is going to have to do a lot of work to repair the damage that has been done to their brand. During the finale of Secret Invasion, we see G'iah (Emilia Clarke) get all the powers of the Avengers, and she takes on and defeats Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir). The series leaves both the fates of G'iah and Sonya (Olivia Colman) open-ended, and we don't know where we could see them next in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In a new interview with TheWrap, director Ali Selim commented on both characters futures, and it sounds like we will indeed be seeing them again in the MCU.

"For me, the Olivia Colman/Emilia Clarke, Sonya/G'iah moment at the end, I think it does set up something really potentially interesting," Selim revealed to the trade in a new interview. "But I think it's also a lovely resolution to the story. And if they never show up in the MCU again, I feel fulfilled."

What is Secret Invasion About?

Secret Invasion centers around MCU veterans Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Talos (Mendelsohn) as they deal with an invasion of shape-shifting Skrulls who have infiltrated all aspects of life on Earth. Other MCU veterans will include Smulders as Maria Hill, Don Cheadle as James "Rhodey" Rhodes / War Machine, and Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross. New cast members will include Emilia Clarke, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Olivia Colman, Carmen Ejogo, Christopher McDonald, Dermot Mulroney, and Killian Scott. The series will be written and executive produced by Kyle Bradstreet, and directed by Thomas Bezucha and Ali Selim.

All episodes of Secret Invasion are exclusively streaming on Disney+. Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on Secret Invasion and the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we learn them!

What do you think about Ali Selim's comments? Do you want to see these characters again in the MCU? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Seth Rogen Reveals Why He Doesn't Work With Marvel or DC https://comicbook.com/movies/news/seth-rogen-reveals-doesnt-work-marvel-dc/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 20:26:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 54d8c1fa-2cc2-4a0b-bb68-84b895ecd7ae

Seth Rogen has been crushing the production game with projects like The Boys and even the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, so you'd think that he and Evan Goldberg would want to move to the major leagues. If you thought that the producing duo would want to work on a Marvel Studios or DC Studios project, then you would be wrong. Rogen has been doing promotion for his upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, and he was asked a bunch of interesting questions, like if he'd want to adapt a Grant Morrison comic book. Now, it seems that he's being asked why he hasn't worked with Marvel or DC. In a new interview with Polygon, Rogen revealed that he doesn't want to work with the two companies and his reasons why.

"Honestly, probably fear. [laughs] We really have a pretty specific way we work; me and Evan have been writers for 20 years at this point," Rogen told the website. "It's a fear of the process, honestly. And I say that knowing nothing about the process. There are a lot of Marvel things I love. It's mostly a fear of how would we plug into the system they have in place, which seems like a very good system, and a system that serves them very well. But is it a system that we would ultimately get really frustrated with? And what's nice about [Mutant Mayhem] is that we're the producers of this. So we dictated the system, and we dictated the process in a lot of ways. And that's what's also appealing for us about The Boys and the other bigger franchise-y type things we've done, is that we are creating the infrastructure and process for them, not plugging into someone else's infrastructure and process. We're control freaks!"

Seth Rogen Says Marvel Studios Movies are for Children

Rogen recently revealed in an interview with Total Film that Marvel Studios movies were geared towards kids and weren't for him.

"I think that Kevin Feige is a brilliant guy, and I think a lot of the filmmakers he's hired to make these movies are great filmmakers," Rogen said in a recent interview. "But as someone who doesn't have children... It is [all] kind of geared towards kids, you know? There are times where I will forget. I'll watch one of these things, as an adult with no kids, and be like, 'Oh, this is just not for me.'"

Rogen's next big movie will be Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem and it's set to hit theaters on August 2nd. Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on Seth Rogen, Marvel Studios and DC Studios as we learn them!

What do you think about Seth Rogen's comments? Would you want him to produce a Marvel or DC project? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Oppenheimer Star Cillian Murphy Comments on Doctor Doom Casting https://comicbook.com/movies/news/oppenheimer-cillian-murphy-comments-doctor-doom-casting/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 19:35:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail a93377fa-bc56-4242-8f6b-f1db67018d68

Cillian Murphy has had a pretty great career since appearing in the 28 Days Later franchise, and he has been in so many beloved franchises since then. Murphy has appeared as Jonathan Crane and Scarecrow in The Dark Knight trilogy and even led the hit series Peaky Blinders. The actor is finally leading a major Christopher Nolan movie with Oppenheimer, and the film is finally in theaters, so the actor has been doing interviews for it. Before the SAG-AFTRA strike began, Murphy made an appearance on Josh Horowitz's Happy Sad Confused podcast, where he commented on playing The Fantastic Four's arch nemesis, Doctor Doom, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"It's always about the script... You never know," Murphy revealed on the podcast. "This business is so unpredictable and wild... You never know what's gonna turn up."

Marvel Studios President Says The Fantastic Four Will be Major Part of the MCU

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige is really excited about the future of the MCU, and he recently revealed that The Fantastic Four will be a big pillar in their films going forward.

"Well, we talked a little bit about Secret Wars. We talked about [Avengers: The] Kang Dynasty as related to [Ant-Man and the Wasp:] Quantumania. The only other one in terms of me personally and my 23-year history is the Fantastic Four," Feige recently revealed. "We sort of talked about mutants and that whole aspect to the Marvel world, but Fantastic Four is the foundation for everything that came after in the comics. There's certainly been versions of it [on screen], but never inhabiting the storytelling of the MCU. And that's something that is really exciting for us. People will start to hear more about that soon. We plan on that being a big pillar of the MCU going forward, just the way they've been in the comics for 50 or 60 years."

WandaVision's Matt Shakman is set to direct the film with no word on who will star as the titular characters. Although, there are a bunch of rumored castings floating around the web. Fantastic Four is currently expected to hit theaters in May 2, 2025.

Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on Cillian Murphy and Doctor Doom as we learn them!

What do you think about Cillian Murphy's comments? Would you want to see the Oppenheimer star as Victor Von Doom / Doctor Doom in Marvel Studios' upcoming Fantastic Four reboot? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Marvel Announces Howard the Duck 50th-Anniversary Special https://comicbook.com/comics/news/howard-the-duck-marvel-50th-anniversary-special/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 16:12:00 +0000 Jamie Lovett 16c6db39-b9c4-4798-b7a9-6515f58209ab

Marvel Comics will celebrate Howard the Duck's 50th anniversary with a special one-shot in November. Steve Gerber and Val Mayerik introduced the cult-favorite comics character into the Marvel Universe in Adventure into Fear #19, published in 1973. Chip Zdarsky and Joe Quinones, the acclaimed creative team who worked on the 2015 Howard the Duck series, will reunite for the oversized Howard the Duck #1 one-shot. Additional writers and artists will also contribute to the issue, each offering their unique takes on the beloved Marvel character. In a press release, Marvel says that Zdarsky and Quinones' story "will get into the nitty-gritty of the private-eye's hectic history with a feather-raising journey through the Howard-verse!" The other stories will examine paths not taken in Howard the Duck's history. Here's the synopsis from Marvel:

"Meet Howard. He's a hard-boiled P.I. with problems by the duckload. But a cosmic, all-seeing friend(?) known as the Peeper(!) is giving him a chance to see what his life COULD be! The joys he COULD have! All the ways his life COULD suck way less than it does now! In other words: 'Whaugh If?'"

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(Photo: Ed McGuinness, Marvel Comics)

Marvel also detailed some of the other Howard the Duck #1 stories. They follow:

  • Emmy-nominated writer and comedian Daniel Kibblesmith and acclaimed artist Annie Wu put Howard in the Oval Office! Inspired by a classic tale from Steve Gerber and Gene Colan's 70s run, Howard the Duck has been sworn in as President. Find out how gutsy he is as Commander in Chief when the Earth is invaded by aliens in this startling political satire!
  • Popular video game designer and writer Merritt K makes her Marvel Comics debut alongside artist Will Robson with a cosmic comedy that sees Howard the Duck leaving the chaos of Earth behind to take over as leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy! Playing Star-Lord is all fun and games for Howard until some of his most iconic classic villains band together to take him out once and for all!
  • And more!

Howard the Duck led a 1986 movie produced by Star Wars creator George Lucas that fared poorly at the box office. Howard has also made Marvel Cinematic Universe appearances in Marvel Studios' Guardians of the Galaxy movies and the What If..? animated series voiced by Seth Green. Lea Thompson, who starred Beverly Switzler in the Howard the Duck movie, in 2018 stated that she hoped to see Howard the Duck fully rebooted by Marvel, citing the excellence of Zdarsky and Quinones' run on the comic as inspiration.

"I worked on the pitch for a really long time and I had the help of Chip Zdarsky and Joe Quinones and they had done a run of Howard the Duck, the last run of Howard the Duck, and they put me in it, Lea Thompson," Thompson said. "And it was really great, so I asked them for help and Joe drew some drawings and Chip and I worked on the pitch and we did it in Marvel and they really liked it. They loved it, actually. But they were like, 'We have no plans for these things, and we're doing the streaming thing, and we'll call you back.' So tweet away, guys!"

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(Photo: Ron Lim, Marvel Comics)

Tim Robbins, who also starred in the 1986 Howard the Duck movie, recently spoke to ComicBook.com and revealed what it would take to get him on board for a reboot. "Depends on the casting of the duck," Robbins said. "I need that gruff guy. I need the cigar-chomping rude boy. That's what I want in Howard the Duck."

Marvel also celebrated Howard the Duck's 50th anniversary earlier this year by releasing a series of Howard the Duck variant covers across its titles in February, March, and April. You can see Ed McGuinness' main cover and Ron Lim's variant for Howard the Duck #1 above. Howard the Duck's 50th-anniversary comic book special goes on sale on November 29th.

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They Cloned Tyrone's Teyonah Parris Shares Link To Her Marvel Character https://comicbook.com/movies/news/they-cloned-tyrone-teyonah-parris-marvel-link-monica-rambeau/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 15:23:00 +0000 Aaron Perine ddff70be-66f5-44ba-931d-8b4ce34e8c48

The Marvels star Teyonah Parris shared that there's a common thread between Monica Rambeau and Yo-Yo. The Washington Post caught up with the superhero actress to talk about everyday heroism and bringing that vision to screen. Parris recognizes that some people might see her sex worker character in They Cloned Tyrone as a harmful stereotype. But, the actress thinks there's some power for the everyday woman in Yo-Yo's resourcefulness. She's the power behind the narrative in the Netflix movie and her companions would be absolutely lost without her. Parris hopes that viewers can appreciate her depiction of heroes that might not match up with the vision of what you think about in your head.

"I wanted to be a superhero. I wanted to be telling the stories of marginalized women who are superheroes," Parris began. "These are the women who are actually in our communities. There should be space to see their humanity even though it might not look nice and clean and pretty, but they get the job done, as Black women do."

Becoming A Superhero, In Parris's Own Words

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(Photo: Marvel Studios)

During a recent appearance at Essence's Hollywood House, the Marvel star thanked the fans for being the driving force behind her time in the MCU. On social media, people kept fanqasting her as Monica Rambeau until it happened in real life! That's a wild path to this point, but it makes a ton of sense when you think about it. (Simu Liu had a similar path to Shang-Chi and mentioned it previously too.) Check out how she addressed the fan support right here.

"I feel like it was the audience and the fans who did it in the first place," Parris said. "I had never heard of Monica Rambeau until people started tagging me on Twitter years ago saying you'd be adult Monica Rambeau. I'm like, Who's that? Because I wanted to be a superhero. 'Let me look her up,' and I looked her up and I'm like, 'Yes, I think so too.'"

She added, "So, when it actually happened and manifested itself, I've been stunned and shocked. And, the fans have been so supportive and so loving. And I feel like it's them who actually helped to bring my dream. And yeah, my visions to life."

Parris's WandaVision Role Also Drew on Older TV and Film

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(Photo: Marvel Studios)

Back in the WandaVision days, audiences were introduced to Monica Rambeau through the sitcom conceit of the show. In a previous interview with Shadow and Act, Parris explained how her Geraldine character was inspired by Willona from Good Times. It seems like the focus on that 70s style and affectation served her well in They Cloned Tyrone as well. During the conversation with the outlet, she also name-dropped Thelma from the show as an inspiration.

Just like in WandaVision, the Netflix movie also takes some time to tweak the stereotypes that those kinds of characters draw upon. (However, the Disney+ show comes from a much more network-friendly sensibility than the Blacksploitation roots clearly showing in They Cloned Tyrone.) Getting those kinds of shows to be mentioned alongside I Love Lucy or The Brady Bunch mattered to Parris. She said, "Well, then I did my job! Because, that was my main inspiration. Willona, a little bit of Thelma. But, mostly Willona was who I was studying for that time period."

Did you love her performance in the Netflix favorite? Let us know down in the comments!

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Kamala Khan Joins the X-Men in Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant Preview https://comicbook.com/comics/news/ms-marvel-new-mutant-1-preview-kamala-khan-comics-actress-death-costume/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 14:38:00 +0000 Jamie Lovett 691386e0-c0b7-463a-b210-c24168f1390d
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Marvel's Daredevil Confirms First Details of New Comic Series https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/marvels-daredevil-first-details-new-comic-series-elektra/ Sat, 29 Jul 2023 03:12:00 +0000 Spencer Perry bdf3e6a8-54d9-4115-b78f-7e93b87c1577
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Spider-Man: No Way Home Almost Featured a Hobgoblin Reference https://comicbook.com/movies/news/spider-man-no-way-home-almost-featured-hobgoblin-reference/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 22:59:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 848563d8-ce5b-4e14-b4cc-6f8ecbbe0123

It has been quite some time since the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, and some fans are still gushing about how the film handled multiverse storytelling better than recent movies that attempted to do the same thing, like The Flash or Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Spider-Man: No Way Home made over $1 billion at the box office and solidified Spider-Man as a force at the box office. Yesterday, we posted some new concept art from The Art of Spider-Man: No Way Home that shows the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) wearing Iron Man's armor, and now there has been something even more interesting that's been released. Another new piece of concept art that comes from the same book shows that the film could have featured a Hobgoblin reference with Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon).

You can check out the Spider-Man: No Way Home "Hobgoblin" concept art below.

Spider-Man: No Way Home Star Apologized for Spreading Hobgoblin Rumors

Previously, Batalon apologized for spreading the rumor that he would become the Hobgoblin in the franchise when he had not.

"You know, I'd just like to say, I'm really sorry, everyone," Batalon revealed. "I did this really stupid thing back in 2016 and mentioned it in an interview. And then I stupidly just continued with the story as if like I knew what was going to happen. And now everyone is talking about it. And I just--I'm sorry for all the misinformation..."

What happens in Spider-Man: No Way Home?

Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures describe the film as: "In Spider-Man: No Way Home, for the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a Super Hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange, the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man."

The film stars Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau, Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire, J.K. Simmons, Jamie Foxx, Alfred Molina, Thomas Haden Church, Rhys Ifans and Willem Dafoe.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is currently available on 4K, Blu Ray, and digital download! Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on the Spider-Man franchise as we learn it!

What do you think about the Spider-Man: No Way Home concept art? Are you mad that they didn't get to do this Hobgoblin reference in the film? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @NateBrail up on Twitter!??

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Sony's Venom 3 Release Date Confirmed https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/sonys-venom-3-release-date-confirmed/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 22:00:00 +0000 Jamie Jirak 1a7f6b74-dc09-4be7-8fae-74b8c84d83e8

Sony announced huge changes to their release schedule today ranging from Kraven the Hunter being delayed a year to removing Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse from their release calendar. These big changes also came with some first-time release date news, including the date for the upcoming Venom 3. The threequel is currently untitled, but it's heading to theaters next year. According to Sony's latest announcement, the Marvel Comics film will be released on July 12, 2024.

We'll be interested to see if the next Venom film holds its release date considering the production was recently halted due to the SAG strike. You can read the current description for Venom 3 here: "Tom Hardy returns as the lethal protector Venom for the third installment of the series, which will be directed by Kelly Marcel who also wrote the screenplay with the story by Marcel and Hardy. Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Amy Pascal, Kelly Marcel, Tom Hardy and Hutch Parker are producing."

Who Stars in Venom 3?

In addition to the return of Hardy, Venom 3 will also feature Chiwetel Ejiofor (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness) and Juno Temple (Ted Lasso) in undisclosed roles.

"These things [usually] come in threes," Hardy explained in a previous interview with Digital Spy. "If there's going to be a new one - and they depend heavily on the success of each individual one, so you can't count on them ever happening again - every one has got to be as if it was the last one. But I think it's really important, if you go into something, thinking that one, two and three are the same... the same story, the same film. So that you don't surprise yourself by being caught out by suddenly having to do a third from nowhere. There's got to be some continuity into a third and fourth and fifth, and if somebody says 'no', that's fine. Let it go, and you move on to something else."

Sony's New Release Schedule:

  • Gran Turismo (Columbia Pictures) - August 25, 2023
  • Untitled Bad Boys Sequel (Columbia Pictures) - June 14, 2024
  • Untitled Venom Sequel (Columbia Pictures) - July 12, 2024
  • Madame Web (Columbia Pictures) - February 14, 2024
  • Untitled Ghostbusters Sequel (Columbia Pictures) - March 29, 2024
  • Kraven the Hunter (Columbia Pictures) - August 30, 2024
  • Karate Kid (Columbia Pictures) - December 13, 2024
  • Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse (Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Animation) - TBD
  • They Listen (Columbia Pictures/Blumhouse) - TBD

How do you feel about these release date shifts? Tell us in the comments!

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Secret Invasion Series Finale Review and Breakdown, Spider-Man 4, and X-Men '97 | Phase Zero https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/secret-invasion-series-finale-review-spider-man-4-x-men-97-phase-zero/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 21:30:00 +0000 Brandon Davis 90912cfc-8002-4373-82cf-1678888d137a

Following the finale of Secret Invasion, ComicBook.com's Phase Zero podcast recorded its latest episode. The new episode of the Marvel-centric podcast series featured an entire breakdown and review of the Secret Invasion finale and series. In the first half of the episode, Phase Zero's crew of Brandon Davis, Jamie Jirak, Aaron Perine, and Jenna Andersn discussed the latest Marvel news which included a hot new rumor about Spider-Man 4 with Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire.

The crew has mixed feelings about Secret Invasion as a whole. Following the splash some of the show's major decisions have made on social media, this is the perfect time to tune in and see what the longtime fans and experts had to say about the show's final episode immediately after it aired. Other topics in the episode included the WandaVision steelbook which is being released in limited edition form without any discs or the show and a recap of San Diego Comic-Con's Marvel news, complete with a breakdown and reaction to the first footage from X-Men '97.

The new episode of Phase Zero runs for a little more than an hour. It was broadcast live on the official Phase Zero YouTube channel before being made available on all major podcast platforms. Links can be found below.

Why is Phase Zero the Best MCU Podcast for you?

Launching on January 15, 2021, Phase Zero made its goal of building a fun and welcoming community of Marvel fans clear. In the time since, more than 2,000,000 listens across platforms and countless comments from listeners and viewers, the community has become one which celebrates the Marvel fandom and regularly engages in conversation about past and future titles. Having connected fans with some of their favorite actors, provided expert knowledge on upcoming titles, and analysis with comparisons to comics, Phase Zero is the one-stop podcast for all things Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Throughout 2021 and 2022, Phase Zero has continued to innovate its content and provide a fun. Hosted by Brandon Davis, Jenna Anderson, Aaron Perine, and Jamie Jirak, the Phase Zero podcast has featured dozens of exciting guests from the Marvel family. WandaVision director Matt Shakman, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier director Kari Skogland, Loki director Kate Herron, What If...?'s creative team of A.C. Bradley and Bryan Andrews, Black Widow writer Eric Pearson, Eternals producer Nate Moore, Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton and star Simu Liu, Moon Knight executive producer Grant Curtis, Marvel Studios prop master Russell Bobbitt, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness costume designer Graham Churchyard, cast members from the She-Hulk series, Venom director Ruben Fleischer, Venom 2 director Andy Serkis, and more have been featured in full-length interviews, along with a trivia episode, a dive into plot holes, and anticipation rankings!

Phase Zero invites you to celebrate all things Marvel, hosting a weekly conversation of theories, speculation, and exclusive interviews and insights. It's the number one spot for MCU fans, welcoming those new to it all and those who think they know it all! New episodes are recorded live on Youtube every Wednesday at 12pm ET before being made available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, and wherever podcasts can be found. For updates regarding the Phase Zero podcast, follow the official Phase Zero account on Twitter!

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Sony Delays Kraven the Hunter, Moves Up Madame Web Release Date https://comicbook.com/movies/news/sony-delays-kraven-the-hunter-moves-madame-web-release/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 21:24:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 67f50a7d-d85f-4347-a153-94d8e43ad955

With everything going on with the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, the film industry is at a standstill. Actors aren't able to promote any of the films that they have already starred in, and it's forcing studios to go to drastic measures. It seems that Sony Pictures is being hit so hard by the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike that it is being forced to delay one project and move up another. The studio revealed today that Kraven the Hunter has been delayed one whole year from October 6, 2023, to August 30, 2024, and Madame Web will be moving up from its February 16, 2024, date to February 14, 2024.

What Is Kraven the Hunter About?

In Kraven the Hunter, Russian immigrant Sergei Kravinoff is on a mission to prove that he is the greatest hunter in the world. The film will star Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Sergei Kravinoff / Kraven, Arana DeBose as Calypso, and Fred Heichinger as Dmitri Smerdyakov / Chameleon. Christopher Abbott, Alessandro Nivola, Russell Crowe, and Levi Miller have been cast in currently-unknown roles.

"He is a hunter and from that world of hunting and there's so many aspects," Taylor-Johnson told ComicBook.com in a previous interview. "What I love about that character is that what is he humanizing is that he has flaws, right? Kraven is a beautiful character. Sergei Kravinov is a beautiful character because it's someone who's really understanding themselves and has flaws. This is a character that was built ages ago and it's in a new time and era, but yeah, is he going to be the hunter that we all want to see? Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely."

What is the Madame Web movie about?

Madame Web will follow the origin story of its titular character, who will be played by Dakota Johnson, a clairvoyant whose psychic abilities allow her to see within the spider world itself. The film is being directed by Jessica Jones helmer S.J. Clarkson, and will also star Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, Celeste O'Connor, Emma Roberts, Zosia Mamet, Mike Epps, and Adam Scott.

Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on Kraven the Hunter and Madame Web as we learn them!

What do you think about Sony's recent release date changes? Are you excited for Kraven the Hunter and Madame Web? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Sony Removes Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse From Release Calendar https://comicbook.com/movies/news/sony-removes-spider-man-beyond-the-spider-verse-release-calendar/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 21:17:00 +0000 Jenna Anderson e4477f42-fa25-4878-871e-4862d941e973

The highly-anticipated Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse just got hit with a major delay. On Friday, Sony Pictures announced that Beyond the Spider-Verse currently does not have a date on their upcoming release date calendar. The film was previously slotted to debut on March 29, 2024, a date that will now be occupied by the untitled Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel. This wasn't the only change that Sony made to its Sony's Spider-Man Universe, with Kraven the Hunter delayed a full year from October 6, 2023 to August 30, 2024; Madame Web moved up from February 16, 2024 to February 14, 2024; and Venom 3 officially dated for July 12, 2024.

These Sony changes mark the first release date moves from a major studio amid the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors' strike, which went into effect earlier this month.

Why Is Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse Getting Delayed?

Earlier this year, just following the release of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, reports came out claiming that Beyond the Spider-Verse would get delayed, amid allegations of production troubles and artists and animators claiming that virtually no work had been done. As producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller recently told ComicBook.com, the goal is to make sure Spider-Verse is handled right, as opposed to hitting a certain release date.

"I would say that just like we're going to take the time necessary to make Beyond the Spider-Verse great," Lord said before Miller concluded their answer. "And we won't back into a release date that doesn't fit."

What is Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse About?

Beyond the Spider-Verse is expected to deal with the fallout of the cliffhanger ending of Across the Spider-Verse, with Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) stuck on an alternate universe with a more villainous version of himself (Jharrel Jerome).

"Here's what I can promise, and I said it about the second one when we were in the middle of it: Phil Lord, Chris Miller, everybody, the producers on this, the directors they're going to bring in ... What they did on the first one is all the directors became executive producers. So they just keep adding to it. What I can promise is they are not going to stop until it's excellent," Peter B. Parker actor Jake Johnson confirmed to ComicBook.com. "And if that means it takes a little bit longer, if that means it's even bigger, if that means it's longer -- they don't play by anybody's rules. They work really hard. As actors in it, we're always shocked that we get called in to record on this last one. I think it was a month before it screened, where we could not believe we were still recording. So they're not going to quit until it's great and I have nothing but faith in them. But in terms of giving anything away [about the story], can't do it."

What do you think of Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse officially getting delayed? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

This story is developing...

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ComicBook Nation: Haunted Mansion & The Witcher Season 3 Part 2 Reviews https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/disney-haunted-mansion-twisted-metal-tv-reviews-secret-invasion-finale-ratings/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 20:52:00 +0000 Kofi Outlaw 27d3b504-6add-4e9b-9168-395c9f3b6588

The ComicBook Nation Crew recaps Marvel's Secret Invasion Finale, reviews Disney's Haunted Mansion movie, Peacock's Twisted Metal TV series, and the epic conclusion to The Witcher Season 3. We also look at Invincible Season 2's Atom Eve Special, preview WWE NXT's Great American Bash, and dive into this week's biggest comics!

Haunted Mansion Review

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(Photo: Walt Disney Studios)

In his review of Disney Haunted Mansion (2023), ComicBook.com critic Charlie Ridgley says:

Disney's new take on Haunted Mansion was always going to have its work cut out for it, thanks to the ill will earned from the 2003 film. Some wondered if the attraction was somehow unadaptable without Guillermo del Toro (who was once attached to helm the project). Enter the team of director Justin Simien and screenwriter Kate Dippold, who have made questions about Haunted Mansion's adaptability feel rather silly. Their Haunted Mansion movie is a breath of fresh air for everyone who has grown tired of Disney's lifeless live-action output of late, as well as die-hard Haunted Mansion ride fans who have been begging to see a film actually give the attraction the love it deserves.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Twisted Metal Review

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In his review of Peacock's Twisted Metal TV series, gamer/critic Cade Onder said the following:

Twisted Metal is a very charming show that manages to accomplish a lot in its ten 30-minute episodes. There are tons of well-earned laughs, a diverse cast of eccentric characters with fleshed out and unique backstories, and a surprising amount of world-building. It's almost shocking that the show isn't longer, given everything it does and how well it pulls it all off. While there are some areas that suffer, such as the vehicular action scenes, everything else comes together in such a satisfying way that it makes Twisted Metal another very successful gaming adaptation.

Rating: 4 out of 5

BONUS ROUND: What's Going On With The MCU???

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(Photo: Producer Pete)

After the disappointments of the Secret Invasion Finale, the ComicBook Nation crew discusses what The Marvel Cinematic Universe needs to do in order to get back on track:

There are several additional ways you can subscribe and/or listen to ComicBook Nation, which are listed below:

  1. SUBSCRIBE to our Official YouTube Page
  2. Watch Us On Paramount+
  3. Listen via the media player embedded below.
  4. Check us out on Spotify or Stitcher
  5. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or iHeartRadio

Each episode has a deep dive into the current biggest discussion topics and debates within geek culture: movies, tv, comics, and video games are regular features, with genres like sci-fi, anime, and wrestling also featured regularly. The ONLY show covering ALL THINGS Geek Culture!

After every show we'll keep the discussion on Twitter:

Have thoughts to share? Want us to cover something on the show? Let us know in the comments!

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Secret Invasion Director Reveals Hilarious Deleted Scene (Exclusive) https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-director-reveals-hilarious-deleted-scene-exclusive/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 20:45:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 71a3aae2-29d6-4024-b2eb-13cfd8822fba

Secret Invasion has finally been unleashed on fans, and the final episode of the series leaves fans with more questions than answers. The Samuel L. Jackson-led Secret Invasion was released to mixed reactions, and it's very clear that there is Marvel fatigue. We see and learn a lot of things in Secret Invasion as it's revealed that James "Rhody" Rhodes (Don Cheadle) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) have both been swapped out and replaced with Skrulls for an unknown amount of time. But it also seems that there are a lot of other things that got removed from the series. ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis had the chance to speak with Secret Invasion director Ali Selim, where he revealed that there was a hilarious scene that got cut from the Disney+ series.

"There's a lot of stuff that doesn't make the final cut, and for me, it's true of any story that you're telling that you keep exploring the best way to tell that story," Selim revealed to us. "And part of that best way to tell that story means shooting certain things and then ultimately not using them because they are too much for the story, or we don't really need to know that, or it's diluting the thrust of the story. So there's a lot of stuff we shot that didn't end up in the final show, but all I can say is either it didn't really work, or it didn't really work for the rhythm of the show."

"The one thing that we really tried to put in, Ben Mendelsohn is a very musical guy, and he uses music to get him into the moment to get him focused on the scene. And a lot of times, he comes to set with a boombox blaring. A lot of times when we ask him to turn it off, he then continues singing that song, and he even climbs into the set into the car, onto the rail car, and he's still singing that song. And there were times where Sam would join him on an old Motown hit, and we have both sides of them singing an old Motown hit. And we tried to work it in. But it just felt with all the torture and mayhem and humanity and earth at stake, why would these two guys be singing old Motown? So things like that. And the other stuff, as I said, it just didn't serve the story." The Secret Invasion director added.

What happens in Secret Invasion?

Secret Invasion centers around MCU veterans Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Talos (Mendelsohn) as they deal with an invasion of shape-shifting Skrulls who have infiltrated all aspects of life on Earth. Other MCU veterans will include Smulders as Maria Hill, Don Cheadle as James "Rhodey" Rhodes / War Machine, and Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross. New cast members will include Emilia Clarke, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Olivia Colman, Carmen Ejogo, Christopher McDonald, Dermot Mulroney, and Killian Scott. The series will be written and executive produced by Kyle Bradstreet, and directed by Thomas Bezucha and Ali Selim.

All episodes of Secret Invasion are exclusively streaming on Disney+.

What do you think about Ali Selim's comments? Do you want to see the Secret Invasion deleted scenes? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Loki Season 2 Poster Features October Release Date and Miss Minutes https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/loki-season-2-poster-features-october-release-date-and-miss-minutes/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 20:28:00 +0000 Jamie Jirak 83404910-3cd0-40f6-8882-02342f6eee08

It's been two years since the first season of Loki came to an end, and the finale's post-credit scene confirmed it would be the first Marvel series on Disney+ to get a second season. The show stars Tom Hiddleston as the titular character, a role he first played in Thor back in 2011. Earlier this year, fans got a glimpse at the upcoming season of Loki during the post-credit scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and now everyone is waiting for the first trailer to drop. Today, the series released a new poster that is sure to please fans of Miss MInutes (Tara Strong). Hopefully, this means a trailer is right around the corner.

"T-minus 100,000 minutes until Loki Season 2 ?," Marvel Studios shared on Instagram. The new poster sees various versions of Loki circling a giant Miss Minutes, and confirms the show's October 6th release date. You can check out the new poster for Loki Season 2 below:

Owen Wilson Teases More Mobius Backstory in Loki Season 2:

Before the SAG strike, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Owen Wilson, and he teased that the new season will reveal more of Mobius' backstory.

"I thought I would have a good time but I really enjoyed it," Wilson says of his time on the first season of the show. "I've been lucky working on a million movies and always having a good time but on that one, I had a really great time and that continued on Season Two. Maybe even moreso because we were filming in London and being there at Pinewood but yeah, [his story] just goes deeper."

What Is Loki Season 2 About?

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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The MCU's Biggest Retcons: Rhodey's Skrull Timeline, The Real Mandarin and More https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/marvel-cinematic-unvierse-biggest-retcons-rhodey-skrull-real-mandarin/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 20:13:00 +0000 Liam Crowley 6c5b24be-686d-4b3c-8a30-b12317d04548
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Secret Invasion Stars Cobie Smulders and Ben Mendelsohn React to Their Shocking Fates https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-talos-maria-hill-cobie-smulders-ben-mendelsohn-react-death/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 19:13:00 +0000 Aaron Perine 018d02e5-2842-458c-a4c8-2d95aa283a8f

Secret Invasion stars Cobie Smulders and Ben Mendelsohn reacted to their respective fates during a new Marvel Studios video. As the series came to a close, the company pre-recorded the cast's reactions to the finale. Neither Cobie Smulders or Ben Mendelsohn make it out of the Skrull invasion alive. So, that's kind of weird. Fans in the comments of the video were overjoyed that the actress got to say her peace after such a long run in the MCU. It feels well-deserved. Mendelsohn decided to take a much more comedic tone in his response.

He joked that "well, most of us did" when joking about the finale. Sadly it seems like Talos and Maria Hill are gone for the moment. A bunch of the viewers are going to have to see what becomes of the other Skrulls as the MCU continues onward. There are reports that Cobie Smulders appears in The Marvels, but the studio has not commented on them. Although groundwork was laid for the future, saying goodbye to the past is hard.

Is Talos Really Gone?

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Secret Invasion director Ali Selim sat down with ComicBook.com Phase Zero Marvel podcast host Brandon Davis to breakdown that finale. Talos' loss was a big blow for some fans. Mendelsohn is one heck of an actor, so losing him feels bad. But, one thing about Marvel Studios and comics in general is that they're always going to find a way to nod back to earlier events. Heck, Talos could be in Secret Wars for all we know.

"They cremated his body in episode five. This story does take place in 2023, 2024, so I can totally see a Nick Fury story that takes place prior to this where who knows who's going to show up, and if a story takes place after 2023, 2024, anything's possible in the MCU," Selim said. "They'll come up with a reason why he's back. I don't really know what the ultimate plan was other than it really makes for a gut-wrenching, isolating story for Nick Fury within the walls of these six episodes."

Cobie Smulders Says Goodbye

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Cobie Smulders has been a Marvel favorite for a long time here. It legitimately shocked some members of the fandom when Maria Hill was killed during Episode 1 of Secret Invasion. She talked to Marvel.com about filming that scene. The actress expressed a ton of gratitude for the time she got to be in the MCU and hoped fans loved her work.

"It was emotional, it was scary. I was lucky enough that we were in this one location over the course of a couple of days shooting the entire sequence, so we got everything, the explosions, the running, the chasing, the Skrulls morphing, and all of that already. It was one of the last things that I did," Smulders began.

"I really loved my time working with Sam, I really enjoyed every moment that I have been able to play Maria, so I was sad, but I'm also just very grateful," she added. "When I signed on to do this 10 years ago, I didn't even think I got it after the audition. 'Well, that was fun. I didn't embarrass myself, but I definitely didn't get it,' I remember saying to my husband. So it's just really been an embarrassment of riches to be able to do all these jobs, and to go from film to TV to animated form. It's really been a magical journey. It was sort of a sad way to go, but I'm grateful for the time that I have had."

Were you surprised by either of these deaths? Let us know in the comments below!

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Xbox Game Pass Users Warn to Try Controversial Game Before It's Taken Away https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/xbox-game-pass-ultimate-marvels-avengers-game-leaving-soon/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 16:22:00 +0000 Tyler Fischer d91a7190-d40e-4741-a0f8-7d028983aa47

Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers across Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC are losing access to five games next week on July 31. Included in this batch of five games are some fairly notable titles, including a fairly controversial AAA game. If you haven't peeped the "Leaving Soon" section on Xbox Game Pass and you missed the announcement, which Xbox naturally promoted as little as possible, the following five games are leaving on July 31: Dreamscaper (Cloud, Console, and PC), Expeditions: Rome (PC), Marvel's Avengers (Cloud, Console, and PC), The Ascent (Cloud, Console, and PC), and Two Point Campus (Cloud, Console, and PC). Obviously, the "controversial" game here is Marvel's Avengers. And according to some Xbox Game Pass subscribers, you should play it before it's gone.

Three days isn't very long with a game, but it's a weekend and the game is only approximately 12-25 hours long, depending on your playstyle. If you're a completionist, you're going to need closer to 100 hours, but otherwise you can see the game over the weekend before it leaves on Monday.

"I must be in the minority because I very much enjoyed my time with the Avengers campaign," writes one Xbox Game Pass Reddit user. "Characters are well acted, the story is good, the combat is flashy and fun (albeit a little hollow). As soon as it was over and it went to the whole "live service" thing I stopped, but it's a fun romp if you're looking for an action game to play."

"I thought the main campaign was good. the end you could see it transforming from the original vision from a gameplay standpoint as it became more objective base," adds a second Reddit user. "However, I would say the main campaign is worth it and its not very long. I wouldn't go beyond the campaign. The black panther DLC was fairly good too."

Of course, everyone's milage with the game is going to vary. For every Xbox Game Pass subscriber saying it's worth checking out the main campaign before it departs the subscription service others are saying it's not worth the time. For what it's worth, we enjoyed our time with the flawed Marvel game that was so contentious it has a "controversies" section on Wikipedia.

"Marvel's Avengers did what it set out to do, which was to create a cinema-worthy story that explores the impact of not only the Avengers but heroes as a whole, all through the eyes of someone they helped inspire, and if you don't love Kamala Khan by the end of this you simply have no soul," reads a snippet from our official review of the game. "Marvel's Avengers has some things to improve and some bugs to fix for sure, but the pure joy of slinging that shield, calling that hammer, and yelling 'embiggen' along the way was infectious, and I think you'll get a kick out of it too. Avengers Assemble, indeed."

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The Marvels Gets a Huge Wave of Funko Pops https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/the-marvels-gets-a-huge-wave-of-funko-pops/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 16:10:00 +0000 Sean Fallon 64396267-846b-4d67-9e89-630f34f2823d marvels-funko.jpg

The upcoming MCU film The Marvels was slated to hit theaters today, July 28th before moving to its current timeslot on November 10th. However, Funko is moving ahead what would have been a launch day Pop drop. The wave is a sizable one, with a collection of exclusives paired with numerous common figures.

In addition to The Marvels lineup, Funko also released a new Gravik Funko Pop inspired by the Secret Invasion series on Disney+, the first since their Nick Fury exclusive for NYCC 2022. Finally, there's a collection of Marvel Bitty Pops featuring Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, and Captain America which have been added to the list below. Exclusives are highlighted. Note that US shipping is free at Entertainment Earth on orders $59+ using the code FREESHIP59 at checkout).

The Marvels Funko Pop Exclusives:

The Marvels Funko Pop Commons - Pre-order at Entertainment Earth / Hot Topic / Amazon

What is The Marvels about?

A direct sequel to 2019's Captain Marvel, The Marvel will further explored Carol Danvers' (Larson) understanding of Kree culture as she works to save planets around the galaxy. The film's full synopsis can be found below.

"In The Marvels, Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol's estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau. Together, this unlikely trio must team up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as 'The Marvels.'"

The Marvels hits theaters November 10th while Ms. Marvel is now streaming on Disney+.

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Spider-Man 2 PS5 Console Covers Sold Out in Minutes https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/spider-man-2-ps5-plates-console-covers-pre-order-sold-out-playstation-5/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 15:35:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo 06676b8e-24cd-42e4-a15f-6e2e1b473d36
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Secret Invasion Director Explains Post-Credits Decision https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-director-post-credits-explained-kevin-feige/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 15:21:00 +0000 Aaron Perine d7de5d3e-959f-4b85-a303-904c09e72eb4

Secret Invasion director Ali Selim explained why the Disney+ series didn't have a post credits scene. TVLine interviewed the filmmaker and talked about all that setup for the future of the MCU. A lot of fans were surprised that there was no post-credits scene after Secret Invasion. But, according to Selim that's because the stuff that happens near the end of the finale serves the same purpose. In the conversation, he also mentioned that the people who make decisions about the post-credits tags are much higher up the totem pole than him. So, if you got an issue, take it up with the man in the big chair.

"That's a good question for Kevin Feige and the MCU at large," the Secret Invasion director said earlier this week when asked about post-credits. "I know that they use these movies and series to launch things, or to wrap things up, and post-credit sequences serve to do that."

"I don't know what they're launching with this show," Selim added. "I do know what they're wrapping up, which is Nick Fury's internal struggle with aging and with his sense of purpose and his sense of 'other,' which I think gets wrapped up really well. And there's not much else to say about that, so I don't know that a post-credits sequence would help. But I also am certain they're launching some things with what's going on at the end of this series, and I guess they didn't feel that any of those things warranted a post-credits sequence."

Secret Invasion Reveals How Long Rhodey's Been A Skrull

SECRET INVASION
(Photo: Marvel Studios)

Of course, a lot of the discussion spiraling out of Secret Invasion centers on James Rhodes being a Skrull for a long time. ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis talked to Selim about that reveal this week. He confirmed some fan theories that Rhodey has been a Skrull since Captain America: Civil War. It makes all the sense in the world based on the evidence provided. But some fans are still really emotional about the implications of that change. Let's talk through it together.

"A lot of people have asked about, 'Definitively, when did Rhodey...?'" Secret Invasion director Ali Selim told ComicBook.com. "I think his legs not working in the end of episode six and him being in the hospital gown points to [Captain America: Civil War]. And, from there, does it have to be definitive, or is it more fun for the audience to go back and revisit every moment, every Rhodey moment and look at it with a different lens now that they think, 'Oh, he might've been a Skrull there.' And make the decision for themselves, or it'll be answered in Armor Wars."

Kevin Feige Talks About Post Credits Scenes

Secret Invasion Launch Event
(Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez)

Last year at San Diego Comic-Con we spoke to Marvel president Kevin Feige about post credit scenes. He laid out a very similar vision to what Selim told TVLine. It sounds like there's more interconnectivity lately. But, the fans clearly want even more. The general fanbase feels like they need an Avengers movie because they want to see all the heroes moving down the tracks to Secret Wars.

"The truth is, all of the tags are never just about the future. There are tags that are eating shwarma, Captain America saying you know you gotta learn patience, sometimes, you know, you wait for something that's not worth it. So they are always fun for us," Feige told us after the Hall H panel. "We don't want everything to feel the same. So some of the tags will connect and some of them won't. Some of the films and shows will connect; some of them won't."

"I think it's just as important that we can have standalone introductory stories like Ms. Marvel, like Moon Knight, in addition to things that interconnect and build towards the larger story," he continued. "A lot of what we've been doing has been building to this larger story, obviously with The Kang Dynasty and the Multiverse Saga, and now I think people will, I hope, come along for the ride. Both where it's you're on the express train to the finale, also when it's fun, as many of our Phase 1, 2 and 3 films were."

Do you feel like Secret Invasion could have used a post-credits scene? Let us know in the comments!

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Marvel's Secret Invasion Director Reacts to Poor Reviews https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/marvel-secret-invasion-reviews-lowest-rated-mcu-show-director-ali-selim-reaction/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 13:56:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo 03e35d70-ac31-4e80-ad85-c07235e1145e

Director Ali Selim has responded to the poor reception of his Marvel Studios series Secret Invasion. Critics largely panned the $212 million-budgeted espionage thriller, which sees spymaster Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and ally Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) race against time to thwart an imminent Skrull invasion and save humanity from Gravik's (Kingsley Ben-Adir) faction of alien shape-shifters. Following Wednesday's "Home" season finale, the six-episode series currently sits at 56% "rotten" on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes -- causing Secret Invasion to become the lowest-rated Marvel Studios TV series to date.

"I don't read reviews. With all due respect," Selim, who directed all six episodes, told Variety when asked about the show's mixed reactions. "For me, I view all the storytelling work I do as a dialogue with an audience. When the show is finished and put up on the screen, that's my half of the dialogue. And the audience then starts their half of the response to it. I think that's valuable, but I don't know. I don't know how to answer the question."

"I don't feel bad about mixed reviews," Selim added. "If you had unanimously good reviews, every movie would gross $10 billion, trillion dollars, right? [Projects] resonate with different people at different times for different reasons, and Marvel has a very devoted -- even rabid -- fan base who have expectations and when their expectations aren't fulfilled, they move in the other direction; they give it a thumbs down."

Reviewers praised Jackson's performance as a war-weary Nick Fury and Marvel Cinematic Universe newcomer Olivia Colman as MI6 Special Agent Sonya Falsworth, but criticized the sluggish storytelling and -- as one critic put it -- "lethargic exchanges" between its starry cast that includes Cobie Smulders, Martin Freeman, Emilia Clarke, and Don Cheadle.

"I don't know -- is it our job to fulfill their expectations? Or to tell the story that we're telling? So, it's a tricky thing," Selim said. "I would love it if everybody loved it, but I also don't have that expectation myself, so I feel great about the response to it."

At 56% "rotten," Secret Invasion ranks below Marvel Studios series Ms. Marvel (98%), the animated What If...? (94%), Hawkeye and Loki (both 92%), WandaVision (91%), Moon Knight (86%), The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (84%), and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (77%).

All six episodes of Marvel's Secret Invasion are now streaming on Disney+.

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Secret Invasion Director Teases Possible Talos Return (Exclusive) https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/secret-invasion-talos-return-alive-tease-director-dead-mcu-characters/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 13:54:00 +0000 Kofi Outlaw a0c18e1d-b301-4be5-8f93-4778ec82a1f4

Secret Invasion hit Marvel fans with the gut punches of two major character deaths: Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) and Skrull General Talos (Ben Mendelsohn). While both deaths were surprising, Hill had been with the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise for over a decade, while fans were still getting to know Talos, after a first appearance in Captain Marvel, and a sort-of-significant presence (impersonating Fury) in Spider-Man: Far From Home - and possibly other places.

So how did Marvel Studios and/or Mendelsohn make the decision to end Talos' story at this point? And, more importantly, there is the question a lot of fans can't stop wondering:

Is Talos Really Dead?

secret-invasion-is-talos-ben-mendelsohn-really-dead-alive.jpg
(Photo: Marvel Studios)

ComicBook.com Phase Zero Marvel podcast host Brandon Davis sat down with Secret Invasion director Ali Selim to reflect upon the series following the finale. When it came to the subject of Talos' death, Seilm made it clear that he was in no position to make the calls about who died, or not.

"Well, as you must know, some of those decisions are way above my pay grade and way above my time on the MCU, so I can't even speak to why," Selim admitted. "But they're very good friends, Nick Fury and Talos. It's a beautiful love story that's almost on par with his marriage to Varra. And so my job is to make it as heartfelt and gut-wrenching as it can be in the moment."

Selim made sure to let Marvel fans know that while he was jut trying to give Nick Fury's story stakes and weight by killing those close to him, there's still a lot of history between Talos and Nick Fury that could be revisited later - not to mention any surprise reveals that Talos was involved in any number of MCU events while impersonating Fury or someone else:

"They cremated his body in episode five. This story does take place in 2023, 2024, so I can totally see a Nick Fury story that takes place prior to this where who knows who's going to show up, and if a story takes place after 2023, 2024, anything's possible in the MCU. They'll come up with a reason why he's back. I don't really know what the ultimate plan was other than it really makes for a gut-wrenching, isolating story for Nick Fury within the walls of these six episodes."

Secret Invasion is now streaming on Disney+.

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Secret Invasion Director Confirms Timeline With Rhodey and Skrull Twist (Exclusive) https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/secret-invasoon-director-how-long-is-rhodey-a-skrull-interview/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 13:00:00 +0000 Brandon Davis 0b3a5f0d-d1c0-4218-aeb3-6f3a5d3a8902

Secret Invasion was expected to shake things up for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Skrull invaders became a threat to global security. Spoilers for Secret Invasion follow. While perspectives might shift after such titles as The Marvels and Armor Wars which are promised as direct follow-ups to the latest Disney+ series, it currently looks like Secret Invasion shook up the eMCU's past more than anything which might follow. Nick Fury's secret marriage was one element introduced as having been a factor since the time following 2012's Avengers movie but it also seems Colonel James Rhodes has been replaced by an alien invader since the events of 2016's Captain America: Civil War.

"A lot of people have asked about, 'Definitively, when did Rhodey...?'" Secret Invasion director Ali Selim said in an exclusive interview with ComicBook.com. "I think his legs not working in the end of episode six and him being in the hospital gown points to [Captain America: Civil War]. And, from there, does it have to be definitive, or is it more fun for the audience to go back and revisit every moment, every Rhodey moment and look at it with a different lens now that they think, 'Oh, he might've been a Skrull there.' And make the decision for themselves, or it'll be answered in Armor Wars."

This means Rhodey was a Skrull through his appearances in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, as well as The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. The Rhodey awakened at the end of Secret Invasion presumably does not know his long time friend Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man, died saving the universe from Thanos. Nor does he know Sam Wilson is Captain America or that Natasha Romanoff is gone. One also has to wonder if the humans who were held captive by Skrulls could have ben victims of The Blip and what happened when they returned?

For Dermot Mulroney, the actor who played President Ritson in Secret Invasion, the reveal of Don Cheadle's Rhodey character being a Skrull came when they filmed their first scene together. "I knew that in those scenes, but if he's revealed to be a Skrull in a scene that I'm not in, then I didn't see that page," Mulroney told ComicBook.com in an interview available on the Phase Zero channel, conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike began. "So, it'd be just being told that by the director as we're shooting it. So, this is also part of the scene. You already know, you think he might be a Skrull, so you don't want to play it. Whichever exactly that version is, that's how I would've learned it. In other words, I didn't come in knowing all that because I wasn't availed to some of the content that played on those moments. But you're picking cool moments that have that gray area. So, maybe back to your previous question, some of that stuff, it's not that you're non-committal in your performance, even better is you're committing to doing nothing so you don't get caught hanging out. That's the actor. So you don't do too much in one direction. It might be proven wrong."

As for Selim, maintaining the surprise and secrets of Secret Invasion until the time they were intended to be revealed was crucial. "We have a great crew and a great MCU family. A lot of these people work for them all the time, and it was never about hiding that," Selim said. "We just shot it. We just shot the Rhodey reveal as a female Skrull, which I think is interesting. And, I guess, hid it from the audience is pretty easy because I don't talk about this stuff anyway, as I told you in the beginning."

What did you think of Secret Invasion? Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them my way on Twitter! Secret Invasion is available in its entirety on Disney+.

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Did Secret Invasion's Finale Set Up the MCU's X-Men? https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-finale-set-up-mcu-x-men-varra-priscilla/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 03:07:00 +0000 Jenna Anderson f3bed230-74ff-4003-ac13-08f41557c5bd

The season finale of Secret Invasion made its debut on Wednesday, capping off the latest live-action series within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The show might have taken some liberties when compared to the Secret Invasion comics, but it did make some unexpected moves for the franchise itself. Even as we know that Secret Invasion will lead into this fall's The Marvels, there's a chance that its impact on the MCU could've been even greater -- and may have helped lay the groundwork for the inevitable debut of the franchise's X-Men. Spoilers for all six episodes of Secret Invasion below! Only look if you want to know!

In the fourth episode of Secret Invasion, a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment reveals the occupation of Varra (Charlayne Woodard), the Skrull wife of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson). More specifically, a framed book jacket for a book written by Varra's human alias, Priscilla Davis, can be seen on the wall of their home. The book is titled Decoding the Superhuman Gene, and even features a faint outline of an X. Fast forward to Secret Invasion's final moments, when Nick invites Varra to travel to space with him to enter peace talks with the Kree. Varra agrees, but says she can't stay long, because "all my work is here, darling", and that work has "never been more important."

secret-invasion-varra-book-x-men.jpg
(Photo: Disney+)

Did Secret Invasion Tease the X-Men?

While these Secret Invasion nods are incredibly fleeting, they do reveal that Priscilla/Varra has been working as some sort of doctor in genetics, work that she continued to do after the human Priscilla passed away. This, combined with the X included on her book jacket, could certainly lead fans to believe that the "Superhuman Gene" is a precursor to the X-Gene that creates the X-Men.

While there would've certainly been a lot of avenues to explore Varra's genetics research on the show itself, especially once The Harvest and Super-Skrulls entered the picture, the fact that they didn't makes this line doubly interesting. Maybe Varra could eventually have a tie to the X-Men once they debut in the MCU, or maybe her work is completely unrelated.

When Will the X-Men Join the MCU?

The biggest showcase of Marvel's merry mutants in the MCU will be next year's Deadpool 3, which will see the return of Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman as Deadpool and Wolverine. Beyond that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has teased that the X-Men are arriving sooner than later.

"You know how much I love the X-Men," Feige explained in a 2021 interview. "I already said that's where I started. I can't tell you anything before we actually announced it, but rest assured, the discussions have been long and ongoing internally."

What do you think of Secret Invasion possibly teasing the MCU's X-Men? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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Spider-Man: No Way Home Concept Art Reveals Iron Man Armor on Green Goblin https://comicbook.com/movies/news/spider-man-no-way-home-concept-art-reveals-iron-man-green-goblin/ Fri, 28 Jul 2023 02:41:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 5820cdfb-ff01-427e-be79-666b3e00eb63

Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures may be still working on their upcoming fourth Spider-Man film with Tom Holland, but fans are still talking about Spider-Man: No Way Home. Some fans still want to see Andrew Garfield become Spider-Man in their universe of Spider-Man characters that includes Venom, Morbius, Kraven the Hunter, and Madame Web, but that is probably unlikely. There is also a lot of other information being released from Spider-Man: No Way Home, like some deleted scenes involving the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe). Now some new concept art has been released involving the iconic villain, and it features something really interesting. The Direct has revealed some new concept art from Spider-Man: No Way Home, and it shows the Green Goblin wearing a piece of Iron Man's armor.

You can check out the concept art below.

Will Tom Holland Return for Spider-Man 4?

Previously, while doing an interview on the red carpet premiere of his Apple TV+ series The Crowded Room, Holland expressed solidarity with the ongoing WGA strike as they negotiate better pay from all of the major Hollywood movie and TV studios. He also revealed that talks were happening for the upcoming fourth Marvel Studios-prouduced Spider-Man movie.

"I can't talk about that, but I can say that we have been having meetings. We've put the meetings on pause in solidarity with the writers," Holland revealed about Spider-Man 4. "There's been multiple conversations had, but at this point it's very, very early stages."

What was Spider-Man: No Way Home About?

Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures describe the film as: "In Spider-Man: No Way Home, for the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a Super Hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange, the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man."

The film stars Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau, Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire, J.K. Simmons, Jamie Foxx, Alfred Molina, Thomas Haden Church, Rhys Ifans and Willem Dafoe.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is currently available on 4K, Blu Ray, and digital download! Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates on the Spider-Man franchise as we learn it!

What do you think about this Spider-Man: No Way Home concept are? Would you have wanted to see Green Goblin wearing Iron Man's armor? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @NateBrail up on Twitter!??

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Sony Pranks Fans With Amazing Spider-Man 3 Video https://comicbook.com/movies/news/sony-amazing-spider-man-3-video-prank-rick-astley/ Thu, 27 Jul 2023 22:25:00 +0000 Aaron Perine 5e13088f-52e5-4fbc-a417-968bac480b18

Sony Pictures decided to have some fun with fans on Thursday and tease Amazing Spider-Man 3. However, as people realized on TikTok, it was just the company having some fun. In true Throwback Thursday fashion, the brand posted a video that led with the Amazing Spider-Man poster and said there was an "important announcement." Instead of Andrew Garfield's bright, shining face staring back, was a Rick Roll. Yep, coincidentally, Rick Astley's smash-hit "Never Gonna Give You Up" released 36 years ago today. That's right, July 27, 1987, what a world.

Needless to say, some of the TikTok users were not thrilled. But, even more of them had to respect a classic Rick Roll at this point. Amazing Spider-Man remains one of the most strange properties in the comic book movie space right now. Sony Pictures has not said anything about bringing Garfield back for another ride. It feels like fans are going to be in limbo until there's a concrete announcement of any kind.

@sony

you know the rules #sony #sonymusic

? original sound - Sony

Garfield Comments On A Future Marvel Return

spider-man-no-way-home-andrew-garfield.jpg
(Photo: Marvel Studios / Sony Pictures)

For his part, Garfield is mostly watching tennis and living his life right now. He told Variety that he would be willing to pull his mask back on if the story was good enough. That statement makes a ton of sense considering that's how he and Tobey Maguire signed on for Spider-Man: No Way Home. Check out what he had to say right below.

"I mean, yes, definitely open to something if it felt right," Garfield mused. "Peter and Spider-Man, those characters are all about service, to the greater good and the many. He's a working-class boy from Queens that knows struggle and loss and is deeply empathetic. I would try to borrow Peter Parker's ethical framework in that, if there was an opportunity to step back in and tell more of that story, I would have to feel very sure and certain in myself."

Tom Holland Wishes He Had Reached Out to Garfield Earlier

andrew-garfield-tom-holland-spider-man.jpg
(Photo: Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images)

Since Spider-Man: No Way Home, Tom Holland has kept a pretty low profile. He still stays in touch with his Spider-Bros. He told The Hollywood Reporter that he wished he had taken the time to talk to Garfield before debuting in Captain America: Civil War. They're all good now, but that can't have felt good for the Amazing Spider-Man star at all. Luckily, we could end up seeing the older hero in a future project.

"That's because of my naivete as a kid. I was 19 when I got cast. I was so caught up in getting the role that I never took any time to think about what it must have been like for him," Holland told the outlet. "If I'd made my second movie and it didn't necessarily deliver in the way it should have done and they recast me, I would really struggle to bounce back. Andrew bounced back in the most unbelievable way. I just wish I'd called him and just said, 'You know I can't turn down this opportunity.'"

Would you like to see Amazing Spider-Man 3? Let us know in the comments!

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Secret Invasion Director Explains Major Death Decisions (Exclusive) https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/secret-invasion-director-death-decision-exclusive/ Thu, 27 Jul 2023 21:36:00 +0000 Nathaniel Brail 711077b5-c102-4f39-943c-bffa25780a3c

Marvel Studios has finally released all episodes of Secret Invasion on Disney+, and it started off with so much promise. Secret Invasion was released to mixed reviews, and as the series progressed, fans started to show signs of fatigue. Marvel makes a lot of tough decisions and ends up killing off some fan favorites in Secret Invasion, with an original Marvel Cinematic Universe actor dying in the first episode. There is also another death that comes in the form of another fan favorite character that we don't want to spoil, so don't read any further if you haven't seen the season finale of Secret Invasion. ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis had the chance to speak with director Ali Selim, and he explained why these characters had to die.

"Well, as you must know, some of those decisions are way above my pay grade and way above my time on the MCU, so I can't even speak to why, but they're very good friends, Nick Fury and Talos. It's a beautiful love story that's almost on par with his marriage to Varra," Selim explained to us. "And so my job is to make it as heartfelt and gut-wrenching as it can be in the moment. They cremated his body in episode five. This story does take place in 2023, 2024, so I can totally see a Nick Fury story that takes place prior to this where who knows who's going to show up, and if a story takes place after 2023, 2024, anything's possible in the MCU. They'll come up with a reason why he's back. I don't really know what the ultimate plan was other than it really makes for a gut-wrenching, isolating story for Nick Fury within the walls of these six episodes."

"Oh, what did we do? When somebody gets killed, it's not necessarily their last day on set. So I think from the time he got killed until the time we said goodbye to Ben Mendelsohn was probably eight months. So the idea that he was dead was never the... But I think Ben is one of our finest living actors, as I would say that of almost everybody in this series. There's something really special about him, and I found something really special in the scenes with him and Sam and in the scenes with him and Emilia Clarke, a real soul to the show. I just made a speech to how much I love him at the end when he left, and then he probably turned on his boombox and lit up a cigarette and walked away, so." The Secret Invasion director added about on killing off Ben Mendelsohn's Talos.

What is Secret Invasion about?

Secret Invasion centers around MCU veterans Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Talos (Mendelsohn) as they deal with an invasion of shape-shifting Skrulls who have infiltrated all aspects of life on Earth. Other MCU veterans will include Smulders as Maria Hill, Don Cheadle as James "Rhodey" Rhodes / War Machine, and Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross. New cast members will include Emilia Clarke, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Olivia Colman, Carmen Ejogo, Christopher McDonald, Dermot Mulroney, and Killian Scott. The series will be written and executive produced by Kyle Bradstreet, and directed by Thomas Bezucha and Ali Selim.

All episodes of Secret Invasion are exclusively streaming on Disney+.

What did you think about Secret Invasion? Have you seen the finale as yet? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!

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Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Todd McFarlane Shares Thoughts on Venom's Design https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/marvels-spider-man-2-venom-design-todd-mcfarlane-comment/ Thu, 27 Jul 2023 19:59:00 +0000 Marc Deschamps d2689b38-73ed-496b-b8c7-2289c688fc1a

When Marvel's Spider-Man 2 releases on PlayStation 5, the game will see Venom playing a key role. There had been some glimpses at the character previously, but at SDCC, Insomniac Games offered our best look yet at Venom's full appearance. Venom's co-creator Todd McFarlane was recently interviewed by IGN, where he was asked to share his thoughts on the design, and whether he thought Insomniac had done the character justice. McFarlane had some praise to share, mostly focusing on the character's size. As McFarlane points out, you can't see Venom alongside other characters, but the most recent trailer does give the impression that the villain has a larger mass to him.

"So let me tell you the first thing I always look for, given I'm the visual creator of him: I intentionally made him bigger than an average superhero, right? Not seeing any other characters in there, he looks big. He has big, broad shoulders. If you now put an average person and he's at least 20, 30, 40, 50% bigger than an average person, even Iron Man, then I go yes. For me, that's a giant point," McFarlane told IGN.

McFarlane went on to point out one element he's not as fond of, and that's Venom's tongue. While that element of the design has become something of a staple over the years, the character's earlier appearances just had Venom with a toothy grin. It wasn't until artist Erik Larsen came on board Amazing Spider-Man that the trademark "Venom tongue" was added.

"Sharks are scary and they never stick their tongue out at you, right? So, he looks cool there, but with or without the tongue he looks pretty badass," said McFarlane.

Regardless of whether fans find themselves in the "pro-tongue" camp or team "anti-tongue," Insomniac's take on Venom certainly does look intimidating! Players can see just how intimidating Venom will be when Marvel's Spider-Man 2 releases on October 20th.

Do you plan on checking out Marvel's Spider-Man 2 when it releases? How do you feel about Venom's in-game design? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!

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The Marvels Won't Screen in IMAX Unless Dune 2 Moves https://comicbook.com/movies/news/the-marvels-wont-screen-imax-dune-part-two-delay/ Thu, 27 Jul 2023 17:45:00 +0000 Cameron Bonomolo 72f8fda7-9851-424f-9214-09215bbaf926

The Marvels is going higher, further, faster -- just not in IMAX. Marvel Studios' Captain Marvel sequel won't screen in the premium large format unless Warner Bros. and Legendary's Dune: Part Two, which is scheduled to release one week before The Marvels, moves off its November 3rd release date. Last week, Variety reported the producers behind Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi epic are weighing whether to delay Dune 2 until 2024 in the wake of the actors' strike that will prohibit its star-studded cast, including Timoth?e Chalamet and Zendaya, from promoting the film if the labor strike extends into the fall.

But during an IMAX earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Richard Gelfond said the Dune sequel is set to have a "very long run time in IMAX" -- five to six weeks -- meaning The Marvels won't have access to those screens when it opens November 10th. The report that Warner Bros. will delay Dune 2 "is not true," according to Gelfond, who added: "I feel quite strongly that it's not going to move."

"There's another great movie coming out around that time, which is The Marvels from Marvel, and we can't play it because we are committed to Dune," Gelfond said during the call. If Dune 2 moves off its November 3rd date, those IMAX screens "will just go over to The Marvels, and having a Marvel movie as a backup is not the worst position to be in," Gelfond added.

Unlike The Marvels, the follow-up to 2021's Dune was filmed for IMAX. Villeneuve's anticipated sequel is one of a few titles touted on the IMAX website, alongside Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer, which secured an exclusive three-week run in North America; Sony's Gran Turismo (August 11th); and Warner Bros.' upcoming DC film Blue Beetle (August 18th).

"Dune is already in the midst of a marketing campaign. There are trailers out. There's lots of materials out. Denis Villeneuve presented at the IMAX CEO Forum. So, it's kind of out of the gate," Gelfond said. "If you put it back in the gate, you've got to duplicate those expenses at some time in the future."

Another reason the CEO doesn't expect Warner Bros. and Legendary to abandon Dune's six-week IMAX run: there's only so much IMAX real estate available, especially with other studios eyeing a push to 2024 amid Hollywood's double strikes. It's why Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One only played on IMAX screens for one week, and why box office behemoth Barbie isn't playing in the format at all.

"It was fortuitous that there were no other conflicting projects. But if they were to move that to next year sometime, it's highly unlikely that they would have that amount of run time," Gelfond told investors during the call. "And just to remind you, IMAX was about 20% of the growth on Dune 1."

From a financial perspective, delaying Dune until its cast can promote the film would cost Warner Bros. more than keeping its lucrative engagement with IMAX. "With no disrespect to Timoth?e Chalamet, are you going to be able to make up for losing the six-week IMAX release?" Gelfond asked. "Are you going to be making up the cost of capital and carrying it for a year? Are you going to move it to an uncertain year when you have no idea what's going to be put against you when they have virtually no competition right now in the marketplace? It doesn't really make any sense."

Dune: Part Two features an ensemble that includes returning cast members Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsg?rd, Dave Bautista, Charlotte Rampling, and Stephen McKinley Henderson; joining them are new additions Austin Butler, Christopher Walken, Florence Pugh, L?a Seydoux, and Souheila Yacoub. It opens only in theaters November 3rd.

Originally dated for July 8th, 2022 before shifting to November 11th, 2022 and then February 17th, 2023, The Marvels moved to July 28th of this year before Disney pushed it off that date to November 10th. Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson lead a cast that includes Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Park Seo-joon, and Zawe Ashton.

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