[Via Blastr]

This past Sunday, X-Men producer and writer Bryan Singer cleared up some X-Men: First Class rumors at a church, where SF classics like Back to the Future and the original War of the Worlds were filmed, in Hollywood, where he was a guest speaker. After the talk, Singer addressed casting rumors for First Class, which he is in the middle of doing. As we have confirmed, Kevin Bacon is in, but Twilight heartthrob Taylor Lautner is out, for now…

“I wanted Taylor to do it, I really did,” Singer said in the interview. “He’s doing a movie in Pittsburgh called Abduction, and then he’s got the next Twilight movie. We talked about it a lot—he is a friend—and I really wanted to make it work. It just doesn’t look like it’s possible to do it.”

It’s interesting choice with Lautner, and I’m curious on who he could have been. Beast, perhaps, seems like the most logical choice. The kid is limber, aerobic, and I’m sure under the right direction could have been a swell young McCoy, but I guess it’s not in the cards.

With Bacon rumored to be Sebastian Shaw, leader of the infamous Hellfire Club, that would explain Emma Frost’s appearance. I’m looking forward to see how all this plays out.

Green Hornet: Blood Ties #1 arrives in October!

Green Hornet: Blood Ties is a precursor to Kevin Smith’s Green Hornet series, and features the original Green Hornet and Kato in action! Ande Parks and Johnny Desjardins tell the exciting story of the last remains of the Italian Crime Family and the Japanese Yakuza. How did the two-man team of The Green Hornet and Kato bring about the fall of all crime in Century City? Find out in this exciting new mini-series!

“Green Hornet: Blood Ties gives Johnny and I the chance to tell a really rich mob story,” says writer Ande Parks. “We’re telling the story of three families on the wrong side of the law, all trying to work together against the threat Green Hornet and Kato represent to their livelihoods. We get to play with the structure that Kevin created for us, while delving deeper into the criminal underworld of Century City. It’s a blast to work on, especially with Johnny Desjardins providing spectacular artwork.”

“In Green Hornet: Blood Ties, you are going to see a Green Hornet with an attitude, cleaning up the seedy streets of century city,” adds Johnny Desjardins.

“As Ande mentioned, Kevin Smith has given us a ton of great back-story to work with,” stated Nick Barrucci, Dynamite President and Publisher. “Green Hornet: Blood Ties is our chance to expand the world of the original Hornet, and lead directly into the ongoing Hornet series starring Britt Reed and Mulan Kato. Ande Parks is the perfect choice for weaving the threads of organized crime and Johnny Desjardins is a superstar in the making.”

Green Hornet: Blood Ties is written by Ande Parks and features the break-out art of Johnny Desjardins. Johnny Desjardins began his career as David Finch’s protégé and is now one of Dynamite’s up-and-coming artists! If you want to know the whole story behind Kevin Smith’s epic, pick this up in October!

If you like what you’ve read so far (c’mon, how can you not?) totally check out more super cute comics at:www.sosuperduper.com!

Nat Turner
Written & Illustrated by Kyle Baker
Published by Abrams Books

Of course, Kyle Baker can draw anything and changes his style at the drop of a hat, so it’s no surprise that Nat Turner looks great and like nothing else out there.  What’s surprising is the technique Baker adopts to tell this history of Turner and his armed slave revolt of August 21, 1831.

Using the transcript of Turner’s confession as the book’s narrative, Baker chooses to make nearly every panel in Nat Turner silent.  Though heavily illustrated and light on text, often no text at all on a page or only a few sentences, Nat Turner very nearly operates as illustrated prose.  Nearly, but not quite.  The overwhelming bulk of the story is carried by the artwork, as Turner’s transcribed confession amounts to only a few pages of text.  Baker chooses to expand each of Turner’s admissions and editorial remarks, capturing the full terror of both Turner’s slavery and his revolution.

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Find out more about Global Freezing here on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays or at ComicsByEgg.com.

With DC’s October solicits out, Cully Hamner finally breaks his silence on the mystery project he’s been talking/tweeting about for some time now, one where he’s on both writing and art duties. Say hello, to Red: Eyes Only.

Blog@ talked exclusively to Hamner about what it was like going back to the world of Red. “Well, for years, I thought that RED was just a standalone thing. Ben (Abernathy, Wildstorm editor), Hank (Kanalz , Wildstorm VP/GM), and I would joke about doing a sequel or prequel, but we knew that it wasn’t a likely thing.”

He went on saying “Everybody was just too busy for it, but when the film started looking imminent, those guys started asking me seriously. I was coming to the end of my run on The Question, so I was going to be free. Warren was way too busy and wasn’t terribly interested, I think. But after he gave it his blessing, I found that I actually had a solid idea—specifically, what would have driven Paul Moses to retire in the first place? You’ll find out in the Fall.”

In addition to this announcement, Hamner writes on his blog. “Also, as a tie-in with the upcoming Summit Entertainment film adaptation of RED starring Bruce Willis, Wildstorm is releasing four comic book prequels to the movie. I did the covers for all of them, based on the movie posters, which I’ll show you as soon as I get the all-clear.”

Red hits theaters on October 15th, just in time for Red: Eyes Only.

And, well, it looks pretty much exactly how you’d hope an animated film version of The Goon to look like — basically a moving, talking version of Eric Powell’s creation — and Paul Giamatti as Frankie sounds great. A fuller teaser is unveiled this Friday at Comic-Con International in San Diego.

Still no targeted release date for the David Fincher-produced film, but we’ll probably know more after the panel. Let us know what you think of the footage in the comments.

The bizarre Fred Phelps-led hate group known as the Westboro Baptist Church have already announced their plans to protest Comic-Con International in San Diego this week — specifically between 1:15 p.m. and 2 p.m. on Thursday, since they’ll already be in town protesting Al Gore’s appearance at the American Hospital Association Leadership Summit.

Of course, the temptation is to confront them and let them know what bozos they are, but that’s exactly what these goofballs are looking for. Instead, Sif and Rescue writer Kelly Sue DeConnick is offering a positive way to channel your anti-Westboro Baptist energy: donating $50 to amfAR, an international nonprofit dedicated to AIDS research, if they actually show up, and $10 an hour for each hour they stay. That’s just what DeConnick and her husband Matt Fraction have planned, adding that donations to the Human Rights Campaign or CBLDF would also be a good choice, you don’t have to be at Comic-Con to participte, and any denomination that people can afford is better than nothing. The official Twitter hashtag is #godlovesbatman.

[via Press Release]

As part of its San Diego Comic-Con festivities, Ape Entertainment will be holding a comic book art exhibit at The New Children’s Museum that will feature original sequential pages from some of Kizoic’s most popular titles, including Shrek, Penguins of Madagascar, Little Green Men, and more.

The exhibit will run from July 19th through the 25th.

“It’s exciting for kids to learn about the process of making a comic book, and seeing the original art from some of their favorite titles is a moment that they’ll remember into adulthood,” states Ape Entertainment founder and co-publisher Brent E. Erwin. “And to be able to meet some of the artists responsible for the work is just icing on the cake.”

Artists Christine Larsen (Shrek) and Ray Height (R.P.M.) will be on hand to showcase their art and will lead a series of workshops aimed at teaching interested students the process of drawing their favorite comic book characters. The workshops will be held Thursday, Friday, and Sunday from 2:00 PM to 2:45 PM.

“The kids who pick up a pencil today and sketch a super hero for the first time could very well be the superstar artists of tomorrow,” continues Erwin.

The KiZoic Art Exhibit is free to all SDCC pass holders. Families who attend will also receive complimentary Ape Entertainment comic books.

The New Children’s Museum is located at 200 West Island Avenue, San Diego, CA.

For more information on Ape Entertainment, visit www.ape-entertainment.com.

Most of the Eisner Award nominees were announced back in April, but this past weekend the 20 finalists for the annual Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award were named; thanks to ComicsPRO for the list.

This year’s crop includes comic book shops from around the country, as well as Israel, England and two from Canada. The award is based on the diversity of product offered, knowledge of the field, community involvement, quality of displays and design, and, this is of course important, “adherence to standard ethical business practices.” If you’ve won before — Tate’s Comics in Ft. Lauderdale took home the trophy last year — you’re not eligible to win again. This Eisners, an annual part of Comic-Con International, take place starting 8:30 p.m. this Friday night in the Indigo Room at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront, nice and close to the convention center.

Full list of nominees after the jump.

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The integration of comic books and music is always a mixed bag — Kid ‘n’ Play meeting Strong Guy aside. So it’s understandable if you’re slightly skeptical over High Priest Of Rhythmic Noise (named after a song off of 1980 album All Shook Up), the new comic book created and written by Cheap Trick lead singer and rhythm guitarist Robin Zander.

It’s being put out by Ape Entertainment, but I couldn’t find any info on the publisher’s site, which Google seems to think is badware. The Cheap Trick site doesn’t offer too many more details, either, but Zander will be signing at the Ape Entertainment booth at Comic-Con International in San Diego, from noon to 1 p.m. this Thursday. Plus, Cheap Trick will be playing at a private party that night, with spots up via a lottery; you can e-mail CTCCevent@aol.com if you want to try and get in on that action and maybe hear “Surrender” live with what is surely a fascinating intersection of comic book geeks and Cheap Trick fans. (more…)

Blooger Marshall Fine of the not-all-egocentrically named Hollywood and Fine launched a fairly vitriolic attack on just about every aspect of fan culture via this entry on Huffington Post. I’m sure that this is a cry (more like a low, keening wail) for attention, but damn.

Some highlights:

Once upon a time, comic-book conventions — like Star Trek conventions — were the Land of the Dweebs, the home of the socially maladjusted and a surefire punchline for comedians.

These are, after all, comic-book movies (or sci-fi, horror or fantasy films that reach the same audience). Their audience is young and undiscriminating (in the sense that they still believe The Dark Knight was the shizzit) — and they somehow have taken over the thinking of the people who control the purse strings in Hollywood.

A steady diet of comic-book and zombie and other fantasy movies is like a steady diet of Big Macs for the mind and soul. Unfortunately, no one will ever make the Super-Size Me revealing the brain-deadening effects that overconsumption of these films is having.

Does this guy have some issues or what? It reads like the screed of someone that was regularly beaten and had their lunch-money taken by the middle school comic book club. There is stuff there that doesn’t come off as attempting to protect the artistic integrity of movies; it’s just hateful.

What do you think, friends? Are you responsible for the ruin of the film industry, the decline of Western civilization, the oil spill, hurricanes, war, and the cause of whatever issues Fine is combating?

Here’s the latest image from the Kenneth Branagh’s Thor, courtesy of the Los Angeles Times print edition. The LA Times doesn’t have the image hosted online, but it’s being hosted by about a million other sites, including Bleeding Cool and SuperHeroHype.

The image shows Thor, Odin, Loki, Frigga, Fandral, and Hogun.  Loki and Odin are wearing their much anticipated chapeaus, and from the look of things, this may be the rumored scene where Thor receives his own winged lid before bouncing down to Midgard.  Also of note, the awesome Twilight Sword standing only about a million feet tall behind Odin. If you ask me, the costumes look much nicer in context with this amazing set.

Majesty abounds!

Robert Kirkman is looking to put his money where his indies are, with the announcement of his new Skybound imprint!

The New York Times has the full scoop, as the Image partner’s initiative will give creators advanced payments as well as the marketing that Kirkman and Image have to offer.

“Looking back, I certainly could’ve used the help when I started…” Kirkman told the New York Times. “It’s a whole new world out there. It’s hard to do any comic book without having an expectation of what could happen. It’s such a prevalent and integral part of our business.”

In exchange, Kirkman will get a partnership stake in whatever properties come out of Skybound. The first Skybound property will be Witch Doctor, by Brandon Seifert and Lukas Ketner. A medical drama meets supernatural horror, a pitch that the creators describe as “House meets Fringe.”

“That Pekar didn’t even draw, but put out these regular stories, I thought was amazing”: Vanessa Davis on Harvey Pekar, in the form of a comic (Link via Drawn and Quarterly). Meanwhile, Tom “Comics Reporter” Spurgeon’s “Collective Memory” feature on Pekar offer’s a gigantic collection of remebrances and reactions from all over the Internet, and Spurgeon has written what is probably the definitive obituary of Pekar.

Only four?: In light of EW‘s reveal of the live-action Green Lantern costume, the Washington Post offers a blog post considering “some of the odder decisons in comic book-to-film translation.”

Edgar Wright sure knows how to promote a movie: Sick of watching the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World trailers? Well, have you seen the officially sanctioned viral remixes, featuring footage not in the studio trailers? No? Well, they’ve been debuting here and there over the last few days, but there are links to them in this post right here.

Don’t worry Daredevil—the Marvel Universe forgave Tony Stark and Reed Richards for killing Goliath in a matter of months: Tim O’Neil has read Shadowland, and he’s got some concerns:

First of all, Daredevil building an Evil Dojo in the heart of Manhattan—OK, I think I already see a problem in your story. Second, and here’s the clincher, we’re supposed to think that Daredevil has finally CROSSED THE LINE by shanking Bullseye. Come on, I’m sorry—if you had Daredevil killing, I don’t know, the Matador or Stilt-Man or something, that would be CROSSING THE LINE. But Bullseye? The same Bullseye who’s got a body count somewhere in four or five digits?

That’s…that’s a pretty good point, actually. If they want to show Daredevil crossing a line, shouldn’t he be icing good guys or something? O’Neil has more on Shadowland, plus reviews of a few other recent Marvel books, at the link.

Find out more about Global Freezing here on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays or at ComicsByEgg.com.

Newsweek joined the New York Media Softball League for the 2010 season, and the new kids on the block have struggled in the early going.  But any new team needs time to gel and find their strengths, and Newsweek showed some early signs of coming together against the DC Bullets on Thursday afternoon.  In the end, it wasn’t quite enough to overcome the Bullets, who bounced back from an early 6-0 hole with seventeen unanswered runs.  Two home runs from Andrew Arnold and three extra-base hits from Pat Brosseau highlighted the offensive deluge. The 17-6 victory boosts the Bullets to 5-2 in NYMSL play, 11-3 overall.

For three innings, however, the outcome didn’t look as certain as the final score indicated.  Neither team scored until the third, when Newsweek took advantage of a few defensive miscues, scorched a few line drives, and blooped a few flares just out of reach.  It all added up to a six-run inning, giving Newsweek a 6-0 lead after three innings.

The Bullets, meanwhile, struggled to make solid contact against Newsweek’s quick-pitching ace.  Often barely settled into the box and unaccustomed to the pitcher’s speed, the Bullets managed only three hits through the first three frames.  Shortstop Adam Schlagman (3-4, 2 R) and left fielder Andrew Arnold grounded two-out singles through the infield in the first, and right fielder Vince Letterio (2-2, R, double) lined a hit to left in the third.  Except for one ground out, the rest of the team treated the Newsweek fielders to a succession of “can of corn” pop-ups.

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After being down for part of the day, DC’s official DC Universe blog  The Source continues to leak announcements out of every pore. The latest: a Static ongoing series written by curren Teen Titans writer Felicia Henderson, and a series of reprints branded DC Comics Presents.

Static was introduced in 1993 as part of DC’s Milestone imprint, going on to star in 45 issues of his own title and an animated series, Static Shock, that ran on Kids WB from 2000 to 2004. Recently, he’s served as a member of the Teen Titans during Henderson’s run.

Henderson, whose run on Teen Titans wraps as of issue #87,  is also a TV writer, with credits including Gossip Girl and Fringe.

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The back of pretty much every Marvel Comic book this week contained this word search, along with the promise that a new member of The Avengers will be revealed at the “Marvel: The Heroic Age: The Avengers” panel a week from today at Comic-Con International in San Diego. It’s pretty much the best comic-related word search since Garfield’s Word Seeks.

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A lot of great writers have had a run on Hellblazer, but Warren Ellis’s late ’90s stint on the title was cut short due to a disagreement between him and DC Comics over a story called “Shoot,” involving schoolyard shootings.

Call it a case of utmost bad timing — as Ellis tells it on his Web site, it was completed before the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, but was scheduled to be released shortly after. DC then wanted to make changes to the story and Ellis refused, leading to him quitting the book.

Turns out it’ll finally get published this October, as part of Vertigo Resurrected; a “series of one-shots and specials” announced today on the imprint’s Graphic Content blog.

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