The writer set to adapt Brian K. Vaughan’s Runaways for the big screen is getting another Marvel movie writing gig – Iron Man 3.

Writer Drew Pearce has been chosen by Marvel Studios according to Deadline. Robert Downey Jr. will once again reprise  his role as Tony Stark although director Jon Favreau is not along for the ride for a third time. Instead, Downey Jr.’s Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang director Shane Black is at the helm.

Pearce doesn’t have many writing credits to his name but some of you may be familiar with his work from the British comedy series No Heroics, in which superheroes hang out at a bar they aren’t allowed to use their powers in. So, not a complete stranger to superheroes and the like.

Deadline says the writer will start from scratch and work closely with the new director on the project which is set to his theaters May 3, 2013. No word on when the Runaways will happen but with Iron Man’s prominence, you can bet he’ll come first.

If getting a Superman comic just right is a hard feat to accomplish in the 21st century, it’s nothing compared to getting one featuring his pal just right.

While the Silver Age stalwart Jimmy Olsen has never, ever gone away from his supporting character gig in the Superman comics, he hasn’t been a successful star in his own right for decades now, and the various attempts to make him work as a leading man in the post-relevance, post-Crisis, post-“Comics aren’t just for kids anymore!’ era never seemed to work out quite right.

In the last few years, for example, we’ve seen James Robinson put Olsen at the center of a dark, deadly serious sci-fi espionage thriller plot as part of the “New Krypton” direction of the Superman books, and Paul Dini and a battalion of writers and artists do…whatever they were trying to do in Countdown.

The problem with the character seems to be that while he is so fantastical that he’s extremely difficult to fit into the more realistic DC Universe line of the last few decades. There was always an almost magical realist quality to the character—a teenage reporter for a big city newspaper who had all sorts of fantastical adventures based solely on his proximity to Superman (and the scores of mad scientists that apparently populate the Metropolis suburbs), and who was always able to triumph, or at least survive, based on his wits. Powerless, he was kind of like Clark Kent, only without the deception, the milquetoast act and the need to change clothes in order to act.

Also, he was a kid, like his readers.

Of course, once kids stopped reading and more and more adult logic started being applied, well, it’s hard to even get past “teenage reporter”—Is he an intern? Did he go to J school? Why doesn’t he live with his parents?

Writer Nick Spencer, like relatively few others—Abhay Khosla in his Superman 80-Page Giant 2011 #1 short story, Grant Morrison in All-Star Superman #4—doesn’t seem to have had many problems making Silver Age Jimmy Olsen work in the 21st century. Or, if he did labor mightily to perfect his take and to find the best way to communicate it, one can’t see it in the final scripting. His Jimmy Olsen seems effortless.

He seems to have accomplished this by accepting the ground rules of the DC Universe and not tried rationalizing them or make too much real world sense out of them—this Jimmy Olsen is still a Silver Age, magical realist type of character and his world is still utterly fantastic. The writing—its characterization, its world-building, its dialogue, its storytelling—didn’t get more realistic, it simply got more sophisticated.

(more…)

Credit: Stan Lee Comics; Chris Hatcher/PR Photos

People have wondered what Arnold Schwarzenegger’s post-governor of California plans would include, and now thanks to this week’s Entertainment Weekly cover story we know part of it: launching a comic book and animated series called The Governator, depicting a fictionalized (as far as we know) version of the former governor/movie star/body builder that decides to add “superhero” to his already bustling resume, complete with a crimefighting lab located underneath his Brentwood home, and “supersuits” allowing him flight and other powers. Co-developing the project with Arnold? Stan Lee, natch.

What we don’t know about the project, said to debut next year, are things like who will actually be working on the comic book or where the animated series will be aired — presumably because those details haven’t been set in place yet. But we do know that the Governator will be assisted in his do-goodery by a 13-year old computer prodigy named “Zeke Muckerberg” (hmm) and among the antagonists will be the “Gangsters Imposters Racketeers Liars & Irredeemable Ex-cons” — yep, called “G.I.R.L.I.E. Men” for short. Not the most sensitive name, as Return of the Dapper Men and Hawkeye: Blindspot writer Jim McCann has already pointed out on Twitter: “G.I.R.L.I.E.-Men are the villains? Seriously?! Way to set an example, Schwarzenegger & Stan Lee’s The Governator comic”

More information is in this week’s EW, on stands this Friday — yes, that is April Fool’s Day, but our guess is that this is neither hoax nor imaginary story.

Shout! Factory and FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) announced today a deal to bring the renowned classic animated series M.A.S.K. to the home entertainment marketplace. Under its multi-year agreement with FME, Shout! Factory will be the exclusive home entertainment distributor with digital rights to the first 65 action-packed episodes of M.A.S.K. (known to fans as the original series aired in 1985) in North America.

“This deal with FremantleMedia Enterprises continues to build on our proven success with some of the premiere animation and family-friendly brands in the marketplace. We are delighted with this opportunity,” state Shout! Factory founding partners. “M.A.S.K. has been one of the fan favorite classic animated series in TV history, with a highly successful presence in many countries across the world.”

Siegel stated, “FME is dedicated to bringing content from our extensive catalogue, including a classic series like M.A.S.K., to the home entertainment marketplace. We are thrilled for Shout! Factory to bring this long lost, retro series from the 80’s to its fans in North America.”

Popular animated television series M.A.S.K., debuted on television and in wide syndication during the 1980s, features M.A.S.K. (Mobile Armored Strike Kommand), a secret organization led by Matt Trakker that fights crime in an unusual way. By donning specially charged masks, they have extraordinary powers to fight the villains of V.E.N.O.M. (Vicious Evil Network of Mayhem). In addition to the masks, our heroes and their counterparts have super vehicles capable of a wide range of defensive and offensive actions, from changing a car into a jet or becoming a submarine. Throughout the years, M.A.S.K. boasts a large fan following and spawned a series of toyline, comic books and video games.

The comic book community is doing a lot of cool things to raise money to aid the situation in Japan — we told you last week about Greg Pak’s offer to send a Vision Machine collection to anyone donating $20 to the relief charity of their choice. Mike Choi, the current artist on Astonishing Thor, is putting up his original art for X-Force #26 up for auction, with the proceeds going to the American Red Cross.

That issue, of course, is especially notable (and presumably valuable) as it happens to feature the death of überpopular X-Man Nightcrawler (über because he’s German, see), and Choi explains on his blog that he originally planned on keeping the pages for his personal collection, but changed his mind when he realized he could, in his own words, show his mother he’s a good person “even if it kills her.” (Read the blog post, it’s quite entertaining.) To sweeten the deal, Choi is also including the artwork for his covers to Uncanny X-Men #497 and X-Men #204, plus he’s looking for folks in the comic book community to get in on the action and throw in their own items of value.

Choi will be at WonderCon in San Francisco this weekend to accept donations and expects to start the auction on April 15 (tax day); information on all that is here.

Deadline is reporting that Kyle Chandler is being “courted” for the lead role in FX’s TV adaptation of Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming’s creator-owned series Powers — presumably as Christian Walker, a detective on the superpowered homicide beat.

The report says Chandler hasn’t committed to the project yet, and is waiting to see a new script — one which is expected to incorporate the actor’s notes. Deadline also reports FX president John Landgraf  as saying Powers is a “contender” for an early 2012 launch. Chandler recently wrapped up his five-season run as coach Eric Taylor on the unanimously acclaimed NBC series Friday Night Lights.

Is Chandler right for the role? Let us know your thoughts either way. (Like we had to ask.)

Tucked into today’s official press release and cover art for the upcoming Green Lantern: Emerald Knights is this gem: Sneak Peak at Batman: Year One, the next DC Universe Animated Original Movie.

Though it was rumored last year and discussed openly at conventions, this will be the first official look at the new animation. On the new “Knights” release, you’ll find plenty of features, including

The full text of the release is after the jump. What do you think, fans?

(more…)

Your second look at the new TV Wonder Woman?: The first photo of Adrianne Palicki as Wonder Woman that was released was much-discussed pretty much everywhere people discuss superheroes, and a common complaint seemed to be the shiny, plastic-y, off-the-rack look of the costume. Well, it looks less shiny, plastic-y and off-the-rack on set, as you can see in this series of images. I was a little bummed she changed boots, as the blue boots in that initial image were my favorite thing about the costume. I still contend the new Wondy costume looks infinitely better than the majority of the superhero costumes on Smallville, like this Blue Beetle get-up, for example. [UPDATE: Oops, looks like the main page also has the same images. That's the beauty of the Internet—you just don't get that kind of two people talking about the exact same thing at the exact same time in different sections of the same venue in print media!]

Speaking of Wonder Woman…: This H.G. Peter-drawn “Wonder Woman, Amazon Baby Sitter!” comic is fantastic, even if none of the events in the actual comic quite live up to the image on the title splash page, of Wondy pushing a baby carriage with a T-Rex happily crammed into it.

“If you look at the series, it’s typically Godzilla — he’s coming to wreak havoc on Japan…There’s no question that it’s unfortunate timing”: That’s IDW’s Ted Adams discussing this week’s release of Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #1 a San Diego Union-Tribune article about a Godzilla-destroying-Japan comic coming out in the midst of Japan’s current tragedies. When the earthquake an tsunami first hit, many political cartoonists turned to Godzilla as a symbol of Japan and/or devastation in Japan in their initial cartoon reactions. (I know I had a hell of a time yesterday thinking of a non-offiensive Godzilla gag to draw at the top of my new release preview column).

Jeff Smith visits Yakko, Wakko and Dot: Sadly, they didn’t seem to be home.

Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez draws the Marvel Family: Check out Jeffrey Klaehn’s little gallery here. It still boggles my mind that when DC wanted to make Mary Marvel “sexy,” they crammed her into a tighter costume with a tiny, barely there skirt instead of just, you know, having a person who draws really well draw her really well.

AAAAAAAAAA!: In this post from Brian Hughes, he discusses why he seems to be buying fewer and fewer DC Comics lately. The main reason I call attention to this post is that Hughes also points out something I so far hadn’t noticed—Phil Jiminez is a great artist, but his Bouncing Boy will haunt your dreams.

Sexless Superman is my favorite Superman: A. David Lewis discusses Superman not being “a sexual being” at The Hooded Utilitarian. I disagree with a lot of what he writes in terms of factual stating—Superman’s not a sex symbol? Then why do so many people wanna have sex with him?—and comic book Superman seems to have sex with comic book Lois Lane all the damn time now that they’re married. Lewis’ article may go away towards explaining why seeing comic book Superman make bedroom eyes at comic book Lois Lane never fails to creep me out. I tend to think of them as my parents for some reason (Like, in the way that I would think about my parents, not in that I think they are actually my parents), and don’t want to hear them allude to doing it. Anyway, it’s well worth a read, being about superheroes and sex, everyone’s two favorite subjects.

Director Darren Aronofsky left the next Wolverine film starring Hugh Jackman just a short time ago but the actor speaks out to make sure everyone knows The Wolverine is still on.

Jackman spoke to Entertainment Weekly at CinemaCon in Las Vegas recently (on a different press junket) to clear things up. “The Wolverine remains very much alive — he’s staying on board, and the script by The Usual Suspects screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie is still in play,” reported EW.

“So now we’re out looking for a director,” said Jackman. “We were pretty much ready to go. The script is fantastic — the best we’ve ever had, which is why it attracted Darren in the first place. His personal situation precludes him from doing it now, and I feel for him. But now we need to find a director.”

That “personal situation” was the very specific shooting location. Even though fans were iffy about Wolverine: Origins, almost no one could say they weren’t looking forward to seeing Logan travel to Japan in this latest adventure.

“We’re not going to settle,” said Jackman of their predicament. “We’re going to find a director as good as Darren, if not better. Well, as good. Everyone is still pushing forward to getting it done.” Although the actor is getting impatient. He told EW he’s getting tired of his protein-powered, muscle-building diet for the role.

Where you look forward to Aronofsky directing this film? What do you think about the project now that he’s now longer involved?

It Came From the NYPL

Grandville
Written & Illustrated by Bryan Talbot
Published by Dark Horse

Bryan Talbot’s one of my favorite cartoonists. Even if Alice in Sunderland wasn’t one of the five greatest comics of all time, the mind-bending Luther Arkwright books or the hippie-dippie fun of Chester Hackenbush would place Talbot high on my personal favorites list.  Grandville, his steampunk, “scientific-romance thriller” from 2009, didn’t really grab my attention, however. I wanted to read it; it’s Talbot after all, but the genre elements didn’t really appeal to me. That steampunk thing just isn’t my bag. So I kept checking the library and finally (and I mean finally, I’ve been checking regularly), the library got it in stock and I borrowed it.

It’s pretty much the perfect library book. Grandville‘s fun, a whole lot of it. Anthropomorphized animals, a stylized steampunk Europe setting, fast action, a few good plot twists and plenty of danger make it a worthwhile thriller. Talbot’s always been a terrific artist, and his expanding mastery of modern coloring only enhances the speed and tension of his line work during the book’s many chase sequences, fistfights and gun battles.

The plot’s not exactly wholly original – and it’s an entirely plot-driven book – but Talbot adds a few wrinkles to keep it interesting. In short, Grandville‘s the perfect library book – a rock-solid adventure by a favorite cartoonist, but one that I probably won’t want to revisit frequently. If steampunk-based, government-murder conspiracy thrillers are your thing, this book’s among the best of its ilk. And even if it’s not, Grandville‘s a really well crafted comic and recommended. If you’re lucky, you can find it in your local library and find out for yourself if it’s a keeper or a borrower – either way, it’s worth the time.

Once a week I sift through the millions of Etsy listings to find the best in geek chic for Blog@ readers. Last week I tried something new by focusing on just one Etsy user and her delightful Gotham Chic prints. I’m going back to basics this week though and showing some love to one of my favorite characters – Batgirl. Surprisingly, there really wasn’t that much Batgirl product on Etsy, so here’s my call to all you craftsters out there: MAKE MORE. Thank you.

Goodness gracious. I almost fell over from the cuteness of this one. It’s the Cupcake Eatin’ Batgirl bottle cap necklace from user anilineblack. For $16 you can gaze at Barbara Gordon really enjoying some cupcakes. And let’s face it, who doesn’t? Also available, Cupcake Eatin’ Batman. Hehe!

Holy glitter Batgirl! (I know, I’m just luring the guys in this week, aren’t I?) This pin-up style Batgirl Glitter Art will definitely brighten up any living space. User tigergalindo has this for $35. There’s also a Wonder Woman piece and several other comic characters from both DC and Marvel available.

Comic book decoupage is a popular craft on Etsy. One day, my whole house will be filled with it. Until then, perhaps you’d like this Batgirl Plate by erindara for $35? Or, if you’d prefer to wear Barbara, a Batgirl bracelet from Customcomix for $17.

Also falling in the adorable category this week, a set of four Super Gals Magnets. User greenbeanbaby also includes Spider Woman, Smurfette, Wonder Woman in the set for $6.25.

As always, bear in mind, since Etsy is a craft website and not a commercial, mass-market dealer, items are almost always one-of-a-kind or in very limited availability. When you see something you like, buy it. It may not be there the next time you surf round. (Yes, it’s a very dangerous site for your wallet.) Also, since most items are created individually, many sellers are willing to customize something specifically to suit your needs. Just ask!

Comic book fans tend to love a good fight, and one was waged on Twitter today between Ron Marz — current writer of Top Cow titles including Witchblade and Artifacts, and a veteran of Green Lantern, Silver Surfer and plenty more — and the official account of Bluewater Productions, the always-controversial publisher of largely unauthorized celebrity biographical comics of everyone from Taylor Lautner to Michelle Obama.

Things got started when Marz, while linking to a press release on an upcoming Bluewater biography of Ayn Rand, stated, “If there’s a better pairing than horrible, selfish nutbag Ayn Rand and Bluewater, I’ve yet to hear it.” Highlights of the quarrel include — after prompting from Bluewater — Marz offering to write a sequel to Bluewater’s Justin Bieber biocomic (provided he was paid his full page rate, which he would donate to the Hero Initiative, and that Bluewater would donate their profits to a charity of their choice), and Bluewater declaring “Bio books are what people want,” along with making lots, lots, and lots of comments about Witchblade sales being low. After being initially denied, the offer is currently at the “trying to smooth it over” stage.

In the ensuing melee, Bluewater (via the account run by the company’s publisher Darren G. Davis), responded to a number of other harsh criticisms of their company centering around alleged non-payment of creators, including one from frequent Marvel artist Mark Brooks, who stated, “You STILL owe me money from 10 years ago. It’s a fact, not made up. I’d drop this Darren.” Davis simply responded “tidalwave,” a reference to Bluewater predecessor Tidwalwave Studios, which Brooks worked for a decade or so ago on comics like Atlas, and an apparent attempt to separate past accusations from current ones. Brooks, in response: “it’s still you Darren. Semantics don’t change that.”

Also getting involved: Greg Harms, who inked Bluewater title 10th Muse circa 2009, accusing the company of “creative bookkeeping” and letting Davis know “I’d tell you to your face that you are an ass.”

Since it’s very possible Bluewater might think better of some of their harsher allegations and reach for delete, we’ve documented a few for posterity’s sake — along with a few of Marz’s barbs — and assembled them into an ersatz highlight reel. Those are after the jump. (And yes, the adorable pup in Marz’s Twitter avatar most certainly does go a long way in making the heated discourse seem much more amiable.)

(more…)

Whenever anyone talks about something more than two years away — be it a wedding, a vacation, or a comic book movie — it’s best to take the “wait and see” approach. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, a 2013 Justice League feature film is described as the “first priority” of Jeff Robinov, president of Warner Bros. motion pictures. (more…)

IDW’s Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #1 may not be the biggest release of the week, but the title character is certainly the biggest comic book protagonist this week. In this new ongoing series, Godzilla will be in the company of some of his monstrous Toho enemies and allies, and in the capable hands of  writers Tracy Marsh and Eric Powell (the latter of whom is also providing covers) and artist Phil Hester. It’s a $4 book.

I have two nagging questions about the series. First, will Marsh and Powell be able to formulate the perfect onomatopoeia to capture the sounds of Godzilla and his fellow monsters screaming and shooting things at each other? Because the sounds are probably my favorite part of the old movies (In a perfect world, Doug Moench would probably be called in to write just the sound effects, and John Workman to letter them).

The other is where exactly IDW expects to sell this thing, now that Godzilla has gone ahead and destroyed so many comic shops…

The Bronx Kill: The latest Vertgo Crime original graphic novel is from longtime Vertigo writer Peter Milligan, with art by James Romberger. The subject matter? A frustrated author who must find his missing wife wit the help of his police officer father.

Butcher Baker, The Righteous Maker #1: This is Joe Casey and Mike Huddleston’s new series about a superhero coming out of retirement, and it has a hell of a title. Huddleston’s art looks pretty great too, although it doesn’t sound or look like this is going to be a book for everyone. See for yourself here.

Caligula #1: Caligula, David Lapham and Avatar Press—a perfect combination? Sounds like. Lapham writes this historical horror story about one of Rome’s most notorious emperors, here possessed by a demon. German Nobile provides the art. It’s a $4 comic. You can see a preview here.
(more…)

We’ve since glimpses of the X-Men: First Class cast in trailers and leaked promo shots but we finally get to see a few mutants up-close and in their comic book garb. And yes, they include that one you’ve particularly been waiting for…

The images come via this week’s Empire magazine cover. In fact, much like comic books, they’re offering a few variant covers. The first features January Jones in all her Emma Frost glory, Michael Fassbender as Magneto and Jason Flemyng as Azazel.

The second shows Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystique, James McAvoy’s familiar Charles Xavier pose and Nicholas Hoult all Beasty.

There’s even a third cover for subscribers only, showing Magneto and Xavier on a nice chrome X-background.

So what do you folks think? Even though Jones is basically wearing just a bra for a top, it’s still not as revealing as I expected Emma’s costumes to be. And anyone else think they should have put the blue characters on the red background or some other color? They’re kind of fading into it instead of popping out like they should be. Both Lawrence and Hoult look pretty good to me.

The issue itself has behind-the-scenes access to the prequel, including interviews with director Matthew Vaughn and the cast.

X-Men: First Class is in theaters June 2.

Perhaps you’ve been following the story of Rob Granito at Bleeding Cool and via various Twitter accounts. In short, don’t pass off the work of others as your own.

Longer form: Rich Johnston began a series of posts last week that began with issues regardings Granito’s credits and became bent on exposing Rob Granito for appropriating work and selling it as his own. The movement gathered momentum, including a Facebook page, and hit a high point at MegaCon when writer Mark Waid and artist Ethan Van Sciver confronted Granito directly.

There’s no doubt that Rich performed a service here. But, as Torsten Adair (an active, intelligent poster whom also works for Barnes & Noble, Inc. in data analysis) noted at the Facebook page, it does seem that there needs to be some organizing in order to police the Arist Alleys of other conventions. Granted, Granito is now banned from future Wizard World conventions and other shows, but it’s probably safe to say that he’s not the only person indulging in this kind of behavior.

It can’t always be up to Rich (though I’m sure he’ll give it a good effort if he uncovers similiar cases), and one (or groups) would need to be careful in the future. This one was, safe to say, pretty obvious. That’s why I think that Adair’s take is a positive one: form a group, establish some criteria, and educate young artists in terms of what constitutes a legitimate homage or “After” image.

On the (large) upside, people that do this frequently are going to think twice going forward. How this plays out when future perpetrators are caught in the act remains to be seen.

The saddest thing you’ll read all day: Deadline Hollywood reprints the contents of a letter the late Joanne Siegel, wife of Superman creator Jerry Siegel and the inspiration for Lois Lane, sent to Time Warner CEO Jeffrey Bewkes just a few months before she died. The issues raised sure makes discussions like who’s playing Lois Lane in the latest Superman movie seem kind of frivilous, huh?

My mind is having trouble processing the idea of Bill Murray’s Batman…which makes me want to see it all the more: Michael Rechtshaffen recounts the many famous names who either clamored for or were once considered for the film roles of Superman and Batman.

Jeff Parker on all things Jeff Parker: I enjoyed this wide-ranging interview with the talented Marvel writer currently responsible for Hulk and Thunderbolts.

J.H. Williams III tries to bring Funk to a pice of his cover art: Here’s a look at Williams cover for the somewhat controversial Static Shock Special, including a nice little walk-through of his thought and creative processes.

“And it’s a bloody good comic, with a couple of moments where it becomes the best thing Garth Ennis has ever done”: Bob Temuka reads Garth Ennis, John McCrea and company’s Hitman series. (I certainly can’t think of a better exmaple of Ennis writing strong characters and compelling drama). I agree it’s a great comic, and among the talented Ennis’ best. I really liked the way Temuka highlighted aspects of the book too, as it forced me to recall great bits from the series and, in  a few cases where I couldn’t remember the reference, to get curious about it all over again.

The Arctic Marauder
Written & Illustrated by Jacques Tardi
Translated by Kim Thompson
Published by Fantagraphics

Fantagraphics has been injecting a steady stream of Jacques Tardi into the American comic book market, and I, for one, am appreciating it. From the ugly World War I drama It Was the War of the Trenches to whimsical fantasy The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec, Tardi is proving a singular and unclassifiable cartoonist. Their latest translation, The Arctic Marauder, continues to showcase Tardi’s range.

Set in 1889, The Arctic Marauder tells of young Jérôme Plumier, a medical student, witness to the unlikely discovery of a sailing vessel lodged atop an iceberg. When his own ship is destroyed, Plumier is eventually rescued but begins a strange, surreal and twisted adventure, leading to the discovery of why so many ships have been sinking in the Arctic Sea and the origin of the iceberg-bound boat.

Whimsically dark, The Arctic Marauder doesn’t fit in with many other books. It’s steampunkish, with an innocent. humorous narration that contrasts the book’s cynically maniacal characters. I have to admire Tardi’s choice to end the book on the most unlikely note, where most writers would end the prologue.

Graphically, Tardi is a superb cartoonist, using strong layouts and strikingly iconic character designs that stay with the reader. His page designs add to the boldness of each composition, and the architecture and technology give the book a palpable sense of place and time.

In short, The Arctic Marauder is pure fun, silly and dark camp. It’s a beautiful book, with an appealing cover and a sturdy hardcover binding. Tardi’s narrative voice keeps the proceedings puckishly light and pleasant, while the plot itself explores oceanic depths and throws out characters rife with madness and egocentrism. There aren’t many books quite like it; comics readers are better off for having Tardi available here in the States.

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Amy Adams, a recent Oscar nominee for The Fighter and star of 2007 revisionist fairy tale Enchanted, has been cast as Lois Lane in director Zack Snyder’s forthcoming Superman film.

According to the Times, Adams just received the news today. She joins British actor Henry Cavill in the tall-building-leaping lead role, plus Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Ma and Pa Kent. The casting presents a rare age discrepancy for a mainstream film; while a male lead being older than a female lead is common (Green Lantern star Ryan Reynolds is 11 years older than that film’s Carol Ferris, Blake Lively), Adams, 36, is nine years older than Cavill, 27.

Actors rumored for the role included Kristen Stewart, Olivia Wilde, Rachel McAdams and Mila Kunis. The previous most recent onscreen Lois Lane was Kate Bosworth in 2006′s Superman Returns. Erica Durance currently plays the character on Smallville, set to wrap its 10-season run this May.

This will be the first comic book film for Adams, but she’s not without her geek (or even Superman) street cred — she played Tara’s cousin Beth in season five Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode “Family,” and showed up as the “freak of the week” in season one Smallville episode “Craving.” (Her TV work also includes a couple of episodes as short-term love interest for Jim on The Office.) Adams has three Oscar nominations to her credit — along with The Fighter, she earned nods for Junebug and Doubt. She’ll also be appearing in The Muppets later this year.

Snyder’s latest film, Sucker Punch, opened this weekend in the No. 2 spot, coming in with $19 million to Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules at $24.4 million. The movie has received mostly negative reviews, with a current score of 36 on review aggregator site Metacritic. The new Superman film — reportedly titled Superman: Man of Steel — is scheduled for a December 2012 release.

The troubled Broadway musical based on Marvel’s Spider-Man has gone through not only shake-ups in production but several injuries since performances began just a few months ago. Today, there’s more.

According to the New York Times, the first major chance in production comes via the removal of the widely-criticized “Geek Chorus” of narrators. The four actors who play the Chorus were notified just yesterday their services would no longer be needed come this Spring when the show goes on hiatus.

The Geek Chorus was created by the director of the musical, Julie Taymor, and one of its script writers, who was recently fired by producers. “Ms. Taymor said in an interview this winter that the geeks were based on the four original creators of the musical: Herself (whose geek stand-in is named Miss Arrow), U2’s Bono and the Edge (named Jimmy-6 and Grim Hunter in the show), and the playwright Glen Berger, who wrote the script with Ms. Taymor and who is represented by geek Professor Cobwell. The loss of the geeks, in other words, represents a particularly personal excision of Ms. Taymor from the “Spider-Man” canvas,” said the NY Times.

Actress T.V. Carpio, who plays the villainous Arachne in Turn Off The Dark, was the latest to be injured mid-performance. The NY Times pointed out that the specific injury was not disclosed but that a person close to the musical said it had something to do with her neck. “The scene that brought harm to Ms. Carpio involves some fairly aggressive hand-to-hand combat between Arachne and Peter, as well as the two characters swooping and swinging from heights to confront each other on stage,” said the NY Times. Carpio is the fifth performer to suffer an injury during the show and the second actress playing Arachne to do so as well.

And lastly, a new choreographer named Chase Brock has been hired to help stage new musical numbers and script revisions. “Daniel Ezralow, meanwhile, the well-respected choreographer who oversaw the current dance, acrobatic and flying numbers, is expected to continue to be listed in the show’s credits — much like the director Julie Taymor, who was sacked by the producers this month over creative disagreements,” said the NY Times.

After breaking on April 19, Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark is set to resume with an overhauled production on May 12.