It’s official. Kevin Costner is playing Superman’s dad in the Zack Snyder directed film.

It had been rumored for some time that the Man of Steel crew were hoping to secure Costner for the role but they’ve finally done it. The Hollywood Reporter says the actor closed the deal with Warner Bros. and Legendary pictures to play Superman’s adoptive father Jonathan Kent.

Costner joins Henry Cavill playing Clark Kent/Superman and Diane Lane, who was recently announced as playing his on-screen wife, Martha. “Whether Costner will have an on-screen death is being kept very tightly under the cape by Warner Bros. and producers Charles Roven, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan and Deborah Snyder,” says THR.

What’s your opinion on the casting? I think Costner and Lane will make a great married couple. My hope is the don’t follow tradition and kill Pa off so soon.

It is always good when those who can, do.

Recently, famed Gothamite artist Dustin Nguyen, posted on ebay a seriously super piece. It’s an 11 x 17 watercolor and acrylic painting which was the variant cover for Superboy #3. Nguyen talked to Blog@ about the piece and the fact that all proceeds are going to the Japan relief and the Red Cross. “One of the very few times I’ve strayed away from Gotham. I was aiming for something a bit iconic and striking in palette,” Nguyen said. “I just want to raise as much as I can for the cause.”

Another known artist is the ever-popular Adam Hughes, who will be taking donations, with a minimum of $5 for a head sketch on Saturday and Sunday for the first hour of C2E2 this weekend. All proceeds going to aid Japan. He will also be there at WonderCon the following week, with the same stipulation.

I love when the comic community can come together like this and aid those who could really benefit. I won’t make it out to C2E2, but I will definitely be at WonderCon for Hughes’ line.

Update:

Artist Kenneth Rocafort (Velocity, Madame Mirage, Action Comics) has posted in his blog that he is running an auction for a rare sketch with all the proceeds going to benefit those who have suffered from the Japan tragedy. All the details are on the mentioned link and the winner gets the sketch as well as a receipt from the Red Cross. The auction will run until the 23rd of March and will be dealt similarly to how the Haiti relief auction was handled. The Dr. Strange above is a sample of the work the winner would receive.

Earlier this week, we reported The Sandman television show based on Neil Gaiman’s famous work that had been announced in September of last year, was stalled. Well, DC Comics Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns says, not true, The Sandman is moving forward.

The earlier news from the Hollywood Reporter had Supernatural creator, Eric Kripke, who was attached to the adaptation saying, “Unfortunately, for a lot of varying reasons, Sandman is not in the works, at least for this season.” He didn’t say it would never happen but he also didn’t sound too optimistic about the whole thing either.

Then, Johns jumped on Twitter to make sure we all knew the TV series was still on. “Correction to world: The Sandman is AWAKE! : ) Psyched to be working with @neilhimself on developing one of the greatest series ever!” he Tweeted. @neilhimself being Gaiman’s Twitter handle.

The original report from last year stated Gaiman was not involved with the show but that that could change. Kripke himself mentioned he had at least spoken with the writer but Johns followed his first  Sandman tweet with another, “Sandman in any form – comics to live action – doesn’t work without @neilhimself.”

As CCO, Johns has his fingers on the pulse of just about every film and television project coming from DC these days so it’s a safe bet The Sandman will be coming to TV eventually and WITH Neil Gaiman involved.

Ok, this is just too awesome for words. Up for bid on Ebay for the next six days, a custom tattoo designed personally for you by comic artist Cliff Chiang and inked by artist Brian Stringer at C2E2. The best part? Proceeds go to the Hero Initiative.

Here’s the gist: “The winner will have the unique opportunity to have Chiang draw, in advance of the show, any character of their choice or any other subject matter that can be agreed upon, as an 8″x10″ illustration. Then, this artwork will be tattooed by Brian Stringer at C2E2.”

And not only to you get the tattoo of your choice out of it, you get to keep the original illustration too. Of course you must have a valid state ID and be 18 years or older in order to win. Also, according to the listing, “The tattoo will be black and gray, any color work at tattooer’s discretion. No cover-ups, text, or logos. Any character head shot, bust, or action pose, up to 8″x10″. Up to 4 hours of tattooing. No neck or face tattoos.”

I’m planning on bidding but I’m worried it’s going to get too rich for my blood by the time the six days are up. I will try though. This is such a cool, original idea and a rare opportunity. Not to mention a great deal. And as I mentioned, 100% of the proceeds go to Hero Initiative so it’s a good cause too.

The comic book in which Spider-Man made his first appearance went for an amazing $1.1 million in a transaction Monday night. That’s gonna buy a lot of web shooters.

Amazing Fantasy #15, written by Stan Lee , with a cover by Jack Kirby and interior art by Steve Ditko, was originally published in 1962 and sold to many for just 12 cents. (Sales for the issue were some of the highest for Marvel at the time.) These days, they’re a little harder to come by. This particular comic was graded 9.6 or near-mint, plus, and was sold by ComicConnect.com from a private seller to an undisclosed buyer. Aren’t they always? WHO ARE THESE RICH GEEKS AND DOES ONE WANT TO HELP ME OUT WITH MY CAR INSURANCE?!

I digress.

The sale now makes Amazing Fantasy #15 the second most expensive comic ever behind Superman’s debut in Action Comics which went for $1.5 million last year. However, it is the most money ever shelled out for a Silver Age book.

Chief Executive and Founder of ComicConnect, Stephen Fishler, said in a statement Tuesday, “People have often wondered how much this near-perfect condition book would sell for, and today we found out.”

Good on you, Google.

You might have noticed today while going to the internet’s most famous search engine, that the banner is honoring Will Eisner, one of the quintessential contributers to the comic medium. The image above showcases Eisner’s most famous creation, the pulp hero, the Spirit. Eisner passed away six years ago, though today would have been Eisner’s 94th birthday.

If you’re not familiar with Eisner’s work, you might want to look into A Contract with God and Other Tenement Stories, as well as Comics and Sequential Art, which is still used today as an exemplary study for comics and illustration.

Here’s to you, sir.

ABC’s new drama pilot sounds kinda familiar if you ask me.

The pilot, called Once Upon a Time, has just snagged Ginnifer Goodwin from Showtime’s Big Love to play the lead role…Snow White.  From Deadline:

[Once Upon a Time] centers on a woman with a troubled past who is drawn into a small town in Maine where the magic and mystery of Fairy Tales just may be real. Goodwin will play Snow White/Sister Mary Margaret, a beautiful woman with dark hair and very pale skin who has been placed under a wicked spell by the Evil Queen (Lana Parrilla), and is brought back from a living death by Prince Charming.

It’s not exactly the same as Fables of course, but awfully fishy when you consider ABC optioned the highly-successful Vertigo comic series for a pilot just a few years ago. Back then, Stu Zicherman and Raven Metzner were writing the script that would follow the fairy tale characters in their exiled home in modern day New York and feature Bigby and Snow White. Fables creator Bill Willingham did in fact read the script for the pilot but nothing more came of it from the network.

Once Upon a Time comes to us from Lost executive producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. And it’s a well known fact most of those Lost guys are big comic fans. In fact, Kitsis and Horowitz produced and wrote for the short-lived Birds of Prey television series. Time will tell if the duo were simply inspired by the comic or are borrowing directly from it.

Whoa. What?

Helloooo…Ma Kent?

Deadline has reported that Academy Award-nominated actress, Diane Lane has been cast as Martha Kent in the upcoming Superman film. “This was a very important piece of casting for me because Martha Kent is the woman whose values helped shape the man we know as Superman,” stated director Zack Snyder. “We are thrilled to have Diane in the role because she can convey the wisdom and the wonder of a woman whose son has powers beyond her imagination.”

This is definitely a different vision than Phyllis Thaxter, who played Ma Kent in the Richard Donner film, and Eve Marie Saint who portrayed the character in Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns. With the casting of Kevin Costner as the possible Pa Kent, I guess this is a good match, just a bit different from what I’m used to imagining.

What do you think, readers? I love Unfaithful, the movie Lane earned her Oscar nomination for, and she definitely has a range. I’m excited to see what Snyder has up his sleeve.

While the Siegel and Kirby families continue to fight their battles in court, readers who want to a fun and accessible overview of the legal issues at stake should pick up the special All-Lawsuit Issue of Comic Book Comics, out in comic shops today.

Comics Alliance has a generous preview, and tonight in New York Evil Twins Fred van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey will be signing copies of the book at the 64 Fulton Street location of Midtown Comics. I’ll be there too for the panel discussion, since I served as the book’s pro bono legal consultant.

Looks like your TV could get a lot more powerful.

Confirmed on both his Twitter and Facebook page, Brian Michael Bendis announced that his and Michael Oeming creator-owned series, Powers, was greenlit for a pilot on FX. No word yet on a time frame or any specifics, other than the project will be written by Charles H. Eglee and directed by Michael Dinner.

Powers tells the story of detectives Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim, that were devoted to special investigations dealing with crimes based about “powers” or super-powered individuals. The series was originally published by Image from 2000-2004, and later moved to its current home at Marvel’s Icon imprint.

The series is being co-produced by Sony and FX Productions.

So, Rama readers, what do you think of this development?

Many politicians use “going green” as a platform these days but in his State of the City address this morning, Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell wasn’t talking about his city becoming environmentally friendly, he dropped one hell of a geek reference.

“If New York is Superman; and Chicago is Batman; and Los Angeles is the Flash; then Austin is the Green Lantern,” said the Texas politician.

We all know the fictional home of Green Lantern Hal Jordan is Coast City, usually compared to real world California cities like San Diego or Los Angeles, but Leffingwell is staking the claim for Austin.

Anyone can name superheroes in a speech but it seems Leffingwell really knows his stuff. “We are a city without fear,” he continued, “We are a city that can create anything we can visualize, through sheer force of will. We are a city with a special charge to shine a light into the darkness and lead the way to a new and better day.”

The mayor also spoke of his cities inhabitants as, ”smart, driven, courageous and compassionate people. People who make things happen. People who keep moving forward no matter what.”

So he messed up the real-world correlation for where the Flash lives but I think we can forgive him after that amazing speech, don’t you?

In his speech, Leffingwell also mentioned breaking ground on a new 800-room hotel in downtown Austin in the next year. His goal? ”We will rock it to the top of convention destinations,” he said.

Build it, and geeks will come.

via Big Shiny Robot and KXAN.com

Image Comics is sponsoring a fun contest with Threadless (you know, the t-shirt company that steals all your money with their awesome products).

“The challenge is to create an amazing comic based off of Threadless designs,” says Lance Curran, the warehouse director and founder of Threadless Comics-On Tees. Their last contest winner, Ben Foot, created the comic above from the t-shirt design, “What Did I Ever Do to You?” by David Schwen.

“I’m obsessed with comics and I’ve always felt that designs on Threadless could make great comic characters,” Curran told Newsarama. “Lucky for us, Image Comics thought so too!” Contestants have 30 days to submit their entry at which time Image will choose the winner.

Besides recognition on the website, the winner will this prize pack of books:

Orc Stain Vol 1
The Fantastic Worlds of Frank Frazetta
Morning Glories Vol 1
Popgun Vol 4 (anthology)
Liquid City Vol 2 (anthology)
Phonogram Vol 1
The Nightly News
San Diego ComicCon 2010 Yearbook (art book)

The winner will also receive a $25 Threadless gift certificate. “Threadless has such a talented and inspiring community I knew this challenge would be full of win,” said Curran. “I’m always looking for ways to combine my love of comics with my love of Threadless.” You can enter now at Threadless.com.

Fans of the short-lived space western Firefly have been eager to see more of their favorite characters since the show was canceled back in 2002. They got their wish with Joss Whedon’s feature film Serenity and again with a series of comic books from Dark Horse. But with the recent news that the lone season of Firefly will once again be airing on cable television, the fever has re-ignited. Fans are now petitioning for Firefly’s star Nathan Fillion to purchase the rights to the series so that it may go back into production. And they’re willing to foot the bill.

According to Entertainment Weekly, fans have created a website and a Facebook page dedicated to the cause. “Help Nathan Buy Firefly” may sound like a ridiculous venture but crazier things have happened. I mean, we did see a feature film made out of this extremely short-live television series after all.

When the news of Firefly coming back to cable was announced, Fillion told EW, “If I got $300 million from the California Lottery, the first thing I would do is buy the rights to Firefly, make it on my own, and distribute it on the Internet.”

Well, that’s all he needed to say. The movement went into immediate action with Fillion’s colleagues even getting in on the fun. From EW:

Jose Molina, a producer on Syfy’s Haven, former Castle producer and author of two Firefly episodes tweeted Friday regarding Fillion’s comment: “For what it’s worth, I’ve told him I’d drop what I was doing and follow.”

Then Jane Espenson, writer of a Firefly episode, a producer on Battlestar Galactica and co-creator of Warehouse 13, replied to Molina: “I’m there, if needed.”

EW also points out, Fillion wouldn’t need nearly the amount of money he mentioned to purchase the rights seeing as how the Terminator franchise recently went for only $30 million and that had a far more successful past.

Now of course, none of this means the people who own the rights currently, 20th Century Fox, have any intention of selling them. And the fans aren’t asking anyone to put up money just yet (so be wary if someone does ask you). But you can’t take the sky from a Firefly fan.

It’s been a while since Ted Naifeh has dabbled in the world of his series Courtney Crumrin.

Over at Naifeh’s site, he presents a few preview pages for the upcoming for the upcoming Courtney Tales 2. Newsarama has got the exclusive interview with Naifeh, as well as the first look to the cover, as well as the official name: Courtney Crumrin Tales: The League of Ordinary Gentlemen.

Blog@: You’ve written another Aloysius story before, what made you want to write another about Courtney’s mysterious uncle?

Ted Naifeh: The first one was really part one of a two parter. I wanted to resolve that story, and this book does exactly that.

Blog@: Without giving too much away, where does this story take Aloysius?

Naifeh: The story explores the roots of my little magical world, where it came from, why it’s there, and what Aloysius’s role is in it. Aloysius is a pretty mysterious character in the main series, and I wanted to reveal some of his secrets. I’d like to think this story addresses why he’s such a lonely old man.

Blog@: Does this tie into any of Courtney’s adventures?

Naifeh: It will in the next Courtney adventure. I start digging more deeply into the back story of Courtney’s world, the community of witches and warlocks in the town of Hillsborough. Some of what comes up will have direct bearing on Courtney’s life.

Blog@: Who are some of the new characters we’ll get introduced in this tale? Any old favorites coming back this round?

Naifeh: One of the characters I had fun with in the last story was the pulp hero Goose Daniels. But since he was transformed into a goose at the end, I needed a replacement. So he has a confederate that comes looking for him, and ends up getting press-ganged by the Anti-Sorcery Society to take his place. Another character that shows up is Aloysius’s grandmother, who was briefly mentioned in Courtney vol 3 as the first witch in Hillsborough. It’s through her that some of the world’s back-story is revealed.

Blog@: Do you feel your style has evolved since last dabbling with Aloysius?

Naifeh: I tried to make it as similar as possible, but I’ve acquired new influences, and I can’t help it if they shine through a bit. It’s not a jarring difference, at least. Just a bit better.

Blog@: Tell us about some of those new influences.

Naifeh: In my promotional trips to Europe, I had had the honor of being exposed to some truly amazing artists. Sergio Toppi is a real artist’s artist. He’s been around forever, and you can see his influence on Bill Sienkiewicz as well as french artist Phillipe Druillet, who I used to adore back in the early Heavy Metal Magazine days. The new one is named Roger (which sounds much more romantic with a French accent), artist of Jazz Maynard (ditto). His lines are so incredible, so elastic yet under precise control.

Blog@: You took a break for a while doing Good Neighbors with Holly Black, how does it feel coming back to the world of Crumrin?

Naifeh: Like returning home, really. Courtney’s world is as comfortable to me as my own bedroom. I’m looking forward to adding some new flourishes. But I really had a ball working on Good Neighbors, trying out some Toppi-style line work (which was ill-advised, but I eventually got some really nice results out of it), and getting to do real fingers instead of Courtney’s spikes or Polly’s nubs.

Blog@: Do you foresee an end to Courtney and Alyosuis’ tales?

Naifeh: I foresee a stopping point. But that doesn’t mean I’m done with them forever. In this new volume, I added a single story element that completely changes their world, and that makes me want to explore the world a bit more. I have a definite conclusion for the Courtney Crumrin series, which is pretty final. But it’s not like Courtney’s going to die or anything. So we’ll see. As for Uncle Aloysius, this second volume concludes the Anti-Sorcerer Society storyline. I’d love to continue his adventures if I have time. But I want to explore new worlds as well. Princess Ugg is calling to me, demanding that her story be told. And there are others.

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed but there’s this little event going over at Top Cow now called “Artifacts”. Ring any bells?

Sarcasm aside, one of the great selling points on Artifacts isn’t just the fantastic story (so far) that’s being architectured by Ron Marz, but he’s working on a rotating team of artists. Recently it was announced that Jeremy Haun (Detective Comics, Berserker) will join the rotation, picking up where Whilce Portacio leaves off.

Blog@ spoke briefly with Marz about the artists he’s been working with and the great chemistry between story and art, as well as working with Jeremy Haun.

Blog: Okay, so, first it was Michael Broussard, then Whilce Portacio, and now Jeremy Haun — who approached who about working on Artifacts? You or Jeremy?

RM: Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik was the matchmaker here. When he knew Jeremy was signing an exclusive with Top Cow, Filip called me up and asked what I thought of Jeremy taking the last on the third arc of Artifacts. Took me all of two seconds to say yes, as Jeremy is somebody I’ve been wanting to work with for a while. We actually talked about working together last year, but I don’t think either of us expected it to fall into place this quickly.

Blog@: Some say Whilce Portacio is doing some of his best work in a long time working on Artifacts, what is it about this story you think that elevates these artists to a whole other level?

RM: I certainly agree, I think this is some of Whilce’s strongest stuff ever, but I’m a bit biased obviously. Whoever I’m working with, whatever project I’m working on, a big part of my job is to play to the artists’ strengths and give them something they’re excited about drawing. Comics are a visual medium, so the scripts need to be as visual as possible. Otherwise, what’s the point? I also think you have to mention Joe Weems on inks and Sunny Gho on colors. They’re both bringing their best as well, so they make a great team with Whilce.

Blog@: Who’s on your shortlist of the artists you’d love to have on the final installment of Artifacts? Or do you already have somebody in mind?

RM: My shortlist has one name on it for who should draw issue #13, and that’s who’s drawing it.

Artifacts: Volume 1 is on sale now.

It’s official. We have our live-action Wonder Woman. Friday Night Lights star Adrianne Palicki has been chosen to embody Princess Diana in David E. Kelley’s Wonder Woman pilot on NBC.

Twenty-seven year old Palicki, who also starred in Supernatural and the film Legion, stands a lofty 5’11″ tall. The news came just late this evening courtesy of the Hollywood Reporter.

Oddly enough, Palicki had a brush with DC Comics before. She was in an episode of Smallville but was also cast as Siren in the Aquaman television pilot that was never picked up.

In high school, the actress played basketball and ran track so it’s likely she’ll be able to keep up with the physicality of the role. Palicki can be seen next in the remake of Red Dawn with Thor star Chris Hemsworth.

Updated: And here’s an image of Palicki with dark hair from the swiftly cancelled “Lone Star”.

Well, what do you think Newsarama readers?

It’s hardly breaking news anymore that the Spider-Man musical Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark has had it’s streak of setbacks and upsets ranging from constant delays (again pushed back to debut March 15th) to injuries and drop outs (remember when Alan Cumming was supposed to be Green Goblin?). Now, it’s hit another setback, but something…positive?

According to Deadline, former Sensational Spider-Man scribe Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa has been signed to do some re-writes. I’d say since one of the major negatives of the show has been it’s lack of having that authentic Spider-Man voice, I can see why they opted for a re-write.

With Turn Off The Dark being bombarded with mostly disappointed reviews, Bono and The Edge brought in their producer as well to up the oompf factor in the music. But with the production tittering the $65 million dollar mark, and already the punchline for many late night shows and SNL itself, has it already tarnished its image?

What do you think, readers?

A month ago, Marion Cotillard announced her pregnancy, so in many fans eyes, that took her off the short list of potential femme fatales when it was announced back in November that The Dark Knight Rises (aka Batman 3) would have two female main characters. Well according to French news site, Le Figaro, that doesn’t seem to be stopping her at all.

In case you don’t speak French, I had Google Chrome help me out with that: “Marion Cotillard in “Batman 3″. The actress, who is expecting a child in the spring with Guillaume Canet, will be scarce this year. She’ll do a single film and her choice fell on Batman 3.”

Now, it’s already speculated that she’ll portray Talia al Ghul, Ra’s al Ghul’s (Liam Neeson from Batman Begins) daughter, but nothing is confirmed so far, especially even if she has a role. Personally, Talia makes the most sense here as Nolan’s trilogy comes full circle. Sure, Catwoman/Selina Kyle, played by Anne Hathaway, is more of a lover, but Talia has always come across as a genuine threat. Could a cameo by Liam Neeson be in the works, too? What do you think, readers?

The Dark Knight Rises opens in theaters July 20th, 2012.

Hold onto your hats fanboys and girls, this is a doozy. Apparently “there can be only one” doesn’t apply to screenwriters. Melissa Rosenberg, adapter of the Twilight Saga for the big screen, has taken over writing duties on the new Highlander reboot.

The reboot itself was news to me. I had no idea they were plannning on an updated version of the 1986 Highlander film starring Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Summit, the studio behind the Twilight films, acquired the Highlander rights back in 2008 from Panzer/Davis Productions.

“Art Marcum and Matt Holloway wrote the initial draft while Cormac Wibberley and Marianne Sellek Wibberley also worked on the script,” says THR. Besides the Twilight Saga, Rosenberg has written episodes of the failed Birds of Prey television series as well as Dexter.

Neal Moritz (I Am Legend, The Green Hornet) and Peter Davis are producing the project and Justin Lin (Fast & Furious) is set to direct. Davis was the producer on the original Highlander as well as the subsequent television show and sequels.

So Highlander fans, what do you think of the Twilight screenwriter taking a crack at Connor MacLeod? I’m more than a little concerned. Then again, the last few Highlander movies have been pretty awful, maybe this will breathe some new life into the franchise. At least she’s familiar with immortals, albeit sparkly ones.

You’ve seen the movie, you’ve read the magazine articles, now you’ve got the opportunity to see the life of Hunter S. Thompson in graphic novel form.

And this isn’t your Entertainment Weekly-style, Bluewater Productions biography either. Written by Will Bingly and illustrated by Anthony Hope-Smith, Gonzo: A Graphic Biography of Hunter S. Thompson is published by an independent graphic novel house in London called SelfMadeHero.

Over the course of Hunter S. Thompson’s extraordinary life he was publically branded a bum, a vandal, a thief, a liar, an addict, a freak and a psychopath. Some of these were true. Yet, even when compared to the most significant figures of the 20th century, his legacy remains a brilliantly vital force. This is his story – the story of a troubled kid who went on to become an international icon, a story that plumbs the darkest depths of American society and charts the now-legendary adventures that birthed Gonzo journalism and a lifestyle beyond imagination.

Read more and check out some preview pages after the jump. (more…)