Superhero Movies Coming Soon: Emilia Clarke To Play Zatanna
Looking at what’s to come, the future of superhero movies could be and should be bright.
This article is more than 2 years old
Marvel and DC. Thanks to their properties, the superhero movie is alive and well. Sorry Martin Scorsese. Since the Michael Keaton-led Batman movies, the superhero genre has seen nothing but a meteoric rise. While DC is slowly righting their ship and coming out with better movies, Marvel, beginning with Iron Man, has hit it out of the park time and time again.
Looking at what’s to come, the future of superhero movies could be and should be bright. Marvel is getting ready to ramp up Phase 4 of the MCU while DC is hoping their future films will add to building their superhero movie portfolio in a positive way. The following list lays out every movie coming soon from your favorite superheroes.
UPCOMING SUPERHERO MOVIES WITH CONFIRMED RELEASE DATES
The New Mutants – August 28, 2020
Delays, reshoots, and more delays. Producer Simon Kinberg wanted to make a superhero horror movie and the New Mutants was it. The film was initially scheduled to premiere in April 2018 but that date was never met. Apparently, director Josh Boone (The Fault Of Our Stars) failed to put enough horror in the horror film. So, reshoots were ordered to add more of the horror element and possibly another character. New Mutants was pushed to August 2019. The Disney-Fox merger was supposedly the reason for the next delay, moving the film to April 3, 2020. The Coronavirus pandemic then cancelled that date, leaving it now releasing in August.
The New Mutants stars Anya Taylor-Joy (The Witch, Split) as Magik, Charlie Heaton is Cannonball, Henry Zaga is Sunspot and Maisie Williams plays Wolfsbane. As for the actual plot, fans are hoping it delivers on the promise of superhero horror.
Black Widow – November 6, 2020
Spoiler alert for those who have not seen Avengers: Endgame. Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff sacrificed herself for the greater good. So how is this superhero solo movie happening? Well, it’s a prequel set after her appearance in Captain America: Civil War.
This standalone superhero movie represents Marvel’s entry to Phase 4 and along with Johansson, it will star Florence Pugh as Yelena, the comic book character who eventually becomes Black Widow. David Harbour is also aboard as Red Guardian, a Russian version of Captain America. In a shocking announcement, Robert Downey Jr. is returning as Tony Stark. Cate Shortland is behind the camera for this highly anticipated movie.
- Go in depth with Marvel’s Black Widow: All We Know About Her Solo Movie
Wonder Woman 1984 – August 14, 2020
It was obvious with the huge numbers Wonder Woman pulled in that sights were set on a sequel. DC jumped in it and brought back director Patty Jenkins to helm Wonder Woman’s next superhero movie adventure.
Gal Gadot returns as Wonder Woman living during the Cold War. Also returning is Chris Pine as Steve Trevor, but it’s not known if his character is seen only in flashbacks or not. Kristen Wiig, known more for her comedy, is here surprisingly playing the villain Cheetah.
Venom 2 – October 2, 2020
That mid-credits scene of Venom told us all we needed to know. Woody Harrelson will be back in action in the untitled Venom sequel as Venom’s murderous foe Carnage. Tom Hardy returns as Eddie Brock and his alter-ego, the symbiotic Venom.
Andy Serkis arrives as the director of a planned Venom superhero movie trilogy but the big question concerning the sequel is, will Tom Holland make an appearance as Spider-Man?
In the meantime, photos from the movie have started to leak and we just got our first look at Woody Harrelson’s Carnage…
And here’s Woody Harrelson’s character when he’s not in Carnage mode…
Marvel’s The Eternals – February 12, 2021
Late in 2020 Marvel will introduce The Eternals, a group of immortals created for comics in 1976 by Jack Kirby. Those familiar with the comic will notice a big change in the movie version with some gender-swapping from the characters Kirby created.
What Marvel hopes The Eternals will be its next big superhero movie franchise stars Angelina Jolie as warrior Thena. Top-lining with her are Salma Hayek as one of the gender-swapped characters Ajak, Richard Madden as Ikaris, and Lauren Ridloff of The Walking Dead series as another gender-swapped character Makkari. Chloe Zhao helms the movie.
- Get in depth with our All We Know Guide To Marvel’s The Eternals
Morbius – March 19, 2021
While Morbius is not the movie’s official title, Marvel’s famous vampire will make his debut in the summer of 2020. Jared Leto, who unfortunately didn’t gain many fans with his portrayal of the Joker, has been tapped to take on the lead role, Michael Morbius.
Here’s the first trailer for Morbius…
Details of the plot have not yet been released but Morbius is a biochemist with a rare blood disease. In his attempts to cure himself, he instead develops powerful abilities and a strong taste for blood. Daniel Espinoza has signed on to direct with Adria Arjona as the Morbius love interest, Martine Bancroft.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – May 7, 2021
The Master of Kung Fu has arrived. Loosely based on the legacy of martial arts icon Bruce Lee, Shang-Chi is being brought forth, according to The Hollywood Reporter, with Marvel’s goal being to offer “perspective on Asian identity.” With that in mind, Simu Lui was hired as Shang-Chi and Destin Daniel Cretton is the movie’s director.
Unfortunately filming on Shang-Chi has now been delayed after the movie’s director Destin Daniel Cretton has gone in for testing to see if he has the Coronavirus. On the advice of his doctor, while he waits for the test to come back, he has now isolated himself in self-quarantine. It’s happening in Australia, where the superhero movie was filming. Cretton has a newborn baby and as such, is especially concerned about the virus.
If Cretton’s test comes back negative then filming on Shang-Chi is expected to resume. If it doesn’t, expect the entire production to be shut down for weeks or months and for the rest of the cast and crew to get tested and, potentially, be infected. That will also likely lead to long delays in the film’s release, but at this point every movie is being delayed anyway.
Not much is known about this superhero movie’s plot but what we do know is that Tony Leung is the film’s baddy, The Mandarin, the real one, not the fake one brought to the screen in Iron Man 3.
According to ComicBook.com, legendary actress Michelle Yeoh is currently in talks to co-star in the film. Yeoh is currently one of the stars of Star Trek: Discovery and CBS is supposed to be working on a Star Trek spinoff show focused on Yeoh’s character.
In addition to Yeoh and Leung, Shang Chi already has Simu as the titular star of the movie. Awkwafina is also in the cast.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – November 5, 2021
One of the most highly anticipated movies on the upcoming superhero movie circuit, the Doctor Strange sequel brings back Benedict Cumberbatch as Strange. According to producers the plan is to “…make the first scary MCU film.” Hear that, The Eternals? News from Doctor Strange 2 says Elizabeth Olsen will reprise her role as Scarlet Witch, adding to the rumors that this sequel plays into the upcoming Disney+ series WandaVision.
- Go in depth with our Doctor Strange 2 Guide
The Batman – June 6, 2021
To say reactions were mixed when writer/director Matt Reeves announced Robert Pattison was going to wear the Dark Knight’s cowl is an understatement. As time has gone on, fans seem to be leaning more toward the positive onIthe hire. More positivity followed when more cast was announced.
Zoe Kravitz is taking the role of Selina Kyle aka Catwoman. Paul Dano is the Riddler, John Turturro plays mobster Carmine Falcone and it is rumored that Colin Farrell will be playing The Penguin. Also rumored is that Batman will be facing more villains. Two-Face, Scarecrow, Bane and the Mad Hatter are linked to the movie.
Rounding out the amazing cast is Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon and Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth. Reeves says The Batman is more of a noir than a superhero movie, focusing on the detective abilities of the caped crusader.
- Get more in depth with The Batman: All We Know About The Next Dark Knight Movie
Spider-Man 3 – July 16, 2021
The on-again, off-again partnership between Sony and Marvel is now… on again! Spidey fans can rejoice. While there are next to no details about the third entry in Marvel’s new Spider-Man franchise, the simple fact that Sony and Marvel buried the hatchet, for now, is big news. We do know that Tom Holland will be back as your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and Jon Watts will return to direct for a third time.
- Go in depth on this superhero movie with Spider-Man 3: The Plan For Far From Home’s Sequel
The Suicide Squad – August 8, 2021
One of the biggest surprises coming from the announcement of The Suicide Squad was that James Gunn of Guardians of the Galaxy fame would be writing and directing. For a time it seemed like James Gunn would never work for Marvel again when controversy over tweets made a decade ago erupted. Those tweets got him fired from Guardians of the Galaxy 3 (he has since been reinstated). Now though, all is well between Gunn and Marvel.
From the original Suicide Squad movie we know that Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, Joel Kinnaman, and Jai Courtney will return. Added to the cast are Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok), Michael Rooker (Guardians of the Galaxy), David Dastmalchian (Ant-Man), Idris Elba (Heimdall in various movies), Pete Davidson (SNL), John Cena (Wrestler-turned-actor), and Peter Capaldi (former Dr. Who) are also appearing.
Thor: Love and Thunder – February 18, 2022
We may be a little under two years away, but Thor: Ragnarok and now Thor: Love and Thunder director Taika Waititi made a big splash at Comic-Con 2019 when he brought out Jane Foster herself, Natalie Portman. Not only is she returning as Jane Foster, but as Waititi tells Variety “It introduces, for the first time, a female Thor.” This is big, especially not knowing the direction Waititi plans on taking Chris Hemsworth’s Thor.
Joining the Thor Love And Thunder cast alongside Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Natalie Portman as Jane Foster may be Tom Hiddleston as Loki. The superhero sequel’s plot is something of a mystery at this point, though the title suggests a lot.
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse 2 – April 8, 2022
It wasn’t long after the extremely successful launch of the first animated Into the Spider-Verse movie that Sony announced a sequel to their animated superhero movie. Winning an Oscar has only added pressure for the new creative team behind Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse 2.
Phil Lord and Chris Miller return as producers but have given the director’s chair to Joaquim Dos Santos from a script by Wonder Woman 1984’s David Callaham.
Black Panther 2 – May 6, 2022
With Black Panther 2 still a couple of years out, the only things we know at this point are Chadwick Boseman returns as T’Challa, the King of Wakanda and title character. Ryan Coogler has signed officially to write and direct.
Expect all those from the first superhero movie, and survivors from Avengers: Endgame, to return to their respective roles also. That list would include Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Winston Duke as M’Baku, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Danai Gurira as Okoye, Angela Bassett as Queen Ramonda, and Martin Freeman as Everett Ross.
Black Panther 2 may the last times Chadwick Boseman plays the character in a solo movie. Rumors swirling around the production suggest both that he’s been unhappy with the creative direction the franchise has taken and also that Marvel plans to have T’Challa’s sister Shuri (played by Letitia Wright) take over as the new Black Panther. Shuri’s takeover could happen as soon as Avengers 5. So while we’ll likely see Boseman show up as T’Challa in Avengers 5, after that he could be done. Once Shuri becomes Black Panther, there will be no reason for Boseman to continue on.
Black Panther 2 will be the fifth time Boseman has played the character in a film and if he makes it Avengers 5 that’ll be his sixth appearance. He first appeared in Captain America: Civil War. He then did Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and now Black Panther 2. Even Chris Evans only played Captain America in seven films.
Aquaman 2 – December 16, 2022
Aquaman is the top grossing DCEU movie so far. So Aquaman 2 was always a given. Not much is known about the second installment other than that Jason Momoa will return and currently Amber Heard is expected to as well. We don’t know if James Wan will return to the director’s chair. It is rumored that Momoa’s Aquaman will face off again against his classic nemesis Black Manta.
- Go in-depth with our Aquaman 2: All We Know Guide
UPCOMING SUPERHERO MOVIES WITHOUT RELEASE DATES
Madame Web – TBA
Sony is working on a secret Marvel comics based movie that has just gotten a lot less secret. Variety reports they’ve hired TV director S.J. Clarkson to helm it and that it’s actually going to be centered around the character of Madame Web. Confirming Variety’s story, The Direct adds that Sony is looking at Charlize Theron to star as the title character.
Madame Web first appeared in the Spider-Man universe, where she is an occasional supporting character. She’s a mutant with the ability to see the future and has in the past usually been depicted as an old woman. She’s an odd choice to center a movie around, it’ll be interesting to see what Sony has in mind for her.
Samaritan – TBA
Of all the characters Sylvester Stallone has played in his illustrious career, a superhero is not one of them. Sure you can always say Rocky is one, perhaps Judge Dredd, maybe even Barney Ross in The Expendables. He also played Stakar Ogord in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 but again, not a full-on superhero. This will all change with the movie Samaritan, an original superhero movie by Overlord director Julius Avery from a script penned by Bragi F. Schut (Escape Room)
Plot details are light at the moment, but what we know is the story tells of a young boy who is in search of a legendary superhero (Stallone) whom everyone thought died after an epic battle. This young boy thinks the superhero still lives. Javon “Wanna” Walton (Utopia) will star as the young boy and by looks of his Instagram post, he is very excited to be starring with the legend.
Also announced to star along with Stallone and Walton are Martin Starr (Silicon Valley, Honey Boy), Pilou Asbæk (Overlord, Game of Thrones), Moises Arias (Hannah Montana, Five Feet Apart), and Dascha Polanco (Orange is the New Black).Samaritan is scheduled to be released this year, December 11, 2020.
The Flash – TBA
This superhero solo movie has had its ups and downs from start dates to writers to directors. Ezra Miller has always been attached to the project and at one point even penned a script that Warner Bros. eventually turned down. It director Andy Muschietti has been brought in helm the new script which is being written by Birds of Prey scriptwriter Christina Hodson.
- Go in depth with our guide to The Flash Solo Movie: All We Know
Black Adam – TBA
Dwayne Johnson was supposed to co-star as Shazam’s nemesis Black Adam in Shazam, but that was not to be. Johnson has remained attached to Black Adam and it was recently announced that the superhero movie will now be a stand-alone adventure for the character. Jauma Collet-Serra, who just worked on Disney’s Jungle Cruise with Johnson, has been tabbed to direct Black Adam. There is no start date but a writer has been chosen. Expect the production on Black Adam to start within the next year.
- Go in-depth on Black Adam with Black Adam: All We Know About The Rock’s Superhero Movie
Shazam 2 – TBA
Zachary Levi returns in the sequel to the surprise hit superhero movie Shazam!. Henry Gayden has been hired by Warner Bros. to start writing. It’s thought director David F. Sandberg will return to helm the project but as of yet he has not officially signed.
Blade – TBA
The bombshell that came with the announcement that Blade was going to be rebooted was that Wesley Snipes would not return as the Daywalker. Instead, Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali has been chosen to take up the mantle as Eric Brooks aka Blade. Kevin Feige, Marvel chief, told Variety about his excitement in bringing Ali aboard, “He’s going to destroy the part…”
Get more in-depth details on the new Blade in our Blade: All We Know Guide
Guardians of the Galaxy 3 – TBA
With all the turmoil surrounding James Gunn and his firing, the future of the Guardian superhero movie series was briefly up in the air. Cast members wanted Gunn to remain and eventually, they wore down the powers that be because Gunn has returned to write and direct the third part. We are assuming most of the Guardians will return for Guardians of the Galaxy 3, but at this point it’s a guessing game.
- Go in depth on this superhero movie with our Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Guide
Ant-Man 3 – TBA
Paul Rudd will be back in this superhero movie as Ant-Man in Ant-Man 3 and we’re expecting Evangeline Lilly to return as well as Michael Douglas. At one point Douglas announced he thought filming would commence in January of 2021, but that’s not confirmed. Peyton Reed will return as Ant-Man’s director, the third time he’ll be in this role for the series.
Deadpool 3 – TBA
Ryan Reynolds is Deadpool. There is no franchise without him. He’s not just playing the character, at this point he’s firmly in control of what kind of movie they’re making with him. Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who wrote the first two movies, are writing this one too. David Leitch returns to direct.
Whether other ancillary Deadpool characters like Cable, Colossus or Wolverine might show up is anyone’s guess. The film is in early stages of development. But Ryan Reynolds will be there as Deadpool and if you’re a fan of the franchise then that’s all that matters.
As of now Deadpool 3 is slated to be rated-R just like all the others. Rumors of pushing it to a PG-13 rating have so far just been rumors. That means you can expect the same extreme gore and extremely raunchy comedy you’ve come to expect from the Merc with the Mouth.
Superhero Movies In Early Development
A-Force – Rumored Development
After that awkward and forced moment in Avengers: Endgame where all the franchise’s female characters teamed up to lead our heroes to victory, Marel has made it clear that they feel the future of their universe is female. And as part of that planned female future, Marvel is reportedly working on an all-female superhero team-up, currently being called A-Force.
You might think Captain Marvel would be the centerpiece of a movie like A-Force, but apparently that isn’t the plan at all. According to this source, while Captain Marvel will be involved, the idea is for She-Hulk to end up leading the all-female Avengers. That’s actually how it plays out in the comic, so on that level it makes sense. But in terms of the Marvel movie universe, it’s an odd decision given that She-Hulk is currently only slated to appear on the television MCU and there are no plans to give her a movie.
Consider this all rumor for now, we’ll add more details as we can confirm them.
Gotham City Sirens – Rumored Development
Harley Quinn just keeps a comin’ and a comin’. This year alone the totally unpredictable Quinn has been seen in the movie Birds of Prey, and she continues in the DC animated series Harley Quinn. If all goes according to plan, she will make her return to the big screen in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, which is scheduled to be released on August 6, 2021.
So, with all this focus on Quinn, one would think that Warner Brothers and DC might back off a little bit (remember, Harley was also seen in the ill-fated first Suicide Squad). But, according to DCEU Mythic Warner seems to be moving forward with another Quinn movie, though at the moment, details are lacking. The prevailing thought here, though, is that a possible Gotham City Sirens could be in the works.
For those unaware, Gotham City Sirens began as a comic book series created by Paul Dini and it referred to three of the most popular female villains living in Gotham City; Harley Quinn, Catwoman, and Poison Ivy. The series consisted of 4 volumes so DC has quit a bit of history to pull from. Dini is also reported to be attached as a writer to the possible GSC movie.
Before Harley Quinn became the focal point of Birds of Prey, plans were to have Quinn be part of the many DC projects Warner had moving forward. Maybe not a main character but somehow showing up. If Birds was the 2020 version, Suicide Squad the 2021 showing, possibly look for Quinn’s next big performance in 2022. The only thing that may hold this up is the fact that there are three DC films currently on the slate for 2022. Shazam! 2, Aquaman 2, and The Flash. So, it remains to be seen how Warner and DC will fit Quinn into their plans.
Inhumans – Early Development
Marvel tried to bring the Inhumans to life once, with a failed television series back in 2017. We’ve been hearing for awhile now, though, that they want to try again. And now the latest is that they may want to try again with Michael Bay.
Marvel’s Kevin Feige has reportedly met with Bay about doing for them, and Inhumans was one of the projects discussed. Bay has had something of a resurgence this year with the highly successful Ryan Reynolds Netflix movie 6 Underground.
The Inhumans are a Marvel superhero group with a publication history going back as far as 1965. They’re often described as evolutionarily advanced humans living hidden in the modern world.
Nightwing – Early Development
There’s long been talk of creating a Batman spinoff centered around the transformation of Batman’s sidekick Robin into the solo crime-fighter Nightwing. Now it looks like Warner Bros. might be ready to make that happen.
Word is that they’re eyeing Zac Efron to take on the role of Nightwing in a feature film with him as the focus. Efron has gained a lot of respect as an actor in recent years and he’s currently something of a hot commodity, with a packed schedule of upcoming projects. So getting him might not be easy, but it sounds like WB might be willing to wait until he’s available.
Booster Gold – Early Development
Booster Gold is not a well-known DC Comics character, but Warner Bros. has seen potential for making him a part of their movie universe for awhile. There’s reportedly a Booster Gold movie script done and ready to go at the studio, as soon as the project gets an official greenlight.
A big component in getting that greenlight will be who they can hire to play Booster Gold. Word is that they wanted Ryan Reynolds for the part, but he has passed. So now Warner Bros. has moved on to their secondary target: Chris Pratt.
Whether Pratt will take the part once its offered is hard to say. He’s wrapping up his time on the Jurassic World franchise with the release of his third in those movies. He still has another Guardians of the Galaxy to shoot, but that’s in the far off future. So maybe he has room on his dance card for another franchise, assuming Marvel won’t get mad at him for slumming it over with DC Comics. Most fans seem to agree that Pratt is actually a better fit for the character than Ryan Reynolds anyway.
Booster Gold is a character from the future who uses his knowledge of future events to make himself a hero. He’s often depicted as a showoff, the kind of character Chris Pratty really excels at.
Daredevil – Early Development
Rumors have been swirling for a couple of weeks that Disney/Marvel might be considering bringing back the casts of some of the Netflix superhero shows for other projects. Now we’re hearing something more specific and reportedly they’re considering making a Daredevil solo movie with Netflix Daredevil series actor Charlie Cox as Daredevil.
Actually the claim is more accurately that they’re thinking of making a Daredevil superhero movie with “mostly the same cast”. So that’d mean bringing “mostly” everyone back. In the minds of most fans the key to everything is Vincent D’Onofrio who definitely delivered a movie quality performance as Kingpin on the show.
Whether they use the original cast or not, a Daredevil movie of some kind is definitely in the works. Most reports indicate they’ll probably tease it by having Matt Murdock serve as Peter Parker’s lawyer in the upcoming Spider-Man 3. If Charlie Cox ends up playing Murdock there, then it’s full steam ahead on Marvel’s Daredevil project.
Constantine Reboot – Early Development
DC Comics is still struggling to create a cohesive superhero universe. They’ve had some recent successes with Joker, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman; but their past is riddled with failures and almost hits that they’d like to fix. One of those is Constantine.
In 2005 Keanu Reeves starred in the movie Constantine, based on the DC Comics character of the same name. It didn’t work. Some fans liked it, but the movie’s box office numbers weren’t exactly stellar, so it just sort of ended up being forgotten.
Now word is that DC wants to bring Constantine back, and they may want Keanu Reeves back too. Rumor has it they are in talks with Keanu Reeves to return as Constantine in a movie that’s being described as a “soft reboot” of the character. Apparently there’s some thought that they’ll connect it to the plot of the 2005 movie while changing things up at the same time.
Bringing back Keanu Reeves as Constantine is a great idea, but I’m not sure why they’d want to bother connecting the new movie to the plot of an old movie no one cared about the first time. Don’t be surprised if they abandon that idea and just go full reboot, as this superhero movie project moves forward.
Punisher – Early Development
Now that Punisher’s run with Netflix is done Marvel is looking for a way to bring their ultra-violent superhero to the big screen. We’ve gotten two different Punisher movies in the past, neither really worked with critics, audiences, or the box office.
Word is that if they try again with Punisher it will be because Marvel President Kevin Feige wants the company to have its own awards contender like DC’s Joker. Reportedly he sees Punisher as the best way for Marvel to do something similar.
Whether Feige’s Oscar-winning, dark and gritty, superhero movie dreams will come true remains to be seen. Punisher in any form doesn’t exactly fit with Disney’s mandate to avoid R-rated movies.
Unfortunately, along with the rumor that Marvel wants to make Frank Castle Joker, comes the rumor that they didn’t care for the Netflix version of the show or actor John Bernthal’s take on the character. So don’t expect to see the Netflix version of the Punisher show up on the big screen.
Joker 2 – TBA
The Todd Phillips directed movie Joker made a crazy amount of money at the box office, which means there’s absolutely no doubt that everyone involved wants to make another one. That said, Phillips has been honest about the fact that he doesn’t really have a sequel planned out and he isn’t even sure if he can get Joaquin Phoenix to come back to play the Joker again.
Go in-depth with the plans for Joker 2 with our Joker 2: All We Know So Far Guide
Sinister Six – TBA
Sony is reportedly working on a super-villain team-up movie featuring all of Spider-Man’s most famous foes called Sinister Six. The name comes from the super-villain team-up of the same name from the Marvel comic books.
The recently released trailer for Morbius suggests the Sony superhero movie may serve as a tease for the Sinister Six movie. Michael Keaton appears in Morbius as the Vulture, a super villain defeated by Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Homecoming. FandomWire claims his appearance there is part of a set up for a future Sinister Six movie.
Doctor Octopus
As Sinister Six moves forward the lineup of villains expected to appear may include Doctor Octopus. He was last played by Alfred Molina in the Sam Raimi directed Spider-Man 2, but rumor is that the part in this new Marvel universe may go to Javier Bardem.
According to WGTC Bardem is Marvel’s top choice to play the infamous Spider-Man villain Doc Ock. Bardem has made a career out of playing great villains, most notably as the iconic bad guy of No Country For Old Men.
What’s not clear is exactly which upcoming superhero movie Doc Ock will show up in first. Some believe that, if they cast him quick enough, he could show up in the post-credits scene of Morbius, as a way to set up the Sinister Six movie. It’s also possible he could show up in the Tom Holland starring Spider-Man 3.
The Full Sinister Six Lineup
In addition to Doc Ock the rest of the Sinister Six cast is likely to include Michael Keaton’s Adrian Toomes aka Vulture (soon to appear again in Morbius), Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio (last seen in Spider-Man: Far From Home), Scorpion, and Kraven (rumored to be the main villain of the upcoming Spider-Man 3). The sixth member is not known at this time, but most believe that Tom Hardy’s Venom would be included.
Batgirl – Early Development
DC has long toyed with the idea of turning Batgirl into a movie, but outside of her questionable appearance in Batman’s movies, she hasn’t made it to the big screen. That’s about to change. Various sources are reporting that Warner Bros. is working on a Batgirl movie.
Cassanda Cain, a character who eventually becomes Batgirl in the comics, is supposed to appear in the upcoming superhero movie Birds of Prey. There Cassandra will be played by actress Ella Jay Basco, but it’s unlikely Ella would become Batgirl for WB’s Batgirl movie.
Some fans have been lobbying for Emma Stone to get the Batgirl role. She seems like a good fit, but it’s unclear if WB is actually considering her. Maybe this will help convince them. An artist has put together a rendering of what Emma would look like in the Batgirl costume. Here she is…
Marvel actress and former Doctor Who companion Karen Gillan has been lobbying hard on Twitter to earn the role. She has a lot of fan support, though there’s been no word yet from the studio whether they might actually consider her. Fans are excited enough about her casting though, to put together mockups of what she might look like in the costume. Take a look…
Spawn Reboot – Early Development
Long before dark and twisted heroes were in vogue, Todd McFarlane’s Spawn was turned into a movie. Back in 1998 critics hated it and audiences didn’t exactly turn out in huge numbers. R-rated superheroes just weren’t what the world was ready for yet. But they’re more than ready now, so creator Todd McFarlane says there’s movement on bringing back Spawn.
He says movement on a Spawn reboot is thanks in part, to the response dark superhero movies like Joker have gotten. Here’s his instagram post teasing the possible return of Spawn…
He’s pretty clear on who he wants playing the character and Jamie Foxx would be an excellent fit. McFarlane been talking about bringing Spawn back for awhile but it seems it’s only now that it’s really getting momentum.
If McFarlane can’t get Jamie Foxx there’s already a backup planned. Reportedly the backup to Foxx is the actor who played Aquaman’s villain, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.
Zatanna – Early Development
Zatanna is a DC comics character who dates all the way back to 1964. Her cover is as a stage magician, but in reality she’s an actual magician. She was involved in the Justice League and in some versions of the character was even a childhood friend of Batman.
DC Comics has been trying to turn the Zatanna into a movie for awhile now. At one point Game of Thrones actress Emilia Clarke was supposed to be playing her. Initially it sounded like Clarke had moved on from the project but now TCN says she’s back to being the frontrunner to play the character and is currently in talks to take on the part.
It’s not a done deal with Emilia Clarke yet, though, and fans have other ideas for who they want to play the character.
One of the actresses most wanted to play the part by fans is Eiza Gonzalez, and she’s been up for several superhero roles with DC in the past, and just missed out on them. Here’s how one fan thinks she’d look as Zatanna…
Rumor has it that they’re also looking at Anya Chalotra to play Zatanna.
Anya Chalotra is currently best known as one of the stars of The Witcher, where she plays the sorceress Yennefer. In addition to already having shown a certain amount of acting skill at playing someone who does magic, she actually does sort of look the part of the raven-haired character as she was drawn as the comics. Anya is such an obvious pick to play Zatanna, she’s almost too obvious.
The Green Hornet and Kato – Early Development
Amasia Entertainment has acquired the rights to The Green Hornet. The company is run by former Marvel Studios president Michael Helfant and Bradley Gallo who plan to take the superhero property and take it in a different direction than the one attempted by the previous superhero movie. As confirmed by the Hollywood trades, this new movie will be called The Green Hornet and Kato.
That previous Green Hornet movie, which was released in 2011 starring Seth Rogen and Cameron Diaz, was sort of a superhero movie comedy and while heralded by some was not overall well received. This new take promises to be much more serious.
Helfant plans to stick more with the pulpy, dark, crime-fighting tone of the original Green Hornet for his film. The Green Hornet is the story of newspaper wealthy publisher Britt Reid, who fights crime in a mask with the help of his faithful sidekick Kato. Originally created in 1936 as a radio serial, the Green Hornet went on to appear in comics and most notably in a popular television series starring Bruce Lee as Kato.
Speaking of their plans for the new movie Helfant says, “We’re a bunch of fan geeks at Amasia and are thrilled about creating something fresh and truly worthy of this legacy property. A new world that is relevant and thrilling, while respecting and honoring the original vision of creator George W. Trendle.”
Gallo also added that their Green Hornet movie will bridge “the film worlds of America and Asia”
Bane – Early Development
In the wake of Joker’s success and the impending relaunch of the Batman universe with The Batman, Warner Bros. is looking to create more spinoffs. One of the ideas at the top of their list is reportedly giving Bane his own movie.
The claim from WGTC is that the WB is currently developing a solo movie for Bane and they’re eyeing Pedro Pascal (the man inside The Mandalorian’s armor) to star. The character was previously played by Tom Hardy in The Dark Knight Rises.
The report says that whether Bane ends up being played by Pedro Pascal or someone else, Warner Bros. is keen to be faithful to his comic book origins and have a Latino play him this time.
While Bane wasn’t particularly well received by most who saw him The Dark Knight Rises, in the comic book world he’s regarded as one of Batman’s best and most formidable villains. In any ranking of Batman’s foes he’s be right up there with the Joker. Done properly, he could easily carry a solo movie in much the same way the Joker did in Joaquin Phoenix’s Oscar winning portrayal.
The Rest Of The Marvel Cinematic Universe
In addition to the many characters already assigned to movies, Marvel is developing characters with an eye to figuring out where they’ll fit into their movies later. At the top of that list is a character called Hyperion, and word is they want Brad Pitt to play him.
Hyperion is basically the Marvel universe’s answer to Superman. He’s one of The Eternals (though he probably won’t be in The Eternals movie) and he’s the leader of a group called Supreme Squadron, which is sort of like an intentional knockoff of the Justice League.
Hyperion possess most of the powers Superman has. He’s super strong, nearly invulnerable, he can fly, he has super-breath and x-ray vision. His powers are also diminished when he’s around a certain kind of radiation. He’s supposed to be like Superman, by design. Almost Marvel’s way of poking fun at DC Comics flagship hero, but in a not-s0-jokey fashion.
Long Term Superhero Plans
The DC Superhero Movie Universe
DC is playing catch-up with Marvel, but with the original Marvel heroes like Iron Man and Captain America retired, they have an opportunity to catch up. So they’re working on building their own kind of superhero universe.
Part of making that universe work is finding the right actors. They’ve been scouting out a lot of different people for different roles, but one of the biggest they have their eye on is Christian Bale.
Bale has of course, already been part of the DC universe. He played Batman in the three Christopher Nolan Batman movies. But now DC may want him back for something different. They’re looking to cast him as one of Batman’s villain.
Word is that Warner Bros. is targeting Christian Bale to play the infamous villain Vandal Savage. Savage is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous and deadly foes in the DC rogues gallery. He’s faced off against Batman and nearly every other DC superhero at some point in his career of crime in the comics.
Savage is an ancient being who started life as a caveman. Gifted with super-intelligence by an alien meteorite, he survived down through the ages and was secretly the man behind some of history’s most powerful figures like Julius Caesar and Jack the Ripper.
Bale would be a perfect fit for the character, however they decide to use him. It’d be weird though, if Christian Bale’s Vandal Savage ends up facing off against Robert Pattinson’s Batman. I suspect if DC does end up casting Christian Bale as Vandal Savage, he’ll end up facing off against someone like Wonder Woman or Aquaman instead.
