Friday 22 February 2008

It's Official: 6 More Added to the Cast of X-Men Origins: Wolverine Movie

From:

Big stars locked in for Sabretooth, Gambit, Deadpool and more.

Wolverine may be the X-Men's resident loner, but that doesn't mean he won't be bringing a whole lot of company with him when his solo movie debuts on May 1, 2009!

Twentieth Century Fox has officially announced six of Hugh Jackman's co-stars, including Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool and Gambit, as played by "Friday Night Lights" star Taylor Kitsch!

What, you want even more? Well how about Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am as John Wraith, Danny Huston as Col. William Stryker and Lynn Collins as Kayla Silver Fox? Add in Liev Schreiber as Sabretooth and you've got a movie that even the big screen will have trouble holding in!

If you need a quick refresher, below are some glimpses at what all the characters look like in various comic book incarnations, but expect things to be a bit different come next year.

So sit down and buckle up, Marvelite, because the ride's just beginning—and you ain't seen nothing yet!

Foo Fighters Sue Marvel over "Wolverine and the X-Men" Animated Feature

From:

The trailer appeared on the web utilizing Foo Fighters music without permission...

Rolling Stone said The series producers First Serve International, Toonz Animation India and First Serve Toonz were also named on the lawsuit, with the Foos seeking unspecified damages.



Once the trailer started appearing on news websites, the cartoon maker pulled it off their own.

Will.I.Am Sings On ‘Wolverine,’ Becomes Teleporting Mutant

From:

He’s a member of The Black Eyed Peas, an internationally known recording superstar heard and beloved by millions. All fine and good - but you ain’t never heard will.i.am sing like this.

“Root-a-toot-toot! I’m doing ‘Wolverine’!” the singer crooned exclusively to MTV News in his first interview about the high-profile “X-Men” prequel. “That’s cool! I don’t mean to toot my own flute, but toot-a-toot-toot!”


It’s all smiles these days for will.i.am with the recent news that he nabbed the part of John Wraith, a teleporting mutant also known as Kestrel, in the eagerly anticipated superhero flick. Not bad for a guy with zero acting experience, especially considering he didn’t exactly get off on the right foot with the casting director, he laughed. Bold, sure, but that’s just how much of a fan he is of “X-Men.”

“You don’t understand, check this out, this is how much of a fan I am. I went to the casting right, and they asked me if I knew about X-Men. I was like, ‘Pssh, I know X-Men.’ They were like, ‘Yeah, you know, you’re gonna play a teleporter.’ And I was like, ‘You mean like Night Crawler?’ ‘Night Crawler wasn’t a teleporter.’ ‘Yes he was a teleporter! The dude was a teleporter!” he recalled, giggling. “He would be on the walls, and he was in the Presidential office disappearing and people couldn’t really hit him. He was like, disappearing, poof poof. I was like, ‘Yo, I’m telling you, homey.’ I’m a fan of X-Men.”

But as much as he’s excited about entering a comic book world, he’s even more excited to be doing it as a black man, he said.

“I love black films, I love ‘em, but I want to see other black films other than, like, barbeques, barber shops, and Fridays. The fact that I’m in this film, that’s super dope because you could’ve had me in a film, like, on a corner,” he insisted. “I’m in a rap group. Cast him and have him play this thug, which is all great. But I’m saying as black people we need to do some other stuff. So I’m super, super, super, super blessed and proud to be a part of ‘Wolverine.’”

As a member of Wolverine’s “top secret” CIA black ops “Team X,” will.I.am knows he has to hold his own alongside buff guys like Hugh Jackman. To that end, he left for Australia last night to “get in shape at boot camp” he said.

In the meantime? Just call him “Thrill.I.Am!” the actor sang.

Well, root-a-toot-toot!

What do you think of will.i.am’s casting in “Wolverine”? Are you more or less excited for the project now that we know a large portion will center on Team X? Sound off below.

New Wolverine Filming Location?

From:

Moviehole Down Under is reporting:

Clint, Just a bit of info re WOLVERINE. I work on Cockatoo Island on Sydney Harbour. For your information, they are filming there over the next few months. Currently building sets etc. Lots of night shooting coming up apparentely. At this stage due to finish there in May. If you use this, please don't use my name. Cheers.

More info on Cockatoo Island can be found at the link above.

Henney is Agent Zero in Wolverine

From:
Variety says that Daniel Henney has also joined the cast of 20th Century Fox's X-Men Origins: Wolverine, now filming in New Zealand, Australia and New Orleans.
Henney will portray Agent Zero, a member of the Weapon X program and an expert tracker with lethal marksman skills.
He'll be joining Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Liev Schreiber (Sabretooth), Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool), Taylor Kitsch (Gambit), Will.i.am (Kestrel), Danny Huston (William Stryker), Dominic Monaghan (Barnell) and Lynn Collins (Silver Fox) in the Gavin Hood-directed pic, opening May 1, 2009.

Thursday 21 February 2008

Stunt Double Talks About Wolverine Filming

From:
Scene.co.nz talked to X-Men Origins: Wolverine stunt double Kate Newman who revealed some interesting bits about what she did on-set (Spoilers ahead!):
Her "scariest" task was to drive an old two-wheel-drive ute along narrow gravel roads at about 80kmh.
"Every time you see that character in a car, that's actually me."
She also had the "unexpected" job of kissing Jackman's double. "Definitely no tongue involved," she adds.
Scenes were shot in Glenorchy, Shotover Canyon and Dunedin, finishing last week.
For more on Newman's experience, hit the link above!

Wolverine Gets New Company on May 1, 2009

From:

ComingSoon.net reports that X-Men Origins: Wolverine will no longer face the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced G-Force on May 1, 2009, but instead will have to cope with tween pic The Hannah Montana Movie.
Also, Disney has announced it will release Bruce Willis sci-fi action-thriller Surrogates, based on the graphic novel, on November 20, 2009.

Dominic Monaghan is Beak, aka Blackwing

From: & JustJared.com.

Just Jared reports that former "Lost" star Dominic Monaghan will play Barnell Bohusk (AKA Beak) in 20th Century Fox's X-Men: Wolverine.

Here's a description of the character:
Beak was a mutant whose bones were light and hollow. His arms had begun to grow feathers, which when fully formed, may have allowed him to fly. He could at the mean time glide and fly for short distances with great effort. Beak also had enhanced eyesight along with talons on his hands and feet. Even though Beak had bird-like qualities, it was extremely difficult for him to fly.
You can read more about Beak here!

According to Wiki, Barnell’s body changes into that of a humanoid-bird form, with a beaked face, bulbous eyes, wing-like arms that give him the ability to fly (albeit clumsily), talons on his hands and feet, and double-jointed knees. In mutant form, Beak also possesses heightened agility, and he may possess heightened senses and a lighter skeletal structure like the avian X-Man formerly known as the Angel (Ben Foster played this character in X3).

Monaghan, 31, willll be joining Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Liev Schreiber (Sabretooth), Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool), Taylor Kitsch (Gambit), Will.i.am (Kestrel), Danny Huston (William Stryker) and Lynn Collins (Silver Fox) in the Gavin Hood-directed pic.

X-Men: Wolverine slashes its way into theaters on May 1, 2009.

Wednesday 20 February 2008

Mutant Cameos Are Crashing Wolverine

From:
By Rafe Telsch

One of the fun things about the X-Men movies is the number of supporting players the filmmakers managed to cram in. Without making all of them primary players, the movie manages to feature quite a few popular characters, making a fun Easter Egg hunt for fans of the comic book.

It looks like that tradition may be carried on with the X-Men Origins movies, or at least the one currently in production, Wolverine. In the past week, two separate mutants have been mentioned as having possible Wolverine appearances, making fans squeal with delight at the possibilities. The appearances were mentioned recently by leading man Hugh Jackman himself, who told USA Today his spin-off would go the route of the previous franchise films with cameos of familiar mutants.

The first reported cameo comes from Film School Rejects who report that one of the heaviest mutants will be putting in an appearance: The Blob. Apparently some test footage is being shot with a practical effect in place to make an 800-pound actor appear more like a 1200-pound character (the numbers seem a little high, to the point even the site is questioning the reliability of that information). The Blob is a massive character, which helps form the basis of his mutant power of being immovable and seriously resistant to attacks. There’s no telling how large a part the character would play in the movie (no pun intended), but the fact that they aren’t relying on CG makes me wonder if it’s not minimal, where they don’t have to worry about having the character in combat of any sort.

The more exciting news builds on a rumor we’d heard before, albeit as a potential stand-alone picture. The good news is that if this cameo happens, it could easily lead into the stand-alone film. AICN reports that the fast-talking mutant assassin Deadpool will be showing up to taunt Wolverine at some point, and the previously rumored casting for the part is still being talked about: Ryan Reynolds. The only reason I doubt this is that recently Reynolds has been talking to the press about his more serious turn as an actor (like in Definitely, Maybe) and that he’s not interested in doing something like The Flash in JLA anymore. Is it that he isn’t interested in that kind of part, or he just wasn’t interested in that specific vehicle?

Since both of these are rumored as cameos, I wouldn’t expect either character to appear for too long in the Wolverine movie, but I love that they’re carrying on the tradition that started with X-Men, that the world of the mutants is bigger than just what we see in the movies, and there are more stories to be told.

An update from Boom operator Ian Thomson

Ian Thompson has been working as a boom operator on X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and had made a little blurb about the production in his blog:

The main unit is now in the process of shipping its-self back to Sydney for a few months. 2nd Unit remains on the south island shooting the jaw-dropping effects sequences that will surely astound audiences in May 2009.

P.S. I’ve had a few very nice emails requesting information and photos, and thought I should point out that I’m not able to take any photos of the set. I’d be fired for sharing ANY information about the film (including photos); it’s just not worth the repercussions.

For pictures that have already been released, check out the pictures on the Wolverine site.

Will.i.am is John Wraith in Wolverine

From:

20th Century Fox has cast Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am in his first film role as John Wraith in X-Men: Wolverine.

He'll be joining Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Liev Schreiber (Sabretooth), Danny Huston (William Stryker), Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool), Taylor Kitsch (Gambit) and Lynn Collins (Silver Fox) in the film opening May 1, 2009.

Wraith is a mutant who has the power to teleport, and is another test subject of the Weapon X program that created Wolverine and other mercenaries.

Gavin Hood is directing the "X-Men" spin-off in New Zealand, Australia and New Orleans. David Benioff wrote the script.

Lauren Shuler Donner and Ralph Winter are producing with Jackman and his Seed Productions producing partner John Palermo. Marvel's Kevin Feige executive produces.



Taylor Kitsch is Gambit in Wolverine!

From:

Scooper 'Chaos Bringer' has revealed on Superhero Hype!'s message boards that "Friday Night Lights" star Taylor Kitsch will play Gambit (AKA Remy LeBeau) in director Gavin Hood's X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Kitsch has signed a three-picture deal.

He'll be joining Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Liev Schreiber (Sabretooth), Danny Huston (William Stryker) and Lynn Collins (Silver Fox) in the 20th Century Fox release, opening May 1, 2009.

Leading up to the events of X-Men, "Wolverine" tells the story of Wolverine's epically violent and romantic past, his complex relationship with Victor Creed, and the ominous Weapon X program. Along the way, Wolverine encounters many mutants, both familiar and new, including surprise appearances by several legends of the X-Men universe.

In related news, we've posted a hi-res version of the new Wolverine photo here! Scooper 'Darthjul' also tells us that "Wolverine" will be shooting in Glebe Point Park, Sydney on February 29.

Ryan Reynolds to Play Deadpool?

From:

Let's recap... Ryan Reynolds told us the following a couple of weeks ago:

CS: You were under consideration for "The Flash," correct?
Reynolds: Uh huh.

CS: Are there any other superheroes you'd be interested in playing?
Reynolds: Basically for me there are two superheroes that I could play. One would be Deadpool, the other would be The Flash. There are no imminent plans to do either just now.

CS: Why Deadpool?
Reynolds: He's just the "merc with a mouth". For me I guess it's a no-brainer.

Now, Ain't It Cool News reports today:
Anyone up for a little DEADPOOL?
How about if Ryan Reynolds is playing him?
This one's supposed to be a secret, but cat's out of the bag now, Marvel.
An awful lot must have happened the last few weeks (or maybe he's just a liar... a good one though!) It's not for a Deadpool movie though, but instead for a cameo in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Thoughts?

Sunday 17 February 2008

New Wolverine Set Photos

From:

We've received two new photos of sets for X-Men Origins: Wolverine in New Zealand. The first is a photo of the old Milburn cement works at Burnside, Dunedin, and the second is a barn that was constructed at Arcadia Station east of Glenorchy.
Following those two are photos snapped off-set of Hugh Jackman (Wolverine) (with personal trainer Michael Ryan, in light blue polo shirt), Liev Schreiber (Sabretooth) (with girlfriend/actress Naomi Watts) and Lynn Collins (Silver Fox) (with boyfriend/actor Steven Strait).