With Iron Man crushing other films at the box office, Marvel is set to make even more super hero films. Some of those have me excited. Some have me wondering.
Of course after the huge opening weekend, two Iron Man sequels are already in the works. The only problem I see for a long running series of Iron Man films is his lack of signature enemies. The super villains that are exclusive to Iron Man are fairly weak. He could do some cross overs with other super heros and use some of the generic Marvel bad guys. This may prove to be a fairly insignificant issue since the antagonist of the first film was not part of the promotion and, by extension, the draw of the movie.
In Iron Man 2, Tony Stark is squared off against Mandarin, his most popular villain. It is scheduled for a April 2010 release.
Other up-coming Marvel inspired movies are:
The Incredible Hulk (June 2008) – Sort of like Batman Begins, the studio is trying to do a retake after the last, horrible Hulk movie (I fell asleep..twice). It looks somewhat promising, but the first one will make me wait until DVD for this one. Although the buzz is that Hulk will be in Iron Man 2, which kind of makes me excited.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (May 2009) – Here’s hoping this is the beginning of a long series of movies dealing with the origins of members of the X-Men. Of course, Wolverine would be the obvious choice for the first one. His origin is probably the most interesting (to go along with the character) and was the most hinted at during the previous X-Men films.
Thor (June 2010) – Following the Norse god of thunder should make for a cool movie, especially if he faces his adoptive brother Loki, god of mischief.
The First Avenger: Captain America (May 2011) – There are so many creative angles that a movie on Cap could go, I pumped at the prospects (which probably just means I’ll be sorely disappointed with the movie).
The Avengers (July 2011) – Iron Man hints at the upcoming potential movie series, which may in fact be the rumored Iron Man 3. It is assumed that this would unite the previous mentioned heroes: Iron Man, Hulk, Thor and Captain America among others. Hasn’t every comic book geek longed for a big time movie that brings together multiple super heroes? This should be a great movie, which one again means I’ll hate it because I’ll be so utterly disappointed.
Ant-Man (not known) – Really? Ant-Man? In the whole Marvel universe, we are getting Ant-Man. I’m just not sold on this one.
The Sub-Mariner (not known) – I guess this is to make the Ant-Man seem serious.
Other comic book movies coming out:
Batman: The Dark Knight (July 2008) – This movie looks GOOD. Of course, all the buzz is around the now deceased Heath Ledger’s turn as The Joker. I thought the reboot of the series was a good idea and turned out well, though not spectacular, in Batman Begins (Scarecrow was an odd choice of villains). This looks like a must see for me.
Hancock (July 2008) – The latest project from Will Smith, who cannot make a bad movie (at least bad at the box office), is shaping up to be a great movie. Featuring a reluctant, alcoholic “superhero” who goes to jail to revamp his image, Hancock looks interesting for a non-established super hero movie.
Superman: The Man of Steel (2010) – The movie is just starting back after the writer’s strike. Not much is known except that Bryan Singer is directing and Brandon Routh is back as the lead. Here’s me not being excited. I feel asleep at the first one, missed the ending and didn’t care.
Punisher: War Zone (December 2008) – I didn’t see the first one and I probably won’t see this one. I’ve just never been sold on the character of Punisher. Some people are. Good for them. Go see the movie and tell me about it.
Hellboy 2 : The Golden Army (July 2008) – I’m about the same with Hellboy as I am with Punisher. Didn’t see the first one, probably won’t see the second one.
Watchmen (2008) – I love the idea behind The Watchmen. I’m not sure if I’ll go see it, but it sounds intriguing.
Spider-Man 4 (unknown) – The last three made huge money. They have to make another one, though nobody knows whose going to play the lead much less which villain is going to get smacked around by Spidey.
Magneto (unknown) – I’m guessing this will be the next X-Men Origin film, which should be fantastic since Magneto is probably one of the most complex super villains in the comic world. His transformation into a villain should be a fantastic story.
Possible movies:
Justice League of America
Batman vs. Superman
Anybody know any other good (or not so good) comic book movies coming out in the next few years?
