More movie news from the multicolored madness that’s called the San Diego Comic Con:
Babe-a-licous!
This was a banner year for panting fanboys, with the likes of Sarah Michelle Gellar, Eliza Dushku, Jaime King, Rosario Dawson, Milla Jovovich, Tricia Helfer and even sci-fi proto-babes Carrie Fisher and Erin Gray (Buck Rogers) in the house to promote various projects. The so-called nerds were finally being shown some love, as evidenced by the many female con-goers wearing T-shirts proclaiming “I [HEART] Geeks.”
Indeed, TV and movie fave Jennifer Garner gave fans a gushing greeting at the Marvel/Fox presentation of her forthcoming Elektra, proclaiming how honored she was to play the ninja assassin icon in the Daredevil spinoff. Amid clips of Garner kicking record-breaking levels of butt in a behind-the-scene montage from the film, the dimpled one also promised that fans were going to love her new costume, which plays of Miller‘s sexy original designs–even more than that curve hugging, midriff-baring leather number she wore the first time out.
Garner‘s video appearance combined with the live pop-ins by Alba and Jessica Biel in New Line’s forthcoming Blade: Trinity gave Marvel the clear edge on delivering sheer babe-itude to Comic Con.
Force Full
Hayden Christensen set his fans’ hearts aflutter when he made a surprise appearance on the stage during Lucasfilm’s two-hour infomercial-esque presentation regarding all things Star Wars joining George Lucas‘ right-hand man Rick McCallum for a peek at some expected behind-the-scenes footage from the newly christened third prequel Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.
And hold onto your Ewoks! The actor’s formerly Timberlake-ish physique has undergone a dramatic transformation–Christensen is far more buff than one might have expected possible, and to great effect. Lucasfilm unspooled footage of Christensen filling out the familiar black-cloaked suit of Darth Vader for the first time and, frankly, even the most jaded Jedis in the crowd couldn’t help but show their enthusiasm with wild whoops.
Pretty soon, the con-goers were overheard engaging in the kind of prognosticating and odds-making that only exists at Comic Con: “OK, dude, if in the original trilogy Star Wars is the best, Empire is next, and Jedi was the lamest, then maybe the prequels will be a reverse version, with Phantom Menace kinda sucking, Clones being kinda cool, and Sith being the most bad-ass.”
We can still hope, young Padawans.
The Fantastic…Three?
Fantastic Four Roll Call: Mr. Fantastic–check (aka Ioan Gruffudd). The Invisible Girl–check (aka Jessica Alba, who showed up blonde like her character). The Thing–check (aka Michael Chiklis, who toted a sizable action figure of his rocky orange alter ego purchased on the convention hall floor). And the Human Torch (Chris Evans)…?
Well, three out of four wasn’t bad.
A prior commitment kept Evans away from San Diego (no flaming the actor, now; he really, really tried to make it, we were told) but the rest of the recently cast actors playing Marvel Comics’ first family (“The Fantastic Four” was the company’s flagship superhero title, created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby back in 1962) showed up on stage together for the first time, just weeks before they’re scheduled to report to the set to start filming–thus there were no film clips to whip the fans into a frenzy.
That feat was accomplished by the sight of the gorgeous, glowing Alba–already an icon among the geek chic crowd thanks to her turn on Dark Angel–and her gracious, humble comments about playing the visibility challenged Sue Storm. For the ladies, there was the suave and charming Welshman Gruffudd (most recently of King Arthur), lean and lanky enough to believably play the team’s pliable patriarch, Dr. Reed Richards. But for all-around appeal, it was tough to beat the enthusiasm of Chiklis, who gleefully shifted from his gritty The Shield persona to the ever-lovin’ blue-eyed Ben Grimm, shouting The Thing’s long-standing catch-phrase “It’s clobberin’ time!” The Emmy-winning actor also stoked the fans’ interest when he revealed that he’d be playing The Thing in costume, rather than just lending his voice to a CGI creation.
Many fans seemed to enter Fox’s presentation a bit skeptically, wary after a) the godawful, cheaply made Roger Corman movie of the early 1990s; b) the new film’s long road to production and frustrating succession of defecting directors, including Chris Columbus and Peyton Reid; c) the early buzz that the new film would be more of a family comedy than an action hero opus, especially when Barbershop director Tim Story took the helm; and d) the casting of the seemingly too-young Alba.
That last concern seemed to evaporate as soon as Alba first smiled at the crowd (her sheer hotness overcame the doubts, and now the fans seem more concerned that her character’s invisibility powers will keep her OFF the screen too often). But during the presentation Story–who joined the cast along with Marvel Studios head Avi Arad and producer Ralph Winter (the X-Men movies)–made great strides in winning over the crowd, demonstrating a convincing passion for the characters and concept.
The filmmakers assured the fans that the over-the-top cosmic super-heroics the Fantastic Four are famous for would be front and center in the film, and the film would also feature a healthy dose of comedy based on the foursome’s dysfunctional family dynamic (also a prominent facet of the comics, from the Lee-Kirby days to the current run).
The filmmakers also promised an announcement regarding the casting of the FF’s arch-nemesis, Dr. Doom (while also reassuring fans that the villain’s real name will be the original Victor von Doom, not the chuckle-inducing Van Damme of the recent “Ultimate Fantastic Four” comic), and alluded that they were zeroing in on an actor with a unique accent: within days Nip/Tuck actor Julian McMahon, a clever choice–although his native Aussie tones seem a long way from Latveria.
Seen on the Sci-Fi Scene
Though promoting their projects is the main reason celebs come to Comic Con, some of them actually mingle with the fans. Spotted on the convention hall floor:
Meanwhile, hardcore comics fans sniffed out the favored water hole of the industry professionals in the Hyatt lounge, where they could hobnob and share shots with the likes of Sin City writer/artist-turned-film director Frank Miller, Ultimate Spider-Man and Daredevil superstar writer Brian Michael Bendis, Smallville screenwriter and frequent comics scribe Jeph Loeb, 100 Bullets mastermind Brian Azzarello, nearly the entire editorial team behind DC’s Batman titles and the top executives at Marvel Comics.
If there is a geek afterlife, San Diego must be heaven. Seriously, if a bomb had dropped on San Diego that weekend, the Hollywood and comics industries would have had no one to turn to for future product. Think about it, Adam West–one powerful blast and you could be back in the game!
Click here for part 1 of this feature!
