Lots of very nice JLA news and some rumours to report today, also a few old nuggets I've collected from previous weeks and never got the chance to post. Newest stuff at the top.

JLA COSTUME DESIGN
- Producer Barrie Osborne talks briefly about Weta Costumes, George Miller's take, here's some of it:

Weta Workshop's involvement in another blockbuster movie has been unmasked - the physical effects studio has beaten Hollywood to design and make the costumes for superheroes including Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and The Flash.

The costumes will be donned by a yet-to-be-named cast for the big-budget Hollywood movie Justice League of America, to be filmed in Sydney this year and directed by Australian George Miller of Mad Max and Happy Feet fame.

The film's Wellington-based American producer, Barrie Osborne, who produced Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings, confirmed Weta Workshop's involvement.

"They are doing all the costumes and they're doing a brilliant job," he told The Dominion Post from Sydney.

"A lot of people thought it would be too hard, that you can only make those things in Hollywood."

"George Miller has a great take on the material, so it elevates it to something that's not a comic-book movie," he said.

If you remember, the previous costume designer Marit Allen passed away not long ago. It's WETA doing the costumes now! That's at least one good piece of news (not that Allen died but that WETA is in charge now, obviously. How can you beat WETA?). I also like that last quote.

"JLA WILL BE INSANE"
- Canada.com reports about an actor rumoured for a JLA villain:

Montrealer Jay Baruchel is on the phone from Sydney, Australia, where he's in rehearsals for what is rumoured to be the most expensive Warner Bros. movie in history. Set for release in 2010, the project is shrouded in secrecy and while Baruchel can't talk too much about it, he does hint at something exciting. "The (film) I'm doing now will be a real cracker," he says in his frank, confident tone. "It will be insane."

Another good and positive quote. It seems the hype has begun! Countdown to February...

MILLER: ANCIENT GREEK GODS AS "REFERENCE POINT" FOR JLA
- NeosKosmos reports:

Dr Miller has been confirmed by Warner Bros. as the director of 'Justice League of America', a large-scale superhero epic featuring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and a host of others, "The Justice League superheroes are in fact related to ancient Greek gods and that will be my reference point."

The film will showcase a detailed blending of live-action, motion-capture, and CGI animation.

What a quote! Interesting. They better keep going with these because the fan response has been incredibly poor lately and everyone's moaning 5 months of waiting has been enough. You don't want to anger the fanbase too much, we're all tired by now, right? I'm thinking we'll be getting more of these little gems in the following weeks.

( More... EVA GREEN *NOT* IN JLA, says her management )

( JLA scenic artist and props maker, JLA illustrator and concept artist )

( RUMOUR: ADAM BRODY 'EXCITED' ABOUT JLA? )

And here's an older rumour from last month (*checks notes*) but it wasn't picked up by the major websites:

RUMOURED JLA ACTORS ASSEMBLE AT A HOTEL IN SYNDEY!
- On Dec 18 we got news on SuperHeroHype boards of a fan who met actor Adam Brody at an hotel in Sydney and got a picture taken with him (see link for pic!). Members wondered if the fan (who actually works at the hotel) could let them know if any other actors are currently staying at the hotel... Like maybe, oh, I don't know, Teresa Palmer, DJ Cotrona and other rumoured people? ;) And were they there because of a movie? The hotel guy says 'yes' to the movie question and 'yes' to the actors, THEY WERE ALL THERE, TOO. "Yes, at the hotel were Cotrona, Hammer, Cabrera, Teresa Palmer and Adam Brody."

O___O

I'd say Megan Gale, also rumoured for Wonder Woman, isn't on the list is because she actually lives in Sydney and wouldn't have to stay at a hotel. :)

( Oh, gee, what would all these actors be doing at the same hotel in Sydney where JLA will be filming? )

Also, the rumoured date for the start of filming is February 11, though one source on SuperHeroHype boards said it's actually getting under way in mid/late March? *ponder* The latter was by an unconfirmed source (but who's really CONFIRMED these days, anyway?) but he claims the JLA technical people from Sydney have been saying this for a month now.

After the news of Brandon Routh being pushed away because of the newcomer Superman in JLA, many sites picked up the story, also voicing their own opinions on the matter. The support for Routh is very vocal, "he's the best part about Superman Returns, he's doesn't deserve this", etc etc, but lots of people are relieved about Singer supposedly leaving, too. It does look like many are of the opinion the faults in SR were the writing, the editing, the film itself. Not Brandon Routh. He only did what the director told him to do. People were saying the same thing when SR came out. He's the "saving grace" of the film and whathaveyou.

SR underperforming may not be Brandon's fault, just like him possibly not being Superman again isn't his fault, but he's certainly the casualty in all this. One fan called him "collateral damage" and it's the perfect way to describe it, really. He could go down with the rest because the writers are gone, Singer could walk, WB could support the new JLA Superman instead, there will be a new cast, etc. It's just a domino effect. If Singerverse is gone, Routh is gone. It isn't fair but is movie business ever fair?

Aaaand you know what's coming next! I wondered how long it would take some site to claim right the opposite, that Brandon is IS STILL Superman, so there! Moriarity of AintItCoolNews merely reported what Variety said at first but then they added an update to the article on the same day (this was still the same day the original news broke):

Updated! Brandon Routh Is Evidently Still The Man Of Steel!

UPDATE -- I just got off the phone with a very high-ranking mole who is absolutely in a position to know what's happening with this film, and he tells me that it is "absolutely false" that Brandon Routh is out as Superman for the stand-alone series.

The only thing that has been determined is that JUSTICE LEAGUE will not feature the actors from the other films. That's it.

Right now, Routh is still Warner's choice to return if they make another stand-alone SUPERMAN film, and that's based on conversations as recently as a few weeks ago.

Don't believe this one, kids. Routh's still the Man of Steel.

Then the usual spiel of backpedaling happened and LatinoReview made a correction to their original article:

**EDIT** Other sites are breaking our balls about how I wrote this news piece, so let me correct it. (It's my first news article. Give me a break people!) The article does not state that whomever is cast as Superman will also be the same actor to carry on the stand alone Superman sequel, but we've heard otherwise. If we're wrong, you can go back to breaking said balls.

O_O Um, okay. The usual... but too late. No cookie for you. The damage is done. I was expecting this but frankly, it doesn't lessen the blow to me. They could have done this months ago if they're in it for website hits and traffic and "who's the biggest insider of them all". They could have had tons of "MOS is dead, wait no, MOS is still on" scoops, just like IESB.net ruled the JLA rumour mill for several months.

They're only doing it now because we're so close to JLA starting filming. The date's been set for months. The cast will be announced soon and many people are disappointed about the rumoured names, plus everyone wants to have some sort of scoop right now before all hell breaks loose. It's the perfect timing to scare people. Adding Brandon to the mix just sweetens the deal, makes everything "juicier".

If we've learnt anything from the JLA rumour mill debacle, it's that rival websites and insiders will fight for website hits and traffic and naturally the competition will try to steal it away. Besides, you know what else this Superman drama needs? The TOM WELLING angle. Again. Seriously, you can't have a good Superman scoop without Tom Welling!

( '[Welling] supposedly has discussed this with a close friend and was told that it is already too late to avoid being typecast and he should go where the money is or risk ending up with no career after Smallville.' )

I've been reading some fan discussions on the whole Routh debacle and one fan believes WB is so daring at the mo to dump Routh because Welling was always their first choice anyway and now that they've got him for JLA and possibly the solo Superman franchise, they no longer need Routh. If it's true he was offered an amount few people would refuse (doesn't he get like over $1 million a year for each season of Smallville?), he may as well change his mind and take the role.

One fan mentioned Routh got only $30,000 for SR. That's insane, I've heard it was either $1 or $2 million! I forgot. Does anyone know? Anyhoo, it's not something that's important to me but since WB's all business (all that matters is box office) and is moving ahead with JLA that's probably worth it for very profitable merchandising/toys alone, then maybe they'd be willing to spend a little extra on Welling if that means he'll accept the role. If Welling got the role, he'd be the only really known actor in the superhero team anyway.

The damage is done. It took one short article, no, PARAGRAPH, for the fanbase to see that Brandon would be missed if WB dumped him. People have spoken. Many may be glad about a new director but Brandon they wanna keep. The only problem with this reasoning is that if Singer is gone, a new director would want to follow his own vision and cast his own Superman. Hence the domino effect: First the writers, then the director, then Brandon and the rest of the cast. Bye bye MOS, hello reboot with new Superman, whoever you may be.

Watch a big portion (it's still early!) of the Superman online community go in a frenzy when Variety blog innocently writes the following in their article about upcoming DC comics movies:

Speaking of DC Comics pics, it is highly unlikely that Bryan Singer will return to shoot the next Superman movie. (The director is finishing up Tom Cruise's Nazi film Valkyrie, and prepping The Mayor of Castro Street). The next Superman we will see on the big screen will not be Brandon Routh, but a younger Superman among a cast of youthful superheroes in The Justice League. That movie will likely not be shot, however, until after the WGA strike is resolved. Warners is so happy with Dark Knight that their fondest hope is that Nolan will return to do another Batman.

It's immediately being mis-read by some fans and you can see it coming from a mile away... Brandon not being in JLA is treated as NEWS when in fact we've known for a long time now that he wasn't even approached about the movie. But people are flipping over that one paragraph in the blog anyway.

Of course Routh isn't in JLA. The blog meant the next onscreen Superman we're going to see will be the JLA Superman since that movie is moving ahead of any possible Superman Returns sequel. That's what it really says. We already knew that. It was pretty much one of the main things being discussed in the Superman fandom since past summer. The blog does not mention the sequel at all, it mentions Bryan not returning to direct JLA which is, uh, also not news, since JLA is being directed by Miller. O_O It's trying to sell the "No Bryan" angle as news.

Bad choice of wording. Honestly. Also using words "likely" and "unlikely" which sound more like opinion and speculation, as SupermanHomepage wisely reminds us.

All of this screaming because of a weblog! Also remember Variety was the one source saying months back WB is still unsure how to proceed regarding JLA and that the strike is effecting everything. The rumour sites, on the other hand, kept saying JLA is full-steam ahead and the strike won't affect the filming schedule, according to Miller. Variety's been one of the big players in the JLA rumour mill extravaganza last year if only because they carry more weight than online websites posting rumours.

But then it gets better...

Just when you see people calming down a bit, there's another shock around the corner! The death stroke was delivered by LatinoReview which jumped on board linking to the above article and saying they've known this all along but weren't allowed to say it just yet because DC forbid them. They announce it's been confirmed Brandon will not be Superman again in ANY movie:

News is a funny thing. Sometimes when its reported the person who reported it gets the credit for breaking the news. Latinoreview has always tried to be the front runner in breaking casting news. Sometimes we miss, but most of the time we're dead on.

Kelvin knew about Brandon not being the new Superman for weeks and weeks now, but made a promise to the DC people that he wouldn't break the story. Variety has now confirmed what we've secretly known for a while and Brandon Routh will be replaced in the stand alone sequel by whomever is cast as Superman in the upcoming Justice League of America movie.

Personally, I thought Brandon did a great job. He had the look to pull off the character and the girls all went nuts for him in tighty tights (I conducted a poll). It wasn't his fault that the script was bad. Hopefully Hollywood knows what they're doing in casting someone who may be even younger than Routh in the role. I don't know what the fascination is with younger casting, especially for super heroes. But I'll take a younger actor if it means Nicolas Cage can't go anywhere near the role.

Now, granted, this isn't just any "rumour site". It was LatinoReview who first broke the news Brandon Routh was cast as Superman in SR. He had to hide away from the press for a week. They were also first to report Singer was interested in the SR project in the first place.

Many fans, especially anti-SR people, are rejoicing and seeing this news, ESPECIALLY the LatinoReview article, AS OFFICIAL.

( LatinoReview does not focus on JLA like the Variety blog. It clearly states in plain words that can't be misinterpreted: they've known for a long time Brandon isn't returning. )



I've said it before and I'll say it again. Though it pains me to choose because I honestly like Singer as a director and a person, if I HAD to choose between Singerverse/movie by Singer or Brandon Routh, I'd pick Brandon Routh in a heartbeat. I want him far more as Superman than Singer behind the helm. That choice was always obvious to me.

*SIGH* Not feeling okay today, I really need a while to digest this. Think it through. This could be the lowest point we've reached since the awful WB quote "IF we make a sequel..." so long ago. I'm still not sure whether I even believe the news or not. A huge part of me denies it with a passion because I'm a fan of Brandon's and not letting him continue is just beyond ridiculous to me.
But as others have said already, I wouldn't be surprised if it indeed turned out to be true and the past JLA rumours of a new younger Superman and possible solo Superman movies spinning off JLA all seem to point to this turn of events. I've said it before that it seriously worried me when the SR writers "left" (or were booted by WB, whatever you choose to believe) the project first because it could mean Bryan would walk next and then Routh, if only by association. It's been suggested before.

And now it LOOKS like it's happening and I'm so sick of it, so sick of WB and sick of lack of official news. It's shocking how calm I am, I don't think it has really hit me yet and a huge part of me does reject the news as false. That must be the reason I haven't screamed yet. It's the fighter in me. The loyal fan.

DON'T WANT TO THINK ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW. UGH!

First, before I go on I'd just like to say a few words about my posts on JLA. I'm not posting these daily anymore as I think putting all the latest rumours into one post is easier and not as aggravating to the readers. The news may be a biiit outdated by the time I post them (a few days tops) but they're at least coming in steadily. :)

I've heard some of these news before the major websites reported on them... *chuckle* Made me realize I could run a very up-to-date Superman news journal if I wanted but as SupermanHomepage said many times over, it's a full-time job and you'd need to sacrifice a lot more time if you wanted to beat everyone to the news. Since this isn't a competition, I'm content with reporting a couple of days or so after the major websites already posted the news. :)

That and I also think daily or almost daily news on JLA rumours would tick people off after a while. We're all very tired of them by now, even if some do crack me up still (like Scott Porter as Superman, see more below) and they can be very fun in all their cracktastic glory. With 2 months left till JLA movie starts production, I'll be posting the news in chunks like this unless there's something especially juicy I need to report on right away. Some rumours are so weird they really don't deserve their own post anyway.

On we go then! The latest I've heard, with newest stuff at the bottom:

X-MEN ACTOR PLAYING JLA SUPERMAN?
- The insider Emi of CountingDown.net (she's posting on IESB.net boards sometimes which I got this info from but you need to sign up to view them now) overheard X-Men actor Daniel Cudmore was in talks for JLA Superman. She reminds us: "I'm saying this is purely a rumor as it came from a casting agency as a through the grapevine / overheard a conversation sort of thing." About Cudmore, who played Colossus in Bryan Singer's X2 (and X-men 3), she says: "I've been told Daniel Cudmore auditioned for Superman and was well liked. Given the ages of the other cast members and what it seems like Miller is going for, he could fit in the role easily. At 6' 6 and pretty built up, he'd be better than anyone rumored so far."

( Pics of Cudmore )

You can hear a clip of his acting on YouTube here. Look for the tall cop. ;) His voice is quite nice!

Interestingly, Daniel Cudmore auditioned for Superman in Superman Returns. One time it was even rumoured he got the part but back then rumours were just as crazy as they are now about JLA and everyone and their grandpa apparently auditioned for Superman.

( A fan was saying Cudmore's image as Colossus is too well-known, he shouldn't play Superman now. )

ADAM BRODY AS THE FLASH?
- Finally a big newspaper reporting on JLA! LA Times says Adam Brody has closed negotiations to play the Flash.

The studio is expected to hold off on an announcement until all the roles are cast and a splashy news conference can herald the return of the beloved series. "Justice League of America" is one of Warner Bros.' highest-priority films right now, with an anticipated 2009 release.

They also mention Scott Porter and Megan Gale are "rumoured" for Superman and Wonder Woman. But then again, they also said earlier Scott Porter is Superman and that isn't true (see below). That much about counting on big newspapers to report credible or only official stuff. They didn't really say Brody was confirmed so at least they're being careful with their words!

( Another tidbit about an actor who auditioned for JLA )

NEW WARNER BROTHERS PRESIDENT
Speaking of "next few weeks", I think they'll announce the cast shortly before they actually start filming in February. Fans have been speculating about the date for a long time. It's odd WB hasn't said anything for so long and one fan says it probably won't happen until after WB Executive Vice President Jeff Robinov gets his promotion (he'll be President) in January. The press conference could easily happen then with him "at the helm", revealing all the JLA cast at once.

I should mention execs Jeff Robinov and Dan Lin are reportedly the ones going *FOR* JLA while President & Chief Operating Officer Alan Horn (we last heard about him regarding Brandon Routh's wedding but it was later reported Horn in fact did not attend) spoke nicely about Superman Returns when it didn't do as well as expected at the BO. Horn admitted they expected more but that the movie did what it was supposed to do (introduce the characters, etc).

Lin, on the other hand, we've heard is the one who's been rooting for JLA from the beginning. There have also been whispers Lin disliked SR but I don't remember exactly what's been said and if indeed it was anything official or just insider stuff. Anti-SR folks often use Robinov and Lin as some of the reasons Man of Steel isn't happening while pro-SR people say WB people's thoughts on SR were overwhelmingly positive, basically pro-SR and sequel, and that most of the execs are FOR the sequel.
People are fighting all the time about this, who supposedly said what, who supposedly thinks this and that... We honestly don't KNOW anything for sure, we only have a few short quotes from Horn that WB was pleased with SR but that they expected it to make $100 mil more domestic.

( Here's an old article from 2004 explaining what the job entails, plus a Robinov interview with him mentioning Superman Returns )

More on WB. NY Times reported a year ago about WB's profits, flops, etc. Great article. SR is mentioned as well and Robinov and Horn said in regards to the poorer BO of their movies that year:

"If Superman had done twice what it did, the whole summer would have looked different," said Mr. Robinov. "It's as much about perception as reality. Even with the failure of a movie like 'Poseidon,' we've had much smaller movies we've lost as much on."

Mr. Horn agreed. "I've seen movies that cost $15 million lose as much as $20 million," he said. "But when event movies don't perform well, it is very high profile."

Back to current news/rumours:

( Teresa Palmer is Wonder Woman? )

CHRIS NOLAN ABOUT JLA
- People worrying Chris Nolan will walk away from Batman 3 because Miller is doing another version of Batman at the same time, can breathe easily. IGN.com reports:

IGN: Are you concerned at all about the Justice League of America movie and of a new Batman being introduced to audiences while your franchise is still going?

Nolan: Not really. To be perfectly honest, it's not really something I've thought about much. I really am just immersed in making this movie. Whatever will happen will happen, and we're just working very hard to make this movie the best it can be.

( More on Nolan )

JLA DIRECTOR SAYS THE MOVIE IS ON SCHEDULE
Sydney Morning Herald reports JLA director George Miller (here's a very recent pic of him) said the movie wasn't affected by the recent writers strike in the U.S. and is expected to start shooting in the new year. Nothing new there but it should put people's minds to rest after all the recent grumblings the movie won't get made after all.

JLA fans are hoping the movie will be successful. One fan says he can't see it failing. "Maybe critically, but not financially." I think this is what's going to happen. People, especially kids and young teens, will EAT IT UP.

Saved my fave bit for last:

SCOTT PORTER TALKS ABOUT JLA
- And once again, Scott Porter ISN'T SUPERMAN, no matter what LA Times claimed before. His name keeps popping up. Luckily, he has been interviewed in a vid on YouTube and he addresses the issue in a very charming way. :) He even mentions the word "fandom" (*hugs him*) and the Superman comic a fan gave him to sign at the con (the fan must be flipping out in excitement, he's almost famous for that comic thing now *laugh*). It's so fun hearing Scott talk about it. Do watch the vid. He's like "Oh man, not again" when JLA is mentioned, just look at his tired face. "Dude, you're Superman. It's on the internet, it's everywhere, you're Superman."
Told you he's a nice guy! :) Damn, just when I was warming up to him. *laugh* He mentions his MySpace and goes: "Be my friend!" Aww. ♥

More faves: "And the internet never lies". Hahahaha. Awesome. "Poor Brandon Routh, he never stood a chance. I thought he was fantastic, he got ripped to shreds."

♥ *fangirls Porter* I like this pic of him.

Here are some JLA movie nuggets I've collected, I'll write this quickly because I'm busy at the moment:

- Variety reports the costume designer on JLA movie Marit Allen has died! Oh dear. She was 66. Is this another bad omen for the project, next to the writer's strike? Fans are wondering whether the costumes for the movie have been completed and whether the team will keep them in the movie as a dedication to her.

- MovieHole "announces" Wonder Woman, Batman and Iris Allen (wife of Flash) actors. This hasn't been confirmed, of course. The usual.

Batman = Armie Hammer
Wonder Woman = Megan Gale
Iris Allen = Zoe Kazan

Megan Gale's name has been popping up forever now and Hammer has been mentioned before, too. I've seen people warming up to him which was a nice change from the usual moaning. He may be just 21 years old but he has a veeeery deep voice and is 6'5'' (195 cm) tall!!
This SHH post has some nice screencaps of his appearance in an episode on Desperate Housewives. He's quite an unknown.
There's also a link to a vid so you can see his acting (but the vid only works for US residents). I've found it on Youtube here. :) The guy next to him (Mike) is 6'0'' and Hammer is towering over him! And here's the first part of his appearance.

Some fans have been saying if he was cast, the Superman actor would have to be even taller! Hence some suggestions he should just play Superman. :) A couple of comments: "A younger looking Superman wouldn't be as bad since he basically ages far more slowly than the other Leaguers." and "THAT VOICE, THE HEIGHT, THAT CHIN, THE FACE. ALL POINTS TO SUPERMAN. imo"

I'd agree a deep voice helps with the supposed age of the character a lot. The voice makes him appear older. Plus, he's HUGE and is long-fingered. Hey, I like that about Routh so... IMO he also looks older than he is already anyway.

Well, so much for a "younger cast". Megan Gale is 31, Common (rumoured for Green Lantern) is 35, Adam Brody (rumoured for Flash) is 27. And now Hammer is 21! He's the only one sticking out next to DJ Cotrona that was rumoured as both Superman and Batman before.

- MovieHole also reported Megan Gale was spotted training. Was it for her role of Wonder Woman? It says she doesn't usually work out as often as lately. Hmmm, yeah, a model in a gym, how astonishing! ;) But hey, it could be all connected, you never know.

- Sanchez of IESB.net posted his opinion as to why Megan Gale is wrong for Wonder Woman. It's because young girls looking up to WW will want to find out more about their heroine and the first images that pop up online when you Google Megan Gale are nudes.
(Though this same argument was posted weeks before by someone else on the IESB boards. It's been talked about before but Sanchez hasn't posted much on JLA lately, maybe this will do for now? At least it isn't another rumour.)

I haven't seen any other male fans complaining about this matter but then again, I think many of the JLA fanboys aren't fathers of daughters. Sanchez is.

I'll cover some fan reactions and some news in this entry.

NO JLA CASTING ANNOUNCEMENT DESPITE RUMOURS
Nothing particularly interesting to report these days regarding the JLA casting development. Moviehole.net posted another rumour a couple or so days ago that the cast will be announced that very day and IESB.net went with the same story but unsurprisingly, nothing came to pass. I didn't want to post another "AN ANNOUNCEMENT IS COMING!" rumour 3 days in a row, so I saved it for today. Though it would have been hilarious if the one rumour I didn't post about actually came true!

Thanksgiving came and went and still no announcement. From what I could gather, the fan reactions haven't changed. If anything, they're more intense than before. Fans are getting angrier by the day and many do agree it's rumour/news sites like IESB, MovieHole and AintItCoolNews that keep adding fuel to the fire. Some are now pointing fingers at these sites instead of WB (and their rumoured "misinformation campaign") for a change. "This isn't WB's fault, if it weren't for sites like IESB and others, we wouldn't have been so pissed off!"
It's mostly the casting announcement that people are angry about, not the other rumours we've been getting via these sites (JLA storyline, who auditioned for what, etc). No one was complaining about IESB when they were reporting casting rumours. Now everyone's complaining because fans aren't getting what they want. Hypocritical much?

( More... )

You know what? SPONGEBOB SHOULD BE MAKING THE CASTING ANNOUNCEMENT. *points at icon* At least he'd do it in style.

SUPERMANUEL AND BATBOY!
As posted in an earlier entry, a silly rumour surfaced about a 21 year-old actor for Batman and an unknown "of Hispanic/Latino descent" for Superman. On one fan forum they're by now a bit of a joke, especially the Hispanic Superman. One fanboy mentioned it looks like we won't be getting SUPERMAN in this movie. More like Supermanuel. Bwah! Cue lots of cackling. The word Superhombre was also thrown around. Another fan joked we'll be having Batboy instead of Batman! :)))

JLA DELAYED? FANS ARE WORRIED.
Another shift (we'll see how long it lasts) happened when several sites picked up the story about the writers strike postponing JLA because it has an unfinished script. I've reported about this already, the story made a few rounds and is being treated as "news" even though the article's re-hashing old news written by other sites, especially Variety's article from weeks ago. The point is that all the rumour sites are saying JLA is going forward as planned and Variety was the only source that reported right the opposite. It said "WB was unsure how to proceed" and things like that.
This is old news but it was making rounds again as if to remind us a lot of things could go wrong with this project.

The "reminder" caused a few fans to start doubting JLA will ever get made, especially after all these rumours that didn't come true. Some who haven't been particularly keen on the idea of a JLA movie from the beginning are commenting the longer we don't get any official casting announcement, the more chances there are the movie will get delayed. We all knew JLA would be extremely difficult to cast... Now some are hoping it'll be too difficult.

A lot of the rumoured cast so far (just people who auditioned) aren't exactly fan favourites. A fan on SuperHeroHype forums comments:
"This JL film is reminding me so much of Superman Returns when it comes to developmental buzz. The cast for Singer film was underwhelming and there was a heavy split of fans between the casting of Routh.
The samething is happening here and it seems Miller is going the exact opposite route with casting then he should be going. He should be looking for solid B grade actors if not A grade.....but he will be going the C and D grade route with babyfaced unknown TV actors. Utterly disappointing..."

TRANSFORMERS WRITERS WRITING 'SUPERMAN RETURNS' SEQUEL?
Another rumour that I've posted about previously, in fact it was just a little tidbit thrown out by Iris of BrandonRouth.com concerning "Man of Steel". She said Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci "seem to be interested" in writing the sequel, now that the doors are open for new writers to come on board. Fans agree this rumour should be taken with a grain of salt like other rumours and indeed it didn't make a splash on any website besides a couple of forums. The thing is, anyone could be writing the script and Kurtzman and Orci are just one of several teams that I'm sure we'll be hearing about in the future in connection with MOS.

The rumour was taken as such but the fan response was positive for the most part. Fans are hungry for more action in the sequel and action's certainly something Transformers delivered.
Kurtzman and Orci are also in negotiations to write Transformers 2. It was reported they could be getting $5 - $7 million for the screenplay. They've been friends since childhood and have co-written stuff for Xena: Warrior Princess, Alias, and movies The Island and Mission: Impossible 3.

BRANDON ROUTH MARRYING!
Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford are getting married tomorrow, Nov 24! Be brave, fangirls! :) The wedding pics will be featured in INStyle magazine. CONGRATS! I think I'll be posting a huge Brandon picspam tomorrow to celebrate. :o)

JAMES MARSDEN IN GAP AD CAMPAIGN
Aww, James Marsden (Richard White in Superman Returns) is featured in one of GAP's new Holiday 2007 ads! Look how sweet he looks:



Check out the link above for a hi-res picture.

*goes back to bed with tea and muffins* *has a cold*

Several rumours and actual news today regarding JLA. The newest are at the bottom.

JLA 90 MINUTES LONG?
This via SupermanHomepage: The Australian Film Commission has officially posted notice for the JLA movie (official title "Justice League of America", not just "Justice League"):

Production Company: Kennedy Miller Mitchell
Producers: Doug Mitchell, Barrie Osborne
Director: George Miller
Writers: Kieran Mulroney, Michele Mulroney
Duration: 90 min
Synopsis: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, the Flash and other superheroes unite to fight against evil forces.
Status: Pre-Production

90 MINUTES!! Lots of grumbling in the SupermanHomepage comments already. A fan comment: "No wonder there isn't a threat to Bale or Routh. New Supes and Bats won't be on screen long enough to threaten intellect let alone a casting coup on "Man of Steel"."

Though I agree with the storyline they're supposedly going with (OMACs, Tower of Babel), it's hard to stretch it over 90 minutes (which includes end credits as someone has pointed out already, which means the movie will be ever shorter. 86 minutes, maybe? Yikes.) Some disagree, saying 90 minutes isn't enough at all ("90 minutes is simply insufficient for a film that should be of epic proportions"), others proclaim it's fine, "This isn't the "Godfather" you know."

Compare this to the 2 and a half hours of Superman Returns. But maybe the runtime will change?

JLA HAS NO SCRIPT?
The Superman fandom was in a frenzy when HollyWood Reporter posted an innocent enough article about the current issue of the writers' strike delaying movies in Hollywood. Guess which movie was also mentioned?

At Warner Bros., "Justice League of America" finds itself without a shooting script and has options expiring on potential actors who recently were screen tested. As a result, it might have to postpone production.

( 'Justice League DOES have a shooting script. It has for quite some time.' )

( Scott Porter says interesting things about the JLA auditions, and he is NOT Superman )

( JLA Actors' Nondisclosure Agreement expires? )

This just in! RUMOURED CAST LIST FOR JLA!
SuperHeroHype posted a supposed cast list for JLA and people are either freaking out or laughing their butts off.

Keep in mind that Warner Bros. has yet to reveal any cast members, but this is a list of names Superhero Hype! received over the weekend as to who might be cast in Justice League. Yes, we realize the much rumored Adam Brody is not listed here as The Flash. Our answer? We just don't know what's up, plain and simple:

Superman - D.J. Cotrona
Batman - Armie Hammer
Wally West/The Flash - Anton Yelchin
Aquaman - Santiago Cabrera
Iris - Zoe Kazan
Wonder Woman - Megan Gale
Talia al Ghul - Teresa Palmer
Green Lantern - Common

We must repeat, the above names are not confirmed.

( Who are these people? )

Man, I'm going back to my Christian Bale icon batch. It'll be posted soon!