Wednesday, November 7, 2001

SPIDER-MAN MOVIE/ANIMATED UPDATE

Sony Pictures on Wednesday released its first image of the Green Goblin from the upcoming Spider-Man movie.

The image is being called a "one-sheet," which means it will be showing up as posters in theaters.

In related news, an official announcement for the new Spider-Man animated series is expected soon, perhaps as early as Nov. 16.

The new series is expected to be on MTV, with Vancouver-based Mainframe possibly involved in the production. The series will come from Sony, which is also behind the Spider-Man movie.

"A script is in development for an animated series," Marvel Studios' Rick Ungar told The Continuum on Tuesday. "Should know more by end of month."

Sources told The Continuum that Brian Michael Bendis, writer of the Ultimate Spider-Man and Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, has been involved in the development of the pilot. Bendis had no comment about possible involvement.

The new series should be for prime time, not Saturday mornings, and would be edgier than previous animated versions of Spider-Man.

Marvel Studios' Avi Arad has said that the show will not be a continuation of the Spider-Man and Spider-Man Unlimited series that were on Fox Kids.

"It stars a young Peter," Arad said. "It will be based off the movie."

DAVID HAYTER TALKS WATCHMEN MOVIE

David Hayter said his goal with the Watchmen movie is "to do this right or not do it at all."

Hayter, the screenwriter who has worked on such comics films as X-Men, X-Men 2 and The Incredible Hulk, recently reached agreement with Universal Pictures to develop a live-action Watchmen movie, based on the 1986 DC Comics series by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons.

Hayter will be writing the script for the film and he told The Continuum he is interested in possibly directing as well.

"But right now I'm focusing on writing it," Hayter told The Continuum in a telephone interview this week. "I have to see how expensive it is, how big a picture it is and how easy of a process it will be getting the story approved by Universal. If we're not able to do in a way it should be done, and that's not a given, we may not be able to do it at all. I believe in either doing it right or not doing it at all.

"Having said that, I'm thrilled to be working with Universal. They've been very supportive of me and the three things I have worked on for them. And I think they understand the subject matter. They get why it's so great.

"It's important for everyone to know just because there's an announcement made about a film, doesn't mean it's a done deal. I'm being very careful along the way to make sure this doesn't unravel story-wise."

Hayter won't actually begin writing Watchmen until early next year, but he said already has "reams and reams" of notes.

"I believe I have found a way to do it," he said of making the transition from comic to film with Watchmen. "It's certainly not easy. It's a very complex story, very dense, very literate.

"I sat down and broke down the story points into their main components, and I found that in that structure, I was able to find a way to present it in a two-hour format."

Hayter said he hopes to talk to Moore about the film.

"I would love to talk to Alan Moore, although I'm not sure he wants to talk to me," Hayter said. "I actually have a friend who has called him to see if he wants to talk -- if he's not appalled over the whole thing."

Come back to The Continuum on Wednesday as Hayter discusses his involvement in Universal's Incredible Hulk movie.

JUST A PILGRIM OPTIONED FOR FILM

Catch 23 Entertainment has acquired the worldwide film rights to Just a Pilgrim, the comic book created by Garth Ennis and published by Black Bull Entertainment.

Marc Danon, vice-president of production and acquisitions, who previously oversaw the development of the Marvel comic book franchise at Artisan Entertainment, brought Just a Pilgrim to Catch 23. Danon will oversee the project for Catch 23 with the help of David Keith, who has recently been promoted to the position of development assistant and junior story editor. Catch 23 will immediately begin to package and develop the property.

"I've long been a comic book fan and Just a Pilgrim is great cutting-edge material to launch Catch 23 into this space," said Robert B. Sturm, Chairman of Catch 23.

Set in a post-apocalyptic future, where the sun has begun to die and the oceans have dried up, Just a Pilgrim centers on a mysterious and deeply religious former Green Beret, Pilgrim, who quotes scripture while dispensing the Lord's harsh judgment on the unholy and unrepentant, as he leads a rag-tag group of refugees to safety.

"Pilgrim is a bleak and fierce comic book hero whose unshakeable faith and defiant mission are perfectly tuned to the mood of the times," said Jeremy W. Barber, chairman of Catch 23. "I am also proud that Marc has continued his work in the comic book space that he began at Artisan."

BATMAN BEYOND'S "UNMASKED" TO AIR

The Cartoon Network is scheduled to broadcast "Unmasked," the only episode of Batman Beyond not to air on Kids' WB!, on Tuesday, Dec. 18 at 6:30 p.m. (ET).

In "Unmasked," Terry remembers a time, early in his Batman career, when he foolishly revealed his identity to a young boy -- leading to his being kidnapped by a cell of Kobra operatives.

The episode, written by Hilary J. Bader and directed by Kyung-Won Lim, is told in flashbacks from a conversation between Terry and Max.

"I think it will reaffirm certain aspects of the Batman mythos in a compelling way," Warner Bros. Animation's Rich Fogel told The Continuum. "However, as is often the case, this was not originally intended to be the series finale, and it certainly does not wrap up all the loose ends. But who knows, maybe we haven't heard the last of Terry McGinnis."

The episode, the 47th of Batman Beyond produced, was originally scheduled to air on Kids' WB! on Sept. 14, but was pulled after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Look for more on "Unmasked" -- including more images -- soon here in The Continuum.

SMALLVILLE'S "COOL"

The WB has released two images from "Cool," the episode of Smallville scheduled to air on Tuesday, Nov. 13.

Here's how the network describes the episode:

"Clark (Tom Welling) has a chance at an evening out on the town with Lana (Kristin Kreuk) thanks to Lex's (Michael Rosenbaum) matchmaking, but the evening is interrupted when Clark faces an icy enemy (guest star Michael Coristine): the high school lady killer who has a kryptonite-induced case of permanent hypothermia and has to feed off of body heat to survive - starting with Chloe (Allison Mack)."

Jim Contner directed the episode, written by Michael Green.

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BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER'S "SMASHED"

UPN has released two images from "Smashed," the episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer scheduled to air on Tuesday, Nov. 20.

Here's how UPN describes the episode:

"Something goes wrong with Spike's chip, allowing him to attack people. Meanwhile, Willow reunites with an old friend to cause some magical mayhem."

The episode was written by Drew Z. Greenberg and directed by Turi Meyer.

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SECOND PRINTING OF THE METABARONS

Humanoids Publishing announced on Tuesday that a second printing of the first issue of The Metabarons is available for ordering.

The first printing has been sold out for many months, according to the publisher. Copies of this reprint will ship the first week of December. A change in the color of the Humanoids logo on the books cover will indicate the second printing.

"We are excited on several levels about this reprinting of the first issue of our flagship title", said Ian Sattler, marketing manager for Humanoids Publishing. "It's amazing how long The Metabarons has sustained the ability to bring in new readers. We printed about double the orders of the first issue. Over time so many new readers came aboard by sampling the first issue that we needed to do a new printing to keep this activity going."

Part of the decision to do a second printing is the result of requests from retailers, who responded positively to the news of the reprint.

The second printing of The Metabarons #1 will be full color, 32 pages and retail for $2.95.

FIRST LOOK: CREED: UTOPIATE #1

CreeD: Utopiate #1 will arrive in stores on Jan. 9 from Image Comics. The issue is written by Christina Z and Trent Kaniuga, with art and cover by Kaniuga.

Here's how Image describes the issue:

"Mark Farely is CreeD. A child who brought to life the fantastical landscapes of his mind, is now a teen and coming to realize just how those world's came to be in the first place. At a new school, he meets Lori, a gorgeous teen who can also travel to a Dreamworld. When Mark attempts to rescue her from the atrocities of her world, it proves harder than anything he's confronted before For festering within is a secret to his past. One of unspeakable terror. Be prepared for dragons, Lovecraftian beasts, sensual, soul sucking faeries and much more in this 4-issue, bi-monthly series."

CreeD: Utopiate #1 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.95.

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BRIEFLY