Kill Bill Prequels, Iron Man, Spider-Man 3 and More

This year’s Comic-Con is turning out to be a virtual orgy of upcoming film footage, news and info. Where else can you find out who is playing the villian in the upcoming Iron Man, see Spider-Man 3 footage and listen to Quentin Tarantino talk about both Grind House and possible Kill Bill prequels, all in the span of four hours.

Well, to start with, Quentin Tarantino did let it slip that he is interested in making two Kill Bill prequels. The first prequel would be an anime origin film about Bill and his mentors. The second would be another tale focused on The Bride.

Next, Jon Favreau (Elf), who is directing Iron Man, confirmed at Comic Con that the villain in the film would be Mandarin.

Mandarin in the original comic was a supervillain, a scientific genius who sought world domination, but had no superpowers. He was a superb athlete and had tremendous martial arts skills. He uses ten rings which respond to his mental commands as weapons.

In Iron Man, troubled billionaire Tony Stark creates a life support suit to assist him after a life threatening accident. He ultimately decides to use its technology to fight evil and crime.

“The suit will be more like a weapons platform than a flying suit – more of a War Machine-feel to it,” Favreau also said at the Comic Con panel.

Iron Man will be in theaters May 2, 2008.

Also, director Sam Raimi confirmed rumors that Topher Grace, from That 70’s Show, will indeed be playing Venom. At the roundtable panel he went on to talk about the look of Venom. The room was relieved to hear that Venom will indeed keep his signature teeth and long tongue. Raimi went on to say, “We had different looks for Venom, but Avi Arad (executive producer) wants to stay classic.” He noted the difficult artistic challenge they have when Grace’s character, Eddie Brock, changes to Venom.

Those lucky enough to be there were treated to a first peek at new footage from the movie. The sneak trailer concluded with a shot of Venom complete with dripping mandible, razor sharp teeth, and his signature long tongue.

Incredible Hulk News:
Louis Leterrier (Unleashed), director of the upcoming The Incredible Hulk, said that General Ross will be returning for this movie.

“This is Marvel’s horror movie,” Leterrier went on. “It’s Frankenstein meets Jekyll and Hyde with a little bit of Edward Scissorhands.”

Leterrier also talked about his vision for the character saying that he would remain focused on how Bruce Banner deals with his hatred for the monster inside of him, and that the film will have a tone close to that of the television show.