Again, not Avengers, but Marvel Universe-related so it’s relevant…
THR’s Heat Vision Blog is reporting that James McAvoy (Wanted) has landed the role of Professor Charles Xavier in the upcoming Matthew Vaughn-directed X-Men: First Class.
This is a much younger Xavier than we’ve seen in the other X-Men films, where he was played by Patrick Stewart.
The movie is scheduled to be released on June 3, 2011.
Hayley Atwell inadvertently slipped that Tommy Lee Jones will be appearing in Captain America: The First Avenger, in an interview with Leicester Square TV. The character that he will be playing is currently unknown.
You can see the video interview below:
An article on Salon.com, with a fact not yet confirmed by the studio, says that actor Dominic Cooper (Mamma Mia!, Tamara Drewe, An Education) will be playing the young Howard Stark, father of Tony, in the upcoming film Captain America: The First Avenger.
The film takes place largely in World War II. Stay tuned for more details and confirmation if or when it becomes available.
Brian Braddock had better watch his back, his territory’s being taken over…
The Los Angeles Times has broken the news that the upcoming film Captain America: The First Avenger, despite the title, will actually be shot in London.
Cost is a major factor in this decision, which is also decided because a majority of the film is set in Europe and many London-based locations such as Piccadilly Circus are involved. There are also “favorable tax incentives” involved with the London location.
The movie, which stars Chris Evans and Hugo Weaving, begins shooting in July, an on the bright side, even though it’s a film about an American hero shot in the United Kingdom, it still won’t have an Italian Red Skull, and for that we should be thankful.
Future Thor actor Chris Hemsworth was interviewed by About.com‘s Rebecca Murray on the red carpet of the Australians in Film 6th Annual Breakthrough Awards.
Among other things, he reveals he has met with Joss Whedon, which implies that the popular director is at least in talks to direct the super-hero team-up film The Avengers.
Here are some highlights:
On the costume: “Oh, it was crazy. I remember the first camera test and putting it on and going, ‘Oh my god,’ and then everyone who came and looked at it was like, ‘Wow, this is a monumental sort of moment.’ And standing in it was a very odd experience, you know? But it was beautiful. I mean, Alex Byrne designed the costume and they spent I think almost two years kind of leading up and building that thing and setting it up. It really paid off. The thing is incredible. It’s not very comfortable, but…”
On how to move around in the costume: “You can’t, really. We broke a lot of them. It’s pretty restrictive. But it it’s such a picture. Anthony Hopkins said to me in the camera test, we were both looking at each other’s costumes and he said, ‘God, there’s no acting required here, is there?’ And I thought, ‘Absolutely.’”
About the Thor movie: “You know, I just finished – I wrapped on last Thursday – and I’ve been involved in that for eight, nine months, actually longer since I found out about it and the lead up, and the whole time it felt like I was kind of treading water to keep my head above water and not think about it. And then now I’m sort of sinking under, going, ‘Wow, what a crazy experience.’ But there was such a support group in that film. A lot of the producers have written comic books, written Thor comics. You’ve got Kenneth Branagh who’s just a genius. And then Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, Stellan Skarsgard…it’s just an exceptional cast.”
On The Avengers: “Look, I just sat down with the Marvel guys and Joss Whedon recently and talked about it. It starts next January, I think, or February, around that time we start shooting. And I think it’s going to be a hell of a ride. When you bring in Iron Man and Captain America and whoever else they wrangle from the Marvel universe, it’s going to be a hell of a film.”
On Thor being understandable to non-comic folks: “You know, I didn’t grow up reading comic books and neither did Kenneth Branagh. So what we worked on was, yeah, we pay all the respect due to where its origin is, but also create a film about real people, real characters, and relationships between fathers and sons – Odin and Loki and Thor and the turmoil that exists there and what have you. That was what it always came down to. It simplified it. Yes, we have this amazing backdrop and the world of comics, but it was about people.”
You can read the full interview, which includes VIDEO, here.