A lot of fans have been wondering what is going to happen with the HBO series once all of George R.R. Martin's books are used up as material. The author is still writing his next installment of the book series, but HBO isn't concerned with it at the moment and they plan on moving forward with the series with or without the material. 

 HBO Programming chief Michael Lombardo had this to say to the Television Critics Association:

"We're not off on our own in respect to at least next season. Obviously George is an integral part of the creative team, so next season every move is being choreographed very closely with him. Certainly after next year we'll have to figure it out with George. The book's not finished at this point, but we're in conversations with him. We're not concerned about it."

He also clarified previous movie rumors saying, "there's no conversations going on about a movie." He also said that they are "not talking about ending the show in the next two years." That means we'll get at least three more seasons. 

Source: TV Line

In the latest episode of Machinima Prime's Super Power Beast Down, Red Hood and Punisher get into an epic battle to the death. I just want to throw out a warning that the fight sequence is very brutal and bloody. Watch the short below and let us know if you agree with the outcome. Regardless of who wins or loses, this web-series always manages to entertain. 

"Let's rock and roll boys!"

A new promo video has been released for Jonathan Liebesman's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles that gives us a rundown of each of the iconic Ninja Turtle characters in the film. In the process it shows off some exciting footage. I've also included a new bandana style poster from the film. 

The city needs heroes. Darkness has settled over New York City as Shredder and his evil Foot Clan have an iron grip on everything from the police to the politicians. The future is grim until four unlikely outcast brothers rise from the sewers and discover their destiny as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Turtles must work with fearless reporter April O'Neil (Megan Fox) and her wise-cracking cameraman Vern Fenwick (Will Arnett) to save the city and unravel Shredder's diabolical plan.

The movie opens up on August 8th.

Via: CBM

The opening scene from Warner Bros. Animation's Batman: Assault on Arkham has just been released. It features the Riddler (Matthew Gray Gubler) trying to annoy the hell out of Amanda Waller (CCH Pounder) by throwing out all kinds of different riddles. This looks like it could be another great animated feature from DC Entertainment. I'm going to try to catch the screening of it at San Diego Comic-Con next week. 

Gotham is in great danger when the government assembles a group of villains — code named the Suicide Squad — and forces them to break into Arkham Asylum to retrieve top secret information stolen by the Riddler. Things take a turn for the worse when one of the Squad members (Harley Quinn) frees the Joker, who is intent on blowing up Arkham Asylum and Gotham City. Batman must use his super hero wits and strength to thwart the wicked plans of the Joker and the Suicide Squad.

Batman: Assault on Arkham will have its World Premiere on Friday, July 25th at San Diego Comic-Con. It will be released by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on Digital HD on July 29th, and on Blu-ray Combo Park on August 12th. Thanks to Warner Bros. for the video.

E3 is over, but that hasn’t stopped Bioware from releasing oodles of gameplay footage from the demo for Dragon Age: Inquisition that was previously only available at the show. Part one emphasizes the combat and teamwork needed to bring down normal foes, as well as one of the multiple dragons that populate the world. Part two focuses on a small sliver of the narrative, and revolves around a mission gone awry. Each one features commentary by Mike Laidlaw to boot, so they are well worth a watch to get a handle on how some of the new systems play.

The developers also recently participated in a Q&A session, so a bit was learned from that as well.

So after my drool fest, here are a couple of things I took away from it all.

1. Iron Bull  is amazing, just peep the trailer for all the evidence needed to back that claim up. Plus, eye patches are cool. Ask Deathstroke.

2. Dorian's mustache is a thing to behold.

3. The Dragons' movements are much more fluid, and I love that you can now target specific body parts when in combat.

4. That tactical menu is a godsend. I anticipate many will feel the same.

5. No one does banter like Bioware. The commentary in the background makes traveling across a big map worthwhile.

this screen really serves no purpose, but I liked it so I used it.

6. I love that the world actually changes according to your actions, at least in small ways. Hunt an animal too much and it will no longer be plentiful in that area. Likewise, if the inquisition takes an area you will see your patrols throughout.

7. Sadly, there was no glimpse of Sandal, but in the Q&A they left open the possibility for his return, so here’s hoping.

Everyone must now say "ENCHANTMENT" before continuing on. Go on, it's okay, no one will judge you.

8. The combat looks vastly more fluid and epic than in previous games. Swords and axes have a meaty sound to them when swung, and even the mages shake the ground a little as they slam their staffs downward. The sound design seems on point.

9. In the Q&A, it was brought up that the Keep, currently in closed beta, will be opening up for public use in August or September. That is where you will shape your world with your past choices.

10. Horses, Horses, Horses, Horses. Yeah, for those who got that, it was a Sleepless in Seattle reference, and no, I am not ashamed. Beyond just horses there are a few other types of steeds, including one with lizard-like scales. 

Well, that was my take. Let us know what you are most looking forward to (or not looking forward to) in the comments.

Director Quentin Tarantino has calmed down a little since his Hateful Eight script leaked online earlier this year. At one point the filmmaker said that he was going to just shelve the project, but since then he did a live stage reading, and now the filmmaker is getting ready to put it into production. The news came in an interview with My Fox Philly, when actor Kurt Russell said:

"There's a Tarantino project called The Hateful Eight that looks like it may go somewhere around the beginning of the year."

Regardless of all the drama that has surrounded this script, it's awesome to hear that there are once again plans to bring this story to life. I'm a huge fan of westerns, and this sounds like it will be awesome. 

The story follows the "steadily ratcheting tension that develops after a blizzard diverts a stagecoach from its route, and traps a pitiless and mistrustful group which includes a competing pair of bounty hunters, a renegade Confederate soldier, and a female prisoner in a saloon in the middle of nowhere."

The live stage reading included Samuel L. Jackson, James Parks, Kurt Russell, Amber Tamblyn, Walton Goggins, Denis Menochet, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, Dana Gourrier, Zoe Bell, and James Remar. From previous reports it sounds like he is going to use the same cast for the film, which is so cool!

Thanks to Firstshowing for the tip in the news.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are teaming up with the Ghostbusters to save the world in an exciting new comic book mini-series crossover! The series was written by Erik Burnham and Tom Waltz. We even have a couple of pieces of cover art for you to check out. The one above was created by Dan Schoening, and the piece below comes from T-Rex Jones.

When a new invention goes haywire, the Turtles are sent to a whole new type of New York City. One with a whole lot more ghosts... and Ghostbusters! The two teams will have to learn to get along quickly, because a new foe from the Turtles past has followed them and aims to conquer NYC! 

Below you will find the full press release that was sent to us with all of the information you need to know about the 4-issue series.

Two teams of legendary heroes will join forces this fall to save New York City and the world from the paranormal and the monstrous when the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlescross paths with the Ghostbusters! With both franchises celebrating their 30th anniversaries this year, it’s never been better time to team up Proton Packs with Ninjutsu!

Transported to a different universe by a faulty invention, the TMNT find themselves in a New York City much like their own, but with one major exception: a rampant ghost problem! If that weren’t enough, the Turtles and their reluctant new hosts, the Ghostbusters, soon find that the Turtles didn’t come alone…

The crossover is written by two talented creators who couldn’t be better acquainted with these unique franchises — Tom Waltz and Erik Burnham. In addition to writing the ongoingTurtles series at IDW, Waltz has also served as editor for the ongoing Ghostbusters series, written by Burnham ­who, in turn, co-wrote the critically acclaimed series Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Secret History of The Foot Clan. 

“A couple of years ago, Tom Waltz and I chatted like the fans we are about how insanely fun this crossover would be if we ever got the chance to write it,” said series co-writer Erik Burnham. “As I sit here today, my excitement level is at eleven.”

“This is an idea that Erik, series editor Bobby Curnow, and I have bounced off each other for quite a while,” said series co-writer Tom Waltz. “And being as deeply entrenched in both properties as the three of us are gives us a unique perspective on how to bring them together. And what better time to do it than during the combined 30th year anniversary celebration?”

“Both Ghostbusters and Turtles are fun, funny and just a little bit weird,” said Curnow. “So putting the two together is a natural choice, especially when you consider the fact that Tom and Erik have worked on both properties for years. This one should be an absolute blast!”

Long-time Ghostbusters artist Dan Schoening will take on cover and interior art duties. Currently showing off the immensity of his talents in the Ghostbusters arc “Mass Hysteria,” Schoening has proven his ability to give this special mini-series the epic scale it deserves. Issue #1 will sport a variant cover byT-Rex Jones, who has provided covers to both series at IDW.

Thanks to CBR for the cover art.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and Boyhood are two wonderfully amazing films that you have to see. They are extremely different types of movies, but both of them display great filmmaking and stories about family. The two movies have been combined into a fantastic mashup trailer created by Nelson Carvajal. It's called Apehood, and I think you'll enjoy it. 

Marvel has released yet another TV spot for Guardians of the Galaxy, and apparently it's the seventeenth one! I'm sure we'll see at least seventeen more by the time the movie comes out. The studio has also released several photos from the movie for fans to check out. Some of them are new, others are just high resolution versions of images that we've seen before. The movie comes out on August 1st.

(Official Art)

Batgirl has undergone several transformations over the years, with the most recent redo (brought on by The New 52) being met with much fanfare as it saw the return of the original Batgirl, Barbara Gordon, to the role. Also having Gail Simone writing the book doesn’t hurt either. While most were excited about the pairing and what it would bring, this move came right after the previous creative team had solidified Stephanie Brown as a worthy successor. Since The New 52, she has yet to resurface. While I was ecstatic to have Babara back, there was a small raincloud above the whole thing. DC had finally gotten me to care about Stephanie and get into the book's overall light-hearted tone, and then they yank the rug out from under me.

(Official Art)

As we reported last week, there is a new creative team in town, and with them comes a new direction. One considerably lighter in tone, which is welcome among the constant grittiness of the New DCU (Futures End, Lights Out, Godhead, the list goes on). While it’s still Babs underneath the cowl, there are numerous changes taking shape. Gone is the more traditional armored spandex, and in its place is a superhero costume that evokes a feeling of youthfulness and style. Barbara will also be moving to Burnside, a hipper more trendy area of Gotham, all the while trying to rebuild her life after the events of Simone's last arc.

The new look was crafted by Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr, the latter of which is taking on full time art duties on the title. This is her first full-time comic gig, and she went into some detail about starting the book with the writing team of Stewart and Brendan Fletcher (Batman Inc., Wednesday Comics) in a group interview with MTV news. It’s definitely worth a look, and they heavily infer that the brightness and energy of the art and costume are reflected in the writing and direction of the character as well.

Come October, the Batverse will get just a bit brighter, and I’m all for it. Others are as well it seems, so here are a few of my favorite fan made renditions of the new design.

Created by: Artist Abe

Created by: Mike Maihack

Selfie: by Mark Henry Bustamante

Created by: Josh Ulrich

Earlier today, Marvel announced their new Thor comic book which features a female Thor, and it looks and sounds pretty badass. The new God of Thunder series is called Thor,  and it was written by Jason Aaron (Thor: God of Thunder, Original Sin), and it includes art from Russell Dauterman (Cyclops). It seems like a lot of people were shocked by the huge change, but being a father of a couple little girls, I'm actually excited about the change. This will definitely help in my attempts to get them to read comic books. I also love the art that was released for it.  Below you will find the press release for the new series.

This October, Marvel Comics evolves once again in one of the most shocking and exciting changes ever to shake one of Marvel’s “big three” – Captain American, Iron Man and Thor – Marvel Comics will be introducing an all-newTHOR, GOD OF THUNDER. No longer is the classic male hero able to hold the mighty hammer, Mjölnir, a brand new female hero will emerge who will be worthy of the name THOR. Who is she? Where did she come from and what is her connection to Asgard and the Marvel Universe?

“The inscription on Thor's hammer reads ‘Whosoever holds this hammer, if HE be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.’ Well it's time to update that inscription,” says Marvel editor Wil Moss. “The new Thor continues Marvel's proud tradition of strong female characters like Captain Marvel, Storm, Black Widow and more. And this new Thor isn't a temporary female substitute - she's now the one and only Thor, and she is worthy!”

Series writer Jason Aaron emphasizes, “This is not She-Thor. This is not Lady Thor. This is not Thorita. This is THOR. This is the THOR of the Marvel Universe. But it’s unlike any Thor we’ve ever seen before.”

THOR is the latest in the ever-growing and long list of female-centric titles that continues to invite new readers into the Marvel Universe. This female THOR is the 8th title to feature a lead female protagonist and aims to speak directly to an audience that long was not the target for Super Hero comic books in America: women and girls.

First things first, if you don't want to spoil anything for yourself by reading a description of some footage from Joss Whedon's Avengers: Age of Ultron, then you might want to stop reading now. I just know that some people like to read this kind of stuff, and I happen to be one of them.

A sizzle reel from the film was recently screened in the UK where Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was holding a preview and Q&A for Guardians of the Galaxy. Thanks to Radio Times, we have description of the footage, which Feige said will probably never be shown again. I hope they screen something at Comic-Con this year! They have to! Anyway, here's the description they provide, which includes the Hulkbuster!

"Known as the ‘Hulkbuster’ in the comics, it looks like Stark’s normal red and gold armour after hitting the gym, and is almost the size of the Hulk himself. Where his normal suit is sleek as a missile, this is bruising like a tank. It’s the iPad to the original’s iPhone, Frasier to the original’s Niles. There’s no word on why the two heroes are fighting, but the Hulk doesn’t need much reason to get in a scrap. You can see some concept art of the fight above: it actually looks better here than the very unfinished footage we saw.

"Also sighted were new brother sister duo Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. Scarlet has mysterious reality warping powers (in the footage this mostly involved making some blocks float around) while Quicksilver can run really, really fast (although without the special effects, it was more of a light jog). Scarlet Witch was shown fighting alongside Hawkeye on a ruined Italian street, but earlier in the reel both she and her brother were locked in fancy Perspex prison cells. Designed by Stark out of the ruins of his New York penthouse, this has all mod cons: floor to ceiling windows, twin laboratories for Stark and Bruce Banner, and parking for supersonic jets. It’s reminiscent of the SHIELD helicarrier in terms of construction, with lots of shiny metal pillars."

Sounds awesome to me! Now we just need to see some footage from the film ourselves. Please let it be Comic-Con! Plllleeease!

I was really rooting for Ryan Reynolds' Green Lantern before it came out. It's one of those movies I wanted so badly to be good. Well, we all know how that turned out. That movie really could have been awesome, but it was just wasted potential. I was a little surprised Screen Junkies hadn't already made an Honest Trailer for the movie, but here it is, and it is hilarious!

In brightest day, in blackest night, Green Lantern won't escape our sight!! You've been demanding this one since the very first Honest Trailer - so we figured it was time to shine a (green) light on one of the most disappointing superhero movies ever.

Artist: Michael Walsh

The creators of the TV series Gotham are doing something really intriguing with the villain Joker. Yesterday, we showed you a few screenshots from the pilot episode of the Batman inspired series that showed a comedian performing in a club for Fish Mooney. There was a lot of speculation that this could be the future Joker, and it might! But there are going to be several characters that will be introduced throughout the first season that might end up being the Joker as well. 

According to Bleeding Cool, "every episode in the first season will introduce a character that might be a future Joker, each emphasising aspects of the character’s iconography, a card sharp, a flower seller, a clown, or just a guy with a very big grin."

I love how they are handling this series and character! This show is going to be so good! 

There's been a lot of big comic book news today with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Ghostbusters crossover, Marvel's new Thor. Now we have one more to add to the list. Marvel has also announced Star Wars: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus.

This is the first Star Wars comic publication Disney purchased Lucasfilm back in 2012. It will represent issues #1-44 and Annual #1 of the original 1977 Marvel Comics series, and it's set to  be released early next year. Above is the first piece of cover art and below you'll find the full press release with details about the comic and story:

The opening volume begins with the events of Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope and ends with Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back. In between, the rebels face a wealth of new perils — from space pirate Crimson Jack to the bounty hunter Beilert Valance, as well as a surprisingly svelte Jabba the Hut (one “t”). Luke goes back to Tatooine, Leia battles alone, Han and Chewie play the deadly Big Game, and Darth Vader hunts for answers! 

"With Star Wars poised to return to its comic book home, what better time to revisit the first adventures of Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, C-3PO, R2-D2 and, of course, Darth Vader?" says Marvel Editor In Chief, Axel Alonso. "I am extremely proud to present these original Star Wars stories, told as only Marvel can, in the first in a massive and glorious Omnibus series."

"Star Wars: The Original Marvel Years" Omnibus arrives in January 2015 and is written by Roy Thomas, Howard Chaykin, Archie Goodwin, Jo Duffy & Chris Claremont, with pencils by Howard Chaykin, Carmine Infantino, Walter Simonson, Herb Trimpe, Michael Golden, Al Williamson and Mike Vosburg. Each copy will also be wrapped in a cover by Howard Chaykin and Greg Hilderbrandt.

After a long casting search for Mowgli, Disney and director Jon Favreau have cast a 10-year-old newcomer from New York named Neel Sethi. He will play the young boy who is raised by jungle animals in the story. Favreau had this to say about the casting in a statement:

“Casting is the most important element of any film and finding the right kid to play Mowgli was imperative. Neel has tremendous talent and charisma. There is a lot riding on his little shoulders and I’m confident he can handle it.”

Sethi will be the only live actor to appear onscreen in the film. It's being developed with a combination of live-action and CG animation. The the voice cast includes Idris Elba as the tiger Shere Khan and Ben Kingsley as the black panther Bagheera, with  Scarlett Johansson in talks to play the python Kaa, and Lupita Nyong’o currently in talks to play Rakcha, a mother wolf who adopts Mowgli.

Disney has slated it for release in 3D on October 9, 2015. 

Joseph Gordon-Levitt recently posted a photo of himself and co-star Charlotte Le Bon in Robert Zemekis' upcoming film The Walk. Gordon-Levitt plays daredevil Philippe Petit, who performed the incredible high wire walk between the twin towers of the World Trade Center in 1974. It took him 45-minutes to pull it off, and it's all chronicled in the fantastic documentary Man on Wire. This movie tells that story, which has been dubbed “the artistic crime of the century.” 

The photo isn't an official image from the film, but it does feature the actor in full costume having a bit of selfie fun. The movie also stars Ben Kingsley and James Badge Dale, and it's set to be released in the US on October 2nd, 2015. This is going to be a great movie, and I'm happy that Zemekis is making live action movies again. 

Lionsgate announced back in May that they will be developing a new big screen adaptation of Power Rangers. THR is now reporting that the studio has hired X-Men: First Class screenwriters Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz to write the project, and they've also brought on Roberto Orci (Star Trek Into Darkness, Transformers) as an executive producer.

Saban launched Mighty Morphin Power Rangers as a live-action TV series over 20 years ago, and the series has been in continuous production ever since. My kids absolutely love this series, and they were beside themselves with joy when I told them a movie was being made. 

It's great that they got a couple of talented writers to work on this thing. It means there's a really good chance it will turn out better than the previous two movies released by 20th Century Fox: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie in 1995 and Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie in 1997. 

A lot of fans were disappointed when the amazingly talented Edgar Wright was replaced by Peyton Reed as the director of Ant-Man. During a Q&A for Marvel's upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy, IGN asked Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige why he decided on hiring the Bring it On director to helm the movie. This was his response:

"Peyton is someone that I've been a fan of for a long time. People may not remember, though probably your readers remember, that he was attached to Fantastic Four more than 10 years ago. We spent a lot of time together… and I got along with Peyton very, very well and he had awesome ideas and an awesome vision for the movie, and for various reasons he ended up leaving that movie...'Peyton was always on our lists, and so when this happened and Edgar [Wright] said 'Not for me' we met with a handful of people, but Peyton was always one that I thought would be great.

"It was not a slam-dunk that he would just step into it and do it. He wanted to be sure that he was wasn't just inheriting something or following someone else's lead. Or wasn't inheriting something that the evil studio had watered down to be something bad. I kept saying, 'You can either read what's online, or come in and talk to us and look at all this stuff.' He looked at everything, he talked with us, and he said 'Number one, I agree with the direction you’re going in. And number two, I can add to it.' And he has – the movie is in as good a shape as it's ever been right now."

That's hard to argue with. The fact of the matter is Feige knows what he wants out of this movie, and he has taken the steps necessary to bring that vision to life. Peyton might not be the strongest, most talented director, but I'm sure that Marvel is still going to deliver a great movie. We'll find out more at San Diego Comic-Con next week.

Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, David Dastmalchian, Patrick Wilson, and Corey Stoll star in the movie, and it's scheduled for release on July 17th, 2015.

Chloë Grace Moretz leads the English language voice cast of Studio Ghibli's new animated feature The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. She plays Princess Kaguya in the film, which also features an all-star voice cast that includes James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, Darren Criss, Lucy Liu, Beau Bridges, James Marsden, Oliver Platt, and Dean Cain.

This sounds like another amazingly beautiful film from the legendary animation studio. Here's the synopsis to give you some insight into the story.

Found inside a shining stalk of bamboo, a tiny girl grows into an exquisite young lady, raised by an old bamboo cutter and his wife. From the countryside to the grand capital city, even unseen she enthralls all who encounter her, including five noble suitors.  Ultimately she must face her fate, punishment for her crime.

Based on the classic Japanese folktale, The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAGUYA is the newest film from Studio Ghibli and the strikingly beautiful culmination of decades of contemplation by its director, Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata.

Here's some additional information that the studio released regarding the production:

THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAGUYA made its international premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, where Variety hailed it as “a visionary tour-de-force.”  Eight years in the making, the film is the untold story of The Princess Kaguya, the heroine of the ancient Japanese folktale The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter. 

The English-language version is being produced by Studio Ghibli and Geoffrey Wexler, with Frank Marshall of Kennedy/Marshall Executive Producing. This is the same team that handled English versions for the two previous Studio Ghibli films, The Wind Rises and From Up on Poppy Hill. 

The film is set to get a theatrical release starting October 17th, with national expansion to follow.