Charlie Jane Anders

They’re doing a Superman/Batman movie… but that’s not the big news

Man of Steel director Zack Snyder just came out and rocked our worlds at Comic-Con. Not just announcing that Batman will be in the Superman sequel — which he did with a cool-looking metallic Superman-Batman logo that drove the crowd nuts. But that was not the biggest deal. Spoilers ahead… The biggest deal was, Snyder…

Time for an edge-of-your-seat scary glimpse of Cuarón’s Gravity

Alfonso Cuaron rocked your world with Children of Men. But now he’s taking us into orbit with the “astronauts in danger” movie Gravity. And it is basically the most intense roller-coaster ride of the year, judging from the scenes we watched at Comic-Con just now. Spoilers ahead… Seriously. Fucking scary. This is not a meditative…

We saw a glimpse of Godzilla. You won’t believe the size and majesty.

Just now at San Diego Comic-Con, we saw the first proper footage of the Godzilla movie — and the absolute main impression we came away with was: HOLY SHIT IS GODZILLA BIG AND POWERFUL. There was tons of shots of disasters and people running and human characters, and more of that in a second. But…

We just saw the first mighty teaser for the Warcraft movie!

Holy crap, there was a big surprise at the Legendary/Warner Bros. panel just now. We saw the-first ever teaser for the World of Warcraft movie, in which a mighty armored warrior goes head-to-head with a huge green orc. The footage showcased an alien-looking landscape full of rocky outcroppings, where a sweaty unshaven figure in armor…

Footage from Jeff Bridges’ Seventh Son reveals tons of crazy monsters

In Seventh Son, Jeff Bridges is a witch-hunter who takes on an apprentice to fight an evil witch (Julianne Moore). But we didn’t realize is this film is chock full of Ray Harryhausen-style monsters, until we saw a ton of footage here at San Diego Comic-Con. Spoilers ahead… We saw a huge “sizzle reel” from…

David S. Goyer tells us about the Walking Dead episode he’s directing

David S. Goyer isn’t just shooting a new season of Da Vinci’s Demons and (probably) planning the future of Superman on the big screen — he’s also taking time out to direct an episode of The Walking Dead this upcoming season. And he told us that this will be a particularly nasty outing for our…

The Agents of SHIELD pilot hits the ground walking

These days, TV pilots set a frenetic pace. You see the hero’s father die in the first act. World-shattering things happen before every act break. So the laid-back, uneventful Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot feels like a throwback. We saw the first episode of S.H.I.E.L.D. at Comic-Con, and here are our spoiler-free impressions. And by “spoiler-free,”…

RED 2 is a classic example of an inferior sequel

RED was a fun little movie, that was worth watching just for Bruce Willis being Batman, Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich acting silly and above all Helen Mirren kicking ass in high heels. RED 2 struggles to recapture the magic of the original, but it’s a perfect example of a sequel that doesn’t have a…

The Conjuring proves horror movies don’t have to be heartless dreck

The Conjuring, out today, isn’t just a strong contender for scariest movie of the year — it’s also a surprisingly sweet, even dorky story about a husband-and-wife team of paranormal investigators, and how their love saves them. It’s a great antidote to your standard dehumanizing horror movie. Spoilers ahead… Director James Wan helped start the…

The Most Astounding Cosplay We’ve Seen at Comic-Con (So Far)

Hot damn, there is some amazing cosplay in San Diego this weekend. In just the first two nights, we’ve seen dozens of eye-popping costumes and clever concepts. Here’s all of our favorite cosplay from Preview Night and the first night. Top image: Mike Rollerson. All photos by Lauren Davis, unless otherwise noted. Toy Story cosplay,…

GOP anti-Obamacare ad tries to capitalize on your love of Sharknado

The GOP is hoping your manifest adoration for Syfy’s Sharknado will make you not want to have guaranteed health insurance. Hence this “Obamacarenado” ad, which says health coverage will slice your arm off, spraying blood everywhere. So did it work? Have your political views changed completely, because you realize subsidized health coverage is like a…

Harrison Ford says Han Solo wouldn’t join the army in Ender’s Game

During the panel for Ender’s Game, someone asked Harrison Ford if Han Solo would be a good soldier in Hyrum Graff’s army — meaning the character he plays in the new movie. Ford said no, and here’s why. Ford told the audience: “Han Solo wouldn’t be good as a soldier in anybody’s army. He’s what…

The Cool Pacific Rim End Titles You Never Saw

Pacific Rim had cool end titles, featuring some nifty robot imagery over a song where Rza raps the movie’s entire plot. But the credits could have been even more awe-inspiring. Imaginary Forces, which designed the sequence, have shared some concept art for neat-looking end-titles that were rejected. In an interview with Art of the Title,…

Which creator do you wish you had met before they became superfamous?

Here at San Diego Comic-Con, you can see your idols live and in person, and even get a few moments to chat with them as they sign something. But which great geek icon do you wish you could go back in time and have a few beers with, before he or she made it big?…

In this Firefly online game, you can’t let them take the sky from you

Check out the first teaser for Firefly Online, a “a multi-user, social online role-playing game” for smartphones and tablets, which is being announced at San Diego Comic-Con. Will there be a “kick the mercenary into your engine” button? Firefly Online is being rolled out by Quantum Mechanix, makers of those awesome collectables, and Spark Plug…

Amazing Spider-Man 2 will have 5,000 villains

The Amazing Spider-Man sequel is apparently going to have more villains than extras. There’s Jamie Foxx as Electro and Paul Giamatti as the Rhino — but that’s not all. Spoilers ahead… Dane De Haan (Chronicle) is playing Harry Osborn in the film, and he’s been rumored for a while to become the Green Goblin towards…

What if Ned Stark and Tony Stark were brothers?

One is the warden of the North, the Lord of Winterfell, and the incorruptible Hand of the King. The other is a genius playboy inventor, armored superhero and leader of the Avengers. But what if the beloved heroes from Game of Thrones and Iron Man were brothers? It might look kind of like this. (Note:…

Turbo could be the sweetest surprise of the summer

Every once in a while, there’s an animated film that has a totally bizarre premise, which should not work at all. And yet, the result is actually kind of great. Gnomeo and Juliet was one such movie, and so is Turbo, the story of a snail that wants to be a race car. Turbo could…

If you’re a science fiction writer in South Africa,you can get your story judged by Lauren Beuekes and maybe win a cash prize along with publication.

Worst crossover ever: Hitler joins the JLA and the Avengers

Thai art students decided to create a mural with some epic superheroes… plus Adolf Hitler. Officials at Chulalongkorn University have apologized, but said the students didn’t realize including Hitler would offend anybody. But what I really want to know is, what is that cool duckling saying? According to the Associated Press: The billboard was up…