Club Jade

As the geek world turns:

• The town of Vulcan, Alberta, will have a special pre-release screening of Star Trek, after Leonard Nimoy went to bat for them to the Paramount bigwigs who chose Sydney, Australia for the world premiere. But wait, Vulcan doesn’t even have a movie theater!
• Leonard Nimoy talks about being Spock one more time, and gives a spoiler as to his scene.
• Some new Red Dwarf: Back to Earth photos have popped up, as well as a postcard from Lister.
• NPR ponders: Does the end of BSG mean dividends for Dollhouse?
• Moviehole reports that the ending of Terminator Salvation has been changed since the original ending was leaked online last month. Maybe they’ll put in that line about the Salvation Army? Will this affect the prequel novel “Terminator Salvation: From the Ashes” written by Timothy Zahn that came out last week?
• And with the latest promo material showcasing the cast of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, cinematical wonders where are Ryan Reynolds and Dominic Monaghan?

Well, it’s a nice trailer, I guess, but is it too little, too late for the X-Men franchise? Or I am just depressive today?

ILM vet to direct Captain America movie. Marvel has signed Joe Johnston (Hidalgo, The Rocketeer) to helm The First Avenger: Captain America. Johnston got his start as an effects illustrator and designer on Star Wars, and also worked on ESB, ROTJ, Raiders, Temple of Doom, Willow, and Young Indy.

• Breaking news from the the forbidden planet of Omega 3: A new Star Trek trailer will be debuting on Quantum of Solace this weekend, but AICN has a description. We do get some new posters, but they’re nothing too exciting.

• Why you do this? We’re not going to get to see Professor Trelawney lobbing crystal balls at Death Eaters because Emma Thompson is picking the Nanny McPhee sequel over Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Not even a quick cameo? Ms. Thompson, why do you hate fun?
• Just imagine the theme song. Beyonce wants to be Wonder Woman. She’s certainly a woman who knows how to dress like something out of a comic book.
• What remains of the X-Men: A synopsis of the Magneto prequel has leaked.
• Much ado about Temeraire: Peter Jackson options Naomi Novik’s Empire of Ivory and Victory of Eagles. (He already has the first three.)

• Narnia: Motherlode of Prince Caspian stills.

• DragonBall Z movie delayed, in part because of The Clone Wars. WE DID IT!
• Speaking of Crimes against Cinema: Remakes of Rosemary’s Baby and The Breakfast Club?
• People: D.J. Caruso still wants Shia LaBeouf for Y: The Last Man; Djimon Hounsou all hyped up for Conan?
• Spoilers: X-philies will love this… if it was 1996; Liev Schreiber and Hugh Jackman in costume on the set of Wolverine; Check out the Watchmen.

• Indy IV: Shia LaBeouf confirms what everyone who say the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull trailer already kinda figured.

• Wolverine: Another Lord of the Rings alumni joins the X-men movieverse: Dominic Monaghan.
• X-Files: Mitch Pileggi returning as Skinner.
• Star Trek: Anton Yelchi talks Chekov.
• Harry Potter: Half-Blood Prince adds a scene that’s not in the book. Well, not in HBP, anyway.
• The Hobbit: Elijah Wood endorses Guillermo del Toro.

It’s great that they might finally bring Gambit into the X-Men movieverse (or so Superhero Hype reports) but what does he have to do with Wolverine? I mean, I realize I only read X-Men comics for a year or two back in the 90′s, but the two never struck me as having much of a connection. Are they swapping Gambit in for a less popular character, ala Rogue for Jubilee in the first X-movie?

And, sorry Josh Holloway fans, but they’re also saying that Taylor Kitsch of Friday Night Lights has been cast. Hopefully he doesn’t turn out to be too much of a disappointment for the lusting fangirls. Assuming they can tear their eyes from Hugh Jackman, anyway.

ETA: Variety reports that Kitsch is in and indeed playing Gambit. Ryan Reynolds and will.i.am also join the cast as Deadpool and John Wraith.

Yesterday’s big news was clearly the Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull teaser, but there were several other developments of note…

• USA Today has the first look at the Wolverine prequel. Looks kind of like an outtake from the first X-film, no?

• No Spock this year: Paramount pushes Star Trek back to May 2009.
• Check out a scary Wer-wolf figure from Prince Caspain.
• Jumper came out today: The reviews? Not so great. Would you perfer another star? A rapper, perhaps?

X-Men producer Lauren Schuler Donner likes the idea of Lost’s Josh Holloway as Gambit. But wasn’t a fourth X-Men movie was off the menu? It’s a nice idea (and one I first heard from the fangirls, naturally) don’t hold your breath.

With hot stuff Eric Bana dropped out of any possible Hulk sequels, and Marvel desperate to cash in, rumor mill says David Duchovny may step in to play Bruce Banner. Mulder? What have you wrought?

Meanwhile, in a more sucessful corner of the Marvel movieverse, Bryce Dallas Howard may play Peter Parker’s next love interest, Gwen Stacy, putting giant continuty loops in the heads of anyone who reads Spiderman comics. Word is that Howard will dye.

And of course, Superman is over budget. This better be the most super movie ever.

And because it’s just not a superhero post without the X-Men, here’s some musings on Professor X and Magneto from John at the Movie Blog.