This week On the Radar George Lucas seeks to capture the minds of even younger viewers, Image Comics takes a shot at Marvel, and one of the most famous music videos of all time may go 3D.  All that and whole bunch of other fun stuff!

Crispin Glover talks Back to the Future controversy

Personally, I didn’t realize Back to the Future was mired in any kind of controversy, but it is.  Speaking at a promotion for Hot Tub Time Machine, Crispin Glover, who played Marty McFly’s (Michael J. Fox) Dad spoke about the raw deal he was dealt after the first film came out:

“On the DVD to the Back to the Future trilogy, Bob Gale has said something that’s totally fabricated,” Glover told a group of reporters at this weekend’s press junket forHot Tub Time Machine. “He said I asked for twice the amount of money that Michael J. Fox asked for in the first film. In the negotiation for the second film, they offered me less than half of what any of the actors that were being asked to come back in the film—Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson and Tom Wilson. They had all done studio films, and they’d made a lot more money. I was being penalized.”

Interesting stuff.  Mind you, considering the somewhat lackluster opinions of the second and third film maybe Glover got off easy by not being in them.

Jamie Foxx to star in Kane & Lynch video game adaption?

There hasn’t been a lot of talk about the film adaption of video game Kane & Lynch other than it could star Bruce Willis as Kane.  Now, another big name is being tossed around to play opposite Willis, Jamie Foxx.  Developed by IO Interactive Nu Image/Millennium is set to finance with Lionsgate distributing.  While I’m confident in the actors involved, video games are not well known for the best of translations to the big screen.

George Lucas bringing Galactic Heroes to TV

Ask any “real” Star Wars fan and they will probably tell you that The Clone Wars cartoon is pretty childish.  Well, prepared to consider that more mature entertainment.  Looking to draw in even younger viewers to the Star Wars universe, George Lucas is working on a cartoon adaption of the Star Wars: Galactic Heroes toy line.  You know, those chunky figures with a whopping two points of articulation (usually the arms).  Worse yet, this problem means more screen time with the one Star Wars character that can relate best to 3 year olds-Jar Jar Binks.

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For those not in the know when it comes to British pop musicians (we won’t blame you), Mika is a pretty big name in the world of UK Pop. He’s basically what Justin Timberlake is the US, but “across the pond.” He’s been on such shows as So You Think You Can Dance and Jimmy Kimmel Live, and now he’s even branching out into the world of comic book films, as his recent single is dedicated to the upcoming film Kick-Ass.

The song, appropriately titled “Kick Ass”, is a sort of anthem for the film, in which a teen wallflower decides to do something with his life and become a superhero. Other critics have referred to the song as “an updated version of the Highlander theme by Queen”, which makes complete sense. We can definitely see Mika becoming the modern day Queen, if only we could get an updated pop version of the Flash Gordon theme. Then we’d be in business.

Until then, check out Mika’s newest music video for the single, starring some of the cast of the film including Aaron Johnson, Chloe Moretz, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. Be sure to catch Kick-Ass in theaters on April 16th of this year (or April 2nd if you’re in the UK.)

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I’m still anxiously awaiting the day I get to see Kick-Ass, and be as cool as our SXSW team that caught its Austin premiere. (Be sure to check out Shannon Hood’s review.)   But at least I could content myself with Mark Millar’s Kick-Ass: Creating the Comic, Making the Movie which the gang at Titan Books was kind enough to let me review.

Anyone who viewed the trailer knows that Kick-Ass is going to be a unique movie. One look at Chloe Moretz’s Hit Girl can tell you that much. But I hadn’t realized just how unusual its page-to-screen transition was. Millar was still in the process of sketching the book out when he approached Matthew Vaughn (licking his wounds after leaving Thor) about directing.

The movie took shape as the comic did, with Millar running back and forth between the production offices and his own keyboard, incorporating ideas from Vaughn and screenwriter Jane Goldman as he went. Characters who were meant to be minor players such as Red Mist took on a life of their own after they were cast, and ended up becoming major players in Kick-Ass’ story arc. If there’s a sequel to Kick-Ass, it may be entirely due to Christopher Mintz-Plasse single-handedly rewriting his character.

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Another week, another set of cool comics coming out from our pals at Marvel. This week sees the release of the next issue of Siege as well as Dark Avengers #15, The Torch #6 and the Punisher Noir hard cover book, which looks extra cool.

Remember to get to your nearest comic shop early for best selection. Don’t know where your nearest comic shop is? Use this handy guide to find one.

Comics On-Sale:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #625
ANITA BLAKE, THE LAUGHING CORPSE – EXECUTIONER #5
AVENGERS VS. ATLAS #3
AVENGERS VS. ATLAS #3 ROBINSON VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA MGC #1
DARK AVENGERS #15 (S)
DEADPOOL: MERC WITH A MOUTH #9
DEATHLOK #5
DOOMWAR #2

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Marvel fans who have been dreaming about future sequels to Iron Man, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk and Spider-Man might be entering into a creative nightmare. According to The Hollywood Reporter the children of comic book icon Jack Kirby have officially sued Marvel to terminate copyrights and gain profits from such lucrative comic creations as Iron Man, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk and Spider-Man.

The suit, officially filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, is a follow-up move from the 45 notices of termination the estate sent out to Marvel, and owner the Walt Disney Co., as well as Sony, Universal, Fox in September of 2009. Marvel responded in January, filing its own lawsuit, claiming the creations were “work-made-for-hire” and that Marvel was the real “author” of such works under the 1909 Copyright Act.

Kirby’s heirs are seeking declaratory relief, including copyright termination and profits, focusing on Kirby’s chief creative period, from 1958 to 1963, when Marvel existed in a tiny office with few employees and relied upon “freelancers to which they had little or no obligation.” As such, they are disputing Marvel’s claim that all creations were “work for hire.”

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Just when we thought things were slowing down on the side of marketing for the upcoming Lionsgate adaptation of Kick-Ass, they come up with even more eye candy for us to peruse over. With that in mind, come three new posters for the upcoming flick, which all have a neat retro theme.

The film, which is based on the indie Marvel comic by Mark Millar (Wanted), already takes on the attributes of a zany ultraviolent film of yesteryear, so it only makes sense that they would put together some quirky posters that showed that off.

The film stars Aaron Johnson, Chloe Moretz, Mark Strong, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and Nicolas Cage. Check out the new posters after the jump, and be sure to catch Kick-Ass in theaters on April 16th.

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Smallville fans have a lot to be happy about these days. The CW has officially renewed the show for its tenth season after strong performances on Friday nights and a creative resurgence due in no small part to the airing of “Absolute Justice,”  the two part Justice Society episode by Geoff Johns. Here’s one more reason to jump on your couch and get excited. The JSA will return to Smallville before the season 9 finale.

MTV’s Splash Page reports from last weekend’s Emerald City Comic-Con at Comics Alliance, Johns said that “[The JSA] do appear again at the end of season on Smallville.” Additionally, Johns stated, “The hope is for every DC character to appear outside the comic books. Correctly.”

This isn’t the only hint that the JSA would bbe back soon. In November, Michael Shanks (Hawkman) hinted to fans he might be returning in future episodes to mentor Clark Kent.

“Clark and his friends are figuring out what their destinies will be, so there is a ripe opportunity for the Justice Society who had been there done that to offer some tough love teaching,” said Shanks.“The way things land at the end of it all, there’s an open door for Carter Hall to be revisited and possibly be part of further mentoring Clark down the road.”

Additionally, Johns has also hinted that Darkseid and the dark gods of Apokolips may appear in season ten of Smallville.

It sounds like the only “green” we’ll see Edward Norton dealing with in the near future will be for his upcoming film Leaves of Grass.  Speaking at SXSW, Norton was asked about whether he would be doing a sequel to The Incredible Hulk.  For fans of his take on the Hulk, his answer is somewhat disappointing:

“I don’t think so,” he said. “I think it has got more to do with what Marvel is doing. I get the sense they have this grand vision of unspooling a lot of their characters and then starting to put them together. I think they can only do so many at a time. Obviously, they are doing Iron Man 2 and then getting some of the new ones out.”

I’ll be the first to admit The Incredible Hulk was by no means awesome, but it was pretty good entertainment.  If nothing else, Norton’s portrayal of Bruce Banner was great, so it’s unfortunate he may not return.  So, if he’s not on board for another Hulk film what about the other Marvel tie-in films like Thor and The First Avenger: Captain America?

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The cast of DC and Warner Bros. upcoming big screen adaptation of Green Lantern, featuring Ryan Reynolds as the titular hero and with Martin Campbell directing, has just grown by two. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Temuera Morrison, best known as Jango Fett from the Star Wars movies, has joined the cast as well as filmmaker-actor Taika Waititi.

According to the trade, Morrison will take on the role of Abin Sur, a member of the Green Lantern Corps who gives Hal Jordan his power ring before dying. Waititi will play Hal Jordan’s best friend. They join a cast that, in addition to Reynolds as Jordan, includes Tim Robbins, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard and Mark Strong as Sinestro.

With the addition of Morrison, who I’ve been a fan of since his earlier work in Once Were Warriors, Green Lantern looks to be shaping up as quit a film. Even if it’s being filmed in 3D, which may or may not be a good thing, I’m still getting pretty excited to see it when it’s eventualy released.

Green Lantern begins filming this week in New Orleans with a release scheduled for June 17, 2011.

Make no mistake about it, Chloe Moretz (500 Days of Summer) owns this movie. She may only be 11 years old, but her performance as Hit-Girl is spunky, sassy, and exciting. Hit-Girl is poised to become a new comic cult icon, and Kick-Ass is quite simply a rollicking good time.

At one of the panels I attended this weekend, someone likened Kick-Ass to a comic type Pulp Fiction, which I would say is a pretty accurate description. British Actor Aaron Johnson plays Dave Lizewski, a nerdy high school type whose only interaction with the popular kids is when he brushes up against one at his locker.

One day out of the blue he decides he is going to become a vigilante superhero. He concocts a hideous green costume that resembles a wet suit, sets up a social media homepage for his alter ego, and starts “training.” When someone asks his name, he proudly proclaims, “I’m Kick-Ass!”

Completely inept and not blessed with any actual powers, Dave gets the living crap beat out of him by a few thugs mere moments after his official debut as Kick-Ass. This results in a multitude of injuries requiring steel plates and rods being placed throughout his body, which makes him a little more impervious to injury, but still not in possession of actual powers.

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