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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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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Welcome to the second part of my look at the duplicity that is the Hollywood we know and love (or love to hate in some cases).   Yesterday I delved into the mainstream films, such as Transformers, which get little to no recognition by the Academy.  These are movies that represent the very monetary foundation of which Hollywood is built.

Today I’m going to slide the other way and talk about the performance side of Hollywood.  Films with limited budgets, little to no marketing and have to fight tooth-and-nail in some instances for distribution as well as theater screens.  They are the darlings of Hollywood, praised for often dramatic portrayal of characters and deeply emotional stories.  Yet, even with all the attention they receive when nominated for an Oscar, only a select group of viewers end up seeing these films.

In contrast to their mainstream counterparts, performance films have always been the underdog.  It starts from the very point the script is completed all the way to getting onto the screen.  It’s the latter which ultimately proves the most critical because without theaters to show it, what good is a movie?

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Even though many of us here at The Flickcast are looking forward to the SXSW Film/Interactive/Music Festival which starts at the end of the week, it doesn’t mean we don’t care about new comics coming out tomorrow. What are we, crazy?

Of course, being the huge Marvel fans we are, we’re always on the lookout for new books to add to our collections. Fortunately, the fine folks at Marvel are always happy to oblige. They’ve even sent us yet another list of comics coming out this week to help.

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.

Check ‘em out:

Comics On-Sale:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #624
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #624 YF VARIANT
BREAKING INTO COMICS THE MARVEL WAY! #1
CABLE #24
CRIMINAL: THE SINNERS #5
DARK X-MEN #5
FANTASTIC FOUR #575 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
HULK: LET THE BATTLE BEGIN #1
IRON MAN 2 SPOTLIGHT

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Captain America (Bucky)

Note: This article may contain spoilers. If you dont care about that, read on.

Norman Osborn is going down. There’s no doubt about it. The “Dark Reign” looks to be collapsing and as casualties on both sides pile up in Seige, the dawn of the Heroic Age is just around the corner.

With the Heroic Age coming, some Marvel books will be coming to an end, most notably New Avengers. In the aptly named New Avengers: Finale, scribe Brian Michael Bendis and artist Bryan Hitch will tie up the loose ends of every New Avengers tale that has led to this point. With no cover image even leaking on to the internet yet, no one knows exactly what’s to come from this book.

This will all come to a head in April, giving perfect timing for Marvel’s latest set of promotional art entitled, “I’m an Avenger” and “I’m a Secret Avenger”. With a “May 2010″ tag, these pieces feature work from John Romita Jr. and show some of the current stars expected to be present in the Avengers team post-Siege. The most shocking has Hawkeye, not Ronin, pictured which could mean that Clint Barton may finally be returning to the good old purple and blue.

The five “secret” pieces show simple silhouettes of various members of the new Secret Avengers along with different quotes they’d use to describe themselves. Of the Secret Avengers thus far there are many theories going on about who might be on the team.

Take a look for yourself at them all below and let us know who you think may be screaming for their team to “Assemble!” come May.

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In an effort to keep things out of the hands of those who made the characters popular, major studios such as Sony, and now Regency and Fox, are rebooting their recent Marvel films in order to retain the rights so they don’t default back to Disney owned Marvel. Sony is doing so with the reboot of Spider-Man, while Regency and Fox have recently announced that they’re doing the same with Daredevil.

Originally made in 2003, and starring Ben Affleck and Colin Farrell, the film isn’t even a decade old and it’s getting a complete revamp. This time, the writer behind 2008’s The Day The Earth Stood Still, David Scarpa, will be penning a script, and the story will more than likely scrub the previous films’ continuity.

It’s unfortunate that studios resort to these childish ways. If the franchise eventually ends up in the hands of Marvel and Marvel Studios, this could mean great film cameos from some of our favorite heroes. A perfect example is what Favreau, Brannagh, and Joe Johnston are doing with the Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America films, and it’s all like a fanboy’s greatest dream.

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Marvel is at it again, adding a new spin to their image and changing things up to excite readers new and old. This time around, the publisher is set to unleash “the dawn of new heroism in the Marvel Universe.” What are they talking about? Well, read on for all the scoop, via the official press release.

Marvel Comics is proud to announce The Heroic Age, the dawn of an exciting new era of heroism in the Marvel Universe! Beginning in May 2010 with the release of Avengers #1, The Heroic Age ushers in a brighter Marvel Universe and a bold new era for the world’s greatest super heroes as they emerge from darkness with a renewed sense of hope and optimism, leading to the formation of all new teams with new members…and brand new characters!

Titles branded with the Heroic Age banner offer a perfect jumping on point for readers new and old alike, as the top comic book creators in the world deliver a Marvel Universe like you’ve never seen before!

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Change, as they say, is inevitable. So it is with most things, including super powered suits worn by members of The Avengers. Case in point this new, improved armor design for one of our favorite flawed heroes: Iron Man.

The new suit, according to our friends at Marvel:

” . . . signals a new era for Tony Stark and the Marvel Universe! From the minds of Eisner Award-winning series writer Matt Fraction and Ryan Meinerding, designer on the Iron Man and Thor films, comes the most bleeding edge, out of this world armor you’ve ever seen!

Following the sold-out “Stark Disassembled” storyline, the Marvel Universe still needs its armored champion and a new mission requires a new kind of armor! But when you see just what Iron Man has planned for the Marvel Universe, your jaw will be on the floor! There’s never been a super hero like the new Iron Man!”

The all-new Iron Man makes his debut in Invincible Iron Man #25, which hits stores on April 25. In the meantime, click through to check out a larger pic of the new armor.

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That’s right people, the wait is over and we’ve got our first glimpse of the new trailer for the eagerly anticipated film Iron Man 2. After solving the puzzle with clues given out from around the Internets, fans were taken to a special site where a link to the trailer’s first appearance was revealed.

And now, following that link, we can get to see the new, improved, and rocking Tony Stark-filled Iron Man 2 trailer in all of its glory. In the trailer we’re treated to some great glimpses of the movie and most of the stars including Sam Rockwell, Mickey Rourke, Don Cheadle and, of course, Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark. There’s also a lot of action and all the fun you would expect from a trailer, and a movie, like this.

Glad to see things seem to be on track for a blockbuster sequel. We can hardly wait for more. Sadly, we will have to wait for the movie until May 7, 2010 but after seeing this first trailer, I know its gonna be worth it.

Click through to check out the new trailer. Or, for a super big version, head over to Apple’s Trailer site.

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It looks like Paramount has been stepping up their marketing over the past few weeks in preparation for next May’s release of Iron Man 2. Just last week, we received two new teaser posters, showing off both Tony Stark and War Machine, and now a brand new poster has surfaced showing off the film’s baddie, Whiplash.

The character is played by Oscar-snubbed actor Mickey Rourke, and is basically a mash-up of a few different Iron Man villains. He’s got Crimson Dynamo’s background with the appearance and name of Backlash. The character is said to fight alongside Tony Stark’s villain in the film, Justin Hammer (played by Sam Rockwell).

Check out the full-sized poster after the jump, featuring a quite intimidating Rourke posing with his glowing makeshift Iron Man power source and light-whips. Be sure to keep it here for all new Iron Man 2 coverage as it comes to us.

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