Larry Ratliff

'Thor' score and seven countries ago

 

Chris Hemsworth puts the hammer down as the title character in "Thor." 

(Courtesy:  Paramount/Marvel Entertainment)

Sorry, fanboys, but by the time Marvel Comics' "Thor" goes into good-vs.-godawful otherworldly evil battle on U.S. screens on Friday, much of the world will have already seen it.

All together now:  "Really?  What's up with that?"

According to an article posted on the Hollywood Reporter Web site, it has something to do with the calendar and the world film market.

"The decision rested with Marvel's distribution partner, Paramount. And when we pressed the studio's Rob Moore, he said only, 'It's a global market now.' Meaning that these days, international audiences are considered equally or more important when planning releases of Hollywood movies," the Hollywood Reporter article states.

The plan appears to be working rather well.  "Thor," starring Chris Hemsworth (the "Star Trek" remake) in the giant hammer-slinging title role and Oscar-winner Natalie Portman ("Black Swan") as mystified mortal Jane Foster, has already cashed in to the tune of $100 million.

That's before the fantasy-action-adventure even rips a single ticket stub in the U.S. or Canada.

And, believe it or not, the English royal wedding also came into play.  (Click here to read my exclusive report on last Friday's Royal Wedding timeline.)

"Paramount took advantage of the big European holiday called May Day, as well as the English royal wedding on April 29, which provided many countries with a three or four-day weekend," the Hollywood Reporter article concludes.

From 'Fighter' to Superman's Lois Lane

Rebooted "Superman" has his rebooted Lois Lane, according to a post on the Hollywood Reporter Web site and other sources.

And it's -- drum roll, please, I suppose -- Amy Adams, the It Girl With Real Acting Chops who earned an Oscar nomination as Mark Wahlberg's tough-as-nails girlfriend in "The Fighter."

I know what you're asking:  They're remaking "Superman?"

Yep.  British actor Henry Cavill ("The Tudors" on Showtime") will have the big red S on his chest as the Man of Steel.

The new version of "Superman," directed by Zack Snyder ("Sucker Punch," "Watchmen"), is slated to hit big screens sometime in Dec. 2012.

Curious about the rest of the "Super" cast?

Well, so far, it's Diane Lane as Superman's Earth Mom, Martha Kent.  And look for Kevin Costner as Pa Kent, Superman's adoptive father.

That's what I said, Kevin Costner as, uh, Pa.

(Amy Adams photo from the Italian Vogue photo shoot courtesy:  amy-adams.org.) 

 

Spidey's new gal-pal cast in Stone

Emma Stone, seen here in "Easy A," has a date with Spider-Man in her future.  (Courtesy:  Screen Gems)

Marvel, Marvel.  The new Spider-Man's got a new girlfriend.  And it's not Mary Jane Watson, portrayed by Kirsten Dunst in three comic-book movie adventures beginning in 2002.

According to an article posted on the Hollywood Reporter Web site, Emma Stone, currently on screen in the teen romantic-comedy "Easy A," will take on the role of "blond-haired tragic love interest Gwen Stacy."

Looks like production will begin in December for what the Hollywood Reporter calls a 3-D nationwide release July 3, 2012.

"In the comics, Gwen was Parker’s first love but died in a fight against the Green Goblin. The studio is not expected to have Green Goblin as the villain in order to distance itself from the previous trilogy (Philip Seymour Hoffman is on the shortlist for the new villain role), but it doesn’t preclude a similar story line to pack dramatic punch," sez the Web post.  (Click here to read it in its entirety.)

As you may have heard, Columbia Pictures and Marvel Comics are re-spinning the Spidey franchise web.  Tobey Maguire is out as Peter Parker, the once-bitten high school nerd who slips into the spandex to battle evil. 

Andrew Garfield, currently enjoying a star-making hot streak as Tommy in "Never Let Me Go" and back-stabbed Facebook money guy Eduardo Saverin in "The Social Network," gets a shot at web slinging as the new Spider-Man.

'Spidey 4' caught up in a tangled script web

(Courtesy:  Columbia Pictures)

If you've already marked May 11, 2011 on your calendar to catch the fourth big-screen "Spider-Man" extravaganza, you may have to look for something else to occupy your time that day.

According to an article posted on the Hollywood Reporter Web site and other sources, "Sony and director Sam Raimi are at loggerheads over which direction to go with the villains."

It sounds very much like an impasse that could delay this spring's production launch and, of course, the May 2011 release date.  The good news, anxious Spidey fans, is that you have a little time to pencil something else in for May 11 next year.

According to the Hollywood Reporter article, Raimi, who has been in the director's chair for all three previous Spidey adventures, wants the Vulture as the primary antagonist for the third sequel.

The movie studio is said to be pushing for another villain and a romantic sub-plot involving a burglar dubbed the Black Cat.

'Scuse me, but I have a question.  Is a third sequel really necessary?

Yes and no.  No from an artistic viewpoint, especially since the franchise's visionary leader can't see eye-to-eye with studio suits over Spider-Man's rival and a sub-plot or two.

But yes, oh YES, when it comes to bottom-line Hollywood economics.  The Spidey franchise is a runaway money-making machine.

Methinks if Raimi rages against the machine too much, even the creative genius behind the comic book-to-big screen transformation could become a victim himself going up against the multi-billion dollar revenue machine.

'Thor' goes Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman as Alice in Mike Nichols' "Closer."  (Sony Pictures)

What?  You're a movie actor and you haven't appeared in a comic book transformation yet?

Who's your agent?  What's the matter with him/her?

That's no longer a problem for Natalie Portman.  The co-star of "The Other Boleyn Girl" and "My Blueberry Nights" will co-star opposite Chris Hemsworth and serve as the title character's love interest, according to an item posted on the Variety Web site.

"In the pic, the actions of Thor, an arrogant Norse warrior, reignites an ancient war, and as a result, he's cast down to Earth, where he is forced to live among humans as punishment. Once there, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth," the article says.  (Click here to read it in its entirety).

Portman, one of the big screen's more versatile actresses, has been plenty busy lately.  According to the Variety article, she's currently shooting Universal's comedy "Your Highness," which is being directed by former Texas resident David Gordon Green and will also star in Darren Aronofsky's supernatural-thriller "Black Swan," just to name a couple of her current projects. 

Screen life beyond 'X-Men' Reynolds wrap

Good news, "X-Men" fans, a "Deadpool" spin-off for Ryan Reynolds appears to be in the works.

According to an item posted on the Hollywood Reporter Web site, Reynolds is attached to reprise the wise-cracking mercenary proficient in swordplay he performed in "X-Men Origins:  Wolverine."

"Deadpool is known as 'the merc with a mouth,' a character that under Reynolds lived up to his billing in 'Wolverine' until the end, when the movie deviated from the comic book persona, imbuing him with several superpowers and sewing his mouth shut," says the Hollywood Reporter article.

Before all that, though, look for Reynolds opposite Sandra Bullock in "The Proposal," a romantic-comedy opening June 19.

(Photo:  Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson/Deadpool in "X-Men Origins:  Wolverine."/Twentieth Century Fox.)