It seems the last decade or so has been the age of superhero movies. Starting with “X-Men” in 2000, the last thirteen years have been filled with comic book characters coming to the silver screen in a larger than life way. This summer’s releases don’t plan on stopping that momentum with several big-name superhero blockbusters coming soon.
Marvel will kick off the summer on May 3rd with “Iron Man 3,” the third installment in the Robert Downey, Jr. films revolving around Tony Stark and his superhero persona, Iron Man. “Iron Man 3” (because they couldn’t really come up with a more creative name!) will involve Stark taking on a villain named Mandarin. He will face a personal journey as he fights to beat the odds against his enemy.
Rejoining Robert Downey, Jr. are film veterans Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle who are reprising their roles of Pepper Pots and James Rhodes/War Machine, respectively. Joining the cast this time around will be Guy Pearce, who will play Aldrich Killian. Aldrich Killian is well known in the comic book world as a scientist who helped create Extremis, a nano virus that rewrites the genetic code and creates super soldiers. Ben Kingsley is also a new addition to the cast. He will embody the role of The Mandarin, a super villain first appearing in the comic world in 1964.
Flying in (pun intended) for the June 14 weekend is DC Comics’ “Man of Steel.” Having seen our fair share of eyebrow raising movies about the famous cape wearing crusader (“Superman Returns” comes to mind), “Man of Steel” is rebooting the Superman series and making a fresh start. Henry Cavill will be playing Clark Kent this time around. His resume includes roles in “Tristan and Isolde” and “The Count of Monte Cristo.”
Amy Adams is set to play Clark Kent’s journalist partner and love interest Lois Lane. Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, and Russell Crowe also join Cavill as Kent’s adoptive parents and biological father, Jor-El, respectively. From the sneak peaks and trailer, “Man of Steel” looks ready to take on a new generation of fans.
Rounding out the summer is another well known Marvel superhero, “The Wolverine.” After the abysmal “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” movie in 2009 and complete lack of tact and continuity, the Marvel universe will attempt to redeem itself with the highly anticipated “The Wolverine.” The story will follow Wolverine through Japan after the events of “X3: The Last Stand” as he trains with samurais. It is set to be released in July.
Which superhero movie are you most excited about seeing?
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