- Festivals
Rocking the Multiverse: Marvel Panel at Comic-Con 2017
Patience can be a virtue and for some comic book fans, who waited more than 50 years to see some of their heroes finally get their cinematic due, the extra 15-minute delay to start the Marvel panel at Comic-Con 2017 seemed well worth the wait.
As the lights dimmed and the crowd of more than 6,000 let their enthusiasm fly, the giant Hall H screen filled with the images of Paul Rudd and Michael Peña. Was this to be an Ant Man preview? Nope, instead the two actors blazed through a comedic tour-de-force of Marvel’s first 10 years of Cinematic Universe; starting with Iron Man and in chronological order, giving a mini capsule take on each of the 16 films that Marvel has so far released. But apparently, this wasn’t the true meaning of the clip – instead the camera turned and we witnessed Michelle Pfeiffer going through her orientation as she joined the team as Janet Van Dyne for Ant Man and The Wasp.
Kevin Feige, the 44-year-old President and mastermind behind the studio, then took to the stage and introduced artwork from Captain Marvel, starring Brie Larson and announcing that not only will Nick Fury return, this time with no eye patch, but that the films’ antagonists will be none other than the Skrulls. For faithful fans of this title, they might recall that these villains first appeared in the Fantastic Four comics – so could this mean that just as Marvel negotiated their way with Sony to merge Spiderman back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Fantastic Four, whose rights are controlled by Fox, next get the same inclusion?
Feige next turned his attention to Black Panther, bringing out the entire cast led by director Ryan Coogler (Creed) and star Chadwick Bozeman. The studio shared a fight sequence inside a casino that showcased not only the skill set of the Black Panther but his female aides-de-camp, led by Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o.
getty images
Thor Ragnarok made its entrance, showcasing returning Avengers Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo, who let it slip that the ever-silent Hulk will speak; somewhat like a two-year-old, but he will be able to finally converse! The movie pits the two superheroes against each other in the gladiator ring controlled by the Master of the Universe (Jeff Goldblum), but soon they realize they might need to settle their differences in order to battle Marvel’s first ever female villain, Hela (Cate Blanchett).
getty images
Just as the talent was all saying their goodbyes and walking off stage, Hemsworth, Ruffalo and Bozeman returned to play the new Avengers Infinity War tease that Disney first showcased at their D23 event last week. Needless to say, the crowd now just has to be patient a little longer…