News Archive: February to September 2000

 


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News Archive

September 21, 2000

It's Official. Batman 5 will be YEAR ONE

Variety online is reporting that Darren Aronofsky and Frank Miller will be working on the Bruce Wayne/Batman film which will be based on Year One . The article also confirmed that the Batman Beyond movie is also being made.

AJ: Well Variety has confirmed what most of us have known for months now. The next film will be Y1. What makes this official is that Variety is a credible trade magazine and is the first "official" news source to report on Y1 and Aronofsky. Interestingly the article claimed that Burton was inspired by Miller's work. The only inspiration that I see in Burton's work from Miller is the visuals. 

September 16, 2000

Brad Pitt Not Batman

Access Hollywood contacted Brad Pitt's agents and were told that Batman is not on Brad's current slate.

Detective 750 Errors.

A printing error in the latest issue of Tec' 750 has left many people confused.

The error caused several pages to be omitted and others to be reprinted. Readers who picked up the misprinted issues are asked to return it to their retailers to have it exchanged.

Dark Victory Notes

Source: DC comics online newsletter

THE SUSPENSE IS A KILLER! ALL WILL BE REVEALED IN BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #13 Since last Halloween, writer Jeph Loeb and artist Tim Sale, the Eisner Award-winning team behind BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN and SUPERMAN FOR ALL SEASONS, have kept readers everywhere on the edge of their seats -- telling a dark tale from the early days of Batman's career in Gotham City. Month after month, BATMAN: DARK VICTORY has been twisting and turning with murders and mysteries -- only a few of which have been revealed. But now, all the answers will be exposed in the extra-length, Prestige Format finale to DARK VICTORY. According to BATMAN: DARK VICTORY editor Mark Chiarello: "It's with a bit of sadness that this project ends, as it was so much fun to see (before anyone else) what kooky twists and turns Jeph would come up with. I'll also miss seeing (before anyone else) Tim's original art. What a great team those guys are! It was an especially wonderful experience having Archie Goodwin look over my shoulder the whole way." BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #13 begins where the shocking events of the previous issue left off. Has Batman finally found the identity of the Hang Man killer (if, in fact, there's only one) who has splattered the calendar with blood by hanging a member of the Gotham City Police Force each month? What connection does the Hang Man have to Harvey Dent, and can the murders be stopped before the most horrifying killing of them all takes place? This time Batman is no longer alone in his quest for justice as a young, inexperienced Robin joins him. But will the addition of an untested partner prove to be more deadly than it's worth? Witness the last stand of the crumbling criminal empire, as the Falcone Family faces off against Two-Face and a mob of freakish allies that includes the Joker, Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, and Solomon Grundy. Will all of Gotham City be left in ruins before the last gang war is over? Which, if any, of the Falcones, the Maronis and the Vitis will survive? And how will this change the lives of James Gordon, Harvey Dent, and Janice Porter? It will be a Victory -- but for who? BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #13 (AUG00 0420) arrives in comic-book stores October 18 with a cover price of $4.95 U.S.

September 11, 2000

Batman movie delay?

An article on Entertainment weekly is reporting that the next Batman film could be delayed due to a SAG (Screen Actor's Guild Strike.

AJ: Interesting news. Unless the next film is being fast tracked, it is unlikely that the next film will be delayed. Originally the release date was set at 2003 so if this is true than things should resolve by then.

September 1, 2000

Alex Ross on QVC 

Source: DC comics online newsletter

World-renowned comic-book artist Alex Ross will visit the QVC studios for the first ever DC Comics show on the shopping network, September 9, at 1 a.m. EST. Exclusive to the show will be, "Origins of Batman Beyond -- # 7," an open edition lithograph signed by Ross and featuring Batman, Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl, the Joker, Harley Quinn, and characters from Batman Beyond. The piece will be available, unframed, for $95 during the QVC show. Ross' QVC appearance follows Sotheby's June auction of original paintings from BATMAN: WAR ON CRIME, the tabloid illustrated by Ross and written by Paul Dini. The auction raised over $150,000 for the John A. Reisenbach Foundation, benefiting the John A. Reisenbach Charter School in Harlem. Also featured during the QVC show will be the Joker, Wonder Woman and Batmobile maquettes, each with an edition size of 2,500 and retail price of $150. Alex Ross' 1993 miniseries Marvels opened a wider acceptance for painted art in comics. Ross moved on to produce the equally successful KINGDOM COME (STAR006816), BATMAN: WAR ON CRIME (STAR10280) and SUPERMAN: PEACE ON EARTH (STAR08454), as well as his next upcoming collaboration with Dini, SHAZAM!: POWER OF HOPE (SEP00 0517), arriving in stores in November. 

....and at AICN

Check out Harry Knowles Ain't it Cool News site for a very interesting interview with Alex Ross. Harry has been fairly rusty with his news, but this interview is an exception. All I can say is that Ross holds no punches and people will definitely be surprised by what he says about Frank Miller, Alan Moore, DC, Marvel and the X-Men.

A and E's biography week to feature 60's Batman actors

-Fans of the 60's show will definitely want to tune in this upcoming week to the A&E channel. This whole week, the biography's will focus on the actors from the popular show.  Here is how the week shapes up.

September 4: Adam West
September 5: Cesar Romero
September 6: Julie Newmar
September 7: Vincent Price
September 8: Roddy McDowall 

Brad Pitt the next Batman?

-EW posted an article stating that Darren Aronofsky, who is related to the Y1 movie, recently talked to Brad Pitt. However this may also be in relation to another movie Aronofsky is working on. On the next film, Aronofsky said "I'd want to bring and independant guerrilla flavor to Batman"

August 22, 2000

Two Batman movies?

-An article by Variety stated that Warner Brothers has made no plans to do away with the Bruce Wayne/Batman movies and continue to do them in the near future. It also confirmed Warner Brothers intention to make a live action Batman Beyond Film.

AJ: Again this just seems to get more interesting.

August 21, 2000

Live Action Batman Beyond movie confirmed?

-According to both the Comics Continuum and Aint it Cool News, Warner Brothers appears to have made a 180 turn and will be making a live action Batman Beyond movie. Alan Burnett and Paul Dini, who have worked on the show and the upcoming Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker direct to video film, have been confirmed for the project and Boaz Yakin director of Remember the Titans, A Price Above Rubies and Fresh, will be the director. Dini also told the Continuum that Warner will be making an official announcement at the end of next week..

AJ: Like everyone else, this has come as a big surprise, So far most of the people  I've spoken to are upset by the news. Personally I'd rather see a good Bruce Wayne/Batman movie as opposed to a Batman Beyond movie. While I enjoy the show, it still doesn't live up to the legacy of Bruce Wayne. I guess it is wait and see time. 

 


June 16, 2000

-(Comics Continuum) The new Harley Quinn Monthly is set to debut in October. 

-DC and WB animation will launch a website called Gothamgirls which will feature some of the infamous ladies of Batlore such as Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Batgirl. The site will feature 3 minute Flash movies and will also have message boards, e-cards, downloads, profiles and interactive games.

-Source (Comic book resources) In an Interview with Comic Book Resources, Batman editor Dennis O'Neil stated that he may step down as editor of the Bat-books sometime within the year.

-Source (Newsarama) Greg Rucka issued an online apology after making a continuity mistake in his mini-series Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood. The mistake in question had Barbara Gordon aware of Robin's identity when in fact she shouldn't have. He also apologized for an error in Detective Comics 747 which stated Renee Montoya's age as 28 when she is in fact 29.

 


May 30, 2000

-Source (Comics Continuum) Artist Tommy Lee Edwards is working on a 64 page Elseworlds Batman story called Batman: Golden Streets of Gotham. Written by Jan VanMeter, the story takes place at the turn of the century and depicts Bruce Wayne as a polish immigrant whose parents recently died in an accident.



April 14, 2000

- If any of you happen to go by Harry Knowles Aint-it-Cool-News site, you will come across what he calls a Weird Batman rumour. Ignore it, chances are it is false. Both Mel Gibson and Richard Donner have dispelled any commitments to a Batman movie and WB is still going the Y1 route.

-Source (Comics continuum): Frank Miller may be getting set to do a sequel to his epic DARK KNIGHT RETURNS storyline. Miller originally planned to write it sometime after he wrote TDKR. DC hasn't confirmed this though.

-Batman will be appearing  in a Japanese Manga. Kia Asamiya, a writer for Image is writing the manga along with C.B. Cebulski. 

"In it, a Japanese news crew travels to Gotham to report on the mysterious legend of the Batman. And of course they end up running right into him," Cebulski said. "So far, in the series, Batman has encountered Two Face, the Penguin, the Riddler and the Joker, but none are the real deal. There is a new drug circulating through Gotham that makes average citizen think they are these villains from Batman's rogues gallery. Bruce Wayne has also taken an interest in the Japanese female reporter Yuko Yagi."

Cebulski said there's no word on an English format yet.

"But as for its Japanese format, it will continue running monthly in Magazine Z in Japan for 10 more months, 14 parts in all. It will clock out at around 400 pages total," he said. "It is scheduled to be collected into two 200-page editions in Japan as well. It is taking place in Gotham now but his investigation into the drug takes Batman to Japan halfway through the story in Part 8.

"The first Japanese collected edition, the Gotham Collection -- might not be the actual title but that is what we are calling it -- will collect parts 1-7 where Batman is still in Gotham. It should be released later this year. The second edition, the Toyko Collection, will collect the second half of the story, chronicling Batman's adventures in Tokyo. Due in late 2001 probably.

"There were also two painted Batman posters printed in Japan, both folded and bound into earlier issues of Magazine Z last year. They were titled First Crime and Batman and the Batmobile. As far as we know, there are no plans to release them again in Japan or here, although Asamiya-sensei would love to see them as a general release."

 


March 16, 2000

-Source: (Comics Continuum) The second of three OnStar commercials featuring Batman is ready to go. The second commercial features the Joker who will be played by Curtis Armstrong who played Booger in Revenge of the Nerds. As for Batman, it is Bruce Thomas who has appeared on Beverly Hills 90210, The Bold and the Beautiful and All My Children and directed by Andrew Davis of Fugitive Fame. Thomas and Davis were also involved with the first one and the BATCAVE is reporting that Davis is also being considered for Batman YEAR ONE.  

For Anyone who still hasn't seen the ad or doesn't live in the US, the ad is available at AdCritic.com and can be viewed by clicking here

-Following the departure of Larry Hama, writer Ed Brubaker will be writing six issues of  BATMAN starting in June. Brubaker's previous works include Scene of the Crime and Deadenders for DC.

-Both Batman and Batman Beyond have earned themselves many Daytime Emmy nominations. They are

-Outstanding Children's Animated Program (The New Batman/Superman Adventures)
-Outstanding Special Class Animated Program (Batman Beyond)
-Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition (Batman Beyond, Batman/Superman (twice) )
-Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing Special Class (Batman Beyond, Batman/Superman )
-Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing Special Class (Batman Beyond) 


March 14, 2000

-Source: (BATCAVE) Scott Rosenberg recently wrote a detailed treatment for the upcoming Batman movie. After it was approved, Rosenberg was asked to expand on what he already had. Though he initially said yes, he backed out at the last minute which leaves the door open for another writer.

-The campaign to get Jeph Loeb to write the next Batman movie has received 500 signatures. If you already haven't joined in, you may do so at http://homepages.go.com/~fabio2_batcave/campaign.html



February 26, 2000

-Source: (Newsarama) BATMAN writer Larry Hama announced that he is leaving Batman "as of now". Hama stated "creative differences" as the reason for his departure and maintained that he had no animosity towards any of the other creators and editors. There is no word on who will replace him. 

-The BATCAVE is reporting that Scott Rosenberg may write the script for the upcoming Batman movie.  


February 25, 2000

-
Good news for Superman fans, Bill Wisher has finally submitted his script for the Superman movie and production seems to be underway. 

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Source: (Comics Continuum) GM isn't the only company that is using Batman to endorse their product.  Batman, along with Superman, will be taking part in the infamous GOT MILK? ads where the person has a milk moustache. Not only that, a major promotion is planned that will involve these ads being placed in numerous magazines particularly ones aimed at kids. In addition there will be a campaign in March where kids will be encouraged by Batman to drink chocolate milk as a part of their regular diet.

View the ads at the Comics Continuum site

Is the apocalypse amongst us? Let me know

-This whole week, Warner Brothers secured a handful of domains involving a possible fifth Batman movie. The list is below

batman5.net
batmanbeyondmovie.com
batmanbeyondmovie.net
batmanbeyondthefilm.com
batmanbeyondthefilm.net
batmanbeyondthemovie.com
batmanbeyondthemovie.net
batmanfive.com
batmanfive.net
batmanv.com
batmanv.net
batman-yearone.com
batman-yearone.net
batmanyearone.net
batman-year1.com
batmanyear1.net

Two interesting points, first there are no domains for Bruce Wayne: The TV series, and second notice the Batman Beyond Domains. Does this mean that a live action Batman Beyond film is possible? Not quite. Fabio2  has insisted that Year One is the way that WB is planning to go.


February 14, 2000

-According to the comics continuum, Production on the animated show Batman Beyond has ended which has come as a surprise to everyone involved with the show. At this point no official reason has been given

-The Dark Knight Returns to the small screen...in the from of TV commercials.  GM has announced that there will be three TV commercials, starting February 17, will show Batman using GM's new OnStar technology.

What does everyone think? Is this another example of showing disrespect towards Batman or does it show just how much of a genius Batman is?