Comic Strip: ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 2′ Teased, ‘Fantastic Four’ Wraps, and Metropolis Gets Destroyed Again

ScreenCrush’s Comic Strip is a weekly roundup of the hottest superhero movie/TV news items. From Marvel to DC and points in between, if it pertains to costumed comic book heroes, we’re covering it here, bringing you our expert analysis. This week, Marvel teases 'Guardians of the Galaxy 2,' 'Batman vs. Superman' set footage shows off a destroyed Metropolis, and 'Fantastic Four' quietly finishes filming.

'Guardians of the Galaxy 2' and Beyond

We already knew that 'Guardians of the Galaxy 2' was getting a July 28, 2017 release date, but writer/director James Gunn has already started talking about the film. Well, by "talking," we mean "having super-vague discussions with press outlets," but it's something! Speaking with Film Divider, Gunn had this to say about the production:

I know a lot of where I want to go. I have a lot of ideas for stories and characters that are going to appear, and there are documents written up, that some people have, about Peter Quill's father and his relationship, a lot of stuff about Yondu and a lot of stuff about Drax that nobody knows....There are a lot of things that are part of the overall schematic that already exist, not to mention a lot of stuff about all of the cultures. There’s a lot of stuff about Xandarian and Kree culture that I’ve written down or I have in my head, as well as Krylorians and Ravagers ... Kevin Feige has stuff. I wrote up a lot. He knows all the stuff and if I died tomorrow they could go make a movie. They could write the story of Peter Quill's father and it would all be there. I think Yondu is a very important character, a really important character in this universe, and I think Nebula is really important too and so I think we'll see more of both of those characters.

Of course, the big question is what's going to happen in the Marvel Universe between now and the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' sequel?

We actually caught up with Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, who remained tightlipped about who's playing Doctor Strange. So that's a dead end.

What about the long-rumored 'Captain Marvel' movie? Or how about any female-led movie? Kevin Feige dodged the question throughout Comic-Con and he continued dodging it this week, which led to the creation of this excellent post detailing his history of dodging this question at every possibly opportunity. C'mon, Marvel. Get with the times. If you're remaining mum because you want to keep that 'Captain Marvel' movie starring Katee Sackhoff (wishful thinking?) a secret until the last moment, we get it ... but it's time to say something!

So despite all of those release dates and rumors, the future of Marvel Studios still seems shrouded in fog and mystery and what not. All we can do now is sit back and hope they make the right decisions.

Oh, and we can watch this video that expertly recaps the first two Phases of Marvel movies, while offering us an official look at Thanos, as voiced by Josh Brolin.

'Batman vs. Superman' Footage Reveals a Wrecked (Again!) Metropolis

With 'Guardians of the Galaxy' conquering the box office, 'Batman vs. Superman' laid low for the week, letting its chief rival enjoy its success. However, the otherwise completely dead week did give us one thing -- a new glimpse of the set from a helicopter!

A local news chopper managed to fly over the set and capture some nice images -- and by "nice images," we mean a completely destroyed Metropolis, complete with smashed police cars and even a Wayne Financials building. Yes, it seems that there was still some city left to be destroyed after most of it was wiped off the face of the Earth in 'Man of Steel.' Check out the footage for yourself below:

'Fantastic Four' Finally Finishes Filming

If you think the quiet shooting being done by 'Batman vs. Superman' is impressive, than the 'Fantastic Four' set has been nothing short of extraordinary. Aside from one leaked (and quickly removed) set photo, the production has been chugging along in silence. In fact, we only know that the film finished filming because stars Kate Mara (Invisible Woman) and Miles Teller (Mr. Fantastic) let everyone know on Twitter:

How strange is it that we know next to nothing about this movie? In an age where leaks are normal and entire plots are spoiled beforehand, it's actually refreshing to think that 'Fantastic Four' may actually surprise us!

'Deadpool' Test Footage Invades the Internet

The greatest battle this week was not between superheroes, but between the lawyers of 20th Century Fox and the leaked 'Deadpool' test footage. The 90-second video was created by director Tim Miller to showcase what a film starring the beloved "merc with a mouth" would look and feel like and was never intended for public consumption. But here we are! And for every embed that gets shut down, two more pop up in its place.

The footage features Ryan Reynolds as the mutant assassin (seemingly far more at home here than he was in 'Green Lantern'), who dispatches a car full of bad guys in the most brutal and silly ways imaginable. Like the comic book version of the character, he churns out the wisecracks faster than you can count them, breaking the fourth wall and generally by being a big goofball. Whether you like the character or not, there's no denying that this pretty much is Deadpool.

Especially interesting is this behind-the-scenes image, which reveals that the Deadpool costume itself was created through motion capture, much like that much-derided Green Lantern uniform. What's up with Ryan Reynolds and not wearing his superhero costumes?

At this point, the 'Deadpool' movie is still dead, but the popularity of this footage is the kind of thing that could get 20th Century Fox to change its mind and give it the green light. Which raises a big question: was this a planned leak? Hmm...

Updates on 'Arrow,' Gotham' and More

Charlotte Ross, best known for her work on 'NYPD Blue,' has joined the cast of 'Arrow' as Felicity Smoak's mother. What's unknown is whether she'll only appear in flashbacks or if she'll somehow have a hand in the main plot. What we do know is that her appearances will be part of a storyline that sheds light on Felicity's past. Meanwhile, J.R. Ramirez has signed on to play Wildcat in the film, making him the latest actor to commit to bringing life to a C-list DC superhero on 'Arrow' this season.

Meanwhile, over in spinoff-land, 'The Flash' has officially cast actress Kelly Frye as Plastique, a C-list villainess who would never have a chance of appearing in a movie, so here she is! Okay, snark aside, it's kind of cool how 'The Flash' and 'Arrow' are finding homes for these obscure characters.

Across networks, former 'Dexter' actor David Zayas has joined 'Gotham' as Sal Maroni, the gangster best known for being the man behind Harvey Dent's transformation into Two-Face. He's a bit of a big deal in the comic book world, so it's nice to finally see him get his due.

Over on ABC, 'Agents of 'S.H.I.E.L.D.' has cast Simon Kassianides as “Bakshi,” who is apparently a “confident right-hand man who’s not afraid to do the dirty work.” Other than that, we know nothing! But that's Marvel for you -- always playing their cards close to their vest.

And finally, this new 'Constantine' promo contains footage that you probably haven't seen yet. Proceed with caution:

Also, remember how Doctor Fate's helmet was included in previous 'Constantine' footage? Well, by the insistence of DC Entertainment's Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns, take a look at what's behind the helmet?

It's Ibis the Invincible's staff! Could we also be seeing some of this guy in NBC's series?

'Batman: Arkham Assault' Releases a New Clip

While you wait for 'Batman vs. Superman' to arrive in theaters (get a comfy chair) or Batman: Arkham Knight to arrive on video game consoles (you can get away with a slightly less comfy chair), you can check out the latest clip from 'Batman: Arkham Assault,' the new direct-to-DVD animated movie that takes place in the Arkham video game universe.

It, uh, looks like a Batman movie!

But seriously, it looks perfectly fine. DC has a decent track record with its DTV stuff and we imagine this one will be no different.

Fun Stuff (the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' Edition)

Here's a piece of 'Guardians of the Galaxy' trivia for you: while most of the cast is dubbed over for international release, Vin Diesel recorded all of Groot's lines for every version of the movie. Then again, it's a pretty simple task when all you say is, "I am Groot.'

And finally, some genius decided that the Guardians needed their own children's book adaptation. Lo and behold, this piece of genius: