‘Black Panther 2’ to ‘Black Adam’: Top film reveals at Comic-Con

Black Panther: Wankanda Forever: The first trailer for ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,’ a sequel to the first comic book film to win a best picture Oscar nomination, was unveiled at the San Diego Comic-Con, which is set to premiere November 11. Returning director Ryan Coogler paid an emotional tribute to the first film’s star, the “late, great Chadwick Boseman.” Boseman died from cancer in 2020, and his role is not being taken over by another actor in the new film. The trailer, which was strung together with a lyrical motif of ‘No Woman, No Cry’, showed Angela Bassett’s Ramonda as Queen of Wakanda. There’s a war with another tribe and armed forces as antagonists. The trailer ends with someone dressed in the Black Panther costume at the end, without anyone knowing who’s wearing the suit now.

Black Adam: Dwayne Johnson went a few steps beyond merely teasing his long-awaited ‘Black Adam’ movie at Comic-Con in San Diego on Saturday. Ever the showman, Johnson brought a new trailer for the DC Comics superhero film and some flashy technology, lighting up the biggest room at the annual fan convention all while in costume. The character Black Adam has the powers of the ancient gods and has been entombed for some 5,000 years before being released into the modern world. In the trailer he says his powers are “a curse, not a gift.” Set for an October 21 theatrical release, ‘Black Adam’ reunites Johnson with his ‘Jungle Cruise’ director Jaume Collet-Serra. It also stars Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher and Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone, all of whom joined Johnson and Collet-Serra for the panel.

New Avenger movies: Marvel announced not one but two Avengers movies that are coming in 2025 to end Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel boss Kevin Feige revealed ‘Avengers: The Kang Dynasty’ and ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ are set to release a mere six months apart in 2025 — on May 2 and November 7, respectively. The announcement makes clear that the multiversal shenanigans of ‘Loki’, ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ and ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ are leading the MCU towards a cataclysmic crossover event.

Other big Marvel productions: Other films announced by Disney at the world’s most famous pop culture gathering included ‘Thunderbolts’ and the ‘Fantastic Four’ reboot, both due in 2024. Feige also set out dates for ‘Blade’ — in theatres November 2023 — and the newly titled ‘Captain America: New World Order’ coming May 2024.

Shazam!: Fury of the Gods: Audiences also got a glimpse at a new trailer for ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods.’ Stars Zachary Levi and Lucy Liu were on hand to promote the sequel, which is due to arrive in theaters on December 21 and continues the story of a teenager-turned-superhero who is feeling a bit like a fraud. The film sees the return of Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer and Adam Brody and adds Helen Mirren and Rachel Zegler of ‘West Side Story’ to the mix.

Bye Bye ‘Guardians’: Writer and director James Gunn launched the trailer of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ at Comic-Con, while confirming our worst fears that this would be the last outing of the Star Lord and his band of outlaws. The trailer of the movie begins with the Guardians being attacked by Ravagers, led by Gomora. Star Lord tries to win her back but she has no memory of them working together. Adam Warlock makes an appearance, played by Will Poulter, and the trailer ends with a teaser for Rocket’s past, signalling an origin story of Rocket. Cast members Chis Pratt, Karen Gillan, Will Poulter, Maria Balakova (as the Cosmic Space Dog), and Pom Klementieff were present. The film will premiere on May 5, 2023.

‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’: The first official look of ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ was also unveiled with director Peyton Reed and stars Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly and Kathryn Newton appearing onstage to help unveil the footage. The exclusive footage was then unveiled featuring first looks of Bill Murray’s character in the film, Jonathan Majors’ villain Kang the Conquerer and the briefest shot of MODOK, the big-headed cybernetic villain from Marvel Comics, making his live-action MCU debut. Rudd is returning for his third ‘Ant-Man’ movie alongside Lilly as Hope van Dyne, a.k.a. the Wasp. Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer also return as inventor Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne who was rescued from the quantum realm in 2018’s ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’. The film hits theatres on February 17, 2023.