Many of you may not even have any interest in a remake of the campy 1984 cult classic, The Toxic Avenger. But for those of you who are, a director has been signed and sealed.

Steve Pink, who is best known for his work directing the hit comedy, Hot Tub Time Machine, has signed on to helm the project, as well as write the script along with Daniel C. Mitchell. Of the announcement, Pink stated that “The Toxic Avenger is exactly what the country–wait, that’s not big enough–what the WORLD needs right now!”

Pink is of course referring to the Avenger’s “green” way of going about things. In the movie, a man named Melvin is the janitor at a health club. One day, some of the club’s evil patrons who often bully the janitor decide to pick on poor Melvin some more, which sees him running for safety, accidentally falling out of a second-story window, and landing in a large vat of toxic waste. The result: Melvin becomes horribly deformed, but also gains an incredible amount of strength, which he uses to battle the tainted people of the fictional New Jersey town in which the movie is set, including the corrupt mayor, and polluters. [...]

With the news last month of a live-action Hulk television series in development over at ABC, many questions are swimming through the minds of fans.

Will it be in continuity with the Marvel films?

Will any of the film actors commit to a television series?

Who will play Banner?

For myself, the first question that sprung to mind was, “How are they going to do the Hulk effects?” I’ve made no secret of my long-standing love affair with the not-so-jolly green giant, and of all the creative hoops the studio and show-runner will eventually have to jump through, the one that weighs most heavily on my mind as a fan is what the beast will actually look like on the small screen.

It might surprise some to learn that the Hulk is one of the few characters to have been brought to life through almost every school of visual effects there is.

Behind the cut, we’ll take a look at those different incarnations and speculate on their potential for the new television series [...]

In A Lonely Place
DVD
Directed by Nicholas Ray
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Jeff Donnell, Gloria Grahame, Frank Lovejoy, Carl Benton Reid, Art Smith, Martha Stewart, Robert Warwick
1950
Columbia Pictures

Deteriorating from the inside-out are the rotten inner demons of Hollywood screenwriter Dixon Steele. Along with that is the man’s inability to create a workable script for directors; he’s on a cold streak of late and his rigid attitude has a lot to do with that. But topping both of these soul-eating disparities is the fact that Steele’s cold world is made possible by the lack of any love interest in his life. All of these bleak assets enunciate his tragedy of being present in a lonely place. The only thing with him in this lonely place is his anger that he can’t govern.

Humphrey Bogart plays Dixon Steele, a great name for a character, and it is a different role that we have come to associate with Bogart. Here is a role that has the traits of two of his more famous characters; the ruthless Fred C. Dobbs in, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, and the cool-as-a-cucumber Rick Blaine from, Casablanca. With In A Lonely Place, Bogart has the effortless aptitude to play both a man we sympathize with, and a man we wouldn’t care if he were to be thrown to a den of starving lions. It’s one of Bogart’s prime, unflinching acting roles [...]

Over at Teefury, for today only, Doctor Who fans can get their hands on a shirt that plays on some awesome Time Lord traditions. The t-shirt, which is only $9, is labeled Prydon Academy: Teaching Yesterday’s Doctors Tomorrow! Prydon Academy, as the hardcore Who fans might know, is the educational institution on Gallifrey where Time Lords, including the Doctor and many others, went to school.

When I saw the design of the shirt, I was pleasantly surprised — it makes Prydon Academy to Doctor Who what Hogwarts is to Harry Potter. Obviously the time loop humor is a bonus, but the mandatory inclusion of the sonic screwdriver (actually it is specifically the one used by the Tenth Doctor, portrayed by David Tennant, thank you very much) is the highlight for me.

Also, while we’re on this topic, just a reminder that the TARDISblend, a Doctor Who podcast co-hosted by myself and fellow Geek of Doom Tom Cheredar, is now hosted here at GeeksOfDoom.com, and you can check out our most recent episode right here. [...]

In August of 2009 we found out that a movie about one of the planet’s most infamous killers, Richard Kuklinski, was being delayed because the producer at that time wanted Channing Tatum for the role. Many of you spoke up about who you’d like to see play the part, and we later found out that one of those names, Mickey Rourke, had been cast in the role.

Now comes a bit of a surprise: there’s actually another separate movie based on Kuklinski, better known as The Ice Man, in the works as well. This project, titled The Iceman, comes from Nu Image, and already has its star: Michael Shannon, who can currently be seen on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, and has also been seen in movies like Bug and Revolutionary Road, which nabbed him an Academy Award nomination. Benicio Del Toro is also set for a role in the film, and James Franco is a possibility. This film will be directed by Ariel Vromen, who has previously helmed Rx and Danika. [...]

*UPDATED BELOW*

A new name has joined the cast of the new Spider-Man reboot being developed by Sony Pictures Entertainment and Columbia Pictures, and that name is Martin Sheen.

It’s being reported that Sheen is now in final negotiations to sign on for the pivotal role of Uncle Ben, who along with Aunt May, raised Peter Parker. As we’ve seen many times over, it’s the murder of Uncle Ben at the hands of a criminal that sets Parker off toward becoming the superhero, Spider-Man.

Sheen joins an already impressive cast that includes Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Emma Stone as Spider-Man’s love interest, Gwen Stacy, and Rhys Ifans as one of the film’s villains, The Lizard.

The new reboot came after things collapsed with Sam Raimi and the development of Spider-Man 4. This new film is directed by Marc Webb, who previously helmed (500) Days of Summer, from a script written by James Vanderbilt, who has also penned The Rundown, Zodiac, and The Losers. [...]

Marvel Comics wants you to catch up on some of their biggest series, and starting in February, they’re going to give you that chance, as they roll out a new initiative labeled Marvel Point One.

Announced Tuesday during a conference call with Marvel editors Axel Alonso and Tom Brevoort, and SVP of Sales and Circulation David Gabriel, Marvel Point One will add an extra issue to many of Marvel’s leading series. Each issue will feature a lower price of $2.99 and will tell a self-contained story that serves as a jumping-on point for the series, laying the groundwork for the next year’s worth of stories. Each issue will be written by the regular series writer and most (but not all) will be drawn by the regular series artist.

See below for a list of the first three months of .1 issues.

The goal of the “Point One” as stated by Marvel is to offer new readers an easy point at which they can jump onto a series that they may not be reading. Marvel has tried similar things in the past, most recently their free “Saga” issues that seek to catch readers up. However, where the “Saga” issues have the advantage of being free, they have the disadvantage of being fairly boring text pieces, and not a dynamic, exciting story that is more likely to create a new reader. By giving readers a cheaper example of what each series is like, I’m sure they hope that they can attract some new readers to those series [...]

After the disaster that went down with NBC and Jay Leno, leaving a one Conan O’Brien out in the dark and alone (though with a sizable chunk of compensation in his pocket), we had ourselves a long, long wait ahead of us before Conan would be contractually eligible to return to the air.

Back in April we found out that the late night talk show host’s new home would in fact be TBS, and now, finally, it’s almost here: the glorious return of Conan O’Brien.

Conan is set to debut this upcoming Monday night at 11pm, but if just a few more days of waiting is still too much for you, Conan decided to make a mini internet preview called Show Zero on Team Coco. This condensed sample of the show takes all of the fun we’re used to and jam-packs it into a nice and neat sub-5-minute pile of entertainment. Guests include The Big Bang Theory‘s Jim Parsons and a musical performance from Steel Train. [...]

If you’re a fan of Neil Gaiman‘s work, you’re probably already familiar with his short story The Price, about a family whose lives begin to change after a mysterious stray black cat takes up residence on their front porch. The story was originally published in Gaiman’s short story collection Smoke and Mirrors, and if you know Gaiman, then you know that this is no ordinary story about a cat.

Aspiring filmmaker Christopher Salmon has launched a Kickstarter project to raise the necessary funds to adapt The Price into a computer-animated film, which has the full support of Gaiman himself!

Salmon created an animatic for The Price, a storyboard mock-up of his vision for the adaptation, which you can watch it here below, and it’s a real treat, as Gaiman narrates it! The video also contains a message from Salmon regarding his aspirations for the film.

Trust me, once you watch it, you’ll feel like, if this is what Salmon can come up with just as a spec, imagine what he can do with the full project. You will want to see the entire project, it’s that compelling, and the beauty of it is, YOU can help to get this film made! That’s what the Kickstarter project is: Salmon needs to raise $150,000 for the project before the December 1, 2010 deadline, so anyone can donate to the cause, and for as little as $10 [...]

If you missed the limited theatrical re-release of Back To The Future last month, don’t fret since the film is once again making its way back to theaters this Saturday, November 6, 2010.

The classic film, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, will come to 75 screens in the United States for a 12:30 PM showing for one day only. This is the digitally remastered version of the film that was recently released on Blu-ray.

Visit AMC to purchase advanced tickets to a screening near you.

If you’re wondering whether to go see the film in the theater — perhaps, like me, you own it and have seen it at home hundreds of times — let me stress how awesome it is to see this 1985 film with a crowd of fellow fans. I went to the October 23 showing and it inspired me to write Revisiting A Classic: 13 Moments From ‘Back To The Future’ That Still Get A Reaction based on my experience at the screening. I highly recommend taking the time to see this film at the theater.

Also, at the screening I went to, they gave out free posters from the event; there were also very cute “Save The Clock Tower” flyers, so perhaps these will be offered at the November 6 showings as well [...]

Amazon is offering up Star Trek: Nemesis for purchase for only $3.99 through their Video On Demand service.

This digital deal is only for today, Thursday, November 4 until midnight PST, so grab it while you can. The digital version is regularly $9.99, and the 24-hour rental is $2.99.

Visit the Star Trek: Nemesis product page to purchase the film.

Released in 2002, Nemesis is the tenth film in the Star Trek franchise and the fourth and final one with the full cast of the Star Trek: The Next Generation television series, starring Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard. While its predecessor, Insurrection, wasn’t a big hit with fans, at least it wasn’t the box office failure that Nemesis was.

Synopsis: After the Enterprise is diverted to Romulus, supposedly to negotiate a truce, the Federation discovers the Romulans are planning an attack on Earth. [...]

With the grand finale of Grant Morrison‘s epic run on DC Comics’ Batman and Robin, along comes the birth of a brand new status quo in the DC Universe, and if you haven’t read Batman and Robin #16, , which came out today, go get the issue, read it, and come back, because…

SPOILERS…

In the issue, Bruce Wayne holds a press conference where he reveals that he is the main funding officer for The Dark Knight.

Although, some mainstream media used headlines and stories to make it appear as though Bruce Wayne declared himself as The Batman, he simply said that he had been secretly supporting and funding his technology, as well as creating a new division of Wayne enterprises called Batman, Incorporated, which just so happens to be the title for the upcoming Grant Morrison Batman comic [...]

Back in July, the first teaser trailer for Zack Snyder‘s visual spectacle, Sucker Punch, was unleashed upon the world, leading everyone to wonder if it could keep up with all of the insanity it promised.

Now comes the movie’s first full trailer, giving us a much better idea of what the film is about while piling on even more visual insanity — as hard as that might be to believe!

The movie is about a group of girls who are locked up in a mental institution in Vermont who travel deep within their own subconscious to attempt to try and escape their prison. The storyline basically allows Snyder — who has previously delivered visually stunning fare in 300, Watchmen, and Legends of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole — the opportunity to play around in a sandbox consisting of every genre known to man…something that could be very, very good for we the watchers.

Be sure to click on over to the other side now to read a full synopsis and check out the full trailer now! [...]

For the adoring eyes of fanboys everywhere, that title says it all.

According to reports, Scarlett Johansson is set to star in Under the Skin for writer and director Jonathan Glazer.

In the movie, Johansson will go other-worldly, playing an alien walking amongst us disguised as the “perfect aesthetic form of a mesmerizing woman.” And what is she doing here? Well, she’s using her “voracious sexuality” to hunt for human prey along highways and other desolate locations.

While a movie just about Scarlett Johansson running around eating us would be amusing enough, there is more to the plot. It’s further described that “She is deadly efficient, but over time becomes drawn to and changed by the complexity of life on earth. With this new found humanity and weakening alien resolve, she finds herself on a collision course with her own kind. Taking her point of view throughout, the film presents a unique look at our world through alien eyes.” [...]

The team of Brad Pitt and Andrew Dominik have worked together in the past on the brilliant western, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and now they’re set to work together once again on a new movie.

The new project is called Cogan’s Trade and will revolve around Jackie Cogan, a mob enforcer who has to investigate a big heist that takes place during a high stakes poker game being played under the protection of the mob. It’s described as a “comedic crime story,” meaning it will probably be along the lines of a Snatch or Ocean’s Eleven type of film.

It’s also said that Dominik is looking to some of his other Assassination of Jesse James cast members to reunite on this movie. The director reportedly wants both Casey Affleck and Sam Rockwell for possible roles in Cogan’s Trade, and other actors he’s also interested in include Mark Ruffalo and Javier Bardem. [...]

India’s Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said that owls in the country are being taken from the wild by Harry Potter fans who want to keep the birds as pets. It’s unclear what evidence Ramesh has to back up his claim, but he said that the decline of owls in the wild coincided with the increased popularity of Harry Potter in India. He also said that urban middle classes families were, in part, responsible because they were capturing owls to give as pets to their children who like Harry Potter. Meanwhile, the wildlife group Traffic reported that wild owls in India are being illegally trapped and traded to be used for black magic rituals and other purposes.

In the Harry Potter film and book series, the boy wizard has a snowy owl named Hedwig who is his faithful companion.

This story really struck a nerve with me. I happen to love owls and every year I adopt a Snowy Owl from Defenders of Wildlife, an organization dedicated to help protect the species out in the wild. If a child really loves owls now thanks to Harry Potter, then the best thing a parent can do is donate to a wildlife fund dedicated to protecting owls — NOT take the owls from their natural environment and keep them as a pet. If middle class families are doing this, that means they can spare the $25 for the donation, which includes a small plush owl, a personalized certificate, a photo of the owl, and a fact sheet. (See this photo of one of my cats, Sixx, sitting with Snowy, my plush owl that came with my donation to Defenders of Wildlife.) [...]

The OneMinuteGalactica folks are back again with another installment from their Nerdy Instructional Films, with the “Be Super Safe At The Office” instructional video.

What makes this video fun is that it’s a mash-up of footage from Superman: The Movie and Superman II along with a narration from a 1940′s PSA about office safety, according to the OMG guys.

Watch the video here below.

Pay close attention to the warnings, especially the one “Don’t put anything on windowsills.”

Obviously, the Superman movies make great fodder for something like this, what with its scenes at The Daily Planet newspaper offices.

By the way, the makers of this little video are the same guys that brought you the all-important “What to Do on A Space Date” video, an instructional for 1950′s space virgins set to scenes from the original Star Wars trilogy [...]

Abrams Books has released a trailer for their new hardcover art book, Star Wars Art: Visions.

Check out the trailer here below!

The art book, which was released this week, has a Foreword by Star Wars creator George Lucas, and an Introduction by J. W. Rinzler, author of the recently published The Making of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

For Star Wars Art: Visions, Lucas invited over 100 artists of varying popularity to contribute their Star Wars-inspired artwork.

The hardcover book is 176 pages and contains 120 full-color illustrations from artists such as Amano, Allan R. Banks, Harley Brown, Gary Carter, James Christensen, Michael Coleman, Philippe Druillet, Donato Giancola, Ann Hanson, H. R. Giger, Daniel Greene, Arantzazu Martinez, Syd Mead, Moebius, Paul Oxborough, Alex Ross, Anthony J. Ryder, Dolfi Stoki, William Stout, Dan Thompson, Julie Bell and Boris Vallejo, Scott Waddell, and Jamie Wyeth.

The 6-minute trailer shows off several pieces of the artwork that’s included in the book, like a baby Darth Maul. It also includes interviews with some of the book’s creators and contributing artists [...]

The Boondock Saints Mobile Game
Platform: iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch App
Developer: Boondock Saints, LLC
Price: $2.99
iTunes

The brothers McManus have come to the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch in the form of a duel stick shooter game, complete with its own story that lives up to the characters from the cult film The Boondock Saints.

Let me first say that I like the idea of this game, which was probably overly ambitious given the platform. Players can choose either Connor or Murphy to charge into each level to do some mindless shooting with a range of weapons. The 14 total levels also feature gameplay by Noah and Romeo at certain points. After accomplishing each mission, you get a tattoo to show your experience.

The mobile game nails most characterization of the Boondock Saints movie, but the basic mechanics make the gameplay painfully slow as well as the response time to movement. And while I chose to play this game on a handheld device, the controls may be better with the larger screen on an iPad.

Still, like many of the very first arcade games in the ’80s, someone with skillful hand-eye coordination and lots of practice can definitely succeed [...]

Thanks our friends at Archaia Comics, Geeks of Doom is proud to preview the first 16 pages of their newest graphic novel, Return of the Dapper Men, which goes on sale in comic shops on Wednesday, November 17, 2010.

All of time has stopped in the land known as Anoreve. With no functioning clocks and year round daytime, the inhabitants of Anorev grow weary of their day to day activities. That is, until 314 well-dressed gentlemen rain down from the sky. Known only as the Dapper Men, these individuals strike out in all directions, searching for a way to restart the world again and bring back tomorrow today.

Written by Jim McCann (Hawkeye and Mockingbird) and artist Janet Lee, The this 128-page full-color hardcover graphic novel is a fantastic tale with a steampunk twist that is sure to break the fairy tale mold. Enjoy this colorful and entertaining preview here below, but be sure to come back next week, when we will post a review for the book [...]