Earlier today we were treated to the first trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and it melted our collective minds. Well, it melted my mind, I may be speaking too strongly for you. What I’m getting at is that in the middle of this E3 and summer blockbuster madness, I’d almost forgotten about that little hobbit and all his dwarf buddies and now I’m stoked to continue their adventure.

Along with the first teaser are these eight images, all taken from said teaser, but they’re pretty and offer great looks at franchise newcomers Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) and Beorn the Bard (Luke Evans), take a look,

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug opens this December 13th.

Source: CBM

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Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel is poised to obliterate the summer blockbuster competition and in a move that smacks of, “If you can’t beat them, join them,” many studios are doing whatever they can to get their trailers attached to Man of Steel screenings. Warner Bros., though, has the inside track with two of their  upcoming movies 300: Rise Of An Empire and Peter Jackson‘s The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, already attached.

But you don’t have to wait, you can see the new trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, right now, below.

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At this point, I’m awaiting New Zealand to rename themselves Jacksonland, or Tolkienland, for as much time as Peter Jackson has spent filming not only the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but The Hobbit trilogy. And he’s there yet again! And will be for about another 10 weeks as they finish the last bits of additional filming required to get what was going to be only two films, into three.

Jackson updated his Facebook page with the above photo, and the following statement

Back on set for our last Hobbit pick ups. Our last ever Tolkien pick ups, in fact. It’s going to be an intense few weeks, but we’re looking forward to shooting some powerful scenes with our great cast. Our next blog is coming soon!

Hmm, Ian McKellen doesn’t look all too happy, does he? Could he be regretting his decision to return as Gandalf? It was a decision he grappled with before relenting and choosing to come back, and judging from the difficulties he had when last there for The Hobbit, he may have only grudgingly returned this time.

What could be left to film? Apparently a lot of work is still needed for The Battle of Five Armies, and– wait, this hasn’t been filmed, yet!? Isn’t this a rather important climax for the trilogy? I don’t know, should we be worried about this? Can’t wait to see what Jackson has to say for himself in the next video production diary.

Source: Collider via The Mary Sue

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So far, the majority of the announced cast of X-Men: Days of Future Past have been returning mutants, but what about new mutants. Well hint, hint, Bryan Singer‘s dropped a little knowledge on us this morning in the form of a Vine video. The 6-second clip from the social networking site reveals several directors chairs with the names of various X-Men characters on them. So we get to see names like “Magneto,” “Storm,” “Kitty Pryde,” “Bobby ‘Iceman’ Drake,” and… Wait, what’s that? “Bishop,” and “James ‘Warpath’ Proudstar?!

To the uninitiated, Warpath is the brother of John Proudstar, a mutant who went by the code name Thunderbird and joined the X-Men after the original team was kidnapped by Krakoa, the living island. Thunderbird was killed on another mission a short time later, but his brother James would go on to join the upstart mutant group X-Force. Bishop, meanwhile, is a refugee from the future where mutants were rounded up into concentration camps by Sentinels. After being liberated, Bishop joined a group of mutant cops only to end up going back in time to the 20th century during the pursuit of a mutant fugitive.

So who’s playing Bishop and Warpath? Well, French actor Omar Sy was already rumored to be playing Bishop in the film, and Booboo Stewart, by virtue of being Native American, is probably a safe bet for Warpath.

Days of Future Past is currently in production for a July 18, 2014 release. The film co-stars Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Michael Fassbender, Anna Paquin, Ellen Page, Shawn Ashmore, and Peter Dinklage.

X-Men: Days of Future Past hits theaters on July 18, 2014.

Source: Coming Soon

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And now, we here at Nerd Bastards bring you some more teasers to wet your appetite for the upcoming barrage of super hero flicks.  This time around, we have Bryan Singer tweeting a ridiculous teaser for X-Men: Days of Future Past, along with some new set pics from the upcoming Wolverine and Spider-Man 2 flicks.  Check it all out after the jump.

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Every day the internet produces an astounding amount of goodies and gems. Most hilarious, some amusing, but all worth at least a few seconds of your time. We here at Nerd Bastards try to bring you the best bits of news and nerdery the webz has to offer, with a bit of snark thrown in. But sometimes not everything makes the cut. Monday through Friday we’ll be bringing you our inbox leftovers, our forgotten bookmarks, the nerdy bits that simply slipped through the cracks. You can submit items to Nerdy Bits by emailing us at nerdybits@nerdbastards.com.

Above: Yowza! Cosplayer Micheline Pitt sure makes a very convincing Vampirella. [CBM]

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At a screening of the Doctor Who Christmas special, “The Snowmen” earlier this week, the same one where Steven Moffat spoke about the new TARDIS and their 50th anniversary plans, Peter Jackson was also in attendance and again was asked about the likelihood he’d ever direct or collaborate on an episode of Who. His response, given with a grin, “Well, you never know, we may well do.“

Is this some cheeky teasing or is there a chance? Ian McKellen supplied the voices of the snowmen in the upcoming Christmas special which could be why Jackson was at the screening. Or, since he and Moffat have worked together before on Tin Tin maybe they’re looking to work together again. Jackson’s an admitted fan of the series, so it doesn’t sound impossible.

What does sound unlikely is Jackson working on Doctor Who anytime soon. The director’s already announced he’s hoping to release the next Tin Tin flick in 2015, plus there’s that little job of finishing up those Hobbit sequels.

What do you think of Jackson working on Who? And when would you expect him to find the time? Would he insist it be shot in 48 fps?

Source: Blastr

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The first, second, and probably eighth word that comes to mind when thinking about, discussing, or writing about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Peter Jackson‘s long-awaited return to the Middle Earth, is, to put it bluntly, “bloat.” Clocking in at two hours and fifty minutes, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey suffers from an under-motivated central character, poorly defined supporting characters, a meandering, unfocused first hour, and a sporadically engaging quest narrative in the second and third hours. The visual effects are variable and occasionally cheap-looking and they are made all the worse when viewed in Jackson’s preferred format of 48 FPS (frames per second), which is less a technological leap forward than it is a probable dead end.

Warning: Possible spoilers ahead. 

Jackson gives us not one, not two, but three prologues, beginning with an elderly Bilbo Baggins (Ian Holm), recounting the events that led to the fall of the dwarf kingdom at the center of the film before segueing to a pre-Lord of the Rings encounter between Bilbo and his nephew, Frodo (Elijah Wood), before segueing again to a younger Bilbo (the wisely chosen Martin Freeman).

The Bilbo we meet has little taste for adventure or risk. He prefers his materially comfortable life in Bag-End to the potential dangers of the outside world. It takes Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen), an itinerant wizard primarily known for his fireworks displays, to spur Bilbo from his provincial complacency by forcefully introducing him to a company of twelve dwarves led by Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), the deposed heir of the dwarf kingdom. Thorin, of course, wants to reclaim his kingdom, but a dragon by the name of Smaug stands in his way.

Even after a reluctant Bilbo decides to join Gandalf, Thorin, and the other dwarves, the narrative pace doesn’t so much pick up as go sideways, filling the next hour with episodic encounters with, among others, Radegast the Brown, (Sylvester McCoy), a minor, forest- dwelling wizard who plays a marginal, tangential role. Naturally, he also encounters orcs, man-eating trolls, stone giants, and goblins — including a grotesque, repellent Goblin King whose singular design reflects Guillermo del Toro’s involvement in pre-production.

Familiar faces makes an appearance in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey thanks to a side trip (they’re all, ultimately, side trips) to Rivendell, the elf kingdom home to Elrond (Hugo Weaving) and Galadriel (Cate Blanchett), along with Saruman (Christopher Lee). familiar faces three, before not one, but two extended battles, one below ground and another above. Another familiar face, Gollum (Andy Serkis), appears as well. With more than a decade’s worth of motion-capture developments to draw from, the Gollum in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is noticeably more expressive than the Gollum moviegoers met eleven years ago. He’s also less the wretched, woeful creature we met a decade ago. He’s far more dangerous, far more treacherous, and far more unpredictable. This Gollum is a cunning, conflicted sociopath willing to bet his life against Bilbo’s in a game of riddles. The encounter, of course, proves key for another reason: Gollum loses and Bilbo gains the ring (and object of desire) at the center of The Lord of the Rings.

Unfortunately, Gollum’s appearance proves to be short-lived. Once Bilbo and Gollum part company on less than friendly terms, the CG monsters, CG backgrounds, and CG- heavy set pieces take over, to increasingly mind- and body-numbing effect. By the time the characters in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey near the end of the first part of their destination audiences will be just as exhausted as the characters onscreen. The promise of two more films to round out another trilogy doesn’t feel like a promise at all. At best, it feels like a challenge. At worst, it feels like a chore. It’s probably more of the latter than the former.

Mel Valentin is a prominent film critic based out of Northern California. You can find his film reviews on NextProjection.com, SFStation.com, and VeryAware.com.

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Another day, another trailer for the Doctor Who Christmas special, “The Snowmen.” This trailer feature a few new clips and our first snippet of Ian McKellen voicing those snowmen. Check it out below,

Also, as you may have noticed, The Doctor (Matt Smith) and new companion, Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman) look to be locking lips right at the end of the trailer. Honestly, can anyone resist The Doctor’s charm? Seems not.

I’m especially pumped for this Christmas special. Some early reviews are even calling this their best episodes ever!

The Doctor Who Christmas special airs Christmas Day on BBC America, BBC One, and Space.

Source: Doctor Who TV

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Ian McKellen has always been one of the greats when it comes to pure, raw acting ability.  In recent years, he’s spread his influence into the geek world by taking on some of the most iconic roles in the fantasy and super hero genres.  And though most know McKellen has played Magneto and Gandalf, until now few knew that for the last seven years he’s been dealing with some real-life drama – a battle with prostate cancer.

In a recent interview with The Daily Mirror, McKellen discussed his cancer, talking a bit about his condition while assuring his millions of fans that it’s not as much of a problem as it could be.  According to McKellen, the cancer is contained and he’s undergoing regular check-ups to make sure that it doesn’t get any worse.  All-in-all, he’s been very positive about dealing with what is one of the world’s leading killers among men.

Hopefully, all the karma that McKellen has built up from playing two of the biggest geek-cred roles in history will work in his favor.  Everyone give a prayer to whatever (G)god(s) you happen to prefer and perhaps this amazing actor will be with us for at least another 20 years.

Check out the full conversation with McKellen over at The Daily Mirror.

And thanks to blastr for the heads-up.

UPDATE: Apparently, reports on Ian McKellen’s cancer may be complete and utter bullshit.

Though present across dozens of reputable news sources, ABCNews.com has just issued a report that McKellen’s agent, Chris Andrews, has made an official announcement that the story originated from a UK tabloid by the name of The Sun and that it has no basis in reality.

Sorry about that folks.  We really do try.

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