2016 is the Year for Superheroes
2015 was a not a bad year for Marvel studios, reuniting The Avengers to save the world once again, rebooting "Fantastic 4" and even shrinking a man to an ant-sized hero.
It worked out for Marvel well enough as "Ant-Man" exceeded expectations whereas "Fantastic 4" did not even touch par.
This year is the year where it gets A LOT BETTER, with 6 superhero movies lined up in one year. It was supposed to be 7 superhero movies, but complications and delays for the production of "Gambit" resulted in a later release than planned.
But why so many superhero movies? Well, it's undeniable that superhero movies have become a trend in the entertainment industry and with Marvel Studios constantly releasing movies each year, they have enough movies to line up until 2020! DC on the other hand, is picking up the pieces to catch-up with Marvel's list of blockbusters.
So this year, moviegoers now have the chance to witness one of the greatest superhero movie rivalries where the DC vs Marvel rivalry has already started with the release of Marvel's "Deadpool"!
Deadpool – February 11
What better way to kick off the 2016 superhero season with a foul-mouthed cheeky superhero that everybody just loves despite the bad looks? Ryan Reynolds, previously DC's "Green Lantern", has taken the transition from DC to Marvel as the green superhero didn't exactly succeed at the box office. Reynolds appeared in "X-Men: Origins" as Wade Wilson, the mercenary with a mouth who is the personality that transitions into the titular character based on the comics.
This origin story tells the story of ex-Special Forces turned mercenary, who undergoes an experimental surgery to cure his cancer but is left with healing powers and killer reflexes. He then adopts the alter ego "Deadpool" to hunt down the people who did this to him.
The buildup for this film has done nothing but keep us on our toes, from the anticipated trailers to having a star-studded cast. So it comes as no surprise that the R-rated film did so well at the global box office that a sequel had already been commissioned before the movie was even released on 11 February 2016.
Reynolds stars alongside Gina Carano as "Angel Dust", Ed Skrein as "Ajax", Morena Baccarin as "Copycat" and many others. What a great way to start the year of superheroes, looks like Marvel is already in the lead!
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice– March 24
Director Zack Snyder confirmed that we will be seeing a lot more of Batman than Superman as part of the story which explains how Bruce Wayne got to where he is. "Only in that because it's a different Batman than the Batman that was in the Christopher Nolan movies, so we have a little bit more explaining to do-and you just had a whole Superman movie," Snyder told The Daily Beast. He stressed that the Batman in this film was influenced by Frank Miller's animated "The Dark Knight Returns" and is nothing as envisioned by Christopher Nolan.
The film goes about Superman's placement on top of the hierarchy for having God-like powers making Gotham's caped crusader take on the Son of Krypton while the world struggles with choosing the hero it needs. A new threat takes over when the two heroes are busy fighting each other, leaving mankind in danger that it has ever had.
Ben Affleck raised a lot of eyebrows after being casted as Batman. Considering the script's need for an aged Bruce Wayne, the qualified actor shouldn't have a problem nailing this role. Henry Cavill returns as Superman alongside Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne and Diane Lane all reprising their individual roles from "Man of Steel". New faces include "Fast & Furious" star Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor, Tao Okamoto as Mercy Graves, Jeremy Irons as Alfred.
Fans would get to see the brand new Batmobile after being featured in the trailer and leaked images online. The current design is a whole new look and the car is said to be even more armed than any other Batmobile having a machine placed on its hood, built by Bruce Wayne himself.
With DC bringing forth all their biggest superheroes on the table, this one is going to be big!
Captain America: Civil War – April 28
When The Avengers united in "Age of Ultron" to save the world, what could possibly tear them up from that teamwork? The third Captain America movie is almost another Avengers story as the team splits into sides lead by Captain America and Iron Man. The split comes about when the government attempts to regulate the Avengers, and Captain Steve Rogers becomes suspicious of those in charge.
Marvel has carefully scripted all their movies and characters to be in the same universe. This story picks up where "Avengers 2" left off, while Rogers continue to lead the new team of Avengers in the efforts for peace, an international incident involving The Avengers brings massive damage. The governing body insists to have a system of accountability and task management. While all this internal pressure is erupting, a new immoral figure steps in to cause chaos.
The anti-hero that will take on the superheroes is Baron Helmut Zemo, played by Daniel Brühl. The actor revealed that the character's trademark mask will not be featured in the movie and that he might make more appearances after "Civil War".
Hulk will not be in the battle between the Avengers as the producers pulled him out for another battle, which is supposedly in "Thor: Ragnarok". However, Spider-Man would be making his long-waited debut working with the rest of the superheroes, but it won't be Andrew Garfield donning the tight red suit. Tom Holland is the new Spiderman and Marvel will deliver his standalone movie in 2017.
X-Men: Apocalypse – May 19
Director Bryan Singer will be in charge of the concluding chapter of the X-Men trilogy after also being involved in the prequels, "X-Men: First Class" and "X-Men: Days of Future Past". This is his fourth "X-Men" movie to date including the first ever "X-Men" which released in 2000.
This film will see familiar faces reprise their roles except one guy. The X-Men walk into war without their precious asset; Wolverine as Hugh Jackman - who said he will play the mutant one last time, and that is when "Wolverine 3" releases.
Oscar Isaac from "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" plays the most feared, Apocalypse. After waking up to a whole new world which he disapproves, he gathers his 4 horsemen to radically reshape society to his vision. As the fate of the Earth hangs in the balance, Raven with the help of Professor X must lead a team of young X-Men, as the squad faces the world's first mutant and prevent him from taking over the world and save mankind from complete destruction. Olivia Munn and Sophie Turner join the rest of the cast for the final chapter, playing "Psylocke" and "Jean Grey" respectively.
Suicide Squad – August 4
This is DC Comics' second movie of the year that features more than 2 big names. "The Suicide Squad", directed by David Ayer, is the first of its kind to feature a superhero movie about supervillains, having 10 of them. The villains to be portrayed in this film are Deadshot, Katana, El Diablo, Rick Flag, Enchantress, Captain Boomerang, Killer Croc, Slipknot, Harley Quinn and The Joker.
The squad is a task force of super villains recruited by a government agency to get their dirty work done in exchange for shorter prison terms. Since Jared Leto was cast as "The Joker", fans got even more excited as the award winning actor is known to get under the skin of every character he plays. He sent his co-stars eccentric gifts, including a live rat to Margot Robbie and a dead hog with some bullets to Will Smith. Furthermore, Smith claims he never met the real Jared on the set of the film, he only ever met The Joker.
Batman will make an appearance in the film after he was seen in the Comic-Con reel for the film. Lex Luthor is also involved in this film after rumours indicated Jesse Eisenberg was spotted on set.
Doctor Strange – November 3
Doctor Strange will be the last superhero movie of 2016 and it will mark the introduction of genuine magic in the Marvel universe. The character was mentioned in "Captain America: The Winter Soldier", while it is also expected for the Ant-Man events to play an important part in the story (as in the Quantum Realm).
This is the first appearance of "Doctor Strange" on the big screen but it might not be an origin story. Strange was a neurosurgeon, who after an accident damaged his hands. After many failed attempts to restore his injuries, he visits The Ancient One for help. That's when he enters a world of sorcery and magic. Having Benedict Cumberbatch in the lead role is also worth mentioning as he was the top choice for the role in so many fan-casts of the movie. Mads Mikkelsen has been casted to play the main villain and it is expected for "Dormammu" to be the character, with "Baron Mordo" played by Chiwetel Ejiofor being his lieutenant. Speaking of casting choices, this isn't the only controversial one as Tilda Swinton has confirmed that she was cast in the role of the "Ancient One" (who is actually a dude in the comics).
As Cumberbatch teased at the D23 expo, the film will be full of girls, cars, explosions and a bit of astral projection into multiple dimensions.
