With James Cameron’s four Avatar sequels currently in development, another familiar face has been confirmed to be returning to the franchise.

As per Deadline, Matt Gerald is to return as Corporal Lyle Wainfleet. And yes, yes, we’re well aware that the character was killed off in Cameron’s first Avatar. How Wainfleet is brought back, we’ll obviously have to wait and see.

Gerald – who has more recently been seen in Marvel’s Daredevil – joins a cast that includes the fellow returning faces of Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Joel David Moore, and CCH Pounder. In terms of newcomers, the sequels have already confirmed Cliff Curtis and Oona Chaplin to be joining the action.

The current plan for all things Avatar is for Avatar 2 to hit the silver screen in December 2020, Avatar 3 for December 2021, Avatar 4 for December 2024, and Avatar 5 for December 2025.

We’ve all been waiting for it, and now we’ve finally got our first look at Josh Brolin as Deadpool 2’s Cable.

For those unaware, Cable is a hugely popular comic book character who originated in the realm of the X-Men. A metal-armed, time-travelling badass, the character also happens to be the son of Cyclops and a Jean Grey clone. The character was first confirmed during the post-credits scene of the first Deadpool movie, and, after everyone and their dog was up for the gig, Brolin was the one who finally landed this hotly-sought role.

The first-look, as ever, has been revealed by Ryan Reynolds, with the Merc with a Mouth actor taking to Twitter:

We all have that one, grumpy, heavily armed Uncle from the future. #PremiumCABLE #JoshBrolin pic.twitter.com/JV3yBIIPQH

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) August 7, 2017

DeadPool 2: Your premium #Cable provider. #DeadPool2 pic.twitter.com/LboS0iVDqZ

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) August 7, 2017

As well as Reynolds as the titular Wade Wilson and Brolin as Cable, Deadpool 2 will also feature Morena Baccarin as Vanessa, Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Stefan Kapicic as the voice of Colossus, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, unknown roles for Julian Dennison and Shioli Kutsuna, and The Strain’s Jack Kesy as the ‘big bad’ of the film, believed to be Black Tom Cassidy.

To be directed by John Wick’s David Leitch, Deadpool 2 is currently set for a June 1st, 2018 release.

Following last week’s news that Chiwetel Ejiofor was to play the villainous Scar, Disney’s upcoming live-action remake of The Lion King has now brought in Alfre Woodard as Simba’s mother, Sarabi.

The Hollywood Reporter broke the news, with the 12 Years a Slave, Mississippi Grind and Marvel’s Luke Cage actress to take over a role played by Madge Sinclair in the original 1994 animated movie. In addition to Woodard and Ejiofor, The Lion King has also got Donald Glover on board as Simba, James Earl Jones as Mufasa, and roles for the likes of Billy Eichner, Seth Rogen, and John Oliver.

To be directed by Jon Favreau, The Lion King is currently shooting in Los Angeles ahead of a July 19th, 2019 release.

We’ve known for a while now that the third Guardians of the Galaxy movie would be the last adventure for this particular incarnation of the Guardians team, and after that there are plans afoot to fully launch the cosmic corner of the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe. Well, now writer/director James Gunn has been discussing all of this.

Speaking to Heat Vision about where things currently stand with the future of these cosmic properties, Gunn enthused, “Those scripts are already in the works. Kevin [Feige] and I talk about it all the time; we just had a meeting today. Discussing what is the next iteration of cosmic characters and where are the characters that we’ve already created going to go in the next batch of films.”

Those new movies would take place after Guardians Vol. 3, and there’s pretty much a bottomless pit of comic book characters available to be brought to the big screen where all things cosmic and otherworldly are concerned. Of course, with Guardians 3 to be the last outing for Star-Lord, Gamora and Co., already there’s speculation that Sylvester Stallone’s Starhawk could lead a new incarnation of the team. Interestingly, in the comic book world, a lot of the players seen with Sly’s Stakar were part of the original Guardians of the Galaxy line-up.

On that idea of Sakar heading up a new team, Gunn explained, “I’m definitely interested in the direction that these characters are headed and their roles in the Marvel Universe.”

In the comic book realm, mind, the original Guardians team had some bonkers origin stories, most notably being from 1,000 years in the future. If they do get more focus going forward, time-travel won’t be factored in, with Gunn stating, “That is not something that we’re dealing with. These are older characters and more criminal than our Guardians. So we’re focusing on that.”

As ever, expect more on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and the more cosmic elements of the MCU as this all continues to develop.

With Neil Marshall on board to direct the David Harbour-starring Hellboy reboot, the film has now moved to announce its first additional cast member.

As Professor Trevor Bruttenholm – the role played by the late John Hurt in Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy pictures – is Ian McShane. The Hollywood Reporter broke the news, with McShane currently enjoying plenty of time in the spotlight for his role in the bonkers-yet-brilliant American Gods.

Production on this new Hellboy effort, titled Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen, is due to start imminently, with shooting planned to commence in September.

As a comic book character, Hellboy debuted back in 1993. A demon drawn from Hell by crazy Nazi types during the closing moments of World War II, he’d end up becoming a part of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense and raised by the aforementioned Prof. Bruttenolm. Throughout his years in action, Hellboy has battled (and usually bested!) countless eerie demons and evil doers, often with the help of the likes of Abe Sapien and Lobster Johnson.

In terms of big screen shenanigans, Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy was released in 2004 and took home just under $100 million worldwide as it won a whole heap of praise from many quarters. The 2008 follow-up, Hellboy: The Golden Army, topped that by taking $160 million from a budget of $85 million. And since that 2008 picture, fans and critics alike have been hoping to finally see the third leg of del Toro and Perlman’s trilogy. As it stands, that now won’t be happening, which is hugely disappointing to hear but, if we’re honest, it’s something we’ve all been expecting. That said, Marshall has proven his salt over the years with efforts such as Dog Soldiers, The Descent, Doomsday and more recently with his work in TV on the likes of Constantine and Westworld. As for Harbour, he’s seen his star rise thanks to his excellent turn in the first season of Netflix’s Stranger Things. It may not be del Toro, it may not be Perlman, but there’s certainly enough talent involved here to make this new take on a beloved hero work.

As ever, expect more on Hellboy: Rise of the Blood Queen as it continues to develop.

Neil Jordan’s upcoming thriller The Widow has moved to bring in one of genre’s hottest rising stars, Maika Monroe.

Via Deadline, Monroe – who has quickly made a name for herself with the likes of The Guest, It Follows and Independence Day: Resurgence – has landed the role of Erica, the protective best friend of Chloe Grace Moretz’s lead, France.

To give you an idea of the film’s plot, Moretz’s role is described as “a young woman who returns an elderly widow’s lost purse, leading to an unlikely relationship between the two – until the young woman discovers her elder might not be all that she seems and that she’s downright dangerous”.

Already on board to join Moretz and Monroe in The Widow is Isabelle Hupert, and the screenplay has been put in place by Ray Wright, best known to genre fans for penning the redo of George A. Romero’s The Crazies.