Warner Bros. was the movie panel to be at for Comic Con this year, turning out major stars for major franchise films such as Ready Player One, Blade Runner 2049, Aquaman and all of the Justice League. Taking the stage were huge names like Steven Spielberg, Tye Sheridan, Ben Mendelsohn, Denis Villenueve, Harrison Ford, Ryan Gosling, Ben Affleck, Jason Momoa, and Gal Gadot, among several others. Previews were afforded for all four movies, including the first full trailer for Justice League. Our reporter on site caught all the action. Read below to get to inside scoop into Warner Bros’ most anticipated films of the year.
– Panel opened with a montage of scenes from many of the most famous Warner Bros. released titles: Lord of the Rings, King Kong, DC Cinematic Universe and more. Crowd cheered loudly for almost every clip.
– First segment was entirely devoted to Ready Player One. Opened with Chris Hardwick interviewing writer Ernest Cline and Steven Spielberg.
– Spielberg said of putting the movie together, “I had no idea how I was going to get any of you there, but Ernie was the guy and the guidebook.”
– First teaser of footage for Ready Player One showed the main character (likely Parzival but not named here) speaking of the world of 2045. He mentions, “There’s no place left to go,” and “They called us the missing millions.” Footage shows numerous characters and scenes across chaotic landscapes and chase scenes. Featured in the midst of the footage is The Iron Giant and a DeLorean (just a couple of the many 80s pop culture references that are sure to grace the film).
– Actors Tye Sheridan, TJ Miller, Zak Penn and Ben Mendelsohn are brought out for questions.
– TJ Miller is dressed in an Elliott hoodie,an E.T. t-shirt, and is wearing Back to the Future style shoes.
– Mendelsohn says, “If you turn up to work and Steven Spielberg is your boss, everything else is gravy.”
– Cline states later, “I feel like Arthur C Clarke, but I was standing on the shoulders of giants like William Gibson.”
– Steven Spielberg says of the inclusion of the DeLorean and The Iron Giant, “The Iron Giant is a real major player in this story.”
– Blade Runner 2049 was next.
– 3 of the 4 walls showed a timeline chronicling the events between the first and second Blade Runner movies.
– Denis Villeneuve, Harrison Ford, Ryan Gosling, Ana de Armas and Lenny James on stage for this one.
– Villeneuve said of why he chose to do this project, “I didn’t want someone else to fuck it up. The movie was there. I couldn’t say no.”
– Gosling humorously pointed out of being in this movie, “It’s like being on a football team with the Avengers.”
– DC Films came next.
– Jason Momoa entered the hall through the back by the crowd’s main entrance running to the stage with a trident in hand while Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” played. He introduced the first small segment of footage.
– The footage featured two fisherman on a boat. One line catches and they’re pulled a short ways before they realize there is an undersea armada beneath them. The camera pans underwater to show hundreds of sea creatures ridden by men.
– Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Ben Affleck and Ray Fisher (but no Henry Cavill) are all brought out next.
– The first Justice League trailer is played and teases Superman’s return at the end. See the trailer here.
– Ben Affleck reveals that he is excited to begin work on the Matt Reeves-directed Batman stand-alone film. Read our article about Affleck’s currently precarious status in the DCEU franchise.