Avatar:

Sigourney Weaver dropped a few more hints about Avatar, the 2009 James Cameron movie she's starring in. Her character, Dr. Grace Augustine, isn't too much like Ripley, her character from the Alien movies. Grace would have wanted a normal life, but chose to devote herself to science. She "has an avatar," and is "very involved" in the movie's plot, including action sequences. In fact, says Weaver, "I would say her real life is as an avatar." (It's not clear what Weaver means, but in an earlier treatments of the movie that's been circulating for years and is believed to be genuine, humans use "avatars," alien-human hybrid bodies, to move around on the surface of the planet Pandora.) Weaver also says Grace is a leader. "Someone who gets the job done. Someone very very driven and smart and yet funny." She modeled the character after Cameron himself. [MTV Movies]

Greatest American Hero:

An informed source spilled details on the Greatest American Hero remake now in development. This version of Ralph Hinkley is the most popular teacher at his school, who connects really well with his students. And he doesn't just fly, he also bursts into flames like the Human Torch — which first happens at the worst possible moment, during a school Open Night in the first half of the film. Also, one of Hinkley's students is Josh, the son of his love-interest Pam. And during one scene, Ralph is talking to Pam, and suddenly has uncontrollable itching on the back of his neck, and has to make a mad dash for the boys' room, where he freaks out about the changes he's going through. The movie also includes a bumbling-but-pompous teacher, Harve Lundy, who has his desk on a pedestal overlooking all his students. [Moviehole]

Star Trek:

At a Star Trek convention this past weekend, Zachary "Spock" Quinto hinted that he does have some scenes with the older Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and with Spock's parents (Winona Ryder and Ben Cross), as we'd pretty much expected. [Trek Movie]

Faran Tahir (who plays the terrorist Raza in Iron Man) also plays Captain Rabu in the new Star Trek movie. He's a new character to Trek, and all Tahir can tell us is his character is the captain of a ship that we've never seen before, and is "one of the good guys." [The Deadbolt]

Iron Man:

That cameo by Samuel L. Jackson as one-eyed, cigar-chomping superspy Nick Fury? Definitely not in the movie. We think. [Starpulse]

Dragonball:

Dragonball producer Tim Van Rellim says our hero Goku dies at the end of the first movie, or the beginning of the second. And Goku's death sets up the storyline of the second film, which they're hoping to start shooting by early next year. [Dragon Ball Movie Blog]

Battlestar Galactica:

Here are some higher res versions of those promo photos we already showed you, from next week's episode. It certainly looks as though some of these pictures take place at Cally's funeral. And President Roslin has a wig: Someone claims to have seen the next four Battlestar Galactica episodes, and offers a ton of spoilers. Grain of salt required, as always. Tyrol "doesn't suspect" Tory of involvement in Cally's death. (Does that mean Tory is involved, and it's not just suicide?) Tyrol feels guilty, but also decides he never really loved Cally because she was too whiny. It also sounds as though Cally, before she dies, admits to Doc Cottle that it's weird that she "basically proposed" to Tyrol after he beat her up.

Baltar's one-god cult grows, and he has a "Jesus overthrowing the money lenders" moment. Tigh gets Six and his dead wife Ellen mixed up. In a mutiny, Sam shoots Felix Gaeta in the leg, and it may have to be amputated. Also, a Six and an Eight die. And so does Seelix. (Noooo!)

Also, Kara keeps getting lost on the way back to Earth, which annoys her crew more and more. And then she picks up a "hitchhiker" — Leoben, who's in a tough scrape after a battle with the other faction of Cylons. Leoben's ship's hybrid tells Starbuck that Three will lead the humans to the Five, who came from the Thirteen (i.e. the thirteenth colony, Earth?). And the Hybrid says Starbuck will lead everyone to their death. [Television Without Pity]

Love Story 2050:

Love Story 2050, the Bollywood time-travel romance that we're all dying to see, takes place in the present for the first half. It's only in the second half that we visit the future, says director Harry Bajewa. [DNA India]

Lost:

The twelfth episode of the current Lost season, "There's No Place Like Home," is rumored to revolve around Claire. And the show is currently filming a funeral which takes place in the future, probably from that episode. At the funeral, Hurley, Sayid and (probably) Jack are there. The funeral appears to be for a "staid older gentleman" — probably Christian Shephard, Jack's dad/boss. Hurley is with a young woman (maybe his old crush Starla) and she's carrying a baby (Aaron?). It looks as though Sayid is with his old flame Nadia, who's not dead yet in this timeframe. (Sayid attends Nadia's funeral in episode nine.) Here are a couple of photos. [Spoilers Lost]
The next episode, April 24, features an "amazing death sequence," which may be related to the return of the smoke monster. Also, the upcoming Claire storyline may be related to actress Emilie de Ravin's new contract. [Ausiello Report]

Stargate: Atlantis:

In the eighth episode of Stargate: Atlantis season five, "Tracker," Ronon, McKay and Keller visit a world where the Wraith have recently arrived. The Wraith turn out to be pursuing a "Runner," a warrior tagged with a homing device so the Wraith can hunt him/her for sport. The Runner, named Kiryk, takes Keller prisoner and leads her to a 10-year-old girl who needs medical attention. Kiryk is surprised to hear that Ronon used to be a Runner, but isn't one any more. Meanwhile, Ronon and McKay have to evacuate a village into nearby caves, with the help of a man named Erran. [Gateworld]

Smallville:

In the 150th episode of Smallville, airing May 1, Kara sends Clark a message from Krypton in the past, warning that Brainiac wants to kill Clark as a baby, so the grown-up (sort of) Clark won't foil his plans in the present. Clark is torn, because he thinks maybe the world would be a better place if he hadn't been there. So his dad, Jor-El, arranges for him to see what life would be like without him: Lex is President of the U.S., Kara was raised by the Luthors, Jonathan Kent is alive, Lana is happily married, and Chloe and Lois are reporters. [KryptonSite]

Doctor Who:

Next year's Doctor Who specials may include a story featuring Winston Churchill and the Daleks. [Doctor Who Forum]

The following quotes appear in this Saturday's Doctor Who episode "Planet of the Ood," except that instead of annoying asterisks, they have actual words:
"Do you like milk and sugar?"
"The ****** must be broken, so that we can ****."
"Very observant, ginger."
"I think your **** must *** soon. Every **** must ***."
"We don't just ***** the Ood, we make them ******."
"That thing about the bees is odd." [Planet Gallifrey]

Sky High (Disney). Comic books already gave us a high-school for superheroes (P.S. 238), but did it have Kurt Russell as a famous superhero and father to the next generation of heroes? I didn't think so. Plus Lynda Carter is the school's principal. The business about the school separating kids into Heroes and Sidekicks is a bit too comic book-y, in some ways. But it's a cute romp, despite the fact that the main character's superpowers suddenly manifest themselves at the most convenient moment.

Meteor Man (Not Disney). we already assassinated this one recently. I loved Robert Townsend's Hollywood Shuffle, and really wanted this movie to be amazing. It actually had its good moments, but dissolved into incoherence and luke-warm gags. Townsend plays Jefferson Reed, a school teacher who finds a piece of meteorite that gives him superpowers, and uses it to confront gangs in his inner-city neighborhood.

The Incredibles (Disney/Pixar). Yes, I know you're going to say this movie is a rip-off of the Fantastic Four. But it's actually just different enough to have its own identity — nobody would confuse Mr. Incredible's big-lunk persona with Mr. Fantastic's brainy gumby schtick. And this is a textbook case for why superhero movies can be better without a direct comic-book source. The Pixar crew are free to create their own backstory for the Incredibles, including an anti-hero law and a special superhero tailor. it doesn't have to try and shoehorn in Doctor Doom, the Negative Zone, or any of the other trappings of the FF.

Darkman (Not Disney). Supposedly Sam Raimi wanted to do a movie starring Batman or The Shadow, but couldn't get the rights. So instead he created his own hero, a scientist who gets disfigured in an attack by mobsters, then gains the ability to disguise himself as anyone thanks to a new synthetic skin. An incredible cast, including Liam Neeson and Frances McDormand, helps elevate this movie above the usual superhero fare, and it's easily as good as Raimi's first two Spider-Man movies. (And much, much better than the third one.)

Unbreakable (Disney's Touchstone Pictures). I harshed on M. Night Shyamalan yesterday, but this one actually isn't bad. It's sort of a meditation on how a comic-book villain (Samuel L. Jackson, with his wackiest hair yet) actually creates his own superhero (Bruce Willis). Given that many movies and comics now revolve around the idea of superheroes like Batman creating villains like the Joker, it's refreshing to see it the other way around.

Underdog (Disney). A movie based on the 1970s cartoon series about a superpowered dog who comes here to save the day. A failed police dog gets experimented on, and develops amazing superpowers. Then he gets adopted and renamed Shoeshine, but secretly sneaks out to fight crime on the side.

Greatest American Hero (Disney). Another movie based on a TV show, this time the live-action show about a schoolteacher (again) who finds a costume that gives him amazing powers — but he doesn't have the instruction manual for how to use them. Luckily, he does have a cranky FBI agent snarking at him. Why is that lucky? Actually, I'm not sure. The movie starts filming in July, and it features a new villain, another schoolteacher who gets his own superpowered costume from aliens who want to exploit the Earth.

The Green Hornet (Not Disney). Originally a radio serial about a Batman-esque rich guy who runs a crusading newspaper and fights crime at night in a mask, with his Korean chauffeur Kato, the Green Hornet became a series of movies in the 1940s. And in the 1960s, it was a short-lived TV series that included Bruce Lee as Kato. And now it's going to be a movie again, supposedly starring Seth (Knocked Up) Rogen. Somehow Rogen beat out George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg for the lead role (or, more likely, they turned it down.) I'm imagining with Rogen in the lead role, it's not going to be a dead serious rendering of the Hornet's story.

Blankman (Not Disney). Another blaxploitation superhero spoof, this time starring Damon Wayans as a genius inventor who learns to make clothes bulletproof and becomes the lowest-budget superhero ever, Blankman. David Allen Grier stars as the friend, who's skeptical but winds up becoming Blankman's sidekick, Other Guy.

Black Scorpion (Not Disney). On the heels of Tim Burton's slightly less campy reinvention of Batman, Roger Corman decided to bring back the camp with Black Scorpion, his story of a policewoman (Joan Severance) who can't find justice. So she straps on a shiny black rubber bustier and a black fetishy mask and prowls the streets in her high-powered car. The original film includes a character named Tender Lovin', which is really all you need to know. (Actually the Corman connection might be all you need to know.) The film earned a sequel, Black Scorpion II: Aftershock, and a short-lived TV series on, wait for it... the Sci Fi Channel. Slogan: Justice has a nasty sting.

The Specials (Not Disney). I actually meant to include this one originally, but couldn't remember the title and had a hard time finding it online. Thanks to Whitworthian for reminding me of its name. The Specials deals with a group of misfit third-string superheroes on their day off, leading their dysfunctional lives and horrifying their newest member, Nightbird. One of the few superhero comedies that doesn't go for the super-broad humor and stereotypes, unlike...

My Super Ex-Girlfriend (Not Disney). I forgot to include this one originally, maybe just because I was repressing it. I did blog about it a while ago. Luke Wilson dumps Uma Thurman's superhero, G-Girl, and she goes on a vengeful rampage. So he sells her out to a supervillain, Professor Bedlam, and nearly destroys the world in the process. Blah.

Orgazmo (Definitely Not Disney). Another classic I somehow overlooked, even though it's one of my favorite movies. (Thanks, tralu!) Orgazmo is a porno superhero whose schtick is that he can cause people to climax with his raygun. But when he decides to fight back against his sleazy producer, he discovers he can wield the power of Orgazmo for real.

In the movie version, just like on TV, Ralph Hinkley is a high-school history teacher chosen by aliens to defend humanity and wear a super-suit. But he loses the suit's instructions and flies around crashing into things. The movie also includes cranky FBI agent Bill Maxwell, a major supporting cast member in the TV version. The movie adds a villain, Harvey Lundy, who's another schoolteacher chosen by evil aliens to help them strip-mine the planet. Lundy and Hinkley wind up having a super-powered duel to the death. The movie also adds a love interest for Hinkley.

I rented the DVDs of the TV show a couple of years ago, and wound up bringing them back early, because the watching-water-boil storylines were so hard to sit through. But adding a supervillain, backed by his own set of aliens with their own agenda, gives the movie at least some potential to rise from awful to watchable. Maybe. [MovieWeb]