One of the stars of the show, Garret Dillahunt (Fear the Walking Dead), is portraying William Macon. Per Deadline, he plays “modern cowboy William Macon, a self-righteous, conspiracy-minded man who masks his ruthless ambition behind a charming and calculated facade.”

Nerd Reactor spoke to the actor about his role in the DC show set in the DC Universe.

“I would certainly say I am an antagonistic presence to the Lanterns, but I know that Macon doesn’t think he’s a villain,” Dillahunt said. “He thinks they have similar goals in a lot of ways, but just different ways of going about it. And I think that’s where the tension comes in.”

There have been many fan theories as to his character, with some thinking that he was going to play Green Arrow.

“I kind of like all the fan theories,” the actor explained. “I like that they’re a little confused. I get accused of… or people suspect me of being all kinds of different characters, and I’m excited to… some of them are right, and it’ll be fun to see what happens when they find out who’s right and who’s wrong.”

About Lanterns

Synopsis: Lanterns follows new recruit John Stewart and Lantern legend Hal Jordan, two intergalactic cops drawn into a dark, earth-based mystery with cosmic ties as they investigate a murder in the American heartland.

HBO in association with Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios. The Lanterns pilot is co-written by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King, who are co-creators for the series. Mundy serves as showrunner.

The first two episodes are directed by James Hawes, with Stephen Williams, Geeta Vasant Patel and Alik Sakharov also tapped to direct.

The series is executive produced by Mundy, Lindelof, James Gunn, Peter Safran, King, Ron Schmidt, and Hawes. Based on the DC comic characters from “Green Lantern.”

The post Garret Dillahunt Explains Why His ‘Lanterns’ Character Doesn’t See Himself as a Villain appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

This year, HBO Max stepped it up for its Lanterns Training Headquarters activation, and it’s easily the top activation during this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. This 30-minute experience really made fans feel like they were training to become Green Lanterns. There were different missions and routes, depending on your group number. In my group, we had to blend in with the locals at a local bar, train at the shooting range, and search for the Lantern left by Hal Jordan.

I chatted with a fan who waited 13 hours to participate in the activation. After having done the experience, he said it was worth it. It definitely left an impact thanks to the sets, special effects, and the actors.

Once we had completed two of our missions, we were all given our very own Green Lantern ring. We got to recite the Green Lantern oath. Once we finished the last line, “Beware my power, Green Lantern’s light!” the rings lit up the room with a green hue. I literally got goosebumps.

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Lanterns will debut on HBO and HBO Max on August 16, 2026.

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe is a spin-off series of The Big Bang Theory. Available now on HBO Max, it follows Stuart as he is tasked with stopping a “multiverse Armageddon” due to accidentally damaging the device. Since Stuart is a comic book shop owner, it was fitting to hold the Stuart Fails to Save the Universe activation inside a comic book shop.

The experience includes going through the shop in search of The Device.

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However, the biggest surprise was when Coogler announced that David Jonsson (Alien: Romulus, The Long Walk), who has made him one of Hollywood’s fastest-rising stars, will become the grown-up T’Challa from Wakanda Forever.

Jonsson’s casting also feels like a fitting continuation of what Coogler has built across the first two films. Coogler has consistently elevated remarkable performers and allowed the characters to define the story. Jonsson has steadily earned praise for bringing depth and vulnerability to every role he’s taken on. Thus, it makes him an inspired choice to follow in the footsteps of the late, great Chadwick Boseman.

’However, he’s not going to let the pressure of following Chadwick Boseman get to him. “I actually don’t want to say too much, because I want to let the screen do the talking,” Jonsson said. “But believe me, the honor is entirely mine.”

Black Panther 3 hits theaters on December 15, 2028.

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During Marvel Studios’ Hall H presentation at San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige started the panel with one of its biggest surprises. He confirmed that the studio has officially begun work on a new Ghost Rider film. Feige then welcomed Ryan Gosling and director Shawn Levy to the stage. “You know this is a character that I’ve wanted to play for a very long time. So, Kevin, Josh Horowitz, Hall H, thank you,” said Gosling.

Gosling will play Ghost Rider in what marks the Spirit of Vengeance’s long-awaited debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Levy, who most recently directed Deadpool & Wolverine, is attached to helm the project, while Jonathan Tropper is writing the screenplay.

For a few years now, Gosling has been actively and publicly stating that he would love to play Ghost Rider. Back in 2022, while promoting The Gray Man, he told interviewer Josh Horowitz that if he could choose any Marvel role, Ghost Rider would be the one. Kevin Feige even responded publicly at the time, saying he would love to find a place for Gosling in the MCU. Fast forward a few years, and that conversation has come full circle in the biggest way possible.

In an interview with Rotten Tomatoes at Comic-Con, he said that Ryan pitched an idea and a vision for the film to his Star Wars: Starfighter director, Shawn Levy, and then pitched it to Kevin Feige. Feige loved the idea, and here we are, with Ryan finally landing the role he wanted.

Ghost Rider hits theaters in 2028.

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The trailer leans heavily on providing more information about Victor Von Doom. It’s also clear Marvel is taking inspiration from the Fantastic Four comics by emphasizing that Reed Richards and Sue Storm knew Victor long before he became an armored tyrant. Speaking to the assembled and seemingly defeated force of Avengers, X-Men, and New Avengers, Sue reflects on the man Victor used to be.

“Victor was always the smartest guy in every room,” she says. “He used to be different. He used to be kind, used to be caring. But then everything he loved was taken from him. I knew he was lost, but I did not realize that he was broken.”

As she speaks, the trailer cuts to the haunting image of the mother and child from the official Avengers: Doomsday poster—suggesting that whatever tragedy shaped Victor lies at the heart of everything that’s about to happen.

Next, Reed Richards confronts Doom amid massive destruction, with Thor visible among the devastation. “Victor, did you do this?!” Reed demands while Doom stares hatefully at Reed.

“All of you have lived stolen lives. Now you must give them back,” Doom says.

Reed shouts again, desperate for an answer. Afterward, Doom flies out the window; he glides downward with his cape spreading behind him.

“I swear, you will beg for hell long before I grant it.” Then, a montage also gives us a glimpse of Love, Thor’s daughter, and a shot of Steve with his baby and more dramatic shots of our heroes. Thor attacks him and blocks Stormbreaker with two fingers. He flings Stormbreaker aside and easily blasts Thor away. Doom then uses sorcery to raise an army of Sentinels from the ground. “Hell answers to me,” says Doom.

If this trailer is any indication, Marvel isn’t treating Doom as just the next Avengers villain. They’re presenting him as Marvel Comics’ most powerful and iconic villain. As a comics-accurate villain that Marvel fans have been waiting for.

Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters on December 18th.

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Creative Director Marcus Smith, Game Director Mike Daly, Senior Project Director Jess Reiner-Reed, and Narrative Director Walt Williams appeared alongside Marvel Games Executive Producer Eric Monacelli. Liam McIntyre (Logan) and Krizia Bajos (Jean Grey) were also there to discuss their characters and the relationship forming between them.

The biggest takeaway is that Insomniac is not simply dropping Wolverine into the familiar. There is no Xavier Institute. Mutants are scattered, frightened, and largely forced to survive in hiding.

Logan and Jean Grey’s uneasy reunion

The Story Trailer opens with an enraged Logan confronting Jean Grey, only for the situation to suddenly expose a far more vulnerable side of him. Whatever has happened between these two, Jean appears capable of seeing past the anger, sarcasm, and carefully constructed walls Logan uses to keep everyone at a distance.

Bajos described the two as sharing something close to a cosmic connection. It’s no secret to X-Men fans that Logan has carried feelings for Jean for decades. Although Jean hasn’t reciprocated feelings, Jean still cares deeply for Logan. Jean can see his wounds—presumably not just the ones his healing factor can close—and understands that there is more to him than the violent man standing in front of her.

In Marvel’s Wolverine, Jean has been moving from place to place and gradually discovering that other people like her exist. She wants to give those mutants something she never had: somewhere safe enough to stop running. Jean may be laying the earliest foundation for something that eventually becomes the X-Men, even if nobody in this world has thought of that name yet.

Then she meets Logan, a rugged stranger who does not exactly look like the community-building type, yet seems willing to put himself through hell to protect people he barely knows. 

The Hand enters Wolverine’s world

The Story Trailer also introduces the Hand as one of the game’s major enemy factions. For those unfamiliar with the comics, the Hand is an ancient, demon-worshipping order of assassins that serves a supernatural entity known as the Beast.

Although the organization is traditionally more closely associated with Daredevil and Elektra, their reach extends throughout the Marvel Universe. Of course, Wolverine has crossed blades with them many times—especially their leader.

Lady Deathstrike is leading the Hand

Insomniac’s largest change to the Hand may be the identity of its leader. Jess Reiner-Reed confirmed that Lady Deathstrike commands the organization in Marvel’s Wolverine and will be one of Logan’s most dangerous enemies.

Lady Deathstrike is one of Wolverine’s most personal recurring foes. Her father, Lord Dark Wind, developed the process that allowed adamantium to be bonded to bone. His stolen research eventually reached the Weapon X program, where it was used to coat Logan’s skeleton. Believing Wolverine’s body represented the theft and corruption of her father’s legacy, Yuriko transformed herself into a cyborg with long adamantium claws. She dedicated much of her life to hunting him.

She has worked with the Reavers and other anti-mutant forces in the comics, but she is not traditionally the Hand’s supreme leader. That is an Earth-1048 invention, and honestly, it makes a strange amount of sense. Deathstrike already has the design, discipline, Japanese background, and obsessive hatred required to stand at the center of an army of supernatural assassins.

The Hand also gives Insomniac a natural path to Japan. Japan is not just another stop on Wolverine’s worldwide journey. It’s a foundational part of his comic history. Some of his most important stories involve the Yashida family, his love for Mariko Yashida, his friendship with Yukio, his rivalry with Silver Samurai, and his struggle to live by a code of honor that does not always agree with his instincts. Chris Claremont and Frank Miller’s original Wolverine miniseries from 1982 is the defining Wolverine storyline—presenting Logan as more than an animalistic berserker with claws.

Whether any of those characters appear remains unknown. Still, sending Logan to Japan while placing Lady Deathstrike and the Hand directly in his path feels very intentional.

Trask Industries is hunting mutants

The other major threat comes from Trask Industries and its billionaire owner, Bolivar Trask. Unlimited wealth combined with an uncompromising worldview can cause enormous damage, and Trask has both. He views mutants as an existential threat and is using his resources to remove them from the world.

In the comics, Bolivar Trask becomes the creator of the Sentinels. His fear of mutantkind leads him to build machines he believes will protect humanity, only for those machines to repeatedly decide that the easiest way to protect humans is to control or eliminate everyone who might produce mutants in the future.

The game has not abandoned that anti-mutant ideology, but Trask’s immediate weapon appears to be the Reavers rather than an army of Sentinels.

Insomniac describes the Reavers as a cybernetic militia operating as guns for hire. They capture mutants and deliver them to Trask. Similar to Lady Deathstrike and The Hand, the Reavers are established comic villains who don’t normally work for Trask. They began as cybernetic mercenaries and were later reorganized by Donald Pierce, a mutant-hating cyborg associated with the Hellfire Club.

Insomniac is effectively combining several different branches of anti-mutant hatred into one ecosystem. Trask supplies the money and ideology. The Reavers provide the technology and manpower. Deathstrike and the Hand bring something older, darker, and far more personal.

There are no X-Men—at least not yet

Eric Monacelli confirmed that the X-Men do not currently exist in this version of Earth-1048, the same universe used for Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man games. In this world, Logan is not a member of the X-Men. There is no Professor Xavier available to explain mutant politics, unlock a hidden memory, or point him toward the next mission. The people in this world are still figuring out what mutantkind is and whether it can survive long enough to form any kind of community.

Nathaniel Essex and Team X

The closest thing the game has to an organized mutant team is Team X.

In Insomniac’s continuity, Team X was created during the 1960s by Nathaniel Essex as a special-operations unit meant to combat the threat posed by Bolivar Trask. Logan left the group three years before the events of the game, apparently under ugly circumstances. Essex felt abandoned by his departure, and Logan’s return is not exactly being treated as a happy reunion.

Anyone who reads X-Men comics should recognize Nathaniel Essex as the real name of Mister Sinister. Sinister is an immortal geneticist with a sick obsession to the studying, manipulating, cloning, and improvement of mutant bloodlines. Sinister has a particularly disturbing fixation on Jean Grey and the Summers family, even creating Jean’s clone Madelyne Pryor as part of his experiments.

Making him the founder of a mutant team is new, but it fits his personality in the worst possible way. Essex rarely helps mutants out of compassion. He collects them, studies them, alters them, and treats their lives like pieces in an experiment only he understands.

The comic version of Team X is different as well. There, they’re a covert unit with a connection to the Weapon X and Weapon Plus programs. Its roster has included Wolverine, Sabretooth, Maverick, John Wraith, Mastodon, and Silver Fox. Their memories were repeatedly manipulated, leaving the team unsure which missions, relationships, and betrayals actually happened.

Insomniac appears to be borrowing that paranoia while changing who brought the team together and why. In Marvel’s Wolverine, the Team X roster is Wolverine, Sabertooth, Mystique, and Sunfire.

Insomniac wants players to feel like Wolverine

Mike Daly said Insomniac set out to create its version of the Wolverine players already understand: cynical, candid, emotionally guarded, and far more compassionate than he wants anyone to notice.

That meant treating his abilities as more than a list of combat mechanics.

Of course, claws naturally sit at the center of the action. However, his healing factor, heightened senses, berserker rage, and adamantium skeleton also influence how he moves through a fight. Logan can track enemies, detect incoming danger, absorb punishment, and push forward with a physical weight that separates him from Insomniac’s much lighter and more acrobatic Spider-Men. 

Adamantium does not simply make Logan difficult to kill; it makes him extraordinarily heavy. Every leap, tackle, and claw strike should feel like it is coming from someone carrying hundreds of pounds of nearly indestructible metal inside his body.

Then there are the missing memories.

Memory loss has followed Wolverine through most of his history. The Weapon X program subjected him to experiments, mental conditioning, and false memory implants until even Logan could no longer separate his real past from the lives other people manufactured for him.

The game is not an origin story, but players will peel back the layers of Logan’s history and discover what happened during his years with Team X. That gives Insomniac a fresh way to explore different periods of his life without reducing the entire plot to another retelling of his story.

Wolverine crosses over with MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls

The panel also revealed a collaboration between Marvel’s Wolverine and MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls.

Wolverine’s stylized Tōkon costume will be unlockable through normal progression in Marvel’s Wolverine beginning on launch day. In return, the Battle Reborn suit designed for Insomniac’s game will arrive in MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls as a free costume for all players on September 1.

A Wolverine prequel comic is available now

Insomniac also released an official digital prequel comic for Marvel’s Wolverine during SDCC.

Written by Narrative Director Walt Williams, with artwork by Luke Ross and a cover by Iban Coello, the comic takes place before the main game. It explores Logan’s difficult relationship with the other members of Team X during a mission to protect mutantkind.

Physical copies are being distributed at SDCC while supplies last, but the comic can also be read digitally through Marvel Unlimited.

Marvel’s Wolverine launches exclusively for PlayStation 5 on September 15th.

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For those attending San Diego Comic-Con, here’s your chance to experience the ultimate Transformers concert. Hasbro and Reigning Phoenix Music will host the music event, which will take place on Thursday, July 23, at House of Blues San Diego.

The concert will feature The Transformers: The Movie – The Soundtrack – The Reformatted Edition and will be performed live by Knights of Unicron. Stan Bush will be performing “The Touch.” Original composer Vince DiCola will also perform, along with Cold Slither and Britta Phillips (original singing voice of Jem from Jem and the Holograms). More guest announcements to come.

Tickets and VIP Packages are available for purchase at https://www.universe.com/events/the-transformers-the-movie-40th-anniversary-celebration-of-life-concert-tickets-VND0R2.

“I’m thrilled to be part of THE TRANSFORMERS: THE MOVIE 40th Anniversary Celebration of Life Concert and to celebrate this incredible film with the fans who have kept its spirit alive for four decades,” said Stan Bush in a statement. “It means so much to me that the music, especially ‘The Touch,’ still connects with people in such a powerful way. This anniversary is a tribute to the lasting impact of the movie, the memories it created, and the amazing TRANSFORMERS community that has embraced these songs for 40 years.”

Additionally, Hasbro will have Transformers exclusives at the convention, including the Transformers Optimus Prime & Autobot Jazz Cereal Box Set and Transformers Jem and the Holograms Autobot Blaster & KP GLIT, KP Sundor, and KP Rosanna.

The Transformers: The Movie 40th Anniversary Concert

Date: Thursday, July 23, 2026
Time: Doors at 7 PM | Show at 8 PM
Venue: House of Blues, 1055 5th Ave, San Diego, CA 92101
General admission – $50.00 plus service charges
VIP packages – $100.00 plus service charges
Merch: Exclusive show merch will be available day of

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One of the projects Lazlow and Houser are working on together is American Caper, an upcoming comic book series by Absurd Ventures and Dark Horse Comics. This marks the first appearance of a new crime-fiction drama by the duo.

“Making video games is really hard,” Lazlow tells Nerd Reactor. “Making comic books is really, really hard as well. It’s a completely different kind of storytelling. When Dan and I started Absurd Ventures, we wanted to work on some new open-world games and do adult comedy animation. Dan and I are both fans of comic books. So, he came up with this idea of this sprawling crime caper set in Wyoming. Which is a place that we’ve never set any of our stories in.”

They reached out to comic book editor Shelly Bond, who helped with bringing in artists like David Lapham (Cross, Stray Bullets), with Chris Anderson on finishes, and Lee Loughridge on colors.

“When Dan came up with these characters, he did the first pass on the script, and then I took it and edited it and get together with them,” Lazlow said. “I’m like, ‘I think we should add some scenes with this character and add this dialogue.’ And then we collaborate with the editor and the artists, and they throw in their ideas.

“I had this idea with comics that someone would just write a script and hand it to the artist, but it’s very much a back-and-forth collaborative effort. It’s a lot of work, but it’s fun. I grew up every Wednesday going to the comic book shop and blowing any money that I had from taking out the trash and mowing the lawn. And to actually be working on a comic with this gang, it’s amazing.”

Houser and Lazlow have been working together for decades, and their working relationship is still the same after all these years.

“It’s exactly the same,” the writer explained. “Dan comes up with the characters. He’s responsible for all those iconic characters that you remember from GTA 3, 4, San Andreas, Red Dead, Bully, and… So he comes up with the characters and the storyline and then we collaborate and we send the scripts back and forth to each other And I add stuff and send it to him and he adds stuff.

“But you know, a lot of our process is I’ll come up with an idea at 11 o’clock at night and text him. And he does the same thing. I have to cut and paste all the text threads and email them to myself and put them in the scripts because whenever an idea pops into his head, he’ll just shoot me a quick email or a text or give me a call. We’ve been creative partners now since 2001, and it was exciting to start Absurd Ventures with him and be making new stuff.”

Expect the same for American Caper with the comedic satire and violence that people know from the games.

About American Caper

Synopsis: Verona, Wyoming. A small town like any other. A land of hunter and hunted. Apex predators… and regulations just waiting to be broken. Culture has become a war, everyone has everything they need yet are miserable, and American life is still dominated by real estate, violence and snake oil. From the tax-avoiders in the manicured wilderness of Wyoming, to the thought police of Brooklyn, to the confused political battlegrounds of Florida, one thing is certain: This tragedy is someone else’s fault.

American Caper issue #1 debuts on November 12, 2025.

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In the third season, we have two Nathans, and it was revealed at the end of the season that one of the Nathans was killed.

“A little sillier, a little more aloof,” Amell said about playing two versions of Nathan during a roundtable interview at SDCC. “It was really more than anything, like, ‘Okay, how can I separate these guys a little bit?’ And it was like, ‘Alright, the one who’s with Nora has been through a lot and is kind of in a pretty serious place. And the one who’s getting rebooted is just kind of like, happier, a little dumber.’

Amell does tease what’s in store for the final season.

“As far as the new season, without giving you any spoilers, it’s like, everybody gets their moment, which is so awesome,” he added. “And I mean, a lot of that is knowing that it was the final season, and Greg and Maxwell and the rest of the writers, really giving everybody their shot and giving them all their time. Even though we only have four episodes, they’re very big episodes. They are very fast. They’re kind of nonstop and we pack a ton into them and it’s like a two and a half hour movie to end the show.”

The fourth and final season of Upload premieres on August 25, 2025, on Prime Video.

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Higuchi was present to promote the upcoming 4K remaster of Shin Godzilla, which will stomp into North American theaters on August 14, 2025.

“It’s hard to believe that ten years have passed,” the director said during the panel. “When we were filming, it was more than ten years ago. We did spend a lot of money cleaning it up in 4K, so it’s like it’s fresh, but I do think it is still very relevant. So hopefully you guys who didn’t have the opportunity to go ten years ago can go see it in theaters.”

IDW Publishing stole the spotlight with exciting reveals about their expanding Godzilla comic universe. Editor Jake Williams announced the upcoming Godzilla x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 crossover series. Fans were also treated to previews of Starship Godzilla by Chris Gooch and Oliver Ono, and Godzilla: Escape the DeadZone by Ethan Parker, Griffin Sheridan, and Pablo Tunica, both explore a shared universe. The panel showcased new art and teased plot twists that promise to expand Godzilla’s mythos in bold, new creative ways.

Beyond comics, the panel highlighted an array of exclusive merchandise and fan experiences. This included Super7’s pop-up shop at their Gaslamp store with movie props, cosplayers, and exclusive items like the Toho ULTIMATES! Godzilla: Minus One figure and a Toho Kaiju Response Team T-shirt.

Mondo offered daily exclusives, including a Godzilla and Hedorah Soft Vinyl Figure Set and a Godzilla #1 poster of Herbe Trimpe’s classic 1977 Marvel cover.

The panel capped off with a surprise appearance by O’Shea Jackson Jr., star of 2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters. He emerged from behind the curtain just as the moderator opened the floor for questions. The actor shared that his favorite Godzilla film was the 2019 flick he starred in because he did not die in the movie.

When Jackson Jr. asked the panelists about their favorite Godzilla movies, Shinji Higuchi cited the 1973 cult classic, Godzilla vs. Megalon, while others mentioned Shin Godzilla, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, and even the Matthew Broderick 1998 Godzilla.

Jackson’s unexpected appearance and how he constantly brought up the fact that his character is not dead have many fans speculating that he may be involved in the next Legendary Godzilla project.

The panel concluded with Mondo giving away unreleased figures to fans who answered Godzilla trivia questions.

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