Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was the big winner at the 51st Annie Awards that took place at UCLA’s Royce Hall. The Sony animated sequel won Best Feature and six other awards making it the big winner of the night. This is the same number of awards that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse won back in 2019 and makes the sequel the front runner for the Animated Feature Oscar next month as seven of the last eleven winner of the Annie went on to win the Oscar. The film also won for Directing, Music, Production Design, Character Design, FX and editing. Netflix’s Nimona won two awards for Writing and Voice Acting for Chloë Grace Moretz, and The Boy and the Heron won Best Storyboarding for its director Hayao Miyazaki and for Character Animation. These two plus Robot Dreams which won Best Feature – Independent will be going up against Across the Spider-Verse for the Academy Award. In a surprise, for the first time in 32 years there was no Disney nor Pixar film nominated for the top prize and the film Elemental went home without a single trophy. 

With Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee returning to the character of Hush in the current Batman comics, it’s a good reminder of what makes the character unique among the Dark Knight’s rogues and why he would make an excellent villain in Matt Reeves’ noir-inspired film series. Reeves has already teased Hush in The Batman—the word "HUSH" appears in one of Riddler’s broadcasts, and the Elliot family is subtly referenced in The Penguin series. T Thomas Elliot was a childhood friend of Bruce who grew to resent him. His jealousy and obsession with destroying Bruce could add a deeply personal layer to the story, something else Reeves seems to like doing in his stories. Plus, Reeves’ Gotham thrives on psychological tension. Hush, a master manipulator and surgeon, could orchestrate a mind-bending mystery, using deception and using other villains to dismantle Bruce’s life. With Gotham’s elite already exposed as corrupt, Hush could exploit this chaos, positioning himself as a puppet master behind the scenes. Given Reeves’ love for detective-driven storytelling, Hush could be a perfect fit for a slow-burn, psychological thriller and keep with the ground realism that was established in the first film. 

The upcoming Max series Lanterns has quietly been building quite a cast with the recent announcement that Paul Ben-Victor has now joined the show. The eight-episode series comes from Chris Mundy, Damon Linedelof and Tom King, all of whom have strong background for this kind of series. As for the premise, the show follows Hal Jordan (played by Kyle Chandler) and John Stewart (played by Aaron Pierre), two Green Lanterns investigating a dark, Earth-based mystery centered around a murder in the American heartland. It’s being described as a thriller with a True Detective-style mystery, blending cosmic elements with grounded storytelling. Other cast members include Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Poorna Jagannathan, Sherman Augustus, Jason Ritter, and Ulrich Thomsen, who will play the iconic villain Sinestro. Ben-Victor has been cast as Antaan, an extraterrestrial with a deep hatred for the law. Some speculate that he may actually be Atrocitus, the leader of the Red Lantern Corps. If that is true, that would be filling out the Green Lantern mythos very quickly, bringing into two other lantern corps and two major villains in just an eight-episode series. The show is expected to premiere early 2026. 

In his upcoming memoir, Jeremy Renner goes into great details about the “tiny but monumental slip of the mind” that lead to his life changing accident on New Year’s Day 2023. In an excerpt published in the Time of London, the Hawkeye actor wrote: “’Before exiting the driver’s cab! — Apply parking brake,’ the manual says. But I didn’t engage the parking brake, or disengage the steel tracks. In that moment — an innocent, critical, life-changing moment — that tiny but monumental slip of the mind would change the course of my life forever. My feet lost their grip on the moving tracks, and I never made it to the cab. I lurched violently forward, out of control. In that split second, I was catapulted off the spinning metal tracks, arms flailing. I arced over the front of the tracks, propelled forward, down on to the hard-packed ice, where my head hit the ground hard and instantly gashed open. There came terrible crunching sounds as 14,000lb of galvanized steel machinery slowly, inexorably, monotonously, ground over my body. It was a horrifying soundtrack.” The result of the accident left Renner with more than 38 broken bones in his body and a long road to recovery. But he has now returned to acting having completed a third season of Mayor Of Kingstown and the next Knives Out movie, Wake Up Dead Man. And not to potentially spoil anything, but the first two Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) films did end up having an actor from Marvel phase one films as the killers… so he might be very important to the plot. 

Julia Garner said that she was initially confused about her casting in Fantastic Four: First Steps because she was offered the role of Silver Surfer, a character she knew was traditionally depicted as male. When she met with director Matt Shakman, someone she really wanted to work with, she was surprised to learn that she would be playing Shalla-Bal, the immortal empress of Zenn-La and the lover of Norrin Radd (the original Silver Surfer). Garner explained that her character carries an air of mystery, making audiences question whether she is truly loyal to Galactus, whom she serves as a herald, or if she has her own agenda. She described the role as unlike anything she has ever played, emphasizing the ambiguity surrounding Shalla-Bal’s motives. When asked if she would be interested in doing a Silver Surfer solo film, she said she would “love to do that”. Garner noted that she enjoys branching out into different genres and was excited to reach a new audience through Marvel. 

Marvel Comics and Marvel Studios are teaming for Fantastic Four: First Steps #1, a special one-shot comic that retells the Fantastic Four’s first adventure, making it the first-ever canon MCU comic tied directly to an upcoming Fantastic Four movie. Written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Mark Buckingham, this comic is an official dramatization authorized by the Future Foundation, celebrating the fourth anniversary of the Fantastic Four’s public debut. The creators worked closely with the film’s production team to ensure the comic aligns with the movie’s world and tone. The comic will hit shelves on July 2, 2025, and aims to bring a fresh perspective to the team’s origin story. This release is part of a larger celebration of the Fantastic Four, including their expanded presence in Disneyland’s Tomorrowland. 

Warner Bros. Discovery has won the recent Superman lawsuit due to a jurisdictional ruling. The estate of Joseph Shuster, co-creator of Superman, filed a lawsuit claiming that Warner Bros. Discovery and DC Comics had lost their international rights to Superman in countries like Canada, the UK, Ireland, and Australia. The lawsuit sought damages and an injunction to block the release of the upcoming Superman film in those regions. However, U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman dismissed the case on April 24, 2025, stating that the court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction. Since the infringement claims were based on foreign copyright laws rather than U.S. law, the judge ruled that the case could not be heard in an American federal court. This decision cleared the way for the global release of James Gunn’s Superman film, scheduled to premiere on July 11, 2025. The ruling did not address the actual merits of the case, meaning the estate could potentially file another lawsuit in a different court. Warner Bros. Discovery expressed satisfaction with the decision, reaffirming that DC Comics controls all rights to Superman. 

Today Skybound and Image Comics, in collaboration with leading games, IP and toy company Hasbro, revealed interior pages and the lineup of variant covers for G.I. JOE #7. This all-new story arc will feature the superstar creative team of writer Joshua Williamson (Duke, Cobra Commander), artist Andrea Milana (Cobra Commander), colorist Lee Loughridge (Universal Monsters: The Mummy), and letterer Rus Wooton (Fire Power). The next chapter of the comic book introducing a bold new vision of G.I. Joe and Cobra to the Energon Universe will hit comic books shops on May 21, 2025.

Kicking off the second story arc of the new G.I. JOE epic, G.I. JOE #7 is a standalone Night Force covert op that features the first appearance of the iconic Beach Head! But is this really his last Mission?!

“Beach Head is one of the most beloved G.I. JOE characters and it’s exciting to finally debut him alongside the return of the mysterious Night Force,” noted executive editor Ben Abernathy. “He’s just the tip of the iceberg for what’s to come in the issue and the larger arc, though, and best of all is having Andrea and Lee back again in the Energon Universe!”

In addition to the main cover by Tom Reilly, G.I. JOE #7 will feature an open-to-order variant cover by Kael Ngu, the kickoff of a new 1:10 incentive connecting cover series by Alan Quah, a 1:25 incentive variant by Jeff Spokes, a 1:50 incentive variant by Homare, a 1:100 incentive variant by Derrick Chew, a blank sketch cover, and a die cut mask cover by Andrea Milana.

G.I. JOE is a tentpole of the Energon Universe, the crown jewel of the historic collaboration between Hasbro and Skybound, who has introduced a brand-new era of the TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE franchises in one shared comic book universe. Other Energon Universe titles include the ongoing series Void Rivals by writer Robert Kirkman (Invincible, The Walking Dead), artist Lorenzo De Felici (Kroma), and colorist Patricio Delpeche (The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country) and the two-time Eisner Award winning TRANSFORMERS by writer Daniel Warren Johnson (Extremity, Do a Powerbomb), artist Jorge Corona (Middlewest), and colorist Mike Spicer (Stillwater, Murder Falcon). Fans should expect can’t-miss moments from every issue of the Energon Universe, as secrets are unveiled along the path to answering the BIG questions from some of the biggest franchises in comics today.

G.I. JOE #7 (Lunar Codes listed below $3.99, unless otherwise noted) will be available at comic book shops and digital platforms including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play on Wednesday, May 21, 2025.

The full list of variant covers is below:

G.I. JOE #7 Cover A by Tom Reilly (Lunar Code: 0325IM295)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover B by Kael Ngu (Lunar Code: 0325IM296)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover C (1:10 Copy Incentive) (Connecting) by Alan Quah (Lunar Code: 0325IM297)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover D (1:25 Copy Incentive) by Jeff Spokes (Lunar Code: 0325IM298)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover E (1:50 Copy Incentive) by Homare (Lunar Code: 0325IM299)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover F (1:100 Copy Incentive) by Derrick Chew (Lunar Code: 0325IM300)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover G Blank Sketch Cover (Lunar Code: 0325IM301)

G.I. JOE #7 Cover H (Die Cut Mask Cover) by Andrea Milana ($4.99) (Lunar Code: 0325IM302)

Oni Press has unveiled a first look inside BENJAMIN #1, the full-length comic debut of writer Ben Winters (EC’s Cruel Universe, Underground Airlines), creator of CBS’ acclaimed TV series Tracker and author of the Edgar Award-winning and Philip K. Dick Award-winning The Last Policeman novel trilogy with artwork by acclaimed illustrator Leomacs (EC’s Epitaphs from the Abyss, DC Black Label’s Rogues)!

In the tradition of Philip K. Dick’s A Scanner Darkly and Thomas Pynchon’s Inherent Vice comes a uniquely fascinating and hilariously deranged excursion into the metatextual nexus where existence and oblivion, past and future, genius and madness, and glitter and grim reality all meet just beyond Hollywood Boulevard in the first of three prestige-format, ad-free issues unlike anything you’ve ever experienced . . . in this timeline anyway . . .

More than just a writer, more than just a science-fiction icon, Benjamin J. Carp was a cultural revolutionary. Across 44 novels and hundreds of short stories—including the counterculture classic The Man They Couldn’t Erase—Carp pushed the boundaries of literary respectability for the sci-fi genre and his readers’ perception of reality itself . . . until decades of amphetamine abuse and Southern California excess finally ended a mind-bending career that always just escaped mainstream success. He died in 1982.

Until 2025 . . . when Benjamin J. Carp awakens, alive, in a burned-out motel on the fringes of Los Angeles. He remembers dying. He knows he shouldn’t exist. Is he a dream? A robot? A ghost? A clone? A simulation? In his own time, Carp pondered all of these scenarios intensely through his fiction—and, now, as he treks from Studio City to Venice Beach and onward into the paranoid sprawl of 21st-century Los Angeles, he will be called to investigate his greatest mystery yet: himself.

“In this sequence from early in the first issue of BENJAMIN, our cranky, hyperarticulate, cult sci-fi author hero Benjamin J. Carp has just been kicked out of the motel room where he woke up,” said Ben H. Winters. “The motel manager (quite reasonably) thinks he's some sort of drunk or squatter, but Carp has no memories at all of how he got there, or anywhere, since he died back in 1982. Out on the street he is astonished at the strange new world (which he thinks has ripped him off) and is rescued by this sweet earnest young man named Marcus, who works at the motel.”







Published across three extra-long, ad-free chapters featuring enhanced design elements and deluxe, cardstock covers... BENJAMIN #1 will feature psychotropic cover art by Christian Ward (Invisible Kingdom), Leomacs (Rougues), and Malachi Ward (Black Hammer: The Return).

BOOM! Studios is thrilled to announce DUNE: EDGE OF A CRYSKNIFE: HIDING AMONG THE HARKONNENS, a brand-new one-shot further expanding the vast and rich universe of Frank Herbert’s seminal sci-fi novel Dune. The exploration into unexplored regions of the Dune mythos is penned by award-winning novelists Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, with acclaimed Dune artist Simone Ragazzoni returning to illustrate.

In the sands of Arrakis, the Fremen plan to strike at the heart of Governor Dimitri Harkonnen’s spice operation. But not all paths to sabotage run the same, as a young Shadout Mapes discovers going undercover!

DUNE: EDGE OF A CRYSKNIFE: HIDING AMONG THE HARKONNENS #1 features main cover art by Raymond Swanland, and variant covers by acclaimed illustrators Juan Samu (Marvel Action: Black Panther) and Justine Florentino (Grim).

DUNE: EDGE OF A CRYSKNIFE: HIDING AMONG THE HARKONNENS is the newest release from BOOM! Studios’ eponymous imprint, home to critically acclaimed original series, including BRZRKR by Keanu Reeves, Matt Kindt, and Ron Garney; Something is Killing the Children by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera; bestselling horror anthology Hello Darkness; Grim by Stephanie Phillips and Flaviano; Stuff of Nightmares by R.L. Stine and A.L. Kaplan; A Vicious Circle by Mattson Tomlin and Lee Bermejo; Ghostlore by Cullen Bunn and Leomacs; Rare Flavours by Ram V and Filipe Andrade; Underheist by David and Maria Lapham; Animal Pound by Tom King and Peter Gross; Minor Arcana by Jeff Lemire; Vicarious by Ryan Parrott and Eleonora Carlini; The Creeping Below by Brian Azzarello and Vanesa Del Rey; Bronze Faces by Shobo, Shof, and Alexandre Tefenkgi; In Bloom by Michael W. Conrad and John J. Pearson; and When I Lay My Vengeance Upon Thee by Gus Moreno and Jakub Rebelka. The imprint also publishes popular licensed properties, including Dune: House Corrino from Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, and Simone Ragazzoni; Power Rangers Prime by Melissa Flores and Michael YG; and The Expanse: Dragon Tooth by Andy Diggle, Rubine, and Francesco Pisa.

DUNE: EDGE OF A CRYSKNIFE: HIDING AMONG THE HARKONNENS #1 will be available in comic shops July 2, 2025. It is available for pre-order at your local comic shop. Digital copies can be purchased from content providers, including Kindle, iBooks, and Google Play.