FROM SPLASH PAGE: Last month, Michael Jackson's death prompted a recollection of how close he and Stan Lee came to buying Marvel Comics. The piece received quite a bit of attention, so when I had the chance to talk with Lee during this year's Comic-Con in San Diego, I had to ask the legendary co-creator of the X-Men, Fantastic Four, Hulk and countless other comic book superheroes about his professional and personal relationship with the King of Pop.

While Lee had kind words for the recently deceased pop culture icon, his mention of Jackson's interest in another of Lee's famous co-creations perked up my ears. In the grand tradition of Marvel Comics' famous series, Lee's response offered up a "What If?" tale involving Jackson and Spider-Man tailor-made for an alternate Marvel universe.

Continue reading What If Michael Jackson Made 'Spider-Man'? Stan Lee Explains How It Almost Happened!

Today the Internet is buzzing with the news that "Spider-Man" (and "Evil Dead"!!!) director Sam Raimi is taking the reins on an adaptation of the wildly popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game "World of Warcraft." The game (and presumably the movie as well) is set in Azeroth, a fictional fantasy world created by the game's developer, Blizzard Entertainment. There have been Azeroth-based games since 1994, though the MMORPG didn't launch until late 2001.

"Warcraft"'s world is a sort of Dungeons & Dragons/"Lord of the Rings"-inspired setting. There are dungeons of course, and dragons, as well as the usual helping of elves, dwarves, orcs and other non-human fantasy races. "The Lord of the Rings" did fabulously well when Peter Jackson adapted the books for an epic-length trilogy. The movie version of "Dungeons & Dragons," not so much. What might we expect from Raimi's "Warcraft"? Read more...

FROM SPLASH PAGE: Back in February, we brought you the news of an upcoming collaboration between Marvel Comics and "Saturday Night Live" regulars Bill Hader and Seth Meyers, titled "Spider-Man: The Short Halloween." The single-issue story promised to take a tongue-in-cheek look at the misadventures of a costumed party-goer mistaken for the real wallcrawler and kidnapped by Spider-Man's foes.

Along with an original story by the comics-savvy "SNL" duo, "The Short Halloween" features art by Kevin Maguire -- the man who helped put the "funny" back in funnybooks during the late '80s alongside another comedic duo, "Justice League" writers Keith Giffen and J. M. DeMatteis.

For the rest of our "Spider-Man: The Short Halloween" interview and preview, head over to SplashPage.MTV.com.

FROM SPLASH PAGE: What do "Batman," "Superman," "Akira," "Hellboy," "The Hulk," "Iron Man," "The Punisher," "Spider-Man," "The Spirit," "Dragonball," "Wanted," "X-Men" and "Watchmen" all have in common? Easy!

It's no secret that the comic-to-movie translation can be hit or miss. On one hand, you have someone like the Punisher — one of the most intense, complex and dark characters ever created in the comic book universe — so you would have thought his story and swagger alone would be enough to make a great action movie with maybe even a good sequel. Apparently not! The movie studios messed up that franchise not once ... not twice ... but three times (once with Dolph Lundgren, then Thomas Jane and most recently with some guy called Ray Stevenson).

(Read more about the roller-coaster world of Sam Jackson's upcoming comic book roles on our Splash Page blog.)

FROM SPLASH PAGE: David Fincher might have been interested in filming the story of a serial killer in “Zodiac” or the macabre crime tale from Brian Michael Bendis’ graphic novel “Torso.” Ask him to do a superhero movie, however, and you may get an unenthusiastic wince.

“No, I'm not interested in doing a superhero,” the “Fight Club” director recently told The Guardian. Taking a round of audience questions during a discussion about his recent work on “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Fincher provided further explanation of his position on Spider-Man.

“I was asked if I might be interested in the first ‘Spider-Man,’ and I went in and told them what I might be interested in doing, and they hated it,” he said.

Read more about David Fincher's "Spider-Man" movie idea at SplashPage.MTV.com.

Sam Raimi has made his name directing superhero blockbusters (the “Spider-Man” films) and quirky cult horror flicks (the “Evil Dead” series). It only makes sense, then, that movie fans were intrigued by recent reports that the filmmaker wanted to revive a once-successful thriller series as his next project. But if you’ve ever wondered who’d win in a fight between Spider-Man and Jack Ryan, Raimi finally has your answer.

“I’m really excited about Spider-Man,” he told us this week, revealing that his flirtation with the Tom Clancy novel-to-film series that has starred Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford and Ben Affleck is finished. “Production [on more ‘Spider-Man’ films] would start probably by March, I’m guessing of 2010.”

Raimi revealed to us during the chat that he’d be willing to shoot “Spider-Man 4” and “Spider-Man 5” at the same time, and also spoke about the futures of Kirsten Dunst and The Lizard. And, as he explained, that doesn’t leave him any time to reboot Tom Clancy’s tale of America’s top CIA operative. Read more...

FROM SPLASH PAGE: Although things weren’t looking too good for awhile, "Spider-Man" has overcome adversities tougher than a Green Goblin / Doc Ock team-up, and now once again has Tobey Maguire and Sam Raimi in his corner. But what about Kirsten Dunst?

“Kirsten, I’d love to work with her again,” Raimi explained to us this week, making it sound as if current plans are to move along to “Spider-Man 4” and “Spider-Man 5” without the actress, despite recent statements that she wants to remain with the franchise.

“I hope she’ll be written into it," said Raimi. "I couldn’t imagine making one without her, and I think she’s an important part of the movies.”

Read more of Sam Raimi's comments on the "Spider-Man" sequels, Kirsten Dunst and potential villains at SplashPage.MTV.com.

FROM SPLASH PAGE: Is Sony betting on black in a bid to jump-start its aging "Spider-Man" franchise? That's the news coming out of Hollywood as the studio reportedly develops a spin-off around Venom, the menacing alien symbiote featured in "Spider-Man 3” that bonded with both Peter Parker and disgraced reporter Eddie Brock. So what do the character's creator and writers think about the news? Read More...

Sure, Christian Bale gets to be Batman. Brandon Routh got to be Superman. And Tobey Maguire got to be Spider-Man -- three times! But only you can be Spidey on Broadway. You can sing, right?

The producers of "Spider-Man" have announced an open casting call in New York for singers and actors to audition as Peter Parker, Mary Jane, and Arachne. For Peter Parker, they'd like a male aged or appear to be aged 16- to 20-years-old, with a greak rock voice. He "can be nerdy with understated sex appeal" with a "good sense of humor." For Mary Jane, they'd like a female in the same age range, with a strong pop/rock singing voice, who has a "beautiful girl-next-door" look. And for Arachne, a dangerous but seductive Spider-Woman, they'd like a female aged 25- to 35-years-old, with "amazing rock vocals." "Think Sinead O'Connor with a Middle Eastern/Bulgarian/Greek twist," they say. Foreign accents welcome. Read more...

If you missed the news when MTV broke it this January, by now you know that Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) will appear in “The Incredible Hulk,” thanks to ubiquitous new television spots which prominently feature old metal head. And you know, too, about a brief easter egg with Captain America, where Bruce runs across a frozen body in the Artic.

Marvel’s cross promotion is easily one of the coolest aspects of their new films, giving filmmakers a sandbox full of toys in which to play. “Hulk” director Louis Leterrier almost got to play with the coolest. Read more...