SUPERMAN RETURNS

The Daily Telegraph reports that a theft on the set caused havoc. "Pranksters caused chaos during a stunt sequence, being filmed in Martin Place last week, by shouting 'cut' and 'action' over the airwaves, writes Michael Bodey. It's believed the thieves with the walkie talkies listened in to much of the night's filming to learn key phrases which they later yelled at key moments. Unfortunately, the mischief almost caused serious injury, with the night's filming centering on a Mustang car jumping down steps and landing between extras. It stopped dangerously a number of times."

In other news, Austin 360 talked to visual wizard Todd McMullen about what he did for the project. "McMullen worked on scenes involving a spectacular disaster. 'We shot a lot of those plates where we kind of moved from the sky down,' he says. 'We did a lot of setups and plate shots that way.' He says the actors will be filmed and added to the scenes later."

X-MEN 3

Accoriding to TV Guide, actress Maggie Grace was never in the running to play Kitty Pryde. "Let's ask her boss, exec producer Damon Lindelof. 'She's on our show,' he told me at press tour. 'That movie starts shooting [this month]. I would be an idiot to let her go do a movie in the middle [of our season].' Lindelof insists no one - including Grace herself - knows how the 'X3' rumors got started. 'The only call she ever made to us was, 'You're going to read about this [in the Hollywood trades]; I don't know what it is, it's not true. I didn't read for the part, I wasn't offered the part, I didn't accept the part. I'm happy to be on 'Lost.'"

SMALLVILLE

Actor John Schneider talked to the Ventura County Star (registration required) about the upcoming season, letting a spoiler or two slip in the process. "Clark has skipped over an important development stage that needs to happen for a young man," he said. "As a real parent, I miss the part of life when the kids need advice from me. They get to the point when they know everything."

Meanwhile, multiple sources (including E! Online and TV Guide) are reporting that actor Dean Cain may be dropping by for an episode or three this season.

SERENITY

Actress Gina Torres told Blackfilm.com that she expects a good response to the film. "All of the characters that you came to know and love are all present and are who they are," she said. "Circumstances determine certain reactions that we have. Circumstances that are particular to the storyline and so, stakes are very high and therefore we have to react in an appropriate manner."

BATMAN

Producer Michael Uslan gave an in-depth interview to Superhero Hype, where he discussed the struggle to get Gotham City on screen at all. "They saw it as based on the television show, and they said if you want to do a Batman movie, we'll do it, but it's gotta be the funny, pot-bellied guy with the Pows, Zaps, and Whams because that's all audiences will remember and love. I said "No way. You're not going to touch this if you're not agreeing to this vision." I had to fight tooth and nail at every turn to make them understand that the underlying property was the comic books and that they weren't campy or silly. That was a battle. I was very careful to not show them the comics from the '60s. In my first three meetings with Tim Burton, it was my responsibility to introduce him to Batman and provide him with the material. I only let Tim see the original year of the Bob Kane/Bill Finger run, up until the time that Robin was introduced. I only let them see the Steve Englehart/Marshall Rogers and the Neal Adams/Denny O'Neil runs. Those three things were the only thing that I exposed them to, because it was just as important as to what they were not looking at."

WORDS FAIL ME ...

Never let your relatives book travel accommodations for you on a conference trip -- this reporter's mother just called to mention a seven mile relocation to save one hundred lousy dollars. Argh. Anyway, if you have the scoop on anything related to comic book movies, TV adaptations or just want to give us a briefcase full of cash, no questions asked, drop us a line and let's coordinate. You can choose an alias if you'd like, or be mentioned by name -- we honor requests for anonymity. Broadcasting live from Los Angeles, this is your humble scribe Hannibal Tabu saying thanks for your time and indulgence, I leave for Chicago very shortly, so reviews will have to wait until tomorrow, wish me luck (since I'll have an ashcan, which I'll offer as a PDF in the next few weeks) and "don't blame me, I'm drunk too!"