SMALLVILLE

Pilot got cancelled? Lost your chance to play a DC superhero? No problem -- just re-emerge as another one on the show that started it all! With spoilers aplenty, Kryptonsite is reporting that would-be Aquaman, actor Justin Hartley will be making an appearance as a rakish blonde hero with a thing for ancient weapons and the color made from combining yellow and blue. Uh huh.

While we're discussing DCU appearances, Kryptonsite also got to talk to actor Aaron Ashmore a little bit more about his quixotic role. "My roommate Mike [Daugherty, one of the screenwriters of 'Superman Returns'] told him that I got the part," Ashmore said, "and he text messaged me, like 'Yeah! Way to go Aaron' and stuff. I haven't talked to him because I've just been all over the place, but I'm looking forward to sitting down with him, and being like 'Big screen, small screen. Who knew?'" Coincidentally, fans of "Veronica Mars" may remember Aaron Ashmore and big screen Jimmy Olsen, actor Sam Huntington sharing screen time in the Season 1 episode "You Think You Know Somebody." Right.

FANTASTIC FOUR 2

The big rumor today comes from Ain't It Cool News, which is claiming that this week's Comic-Con will see the announcement of actor Doug Jones (Abe Sapien in "Hellboy") as the motion-capture actor for the Silver Surfer in the upcoming sequel. Jones, of course, is already looking to return as Abe Sapien in the "Hellboy" sequel.

CLERKS 2

We've got one last interview about the fanboy fave, this time with director Kevin Smith.

TRANSFORMERS

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg was asked about the Cybertronian adventure in an interview and said, "The dailies are fantastic. I have seen no effects work so far. IÕve only seen the scenes with the characters and a lot of the action, we call them plates, but itÕs plates with first team characters running around and hiding and fighting and itÕs pretty amazing what Michael BayÕs doing with the camera, and with the performances."

TMNT

According to Superhero Hype, a teaser trailer for the film will hit theaters with Warner Bros.' "The Ant Bully" the following week on July 28. We'll most likely see the trailer online before then, as well as premiering at Comic-Con.

SUPER EX-GIRLFRIEND

Uma Thurman is quoted at Sci Fi Wire talking about her character in the upcoming superhero comedy. I think that one of the great things about the script is that, unlike the typical valiant-type superhero that's like, 'Oh, yes, I must go save the world,' unlike that there's a whole comedy base here with the reality of it all," Thurman said. "Here's this girl like any of us, who stumbles on a rock, and by the way she says 'girl' [rather than woman] because she is [a] girl, and so if she called herself [a] woman at 17, she would have a problem. But she really is more tense than kryptonite. She's just a real person. She wants to have a real life. She just deals with her responsibility of having superpowers, but she really resents it. I guess that's the humor in the piece."

YES, I'M MAD ABOUT SKIPPING SAN DIEGO, SHUT UP! DAMNED GAS PRICES ...

Here's where you get in on the action. Did you see a link we didn't catch? Have you snuck into a closed movie set, and have inside data? Maybe your cousin is dating somebody who knows something, and they had to tell you? Whatever it is, we wanna know it all -- fire off an email and let us know whether you want your name used or your contributions to geekdom to go down anonymously. Broadcasting live from Los Angeles, this is novelist/karaoke host/all-around lunatic Hannibal Tabu saying thanks for your time and indulgence, and [tagline sent back to development hell until something hipper can be dreamed up].