Was there really a chance of writing about something other than Man of Steel in this week’s opening paragraph? Well, maybe. I did really enjoy This Is the End. But, alas, this week is about Supes’ return to the big screen. I watched the film (in 2D) for the first time last night and, as far as superhero movies go, it elicited an emotional response from me that few in the genre have. Sure, there were times where the grand scale of destruction left me cold and the product placement took me out of the moment (if only to admire some beautiful appliances meeting their untimely demise). Nevertheless, the themes of love, sacrifice, acceptance, and trust were beautifully woven into the film’s text in such a way that it made me do something I’ve only done one other time (while reading Grant Morrison‘s excellent All-Star Superman run): become emotionally invested in the Man of Steel.

While this is undoubtedly Kal-El’s weekend, in addition to Man of Steel interviews and more, this week’s Top 5 also includes the first teaser trailer and poster for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, This Is the End interviews with Seth Rogen and more, the new Elysium trailer, and a recap of E3 2013 from the convention floor. Learn more about all of the above via a link and brief recap after the jump.

This Is the End opens today, and you should totally go see it.  In a clever bit of cross-promotion, a new parody has This Is the End stars Seth Rogen, James Franco, Craig Robinson, Jay Baruchel, and Danny McBride stuck in a Portland The Real World house with Portlandia stars Joi Niemeyer and Averey Tressler co-star, and while their fans might be a bit disappointed that all of the jokes come from the guys, it’s still a damn fine parody of The Real World.  It also shows off the great comic dynamic fans will see in This Is the End without giving away any jokes from the movie.

Hit the jump to check out the parody.  The Real World: Portland finale also airs today in case you care.

Judd Apatow‘s past collaborators have exceeded him.  Left to make a movie without his direct oversight, stars Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson have made a film with the influence of Apatow’s past work, but none of his recent weaknesses.  That’s not to say that these actors are only indebted to Apatow or that their comic talent came from working with the successful writer/director/producer.  But they’ve all worked with him in the past, and their latest effort, guided by a script and direction from Rogen and Evan Goldberg, leaves behind comic one-upmanship and endless riffing to provide a balanced comic dynamic that’s able to navigate a loose plot to big laughs.

Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s apocalyptic comedy This Is the End is the most fun I’ve had in a theater this year.  I told Rogen as much when I had a chance to sit down and interview him along with co-stars Jay Baruchel and Craig Robinson.  The guys talked about the process of casting themselves, convincing other Hollywood actors to sign on for cameos, writing jokes for different types of audience members, some deleted scenes that will hopefully appear on the DVD/Blu-ray and what each of them has coming up next, including the Rogen and James Franco picture, The Interview, the Goon sequel and Hot Tub Time Machine 2.

Also starring James Franco, Jonah Hill, Danny McBride, Michael Cerra, Rihanna and Emma Watson, This Is the End opens June 12th.  Hit the jump to watch our video interview.

Sony Pictures has released some new high-resolution images from two of the studio’s most highly anticipated 2013 releases.  First up, a new image from director Neill Blomkamp’s sci-fi pic Elysium teases an intense showdown between Matt Damon and Sharlto Copley.  I saw a bit of this sequence at Comic-Con last year and it is absolutely brutal; you will be shocked at just how badass Copley is with this character.  The film opens on August 9th.

Additionally, Sony has released a handful of images from Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s directorial debut This Is the End.  We see Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Danny McBride, Jay Baruchel, and Craig Robinson handling an apocalyptic event in a variety of ways, but the images also give us new looks at the film’s other supporting characters (ie. more actors playing themselves) including Emma Watson, Michael Cera, Rihanna, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.  The film opens on June 12th.  Hit the jump to check out images from Elysium and This Is the End.

Sony sent over five clips from This Is the End, the apocalyptic comedy written and directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.  Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson star as versions of themselves who take refuge in Franco’s house when disaster strikes: “As the world unravels outside, dwindling supplies and cabin fever threaten to tear apart the friendships inside.”

Also featuring Jason Segel, Michael Cera, David Krumholtz, Paul Rudd, Martin Starr, Mindy Kaling, Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, and Rihanna, This Is the End opens June 12.  Watch the clips after the jump.  And for more, check out the red band trailer, the green band trailer, and the international trailer, plus these previously released clips.

Columbia Pictures has released a batch of character posters for the upcoming apocalypse comedy This Is the End.  The film marks the directorial debut of Superbad and Pineapple Express scribes Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and finds Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson playing heightened versions of themselves as they hole up in Franco’s house when a world-ending event occurs.  Early buzz on the pic has been fantastic, and these character posters are a great tease for what’s sure to be a very, very funny ride.  Additionally, the first and only original track from the soundtrack, “Take Yo Panties Off,” is now streaming online, and it features Snoop Dogg and Robinson waxing poetic about their lady friends.

Hit the jump to check out the posters and to listen to “Take Yo Panties Off.”  This Is the End opens on June 14th.

Sony Pictures has released a batch of new images from writers/directors Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s apocalypse comedy This Is the End.  The film finds Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson all playing versions of themselves as they hole up in Franco’s house when a world-ending event occurs.  The trailers, featurettes, and recent clip with Emma Watson all make the comedy look like a lot of fun, and I’m eager to see how Rogen and Goldberg fare in their directorial debut.

Hit the jump to check out the high-resolution images.  The film also stars Jason Segel, Michael Cera, David Krumholtz, Paul Rudd, Martin Starr, Mindy Kaling, Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, and Rihanna.  This Is the End opens on June 14, 2013.

If you missed the red-band trailer for director Paul Middleditch’s horror comedy Rapture-Palooza, you can check out the newly-released toned-down version here.  There’s only a little bit of new footage and it keeps the same jokes from the first trailer (minus the profanity), but star Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air) is certainly worth a second look, don’t you think?  She plays the object of affection sought after by the Anti-Christ (Craig Robinson) when the Rapture befalls Seattle.  Her boyfriend (John Francis Daley) will do anything he can to stop her from becoming Satan’s bride.

Also starring Rob Corddry, Rob Huebel, Paul Scheer, Thomas Lennon, Ana Gasteyer, John Michael Higgins, Tyler Labine and Ken Jeong,  Rapture-Palooza opens in theaters and on VOD June 7th.  Hit the jump for the green-band trailer, image, synopsis and poster.

The apocalypse scenario in This Is the End hasn’t been explained, but it looks like the film is employing more than one.  There are people being abducted by aliens, the ground opening up to swallow Aziz Ansari, monsters, and now, according to Emma Watson, zombies.  There’s a good joke in here of the guys reacting to the news, but this clip seems to be a lead-in to a better scene, and I’m excited to see how Watson plays into the comedy.

Hit the jump to check out the clip.  The film stars Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, James Franco, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson.  This Is The End opens June 12th.

A new behind-the-scenes featurette for Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s directorial debut This Is the End has landed online.  As Rogen explains it, “the end of the world happens and a bunch of friends barricade themselves together, and then all of their problems kind of come to the surface.”  It just so happens that the group of friends in question consists of Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, and Danny McBride.  Within the featurette, the actors talk about playing versions of themselves in the film and how close they are to reality (Franco’s character is obsessed with Rogen in the pic), and we also get a look at more of the hilarity that ensues.

Hit the jump to watch the featurette.  The film also stars Emma Watson, Jason Segel, Michael Cera, David Krumholtz, Paul Rudd, Martin Starr, Mindy Kaling, Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, and Rihanna.  This Is the End opens on June 14, 2013.

There’s an interesting pairing schematic to this week’s Tyler Perry produced comedy Peeples. Craig Robinson and Kerry Washington star as a seemingly perfect couple… The only hitch: she’s yet to introduce her beau to the family (David Alan Grier & S. Epatha Merkerson). Both Robinson and Grier are primarily thought of as comedians, the former – a utility player in pretty much every comedy of the past five years, the latter – a founding member of one of the great sketch comedy shows: In Living Color. Their other halves however are played by dramatic actresses: Washington – the elusive object of affection in Django Unchained, Merkerson – the longest running cast member of Law & Order. The intermingling of drama and comedy performers lends the film a strong balance as a ‘dramedy’. Sure Peeples is a familiar riff on Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner/Meet the Parents; but it’s also a surprisingly charming film – and that can all be attributed to the cast and their interplay within.

In the following interview with Robinson and Washington, the duo discuss how Peeples allowed them to branch out from their comfort zones and how they choose film projects given their heavy television schedules. Robinson also discusses his penchant for playing children’s teachers (the comedian has a background in education) and gives a brief update on the status of Hot Tub Time Machine 2. For the full interview, hit the jump.

YouTube has announced the first-ever Comedy Week, set to take place May 19-25.  YouTube has recruited an impressive roster of outside talent, including Vince Vaughn, Rainn Wilson, Sarah Silverman, Michael, The Lonely Island, Seth Rogen, Tim and Eric, Ed Helms, Ken Jeong, Norm Macdonald, and Craig Robinson.  The week also has room for YouTube mainstays like Ryan Higa, Smosh, Epic Meal Time, Rhett & Link, and Epic Rap Battles of History.

The event kicks off with a live variety show on May 19, followed by “a week of dedicated programming that includes live performances, new episodes from popular YouTube comedy channels, curated top ten lists from comedy stars and more.”  Hit the jump for the press release with all the details and the full list of participating talent.

A new clip from the directorial debut of Superbad and Pineapple Express scribes Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg has been released online.  This Is the End stars Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, and many more as the actors play exaggerated versions of themselves that are trying to survive the end of the world.  The majority of the story appears to take place in James Franco’s house, which serves as the group’s default bunker, and this new clip highlight’s Baruchel’s unwillingness to die at the actor’s house.  The film still looks like it’s going to be a whole lot of fun, and if you somehow still need convincing I suggest you check out the hilarious red-band trailer that was recently released.

Hit the jump to watch this new clip, and click here for Dave’s recap of the pic’s WonderCon panel.  The film also stars Emma Watson, Jason Segel, Michael Cera, David Krumholtz, Paul Rudd, Martin Starr, Mindy Kaling, Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, and Rihanna.  This Is the End opens on June 14, 2013.

At WonderCon a few days ago, I landed an extended video interview with Craig Robinson.  While he was in attendance to help promote Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s awesome-looking end of the world comedy, This Is the End (click here for the red band trailer and our panel recap), we also talked about the Hot Tub Time Machine sequel (which he says starts to film in June, and John Cusack may return), and his NBC pilot that’s now called Mr. Robinson.

For those not familiar with This is the End, the R rated comedy stars everyone in Hollywood (Rogen, Jonah Hill, James Franco, Jason Segel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Michael Cera, Emma Watson, Paul Rudd, Jay Baruchel, Mindy Kaling, Kevin Hart, Martin Starr, and more), and it looks to be one of the better films this summer.  Hit the jump for what Robinson had to say about all of his projects, and circle June 14, 2013 on your calendar because that’s when This is the End is due out in theaters.