Marvel’s biggest challenge in Phase Two is Guardians of the Galaxy.  All of the other films are direct sequels, so not only does Guardians have to bring in five new characters, but it’s also the oddest assortment yet.  Led by half-human, half-alien Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), the team is comprised of humanoid aliens Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), a gun-wielding, talking Raccoon appropriately named “Rocket Raccoon”, and Groot, a giant, walking tree.  Marvel has earned the faith of audiences, and this is where it will be tested.  But President of Production Kevin Feige isn’t worried.  “We can take it to all those crazy places as long as all the characters respond in an emotionally truthful way,” he tells EW.

Hit the jump for what else Feige about the film had to say as well as a new piece of concept art.  The film also stars Michael Rooker, Ophelia Lovibond, and Lee Pace.  Guardians of the Galaxy opens in 3D on August 1, 2014.

The first trailer for Riddick is now online.  It’s been a long wait for such a short teaser, but it’s got everything you crave in a Riddick movie: Vin Diesel, fearsome creatures, eyeshine in the dark and stone-cold one-liners from the titular anti-hero.  There’s not much in the way of plot (or co-stars) revealed here, but the tone is spot on.

Also starring Karl Urban, Katee Sackhoff and Dave Bautista, writer/director David Twohy’s Riddick opens September 6th.  Hit the jump to watch the first trailer.

Reports now have Dave Bautista (The Man with the Iron Fists) signed on to play Drax the Destroyer in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy.  Bautista was in the mix for the role with Isaiah Mustafa and Patrick Wade, as well as Jason Momoa, who many considered the frontrunner.  Bautista will now become the second team member to join Marvel’s Guardians after Chris Pratt (Zero Dark Thirty) signed on as Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord earlier this year.  While Quill is a human-alien hybrid, Drax began life as a human but was reborn in a powerful new body which granted him extreme strength, flight, and energy blasts.  Hit the jump for more.

I know what you’re thinking: Another day, another Riddick image.  At least Vin Diesel has someone else to play with in this newest image from the David Twohy picture.  This time around, Diesel is at the mercy of Diaz (Dave Bautista), or is it the other way around?

Riddick, also starring Karl Urban and Katee Sackhoff, debuts on September 6th.  Hit the jump to check out the full image.

Earlier today we added Michael Rosenbaum to the shortlist to play Peter Quill (aka Star-Lord) in Guardians of the Galaxy alongside Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jim Sturgess, and Zachary Levi.  One more possibility has surfaced for Star-Lord, but the casting rumors have branched out with a shortlist for Drax the Destroyer.  First up: CBM hears that Marvel is “still high on” John Krasinski for Star-Lord, a “master strategist and combat expert who wears an ability-enhancing suit and pilots a psychically-linked ship.”  Marvel had their eye on Krasinski for Captain America once upon a time.  Although that didn’t work out the studio is still understandably keen on Krasinski.  Peter Quill is set up to be the central character in James Gunn‘s adaptation of the Marvel comic.

For Drax the Destroyer, Marvel is reportedly looking at Isaiah Mustafa, Brian Patrick Wade, and Dave Bautista.  Interesting list: Mustafa is best known as the Old Spice Guy and Bautista is a former WWE professional wrestler.  Wade by comparison is just your typical actor—given his unspectacular resume, we can conclude Marvel is not seeking big names to play Drax, a superhuman warrior created to defeat Thanos.  Hit the jump for character bios.

A new trailer from writer/director/star RZA’s kung-fu action flick The Man with the Iron Fists has dropped and it features UFC fighter Cung Le in character as the Bronze Lion.  The story follows a group of warriors, assassins, heroes and villains who unite to take down a clan traitor in order to prevent their own destruction. RZA’s directorial debut made my most anticipated list and I’m encouraged by the crazier and crazier footage being released.  If you missed the previous red-band trailers, you can get caught up here and here.

Hit the jump to watch the new trailer.  The film also stars Russell Crowe, Lucy Liu, Byron Mann, Rick Yune, David Bautista, Pam Grier and Jamie Chung.  The Man with the Iron Fists opens on November 2nd.

Hey, everyone: remember that trailer for The Man with the Iron Fists? The one with all the gory Kung Fu hijinks, murderous sex workers and other EYE-popping spectacle? Of course you do. Most of us pledged to lay EYEs on the film as soon as Russell Crowe inexplicably (but quite awesomely) appeared as a cowboy. Well, get out your date-circling Sharpie, because we’ve gotten word that Universal is EYEing a November 2, 2012 release date for its grindhousey martial arts epic. The directorial debut of The Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA, Fists sees a clan dispute in feudal China erupting into an all-out melee between some truly badass warriors. Co-written by Eli Roth (Hostel) and produced by Quentin Tarantino, it’s graced with an eclectic international cast led by RZA himself in the title role, as well as Lucy Liu, Jamie Chung, Pam Grier, Rick Yune, Cung Le, Daniel Wu, Byron Mann and former WWE wrestler Dave Bautista.

While the promising flick is currently slated for early November, do keep an EYE on local listings in case it’s violently dislodged and sent careening across the schedule.  Hit the jump to watch the film’s trailer.

With pre-production well underway, David Twohy’s Riddick is now starting to put together its supporting cast.  We previously reported that Karl Urban would be returning to the franchise to star alongside Vin Diesel, and now Bloody-Disgusting has some new casting details to report.  According to BD, offers are out to voice Andreas Apergis (Durham County) Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica) Bokeem Woodbine (The Rock) and WWE wrestler Dave Bautista (The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption).  If Apergis signs on, he’ll play play “Krone”, commander of the dark theocracy, while Sackhoff would pay “Dahl”, a Nordic merc tracking Riddick.  I’m definitely up on the idea of Sackhoff playing a merc, and hopefully Woodbine will top his shocked-death face from The Rock.

Check out the official synopsis for Riddick after the jump.