The cast and crew of Supernatural, the long-running WB/CW cult hit, took to Comic Con to discuss the end of the seventh season and it’s effects on the upcoming eighth.  Amongst the panel: Cast members Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Jim Beaver, Misha Collins & Mark Sheppard, Writer/Executive Producer Ben Edlund and new series showrunner Jeremy Carver.  For a recap of the panel, hit the jump.

The CW Network has renewed station standout The Vampire Diaries, along with fan-favorites Supernatural and 90210; all three series will return for the 2012-2013 season.  The Vampire Diaries, starring Nina Dobrev, Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley, returns for its fourth season.  The long-running Supernatural, starring Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles and Jim Beaver will kick-off its eighth season, while Beverly Hills socialites Shenae Grimes, Tristan Wilds and AnnaLynne McCord return for the fifth season of 90210. Hit the jump to read the press release.

Having finished six seasons and already at work on their seventh, Supernatural is no stranger to Comic-Con, but this year Ballroom 20 would not be enough to hold them. For the first time ever, Supernatural’s panel was hosted in Hall H, with fans filling up the giant hall to scream and cheer for there favorite monster hunting brothers. Moderated by IGN’s Eric Goldman, the panel consisted of writer and showrunner Sera Gamble, writer Ben Edlund, Jensen Ackles (Dean), Jared Padalecki (Sam), Misha Collins (Castiel), Jim Beaver (Bobby Singer), and Mark Sheppard (Crowley).  Hit the jump to read about what is in store for Sam and Dean this year.

This December, you’re probably going to be on “The Grid” whether your like it or not.  Disney is marketing the hell out of their upcoming blockbuster TRON: Legacy, which opens in 3D on December 17th.  You also have the soundtrack by Daft Punk on December 7th, and then there’s the video game tie-in, TRON: Evolution getting released the same day.  Video game tie-ins rarely pan out, but there are few movies that lend themselves to a video game adaptation as well as TRON.  However, when you have a world that showcases light cycle races and disc wars, that leads to high expectations.  Hopefully, TRON: Evolution can deliver.

Today, we have two videos for the game.  First is a cut-scene which showcases the villain Abraxas (voiced by Smallville‘s John Glover) tearing up the joint.  We also have a featurette that showcases the game’s voice acting.  I always think it’s great when actors from the film come in and lend their voices to the game.  The featurette talks with actors Olivia Wilde, James Frain, and Bruce Boxleitner, as well as Jensen Ackles (Supernatural), who isn’t in the movie, but is still great.  Hit the jump to check out both videos.  TRON: Evolution will be available for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, and PC.  There will also be a “Collector’s Edition” for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Season 6 of The CW drama Supernatural marks not only a new chapter in the show’s story, but also a change in leadership, as executive producer Eric Kripke has handed over show runner duties to Sera Gamble. Having already been on staff as a producer and writer, it’s been a very smooth transition for all involved, and it has helped to invigorate and re-invent the series in a way that will keep it fresh for seasons to come.

During a recent interview to promote the show’s return, Eric Kripke and Sera Gamble talked about wiping the slate clean this season, getting to see how things have affected both Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) post-apocalypse and how they’re definitely up for more seasons, if there’s the demand for it. Check out what they had to say after the jump:

Returning for its sixth season, the dark CW drama Supernatural follows Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles), who took on the Devil himself and survived the apocalypse, in last season’s emotional finale. Now, the brothers are separated, as Dean has retired from hunting, believing that Sam is stuck in Hell. However, Sam has escaped and the two reunite to fight the rising tide of creatures and demon-spawn, but quickly realize that neither are who they used to be, their relationship has changed and nothing is what it seems.

During an interview to promote the return of the popular series, co-stars Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki talked about how the tone of the show will be very similar to how things were in Season 1, the ways in which their characters would be different now and that they think fans will enjoy getting back to the basics of what they loved about the show, in the first place. Jensen also shared what it was like to make his directorial debut this season. Check out what they had to say after the jump:

Just when you think it can’t possibly get any bigger, the annual San Diego Comic-Con manages to do just that. The exponentially growing number of attendees and non-comic book related attractions doesn’t deter it from being one of the biggest draws of the summer for fans of superheroes, sci-fi, action-adventure and all things vampire. Over the last couple of years, people have even decided to camp out on the street under tents, for a better chance to catch a glimpse of the A-list actors and filmmakers that film Hall H with their upcoming blockbusters.

While I understand that Comic-Con ended on July 25^th, I went straight into attending the Television Critics Association Press Tour, where I’ve been every day since, and I haven’t had any time to post these until now. But, I got so many great photos of the folks that I interviewed that, even though Comic-Con ended awhile ago, I think the photos are still of interest.

Throughout my stay at Comic-Con, I took photos of Green Lantern star Ryan Reynolds, Ali Larter & Wentworth Miller from Resident Evil: Afterlife, Chloe Grace Moretz & Kodi Smit-McPhee from Let Me In, the stars of Sons of Anarchy, the cast of Psych, Amber Heard & Nicolas Cage from Drive Angry 3D, Anna Torv & Joshua Jackson from Fringe, Maggie Q & Lyndsy Fonseca from Nikita, Daniel Dae Kim & Grace Park from Hawaii Five-0, Denis O’Hare from True Blood, filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro, the cast of the U.K. series Being Human, Elisabeth Shue & Steven McQueen from Piranha 3-D, the cast of The Vampire Diaries, Jensen Ackles from Supernatural, the stars of Castle, Jeff Bridges & Bruce Boxleitner with the new co-stars of Tron: Legacy, and Bruce Willis, Karl Urban & Helen Mirren from RED. Hit the jump for all the photos:

Quirky television programs that blend horror, fantasy and folklore such as Supernatural have been a staple of network line-ups for decades. Obviously The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits are classics in the genre and set the bar for freaky quality. Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer came along and injected teen melodrama, genuine emotion and pop cultural quips into the horror/fantasy television playbook. Soon after Buffy’s success, a deluge of similar shows flooded the airwaves (Roswell, Angel, Charmed and so on). Supernatural studiously follows the path blazed by its predecessors. The initial season of Supernatural starts off strong, but begins to meander into a droll villain of the week formula. Though, it’s not how you start, but how you finish that matters. Does Supernatural finish strong? Double tap the jump to find out.

Warner Home Video has sent over the trailer and a few images from the next DC Universe animated movie, Batman: Under the Red Hood.  Featuring the voices of Bruce Greenwood as Batman, Jensen Ackles as Red Hood, Neil Patrick Harris as Nightwing, John DiMaggio as The Joker and Jason Issacs as Ra’s Al Ghul, the straight to DVD/Blu-ray movie arrives July 27 – which is comic-con weekend.  The disc also comes with a “showcase short” for Jonah Hex.  Hit the jump to check out the trailer, images, and the official synopsis:

I have an exclusive announcement: I am under consideration for the lead role in The First Avenger: Captain America.  Well okay, not yet exactly.  But once they cycle through every young white male in Hollywood, they’ll get to my alliterative name.

The tale of super soldier Steve Rogers is one of the hottest untapped superhero properties on the market, so this is obviously a huge role for whoever lands it, but it’s getting difficult to keep track of all the contenders.  The first we heard, John Krasinski, Michael Cassidy, Patrick Flueger, Scott Porter, Mike Vogel, Chace Crawford, Garrett Hedlund, and Jensen Ackles were all on the shortlist.  After a short-lived rumor that Krasinski was a lock came word that he was anything but; in fact, Tron: Legacy star Hedlund and Vogel (Cloverfield) made it to the top of the initial heap, now joined by Fantastic Four‘s Chris Evans.  To add to the confusion, Hitfix has another name for us that teases great things: Ryan Phillippe.  Details on what Marvel is trying to tell us after the jump.

The synopsis for The First Avenger: Captain America might have been released thanks to a casting announcement on featurecasting.com.  Also, thanks to the same release, it’s looking like filming is set to begin on June 28, 2010.  With a release date of July 22, 2011, and the fact that director Joe Johnston recently told me he’s busy in pre-production, the filming date sounds pretty accurate.

If you’re interested in reading the synopsis, hit the jump:

UPDATE: Marvel has contacted us to let us know the synopsis is not accurate.

John Krasinski, Scott Porter, Garrett Hedlund, Jensen Ackles, Chace Crawford, Michael Cassidy, and Mike Vogel are all on the short-list for The First Avenger: Captain America.  According to THR, the seven actors have screen-tested for the role or are expected to test screen over the next two weeks.  In a recent interview, director Joe Johnston (The Wolfman), says he expects to have the role of the Marvel superhero cast by March 1st.

Krasinski is the best known of the bunch because of The Office and co-starring last year in wide release movies like Away We Go and It’s Complicated.  As for the six others, you have Michael Cassidy who screen-tested for the Superman movie when McG was set to direct, Patrick Flueger of The 4400 and a supporting role in Brothers), Scott Porter of Friday Night Lights (the TV series) and Speed Racer, and Mike Vogel who starred in Cloverfield.  And then you have Chace Crawford (Gossip Girl) who’s in talks to screen test. Garrett Hedlund (Eragon, the upcoming Tron Legacy) and Jensen Ackles (Supernatural) both are under consideration but are currently out of the running due to scheduling conflicts (word to Ackles: leave Supernatural behind and go for this role).

Captain America is the final piece in creating the Marvel’s superhero team-up of The Avengers with Iron Man/Tony Scott (Robert Downey Jr.) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) already in play.  Hit the jump for my thoughts on the potential Captains, details for those unfamiliar with the character, and what we know about the upcoming movie, which is scheduled to hit theaters on July 22, 2011.