Zak Penn Talks The Avengers

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Zak Penn Talks The Avengers

July 8, 2009

CraveOnline talked to Zack Penn about his work on Marvel Studios' upcoming films and here's an excerpt:

CraveOnline: How is working for autonomous Marvel different from working under the studio collaborations?

Zak Penn: Pretty much night and day. Marvel, everyone there has read every comic. They’re big fans of it. We’ve kind of moved past the normal fights that you have and just talk about what would make a cool movie. Here’s the thing though. Once you get into the process of making a movie, compromise is like your life. Everything is a compromise. Even if everyone has the best intentions setting out on a movie, you can make a total piece of sh*t. I’ve learned this the hard way. It is really damn hard to make a good movie. If you ever manage it, be proud of yourself. It’s so damn hard. Even though we all have the best intentions, it still might suck but it is at least a relief to not be fighting with people as much. We’re all kind of on the same page.

CraveOnline: How do you start writing The Avengers before Captain America and Thor are done?

Zak Penn: My job is to kind of shuttle between the different movies and make sure that finally we’re mimicking that comic book structure where all of these movies are connected. It used to drive me crazy at Fox not being able to interweave. Why couldn’t we have Fantastic Four in this movie? Why couldn’t we do this? Now we will. Thor and Captain America will lead right into the Avengers movie, and Iron Man 2 as well.

CraveOnline: Do they give you a place to start or do you have to wait to find out where you pick up?

Zak Penn: We are learning it as we go and it’s pretty complicated. I have a meeting at Marvel this week to catch up on continuity. There’s just a board that tracks “Here’s where everything that happens in this movie overlaps with that movie.” It’s just what they do in the comic books. Think how complicated it is when you’ve got all the titles those companies do. Someone’s got to keep track of all that. What’s Wolverine wearing this week? Are his claws bone or [adamantium]? Yeah, it’s going to be really difficult. The only thing I can say is I’m pushing them to do as many animatics as possible to animate the movie, to draw boards so that we’re all working off the same visual ideas. But the exigencies of production take first priority.

CraveOnline: Should Wolverine have been R?

Zak Penn: That was our frustration. He’s got razor sharp claws and you can’t show blood. So what does he do? In every scene, he’s running around blocking, hitting you with the claws and not cutting you. Where do you go with that? There’s no way to do it.

You can read the full interview here.

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Posted by: Krumm on July 8, 2009 at 17:51:42

ugh.

Posted by: vtlumberjack on July 8, 2009 at 17:59:35

this interview is a couple weeks old...

Posted by: mike on July 8, 2009 at 18:01:26

it would be sweet if the did a more marvel version of wolverine for the avengers, brown and tan, 5'5 and feral.

Posted by: MisterFantastic on July 8, 2009 at 18:02:32

Wait is he hinting that the Fantastic Four are in the Avengers movie?

Posted by: HappyPalooza on July 8, 2009 at 18:07:53

Well at least he says he fought for X-Men 3 and admits Elektra blew chunks. Zak Penn's always kinda annoyed me in interviews and he doesn't seem to take real pride in his work, but he does get a pretty bad rep. It's pretty ****ty being a screenwriter because you can't win.

In fact, this guy's living proof that the director makes or breaks the movie. Take awesome movies like X2 and The Incredible Hulk against lame-ass movies like Elektra and X-Men 3, all of which (co)written by him and directed by different people.

Posted by: HappyPalooza on July 8, 2009 at 18:08:36

MisterFantastic,

No.

Posted by: abe on July 8, 2009 at 18:13:58

Good points about Wolverine.
So in that regards is Marvel going to reclaim the rights to making the movie, with Fox distributing it? Makes sense to me. Marvel get to make the movie they want, and Fox get to release a movie without having to pay the costs of producting said movie!

Posted by: Fanboiii on July 8, 2009 at 18:18:14

Not a fan of Zak Penn. I think it's a bad sign if he thinks making a good movie is so hard. If he was actually good, he wouldn't think it's that difficult. I could understand if he said it takes a lot of work, but if he's straining his brain too much, than he's just not equipped.

Posted by: Pearlman on July 8, 2009 at 18:20:32

Zak Penn is surely the worst thing ever happened to Marvel movies, hands down homies !

Posted by: Cheyenne Xavier Murdock Wayne on July 8, 2009 at 18:23:14

Im game...

Posted by: Darien on July 8, 2009 at 18:28:12

how will they incorporate the the hulk in the movie?

Posted by: Darien on July 8, 2009 at 18:29:12

how will they incorporate the hulk in the movie**

Posted by: Wolverine_X on July 8, 2009 at 18:47:23

He is so right about Wolverine. I mean Hugh Jackman cut things and where's the blood??

The next Hulk movie should be just the Avengers. Hulk should be the main villain crossing with Loki. Don't make another Hulk movie until that one.

I hope the Cap actor can get the right chemistry with Downy Jr. Bring on Brad Pitt or Paul Walker for it. Or Matt Damon. They sure have great performances.

Posted by: jim the fan on July 8, 2009 at 19:03:06

he sounds kinda clueless, maybe he will get thrown off the movie

Posted by: M on July 8, 2009 at 19:14:31

@ mike

Wolverine's 5'3"

And Penn was only using him as an example of how he needed to keep this and that straight while writing any thing, the Crave asked a Wolverine related question, which of course baffed people I guess. He wont be in the Avengers because he isn't an original Avenger.

We'd sooner see The Beast in the Avengers movie then Wolverine. Beasts logged a lot time in as an Avenger, so much so that thats why he's so popular even with humans in the Marvel U dispite his obvious mutant features.

Honestly if Wonder Man is any where near an Avengers movie in the future and Fox can let up some on the X-Men rights to allow Beast to be in another movie we could very well see him there, they're friendship is pretty legendary.

Posted by: Dean on July 8, 2009 at 19:18:40

Now that they have picked up the reins for Spiderman again, I do hope they try incorporate him into the Avengers movie.

Ok I know he isn't an original, but it'd be good to see him in it in some way. Even if it is a cameo. Perhaps where all the Marvel characters come together to help in some big disaster. Hulk destroying a city?

Or is it too early to be thinking like that, and maybe save it for an Avengers sequel?

Posted by: Harish on July 8, 2009 at 19:31:05

I'm glad he's collaborating with the studio as he writes it. This gives me hope. I'm sure if he genuinely tries that it will then be something worthy and perhaps excellent for as long as the studio sheperd him and as they now have a working manner of making these films happen.

Besides, IF it's bad I'm sure they'll get someone else who's worthy to re-write it considering Marvel Studios are doing their absolute best and seem to be banking so hard on it.

Posted by: Dean on July 8, 2009 at 19:18:40

Now that they have picked up the reins for Spiderman again, I do hope they try incorporate him into the Avengers movie.

I don't know where you read this but I'm 90% sure Sony still have the rights.

Posted by: Fanboiii on July 8, 2009 at 19:44:58

Thanks giddy, but it's not too hard to write better than Zak Penn. Too bad it's not what I wanna do with my life. I guess that's how hacks like Zak Penn gets his foot in the door. He obviously has no integrity if he admits no-blood Wolverine doesn't make sense yet he went ahead and wrote it anyway. He's just a pen. It's the studio that does the writing for him.

Posted by: thor on July 8, 2009 at 20:03:38

Posted by: Dunst sucks on July 8, 2009 at 19:45:34

Can someone explain why the Hulk is supposed to be the bad guy in this movie? He is a good guy in the comics and, if I recall correctly, wasn't he a member of the Avengers?

Yes. he is a member, and has also fought the team.

I think it's important to note that Banner's character in last film was begining to develop control over his transformations. I don't think he'll be the main villian, at most he'll fight the team in the first act.

Posted by: I MADE GALACTUS EAT MY SHORTS on July 8, 2009 at 20:16:34

i cant wait for the avengers movie! i think zak pen will do an awesome job, so if he is reading this rock and roll man, make it leave the field.. Im studying to be a screen play writer and i already see the line of getting people to like your movies and compromise it takes to do this so no one is to blame except for the people who dont like it cause truly their the ones not conform; which is your ow discussion of that being a good thing or bad... but anyways i would love to see dr doom control the flow of bad guys in avenger movies and definitely start setting up for secret wars after all the squeals of iron man thor etc, after that is when everone else and be incorporated into the universe.. i dont need to see spidey in avengers 1 cause it will take from my love for the other characters... i really hope wolverine is in captain america for a bit just so i can say i cried in a superhero movie

Posted by: GammaBob on July 8, 2009 at 20:27:16

I'm really not looking forward to Avengers, for one simple reason. I KNOW my main man, The Hulk, will once again get the shaft. It'll probably be a lousy 15 min appearance like Venom in SM3. Or worse, we'll see Captain America find some lame ass way to take down the Hulk. I mean we all know The Hulk could take the Avengers in his friggin sleep, but of course it's considered "blasphemy" to see that dink Captain America get the beat down he deserves. Same retarded reason we never see Superman get his ass handed to him. Oh sure, he did that one time but then "came back" ......what a cop out. I swear, it'll be just another example of society trying to keep the "colored" man down.

Posted by: alex rider cross on July 8, 2009 at 20:40:42

fanboiii u are the reason I dislike fanboys. You cannot please them. Do you know I read a post the other day that said Watchmen followed the book too closely. Fanboys complain when a director takes liberties and they complain when they follow the source material.

Posted by: alex rider cross on July 8, 2009 at 20:44:04

GammaBob you are right. I don't know if you were trying to be funny or not but you are correct. I can't stand Captain America. I even like the black cap better than him and he wasn't that great. Captain America to me is one of the lamest characters in comics along with superman. Those characters stay alive for no reason. Who says they have to be the symbols of america. Why can 't another character do that why those douches.

Posted by: Roffstafarian on July 8, 2009 at 20:48:37

I think it might be pretty cool if once the team is assembled Fury tells them that their first mission is to recruit Bruce Banner as the resident egghead but they have to fight down the Hulk when they meet him. Sort of like when Mina and Quatermain tried to recruit Jekyll but have to go through Hyde in order to do so in "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" (The Moore version, not the Connery abortion). Anyone?

Posted by: catchphrase on July 8, 2009 at 21:07:56

To thor:

god i hope they do it that way.
having the avengers rescue cap from the ice, try to recruit the hulk, fight him, then have him join the team for the final battle against... whatever they fight at the end

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