Superhero Bits: More The Batman Concept Art, Gotham Knights Finally Gets A Release Date & More

(Superhero Bits is a collection of stories, updates, and videos about anything and everything inspired by the comics of Marvel, DC, and more. For comic book movies, TV shows, merchandise, events, and whatever catches our eye, this is the place to find anything that falls through the cracks.)

In this edition of Superhero Bits:

• More new concept art from "The Batman."

• That "Shang-Chi" concept art featuring Deadpool gets cleared up.

• Zoe Saldana hypes up the greatness of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3."

• A new "Morbius" TV spot.

• All that and more!

Joe Barton was the man who was tasked with bringing the Gotham City Police Department front and center for a spin-off series on HBO Max set in the same world as "The Batman." However, as we recently learned, the show has evolved and will now focus on Arkham Asylum. Now, Barton has spoken out on the matter with the above tweet, and he seems (understandably) pretty bummed about the fact that the show is not moving forward. It's a tough break, especially since the project likely would have been a big boost to his profile as a creator.

The "Red Sonja" movie has been in the works for a very, very long time and it just can't seem to catch a break along the way. To that end, a new report from The Illuminerdi suggests that Hanna John-Kamen ("Ant-Man and the Wasp") is no longer on board in the leading role for reasons that remain vague. This should be taken with a grain of salt for now, but the report notes that Millennium Films is looking for another actress to fill that role. We'll see what comes of it, but this could be yet another major setback for a film that has had its share of setbacks.

The above concept art from "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" recently made the rounds online, and made waves as it seemingly was proposed that Deadpool would/could have made his debut in the MCU in last year's film. However, artist Andrew Kim has set the record straight in a conversation with IGN.

"Long story short, and sorry to disappoint, but there was no involvement of Deadpool or Proxima in the early going. When I was designing the fight club, my PD mentioned to me that we could see other Marvel characters fighting in the ring when we first revealed the scene. Deadpool and Proxima were my idea to put in as I thought their dynamic fighting styles could be a perfect fit in the ring like that (you know, they don't fly) and Deadpool's red was a nice pop against the bluish background, so part of it was a design choice for this concept painting."

So there we have it. This was merely an idea put forth by Kim in the early goings and wasn't something that was actually considered by anyone who makes big decisions at Marvel Studios. We'll just have to wait for "Deadpool 3," it seems.

It may be a little hard to believe given that we have been watching trailers for this movie for more than two years, but "Morbius" is actually coming out in just a few weeks. As such, Sony is kicking up the marketing campaign, as evidenced by this new TV spot. It doesn't feature too much by way of new footage, instead repackaging much of what we've already seen in a tighter package. In any event, it signals that we'll finally have this movie out in the wild to (hopefully) enjoy. "Morbius" hits theaters on April 1, 2022.

Wolverine, since his first appearance in the pages of Marvel Comics, has been inherently Canadian. Yet, when Hollywood was looking to bring the mutant to the big screen in 2000's "X-Men," the studio (Fox) at the time, attempted to make him American. Yet, in a new report from Inverse, screenwriter David Hayter reveals he stepped up to fight the good fight and maintain this part of the character's backstory.

"One of the proudest moments I had on the first film was when I was called into one of the producers' offices and they said to me, 'Hey, can we just find Wolverine in Alaska instead of Alberta and make him American?' I knew this was coming, but I was ready. I told them, 'Everybody knows that Wolverine is Canadian and the fans will kill you ... I had no power in this situation, but I stood my ground and he stayed Canadian. I don't like to call myself a true Canadian hero, though. I'll leave that to others."

It all worked out, as Hugh Jackman ended up playing the part for 17 years, culminating in 2017's much-acclaimed "Logan." And he was Canadian all the way!

As revealed by hair and makeup artist Zoe Tahir in the above Instagram posts, we have some early test footage shots of Robert Pattinson as our emo Caped Crusader in "The Batman." But what is particularly interesting comes in Tahir's caption, where she explains these test shots actually ended up in one of the movie's trailers, which was not ever intended to be the case. It's a very cool bit of behind-the-scenes knowledge, especially now that the movie is out in theaters, with many viewers and critics praising Pattinson's take on the character.

"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" is currently in production and is set to conclude the trilogy that James Gunn kicked off back in 2014. It became one of Marvel's most unexpected yet beloved franchises to date. Now, returning star Zoe Saldana, who reprises her role as Gamora, has hyped things up in a new interview with Screen Rant, saying that this third installment will be the best yet.

"I think it's going to be the best one yet. We're having a blast, but then again, it's just not easy to shoot a Guardians movie. There's a lot of action. There's a lot of dust. There's a lot of makeup, endless hours of makeup, but the end result is so worth it."

That's a bold claim, but a welcome one as we get ready to send Star-Lord and this rag-tag group of heroes off in style next year. "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" is set to hit theaters on May 5, 2023.

At long last, the highly anticipated "Gotham Knights" video game has been given a release date. The game has been delayed several times since it was initially announced, but now Warner Bros. has committed to an October 25, 2022 release date, as we can see in the above Instagram post. This means players will finally have the chance to suit up as various members of the Bat-family in the wake of Bruce Wayne's death to do battle with the Court of Owls. It would not be surprising to see a new trailer arriving sooner rather than later with the release date set in stone.

Lastly, Warner Bros. has shared some brand new concept art from "The Batman," specifically showcasing some of the suit designs from director Matt Reeves' DC Comics adaptation. The artwork comes from "The Art of The Batman" book, which is set to hit shelves next month. These latest images offer a little taste of what fans can look forward to should they choose to pick up the book for themselves. Presumably, there will be lots of tidbits that offer a glimpse into what went into crafting this particularly dark vision of Gotham City.