Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is just a bit more than a week from its 3D theatrical debut here in the states, and in anticipation of the Marvel character's second cinematic outing, a new official clip has landed online.  Contrary to what you might expect from a Ghost Rider sequel directed by Neveldine/Taylor, the clip is a quiet dialogue scene of nuanced and observant character interaction focusing on one man haunted by his unforgivable past.

With just three weeks until the sequel actually arrives in theaters, a big haul of images from Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance have appeared online.  There are over seventy-five total, so we're just providing a sampling here, but even so, the stills give a sense of how different the film will be from its predecessor, 2007's Ghost Rider.

At the San Diego Comic-Con panel for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance way back in July of last year, the highlight wasn't actually the first presentation of the sequel's trailer, it was a brief two-and-a-half minute behind the scenes featurette.  Now, with less than a month to go for before the film's release, that featurette has emerged online so that you can take a peek even if you didn't make the annual pilgrimage to Southern California.

Earlier this week we saw a new official one sheet for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, and now, in time honored fashion, a full theatrical trailer has followed in that poster's flaming footsteps.  Based on this trailer, the sequel to Mark Steven Johnson's Ghost Rider would seem to be focused squarely on ridiculous action, just as you'd expect from Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the aggro-duo behind both Crank movies and Gamer.  The trailer also gives our first idea of the Spirit of Vengeance storyline, such as it is, which finds Nicolas Cage's Johnny Blaze playing the hero in order to protect a young boy from becoming the human vessel for the Anti-Christ.

Though it never actually became a real movie, Superman Lives exists now as a notorious example of what could have been.  The story of the film long ago passed into infamy, thanks in part to the public stories of its one-time screenwriter Kevin Smith, online script drafts, images of costume tests, and the general batshit craziness of the fact that Tim Burton almost directed a Superman movie starring Nicolas Cage and based on the famous 90's "Death of Superman" comic arc.  The project ended up having the plug pulled shortly before production, becoming just one of the would-be Superman projects that never actually happened.  Now there's some new photographic evidence indicating how grateful we ought to be that it never actually happened, as some concept designs for Superman toys have made their way online for your perusal and judgment.

Last month, perhaps in order to get into the Thanksgiving spirit, Sony Pictures unveiled four aggressively stylized pieces of poster artwork for the upcoming semi-rebooted sequel Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.  Refresh your memory by taking a gander at those here and here.  Now, though, the studio has rolled out (no pun intended, I swear) a more conventional one sheet, one that features everything you'd expect out of a Ghost Rider poster.  Namely, a leather outfit, a charred-up motorbike spitting hot fire from its wheels, and, of course, a flaming skull.  There's also a swinging chain serving to visually illustrate that Spirit of Vengeance is in 3D, as well as the words "Nicolas" and "Cage," serving to remind us that Nicolas Cage once again plays Johnny Blaze.

There's a little challenge in marketing Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, as 2007's Ghost Rider performed pretty well and increased awareness of the Marvel Comics character, but was not generally well received by audiences or fans.  So how can the sequel, which is very nearly a reboot in many important respects, bank off that awareness whilst also promising a wholly different experience, courtesy of aggro-directing duo Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor?  Two new pieces of poster artwork for the sequel suggest that the approach in selling Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is to go way, way over the top in order to convey the film's wild tone, which is miles away from Mark Steven Johnson's cartoonish round with the property.

As directors, Brian Taylor and Mark Neveldine have an aggressive style that figuratively punches the audience in its solar plexus and then throttles its crotch.  That approach is potentially perfect for a comic book character who is alternately a human biker and a demon spawn with a flaming skull where his head should be.  With two new pieces of poster artwork for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, someone in marketing at Sony Pictures has nicely encapsulated the Neveldine/Taylor style (seen in films such as Crank and Gamer) with some pretty nifty images.  So good you can practically feel your crotch getting mercilessly pummeled.

Mark Steven Johnson's 2007 take on Ghost Rider wasn't really the balls-to-the-wall demonic actioner that plenty of folks must have been hoping for, but was instead more of a standard superhero origin tale with a flaming skull and some nice new leathers.  The upcoming sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, is not a reboot, as it once again stars Nicolas Cage as Johnny Blaze and does not explicitly disavow the first film, but new directors and co-writers Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor are definitely taking a different approach.  How different?  The Comic-Con tagline for the sequel was "Fucking Your Shit Up in 3D February 2012." 

At the SpikeTV Scream Awards this week, the first official clip from Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance played for the crowd and the audience at home.  Now, of couse, that clip is online, complete with the sounds of a cheering crowd from the horror-centric awards show.  The clip briefly shows Johnny Whitworth as the villainous Blackout before he turns into a demonic something-or-other, then re-introduces Ghost Rider himself. 

Throughout all the sundry stories of casting on The Expendables 2, it's often seemed a given that Mickey Rourke would reprise his brief role from the first film, appearing once again as the former Expendable Tool.  Particularly after a spoiler-y synopsis of the film's story emerged online in May, Rourke's involvement looked to be set.  Not so, as Oscar-nominee Rourke has opted not to appear alongside Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Liam Hemsworth, and a gaggle of other tough guys.  Instead, he'll be busy playing a crucial role in Seven Psychopaths, the sophomore feature from writer-director Martin McDonagh.