The Heroes and Villains of Summer 2013

The Heroes and Villains of Summer 2013

This summer brings an action-packed four months of battles between good and evil. Take a look at the match-ups in now or headed to theaters and tell us which one you're most looking forward to.
Heroes: Iron Man and Pepper Potts

A lot has changed since New York. Tony Stark himself has said so while he spends his days tinkering in his basement tech shop. Then, in one (Extremis) flash, everything changes and things (like clifftop mansions) come crashing down. Can Iron Man shake off the Avengers blues and save the day once again? Probably and he'll bank $1 billion-plus worldwide in the process.
Villian: Aldrich Killian

Sheesh, talk about holding a grudge! You get stood up one night by Tony Stark and you end up waging a takeover of the world. OK, so there's a little bit more to it than that. Guy Pearce plays the power hungry villain in Shane Black's billion dollar-plus grossing superhero sequel.
Heroes: S.S. Enterprise Crew

Kirk never could stay out of trouble. It's that same headstrong stubbornness that catapults him and his crew into a conflict with members of the Federation and a gimmicky third act nod to one of the first Star Trek movies.
Villain: "John Harrison"

If you've seen the movie, you know why his name is in quote marks. If you're one of the few that haven't, know that "Harrison" reluctantly helps Kirk and company all while having ulterior motives of his own. And go watch Star Trek Into Darkness already!
Heroes: Fast Six Crew

If you've got a villain who can drive circles around the authorities, your best bet at catching them is by hiring Dom and his crew. Watch as they flip tanks, anchor airplanes and dive across bridges in the latest installment in this reenergized franchise.
Villain: Owen Shaw

The toughest villain the Fast & Furious crew has faced yet thrives on precision and a nifty customized Formula One style car, complete with a front end car flipping ramp. Just how much chaos will he raise for Dom's crew? Find out in Fast Six.
Hero: Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman

He is one of the most iconic superheroes in the world and on June 14, Kal-El makes his return to theaters worldwide in Zack Snyder's reboot of the Superman saga. With Christopher Nolan producing and David Goyer writing, here's hoping they knock this one to Krypton and back.
Villain: General Zod

DC's supervillain and Superman foe breaks free from the Phantom Zone and wreaks havoc on Earth in an attempt to capture Kal-El. Michael Shannon portrays the villain in Zack Snyder's reboot.
Hero: Brad Pitt as Gerry Lane

He's hunted Nazis, led an assault on Troy, shot it out with a super-spy and schemed his way to riches in his previous movies. Now Pitt is our last hope from a zombie epidemic that is breaking out worldwide in World War Z. Will Edward Norton's Fight Club alter ego be able to save the day?
Villains: Zombies

Ah, zombies. They're kind of a thing nowadays and this summer, they'll literally take over the world, running roughshod through some of the biggest cities in the world. So remember some of the basic zombie rules as mentioned in Zombieland: double-knot your shoes, travel light and carry an extra pair of underwear.
Hero: Channing Tatum as John Cale

Tatum rides his breakthrough 2012 into this summer by saving president Jamie Foxx from a group of terrorists who have some bad ideas they want to push into action… and we're not talking about frivolous government spending.
Villians: Terrorists

This year hasn't been kind to the White House. After surviving a wave of terrorists earlier this year in Olympus Has Fallen, Roland Emmerich is back to blow it up--but hopefully stop Jason Clarke and his bad guy crew along the way.
Heroes: Armie Hammer & Johnny Depp as Lone Ranger and Tonto

It's time to leave the production issues and the mega-budget behind, saddle up and ride for justice (and a massive opening weekend). Will fans be action-ed out by the time the Lone Ranger rides into theaters or will they Hi-Ho Silver it to their local theater to watch Hammer and Depp (sounds like a noir detective agency) save the day?
Villain: Wiliam Fichtner as Butch Cavendish

If you had the kind of skin and dental issues that Butch Cavendish has, you'd be angry too. But Cavendish is more than just a man with hygiene issues. He's an outlaw who kills a party of Texas Rangers in an ambush and that makes him a bad, bad man... with hygiene issues.
Heroes: Giant Freakin' Robots

Guillermo del Toro's imagination goes into overdrive in the sci-fi action flick Pacific Rim. So what's up with these giant robots? Well, you're going to need them when you're taking on…
Villains: Giant Freakin' Monsters

Much is unknown about the depths of the ocean. It turns out it's home to giant freakin' monsters that break free and go on a destructive rage spree. Pacific Rim is essentially an homage to classic Japanese monster movies and the Evangelion series. If all goes well, a sequel could be arriving in a few years!
Heroes: Jeff Bridges & Ryan Reynolds as Roy and Nick

In its comic form, R.I.P.D. is a fun, amusing read that could use a bit more character and story development. This summer, it'll hopefully get it when the comic series jumps to the big screen with Bridges and Reynolds playing our lead characters – the Southern twangin' cowboy Roy Pulsipher (formerly Roy Powell in the comics) and recently slain cop Nick Walker (aka Nick Cruz in the comics).
Villains: Bobby Hayes and the Dead-Os

While Roy and Nick spend most of their movie hunting down undead aliens, the real pull in the story is the film's main villain played by Kevin Bacon. We didn't see him in the first trailer, but hopefully upcoming clips will feature a meaty performance by Bacon. R.I.P.D. is in theaters July 19!
Heroes: Gru and the Minions

The world's number 1 villain is back for number 2 with his wacky minions and his foster kids as they get drawn into a new adventure when the Anti-Villain League summons him to stop a new bad guy. Will he succeed? We'll know soon in Despicable Me 2.
Villain: Eduardo

We've yet to see any footage of the new villain, but rest assured he'll make things as difficult for Gru and company as Al Pacino bailing at the last minute did for the production of this sequel. Benjamin Bratt replaces Pacino to voice Eduardo.
Heroes: Kick-Ass and Hit-Girl

The dynamic duo is back and this time they have friends. Since the conclusion of the first film, Hit-Girl has hung up her cape and despite the constant requests from Kick-Ass to join the super team called Justice Forever, she struggles to keep the crime-fighting out of her life and instead spends her time training Kick-Ass. When things take a turn for the evil, Hit-Girl kicks back into gear, purple wig and all.
Villain: The Motherf**ker

So your evil crime lord of a dad has been killed by Kick-Ass. It's enough to drive Chris D'Amico (formerly known as Red Mist) over the edge and into the dark side. Bent on wreaking havoc and avenging his father's death, he dons a new costume, a new supervillain name and assembles a new crew of bad guys for a final confrontation whose repercussion will surely spill into Kick-Ass 3.
Heroes: Lily Collins & Jamie Campbell Bower as Clary and Jace

If all goes well, we could be seeing this duo for quite a while. There are six novels in the Mortal Instruments series (so far) with the sixth book, City of Heavenly Fire, due out in March 2014. In the first in the series, City of Bones, will Clary and Jace be able to find the demon who has kidnapped her mom?
Villain: Jonathan Rhys-Meyers as Valentine Morgenstern

Jonathan Rhys-Meyers brings the demon Valentine Morgenstern to life from the pages of Cassandra Clare's YA fantasy series. During his younger days, he led an elitist group called The Circle, but when his father was killed during a raid on a vampire nest, be became bitter and cruel and sought to rid the world of Downworlders (vampires, werewolves, etc.). If anyone can pull off smoldering bitterness, it's JRM.
Heroes: The Smurfs

Papa, Brainy, Clumsy and the rest of the Smurfs return too save Smurfette who has been kidnapped by Gargamel. With an all-star cast voicing the well-established characters, there's no doubt The Smurfs 2 should be another hit for Sony. In fact, there's already a third film slated for 2015.
Villains: Gargamel and the Naughties

The evil sorcerer is up to his usual tricks, this time unleashing his new creation – the Naughties – on the world. He kidnaps Smurfette because she knows the secret spell that can turn the Naughties into real Smurfs.
Heroes: Wolverine and Yukio

James Mangold's take on Marvel's A-list mutant finds James 'Logan' Howlett teaming with thief and masterless samurai Yukio. Yukio is not a mutant, but specializes in throwing shurikens with deadly accuracy. It will be interesting to see how Mangold has adapted the Chris Claremont/Frank Miller series this movie is based upon.
Villains: Silver Smaurai and Viper

Silver Samurai may have made his first appearance in a mid-'70s Daredevil comic, but in Mangold's adaptation, he's very much Wolverine's main nemesis. Meanwhile, Viper aka Madame Hydra has been portrayed as a foe to both the Avengers and the X-Men. She first comes into contact with Wolverine upon trying to assassinate his love, Mariko Yashida... and you don't mess with Wolvie's sweetheart.
Heroes: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Friends

Wrapping up Edgar Wright's "Cornetto Trilogy," the best buds return to their hometown with some friends to attempt a legendary pub crawl that they failed in their youth. During the course of the night, they start to realize that things have changed considerably since their early days. Will they survive the night and complete the crawl?
Villains: Evil Robots

In The World's End, the pub-crawling quintet realizes that the people of their hometown aren't, well, people. They're evil robots and they're not taking kind to the returning guests.

Which hero and/or villain can you really get behind this summer?
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