Lena Headey

Karl Urban Lays Down the Law in New Still Images from Dredd

Judge Dredd is a hugely important comic book character in Great Britain, where his exploits as judge, jury and executioner of the futuristic megalopolis Mega City One have been in print since March of 1977, but to most Americans he is the dim-witted, somewhat sappy future cop played by Sylvester Stallone in the wish-we-could-forget-it 1995 Judge Dredd movie. Kiwi actor Karl Urban (Star Trek) is aware of the stigma attached to the character in America, which is why he's been taking every opportunity to distance the Judge Dredd he plays in director Pete Travis' (Vantage Point, Endgame) Dredd, with Stallone's version. In an interview with MTV conducted during the recent San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC), Urban pulled no punches about the differences between the movies, adding that he doesn't "give a damn" what Stallone thinks.

I think it's a difference of if you like your heroes wearing lycra and gold cod pieces, then his film's the one for you. If you like a badass movie where your heroes are real and wearing leather motorbike suits and body armor and hard-core, gritty, pull-no-punches, this is the movie for you.

Dredd made its worldwide debut at SDCC last week and it was received with thunderous applause. Check out the gritty new still images from the movie and see for yourself why Urban isn't too worried about people confusing his take on the character with Stallone's

• Dredd
• Karl Urban
• Lena Headey
• Sylvester Stallone
• Comic-Con 2012

First Trailer for Dredd Exceeds Expectations

Anyone that saw 1995's Judge Dredd starring Sylvester Stallone knows that director Pete Travis (Vantage Point, Endgame) didn't have a high bar to climb for his upcoming Dredd to be seen as the better adaptation of the British comic book character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. Now that the first trailer is online, Travis, by many accounts, has exceeded expectations.

The first part of the trailer sets up the world of Mega City One, where the populace is falling under the influence of a new illegal drug controlled by drug lord Ma-Ma (Lena Headey). Coming to the city's aid is cop Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) and his rookie partner, the telepathic Judge Anderson (Olivia Thirlby), who, in the movie's neo-futuristic setting can act as judge, jury, and executioner. The second half of the trailer is dedicated to the action, which seems to steamroll once Dredd and Anderson are caught inside a building controlled by Ma-Ma in a The Raid: Redemption-like twist.

• Dredd
• Karl Urban
• Olivia Thirlby
• Lena Headey

Superhero Smackdown: New Still Images from The Dark Knight Rises and Dredd

Just because The Avengers spent all week racking up box office records and is already doing so again, taking the title of "best second Friday" away from The Dark Knight, let's not forget that there are three more superhero movies on the horizon, each hoping to take those titles away from "Earth's Mightiest Heroes." Of the three — The Dark Knight Rises, The Amazing Spider-Man, and Dredd — Christopher Nolan's third and final Batman movie has the best chance of kicking The Avengers off of its throne in light of the fact that most of the titles that were broken this past week were previously owned by The Dark Knight. Warner Bros. has been sparing in its promotional materials for the movie, but the studio released an awesome new high-resolution photo of Tom Hardy as the man who finally breaks the Bat, Bane, to help launch the new interactive iPad edition of Total Film Magazine.

• The Dark Knight Rises
• Dredd
• Tom Hardy
• Karl Urban
• Lena Headey
• Olivia Thirlby
• Langley Kirkwood

Gerard Butler and Lena Headey Will Have Roles in 300 Sequel

Ever since director Zack Snyder first expressed his interest in directing a sequel to his 2007 sophomore effort 300, the question that has been bedeviling fans has been whether or not Gerard Butler would somehow be able to reprise the role of Leonidas, king of the Spartans, despite the fact the character died at the end of the first movie. Butler said that he would be game for a return to Sparta, and Snyder teased the possibility of Leonidas' return when he revealed that 300: Battle of Artemisia (formerly Xerxes) takes place during "the exact same three days" as the events in 300. Now, we have the first confirmation that not only Leonidas, but also his wife, Queen Gorgo, were written into the sequel, opening the way for both Butler and Lena Heady to return.

• 300
• Gerard Butler
• Lena Headey

Lena Headey Cast as Villain in Dredd

Every comic book movie needs a villain, and director Pete Travis's adaptation of Judge Dredd, simply titled Dredd, is getting one. Fansite JudgeDreddMovieNews was the first to report that Lena Headey, known for her performance as Queen Grogo in 300 and as Sarah Connor in the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles TV show, has been cast as the movie's "villain and gang-leader, Madeline Madrigal a.k.a. Ma-Ma." Dredd is currently shooting in South Africa, and Headey began work last week. Headey sent her fans a greetings from South Africa on her official Facebook page.

• Dredd
• Lena Headey
• Alex Garland
• Pete Travis

300 Bloodies the competition

• 300
• Zack Snyder
• Lena Headey