Amid political backlash, Canada's Nathan Fillion says Superman's true power is hope
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Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Hot Docs film festival co-founder Debbie Nightingale dies
Hot Docs film festival co-founder Debbie Nightingale has died at 71. The organization says the veteran Toronto film producer died on July 10. Her obituary says she fought cancer with the 'fierce determination' she had brought to all other aspects of her life. In 1993, Nightingale teamed up with veteran documentary filmmaker Paul Jay to launch a showcase that would evolve into Hot Docs, Canada's largest documentary film festival. She helped raise the initial $100,000 that got the organization off the ground and served as its first festival manager and later as executive director. She also produced several films, TV shows and documentaries, including 2004 hockey dramedy 'Chicks with Sticks' and 2010's series 'Living in Your Car,' a darkly comic look at corporate downfall. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. Hot Docs said in a statement that Nightingale 'recognized the importance of documentary filmmaking' and provided 'a place where filmmakers, funders and audiences could connect.' Her obituary notes that she also operated Haute Goat Farm, a 200-acre property in Port Hope, Ont. 'Debbie was not only the founder but the true heart and soul of Haute Goat — a dreamer, a doer, and an inspiration to all who crossed her path,' said a statement on the farm's Facebook page. 'Her love for animals, people, and the land was the magic behind every visit, every experience, and every smile on the farm.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 17, 2025.
CBC
8 hours ago
- CBC
From Canadian roots to odd superpowers: 5 fun Superman facts
The superhero wasn't always able to fly ⭐️HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW⭐️ Superman, the newest film to star the comic book hero, hit theatres July 11. With more than 80 years of history, there's a lot to know about the character. His past includes Canadian roots, multiple names and some weird superpowers. Plus, a real dog inspired his sidekick. ⬇️⬇️⬇️ Superman is the biggest hit movie of the summer so far. It hit theatres July 11 and made $122 million US in its opening weekend. But this isn't Superman's first time on the big screen. Fans have been following the superhero's adventures in the movies — along with comic books, TV shows and more — for more than eight decades. With such a long history, there are a lot of interesting things about Superman that you may not know. Here are five of them. 1. He has Canadian roots While Superman is often seen as an all-American hero, he actually has a few connections to Canada. Joe Shuster, one of Superman's creators, was born in Toronto, Ontario. While he eventually moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he met co-creator Jerry Siegel, his time in Canada still had an impact on the hero's world. Metropolis, the city where many of Superman's adventures take place, was partially inspired by Toronto. The newspaper where Superman works under his secret identity of Clark Kent, The Daily Planet, was inspired by the Canadian newspaper Shuster delivered as a child: the Toronto Star. That's according to a Toronto Star interview with Shuster shortly before his death in 1992. 2. He has 3 names We all know that Clark Kent is Superman's secret identity — those glasses don't actually hide that much — but he also has another name. Superman was born on the planet Krypton, where he was given the name Kal-El. When the planet was about to be destroyed, his parents tried to save their baby by sending him to another planet in a rocketship. The rocket ended up landing on Earth, in the U.S. state of Kansas. It was found by two farmers, Martha and Jonathan Kent, who adopted the baby and named him Clark. 3. He hasn't always been able to fly Superman is in great shape, so you might not realize that he's actually 87 years old. His first appearance was in Action Comics No. 1, published in June 1938. The Superman we met in that comic is a little different than the one we know today. For one thing, he couldn't fly. Originally, his powers were described as being 'faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.' It wasn't until the 1940s that Superman would be shown flying in comics. Over the years, Superman has developed a lot of different powers. Some of them stayed — like flying — and some of them didn't — like shooting mini Superman clones out of his hands. 4. The first Superman movie came out almost 75 years ago While he started as a comic book character, Superman has appeared in many different mediums, from radio to television and, of course, films. Superman's first appearance on the big screen was in 1951's Superman and The Mole Men. It was later reused as a two-part TV episode in 1952's The Adventures of Superman series. Since Mole Men, there have been eight live-action Superman films, and four actors have played the character on the big screen, with David Corenswet becoming the most recent in the new film. 5. Superman's super dog was inspired by a real rescue dog There's an expression that says man's best friend is a dog, so it makes sense that Superman's best friend would be a super dog. Krypto is a dog from Krypton who has all the same powers as Superman but is, well, a dog. Krypto debuted in a March 1955 comic, but this summer he's making his first appearance in a live-action film. On July 9, Superman director and writer James Gunn told Fox News 2 St. Louis that he was inspired to include Krypto by his own dog. Ozu, left, with his owner, Superman writer and director James Gunn. Gunn says adopting Ozu inspired him to include Krypto, right, in the 2025 movie. (Image credit: James Gunn/Instagram) While he was writing the script, Gunn adopted Ozu, a rescue dog. Because Ozu wasn't used to living inside, Gunn said, the dog tore apart his house. That made him think about how much more destructive Ozu would have been if he had superpowers. In the film, Krypto is entirely CGI, but Ozu was used as the model.
CBC
a day ago
- CBC
Nathan Fillion was a shy comic book kid. Now, he's a Green Lantern in Superman
Nathan Fillion knows what it's like to be a fan, as well as a person at the centre of intense fandom. In an interview with Q 's Tom Power , the Edmonton-born actor says he was a shy comic book kid who loved Spider-Man, the X-Men, Batman and Superman. Now, he's playing Guy Gardner — one of the characters known as Green Lantern — in the latest Superman blockbuster. "Having a love for it myself, I don't feel like I have to service fans out there, I feel more like I have to service me because I'm one of the fans," Fillion tells Power. "I am the fan with the fortunate experience of not only having a front row seat, I'm actually in the catbird seat." WATCH | Nathan Fillion's full interview with Tom Power: Fillion's character in Superman is one of many Green Lanterns in the intergalactic peacekeeping force known as the Green Lantern Corps. As a Green Lantern, his responsibility is to enforce the law and resolve planetary issues, but he's a deeply flawed man. "He's a jerk," Fillion says. "He has a chip on his shoulder. He has had a very tumultuous life growing up. He doesn't like the idea of being passed up or overlooked. He is a sexist. He is a narcissist. He is egomaniacal. He is self-centered." The actor reportedly fought to keep the character's iconic blonde bowl cut from the original comics. For his performance, he took inspiration from Sophia Petrillo, Estelle Getty's character on The Golden Girls. "She had a stroke and that part of her brain that filters out 'maybe I shouldn't say this' had been damaged," he explains. "As was Guy Gardner. He was in an accident. He was hit by a bus and spent some time in a coma at one point. And I said, 'I'm going to take that and say there was a click in there to an already damaged guy. Now, he just doesn't have that filter anymore.'" WATCH | Official trailer for Superman: Growing up in Edmonton, Fillion never could have imagined that he'd one day be sharing the big screen with one of the superheroes he admired. "I didn't know acting was a thing," he says. "I didn't know people would pay you to act. I had no idea what that was all about. I just wished I could be a superhero. I wished I could fly." Looking back, he credits his love of comic books for leading him to where he is today. "I am a fan," Fillion says. "I am a fan of comic books. All the stuff I got in trouble for when I was a kid, daydreaming and drawing in the margins of my binders when I should have been studying, it's all prepared me for this moment." The full interview with Nathan Fillion is available on our YouTube channel and on our podcast, Q with Tom Power . Listen and follow wherever you get your podcasts. Interview with Nathan Fillion produced by Catherine Stockhausen.
