Comic-Con 2014: five things we've learnt

1: Everybody's going Mad for Max

It's 30 years since Mel Gibson rolled into Bartertown in Mad Max: Beyond the Thunderdome, but after a long stint in pre-production the Road Warrior is finally set for a big screen return with Tom Hardy taking up the title role. Footage from George Miller's fourth of instalment of the action franchise, which is scheduled for a 2015 release, premiered at Comic-Con on Saturday and it certainly didn't disappoint. "It looks nothing like any other action movie out there," said Rolling Stone. "Think Road Warrior times ten…"

Mad Max: Fury Road Trailer

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2: Chris Nolan's latest is his "most ambitious film" to date

Fan-favourite Christopher Nolan made a long-overdue Comic-Con debut on Thursday as Paramount rolled out the latest trailer for his upcoming sci-fi odyssey: Interstellar. Joined on-stage by fellow first-timer, and Interstellar lead, Matthew McConaughey, the Dark Knight director told enraptured fans he'd come to San Diego to see "what all the fuss is about." Typically tight-lipped about the storyline, Nolan offered little insight into his latest project, though McConaughey said audiences can expect "the most ambitious film Nolan has ever directed" when Interstellar hits cinemas in November.

Interstellar Trailer

3: Avengers sequel looks set to raise the bar – again

"It just keeps getting better", Robert Downey Jr told an expectant crowd as Marvel readied the first footage from Avengers: Age of Ultron. Comic-Con's fabled Hall H "has become a second home to the Avengers", Vox says, and the ten strong cast – including new recruits Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Quicksilver) and Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch) – enjoyed a spirited homecoming on Saturday night. The main stage groaned under the weight of Downey Jr & Co, while fans gawped at a flurry of action-packed images from 2015's most eagerly awaited blockbuster. The concept art wasn't bad either...

Avengers: Age of Ultron concept art

4: Wonder Woman's had a makeover

Not to be outdone by the team at Marvel, Warner Bros and DC unveiled early footage from their own mega-franchise, Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, which is currently shooting in Chicago. The studio played it cool before the event, but given its 2016 release date "we knew there couldn't be any truth to reports that Batman vs Superman would have no presence at San Diego", says Yahoo. And so it proved. Zack Synder's teaser, coupled with two new images from Warner Bros, including a first look at Gal Gadot's revamped Wonder Woman, were enough to send the crowd and twittersphere into overdrive.

5: Quentin Tarantino will direct The Hateful Eight

The "will he/won't he?" surrounding Tarantino's latest project is finally over as the director announced his post-Civil War western, The Hateful Eight, will go ahead after all. The film's future was thrown into doubt when an early script was leaked online by Gawker, leading the director to shelve the project. But during a friendly Q&A with Comic-Con fans on Sunday, Tarantino confirmed he still plans to go ahead with the Wyoming-based western. "Yes, we are going to be doing The Hateful Eight," he said. "We weren't sure about it, but I just decided just now."