Max Steel will debut its first footage at this year's Comic-Con 2014 in just under two weeks. But Yahoo! Movies has our exclusive look at 7 new photos from this adaptation of the Mattel action figure and animated series, which gives us our first sneak peek at the villainous Dread, along with more images of star Ben Winchell as he transforms into this superhero for a kinder, gentler age of vigilantism.

Check out the latest images, along with commentary from director Stewart Hendler:

The movie's central mythology is adapted from the animated TV series, including the villainous Dread. Stewart Hendler takes pride in the fact that the villain's suit was made by Legacy Effects, the studio that's created famous suits and creature designs in such films as Iron Man, Avatar, and Pacific Rim.

Max Steel follows 16-year-old Max McGrath, whose body generates massive energy bursts that he can't control. He meets Steel, a techno-organic extraterrestrial, and the duo form a symbiotic relationship that harnesses their combined energies. Here he is seen in the climactic 'power chamber' scene.

"Neither of them can live without the other, and they drive each other crazy. But when they work together, they can actually be something cool."

Andy Garcia takes on a mentor role as Dr. Miles Edwards, who befriends Max and his mother (Maria Bello) shortly after they arrive in the small town of Copper Canyon following the death of Max's biological dad.

"One of the keys for Max to unlock and figure out what the heck is up with his powers and what happened to his dad."

"This is the moment where Max's powers, which start out a fun, quirky thing that he can mess around with, start to overwhelm him, and become something that he can't control and actually seem to threaten him physically. This is him about to overload for the first time."

Steel will be completely CG animated in the finished movie.

"Ben was talking to nobody on set, which was pretty funny."

Taylor Lautner, who shot to instant stardom with his role as Jacob in Twilight was originally cast as Max Steel. The crew was happy to have Ben Winchell take over the role, though.

"I've worked with a ton of young actors, and he's the most likely to become a legitimate star. And for all the right reasons. He had to go to the hospital once because he got so dehydrated and collapsed. I think he's actually sort of proud of that, though."

Here is the Max Steel costume seen in its design phase.

"It was a complicated concept because Steel and Max both create what you see. Steel takes Max's energy and converts it into matter and wraps that matter around him. Just defining what that would look like took a while."

"It's almost like they've fused together. Max has this energy that threatens to overwhelm him and he can explode. And this is almost like a protective barrier."

Director Stewart Hendler concluded by describing the tone of Max Steel, which will be decidedly different from other animated series adaptations:

"It's very much designed to be grounded within the teen experience. I'm a sucker for coming-of-age stories that [relate] how difficult it is to be a teenager."