Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Working on Live-Action ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ Movie

    Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Working on Live-Action ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ Movie

    It looks like the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie is finally moving forward, as Blumhouse founder shared a new picture sharing that he’s actively working with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop on an upcoming project. While he doesn’t give away what exactly it is going to be, he does state that their “expertise with animatronics is absolutely killer” and a close look at the desk confirms they are already preparing the animatronics for Five Nights at Freddy’s.

    The bowtie technically gives away that it’s Freddy but we don’t know if they might mix things up with some new animatronics. The three toes and green coloring could hint at Happy Frog. There’s no real core story they can directly adapt from the games, but as it seems to be a cleaner design, we might explore the earlier days of the pizza place. Perhaps we see what it was like before the vanishing of children turned it into the horror house that it is known for in the games.

    The surprising revelation is that the project is moving forward after all. While Jason Blum teased that movement was happening in the film, it did lose its director. Chris Columbus was originally attached. There were seemingly some complications with the creator Scott Cawthon not signing off on the script, which he was involved with writing, and here’s hoping we might get an announcement soon.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Prey’ 3-Day Debut Dominates Hulu’s Viewership Numbers

    ‘Prey’ 3-Day Debut Dominates Hulu’s Viewership Numbers

    While many have wondered why the latest Predator film with the title Prey ended up as a Hulu exclusive, it definitely has become quite a popular film online. well, it seems that the story of the fierce warrior Naru has hit a cord with viewers. 20th Century Studios’ latest film has premiered on Hulu, Disney+, and Star+ in specific markets as the most watched film debut on the services.

    Not only that, but it also has seemingly beaten the TV series’ debuts viewership numbers based on hours watched in the first three days of its release. It’s a testament to the genre film created by Dan Trachtenberg and his team. There’s sadly no specific number to get a feeling for just how huge the release has been, but it’s great to see such a unique project get the acclaim it deserves.

    There’s also a testament to the draw that a Native-American cast has with audiences, which hopefully also opens up the windows to many more diverse projects getting more acclaim. It does also open up the question again of how massive the project would’ve been if it hit theaters, but there’s always a risk with genre films, especially R-rated ones. though, there’s something interesting about it also being a massive streaming success, which may also further push for an R-rated inclusion in Disney+ to grow its viewership.

  • New ‘Echo’ Set Photos Offer First Look at Vincent D’Onofrio’s Return as Kingpin

    New ‘Echo’ Set Photos Offer First Look at Vincent D’Onofrio’s Return as Kingpin

    Just the other day we got our first look at set photos from Ironheart, which revealed our first look at the Marvel villain The Hood. Now, Atlanta Filming has also shared some set photos from Echo offering our first look at the returning Vincent D’Onofrio as Kingpin.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/ChC0Nl_gVPh/?igshid=YzAyZWRlMzg=

    It looks like he is continuing to rock his white suit that is a combination of gis traditional comic outfit and what he wore in Daredevil Season 3. The actor is set to return in the role for the sequel series Daredevil: Born Again heading to Disney+ with a whopping 18 episodes.

    The set photos offer the confirmation that not only did he survive the shot from Echo back in Hawkeye. The bigger surprise is that he didn’t take any damage from the ordeal but that could be something we see earlier in the season as he recovers

    Source: Instagram

  • Zazie Beetz to Return in ‘Joker’ Sequel

    Zazie Beetz to Return in ‘Joker’ Sequel

    When the Joker sequel was announced, all eyes were on the fact that not only was it going to be a musical but also Lady Gaga is very likely taking on the role of Harley Quinn. We still don#t know any details about the project, but we did get a confirmation that she is definitely joining the project in an unknown role. In a surprising twist, it seems that a familiar face is going to return to the project from the first entry, as Zazie Beetz will take on the role of Sophie Dumond once again.

    While there have been hints that Joker: Folie à Deux will mostly take place in Arkham Asylum, the ending did keep a lot of questions open on how much of the story was actually Arthur Fleck’s experience or in the character’s mind. Carried mostly by Joaquin Phoenix‘s performance, the project played with the viewer’s perception of what is and isn’t real. As such was the story arc of Beetz‘ Dumond. While it seemed that she was slowly falling in love with Fleck, it turns out it was all in his mind.

    There’s no word on how her character might tie into the story, perhaps they’ll play around with the idea that she’s an inmate or someone that is still haunting Fleck’s subconscious. It would be strange if she returns for a brief appearance or generally if they want to further explore his actions as he fully became the Joker. Perhaps we get to see Gotham from her perspective as everything has gone insane after Fleck accidentally led a faction into trying to overtake the city. Whatever may be, we’ll have to wait and see.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘One Piece Film RED’ Nabs the Second-Biggest Box Office Opening in Japan

    ‘One Piece Film RED’ Nabs the Second-Biggest Box Office Opening in Japan

    One Piece has been slowly growing its international presence ahead of the live-action series hitting Netflix at some point in the future. While production has been busy, it’s not the only major project finding development. The original manga by Eiichiro Oda is about to enter its final saga and kicked it off with quite the bang. Not only is One Piece Odyssey on the horizon to release later this year, but we also had the world premiere of the fifteenth film entry simply titled RED.

    The story focuses on the Strawhat pirate’s arrival at a concert by the superstar Uta. As it turns out, she’s not only a childhood friend of Luffy but also the daughter of Shanks; probably one of the biggest revelations to catch people off-guard when the first trailer dropped. The film has now opened in Japan across 495 screens on August 6th and has already made quite the splash.

    According to Crunchyroll, One Piece Film RED has made 2.25 billion yen, which equates to $16.63M. What makes this stand out is that it’s now the biggest opening for a One Piece film yet and even the second-biggest two-day opening weekend in Japanese history. The only one still standing at the top was Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train which pulled in 3.3 billion yen. It did take the top spot from Jujutsu Kaisen 0, which stood at 1.6 billion yen.

    It’s also now the third film to make one billion yen on opening day and only the second to make another billion on its second day. So, it’s safe to say that the project has definitely had quite a bit of hype behind it and with the current events in the manga unfolding, there’s a likelihood it could also perform quite well internationally. Mugen Train was a big international success during the pandemic, and it’ll be interesting to see

    Source: Crunchyroll

  • New ‘Ironheart’ Set Photos Offer First Look at Her New Armor

    New ‘Ironheart’ Set Photos Offer First Look at Her New Armor

    It looks like we’re getting some set photos from the upcoming Ironheart series. While not much is known about the Disney+ project, and how it’ll tie into her appearance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever but it looks like we’re definitely getting an armor. The surprising reveal is the fact that it’s not as lean as we know it from the comics and even seems to be a different take on an earlier design, especially with how bulky it is.

    Perhaps it’s an evolution of the one that was teased in the Black Panther trailer and even merchandise.The set photos shared by @ironhnews not only show Dominique Thorne in a part practical and part CG suit but also the armor in its full detail.

    The fact that they didn’t skip to her final design from the comics makes this stand out quite a bit. It’s a very bulky design and likely one of her earlier models. Here’s hoping we get to see it evolve throughout the series run, especially as she starts to embrace her own design that’ll make it stand out. With The Hood now finally confirmed as part of the series, it does open up many more questions on how the story will tie together and if perhaps her armor may be one of the catalysts leading into Armor Wars.

    Source: Twitter

  • New ‘Ironheart’ Set Photos Offer First Look at Anthony Ramos as The Hood

    New ‘Ironheart’ Set Photos Offer First Look at Anthony Ramos as The Hood

    It’s been highly speculated for a while that Anthony Ramos will be playing the villain The Hood in the upcoming Disney+ series, Ironheart. There never was an official statement in regards to his role besides Ramos being teased as a big part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s future.

    With it being such a big deal, it’s quite surprising to see that @CosmicMMedia has shared a first look at the actor in the iconic hood on the set of Ironheart. It definitely looks to be quite close to what we saw in the comics, which may get some CG additions to make it feel a bit more alive but it’s definitely an interesting design. He even has his handguns, which were his go-to weapon even with the magical item around his neck.

    If he does have a bigger role moving forward, it’s going to be quite iinteresting to seee what exactly entails. perhaps there’s something about the item around his neck that may even tie to the overarching mystery of powerful artifacts. Perhaps these are items necessary to take down Kang the Conqueror and he may have a minor but significant role throughout.

    He’d also make for a great recurring villain on the street-level corner of the MCU. Him working alongside Kingpin to take over New York City in Daredevil: Born Again could make for a unique challenge. Here’s hoping that the wait for an official look isn’t too far away, especially with how her design evolves from her cinematic premiere going into the TV series.

    Source: Twitter

  • Sam Mendes and Armando Iannucci to Adapt Comedy Pilot Based on Superhero Filmmaking for HBO

    Sam Mendes and Armando Iannucci to Adapt Comedy Pilot Based on Superhero Filmmaking for HBO

    With The Boys and other counter-culture movements in regards to superhero productions being all the rage, Warner Bros. HBO division has given a pilot order to The Franchise. Created by director Sam Mendes and Armando Iannucci, the pilot order will explore superhero movie-making from a comedic standpoint. It’s unclear if this is purely meant to mock the current franchise market or generally go directly mock current tentpole franchises, but the description of the series is as follows according to Deadline:

    The half-hour project takes a wry look at superhero movie-making. It follows a hopeful crew trapped inside the dysfunctional, nonsensical, joyous hellscape of franchise superhero movie-making. If and when they finally make the day, the question they must face — is this Hollywood’s new dawn or cinema’s last stand? Is this a dream factory or a chemical plant?

    The timing also comes as Iannucci’s Avenue 5 comedy is coming to an end, which will see him then executive produce the new HBO series through the Dundee Productions banner. Jon Brown is attached to serve as showrunner, writer, and executive producer. Mendes is going to direct the pilot episode but no further details or castings are known.

    It’s a shame that no one that worked on a superhero franchise is seemingly involved to offer a true behind-the-curtains experience, as it may only offer an outsider’s perspective that is quite focused on one takeaway potentially. Yet, with the comedy team behind it, there’s potential it’ll offer a balanced look at the highs and lows of the concept.

    The timing is interesting, as Iannucci also just recently debut a Spider-Man story in Amazing Fantasy #1000. Mendes was also once approached to direct Marvel’s The Avengers back in 2012 before Joss Whedon took on the role. Superheroes are all the rage right now and it’s no surprise that someone will try to bank on that very concept. We’ll have to see what the production has in store and if HBO moves forward with a series order, but banking on the success of superheroes by making a series about making superhero films sounds like the next step in the overall genre trend.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Marvel’s Midnight Suns’ Faces Another Delay, May Not Release Until 2023

    ‘Marvel’s Midnight Suns’ Faces Another Delay, May Not Release Until 2023

    Well, it looks like the wait for Marvel and Firaxis’ upcoming tactical RPG, Midnight Suns, which offers a unique take on the iconic superhero gaming franchise will have o wait just a bit longer. Firaxis’ parent company, Take-Two, has revealed during an earnings call that they have decided to push back the upcoming game Midnight Suns once again. This delay makes it the second time the game has required more time to be worked on and the vague “later this fiscal year” has raised some eyebrows.

    For those that might not know, a fiscal year isn’t the natural year that ends in 2022. In fact, the fiscal year for Take-Two doesn’t end until March 2023, which adds the potential delay could be until next year. Midnight Suns offers a promising look at Marvel’s mystical side with some familiar faces joining the fray to take on whatever threat is heading towards Earth.

    Delays haven’t been too uncommon as of late, especially due to the nature of COVID making production cycles far less predictable. While some may not be happy to hear that the wait may be quite a bit longer, especially with a vague timeline given this time around, it does give the development team enough time to bring the project to life. In an industry plagued by crunch time, similarly to the VFX industry, this hopefully means the team also gets some time rather than continue having to push through endless hours.

    Source: IGN

  • Bandai Namco Working on Live-Action ‘Pac-Man’ Movie

    Bandai Namco Working on Live-Action ‘Pac-Man’ Movie

    The yellow ball that started it all is seemingly heading to the silver screen. In a new report by The Hollywood Reporter, it seems that a live-action film is in development based on Pac-Man, which sees Bandai Namco Entertainment alongside Wayfarer Sutiods, founded by Justin Baldoni and Steve Sarowitz, bringing the yellow ball to movie theaters. The arcade game Pac-Man became a staple for many arcades across the United States when he was first introduced in 1980s and has gone on to star in various games and even TV series.

    It seems that the project is based off of an idea by Sonic the Hedgehog‘s Chuck Williams which will see Baldoni, Andrew Calof, and Manu Gargi produced for Wayfarer Studios. William‘s Lightbeam Entertainment is also involved with him and Tim Kwok in a producing role. There’s no word just how they’ll adapt the video game character’s first live-action film but it does seem like they are going down the route that Sega took with its mascot.

    There’s still a lot we don’t know, especially if they’ll follow the cliché storyline of the being from another world lands in the real one and has to find a way home. Of course, Pac-Man’s overall design is simplistic in the original games and has gone through many variations; most notably him gaining shoes and gloves like most mascot characters over the years as he entered the 3D realm. So, we’ll have to see if this project truly comes together to get a feeling of how they’ll adapt this take on the character.

    Source: Hollywood Reporter