Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • ‘The Incredible Hulk’ Star Opens Up About Acting Opposite a Different Hulk Actor

    ‘The Incredible Hulk’ Star Opens Up About Acting Opposite a Different Hulk Actor

    The upcoming Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law marks the grand return of Tim Roth in the role of Emil Blonsky. He’s only the second actor from 2008’s The Incredible Hulk to join production; following the late William Hurt as General Thunderbolt Ross in Captain America: Civil War. With such a time gap, it was quite the change for the actor, who opened up about the experience in an interview with Forbes to promote the upcoming project, Resurrections.

    While he continues to not give away any details on his exact role, he does look back fondly at The Incredible Hulk; even calling it a “big budget indie” as it was in development before the Marvel Cinematic Universe truly came together. He did highlight it was quite the adjustment jumping back into the fray of this franchise.

    Coming back, I didn’t know what to expect. Once I started shooting on it, I didn’t know how to go about my business, and it was a bit disconcerting. Tatiana Maslany is incredible, and She-Hulk is a comedy, and she’s bloody good at comedy but, to be fair, she’s pretty, pretty good at everything When Mark Ruffalo showed up to do his stuff that I was involved in and saw the two of them interacting, it was a penny drop moment for me, and I went, ‘Oh, that’s what we’re doing. Oh, okay,’ and then I knew what to do. Basically, on the first segment I was involved in, I got some serious direction from them about we go about our business there, and then it was all playtime. It was a lot of fun.

    Tim Roth

    He also jokingly added how unique it was to star opposite Mark Ruffalo, who is the second actor in the franchise to take on the mantle. The 2008 Hulk film originally had Edward Norton in the iconic role before he passed after some creative differences heading into The Avengers. It seems that he and Ruffalo had quite a bit of fun with that fact on set.

    Yeah, I was like, ‘You’ve changed.’ (Laughs) It’s kind of fun. We used to hang around and muck about between takes, and we had a nice time. I very much respect Mark as an actor, so even under those bizarre and wonderful circumstances, that one was a treasure.

    Tim Roth

    It definitely sounds like he had quite a lot of fun with the project, which adds to the uniqueness of joining after so long. Not only is it a straightforward comedy but also a very different kind of project that is heading to Disney+ exclusively. So, it’s going to be exciting if that behind-the-scenes energy also carried over into the streaming series.

    Source: Forbes

  • ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ Director Hints at Marvel Studios’ Plans for Hercules

    ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ Director Hints at Marvel Studios’ Plans for Hercules

    The post-credit stinger for Thor: Love and Thunder felt like a return to form for the Marvel Studios franchise, as it finally introduced a new character that would have a big role moving forward. In it, we saw that Russell Crowe‘s Zeus survived having his own lightning bolt shot through his chest and sending his son out to kill Thor for what he’s done. As it turns out, the son he’s talking to (he’s had quite a few in Greek myth) is non-other than Hercules, played by Brett Goldstein.

    While many believed it may be a hint at the next entry for the Thor franchise, it does seem like they may have other plans for the Greek demigod, as hinted by Love and Thunder‘s director Taika Watiti. he highlighted that his inclusion was an idea from Marvel Studios directly and that he’ll likely “won’t be invited to come and be a part of.”

    And then [Louis D’Esposito?] is like, we’re gonna introduce Hercules, and um, that made no sense to me, I didn’t even know that was a character in Marvel, but um, apparently it is, and um… It was good, I know it’s opening up a whole new thing, uh, which I won’t be invited to come and be a part of, but I’m happy for everyone who loves Greek Gods.

    Taika Waititi

    That last line certainly sounds like a jab at many that have been openly displeased with his adaptation of the popular Norse God of Marvel myth. The more comedic direction has rubbed quite a few the wrong way and it seems to still stand out among the already comedy-heavy Marvel Cinematic Universe.

    His future with the franchise is uncertain and it’ll be interesting if they would make a follow-up, especially with how the latest film ended. No matter what direction they might go, it still looks like the future is full of opportunities and new characters for Marvel Studios.

    Source: Reddit via The Direct

  • Kevin Feige, Edgar Wright, and James Gunn Reached Out to ‘Batgirl’ Directors Over Sudden Cancelation

    Kevin Feige, Edgar Wright, and James Gunn Reached Out to ‘Batgirl’ Directors Over Sudden Cancelation

    It’s been a tough week for Batgirl‘s creative team. Warner Bros. Discovery has pulled a bizarre move by writing the entire film off for taxes, which costs $90M to produce and was nearly finished. Given their work on Bad Boys For Life and Ms. Marvel, it seemed bizarre for many that a film directed by Adil El Arbi and Billal Fallah wouldn’t be able to live up to any standards. Still, Warner Bros. Discovery head David Zaslav saw the “right” decision to protect the DC brands.

    What wasn’t the right decision was that the team wasn’t even informed until the news first broke through the New York Post. Even Walter Hamada, the CEO of DC Films, only found out as the decision was already made during a screening of Black Adam without even being consulted. Now, director Adil El Arbi shared an e-mail they received from Marvel Studios director Kevin Feige on the matter painting a very big contrast between the way it’s being handled by executives of different corporations.

    Feige sending out this e-mail is definitely a showcase of a closer relationship with talent over at Marvel Studios, but also simply a showcase of kindness that anyone would need if their passion project is just pulled to save money. The film business has always found a balance between the two sides, but Warner Bros. Discovery current moves are certainly more business than artistic, adding pressure to future talent potentially joining any future project.

    He wasn’t the only one to reach out, as it seems that the Batgirl director’s were also given support by James Gunn and Edgar Wright, who famously lost their own passion projects. While for different reasons, there are always going to be moments where things just don’t come together creatively as intended. But, this case is less a creative difference but a bizarre move by a company to save as little money as possible.

    Source: Twitter, Variety

  • ‘Moon Knight’ Director Backtracks on Season 2 Tease, Hints at Interest in Exploring Character’s Judaism

    ‘Moon Knight’ Director Backtracks on Season 2 Tease, Hints at Interest in Exploring Character’s Judaism

    Not too long ago, Moon Knight director Mohamed Diab was asked by a fan alongside Oscar Isaac, who was visiting Cairo at the time, if they were working on a second season. At the time, they jokingly stated why else they’d be there and Diab also shared a “Season 2” tease on Twitter. So, it seemed like maybe there was a chance that something is happening. Yet, it seems the director may have backtracked on that statement in a new tweet.

    Moon Knight had a strong focus on its Egyptian mythology and DID, which led to some fans being disappointed with the lack of Jewish representation. while it was present, there have been many discussions on if it was enough. In response to a tweet on the matter, Diab has hinted that not only is he definitely open to exploring it more but also now backtracked that there are no talks in regards to the character’s future.

    It’s confusing as we don’t know if the previous teases were just them playing around or he may have accidentally revealed something he wasn’t supposed to. Moon Knight definitely feels right to continue after that post-credit sequence. Jake Lockley was teased throughout the entire season for a last-minute reveal, and there’s also the question of how exactly they might want to include the character in future projects.

    Considering that two personalities left the life of a superhero behind, it would be odd not to further explore that dynamic before throwing them into a crossover storyline. There’s definitely something interesting to explore with the concept of the inner conflict with being used by an Egyptian god with a Jewish background. Here’s hoping they get the chance to further explore it.

    Source: Twitter

  • Walter Hamada Almost Left Warner Bros. Due to ‘Batgirl’ Controversy

    Walter Hamada Almost Left Warner Bros. Due to ‘Batgirl’ Controversy

    The shelving of Batgirl for tax reasons is something that left quite the bitter taste with many long-time fans of DC films and Warner Bros. Under new leadership, David Zaslav has been taking a hammer to most every prominent project they have with one controversial decision following the next. Now, it turns out that DC Films president Walter Hamada was just about to exit the studio over the recent decision.

    While he’s agreed to stay, it does seem like it’s going to be short-lived as he’ll supervise the release of Dwayne Johnson‘s Black Adam in October. He’s not made a comment in regards to this current development but it does seem to lack the last pieces are falling apart at Warner Bros. Discovery. There’s still some questioning on their decision to not even give the film a chance theatrically, as it seems it was deemed “not strong enough” for that kind of release.

    The big reveal is that Hamada has not been consulted about the decision and simply found out during a test screening for Black Adam. He naturally was worried bout those heavily involved with the production who haven’t really been informed either until the news was first released by the New York Post, which stated that low test scores were one of the reasons.

    Hamada has been a highly discussed figure in the DC realm due to decisions surrounding Justice League back in 2017. Internally, there was a lot of pressure of setting a path for these projects and creating their own shared universe like Marvel but things have been bumpy along the way, even if The Suicide Squad, The Batman, Aquaman, Peacemaker, and more still shined bright. If he’ll truly leave the company we’ll have to see once the Black Adam releases.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • Hall of Murphy: Episode 19 – All Things SDCC

    Hall of Murphy: Episode 19 – All Things SDCC

    Hall of Murphy is back as John and Joe take some time to discuss all things San Diego Comic-Con with Black Adam, Shazam, and even some DC League of Super-Pets thrown in for fun.

  • Disney+’s ‘Ironheart’ Adds ‘RuPaul Drag Race’ Winner

    Disney+’s ‘Ironheart’ Adds ‘RuPaul Drag Race’ Winner

    A new casting announcement has arrived for Marvel Studios’ latest Disney+ series Ironheart. According to Deadline, RuPaul Drag Race winner Shea Couleé has joined the production in a secret role. The production is spearheaded by head writer Chinaka Hodge and has been in some form of development since its initial announcement back in December of 2020. There is no word what character they might be playing but the series’ cast has been growing as production began recently.

    We still don’t know what to expect from the Disney+ series, especially as the character will appear in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Dominique Thorne will take on the mantle of Riri Williams and will likely get her first armor in the upcoming film as teased by various merchandise. Though, it’s unclear if the show will continue her storyline from that film or act more as a smaller side story. Still, it’s the first new character to get introduced in a Marvel film only to spin off into her own project.

    So, it’s going to be interesting to see where they take this character. Especially how the Multiverse Saga might tie to her character, as with many Young Avenger popping up, she may seemingly take the spot once held by Iron Lad. Perhaps there’s something they are building up in the future that could connect with Kang the Conqueror in some interesting way.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Moon Knight’ Director and Oscar Isaac Tease Potential Season 2

    ‘Moon Knight’ Director and Oscar Isaac Tease Potential Season 2

    Moon Knight offered a different kind of Disney+ show, especially with the thriving force in the psychological analysis of DID on DIsney+. It ended in a way that left a lot open and many were surprised that there wasn’t any confirmation for a second season. San Diego Comic-Con left us with quite a few announcements but nothing on Moon Knight. Luckily, a new video and curious tweet could be adding some fuel to the fire on a potential season 2.

    A new sighting of director Mohamed Diab and Oscar Isaac potentially sparks renewed hope for a second season. If that wasn’t enough, he also shared it on Twitter sparking more potential that a second season might be something they are considering for the empty spots in Phase 6. The reveal of Jake Lockley in the post-credit sequence has had many hoping for a continuation to further explore the dynamic setup

    The video on Tiktok also had a fan asking Isaac and Diab if there is a second season coming, especially as they were meeting in Egypt, Cairo. Their response was “Why else would we be in Cairo” teasing the fan. So, it definitely does add some hope that more is on the horizon. So, here’s hoping a potential announcement is heading our way at Disney+ Day or even D23, which may give us a bigger hint at the franchise’s future.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Joker’ Sequel to Mostly Take Place in Arkham Asylum

    ‘Joker’ Sequel to Mostly Take Place in Arkham Asylum

    The upcoming sequel to Joker subtitled Folie à Deux, finally gets a release date as Todd Phillips returns to the world he set up back in 2019. Joaquin Phoenix is already confirmed to return while rumors have hinted that the film is going to be a musical. There have been hopes that Lady Gaga might even take on the role of Harley Quinn. We know very little about the actual story direction of the sequel outside of rumors, but it looks like we got our first little nugget of information.

    According to The Wrap‘s Umberto Gonzalez, it seems that most of the upcoming films will take place in Arkham Asylum. So, it hints that it’ll set up right after where the first film ended and potentially follow the storyline known as Mad Love from the comics. The story revealed how Harley Quinn was actually Joker’s psychiatrist that would create a unique bond with him during her interviews with the inmate.

    It’ll be interesting to see how the project will come together, and it does seem likely that it’ll involve a lot of musical dream sequences throughout. It may be a way to add a different background as they explore the character’s bonding. We’ll have to see if they make an announcement on the casting in the near future, especially if they already set a release date.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘She-Hulk’ Star and Director Stand by VFX Artists

    ‘She-Hulk’ Star and Director Stand by VFX Artists

    There’s been a lot of talk about the way VFX artists are treated by Marvel Studios. Given they are one of the biggest players in the market, there’s going to be tension as with any other service-based industry. It’s definitely been quite a few reports from artists that highlighted the crunch and many challenges that come with the work on these Disney+ and movies.

    She-Hulk: Attorney at Law was one of the many targeted due to its inclusion of not one but many fully CGI characters like Hulk, She-Hulk, Abomination, and who knows who else might show up. During this year’s Summer TCA panel, Tatiana Maslany, Kat Coiro, and everyone attending the panel voiced their support for the VFX industry, as well as for them being able to unionize.

    It’s great to see them speak out on the matter, and as more reports from many perspectives start to surface, it does paint a very curious picture. There’s a lot we don’t know behind the scenes and we’ll have to see if there will come an official statement from Disney or Marvel Studios.

    No matter where one stands on the issues, it doesn’t mean we should downplay the work that is being done on the Disney+ show which has improved tremendously since the first entry. So, it’s going to be exciting to see how the show comes together once it premieres in just a few weeks.

    Source: Twitter