Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • Warner Bros. Discovery to Combine HBO Max and Discovery+

    Warner Bros. Discovery to Combine HBO Max and Discovery+

    It was only a question of time, but the official announcement has finally arrived. As Warner Bros. Discovery is about to be created when the AT&T merger finalizes with Warner Media, it seems that HBO Max and Discovery+ will be fused into one service rather than Disney’s multi-platform bundle strategy. Gunnar Wiedenfels, who will be the CFO of Warner Bros. Discovery, shared the following insights into their approach during the Deutsche Gank 30th Annual Media Internet & Telecom Conference:

    One of the most important items here is that we believe in a combined product as opposed to a bundle… We believe that the breadth and depth of this content offering is going to be a phenomenal consumer value proposition

    Gunnar Wiedenfels

    He also highlighted why they aren’t rushing this concept and want to give it some time to figure out how best to approach it.

    The direct-to-consumer business is obviously further along now than what we had four years ago. There’s a greater risk, you want to get that right. Between the two direct-to-consumer products, by the time we close, close to 100 million people are going to be affected as we make those changes. So that will need some very, very detailed and disciplined planning

    Gunnar Wiedensfels

    This change won’t happen overnight, so bundling will still be available early on as they try to figure out how to merge the platforms. It’s unclear if they’ll stick to the HBO Max or Discovery+ branding, as they may take a different approach. The services are currently available with an ad-supported and ad-free variant that is priced differently. So, we might have to wait for some time before we get a clearer vision of

    what the streaming future has in store for HBO Max and Discovery+.

    Source: Variety

  • REPORT: Marvel Studios’ ‘Echo’ Adds Graham Greene

    REPORT: Marvel Studios’ ‘Echo’ Adds Graham Greene

    All eyes have been on the upcoming Marvel Studios’ releases of the year, but slowly we’re getting more details on other projects soon to enter production. Among them is the recent update on Echo, which is seemingly eyeing a production start soon. It looks like they may have also already started their casting process, as The Direct has just revealed that veteran and Academy Award-nominated actor, Graham Greene, has joined the production in an undisclosed role.

    The actor is famous for his performances in Dances with Wolves for which he was also nominated for an Academy Award, The Green Mile, and Wind River. It would be another big series for the actor as well, as he recently appeared in American Gods last year, and is currently working on The Last Of Us for HBO.

    Greene is a great addition to the series, especially as the series is eyeing to embrace Maya Lopez’s Indigenous background. It wouldn’t be too surprising to see many actors with many more Indigenous actors join the production. As far as we know, it seems that the production hopes to start soon with some exterior shots of Grantville planned. The project’s location manager teased that it’ll mainly focus on a small town, which was our first hint at the series’ direction. We’ll see if some official casting finds its way online in the near future.

    Source: The Direct

  • ‘What If…?’ Wins Best Animated Series at the Critic’s Choice Awards

    ‘What If…?’ Wins Best Animated Series at the Critic’s Choice Awards

    It looks like it was a big night for Marvel Studios at the Critic’s Choice Awards, as they managed to take in one win during the event with What If…? nabbing the Best Animated Series award. In a strong year for animation, it’s a big win for Marvel Studios especially with it being their first venture into animation. Some might question why Arcane isn’t nominated, but the Netflix series sadly wasn’t eligible due to the cut-off date for the awards. What If…? was going up against other titles which include Big Mouth, Bluey, Bob’s Burgers, The Great North, and Q-Force.

    Dune. WandaVision was nominated for Best Limited Series but lost against Mare of Eastwood. Paul Bettany, Elisabeth Olsen, and Kathryn Hahn were both nominated for Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actress respectively but didn’t take the win home. So, it’s great to see Marvel studios manage to take home at least one award after also mostly being kept out of the Oscars again in their go-to visual effects category.

    Of course, we recently heard that What If…? will return this year with a new season, which adds further credence to their plans of this animated project being a yearly release. It’s unclear if future seasons will unshackle itself from having to forcefully follow specific set storylines, but it does seem like the Guardians of the Multiverse maybe something from the past. Of course, they may also find a recurring villain breaking the multiverse to call them to action once again. We’ll see once we learn more about the next season.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘The Batman’ Holds Exceptionally Strong in 2nd Weekend as Uncharted Passes $300M

    ‘The Batman’ Holds Exceptionally Strong in 2nd Weekend as Uncharted Passes $300M

    The Batman has had an impressive hold on the box office in its second weekend, as the film managed to stick with a -51% drop with $66M. If you exclude the preview nights, it would stand at -41%, which is even more impressive. It’s now the strongest second-weekend hold, as it passed The Dark Knight’s -53% and even surpasses most of Marvel Studios’ holds which average at around 60%. It’s an impressive feat for a three-hour film as it now stands at $238.5M domestically.

    The film already passed $400M yesterday and it currently looks likely that it’ll pass $500M by the end of the week. Keep in mind, the film has yet to release in China, which will give it another strong boost going into the end of the month. It still seems to be building towards a $1 billion run, especially with that holdover but the coming weeks might paint a better picture. Overall, the film is performing exceptionally and it’ll be exciting to follow.

    Overall, it’s been a strong weekend as Spider-Man: No Way Home also is still building up towards $800M, as it currently now stands at $792.2M with a $4M intake over its 13th weekend. The other Tom Holland-led project Uncharted still held on to the second spot pulling in $9.25M over the weekend and now at $113.3M domestically. The film has now passed $300M worldwide and Sony is definitely happy with its performance. So, a sequel announcement might be in the near future.

    Source: Deadline, Forbes

  • Benedict Cumberbatch Still Working on ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’s Reshoots

    Benedict Cumberbatch Still Working on ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’s Reshoots

    Now, this is a rather surprising reveal. It seems that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness may still be busy doing reshoots ahead of its May release. It’s not too long until the film hits theaters, but its main star, Benedict Cumberbatch, revealed in an interview on the red carpet for the BAFTA Awards. When talking about his current stay in Los Angeles, it seems that the topic came up on him still staying there due to the busy shoot.

    I’m having a really nice time doing reshoots for Doctor Strange.

    Benedict Cumberbatch

    What stands out is that America Chavez actress Xochitl Gomez has also shared a TikTok with her stunt double on what seems like the set of the Doctor Strange sequel. As such, it seems they are still busy doing reshoots, which has been quite extensive given how far back we first heard of them conducting them. There’s a chance that they are working on some post-credit elements that are filmed in secrecy or later on in the production to keep them from prying eyes. Yet, it’s crazy to think they’re still busy working on the film.

    The strange thing is, we heard they wrapped work on the film back in January. So, this is either another set of reshoots or they had to pause production at some point. We’re only more than a month away from the film’s release, and they tend to work on the effects simultaneously, but it is still surprised he is still busy working on the film. For now, we’ll see if more details are revealed but we likely won’t know anything until the behind-the-scenes footage drops.

    Source: Twitter, Twitter

  • William Hurt Has Passed Away at the Age of 71

    William Hurt Has Passed Away at the Age of 71

    Sadly, the news has just broken that Oscar-winning veteran actor William Hurt has passed away. It seems that he has died peacefully of natural causes today, who was going to turn 72 next week. His son had the following to say on his father’s passing:

    It is with great sadness that the Hurt family mourns the passing of William Hurt, beloved father and Oscar winning actor, on March 13, 2022, one week before his 72nd birthday. He died peacefully, among family, of natural causes. The family requests privacy at this time

    The actor was nominated for three Academy Awards back-to-back for his work on Kiss of the Spider Woman, Children of a Lesser God, and Broadcast News. He made his debut in 1980 as a scientist in the fiction thriller Altered States and had a memorable career ever since. He also famously played Thaddaeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in which he first played in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones in these hard times.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Echo’s Location Manager Teases ‘Hawkeye’ Spinoff’s Story and Scale

    ‘Echo’s Location Manager Teases ‘Hawkeye’ Spinoff’s Story and Scale

    While most of our attention is on the upcoming releases, Marvel Studios is already preparing to start production on their next projects. It wasn’t until Disney+ Day that we got the official confirmation for the Echo series, which was rumored long before Hawkeye even released. We still know very little about the story and how it may build-out of the finale from that series, especially in her confrontation with Vincent D’Onofrio‘s Kingpin. A small piece in the Newnan Times-Herald may offer our first tease t the scope for this story.

    A production titled “Grasshopper” has been confirmed to start production there which so happens to be one of the production titles used for Echo. It was initially known as “Whole Branzino” but the company tends to use a multitude throughout productions nowadays. It seems that the film has gotten their hands on permits to film in Grantville Supposedly the production will prep in May with the backdrop being used for establishing shots.

    The interesting part here is that Ryan Schaetzle, the location manager for this production, has offered a few minor details on the production. First off, the previously mentioned dates are seemingly only intended for two episodes. So, they may return for more permits as the rest are still being written. According to Schaetzle, the story will focus on a small town that Grantville will be a part of.

    Hawkeye' Directors Bert & Bertie on Bringing Echo to Life Onscreen With Alaqua Cox

    In a way, it hints that Alaqua Cox‘s take on Maya Lopez might flee the city after the events of Hawkeye. After taking a shot at the Kingpin, she tries to follow her roots and could be returning to her family that lives outside of New York City. It seems rather implied that Kingpin will survive the confrontation, and he might try to take her back by sending people after her threatening the local town. As the series is still being written, there’s a chance that this may also only take up a few episodes before she returns to the city for a final confrontation.

    It’s only speculation based on the little information that has been provided, but it focusing on a small town does seem fitting for the character. Lopez is a more grounded character, especially in how we were introduced to her in Hawkeye. So, it makes sense that they’d take that approach. perhaps it even plays into classic stories featuring small towns rising up against corporate people trying to buy it out. Given her Native-American heritage, there’s an important story to be told here through her eyes.

    Source: One Take News, Newnan Times-Herald

  • Samuel L. Jackson Accidentally Leaks Martin Freeman Joined ‘Secret Invasion’

    Samuel L. Jackson Accidentally Leaks Martin Freeman Joined ‘Secret Invasion’

    During a panel with Happy Sad Confused Podcast’s Josh Horowitz, it seems that Samuel L. Jackson may have accidentally confirmed that Martin Freeman‘s Everett Ross will make an appearance in the upcoming Secret Invasions Disney+ series. So far, he hasn’t been announced as part of the cast, but it does make sense given his ties to the CIA. They are discussing the various talent in the project highlighting Emilia Clarke and Olivia Coleman. In the middle of it, he suddenly adds that Martin Freeman.

    His addition does open up the question of whether we might even see Sharon Carter make an appearance in the series. We were left off with the reveal she was actually the Power Broker in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. So, she seems like a likely candidate to turn out as a Skrull and she seemingly got her old job back during the ending of that Disney+ series’ run. So, the return of Ross would also mean there’s a chance she could appear.

    Ross’ appearance also makes you wonder where he’ll stand and what that means for Nick Fury. As far as we know, SHIELD is still disbanded in this universe. So, perhaps he is currently working for the government through the CIA. Yet, it seems more likely he is just doing his own thing and could be reviving the spy organization as a result of the invasion. We also don’t know why the Department of Damage Control knew about his whereabouts in space. Here’s hoping the series might finally answer ra few of our lingering questions.

    Source: Twitter

  • Leaked ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3 Set Photos Tease Sith-Themed Mandalorians

    Leaked ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3 Set Photos Tease Sith-Themed Mandalorians

    The continuation of Din Djarin’s story has been highly anticipated after The Book of Boba Fett gave us the reunion of Baby Yoda and Djarin. While it felt a bit sudden shortly after they separated, it did open up a lot of possibilities on what The Mandalorian Season 3 might explore. It’s almost impossible to predict what direction they might take, but a slew of set photos have leaked online that may offer a glimpse into what they’re planning.

    What stands out in the images are the bright red Mandalorian-like helmets. They seem to share the same color as the Sith Troopers that we see in the sequel trilogy, but with the overall design used for Mandalorian helmets. The split in the middle is the only oddity in its design. The third image does hint at another empire base being visited. Perhaps a group of rogue Mandalorians has aligned themselves with them. The material also seems to be closer to Trooper armor rather than the usual Beskar. Plus, don’t have any horns, which excludes a connection to Darth Maul’s time as the ruler of Mandalore. It’ll be interesting to see how these factor into the series whenever it premieres.

    The Empire is probably still after poor Grogu, who still has an affinity for using the Force. Perhaps his action son Tatooine might have put him back on their radar, as he and his father are on the run. The Mandalorian also set up an eventual battle for Mandalore, as Djarin would become the person to wield the Darksaber. So, we’ll see if these helmets are from those hunting him down.

    Source: Twitter

  • Xochitl Gomez’s America Chavez Will Teach Doctor Strange about the Multiverse

    Xochitl Gomez’s America Chavez Will Teach Doctor Strange about the Multiverse

    We’ve all wondered just what may unleash Doctor Strange into the multiverse. The end of Spider-Man: No Way Home seemingly hinted that his own actions might be the trigger that opens up the world to a threat far beyond its comprehension. Yet, Strange did mention that very little is known about the multiverse. Which would mean he’d require a guide in his time throughout it. As it turns out, Xochitl Gomez‘s America Chavez will take on exactly that role for the character, as revealed by its director Sam Raimi in an interview with Empire.

    Strange is still learning about the Multiverse. And here’s a character that can actually travel through it. He’s such a know-it-all all the time, and to have to learn from a kid probably smarts.

    Sam Raimi
    Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness – exclusive

    It’ll be interesting to see how this affects the character’s ego and what it might mean for his development throughout the story. The latest trailer hinted at him being accused for something, which may also be the act of one of his Variants but the almost Sorcerer Supreme might get humbled throughout the story. Benedict Cumberbatch does highlight that this story is “a lot of self-discovery” for the character.

    There’s a lot of reckoning. And a lot of self-discovery. Strange is almost a stranger to himself before this film unfolds and reveals what, essentially, is in his nature, that he then has to either confront or resist or fall into or become

    Benedict Cumberbatch

    It’s a fitting direction for the character, who has mostly been a side character up to this point. Taking him out of an environment he is familiar with and adding a new character with more experience would definitely push him to let go. We saw a compassionate Strange when he helped Peter make the hardest decision in his life, but who knows how forgetting him may have affected him as well. Perhaps he no longer wants to let anyone near him out of fear of losing again, even if subconsciously. Whatever it may be, we’ll find out in May and cannot wait to see how they explore the multiverse.

    Source: Empire