Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • Simu Liu Talks the Importance of Shang-Chi Being an Asian-American Hero Without a Mask

    Simu Liu Talks the Importance of Shang-Chi Being an Asian-American Hero Without a Mask

    Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will be a new kind of hero for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not only will he explore a new corner of the ever-expanding franchise, but also continue Marvel Studios’ drive to push more representation on the silver screen. Simu Liu will take on the role and discussed his background as playing Spider-Man at kid’s birthday parties and the trouble of having to hide his face. In a way, it also inspired how Shang-Chi is a hero that doesn’t hide his face from the world but rather embraces his identity, as highlighted by Liu’s own experiences.

    As an Asian man, I could never show my face. It was only once I put the mask on that the illusion of the superhero would be sold. The moment that I took it off, nobody would ever think I could be that. That’s something I was keenly aware of.

     

    Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings – exclusive

     

    It’s also something that made director Destin Daniel Cretton the perfect choice for the film. While known for his dramas like Short Term 12 and Just Mercy, he was an avid fan of classic Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, and Jet Li films. As he points out in the same interview, he wanted to bring that Asian-American experience to the silver screen.

    But I haven’t seen a hero on screen that really walks and talks like me, dresses like me, listens to the music that me and my friends listen to; somebody truly Asian-American. And that was what was really exciting to me, to create something that just shows the Asian-American experience through the eyes of a budding superhero.

    As Kevin Feige pointed out, the overall reception for Black Panther showcased the importance of representation and ended up fast-tracking the project. It’ll hopefully kick-start a new franchise that gets a chance to further showcase the experience of Asian-Americans through that special lens. There’s a lot of mythology built around the character that also benefits from that specific viewpoint.

    Source: Empire

  • Kevin Feige Shares How ‘Black Panther’s Reception Fast-Tracked ‘Shang-Chi’

    Kevin Feige Shares How ‘Black Panther’s Reception Fast-Tracked ‘Shang-Chi’

    Marvel Studios is back in theaters with their next major project heading our way this September. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will explore a new corner of the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse. Not only will it finally unveil the true Ten Rings organization teased since 2008’s Iron Man, but we’ll also get to explore a new cornerstone of cinematic representation, an Asian-American-led superhero film. In an interview with Empire, Kevin Feige revealed that he’s been on their list of potential cinematic heroes, but it was Black Panther’s success and social relevance that drove them to fast-track the project to ensure that everyone can see themselves on the silver screen.

    I remember seeing a viral video when the Black Panther poster first came out. It was some young men in a movie theatre overwhelmed with excitement at seeing the poster, and it was moving because people were excited about the movie we were making. But it was also a harsh realisation that they were reacting that way because they had not seen it before. So Panther really coalesced the notion of, ‘Everybody deserves to see themselves portrayed in these larger-than-life ways.

     

    Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings – exclusive

     

    While part of the film will explore the Ten Rings and Shang-Chi’s heritage, there’s a strong emphasis on his time living in the United States. It allows them to bring that very story to life and explore what it means to live as an Asian-American in the country. Black Panther was the first sign of the importance that cinema gives everyone a chance to see themselves on the silver screen, or even as a hero. Hopefully, it’s also just the beginning of exploring the diverse corners of the MCU.

    Source: Empire

  • ‘What If’: Captain Carter to Utilize Scrapped Captain America Storyboards

    ‘What If’: Captain Carter to Utilize Scrapped Captain America Storyboards

    We’ve seen some creative ideas make their way into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Yet, there is still something that sadly ends up on the cutting room floor. Normally, a franchise doesn’t get a chance to revisit them, but Marvel Studios’ new animated series What If gives them a unique opportunity. Director Bryan Andrews confirmed that some unused concepts will get utilized through the newly introduced Captain Carter. He’s been with the company since 2010s Avengers as a storyboard artist and finally has the chance to reuse scrapped ideas.

    There’s a ton of Captain America stuff that I had done over all the years that just never quite got in there. And I was like, ‘Ah-ha!’ ‘Cause now we have Captain Carter and she’s got the shield, there’s a lot of stuff ready to go… The moves are visually invigorating and they should be on the screen.

    Of course, he does confirm there will be a lot of unique elements that belong to Captain Carter and make her stand out from Steve Roger’s time. It’s great they get to bring back old ideas through this show. Who knows, we might even see some concepts from earlier entries that never made it on the silver screen but get adapted in animated form.

    The concept of the What If series opens up what feels like endless possibilities and could become a mainstay in Marvel Studios’ line-up. We know that they’ll also adapt a prelude comic, as head writer A.C. Bradley confirmed a version of Fury’s Big Week will get adapted as an Agatha Christie-style story. It’ll be interesting to see what else the ten-episode season might offer once it premieres in a few weeks.

    Source: The Direct

  • ‘Jungle Cruise’ Nabs Decent $34M in Domestic Box Office and Another $30M on Disney+ Premier Access

    ‘Jungle Cruise’ Nabs Decent $34M in Domestic Box Office and Another $30M on Disney+ Premier Access

    It looks like the Box Office still requires more time to heal after all.  As the Delta variant rages across the world, the latest Disney movie entered cinemas with a decent $34.2M opening. As Forbes points out, it’s in line with Dwayne Johnson’s most non-Fast and Furious films. In a way, it’s on par with Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. In addition, Disney also released their income through Disney+ Premier Access, as they gained an additional $30M.

    The film did manage to pass Space Jam: A New Legacy‘s $31M, but it can only hope for a leggier post-launch to ensure it makes back its expensive $200M budget. Overall, the trend continues as the film’s second weekend sees a sharp decline. Last week’s Old dropped by around 70%, while Snake Eyes plummeted by 79%. In a way, we should continue to expect these kinds of drops in future releases.

     

    Nicht "Snake Eyes 2", aber so ähnlich: Noch ein "G.I. Joe"-Film kommt - Kino News - FILMSTARTS.de

     

    Black Widow earned another $5.8M, with only $2M keeping it from surpassing F9’s domestic total. As such, it seems likely it’ll hold the title as a domestic top performer for some time. It may remain Marvel Studios’ third worst-performing film due to the current situation, but it still is showing some legs. Of course, the lawsuit surrounding Scarlett Johansson adds some questions on how to perceive its “success.”

    Jungle Cruise’s advantage moving forward is it doesn’t have any direct competitors. So, there’s a chance it could leg out like Black Widow is currently. The curious aspect about the Box Office development is that it still seems the overall trends between films are on par with pre-pandemic numbers. Disney releasing their Disney+ numbers only for the opening weekend is curious and opens up a question regarding transparency. We never heard how much about Raya and the Last Dragon, Mulan, or even Cruella‘s numbers. Moving forward, transparency from streamers will be a big question mark.

    Source: Forbes

  • ‘What If’: Tom Holland’s Absence in Cast List May Confirm Spider-Man’s Leaked Identity in Disney+ Series

    ‘What If’: Tom Holland’s Absence in Cast List May Confirm Spider-Man’s Leaked Identity in Disney+ Series

    The official cast list for Marvel Studios animated series What If finally got revealed. It includes a long list of iconic MCU actors that are returning to the franchise to lend their voice to this new venture. Yet, there are some notable absences. Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Brie Larson, and Scarlett Johansson are noticeably absent from the list. We’ve known that Tony Stark will get a new voice actor through the first trailer, but there never was a statement regarding why they didn’t join the production. Yet, there’s another absent actor in the list, whose character we know makes a return to the series, Tom Holland. Toy leaks confirmed a version known as Zombie Hunter Spidey. Yet, a leak hinted that it isn’t Peter Parker in the iconic role.

    There was a toy leak that first confirmed Spidey’s appearance in the series. Yet, it wasn’t Parker, but rather mentioned that Steve Rogers took over the role at some point. There’s a chance he took on the mantle after something happened to Peter during the zombie outbreak. He’s also wielding the iconic cape of Doctor Strange, which means the survivors of the outbreak are using all the weapons they have at their disposal. Yet, we know there’s a Zombie Captain America in the series, which opens up a lot of questions about how this zombie outbreak affects the multiverse.

     

    Das sind angeblich die 6 (!) Gegner von Spider-Man in seinem neuen MCU-Abenteuer - Kino News - FILMSTARTS.de

     

    It might connect to the issue regarding Sony’s rights to that specific version of the character. If you look closely, the costume provided in the animated series is different from the films, as the redesign is closer to the ones we see in Disney’s theme park. It’s the one used in the Worldwide Engineering Brigade attraction. So, it seems likely they had to fall back on this version of the character due to the rights.  The animated rights to the character returned to Disney and were the reason why Spectacular Spider-Man got canceled back in the day.

    So, they might’ve taken this unorthodox direction to include him in the series without requiring Sony’s input. Of course, it could also be a similar case to the absence of other actors. There’s a chance he simply couldn’t return to the role, but they still included a version of Peter Parker that becomes a zombie hunter. The leak teasing Captain America taking on the role could be from another storyline if it turns out true. The Zombie version of Steve Rogers would put a dent in this leak but with a series exploring the multiverse, anything is possible.

    Source: Polygon, Comic Book

  • Marvel Studios ‘What If’ Cast List Confirms Clark Gregg’s Return as Agent Coulson

    Marvel Studios ‘What If’ Cast List Confirms Clark Gregg’s Return as Agent Coulson

    Marvel Studios’ upcoming Disney+ series will explore the alternative realities of stories we’ve followed throughout the last few years. We’ve learned that quite a few iconic actors will reprise their iconic roles from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Surprisingly, there are some receptions as Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Black Widow, and Captain Marvel will get new voice actors as confirmed in the latest trailer. Yet, there are some great minor characters finally making their return to the franchise, such as the official cast list confirming Clark Gregg’s Agent Coulson returning to the franchise. Here’s the complete cast list for the series as provided by Comic Book:

    Andy Serkis, Angela Bassett, Benedict Cumberbatch, Benedict Wong, Benicio Del Toro, Bradley Whitford, Carrie Coon, Chadwick Boseman, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Sullivan, Clancy Brown, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Danai Gurira, David Dastmalchian, Djimon Hounsou, Dominic Cooper, Don Cheadle, Emily VanCamp, Evangeline Lilly, Frank Grillo, Georges St-Pierre, Hayley Atwell, Jaimie Alexander, Jeff Goldblum, Jeremy Renner, John Kani, Jon Favreau, Josh Brolin, Karen Gillan, Kat Dennings, Kurt Russell, Leslie Bibb, Mark Ruffalo, Michael B. Jordan, Michael Douglas, Michael Rooker, Natalie Portman, Neal McDonough, Ophelia Lovibond, Paul Bettany, Paul Rudd, Rachel House, Rachel McAdams, Samuel L. Jackson, Sean Gunn, Sebastian Stan, Seth Green, Stanley Tucci, Taika Waititi, Tilda Swinton, Toby Jones, Tom Hiddleston, and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor.

    It’s crazy to think how many actors returned to lend their voices to the animated series. Yet, some major actors did not return. If they continue the series with multiple seasons, it’ll be curious to see if they can keep this sizeable voice cast. Gregg’s return is a great one, as it also adds to the show, potentially connecting the franchise with the events of Agents of SHIELD, whose canonicity is always an open question. He’ll likely appear in the episode that is based on Fury’s Big Week, the first adaptation of the prelude comic.

    Source: Comic Book, Variety

  • ‘Doctor Strange’ and a Multitude of Cameos: Exploring the Film’s Many Rumors

    ‘Doctor Strange’ and a Multitude of Cameos: Exploring the Film’s Many Rumors

    Besides a few hints and plenty of rumors, we know very little about Doctor Strange’s travel through the multiverse. The aptly titled Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will build upon the events of Loki and will follow after Benedict Cumberbatch’s appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Yet, the multiverse opens up the franchise to what seems like endless possibilities. We know that Wanda Maximoff will return after the events of WandaVision, as she searches for her children throughout the multiverse. America Chavez will also make her MCU debut with the upcoming film. Yet, there are countless more rumors  So, let’s take a closer look at the multitude of cameos and appearances rumored for the sequel.

     

    WandaVision“: Das Ende von Folge 9 erklärt – Das steckt hinter den Post- Credit-Szenen · KINO.de

     

    Let’s start with those that might have larger roles in the film. A recent Funko Pop leak teases the addition of different Variants of Strange and Wong. There will be Supreme and Defenders versions, which may or may not be allies in their multiversal travels. It also included the naming of Rintrah, who Adam Hugill is reported to be playing. The iconic comic character will also get a Funko alongside the Variants, which may hint at them having a somewhat larger role in the story.

    The only hint at an overarching villain we got was the hint at the appearance of the multiversal being, Shuma-Gorath. The upcoming What If series may have hinted at his inclusion, and he seems like the perfect choice for this type of storyline. He’ll likely connect to the appearance of America Chavez, whose abilities may become the catalyst for the overarching narrative in the film. Now that we got the bigger roles out of the way, let’s take a closer look at the various teased or rumored cameos for the upcoming film:

     

    Doctor Strange 2: Does Shuma-Gorath Work For Mephisto? | CelebJar

     

     

    Bruce Campbell in 'Doctor Strange'-Sequel dabei?

     

     

    There are quite a few rumors and who knows what else might appear online in the coming months, ahead of its release. At one point, Mads Mikkelsen was rumored to make a grand return before it swiftly got debunked. It was a given that the moment Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange jumped into the multiverse that almost any possible appearance has become a possibility. So, if the rumors surrounding Spider-Man: No way Home turns out true, who knows if they may also connect with Strange’s upcoming adventure with his appearance confirmed. So, we’ll see if this list ends up growing as time goes on.

  • Latest ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Dev Stream Offers First Look at Black Panthers Comic-Inspired Outfits

    Latest ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Dev Stream Offers First Look at Black Panthers Comic-Inspired Outfits

    After a brief hiatus, Marvel’s Avengers came back with a vengeance. The latest developer stream featured Crystal Dynamic’s Lead Character Artist. He gave us some insight into all the work that goes into creating these characters, which you can watch lie alongside some showcase of the details made to bring the Vibranium weave to life.

     

    https://twitter.com/PlayAvenger/status/1421218782744301568?s=20

     

    Let’s take a closer look at the various new comic-inspired costumes that were featured in the game. They started with a costume that initially showed up in a trailer for a few seconds. The Most Dangerous Man outfit was inspired by Kasper Cole’s time as the character, who was a New York police officer. He stole the costume without having any abilities. The artist pointed out that the toughest part was to make the long cape work due to how specific their engine’s physics work.

     

    https://twitter.com/PlayAvenger/status/1421216919726723078?s=20

     

    The next outfit is Black Panther in his king uniform. Yes, it is an actual playable skin in the game and not just used for cutscenes. What stands out is that T’Challa always has rings on his hands that he can use as claws to fight. It’s a Crystal Dynamics original design, but it takes inspiration from the character’s many iterations.

     

    https://twitter.com/PlayAvenger/status/1421219148886159363?s=20

     

    The next design is strongly inspired by Jack Kirby‘s original design from 1966. CD confirmed that they included the skin after seeing everyone’s excitement for him having a cape. They also teased that you’ll get a good look at every detail while using photo mode in the game.

     

    https://twitter.com/PlayAvenger/status/1421221857181769729?s=20

     

     

    Last but not least, the Strategist outfit is inspired by the 2010 run Black Panther: Man Without Fear. In it, T’Challa lost the abilities of the heart-shaped herb and still protected New York City during Daredevil’s absence. This version of the outfit includes many pockets to utilize the different tools while lacking his usual abilities.

     

    https://twitter.com/PlayAvenger/status/1421222994966454278?s=20

     

    The showcase of Black Panther in action also confirmed that he will not use a spear in action, but his claws. When the initial reveal of Christopher Judge in the role featured mainly pictures of him wielding a spear as a weapon. The heavy attack animation also showcases a special purple animation that showcases his attacks.

     

    https://twitter.com/PlayAvenger/status/1421224093475655680?s=20

     

    We’ll get a closer look at the costumes in a blog next week, alongside the first emotes. A Wakanda Forever emote was teased by the developers. We also can expect more outfits and even gameplay through their Social Media in the coming weeks as we near his August 17th release.

    Source: Twitch via Twitter

  • ‘Jungle Cruise’: Jack Whitehall Talks Improvising on Set

    ‘Jungle Cruise’: Jack Whitehall Talks Improvising on Set

    The latest theme park adaptation by Disney features quite the all-star cast. The WWI story features Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Jack Whitehall, Edgar Ramirez, Paul Giamatti, and many more. With such a stellar cast, it opens up many possibilities for them to interact on set. Their dynamic on the film’s set can determine their character’s directions and lead to some off-script banter. Some of the most iconic lines in cinema history were improvised by the actors, and Whitehall teased that we can expect some off-script lines in the film during the press junket.

    I mean, there was a fair amount of improv. The script was amazing, but then also, we were given the space to kind of improvise and add stuff to it, and-and-and these two created this environment where we were able to do that, and it felt like such a safe space.

    He goes on to tease that quite a few jokes landed on the cutting room floor, but for a good reason. It almost makes you wish we’d get an R-rated version of the film to see the jokes that didn’t make it into the film. Still, it’s great that their director, Jaume Collet-Serra, gave them the possibility to build on the cast’s dynamic. His work on the film as a director even inspired Dwayne Johnson to push him to tackle his DC passion project, Black Adam. So, there’s a good chance we can expect more improvisation in their next project together.

  • Emily Blunt Talks How ‘Indiana Jones’, ‘Romancing the Stone’ And More Inspired ‘Jungle Cruise’

    Emily Blunt Talks How ‘Indiana Jones’, ‘Romancing the Stone’ And More Inspired ‘Jungle Cruise’

    Finally, Jungle Cruise has released on Disney+ Premier Access and in theaters. Disney has been attempting a resurgence on their films based on popular theme park rides. Pirates of the Caribbean was one of their most successful ventures that managed to turn it into a franchise with five installments ending in 2017 and a reboot in the future. The latest attempt takes us on an adventure into the jungle during the first World War with Emily Blunt and Dwayne Johnson. In the press junket, Blunt talked about the many inspirations that helped bring this adventure to life.
    And was made in the spirit of the films that we all grew up watching. And just, I mainline those movies into my veins. I just loved Indiana Jones and Romancing the Stone, African Queen. Like, they are just joy bombs, and they’re nostalgic, and I think we just needed to pierce people’s hearts directly with the spirit of those films that we all loved as children. Um, and it just took a lot of tempering and c-beautiful conducting from Jaume, who was just extraordinarily free-spirited with us.
    The first trailers did tease that Romancing the Stone and Indiana Jones vibe, which is perfect for this kind of adventure. During the junket, the actors also discussed how they took the concept of the ride and add layers to it while crafting this story but kept the silly aspects of the ride intact, according to Jack Whitehall. They even shared their experience riding the original theme park ride for the first time. Blunt confessed she only rode the ride a few days before the premiere.