Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • ‘Moon Knight’: New Set Photos Offer First Look at Ethan Hawke

    ‘Moon Knight’: New Set Photos Offer First Look at Ethan Hawke

    Moon Knight has just recently entered production in Budapest and it looks like it didn’t take long for the first set of photos to find their way online. Luckily, it seems that someone was able to get a photo of Ethan Hawke on set, which teases his potential role in the Disney+ series. The Budapest Reporter shared the set photo of the actor in a brown tweed blazer. It seems he also has a walking cane which isn’t shown in the image and he is channeling a “mad scientist” look with long-greyish hair. The outlet believes he could either be playing Dracula or Moon Knight’s informant Bertrand Crawley. He is walking around in broad daylight which could rule out the prince of darkness and Crawley isn’t portrayed as a villain for the hero.

     

     

    We still know very little about Moon Knight‘s plot. Hawke is confirmed to be playing the series’ main antagonist. So, they might be shooting an interior sequence and he simply was walking on the set. Dracula goes by classic vampire rules. Yet, it seems strange to introduce the prince of darkness in Moon Knight rather than the upcoming Blade film. We’ll see which direction the Disney+ takes. Signs seem to be hinting at a more supernatural-inspired story and it could make the series stand out from the other Marvel Studios’ produced series. Here’s hoping we get some more details on the show, as we are still waiting for more casting information on the rest of the cast.

    Source: Budapest Reporter

  • ‘Falcon and Winter Soldier’ Tops Netflix and Amazon Shows in April’s Viewership

    ‘Falcon and Winter Soldier’ Tops Netflix and Amazon Shows in April’s Viewership

    The biggest drawback of streaming services lies in their stubbornness to publicize any viewership data. Anything running on television was made available through Nielsen. So, we were once able to get a grasp of how our favorite shows were performing. Disney+, Netflix, Amazon, and others aren’t forced to make this information available for advertisers, which makes it difficult to assess a show’s success and potential future. Luckily, there are various analytics companies that try to get a better look at how they are doing. Of course, Marvel Studios’ new venture into long-form storytelling made the world wonder how they would perform and it looks like Disney has nothing to worry about. According to Variety, the TV analytics provider TVision announced that Falcon and the Winter Soldier was March’s most-watched series.

    They analyze the viewership numbers between the three major streaming networks, Disney+, Netflix, and Amazon. According to their analysis, the latest Marvel Studios show was viewed 40.4 times more frequently than regular TV shows. The series beat out the other competitors, such as This Is a Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist and The Serpent in April. It even beat WandaVision in March after only premiering on March 19th with 43.4x in comparison to the 35.1x factor of its predecessor. This data is based on their panel where they track 25,000 titles among 5,000 households from connected televisions. It’s not too dissimilar how classic TV series are tracked.

    This development also highlights the staying power of weekly releases, as even fan-favorite Netflix series Bridgerton barely made it into their list with 11.7x. Falcon and the Winter Soldier managed to have an impressive staying power from its premiere into the following month. It is believed that its direct ties to Avengers: Endgame‘s ending also boosted the show’s appeal alongside its relevant social messaging. It’ll be interesting to see how Loki does, especially with the recent change to Wednesday releases.

    Source: Variety

  • ‘The Flash’: Tom Cavanagh and Carlos Valdes Leaving the CW Show After Season 7

    ‘The Flash’: Tom Cavanagh and Carlos Valdes Leaving the CW Show After Season 7

    It looks like the seventh season of The Flash will end with quite a bit of change, as Deadline has just reported Tom Cavanagh and Carlos Valdes are leaving the show. The show will return for an eight-season but the cast will be cut down. Cavanagh played the show’s main antagonist Eobard Thawne, or better known as the Reverse-Flash. He did end his tenure as a series regular at the end of the sixth season but continued to make guest appearances. It seems that he has hinted at his exit in an Instagram post in February. Valdes played the character of Cisco Ramon, who was a series regular up until this point. Executive producer and showrunner Eric Wallace had the following to say on their exit:

    Tom and Carlos have been an integral part of our show for seven seasons, and will be greatly missed. Both are incredible talents who created beloved characters that fans and audiences around the world have come to love. Which is why we are happily keeping the door open for return appearances.

    They were part of the original six cast members alongside Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, and Danielle Panabaker. It seems that they are still actively negotiating their deal with Gustin signed up for the next season. Of course, losing these two is a major shift for the series and it’ll be interesting to see how the finale addresses their absence moving forward. There is always a chance that they could make an appearance later down the line, but it also depends on how many more seasons we can expect from the Scarlet Speedster’s run on CW.

    Source: Deadline

     

  • Andrew Garfield Continues a Marvel Tradition by Denying Involvement with ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Andrew Garfield Continues a Marvel Tradition by Denying Involvement with ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Spider-Man: No Way Home seems like the worst kept secret in the industry. It all came to a boil when Spider-Man 2 actor Alfred Molina just outright confirmed his involvement with the project. He confirmed that he was returning as Doctor Octopus and that he may even continue from Sam Raimi‘s original film. It has quiet down since production wrapped on the project, but there are still countless unanswered rumors going around. Months ago, the rumor hit the web that Andrew Garfield might be returning alongside other Spider-Man franchise veteran. There was also the posts on Instagram by Garfield‘s stunt double William Spencer alongside Greg Townley. Why was that significant? Townley is Tom Holland‘s stunt double. Well, the Amazing Spider-Man actor was interview by Josh Horowitz on the rumors going around in which he denied the rumors.

    It’s a bit of a strange interview, as Garfield seems to harp on the topic for quite some bit and is dodging the question. He does deny his involvement but is vague enough to still keep the door open in a way. Of course, it isn’t new for actors to deny their involvement with projects. It’s almost become a tradition that MCU actors deny their involvement with these projects. We even prepared an overview of various denials in the past. Tatiana Maslany was a recent addition to that list after getting confirmed by Mark Ruffalo. In the past, Jeremy Renner, Evangeline Lilly, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Paul Rudd have also famously denied their involvement. Of course, we won’t know for sure that he is involved until we get an official confirmation, but there are enough hints to put together that he is involved in some capacity. We’ll see how the story unfolds. It’ll be interesting to see if Tobey Maguire will join the tradition.

    Source: Twitter

  • How Marvel Studios Latest Reveals May Hint at the End of Phases

    How Marvel Studios Latest Reveals May Hint at the End of Phases

    We’ve kicked off the week with a rather curious reveal. May 2nd is the anniversary of when the first Iron Man was was released back in 2008. In addition, recent films like Godzilla vs. Kong and Mortal Kombat have helped continue the revival of cinemas. So, in a way, Marvel Studios wanted to use this chance to highlight the future of the franchise alongside the silver screen’s return. In it, we got the release dates and titles for the Black Panther and Captain Marvel sequels. We even got the confirmation that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will release in 2023. Now, these continuous reveals make us wonder how the classic “Phases” of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will work without any information on it. Is this perhaps the end of their classic format?

     

     

    Let’s start with the noteworthy absentees. Of course, the cinema celebration trailer did not reference any of the Disney+ series. Yet, it didn’t showcase every single film. The upcoming Blade film, which stars Mahershala Ali, wasn’t mentioned at all. The film had a prominent role during Disney’s Investors Day among the line-up. Yet, it somehow was not referenced as Marvel Studios builds up into its 2023 slate. They even included the same teaser for Fantastic Four that got revealed during the December event. Even the Sony-owned Spider-Man: No Way Home had a teaser. So, it would imply that the film may have gotten pushed back. Stacy Osei-Kuffour has joined the project to pen the script. So, it definitely has entered a form of pre-production. We also have no sign of Deadpool 3, which also was confirmed to be part of the MCU moving forward. Now, this move may hint at these projects not releasing until after May 2023, but we’ve seen their scheduled shift before. There is also that mysterious slate for a Marvel project in October 2022, which had many wondering if it might be a placeholder for Blade.

    We’ve seen things change frequently. At one point, it was planned for Phase 4 to end with Thor: Love and Thunder. Suddenly, we’re talking about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 being part of the slate in May 2023. It could be part of Phase 4, but there is a possibility they’ve already teased their fifth phase. Marvel Studios’ new strategy might have made the phases a thing of the past. We no longer have a strict slate but an ever-changing development cycle. Especially since the pandemic hit, they’ve had to adjust their focus with Disney+ growing in importance. So, we might not see the phases we are used to. There is no overarching saga for now, even if some points are hinting at a Multiverse arc. Yet, we’ve also seen many different storylines getting set up. WandaVision and Falcon and the Winter Soldier have offered many new avenues for the franchise to explore. It won’t be as straightforward as the Infinity Saga moving forward. So, we may be talking in Arcs rather than Phases as the MCU continues to expand.

    Source: Twitter, Marvel

  • ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’ Episode Count Revealed

    ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’ Episode Count Revealed

    While Marvel Studios takes a short hiatus until June, we have the next Disney+ Original keeping us busy in the meantime. To celebrate May 4th, Star Wars: The Bad Batch will start off a brand new story exploring the aftermath of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Up until its release, we were uncertain how many episodes we can expect and it seems we finally got our answer. In an interview with Cnet, the series writer Jennifer Corbett and supervising director Brad Rau offered some insight on the upcoming project.

    Rau revealed that the first season will consist of 16 episodes. Interesting enough is that he does call it “season 1,” which may hint at a future addition that may already be in the cards. He certainly shared his enthusiasm to explore these characters further and continue the stories of this spin-off.

    The episode count is quite interesting, as it is longer than the previous two seasons of The Clone Wars. while it isn’t the usual 22 that we commonly see in the animation, it seems they may have prioritized the story and adjusted the episode count accordingly. Unlike its prequel series, this series also focuses on a specific group of characters rather than jumping between different stories. So, they most likely can streamline their approach. It’ll be interesting to see how this show stands out from its predecessors and if some of the set-ups here might even find their way into live-action, as Ashoka Tano did in the last season of The Mandalorian.

    Source: Cnet.com

  • Marvel Studios Unveils First Look at ‘Eternals’ in New Trailer

    Marvel Studios Unveils First Look at ‘Eternals’ in New Trailer

    We’ve been highly anticipating any sign of life from the upcoming Eternals film. After getting postponed by an entire year, we’ve been wondering what we can expect from the film. We’ve been wondering how Chloé Zhao would bring one of Marvel’s many alien species to life on the silver screen. After a long wait, Marvel Studios drops a brand new trailer to celebrate the return of cinema and the anniversary since the release of Iron Man back in 2008. In the trailer, they suddenly reveal their future slate with release dates and, to top it off, offer our first look at the Eternals film. The first look showcase Angeline Jolie ready for battle and the Eternals together:

     

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Ms. Marvel’: Set Photos Reveal First Look at Iman Vellani in Full Costume

    ‘Ms. Marvel’: Set Photos Reveal First Look at Iman Vellani in Full Costume

    We’ve been waiting a long time for our first look at Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel in full-costume. In one of the first set photos, we got her in a Halloween costume inspired by Captain Marvel. Well, the set photos have finally found their way online, as Just Jared has shared our first official look at the actress in full Ms. Marvel gear on the set of the Disney+ show.

    As we aren’t allowed to share these images, you can check out the images directly on Just Jared.

    It is our best look yet at the iconic costume and it also seems to strongly match the drawings from one of the directors. Yet, there is one detail that is quite different. She isn’t wearing a purple scarf but the red one we know from her comic. perhaps this takes place after she meets Red Dagger and receives it from him.

    Overall, the costume looks quite a bit more modern. So, we might see a homemade one at one point in the series. Even in the Marvel’s Avengers game, her first costume design was based on a burkini. So, it might develop as she grows into her powers. We don’t know yet how they will portray her Embiggen abilities and if they might explain how her costume doesn’t rip when she grows in size. We cannot wait until we get more footage, as we got a brief glimpse at the series in a small sizzle reel during Disney’s Investors Day.

    Source: Just Jared

  • Latest ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Dev Stream Revealed Red Room Takeover Start Date and Black Widow’s MCU Skin

    Latest ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Dev Stream Revealed Red Room Takeover Start Date and Black Widow’s MCU Skin

    Marvel’s Avengers has gone through quite the week, as various of their MCU skins have leaked online. We also had our first event with the Tachyon Anomalies, so we’ve been anxiously awaiting some information on the upcoming Red Room Takeover. Luckily, we got an official look and some more details in the latest developer stream by Crystal Dynamics.

    • Of course, we got some details on the development of some bugs. Priority Mission rewards have been fixed and the next patch will fix the missing Black Widow Outrider glasses. The Kate Bishop nameplate has also been replaced.
    • It looks like we are getting the Red Room early, as it will consist of two parts. The first one will kick off next week on May 6th and is titled Sky Protocols. The second part will release later in May but no date has been given. It will include brand new mission chains, animated nameplates, and Black Widow will be a recommended character. The actual HARM room takeover will be n the second part.
    • We will get a new set of Red Room-inspired outfits for all our heroes.  They also revealed Black Widow’s MCU skin officially that’ll be adapted from Avengers: Endgame. It’ll be made available next week alongside the Red Room’s first part.

     

     

    • Crystal Dynamics has hinted that further details on post-Level 50 progressions will follow in the upcoming weeks. They will give us insight even before they finish their development on it, and they might even tease some new skins potentially.
    • Omega-Level Threats continue to be in good shape. They are working on balancing and some minor bugs on the Labs OLT. They’ve teased some curious additions to the bosses that may add some new complexity in the future.
    • Patrol Mode might get a spotlight in the future, where they also want to talk bout future additions. So, we can expect them to grow as time goes on.

    The MCU skin certainly looks like it got plucked directly out of the film. I am surprised that the next event is happening so soon after the last one ended. We’ve seen a lot of new additions, and active communication has been evolving with each stream. They are offering further details and are actively offering some insight into ongoing developments. Patrol Mode especially has been highlighted quite a bit. So, it could be a positive sign for it to release earlier than initially expected.

     

    Source: Twitch

  • ‘Falcon and Winter Soldier’ Finale Almost Included Spider-Man At One Point

    ‘Falcon and Winter Soldier’ Finale Almost Included Spider-Man At One Point

    In an ever-expanding franchise like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it almost seems like the possibilities are endless. You have such a long list of characters to choose from to explore the vast corners of the universe. Well, it seems that the Falcon and Winter Soldier team were just as ambitious when they were mapping out the story. At some point, they originally wanted to include Peter Parker in the season finale, as it took place in New York City. Well, it seems that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was the one to shoot down that idea. Malcolm Spellman revealed in an interview with Inverse:

    Then Kevin Feige tells you, “No. Stop it.” Listen, when you first show up to these projects, in your mind you think you’re gonna get to use everybody in the MCU. But Marvel always asks, “Does this person belong in this story? You cannot just geek out and put all of our characters in your project because you like them. They have to occur organically.” So Spider-Man did not make it.

    The inclusion of Spider-Man would’ve made sense with it being his home turf, but the approach says a lot about how Marvel Studios approaches their characters. Instead of forcing every hero to show up in every project, they need to fit the story organically rather than getting forced in. Falcon and Winter Soldier already included Zemo, Sharon, and the Dora Milaje. At one point, it could take away from Sam and Bucky’s story. It is interesting to note that Feige didn’t exclude the fact that Tom Holland‘s Peter could appear in the Disney+ show, which opens up a lot of other questions if you consider the recent dealings between Disney and Sony. We’ll see if more is to come to this aspect of the franchise. Luckily for Sam, he won’t be able to steal the shield again.

    Source: Inverse via The Direct