Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • Patty Jenkins Directing ‘Star Wars: Rogue Squadron’ Film

    Patty Jenkins Directing ‘Star Wars: Rogue Squadron’ Film

    Looks like Star Wars expanding its film slate. After teasing Taika Waititi‘s upcoming film, they also revealed that Wonder Woman’s Patty Jenkin‘s is directing a brand new film titled Rogue Squadron. It won’t release until December 2023 so there is still a lot of time until we find out more about the series. Still,  the group is familiar to Star Wars fans, as they are a legendary starfighter squadron that was part of the Rebel Alliance. It will be interesting to see how they expand upon this famous story. Maybe we get some tributes to the original arcade game as well just for fun.

    https://twitter.com/PattyJenks/status/1337177394625478656?s=20

  • ‘Star Wars: Lando’ Series Announced

    ‘Star Wars: Lando’ Series Announced

    They are pushing out one series after another. It looks like Lando Calrissian has finally gotten his own show. It was just announced that the creator behind Dear White People Justin Simien will be developing a series focused on Lando. We sadly couldn’t see it but this is quite a surprise. There is a chance that this series will continue after the storyline that was set-up in Solo. It is still in early development so a lot can change.

  • ‘Rogue-One’ Spin-Off Officially Titled ‘Andor’ with Sneak Preview

    ‘Rogue-One’ Spin-Off Officially Titled ‘Andor’ with Sneak Preview

    Finally, the story focused on Cassian Andor has gotten a title and it is as simple as you expect it to be. The series is titled Andor, which includes Stellan Skarsgard. Mon Mothma will also make her return in the series. Not just that, we even got a trailer, which we can actually watch, that showcases the show’s direction. The Rogue One spin-off is described as a spy spin-off that will continue to explore Cassian’s story before the events of the film.

     

  • ‘Alien’ Series In Development for FX

    ‘Alien’ Series In Development for FX

    It has been announced that Alien will get its own series on FX. While we sadly could not see the first footage, it seems that they will be continuing the story alongside Ridley Scott. A part of the story will take place on earth, so we can expect the Xenomorph to finally make his appearance on our planet. It will be exclusive on FX, but that brand will fall under the STAR banner internationally. Noah Hawley of Legion and Fargo fame will be the series’ showrunner.

  • Disney+ Expansion Confirmed to Include Mature-Content in International Markets

    Disney+ Expansion Confirmed to Include Mature-Content in International Markets

    It has been a long-time coming but finally, Disney confirmed that Disney+ will expand beyond its family-friendly focus. There were quite a few rumors going around that they would combine with Hulu and Star. It made sense, as Disney+ was lacking any R-rated content and seemed rather restrictive if you consider offers by their competitors. Well, they have confirmed that the STAR branding will take Hulu’s place in international markets with a brand new look. India is getting a combined service with Disney+ Hotstar. It looks like Star will be fully integrated into Disney+ with original and library entertainment series. It will be available and launched on February 23rd.

    That means the price of Disney+ will rise to 8.99 € as it includes additional footage. You can access it via the main channels but you have to access it via a password. So the core content is expanded in the main menu. Latin America will also have access to the standalone STAR+ service. It is really confusing how each market has a different streaming service and availability.

  • ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ Heading to Disney+ Premier Access

    ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ Heading to Disney+ Premier Access

    Looks like Raya and the Last Dragon are joining Mulan through the Premier Access strategy. We originally thought they might not return to utilize this service, but it seems they saw the potential to keep it around. Soul is still set to release for free, so it is interesting that the Disney original animated film will be hidden behind a paywall. They haven’t revealed the costs that are involved, so it is uncertain if they will stick with their $30 price but for now this is a great reveal. It could tease many more films heading to the service that are just waiting to be revealed in the rest of the event. The film stars Awkwafina and Kelly Marie Tran and will release in March.

  • ‘Percy Jackson And The Olympians’ Logo Revealed

    ‘Percy Jackson And The Olympians’ Logo Revealed

    We are only a few hours away from Disney’s Investor’s Day. The event will be four hours long, so many are expecting some reveals and teases of the company’s future ventures. There is a lot of attention towards their digital offerings, as Disney+ has gained a lot more traction this year. It has been a challenge for the House of Mouse to keep their theme parks open, so they are investing in ventures that could make up for their current losses. So, a variety of new shows are expected to be announced to map out the future. They’ve also been collecting a variety of high IPs, such as Rick Riordan‘s Percy Jackson series. Well, it looks like we got a glimpse ahead of the event, as the author has leaked the series’ logo on TikTok.

    Looks like they went with the original name instead of just the protagonists’ name. Percy Jackson and the Olympians ran for five volumes and ended in 2009 with The Last Olympian. The story focused on demigod Percy Jackson, as he gets thrust into a world of Greek mythology that has been hidden from the modern world. The first book The Lightning Thief was adapted into a film by Chris Columbus back in 2010. Its sequel, Sea of Monsters,  followed in 2013 with Thor Freudenthal at the helm. Disney purchased the rights tot he company back in May and creator Riordan revealed that they are developing a Disney+ series. We do not know if the first season will mainly adapt The Lightning Thief but we may get some more information at the upcoming event.

    Source: The Verge, Twitter

  • ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Netflix Series in Development

    ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Netflix Series in Development

    Here’s an interesting surprise that may have accidentally leaked ahead of The Video Game Awards. Netflix shared a tweet that revealed they are working on a brand new 3D animated series together with SEGA, WildBrain, and Man Of Action Entertainment. It is set to debut in 2022. There are no exact details given so it doesn’t look like it will be connected to the films or even the games’ ongoing conflict. We are still waiting for any news regarding the follow-up to Sonic Forces, so this might also tie into that game similar to the Boom spin-off.

     

     

    Sonic Boom was an American-French produced show that featured the redesigns of the Boom reboot. Ironically, the series was well-received while the games were hit by heavy criticism. The blue blur has a long history with animated projects dating all the way back to 1993. It also had a second series at the time titled SatAM due to it taking on the Saturday morning timeslot. There was also Sonic Underground that completely revamped Sonic’s origin back in 1999.

    He has quite an extensive history, so it isn’t surprising that they are giving a new animated series a shot. The collaboration with Netflix is a huge step that could mean it’ll have a much bigger budget. Man of Action Entertainment has worked on a variety of shows, such as Ben 10, Big Hero 6, and The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Hopefully, this show takes inspiration from SatAM and the Archie comics, which have featured some darker storylines. WildBrain is also involved, who specialize in child-friendly content so that seems rather unlikely. Guess I’ll have to wait longer until Scourge the Hedgehog makes an appearance outside of the comics. Still, it is interesting that the tweet got deleted shortly after it was published so we’ll see when it’ll be announced during the Game Awards.

    Source: Tails Channel

  • Rachel McAdams Set to Return in ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’

    Rachel McAdams Set to Return in ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’

    We are only a few hours away from Disney’s Investor’s Day live stream. There are high expectations for the event to reveal the future of Disney+, and maybe offer a tease for the new Marvel Studios’ shows. It looks like we’ll get one more piece of news to build up to the event, as Deadline has revealed that Rachel McAdams is set to reprise the role of Christine Palmer in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Benedict Wong and Chiwetel Ejiofor are also set to return in their respective roles. They’ll be joining Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, and Xochitl Gomez. sam Raimi has taken over the director’s seat from Scott Derrickson.

    They could not offer any information on how big a role McAdams will have in the film, which will see Strange traverse a broken multiverse. Cumberbatch is currently filming Spider-Man 3, which may also tie into the film so who knows if we spend a lot of time with Palmer. There is also the question of how WandaVision ties into the project, as her story will most likely be the set-up why the fabric of our reality is torn to shreds.

    McAdams just recently starred alongside Will Ferrel in Eurovision, where she was able to show off her comedic side. While I don’t believe she’ll have a major role given the nature of the story, she is a great actress that deserves a bit more screentime. They could surprise us and introduce Clea as a character that takes over Palmer’s body. Her sudden disappearance may be the reason that Strange ends up traversing the multiverse.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Black Widow’ Still Eyeing a Theater Exclusive Release

    ‘Black Widow’ Still Eyeing a Theater Exclusive Release

    Ever since Warner Bros. dropped the bombshell that all their 2021 releases will be available via HBO Max, all eyes were on Disney if they would follow suit. Black Widow was among the many films that got delayed. Many were hoping it would take a Premier Access route just like Mulan did. Sadly, it seems it didn’t pan out with the additional paywall, so they postponed the film further into 2021. We were only a few weeks away from its initial release, and now we still have five months ahead of us. Tomorrow’s Investor’s Day had us think we will get a confirmation on how they’ll move forward with the film, and it looks like the New York Times might’ve gotten their hands on some curious details.

    They confirm that Disney might be splitting their projects into different categories. Big-budget films, such as Black Widow, will remain as theater exclusive releases while minor projects are heading online. Their primary focus remains to strengthen Disney+, which might be their most lucrative venture in these trying times. Of course, a streaming service is a long-term investment, so analysts don’t expect it to become profitable until 2024. Just this year, they had a loss of $2.8 billion in their direct-to-consumer division, which will only peak in 2022 until the rollout costs decline. It isn’t an easy venture, so growing the subscriber numbers at a rapid rate can help that cause.

    So, why not add Black Widow to streaming? Well, if, and that is a big if, the pandemic slows down by that point, they can make more money through a theatrical release. Plus, they can use it to support their streaming service as eight Marvel shows are planned to expand the Marvel Cinematic Universe. WandaVision releases in January, so its success could also change the direction potentially. NYT also points out that Premier Access isn’t lost but might return in some form or another. It makes sense, as they did invest money for the branding and programming to utilize this service. We will get an official word tomorrow, but it looks like we’ll still have to wait until we get to revisit Natasha’s story in May.

    Source: NY Times