Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Joseph Aberl

  • New ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Storyboard Reveals Mysterio’s Original Role

    New ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Storyboard Reveals Mysterio’s Original Role

    Spider-Man: No Way Home may have gone through some of the most changes throughout its production. A multiverse storyline featuring former Spider-Man villains was strongly dependent on actor availability that could make the film work. Plus, some may have only joined later in the pre-production schedule which may have also led to many last-minute changes to make it work.

    Somehow the film still managed to pull it off and offer a nostalgic but very personal storyline about loss. Storyboard artist Phil Langone has shared a new storyboard from the film’s earliest days that reveals Jake Gyllenhaal‘s Mysterio originally had a role in the film. It seems that he was going to be responsible for the death of Aunt May, which would eventually carry over to Willem Dafoe‘s Green Goblin in the final product.

    The mention of “one of” further hints that there may have been quite a few more different potential scenarios on how this sequence came to be. There’s also a chance that they were creating different scenarios to ensure that not every detail would manage to leak online, as the film was surrounded by quite a few leaks building up to its release.

    Still, there’s a lot of potential for knowing that there are plans for Mysterio potentially to return. Of course, this could’ve also been a version from another dimension, as it would’ve been fun to see Sam Raimi‘s original vision for the character with Bruce Campbell in the role. Perhaps we’ll see if some concepts return in the inevitable fourth entry.

    Source: Instagram

  • OFFICIAL: ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ to Cease Support in September

    OFFICIAL: ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ to Cease Support in September

    Not too long ago, a rumor hit the internet that Marvel’s Avengers may be ending sooner than expected, there were hints that we’ll get an official statement next week. Surprisingly, the news came even faster as the official blog from Crystal Dynamics announced that the game will get one final update on March 31s. Overall support for the game will wrap on September 30th, 2023 marking its third year since release.

    The recent update of 2.7 with Winter Soldier and Cloning Labs will be the last new content update and there won’t be any more cosmetics being added to the game. 2.8 in March will mainly only act as a balance update for those still actively playing the game. They do highlight that even after September, the single- and multiplayer functionality will still be available.

    For those that still have credits invested in the game, the marketplace will no longer be available as of March with leftover credits being balanced through in-game currencies to develop your characters. They also will make all challenge cards and shipment cosmetics available for players for free. They are also set to gift all the marketplace cosmetics as a way to show their gratefulness to those that stuck around.

    The game wrapping up with its third year seems quite fitting even if it’s a shame we couldn’t at least finish the storyline that was set out with the Kree invasion hinted at ever since the events of A-Day. Captain Marvel has been hinted at as a character ever since Ms. Marvel was first released yet we’ll never know what their original plans were. She was just one of many more that were rumored to release long before the game launched. Guess we’ll never know.

    Source: Crystal Dynamics

  • ‘Friday the 13th’ Producer to Reboot the Franchise

    ‘Friday the 13th’ Producer to Reboot the Franchise

    Horror has proven it’s one of the franchises that’ll pull in an audience. Even during the pandemic, the genre has remained a power player and we’re seeing an increase in more projects finding their way into theaters. Warner Bros. has even decided to push Evil Dead Rise into a theatrically exclusive release instead of streaming, and Scream is also about to release its next entry after the franchise’s successful revival last year.

    It seems that it was just the beginning, as Bloody Disgusting has shared that Friday the 13th producer and director Sean S. Cunningham is helping revive the franchise once again. He’s set to bring a reboot off the ground but that isn’t all. He’s also working on a reboot of 1985’s House and an original film titled The Night Driver.

    There are other classic franchises that might see a return, especially if this new reboot might turn out quite popular. Who knows if perhaps we’ll get a new entry into A Nightmare on Elm Street that could potentially build towards another reunion between Freddy Krueger and Jason Vorhees. With cinematic universes still a big trend, there would be some fun to see some slasher films give it a simple attempt by just offering some classic confrontations between horror icons.

    Source: Bloody Disgusting

  • ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3 Trailer Overtakes ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ As Most Viewed Star Wars Disney+ Trailer

    ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3 Trailer Overtakes ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ As Most Viewed Star Wars Disney+ Trailer

    The Mandalorian is about to make its grand return. The series that not only started Disney+ but also Star Wars‘ first venture into live-action is almost upon us. Now, it’s about to enter its third season with a grand scale being teased in the trailer with a long-awaited return to Mandalore. Within 24 hours, the trailer has pulled in 83.5M views, which makes it the most-watched Star Wars Disney+ series.

    It has now overtaken Obi-Wan Kenobi, whose trailer was viewed 58M times. That series had the nostalgia of seeing Ewan McGregor back in the role but there’s still something special about seeing Din Djarin reunite with Grogu once again in the upcoming Disney+ series. We haven’t seen them since the finale of The Book of Boba Fett back in January.

    It’ll be interesting to see how long-time viewers will jump into the series’ return, especially with one of the main plot points from the last season having been resolved in a spinoff series. Grogu left to become a Jedi with Djarin taking off his helmet to say farewell to his adoptive child. Yet, now their already reunited going into the third season.

    Still, there’s something exciting about seeing what the future has in store for Star Wars. The Mandalorian had that perfect mix of nostalgia with enough new to make it stand out. It also feels like a callback to the original trilogy with how it uses similar shot techniques. It’ll be interesting to see what we’ll see in the third season and what it’ll be like with more Mandalorians running around.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • RUMOR: Atlus May Reveal ‘Persona 5’ and ‘Persona 3 Remake’ This Summer

    RUMOR: Atlus May Reveal ‘Persona 5’ and ‘Persona 3 Remake’ This Summer

    The rumor mill surrounding the Persona franchise has been quite curious. The 25th anniversary fell flat for many fans due to the build-up potentially hinting at the confirmation of Persona 6 but no real news coming out of the event. Yes, we did get the remasters of Persona 3 Portable, Persona 4 Golden, and even Persona 4 Arena Ultimax, but it left many wondering what exactly the future looks like for the franchise.

    Then we got a surprise development with a new rumor hitting the web that we’re not only potentially getting a new mainline entry, but even a remake of Persona 3 in some form of development. It seems like an exciting time to be a fan of the franchise yet Atlus remains silent on any of its current projects. There have been hints that some of their initial plans for the 25th anniversary couldn’t come quite together as planned, but a new rumor is making the rounds that they’ll make up for it in 2023.

    Resetera isn’t the safest place for rumors, but the source is someone that has called the reveals from the anniversary and was the source behind the remake rumor. While no true details have been shared, they highlight that the Remake and Persona 6 are further down the production line with a potential summer reveal planned.

    They also highlight that they were originally set to be revealed at an earlier date but things shifted for one reason or another. Still, Atlus has not been shy to hint at “several” unannounced titles heading our way in 2023 which also adds at least some believability that something for the future Persona entries might be revealed sooner rather than later. There’s still hope that the green bucket in one of the anniversary images was a definite hint at the sixth entry.

    Source: Resetta

  • RUMOR: ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ May End Sooner Than Expected

    RUMOR: ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ May End Sooner Than Expected

    Marvel’s Avengers has been an interesting project to follow throughout the years. It was an ambitious game when it was first announced, as you’ll get the chance to play a never-ending game that slowly adds more and more heroes to its roster. Games-as-a-Service have always been controversial but the promise was there yet a botched release left a bitter taste in players.

    There was still some merit to what the game had to offer with some great combat and some fun story additions. Yet ever since the Black Panther-focused content patch, we’ve not seen any single-player offerings from the game since. We did finally get Cloning Labs recently, but Marvel’s Avengers certainly lost the momentum that it promised during its initial release.

    Now that Winter Soldier made his way tot he game, rumors continued to make the rounds that the game will eventually shut production in 2023 but still with one more big batch of content set to release. A new article published by Miller Ross, who made a name online for leaking various details from the game, has shared that the game may be ending sooner rather than later.

    In a new piece for eXputer, the leaker has shared details of what he’s heard that is happening behind the scenes over at Crystal Dynamics. It’s no secret that they’ve started work on their next Tomb Raider game under the new ownership and with Amazon Games set to release it. If this piece is to be believed, most of the skeleton crew that was still involved with the project will soon be fully moved to the studio’s new title.

    Brian Waggoner took over as Lead Developer some time ago, but due to controversy was no longer going to represent the studio or the project. He goes on to highlight that Waggoner has now completely departed the project and that has shifted some initial plans. It seems they wanted to keep the game running still going into the second half of the year but they are seemingly fast-tracking the game’s end.

    We still have to take it with a grain of salt, but Miller claims the game’s official cancelation would follow next week. While it didn’t live to its fullest potential, Marvel’s Avengers still managed to go for over two years after initially hitting shelves back in September 2020. The game isn’t going to shut down from one day to the next, as they may have one final release set and rework some elements allowing for those still playing the game to continue to do so.

    Marvel Games is about to enter a new era of offerings with releases such as Midnight Suns and the return of Spider-Man 2. We have a variety of new projects heading our way, such as the new Iron Man game from EA, which is supposedly not the only one as two other games are rumored. We also have a second Insomniac franchise in development based around Wolverine, but it does seem unlikely that Marvel is going to test the waters with a GaaS game anytime soon after the experience with Marvel’s Avengers; if it gets officially canceled soon or still continues moving forward.

    Source: eXputer

  • Missing ‘Thunderbolts’ Artwork May Add Weight to Recent Rumors

    Missing ‘Thunderbolts’ Artwork May Add Weight to Recent Rumors

    Marvel Studios has been busy promoting the upcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp sequel, but there are a variety of other projects in some form of development. One of the biggest questions surrounded Marvel Studios’ latest attempt at a new group of unlikely heroes joining together to fight a common cause in Thunderbolts.

    It wasn’t until D23 that we got our first official look at the team right after the film was announced during San Diego Comic-Con not too long before. So, many were surprised to get a first look at the team but it wasn’t without any controversy, as some felt the team was too one-note given the number of super soldiers involved.

    Now, just as rumors are making the rounds that one o its most unique additions might not be a part of the film, it seems that the original artwork is no longer available on Andy Park’s Instagram channel and even missing from the official Marvel Studios Instagram account. It was initially uploaded after the panel for everyone to get a high-quality look at what was revealed but its absence is quite noticeable.

    Regarding the rumor, the Internet has been discussing whether one of its key members may no longer appear in the film. Ant-Man and the Wasp introduced one of its most unique villains in Ava Starr, better known as Ghost. She was played by the talented Hannah John-Kamen who had yet to return to the franchise. Now, the rumors are pointing to her potentially no longer being part of the film, which might be a reason they took down the artwork.

    Of course, there’s no confirmation in regards to why it is no longer available on their official accounts. They tend to rewrite these projects quite frequently and who knows if they might’ve taken some of the feedback to heart and want to expand the team beyond the cast we’ve already seen. It would be a shame if the one character with a unique ability would end up not appearing, but we’ll have to see once more news drops. For now, the drop

    Source: Instagram

  • ‘Avatar 3’ Will See the Return of Payakan and His Nemesis from ‘The Way of Water’

    ‘Avatar 3’ Will See the Return of Payakan and His Nemesis from ‘The Way of Water’

    Avatar: The Way of Water introduced the world to some amazing new characters that continue to expand the world of Pandora. Yet, with hints at the story of the third entry pushing the Sully family to further explore what else is out there, it seemed like perhaps we won’t spend too much time with some familiar characters especially those attached to the water in The Way of Water.

    As it turns out, we’ll definitely see the return of two rather interesting characters. As pointed out by producer Jon Landau, the whale-like being known as Payakan will return, but “not just as a creature.” He goes on to highlight that they’ll “explore his relationship with Lo’ak.” So, it seems we’ll get to further explore his race and uncover something we may have not expected.

    The biggest surprise however is that Scoresby (Brendan Cowell) is also set to make a return. It’s interesting how villains simply don’t just stay down in this franchise. The arch-nemesis of Payakan lost his arm in the finale and was sent flying. For now, there’s no word though if he survived or we might even see the same memory transplant into an Avatar.

    Either way, it looks like the two will meet up once again for a fight that might see them fight each other in a new way. There’s definitely something interesting about how James Cameron tends to bring back characters from past iterations and continues to build them up. By the end of Avatar 5, we might have an army of former villains teaming up against the Sully family.

    Source: Empire

  • First Look at ‘Guardians of the Galaxy in ‘Vol. 3’ Funko Pops

    First Look at ‘Guardians of the Galaxy in ‘Vol. 3’ Funko Pops

    We’re only a few more months away from the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. While all our eyes are on the upcoming Ant-Man release, there’s still the exciting finalé to James Gunn‘s trilogy featuring an unlikely team of galactic protectors. As the film is only a few months away, we also got our first look at a variety of new Funko Pops featuring the Guardians and even Adam Warlock.

    The Guardians are all showcased in the new uniforms we saw in some set photos many years ago and were heavily featured in the first trailer for the film. What is worth noting though is that Kraglin is seemingly not wearing a uniform and it might be a hint that he’s not a full member of the Guardians. Though, there’s always a chance this is simply the design they went with for the Funkos.

    It’s also great to see Cosmo getting a lot of focus. We got our first look at Maria Bakalova‘s take on the character, which was quite promising and already made the puppy a must-see for the third entry in the trilogy.

    Groot’s more adult version is also given quite the focus and isn’t surprising given just how popular Baby Groot was when Vol. 2 was released back in 2017. Even after almost six years, there’s no denying that he’ll likely be a fan-favorite once again though with Cosmo’s addition, he might have some tough competition.

    Source: Twitter

  • Channing Tatum Still Calls Marvel Studios to Make ‘Gambit’

    Channing Tatum Still Calls Marvel Studios to Make ‘Gambit’

    There were quite a few projects that ended up on the cutting groom floor due to the Fox merger with Disney. While there’s always the shame about losing out on what could’ve been, there are also some projects that already seemed a bit doomed from the get-go. New Mutants managed to survive the ordeal and there was also a Channing Tatum-led project that was just about to get the camera rolling when the merger happened.

    In an interview with Vanity Fair, Tatum got a chance to reflect on the project that never got a chance to get made, and he believes that they didn’t like “the tone of the movie” at the time. Not just that but he also holds hope they might want to make it after all.

    It got swallowed up into Disney by way of Marvel when they bought Fox…and ultimately I just think that the tone of the movie we wanted to make was very far from what they wanted to do—or, you know, maybe they’re waiting to see how they do it with us or without us.

    Channing Tatum

    He also highlights that while he’s trying to “spiritually, emotionally” let go of the project, he and his team still call Marvel Studios “every once in a while” to potentially get the project going.

    We call every once in a while, but we’ve got to spiritually, emotionally, kind of mentally let it go.

    Channing Tatum

    It seems very unlikely that Tatum will get the chance to bring this project to life, but there would be some fun in having him at least play the role in an upcoming multiverse storyline. Mutants aren’t likely to have a major franchise in the Multiverse Saga outside of Deadpool 3, but there’s a good chance they could give him a cameo in that film or even in Avengers: Secret Wars later down the line.

    Source: Vanity Fair