Murphy's Multiverse

Author: Nicole

  • The Reasoning Behind ‘Batwoman’ and ‘Legends of Tomorrow’ Getting Canceled

    The Reasoning Behind ‘Batwoman’ and ‘Legends of Tomorrow’ Getting Canceled

    In recent years, it has been normal for the CW to renew nearly all of its titles despite their often-low ratings. This year, however, following the successful merger between Warner Bros. and Discovery, the network is being forced to reevaluate all ofits titles.

    The Hollywood Reporter did a deep dive into what is being called “the Red Wedding at WBTC/CW.” After canceling ten shows – so far – the network’s volume of original titles has dipped to what is considered its lowest level since 2012. While the CW has never been profitable, the network was ultimately launched as a means to supply low-scripted shows from both Warner Bros. and CBS Studios to cash in from “lucrative international rights.” The network would then strike a huge deal in 2011 that saw Warner Bros and CBS Studios add revenue from a $1 billion deal with Netflix to stream its titles.

    So, how did all of this factor into the cancellation of Batwoman and The Legends of Tomorrow? Well, after the Netflix deal was not renewed, the plan was to switch to streaming CW titles on HBO Max and Paramount+. This impacted foreign rights deals, making it so the lower-rated shows were no longer “profitable” enough to keep on the air. While Mark Pedowitz, the CEO of the CW, wanted to renew both Batwoman and The Legends of Tomorrow, Warners was unwilling to pay the leases on the studio space for these shows, resulting in them expiring on May 1st.

    Both shows struggled in their final seasons, pulling in under 600,000 same-day views and only nabbing a 0.1 in the all-important 18-49 demographic. While both were loved by fans around the world, it ultimately came down to money. Neither title was pulling enough in regarding profits to keep them alive for the network.

    With the network expected to go up for sale, the CW will look drastically different in the next year or two. For now, fans at least have the DC shows on HBO Max that they can enjoy.

    Source: THR.

  • Tyler Hoechlin Returns for ‘Teen Wolf’ Movie

    Tyler Hoechlin Returns for ‘Teen Wolf’ Movie

    After initially holding out, Tyler Hoechlin has closed a deal to star in the Teen Wolf movie.

    The revival movie, which is currently in production, will see Hoechlin reprise his role as Derek Hale. The actor, who starred in the MTV series, was one of the few stars not confirmed to return during the initial cast announcement along with Dylan O’Brien and Arden Cho. While it is unclear why Hoechlin held out on signing on, Cho opted not to return due to salary differences. As for O’Brien, the young actor confirmed he decided not to return as he felt his character’s story ended on a good note in the series.

    Other confirmed cast members returning for the revival film are Tyler Posey, Holland Roden, Shelley Hennig, Crystal Reed, Orny Adams, Linden Ashby, JR Bourne, Colton Haynes, Ryan Kelley, Melissa Ponzio, Ian Bohen, Vince Mattis, Nobi Nakanishi, Khylin Rhambo, Amy Workman and Dylan Sprayberry. More names are expected to be announced soon.

    The revival film, titled Teen Wolf the Movie, will air exclusively on Paramount+. Series creator Jeff Davis returns to write and produce the film, which will see the “wolves howl once again due to a terrifying evil in Beacon Hills.” As of now, no premiere date has been set for the movie.

    Hoechlin currently stars in Superman & Lois for the CW, which is confirmed to return for a third season.

    Source: THR.

  • REVIEW: ‘Trip’ is Not a Trip Worth Taking

    REVIEW: ‘Trip’ is Not a Trip Worth Taking

    Every now and then, there comes an indie horror movie that surprises viewers in a good way. Unfortunately, Trip is not that movie. From the moment it starts, it is clear this isn’t going to be a good trip, but it only continues to go downhill as the film progresses.

    The film opens with a mother standing in her kitchen and her teenage daughter coming to join her in her softball uniform. As the mother grabs a bottle of water – that is missing a label, of course – her daughter explains they’re going to be late. What follows is an absurdly uncomfortable conversation with a mother that sees no problem with not letting her daughter or her husband know the game has been delayed. It then delves into a conversation about scholarships and money before the daughter drops her own bottle of water because of something she saw. The entire scene is chaotic and leads into what is one of the worst acted scenes in the film… and there are plenty of those.

    As revealed in the film’s trailer, the daughter soon commits suicide, which leads to the mother (Ally) diving headfirst into a downward spiral. She becomes reclusive and hardly even speaks to her husband, who has tried to hold it together for both of their sakes. When she is visited by a mysterious therapist, Ally soon finds she’s willing to do anything to reconnect with her daughter Samantha. What follows, though, are a series of bad decisions that will impact her life forever.

    The most frustrating thing about Trip is that most of the assumptions viewers will come up with? They turn out to be true in the end. A good horror story should keep audiences guessing. Trip lets you connect the dots as you’re watching, tacking away any possible surprise or shock at the “scarier” moments. If you can guess what it going to happen, it is hard to become scared of the unknown.

    Things that Trip does do right? It contains the story in a single setting which allows the film to truly make use of its budgetary constraints. More impressively, though, Trip does a pretty great job with makeup and prosthetics to create spooky effects when used. Unfortunately, without a strong cast and a decent story, a well thought out location and great effects do little to make for a worthwhile film.

    For those brave enough to give Trip a chance, do yourself a favor and don’t watch the trailer. The trailer not only makes it look more interesting than it is, but it also contains far too many spoilers. In fact, a good portion of the final act is on display in the trailer… which is a rather odd marketing decision. Then again, Trip is an odd movie as a whole, so perhaps the marketing decisions make sense in the end. Either way, Trip wants badly to be a terrifying horror film, but it gets so lost in its own concept that it fails.

  • ‘Naomi’ Not Returning for a Second Season on the CW

    ‘Naomi’ Not Returning for a Second Season on the CW

    The CW has canceled a slew of shows including the DC Comics adaptation Naomi.

    After finishing its first season just two days ago, the CW has confirmed Naomi will not be returning for a second season. The news, while unfortunate, shouldn’t be too surprising. Despite having Ava DuVernay behind the project and plenty of critical acclaim, the series failed to find an audience like most of the network’s shows.

    This marks the latest DC Comics television series to get the ax following the cancellations of Legends of Tomorrow and Batwoman. Currently, renewal decisions have yet to be made for The Flash, which is rumored to end after Season 9, Stargirl, and Riverdale. Superman & Lois has already been renewed for a third season. A new DC Show, titled Gotham Knights, has filmed a pilot for the network; a decision regarding that title has not yet been made either although it is expected to be ordered to series.

    While the CW has been notorious for its low ratings, it was recently announced that the network might soon be going up for sale. In the past, The CW benefited greatly from its Netflix deal, which was thought to bring in a fair amount of revenue while in place. Unfortunately, after that deal was not renewed with Warner Bros. looking to use its own streaming service instead, the CW shows suffered. It is currently thought that Nexstar is the frontrunner to purchase the CW, although it is unlikely a deal will be made in time for the network’s upfronts presentation next week.

    Source: THR

  • Peacock Developing a ‘Reality Bites’ Series With Original Screenwriter

    Peacock Developing a ‘Reality Bites’ Series With Original Screenwriter

    Reality Bites is getting an update from Peacock. The NBCUniversal-backed streamer is looking to develop what is being called a “reframing” of the 1994 film of the same name. Helen Childress, who wrote the original film, is on board to write the remake which will follow the driven and idealistic Lelaina Pierce and her three best friends as they leave college and learn to be adults in the 90s all while trying to hold onto who they are, as well as each other.

    This is the second attempt at trying to adapt Reality Bites for television by NBCUniversal. Back in 2013, NBC partnered with Ben Stiller, who directed the original film, to develop a scripted comedy adaptation. That project was also penned by Childress with Stacey Sher and Michael Shamberg also on board as producers. Unfortunately, that project ultimately fell apart and Stiller is not currently attached to this latest attempt.

    Reality Bites, which was released by Universal in ’94, earned approximately $33.3 million at the worldwide box office on a $11.5 million budget. It starred Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Steve Zahn, Janeane Garofalo and Stiller.

    Childress will serve as an executive producer alongside Jenna Bans as well as Shamberg, Sher, and Danny DeVito all of whom helped to produce the movie. They’ll also be joined by Casey Kyber (What She Said). This marks the latest Universal film to get the small-screen treatment following the likes of Pitch Perfect and Ted. As of this writing, no cast is attached to this project.

    Source: THR

  • Iman Vellani on the How Filming ‘The Marvels’ was Different From ‘Ms. Marvel’

    Iman Vellani on the How Filming ‘The Marvels’ was Different From ‘Ms. Marvel’

    As Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness continues to dominate at the box office, Marvel Studios is already looking ahead to its next release. Ms. Marvel will debut on Disney+ next month, introducing one of Marvel Comics’ brightest heroes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

    Starting as Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, is Iman Vellani, who has already wrapped production on yet another MCU project with The Marvels. That film is set to introduce Kamala to her hero, Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris). While talking about her role as Kamala, Iman teased what it was like working on The Marvels and how it differed from filming Ms. Marvel.

    It was absolutely amazing, a completely different experience. You have the same amount of filming time almost to film a lot less content, so everything was more relaxed. And Brie and Teyonah were the most amazing support system, just to have people who have the same pains from doing stunts. We were just crying together. It was awesome.

    Iman Vellani

    It remains to be seen how Vellani’s Kamala will make the jump to The Marvels, but it’s clear she enjoyed the filming process. After all, being the lead in a television series can be stressful. In this instance, though, she had support in both Larson and Parris.

    Ms. Marvel will debut on Disney+ on June 8th, while The Marvels will hit theaters on July 28, 2023.

    Source: Empire Magazine via Twitter.

  • Jeremy Slater Explains Why Werewolf by Night Didn’t Appear in ‘Moon Knight’

    Jeremy Slater Explains Why Werewolf by Night Didn’t Appear in ‘Moon Knight’

    Ahead of Moon Knight‘s debut, rumors indicated that a Werewolf by Night cameo would occur. The rumors seemed to only grow more rapid when a trailer for the long-awaited series showcased a Werewolf by Night Easter egg thanks to a framed comic book cover featuring the character fighting Moon Knight. Unfortunately, though, in the end, there was no appearance by the character, and for good reason.

    In a new interview with Comicbook, Moon Knight‘s head writer Jeremy Slater explained that while he might’ve included the character in a pitch, it never really went beyond that. “There weren’t discussions of doing Werewolf by Night per se, just because they had already had some plans for him, and Kevin [Feige] had an idea of how he wanted to use him,” he explained.

    While Marvel Studios has yet to officially announce its Werewolf by Night Halloween special that is in production, we do know that Gael Garcia Bernal (Mozart in the Jungle) will star in the special alongside Laura Donnelly (The Nevers). The special is being directed by composer Michael Giacchino, and production has been underway for a bit now and very little is known about the project outside of that. As for what could’ve been, however, Slater had a fun fight sequence he pitched for the character to show there’s plenty more to Moon Knight than we get to see in the series.

    “In my pitch, one of the images that I used was a shot of Moon Knight fighting a giant, 12-foot-tall werewolf with glowing eyes,” he says. “I was like, ‘Look, yes, Moon Knight is a street-level vigilante guy. He can go up against the purse snatchers and the drug runners and everything. But he’s also a monster hunter and that’s how he was introduced.’”

    Although it is unfortunate that Slater’s pitch didn’t work out, fans can rejoice knowing Werewolf by Night is expected to hit Disney+ later this year.

    Source: Comicbook.

  • ‘Moon Knight’ Producers Board Marvel Studios’ ‘Fantastic Four’

    ‘Moon Knight’ Producers Board Marvel Studios’ ‘Fantastic Four’

    It looks like two of the producers behind Marvel Studios’ Moon Knight have boarded Fantastic Four.

    The news was revealed by Moon Knight‘s head writer, Jeremy Slater, in a new interview with Comicbook. “My execs on Moon Knight are the same guys who are running Fantastic Four, so we had a lot of talks about it,” Slater explained. “Grant and Nick are amazing executives. They’re going to find brilliant writers and brilliant directors. And they don’t need my stink anywhere near that project.”

    Grant Curtis and Nick Pepin will help to produce Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four reboot. Along with producing Moon Knight for Disney+, Curtis has produced a fair amount of Sam Raimi projects including his Spider-Man trilogy for Sony and Drag Me to Hell. While Pepin has been working on projects within the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2016 when he served as a production assistant on Captain America: Civil War.

    This exciting news comes weeks after Jon Watts exited the project due to a hectic schedule. Watts, of course, is coming off the Spider-Man trilogy for Marvel Studios and Sony. Had he stayed on for Fantastic Four, the director wouldn’t have had gotten much of a break between projects. The split was amicable and it is expected he’ll return for another Spider-Man film. As for who will take over directing duties for Watts, a new director has not yet been announced.

    Fantastic Four does not yet have a release date.

    Source: Comicbook.

  • Dane Whitman was Nearly in Moon Knight

    Dane Whitman was Nearly in Moon Knight

    After months of speculation regarding what the series might have in store, Moon Knight finished its run earlier this month with the reveal of Layla El-Faouly as a superhero and a third alter for the titular hero in Jake Lockley. However, as big as these moments might’ve been, it seems as though Moon Knight underwent a lot of changes throughout what looks to potentially be its first season. In a recent interview with Comicbook, series head writer Jeremy Slater revealed one Eternals character nearly appeared in the Disney+ series.

    As Slater explained to the outlet, they considered bringing in Whitman because of his experience in a history museum. Unfortunately, though, they opted not to include him as it would’ve been yet another appearance of Kit Harington‘s Whitman without him suiting up. “We talked about Dane Whitman a little bit just because he works in a history museum and that could be a natural interaction,” he explained. “My feeling was if we got Kit Harington to show up and he doesn’t suit up and he doesn’t kick ass, as a fan I’m pissed off.”

    If they would’ve been able to include an appearance by Harrington, Slater would’ve needed to ensure the character was able to don his suit. With a limited six-episode count, though, there simply wasn’t room to properly introduce Black Knight. “There was no space in those first two episodes to have him suit up and play Black Knight in the storyline, so we ultimately decided that it didn’t make sense to make this connection. But it was something we definitely talked about a couple days in the room.”

    When or how Harrington finally does suit up as Black Knight is still unknown. However, given the post-credits scene in Eternals, an appearance in Blade doesn’t seem unlikely.

    All episodes of Moon Knight are now streaming on Disney+.

    Source: Comicbook.

  • Hayden Panettiere Returns for ‘Scream 6’

    Hayden Panettiere Returns for ‘Scream 6’

    In a surprising twist, Hayden Panettiere is returning to the Scream franchise.

    The news comes courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, with the outlet reporting that Panettiere is returning as Kirby Reed for Scream 6. The actress first appeared in Scream 4, which debuted in 2011 and also starred Emma Roberts as Jill Roberts. Scream 4 marked the final Scream film to be directed by Wes Craven prior to his passing in 2015. The movie also saw Craven reunite with Kevin Williamson who penned the original film and its sequel.

    Panettiere’s return comes a day after four more survivors were announced for Scream 6. She’ll join Melissa Barrera, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding and Jenna Ortega who all starred in the fifth film, Scream. Also confirmed to return for the film is Courtney Cox, and while Neve Campbell has not been announced yet, she has confirmed she was approached for the project.

    The sixth Scream film will be directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett from a screenplay by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick. The project will be produced by Project X Entertainment’s Vanderbilt, Paul Neinstein and William Sherak. Williamson, who penned the first Scream film, is also on board as a producer.

    Principal photography on Scream 6 is slated to kick off this summer. The film is set to hit theaters on March 31, 2023.

    Source: THR.