Murphy's Multiverse

Category: News

  • Disney Adds Two Star Wars Films to Its 2026 Slate

    Disney Adds Two Star Wars Films to Its 2026 Slate

    At Star Wars Celebration 2023, it became clear that Lucasfilm intended to make a splash in their return to theaters. Just a few months later, the studio has staked out a pair of new theatrical dates.

    According to THR, Lucasfilm, which has not released a film since 2019’s Star Wars: Episode IX-The Rise of Skywalker, will now have two releases in 2026. The first of those, originally slated for 2025, will debut on May 22nd, 2026 and will be followed up with another theatrical release on December 18th, 2026. They are joined on the slate by the preexisting December 17th, 2027 date and it’s likely that those 3 dates will be occupied by the three films revealed at Star Wars Celebration.

    Of Lucasfilm’s 3 announced films, it’s believed that Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy‘s New Jedi Order era film, which was being rewritten by Steven Knight after Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson left the project, is furthest along in development. That makes May 22nd, 2026 the likely landing spot for that film and it now seems likely that it will be joined that year by Dave Filoni‘s New Republic-era film which might occupy the new December 18th, 2026 date. James Mangold‘s Dawn of the Jedi-era project remains in development but given the director’s current slate, it seems likeliest to end up in 2027.

    Source: THR

  • Marvel Studios Makes Major Changes to Phase 5 and 6 Release Dates

    Marvel Studios Makes Major Changes to Phase 5 and 6 Release Dates

    As part of a multitude of moves made by Disney, Marvel Studios upcoming film slate has been changed significantly.

    Resultant to the production delays caused by the ongoing WGA strike, Marvel has made a series of changes beginning in 2024. Deadpool 3 will now kick off their theatrical offerings, opening on May 3, 2024, a date that was originally supposed to see the debut of Captain America: Brave New World. Sam Wilson’ first feature film as Captain America will now instead open on July 26, 2024–where Thunderbolts was slated. In turn, Thunderbolts, which has not yet begun production, will be released on December 20th, 2024 which was originally set aside for Avatar 3.

    Blade, which like Thunderbolts has not begun production because of the WGA strike, will now move to February 14th, 2025. The domino effect continues, moving Fantastic Four to May 2nd, 2025 where Avengers: The Kang Dynasty was originally intended to debut. That film is now slated for May 1, 2026 which was the original date of Avengers: Secret Wars and so, as you’ve probably guessed by now, Secret Wars will now release a full year later on May 7, 2027.

    Before

    May 3, 2024-Captain America: Brave New World

    July 26, 2024-Thunderbolts

    September 6, 2024-Blade

    November 8, 2024-Deadpool 3

    December 20, 2024-Avatar 3

    After

    May 3, 2024-Deadpool 3

    July 26, 2024-Captain America: Brave New World

    September 6, 2024-Untitled Disney

    November 8, 2024-The Amateur

    December 20, 2024-Thunderbolts

    The net result, of course, is one less Marvel Studios film in 2024.

    Source: THR

  • ‘Superman & Lois’ Renewed, ‘Gotham Knights’ Canceled

    ‘Superman & Lois’ Renewed, ‘Gotham Knights’ Canceled

    The CW has opted to renew Superman & Lois for a fourth season, while opting to cancel freshman series Gotham Knights. The news was announced on Monday evening. Both shows, along with All American: Homecoming, were the final shows from the network awaiting renewal decisions following the network’s upfronts last month.

    Now under new ownership, thanks to Nexstar, the CW is looking to rebrand and (hopefully) make the network profitable finally. Nexstar took time to evaluate each series – weighing the pros and cons before making any type of decision – and ultimately seemed to look at the views for each series. While Gotham Knights is said to be the cheapest of any DC series over the years, it lacked the audience to justify bringing it back. Superman & Lois, on the other hand, might’ve carried a hefty price tag but also managed to be the second most-watched show on the CW within the past year.

    Superman & Lois joins three others shows moving forward from the CW: All American, Walker, and All American: Homecoming. The show, which is returning for its fourth season, is expected to see an episode reduction in season four. As of now, Superman & Lois is expected to have a ten-episode fourth season, down three episodes from season three.

    Source: THR.

  • Al Ewing and Leonard Kirk Set to Open ‘Avengers Inc.’

    Al Ewing and Leonard Kirk Set to Open ‘Avengers Inc.’

    Immortal Hulk, Guardians of the Galaxy and Ultimates writer Al Ewing and Sabretooth and Sabretooth & The Exiles artist Leonard Kirk are launching a brand new take on the Avengers this Fall featuring one of the founding members of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. OG Avenger Janet Van Dyne will headline Avengers Inc., an ongoing series that will see her “out to solve the most amazing, fantastic and uncanny whodunnits the Marvel Universe has to offer!” according to Ewing.

    Her name is Janet Van Dyne. She’s a hero. She’s a celebrity. She’s hunting a killer. His name is Victor Shade. He’s a villain. He’s an enigma. He just got killed. And together, they’re out to solve every mystery in the Marvel Universe…starting with their own.

    Marvel.com

    The new book–which will feature “direct connections” to Jed MacKay and C.F. Villa’s main Avengers title–will begin “with a deadly conspiracy rooted in the ghosts of the Avengers’ past that only founding Avenger Wasp can solve. But she won’t be alone as she finds a new partner in Victor Shade! This former alias of Vision mysteriously resurfaces just as Janet discovers a score of Super Villain murders. Will he guide Wasp to the truth or is his familiar guise hiding the very clues Janet needs to crack the case?“

    As Ewing explains, “Avengers Inc. takes the beating, buzzing heart of the original Avengers, teams her up with an undead mystery man with an identity so secret even he doesn’t know it, and sends them both out to solve the most amazing, fantastic and uncanny whodunnits the Marvel Universe has to offer!” “It’s kind of a classic ‘will-they-won’t-they’ crime-solving partnership—or it would be if the ‘will-they’ in question was ‘save the world from…’ Well, that’d be telling. See you in September!” teased the author.

    “I am unsure what can be said of Avengers Inc. without spoiling anything for the readers,” said Kirk. “I can say this is a fun and intriguing take on some familiar characters that leans more into detective skills over super strength, wit rather than eye beams and cunning instead of small, genetically mutated, furry creatures. Al is doing a bang up job with this and I am having a load of fun. I hope the audience does too.“

    Source: Marvel.com

  • ‘Persona 3’ Remake Will Not Include Portable or FES Content

    ‘Persona 3’ Remake Will Not Include Portable or FES Content

    We’ve kind of expected it but luckily Persona 3 Reload producer Ryota Niitsuma and chief director Kazuhisa Wada did not let fans speculate for long if we’re going to see any additional content from previous Persona 3 editions included in the upcoming remake. In an interview with IGN, they confirmed that the game is a remake of the 2006 PlayStation 2 original.

    So first I’d like to mention that since the basic concept of the Persona 3 remake was to remake the Persona 3, we don’t have the FES and Portable contents included. We wanted to really genuinely work on recreating the Persona 3 experience.

    Ryota Niitsuma

    This might naturally annoy some as there’s the hunt for the “definite” edition of the iconic entry. FES is no longer accessible for those that don’t already won’t the game for PlayStation 2 and Portable doesn’t include that content. Plus, the female main character (FeMC as fans call her) was a great addition that brought along new social links and a new twist on the familiar story.

    So we can’t really go into the details at this point yet, but we have remade basically everything from scratch as for Persona 3 the original version,” Niitsuma said. “So we have newly recorded voices, we have new scenes and events. We also have both new and arranged music. We’ll be kind of releasing that information, following everything. So please look forward to that
    Ryota Niitsuma

    Their goal was to bring the original game to the modern era and preserve what made it stand out, while still taking the big learnings they had from Persona 5‘s experience. The franchise has changed quite a bit and while there is some skepticism on taking on these P5-esque elements, it does make sense they want to make sure of them to expand upon what made the original stand out.

    So the basic concept of recreating the Persona story was that we wanted to keep everything from the original version, but update everything to the modern day. So at the same level of Persona 5, basically. So we have the newest graphics, we have updated the system to the newest usability… We have the voice lines in [both Japanese and English.] We also have the text available in 13 languages. So you should be able to have similar experiences to that of Persona 5.

    Kazuhisa Wada

    Many are speculating that we might either see a new version that includes the missing content or we might even just have it as DLC. It’s surprising they didn’t just create two versions of the game similar to the Pokémon franchise but that might be for the best considering that those elements haven’t aged great for those wanting a fuller experience from a game. We’ll have to see if FES‘ story The Answer or even the FeMC might appear at a later point in this game.

    Source: IGN

  • New Details and Voice Cast Revealed for ‘Persona 3 Reload’

    New Details and Voice Cast Revealed for ‘Persona 3 Reload’

    Ahead of the Xbox Game Showcase, Atlus West accidentally leaked the trailer early for Persona 3 Reload; a remake of the iconic game that started the day system the franchise became famous for. Now that the trailer is officially released, we finally have some insights into what exactly we can expect from the new take on the iconic game that started Persona’s growth into the franchise it is today.

    The one complaint some had was that Junpei Iori’s design in the footage shown was a bit off. And interestingly enough, the new website, P3RE.jp (which was part of why we knew the remake was coming eventually) gave us some brand new character portraits highlighting the updated designs that pay a bit more tribute to the original designs.

    It also looks like they are, indeed, going to have a new dub for the entire game. Some of the voice acting hasn’t aged too well when replaying Persona 3 Portable’s remaster and it wasn’t too surprising they’d go down this route but it’s definitely great to get a confirmation that they will add a new voice cast. It’s uncertain if some will return but it seems the one’s confirmed so far are:

    • Dawn M. Bennett as Aigis
    • Allegra Clark as Mitsuru Kirijo
    • Alejandro Saab as Akihiko Sanada
    • Zeno Robinson as Junpei Iori
    • Suzie Yeung as Fuuka Yamagishi
    • Justine Lee as Ken Amada
    • Justice Slocum as Shinjiro Aragaki
    • Heather Gonzalez as Yukari Takeba
    • Aleks Le as the Protagonist

    That isn’t all, as a few screenshots from the game have also been released that offers a first look at some more gameplay with you interacting with some of the cast members. While the menu and everything remains pretty much the same (keep in mind this is very likely still an early version of the build that is being shown off and quite a few elements can change throughout the production) it does confirm that we are getting an animated opening and sequences. So, it won’t all just be in-game animations for this adaptation.

    The game looks quite promising and we’ll hopefully get a good look at more in the coming months. While the primary focus will very likely be on Persona 5 Tactica ahead of its release, they may still share a new trailer that confirms the already leaked multi-console release of the game. There’s already a second trailer that does seem to show some slight changes from the initial showcase so we’ll see what else they might share.

    Source: Twitter, P3RE, Twitter, Twitter, Twitter

  • ‘Transformers’ & ‘Spider-Man’ to Battle for Top Spot at the Domestic Box Office

    ‘Transformers’ & ‘Spider-Man’ to Battle for Top Spot at the Domestic Box Office

    Transformers: Rise of the Beasts has finally been released in theaters and is surprising quite a bit. While early predictions expected the film to open around $40M, it had a stronger Friday opening and is heading to $60M opening weekend at the domestic box office. Surprisingly though, that might not be enough to dethrone the current box office reign of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Currently, it is slightly edging out the film with $60M against $55.9M but Sunday could still make all the difference.

    The film overall is showing a strong international box office and is going to open north of $160M worldwide. China remains the biggest fan of this robot-in-disguise franchise with an $11.8M Friday. The market has overall shown quite a bit of healing over the last few months. The Little Mermaid struggled quite a bit but it seems Transformers might reignite the excitement before the next major release The Flash.

    It’s a strong jump from the initial expectations. While it didn’t hit the highs of the hopeful $70M, it does give the film a bit more of a chance to make its money back. There’s hoping to build up the iconic franchise again even after Bumblebee underperformed with $21.6M and The Last Knight’s $44.6M. There’s a chance that if they keep pushing it could return to a $100M+ opening again but it’s definitely a hopeful start for the franchise, especially with a decent A- CinemaScore.

    The big question is if the latest Spider-Verse entry will surprise given it already has shown some strong legs. The summer box office is stacked and it definitely has proven that family fare and strong word-of-mouth can carry quite a few projects. Fast X is the only big release that one could say lost any momentum going into its second weekend but we still have a few big releases that will show if people put all their money in early or not.

    Source: Deadline, Deadline (WW)

  • Spanish Retailer Leaks ‘Persona 3 Reload’s Multi-Platform Release

    Spanish Retailer Leaks ‘Persona 3 Reload’s Multi-Platform Release

    Well, if the trailer didn’t leak in advance, it seems Spanish retailer Xtralife was going to do it for Atlus. A new listing has surfaced online and it confirms that while Persona 3 Reload was an Xbox Showcase exclusive, the game is going to be a multi-platform release. The retailer includes the games on multiple consoles which also includes a Switch release; which is not too surprising given Persona 5 Royal was recently made available on the console.

    It also matches Atlus seeing the potential of multi-platform releases to truly bank on the success of their franchise. Though, rumors did point to Persona 6, the next actual mainline entry, potentially being an exclusive for PlayStation 5 for some time. That would make sense given that Persona 5 was a huge hit when it was first released and it would also allow the game’s core audience to stick with it while others get a chance to catch up on the remake of Persona 3.

    What is interesting is that the box art is also included, which seems pretty much set in stone alongside the Reload logo. Though it does say “Not Final Artwork” and could change given its Early 2024 release. While personally wished they’d updated the logo, the visual of the game’s main character in water is seemingly going to be a recurring theme moving forward for the entry. Here’s hoping that they may have also added some elements into the actual remake that make this aspect come across outside of just the UI.

    Source: Xtralife (Switch), Xtralife (Xbox), Xtralife (PS)

  • ‘Superman Legacy’ to Introduce DCU’s The Authority

    ‘Superman Legacy’ to Introduce DCU’s The Authority

    It’s Friday and that means we get the traditional Heat Vision newsletter from Hollywood Reporter. This usually comes with a big scoop but sometimes they hide away big reveals in the smallest sections of the text. This time around, it seems THR has gotten its hands on the details that James Gunn’s upcoming film is set to introduce one major addition to the new DC Cinematic Universe.

    Hidden away in a section on the recent casting bits for Superman Legacy, they reveal that The Authority will also be introduced in the upcoming film. While they don’t state which members will appear, it does seem like Gunn is dead set on using the upcoming film as a jumping-off point for his overarching storyline.

    They also mention that they are likely to cast Lex Luthor, which is a tradition at this point given how closely tied the character is with Superman, but it’s curious that they’d not try to build it up over time but instead jump straight in. It does make you wonder how he is setting up this universe and if we’ll see way more crossovers rather than individual projects.

    We knew for some time that The Authority will be introduced and while most might be disappointed we’re not just getting the Justice League, it’s a clever way to give audiences a new group of superheroes that are quite obscure. With Justice League having left a bad taste with audiences some years ago, it’s a way to have a major crossover team without retreading familiar ground.

    Source: Hollywood Reporter

  • Lionsgate Out for Gold with a Reboot of ‘Leprechaun’

    Lionsgate Out for Gold with a Reboot of ‘Leprechaun’

    Perhaps inspired by the mostly successful requels in the Halloween and Scream franchises, Lionsgate is relaunching one of its offbeat horror franchises with a new Leprechaun film. Felipe Vargas will direct the new film working off a script from live-action Lilo & Stitch scribe Mike Van Waes. Roy Lee, who oversaw production on It and Barbarian, and Lionsgate’s Miri Yoon will be producing.

    Beginning with 1993’s Leprechaun, Lionsgate rolled out 8 films in the franchise, including classics such as Leprechaun 4: In Space and Leprechaun in the Hood. Willow and Star Wars franchise star Warwick Davis played the titular imp in the first 6 films before sitting out 2014’s Leprechaun Origins and Leprechaun Returns. According to THR, Davis will not be attached to the new project.

    “Thirty years after its debut, this franchise still casts a spell, and we’re thrilled to be bringing it back with a new vision,” said president of production for Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group, Erin Westman. “Roy and Miri are two of our most trusted producers, especially with this genre, and we’re excited by Felipe’s vision for the film as a director. In his hands, this movie should be very scary and a ton of fun.“

    With Vargas set to begin work on Rosario, his film debut, don’t expect work on the Leprechaun reimagining to begin until late 2023 or early 2024.

    Source: THR