Murphy's Multiverse

Category: News

  • ‘The Sandman’ Season 2 Eyeing Summer Production Start

    ‘The Sandman’ Season 2 Eyeing Summer Production Start

    Netflix hasn’t been doing its best at keeping enthusiasm alive for the streaming service. After canceling quite a few shows, it almost feels like a rarity when one does eventually make its return. Luckily, the ambitious and beautiful The Sandman was able to get that rare Season 2 renewal and is already preparing to start production on its second season according to Mason Alexander Park, who recently offered some insight into what’s heading our way during the Fan Expo in San Francisco.

    Park plays Desire in the DC series, who has a big role going into the next part of the series. During the panel, they highlight though that there’s a reason this won’t be called “Season 2” as it traditionally would. So, we’ll have to see what they’ll title this continuation but they do highlight that production is set to start this summer.

    There is more Sandman coming in a really cool way and it can take many forms, so we’re starting shooting in the summer and we’re gonna tackle the next huge chunk of stories in however long that might take. And I’m really excited to share the format of what that might be with everybody eventually.

    Mason Alexander Park

    The highlight of the format of this continuation does sound interesting and perhaps they will split the seasons up according to various story elements to keep the tale of Morpheus coming out in multiple steps. We had the additional episodes that expanded the original series and there’s also the fact that Netflix experiments with establishing two distinct parts for some of their biggest releases. So, we might see this trend continue.

    Source: Fan Expo via Winter is Coming

  • Madonna Biopic Not Moving Forward at Universal

    Madonna Biopic Not Moving Forward at Universal

    In the age of biopics based on pop music icons of the 20th century, one potential project is officially not moving forward. It’s been announced that the Madonna-based film is no longer in development at Universal Pictures. The film was to be directed by the pop icon herself, but the recent announcement of Madonna’s new world tour officially axed the project from happening. However, some Hollywood sources noted that the decision to cancel the biopic was already made at the end of 2022. Madonna also co-wrote the script for the project alongside Erin Cressida Wilson with Amy Pascal set to produce.

    Much was made about the grueling audition process for playing Madonna in the now-canceled film. It’s been said that the months-long experience was akin to a boot camp, including 11-hour days consisting of dancing, acting, and singing with Madonna and her choreographers. Numerous young stars in Hollywood and the music industry such as Florence Pugh, Odessa Young, Emma Laird, Bebe Rexha, and Sky Ferreira were in contention for the role. Ultimately, Julia Garner (of Ozark fame) was the front-runner to take on the part of the iconic singer, but it seemingly will not come to be.

    The biopic was first announced in 2020 and was set to cover the decades-long career of Madonna in the worlds of music and fashion. However, new reports have come out about the tumultuous process to get the script together. All versions of the script were well over 180 pages, with issues to parse down Madonna’s career into an individual film. Some discussions were had about adapting her life story into a two-part saga or even a limited series. Though as it stands now, the project is not moving forward in any way at Universal Pictures.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • REPORT: ‘Daredevil’s Disney+ Series Adds ‘Arrowverse’ Writers and Former Lawyers

    REPORT: ‘Daredevil’s Disney+ Series Adds ‘Arrowverse’ Writers and Former Lawyers

    It looks like Marvel Studios is pushing forward quickly, as they are ramping up on one of their most ambitious Disney+ series yet. Daredevil: Born Again will be the longest Disney+ series with 18 episodes and their first attempt at living in the shadow of a previous adaptation with returning actors. Now, we may have a better idea of what they may have planned for the series with som newly revealed writers.

    Daredevil‘s Disney+ series may have added some former lawyers to its cast with David Feige, who was a public defender in New York City but also went on to work on series like Raising the Bar or The Firm. Former attorney Thomas Wong also joins after working on Bull and Michael Weatherly. Queens prosecutor Zachary Reiter has also joined, who worked with Feige on The Firm as well as on Law & Order: Organized Crime

    She-Hulk, Attorney at Law also relied on former lawyer Charles Soule to offer some insight into how to bring the legal comedy to life. That isn’t all, as the report also points to former Arrowverse writers having joined the production with Jill Blankenship and Grainne Godfree. Blankenship was a showrunner on Naomi but also worked on a variety of Arrow episodes while Godfree was involved with The Flash, Arrow, and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.

    The addition of Arrow writers is definitely interesting, as this extensive writers’ room may hint at a very grounded and legal-heavy drama. It would match why the show has up to 18 episodes. They join showrunners Matt Corman and Chris Ord, who have the challenging task of bringing back the iconic franchise while adding their own spin to it.

    Source: Cosmic Circus via The Direct

  • RUMOR: ‘You’ Star Joins ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ as Vanessa

    RUMOR: ‘You’ Star Joins ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ as Vanessa

    It feels like Five Nights at Freddy’s has been in development hell for quite some time. Now, they’re finally moving forward with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop working on the live-action adaptation. The biggest news came when the first casting announcement also finally dropped with Matthew Lillard and Josh Hutcherson taking on leading roles for the project.

    Emma Tammi is in the directing chair and it looks like one more star has been found in a rather curious role for fans of the gaming franchise. You‘s Elizabeth Lail has seemingly joined the cast according to Daniel Richtman. For those that recently played the game Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach, the character had a major role in the game and its lore.

    GeeksVibesNation also highlighted that the role of “Vanessa” is currently being cast with the description stating that she’s a “police officer who shows up during one of Mike’s work shifts.” What sticks out is that she has a “keen understanding of the dark history and inner workings of the restaurant.”

    She was a nightguard in the Security Brach game and it’s curious they changed her role, but there’s a chance the name is just a coincidence to get fans of the franchise theorizing. Still, there’s a good chance that creator Scott Cawthon is reusing elements from his various games to pick together a unique story that plays on similar themes. The only question we’re stuck with now: is Vanny also going to appear?

    Source: GeeksVibesNation, Patreon via Twitter

  • ‘Superman and Lois’ Adds ‘The Walking Dead’ Star as Lex Luthor

    ‘Superman and Lois’ Adds ‘The Walking Dead’ Star as Lex Luthor

    At this point, we may have more versions of Lex Luthor in the DC Extended Universe than almost any other character. Superman & Lois has still been going strong with its third season set to premiere later in March. Yet, it seems the first major casting news has finally arrived with the CW series having added Michael Cudlitz in the role of the iconic DC villain bent on taking down his superpowered archrival.

    The character description has hinted that Cudlitz‘s take on the iconic character will explore the duality of the character. By day, he’s a “visionary billionaire behind LexCorp” but the criminal underworld knows that he’s actually a “brutal psychopath.” It seems this version of the character has not been in the public for some time and has set his eyes on revenge towards Tyler Hoechlin‘s Superman and Elizabeth Tulloch‘s Lois Lane.

    Even the nice family life of the Clarks won’t be safe from his new take on Luthor, which seems to be leaning more into a darker place for the character. We’ve just recently got a new version of the character played by Titus Welliver in the fourth season of Titans back in November. The Arrowverse had Jon Cryer in the role, who gave his unique take in the role.

    Source: Entertainment Weekly

  • ‘Wakanda Forever’ Among 22 Disney Projects Nominated for the 95th Academy Awards

    ‘Wakanda Forever’ Among 22 Disney Projects Nominated for the 95th Academy Awards

    Nominees for the 95th Oscars have been announced at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater located in Beverly Hills, California. The nomination ceremony was hosted by Riz Ahmed and Allison Williams, and consisted of 23 different categories, including best picture, best actor and actress in lead and supporting roles, best original and adapted screenplay, and much more.

    The announcement was streamed live on the Academy’s official webpages (Oscars.com) and social media handles, as well as aired on ABC’s Good Morning America. You can take a look at every single nomination at the 2023 Oscars, in over 23 different categories below.

    Best Costume Design

    • “Babylon”  
    • “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
    • “Elvis”
    • “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
    • “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris”

    Best Actress in a Supporting Role

    • Angela Bassett (“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”) 
    • Hong Chau (“The Whale”) 
    • Kerry Condon (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
    • Jamie Lee Curtis (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 
    • Stephanie Hsu (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 

    Best Actor in a Supporting Role

    • Brendan Gleeson (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
    • Brian Tyree Henry (“Causeway”) 
    • Judd Hirsch (“The Fabelmans”)
    • Barry Keoghan (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
    • Ke Huy Quan (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 

    Best Animated Feature Film 

    • “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio”
    • “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On” 
    • “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish”
    • “The Sea Beast”
    • “Turning Red”

    Best Makeup and Hairstyling 

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front” 
    • “The Batman”
    • “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”
    • “Elvis” 
    • “The Whale” 

    Best Original Score 

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front”  
    • “Babylon”  
    • “The Banshees of Inisherin”
    • “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
    • “The Fabelmans”  

    Best Live Action Short

    • “An Irish Goodbye”
    • “Ivalu”
    • “Le Pupille”
    • “Night Ride”
    • “The Red Suitcase”

    Best Animated Short Film

    • “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse”
    • “The Flying Sailor” 
    • “Ice Merchants” 
    • “My Year of Dicks” 
    • “An Ostrich Told Me the World Is Fake and I Think I Believe It” 

    Best Sound

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front”
    • “Avatar: The Way of Water”
    • “The Batman”
    • “Elvis”
    • “Top Gun: Maverick”

    Best Adapted Screenplay

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front”
    • “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”
    • “Living”
    • “Top Gun: Maverick”
    • “Women Talking”

    Best Original Screenplay

    • “The Banshees of Inisherin”
    • “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
    • “The Fabelmans”
    • “Tár”
    • “Triangle of Sadness”
    • “An Irish Goodbye”

    Best Cinematography 

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front”
    • “Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths”
    • “Elvis”
    • “Empire of Light”
    • “Tár”

    Best Documentary Feature Film 

    • “All That Breathes”  
    • “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed”
    • “Fire of Love”
    • “A House Made of Splinters”
    • “Navalny”

    Best Film Editing

    • “The Banshees of Inisherin”
    • “Elvis”
    • “Everything Everywhere All at Once”
    • “Tár”
    • “Top Gun: Maverick”

    Best Documentary Short Film 

    • “The Elephant Whisperers”
    • “Haulout”
    • “How Do You Measure a Year?”
    • “The Martha Mitchell Effect”
    • “Stranger at the Gate”

    Best International Feature Film 

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front” (Germany) 
    • “Argentina, 1985” (Argentina) 
    • “Close” (Belgium)
    • “EO” (Poland) 
    • “The Quiet Girl” (Ireland) 

    Best Visual Effects

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front”
    • “Avatar: The Way of Water”
    • “The Batman”
    • “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”  
    • “Top Gun: Maverick”

    Best Original Song 

    • “Applause” from “Tell It Like a Woman”
    • “Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick”   
    • “Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”   
    • “Naatu Naatu” from “RRR”   
    • “This Is a Life” from “Everything Everywhere All at Once” 

    Best Production Design 

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front”
    • “Avatar: The Way of Water”
    • “Babylon”
    • “Elvis”
    • “The Fabelmans”

    Best Lead Actor

    • Austin Butler (“Elvis”) 
    • Colin Farrell (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
    • Brendan Fraser (“The Whale”) 
    • Paul Mescal (“Aftersun”) 
    • Bill Nighy (“Living”) 

    Best Lead Actress

    • Cate Blanchett (“Tár”) 
    • Ana de Armas (“Blonde”) 
    • Andrea Riseborough (“To Leslie”)
    • Michelle Williams (“The Fabelmans”) 
    • Michelle Yeoh (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 

    Best Director 

    • Martin McDonagh (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) 
    • Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) 
    • Steven Spielberg (“The Fabelmans”) 
    • Todd Field (“Tár”) 
    • Ruben Östlund (“Triangle of Sadness”) 

    Best Picture

    • “All Quiet on the Western Front” (Netflix) 
    • “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios) 
    • “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures) 
    • “Elvis” (Warner Bros.) 
    • “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) 
    • “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures) 
    • “Tár” (Focus Features) 
    • “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures) 
    • “Triangle of Sadness” (Neon) 
    • “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) 

     Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert’s Everything Everywhere All At Once leads the awards with a total of 11 nominations. In second place, Edward Berger’s All Quiet on the Western Front and Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin are tied with 9 nominations each.
    Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis stands at a close third place, with 8 nominations.

    The final winners for the 2023 Oscars will be announced on Sunday, March 12, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. Television host/comedian Jimmy Kimmel is set to return as the host, after previously hosting the ceremony back-to-back in 2017 and 2018.

  • New Rumor Exposes the True Big Bad of Marvel Studios ‘Thunderbolts’

    New Rumor Exposes the True Big Bad of Marvel Studios ‘Thunderbolts’

    Since her first appearance in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Julia Louis-Dreyfus‘ Valentina Allegra de Fontaine has been recruiting some folks who are comfortable living in a moral grey area. Following a big reveal at D23 Expo 2022, audiences learned that Val’s full team will come together in the 2024 film Thunderbolts. Since the concept art of the team was unveiled, speculation about potential missing members of the squad began and recent rumors seemed to confirm that at least one member was withheld: Robert Reynolds, aka, Sentry. While the super-powered Sentry seems like he might be a bit too wack to fit into the MCU, there are some changes that could be made to make him fit the rumored “evil Superman” bill. However, despite having a plethora of problems, Sentry has never truly been a bad guy–at least not on his own merit–and a new rumor suggests that might not be the case in Thunderbolts either.

    According to Twitter user CanWeGetSomeToast, while it’ll be Sentry going into battle against the Thunderbolts, Val’s the one pulling his strings.

    https://twitter.com/CanWeGetToast/status/1617666429280751616?s=20&t=z6_4rmUxVwdstRv-YmCjwg

    The user suggests that Val will be behind whatever new Super Solider project is responsible for (presumably) turning Reynolds into Sentry and somehow making him her puppet. Additional rumors suggest that Sentry begins Thunderbolts as a member of the team before turning on his allies. From the sounds of it, whatever manner or method of control Val will have over Sentry won’t last and the Thunderbolts will have to come together to either take him down or get cooked.

    Sentry being under the thumb of a manipulative and duplicitous leader isn’t a new concept. During the Siege era from the pages of Marvel Comics, Sentry finds himself a member of Norman Osborn’s team of Avengers (Dark Avengers) and is used by Osborn as a one-man hit squad before being taken out by Thor. With Thor not currently expected to appear in Thunderbolts, one must wonder who will stop Sentry.

  • HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’ Originally Gave Tess An Origin Story

    HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’ Originally Gave Tess An Origin Story

    HBO’s serialized take on the acclaimed video game The Last of Us has thus far been a hit with fans. The show has been praised for its ability to recreate key moments from the original game while also offering expansive new information about the origins of the fungal pandemic and its leading characters. This week, the series debuted its second installment, which featured a heavy focus on Anna Torv‘s Tess, the smuggling partner of Pedro Pascal‘s Joel and co-caretaker of Bella Ramsey‘s Ellie. While the episode mostly sticks to the same character arc Tess has had since 2013, showrunner Craig Mazin was quick to reveal this wasn’t always the case.

    In the latest edition of HBO’s The Last of Us Podcast, an official weekly companion series in which Mazin and franchise creator Neil Druckmann discuss adapting the game to live-action, the former explained that the second episode nearly gave Tess a full-blown backstory. After being asked by podcast host Troy Baker about the character’s vulnerability and willingness to feel hope, Mazin stated they had actually written an origin for her that would have expanded upon the complex emotions she displays throughout the episode:

    There is something we had talked about, and we wrote it. We never shot it. It was a little bit of a backstory for Tess, and the fact that Tess had a kid. She had a husband and she had a son, and they were infected and she had to kill them. She killed her husband, but she could not kill the son. She couldn’t do it. She locked him in the basement, where theoretically, he’s still a Clicker.

    Craig Mazin

    Druckmann then elaborated further, chiming in to give more details on how the backstory would have been told and why it didn’t make the episode’s final cut:

    We had a cold open where we just like, the camera pushed on this door and you just hear this pounding coming from this basement and then we cut out. Then later, Tess would tell the story of how she couldn’t kill her son…it didn’t fit, but it was fun to think about.

    Neil Druckmann

    Whether or not fans choose to take this as the canon origin story for Tess is up to them. It hasn’t actually been included in any official in-world content, so it could be altered in the future if the creatives decide on something else. Or, as is often the case with The Last of Us, Tess’ history before Joel could remain a mystery forever. Either way, like Druckmann said, it’s still fun to think about.

    Source: HBO’s The Last of Us Podcast

  • Jeff Lovesness Explains Why Kang Poses a Greater Threat than Thanos

    Jeff Lovesness Explains Why Kang Poses a Greater Threat than Thanos

    Following in the footsteps of the last Avengers film, 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, can’t be an easy task; however, it’s one that Rick and Morty and Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania scribe Jeff Loveness seems to have embraced. Loveness’ task on Avengers: The Kang Dynasty was simple: find a way to have Kang out-Thanos Thanos. Kang, who will be introduced in his full glory in Quantumania, poses a very different kind of threat than Thanos and one that Loveness believes audiences might find a bit more terrifying because as he explained in SFX Magazine, Kang is just one of us.

    To me, it’s all about the humanity. Obviously, Thanos is a great, iconic villain, but he’s also a big purple CGI guy. He’s an alien from outer space. The thing I really wanted to lean into is that Kang is a human being. Kang’s also a very lonely character. We’re going to be seeing a lot of him in a lot of different ways going forward, but I really wanted to introduce the humanity and even the vulnerability of this character before he gets to such apocalyptic, Avengers-scale heights.

    Jeff Lovenss

    If Quantumania is then about introducing the very human and vulnerable Kang, The Kang Dynasty would seem to be the place to unleash Kang. Loveness indicated that’s exactly what will happen and it might be more than Earth’s Mightiest Heroes can handle.

    Kang is a top-tier, A-list Avengers villain. What do you do when you feel you’re not enough against that? How do you step up to face the challenge of this generation, who is Thanos on an exponential level? He’s almost this infinite Thanos. I think we’re setting things up for a pretty dynamic story.

    Jeff Loveness

    Phase 4, which consisted of 14 live-action projects, recently concluded with the emotional Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Many of those projects introduced new heroes who are likely to be among those assembled to take on Kang. According to Loveness, when that tie comes, Marvel Studios will be ready to “put the pedal to the gas again.”

    As I’m building to Avengers I want it to feel like a generational struggle. Phase 4 felt like the birth of new characters. You’re giving everyone a little bit of a breath, you’re broadening out the universe, you have fun Disney Plus shows that are elevating characters. And now I think it’s time to put the pedal to the gas again, and really take all these new characters that we like and throw them into the fire.

    Jeff Loveness

    You had us at infinite Thanos. Fans will catch their first glimpse of just how dangerous Kang is when Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania hits theaters on February 17th before watching him take over time in 2025’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.

    Source: SFX Magazine via Games Radar

  • ‘Quantumania’ Writer Jeff Lovenes Shares Unusual Source of Inspiration for MODOK

    ‘Quantumania’ Writer Jeff Lovenes Shares Unusual Source of Inspiration for MODOK

    Having worked as a writer on Rick and Morty for two seasons, Jeff Loveness is no stranger to alien landscapes, strange creatures and pulling from off-the-wall references. In that regard, Loveness must have felt right at home while scribing Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, which takes the heroes to the Quantum Realm and introduces them to an array of peculiar creatures. Though the Ant-Family finds themselves in another dimension, it’s a creature with ties to their own that has caught the eye of audiences in the latest trailer and who will pose problems for the protagonists for MODOK’s time has come.

    As seen in the new trailer, MODOK is played by Corey Stoll, whose Darren Cross was gruesomely dispatched into the Quantum Realm in the final act of 2015’s Ant-Man. The character, who has a fairly comic-accurate design, plays a major role in Quantumania and according to Loveness, is also responsible for his “favorite moments” in the film.

    MODOK is maybe my single favorite thing that I got in the movie. Obviously, we are very faithful to the comics with the design and the look, but then there is a little bit of extra we put into him. Maybe I’ll get fired off The Kang Dynasty when people see it, but some of my favorite moments come from MODOK and the dynamics there.

    Jeff Loveness

    While MODOK’s look is comic-inspired, Loveness had to come up with a brand new take on the character given his new origins. In doing so, he took inspiration from a late 80s off-beat, cult classic comedy, A Fish Called Wanda.

    I’ll just say he was inspired by Kevin Kline in A Fish Called Wanda and Frank Grimes in an old Simpsons episode – this really put-upon, selfish, entitled but then also deeply sad, insecure man who knows that he got a shit deal in life and is trying to make the best of it. His ego will crumble the second he’s challenged but then also like Kevin Kline in A Fish Called Wanda, he’s pretty good at killing people.

    Jeff Loveness

    A Fish Called Wanda is a wacky heist film with a number of betrayals and double-crosses, many of which include Kline’s Otto, a role for which he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Like its successors, Quantumania appears to be a heist film, so should the script of Quantumania have taken a bit of inspiration from A Fish Called Wanda, fans will have their share of twists and turns to track, which is part of the fun of heist films.

    Loveness explains that MODOK is “a real loose cannon character and I had a great amount of fun with him,” while adding that he played a key role in finding the tone for the threequel. “We cracked MODOK as a character“, said Loveness, “and the movie just became so fun.” Fans don’t have long to find out just how much fun Quantumania is as it is set to hit theaters on February 17th.

    Source: SFX Magazine via Games Radar