Murphy's Multiverse

Category: News

  • The Morning After Huddle: June 28, 2022

    The Morning After Huddle: June 28, 2022

    Happy Tuesday, teammates! Welcome to your favorite news source for all things NFL. This is The Morning After Huddle! So many stories, so little time. Let’s hop into it.

    Here’s what you need to know:

    • I’m convinced that athletes wake up and say, “what can I do today that’s completely out of my league?”. That answer is apparently (and continues to be) boxing. Adrian Peterson wants to get in the ring with Le’Veon Bell and the two have scheduled an event for July 30 at Crypto.com Arena. 
    • Today in As Deshaun Watson Turns, the Texans are being sued. The lawsuit says that the Texans knew about his behavior in massage therapy sessions and should’ve done something about it…like not enable him at all. (Shocking, I know.) A few weeks back, Jenny Vrentas did some fabulous reporting and noted many of the details listed.
    • Next, the first Black starting quarterback in the American Football League, Marlin Briscoe, passed away from pneumonia complications at the age of 76. Briscoe was a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Miami Dolphins.
    • Last, but not least, your Key Signings Roundup:

    Thanks for breaking down the Huddle with us today! Join us tomorrow for your Wednesday NFL headlines and more news you need to know.

    ICYMI: Monday – June 27, 2022 Edition

  • Disney+’s ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ Was Originally Pitched as a Movie Trilogy

    Disney+’s ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ Was Originally Pitched as a Movie Trilogy

    Lucasfilm’s latest Disney+ series, Obi-Wan Kenobi, saw the return of Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen in their iconic roles from the Prequel Trilogy. Many wondered how the series came together and what may have led to the project ending up on the Disney+ streaming service. It turns out that writer Stuart Beattie initially pitched the project as a film trilogy. Initially, he wrote the first of three films that would eventually be stretched out into the six episodes of the Obi-Wan Kenobi series.

    I wrote the film that they based the show on. So, yeah. I spent like a year, year-and-a-half working on it. And then, when the decision was made not to make any more spin-off films after Solo came out, I left the project and went on to other things. Joby came on and took my scripts and turned it from two hours into six. So, I did not work with them at all, I just got credit for the episodes because it was all my stuff

    Stuart Beattie

    He goes on to highlight how he initially pitched the project to Lucasfilm, which would’ve been three stories that explore the different stages of his evolution into Ben Kenobi from the Original Trilogy, most notably how we meet him in A New Hope.

    So when I pitched my Obi-Wan story to Lucasfilm, I said, ‘There’s actually three stories here. Because there’s three different evolutions that the character has to make in order to go from Obi-Wan to Ben.’ And the first one was the first movie, which was the show, which was, ‘Surrender to the will of the Force. Transport your will, surrender your will. Leave the kid alone.’ So then, the second [movie] was thinking about where Kenobi ends up.

    Stuart Beattie

    He also highlights that very transformation and wanting to explore that storyline of how he goes from the man we see in the Prequels into the role of sacrificing his life to let Luke Skywalker follow his own fate.

    And one of the most powerful and probably the most powerful moment in all of Obi-Wan’s story is that moment where he sacrifices himself in A New Hope. Great moment, you know, makes you cry. But, if you stop and think about it, it’s a pretty sudden thing, to just kind of go be fighting a guy, to see Luke and go, ‘I’m gonna die.’ You know, that to me, that required forethought. That required pre-acceptance that this was going to happen.

    Stuart Beattie

    Hearing that an initial film idea was stretched out into the first six episodes doesn’t seem too surprising given the slower pace of the project. Obi-Wan Kenobi has strengths but there are moments where it felt like it was initially planned as a singular film that was broken down into three arcs with two episodes each. It was marketed as a limited series, which makes it curious that the initial pitch of a trilogy could’ve been made for at least three seasons. So, we’ll have to see if they backpedal on the idea after all.

    Source: The Direct

  • Christian Bale on His Gorr the God Butcher Not Being Comic-Accurate in ‘Thor 4’

    Christian Bale on His Gorr the God Butcher Not Being Comic-Accurate in ‘Thor 4’

    There have been quite a few discussions surrounding why Thor: Love and Thunder moved away from Gorr the God Butcher’s iconic comic design. Many theorized that having Christian Bale involved with the project was one of the decisions, but the actor now offered some insight during the press tour on how they approached the design, most notably due to Bale‘s restrictions after wrapping up another project.

    Yeah, I was coming off of a film where it had been necessary to be sort of rather lacking in muscle. And then I saw the images and thought: “Well, that’s not going to be possible. And this G-string that#s going on there.” He looked in the comic books like physically a, you know, someone to reckon with Thor. And I said: “Well, you know that’s just not going to be possible in the state I’m in.

    Christian Bale

    He goes on to highlight that he only had three days between productions, which is the result of COVID. We’ve seen with many productions that they had less prep time and with VFX houses slammed, it’s not easy for these productions to somehow get their projects out in a meaningful way; which Marvel Studios has found a balance to work with.

    And so we said: “Alright, now we’ll go with the supernatural powers that he does have that he gets from the Necrosword etc, which I think works really effectively.

    He also highlighted that the G-string was already decided not to be part of the film before Bale even sat down with director Taika Waititi. So, it seems that they’ve already decided on some aspects of the design before he joined, but also adapted to his thinner frame due to his previous project. It once again highlights how these productions are far more complicated and also have to adapt when they adapt talent, especially ones as big as Christian Bale.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Succession’ Season 4 Kicks Off Production With First Set Photo

    ‘Succession’ Season 4 Kicks Off Production With First Set Photo

    It was back in October that the HBO series Succession was renewed for a fourth season. Not much was known about the upcoming new season, which continues to follow the Roy family, a group of dysfunctional entrepreneurs in the media and entertainment world. Brian Cox plays the role of Logan Roy and is joined by a stellar cast that includes Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, Matthew Macfadyen, Jeremy Strong, and more.

    Cox and Strong have been praised as the series went on to nab quite a few nominations, and it seems after quite a few months of waiting, production has finally started don the fourth season of Succession. The official Twitter account has shared a photo from the set, which sadly doesn’t include any of the cast but confirms that production has begun.

    HBO has continued to offer a powerhouse of productions, even as it expanded into streaming with HBO Max. With a stellar cast, Succession was surely to draw in an audience and it’s great to see a successful series enter the fourth season as most streaming alternatives sadly barely make it past a second season. Each one ran for around ten episodes, with only the third ending on a ninth episode. So, showrunner Jesse Armstrong might stick to that format moving forward. The above image also confirms that Mark Mylod is back in the directing chair after working on last season’s finale.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Doctor Strange 2’ Beats Out ‘Shang-Chi’ and ‘Eternals’ Viewership in First 5 Days on Disney+

    ‘Doctor Strange 2’ Beats Out ‘Shang-Chi’ and ‘Eternals’ Viewership in First 5 Days on Disney+

    It looks like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has been a big release on Disney+ even while it’s still available in theaters. The film has been building up quite a bit over the last few weeks in cinemas, as it’s likely to end its run with at least $950M. While it isn’t a billion, it’s quite the jump from the previous entry and further proves that Marvel Studios has a hold at the box office. Now, they also released the film on Disney+ to grab a home audience and it looks like the film performed quite well.

    According to a study by Samba TV, a third-party analytics company, the film pulled in 2.1M US households that watched the Doctor Strange sequel in its first 5 days of streaming. To put it in perspective, SambaTV reported that Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Teen Rings pulled in around 1.7M viewers back in November. Eternals also pulled in a strong 2M which now puts Doctor Strange on top with 2.1M.

    It needs to be pointed out that this value is only a temporary look and might not truly represent how these projects are truly performing. Still, from a third-party perspective, it does seem like the project is doing quite well. 2M viewership seems to be the core audience for Marvel films, which is a curious benchmark for future projects. These numbers could be quite a bit higher due to it relying on Samba TV’s household panels but it at least offers us a little glimpse of how our favorite projects are performing.

    Source: Twitter (Strange), Twitter (Shang-Chi), Twitter (Eternals)

  • Warner Bros. SDCC Plans Revealed

    Warner Bros. SDCC Plans Revealed

    The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that while certain properties from Warner Bros. Discovery will be showcased at San Diego Comic-Con next month, CEO David Zaslav is looking to make big changes to the company’s approach at the convention. Per the outlet, this year will mark the first time that Warners – including DC. – will not have a presence on the convention floor. In recent years, the company has had a huge presence on the convention floor, including signings from the Justice League cast in recent years.

    Perhaps the biggest news, however, is that there will be no presence for the CW at SDCC. Fans of The Flash and Superman & Lois, unfortunately, should not expect the panels and promotion of recent years. This, of course, shouldn’t be too surprising. Along with cleaning most of its slate, the CW is expected to go up for sale which more than likely had an impact on the decision to forgo SDCC. The lone exception will be Riverdale, with the series set to make its final Hall H appearance ahead of its sixth and final season on the network.

    While Warner Bros. Discovery will not have a floor presence, titles such as House of Dragons and Sandman will make a huge splash at the convention thanks to HBO and Netflix. There will also be panels by DC Publisher and CCO Jim Lee, as well panels for animated titles (for young and old), and Warner Bros. Games. There will also be a special screening of the first two episodes of Harley Quinn, as well as the premiere of the animated film Green Lantern: Beware My Power, which will be followed by a Q&A.

    The decision to rethink how Warner Bros. Discovery approaches Comic-Con is said to be so that the company can be “more strategic” as the convention has cost Warners approximately $25 million in past years due to the floor installation, travel for its talent and tech costs for presentations. It remains to be seen whether or not this change is permanent in coming years, or if this is merely a one-time change.

    Source: THR

  • Eisner Award Winner Saladin Ahmed Part of Creative Team Behind ‘Drac: Son of Dante’

    Eisner Award Winner Saladin Ahmed Part of Creative Team Behind ‘Drac: Son of Dante’

    Drac: Son of Dante is being crafted as a 15-part webcomic series for Tapas Media and Endeavor Content. It is free to read exclusively via Tapas Media’s site and mobile app, with the first two episodes having already launched. More episodes will release weekly on Fridays. It is said to introduce a new and contemporary mythology to the origins of Dracula, with the hopes that it will resonate with “multicultural and youth audiences alike.”

    The series follows Dane, an eerie, flute-playing immortal who soon finds himself drawn to the human condition despite the judgment of his kind, vampires. It soon becomes an obsession of Dante’s, only to erupt into a conflict for the ages when his son, Drac ultimately chooses a human bride. 

    “I couldn’t be more excited to be collaborating with such a ridiculously talented group of creators,” said Ahmed. “The team’s accolades speak for themselves. But it’s the living energy my fellow writers – along with artists, editors, producers, and musicians – have brought to DRAC: Son of Dante that’s going to make this a story people talk about for a long time to come.”

    Ahmed served as a writer on Drac: Son of Dante along with Son M., Rob Markman and Deron Bennett. He also serves as an executive producer along with King, Free, Eric Pertilla and Layne Eskridge. Ray-Anthony Height, Don Ho, Craig Yeung, Sam Curtis, Marc Yarza, Butch Mapa, JJ Lopez, Federico Dalloccio, Paulo Sampaio and Marissa Louise all worked on the art for the series with Quelle Chris (Judas and the Black Messiah) scoring the project.

    Ahmed is an acclaimed novelist, comic book writer and poet. He made his Marvel comics debut with the critically acclaimed Black Bolt, which went on to win the 2018 Eisner Award for Best New Series. He has since penned Miles Morales: Spider-Man and The Magnificent Ms. Marvel. Most recently he co-created Abbott for Boom Studios, as well as contributed to episodes for Spotify’s hit podcast, Batman Unburied.

    Source: Deadline

  • Disney + Series ‘American Born Chinese’ Adds ‘Hacks’ Star to Cast

    Disney + Series ‘American Born Chinese’ Adds ‘Hacks’ Star to Cast

    The news comes courtesy of Variety, with the outlet revealing the Hacks breakout has nabbed a guest role in the forthcoming series. She joins a cast that includes the likes of Michelle Yeoh, Yeo Yann Yann, Daniel Wu, Chin Han, and Ke Huy Quan. Liu will portray Princess Iron Fan, a character described as “enchanting” and having magical powers.

    The Disney+ series, American Born Chinese, is based on the graphic novel of the same name by Gene Luen Yang. It follows Jin Wang, who’ll be played by Ben Wang, who is described as a high schooler trying to juggle a social life with his immigrant home life. After meeting a foreign exchange student named Wei-Chen, played by Jim Liu, the duo soon see their worlds colliding as Jin soon finds himself in a battle of Chinese mythological gods.

    Liu, who first broke out with the role of Kiki on the HBO Max series, Hacks, is building a busy resume. Along with American Born Chinese, Liu is confirmed to appear in the AMC anthology series, Tales of the Walking Dead, as well as the Amazon series adaptation of Dead Ringers. Outside of Hacks, she has previously appeared in shows like Better Call Saul and Hulu’s recently canceled Dollface.

    American Born Chinese hails from writer and showrunner Kelvin Yu, as well as Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), who’ll serve as a director and executive producer on the series.

    Source: Variety

  • Taika Waititi on the Unexpected Love Triangle in ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’

    Taika Waititi on the Unexpected Love Triangle in ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’

    It’s clear that there were no restraints placed on the creative mind of Taika Waititi during the production of Thor: Love and Thunder. If the promotional footage from the trailers have shown fans anything, it’s that the fourth Thor installment will be the Odinson’s wildest ride yet as his former flame, Jane Foster, comes crashing back into his life as a Thor of her own.

    Part of the mystery of Jane’s return is clearly tied to another of Thor’s loves: his hammer, Mjolnir. Destroyed by his sister, Hela, in Thor: Ragnarok, Mjolnir is back in Love and Thunder, and, as has been seen in the trailers, apparently more fond of Jane than the Odinson. In Mjolnir’s absence, of course, Thor had a new weapon, Stormbreaker, forged for him with the help of Eitri and a helping hand from Groot. During the global press conference for Thor: Love and Thunder, Waititi explained that because Stormbreaker’s handle is part of Groot, it was going to have some feelings about Mjolnir coming back into Thor’s life.

    Yeah. And Stormbreaker, I don’t know if this is the way anyone else thought about it, but you gotta remember Stormbreaker’s made of Groot’s arm. Well, you know, the handle is. And so Groot was like a teenager when he did that. So we felt like Stormbreaker was a young wif and had only just been born about five or six years ago. So it had to feel a little bit like an adolescent and it was like it was going through changes.

    Taika Waititi

    Reading between the lines, it appears that Waititi has indeed written a love triangle into Thor: Love and Thunder, though not one fans of the MCU saw coming, but rather one between a thunder god and his two weapons.

    Thor: Love and Thunder hits theaters on July 8th.

  • Jason Schwartzman the Latest to Board Prequel to ‘The Hunger Games’

    Jason Schwartzman the Latest to Board Prequel to ‘The Hunger Games’

    The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes has added yet another actor to its growing cast. Jason Schwartzman joins the cast as Lucretius “Lucky” Flickerman. Not only is the character the host of the 10th Hunger Games, but he is also an ancestor of Caesar Flickerman’s, who we saw played by Stanley Tucci in The Hunger Games franchise. Schwartzman joins the previously announced Tom Blyth as Coriolanus Snow, Hunter Schafer as Tigris Snow, Josh Andres Rivera as Sejanus Plinth, and Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray. 

    The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel to The Hunger Games films and is based on the book of the same name. Francis Lawrence, who helmed three of the four Hunger Games films, is returning to direct the prequel. He directs from a script by Michael Lesslie (Macbeth).

    The synopsis for the film is as follows:

    Years before he would become the tyrannical President of Panem, 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow is the last hope for his fading lineage, a once-proud family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol. With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow is alarmed when he is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird, the girl tribute from impoverished District 12. But, after Lucy Gray commands all of Panem’s attention by defiantly singing during the reaping ceremony, Snow thinks he might be able to turn the odds in their favor. Uniting their instincts for showmanship and newfound political savvy, Snow and Lucy’s race against time to survive will ultimately reveal who is a songbird and a snake.

    The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will be produced by franchise producer Nina Jacobson and her partner Brad Simpson, as well as Lawrence. Suzanne Collins, who penned The Hungers Games books, will also serve as an executive producer alongside Tim Palen and Jim Miller. Production on the film is currently underway for a planned Nov. 17, 2023 release.

    Source: THR