Murphy's Multiverse

Category: News

  • Diamond White, Alfre Woodard, and More Join ‘Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur’ Animated Series

    Diamond White, Alfre Woodard, and More Join ‘Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur’ Animated Series

    The news got filled with theories on WandaVision and excitement for future Disney+ releases. All our eyes were mainly on the upcoming live-action releases. It all changed until we got some more news on the stop-motion-animated MODOK series heading to Hulu yesterday, and it looks like another Marvel Animation series is making a comeback. At the tail end of 2019, Disney Television Animation announced the animated series Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. After a long wait, the official Disney TVA Twitter shared some concept art and a brand new logo for the upcoming series. They also finally confirm that the series will debut on the Disney Channel in 2022.

    The series is getting developed by Laurence Fishburne and Helen Sugland‘s Cinema Gypsy Productions, who were also the masterminds behind ABC’s Black-ish. As the image showcases, the story is following 13-year-old genius Lunella Lafayette and her T-Rex Devil Dinosaur. They will work together to protect New York City. How did a giant T-Rex make it into the Big Apple? Well, she accidentally pulled him into the present day after an experiment. The cast has some great star power with Diamond White, Alfre Woodard, and Laurence Fishburne. Speaking of Fishburne, the tweet confirms that The Beyonder will have a role in the upcoming series. Our titular star will be voiced by Damond White, who many might recognize from her voice work and appearances in various Madea films. It already looks like a fantastic addition to the Marvel family, and here’s hoping we get a sneak preview by summer for its release next year.

    Source: Deadline, Twitter

  • ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2’ Release Date Announced Alongside New Logo

    ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2’ Release Date Announced Alongside New Logo

    Right before the pandemic hit, one of the last films to grace the silver screen was Sonic the Hedgehog. Sega’s first major Hollywood film told the origin story of a young blue hedgehog, as he met his arch-rival Jim Carrey‘s Dr. Robotinik and made some friends along the way. At the end of the film, it was revealed that a familiar face is joining his next adventure, as Miles ‘Tails’ Prower made his live-action debut. Just recently, there is also the rumor going around that Jason Momoa was offered the role of Knuckles the Echidna. Now, it like the film is getting ready to enter production, as the official Twitter account shared a small animation that reveals the film’s rather straight-forward title and the official release date of April 8th, 2022.

    As a huge Sonic the Hedgehog fan, I am excited to see where they are heading with the upcoming film. It makes sense they would remain with the classic numbering system, as even the original trilogy followed that structure. I would’ve loved to see some subtitles like Adventure or Heroes. It would just add that little something. We still have no idea where the story is heading, as Dr. Robotnik remains stranded on a planet full of mushrooms. There is a chance that they might introduce a brand new villain, such as the Echidna tribe that got teased during the opening sequence of the last film. It’s also kind of perfect that Tails gets a larger role in the sequel, as he did in the original Sega Genesis game.

    As this year will celebrate the blue blur’s 30th anniversary, we might get some more insight into the film’s story around June. Ironically, it is kind of perfect to reveal this in February, as Sonic’s first actual video game appearance was in the arcade game Rad Mobile. That means his actual 30th anniversary is in February, so Paramount chose a perfect time for this reveal. Now, if only they could announce the next game s well.

    Source: Twitter, The Gamer

  • New ‘THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER’ Trailer Smashes 24-hour Record

    New ‘THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER’ Trailer Smashes 24-hour Record

    Sunday’s trailer for the Disney Plus streaming series The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is now the most viewed trailer for a streaming series and it blew the previously held record away. The new spot had 125M views in the first 24 hours, more than doubling the previous record of 53M which was held by another Marvel Studios project, WandaVision.

     

    The marketing approach for the series seems sure to capture the attention of younger audience and is, in some ways, reminiscent of the way Marvel Studios marketed Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The new trailer gave away very little about the plot of the series, but showcased some serious action and the bright, flashy lights of Madripoor while keeping the focus on the strained relationship between the two series leads that fans loved in Captain America: Civil War. The series is set to debut on Disney Plus on March 19th.

  • Official ‘Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ Merchandise Reveals Flag-Smashers’ Secret Identity

    Official ‘Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ Merchandise Reveals Flag-Smashers’ Secret Identity

    Right now, WandaVision is on everyone’s mind as we build-up to the final four episodes. Yet, the Super Bowl gave us a brand new Falcon and the Winter Soldier trailer that showcased all the action and our new antagonist, Flag-Smasher. The character is the leader of a secret organization ULTIMATUM, which seeks world peace through violence. The trailers revealed a gender-swapped version of the Marvel villain with a very different design from the comics. Our first look at the actress confirmed that Erin Kellyman is indeed playing this interpretation, as reported by Lizzie Hill. Many might remember her from Solo: A Star Wars Story.

    A few months ago, we even saw that the Disney+ show is using the comic’s world symbol with an additional bloodied handmark. The only question was if this was an adaptation of the original Flag-Smasher or a brand new character. Well, it looks like the merchandise site Zazzle may have accidentally revealed her identity. The description for the graphic card states the following:

    Check out this paint splatter graphic featuring Karli Morgenthau, leader of The Flag Smashers!

    It looks like the show’s Flag-Smasher is indeed a gender-swapped version of the original Karl Morgenthau. It would imply that she might have a similar origin story, as the daughter of a wealthy Swiss banker and diplomat who traveled the world in her youth before a tragedy would warp her world-view. It will be interesting to see how they tackle her story and how it may intertwine with the overarching plot about who will be the next Captain America. It certainly will be a battle of world views when Marvel Studios’ second show hits Disney+ in March.

    Source: Zazzle

  • ‘M.O.D.O.K.’ Co-Creator Jordan Blum Reveals First Look at Mr. Sinister

    ‘M.O.D.O.K.’ Co-Creator Jordan Blum Reveals First Look at Mr. Sinister

    It has been a while since we had any real news on the upcoming MODOK Hulu Original show. We got our first official look at the stop-motion animated series around four months ago. Robot Chicken‘s Stoopid Buddy is behind the wheel with their classic animation style making a return and showing the difficulty of balancing his family life while trying to conquer the world. So far, the only confirmed character outside of MODOK’s family is the main antagonist Austin Van Der Sleet, who owns a rival company. Luckily, it looks like we will see a variety of other Marvel icons make an appearance in the series. Co-Creator Jordan Blum took to Twitter to reveal that the iconic X-Men antagonist, Mr. Sinister, will make an appearance.

    https://twitter.com/BlumJordan/status/1358892327712874497

    The design truly embraces the character’s taste in capes. Sadly, we don’t know who will be voicing Mr. Sinister or how large the role will end up being. It also is the last show after Hellstrom to come from the time before the Marvel TV and Studios merger. MODOK will be an adult comedy. As such, it makes sense that it will not become a Disney+ show. There is a chance it will get released as the first Marvel series under the STAR banner in selected markets. Hellstrom technically will have that title, but it didn’t come with a Marvel logo. Originally, it was eyeing a release early this year. So, they might have pushed it back with no official release date announced. Hopefully, this reveal is just the beginning of other iconic Marvel characters that will join the animated series.

    Source: Twitter

  • EXCLU: First Details on Dan Trachtenberg’s Comanche ‘Predator’ Film

    EXCLU: First Details on Dan Trachtenberg’s Comanche ‘Predator’ Film

    At the tail end of 2019, DiscussingFilm revealed that famous director Dan Trachtenberg is working on the film Skulls. He will work alongside producer John Davis, who worked on Chronicle, The Man From UNCLE, and Disney’s upcoming Jungle Cruise film. It turned out that this film is the fifth installment in the Predator title that got revealed sometime before. It would continue the franchise after Shane Black‘s 2018 film The Predator. He will work based on a script written by Patrick Aison, whose work includes Jack Ryan and Kingdom. The film will follow a Comanche woman who defines her culture’s norms and decides to become a warrior. Now, we can exclusively report some details about the upcoming project and its main characters.

    Let’s start with our rebellious girl, whose name Kee means “no”. They are looking for a 15-year-old to take on the role of a rebellious Comanche teen. She has a close relationship with her brother. He is our second lead, the 18-year old Taabe, whose name means “sun”. Kee is a truth-teller who sees what others don’t, as she guides her brother, who is expected to become Chief one day. After a successful hunt, he believes he has come of age and no longer requires his sister’s help, which creates a rift between them. She decides to set out and prove that she is just as capable as the others. She aims to defy the rules set by the masculine world of the Comanche.

     

     

    Their dynamic will be quite an interesting one to explore throughout the film, especially if these hunters have to face one of space’s deadliest hunters. The production is currently still shying away from the Predator title. It still is being produced with the working title Skulls. I like this new angle, as the alien race has visited Earth multiple times to face their greatest foes. The film’s casting is also an important move for representation and will offer a unique perspective on a classic franchise.

    Source: DiscussingFilm, Deadline

  • RUMOR: Jason Momoa Offered to Voice Knuckles in ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Sequel

    RUMOR: Jason Momoa Offered to Voice Knuckles in ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Sequel

    It would appear as though the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog sequel is looking to add some heavy star-power to its cast. The Illuminerdi has learned that Jason Momoa, best known for his starring roles in Aquaman and Game of Thrones, has been offered to voice Knuckles the Echidna. He is a fan-favorite character who was long-rumored to be playing a role in the film. A while back, the in-house production being called Red Energy seemed to hint at his addition. Their sources behind the Momoa casting claim that the “ball is in his court”, and that the muscle-clad actor needs only agree to terms to finalize the deal.

    Fans began speculating that Knuckles would appear in the sequel almost as soon as the original dropped in early 2020, a theory, which got promoted by the mid-credits surprise when another classic supporting character from the franchise, Miles “Tails” Prower, made his live-action debut. Although the original video game voice actress, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, returned to play Tails, many speculated that a character like Knuckles could receive a new voice in a similar vein to the film’s title character. The popular fan theory was that they would cast Dwayne Johnson, and it seems that they certailny had a specific type of actor in mind for the role. If he accepts Paramount’s conditions, he’ll replace Dave B. Mitchell, who played him in the games.

    The Sonic the Hedgehog sequel was confirmed in May. It was only three months after the film’s successful theatrical release of the first film. The announcement came on the heels of a surprisingly successful run in theaters, which ended up making Sonic the sixth highest-grossing film of the year. The cast of the first endeavor, which included Jim Carrey as the evil Dr. Robotnik and James Marsden as Sonic’s new real-world best friend, is expected to return alongside Ben Schwartz in the title role. Jeff Fowler, who made his theatrical directorial debut with Sonic the Hedgehog, is also on board to helm the sequel. The cast will see the return of Schwartz and Carrey in their titular roles. They have stated interest in the next film bringing the story more in-line with the source material. The actual plot of the franchise’s future remains tightly under wraps.

    Source: Illuminerdi

  • First Look at ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ New Wasteland Biome Released

    First Look at ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ New Wasteland Biome Released

    Marvel’s Avengers has been building up to their next character reveal. Hawkeye was the first DLC character to get, and we will finally get to see him in action on next week’s War Table Deep Dive. We already got a glimpse when he briefly joined your squad in a mission from Kate Bishop’s DLC storyline Taking AIM, but it was only the beginning to whet our appetites. Now, Hawkeye will face a desolate future in his original Operation Future Imperfect. As the name implies, it is based on the comic run by the same name. Maestro takes center stage and rules over what remains of humanity in the future. Crystal Dynamics used this opportunity to highlight its first new biome, the Wasteland. Tore and Oscar from their development team offer a few more insights into what we can expect with our first official look at the brand new biome.

     

     

    Old Man Hawkeye is their main inspiration behind the Wasteland’s design. The spin-off of Old Man Logan revisited the titular hero’s journey throughout a broken and desolate world. The new biome’s design was grey and sandy early on until they decided to embrace the desert’s orange tint. Our first look certainly showcases how beautiful even a deserted world can look with the right color scheme. As teased in Bishop’s storyline, the world gets invaded by the Kree sentry. Some humans were able to take down a few of the Sentry but still got overrun by the alien invaders. If things weren’t bad enough, pollution and tectonic shifts have destroyed almost all life. Only a few humans are holding on for dear life, as nuclear bombs have created new canyons and a barely recognizable landscape

     

     

    CD highlights that there will be various points of interest that players can check out to explore what happened in the future. A major aspect of the landscape will be the previously-mentioned Kree Sentry that are littered across the landscape. The images certainly show a promising new environment that will add a new spice to the game. Here are some of the screenshots and art work from their Developer Blog that highlights the new environment as we anticipate the reveals from next week’s Deep Dive:

     

    Source: Play Avengers

  • Blue Sky Studios Shut Down by Disney

    Blue Sky Studios Shut Down by Disney

    The studio that brought you the Ice Age franchise is closing its doors. Deadline revealed that Disney is shutting down Blue Sky Studios, which it acquired along with many other assets in the massive Fox takeover just two years ago. The studio was the prime money-maker of Fox’s animated division, having grossed $5.9 billion in total throughout thirteen films since 2002. Blue Sky produced numerous hits alongside the now-iconic Ice Age films, such as the Robin Williams vehicle Robots and the high-flying Rio. They also adapted critically-acclaimed classic properties like Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who! and The Peanuts Movie. The reason behind the closure is the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, with losses from their theme park lockdowns and theater closure hindering the corporation’s ability to maintain three animation studios at once. Disney is instead opting to maintain funding for their mainstays, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios.

    The entire Blue Sky library will remain a part of the Disney experience, and the previously-announced Ice Age series for Disney+ is expected to arrive. However, the studio’s next film, Nimona, a magic-based medieval fairy tale about a shape-shifting boy who partners with a mad scientist to topple an evil ruler, will halt production. It still required ten more months to finish. Tragically, the demise of Blue Sky will lead to the loss of 450 jobs. Deadline does report that Disney will work with the former employees to find positions at other internal studios. The world is sure to miss the storytelling prowess of Blue Sky and the diversity that another animation studio would bring to the table. The work of the company played a vital role in many childhoods. Sadly, the latest release of the Tom Holland-led Spies in Disguise failed to make the impact the company was hoping for. Here’s hoping that the workers impacted by the closure will find ample opportunity in their future elsewhere. We wish them all the best in their future endeavors and that they can find something soon.

    Source: Deadline

  • CW Moves Forward With ‘Powerpuff Girls’ Live-Action Series

    CW Moves Forward With ‘Powerpuff Girls’ Live-Action Series

    It looks like The CW has found its next hit franchise to adapt, as Variety has just revealed they ordered a pilot for a live-action adaptation of Powerpuff Girls. We first heard of its development around six months ago, where it was revealed that CW regular Greg Berlanti and his team from Berlanti Productions are developing a series around the famous Cartoon Network franchise. Their success in adapting Riverdale may have sparked an interest to explore the story of three crime-fighting sisters in their later years. It comes at the worst time, as the world needs them more than ever before. The series joins other orders, such as a remake of USA Network’s The 4400, DC’s Naomi, and an untitled religious dramedy.

    It will be based on the characters from the original animated series, which ran for six seasons from 1998 until 2005 before getting a reboot in 2016. This live-action adaptation will be written by Heather Regnier and Diablo Cody. The series will follow the trio in their early twenties, as they resent their childhood for wasting it on crime-fighting. So far, the series has only gotten a pilot, which means that CW still has to sign off on the series before ordering it to series.

    It will be interesting to see how they adapt this iconic franchise. There is a chance it might be part of the HBO Max deal, as the production budget might rival Superman & Lois given the wide range of superheroic abilities the trio wields. There is also the question if they will include iconic characters from the series like Mojo Jojo or HIM, who might also require some heavy effects work. For now, we can only wait and see how the pilot turns out and if CW is interested in giving this adaptation a shot. It also opens up the question of which other Cartoon Network shows might be up next for a live-action adapation.

    Source: Variety, Deadline