The rumor mill surrounding Persona has been quite interesting, as there’s a variety of stories making the rounds. We’ve long been waiting for an announcement for the next mainline iteration of Persona, Persona 6, which has been quite absent. Even the 25th anniversary was surprisingly calm about the future of the franchise but there have been a variety of rumors making the rounds as of late in regards to the next numbered entry and a remake of Persona 3, which just recently got a remaster.
Now, it seems that Reseterra has become the source for any Persona rumor nowadays. It’s a surprisingly very selective environment that normally only allows things in that may have some truth to them. The latest comes by sharing a video of Nate the Hate, who has shared quite a few things in the past, and seemingly may have given us a tease of what’s to come.
Besides the already existing Persona 3 Remake rumor of appearing at the Xbox Showcase, he also seemingly stated that Persona 6 is going to be a PlayStation 5 exclusive moving forward. Atlus is seemingly embracing the next-gen console and it makes sense given the franchise generally has been a standard part of Sony’s line-up. Though, they state it might just be a limited release similar to Final Fantasy VII Remake, as we theorized with the P3Remake rumors recently.
That’s not all, as he also seemingly states that they are eyeing a late 2024 release for the game. So, the set-up would be for the remake to hit multiple consoles sometime this year on all consoles but using Xbox as its main marketing source similar to the reveal of the previous remasters. It’s to highlight the step forward for the franchise and likely a hint that they will keep spinoffs or other adaptations for multiple console releases while the mainline series gets the PlayStation exclusivity.
Martin Lawrence and Will Smith are suiting back up as Marcus Burnett and Mike Lowrey, bad boys for life who ride together and die together, in a fourth installment of the Bad Boys franchise. The new film, directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, was announced earlier this year and has been filming in Atlanta for some time. With production drawing to a close, a new title has emerged for the project.
Following up on incorporating Burnett and Lowrey’s motto (we ride together, we die together…bad boys for life) into the title of the third film in the series, Bad Boys for Life, the fourth film in the franchise will be called Bad Boys: Ride or Die.
While there’s no release date for Bad Boys: Ride or Die, it seems safe to say the wait for it will not be as long as the wait between the second and third films in the franchise. When El Arbi and Fallah resurrected the series in 2020, it had been 17 years since Michael Bay‘s Bad Boys II had been in theaters. With the new film set to wrap production later this Summer, it seems likely that Sony will roll the fourth feature film into theaters some time in 2024.
The original version of The Little Mermaid is widely regarded as the film that kicked off Disney’s animated renaissance. Back in 1989, the studio wasn’t the box office juggernaut it is today, with lucrative franchises in its grasp like Infinity Stones, so you can imagine how now, 34 years later, expectations are through the roof for the latest in a long line of mixed reviewed, but fairly reliable box office performers drawing from the creative well of that period. And charitably, one could attribute some of the negativity around this updated original to fans who cling to nostalgia amidst the tempest that is modern media criticism. It’s hard to say whether diehard fans of the original will give the 2023 version of The LittleMermaid a fair shake, but viewed through the lens of today, it’s a delightful, all-ages romp with heart, humor, and a hopeful message about seeing past our differences and forging peaceful understanding.
Off top, Halle Bailey‘s Princess Ariel brings vocal ability to the role that’s undeniable, and in her acting performance, she captures the innocence and eye for mischief that the story needs to propel its plot forward. The longing in her rendition of “Part Of Your World” helps to economically convey not only her curiosity about the surface world but the notion that her destiny lies beyond the shoreline. And when (spoiler alert) Ms. Bailey has to deliver a voiceless performance, her physical and facial acting ensures that we remain in touch with her POV.
But with Jonah Hauer-King‘s Prince Eric, however, the story forces the audience to have to work a bit harder to get to his center. Yes, we’re introduced to an almost textbook romantic lead, with an appetite for danger and a heroic heart (and of course he has an adorable pet upper!). And yes, his love for the spoils of the underwater world mirrors Ariel’s love for the surface, and he too feels restricted by responsibility. But were it not for the chemistry between the two leads that crackles whenever they’re paired, a viewer might find him a little too flimsy to be a compelling partner for our Ariel. But sometimes, part of being a heartthrob is being enough of a cipher that desirable qualities can be projected upon you…and smiling nice. So 10/10 in that respect.
Ursula the Sea Witch is one of the more iconic Disney villains, and I’d imagine that for most fans, how they feel about her will sink or sail this film for them. Melissa McCarthy chews the seaweeded scenery here, and while it certainly felt like there were additional levels of menace yet to reach, she made for an entertaining antagonist who made her rendition of “Poor Unfortunate Souls” her own, in one of the film’s standout musical numbers.
Speaking of standout musical numbers, the scene-stealers in this film were Daveed Diggs‘ Sebastian the Crab and Awkwafina‘s Scuttle the Seagull. The Grammy-winning “Under The Sea” is the original’s signature song, and Daveed puts his all into delivering a version that is worthy of comparison to Samuel E. Wright‘s classic. Awkwafina, on the other hand, performs a Lin-Manuel Miranda original that is an absolute bop. And comedically, the chemistry and banter between the two characters were great. As comic relief sidekicks go, the two were top-tier. Sign me up for a spinoff!
Alongside the winning soundtrack, the visuals of the film were also a highlight, one that unfortunately the trailers didn’t do justice. While certainly there are dark and murky moments in the early going, they’re meant to create a sense of mystery and danger that contrasts with the vibrance and wonder of the undersea. But once we’re on dry land in earnest, the bright Caribbean setting and the variety of flavors in director Rob Marshall‘s visual palette allow us to enjoy the excursion alongside Ariel and experience a different kind of wonder. And that all culminates in another amazing musical sequence, “Kiss The Girl,” where water and land life alike try to bring our leads together in romance.
Overall, everything works. King Triton, played admirably by Javier Bardem, strikes the right notes of distrustful dad who lays down the law a little too forcefully, and Norma Dumezweni‘s Queen Selina is appropriately regal, but frustrated by her son’s childish love of trifles, yet supportive of his search for true romantic love. And as the rising action puts the two figures into conflict, their respective sympathetic performances keep us buoyed long enough for a satisfying resolution.
Obviously, like many Disney movies, the ending might be a bit too tidy and the victories might feel a tad unearned. However, as family-friendly films go, that can be forgiven when it’s a fun time in the cinema that makes you smile and laugh throughout and leaves you feeling good at the end. It’s best not to compare it beat by beat to the original, and to appreciate it as a film that puts its own spin on a familiar story. On that level, it works as one of the Disney live-action retellings you can love alongside its animated counterpart.
It looks like Fast X is still making a splash internationally, as while it didn’t beat the previous entry domestically, it has revved up quite a bit of momentum at the global box office. It highlights that some franchises may face their own slowdown but that isn’t always the case for every single market, especially with how some viewed the international development in Eastern markets for MArvel Studios’ more sci-fi-oriented filmmaking in the last few years.
Still, Fast X has pulled in $318.9M worldwide, which is a good start even if it only pulled in $67.5M domestically. The international bow makes it the second largest release of the year with The Super Mario Bros. Movie still holding on to the top spot at $377M. Though, it is the third-highest opening for a Fast and Furious film. Still, it had the biggest international opening of any film so far.
The film actually had an impressive opening in China at $78.3M, which after Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 also surprised might be a hopeful sign that the market is warming up to external films again. Though domestically, the film received a B+ CinemaScore, which commonly hints at a more positive but mixed reception and it is a lower opening than F9 during the pandemic.
There is, however, one major issue this film is going to face and that is its hefty production budget. While during the pandemic many film budgets have spiraled out of control with the old $200M now hovering around $250M, Fast X has a bit of a bigger challenge ahead. Even with a massive opening this year, the film has to make quite a bit of cash due to costing $340M.
That means, the film would have to make at least $640M just to cover its production budget and potentially around $850M to be considered profitable. while its international legs could be a factor, it’s still a long way to know if this film was worth its investment. To put it in perspective, the film costs more than Avengers: Infinity War and 10M less than Avatar: The Way of Water. So, the second weekend will be vital to see how far the franchise’s engine truly will run.
With principal photography on Captain America: New World Order having shifted out of the studio this past week, photographer Christopher Oquendo has staked out the Brown Airport location of the production and shared several rounds of excellent behind-the-scenes material. The photographer’s latest shots have unveiled not only a new setting for the film but also some more members of the villainous Serpent Society.
— Christopher Oquendo (@Christo45951886) May 19, 2023
It turns out the Serpent Society has its own private jet, complete with some gold and green accents that look like they match the costumes worn by WWE Superstar Seth Rollins and an as-yet unidentified co-star from a prior batch of set photos. While set photos never provide much context, it seems safe to say that the Serpents have used their private jet to make their way to Cancun, where their fight with Captain America and Falcon is likely to take place.
— Christopher Oquendo (@Christo45951886) May 21, 2023
In addition to revealing a new setting for the fourth entry in the Captain America franchise, the most recent set photos also provide a shadowy look at another member of the Serpent Society. It’s expected that there will be five of them in the film (Asp, Bushmaster, Cobra, Constrictor and Diamondback), and, at the moment, it’s still unclear which one of those Serpents will be played by Rollins; however, the photographer–who may be working with some additional information–teased that the shadowy member of the team might be its leader, King Cobra.
It’s not clear what role the Serpent Society plays in the film just yet but given the amount of time spent on the production on this particular set of scenes, it’s safe to say they at least have a fairly large role in the film and will occupy quite a bit of Captain America and The Falcon’s time! Captain America: New World Order is currently slated for a May 3rd, 2024 release.
It took 35 years to get it off the ground but production on the sequel to the 1988 cult classic Beetlejuice is underway. Director Tim Burton is returning to the world of The Ghost with the Most for the sequel, reuniting with stars Michael Keaton, the lovely Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder who played the titular bio-exorcist and iconic goth girl Lydia Deetz, respectively. Cameras have been rolling on the sequel for over a week and now the first behind-the-scenes look at Ryder has hit the internet!
Yep, that’s Lydia Deetz! Ryder’s return to the role came complete with looking damn near identical to the character’s memorable late-80s look from the original. Ryder has had an incredible second act to her career with her role on Stranger Things putting her back in the spotlight and now, in this legacy sequel, she’ll be stepping back into one of her most famous roles over three decades later.
While next to nothing is known about the plot of the film, it will star Jenna Ortega as Lydia’s daughter and Willem Dafoe as an afterlife cop. Justin Theroux and Monica Bellucci have also signed on for the sequel, which is currently set for a September 6th, 2024 release.
It’s looking more and more like blockbuster fatigue is showing its fangs, as even the latest entry of the Fast & Furious franchise, Fast X, is kicking off its domestic run softly. Louis Leterrier is directing the latest entry in the franchise that came in with a soft B+, which means the action hit is getting some mixed reviews from audiences. It’s the same grade that F9 got previously during the pandemic but it’ll be curious to keep an eye on what this means for its box office.
The film took in $27.5M and is currently 8% behind F9. With a B+ score, it seems like the film is likely going to roll out around $66M over the weekend. That of course isn’t great with Vin Diesel recently trying to promote that he’s decided they’ll spin out a trilogy out of Fast X, which originally was setting up the final entry to the franchise. It’s hard to say if the two-year wait and the overall soft embrace of the previous entry may have played a key factor in its box office.
Outside of Super Mario Bros. Movie and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, big releases have been struggling a bit this year. The latter is also showing another stronghold with a 46% drop even going up against this direct competition from Universal. Mid-budget investments have performed better than expected in April as people were preparing for the summer, but perhaps we’re about to face an average 100M opening moving forward with the franchise going above or below depending on the marketing push behind, as even former franchise giant, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, is only projecting around a $40M opening weekend.
Mortal Kombat 1 dropped its first trailer in style with a lot of fanfare. It already has many wondering who else might join the roster of the September release, and it seems that Amazon Italy may have accidentally leaked who will be part of the first Kombat Pack. It seems that the recent rumors are true and we’re getting some bloody good heroic additions for this R-rated game that has seen horror icons and 90s stars.
According to Amazon Italy, Mortal Kombat 1’s Kombat Pack 1 (say that ten times) will include some familiar characters from the franchise’s past. The list includes Quan Chi, Ermac, and Kenshin’s son Takeda. While Takeda is a curious addition given the reboot technically would bring back Kenshin first rather than his son given the timeline, that isn’t the thing that likely had everyone’s eyes on it.
The game will continue the tradition of including third-party characters and it seems they are going in a heroic direction this time around. Given the rise in R-rated superhero offerings, it’s not a surprise but the additions are quite interesting. We have Invincible’s Omni Man, DC’s Peacemaker, and The Boys‘ Homelander included in the list.
Homelander was a fan-favorite addition given his unhinged behavior in the Amazon series. Ironically, the inclusion of Omni Man also adds fuel to the fire of finally getting to see these two Superman-inspired characters to prove which one is more powerful. Though, we don’t know which version of Homelander is going to be brought to the game, as they could either go with the comic design or Antony Starr’s version. They did bring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone to life in Mortal Kombat 11. So, anything is possible if they have the rights.
Harrison Ford‘s swan song as Dr. Henry Walton Jones, Junior has been the source of significant buzz since it was revealed that James Mangold was brought on board to helm the film. Trailers and promotional material for the film continued to generate excitement for the film ahead of its June 30th wide release; however, after debuting at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, the film’s place in the franchise is already being called into question.
While it’s not all doom and gloom for the fifth entry in the series, early reviews that have been made available via Rotten Tomatoes will certainly cause some concern. Though it’s currently just a small sample size of 26 reviews, only 50% of those who have reviewed the film have had primarily positive things to say about Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
While it’s not typically the kind of fare that debuts at Cannes, it is a bit shocking that Ford’s farewell to the character has been so harshly hit. Obviously, at 50%, it’s currently split right down the middle in terms of positive and negative reviews; however, even some of the more positive takes on the film echo some of the negative review’s concerns. Though AwardsWatch’s Ben Rolph calls Dial of Destiny “a thrilling, action-packed swan song for the iconic character“, the Playlist’s Robert Daniels firmly states that “some relics should just stay buried,” calling into question if the new film was necessary. “The jokes, the zest and the exuberance just aren’t there,” said BBC’s Nicholas Barber, adding to that narrative, “so instead of a joyous send-off for our beloved hero, we get a depressing reminder of how much livelier his past adventures were.”
Fortunately, most critics, including Geoffrey Macnab from the Independent, are quick to praise the film’s star in his last turn as Indy. “Harrison Ford is the hero of the hour. He never loses either his scowl or his doggedness. He plays even the flimsiest scenes with conviction and dry humour. His performance carries the movie.” Rolph, who gave the film a B score, added that Ford’s performance in Dial of Destiny is “a fitting end to one of cinema’s greatest action heroes, and one of the most iconic roles of his career, with this film.” With the film set to be screened at least a few more times ahead of its premiere, the Rotten Tomatoes score will certainly change. The only question is whether or not that will be for the best.
Simon McQuoid is back in the director’s chair for the Mortal Kombat sequel. The film will pick up where the last one ended, as the team heads out towards the actual tournament that wasn’t really touched upon in the first film. While we recently heard Karl Urban has been in final negotiations to play the role of Johnny Cage, it seems one more iconic character is set to return.
The Hollywood Reporter has unveiled that Tati Gabrielle, who appeared in You and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, has joined the sequel to the 2021 streaming hit. She’ll take on the role of Jade, who is the bodyguard of Princess Kitana in the original gaming series.
For now, Jessica McNamee and Josh Lawson are expected to reprise their roles from the original. It’s uncertain who else might join as of now and what direction the story might take. It’ll likely take some cues from Mortal Kombat 2 and 3 given how much ground they will try to cover with this storyline.
For now, we can only speculate as there has also been no mention of Hiroyuki Sanada returning as the iconic Scorpion. His bout with Sub-Zero was the highlight of the first film and there’s still a lot more story left to tell going into a sequel. Of course, he’s not technically the “main” character but was a big draw to many fans even with the gaming franchise. He was the highlight of the poster so it’ll be interesting to see if they try not to be too dependent on him.
We use cookies to improve your experience on our site. By using our site, you consent to cookies.
This website uses cookies
Websites store cookies to enhance functionality and personalise your experience. You can manage your preferences, but blocking some cookies may impact site performance and services.
Essential cookies enable basic functions and are necessary for the proper function of the website.
Name
Description
Duration
Cookie Preferences
This cookie is used to store the user's cookie consent preferences.
30 days
These cookies are needed for adding comments on this website.
Name
Description
Duration
comment_author_email
Used to track the user across multiple sessions.
Session
comment_author_url
Used to track the user across multiple sessions.
Session
comment_author
Used to track the user across multiple sessions.
Session
Statistics cookies collect information anonymously. This information helps us understand how visitors use our website.
Google Analytics is a powerful tool that tracks and analyzes website traffic for informed marketing decisions.
Contains information related to marketing campaigns of the user. These are shared with Google AdWords / Google Ads when the Google Ads and Google Analytics accounts are linked together.
90 days
__utma
ID used to identify users and sessions
2 years after last activity
__utmt
Used to monitor number of Google Analytics server requests
10 minutes
__utmb
Used to distinguish new sessions and visits. This cookie is set when the GA.js javascript library is loaded and there is no existing __utmb cookie. The cookie is updated every time data is sent to the Google Analytics server.
30 minutes after last activity
__utmc
Used only with old Urchin versions of Google Analytics and not with GA.js. Was used to distinguish between new sessions and visits at the end of a session.
End of session (browser)
__utmz
Contains information about the traffic source or campaign that directed user to the website. The cookie is set when the GA.js javascript is loaded and updated when data is sent to the Google Anaytics server
6 months after last activity
__utmv
Contains custom information set by the web developer via the _setCustomVar method in Google Analytics. This cookie is updated every time new data is sent to the Google Analytics server.
2 years after last activity
__utmx
Used to determine whether a user is included in an A / B or Multivariate test.
18 months
_ga
ID used to identify users
2 years
_gali
Used by Google Analytics to determine which links on a page are being clicked
30 seconds
_ga_
ID used to identify users
2 years
_gid
ID used to identify users for 24 hours after last activity
24 hours
_gat
Used to monitor number of Google Analytics server requests when using Google Tag Manager
1 minute
Marketing cookies are used to follow visitors to websites. The intention is to show ads that are relevant and engaging to the individual user.
Pinterest Tag is a web analytics service that tracks and reports website traffic.
