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  • CinemaCon: Xolo Maridueña Shares Why Blue Beetle Stands Out from Other Heroes

    CinemaCon: Xolo Maridueña Shares Why Blue Beetle Stands Out from Other Heroes

    CinemaCon has brought us our first look at what the summer has planned for us and it looks like quite a doozy. Warner Bros. had the second day to kick off with quite a few announcements from their various projects. It’s also quite the gamble for them, as they are putting all their money on the next releases truly making a mark to water down the bad blood that rose with their HBO Max activities in the last few years.

    Among their first big new streaming-to-theatrical releases is Blue Beetle, which only recently got its first trailer. Warner Bros. Discovery took to the stage to showcase the talent they have, and among them was Blue Beetle’s star Xolo Maridueña. The actor took the chance to share why he believes Jamie Reyes stands out from other superheroes.

    I think he’s the only person ever to get superpowers and not want them.

    Xolo Maridueña

    It’s easy to say that there are countless superheroes that aren’t quite happy with being given the powers they have, especially characters like Hulk or The Thing. But, it’s definitely a potential first for the current roster of DC heroes that managed to embrace their powers. Still, Maridueña‘s excitement is infectious and it was great that he was given the stage during CinemaCon.

    Source: Twitter

  • CinemaCon: Sony Unveils First Look at R-Rated ‘Kraven The Hunter’

    CinemaCon: Sony Unveils First Look at R-Rated ‘Kraven The Hunter’

    Sony’s CinemaCon presentation didn’t include any news about the status of Tom Holland‘s new Spider-Man deal nor an update on when to expect Spider-Man 4 but they did bring a first look at the film everyone is looking forward to: Kraven the Hunter! Footage of director J.C. Chandor‘s upcoming film was screened for the crowd and, according to reports, it was pretty rowdy!

    Described as “a Marvel movie grounded heavily in the real world“, the footage naturally featured a surprising look at Alessandro Nivola ingesting a serum and then transforming into the Rhino whilst asking “don’t you want to know why they call me the Rhino?” It doesn’t get more grounded in reality than that!

    The highlight of the footage was a violent rampage by Aaron Taylor-Johnson‘s titular character. In an all-out assault on a team of poachers, Taylor-Johnson‘s Kraven brutally attacked and killed them in a variety of creative ways including biting off a piece of one of their faces and spitting out the blood. This of course was part of the revelation by Sony that the film will be an R-rated theatrical release, news that is sure to please that particular corner of the internet.

    Kraven the Hunter is set for release on October 6th.

  • ‘Big Mouth’ & Spinoff ‘Human Resources’ Renewed for Final Seasons

    ‘Big Mouth’ & Spinoff ‘Human Resources’ Renewed for Final Seasons

    Seems Netflix is cleaning the house, as one of its longest-running shows is coming to an end. Nick Kroll and Andrew Goldberg’s Big Mouth has been renewed for an eighth season ahead of the release of its latest season. The big twist is that the show about kids going through their puberty, which manifests itself into different types of creatures, will be ending with that season.

    But wait folks, there’s more as Human Ressources, a spinoff show of Big Mouth, is also set to return for a final season. It only got two seasons in total and the spinoff is set to arrive later this year. What does make this stand out is that Big Mouth’s eighth season also will act as a send-off to both entries due to how they connected in the past.

    Kroll shared the following statement as a joke referencing the series coming to an end:

    If you would have told adolescent Nick Kroll and Andrew Goldberg that middle school would take 8 years to finish, they would have been like ‘yeah, that sounds about right. This seems like it will never end.

    Nick Kroll

    With this cancelation, Big Mouth is the longest-running series in Netflix’s library of originals that isn’t categorized under Kids & Family. This renewal puts it ahead of Grace & Franky, which ran for a total of seven seasons. With a live-action adaptation of One Piece on the horizon, perhaps it might break its record given just how long the manga has been running; if it turns out to be quite popular of course.

    The show’s popularity had many surprised given its very in-depth but fantastical look at hormones, becoming an adult, sexuality, and coming of age. Both entries combined have reached one billion hours viewed on Netflix and have been watched by 50M+ households.

    Source: Deadline

  • The Final Chapter of the ‘Fast & Furious’ Franchise Finds Its Co-writers

    The Final Chapter of the ‘Fast & Furious’ Franchise Finds Its Co-writers

    One of the most financially successful franchises in box office history is gearing up for its last ride. The Fast & Furious franchise has fascinated fans since the beginning of the century but the end is in sight with Fast X headed to theaters this year and the creative team of the eleventh and final film starting to come together. It was recently reported that Fast X director Louis Leterrier was returning to helm the finale and now, according to Deadline, the film has found its writers.

    The Flash writer Christina Hodson and The Cloverfield Paradox scribe Oren Uziel are teaming up to write the script for the eleventh Fast film which, according to Deadline, is “being described as a companion to Fast X.” Justin Lin directed and co-wrote both F9 and Fast X before departing the franchise last year after some unpleasant business with franchise star Vin Diesel.

    While Hodson has been on a pretty consistent superhero/comic book movie streak, penning not only The Flash but also Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey and Bumblebee, Uziel most recently penned the script for the Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum film The Lost City. Uziel also wrote the screenplay for Tatum’s 22 Jump Street, so this seems like a move clearly designed to get Tatum, who may be the only actor in Hollywood not to appear in the Fast franchise, into the series finale.

    At this point, a release date for Fast 11 has not yet been slated.

    Source: Deadline

  • James Gunn Updates the Post-Credit Scene Status of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’

    James Gunn Updates the Post-Credit Scene Status of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’

    For many Marvel Studios fans, there is nothing more important than the post-credit scenes that follow almost every project. For better or for worse, that is the culture that Marvel Studios has created and although the stingers often distract from a conversation about the events of the film it seems they are here to stay. When Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was screened in Paris, no post-credit scenes were shown, causing some fans to believe there wouldn’t be any; however, James Gunn has taken to social media to address that concern and indicated that fans of post-credit action would be satisfied.

    Answering a question from papaj_419, Gunn indicated that the audience will want to stick around for not one but two post-credit scenes after Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which has been confirmed to be the longest film of the Guardians franchise clocking in at just under 2 hours and 30 minutes.

    2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy featured 2 post-credit scenes as well while 2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 boasted 5, the most of any MCU film to date. All but two of the films in the Multiverse Saga have featured two post-credit scenes with one running midway through the credits and the other after all the credits rolled.

    Vol. 3 is Gunn’s last hurrah with both the Guardians and Marvel Studios as he moves full-time into his new role as co-chair of DC Studios. Reactions from the Paris screening have said the film is heartbreaking and the best of the trilogy and with further press screenings scheduled to get underway on April 27th, there’s sure to be plenty more reactions on the way.

    Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 opens in theaters on May 5th.

  • Major Animated Character Confirms ‘Andor’ Season 2 Role

    Major Animated Character Confirms ‘Andor’ Season 2 Role

    One of the most interesting aspects of Lucasfilm’s Star Wars streaming series Andor was how it tied into not only the live-action film Rogue One but also the beloved animated streaming series. One character who tied into both eras is Saw Gerrera, played by Forrest Whitaker, and it seems that the character is destined for another go around in Andor Season 2.

    Locations for Season 2 of Andor have indicated that the streaming series would find a way to incorporate not only major characters from the animated series but also the transitional live-action series as well. Despite the bad news facing them and according to Whitaker, Gerrara is set to appear in Season 2 of Andor.

    As for what Whitaker’s Gerrera might be up to ahead of Andor Season 2, it is absolutely tied to the events of Rogue One. The first season of the show deals a significant amount of growth for Diego Luna‘s Cassian Andor. At some point soon, Andor will be faced with the totality of his actions and we all will be left to judge its success!

    Source: comic books are dangerously!

  • ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Holds On to the Top Spot as ‘Evil Dead Rise’ Surprises at the Box Office

    ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Holds On to the Top Spot as ‘Evil Dead Rise’ Surprises at the Box Office

    It looks like Nintendo has fully dominated the box office, as The Super Mario Bros. Movie faces another soft drop in its third weekend and has pulled in $58.2M domestically and another $70M internationally. As such, the film is now at a strong $434.33M stateside and $437.5M in international markets, which sums up to a powerful $871.8M. It’s interesting that the film has such a strong weekend hold but seems to fizzle out a bit during the week after a strong 81% drop on Monday. Still, it seems that the film just pulls in multiple generations to relieve their gaming childhood.

    That is not all, as Evil Dead Rise, the counter-programming for the weekend, has been released and finds its way into quite the strong start at $23.5M. That is quite the number considering it only cost around $15M and proves once again just how powerful horror is in the market. It’s also a sigh of relief for Warner Bros. who originally wanted to release this film as a direct-to-streaming offering on HBO Max before the new leadership changed gears.

    It received a B CinemaScore but that has become quite common for anything with horror elements or gore in it. So, it should be taken lightly and we’ll see how its legs develop. Evil Dead Rise has the task to beat 2013’s Evil Dead reboot which had a slightly higher opening but also a just as slightly higher budget. If it has strong legs it might even surpass the $97.5M budget but Super Mario Bros. Movie is taking up most of the market at the moment.

    Guy Ritchie’s latest film, The Covenant, sadly isn’t doing too hot as it opened to a soft $6M which won’t help much even with an A CinemaScore. Dramas aimed at adult audiences and regular family films without a bigger nostalgic draw have still been struggling a bit at the box office. Even after a good early push, Beau is Afraid has stumbled to $2.7M while expanding its theater count which isn’t a good sign for its $35M budget.

    Source: The Numbers, Variety, Variety

  • First Reactions Call ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ a Heartbreaking Last Tour

    First Reactions Call ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ a Heartbreaking Last Tour

    Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has been set up to be an emotional ride ever since director James Gunn made it clear this was not only his last go around with the team but also the last tour for this iteration of the Guardians. The trailers and promotional footage have done nothing but reinforce that thought and now reactions to the first public screening of the film in Paris confirm you’ll want to bring tissues.

    While most reactions agree that Vol. 3 is a heartbreaker, there doesn’t seem to be the same consensus about Will Poulter‘s Adam Warlock. The ultimate weapon of the Sovereign seems to be a little divisive with some touting the character’s addition to the MCU with others calling him “disappointing.”

    https://twitter.com/MidouMir/status/1649855631489105920?s=20

    Based on the promotional material for the film, some fans have wondered if the introduction of the High Evolutionary might bring some darker moments to the film. It seems that’s the case with one viewer saying there were “touches of terror” in the film and another suggesting Gunn may have tapped into his Troma roots for this one!

    Though there are a couple of early reactions that call the film uneven, it seems that after a rough patch that included Thor: Love and Thunder and Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, Marvel Studios is back on track as more than one critic claims Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is the studio’s best film since Avengers: Endgame.

    With the Hollywood Red Carpet premiere and multiple press screenings coming up on April 27th, expect another round of social media reactions that evening and full reviews landing on April 28th.

  • Lucasfilm’s New Jedi Order Movie Rumored to Be Searching for a New Lead

    Lucasfilm’s New Jedi Order Movie Rumored to Be Searching for a New Lead

    What began as a “top secret” Star Wars sequel-era project being written by Damon Lindelof has now become known as the first project in an all-new era of Star Wars stories know as the New Jedi Order era. That film, which looks to be on track for a 2025 release, is set to be directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and will see Daisy Ridley–and possibly John Boyega–return to the franchise. Though it looks like production will be able.to get underway sometime next year, it hasn’t necessarily been a smooth ride.

    After delivering a script co-authored by Justin Britt-Gibson, Lindelof left the project but was quickly replaced by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. The announcement of Ridley’s return as Rey stirred up both positive and negative buzz, though it was recently rumored she was not intended to be the film’s protagonist. That role was expected to go to Aquaman and Watchmen star Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who is already on board for a major Disney project in Marvel Studios streaming series Wonder Man. Now, a new rumor from the same source that initially reported Abdul-Mateen‘s involvement indicates the star has left the project.

    During a recent segment on The Hot Mic Podcast, the show’s co-hosts seemed to confirm that the film’s “original lead”, who was “from Watchmen“, had departed the project. It seems the timing of Abdul-Mateen‘s departure coincided with Lindelof’s decision to move on, though no further details about that connection were given.

    Despite all that, it’s full speed ahead on the New Jedi Order project. Casting is expected to be ongoing throughout the Summer with principal photography to follow in either late-2023 or early-2024. Though it has been made official by Lucasfilm, the project is expected to be in theaters on December 19, 2025.

    Source: The Hot Mic Podcast

  • Disney+ Not Moving Forward with ‘National Treasure’ Season 2

    Disney+ Not Moving Forward with ‘National Treasure’ Season 2

    Disney+ has decided not to move forward with a second season for the National Treasure spinoff show, Edge of History. Disney Branded Television and ABC Signature tried to grow the classic film franchise that starred Nicolas Cage. Lisette Olivera headlined the series opposite Catherine Zeta-Jones and even starred some original cast members from the films.

    It’s a shame to see the series not move forward, as it was a unique offering giving the streaming service a unique project with an adventure vibe. Many have hoped to also see Nicolas Cage return to the role of Benjamin Franklin Gates in an upcoming season. Still, there’s always the opportunity that they may try to bring back the franchise as a theatrical release given it’s a well-established IP.

    Disney+ has recently been on a canceling spree, as they’ve let go of series like Big Shot, The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, Diary of a Future President, Turner & Hooch, as well as the Mysterious Benedict Society. It’s unclear if this is due to a lack of viewership or also the streaming service reducing its focus on streaming spend given the new direction for Disney’s future investments.

    Source: Deadline