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  • Around The League: NFC North

    Around The League: NFC North

    Unlike the two best QBs in this division, we are going to take a shot… at making you care about, probably, the worst division in football. Anything other than a Packers’ division title would be a major surprise. You like that? I bet you do, cheeseheads! Let’s dive right in. 

    1. Who replaces Devante Adams in Green Bay? Now, this off-season saw A LOT of movement across the league, but no two moves symbolized the player movement that is starting to resemble the NBA than Pat Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers both seeing their favorite targets jettisoned to really warm places. No, they didn’t get sent to Hel, but Vegas and Miami respectively. The Chiefs opted to take one of Rodgers’s weapons and sign JuJu Smith Schuster to attempt to replace Hill’s production. The Packers? Armed with two first-round picks, they elected to not draft a WR for Mr. State Farm. I wonder how he took that news! No, instead they added stud WR Romeo Doubs, who I think is going to be in the running for offensive rookie of the year. They also bring back Allen Lazard, who folks have been waiting to blow up for lord knows how long now. My money is on the rookie to be the next in the long line of non-first-round WRs who we ask ourselves “how’d they fall out of the first.”

    2. When does Justin Jefferson get paid? The former LSU standout has engineered the best start to a career for any WR ever. Yes, you read that right. However, with so many WRs finding their way to their preferred locations, the longer his contract situation drags out (he’s eligible for a new deal after this season), the louder the noise gets that he will force his way out of Minnesota and away from a QB who is one virus away from missing a month or, you know, dying. His contract should make him the highest-paid WR in the NFL before the Bengals make their young stud WR the highest-paid WR in the NFL in three seasons. The Vikings have a new GM and HC, and could they prioritize trading him to recoup assets that let them land their franchise signal caller? We will see! 

    3. Jared Goff didn’t see the Lions draft his replacement (Malik Willis would’ve been an excellent choice), and instead, he saw them get him arguably the best WR and pass rusher in college football to a scrappy team that would not give up in games last year despite very clear talent deficits on both sides of the ball. Now Goff enters his second year in Detroit, but let’s be clear: he’s probably not long for the Motor City, where the Lions have excess draft capital to address the Joey Harrington-size hole they’ve had at QB. Do they swing for the fences and go up and get their guy, or will they be bad enough to where they don’t have to do that? Probably the latter, but at least Goff has some talent at WR. 

    4. Whereas Kirk Cousins has two talented WRs to throw to, and Aaron Rodgers saw his team add two talented (if one really raw) prospects in the draft, and Jared Goff now has Jameson Williams to go with Amon-Ra St. Brown and TJ Hockensen, the Chicago Bears have not a soul for Justin Fields to throw to. It’s like the new Bears General Manager found the manual on what not to do for your young QB where Bill Belicheck left it, and said “this feels like a great idea to replicate.” Justin Fields saw the Jets get Zach Wilson Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, CJ Uzomah, Tyler Conklin, and Laken Tomlinson. He saw the Jaguars get Evan Engram, Christian Kirk, and Brandon Scherff for Trevor Lawrence. He saw the Texans, enablers of a nasty man, give Davis Mills Dameon Pierce and John Metchie III. Ok, that’s not that great, but it’s better than what Fields has. With Denzel Mims, Sterling Shepherd, and Odell Beckham Jr available via different routes, the Bears would be smart to acquire one of them so they can assess what they have in Fields. 

  • Neil Gaiman Details Rejected ‘Doctor Strange’ Movie Pitch

    Neil Gaiman Details Rejected ‘Doctor Strange’ Movie Pitch

    Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman has put acclaimed writer Neil Gaiman back in the spotlight, and he’s using the opportunity to discuss some failed projects from his past. In a recent appearance on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast, Gaiman spoke in detail about a rejected pitch he made to Marvel boss Kevin Feige over a decade ago. The creative revealed that, in 2007, he drew up an idea for a Doctor Strange film that would have been directed by auteur Guillermo del Toro. Unfortunately, at the time, Marvel was more focused on their big-name characters, and turned down Gaiman’s pitch so they could make a push toward The Avengers instead.

    Gaiman elaborated:

    Kevin and I have spoken a few times over the years on things. The only one that I wish, although, odds are probably, I think the way they did it commercially was better than…but I remember back in 2007, having minimalistic conversations with Kevin Feige about ‘What about Doctor Strange?’ Then talking to Guillermo Del Toro, and Guillermo and I having these ideas about Doctor Strange and starting the beginning, me starting the beginning of the conversation with Kevin about ‘I could do Doctor Strange with Guillermo.’ And basically, they said, ‘We just want to concentrate on the core characters right now. Doctor Strange is way up the line. We don’t want to go there.’

    Neil Gaiman

    Marvel’s plan eventually worked, transforming them into one of history’s most successful film studios. Scott Derrickson would go on to helm the first Doctor Strange as an origin story in 2016, with a trippier sequel from cult favorite Sam Raimi, titled Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,dropping earlier this year. Gaiman‘s take on the character apparently would have been much darker, with a focus on his flaws and a lot of visual inspiration from co-creator Steve Ditko:

    There were some cool things in it. My favorite Doctor Strange thing was the idea of…the one thing that we really wanted to do was have his adventures, have him become an alcoholic and a disbarred physician, all that sort of stuff, happen in the 1920s. So the idea is that he went through all of that and the training to become the world’s greatest magician maybe in the early ’30s, late ’20s, and he’s been living in Greenwich Village for 90 years looking the same in his place, and nobody really notices. We just sort of liked that idea, and he would have been sort of out of time. But other than that, it would have just been very sort of Steve Ditko because, you know, that’s the best.

    Neil Gaiman

    Both released Doctor Strange films are now streaming on Disney+, while Gaiman’s The Sandman is available on Netflix.

    Source: The Direct

  • The Morning After Huddle: August 27, 2022

    The Morning After Huddle: August 27, 2022

    Welcome to your Saturday morning edition of The Morning After Huddle! A former second-round pick is finding his strides again.

    Here’s what you need to know:

    • First, Eugene ”Geno” Cyril Smith III is your starting Quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks. After Friday night’s preseason game loss to the Cowboys, Coach Pete Carroll made the announcement. Geno is living out his quest again to be a starting quarterback, nine years after joining the New York Jets to battle Mark Sanchez for the starting position and four teams later. Not bad, Eugene.
    • Next, in case you missed it, Bills Punter Matt Araiza is facing allegations of sexual assault stemming from an October 2021 incident. The Bills released a statement saying that they had no comment due to the ongoing investigation, but that they investigated Araiza upon learning of the allegations. A new report out of Buffalo says otherwise. And there’s this nugget: Coach Sean McDermott said on Friday that the Bills had “a lot of work to do”, essentially referring to gathering an understanding of the Matt Araiza situation.
    • Finally, your Key Signings and Trades Roundup:

    We’re back on Monday with more insights and analysis on all things you want to know about the NFL.

  • Alaqua Cox Has Wrapped Filming on ‘Echo’

    Alaqua Cox Has Wrapped Filming on ‘Echo’

    Late Friday night, Alaqua Cox took to her Instagram stories to share that production has officially wrapped on Echo. The actress shared a photo of her texting her late father in celebration of wrapping principal photography. She texted, “We just wrapped up Echo! I did it dad!!” She shared a screenshot of the text and added, “I know you’re so proud of me, dad. I love and miss you so much.” The actress lost her father in November 2021 and has been open with fans about her grieving process as she navigates headlining her own series.

    Filming on Echo kicked off back in April, with Cox once again using Instagram to share the news. The actress posted flowers she received from her co-star K. Devery Jacobs (Reservation Dogs) to celebrate the start of production. Marvel Studios would later confirm production had started by revealing some of the cast of the series and a still shortly thereafter.

    Echo, of course, is a spinoff from Hawkeye. Not only will Cox be returning as the titular hero, but she’ll be joined by Vincent D’Onofrio‘s Wilson Fisk, who we saw briefly in Hawkeye. Also joining her in the series will be Charlie Cox, who will be appearing as Matt Murdock/Daredevil.

    Echo is slated to hit Disney+ sometime next year. With production officially wrapped, perhaps we might hear about a proper release date during the Marvel Studios presentation at D23 next month.

  • What to Expect from Lucasfilm at D23 Expo 2022

    What to Expect from Lucasfilm at D23 Expo 2022

    Disney’s second Studios Showcase at D23 2022 looms large as both Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm are set to roll out first looks and announcements for their upcoming slates. We’ve taken a shot at predicting what Marvel Studios might get up to on stage in Hall D23, now it’s Lucasfilm’s turn.

    Big Indy Energy

    Perhaps the biggest news expected to come out of the Studios Showcase surrounds James Mangold’s Indiana Jones film. After a number of setbacks over the years, Indy V is set to release in theaters on June 30, 2023, nearly 4 years after its original target date. An all-star cast surrounds the legendary Harrison Ford in this one, so bringing them onstage to reveal the official title of the film and a teaser (there have been rumors that one is in the works) would make for a big splash for one of Lucasfilm’s largest non-Star Wars properties.

    Bad Batch Bash

    the bad batch season 2 premiere

    A second season of The Bad Batch is coming soon, but how soon? Originally, it was expected that the sophomore season of the animated series would drop on Disney + on September 28th; however, much has changed since then that could impact the series, most notably, the Star Wars live-action series Andor saw its release date pushed back nearly a month. With that change and no official word from Lucasfilm about when to expect the Batchers’ Season 2 exploits, fans aren’t entirely sure what to expect. That should all change at D23. An updated trailer and a release date are entirely reasonable expectations for a series that is all but a lock to premiere before the end of the year.

    The Further Adventures of Willow Ufgood

    The Disney Plus streaming series Willow was rolled out at Star Wars Celebration back in May and hasn’t been heard from since. Currently set to debut on the service in November, Willow has to be in the plans for D23. The first trailer was pretty nostalgic, so a second trailer that provides a bit more of an idea of what the series is all about is probably in order. It wouldn’t be too surprising if the star of the series, Warwick Davis, were on hand for something. Davis has a wonderful relationship with Lucasfilm, so if there’s an opportunity for him to be there, he certainly would be.

    Mando and Ahsoka Updates

    It is probably far too early for publicly released teasers/trailers for Season 3 of The Mandalorian and/or Ahsoka and those two projects were front and center at Star Wars Celebration back in May, but that doesn’t mean fans at D23 won’t be seeing something! Expect footage to be shown from both series and HOPEFULLY some target windows for release. These two series are among the Crown Jewels of Lucasfilm’s properties and you can expect the studio to show them off and generate hype around them whenever possible.

    Who’s on the Crew?

    Production on Jon Watts‘ streaming series, Skeleton Crew, has been underway for over a month now and short of Jude Law, the cast of the coming-of-age story is completely unknown. In fact, everything about the series is wrapped up in mystery and short of a few decent rumors and leaks, fans just don’t have a lot of information about the show. One thing that is known, however, is that it’s filming in California, making it possible for that unknown cast to swing into Anaheim and be introduced to the D23 crowd. Even if they don’t take a break from filming to pop in, however, it seems fair to expect some sort of update on the series.

    Double Visions

    star wars visions 2

    Season 1 of Star Wars: Visions, a non-canon animated anime-inspired anthology, became an overnight sensation when it streamed on D+. A second season of the series was announced at Star Wars Celebration and rumors have indicated it may still stream in 2022. The new season will expand its menu of cultural influences beyond anime and continue to introduce new characters, locations and stories. An announcement of a release date along with either a trailer or some concept art doesn’t seem like too much to expect.

    Tales Teasers and Timeline

    star wars tales of the jedi

    Expected to stream on D+ sometime this Fall, Tales of the Jedi has no official release date and no official trailer, though one did leak online along with the plots of all six episodes. Since the series was first shown off back in May, it’s commandeered quite a bit more attention than anyone probably expected. A trailer, which would be made public, and a release date certainly seem in order.

    Answers about The Acolyte

    the acolyte star wars

    The Acolyte is one of Lucasfilm’s most mysterious and most talked about streaming projects. Even though it’s set to begin principal photography in October, there’s been next to no official news about the project. As of now, only the series lead, Amandla Stenberg, has been officially revealed by the studios. All this means that the series could have a fairly major presence in the Hall D23 presentation, introducing the cast and giving fans a little better idea of what to expect and either confirming or shooting down those Darth Plageuis rumors.

    Announcements

    If everything listed above happened at D23, not only would it fill Lucasfilm’s portion of the 2-hour time slot, but also please even Star Wars fans. However, there are a couple of other pieces of low-hanging fruit that Lucasfilm could pluck that would really send fans away in a frenzy. A second season of Obi-Wan Kenobi is as sure of a thing as any Star Wars project, so why not announce it? Now that Taika Waititi has fulfilled his obligations to Marvel Studios around Thor: Love and Thunder, how about some information on his Star Wars film? Three titles were recently trademarked(The Great Circle, The Galactic Circle, and Circle of Resistance.) that fans believe are Star Wars-related and COULD indicate an announcement is imminent. Could one of them be Waititi’s film? And of course, there’s always the element of surprise and the option that something entirely new pops up, whether Star Wars-related or related to another one of Lucasfilm’s major IPs.

    No matter how you slice it, D23 is shaping up to be a can’t-miss event for fans of Lucasfilm’s many properties.

  • Jack Quaid Says He Isn’t In ‘The Boys’ Spin-Off ‘Gen V’, Teases ‘The Boys’ Future 

    Jack Quaid Says He Isn’t In ‘The Boys’ Spin-Off ‘Gen V’, Teases ‘The Boys’ Future 

    The Boys, Amazon’s massively popular antihero series, is about to begin filming it’s fourth season. Returning for another round of violence and chaos is star Jack Quaid, who has grown to prominence on the show playing the timid-turned-tenacious vengeance seeker Hughie Campbell. The end of the third season left Quaid’s character in a unique place, with Hughie now recovering from the effects of using an experimental temporary “V” – a drug that grants people superpowers – and working to make amends with his romantic partner – Erin Moriarty’s Starlight. With so much to do in The Boys’ next season, it doesn’t seem like Campbell would have much time to appear anywhere else in the franchise, and according to Quaid, he really won’t be.

    Speaking exclusively with Variety, the former Hunger Games actor was asked if fans should expect to see Hughie cameo in The Boys’ upcoming spin-off, Gen V. Set concurrently with the flagship series, Gen V follows a group of young college-age “Supes” as they attend the Godolkin University School of Crimefighting and are tested in deadly challenges. Last month, series creator Eric Kripke teased that the two shows would feature crossovers, but Quaid says he hasn’t yet been involved in Gen V in any capacity. However, he did spend an afternoon with the spin-off project’s cast in a pretty endearing way. Answering the question, he explained:

    Not at this point. I haven’t really talked about that with anyone, but I’d love to be. I actually can talk about this now, because it was happening when I was shooting “Strange New Worlds” in Toronto, and that was just as the cast of “Gen V” was starting production. So I took them all out to brunch one day. I got to know a bunch of them. They’re awesome. They’re so talented. They’re so cool. I can’t wait for that show to come out. I wish them all the best. They’re gonna knock it out of the park.

    Jack Quaid

    Before he left, Quaid fielded one final question. While his character successfully avoided a lethal dosage of the “Temp V”, his partner-in-crime Billy Butcher, played by Karl Urban, wasn’t so lucky. In the third season finale, Butcher learns he only has a year left to live, something he hides from his companions. When asked how Hughie will respond when he finds out, Quaid said:

    Man, I mean, we’re gonna have to find out, but it’s not gonna be good. Butcher is like his best friend and an older brother. So that’s pretty devastating news, when Hughie finds out but we’re just going to have to wait and see how that plays out. I haven’t read all the scripts for Season 4 yet. I don’t really know, actually. This is my time to be a fan and just kind of let things come to me and react to them genuinely as I’m reading them. But I was really happy with the way the writers teed everything up for this next season.

    Jack Quaid

    Neither The Boys’ fourth season nor Gen V, previously titled The Boys Presents: Varsity, have a current release date. The former has just begun production in Toronto, while the latter has been filming for most of the past year.

    Source: Variety

  • Netflix Eyeing Scrapped ‘Batman: Caped Crusader’ Animated Series

    Netflix Eyeing Scrapped ‘Batman: Caped Crusader’ Animated Series

    Some good DC news after a slew of bad ones all month; there is hope for the scrapped Bruce Timm/Matt Reeves animated Batman series, Batman: Caped Crusader, as multiple streaming services are looking to acquiring the show. Netflix, Hulu, and Apple+ are among the few streamers interested.

    This report comes after the massive culling over at WB/Discovery as CEO David Zaslav scrapped, outright canceled, and delayed multiple projects on deck. Batman: Caped Crusader was one of the upcoming projects removed from HBOMax with the hopes of being shopped elsewhere. The studio believes that a buyout of such a project will net them more profits than if they aired it themselves.

    Source: THR

  • Matt Shakman Exits ‘Star Trek 4’ For ‘Fantastic 4’

    Matt Shakman Exits ‘Star Trek 4’ For ‘Fantastic 4’

    Matt Shakman is suddenly a director in high demand, but it seems he won’t be able to juggle every job that’s come his way. Shortly after news broke that the former WandaVision maestro had landed Marvel’s coveted Fantastic Four gig, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that he would no longer be helming Star Trek 4 for Paramount. Shakman had been announced as the man guiding Chris Pine’s Trek franchise towards its long-awaited fourth entry in the summer of 2021. THR reports the search for his replacement will begin immediately, and it’s not clear whether the creative change will impact the film’s planned release date of Dec. 22nd, 2023.

    Paramount Pictures released the following statement regarding Shakman’s exit:

    Matt Shakman is an incredibly talented filmmaker, and we regret the timing didn’t align for him to direct our upcoming Star Trek film. We are grateful for his many contributions, are excited about the creative vision of this next chapter and look forward to bringing it to audiences all around world.

    Paramount Pictures

    Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana and John Cho are still expected to reprise their roles alongside Pine as the crew of the famous Enterprise. They were last seen together in 2016’s Star Trek Beyond, which was directed by Justin Lin. Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires, working from a Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson-Dworet draft, wrote the most recent version of the fourth film’s script.

    Source: THR

  • Two Other Rising Directors Were Approached for ‘Fantastic Four’

    Two Other Rising Directors Were Approached for ‘Fantastic Four’

    It has been a notable day for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with further confirmation that WandaVision‘s Matt Shakman has entered talks to direct Fantastic Four. This has come after a long and detailed search from Marvel Studios since the departure of Jon Watts earlier this year. With the announcement of Shakman, comes further information about the exhausting process to find the right director to helm Marvel’s first family. According to Borys Kit of The Hollywood Reporter, Michael Matthews of Love and Monsters fame was the runner-up in the Fantastic Four sweepstakes.

    In addition to Matthews, it’s further been revealed that Reid Carolin was another name that met with Marvel Studios to pitch his vision of Fantastic Four. Carolin is arguably best known for his work directing the Channing Tatum-led Dog from earlier this year.

    While interesting to compare and contrast the credentials of these two names with that of Matt Shakman, it’s certainly a futile gesture as audiences don’t have any clear understanding of what creative direction is being taken for Fantastic Four and how a different director would make some sort of difference. Nonetheless, this will remain as a type of “what if” scenario to envision how the previous works of Matthews and Carolin would’ve influenced a take on the Fantastic Four team.

    In terms of Shakman, this certainly is a major score for the career of the director on the theatrical scale. While having a robust career as a director in television, Shakman has only had one feature film to his name previously. Though his work on the likes of luminary television programs such as It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Fargo, and Game of Thrones should assure audiences of his qualifications. And most especially, his time directing WandaVision should especially make fans excited for what could be in store for Fantastic Four.

    Source: Twitter.

  • Alessandro Nivola on Playing the Villain in Sony’s ‘Kraven the Hunter’ Film

    Alessandro Nivola on Playing the Villain in Sony’s ‘Kraven the Hunter’ Film

    As Sony looks to continue moving forward with their cinematic universe of characters within the lore of Spider-Man (without the titular character present), one film that has piqued the curiosity of some is 2023’s Kraven the Hunter. As the film approaches its January premiere, Alessandro Nivola sat down with The Hollywood Reporter to discuss his involvement as the main antagonist. Nivola focused on his excitement about reuniting with director J.C. Chandor after having worked with him on A Most Violent Year. Alongside this, the actor described the more practical nature of this film as opposed to others in the superhero genre.

    These movies all have a certain formula to them, but J.C. said that he wanted to shoot all on location. The physical ability of the characters in the movie is also more grounded in reality. People aren’t flying around or anything. J.C. described it as the most incredible Olympic athlete you’ve ever seen. Moreover, the role, which I’m not yet allowed to disclose, was just a real acting opportunity for me.

    Alessandro Nivola

    Kraven the Hunter has been confirmed to have been shot on location in predominantly Iceland. That bit of news has the potential to draw in more interest as most superhero flicks are filmed with the help of greenscreens. Nivola also talked about the enjoyment he had in playing an antagonist with pathos and complexity while avoiding general stereotypes of actors working within the realm of superheroics. The actor also gave some teases towards specific facets of his character and the film at large.

    It’s just a great character part, and I didn’t have to do any CGI. I didn’t have to do any green screen. I only transform, physically, in the final moments of the movie, so it’s just a classic villain role. It had a really interesting, complex psychology and personal history to draw on, and the movie has a time jump in it, so the character changes a lot from the way he is in the beginning of the film. It was as much of an acting opportunity as any other film I’ve done, and I didn’t have to contend with wearing a spandex outfit or anything like that.

    Alessandro Nivola

    If what Alessandro Nivola talks about here is able to be translated onto the screen, then there is a chance that Kraven the Hunter can become a relative surprise hit within the genre. And Sony should certainly be hoping for that if they want to maintain success in this attempt at a cinematic universe following the unmitigated flop of Morbius earlier this year.

    Kraven the Hunter stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the titular role and is currently scheduled to open in theaters on January 13, 2023.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter