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  • REPORT: ‘Aquaman 2’ Will Recast Amber Heard’s Mera

    REPORT: ‘Aquaman 2’ Will Recast Amber Heard’s Mera

    There’s been a lot of reports on what exactly the future looks like for Amber Heard in the upcoming Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. She was initially cast as Mera in the first film, and there have been countless petitions for Warner Bros. to recast the role. Now, the trial with Johnny Depp has come to an end with rumors circulating that she’d be cut entirely from the film. JustJared has now added to the story that she’ll be recast entirely but no further details have been given in regard to how that would look like or who may take over the role.

    There’s been a lot of reports and Warner Bros. Discovery is ready to invest money to recast and reshoot all her scenes after the drama surrounding her trial would make for an interesting move. There have been hints at what direction the sequel’s story will take and we’ve learned that her role has been greatly reduced, to begin with. So, it may not be as big of a deal as it seems at first.

    There have been quite a few fan castings on who could take the role, such as Emilia Clarke, especially due to her past with frontman Jason Momoa in Game of Thrones. Still, there’s no official confirmation yet from Warner Bros. and we may see an official statement regarding the recasting in the near future as the production enters reshoots eventually.

    Source: JustJared

  • ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episode 2 Primer

    ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episode 2 Primer

    This first episode of Ms. Marvel, “Generation Why”, was incredibly relatable to most teens. The first episode introduced Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani girl, who is obsessed with the superheroes that saved Earth, especially Carol Danvers. She lives a typical teenage life and has a loving- and hilarious-family. While her mother is very conservative and her father is a bit disconnected, they love her very much. Kamala has two best friends, Bruno and Nakia, and seems to spend most of her time at school (all the time really) with her head in the clouds, daydreaming about and doodling superheroes. Day to day, she lives a pretty ordinary life and goes mostly unnoticed.

    That all begins to change quickly once Kamala finds this a bangle that her Grandma gifted her. Kamala and Bruno have been looking forward to AvengerCon and Kamala has spent a lot of effort on her Captain Marvel costume. She needs just one final piece of flair and the bangle is it! Unfortunately, while Kamala’s mother is fine with Kamala going to the Con, she has a problem with her costume: she thinks that it is too skimpy. Because of this, her mother refuses to let her go, so Kamala had to sneak off to the convention. During the convention, Kamala went on stage for a costume contest. As soon as she puts the bangle on, her powers start to show and she immediately has what’s maybe a vision (?) of what looks like hundreds of people walking in a crowd. On stage, her powers are totally unleashed and since she has no control of them, she accidentally puts one of the “cool kids” from her school in danger before saving her with a pretty cool “stretchy arm” that looks like her powers from the comics.

    The big question is obviously why Kamala’s grandmother had a bangle that unlocked super powers just sitting around in a box of stuff. Does the bangle give Kamala the powers? Does the bangle activate powers Kamala already had? In the comics, Kamala was an Inhuman whose powers were activated accidentally. While she’s different in the show, it seems like that part could stay the same. It definitely feels like there’s some connection between the powers and Kamala’s heritage.

    Arlyn’s Assumptions

    The next episode will definitely see Kamala explore her powers a little more. I’m a teenage girl who loves Marvel movies and the heroes. If I suddenly had powers, I’d spend all kinds of time trying to figure out how they work and see what cool stuff I could do! I also think that she will be in quite some trouble for sneaking out to the convention.

    Episode 2 of Ms. Marvel streams tomorrow on Disney Plus.

  • Sgt. Rock

    Sgt. Rock

    Premiere: TBD

    Directed by Luca Guadagnino, DC Studios’ Sgt. Rock will be a period piece exploring the WW II adventures of the title character. In November 2024, it was reported that the studio was in talks with Daniel Craig to play Sgt. Rock. The character first appeared in the DCU alongside Easy Company in Episode 3 of Creature Commandos.

    Cast

  • ‘Squid Game’ Reality TV Show in Development at Netflix

    ‘Squid Game’ Reality TV Show in Development at Netflix

    It looks like the YouTuber Mr. Beast provoked Netflix enough to make their own Squid Game, as he beat them to it. While a second season for the iconic South Korean series has already been announced, they have announced that they are also creating a new reality series titled Squid Game: The Challenge. 456 players are going to play the iconic games from the series for prize money of 4.56 million. Yes, they are replicating the show with an open casting call for anyone interested in attempting it.

    Of course, Netflix isn’t going to kill off contestants but it’s certainly a curious choice to replicate a game show that showcases rich people enjoying the desperation of people trying to win money to cover their depths. Now, they are producing their own Squid Game, a game of people desperately trying to win money while people watch it from home. While it’s no surprise they’d try to bank on the success of the concept, it does seem a bit curious to replicate the show’s concept in real life given its themes.

    We’ll see just how they tackle the project and if they will closely follow the Korean-based games or add more western additions. They’ll definitely include Red Light, Green Light as well as the iconic candy shape game. Still, it’s a very bizarre choice to make this a reality, and kind of how undermines the principle of the original show. We’ll see if they will truly pull through with this project or what direction it potentially takes given the underlying concept.

    Source: Twitter, Variety

  • ‘Puss in Boots’ Director to Tackle a ‘Smurfs’ Musical

    ‘Puss in Boots’ Director to Tackle a ‘Smurfs’ Musical

    It looks like Chris Miller has found his next project, as he is set to adapt a Smurfs film installment. The former Puss in Boots director will tackle the next entry for Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation, which was highlighted during the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. It’s part of a deal from the worldwide licensors holders LAFIG Belgium and IMPS, where multiple films were set to get produced based on the popular comics.

    The musical will be produced from Pam Brady‘s screenplay, who’s well-known for his work on Team America: World Police. Paramount Animation’s president Ramsey Naito has also shared the following statement regarding Chirs Miller joining the production.

    We’re thrilled to have such a talented group of people bringing audiences this latest rendition of the beloved Smurfs universe, including the incredible Chris Miller.

    Ramsey Naito

    They have confirmed that this Smurfs entry is going to be a musical that fits the childhood classic characters. So, we’ll see how they bring these characters to life and if it acts more like a standalone project or even acknowledges previous cinematic entries. Either way, it looks like The Smurfs aren’t going to take a break from the silver screen any time soon.

    Source: Hollywood Reporter

  • ‘The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ Adds 5 in Key Roles

    ‘The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ Adds 5 in Key Roles

    The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a prequel that will follow 18-year-old Cornelius Snow in the 10th Annual Hunger Games, has added five actors to its roster. Knox Gibson, Aamer Husain, Jerome Lance, Mackenzie Lansing and Ashley Liao have joined the film as either tributes or mentors. They join the already announced Rachel Zegler, who will play tribute Lucy Gray Baird, and Tom Blyth, who will play Snow.

    Liao signed on to play Clemensia Dovecote, a mentor from District 11 and a close friend of Snow. Husain will play Felix Ravinstill, another mentor to a District 11 tribute, while Gibson, Lance and Lansing all signed on as tributes from other Districts.

    The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes was written by Hunger Games writer Suzanne Collins and was published in 2020. The book is set 64 years before the events of the Hunger Games. The screenplay for the film has been developed by Michael Lesslie and the film is currently set to be released in theaters on November 17, 2023.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Top Gun Maverick’ Beats ‘Doctor Strange 2’ to $400M Domestically

    ‘Top Gun Maverick’ Beats ‘Doctor Strange 2’ to $400M Domestically

    Top Gun: Maverick continues to fly high. The Tom Cruise-led film has crossed the $400 million mark at the domestic box office, making it the highest-grossing movie of the year, pulling ahead of Marvel Studios’ Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which is sitting at $398.7 million domestically as of Monday. With a $401.8 million domestic haul, so far, Maverick has also earned a spot as the second-highest grossing movie of the pandemic following Spider-Man: No Way Home. When all is said and done, Top Gun: Maverick will easily find itself in the billion-dollar club at the worldwide box office.

    As for Jurassic World: Dominion, the dino-flick pulled in another $12.7 million on Monday, bringing its four-day total to a decent $157.7 million. While that’s a less than impressive Monday haul for the month of June, it’s still notable during a pandemic. For comparison’s sake, though, Dominion’s first Monday was below 2015’s Jurassic World ($25.3 million) and 2018’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom ($14.7 million). With the release of Lightyear this weekend, Dominion is expected to see a fair 58% drop in its second weekend with experts predicting it’ll pull in another $61 million.

    With a fresh rating of 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, Disney and Pixar’s Lightyear looks likely to upset Maverick and Dominion at the box office this weekend. As to how high Lightyear will fly, however, remains to be seen.

    Source: Deadline

  • Den Den Murphy Episode 21 – All Things Geeked Week

    Den Den Murphy Episode 21 – All Things Geeked Week

    While Fezzy sadly didn’t make this week’s recording, Joe and Suki are keeping you covered on all things One Piece that has transpired, such as the big showcase during Geeked Week, and new castings for the live-action Netflix series, recapping chapters 1050 and 1051. It’s an episode that shouldn’t be missed out on.

  • First Look and Details on Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinocchio’

    First Look and Details on Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinocchio’

    Guillermo del Toro‘s upcoming Pinocchio has been a passion project for the director for years. He’s been trying to get it made for a while and now has found a home with Netflix that is willing to let his artistic venture come to life. The stop-motion storyline from the director of Labyrinth and Hellboy promises something special, and in a new piece by Vanity Fair, he gets to talk about how he’s approaching a more gothic take of the tale.

    I’ve always been very intrigued by the links between Pinocchio and Frankenstein,” del Toro tells Vanity Fair for this exclusive first look. “They are both about a child that is thrown into the world. They are both created by a father who then expects them to figure out what’s good, what’s bad, the ethics, the morals, love, life, and essentials, on their own. I think that was, for me, childhood. You had to figure it out with your very limited experience

    One thing that intrigued the director was the similarities between the living puppet and the iconic Frankenstein story, as a doctor brings his creation to life.

    I’ve always been very intrigued by the links between Pinocchio and Frankenstein. They are both about a child that is thrown into the world. They are both created by a father who then expects them to figure out what’s good, what’s bad, the ethics, the morals, love, life, and essentials, on their own. I think that was, for me, childhood. You had to figure it out with your very limited experience.

    Guillermo Del Toro

    The upcoming film will delve into that kind of ethics a bit, but he promises it’ll still be child-friendly, he simply believes “these are times that demand from kids a complexity that is tremendous. Far more daunting, I think, than when I was a child.”

    He’s working on the project alongside Mark Gustafson, who many might know as the animation director for Wes Anderson‘s Fantastic Mr. Fox. Though, there is a deliberate choice to tell the story of a wooden boy coming to life while everyone else is made of stop motion puppets, which also makes it stand out from other adaptations, especially Robert Zemeckis‘s live-action version for Disney.

    Gregory Mann will take on the voice of Pinocchio, who is a cheerful fellow but has a sad backstory. He’s actually carved out of the tree that grew over the grave of Gepetto’s son. the heartbroken man will be voiced by David Bradley, who gets a second chance at being a father. Ewan McGregor is also set to join as the purple cricket, Sebastian J. Cricket, who made a home out of Pinocchio’s trunk.

    The big departure will be that there are no longer other mystical beings outside of the young boy being brought to life from wood. So, don’t expect the talking animals or donkey transformations from the original storyline. He also generally took a different direction with the villain

    I didn’t want magical creatures other than the wood spirit that gives him life, and Pinocchio himself,” del Toro says. “I didn’t want a talking fox and a talking cat and the magic of transforming him into a donkey. I wanted everything else to feel as close as we can to the real world. The three main villains in the original story are the cat, the fox, and the puppeteer, and we wanted to fuse them into one

    Guillermo del Toro

    As with any del Toro film, Ron Perman is also joining the production as a new addition to the story. he’ll play an authoritarian trying to recruit the wooden boy as a soldier, which moves away from Pleasure Island. He also teases many more changes to iconic characters to make this story truly its own take on a magical creature in a real and dark world.

    It definitely sounds like he is taking a different direction and the concept art that was revealed some time ago promises a dark storyline that will surely be among the director’s best. He’s always had a way of telling stories of people that stand out from the rest and it seems the theme will remain in the upcoming Pinocchio film heading to Netflix.

    Source: Vanity Fair

  • EXCLUSIVE: ‘Lightyear’ Creatives Reveal Keke Palmer and Taika Waititi Almost Played Siblings

    EXCLUSIVE: ‘Lightyear’ Creatives Reveal Keke Palmer and Taika Waititi Almost Played Siblings

    Pixar’s Lightyear has spent years in development. As a result, it went through quite a few changes from its original conception to its eventual release. In an exclusive interview with Murphy’s Multiverse, some of the film’s lead creatives revealed that two of the project’s main characters at one point had a much different relationship than they do in the finished movie.

    When asked to discuss a few unused ideas from Lightyear‘s development process, producer Galyn Susman mentioned that Keke Palmer‘s Izzy Hawthorne and Taika Waititi‘s Mo Morrison were initially thought of as siblings. Director Angus MacLane then chimed in to explain that Uzo Aduba‘s Alicia Hawthorne, Buzz’s first partner before he gets lost in time, was not in the first drafts of the story. As a result, Izzy and Mo were made to be family so the film would have the same emotional anchor:

    They were originally siblings because Alicia didn’t exist. We wanted to show Izzy has a family, and Buzz doesn’t. Alicia got to be the personification of home that Buzz was after, and then connecting Izzy and Alicia was kind of like “oh, of course, that makes perfect sense.” But it wasn’t always that way.

    Angus MacLane

    MacLane also revealed that this version of the script had Waititi‘s Mo as a dentist. Apparently, the comedic relief character would have spent a good chunk of the movie attempting to give other characters dental check-ups, making a plethora of dental puns along the way. It’s unknown if this idea was dropped before or after Palmer and Waititi were thought of for the roles, but one can only imagine the kind of hilarious comradery that may have come out of their sibling relationship.

    Lightyear lands in theaters June 17th.