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  • We Got an Early Look at Disney’s ‘ENCANTO’

    We Got an Early Look at Disney’s ‘ENCANTO’

    Walt Disney Animation Studio may be on its 97th year and 60th film but there seem to be no signs of it slowing down. Its 60th outing, Encanto, comes out later this year and we at Murphy’s Multiverse got to see 30-minutes of footage from the film. What we saw wasn’t long but was enough to convince us that this movie is worth anticipating.

    As the setup for the movie goes, The Madrigals are a family that’s been blessed by an Encanto, bestowing their line with powers unique to each family member. The family lives in a fantastical home and uses their abilities to keep their town prosperous. However, a mysterious dark force seems to be after the Madrigals, putting their house and powers in jeopardy. It all falls on Mirabel, the one family member without powers, to solve this sinister mystery haunting her family.

    In the press junket for Encanto, co-director Charise Castro Smith talked about how each power a Madrigal family member has corresponded to family dynamics we’re all familiar with.

    It’s special in a way that is a nod to family dynamics that we can all relate to.  So there’s a strong, dependable child who’s the rock of the family.  There’s the perfect golden child whose happiness blossoms.  There’s a quiet kid who’s not so comfortable talking to people, so he talks to animals.  And there’s the worrywart who can see the future, but only sees the bad things.  So as we thought about that, we had a big breakthrough, because we realized that the family’s house didn’t have to be just a house, because in an Encanto the house itself could have powers too.

    On the foreground of Encanto is a very Nancy Drew-esque tone that draws you in. The beats of Mirabel trying to piece together information about the family’s past and her investigations within the fantastical realms in their house evoke that of a young adult detective story, with the film’s fantastical titular subject matter serving as the background. The curious nature of Mirabel, on top of her status as the normie in the family, already makes her the quintessential underdog detective. Director Jared Bush had this to say about her:

    Mirabel really carries this story.  It is about her,and she goes on this journey. She’s funny and human and empathetic, deeply emotional and quirky, and I think literally unlike anything we’ve ever put on screen before.  And Stephanie [Beatriz] not only nailed all of that, she brought her own personality to the character, ad libbed a ton of lines, and really elevated both this character and our movie considerably.

    The Madrigal family home is a character in and of itself, in many ways serving as the crux of the family’s identity. Director Byron Howard spoke about the importance of the family’s mystical place of refuge not only as a storytelling device but also as a thematic anchor.

    So we played with the idea of the physical as a literal representation of the family and their emotional connections.  If the family’s happy, the house is healthy.  If the family’s being playful, the house may be playful.  But if the family is going through struggles, the house cracks Byron Howard

    To respectfully remain true and genuine towards the cultural material they’re adapting, the Columbian Cultural Trust was formed. Composed of experts in Columbian music, anthropology, culture, architecture, and botany, this group was crucial in the development of Encanto. According to Jared Bush:

    They’ve been part of the film, literally since the beginning, probably even before the beginning, reviewing early scripts, participating in every screening, and meeting with us weekly.  That’s a lot of meetings to help ensure that the creation design look and feel of our world is on point.  We are enormously indebted to them and all of the experts who formed our Columbian Cultural Trust. 

    Walt Disney Animation president Clark Spencer praised the work of directors Jared Bush and Byron Howard, who helmed the hit Zootopia a few years back, and their newfound collaborative partner Charise Castro Smith during the junket, saying:

    One of the things I love so much, Byron and Jared, and then when Charise joined, was this creative world that the audience is going to fall in love with.  And we had so many of those components. During my nearly 20 years of producing, I never had the chance to produce a Disney musical.  So when the opportunity presented itself to work with Byron Howard, Jared Bush, and Lin-Manuel Miranda on Encanto, I jumped at the chance.  And while it might seem crazy to run a studio and to continue to produce a film at the same time, I just couldn’t step away from a project I loved so deeply.  

  • ‘Spider-Man 2’ to be Insomniac’s ‘Empire Strikes Back’

    ‘Spider-Man 2’ to be Insomniac’s ‘Empire Strikes Back’

    After a long wait, the sequel to 2018’s Spider-Man game finally got its first trailer. Not only that, we even got a good look at the long-teased antagonist, Venom. Of course, his inclusion raises a lot of questions about what we can expect from the sequel. Luckily, Vice President of Marvel Games, Bill Roseman, teased that the sequel might be a darker story from the previous entry. In the latest podcast entry of This Week in Marvel, he briefly touched upon the upcoming sequel and compared it to the original Star Wars trilogy.

    If the first Spider-Man game was Star Wars, Spider-Man 2 is [our] Empire Strikes Back.

    It’s certainly a tall order to compare it to The Empire Strikes Back. The sequel became the modern standard for what any franchise tries to accomplish. Not only does it continue the story, but it pushes our heroes to a brand new breaking point. There’s no true hope that it’ll end on a positive note. So, who knows what the future has in store for Miles Morales and Peter Parker as they face off against Venom.

    It’s crazy to think that the sequel would be even darker than the first. Peter had to make the most depressing decision he ever had at the end of that game, which might be the toughest sacrifice we’ve ever seen a version of this hero make. The game showcased who is the host for the Venom symbiote, which also makes his inclusion quite a personal story once he realizes who it is.

    Source: This Week in Marvel

  • REVIEW: ‘What If… Ultron Won?’ – Episode 8

    REVIEW: ‘What If… Ultron Won?’ – Episode 8

    What If… Ultron Won? is another lovingly dark episode that scoops up the scraps of the multiverse and the varied multiversal seeds the series has been planting throughout the season. While Ultron’s presence is certainly in the spotlight—and he’s definitely a class-act villain—he comes across as more of a vessel to tell the Watcher’s own story through. Impressively, Episode 8 manages to tell a two-pronged story throughout its short runtime. 

    First, it explores the classic What If… ? story of what would have happened on the sacred timeline had Ultron been able to assume Vision’s body. The result is that he is able to quickly laser Thanos in half, acquire all of the infinity stones, and destroy the entire universe piece by piece. He even takes on Captain Marvel, who once again returns as a wildly powerful being that can drive Ultron into the inner core of a planet but it’s not enough. It’s a story that the Watcher uncharacteristically states breaks his heart—which is somewhat interesting considering he also watched Strange Supreme destroy his entire universe for love and due to overwhelming grief. Either way, generally everything and everyone we would know from our universe is wiped out, and almost no hope remains.

    But enter that sliver of hope: Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton as the last remaining heroes alive fighting Ultron and his sentries. The episode absolutely paints the two “lamest Avengers” as, frankly, pretty damn cool. Natasha is up to her usual skillset for the most part, but Clint really seems to get an upgrade. Apart from a metal arm, his archery skills are nearly perfect and his arrows are wild. 

    Still, Clint stands out as having a particularly human dark moment that hit even amongst the total universal destruction. He mentions throughout the episode that he feels tired and as though there’s no point in fighting anymore. While Natasha and the Watcher hold out hope—and hope appears to arrive in the form of Arnim Zola—Hawkeye eventually actually gives up because he no longer wants to fight. It’s a stunning shot of him leaping into a pit of sentries in an obvious nod to Natasha’s own death on Vormir in Endgame. Honestly, even if you hate dark episodes, you have to love it for its realistic take on post-apocalyptic life and human (or superhuman) imperfections. Despite the entire premise of this first layer of story being “hope survives”—a message we’ve encountered before in the series—this episode is a brutal but wise reminder that sometimes it dies.

    The other side of the episode involves the Watcher more personally. While we have seen him somewhat more involved emotionally, we have never peered behind the curtain until now. The Watcher already toyed with interfering in Natasha’s and Clint’s affairs, but was able to stay out of it. But, when all seemed saved, Ultron gained the power to see beyond his own universe, recognize the multiverse, and find the Watcher. 

    The Ultron-Watcher showdown is a genuine spectacle of solid animated action and visual enhancement. At first, the Watcher was surprised that Ultron was able to see and locate him, but he also seemed scared. The turnaround into him being an incredibly powerful cosmic being was definitely rewarding, particularly considering that we have only seen him hovering around. Still, Ultron is ultimately the powerhouse he always should have been, and he ultimately defeats the Watcher with some bonkers moves like taking a Galactus-esque bite out of a galaxy. 

    Once the Ultron-Watcher battle starts, What If… ? really begins feels like the work it did in building the season piece by piece will pay off in a compelling and rewarding way, rather than just attending to fan service in exclusively one-off kernels of easter eggs and mini-stories. The two literally punched their way through numerous universes throughout the fight, with Ultron seemingly taking the wheel on most of it. And yes, we did see a universe where Steve Rogers becomes president.

    The result was stunning—combine it with the visuals of where the Watcher resides amongst all the shards of time prisms, and we have a very different visual and spatial concept of the series and the multiverse itself. It’s much more Doctor Strange than any other comparison, but the unique elements at play (and the animation) certainly distinguish it from anything we’ve seen before. Any live-action adaption of this type of imagery and movement—looking at you, Multiverse of Madness—will likely be a sight to behold.

    Speaking of Doctor Strange, the Watcher ends up in Strange Supreme’s tiny universe bubble we saw at the end of Episode 4. Luckily, the two have briefly met before, and there’s already a buddy-banter dynamic. Which does interestingly call into question Strange Supreme’s personality—he was certainly “Dark Strange” before, but he was fairly jolly here. Either way, he gets the Watcher to admit he needs to intervene and get help. While we know from teasers and trailers who many of these “Guardians of the Multiverse” will be, the finale will undoubtedly keep a few surprises or twists up its sleeve to finish the season strong.

    The penultimate episode of What If… ? definitely delivered in terms of setting up a larger crossover that spans the entire season. Now that we’ve finally seen the Watcher in his fullest, we have a greater sense of how the multiverse comes together and how to view it on a macro-level rather than bit by bit as we have been doing. The episode certainly sets up an exciting finale and it is another strong take on dark themes that the series has toyed with so well in the past. 

  • Will Smith Explains Deadshot’s Absence in ‘The Suicide Squad’

    Will Smith Explains Deadshot’s Absence in ‘The Suicide Squad’

    Perhaps one of the brightest spots in the original Suicide Squad film was Will Smith, who played Floyd Lawton, AKA Deadshot. Smith however did not return for the follow-up, and initially was almost recast. Early reports indicated that Idris Elba would take over the role of Deadshot, but that ultimately didn’t pan out so that the door may be left often for Smith’s return. Elba would go on to play Robert Dubois, aka Bloodsport, with no mention of Deadshot in the film.

    Recently Smith participated in a special interview with GQ in which he’d gone incognito on social media to answer some of his fan’s questions. One of the many questions that came up was “Why is Will Smith’s Deadshot not in the Suicide Squad, Maybe bc he didn’t want to reprise the role??”. Smith responded to the question with the following quote.

    Yeah, I was working and they were ready to shoot. It was a timing issue, I can come back.

    It seems he was aware of the initial reports that the studio was eyeing Elba as his replacement, as he ask those around him about the status of Deadshot in the DCEU.

    They didn’t cast anybody in Deadshot? they left Deadshot out, right?…So Idris playing a different character he’s not playing, or is he playing Deadshot? Different character? Alright cool so I can come back!

    It’s great to see Smith so excited that the door is still open for him to return as Floyd Lawton, maybe in another Suicide Squad film or a potential Secret Six project. While there’s no current plan to bring Will Smith back in any upcoming project we sure hope he pops up again somewhere in the DCEU.

    SOURCE: GQ

  • Meet the Skrulls: An Unlikely Family Dramedy in the MCU

    Meet the Skrulls: An Unlikely Family Dramedy in the MCU

    The upcoming Secret Invasion series on Disney+ will explore the invasion by the Skrulls. We got our first introduction to the alien species during Captain Marvel, and they’ll take center stage once more in the upcoming Secret Invasion series. We’ve recently shared details that Ben Mendelsohn‘s Talos won’t be the only Skrull, and some don’t share his more peaceful mindset. So, we’re going to witness an invasion by the shape-shifting aliens soon, and potentially even beyond the Disney+ series. As such, it opens up the path to explore the life of Skrulls hiding amongst modern suburbia. So, the perfect sequel series would be an adaptation of the 2019 Meet the Skrulls.

    The comic series explored the life of the Warner family. They’ve lived a suburban life on Earth. Well, if you ignore the fact that they are Skrulls preparing Earth for an invasion. Robbie Thompson and Niko Henrichon brought a simple concept to life that took a look at aliens trying to fit in with humanity while keeping to accomplish their mission. Marvel Studios is no stranger to exploring a strange suburbia life with their first Disney+ venture of WandaVision. Yet, it explored a sitcom version of that kind of life, and now it’s time for Marvel Studios to embrace it.

    Meet the Skrulls #1 - Stories For Nerds

    Skrulls living in the suburbs while following their mission might seem simple, but it could also help flesh out the MCU. Why not have the parents work at Stark Industries or the WHIH news. That way, we can see the world that the bigger projects don’t normally share with us. This Disney+ series isn’t like Solar Opposites, where they are living as aliens in plain sight, but rather a group of Skrulls, who are paranoid of getting caught. It opens up to some comedic moments of them misunderstanding things, trying too hard to hide, or even letting loose at a party. Especially giving us insight into teenage Skrulls adjusting to life could bring out some dangerous situations.

    Of course, there’s also the drama of it taking place post-Secret Invasion. The world is aware of their presence and is on the hunt for the last splinter cells. So, the build-up to seeing what S.H.I.E.L.D.’s existence means to them. At one point, they are uncovered and have to survive an infiltration of their home. In a way humanizing the alien species that simply believed in their mission was for a good cause. Not only would we get a look from a more grounded perspective in the MCU, but also fully understand the motivation of the aliens. Perhaps they didn’t know they were just pawns but believing in something to keep their race alive. Can you truly trust everything you see and know?

  • Marvel Studios Currently Juggling 30+ Projects

    Marvel Studios Currently Juggling 30+ Projects

    Marvel Studios has always been an overachiever in the business. Not only did they build a connected universe on the silver screen, but decided to expand it through streaming on Disney+. Recently, they even ventured out into animation while adding new talent to continue their efforts to expand. We only get a glimpse into what they are working on with each grand announcement, which hopefully expands once Disney+ Day arrives.

    They also recently gave Victoria Alonso, who has been with the company since 2008’s Iron Man, a promotion. In an interview with 221radio, she offered some insight into her current schedule, which was brought to our attention through our very own Discord. While discussing her time on The Marvel‘s set, and lunch with Salma Hayek, she also offered a small window in just how many projects are currently in development over at Marvel Studios. After the interviewer asked if they were working on 35 projects, she corrected them with the actual number and that not everyone makes it out of some form of development.

    We are currently working on 31 projects, don’t add 4 more, please. (Laughs) It is a question about how are we handling multiple plates in the air at the same time, and the biggest thing is that sometimes the plates fall, and, you know, what are you going to do then? We want people to understand that the idea that we have, to tell these connected stories, it is important that the world knows that the characters we create, their stories have to do with how humans interact with each other.

    Victoria Alonso

    The number makes sense, as currently there are seven films alone in production, as confirmed by the President of Physical and Post Production, Visual Effects, and Animation Production. She did also highlight that they are venturing into animation more in the future. She also highlights that some might just not make it out of a specific step of development. It’s crazy to think how many projects they are currently working on, and the number might only continue to rise as time goes on.

    Source: 221radio

  • Alice Waddington to Adapt Dark Horse’s ‘Dept.H’ for Netflix

    Alice Waddington to Adapt Dark Horse’s ‘Dept.H’ for Netflix

    Netflix continues its ongoing adaptation spree, as Deadline shared that Paradise Hills‘ Alice Waddington has joined the upcoming adaptation of Dept.H. T.S. Nowlin, who penned The Maze Runner, will tackle the script with Mike Richardson, Keith Goldberg, and Paul Schwake of Dark Horse Entertainment producing. It’ll explore the story of how the death of a scientist leads his estranged daughter six miles below the ocean floor to uncover what lead to his untimely end. It becomes a race against the time as it might become her underwater grave.

    Dept.H was written and illustrated by Matt Kindt, which started under the Dark Horse banner back in 2015. Ever since their success with Umbrella Academy, they’ve been expanding their ventures with Dark Horse Entertainment, such as the recent announcement of Grendel. The streaming market has been quite competitive and it continues to grow with each new competitor.

    Netflix has been focusing more and more on developing well-known IPs to build its brand. Umbrella Academy proved that their model has some potential, and we’re seeing recent developments with them going beyond just Dark Horse. They are tackling live-action adaptations of popular Anime, such as the recent showcase of Cowboy Bebop. It’s going to be interesting to see how it continues to grow moving forward.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘No Time To Die’ Eyeing a 90M International Opening Weekend

    ‘No Time To Die’ Eyeing a 90M International Opening Weekend

    It hasn’t been easy for the James Bond franchise. Like many others, it faced countless delays due to the pandemic. The final entry in Daniel Craig‘s time as the British secret agent is nearing and the new marketing push has been highlighting that moment where the story that started with 2006’s Casino Royale comes to an end. As the film is set to release this week, the box office predictions are in and it’s looking good. It’s set to release in 50 markets overseas, which includes UK, Spain, Mexico, Japan, and many more. Even with its older demographic, it seems likely the film might pull in around $90M internationally.

    There’s always the chance this number can change, but for an early prediction it#s quite the win for the final entry. In the UK, it seems that Bond could be its biggest opening since the last summer before the pandemic started. Once the review embargo lifts, we’ll have a clearer picture of where the film is heading and if it manages to reach 2015’s Spectre‘s $123.5M. Currently, the film’s pre-ticket sales are even outperforming 2019 ‘s numbers by 10%.

    We’ve been seeing more recovery by the box office weekly. Dune even opened to a very formidable $77M internationally and it won’t release in the US until October. The big question mark is always a China release, which the film secured for October 29th. It’s going to be interesting if the last Craig-led project will dominate the box office to sign off the end of an era with a bang.

    Source: Deadline, Forbes

  • ‘What If…?’ Head Writer Hints at Tony Stark Episode Pushed Into Season 2

    ‘What If…?’ Head Writer Hints at Tony Stark Episode Pushed Into Season 2

    At one point, What If…? was initially announced to consist of 10 episodes with the second season already in development. Yet, as time went on, that number seemed to fluctuate especially when the pandemic hit. It wasn’t until last month that we learned that one of those episodes had been pushed to next year’s second season. After weeks of speculation, head writer A.C. Bradley has finally given us our first clue which episode got postponed. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she states that:

    “Our 10th episode was a more light, upbeat Tony Stark episode.”

    A.C. Bradley

    After some light deduction, we can figure out that Bradley is referring to an episode that was leaked during the summer. There’s a Lego set with the title “Tony Stark’s Saakarian Iron Man.” It included a Thor: Ragnarok-inspired Hulk Buster suit. It also came with Tony Stark and Valkyrie, which would hint at him taking the place of Hulk in his journey to Sakaar.

    In the same interview, they confirm that the upcoming eight-episode will lead into the finale, which seems to focus primarily on Ultron and the Guardians of the Multiverse. There was also the tease of a Gamora-centric episode, which featured her hunting down Stark. It also seems absent and might even connect to the one above. It also fits with the joke, where Bradley highlights that

    I noticed on Twitter we’re getting a lot of crap for killing Tony a lot. He has become the Kenny of the What If…? universe by accident.

    A.C. Bradley

    So, the comment adds more credence to the connection, as we have seen Iron Man bite the bullet quite frequently throughout the first season. Gamora was hinted at as part of the multiversal guardians in one of the earlier trailers. So, if they postponed the episode into the second season, it’ll be interesting to see if she still has a role in the upcoming crossover.

    Source: EW

  • EXCLUSIVE: Tidbits on the Evil Skrulls in ‘SECRET INVASION’

    EXCLUSIVE: Tidbits on the Evil Skrulls in ‘SECRET INVASION’

    Earlier this year, trades broke the news that 2020 breakout star Kingsley Ben-Adir would be joining the cast of Marvel Studios Disney Plus streaming series Secret Invasion as a villain set to go up against Nick Fury and his Skrull buddy Talos. The 35-year old actor landed a role for which Marvel Studios had checked on names such as Gary Oldman (who the studio has been interested in for several roles) and hoped for star power on the level of Denzel Washington. In short, this is a major Marvel Cinematic Universe role, but one about we know very little. Murphy’s Multiverse has uncovered a bit of information on Ben-Adir’s role and how it connects to Killian Scott’s, who joined the cast last Spring.

    As fans have speculated, Ben-Adir is indeed playing a Skrull that will find himself up against Nick Fury and Talos throughout the series. The interesting bit here, however, is that Ben-Adir’s Skrull character will be revealed to have a long history with Ben Mendelsohn‘s Talos. Prior to the Kree Accusers’ destruction of the Skrull’s homeworld of Skrullos, Talos was a Skrullian general who had spent his lifetime fighting in the Kree-Skrull War working alongside Kree scientist Mar-Vell to find refuge for a group of Skrulls. Given the Skrull’s generational hatred for the Kree, it seems very likely that Ben-Adir’s Skrull character might find Talos’ taste in allies unsavory. 

    While Marvel Studios is working to keep the identity of Ben-Adir’s character a secret, the fact that he has a history with Talos could give fans clues as to who he might be portraying. Given it’ll have been at least 30 years since the destruction of Skrulls, it’s reasonable to assume that other Skrulls could have reestablished themselves elsewhere, perhaps Tarnax IV, and readied their invasion of Earth.

    If that’s the case, Ben-Adir could be portraying the Skrull spy Paibok, who was himself a Skrullian military captain in the comics. Should they, however, wish to take the “go big or go home route,” Ben-Adir could be portraying one of the Skrull’s most decorated military heroes: Kl’rt. While most people know Kl’rt as the Super-Skrull, it wasn’t until later in his career that he became the first Skrull to carry that designation after being granted the combined powers of the Fantastic Four. Then again, it may be premature to introduce the Super-Skrull version of Kl’rt before the Fantastic Four are established. However, having a disgraced Kl’rt return home with his tail between his legs might give him the necessary motivation to become “super” in the future.

    Joining Ben-Adir’s Skrull in his battle against Fury and Talos will be Scott’s character. While his identity is similarly a tightly kept secret, his character is a crony of Ben-Adir’s, meaning he’s likely a Skrull himself. Given Scott’s very everyman looks, he’s possibly playing someone like Klrr. In the comics, Klrr is a Skrull spy who infiltrated Stark Industries and whose family, under the guise of the Warners, helped prepare for a Skrull invasion. Old rumors pointed to the 2019 series Meet the Skrulls as a potential inspiration for Marvel Studios Secret Invasion, so it wouldn’t be too surprising to see some of those characters, like Klrr who posed as Carl Warner, show up here. 

    While some fans are still expecting a direct adaptation of the Secret Invasion comic event and looking for an Avenger cameo-fest, Kevin Feige has stated the MCU adaptation will play heavily with the themes of distrust and paranoia. On that note, fans can look forward to Christopher McDonald throwing gas on the fire as a discord-sewing, “tough talk” talking head TV figure. This one is starting to sound like it’s going to be a blast. 

    Secret Invasion is expected to stream sometime in the second half of 2022.