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Don’t Expect ‘Loki’s TVA in ‘What If’

A multiverse is a crazy place. It feels like almost anything can happen, and that is exactly what Marvel Studios hopes to bank on with their upcoming animated series What If. It’ll explore the different possibilities if a slight change happens at one point in the franchise we’ve come to love over the past decade. It follows directly in the shoes of Loki, which saw the multiverse expand at the end of its final episode. Yet, it also introduced us to the Time Variance Authority that controls what universe is allowed to grow.

Even in the finale, we learned of their new function as a new ruler took over. It made us wonder if we’ll see them at some point in the series, as they might want to prune some of these new timelines. Luckily, A.C. Bradley, the head writer of the series, confirmed that they will not appear in the series.

Basically I was like, OK, ‘I’m just going to go and show all the fun we can have in the multiverse… I’m going to show all the things that can happen and the places we can go, I’m not going to lay down any serious rules, I’m not going to touch anything to do with the TVA.’

It’s good to know, as we won’t be keeping an eye out for them at any point in the story. While it would’ve been fun to explore these different timelines with the potential threat of time-changing desk jockeys, it would’ve taken away from the main focus of this story. There’s also always the possibility to explore their story in a potential Loki spin-off that is dedicated to the TVA’s adventures throughout the multiverse.

Source: io9 via The Direct

August 5, 2021
RUMOR: ‘Dead Space’ Remake Eyeing a Potential Fall 2022 Release

Electronics Arts surprised many when they dropped a teaser trailer for a remake of the original Dead Space game. The new visuals for next-gen consoles were built with the iconic Frostbite engine. It dropped the trailer, teasing the space station we first visited in 2008. It went on to get two sequels, and quite a few spin-offs. Yet, we haven’t seen a new entry since 2013. So, its return is great for horror fans all over the world. It looks like Venture Beat may have gotten their hands on the release date, as their sources claim it’ll be made available next year in the fall.

There currently is still no official release date for Motive Studios’ remake. So, we have to keep in mind that production can get delayed, especially with the current pandemic still raging across the world. EA wants to reboot the franchise with the return to the USG Ishimura in the year 2508. There have been hints we’ll get a closer look at the game in action later this year, which might include some actual gameplay.

The horror franchise has been a mainstay with its space setting and unique take on the genre. You don’t get the usual weapons, but use whatever the mining station provides. The way you take out the enemies was also something that caught people by surprise, even with the warning being sprayed on the walls. It’ll be interesting to see if they add some new elements and surprises to keep returning players on their toes.

You can check out the trailer here:

Source: YouTube, VentureBeat

August 5, 2021
Ryan Reynolds Hints at a Potential 2022 Production Start for ‘Deadpool 3’

There have been many questions surrounding the third Deadpool film. We have no idea how it will introduce Ryan Reynolds’s character into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It will be a continuation of the last film and without the official introduction of the Mutants in the Marvel Studios franchise, it’s uncertain if it will just throw the Merc with a Mouth into a new universe, especially after the events of Loki. Well, while we don’t get any details, in an interview with Collider, the Canadian actor did hint that there’s a 70% chance they might start filming next year.

The percentage chance? I don’t know. I couldn’t assign a percentage to that. I’d say it’s 50/50 maybe? We’re really actively developing it and getting it into pretty good shape. What the hell month is it? August? Oh, next year? Probably pretty damn good. I’d say 70%.

He did confess that he’s been so busy that it’s hard to keep an overview on time, but also discussed working with the film’s writers Lizzie Molyneux-Loeglin and Wendy Molyneux.

It’s something that is just a daily process. Writing is kind of like that, you’ve gotta allot time to do it and walk away, and I’m working with the Molyneuxs on it, it’s been great. They’re incredibly talented and so, so smart. They so understand that world and know how to zig when everyone’s expecting a zag, so it’s been a lot of fun

We did recently get some Deadpool content with his first official MCU crossover. He sat next to Taika Waititi’s Korg, as they watched the film Free Guy, which he is currently promoting for Disney and 20th Century. There’s a lot of interest in the next Deadpool film due to it being the first venture for Marvel Studios into the realm of R-Ratings. They did confirm that even Blade will follow the usual PG-13 structure. So, its success could open up the company to explore further projects with the rating.

Source: Collider

August 5, 2021
‘Y: The Last Man’’s Turbulent Journey to FX

After what seems like an eternity, the Y: The Last Man trailer finally got released. With a little over a month to go before its September 13th premiere on FX, it feels like a good time to go back and remember just how difficult it was bringing the Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra iconic comic series to the small screen. In 2015, the series was announced to enter development over at FX. Since, the show has not only gone through different showrunners, a different main cast, but also a different title. From just the initial Y, it has since moved back to the source material’s original title, Y: The Last Man.

Michael Green (Smallville, Heroes, American Gods) was once slated to serve as showrunner, and was co-writing the pilot with Brian K. Vaughan., After working on the show for four years, he left the production in 2019 following “creative differences” being replaced by Eliza Clark (Extant, Animal Kingdom). With principal photography for the pilot taking place in 2018, it’s perhaps fair to assume that, following the changes to the leadership behind the show, we’ll be getting little to no footage of that period to show up in the final product.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, filming got postponed to later 2020. It only concluded last month, July 2021. Around the time filming began, it was also announced that the show would feature an almost entirely different cast from the one initially announced in 2018. Barry Keoghan (Eternals), Diane Lane, Imogen Poots (28 Weeks Later), Lashana Lynch (Captain Marvel), Juliana Canfield, Marin Ireland, Amber Tamblyn, and Timothy Hutton were all set to star in the show, but perhaps due to delays and the way the approach towards the show evolved, some ended up getting replaced. Ashley Romans and Olivia Thirlby (Dredd) stepped into the roles which initially belonged to Lynch and Poots. Ben Schnetzer replaced Keoghan as Yorick Brown, the series lead. Paul Gross also joined the show at a later stage as Hutton, another of the big names from the original cast list, left following a restructuring surrounding his role.

Getting the show off the ground was obviously an extremely turbulent affair, something that might probably end up hurting the series’ quality. But it’s rather poetic if a show that focuses on a global cataclysmic event, that got postponed due to a global pandemic, somehow found redemption to its lackluster development story in a series that does justice to the brilliant, Eisner Award-winning comic series it’s based upon.

As stated above, the show focuses on the aftermath of a cataclysmic event that ends up killing every single mammal on planet earth with a Y chromosome. In layman’s terms, only females survived. Enter Yorick Brown, who mysteriously manages to survive with no idea of how that came to be. Alongside Ampersand, his pet monkey, he becomes involved in a world of governmental espionage and international intrigue. All of this with the backdrop of humanity possibly being on the verge of extinction for simply not being able to reproduce. We’re led in a globetrotting adventure, across multiple continents as Yorick, the Last Man, fights not only for his own future but also for his race. It is set to premiere on September 13th, 2021, on FX.

Source: Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, Variety, Deadline, GameSpot, Collider, Deadline, ScreenRant

August 5, 2021
James Gunn’s ‘The Suicide Squad’ Eyeing a $30M+ Domestic Opening Weekend

We’ve been discussing the Box Office frequently, as the pandemic has changed our perception of what makes a film successful. Even with Black Widow’s great opening weekend with around $80M, it still saw a stark drop in its second weekend and lost to Space Jam: A New Legacy. Yet, it passed the film, which saw just as harsh a drop. These films were made available through digital alternatives, and it’s a general theme that audiences aren’t willing to risk a second viewing of the same film during the quarantine. Now, all eyes are on James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad opening weekend.

It looks like it’ll take on the Box Office with a $30M opening. Unlike past weekends, it won’t have too much competition when it releases worldwide, and there is still hope it might even pass the $40M mark. With a $185M production budget, it’ll be a smaller release, but given current situations, it’s still impressive. Larger releases in the past few months were around that very mark, with Black Widow and F9 being the only exceptions.

Of course, it’s also available on HBO Max, which is WarnerMedia’s big hope for its release. It currently already gained $7M in some international markets and could be heading towards an overall $70M worldwide. It’ll get compared to the previous franchise entry by David Ayer, which managed around $746M, but it wasn’t facing any of the current troubles. Deadline has highlighted that the Delta variant is one of the causes for the overall Box Office drop we’ve seen over the last few months, even after May saw a bit of an uptick. It’ll be curious what it might mean for the future of the Box Office and if September releases will get shifted back.

Source: Variety, Deadline

August 5, 2021
‘Eternals’: Gemma Chan Teases Sersi’s Romance with Richard Madden’s Ikaris

Black Widow signaled Marvel Studios’ grand return to cinemas. Now, we have three more films heading our way, introducing the many corners of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There’s one that stands out among the rest, the millennia-spanning Eternals will introduce the world to the alien race that was there when humanity was just in its infancy. After we got our first trailer, we got a glimpse at the all-star cast and the film’s central themes.

Luckily, Gemma Chan, who will play Sersi, sat down with Vogue and discussed her second MCU character after playing Minn-Erva briefly in 2019’s Captain Marvel. She offers some insight into what we can expect with her character and hints that they might be breaking the formula that put Marvel’s iconic heroes on the map, as:

Sersi is not your typical superhero: she’s not necessarily the best fighter, she doesn’t have the most obviously impressive powers. The main thing is she’s an empath. She has a connection with humans, and with the world and the earth. That is her strength, so I leant into that.

The actress goes on to discuss working alongside her long-time friend Richard Madden, who will take on the role of fellow Eternal Ikaris. Most known for his role as Robb Stark on Game of Thrones, we’ll meet his character in the film as a long-time lover of the iconic character. She shared a little insight into what we can expect from their relationship, while nervously keeping an eye out for Marvel Studios’ famous snipers.

Between us, she and Ikaris are kind of immortal soulmates. That was a fun thing to play. Over a span of a thousand years, how do you play a normal relationship? The good thing is, Richard and I have known each other for over 10 years.

It’s quite an interesting story they’ll introduce with a love that lasted for such a long time. We know that fellow Game of Thrones actor Kit Harrington will join as the Black Knight. So, we’ll see if these immortal soulmates will face some unlikely challenges once the film releases this November in theaters.

Source: Vogue

August 5, 2021
James Gunn Talks Rocket’s Tragic Origins in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’

Even if you consider the long delay for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, we still know very little about the final entry of the iconic space opera franchise. James Gunn has dropped some hints here and there, but he gave us an update in an interview with Josh Horowitz on his Happy Sad Confused podcast.

After discussing his turbulent journey into making The Suicide Squad, and the inspiration of starting the first Guardians film, he offered a tiny insight into the emotional core of the franchise that is Rocket Raccoon, and how the threequel will explore his history before the events of the first film.

Well, I think we get to know where Rocket, you know, at the very first movie, we see Rocket take his clothes off. We see those scars on his back. We see that he comes from a place very difficult. To me, me, that’s always been the center of the Guardians. How do you make a raccoon talk and make him real. It sort of ended up being the saddest story of all time.

He also goes on to hint that the story will be quite a sad experience, and it “kills him every time.” Gunn has voiced his love for the character and confirms that we’ll explore his past and where he is from. The other Guardians will get a focus, but it seems that Rocket is at the core of this story. It will end the trilogy that he started back in 2014. Hopefully, these words don’t spell an untimely end for the loveable raccoon with anger issues in the MCU once the film releases.

If you are interested, you can check out the podcast entry here:

Thrilled at last to have @JamesGunn on the #happysadconfused podcast. This one covers a ton. Great chat about his awesome new film and much more. https://t.co/QvX7hX2iz3

— Josh Horowitz (@joshuahorowitz) August 4, 2021

Source: Twitter

August 4, 2021
‘Loki’s Head Writer Michael Waldron Confirms Coordination with ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Writers

Spider-Man: No Way Home’s multiversal story seems to be the worst kept secret in the industry. Rumors dropped early that Andrew Garfield, Kristen Dunst, and many more would reprise their roles from past Marvel films in the upcoming threequel. To make matters worse, Alfred Molina confirmed his involvement and return as Doctor Octopus in an interview with Variety.

It seems that we can add Loki‘s Michael Waldron to the list of people hinting at the multiverse storyline. In an interview with The Playlist Podcast, he confirmed that he actively communicated with No Way Home writers Chris McKenna and Eric Summers. In the podcast, he states the following:

Your producing teams are constantly communicating with those producing teams to make sure that you’re not screwing each other up. I had the benefit on Spider-Man: No Way Home, Chris McKenna and Eric Summers wrote that, I was their writer’s PA on Season 5 of Community, so I can call McKenna and get bullied by him whenever I want, but also say ‘Hey, what the hell are you guys doing? Let me make sure I’m not ruining it.’ So there’s communication to the extent that the creative teams themselves, the filmmakers, the writers, whoever, can become friendly, it certainly benefits the projects.

Of course, the multiverse would be the connective tissue they would discuss. Loki‘s final episode unleashed the multiverse, with every possible branch coming into existence. With all the rumors surrounding No Way Home, it makes sense they’ll try to keep it consistent. Plus, Waldron is the writer of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which will probably build upon the Spider-Man threequel. The collaborative approach makes a lot of sense to keep the world’s rules in line, especially if the multiverse becomes a bigger element moving forward in the current Phase of the MCU.

Source: The Playlist Podcast via The Direct

August 4, 2021
DC President Hints at More DCEU Projects in James Gunn’s Future

James Gunn’s Suicide Squad sequel will soon release and continue the DC franchise. He’s been busy working on a spin-off focused on the character of John Cena’s Peacemaker before returning to Marvel with the final installment of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. So, it looks like the director will be quite busy for the years to come, and DC Films president Walter Hamada may have hinted at a lot more projects in the iconic comic world heading his way. After a vague mentioning that they would always welcome him back, he also ended the interview with the following statement:

He’ll be back. We have more stuff planned.

So, it seems pretty clear that Gunn is in no way finished working with DC. It’s unclear if he’ll return to work with Marvel Studios in the near future, but the more disconnected strategy for the DCEU franchise may offer him a wilder playing field with how he approaches characters. There are hints that Peacemaker might get a potential second season, and he may even explore other spin-offs of the various members.

Of course, he may even return for a sequel for The Suicide Squad, or tackle a brand-new character. Almost five months ago, Charles Murphy heard that Krypto was on the table at some point, and he could potentially return to the idea. It’s great to see Gunn‘s return to the world of comic book movies. We’ll all keep a close eye on what his future holds. Who knows what other wacky adventures or stories he has in store for us.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

August 4, 2021
‘Agent Carter’ Footage is Absent in Peggy Carter’s ‘Legends’ Episode

As is tradition, Marvel Studios released a new slew of episodes for their Legends series. It recaps the story of a character or specific group to ensure others can catch up quickly ahead of its release. What If came with an interesting combination featuring the Avengers Initiative, the Ravagers, and Peggy Carter. It teases the first three episodes of the new animated series What If and could hint at new entries for each new scenario in the future. Yet, there’s an interesting reveal with the episode focused on Peggy Carter, it’s missing a significant part of her story, Marvel TV’s Agent Carter.

Why is it significant? Well, there have been many discussions about the canonicity of Marvel TV’s ventures. Loki’s introduction of the Sacred Timeline and eventual expansion into the multiverse opened up the possibility of any type of story being part of the bigger piece. So, it seemed like the perfect time to include her story, especially with the inclusion of James D’Arcy’s Edwin Jarvis in Avengers: Endgame. Yet, the entire episode doesn’t feature a single piece of footage from the expanded ABC series.

There is some footage that some viewers might be surprised to see return, the original Agent Carter One-Shot. It was released in 2013 featuring the tease of the Zodiac. So, why did it make the cut but not the show? There’s a chance it is purely due to the Zodiac plotline finally getting picked up after its complete absence in the ABC series. As it was a Marvel Studios production, they may want to revisit the storyline through an alternative reality, which may also be their approach with the Fury’s Big Week adaptation.

With the confirmed return of Bradley Whitford, who only appeared in the One Shot, it seems very safe to assume that’s the reason for its inclusion. Yet, Agent Carter‘s second season ended on quite the cliffhanger that still never got resolved. Sadly, it seems we’ll never find out what happened to Agent Thompson and due to them not picking up those pieces, it wasn’t included in the Legends episode.

Yet, we’ve theorized that its absence may also continue the story that Marvel Studios is distancing itself from storylines set up through Marvel TV. Even a month ago, James Gunn declared WandaVision as the first true MCU series. So, Legends completely sidelining two seasons’ worth of stories while still showing us Peggy’s final days and even funeral, which does not seem relevant to the What If scenario of the original Captain America: The First Avenger.

It’s an odd balance and continues to showcase the growing rift between Marvel Studios and the old TV division. The appearance of the Marvel Netflix series in future entries could also highlight this direction by using the old cast with completely new stories, negating any canonicity of these original shows. For now, until they pick up or reference any story from that franchise, we’ll have to accept it’s part of a multiverse that seems forgotten. Yet, one could argue the use of the iconic red hat from the first season might be that glimmer of hope after all.

August 4, 2021