Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Disney Plus

  • ‘Werewolf by Night’

    ‘Werewolf by Night’

    Premiere: October 7, 2022

    Following the disclosure, over several months, of a number of LLCs linked with MCU projects, a report on August 2021 stated that one titled “Natural History Productions” is referring to a Werewolf by Night Disney+ project said to be in early development over at Marvel Studios. The details surrounding the show are scarce, to say the least, but with three Disney+ series already under their belt, we should expect more news on both this and several other MCU series set for development in the coming months.

    With production set to begin in early 2022 the project, a Halloween Special, is likely to be eyeing a late October 2022 Disney+ premiere.

    Even without the show having been officially titled, Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal joined the project in early November 2021. His role is, as of his casting, unknown. With Michael Giacchino directing the project, Laura Donnelly joined the cast in early 2022 with production on the Disney+ Halloween Special set to begin in March.

    A trade report confirmed Giacchino‘s involvement in the project in March 2022. This was something that had been long rumored, mostly due to some solid pieces of evidence that heavily hinted at his Marvel-associated directorial debut. Considering his professional background, having music play a bit part in the project seems like a given at this point.

    This was later confirmed via a trade report, along with confirmation that the show indeed started production in March 2022. Just a month afterward, and with shooting well underway, it was rumored that Laura Donnelly’s character was none other than Elsa Bloodstone.

    With an expected Halloween 2022 release date, the Marvel Studios Special Presentation was only actually confirmed to exist in September 2022. At D23 there was official confirmation of both the director (Giacchino), both leads (Garcia Bernal and Donnelly) and their respective characters. The first trailer, released at the same event, revealed that a number of other characters are set to make appearances, with Man-Thing being the highlight.

    Cast

    • Gael Garcia Bernal as Jack Russell
    • Laura Donnelly as Elsa Bloodstone

    Promotional Material

  • ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special’

    ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special’

    Premiere: November 25, 2022

    With Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn directing, this holiday special created specifically for Disney+ will be shot during the production of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

    The Special Presentation will see the return of the entire Guardians team, with Maria Bakalova making her MCU debut as Cosmo the Spacedog, ahead of her appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Kevin Bacon is set to play a fictionalized version of himself, someone intrinsical to the plot as it will revolve around his kidnapping by (some of) the Guardians themselves. Michael Rooker will also make his return as Yondu Udonta, even if with his character having died in Vol. 2.

    With the release of the project’s trailer, a November 25, 2022 premiere was confirmed.

    Cast

    • Chris Pratt as Peter Quill / Star-Lord
    • Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer
    • Karen Gillan as Nebula
    • Pom Klementieff as Mantis
    • Vin Diesel as Groot
    • Bradley Cooper as Rocket
    • Michael Rooker as Yondu Udonta
    • Kevin Bacon as himself
    • Zoe Saldaña as Gamora
    • Maria Bakalova as Cosmo the Spacedog

    Promotional Material

  • ‘Secret Invasion’

    ‘Secret Invasion’

    Premiere: TBD 2023

    One of Marvel Comics most intense and wide-ranging comic book crossover events is coming to the MCU in 2022 with Secret Invasion! Announced at Disney’s 2020 Investor Day, Secret Invasion will focus on a faction of less-than-friendly Skrulls who have spent years infiltrating Earth and are now ready to take over.

    Kyle Bradstreet will develop and oversee the project as Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury and Ben Mendelsohn reprises his role as Talos. In April 2021 Olivia Colman was confirmed to be in negotiations to join the series, and just a couple of days later we learned that Emilia Clarke was also talks to join the cast in an undisclosed role. Kingsley Ben-Adir and Killian Scott are also expected to have their names added to the cast list.

    The following month the show found its directors in Thomas Bezucha and Ali Selim, and also got Christopher McDonald on board portraying a newly created character. Samuel L. Jackson confirmed production had started by October 2021.

    Notably absent from the announcement cast list, Cobie Smulders was confirmed to be reprising her Maria Hill role per a trade report in early December 2021. A few months into 2022 Samuel L. Jackson accidentally confirmed that Martin Freeman‘s Everett Ross would be making an appearance in the show.

    Colman‘s role was reported to be that of Union Jack with her character’s surname (Fallsworth) being shared by two of the comics’ iterations of the character. Clarke‘s character, initially undisclosed, was confirmed to be that of Abigail Brand.

    Cast

    • Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury
    • Ben Mendelsohn as Talos
    • Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill (?)
    • Don Cheadle as James Rhodes / War Machine
    • Emilia Clarke as Abigail Brand
    • Olivia Colman as Sonya Falsworth
    • Martin Freeman as Everett Ross
    • Kingsley Ben-Adir as an unknown Skrull villain
    • Killian Scott as Fiz
    • Christopher McDonald as an unnamed news personality

    Promotional Material

  • ‘What If…?’ (season 2)

    ‘What If…?’ (season 2)

    Premiere: 2023

    Even though season 2 was pretty much a given, it was officially confirmed by executive producer Brad Winderbaum that a second season was in development. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, one episode initially developed for the show’s first season would instead be pushed to its second season, thus meaning both would be comprised of 9 episodes each.

    Despite the way season 1 ended, with several storylines coming together at the end, it was confirmed that season 2 would be sticking with the pseudo-anthology format. Regarding its release schedule, and even though many expected the series to become a hallmark of Disney+ summer scheduling, the show was noticeably absent from Disney+’s 2022 line-up.

    It was confirmed at Marvel Animation’s panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2022 that What If…? season 2 would have its Disney+ premiere in early 2023 and that Elizabeth Olsen will reprise her role as Wanda Maximoff / The Scarlet Witch.

    Cast

    • Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher
    • Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff / The Scarlet Witch
    • Haley Atwell as Captain Carter
  • ‘Moon Knight’

    ‘Moon Knight’

    Premiere: March 30, 2022

    Another Disney + series about which we have more questions that answers, Moon Knight will introduce fans to the labyrinthine mind of Marc Spector. Showrunner Jeremy Slater is leading a talented writer’s room and now with Oscar Isaac on board as Marc Spector, we can expect the supporting cast to start to fill in. 

    On January 8, 2021, a trade report confirmed that Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead will be directing some episodes of the show, joining Egyptian filmmaker Mohamed Diab that was already attached to the show.

    Bahrani actress May Calamawy was attached to the show on January 13, 2021. Given the show’s likely storyline, having an Egyptian father will surely help her portray whatever Egyptian character Marvel might have offered her. Just two days later Ethan Hawke saw his name attached to the project, seemingly taking up the part of the series’ main villain. Alexander Cobb was rumored to be joining the show in an, as of yet, undisclosed role.

    With the release of the first official trailer came a couple of confirmations regarding the project. Hawke was revealed to be playing Arthur Harrow and the series’ premiere was now scheduled for March 30, 2022.

    February 2022 brought a number of confirmations regarding the show’s characters. May Calamawy was confirmed to be playing Layla El-Faouly, Ethan Hawke will portray Dr. Arthur Harrow and the F. Murray Abraham will lend his voice to the nocturnal “God of the Moon”, “God of Vengeance” and the “Shepherd of to the Lost”, Khonshu.

    Unlike other Marvel Studios streaming shows, Moon Knight will premiere with a single episode.

    Cast

    • Oscar Isaac as Marc Spector / Moon Knight
    • Ethan Hawke as Arthur Harrow
    • *Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / The Hulk
    • May Calamawy as Layla El-Faouly
    • F. Murray Abraham as the voice of Khonshu

    (* indicates RUMORED additions to the cast)

    Promotional Material

  • ‘Ms. Marvel’

    ‘Ms. Marvel’

    Premiere: June 8, 2022

    After originally being scheduled for late-2021, Ms. Marvel is set to stream on Disney Plus sometime between July and September of 2022.

    In a late September report, four new supporting characters, including Sheikh Abdullah, are apparently set to appear besides Kamala on her live-action debut. A couple of days later, Deadline reported that Marvel Studios had found their Kamala, and that newcomer Iman Vellani will be playing the series’ titular character. Matt Lintz was later confirmed to be portraying Bruno Carrelli due to some leaked set pictures.

    Two new characters were confirmed in December 2020 (Kamran and Red Dagger) and a couple of days later the first footage from the show was shown at the Disney Investor Day presentation. Laurel Marsden was announced as being part of the cast in February 2021 and will be playing Zoe Zimmer.

    Alongside the release of the show’s first Official Trailer came definite confirmation of a June 8, 2022 premiere on Disney+.

    Cast

    • Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan / Ms. Marvel
    • Rish Shah as Kamran
    • Aramis Knight as Red Dagger
    • Matt Lintz as Bruno Carrelli
    • Laurel Marsden as Zoe Zimmer
    • Saagar Shaikh as Aamir Khan
    • Zenobia Shroff as Muneeba Khan
    • Mohan Kapur as Yusuf Khan
    • Yasmeen Fletcher as Nakia Bahadir
    • Laith Naki as Sheikh Abdullah
    • Travina Springer as Tyesha Hillman
    • Azher Usman in an unknown role
    • Nimra Bucha in an unknown role
    • Anjali Bhimani in an unknown role

    Promotional Material

  • ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’

    ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’

    Premiere: August 18, 2022

    Showrunner Jessica Gao is currently prepping what appears to be a light-hearted take on Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, for Disney +.

    Marvel was initially looking for an actress in her 20s-mid 30s with comedic chops to portray Walters. On September 15, 2020, Kat Coiro (It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia; Shameless) was confirmed to be directing multiple episodes of the show, and just two days later it became official that Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black; Perry Manson) had landed the series’ title role, ahead of an early 2021 start of production.

    During the Disney Investor Day presentation on December 10, 2020, it was confirmed that Tim Roth would be reprising his Abomination role from The Incredible Hulk and that Mark Ruffalo would also be returning as the Hulk himself. Ginger Gonzaga joined the cast in January 2021, in the role of Walter’s as of then-unnamed best friend. In April it was Renée Elise Goldsberry that joined the show playing a lawyer named Amelia. Jameela Jamil was announced to be playing the villainous Titania in early June 2021, with the series also adding Josh Segarra and Director of Photography Florian Ballhaus to its crew the following month. Griffin Matthews (The Flight Attendant) will also be joining the show in an undisclosed recurring role.

    In April 2022 some rumors surfaced that hinted at a late 2022 / early 2023 streaming debut for the series, a slight delay on what was initially expected. These rumors were later proved to be unsubstantiated with the announcement that the series would premiere on August 17 following the release of its first official trailer on May 17, 2022. Besides the release date, the show got a new title with the Attorney at Law subtitle being added and confirmation that it would consist of nine episodes instead of the initially announced ten.

    Amie Doherty was confirmed as the composer of the show in July 2022.

    According to an official Disney release, She-Hulk will debut with a single episode on August 17th, meaning it will likely have a nine-week run that will conclude on October 12th. This was soon changed with the series being revealed to be premiering on August 18 instead, with a new episode every Thursday. The decision will prevent a bigger overlap with the release of Rogue One spin-off Andor as well as prevent an Obi-Wan Kenobi / Ms. Marvel situation where both series’ episodes were being released on the same weekday.

    Cast

    • Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer Walters / She-Hulk
    • Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky / Abomination
    • Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / The Hulk
    • Jameela Jamil as Titania
    • Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil
    • Benedict Wong as Wong
    • Ginger Gonzaga as Nikki
    • Renée Elise Goldsberry as Amelia
    • Griffin Matthews in an unknown role
    • Josh Segarra in an unknown role
    • Unknown actor as Leap-Frog

    Promotional Material

  • ‘Hawkeye’

    ‘Hawkeye’

    Premiere: November 24, 2021

    The Marvel Studios Disney+ series looks set to adapt Matt Fraction’s award-winning comic series and see Clint Barton become a mentor to Kate Bishop, a young and similarly unpowered hero and a member of the Young Avengers. Hawkeye will also reportedly give us a further look into Barton’s time as Ronin, which could possibly play out similarly to this Connecting Imaginary Dots piece I wrote a while back. A report by the Illuminerdi has indicated that the series will see the duo take on the Clown, a European assassin who caused them a lot of problems in the comics.

    Originally scheduled for Fall of 2021, production on the series was indefinitely delayed in January of 2020. Just one month later, Disney set September 28th as a tentative start of production but with all the COVID delays it looks like that date may have been pushed into October.

    In late September 2020, it was reported that Madame Masque would make an appearance in the show, further adding to the idea that Matt Fraction’s run will have a big influence on the series’ storyline. Around the same time, we learned of a casting call that seemed to validate an earlier piece of ours, regarding the possibility of Maya Lopez, aka Echo, making her MCU debut in the series.

    Some weeks later a casting sheet surfaced that stated that production was looking for someone to play an audiologist. That seemed to indicate that, in the show, Clint might have some trouble with his earing, something that further ties the show to the Matt Fraction run.

    Hailee Steinfeld was confirmed as being the choice to portray Kate Bishop by Murphy’s Multiverse on our December 2, 2020 report. The following day six more cast members were announced, including Vera Farmiga who will be playing Kate Bishop’s mother, Eleanor. Among the other names are Tony Dalton, who will portray Jack Duquense a.k.a. Swordsman, and Alaqua Cox will play Maya Lopez/Echo, a role we first reported here. Florence Pugh will also make an appearance, reprising her Black Widow character, Yelena Belova

    According to an Instagram post featuring Alaqua Cox, the series is set for a Fall release. This was later confirmed when, on July 29, the show’s premiere date was official announced to be November 24, 2021. Alongside the announcement, an exclusive first-look was released. Subsequent promotional material confirmed the return of Linda Cardellini as Laura Barton, a role she last played in Avengers: Endgame.

    Cast

    • Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton / Hawkeye
    • Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop
    • Vera Farmiga as Eleanor Bishop
    • Tony Dalton as Jack Duquense / Swordsman
    • Fra Fee as Kazi / Clown
    • Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova
    • Alaqua Cox as Maya Lopez / Echo
    • Zahn McLarnon as William Lopez / Crazy Horse
    • Vincent D’Onofrio as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin
    • Linda Cardellini as Laura Barton
    • Brian d’Arcy James as Derek Bishop
    • *Unknown actress as Madame Masque

    (* indicates RUMORED additions to the cast)

    Promotional Material

  • ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ Jon M. Chu Set to Direct Live-Action ‘Lilo and Stitch’

    ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ Jon M. Chu Set to Direct Live-Action ‘Lilo and Stitch’

    Here’s an interesting surprise. It looks like Disney is not quite done with their cash cow live-action adaptations and has already set their eyes on the next project. They aim to adapt the Hawaiian story of Lilo & Stitch into live-action, which was originally going to be featured on Disney+. It is uncertain if things have changed but they have tapped Crazy Rich Asians director Jon M. Chu to tackle the project. Producers Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich of Rideback are set to return after their success with the Aladdin adaption into live-action. They currently do not have a writer set for the project. Mike Van Waes has drafted the version that was initially titled Stitch for Disney+, which was never officially greenlit.

    The original story by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders focused on a young girl named Lilo, who met the alien creature Stitch. He was created in a lab as the perfect creation of destruction. His time in Hawaii, however, teaches him about the importance of Ohana. The little alien was hellbent on protecting his newfound home from those that are trying to recapture him once more. Chu is a fantastic director to tackle this project. It also is his second project with Disney, as he is also involved with the upcoming Lucasfilm Willow project. These live-action adaptations of beloved animated classics haven’t gotten the best reception, so maybe this film can break the curse.

    Source: Hollywood Reporter

  • Disney+ Working on a ‘Darkwing Duck’ Reboot

    Disney+ Working on a ‘Darkwing Duck’ Reboot

    He is the terror that flaps in the night, the scourge that pecks at your nightmares. Yes, it is indeed Darkwing Duck, who seems to be getting his series on Disney+. The streaming service has added Point Grey Pictures executive producers Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, and Alex McAtee to join the project. McAtee will be overseeing its production as they look for a writer. According to Variety, this is only in the early stages of development, so it might still take some time before it will appear on Disney+. This announcement follows after a few episodes on the Ducktales reboot focused on the titular character. It is uncertain if this will act as a continuation within the series’ canon or if, like the original show, will exist as its universe.

    The original Darkwing Duck from 1991 followed the suburban life of Drake Mallard. He fought crime alongside Launchpad McQuack and his adopted daughter Gosalyn. In the DuckTales reboot, they turned the original character into a fictional character of an in-universe superhero show. Jim Cummings returned to voice the iconic character but was an actor named Jim Starling. Mallard was a fan of the character who was going to replace him in a darker reboot. The Duck Knight Returns. He turned to crime-fighting after a falling out with his idol. 

    Chris Diamantopoulos took over voice acting duties for the new incarnation of Mallard. The series’ third season also finally introduced Gosalyn to round out the cast of the original. It would be a waste to disconnect the show from DuckTales, as it is already set-up these characters perfectly for a new generation. It’ll be interesting how these shows will interact with each other and if we might see other spin-offs, such as one focusing on Gizmoduck. Hopefully, they’ll give us a new rendition of that iconic theme song I am curious what direction they will take.

    Source: Variety