Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Marvel Movies

  • Frank Grillo Doubts a Crossbones Return to the MCU, Hints at DCU Future

    Frank Grillo Doubts a Crossbones Return to the MCU, Hints at DCU Future

    There’s always a discussion surrounding how villains are treated in any comic book cinematic franchise. Most commonly, they survive for mostly one film and those that make it out alive aren’t around for too long. So, while the heroes continue to get some development, outside of Loki, most villains end up one-dimensional due to the lack of screen time.

    As it turns out, Crossbones actor Frank Grillo feels the same. His character was seemingly set up for a long future with the Marvel Cinematic Universe but faced an untimely end during Captain America: Civil War. One might argue that without his character, the events of that entire film wouldn’t have taken place but it seems Grillo wasn’t a fan of how his character was treated, and seemingly confirms he’ll appear in an upcoming DC project.

    They never told a story [about Crossbones]. The mythology of the MCU and just what Marvel has in its pool of characters, it’s so deep. Crossbones was there for a minute, but he was supposed to be there longer, then they went the direction they did. I think Crossbones serves a purpose, but I think the interesting thing is that if you see how many people around the world have responded to Crossbones, and again, he’s on the screen for a very f–king short amount of time, I think there’s more there. I think there was more meat on the bone. I was disappointed, which is why I went over to DC.

    Frank Grillo

    It’s certainly a bit strange as he probably had more screen time than any villain in the MCU. Plus, he also returned for two projects even after his character died, as he returned in Avengers: Endgame and even voiced Crossbones again in What If…?. So, he wasn’t a character that was completely sidelined and it would’ve been great to see him return especially with future multiversal storylines. But going by his comments, that ship has sailed.

    Source: ComicBook.com

  • DC Studios co-CEO Weighs in on Competing with Marvel Studios

    DC Studios co-CEO Weighs in on Competing with Marvel Studios

    Marvel vs. DC is seemingly half of what makes the Internet the Internet. There’s always been a competition on who has the coolest hero, the best character developments, the most iconic moments, and whatever a nerdy brain can think up. Yet, it’s a very different picture for those involved in trying to make these companies and their projects a success.

    Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has very openly stated that he hopes to see DC succeed, as he believed it was beneficial to everyone. And now DC Studios co-CEO, James Gunn, has echoed those same words. He believes that “every movie Marvel has is sort of an advertising for comic-book films, and vice versa.”

    I think it’s the opposite. To be frank, I think the better Marvel movies do, it’s better for DC, and the better DC movies do, it’s better for Marvel. When people see bad movies, they don’t want to spend more money on seeing more movies. So you want good movies to happen, especially since we’re making two or three movies a year at DC. So every movie that Marvel has is sort of an advertising for comic-book films, and vice versa. And you don’t want to scare off people from going to the theater. And if we’re both making good movies, that’s the best of all situations, which keeps the ball bouncing back and forth. At that point, we can talk about rivalries, and it’d be fun.

    James Gunn

    It’s also fitting that the director of a Marvel and DC film feels this way, as his belief isn’t far-fetched from reality. We’ve seen all these films at their best when others succeed, as there’s a certain boost from one project going into the next. As such, these projects need each other to offer something unique to make them stand out, while also boosting their success. Here’s hoping whatever dragged the last two films down is about to take a different direction.

    Source: Rolling Stone

  • ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’s James Gunn Believes in Superhero Fatigue

    ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’s James Gunn Believes in Superhero Fatigue

    Superhero fatigue has been all the rage right now. Mostly due to some pointing out that they’ve seemingly reached their limits and reading too much into box office performances of two distinct projects earlier this year. Shazam: Fury of the God couldn’t pull in an audience and opened with a depressing $30M while Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania lost steam surprisingly fast after a bombastic opening.

    While there’s more to this given just how superhero films performed last year, James Gunn gave his thoughts on the topic and seemingly believes that there is such a thing. Yet, he points out that it’s not as simple as “superhero movies” but rather spectacle films that lack the heart that really drags us into these stories.

    I think there is such a thing as superhero fatigue. I think it doesn’t have anything to do with superheroes. It has to do with the kind of stories that get to be told, and if you lose your eye on the ball, which is character. We love Superman. We love Batman. We love Iron Man. Because they’re these incredible characters that we have in our hearts. And if it becomes just a bunch of nonsense onscreen, it gets really boring. But I get fatigued by most spectacle films, by the grind of not having an emotionally grounded story. It doesn’t have anything to do with whether they’re superhero movies or not. If you don’t have a story at the base of it, just watching things bash each other, no matter how clever those bashing moments are, no matter how clever the designs and the VFX are, it just gets fatiguing, and I think that’s very, very real.

    James Gunn

    It’s not completely wrong, as many spectacle films sometimes can overshadow the heart of the story. Ant-Man‘s third film is quite a bit “bigger” than the previous and perhaps just went overboard on what defined the franchise initially. Even Shazam‘s sequel seemingly started going in a bigger direction and there’s no surprise that the first two very family-centric franchises may have struggled a bit earlier this year.

    Of course, the topic of superhero fatigue is also quite a bit important for James Gunn, as he’s the head of the newly formed DC Studios. With him set to also direct the next Superman film that’ll define a future new cinematic universe, he’ll put a lot of weight into ensuring that fatigue doesn’t take away their opportunity to build this franchise.

    Source: Rolling Stones

  • James Gunn Reveals How Taika Waititi Saved His Vision of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’

    James Gunn Reveals How Taika Waititi Saved His Vision of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’

    It’s strange to think that there was a time when we didn’t know if we’ll see James Gunn direct the third Guardians of the Galaxy film. The director was a major part of the studio’s future before a controversy derailed everyone’s plans. Luckily by 2019, Gunn found his way back but was also quite busy directing his DC film, The Suicide Squad.

    So, many of his initial plans have gone through quite a few new directions as Avengers: Endgame was on the horizon and the film ended with Thor joining the Guardians. One thing Gunn knew was that he didn’t want to include the character in his story, but in an interview with the Rolling Stones, he reveals how Taika Waititi saved the vision of his film.

    And I didn’t think it was gonna be in there. Endgame came out right after I decided to do Guardians again. So I didn’t have much say in what was in Endgame, and then it came out and then I was like, ‘What the fuck am I gonna do?’ That’s when [Marvel Studios president] Kevin [Feige] told me Taika’s gonna do Thor, and we’ll have the Guardians in it. I said, ‘Thank God!’… To be completely honest, Thor was never going to be in this movie. Taika took a bullet for me. Because I was not going to have him in. I was just gonna start up and there’s no Thor.

    James Gunn

    So, without Thor: Love and Thunder, we might not have the true original vision of Gunn‘s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. He had a shot to explore the Guardians a bit (ironic given he was the Internet’s top choice to continue the franchise if Gunn never managed to return) and set them off on their adventure once Thor realized his true mission was to uncover what

    Source: Rolling Stones

  • ‘Deadpool 3’ Adds ‘The Marvels’, ‘She-Hulk’ Scribe to WritingTeam

    ‘Deadpool 3’ Adds ‘The Marvels’, ‘She-Hulk’ Scribe to WritingTeam

    Current writer of Marvel Comics’ The Amazing Spider-Man, Zeb Wells‘ history with Marvel Comics dates back to 2002’s Spider-Man’s Tangled Web. Wells turned his trademark style with Marvel Comics into a gig at Marvel Entertainment, where he wrote the unreleased pilot for New Warriors, and then into a spot in the writer’s room for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Now it seems Wells’ success has led him to a spot on one of Marvel Studios’ most anticipated upcoming theatrical releases.

    According to Deadline, Wells has joined Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese as a contributor to the script of 2024’s untitled Deadpool threequel. While Marvel Studios has yet to comment on Wells‘ contribution to the script, it’s possible he was chosen due to his work on Marvel Comics’ A + X and Savage Wolverine. Wells has quickly become one of Marvel Studios’ most hired guns, having not only served as a writer on She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, but also as an executive producer as well as co-writing 2023’s theatrical release, The Marvels, as well as being the head writer for the upcoming animated series Marvel Zombies.

    The third installment in the Deadpool franchise is currently untitled but will see Ryan Reynolds’s Merc with a Mouth debut in the MCU alongside Hugh Jackman‘s Wolverine. With production expected to kick off soon, the cast has filled up quickly with Emma Corrin signing on as the film’s villain, Matthew Macfadyen set to serve as a third wheel to Deadpool and Wolverine, Karan Soni and Leslie Uggams returning as Dopinder and Blind Al, respectively, and Owen Wilson rumored to pop up as TVA agent Mobius. The film is currently slated to hit theaters on November 8th, 2024.

    Source: Deadline

  • New Rumor Puts a Number on Marvel Studios’ Future Yearly Output

    New Rumor Puts a Number on Marvel Studios’ Future Yearly Output

    Quality over quantity has been the long-echoed outcry on the internet surrounding Marvel Studios’ direction during the pandemic. With up to four shows on top of three films, it seemed like they were hoping too put out as much as they could. There were hints that Bob Chapek‘s era has forced them to also enforce more Disney+ releases to promote the streaming service while also trying to adjust to something no one ever expected to delay their releases for two years.

    Marvel Studios was playing catch-up but there was enough drama to overshadow the troubles most production companies are facing in the current timeline. CG over specific shots in a 2+ hour project were the signs of this development, and many discussions have surfaced online. Ironically, most of this discourse only really arrived during 2022 and has been hyper-fixated on in the current mythos.

    That was until Bob Iger once again took over as Disney CEO and many new rumors have surfaced hinting at a new yet old direction. Ironically, the number of rumors of potential projects was one of the causes for concern, these new rumors are potentially doing the same thing. On The Hot Mic, Jeff Sneider has added more fuel to the fire of a more regulated output in the form of an exact project count moving forward.

    Marvel’s target output has been reduced. I don’t know if this has been reported, or if this was a line in the trades, or whatever, but I’m told that the target output has been reduced from four shows and four movies a year to two shows and three movies a year. And of course that’s malleable. You could get one on either side of that, or whatever.

    Jeff Sneider

    Two series and three films a year seem to be the current direction for 2023. We just recently saw Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania release with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and The Marvels on the horizon. We also had the longest pause between series releases with Secret Invasion finally getting its June release and likely only the second season of Loki on the horizon. While some future schedules might hint at a different schedule, they have reshuffled their schedules quite a bit as of late.

    It is kind of funny to think that this schedule matches what we had with the Netflix series and the Marvel movies, as we had two series and three films every year. Yet, we also had additional Marvel series like The Runaways, Agents of SHIELD, as well as Cloak and Dagger. 2018 to 2019 technically had more projects airing with a higher number of episodes compared to the “stuffed” 2022 but perhaps the Marvel studios branding is creating the illusion of such. Either way, the current rumor mill will likely have many happy to see the studio dial it down.

    Source: YouTube via The Direct

  • Fandango Reveals When ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ Tickets Will Be Available

    Fandango Reveals When ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ Tickets Will Be Available

    Advance ticket sales are one of the most interesting modern-day phenomena in the entertainment business. With so many theaters and so many screens in each theater dedicated to major releases, it’s increasingly rare for showings of those major releases to sell out. Given that opening weekend now essentially begins early Thursday afternoon in most places, there are dozens of opportunities to catch a tentpole release on opening weekend and, for those not living in major metropolitan areas, most of them can be done in relatively empty theaters. However, fans LOVE buying their tickets online as soon as possible and now Marvel Studios, via Fandango, has made it clear when tickets will be available for advance purchase for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

    Fans looking to book their trip to see James Gunn‘s final installment in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise can purchase tickets online beginning Monday, April 3rd. The announcement of the date came via a teaser for the film which included some brief snippets of new footage.

    In Marvel Studios “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” our beloved band of misfits are looking a bit different these days. Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.

    Official synopsis courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Publicity

    Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 hits theaters on May 5th!

  • Simu Liu Talks Potential ‘Shang-Chi’ Sequel

    Simu Liu Talks Potential ‘Shang-Chi’ Sequel

    We’re still waiting for the official confirmation that Shang-Chi‘s sequel is on the horizon. Outside of quite a few rumors, Marvel Studios has been surprisingly shy about announcing one even as the first entry was quite the critical darling. It also was the first sign of strong legs for the studio that it hasn’t quite enjoyed since the pandemic recovered.

    Still, the film’s star Simu Liu has shared his thoughts on what it means to tackle a sequel in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, especially after introducing the world to this unique corner of the universe. He also highlights that he hopes they can “still afford Michelle Yeoh” after her major Oscar win for Everything Everywhere all at Once.

    Going into a sequel feels exciting. It doesn’t necessarily feel like there’s a pressure to perform or a pressure to exceed. It feels like we’ve established a world and there’s just something really nostalgic and exciting about returning to that world that we’ve spent so much time ideating on and thinking about. And then, we’re getting to revisit some things, but also show the viewer new things. We’ll deliver all of the amazing action that we were celebrated for on the first movie, but then also hopefully explore new sides of Shaun’s character and the characters around him. That is, of course, if we can still afford Michelle Yeoh. She’s on top of the world and just the queen of everything.

    Simu Liu

    It’s strange to think how much time has passed since the film was released in theaters. There was something special about this kung fu-inspired project, and here’s hoping we get quite a few more. There’s also the rumor of a potential 10 Rings Disney+ spinoff they might be working on. So, we’ll see if we get more out of the Shang-Chi corner of the MCU.

    Source: Collider

  • Matt Shakman’s ‘Fantastic Four’ Adds ‘Avatar 2’ Writer

    Matt Shakman’s ‘Fantastic Four’ Adds ‘Avatar 2’ Writer

    Josh Friedman of Avatar: The Way of Water and Snowpiercer fame has found his next project, and it’s quite the big one. It seems he is joining the upcoming Fantastic Four film that’ll be the first arrival of Marvel’s first family in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He’ll join director Matt Shakman in what may be one of their most ambitious projects yet.

    It’s a big get for the studio given he was part of one of the biggest releases in 2022. Previously, Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer were attached to write. Friedman joining may be a hint that they are moving further away from the pure comedic direction the project may have had given their involvement with various comedies. Friedman is more serious in tone with his tone and, bigger yet, a huge sci-fi veteran.

    He was involved with Steven Spielberg‘s War of the Worlds, created the Terminator spinoff series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, and more. Given the announcement dropped now, he has likely been involved with the project for a few months now. We also recently found out that Thunderbolts also added a new writer in Beef‘s Lee Sung Jin. Some may not remember but this is very much a pre-pandemic Marvel movie. Outside of a handful of writers, they had a variety of people work on the scripts before releasing a film. So, perhaps something for the “quality over quantity ” crowd.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • Latest BTS Photos from ‘Captain America 4’ Provide First Look at Harrison Ford’s Thunderbolt Ross, Tim Blake Nelson’s Villainous Leader

    Latest BTS Photos from ‘Captain America 4’ Provide First Look at Harrison Ford’s Thunderbolt Ross, Tim Blake Nelson’s Villainous Leader

    Harrison Ford and Tim Blake Nelson were the latest actors to be captured on the set of Captain America: New World Order. The set photos, courtesy of Just Jared, show Ford’s Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross and Tim Blake Nelson’s Samuel Sterns.

    A close look at Nelson shows the actor sporting a touch of green, indicating that the scenes shot today probably involved a mix of practical and VFX to run the actor into the villainous, gamma-infused Leader!

    News of Nelson’s return as the Leader was first announced back in September 2022 as part of Marvel Studios’ D23 presentation. The actor first portrayed the character in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. This will mark his long-awaited return, following rumors that initially had the character set to appear in She-Hulk. As for Ford, reports of his casting first circulated in October 2022. They were quickly confirmed, with the actor officially taking over the role of Ross for late actor William Hurt.

    The film, which sees Anthony Mackie take over the mantle of Captain America, is in production now. It is being directed by Julius Onah and will hit theaters on May 3rd, 2024.

    Source: Just Jared.