Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Movie News

  • ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ Receives A CinemaScore

    ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ Receives A CinemaScore

    The ratings are in and it looks like the general audience have quite enjoyed their time with the latest Avatar entry, Avatar: The Way of Water. The official CinemaScore has arrived and it’s another A for James Cameron, the same rating the original had back in 2009. In retrospect that is actually quite surprising that it didn’t have an A+ at the time given just how incredible its legs are, but that might just be the Cameron effect.

    https://twitter.com/CinemaScore/status/1603997366628909056

    The CinemaScore is mainly there to highlight how much general audiences are enjoying the latest film. 2022 has been quite rough and critical with many long-time franchises and films landing in the B to B+ territory throughout the year. Marvel Studios was sticking around the B+ score until the release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever with an A. Though, interestingly enough these films still had some crazy legs at the box office even with lower scores. 2022 generally has been struggling, as we’re still feeling the effects of the pandemic and a general exhaustion after being locked at home for multiple years.

    Still, Avatar: The Way of Water is not set to break any domestic records but could make quite the pull internationally with it possibly passing $500M+ worldwide. If it plays like the last two films by the director, it would have a good chance to make it towards a $2B+ box office run, as it also has barely to no competition in the coming weeks. Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s December release was record-breaking last year and the spot might get more and more popular if it keeps up this trend.

    Source: Twitter, CinemaScore

  • Henry Cavill and Gal Gadot’s Cameos in ‘The Flash’ Cut

    Henry Cavill and Gal Gadot’s Cameos in ‘The Flash’ Cut

    We know that the DC Extended Universe is no longer what it once was, but it looks like we’re already seeing the ripples of James Gunn and Peter Safran‘s new direction already taking effect. 2023 will feature the last films produced under the old leadership and it’s too late to just not release the, but that doesn’t mean they can’t make any changes along the way. Henry Cavill already had to give up the mantle of Superman and Gal Gadot‘s Wonder Woman 3 is seemingly dead in the water. Now, they’re also being removed from already shot projects.

    In a new report by The Hollywood Reporter, they talk about why Cavill ended up not returning to the role of Superman. The spark that gave him hope was mainly driven by a selfish push by Dwayne Johnson to receive full creative control over his own corner in the DCEU, but with new leadership in town that is no longer happening. Now, it seems his already shot cameo in The Flash set for a release next year has been cut alongside scenes featuring Gal Gadot‘s Wonder Woman. It looks like we’ll have a complete clean plate moving forward.

    There is only one uncertainty and that is what it means for the film. We don’t know if the truly only had cameos or maybe even appeared in some form in the production. It is strange that they didn’t just keep the cameos as a last hurrah for that era. Yes, it makes sense to recast for their new adaptation and DC Studios’ New 52 take but why not have them appear one last time before they just reboot the series? We’ll have to see what this means for the future of the franchise.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • Villain for the Scrapped ‘Man of Steel’ Sequel Reportedly Revealed

    Villain for the Scrapped ‘Man of Steel’ Sequel Reportedly Revealed

    As news came this week that Henry Cavill‘s tenure as Superman had officially come to an end, fans lamented what could have been for his version of the character who first appeared in 2013’s Man of Steel. A scrapped sequel for the film had been in the works at Warner Bros. Discovery, but as James Gunn and Peter Safran stepped into their new roles as co-chairs of DC Studios, that project was scrapped. Now a new report has revealed who Cavill‘s Kal-El would have squared off with in the sequel.

    According to THR, Man of Steel 2 would have pitted Superman against one of his classic foes: Braniac. Braniac and Superman have been going at one another since 1958 with his vilest plot being the miniaturization of Krypton’s capital city of Kandor which he then kept in a jar! The sick bastard!!

    Braniac has a pretty long history in live-action,ost notably as an ongoing antagonist in Smallville where he was played my James Marsters. The character was also a major player in Superman: The Animated Series.

    While fans mourn the lack of Brainiac in the Snyderverse, keep in mind he’s far too important of a character in Superman’s story to stay out of a long form story about the character in Gunn’s all-new DC Universe.

  • Donald Glover to Star and Produce in a New Villain-Focused ‘Spider-Man’ Film

    Donald Glover to Star and Produce in a New Villain-Focused ‘Spider-Man’ Film

    Sony is at it again, as it seems they have found their next niche Spider-Man character to get his own spinoff film. In The Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision entry they’ve unveiled that the previous popular fan cast for The Amazing Spider-Man‘s title role, Donald Glover, will make his return to the world of the webhead as a star and producer of an upcoming villain-based spinoff. Who are they focusing on you might ask? None other than Hypno-Hustler.

    Eddie Murphy‘s son, Myles Murphy, is set to write the project that doesn’t have a title just yet. It marks another one of the bizarre Sony Pictures’ choices of developing films based on obscure villains from the character’s catalogue. It seems Glover loved the musical aspect and doesn’t have the Marvel baggage of connecting him to the wider audience. There’s no word if they are going for the character’s disco roots or even taking a more modern approach, as the details remain under wraps.

    Sony’s approach to using the Spider-Man license is definitely bizarre and somewhat out there that you have to respect it. There’s a good chance that they might have some other bizarre characters that’ll get their own project down the line. Anyone else up for a Screwball seires about their troubles as an influencer? Still, Donald Glover once again returns to the franchise after briefly appearing in Spider-Man: Homecoming and this hopefully doesn’t mean he’ll not also return to that role later down the line.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • Amazon Secures Rights to ‘Warhammer 40,000’, Henry Cavill to Spearhead Cinematic Universe

    Amazon Secures Rights to ‘Warhammer 40,000’, Henry Cavill to Spearhead Cinematic Universe

    While we just recently heard that Amazon is looking to Man of Steel’s Henry Cavill to star and executive produce an adaptaiton of the Warhammer 40,000 table top games, they haven’t yet secured the rights to the property. Luckily, it didn’t take long after as they just confirmed that the agreement has been finalized for the rights across TV series, film, animation, and even games. Head of Amazon and MGM Studios, Jennifer Salke, has shared the following statement:

    Warhammer 40,000 has captured the imagination of fans of all ages, from all walks of life, and all over the world. We are excited to work with Henry, Vertigo Entertainment, and Games Workshop across our Amazon entertainment businesses on this brilliant, immersive franchise for our global customers to experience for years to come.

    Jennifer Salke

    Henry Cavill has an executive producer role on the upcoming project, and has secured the rights alongside Vertigo Entertainment’s Roy Lee and Natalie Viscuso. He also confirms that this is more than just a one time project, as he will spearhead and build up the cinematic universe.

    I have loved Warhammer since I was a boy, making this moment truly special for me. The opportunity to shepherd this cinematic universe from its inception is quite the honor and the responsibility. I couldn’t be more grateful for all the hard work put in by Vertigo, Amazon Studios and Games Workshop to make this happen. One step closer to making a nigh on lifelong dream come true.

    Henry Cavill

    He also couldn’t contain his excitement with a post after the first announcement on his involvement hit the internet.

    It’s a major step forward for the actor hfter having recently left The Witcher series and losing out on his iconic DC role of Superman. Yet, it seems that Warhammer 40K will keep him busy for many years to come if the post-apocalyptic project manages to get rolling. And, it seems like he is able to make a lifelong dream come true and that’s always a great way to approach any cinematic universe.

    Source: Instagram, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter

  • Peyton Reed Teases Bill Murray’s “Crucial Role” in ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ Sequel

    Peyton Reed Teases Bill Murray’s “Crucial Role” in ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ Sequel

    Ant-Man and the Wasp is back in style as they’re about to face the Quantum Realm in Quantumania. Not only its natural dangers are going to be in their path but also some new and familiar enemies. We finally get our first look at Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror; only met a Variant previously; as well as some new additions. SDCC already confirmed that MODOK, the Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing, will have a role in the film but we also know that Bill Murray has a big role.

    In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, director Peyton Reed finally got a chance to hype up his upcoming February release by sharing some details on what his next film has in store for us. In it, he also got the chance to talk about Bill Murray‘s character, who leaked that he’s a “bad guy” all the way back in January of this year. Now, Reed got a chance to confirm he has a “crucial role” in the story and how he connects to the overarching storyline.

    Bill Murray plays a character from Janet van Dyne’s. It’s a crucial role. A big theme in this movie is the things that parents and kids don’t say to each other, the secrets that they keep in families. In the last movie, when Hank and Hope rescue Janet, Evangeline Lilly’s character had this idea of: Oh, I’m going to be reunited with my mom, this is going to be great, we’re going to talk about everything. But what happens if the other person, in this case Janet, puts up a wall and maybe is not comfortable talking about certain things and doesn’t reveal certain things about her past? As we know from great stories, you can put the past behind you, but the past will always find a way to show up again. Bill’s character represents that in this movie.

    Peyton Reed

    It’s definitely going to make for an interesting storyline on how our parents have their own secrets, which also adds the question of how this’ll connect back to Scott and Cassie Lang. The Ant-Man film shave been the more family-focused of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and taking a darker twist on that type of storyline will definitely make this an interesting addition to the franchise.

    Source: Entertainment Weekly

  • Blumhouse’s ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ Movie Adds Matthew Lillard and Josh Hutcherson

    Blumhouse’s ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ Movie Adds Matthew Lillard and Josh Hutcherson

    Ruh Roh Freddy, it seems that the upcoming Blumhouse adaptation of Five Nights at Freddy’s is finally moving forward. After countless delays over script issues with the creator Scott Cawthon, they are finally moving forward with the project. They have no added two starts with production set to start in New Orleans in February. Long-time Shaggy voice actor Matthew Lillard has joined alongside Josh Hutcherson, who is well known for his performances in The Hunger Games.

    They’re definitely an interesting addition and there’s no details on who exactly they might end up playing. To be fair, the FNAF franchise isn’t well-known for its cast but rather the creepy animatronics that haunt the Pizza restaurants named after Freddy Fazbear. Though, Lillard would make for a great phone guy if that staple character will make an appearance or they simply have Cawthon cameo in the role.

    Five Nights at Freddy’s is a simple concept but the lore that has build around the franchise with each new entry offers a lot. The only question is if Cawthon‘s perchance for cryptic storytelling will translate well into live-action cinema. He may try to sneak in details and build up a franchise that barely gets going if the story doesn’t hit those same emotional beats you’d expect from a film. The recent PlayStation exclusive game Security Breach faced a similar issue in trying to bring the gaming franchise into a quasi open world format.

    Source: Deadline

  • Peyton Reed Says Jonathan Majors is Kang…With a Twist

    Peyton Reed Says Jonathan Majors is Kang…With a Twist

    Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania director Peyton Reed has a lifelong love affair with Marvel Comics. The mind behind Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man franchise has never been shy about his affinity for the comics and the characters found on their pages and once upon a time pitched a Fantastic Four movie to the execs at Fox. Reed’s first two Ant-Man projects were released following major event films and, as such, were fairly mild in terms of their impact on the greater MCU. In both cases, that meant that the film’s villains definitely weren’t on anyone’s top ten bad guys lists. That’s all about to change with Quantumania.

    “I grew up a real Marvel comics nerd,” Reed told EW, “and there are a handful of antagonists in the Marvel comics universe who are all-timers. Loki, obviously. Doctor Doom from the Fantastic Four. And Kang the Conqueror.” The last name on that list will make his MCU debut in Quantumania and as can be gleaned from the trailer for the film, he means business.

    via EW

    According to Reed, bringing in a major villain and changing peoples’ perspectives on what an Ant-Man movie can have always been on his mind. “In conversations with Kevin Feige and Marvel, it was like, I want to put Ant-Man and Wasp up against a really formidable villain in this movie,” said the director, “and so we’re doing Kang the Conqueror.”

    Even the hardest of the hardcore Marvel Comics fans might have a hard time explaining the totality of Kang to a newbie. He’s just a complicated dude with a lot of time travel stories that make his character hard to follow…because he’s many different characters depending on when he is. While the MCU version will still have some of those qualities, Reed hints that this version of Kang isn’t exactly ripped right from the pages of the comics.

    In the comics, Kang has dominion over time, he’s a time traveler. His situation is a little bit different in this movie, which I won’t spoil for you, but he’s someone who, [while] we live very linear lives, from childhood to death, Kang doesn’t exist that way. It struck me as interesting to take the tiniest Avengers — in some people’s minds maybe the least powerful Avengers — and put them up against the most powerful force in the multiverse.

    Peyton Reed

    As for what that means, fans will have to wait just a couple more months to find out for themselves; however, get used to see Majors and Kang and Majors as not-quite-Kang for the next few years.

    Source: EW

  • UPDATED: Newly Spotted DC Studios Logo Debunked

    UPDATED: Newly Spotted DC Studios Logo Debunked

    UPDATED: Earlier today, we’ve shared a post from producer Patrick Schumacker that had a curious DC Studios logo. What caught everyone’s attention was that he deleted the post quite swiftly which made many think that perhaps there’s more to this image. Now, The Wrap’s Umberto Gonzalez has shared that the logo may have the title on it but it’s simply a holiday gift that was handed out.

    Source: Twitter

    Well, here’s a sudden surprise but it seems like producer Patrick Schumacker, who has worked on the DC series Harley Quinn and Powerless, has shared an interesting new post on Social Media before swiftly taking it offline. That action has sparked quite a bit of interest as @FlashFilmNews was fast enough to get their hands on the image that reveals DC Studios new logo. As the division is new, formerly known as just DC Films, we’ve long wondered if they’d unveil one in the near future. It seems it may have found its way online faster than anyone may have expected.

    What makes this logo stand out is that it’s taking cues from Jim Lee‘s redesign as part of the New 52. The fact it includes Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and The Flash may also be our first look at what could be the slate. Though, we still have to say that perhaps its not the official logo and just one version they played around with but why would there be a sweater printed? It could also be something he purchased as a fan but DC Studios didn’t exist before James Gunn and Peter Safran took over as co-CEOs, as it was always known as DC Films under Walter Hamada.

    We still can’t say this is the final design but the fact that Schumacker swiftly deleted it before it went online is a bit telling. Perhaps a reveal was planned for today and he just accidentally scheduled it for the wrong time, but with James Gunn teasing a slate reveal in January, perhaps a logo reveal is something they want to offer as a little holiday gift. We’ll see if something follows in the coming days.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Avatar 2’ Opens to $17M Domestically, Already Passes $50M Worldwide

    ‘Avatar 2’ Opens to $17M Domestically, Already Passes $50M Worldwide

    Not a person in the world would’ve denied that the release of Avatar: The Way of Water would draw in an audience, but the question was always just how big the film might go. It could follow the Marvel box office formula with a massive opening but not have the same legs as its original. The film was set to make up to $170M according to analysts, and it does seem like it’s still on track towards at least $150M with it having pulled in a strong $17M in early previews.

    It would put it on pace to become one of the highest opening films of the year, but will likely not dehtrone either dominating Marvel Studios’ productions that pulled in over $180M. Though, early critical reception is very positive and could give it a much bigger boost than anyone might be expecting at this point. Still, the $17M are lower than Jurassic World: Dominion that opened to $18M and with an international push managed to get past a billion. The original had some massive legs and projections also have it making upwards of $350M in its Chinese run, something Marvel hasn’t had the privilege to in a while.

    The film has opened in 44 international markets and pulled in $50.4M excluding China, where it pulled in $18.5M. With a $100M opening in China it does have a chance to potentially dehtrone Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as the highest opening film of the year. Word-of-mouth might be what pushes this film forward even if it’s unclear just how far the film might go. The Way of Water only has the caveat that it needs to make a lot of money to end up profitable for James Cameron‘s vision of multiple films to come true.

    Source: Twitter, Variety