Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Movie News

  • EXCLUSIVE: ‘Hollywood Stargirl’s Tyrel Jackson Williams Originally Auditioned for 2020’s ‘Stargirl’ Years Ago

    EXCLUSIVE: ‘Hollywood Stargirl’s Tyrel Jackson Williams Originally Auditioned for 2020’s ‘Stargirl’ Years Ago

    Hollywood Stargirl is only a few days before it releases on Disney+, as it continues the story of Stargirl Caraway (Grace VanderWaal) after her time in Mica, Arizona. Now, she finds herself in Hollywood, as the title implies, and may find her love for music may open up new avenues moving forward. She’ll meet the ambitious brothers Evan (Elijah Richardson) and Terrell (Tyrel Jackson Wiliams), who’ll play an important part in the latest chapter of her story.

    As both are newcomers to the film franchise, I got a chance to sit down to chat and it turns out that it wasn’t the first time that Tyrel Jackson Williams auditioned to be part of the Stargirl franchise. He revealed that he had “auditioned for the original a bunch of times” five years ago.

    It was really interesting, I had seen the original. I’d have actually auditioned for the original a bunch of times, years ago, maybe like 5 years ago. And when the audition for this came around, I was like, I got déjá-vu a little bit: “I think…didn’t I already?”

    Tyrel Jackson Wiliams

    While it didn’t work out back then, he was happy to join the cast with the sequel, especially as it took a new direction giving Grace VanderWaal‘s Stargirl the actual leading role.

    But it was really great to jump in now and the world had already been built out and to see they wanted to see it take into a newer direction and give Stargirl more agency and more responsibility. I am happy to be able to be a part of this new direction.

    Tyrel Jackson Williams

    It’s definitely always surprising to find out that actors tried to join franchises at an earlier point but would eventually find their way to join after all. So, it seems like Williams went through quite the journey to eventually end up being part of Stargirl after all. Hollywood Stargirl is going to release on June 3rd.

  • ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Ends Memorial Day Weekend With Massive $160.5M

    ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Ends Memorial Day Weekend With Massive $160.5M

    It looks like Top Gun Maverick managed to pull up even more momentum than predictions set and has officially passed the $160M mark over the four-day Memorial Day weekend. The key audience of 35+ moviegoers has returned to push this film and it seems it was exactly what they were waiting for to see with the pandemic keeping them from visiting theaters.

    Originally the film’s lowest openings were at the conservative $95M and it’s the second film after the pandemic to start to truly beat expectations, as did Spider-Man: No Way Home last December. Paramount’s domestic distribution president Chris Aronson had the following to say about its success:

    I think it opens the door to what is possible.

    Chris Aronson

    IMAX president Megan Colligan also highlighted that this may be just the start with other strong contenders hitting theaters soon, which include Jurassic World: Dominion, Elvis, Lightyear, Minions: Rise of Gru, and Thor: Love and Thunder.

    A whole segment of moviegoers have just come out for first time. Top Gun is an exceptional movie, and there is a really excellent lineup of movies coming down the pike. You really need that one-two-punch.

    Top Gun had a 55% purchase by 35 years and older viewers with 18% even being older than 55 years. In comparison, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘ ticket buyers were predominantly younger with 66% below the age of 34 years. Yet, 21% of younger audiences also came to check out the new Top Gun film, highlighting the interest of cross-generations, most likely a family bonding event for parents sharing their nostalgia with their children.

    It further highlights the potential of older skewed films drawing in an audience once again, but there’s a chance that it may also be a film that happened to release at the perfect time. As people have reached a boiling point with the pandemic and may be looking for that feeling that this film provides. The potential is that this film leads to a future with a stronger balance and diversity in cinema, which helps further develop all genres and entries.

    Source: THR

  • ‘West Side Story’s Rachel Zegler Joins ‘The Hunger Games’ Prequel

    ‘West Side Story’s Rachel Zegler Joins ‘The Hunger Games’ Prequel

    It looks like the rumors surrounding Rachel Zegler‘s next major production were real as Variety has just broken the news that she will be joining the upcoming The Hunger Games prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The actress recently teased that she may have a role with a tweet last Monday night where the first letters spell out the main character’s name, Lucy Gray Baird.

    https://twitter.com/rachelzegler?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1531244647510683649%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fvariety.com%2F2022%2Ffilm%2Fnews%2Frachel-zegler-hunger-games-prequel-lucy-gray-baird-1235281420%2F

    Now that the news has officially dropped, she confirmed that it was indeed an intentional tweet to catch people’s attention. The film will adapt the book by the same name which was published in 2020 by Suzanne Collins. It explores the early days of Coriolanus Snow, who would eventually become the tyrannical ruler of Panem and the one to make Katniss Everdeen’s life a living hell.

    The movie will explore Snow as he mentors Zegler‘s Lucy Gray Baird, who is a tribute from District 12 during the 10th Hunger Games. Gray sees in her the potential to unleash his own ambitions after she sings during the opening reaping ceremony. Zegler‘s history with musicals makes her the perfect choice for the role, as she just recently wrapped work on Shazam! Fury of the Gods is currently filming the live-action adaptation of Snow White for Disney.

    Source: Twitter, Variety

  • EXCLUSIVE: Grace VanderWaal on Tackling the Leading Role in ‘Hollywood Stargirl’

    EXCLUSIVE: Grace VanderWaal on Tackling the Leading Role in ‘Hollywood Stargirl’

    Hollywood Stargirl is a special kind of sequel. While it continues the Disney+ film from 2020, which was only known as Stargirl, it takes a very different direction. In a world where adaptations tend to follow the books closely, director Julia Hart wanted to take the character in a very different direction. Instead of sticking to the small town of Arizona, Stargirl Caraway is heading to Hollywood.

    In an exclusive interview with Stargirl herself, Grace VanderWaal, I got the chance to ask her about taking on the leading role from Graham Verchere, who played Leo Borlock in the first film. She shared about what it was like taking on that responsibility and also prepared herself for taking on the bigger role going in.

    It was a lot of pressure because the first movie has a lot to do with Leo. The movie is called Stargirl but I feel like I wasn’t the main character. So, just personally, like professionally, I was preparing myself for that amount of work and being in every scene and all that. Just taking on that responsibility. But it was so fun, it didn’t feel like hard work.

    Grace VanderWall

    She also shared about what it was like finding out that they wouldn’t be following the books but rather taking a different direction. she also highlighted that to her it was “the right thing to do.”

    All I know is that I wasn’t really surprised when I was told what it was going to be different from the books. I don’t know what I expected but It felt right, it felt like the right move when I heard about it. I don’t know why, but that makes like perfect sense, that was the right thing to do.

    Grace VanderWall

    It definitely takes the story in an interesting new direction and offers something unique to those that followed Stargirl’s story in Jerry Spinelli‘s novel, Love, Stargirl. VanderWaal is joined by a new cast consisting of Elijah Richardson, Judy Greer, Tyrel Jackson Williams, Uma Thurman, Judd Hirsch, and more. The film will release on June 3rd on Disney+.

  • Naked Chris Hemsworth is ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ Trailers Most Replayed Moment

    Naked Chris Hemsworth is ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ Trailers Most Replayed Moment

    We were all quite excited when we got the second trailer for Thor: Love and Thunder, as it offered our first clear look at Christian Bale as Gorr the God Butcher. We even got a good look at Russell Crowe as the Greek god Zeus, who had some fun by flicking off Thor’s disguise. He ended up overdoing it, as it lead to Chris Hemsworth‘s God of Thunder standing without his clothes on. It seems that this joke has become quite the hit with fans, as ComicBook.com noticed that it this part is the trailer’s most replayed moment.

    via ComicBook.com

    It’s definitely no surprise that this moment may have caught everyone’s glimpse, as Hemsworth went all out with his training for his return as the Thunderer. Even earlier set photos including him showed off just how trained he got, as his arms seemed like they doubled in size since the last time we saw him on screen.

    Taika Waititi might also just be a marketing genius, as Hemsworth‘s special training isn’t the only thing that people are talking about. Natalie Portman not only returned to play Jane Foster but also went all out with her training, as many noticed just how ready she was to take on the role of Mighty Thor. Perhaps they are also hiding just how chipped Korg’s rocks have gotten since the last time we saw him growing moss while playing video games on a comfy couch.

    Source: YouTube, ComicBook

  • ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Creator Reveals Where Movie Fits in the Series’ Timeline

    ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Creator Reveals Where Movie Fits in the Series’ Timeline

    The Bob’s Burgers Movie is set to hit theaters on May 27th. In production for nearly four years, it will be the first film adaptation of series that has run over a decade. As a result, it may be hard to place the film clearly within the show’s extensive and complicated timeline. Thankfully, franchise creator Loren Bouchard doesn’t seem to think it matters much when the movie’s story takes place in regards to the animated series. In fact, after being asked about it at a recent press conference, he explained that it’s been left vague almost purposefully:

    I like this question because it’s, you know, it’s not any kind of linear timeline that we can understand using our own lives. I mean, this is sort of a circular space where this family seems to be going through this, sort of roughly, a year over and over again with different permutations.

    Loren Bouchard

    He continued to elaborate on the nature of cyclical storytelling and it’s apparent lack of continuity, including the way the show’s writers and animators are allowed to play with some elements of time but not others:

    And then some things, we’ve pulled through. So you can’t call it continuity, really. And certainly not for somebody who’s watching early seasons and late seasons, you know, in the privacy of their own home streaming. And for them, it must be doubly weird. Louise is on her green mean, you know, mean green machine one episode, and then she’s riding a bike in the next episode. And so that’s not continuity exactly, but we have made a deal with the fans, I think, that as long as it feels right, that as long as there’s this sort of, it’s not narrative growth over time, but it’s kind of this layers that build up.

    Loren Bouchard

    The director concluded his anecdote by stating any installment of Bob’s Burgers, including the film, could take place at any time in the life of the Belcher family:

    It is depth. And so for the movie, yeah. I mean, it’s got to fit in there. And we are just, you know, now starting to think about these episodes that are gonna air after the movie, and they’re gonna air in the shadow of this event. But of course, they also kinda happen before. I mean, in a way, the movie happened before the first episode, so this is a weird game to play. But it’s fun.

    Loren Bouchard

    A separate question during the conference asked if recent episodes of the series had any references to the film’s events, which received an answer revealing that a giant crack had been forming slowly in front of the Belcher’s restaurant that would eventually become the giant sinkhole present in the movie. So, if any fans out there aren’t happy with Bouchard‘s take on the Bob’s Burgers timeline, then perhaps they could use this as their own measure of continuity.

  • ‘Doctor Strange 2’ Overtakes ‘The Batman’ as 2022’s Highest Domestic Earner

    ‘Doctor Strange 2’ Overtakes ‘The Batman’ as 2022’s Highest Domestic Earner

    While all eyes are on Top Gun: Maverick‘s dominance over theaters, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness still held on tight to the second spot as it has pulled in $16.4M over the weekend. As such, the film has now managed to reach $370M at the domestic box office, which puts it at the top spot as the highest-grossing domestic release of 2022 so far. It has just barely passed The Batman‘s $369M and is currently on its way to passing $400M domestically.

    It has now reached $868.7M worldwide after pulling in another 22.9M overseas. It’ll continue to inch its way towards a potential $900M but some predict it could still pull in around $950M. Though with new arrivals like Top Gun and Jurassic World Dominion around the corner, we might see it slow down. Still, its’s 48% drop is actually lower than that of Captain America: Civil War and has shown some surprising legs after the initial harsh drop. It further hints at this film legging out like a horror film.

    It’s a considerable development that it legged out as it did, as earlier it seemed like it wasn’t going to hit $900M after that initial drop. While it’s not really possible for it to pass a billion, it’s not a measure of its success if you consider that it’s not even released in some key markets like Russia (for obvious reasons), China, Saudi Arabia, and more. So, it did perform quite well and is pulling through after some made theories on the MCU’s box office draw.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Pulls in $248M Worldwide in 3-Days, Tom Cruise’s First $100M Domestic Opening

    ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Pulls in $248M Worldwide in 3-Days, Tom Cruise’s First $100M Domestic Opening

    It’s finally official, as the final numbers will still come in but it’s looking like Top Gun: Maverick has pulled in $124M at the domestic box office in 3-days. Keep in mind, that it’s Memorial Day weekend and it gets an additional boost with the fourth day, which puts it at potentially passing $150M by tomorrow. As of now, it’s the third-highest opening of 2022 and Tom Cruise‘s biggest opening ever in his long career. It’s also opened $100M more than the original when it was made available back in 1986.

    Worldwide the film is currently at $248M which is just 0.5M short from The Batman‘s opening. It is now Paramount’s biggest opening and they already had a strong year with Sonic the Hedgehog 2’s $72M, The Lost City‘s $30M, Jackass Forever at $23M, and Scream‘s $30M. The film has beat expectations and is making quite the splash that rivals 2007’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. It stays on track, it could even beat that film’s $153M to become Memorial Day weekend’s highest opening film.

    As expected, the film is male-dominated but it’s only 58%. 30% said they’d watch it again in theaters which put it on a good hold for the next weekends. We’ll see if higher openings still end up leading to bigger drops, as was suspected with other recent releases but given how close it is to The Batman, it may have a similar development. With final numbers not yet in, it could also even pass The Batman‘s opening weekend, but we’ll know more by tomorrow.

    Source: Twitter, Deadline, Forbes

  • ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Continues to Top Expectations, Gunning for $255M+ Worldwide Opening Weekend

    ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Continues to Top Expectations, Gunning for $255M+ Worldwide Opening Weekend

    It’s a true summer box office revival as Top Gun: Maverick is on its way to hype up the industry’s upcoming releases with a record-breaking Memorial Day release. Not only is it beating early expectations, but the return of Tom Cruise as Pete Mitchell after 36 years will establish Paramount’s most successful release at the box office yet. As of now, it’s eyeing $120M for a three-day opening and would still end its four-day weekend at $150M after pulling in $51.8M on Friday. Comscore’s senior media analyst Paul Dergarebedian had to follow to say on the actor pulling gin these numbers.

    Tom Cruise is one of the few true movie stars left in the business. His name on the marquee means something to audiences who have come to trust that his films will be worth every dollar of that movie ticket purchase.

    Paul Dergarebedian

    The film has a strong pull for a four-day weekend and its massive critical success is pulling in a lot. It’s even beating out other Paramount releases to take the top spots and create a new benchmark for the studio. Internationally, the film is beating its $80M projects and is on its route to potentially pulling in $125M over 3-days, which would hint at a potential $255M opening weekend worldwide. It’s generally a great performance and it’ll be interesting to see how its legs perform.

    A+ rating and strong word-of-mouth are definitely playing in its favor, which hasn’t been seen since Spider-Man: No Way Home. So, the film could be another exception within the market but its second weekend will be interesting to see. The strong performance is also thanks to an older demographic which came at the cost of Downtown Abbey: A New Era which dropped 76% in its second weekend as it has a similar base older audience.

    Source: CNN, Twitter

  • Grace VanderWall on the Challenge of Writing an Original Song for ‘Hollywood Stargirl’

    Grace VanderWall on the Challenge of Writing an Original Song for ‘Hollywood Stargirl’

    Grace VanderWall had a lot of weight on her, as not only was she taking the leading role this time around in Hollywood Stargirl, but she also had the challenge of creating a completely unique song for the film. It’s not the first time as she also made one for the first, but this time around she actually had an “assignment” to prepare one and it looks like it caught her by surprise initially, as she talks about the experience during the Disney+ film’s press conference.

    I’ve never done that. I’ve never, like, been asked to write anything about anything before. Like, I’ve never had, like, maybe an assignment is the wrong word. But, like, an assignment. So I was really nervous because I was like, “Oh god, everyone thinks I can do this. And I’ve, like, never done it before.” But it worked out. I did it. And it was easy. But yeah, it was really, really fun. I was so honored that I got to write a song for the movie again. Because I love writing and I love the movie and it was fun.

    Grace VanderWall

    She also highlighted that her biggest challenge was including Elijah Richardson in the song, but he wasn’t cast at the time she was working on the project. So, she started work on it very early in the production process, which added a unique challenge but she still managed to add a memorable song to the film.