Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Movie News

  • BREAKING: Marvel Studios ‘Fantastic Four’ Without a Director Following Jon Watts’ Exit

    BREAKING: Marvel Studios ‘Fantastic Four’ Without a Director Following Jon Watts’ Exit

    Here’s a surprise to many, but after being announced as the director for Fantastic Four in 2019, it seems that Jon Watts has pulled out of the project. This is quite the surprising move considering he just cemented his standing with Marvel Studios after his work on Spider-Man: No Way Home. It seems that the reasoning is that the director wants to take a break after completing the trilogy and it wasn’t intended to be his next film.

    The director has been quite busy, as he’s been busy with production, directing, and promoting the Spider-Man films since he finished work on his 2015 Cop Car. So, he wants to take a break and all parties have confirmed the exit is amicable. Marvel Studios CEO Kevin Feige shared the following statement:

    Collaborating with Jon on the Spider-Man films has been a true pleasure. We were looking forward to continuing our work with him to bring the Fantastic Four into the MCU but understand and are supportive of his reasons for stepping away. We are optimistic that we will have the opportunity to work together again at some point down the road.

    Kevin Feige

    Watts has shared the following statement on the exit:

    Making three Spider-Man films was an incredible and life changing experience for me. I’m eternally grateful to have been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for seven years. I’m hopeful we’ll work together again and I can’t wait to see the amazing vision for Fantastic Four brought to life.

    Jon Watts

    It’s great to see Marvel Studios give the director time to focus on himself and take a step back. Not only that, but it opens up new opportunities for them to find a new voice to join the MCU, especially with the strong sci-fi direction this project might take. There’s a lot of potential with many talented directors that might be perfect for the film.

    Source: Deadline

  • REPORT: ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ May Introduce Aquaman’s Child

    REPORT: ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ May Introduce Aquaman’s Child

    We just recently got some teases on what the future of the DCEU has in store, which included a brief tease of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. While we still know rather little about the project, a new report by The Direct may hint that Jason Momoa‘s Arthur Curry and Amber Heard‘s Mera may have an addition in the upcoming film. While they couldn’t share any details, they have heard that the film will include their child.

    It’s not the first time they had a child, as we were introduced to Arthur Curry Jr. some time ago. Yet, there was also the rather dark Aquaman: Death of a Prince storyline, whose title already hints at the rather dark turn for a storyline of the 1970s. It’s not clear if James Wan might be building up an adaptation of that storyline, or if they are potentially exploring a new take on Aqualad.

    We do know that the character is getting an HBO Max adaptation, but that will explore a storyline inspired by a graphic novel. So, we’ll see how exactly their child might be connected to the story. The confirmed return of Black Manta doesn’t bode well given the child’s comic history. Perhaps their kid gets abducted and brought to the Lost Kingdom in the title, which sets up the potential storyline and why they are unleashed upon the world. For now, it’s just speculation but that’s the fun of it all.

    Source: The Direct

  • Blake Lively to Make Her Directorial Debut Adapting Brian Lee O’Malley’s ‘Seconds’

    Blake Lively to Make Her Directorial Debut Adapting Brian Lee O’Malley’s ‘Seconds’

    Blake Lively is set to step behind the camera in her latest role as director. The Hollywood Reporter announced on Friday that Lively will helm the adaptation of Seconds for Searchlight. Seconds is based on the graphic novel of the same name from creator Bryan Lee O’Malley.

    It tells the story of a girl named Katie Clay who finds herself with the power to try to fix her past mistakes by writing them down in a notebook and taking a mushroom before going to sleep. As expected, however, Clay soon finds herself obsessed with trying to correct every little mistake and soon finds she’ll have to face the consequences for ignoring the rules.

    O’Malley, of course, is best known for his work on Scott Pilgrim which received a live-action adaptation from Edgar Wright. Despite stumbling at the box office, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has quickly become a cult favorite. This time around, while Lively will direct Seconds, she’ll be doing do from a script penned by Wright.

    This marks Lively’s first film directing gig after she directed a music video for Taylor Swift last year with “I Bet You Think About Me.” The former Gossip Girl star has seen her star on the rise in recent years thanks to projects like The Shallows and The Rhythm Section.

    As of this writing, Seconds does not yet have a release date.

    Source: THR

  • ‘The Marvels’ and ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’ Swap Release Dates

    ‘The Marvels’ and ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’ Swap Release Dates

    Two of Marvel Studios’ 2023 films have swapped dates. Captain Marvel sequel The Marvels was previously dated for release in February 2023, and will now release in July 2023. While the third film in the Ant-Man series, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania which was previously set to release in July 2023 has moved up to February 2023. 

    Deadline reported that both films are moving along well but that the Paul Rudd film was a little further along in the process. Both films started filming last Summer in London, and are equally set to continue stories on a wider stage than the films before them. With Quantumania potentially having connections to Loki Season 2 through Kang, it will be interesting to see where they connect in the timeline. Similarly, it is expected that Secret Invasion will connect to The Marvels through the Kree-Skrull tensions. The Samuel L. Jackson-led series seems like it may have a more direct connection, where Kang’s variants are separate people. Yet it is unclear exactly when Secret Invasion will take place in relation to The Marvels. Lots still yet to be discovered.

    In terms of the productions, it’s great to hear that both films are moving along nicely. Keeping the Marvel Studios dates means fans aren’t really losing anything. The swap of dates means there will be more for fans to discuss and theorize in relation to what happens when. It will be an exciting slate for 2023 for the Marvel Cinematic Universe regardless of the date swaps.

    Sources: Deadline

  • REPORT: America Chavez’s Mothers Have Been Cast in ‘Multiverse of Madness’

    REPORT: America Chavez’s Mothers Have Been Cast in ‘Multiverse of Madness’

    As Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness approaches, the secretive film has been dropping more and more information. Even with the rumored high-profile cameos on fans’ minds, one highly-anticipated character already known is Xochitl Gomez’s America Chavez. The young hero’s ability to make portals to alternate universes will surely come in handy in the multiversal sequel.

    Still, the character also marks major milestones for the Marvel Cinematic Universe as America’s Latinx and LGBTQ+ comics background will make its way into the live-action film. In the comics, her traditional origin story is that she used her dimension-hopping powers to travel from a universe known as the Utopian Parallel after her mothers gave their lives to save that universe. Multiverse of Madness has made headlines after some countries banned the film and others asked Disney to remove LGBTQ+ references from the film.

    While we knew America’s mothers would be referenced, it looks like we now know that the two have been cast. According to One Take News, actresses Ruther Livier and Chess Lopez played the role of America’s mothers in the Doctor Strange sequel. While the scope of their roles is not yet known, it seems likely that they may be relatively small. Still, the fact that the roles have been filled does indicate that we will likely see a significant part of the young hero’s past.

    Livier has appeared in 90210 and has done a lot of voice work, particularly in video games such as Sly 3, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and Dead Rising 3. Lopez seems to be relatively new to the entertainment scene, having appeared in a few short films.

    Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness his theaters on May 6, 2022.

    Source: One Take News

  • ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel ‘The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes’ Hitting Theaters Next Year

    ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel ‘The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes’ Hitting Theaters Next Year

    Ever since the Hunger Games films came to an end, Lionsgate has been vocal about wanting to return to the franchise. So, it isn’t entirely surprising that the studio announced The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is coming to the big screen.

    During Lionsgate’s presentation at CinemaCon on Thursday, the studio revealed the Hunger Games prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, is headed to the big screen on Nov. 17, 2023. The film is based on the book of the same name by author Suzanne Collins. It tells the story of Coriolanus Snow at the age of eighteen as he prepares to enter the Hunger Games. Francis Lawrence, who helmed the three sequels to The Hunger Games, returns to direct the prequel. He directs from a script by Collins, Michael Arndt (Catching Fire), and Michael Lesslie.

    As it stands, while production is underway, no casting has been announced for the film.

    The Hunger Games franchise was a massive success for Lionsgate, earning an astounding $3 billion at the worldwide box office across four films. While The Hunger Games novel also appeared on the New York Times bestseller list for more than 260 consecutive weeks.

    Source: Variety.

  • New ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Promo Teases Comic-Inspired [SPOILER]

    New ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Promo Teases Comic-Inspired [SPOILER]

    If you want to avoid spoilers for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness then only continue reading at your own risk.

    So, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has been spoiled quite a bit by the people that are making the film. It’s unclear if they are trying to give it an additional marketing push, as they are remaining quite vague but still showing off more than one would initially expect. We already shared the first look at What If..?’s Captain Carter but that wasn’t all the trailer included. We already know Patrick Stewart will appear in the film, but the trailer offered our best look yet and it seems that he’ll have a classic X-Men animated series-inspired look.

    The trailer includes a brief tease of the iconic Professor X yellow hoverchair. It was first used back in 1991 when it made its debut in X-Men Vol. 2 #1. It would go on to become quite a popular vehicle of transportation for Professor Xavier, and became an even bigger iconic aspect of the character after being part of the 90s animated series, which is also set to return in a Disney+ continuation titled X-Men ’97.

    It’ll be interesting to see the fully envisioned version of this design, as it seemed like something that wouldn’t make the jump to the silver screen. Even in the original X-Men films, it was mostly a very detailed design wheelchair. If they do introduce the character into the mainline MCU, it’ll be interesting to see if they build upon this reveal or potentially set it up in a way that we get something comic-accurate before they take a unique direction.

    Source: Twitter

  • Latest ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Promo Includes First Look at [SPOILER]

    Latest ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Promo Includes First Look at [SPOILER]

    Only continue at your own risk if you want to avoid spoilers for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The latest promo includes some massive spoilers for the film.

    It looks like another Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness promo has found its way online and this one is filled to the brim with spoilers. For some reason, Marvel decided to build up more hype for the upcoming project by including ore from the Illuminati. While an earlier promo did included the first confirmation of their name, they have seemingly revealed a few more members in this spot.

    Not only did it include more teases of Patrick Stewart‘s return as Professor X, but the biggest reveal came in the form of a brief shot that includes the confirmation that Peggy Carter will return to the MCU. Not just Carter, but her What If…? incarnation is known as Captain Carter. It’s unsure how it may tie into the animated series, but this is pretty clearly her

    Image

    It’s such a weird decision by Marvel Studios to include a teaser that reveals this kind of detail. There’s quite a bit of footage in this that most might have likely tried to avoid as much as possible. Not only did it find its way online, but it seemingly is also a public promo for the film. Here’s hoping that there are more cameos to this that they are actively trying to hide even more by teasing their inclusion. Whatever the reason may be, it’ll likely boost their sales numbers now that are already impressive.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ and ‘A Quiet Place’ Spinoff Official Titles Revealed

    ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ and ‘A Quiet Place’ Spinoff Official Titles Revealed

    It’s Paramount’s turn at CinemaCon to announce a few projects. While they already had their own event that was chock-full of announcements, they used the opportunity to announce the official titles for two of their upcoming flagship franchises, Mission: Impossible and A Quiet Place. Not only did we get the title for the seventh entry in the franchise but also a good hint of what the spinoff is all about.

    Let’s start with the big announcement and that is that Tom Cruise appeared on screen to announce that his upcoming film is titled Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One. Now, the name may have some major implications, as there have been some behind-the-scenes statements that hinted that the first film’s production isn’t officially ended as they push back the release dates and try to keep investments open for both parts. So, the title “Part One” may add that additional pressure on the executives.

    That’s not all, as the upcoming A Quiet Place spinoff also finally gets a name, which is simply A Quiet Place: Day One. As many suspected, the project will explore the early days of the invasion that would change the lives of many. Keep in mind, that this isn’t the actual third entry, which isn’t set to release until 2025. Day One will be directed by Pig‘s Michael Sarnoski, who took over from Jeff Nichols. So, it’s great to finally get the confirmation on what the film will focus on.

    Source: Variety, Yahoo

  • Sam Raimi is Open to Film ‘Spider-Man 4’ With Tobey Maguire

    Sam Raimi is Open to Film ‘Spider-Man 4’ With Tobey Maguire

    Ever since Tobey Maguire returned to the role of Peter Parker in Spider-Man: No Way Home, it has opened the floodgates on potentially exploring the film that Sam Raimi was never able to make. Of course, director Sam Raimi has also returned to the Marvel world with his work on the upcoming Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness film and it added more fuel to the fire that he’d tackle a fourth Spider-Man film. Luckily, in an interview with Moviepilot, Raimi confirmed that he’d love a jump into the multiverse to finally tell that very story.

    I didn’t think it was possible but after jumping back in with the multiverse, I realized that anything is possible now so I’m completely open to it.

    Sam Raimi

    Now that the multiverse has broken free, there are many opportunities for the director to revisit the franchise. While Spider-Man’s rights still remain at Sony, they’d definitely be open to the opportunity of revisiting the franchise that kickstarted the current comic book boom. Of course, it strongly depends on if Maguire is also open to taking on the role once again, but he has publicly stated that putting on the suit in No Way Home motivated him to potentially revisit the character again.

    You can watch the full Moviepilot interview with Sam Raimi right here:

    Source: YouTube via OTN