Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Movie News

  • Gareth Edwards to Direct New ‘Jurassic World’ Movie

    Gareth Edwards to Direct New ‘Jurassic World’ Movie

    David Leitch is out, Gareth Edwards is in.

    Deadline announced on Tuesday that Rogue One director Gareth Edwards will direct the latest Jurassic World movie. The news comes after it was recently revealed David Leitch walked away from the film after being in early talks to direct it. Edwards is currently in final negotiations with Universal, meaning a deal should be closed relatively soon.

    According to Deadline, Edwards managed to easily impress producers Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall, who were behind the original franchise, the director was quickly given an offer. Pre-production is supposed to quickly get underway once the deal is complete. As previously reported, the new Jurassic World movie will be a brand new, fresh take on the Jurassic films. None of the previous cast members are expected to reprise their roles.

    The Jurassic World franchise has been a huge box office success for Universal. The first film, which debuted in 2015, went on to earn an impressive $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office. The sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, released three years later, and earned $1.3 billion. The final film in the trilogy, Jurassic World: Dominion, released in 2022 and managed to still bring in $1.1 billion despite COVID-19’s impact on the box office.

    The latest Jurassic World movie will hit theaters on July 2nd, 2025.

    Source: Deadline

  • First Reactions to ‘Dune: Part Two’ Hail the Film as a Sci-Fi Masterpiece, Praise Director Denis Villeneuve

    First Reactions to ‘Dune: Part Two’ Hail the Film as a Sci-Fi Masterpiece, Praise Director Denis Villeneuve

    Supermega-visionary-auteur Denis Villeneuve went all in on Dune: Part Two and if the early reactions from critics who screened the film at its world premiere in London are anything to go by, his gamble paid off. While full reviews are still embargoed, critics took to social media to share their impressions of the sci-fi sequel and the praise was universally effusive.

    A Cinematic Masterpiece

    Screen Rant’s Joe Deckelmeier heaped praise on the film calling it a “cinematic masterpiece” and “an epic cinematic journey.” He also echoed other critics sentiments by calling the film “an experience” that he felt like he was a part of.

    A Magical Experience

    Like Deckelmeier, CinemaBlend’s Eric Eisenberg felt the “experience” of the film, proclaiming he left feeling as though he had “ridden a sandworm.” As is the case with great literature, Eisenberg noted that this adaptation of Frank Herbert’s beloved novel also tapped into the political zeitgeist of modern times.

    https://twitter.com/eeisenberg/status/1758249830986445276?s=20
    LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 15: (L-R) Josh Brolin, Florence Pugh, Léa Seydoux, Rebecca Ferguson, Souheiler Yacoub, Zendaya, Timothée Chalamet, Stellan Skarsgård, Austin Butler and Anya Taylor-Joy attend the World Premiere of “Dune: Part Two” at Leicester Square on February 15, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)
    LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 15: Zendaya and Timothée Chalamet attend the World Premiere of “Dune: Part Two” at Leicester Square on February 15, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)
    LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 15: Zendaya attends the World Premiere of “Dune: Part Two” at Leicester Square on February 15, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)
    LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 15: Timothée Chalamet attends the World Premiere of “Dune: Part Two” at Leicester Square on February 15, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)
    LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 15: Zendaya, Director, Screenwriter and Producer, Denis Villeneuve and Timothée Chalamet attend the World Premiere of “Dune: Part Two” at Leicester Square on February 15, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by John Phillips/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)

    Mr. Villeneuve’s Opus

    Already revered in sci-fi circles, Dune: Part Two looks as though it’ll elevate Denis Villeneuve’s status to god tier. Griffin Schiller called the film Villeneuve’s “magnum opus” and “the definitive sci-fi epic of a generation.”

    Games Radar’s Emily Murray doubled up on the opus (which is fascinating because I have no idea what that means) and added that the “immersive” action was a highlight along with performances by starts Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya.

    As great as this all sounds, social media will remind you that every single person who saw the film is a WB shill who was paid a massive sum of money to share kind words about the film on X.

    Dune: Part Two hits theaters across the globe on March 1, 2024.

    About Dune: Part Two

    The saga continues as award-winning filmmaker Denis Villeneuve embarks on Dune: Part Two, the next chapter of Frank Herbert’s celebrated novel Dune, with an expanded all-star international ensemble cast. The film, from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures, is the highly anticipated follow-up to 2021’s six-time Academy Award-winning Dune.

    Dune: Part Two will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a path of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

    The big-screen epic continues the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s acclaimed bestseller Dune with returning and new stars, including Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (Wonka, Call Me by Your Name), Zendaya (Spider-Man: No Way Home, Malcolm & Marie, Euphoria), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning), Oscar nominee Josh Brolin (Avengers: End Game, Milk), Oscar nominee Austin Butler (Elvis, Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood), Oscar nominee Florence Pugh (Black Widow, Little Women), Dave Bautista (the Guardians of the Galaxy films, Thor: Love and Thunder), Oscar winner Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter, Hairspray), Léa Seydoux (the James Bond franchise and Crimes of the Future), Souheila Yacoub (The Braves, Climax), with Stellan Skarsgård (the Mamma Mia! films, Avengers: Age of Ultron), with Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (45 Years, Assassin’s Creed), and Oscar winner Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men, Being the Ricardos).

  • ‘Thunderbolts’ Gets Yet Another New Release Date

    ‘Thunderbolts’ Gets Yet Another New Release Date

    As fans continue to wonder if Thunderbolts will ever start production, Marvel Studios has given the film a new release date. As part of yet another reshuffling of its slate, the theatrical release Thunderbolts has been moved UP 12 weeks.

    As part of their big Valentine’s Day reveal of the cast, new title and new release date for The Fantastic Four, Marvel Studios moved Thunderbolts from a July 25, 2025 to May 2, 2025. With principal photography on the former slated to get underway in March and the latter not until summer, the studio simply swapped release dates for the two films.

    Originally set to hit theaters July 26, 2024, Thunderbolts has been hit hard by delays with star Wyatt Russell joking that production had almost started “14 times.” Not much is known about the film’s plot other than it will see a team composed of Florence Pugh‘s Yelena Belova, Russell’s John Walker, Hannah John-Kamen‘s Ava Starr/Ghost and Olga Kurylenko‘s Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster working for Julia Louis-Dreyfus‘ scheisty Valentima Allegra de Fontaine. Top Gun: Maverick actor Lewis Pullman will also star as Robert Reynolds, aka Sentry, one of Marvel Comics’ most powerful and enigmatic characters.

  • ‘Masters of the Universe’s: Amazon Looking at Travis Knight to Lead the Way to Eternia

    ‘Masters of the Universe’s: Amazon Looking at Travis Knight to Lead the Way to Eternia

    Bumblebee director Travis Knight is on the precipice of unlocking the gates of Castle Grayskull. According to a trade report, Knight is Amazon’s top choice to helm the long-gestating live-action Masters of the Universe film that would put Mattel’s He-Man on the big screen for the first time since 1987.

    After Mattel debuted its Masters of the Universe toy line in 1982, Filmation produced He-Man & The Masters of the Universe, one of the decade’s most popular animated series. Though it only ran for two seasons, the property led to spinoffs, reboots, Dolph Lundgren‘s aforementioned film and revivals such as Kevin Smith’s Netflix series. The vast mythology of the franchise has expanded in other media as well, with multiple comic book series having been created over the past 40 years. The characters, locations and catchphrases are etched in the brains of children of the 80s and have taken on a new life through memes, providing Amazon with the opportunity to market Knight’s new film to a wide age range.

    Amazon MGM studios has been in negotiations to acquire the rights to produce a live-action Masters of the Universe film since 2021 when Netflix bailed on their attempt to get one off the ground. That project was based off a script by David Callaham and Adam and Aaron Nee and it looks as though the new version will be getting a fresh script by Chris Butler. According to the trade report, Knight’s version will see a young Prince Adam sidelined on Earth for two decades before returning to Eternia to face off against Skeletor and find out that he does indeed have the power.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Becomes Most Watched Trailer of All Time within 24 Hours

    ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Becomes Most Watched Trailer of All Time within 24 Hours

    That did the trick. Deadpool & Wolverine has managed to break a major record this weekend. The first trailer for Ryan Reynolds‘ grand return to the franchise has been met with a warm welcome after its Super Bowl release. Within 24 hours, the trailer has become the most-watched trailer with 365M views. That is even higher than Sony and Marvel Studios’ major release during the pandemic in the form of Spider-Man: No Way Home (355M).

    The film is directed by Shawn Levy, who worked on various projects with Reynolds in the past. This film also marks the major return of Hugh Jackman in the iconic role of Wolverine. In a way, the trilogy has been building up to an eventual meeting and the set-up of the TVA arriving makes sense given the way he played around with time travel being a major part of the second entry.

    These views also further highlight the complicated discourse of “superhero fatigue” that has been making the rounds. We might be going through the same experience that we had with Phase 2 where the topic had gained traction before a return in the third phase. It’ll be interesting to see what this might mean for the box office and if this is a sign that it’ll manage similar numbers to what No Way Home managed.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Madame Web’: First Reactions to Sony’s Latest Debacle Hit Social Media

    ‘Madame Web’: First Reactions to Sony’s Latest Debacle Hit Social Media

    Sony must be given credit. Though the studio behind two of the most well-received animated superhero films of all time (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse) can’t seem to put together a solid live-action CBM, they truly embody the superhero spirit by never giving up. The studio’s latest effort, Madame Web, hits theaters on Valentine’s Day and was screened for critics ahead of time…and it sounds as though it turned out exactly like everyone thought it would.

    “The Worst Comic Book Movie I Have Ever Seen”

    With Green Lantern, 2015’s Fant4stic Four and Sony’s own Morbius to compete with, being the worst CBM ever is tall order to be sure, but at least one critic thinks Madame Web may have taken the top spot. Critic Cris Parker called Sony’s latest installment in whatever it is they’re calling their efforts “an embarrassing mess” with a “laughable structure.” Given the current culture of social media, that means in about 6 months people will be talking about how it’s one of their favorite films.

    “A Scattered Story That Leads Nowhere”

    Heroes Unbound found Madame Web’s plot to be “lackluster” and while they indicated it did contain “charming performances”, they ultimately labeled it as nothing more than “a passable movie.” And that’s the nicest thing anyone is saying about it so far.

    “Just Kinda There”

    With a cast that included Dakota Johnson and Sydney Sweeney, Sony certainly continued its trend of casting attention-grabbing stars. With that in mind, you’d hope they’d eventually put together a film that grabbed attention in a positive way. Instead, Madame Web is “totally fine” and “just kinda there” according to James Preston Poole.

    “It Was Bad”

    Brandon Schultz was willing to give it a shot, bless his heart, but in the end…”it was bad.”

    https://twitter.com/bneilschultz/status/1757294083096089020?s=20

    The good news is that as we all know, the early reviews are always the best ones as they’re done by critics who are clearly paid by the studios to get the film some good press (at least that’s what I always read on X), so don’t let these early reviews stop you from seeing Madame Web in theaters! And, don’t forget that Sony’s Kraven the Hunter will also hit theaters later this year!

  • Sony Finds New ‘Karate Kid’ in Ben Wang

    Sony Finds New ‘Karate Kid’ in Ben Wang

    Sony has found the new Karate Kid. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed on Monday that Ben Wang will star in the newest Karate Kid film. Wang, who is coming off of American Born Chinese, will join Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio in the film.

    Wang’s casting comes after Sony held a global search, which reportedly saw over 10,000 video submissions within the first 24 hours after it was announced. Wang’s audition is said to have “demonstrated a deep connection to the character.” The studio also loved that Wang is fluent in Mandarin and is highly skilled in various forms of martial arts. Sony is keeping details regarding the film quiet for now, however, the film will see the franchise head to the East coast and focus on a teen from China.

    If you’ve been following us here for some time, this shouldn’t be surprising. We here are Murphy’s Multiverse first revealed Sony’s plans to revisit the Karate Kid franchise on the big screen in 2022. In our report, we noted that the actor will need to be fluent in Mandarin, we also revealed the film will see the character move from Beijing to Brooklyn.

    The film is currently slated to hit theaters on December 13th, 2024.

    Source: THR

  • David Leitch Exits ‘Jurassic World’

    David Leitch Exits ‘Jurassic World’

    On Monday, it was revealed that director David Leitch was in talks to helm a brand new Jurassic World movie for Universal. At the time, it was noted that talks were still early, and a deal had not officially been made. Unfortunately, it looks like, as of Friday, Leitch is no longer in talks to direct the movie. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed on Friday that the Deadpool 2 director has exited the project.

    It’s said the deal ultimately broke down due to a difference in vision between Leitch and Universal. With a release date already set, Universal will need to move quickly in order to secure a new director if it hopes to keep the movie on track for its release next year.

    The Jurassic World franchise has been a huge box office success for Universal. The first film, which debuted in 2015, went on to earn an impressive $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office. The sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, released three years later, and earned $1.3 billion. The final film in the trilogy, Jurassic World: Dominion, released in 2022 and managed to still bring in $1.1 billion despite COVID-19’s impact on the box office.

    The next Jurassic World film is currently slated to hit theaters on July 2, 2025.

    Source: THR.

  • ‘The Conjuring 4’ Lands Director Michael Chaves

    ‘The Conjuring 4’ Lands Director Michael Chaves

    The Conjuring is coming to an end. The Hollywood Reported revealed on Friday that Michael Chaves will direct The Conjuring 4. The film is expected to serve as the final film in the mainline franchise. This marks a return for Chaves, who previously directed The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. He also directed The Nun II, which takes place within the world of The Conjuring. Also returning to the franchise is David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, who wrote the screenplay and previously penned the third film alongside franchise creator, James Wan.

    Details are being kept under wraps regarding the fourth installment, however, Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are expected to return as Ed and Lorrain Warren. Production on the movie looks set to kickoff over the summer in Atlanta.

    The Conjuring, which was released in 2013, quickly turned into a hit franchise when the movie pulled in $320 million at the worldwide box office. A huge feat for a film produced for just $20 million. Over the years, New Line has crafted a Conjuring film franchise that includes the Nun films, the Annabelle films, and The Curse of La Llorona.

    As of now, The Conjuring 4 does not yet have a release date.

    Source: THR

  • Dan Trachtenberg to Direct New Predator Film ‘Badlands’

    Dan Trachtenberg to Direct New Predator Film ‘Badlands’

    Dan Trachtenberg resurrected the Predator franchise with 2022’s Prey. Now, 20th Century is handing him the keys to the kingdom. Multiple trade reports have confirmed that Trachtenberg will direct another film in the franchise titled Badlands.

    While the end credits of Prey set up the possibility of a direct sequel to that film, Badlands is NOT that sequel though 20th Century is still developing that project with star Amber Midthunder in mind to return. Instead, Badlands, which was co-written by Patrick Aison, will feature a new female lead and be set in the future. Production is expected to kick off this July.

    Trachtenberg is also reportedly now 20th Century’s Predator curator with “a host” of projects based on the franchise in the works.