Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Movie News

  • Jason Momoa Rumored to Be Abandoning Aquaman Amid Reports of Shoddy Sequel

    Jason Momoa Rumored to Be Abandoning Aquaman Amid Reports of Shoddy Sequel

    While James Gunn and Peter Safran‘s new DC Universe comes together, it may be doing so with a new Aquaman eventually. As reports by a pair of trusted insiders indicated that Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom is shaping up as a stinker, a new rumor suggests that film will be the last go around as Arthur Curry for star Jason Momoa.

    According to both Viewer Anona and Big Screen Leaks, James Wan‘s sequel to the financially lucrative Aquaman is testing incredibly poorly ahead of its December 2023 release. Though the first film wasn’t a critical darling, it did rake in over $1B at the box office. As the old DC slate begins to give way to DC Studios’ plans, Warner Bros. would certainly like to near that mark again but it may be rough especially as a follow-up rumor indicates that Aquaman star Jason Momoa is bailing on the franchise.

    The news isn’t all bad for DC fans, however, as it seems Momoa has another DC role in mind…one that might be right up his alley. The new role shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who have been paying attention, but according to the rumor mill from Hot Mic podcast host Jeff Sneider, Momoa will make the jump the DCU to fill the role of interstellar, heavy metal mercenary Lobo, “the most badass bounty hunter in the galaxy.”

    Given that Gunn has only revealed the first half of Chapter 1 of the DCU, it’s possible that a Lobo project fits into the second half of the Gods and Monsters entry. Even if Momoa is already on board, it makes sense, as Sneider points out, to wait for Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom to complete its theatrical run before revealing Momoa’s bold new role.

  • ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ Opens to Franchise Best

    ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ Opens to Franchise Best

    Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has topped the box office. The Ant-Man threequel managed to take in an impressive $120 million over Presidents Day weekend, beating out expectations. Perhaps more impressively, though, the film’s opening makes for the biggest opening for the Ant-Man films to date. The film’s opening is also the third-best opening for February and Presidents Day weekend, behind Black Panther’s $242.1 million opening and Deadpool’s $152.1 million opening.

    Rich Gelfond, the CEO of IMAX, noted that $24 million of the film’s box office came from the premium format screens, calling it the first blockbuster of the year. “’Ant–Man’ is the first new Hollywood blockbuster out of the gate in 2023.”

    Quantumania makes for the first $100 million domestic debut so far this year. Overall, the film took in $225 million at the worldwide box office, having earned $121 million internationally. While the movie didn’t quite take off in China as Marvel might’ve hoped, earning just $19.2 million, the film seems to be doing quite well despite its low rating among critics. Quantumania is currently sitting at 47% on Rotten Tomatoes following 308 reviews, but audiences don’t appear to feel the same way as critics – the audience score is currently at a solid 84% following 5k verified ratings.

    For comparison’s sake, 2015’s Ant-Man opened to $57 million, while 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp opened to $76 million. While those films ended their runs with $519 million and $622 million, Quantumania is expected to end its run ahead of both titles.

    Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is now playing in theaters.

    Source: Variety.

  • Peyton Reed Discusses What His Future with Marvel Might Hold

    Peyton Reed Discusses What His Future with Marvel Might Hold

    Peyton Reed is in rare company at Marvel Studios. With the release of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, Reed joined Jon Watts (Spider-Man) as the only directors to complete a trilogy of films for one franchise. They’ll be joined by James Gunn when Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 hits theaters in May and while Gunn’s future won’t include more Marvel Studios projects, Reed’s very well may. It’s already been made clear that ideas for a fourth Ant-Man film have been hatched and discussed with Kevin Feige so it seems just a matter of time before Ant-Man 4 gets the green light. But would Reed want to return for another round?

    That’s a lot more complicated answer than you might believe as Reed revealed in an interview with Collider. The short answer is definitely yes, but the director has some pretty interesting thoughts about what coming back would mean.

    It’s interesting because, you know, I’m superstitious about this stuff, right? I mean, when we were doing the first Ant-Man there was certainly no guarantee we were going to get to make a second one. And even after the second one, there was no guarantee. When we finally announced that, “Okay, we’re gonna make Quantumania, we’re gonna get to do this,” it was marshaling all the forces onto that because we knew if we’re gonna get to do a third one, it’s gotta be something altogether different. We gotta show the audience something different.

    For me, it was the Quantum Realm, of being able to create that whole world, worlds within worlds, and answer those questions. What the hell was Janet Van Dyne doing down there for 30 years? And also, to kick off Phase 5, to introduce Kang the Conqueror with Jonathan.

    Peyton Reed

    Reed’s interest in returning seems to be tied to making sure whatever comes next looks and feels different than what came before. Quantumania certainly accomplished that even if it wasn’t well-received critically. So what would a fourth film entail? While he doesn’t give a direct answer, inspiration might be found in the pages of Fantastic Four comics.

    So I was focused on that thing. Now that the trilogy is done, who knows? Again, years ago – you and I have talked about this before – I developed Fantastic Four like 20 years ago. I channeled a lot of my Fantastic Four love into the Ant-Man world, and specifically into Quantumania. You know, it’s no mistake that both are kind of dysfunctional families of superheroes, and in Fantastic Four they may go into the Negative Zone, we went to the Quantum Realm. I really scratched that itch with these movies.

    Peyton Reed

    With so many great Fantastic Four stories to be told and only so many films in which to tell them, it’s possible that Reed could continue to turn to them for inspiration for the Ant-Man franchise should things head in that direction. However, there are some other Marvel properties in the works that Reed might be interested in working on as well, should the opportunity present itself. “I want to play in a lot of different sandboxes,” said Reed of the idea of working outside of Marvel before adding, “I would never say no to a future doing stuff at Marvel. I mean, I’ve loved my time at Marvel, I love the people in Marvel, and I love what they’ve been able to do.“

    What other “stuff” at Marvel might have caught his eye? “I would do a Nova movie,” said Reed. “I love [The Man Called Nova]. That seems cool.” With a Nova project currently in development at Marvel Studios, Reed may just have his chance.

    Source: Collider

  • ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’: Where the Threequel Fits on the MCU’s Timeline

    ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’: Where the Threequel Fits on the MCU’s Timeline

    The MCU’s five-year time jump created all kinds of narrative space to explore within the Multiverse Saga and the creatives behind Marvel Studios’ Phase 4 projects took full advantage. While WandaVision takes place in 2023 just weeks after the events of Avengers: Endgame, Thor: Love and Thunder and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special seem to be set in 2025. So where does the latest installment of the Multiverse Saga fall? Fortunately, Marvel Studios has made pinpointing the location of the events of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania on their timeline very simple!

    Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania gives a few clues to its location on the timeline, including a slightly older Cassie, but the best bit of info doesn’t come from the movie itself, but rather from a combination of facts from another film and, more importantly, a member of Marvel Studios’ Parliament. During Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which is seemingly set in early 2025, some information about the setting of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania is casually shared in a CNN ticker. That bit of info on the ticker reveals that Scott Lang is out and about on his book tour during the events of Wakanda Forever.

    Scott Lang continues tour in support of autobiography Look Out For The Little Guy.

    Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

    As exciting as that is, it doesn’t quite pinpoint Quantumania’s place on the timeline because book tours take some time. However, the events of Quantumania can clear things up a bit because it seems that the book reading seen in the film is probably the last one on the tour since Scott–and the rest of the Ant-Family–find themselves in the Quantum Realm shortly after. Thankfully, that’s where Parliament member Nate Moore‘s comments come into play and can clarify.

    The Marvel Cinematic Universe in Timeline Order as seen on Disney Plus

    In an interview with CinemaBlend, Moore gave some clarification as to when the events of Wakanda Forever and Quantumania take place.

    Yeah I mean, look if you think about… This movie clearly happens after No Way Home and Eternals. I think it probably happens potentially concurrent with [Thor: Love and Thunder]. New Asgard does exist in our universe, for instance, or in our film. And almost concurrent with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which is coming out in February.

    Nate Moore

    Given that Ms. Marvel has a Scott Lang Easter egg dropped in, it’s safe to say that Wakanda Forever, She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel and Thor: Love and Thunder are all taking place fairly concurrently with Quantumania but that Quantumania‘s setting is just a bit after Wakanda Forever and just a bit before Love and Thunder. So, until further notice, 2025 it is!

    Source: CinemaBlend

  • ‘Ant-Man 3’ Faces Challenging Box Office Debut in Asia Pacific Markets

    ‘Ant-Man 3’ Faces Challenging Box Office Debut in Asia Pacific Markets

    Not all is sunny with the latest release by Marvel Studios, as while it did manage to release in its predicted release window at $104M domestically over three days. The big surprise is a softer release internationally at $121.3M. As of now, the film is 13% ahead of the first Ant-Man internationally but 27% below its sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp. Yet, the big reasoning here is that it had a very soft Chinese opening at 19M, which is quite a bit further away from the predicted $35M to $55M. It seems that it did receive a similar score to that of the first Ant-Man but was lower on another score.

    Rotten Tomatoes soft score didn’t help and if you add in factors like a tired box office after Chinese New Year and a general lack of interest in Hollywood productions, it’s going to be a tough battle for the film in that market. We also can’t forget that Marvel films have been banned since 2019 and it was going to be an uphill battle no matter what was released in that market. Deadline also points out one rather interesting aspect: science-fiction has major troubles in Asia Pacific markets as even Star Wars has trouble establishing itself in these markets.

    South Korea seems to have a similar development with these types of films, which doesn’t help matters much as both were key markets in the last two films’ releases. Still, Australia and European markets are performing ahead of the last two releases and could make up for the softer Asian release, but it does seem unlikely that the film will pass Ant-Man and the Wasp‘s global box office at this rate. It could have a chance at around $550M to $600M depending if that B CinemaScore will not overshadow any potential legs. The drop in the next weekend will give us a clearer picture.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Ant-Man 3’ Dethrones ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ as Third-Highest February Release

    ‘Ant-Man 3’ Dethrones ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ as Third-Highest February Release

    It’s been a nailbiting weekend for the box office, as many were unsure if Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania may actually manage $100M opening. The B cinemaScore and critical reception made it a make or break situation. Now, for any other ffilm this would be a fantastic opening weekend even with an A score, but Marvel has more weight on its shoulders as one of the biggest franchises and money-makers for Disney. Still, the film surprised and pulled in an additional 33.8M over Saturday after a strong $46M Friday (including Thursday previews) and is set to close the weekend with $104M over three days.

    Don’t forget, this is Presidents Day weekend and as such will probably wrap up around $118M. Keep in mind, those numbers can always fluctuate once the weekend wraps up. That would place perfectly in the more positive side of its initial prediction that was between $96M to $131M. So, the film certainly delivered on its box office promise even if the next weekends drop being the true indicator what kind of multiplier we can expect. A more mixed to positive word-of-mouth could still net it a 2.3 multiplier but given the Ant-Man franchise could surprise given how well it worked with children and families. It may have potentially found a niche that could carry the film further.

    It should also be noted that the Saturday hold percentage wise is better than Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (-36%), Thor: Love and Thunder (-40%) but not far from Eternals, who also shares the B rating. Deadline believes the draw of Kang the Conqueror may be balancing out any of the critical reception. The film opened 44% higher than Ant-Man and the Wasp and is now the trilogy’s biggest opener. Interestingly enough was playing evenly throughout the entire day. So, this is perhaps a more balanced experience than the other more frontloaded pictures, but only time will tell.

    Overall, the film also pulled in a strong $121.3M worldwide and now stands at $238.3M worldwide. The film isn’t breaking any records worldwide and had a smaller opening in China with 19.2M but that market also hasn’t had a Marvel movie in quite some time release at the same as internationally. Deadline has pointed out that science-fiction adventures do have that habit internationally. As of now, the film is now the third highest opener in February ever following Black Panther ($242.2M) and Deadpool ($152.2M). It has now dethroned the former third place holder of Fifty Shades of Grey at $93M.

    Even with the current critical and CinemaScore rating, there’s still expectation the film will become the highest Ant-Man entry, which it would manage by passing $622M. To reach though, it’ll need a better multiplier around 2,6 at least, which might be the biggest challenge. A rejuvenated market may help push its legs, as our only real comparison is during last year when fiilms barely had any momentum and multiple weeks of barely any major releases.

    Source: Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Variety

  • ‘Quantumania’ Post-Credit Scene Explained

    ‘Quantumania’ Post-Credit Scene Explained

    By now, we all know to stay for dessert when it comes to Marvel movies and that usually means one or two credit scenes, in the middle and at the end. We already covered the mid-credit scene for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantummania, which introduces the Council of Kangs and (potentially) 6 Variants of the Conqueror that will play a primary role in other Phase 5 releases. You have a version of Kang that looks like a Skrull, a version of Kang in Red that could be Scarlet Centurion, a version of Kang that could be the new owner of Avengers Towers Mr. Gryphon, and then the big 3 Kangs in Rama Tut, Immortus, and one who may be either Iron Lad or the Silver Centurion. There is one Variant conspicuously absent from the Council, and it’s here we see in the end credit scene. 

    In the post-credit scene, we arrive in a small town for what really looks like an expo of some kind put together by a man named Victor Timely. Victor Timely bears a striking resemblance to Kang The Conqueror, and a bunch of the variants that have descended upon the coliseum in the mid-credits scene, so we have now met ANOTHER Kang Variant. Now, Loki is terrified to see Kang’s Victor Variant, whereas Mobius doesn’t seem to understand the worry. If you look closely around Timely’s stage, you see a very weathered-looking version of the core used to power the Conqueror’s Time Chair in Ant-Man, which begs a lot of questions about exactly how we are going to get to the Kang Dynasty. 

    The MCU was smart to connect the Conqueror to an original Avenger in the Wasp and a new Avenger Ant-Man, as it personalizes the fight ahead. Likewise, having Loki meet He Who Remains and having him be the one to encounter Victor Timely does the same. However, what if Timely’s not here to highlight a connection to Loki, but to Marvel’s first family and the original Iron Man? 

    Timely is an inventor in the MCU, that much we know, and in the comics, he is the inventor responsible for the original Human Torch. If you go back to Captain America: The First Avenger, you see Horton’s Human Torch at the Stark Expo that Howard Stark is putting together.

    Also, introducing Timely now could mean that Howard Stark knew Timely and that Timely befriended Stark because he knew that it was Howard’s son whose technology would one day be needed to stop the other Kangs. Whereas the Conqueror says that he saw that the timeline was broken and he set to correct the mistakes the Council made, Timely may have decided he wanted nothing to do with the Council and just wanted to improve mankind. 

    Or, like in the comics, he’s just hiding and biding his time before he can return to destroy the Avengers. 

  • First Production Details for Millenium’s Second ‘Hellboy’ Reboot

    First Production Details for Millenium’s Second ‘Hellboy’ Reboot

    It hasn’t been easy for Hellboy. The franchise was made a Hollywood staple with its two films directed by Guillermo del Toro, which sadly wasn’t as big of a box office success as they were able to finish their trilogy. So, they gave it another shot in 2019 with David Harbour taking over the role popularized by Ron Perlman. Now, Millenium Media is ready to give it another shot with the upcoming adaptation under the title Hellboy: The Crooked Man.

    Brian Taylor of Crank fame will be directing the film and they are already eyeing a production start in Bulgaria next month. It seems that no one has been cast just yet but they do seem to be in the final stages of finding their cast. Comics creator Mike Mignola is also involved with the project and even wrote the script alongside Chris Golden, who is his comic collaborator for Dark Horse. They promise the story will “expand Hellboy’s world through one of the most beloved issues of the comic series.” Surprisingly, this is the first time that Mignola is involved with the film franchise.

    The adaptation is inspired by the 2008 comic, which was released around the time Hellboy 2: The Golden Army found its way into theaters. Millenium took over the rights for the iconic character back in 2018 and they are hoping to establish a new franchise with this entry. No, not just a trilogy but going for multiple films even after the disappointment that was the 2019 reboot; something David Harbour jokes about as something that still haunts him to this day.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Ant-Man 3’ Conquers a $46M Friday Opening at the Box Office

    ‘Ant-Man 3’ Conquers a $46M Friday Opening at the Box Office

    The numbers are in and after a very strong $17.5M Thursday preview showing for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, it seems the film managed to pull in a strong $46M haul over Friday at the domestic market. As such, there’s a good chance the film will at least pull in $100M over three days at the box office; though the recent B CinemaScore could slow down its momentum. Still, the film is the biggest in the trilogy as Ant-Man opened to $57.2M; the smallest MCU start; and Ant-Man and the Wasp managed to pull in $75.8M. They grew from previews at around $6M and $12M respectively.

    The film is now the third-highest Friday grosser in February and is on track to make around $115M over the four-day weekend. There have been some that believe it could go even higher towards $120M but the current critical reception may make that a bit difficult. 62% of the audience seemingly purchased their tickets in advance or even on the day still makes for a strong opening overall for the film. Audiences seem to give it a 3 1/2 star overall and while it has similar lows like Eternals, this entry has a bit more going for it that could entice audiences long-term.

    Kang’s arrival was the main selling point and that could definitely be something that’ll keep audiences interested to check it out in case they missed anything. Creed 3 is also around the corner starring Jonathan Majors, which may boost the film for those wanting to compare his performances. IMAX made up 43% and is showcasing that the format may become a great way to build more revenue for cinemas. The big test remains on how the film will perform overall at the box office, as it’s unclear if it’ll manage to pull $700M+ with its current rating.

    A $600M run does seem very possible but just how high it goes depends on the drop in the next weekend. The Box office is looking at a lot of competition in the coming weeks but that actually makes for a good thing, as the last few years have been dead at the theaters. So, the more releases there are, the more momentum theater chains get in visitors. Some might come back to check out the Ant-Man threequel and it seems he movie performed very well with families. Perhaps that kind of demographic could make all the difference and push the film towards a 2.3 or even 2.4 multiplier.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline

  • ‘Ant-Man 3’ Joins ‘Eternals’ With Lowest MCU CinemaScore

    ‘Ant-Man 3’ Joins ‘Eternals’ With Lowest MCU CinemaScore

    There’s been quite a discourse online about the quality of the recent Marvel movies. The critical reception of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has reawakened discussion points that have been around since all the way back in Phase 2, as the franchise continues to exist in a cycle of quality discussions. Still, even with a mixed critical reception with 48% on Rotten Tomatoes, the Audience Score is quite a bit more positive with 84% of audiences seemingly enjoying the film.

    Still, the CinemaScore is a classic way to see where the film’s overall word-of-mouth might land and it seems that audiences are also mostly mixed with the very frontloaded scoring. The film has now been the second Marvel Cinematic Universe film to receive a B CinemaScore. Audiences are seemingly a bit mixed on the film but it’s interesting that the second high sci-fi attempt by Marvel Studios ends up with a similar rating.

    https://twitter.com/CinemaScore/status/1626871462463262720

    One thing often overlooked is that the CinemaScore does not mean people hate the film, they just simply thought it was okay; a general sentiment you see online. There’s also always a chance that certain elements in the film just don’t jive with audiences. Horror films generally don’t do better than a B or B+ due to the elements included in the film that define the genre. Not every blockbuster film pulls in an A ranking like the recent Plane also landed at a B+.

    It’s just unusual for Marvel to have this many B ratings throughout the last two years but also not a complete defining trait of the franchise. They’ve been more experimental and that is reflected by these films not always being “crowd pleasers across the board.” The big thing here is if the film will have legs moving forward though even 2022’s B+ films did manage to pull in quite a box office over its run. We’ll have to see though if this B scoring will slowly come to an end as Marvel Studios reshuffles.

    Source: Rotten Tomatoes, Twitter