Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Movies

  • A Brief History of Denials by Marvel Studios Actors, V2

    A Brief History of Denials by Marvel Studios Actors, V2

    Charlie Cox

    After reports of his return to the role of Matt Murdock/Daredevil in Spider-Man: No Way Home began to circulate, Charlie Cox was peppered with questions for nearly a year. Steadfast in his denial at first (“My answer is no comment; I don’t know what’s going to happen. I genuinely don’t know.“), Cox softened over time. Cox made a brief but memorable cameo in No Way Home and is expected to show up again in She-Hulk.

    Benedict Cumberbatch

    Back in 2014, Benedict Cumberbatch spoke to MTV about the possibilities of him portraying Doctor Strange and he mentioned that at the time, it couldn’t work out because he was doing a little play called ‘Hamlet’ in London. “So I don’t think I could even if that was in the cards. It sounds like a fantastic project. It’s a shame if I miss out, but who knows?” Of course, Cumberbatch has already portrayed the character 6 times and just completed reshoots on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, where he’ll be playing multiple versions of the character in his 7th MCU appearance.

    Andrew Garfield

    After more substantial rumors about his return as Spider-Man in Spider-Man: No Way Home began to show up online, Garfied began to feel the heat. When asked about his potential reprisal in the Spring, Garfield said, “They might be doing something, but ain’t like I ain’t got a call.” To his credit, he kept up the lie up until the film’s release, telling Wired, “No, I’m not. I’m not! Crying out loud. But I’m really excited to see what they’re gonna do with the next movie because I just love them,” just a week before the film’s release.

    Tom Holland

    Unfortunately for Holland, nobody was forced to lie more about the returns of previous Spider-Man Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire. The denials are too numerous to list here, but the poor guy has to be feeling relieved now.

    Brie Larson

    Larson was revealed as Captain Marvel at SDCC ’16 but rumors of her involvement pre-dated that by quite a bit. In a 2015 interview with MTV, Larson did less denying and more playing dumb when asked about the character:


    So would I be playing a man? This is interesting, I’m kind of into it… I thought I was always forever going to be stuck playing female roles but I’m down to play Chris Evans. Oh wait no, Chris Evans is Captain America. Who’s Captain Marvel? I have no idea what I’m talking about. But people want me to play this? OK good to know. I guess I gotta start reading the comic book.

    Larson finally appeared as Carol Danvers in 2019’s Captain Marvel and recently completed filming on The Marvels after making a cameo in Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings and is expected to be a Marvel Studios mainstay over the next decade.

    Evangeline Lilly

    Taking the lead from her Ant-Man co-star, Evangeline Lilly denied the rumors of her being the female lead in Ant-Man back in 2014. She stated back then that “No, I can’t. I don’t know anything about those rumors.” Lilly’s character became the first female MCU title character and joins Rudd in returning for the third Ant-Man film.

    Jonathan Majors

    After Jonathan Majors was cast as Kang the Conqueror, rumors surfaced that the character would first appear in Loki. Given the timing of his casting, the rumors made a lot of sense, but Majors went on record denying the rumors saying, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” To be fair, the rumors weren’t entirely accurate as he portrayed He Who Remains, technically a Variant of Kang, so Majors might have some wiggle room.

    Tatiana Maslany

    Just a month after a trade reported that Maslany had signed on for the role of Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk, the actress went into full denial mode, saying:

    That actually isn’t a real thing and it’s like a press release that’s gotten out of hand. I’ve been connected to these things in the past and press has gotten onto it, but it’s not actually a thing, unfortunately. I don’t know how these things get – I don’t know, I don’t know. You know better; I have no idea.

    Trade reports are about as good as it gets in terms of accuracy and this one hit the mark as well. Maslany will be seen in She-Hulk sometime in 2022.

    Jeremy Renner

    Even an original core member of the Avengers had denied he was cast. Back in 2010, Jeremy Renner stated that the Hawkeye rumor was “just one of those things that got blown way out of proportion. It was an idea…So there’s truth that we talked about it, but there’s no truth to me doing it. “ The actor first popped up for a cameo in Thor and now Renner has been an MCU mainstay, finally leading his own project and potentially moving into a second decade of work as the Avenging Archer.

    Paul Rudd

    Let’s all go back to a simpler time, 2013. Paul Rudd is fresh off production from Anchorman 2. By that time, Variety had released a report saying that Rudd and Joseph Gordon-Levitt were the frontrunners to portray Ant-Man in the MCU. When asked about the subject, Rudd stated said “It’s all rumor, man!”. Rumor indeed, Paul! Rudd just completed principal photography on Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, which will be the 7th time he has portrayed the character he was only rumored to portray, including voicing him in What If…?.

    At this point, it’s modus operandi for Marvel Studios but it truly serves no purpose other than to create a sense of mistrust in the actors. However, it is unlikely to change, so we’ll just keep updating this list.

  • ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Almost Featured Morgan Stark

    ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Almost Featured Morgan Stark

    Spider-Man: No Way Home is filled to the brim with characters from across the multiverse. The story is a love letter to Spider-Man and his cinematic history, as well as pushing Tom Holland‘s character forward in new and interesting ways. Who knows how many scenes ended up on the cutting room floor due to just how much they already had to balance from the get-go. Well, it seems we found out about one, as Avengers: Endgame‘s Lexi Rabe, who famously played Tony’s daughter Morgan Stark, revealed she was cut from the film.

    It’s a curious surprise, as it makes you wonder what role she may have had specifically in the story. Of course, it’s still too early to discuss what was in the film, but there are a few moments where we may have had a brief moment of her appearing. The Stark connection does exist, as Tony did end up deciding to change the world to bring Peter back, who he probably saw as a surrogate son. We’ll see whatever storyline that could’ve been set up with her appearance might get revisited, as it is uncertain what future the character has in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

    Source: Instagram

  • Murphy’s Team-Up, Volume 11: Reviewing ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Murphy’s Team-Up, Volume 11: Reviewing ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

    Anthony Canton III

    Spider-Man: No Way Home is the epitome of what an epic superhero film should be. It’s attention to the history of Spider-Man films is in some ways so on point it’s jarring. Emotionally it’s gut wrenching and heartbreaking, yet hopeful. Tom Holland is a superstar of the highest order. It’s a satisfying conclusion to a wonderful trilogy yet it leaves something on the table for the future. It enters my top 5 MCU films as even with its long awaited hype and knowledge, it still delivers. There are character performances from many that are excellent and full of depth. Willem Dafoe specifically delivers a performance the likes of which we might never see again. The theater experience was at Infinity War/Endgame levels. They have a tough act to follow to top this film, but I’ll be happy to see them try. The opportunity to tell new stories will be excellent for the franchise going forward.

    Filip Manka

    Wow, they made it. After all the misgivings, disastrous leaks, and promotional material, I got a really good and coherent Peter Parker/ Spider-Man story. It’s not a perfect movie. There’s a lot of bad editing and scripted scenes, the visuals and CGI are miserable for the most part, and the dialogue in many scenes leaves a lot to be desired. However, the amount of heart, the understanding of this character, the world with really surprising interactions, and the meta layers were something really good. It was an amazing experience, a fan event that did a great job of embracing a large amount of fan service emotionally.
    I had a great time. There was a lot of emotion, laughter, and at times embarrassment, but I’m happy that underneath all that content, we got a good conclusion to the trilogy. The future promises to be wonderful!

    Hunter Radesi

    I’ve been disappointed in this Spider-Man for months. I never wanted this movie to tackle the multiverse, and I definitely didn’t want what felt like a clear trajectory for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker to be sidetracked by studio-driven money grab. This is why, against all odds, it brings me great joy to say I actually really liked No Way Home. I suppose what I wasn’t expecting was for the film to be so aggressively Spider-Man in nearly every way. Holland’s Peter gets an arc that works with his previous story, while propelling him forward into his next era. As much as I wanted to see new villains close out this trilogy, I could not contain my nerdy excitement when personal favorites like Willem Dafoe and Andrew Garfield showed their faces again. And boy, did they show them. Absolute top tier performances from the duo, as well as Holland and Zendaya. While I did miss the lower-level, high school hijinks of the previous installments, there’s just something about a theater going insane together that can’t be beat.

    John Sabato

    Spider-Man: No Way Home is an incredible closing film of the Homecoming trilogy. While the film’s biggest fault is the spell plot, it makes up for it with brilliant character work and performances from everyone. Tom Holland shines in this film, truly his best performance as Spidey: he’s giving it everything he’s got. Willem Dafoe is another standout here; his return is unhinged and wildly unpredictably, the way he’s able to just turn it on and off is what makes him so interesting, and almost sympathize with him. The end of the film is what really seals the deal and promises an interesting path forward and will surely give the fans everything they’ve wanted with MCU Spider-Man in the next trilogy.

    Mary Maerz

    I thought No Way Home was wonderfuI was impressed that it managed to be a great movie and experience despite the ridiculous build up to it. It somehow delivered on all of its “promises” but yet the movie didn’t really suffer from the “it’s trying to do too much” plague that caused plenty of other comic book movies to not be successful, including past installments of Sony’s Spider-Man franchise. While Tom Holland’s Peter Parker definitely got a genuinely emotional and strong story, the best parts of the movie (to me, by far) were still the Sony crossovers. The dialogue and character interactions were very strong, especially considering how forced the situations in which the characters found themselves in actually were. I do not truly understand the Endgame comparisons–yes, it was a very ambitious crossover and finale-type event, but Endgame was a culmination of 22 movies worth of essentially the same story, whereas No Way Home was more of a celebration of the three live-action eras of Spider-Man within Holland’s third solo movie. So No Way Home is no doubt one of the biggest solo movies of all time, but it didn’t hit anywhere near as hard as Endgame did for me. Because of how much it relied on the Sony crossovers, I am curious to see how this movie ages once the novelty wears off. Last but not least, No Way Home’s plot really made no sense and there are countless plot holes or at least major questions that the movie just completely ignores. To be fair, No Way Home was great even with that caveat, but I’m always going to be frustrated by that.

    Charles Murphy

    The most comic booky Marvel Studios movie to date. The most Spider-Man Spider-Man movie to date. The most Peter Parker Spider-Man movie to date. Spider-Man: No Way Home is all these things. Emotionally, this film is on par with Infinity War and Endgame. And while part of that comes from Tom Holland, who has delivered on these scenes time and time again, there’s no doubt that the return of Andrew Garfield, whose masterful understanding of the character was enhanced by his turn here as an older, embittered Spider-Man, caused an emotional overload. Peter has been put through the ringer during his first few years as Spider-Man and No Way Home boldly tackled those themes and allowed Holland’s Peter to learn the true cost of being Spider-Man. Parker Luck was on full display. The returning characters served the story well and their arcs show that both Spider-Man and the Marvel Studios crew have grown in the way they deal with and treat villains. Helping people is what Spider-Man is supposed to do and, at the end of the day, that’s what happened here. Easily the best movie of the year and the best live-action Spider-Man film to date.

    Megan Murphy

    Spider-Man: No Way Home has got to be the best Marvel Studios production yet. Differing from other Marvel movies, I never had a moment to blink or a hint of boredom. This movie had such an intriguing plot that never skipped a beat. The incorporation of both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield has opened up a whole new world for Marvel (literally and metaphorically). Although characters from other universes have shown up in Loki , What If?, and Into the Spider-Verse, this movie by far takes the cake on opening new opportunities. With Spider-Man being such a popular character and the popularity the Spider-Man movies have gained, I think that the true idea of the multiverse will be able to come to light after Spider-Man: No Way Home. Marvel Studios will now have so many opportunities to introduce new characters and the audience will have a better understanding of the multiverse and its extremities. In the end, this movie was one of the best ever Marvel movies with many to choose from.

  • ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ is Sony’s Biggest Opening Weekend Ever With $587M Worldwide

    ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ is Sony’s Biggest Opening Weekend Ever With $587M Worldwide

    the news just broke that Spider-Man: No Way Home has taken the spot of third-highest opening weekend in the domestic box office. Well, the international numbers are just in and it has continued that very trend worldwide. The film is just shy of a $600M opening with $587M. It’s now only the sixth film to open past the $500M mark and has instantly taken the sixth spot of biggest openers of the year. Keep in mind, what makes this an impressive accomplishment lies in the fact it is without a Chinese release.

    There are still hints it’ll open in the Middle Kingdom at some point, but the fact it’s already the biggest opening of the year and very likely to pass $1 billion internationally. It managed $253M domestically, which is great if you consider that no film since before the pandemic could scatch the $100M surface. It has managed to take in $334M worldwide as we enter the end of MCU Spider-Man’s trilogy that reintroduces some familiar faces of the character’s cinematic past.

    At this rate, even if it faces a 70% drop, there’s a good chance that the film will pass $1 billion around its third week. There’s no defined release date in China, but if it does manage to release in the coming weeks, there’s a good chance the film might near around $1.5 billion potentially, but anything near $2 billion seems a bit unlikely. There is a chance that the stories surrounding the Omnicom variant may also shift its development, but its performance is certainly impressive.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Swings its Way to Third-Highest Opening Weekend of All Time

    ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Swings its Way to Third-Highest Opening Weekend of All Time

    It’s been a turbulent weekend, as people flocked to theaters to witness the film that is Spider-Man: No Way Home. Everyone wanted to see if the rumors were all true and it led to the best opening since the pandemic, as the film has now premiered to $253M across 4,336 theaters in the US. As such, it now has broken many of its earliest expectations at the domestic box office. It beats out Sony’s other Spider-Man spinoff, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, that took the top opening just shy of $100M by a mile and offers some motivation about the box office’s full recovery. Tom Rothman had the following to say on the film’s success:

    This weekend’s historic Spider-Man: No Way Home results, from all over the world and in the face of many challenges, reaffirm the unmatched cultural impact that exclusive theatrical films can have when they are made and marketed with vision and resolve. All of us at Sony Pictures, are deeply grateful to the fabulous talent, both in front of and behind the camera, that produced such a landmark film. Thanks to their brilliant work, this Christmas everyone can enjoy the big screen gift of 2021’s mightiest Super Hero —your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

    Tom Rothman

    The numbers are impressive as they even compete with pre-pandemic releases, as the film is now the eighth to pass the $200M mark in the local box office and has nabbed the third-highest opening weekend of all time. It even doubled Homecoming‘s $117M opening weekend, which saw a slight dip with Far From Home‘s $92M. As it stands, the film has beat out Star Wars: The Last Jedi‘s $220M, Jurassic World‘s $208M, as well as fellow Marvel Studios projects Avengers: Infinity War and Black Panther. It’s an impressive accomplishment and it’ll be interesting to see how word-of-mouth might push the film moving forward.

    Source: Variety

  • Robert Pattinson’s ‘Good Time’ Performance Landed Him ‘The Batman’

    Robert Pattinson’s ‘Good Time’ Performance Landed Him ‘The Batman’

    The Batman will feature the debut of Robert Pattinson as the iconic Dark Knight. Fans are dying to see his performance as the character, as his take looks to be drastically different than anything we’ve seen before. The actor has grown tremendously as an actor since his Twilight days with films like The Lighthouse, Tenet, High Life, The King, and Good Time.

    Director Matt Reeves recently sat down with Empire Magazine for the 2022 film preview where he dove into what inspired him for this take on Bruce Wayne. the director also shared how Pattinson‘s performance in Benny and Josh Safdie’s Good Time landed him the role of Batman.

    In that movie you could really feel his vulnerability and desperation, but you could also feel his power.I thought that was a great mix. He’s also got that Kurt Cobain thing, where he looks like a rock star, but you also feel like he could be a recluse.

    Matt Reeves

    Reeves casting in the film is something that’s garnered a lot of attention. And his source of inspiration is certainly something that might offer people some insight into what he will bring to the table. Pattinson‘s performance in Good Time is definitely one fan anticipating the upcoming release of The Batman should check, amongst his other projects and roles.

    The Batman is currently set to release in theaters on March 4th, 2022 with Zoe Kravitz, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright, Colin Farrel, Andy Serkis, Barry Keoghan, Jayme Lawson, Peter Sarsgaard, and John Turturro starring alongside Pattinson.

    Source: Empire

  • RUMOR: Henry Winkler Will Play Al Pratt in ‘Black Adam’

    RUMOR: Henry Winkler Will Play Al Pratt in ‘Black Adam’

    Legacy is an important aspect in the DC universe, with many of today’s most prominent characters like The Flash and Green Lantern picking up mantles from previous iterations. The Justice Society of America is where it all started, with many characters being new iterations of previous characters like Hourman, Dr.Mid-Nite, Doctor Fate, Starman, and Atom Smasher. A while back it was reported that the film would indeed feature the original Atom, and a founding member of the JSA, Al Pratt. It seems that was indeed true and we’ve now got a face to put to the name.

    It’s being reported that the Fonz himself has joined the cast of The Rock’s highly-anticipated DCEU debut in Black Adam. Henry Winkler will reportedly play Al Pratt, the first Atom and a veteran hero in the DCEU. Pratt was reported to play an uncle-type role to Albert Rothstein, the newest Atom Smasher. In the comics, Albert was the godson of Pratts wife, Mary James. Albert will reportedly don Al’s original Atom suit in the film, as he suits up for the first time as a recruit under Hawkman and Doctor Fate for the newest incarnation of the Justice Society of America.

    Noah Centineo will play Albert Rothstein, aka Atom Smasher alongside Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson as Black Adam, Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate, Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Quintessa Swindel as Cyclone, and Sarah Shahi as Adrianna Tomaz in Black Adam. The film is currently set to release in theaters on July 29th, 2022.

    SOURCE:

  • How The ‘No Way Home’ Mid-Credit Scene Could Lead to ‘Secret Wars’

    How The ‘No Way Home’ Mid-Credit Scene Could Lead to ‘Secret Wars’

    In 1984, Marvel Comics published Secret Wars, it’s first ever line-wide crossover event and, in fact, the first event of its kind by any comic book publisher. Secret Wars saw all of Marvel’s heroes and villains transported to the mysterious Battleworld by the Beyonder, one of the most powerful beings in the multiverse. The Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and hosts of villains, Doctor Doom key among them, were grouped into teams to do battle with one another with the promise that the Beyonder would grant them their every wish should they “slay” their enemies.

    It was an incredible premise that sold more copies than anything Marvel had published in 25 years and spawned two direct sequels and, in 2015, another sprawling, line-wide Secret Wars event orchestrated by Jonathan Hickman. In Hickman’s Secret Wars, inhabitants of Earth-616 and Earth-1610 found themselves on an all-new Battleworld after the collision of their respective universes destroyed each of them. Hickman’s event once again featured Doctor Doom but leaned much heavier into the concepts and constructs of the multiverse. At the conclusion of the event, Earth-616 was restored and, for a time, served as the only Earth in the Marvel Universe.

    In 2019, it was first brought to my attention that Marvel Studios had an eye on developing Secret Wars. In the two years since, there have been multiple, significant developments on that front. The Russo brothers, who once indicated that it would take an event the size of Secret Wars to bring them back, have entered into negotiations with Marvel Studios to return for an unannounced project; Marvel Entertainment recently made moves to secure the rights to characters featured in the original Secret Wars events; the concept of the multiverse was deeply explored in Loki and head writer Michael Waldron may have tipped us off that the studio was headed in the direction of a Secret Wars project; finally, stories began being told through What If…?, Spider-Man: No Way Home that allowed multiversal variants of characters to begin interacting with one another. And it is one such interaction from the mid-credit scene of Spider-Man: No Way Home that might be the biggest piece of evidence yet that a Secret Wars project is headed our way.

    We learn from the mid-credit scene of No Way Home that while most of the characters who came through portals during the miscasting of Doctor Strange’s spell ended up converging in New York City, Eddie Brock spent his time drinking in Mexico and getting a brief history lesson about the heroes and villains of this dimension. When Strange’s new spell sent everyone back where they belonged, a piece of the symbiote was left behind. It certainly doesn’t make any sense given how we saw Strange’s spell work on everyone else, but the symbiote is here and once Peter finds it, it’ll set the stage for Secret Wars.

    Marvel Studios has often indicated that they don’t intend to create projects that are direct adaptations of the comic books on which they are based. They are more likely to grab onto catchy titles and moments from those arcs. For example, Captain America: Civil War was nothing like the comic book event but it did recreate an iconic comic book panel. The studio is likely to do the same with Secret Wars and nothing from that event is more iconic than Peter Parker first donning the black, symbiote suit with the large, white Spider logo across the chest.

    Getting Parker in the black, symbiote suit is almost certainly a key precursor to Marvel Studios Secret Wars project. so the symbiote fragment being left behind in No Way Home to eventually be found by Parker is the first big step in preparing him for whatever version of the story they choose to tell. As was pointed out during the premiere of No Way Home, Tom Holland’s contract calls for one more appearance in a Marvel Studios film and there’s no bigger project in the works than Secret Wars. It could potentially reunite Holland with the Russo brothers, who introduced his Spider-Man to fans in Civil War and made him a significant player in both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Given what we’ve already seen in Loki and what the post-credit scene teaser for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness suggested, the multiverse is going to be in disarray and it’s all but certain that a major battle between universes is in the cards. The pieces are all in place now, including Spider-Man looking the part. All we need now is the official announcement.

  • ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Added New Characters During Reshoots

    ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Added New Characters During Reshoots

    Much was made about the extensive additional photography on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. While most people understood it was part of the process, others concocted elaborate fictions about how the extra work on the film spelt doom for the sequel. Over time, however, more and more evidence has surfaced to indicate that the extra time on the film was necessary to accommodate actors who couldn’t work in the UK during the original production time. With the additional work nearing an end, as first reported by Aaron Couch earlier this week, new details about it have surfaced.

    According to THR’s Heat Vision newsletter, part of the reason for the reshoots, which wrap up this week, was to include new characters to the film. Inspired by the interactions of multiversal characters and Variants in Loki and Spider-Man: No Way Home, the creative team behind the Strange sequel took the opportunity to lean heavily into the multiverse angle and include “more cameos and character introductions.”

    Given how much the opening up of the MCU multiverse changes the game, there’s no telling what prior iterations of characters might show up. It would seem the Fox X-Men (maybe even Deadpool) and Fantastic Four films, Marvel Studios animated series What If…?, Netflix’s Defenders-verse series and Sony’s Spider-Man films would be ripe for the picking, along with pretty much any and every Marvel property ever put to screen, animated or live-action. True believers, it’s a great time to be alive.

  • BREAKING: Kevin Feige Confirms Active Development on a Fourth Spider-Man Film

    BREAKING: Kevin Feige Confirms Active Development on a Fourth Spider-Man Film

    Marvel Studios and Sony are in active development on a fourth Spider-Man collaboration, according to Kevin Feige. Speaking with the New York Times about the future of the character, Feige said the following:

    Amy and I and Disney and Sony are talking about — yes, we’re actively beginning to develop where the story heads next, which I only say outright because I don’t want fans to go through any separation trauma like what happened after “Far From Home

    We also know that Holland’s Spidey is due another appearance in a Marvel Studios solo film, which Feige also addressed:

    He is going to show up sometime. The when and where, of course, is the fun part-and the part that we don’t talk about.