There’s been no information on the live-action adaptation of Netflix’s One Piece series. Its showrunner Steve Maeda did share an Instagram post that the pandemic postponed their show back in March. That was the last official update we got our hands on since. Luckily, it seems that the folks over at Illuminerdi might have gotten their hands on some curious details on the upcoming project alongside what could be the first potential casting for the show, as Netflix is eyeing Ludi Lin in the role of Zorro.
Illuminerdi got their hands on the character descriptions for the various member of the Straw Hat Pirates. The before-mentioned casting would be the biggest inclusion. His background as a martial artist would make him a good choice due to Zoro’s affinity for swordplay. He’s a key member of the team as the crew’s first mate. After Luffy sets out to the sea, he comes across the pirate hunter and they build an inseparable bond throughout their travels on the Grand Line.
His character description hints at some familiar characteristics. They highlight his time as a mercenary, as he does any work to get around. They also highlight his love for his weapons and a good drink. Sadly, no mention of his terrible sense of direction which would’ve been a fun addition given his perchance of getting lost at the worst possible moments.
It looks like casting is underway for the upcoming Disney+ spin-off Ahsoka. It’ll continue the story set up in The Mandalorian, where Rosario Dawson‘s take on the iconic Star Wars character sets out to find out what happened to Ezra after the events of Rebels. Cinelinx’s Jordan Maison and SlashFilm’s Adam Frazier shared some insight into the potential actors up for the role, as they shared information that includes Lana Condor, Tati Gabrielle, and Havana Rose Lui.
Sabine Wren has quite a few ties to the plot focused around the return to Mandalore. She is a female Mandalorian warrior, who acted as a revolutionary leader in the early times of the rebellion. She even was another Mandalorian to wield the Darksaber. Her goals align with those of Bo-Katan and her introduction into live-action might be the first inklings towards the overarching plot of the various stories.
The Mandalorian’s third season got delayed by some time, as we’re first to expand the franchise through the upcoming The Book of Boba Fett series. With Ahsoka rumors making the rounds, it might possibly enter production after Djin Darin’s story continues in the third season. So, they might even introduce Sabine in the mainline series before she takes a central role in the spin-off.
Marvel Studios kicked off the What If…? animated series with a strong episode exploring a timeline where Peggy Carter received the Super Soldier serum. The first season consists of nine episodes that’ll take a unique perspective on the multiverse. Luckily, there’s also a second season heading our way, but Head Writer A.C. Bradley offered some insight into episodes that were left behidn ont he cutting room floor.
What If….Steve Rogers Joined Hydra
The first idea is one we recently saw realized in the Secret Empire storyline. We are introduced to a version of Captain America that ends up as a minion of Hydra. It seems the idea was on the table, as they wanted to explore a version that became a minion of the evil organization and evne hold the title of Captain Hydra.
My idea was, if Steve fell off the train, we would jump forward in time,” Bradley says. The Steve Rogers version of Winter Soldier would not slyly operate in the shadows, but instead aggressively and openly pursue the cause of his new evil overlords.
The story would’ve had a big twist with former enemy, the Red Skull, joining forces with Peggy, Howard, and Bucky to take down the man that ended up replacing him at the top of Hydra’s food chain. She reveals this was the pitch that got her the job in the first place.
What If … Tony Stark Was Indiana Jones
It looks like Bradley also was curious about the estranged relationship between Tony and his father. At one piont, she considered creating a story inspired by The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. She wanted to explore how their relationship would’ve been shaped throughout the years and show the sparks flying between them.
At the end of the day, Tony Stark is the guy who was never supposed to be the hero, becoming the hero,” she says. The real promise of this alternate storyline might have been showing us who Tony was before he put on the cynicism that became his very first, unseen armor.
What If…Loki Was Worthy
Bradley highlighted that they wanted to avoid giving characters a focus who already are getting their own spin-off series, but there was a fun Loki pitch in the works. At the time of the initial pitch, this rule wasn’t known and showcased Loki wielding Mjolnir. It’s similar to the deleted scene from Thor: The Dark World where Loki imagined himself wieldign the hammer. They’re only concern was that it might change teh character too much from what made him standout.
What If… Spider-Man Turned Into a Spider
We know that Spider-Man will appear as part of the mysterious zombie episode due to his naming as the Zombie Slayer. Yet, it seems they had a much darker story planend for him, as they were inspired by Franz Kafka’s novellaThe Metamorphosis. Yet, it seems a David Cronenberg-esque body horror was too much for Marvel to sign off on. Yet, they said okay to zombies.
If would have been hard-R for a show that probably your kids will end up watching. It was a little too dark. So I was like, okay, that’s fine. Can I do zombies? And they said, yes, you can do zombies
What If…Tony and Pepper Travelled Through Space
It looks like love is in the air, as one of the pitches would’ve seen Tony Stark and Pepper Potts spending their time travelling through space. It seems they wanted to include all kinds of characters with them jokingly including Star Wars characters. Earlier on they also reference taht the original pitch even included Rocketman making an appearance.
I would pitch Star Wars characters. That was me half the time having a joke, and also just really liking Mark Hamill, having worked with him on Trollhunters. Sometimes you would push the crazy ideas just to see if there was any movement.
It seems they truly tested what was possible with Marvel Studios, and the ideas vary quite a bit in fun ways. I think the Cronenberg-inspired story would be a great storyline to explore in the mainline MCU at some point. Captain America turning into a Hydra agent would be a great story to explore, as we got glimpses of a “What If Hydra won” storyline in Agents of SHIELD. Who knows, maybe these ideas get a chance to return with a potential third season.
Netflix gave us the sweetest bit of news announcing Sweet Tooth will be returning for a second season on the streaming service. The series, based on the popular comic of the same name made its debut to outstanding reviews from critics. It even became one of the streamers highest viewed series with over 60 million accounts tuning into the series. Sweet Tooth was only two million away from The Queens Gambit‘s viewers.
It follows a hybrid deer boy named Gus, who is off looking for his mother. In his journey, he is accompanied by a human named Jeppered. Together traverse the end of the world. While no adaption follows its source material 100%, Sweet Tooth seems to be heading in a similar direction as the original comic going by the first season ended. So, let’s take a closer look at what the second season has in store for us.
If you want to remain completely unspoiled, we will discuss the ending of the comics in this section. Only continue at your own risk.
The end of the first season saw Becky pick up a signal on a walkie-talkie, but can’t make it out. The voice on the other side of the transmission turns out to be Gus’ mother, Birdie, who made her way to Alaska in search of a cure. It’s the same place they end up in the comics to uncover the truth behind the recent events. With Gus captured by the last men and Jeppered MIA, it might take a bit before they can head that way. Alaska is where the story culminates to reveal the truth behind Gus. Essentially, he is a god or rather the clone of one.
In the comics, we’re taken back to 1911 when Dr. James Thacker set off to Alaska to find his brother-in-law, Louis Simpson. He found a home in Alaska and chose to stay, marrying and eventually fathering a child with one of the Inuit women he found there. The child was like Gus, a deer-boy, but was the reincarnation of Tekkietsertok. The being is known as the native god of hunting.
Thacker and his men massacre the Inuits and throw the child into a cave, disturbing the resting place of many ancient native gods. It’s these events that release the plague. All the men ended up dying and the plague would end there. Yet, it returned when all of the gods were cloned into new hybrids once again and started the events of the comic.
This revelation essentially answers the question of what came first, the hybrids or the plague. It could very well be the direction the series is heading in, but there is one thing the series has yet to touch. In the comics, it’s the religious influence that drives the story forward with Dr. Singh finding Gus’ dad’s book. He’s the reason they make their way to Alaska in the first place.
With Birdie already there, we could see another origin for Gus play out, especially since he seemed to be the only bi-product of his mother’s initial experiment. As of now, the other native god clones are absent. They could take a less religious influence and simply see the plague as a result of them playing god.
It looks like the long wait has finally come to an end, as Netflix is moving forward with their live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series. Not only that, but they also found their core cast and creative team for the project. Sleepy Hollow’sAlbert Kim has joined the project as showrunner, executive producer, and writer. It’s the first confirmation of his involvement since Illuminerdi dropped the rumor back in February. He’ll work alongside fellow executive producers, Dan Lin, and Lindsey Liberatore. Goi Roseanne Liang and Jabbar Raisani join the project as directors.
They also found their cast with Gordon Cormier playing Aang, the “fun-loving twelve-year-old who just happens to be the Avatar, master of all four elements.” The waterbending siblings’ Katara and Sokka will be played by Kiawentiio and Ian Ousley. Finally, the firebending prince of the Fire Nation, Zuko, also joins the cast in the form of young actor Dallas Liu, who some might know from PEN15. Kim had the following to say in a blog post on the importance of this series heading into live-action:
A live-action version would establish a new benchmark in representation and bring in a whole new generation of fans. This was a chance to showcase Asian and Indigenous characters as living, breathing people. Not just in a cartoon, but in a world that truly exists, very similar to the one we live in.
It hasn’t been an easy road for the project, as it originally included the creators of the Nickelodeon animated show before they left due to creative differences. The Last Airbender ran for three seasons before it got a sequel in 2012 titled The Legend of Korra. Nickelodeon is currently looking to expand the franchise, with the creators starting a new studio, which will develop films and series for Paramount+. It’ll be interesting to see how the live-action version will adapt the original series, and how different the paths will be from the new studio.
Marvel Studios has been continuing to expand more and more. First, they expanded into long-form storytelling through Disney+, and with the release of What If…? they even joined the animation market. There have already been hints at them wanting to explore more projects through the medium. The only other project confirmed so far is the photo-realistic animated series exploring the adventures of Baby Groot in I Am Groot. There’s also the question if they would continue to build upon the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse or explore unique avenues through animation.
In an interview with Variety, Brad Winderbaum may have offered some insight into their approach. He confirmed that all projects will be under Marvel Studios and produced by Kevin Feige. As such, he proclaims they’ll “be born of the same stuff that makes the rest of our content.” He also goes on to tease the following, as Variety highlights these projects will be connected:
How will they be connected? Time will tell as the story of the multiverse unfolds.
So, it’s likely that any future ventures will play into the multiverse concept that got set up by Loki’s final episode. It’s the perfect way to revisit already established characters while still keeping them within canon in some way or another. Their animation’s “unique aesthetic” got developed together with independent animation studios. Flying Bark Prods, Squeeze Animation Studios, and Blue Spirit were involved in the process. They would be open to work alongside Pixar and Disney Animations to expand their repertoire. Still, no matter what animation style they follow, it’ll be interesting how these projects will interconnect as they explore new approaches with each one. Marvel Studios has a bright future ahead, and we can’t wait to see what animated projects might be heading our way in the future.
Marvel Studios’ first foray into animation with What If…? featured a wide cast of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Around 85% of the cast returned to reprise their iconic roles with some noticeable absentees. There has been some uncertainty why they weren’t invited or what would’ve led to actors like Brie Larson, Chris Evans, and more not reprise the roles they played for so many years. Dave Bautista then took to Twitter to announce that he wasn’t even approached to reprise the role, which added even more confusion. Well, it seems there might’ve been some miscommunication, as the new head of Marvel Studios’ animation department, Brad Winderbaum, just revealed that they’ve reached out to everyone in some form or another.
I saw that, too. It’s my understanding that everybody was asked in some way, shape or form, either through their agents or directly. I don’t know really what happened behind the scenes there, but certainly, we would have loved for him to be in the show. So there’s probably some miscommunication somewhere.
It’s unclear if it truly was just a miscommunication that led to his absence, but given how many names returned, it would’ve been odd not to invite him. He’s set to return as Drax the Destroyer in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. So, it’s not like his time with the character has come to an end with the franchise. Bautista is known to be outspoken on Twitter. So, he might openly discuss if it truly was a case of miscommunication, which can happen in such a large industry. Still, if the character returns in a second season, it would be great if they’d let him join the project after all.
Marvel Studios has just released its first venture into animation. The 3D style of What If…?makes it feel like a comic book come to life. Each episode focuses on a different universe that splintered off from the Sacred Timeline. It won’t be the only venture into animation for the studio, as they already started the first steps to expand. There is one other animated series we do know about, and that is the I Am Groot shorts. We haven’t heard anything on the project since its initial announcement during Disney’s Investors Day. But, we may have finally gotten our first tease of what to expect with the project.
Variety had a chance to sit down with Brad Winderbaum, who got promoted to Marvel Studios’ Head for Streaming, Television, and Animation. He was the producer behind the What If series and will help the company continue to expand. In the article, Variety also offers our first insight into what type of animation style we can expect from the I Am Groot spin-off. It seems it won’t take the cartoon-inspired style, but rather explore “photo-real” animation. This approach would imply that the series will build upon the design we saw in Guardian of the Galaxy Vol. 2, as it’ll follow the baby version of Groot.
So, it might be an animated project purely on the basis it won’t include any actors in it. There was the tease that we’ll meet some new and unusual characters, which might not be human. It also gives us our first confirmation that Marvel Studios will explore different animation styles rather than stick to the one introduced with What If…?, which is a great direction to take. Animation offers a lot of potentials to explore different takes to add a unique personality to the story. It would be a shame not to bank on that while diversifying the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse.
Ms. Marvel will introduce the world to newcomer Iman Vellani as the titular hero. She’ll embody the character of Kamala Khan and her struggles as a Muslim-American teenager in a world filled with superheroes. We’ve gotten glimpses of the show that was originally set to release this year, but Marvel Studios has been oddly quiet on its development. Hawkeye is eyeing a November release, but there is no word if Ms. Marvel would fill the tight slot between it and the recently started What If…? series.
A recent leak gave us our first clear look at her rather faithful costume, but with one noticeable difference. She was wielding a purple power construct on her hand rather than showing off her classic Embiggen abilities. It’s unclear how much they will deviate from the source material, but Vellani spoke about tackling the role in an interview with Variety:
The fact that the show is being made & they’re including this character in the MCU is [what’s important]. I don’t really have to go out of my way & talk about being a Muslim and being Pakistani — it all comes out in the show. People seeing a person like me involved in a project as big as this is, I think, inspiring enough.
The MCU is expanding in many ways. Falcon and the Winter Soldier also tackled important perspectives that normally don’t get the limelight in media. Ms. Marvel has the potential to explore that same depth with how Kamala Khan adjusts to gaining abilities beyond her control and also being a Muslim-American. It’ll be interesting to see how they build upon her story and what the strange constructs have to do with her overall journey.
The series was first announced almost a year ago, which would explore the child superheroes in their late 20s, as they try to run away from their heroic duty. It seems she exited the project due to scheduling conflicts as they tried to extend her contract. It’s uncertain if the other two will potentially leave the project, but Variety claims they are still attached. CW is actively looking to replace her as they try to reshoot a new pilot.
It’s already been questionable if a live-action adaptation of Powerpuff Girls was a great move, especially when the script seemingly leaked online. The series was going to introduce the world to Mojo Jojo’s son Joseph “Jojo” Mondel Jr., who was going to be played by Nicholas Podany. It’s unclear how many other elements from Craig McCracken’s original series would get added, but we did get a look at set photos teasing their original costumes from the Cartoon Network series. They even released a promotional image of their new costumes, but it looks like they’re going to have to update that once the new pilot enters production.
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