Category: Film News

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James Gunn Assures Fans ‘Peacemaker’ Series Will Not Delay ‘Guardians of The Galaxy 3’ Shoot

It was announced yesterday by WarnerMedia that James Gunn would write an eight-episode Peacemaker series for HBO Max based on the DC Comics character played by John Cena, which will be first seen in The Suicide Squad. 

Here is that official press release. 

Oh f*ck, it’s Peacemaker! HBO Max is set to explore the origins of the Peacemaker character, the master of weapons from the highly anticipated upcoming The Suicide Squad film, in the new Max Original action-adventure-comedy series Peacemaker. HBO Max has given a straight-to-series order of eight episodes for the first season of the show. John Cena will reprise his role from The Suicide Squad movie to star in the series, and the film’s acclaimed writer/director James Gunn will write all eight episodes of Peacemaker and will direct multiple episodes, including the first. Gunn and The Suicide Squad producer Peter Safran will serve as executive producers of the series, with Cena as co-executive producer. Based on characters from DC, Peacemaker will be produced by Gunn’s Troll Court Entertainment and The Safran Company in association with Warner Bros. Television. Peacemaker is scheduled to begin production in early 2021, prior to Gunn beginning work on the next Guardians of the Galaxy film.

James has responded to fan concerns on Twitter that Peacekeeper could lead to further delays to Guardians of The Galaxy 3 because he’s set to direct multiple episodes next year. 

GUNN: “I’m doing Peacemaker in the time always allotted between The Suicide and Guardians of Galaxy Volume 3. Normally I would have been taking more of a break in this space but it’s Covid, I’m stuck at home, so I wrote a TV series.”

The Suicide Squad will be released on August 6th, 2021 and James wouldn’t likely be able to begin shooting the Guardians sequel until the promotional tour completes. 

SOURCE: JAMES GUNN

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Netflix Spends $30M To Secure Remake of Danish Thriller ‘The Guilty’ Directed By Antoine Fuqua and Starring Jake Gyllenhaal

Deadline reports that Netflix is spending a massive $30 million on securing the worldwide rights to an English remake of the Danish film Den skyldige aka The Guilty from Training Day director Antoine Fuqua and True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto.

Nightcrawler’s Jake Gyllenhaal will play 911 dispatch operator Joe Bayler. 

It takes place over the course of a single morning in a 911 dispatch call center. Call operator Joe Bayler (Gyllenhaal) tries to save a caller in grave danger—but he soon discovers that nothing is as it seems, and facing the truth is the only way out.

Here is the trailer for the original Danish film. 

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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Ryan Gosling and Director David Leitch Team On Stuntman Drama For Universal – Penned By ‘Iron Man 3’ Screenwriter Drew Pearce

Deadline is reporting actor Ryan Gosling has signed on to star in an untitled stuntman drama for Universal Pictures that will be directed by David Leitch (John Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 3) from a script penned by Drew Pearce (Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Iron Man 3, Hotel Artemis, Hobbs & Shaw). 

Plot details on the project are currently tight-lipped but Ryan previously played a stuntman in the thriller Drive for director Nicolas Winding Refn.

Universal landed the project with a seven-figure deal after reported interest from Netflix, Paramount Pictures, and MGM Studios.  

Leitch is currently making the Brad Pitt action flick Bullet Train for Sony Pictures. 

Gosling recently attached himself to a new Wolfman film from Invisible Man writer/director Leigh Whannell that is at Universal Pictures as well. 

Ryan is also set to co-star with Captain America actor Chris Evans on the Netflix spy thriller The Gray Man directed by The Russo Brothers, one of the most expensive films ever produced at the streaming service. 

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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Marvel Studios Movies Delayed Again As ‘Black Widow’ Heads To May 7th, ‘Shang-Chi’ To July 9th and ‘Eternals’ Moves To November 5th

Not so fast with those predictions of Black Widow heading to VOD or Disney+!

Disney has announced new release dates for multiple Marvel Studios films via Variety which include moving Black Widow from November 6th to May 7th, a move that will likely disappoint fans expecting the film to head to Disney+ by the end of the year.

Eternals also will move from February 12th, 2021 to November 5th, 2021 with Matthew Vaughn’s The King’s Man taking their old spot.

Shang-Chi & The Legend of The Ten Rings heads to July 9th, 2021 after Black Widow took it’s May 7th spot. The film is still shooting in Australia but seemingly won’t be getting as much of a delay as we had been bracing for all things considered.

There is a good chance that is way more visual effects work and possibly extra shooting that needs to be done on Eternals that would see the film getting bumped all the way to later part of 2021. The Deviants still haven’t been revealed by the studio who are most likely going to be motion-capture/CGI characters in the film.

SOURCE: DISNEY VIA VARIETY

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Second Round of Shutdowns In The UK and Elsewhere Could Have A Huge Impact On Hollywood’s Recovery

Movie theaters around the globe are trying to recover from the last couple of months but it looks like they could be closing again in multiple countries sooner than expected. The United Kingdom and Canada are currently seeing spikes of new cases of Coronavirus that has led to new restrictions along with promises from governments that a second national shutdown isn’t off the table if things don’t improve. 

New cases in the United Kingdom could hit as high as 50,000 per day by mid-October, which would be more than the United States is currently seeing as September 20th numbers were 34,586. The UK’s numbers on Monday were reportedly 4,368, a steady increase going the wrong way as the numbers have been doubling every seven days. The idea is to prevent 200+ deaths per day. 

Spain has already instituted restrictions on Madrid just months after European countries eased restrictions back in July. The continent is now seeing rises just like the UK with Spain seeing 31, 428 new cases since Friday. 

France also hit 13,000 new cases on Saturday and 10,569 on Sunday. 

Not the direction you want to see when there are predictions of a massive second wave in the fall and winter. 

The film industry has seemingly shrugged off the lackluster domestic returns thinking that international box office numbers will keep studios afloat. However, if places like the UK, Europe, and Canada shut down theaters again a massive movie like No Time To Die might lose a lot of money and end up hurting Hollywood’s recovery. 

The United Kingdom is also trying bounce-back concerning film production with large studio films such as The Batman, Fantastic Beasts 3, and Mission: Impossible 7-8 said to be currently filming. A shutdown could see those shoots placed on pause again if the government suddenly decides it’s not a good idea while the country is seeing significant COVID-19 spikes. Robert Pattinson had reportedly tested positive for Coronavirus despite the strict safety precautions promoted ahead of the production resuming in London. 

Other projects expected to shoot in the United Kingdom soon include Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness (Longcross Studios), Ant-Man 3 (Pinewood Studios UK), The Flash (Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden), and Marvel’s Moon Knight series. Some of these shoots could see hiccups in the pre-production/prep stages if not massive filming delays if there is a prolonged shutdown. 

Dwayne Johnson and his family tested positive for COVID-19, he’s already back on the set of Netflix’s Red Notice in Atlanta, Georgia. Filming on The Falcon & The Winter Soldier has also resumed in Atlanta as well with expectations that Loki and other shows will begin there soon. 

It seems extremely irresponsible on the part of studios to chug along like nothing is wrong given that the state of Georgia with a population of 3.7 million has more new cases of COVID-19 than the entire country of Canada that has a population of 37.4 million, the latter on the cusp of greenlighting a second shutdown that could see productions in Toronto, Montreal, and even Vancouver stop entirely again. Not to mention, pulling down theater ticket sales as Canadian box office dollars are included in the domestic cumes.  

We’ll have to see the numbers can be turned around without national shutdowns but it doesn’t seem like it can be avoided at this point. 

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Jon S. Baird Confirmed To Direct ‘Tetris’ Drama For Marv Films – Working Title Is ‘Falling Blocks’

There had been mystery surrounding what Marv Films project director Jon S. Baird (Filth, Stan & Ollie) had been attached to direct after trade reports linked to an unknown project. In July it was reported by the Daily Mail that Jon would be directing a live-action Tetris movie with British actor Taron Egerton (Kingsman 1-2, Eddie The Eagle, Rocketman) set to play video game entrepreneur Henk Rogers.  

The Ronin can now confirm the Daily Mail’s reporting that Baird is indeed attached to direct with Matthew Vaughn producing and add that film and could begin shooting this fall/winter in the United Kingdom under the working title of Falling Blocks. 

This version seems to be heading more in the period drama direction as it’ll take place in the 1980s during The Cold War. 

Russian video game developer Alexey Pajitnov created the hit Tetris, which was popularized by the Nintendo Gameboy but was embroiled in a legal battle to secure the intellectual rights. 

Taron had been previously in talks to take the leading role of Seymour in the remake of genre musical Little Shop of Horrors for Warner Bros. and director Greg Berlanti. I’m not sure what this means for Taron’s involvement with Little Shop of Horrors, which had landed tax incentives to shoot in the state of California. 

Tetris aka Falling Blocks could end up landing a release date sometime in 2021. 

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Fantastic Concept Artwork From Roland Emmerich’s Abandoned ‘Foundation’ Movie At Sony – Based On The Beloved Isaac Asimov Novels

Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series of novels are considered some of the best examples of the science fiction genre and is getting a series adaptation at Apple TV+ that will begin airing in 2021. 

Check out the upcoming show’s teaser trailer below. 

Based on the award-winning novels by Isaac Asimov, Foundation chronicles a band of exiles on their monumental journey to save humanity and rebuild civilization amid the fall of the Galactic Empire

Before there was a show, director Roland Emmerich (Stargate, Independence Day) attempted to make a feature film version for Sony Pictures that ultimately didn’t come together. 

Production designer Oliver Scholl has posted a bunch of Foundation concept artwork on his website that was created between 2010-2011. 

Scholl’s credits as a production designer include Venom, Edge of Tomorrow, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Independence Day, Godzilla 1998, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., and Suicide Squad. He also worked in the art department on sci-fi films such as Stargate, Mission To Mars, Titan A.E., and A.I. Artificial Intelligence. 

The artwork certainly has a scale that we’re not really used to from Roland and does have an Avatar feel to it.

Artwork by Manuel Plank, James Clyne, Steve Burg, The Aaron Sims Company, with the help of Michael Meier, Oliver Scholl

SOURCE: OLIVER SCHOLL

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‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Actress Carrie Coon Says She May Return To MCU With A Live-Action Role

Carrie Coon (Fargo, Gone Girl) recently spoke with The Hollywood Reporter to promote her drama The Nest co-starring with Jude Law (Captain Marvel). The topic switched over to her work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe voicing The Children of Thanos villain Proxima Midnight, who was a motion-capture character.

When asked if she would be able to return the MCU with another live-action role, Carrie gave the impression that could indeed happen and possibly has been part of discussions when she originally took the role.

THR: When you agreed to play Proxima Midnight in Infinity War, was there an understanding that it wouldn’t rule you out from appearing as another character in human form at some point? I’m sure I’m not the only one who wants to see you back in the MCU.

COON: “Oh, thank you. That’s very kind. Yes, that is certainly the kind of conversation that an agent would engage in when looking into committing to those jobs. Yes, they want some verbal assurances that the possibility for additional work is not completely off the table. So, yeah, absolutely. It’s like, you know, being on Chicago Fire. You get killed and then you can’t come back for another year. You want to make sure that we have job security, so we’re always asking that question. Absolutely.”

Having actors return for a second MCU wouldn’t be crazy thing to happen as actress Gemma Chan played Kree villain Dr. Minerva in Captain Marvel only to take a leading role in Chloe Zhao’s Eternals as Sersi.

I’d love to see Carrie considered for the role of S.W.O.R.D.’s Abigail Brand.

Carrie recently worked with Ant-Man actor Paul Rudd, Captain Marvel’s Mckenna Grace, and Spider-Man: Homecoming’s Bokeem Woodbine in Sony’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

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‘Resident Evil’ Reboot Film Adds ‘Shazam!’ Production Designer Jennifer Spence

The Ronin has been able to confirm that production designer Jennifer Spence has been hired for the Resident Evil reboot film, which is based on the classic Capcom zombie horror video games.

Jennifer’s extensive horror credits include Lights Out, Insidious: Chapter 2, Insidious: Chapter 3, Paranormal Activity 2, The Lords of Salem, Paranormal Activity 3, Paranormal Activity 4, Rob Zombie’s Lords of Salem, Annabelle: Creation, The Nun, and most recently The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It.

She also worked on DC Comics film Shazam! as well.

They’ve also added art director Tony Ianni, who does extensive work on the sci-fi series The Expanse as art director and now as the show’s production designer.

Some character tidbits that leaked suggested that the new film will focus mostly on iconic characters from the video game franchise rather than continuing the Alice story from the Paul W.S. Anderson films that starred Milla Jovovich.

There is a live-action Netflix series in development as well.

Filming is expected to begin in/around the Toronto area on October 13th and complete by December 19th.

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Guy Ritchie Reuniting With ‘Wrath of Man’ Production Designer For MI6 Thriller ‘Five Eyes’ Starring Jason Statham

The Ronin has been able to confirm that director Guy Ritchie has hired production designer Martyn John for his upcoming spy action movie Five Eyes starring Jason Statham for STXfilms and Miramax. Guy and Martyn had previously worked on his armored car action film Wrath of Man (formerly Cash Truck) which is a remake of the French film Le Convoyeur from 2004 and is expected to be released on January 15th, 2021.

Five Eyes was penned by The Gentlemen screenwriters Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies with rewrites from Guy. 

MI6 guns-and-steel agent Orson Fortune (Statham) is recruited by global intelligence alliance Five Eyes to track down and stop the sale of a deadly new weapons technology that threatens to disrupt the world order. Reluctantly paired with a CIA high-tech expert, Fortune sets off on a globe-trotting mission where he will have to use all of his charm, ingenuity, and stealth to track down and infiltrate billionaire arms broker.

Five Eyes aka FVEY is a real intelligence alliance that consists of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Filming on Five Eyes is expected to begin next month in Europe.

Ritchie previously tackled the spy genre with The Man From U.N.C.L.E., a feature film adaptation of the classic television series. 

The director is also said to be attached for Disney’s Aladdin sequel.