Category: Film News

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‘The Movie Critic’: Tom Cruise Could End Up Appearing In Quentin Tarantino’s Final Film Starring Brad Pitt

If you weren’t aware Quentin Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction”) is looking to hang up his feature film director spurs once he completes his tenth and final film, “The Movie Critic.” The pic is set in 1970s Los Angeles and is said to focus on a cynical movie critic that writes for an unnamed “porno rag” (This could easily be a publication owned by mobsters who had a financial interest in the porn industry) that takes inspiration from Travis Bickle, the lead character from the film “Taxi Driver” alongside potential elements from the revenge thriller “Rolling Thunder.” Telegraphing a violent angle to the film, which tends to be Tarantino’s calling card with his projects. We previously learned that Brad Pitt will be taking the lead role in the film, assumed to be the aforementioned movie critic. There is an equally exciting name that could show up in the film as well.

Not too long ago journalist Jeff Sneider had suggested that Tom Cruise could be potentially vying for a small role in the final Tarantino film. And now, Variety is backing up that claim as well in a new report outlining Cruise’s new attempts to get back to acting-focused projects not just action blockbusters like his popular “Mission: Impossible” movies. Stating the actor has “had discussions” about joining the upcoming production. Again, the size and character angle for the potential role haven’t been revealed in any great detail.

Eyes Wide Shut: Hidden in Plain Sight - An In-Depth Analysis of Stanley Kubrick's Misunderstood Masterpiece (Essay) — Boy Drinks Ink

This wouldn’t be all that surprising given that Tarantino sang high praises to “Top Gun: Maverick” when he saw it and seemingly, on paper, the two cinephiles could be a great pairing. Of course, Crusie isn’t a stranger to working with famed Oscar-caliber directors like Tarantino. Some of his previous directors include Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Paul Thomas Anderson, and the late iconic Stanley Kubrick on the thriller “Eyes Wide Shut.”

Pitt and Tarantino had worked together before on “Inglorious Basterds” and “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood,” with the latter earning him a Best Supporting Actor statue at the Oscars. Cruise and Pitt co-starred in the vampire drama “Interview With A Vampire” based on the Anne Rice novel of the same name. More big names are expected to be mentioned for parts in the film and we’ll have to wait until we learn if Cruise ultimately takes a part or not. I also think it’s safe to say longtime muse that Samuel L. Jackson will have a part waiting for him as well.

SOURCE: VARIETY & JEFF SNEIDER

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‘Jurassic World 4’: Amblin/Universal Select ‘Rogue One’ & ‘The Creator’ Director Gareth Edwards For Next Installment

The Ronin can independently confirm THR/Deadline’s recent report that Gareth Edwards has been hired to direct “Jurassic World 4,” aka, “Jurassic Park 7.” We had been tipped off just before the outlet dropped their report on the hiring. Edwards isn’t a stranger to working on existing studio IP he previously worked on “Godzilla” for Legendary helping them launch their Monsterverse lineup of films and did the “Star Wars” prequel film “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” that spawned into two seasons of “Andor” on Disney+. The filmmaker also has an established working relationship with ILM, the visual effects company that works on the “Jurassic” franchise. Their recent film together, “The Creator,” was nominated for the Best Achievement In Visual Effects Oscar at this year’s Academy Awards ceremony going up against the likes of the scrappy Japanese film “Godzilla Minus One.”

The news comes after David Leitch (“Deadpool 2”), who has a first-look deal with Universal Pictures, was in talks but eventually backed out over creative differences with the studio. “Jurassic World 4” is expected to be a soft-reboot of the franchise without any returning cast members and a script coming from veteran screenwriter David Koepp (“Mission: Impossible”), who previously wrote Steven Speilberg‘s “Jurassic Park” and “Jurassic Park: The Lost World.”

UPDATE: Collider was able to get this quote from Edwards last night at their FYC event saying “This opportunity is like a dream” and said this was the only thing that would make him “drop everything” including his next movie idea.

“I was about to take a break and I started writing my next idea for a film and this is the only movie that would make me drop everything like a stone and dive right in. I love ‘Jurassic Park.’ I think the first movie is a cinematic masterpiece…so this opportunity is like a dream to me. And to work with Frank Marshall and Universal and David Koepp, who’s writing the script, I think they’re all legends. So I’m just very excited.”

Author Michael Crichton is the creator of “Jurassic Park” with two novels published before his death. The franchise focuses on a bio-engineering company that discovers a way to clone dinosaurs for a new amusement park attraction until human error leads to the aggressive creatures being freed from their electrified cages/pens. “Jurassic World: Dominion” had dinosaurs living off the island and cohabitating with humans in different parts of the world. We’re still waiting on concrete plot details but we likely won’t have to too much longer with an expected summer production to meet Universal’s set release date of July 2, 2025. Although, given that both “Fantastic Four” and “Superman: Legacy” are taking spots in that month, we suspect that Universal will either move up or delay the film’s release, It all depends on when filming actually begins as Edwards will now have to jump feet first into production design and prep for this next installment.

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‘Shang-Chi 2’: Simu Liu Reiterates That Director Destin Daniel Cretton Is Returning For The Marvel Sequel

Marvel Studios is busy these days after the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes were resolved last year allowing them to finish “Deadpool & Wolverine” with “Fantastic Four” and “Thunderbolts” next on deck. Another project that has been quietly in development is a sequel to “Shang Chi.” A less-than-stellar update came from the film’s main star Simu Liu (“Barbie”) suggesting that there wouldn’t be any real movement on the sequel until after the next “Avengers” installment that had director Destin Daniel Cretton attached. Well, Cretton is no longer making “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty” as he exited with that project currently undergoing rewrites by Michael Waldron (“Loki,” “Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness”) after he replaced Jeff Loveness (“Ant-Man 3”). Reports said the filmmaker would instead focus on his Disney+ series “Wonder Man” and the “Shang-Chi” sequel.

While speaking with ComicBook, the Canadian actor echoed previous media reports that Cretton would be focusing on “Shang-Chi 2” after his exit from “Avengers 5.”

“Oh man, I don’t know to be honest,” Liu responded to questions on when the sequel is coming. “I mean, those things are so above my pay grade. I just wanna continue to be a fan of it. You know, when I get a call of like, ‘Hey, this is what you’re in and this is where you’re going to show up. And, this is when you’re going to need to be blacked out for.’ That’s kind of generally what tends to happen. But, you know Destin is such a special filmmaker and we’re very happy to have him on the sequel. So, he’ll be working on that and we’re really excited to see what he comes up with. I think he’s going to do a brilliant job.”

Police Story III: Supercop" is a standalone speedway of antics and action – Tone Madison

Previously, Cretton told Cinema Blend that it would be a dream to land legendary action star Jackie Chan for the next installment. This wouldn’t be an insane notion as the last installment included two key actors from Chan’s “Police Story 3,” aka, “Supercop” with Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh and Yuen Wah (“Kung Fu Hustle”) taking supporting roles. A film that obviously influences the Marvel pic.

“If we could ever get Jackie [Chan] into a movie that would be a lifelong dream of mine. Yeah. Let’s put it out there.”

Marvel Studios has yet to date the sequel, but we shouldn’t be all too surprised if it ends up getting released between 2026-2027. Given that Marvel has a heap of dates in that range that haven’t been announced what titles would be in those spots to the public.

SOURCE: COMIC BOOK

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‘Fantastic Four’: Marvel Confirms Vanessa Kirby, Pedro Pascal, Ebon Moss-Bachrach & Joseph Quinn For Lead Roles In MCU Reboot

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, Marvel Studios has made it official by announcing the three main leads of their “Fantastic Four” reboot from director Matt Shakman (“WandaVision”) and seemingly have also confirmed a 1960s-setting (1963?) alongside their robotic companion H.E.R.B.I.E. (Something I’ve been teasing on social media for years).

Fantastic Four #1 Alex Ross Regular Cover - Legacy Comics and Cards | Trading Card Games, Comic Books, and More!

The lineup so far is Pedro Pascal as Dr. Reed Richards (Mister Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm (The Invisible Woman), Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm (The Human Torch), and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm (“The Thing”). Journalist Jeff Sneider was the first to report the subsequent names of the cast with industry insider Daniel Richtman being the first to mention that Pascal was in talks to play Richards.

Marvel made the announcement via their social media accounts and even posted a fun promo poster revealing that aforementioned 60s-setting. “Fantastic Four” is set to be released on July 25, 2025, and will begin shooting at the Pinewood Studios stages in the United Kingdom in the not-too-distant future.

We’re still waiting for the reveal of a villain and who will play them. Rumors have suggested that we could end up seeing a new incarnation of Doctor Doom, but that has yet to be made official by Marvel.

Check out that awesome teaser poster artwork below.

SOURCE: MARVEL STUDIOS

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Ben Mendelsohn Desperately Wants To Return To MCU As ‘Fantastic Four’ Villain Doctor Doom: “I Would Almost Give My Eyes & Teeth To Play Doom”

One of the more disappointing aspects of recent Marvel Studios projects was the deaths of Cobie Smulders‘ Maria Hill and Ben Mendelsohn‘s Talos (strained leader of The Skrulls on Earth) in the critical disaster “Secret Invasion.” The uneven Disney+ series seemingly ended Mendelsohn’s MCU run and is now giving hints about who he’d like to play if given a second Marvel role in the future.

While speaking with GQ Magazine (via The Playlist) the Aussie actor revealed he’d really like a shot at playing Victor Von Doom, aka, Doctor Doom if allowed to nab a secondary part in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A traditional “Fantastic Four” villain that also rules over the fictional country of Latveria and has become a rogue more on the level of a major Marvel supervillain such as Loki or Thanos.

“I would almost give my eyes and teeth to play Doctor Doom,” said Mendelsohn as his dream Marvel role. “I think Doctor Doom is the great unread Marvel character that could and should be done. But it is what it is. I got to work with Spielberg, and I got to work with Terrence Malick, and I got to work with Ridley Scott. It’s been incredible. I didn’t think this ship was coming.”

There is also an expectation that Doom could end up potentially playing a pivotal role in future MCU installments even beyond “Avengers: Secret Wars” and would be a villain role that could give an actor multiple chances to return, not unlike Tom Hiddleston’s Loki. Mendelsohn isn’t a stranger to villain roles having played baddies in Christopher Nolan‘s “The Dark Knight Rises” and Krennic in “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” one of the more memorable villains from the modern era of “Star Wars.”

It wouldn’t be unheard of for Mendelsohn to play another character in the MCU as we’ve seen actors such as Gemma Chan and Benedict Cumberbatch come to mind who have played both MCU heroes and villains. Doom wearing a mask as part of his operatic costume could also obscure his face for most if not all of his screen time and make it even easier for Mendelsohn to not be recognized as appearing in “Captain Marvel” and “Secret Invasion” previously.

When it comes to “Fantastic Four” we really only have one actor set for the MCU reboot as fellow “Star Wars” alumn Pedro Pascal is all but confirmed to play Dr. Reed Richards, aka, Mister Fantastic. It doesn’t hurt that Pascal and Mendelsohn recently worked together on the film “Freaky Tales,” helmed by “Captain Marvel” directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. We’re still waiting on some trade reports or announcements from Marvel Studios to give an idea of who will actually round out the cast of director Matt Shakman‘s reboot of Marvel’s first family after endless rumors/speculation on who else will join the film.

SOURCE: GQ MAGAZINE

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‘Masters Of The Universe’: Travis Knight In Final Talks To Direct He-Man Reboot At Amazon/MGM, Replacing The Nee Brothers

After multiple incarnations, delays, director switch-ups, and studio jumping it looks like the reboot of “Masters of The Universe” is finally coming together after Netflix gave the project the boot last year. A new report from Deadline has revealed that director Travis Knight (“Bumblebee”) is in final talks to helm the new cinematic incarnation of He-Man, which is expected to land at Amazon/MGM Studios. However, the report fails to mention who exactly plays the hulking hero as previous actor Kyle Allen is nowhere mentioned in the promising update.

We’ll keep our fingers crossed that Knight ends up hiring John Cena, who briefly appeared in “Barbie” this summer (another Mattel project) and had a rather big supporting part in “Bumblebee.” Cena has established himself as an action star via roles in “The Suicide Squad” ( Pacemaker getting his own Max spinoff series overseen by James Gunn) and the last two “Fast & Furious” installments.

Funny enough, I called Amazon potentially picking up the film last July. Hopefully, my John Cena recommendation is considered too.

The Nee Brothers had been previously attached to direct at Sony and Netflix before the recent version had moved to MGM/Amazon. Their version of the script they worked on with David Callaham (“Shang-Chi”) is also getting a rewrite from Chris Bulter (“Missing Link,” “ParaNorman,” & “Kubo & The Two Strings”), who has worked with Knight in the past.

Knight also comes from the world of animation with his delightful pic “Kubo & The Two Strings” being a masterstroke of stop-motion animation and should help attempt to bring an iconic animated superhero character to live-action after the long-forgotten 80s film that starred Dolph Lundgren.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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Mark Ruffalo Downplays Another Solo ‘Hulk’ Film Ever Happening While Teasing More Appearances In Other MCU Movies: “We’ll Never Give You A Standalone ‘Hulk'”

Mark Ruffalo seems to be game to keep playing the Banner/Hulk role for years to come, and this is sort of highlighted in a recent chat he had during the Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2024, where the “Avengers” actor revealed that there are zero plans for another solo “Hulk” film (Despite ongoing rumors) but we could end up seeing those events play out over multiple other films in the MCU.

“We’ll never give you a standalone ‘Hulk’…I don’t mean to burst anyone’s bubble but that’s not happening. So, we’ll do it over four movies, how’s that sound?” Ruffalo told the crowd when the subject of a solo ‘Hulk’ film came up without specifically naming what those movies could be and where he’d potentially appear.

This would indicate two things. Talk of a new solo “Hulk” movie is likely bogus (Maybe those elements will be used elsewhere) and rumblings of Marvel Studios getting back full control of both Hulk/Namor from Universal Pictures aren’t likely accurate either. Ruffalo is well-known for spilling the beans including the ending of “Avengers: Infinity War” during press for the film ahead of its release to the public. However, he’s been the one mainly championing a solo film in press interviews because he never was able to get one himself since “The Incredible Hulk” was before he was hired for the gig. If there was a shot of it happening he’d be telegraphing there is more of a chance than “it’s never happening.”

Some fans and outlets have sort of misconstrued Ruffalo’s comments here about “Captain America: Brave New World,” while he said he’s excited about the film after the interviewer brings it up, he never actually says he’s appearing in it. Hardly the smoking gun some folks are making it out to be. I mean, it could make some sense to fans given three big “Incredible Hulk” characters are confirmed to be in the film (Thunderbolt Ross, Betty Ross, and The Leader). Yet, hearing the original quote from Ruffalo he’s simply not saying he’s showing up just that he can talk about that film without getting in trouble.

Thor: Ragnarok': When Hulk Was a Gladiator in The Comics – The Hollywood Reporter

It’s not like Marvel hasn’t been sneaky in the past as “Thor: Ragnarok” added a heap of elements but not all from “The Planet Hulk” comics without having to be directly part of a solo adventure and it’s a way to avoid Universal entirely. In theory, other Hulk events like “World War Hulk” could be applied to other upcoming films rather than a solo project.

The MCU just introduced Hulk's son Skaar | Popverse

Hell, even the recent Disney+ series “She-Hulk” was able to introduce both Banner’s cousin Jennifer Walters and his son Skaar.

We have to assume that it’s a gimmie that Bruce Banner will appear in both “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty” and “Avengers: Secret Wars.” It remains to be seen what other projects he’ll be part of given there might be opportunities for a cheeky cameo in “Deadpool & Wolverine” (Given Ruffalo’s connection to Shawn Levy/Ryan Reynolds via “The Adam Project” and he’d finally go toe-to-toe with Hugh Jackman‘s Wolverine) and could end up appearing in “some capacity” in upcoming things such as “Thunderbolts,” “Armor Wars,” “Shang-Chi 2,” or that hypothetical “Thor 5.” Until it’s official it’s worth having a little patience and not jumping to conclusions.

You can watch that exchange with Ruffalo for yourselves below.

SOURCE: SANTA BARBARA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024 VIA YOUTUBE

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‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Trailer Confirms TVA Plotline, Pyro Returns & Teases Wolverine’s Madripoor Persona Patch

Yesterday, was the big Super Bowl game which obviously means expensive/overproduced ads and studios trying to get as many eyeballs on their upcoming films as possible. That seemed to be the perfect opportunity for Marvel Studios to first reveal footage from their big/only blockbuster film releasing this July, “Deadpool 3.” Now officially titled “Deadpool & Wolverine” (Something we long suspected would be picked to help promote Wade’s iconic X-Men co-star) and the teaser trailer released last night confirms that the Multiverse pic will indeed see the involvement of the Time Variance Authority from “Loki,” although, we haven’t spotted any established characters from the show, yet.

Director Shawn Levy and star/producer Ryan Reynolds are seemingly keeping to the R-rated action-focused superhero roots alongside the cheeky meta humor, something a lot of naysayers including the character’s co-creator Rob Liefeld had been completely skeptical about once Disney/Marvel got their hands on the franchise post-merger. It’s hard to say now that this doesn’t look like more of the same just with a MUCH bigger production budget compared to those last two installments alongside leaning heavily into the Multiverse of it all.

In the trailer, we see that Matthew Macfadyen‘s character (A TVA agent or simple bureaucrat) is attempting to recruit Wade for some sort of reason and will seemingly bring him into the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe. Although, from the looks of things we’re mostly getting Fox/Singerverse characters such as the return of actor Aaron Stanford as Pyro (Who hasn’t appeared in the franchise since “X3: The Last Stand” and could signal more Singerverse actors coming back) and a potential nod to Patrick Stewart‘s second return as Professor X after a previous appearance in “Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness” as part of The Illuminati on Earth-838.

Wolverine: Patch (2022) #1 | Comic Issues | Marvel

Longtime Wolverine fans will likely notice the club/casino scene where Wade is about to approach a variant of Wolverine at a card table, who looks to be in his Madripoor persona Patch. The identifying factor is that Logan is wearing Patch’s signature white suit jacket and I’m also willing to bet an eye patch too. Nothing says that scene is set in Madripoor, but it’s long been a hangout of Wolverine and Marvel has already established the cutthroat location in “The Falcon & The Winter Soldier.”

Of course, it’s been long confirmed that Hugh Jackman will be back as Wolverine and we got a little tease of that interaction towards the end of the teaser. However, it’s still unclear how many Foxverse cameos we’ll ultimately get as Jennifer Garner’s Elektra and The Hand have been teased recently in promo materials that have made their way online. While Marvel/Disney haven’t announced Garner’s participation, if Taylor Swift is actually in there too, and will likely want to keep other appearances secret for as long as they can. The one thing on their side is an avalanche of real and fake online rumors about the film making it harder to actually pin down what is real and what is bogus concerning the film. At least we have validations of some of those rumors, unclear if the other trailers/spots will be spoiling other surprises before its July 26, 2024, release date.

Anyways, if you haven’t already watched the “Deadpool & Wolverine” teaser a hundred times already you can view it below.

SOURCE: MARVEL STUDIOS

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RUMOR: Crew Jacket May Confirm Red Hulk Showing Up In ‘Captain America 4’

Take the following with a pinch of salt, but some images that showed up recently on Reddit claim to reveal Red Hulk will indeed show up in Marvel’s “Captain America: Brave New World.” The unverified image seems to include what is most likely a crew wrap gift jacket (A common practice that cast/crew are gifted a memento for their time working on the production) with a giant monstrous red hand grabbing the iconic hero’s shield and could confirm the character is in the fourth installment. The anti-hero Hulk persona is best known as connected to Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in both comics and the animated series “Agents of S.M.A.S.H.,” who is now played by Harrison Ford after taking over the role from the late William Hurt.

Harrison Ford on Captain America 4 Set: Let's Shoot This Piece of Shit

Red Hulk showing up in these upcoming movies isn’t some new revelation, surprise, or even considered a spoiler as Thunderbolt Ross, expected to be President Ross in both “Captain America 4” and “Thunderbolts,” nearly transformed into the red hulking brute in “Captain America: Civil War” as The Russo Brothers have mentioned that was an unused idea that was kicking around back when Hurt was still in the role. So, in theory, it was only a matter of time before Red Hulk would be showing up (An official set photo seen above teased Ross’ tattered clothing from a transformation) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe because that’s how these things work now. Ross is only one of many “Incredible Hulk” characters making their return such as Dr. Samuel Sterns and his daughter Betty, so having a Hulk underpinning story element is far from shocking. Ford stepped into the Thunderbolt Ross part, and there had been a longstanding expectation that they were bringing Ross back to ultimately make his jump to Red Hulk, a version of the Hulk where Ross has more control of his powers similar to Smart/Professor Hulk and Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk. Basically, giving Ross what he’s been ultimately pursuing with a military application of Dr. Bruce Banner’s power-set.

Also, it should be clear that if the Red Hulk nod is indeed part of a crew wrap gift Marvel Studios would have known this would have made its way online and likely wouldn’t be much of a spoiler as it’ll be all over promotional materials. Even if this would be earlier than they likely would have wanted. It’s worth mentioning there has been chatter that “Brave New World” is expected to be undergoing extensive reshoots, and all this could change depending on those new scenes being rewritten by Matthew Orton (“Moon Knight,” “Operation Finale”).

Image

From a narrative standpoint, in the comics, there had been a bit of an arms race with various villains including The Leader (Tim Blake Nelson) and HYDRA (Serpent Society potentially replacing them as Madame Hydra’s other villainess persona Viper was part of that group) trying to weaponize the Hulk’s powers. The two baddies getting their hands on the Hulk tech is something I’ve been bringing up for years as a potential angle for their involvement in the film.

Then again, Thunderbolt Ross isn’t the only Red Hulk persona as his daughter Betty Ross (Liv Tyler) also obtains Hulk abilities and Betty ends up using the name Red She-Hulk, getting her own run of comics at Marvel.

Julius Onah directs with a cast that includes Anthony Mackie, Ford, Carl Lumbly, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Rosa Salazar, wrestler Seth Rollins, Xosha Roquemore, Liv Tyler back as Betty Ross, and the aforementioned Tim Blake Nelson reprising his role as Gamma-boosted super-villain The Leader. The new sequel will see Mackie’s Sam Wilson taking on the cinematic Captain America mantle from Steve Rogers after the events of “The Falcon & The Winter Soldier” and the U.S. government’s failed attempt to replace him with Wyatt Russell‘s U.S. Agent. “Captain America: Brave New World” has a release date of February 14, 2025, and would mean that a trailer isn’t likely coming anytime soon with “Deadpool 3” being their main film project coming out in 2024.

SOURCE: REDDIT

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‘Death Stranding’: Hideo Kojima Says He Selected A24 With Aspirations An Artsy Indie Film Adaptation Could Earn Awards Consideration

Hideo Kojima‘s relationship with Sony via PlayStation and their feature film adaptation of his video game masterpiece franchise “Metal Gear Solid” (Owned by Konami, whom Kojmia had a falling out with) is extremely strong but he’s now revealed why he selected A24 Films and not Sony Pictures to handle this movie incarnation of “Death Stranding.” During a new episode of his HideoTube web series, the head of Kojima Productions and its namesake discussed his reasoning behind choosing A24 over Sony (Via GameSpot), which seems to be more about Kojima wanting a studio to make an indie/artsy incarnation that might end up getting awards consideration at film festivals.

“It’s easier to adapt it into a TV series, like ‘The Last of Us,'” Kojima said. “It’s quite difficult to adapt a 50-60 hour game like ‘Death Stranding’ into a two or three-hour movie. The worldview won’t change, of course. But the story of the game as is won’t fit into just two hours. We’re still looking at how to approach it.

“In the past, film adaptations of video games always failed, you know. But in the last four to five years, people who understand games have taken on the task of adapting it into a film or drama. And several hits have been made, like ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie.’ And that’s the trend these days, but with A24, I want to make something that’s based on a game, but also indie and artistic, something that can win awards at film festivals like Cannes, Venice, or Sundance.”

Death Stranding: Director's Cut for the PlayStation 5 gets a mysterious trailer - HardwareZone.com.sg

We’re still waiting on who exactly will be either writing or directing the “Death Stranding” movie for A24, but Kojima’s friends in Hollywood and the international film scene run deep. So, it’s anyone’s guess. However, there is an expectation that cast members from the original video game such as Norman Reedus (“The Walking Dead”), Lea Seydoux (“Dune: Part Two”), Mads Mikkelsen (“Another Round”), Margaret Qualley (“Once Upon A Time In Hollywood,” “The Nice Guys”), and others could end up reprising their roles in the feature film with announcements on that front likely coming shortly once they secure a creative team.

Kojima is a busy bee with “Death Stranding 2: On The Beach” releasing on PS5 in 2025 (Opening the door for a sequel to the upcoming film), is working on another video game called “OD” with filmmaker Jordan Peele (“Nope”), his documentary series “Connecting Worlds” will debut this year on Disney+, and he just announced a brand new game called “Physint” that takes place within the action-espionage genre using cutting-edge technology (Harkening back to his “Metal Gear” roots and could easily get a feature adaptation too).

Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts (“Kong: Skull Island”) and actor Oscar Isaac (“Moon Knight”) have been attached to a live-action “Metal Gear Solid” at Sony Pictures, although, movement on that project hasn’t been as speedy as fans would want. Then again, “Metal Gear Solid” is a mash-up of all sorts of sci-fi/action genres, politics, and philosophy, and trying to make a version that will make skittish studio executives excited could be an issue given the inherently weird choices Kojima made in the games that are intertwined within the commercially viable elements that could mirror the James Bond franchise or any military thriller.

You can watch the full HideoTube episode with English subtitles below.

SOURCE: KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS VIA YOUTUBE