Category: Film News

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Tom Holland Denies Rumors ‘Spider-Man 3’ Will Feature Tobey Maguire & Andrew Garfield – “They Will Not Be Appearing In This Film”

Despite rampart rumors for Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 that included unconfirmed rumblings that former Spider-Man actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield would be reprising their roles in a Spider-Verse-type event film, actor Tom Holland is denying that is happening.

In a recent interview with Esquire posted this week, the young actor while promoting his crime drama Cherry states that he’s unaware of Tobey and Andrew being involved with the project. The outlet noting the disappointment in his voice while delivering the bad news.

This particular Spider-Man installment has been subject to a host of rumors about casting decisions. When we talk in December, several outlets are reporting that Holland’s forebears, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, will appear alongside him in some kind of ultimate Spider-verse moment. When I ask Holland about this possibility, he is suddenly positive he knows what he’s talking about.

“No, no, they will not be appearing in this film. Unless they have hidden the most massive piece of information from me, which I think is too big of a secret for them to keep from me. But as of yet, no. It’ll be a continuation of the Spider-Man movies that we’ve been making.”

While Holland could be lying here, none of the trades who have been actively covering the casting of the Spider-Man sequel have corroborated the rumors of their involvement. Even unconfirmed rumblings they’ve been spotted on set, however, no photographic proof of that has materialized. Tom Holland would be the first person to tell you that he can’t keep a secret as his persona is that of someone who inadvertently spoils things.

Holland also said they’re about eight weeks into the production and still have much more to go.

What we do know about the film is that Benedict Cumberbatch will be appearing as Doctor Strange with former franchise actors Jamie Foxx and Alfred Molina reprising their roles as Spider-Man villains Electro and Doctor Octopus.

It’s possible we might end up with a version of The Sinister Six though.

Sony Pictures has given the film a release date of December 17th, 2021 but that might be moved if they need to find a new spot for Venom sequel Venom: Let There Be Carnage, as the studio might bump it’s July release to another date.

SOURCE: ESQUIRE MAGAZINE

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Michael B. Jordan Won’t Say If He’ll Appear In ‘Black Panther 2’ But Keen On Returning To The Franchise

There have been multiple unconfirmed rumors that Michael B. Jordan’s Erik Killmonger would be returning for Black Panther 2, however, this has yet to be supported officially.

Michael B. Jordan today spoke with ABC’s Good Morning America while promoting his upcoming Amazon action flick Without Remorse. During his chat with the morning show, he was asked if he’d return for the sequel but wasn’t confirming his involvement while reaffirming a previous desire to return to the Black Panther franchise and Marvel Cinematic Universe if asked by the studio.

JORDAN: “I can’t say too much about that one, man. Honestly, with the year that we’ve had and the loss of a dear friend. They were figuring out whatever they need to do or what’s best for the franchise. They’re family, so if I ever have the opportunity to get back into that franchise, I would.”

Marvel Studios and Ryan Coolger have yet to reveal what their ultimate plan would be in the wake of the death of Chadwick Boseman, as Kevin Feige has repeatedly said they wouldn’t recast the T’Challa role or use a digital-double.

Fans have speculated the Multiverse could open the door to heroic (also alive) incarnation of Killmonger, allowing the character to take the franchise reigns from T’Challa. However, this is only a theory as characters such as Shuri and M’Baku have also been fan-favorites to take the mantle.

Coolger is developing multiple series for Marvel and Disney+ starting with one set within the Kingdom of Wakanda.

Production on Black Panther 2 is said to begin this June in Atlanta, Georgia with a release date of July 8th, 2022.

SOURCE: GOOD MORNING AMERICA

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‘Guardians of The Galaxy 3’: James Gunn Reveals He Is Reuniting With Cinematographer Henry Braham After He Shoots ‘The Flash’

Last week, director James Gunn has revealed on Twitter that he is planning on reuniting with cinematographer Henry Braham for Guardians of The Galaxy 3 after he finishes work on The Flash. Adding that he is working with Michael Bonvillian (Cloverfield, Zombieland) for his HBO Max series Peacemaker, a spinoff of The Suicide Squad.

Henry previously worked with Gunn on The Suicide Squad and Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.2.

https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1357478747201368070?

While when production begins in Atlanta is a little uncertain but it’s aiming for a release in 2023. Also, James is expected to complete filming on Peacemaker this June in Vancouver and suggests filming on Guardians 3 could begin later this year.

Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love & Thunder will see a Guardians reunion before the third movie as a bulk of the cast is currently in Sydney, Australia for that shoot.

SOURCE: JAMES GUNN

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‘Fast & Loose’: Will Smith Teaming Up With ‘Deadpool 2’ Director David Leitch For Memory-Loss Action Flick

Deadline reports that a bidding war is underway for an upcoming action film titled Fast & Loose from John Wick co-director David Leitch and starring Oscar-winner Will Smith. The outlet says that studios in the mix for the bidding include Warner Bros., MGM, Paramount Pictures, and Sony Pictures.

It’s script was penned by Jon and Eric Hoeber with Leitch expected to direct.

After the leader of an upper-echelon criminal organization suffers memory loss from an attack, he reunites with his crew, only to find that things aren’t what he thinks they are. When John Riley (Smith) wakes up in Tijuana after being left for dead with absolutely no memory, he follows a string of clues to uncover his identity discovering he’s been living two different lives: one, as a super-successful crime kingpin, surrounded by beautiful women, expensive toys, and a lavish lifestyle and the other as an undercover CIA agent, but with a puny salary, no family or home life whatsoever, and zero trappings of success. The problem is, he can’t remember which of these two personas is his true identity, and, more importantly, which life he really wants to live.

Leitch’s action credits go deep with Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, Hobbs & Shaw, and is currently shooting the Brad Pitt assassin movie Bullet Train in Los Angeles. He’s also behind the upcoming Bob Odenkirk movie Nobody as one of the film’s producers.

Smith recently had a hiccup with his film Gemini Man becoming a bit of a box office flop. However, Bad Boys For Life became one of the most profitable films of 2020 earning an impressive $426.5 million on a budget of $62.5 million, it’s box office success led Sony Pictures to quickly put Bad Boys 4 into development.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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‘Blade, The Vampire Hunter’: Marvel Selects ‘Watchmen’ & ‘Hunters’ Writer Stacy Osei-Kuffour To Pen Their Reboot

Yesterday, it was revealed by The Hollywood Reporter that Marvel’s search for screenwriters to tackle their upcoming Blade reboot (seemingly now titled Blade, The Vampire Hunter) has ended as the studio has reportedly selected writer Stacy Osei-Kuffour to tackle the reboot’s script. The studio is said to have been looking for black writers for the last six months that could jump onto their new incarnation.

Stacy is no stranger to comic book or genre project as she previous worked on HBO’s Watchmen and Amazon’s Nazi-hunter exploitation homage Hunters. A perfect choice if you ask me given those her credits. This will make her the first black female writer to work on a Marvel Studios feature film.

Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali is taking over the role of Eric Brooks aka Blade made famous by Wesley Snipes starting in 1998. The success of that first film led to two sequels along with messy live-action televisions that aired on Spike TV. It also predates the release of Fox’s X-Men by two years and proved that feature film adaptations based on Marvel Comics characters could connect with audiences, and make money.

Blade is a half-vampire which allows him to be immune to sunlight leading to his nickname, The Daywalker. He has the strength and speed of a vampire along with their thirst for blood. In the films, he used a serum to keep his thirst at bay. It remains to be seen how much of the established film lore will survive the new MCU version.

We’ll have to wait and see what their angle for the reboot as the trilogy (Blade: Trinity was produced by Kevin Feige) is best known as an R-rated genre hybrid of martial arts action and horror. If Marvel Studios is keen to keep Deadpool 3 an R-rated film there is a likelihood that Blade, The Vampire Hunter could be targeted towards adult audiences given that kids really don’t identify the character or for certain age groups even know he exists.

The next big step will be hiring a director.

While no names have been circulated to be in the running, I’d love to see Rick Famuyiwa to be considered as his work on Lucasfilm’s Star Wars series The Mandalorian has proven he can play within a large established sandbox and also contribute to it at the same time.

As they’ve only just announced a screenwriter, I don’t think the Blade reboot is going to be shooting in 2021 as Marvel is currently busy with productions such as Spider-Man 3, Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness, and Thor: Love & Thunder filming in Atlanta, London, and Sydney respectively. They’re also expected to begin shooting Ant-Man 3, Captain Marvel 2, and Black Panther 2 later in the year.

A release date for Blade, The Vampire Hunter has yet to be announced.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

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‘Eternals’ Director Chloe Zhao Tapped By Universal For New ‘Dracula’ Movie That Will Be A Mix of Sci-Fi & Western Genres

The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Nomadland and Eternals director Chloe Zhao has been hired by Universal Pictures for a new Dracula film. Instead of treading on previous ground with the good Count, Chloe’s take is said to be a mix of horror, science fiction and western genres.

This new Dracula project, however, will be a far cry from the more traditional or even modern incarnations made over the years. Details are being kept in the coffin, but Zhao’s version is described as an original, futuristic, sci-fi Western. Themes of being on society’s fringes, something Zhao has tackled in her previous work, will course through the project’s veins.

Vampire movies that sort of come to mind here are Kathryn Bigelow’s Near Dark, Blade/Blade II, and Daybreakers.

Zhao’s latest film Nomadland is looking to become a huge Oscar contender and she will likely land some commercial success with her upcoming Marvel Studios movie Eternals coming out on November 5th, 2021.

Universal Pictures has been developing a heap of projects with their iconic Universal Monsters along with a recent remake of The Invisible Man, which has led to director Leigh Whannell to return for a new Wolf Man remake with Ryan Gosling attached to star. There many more projects in the works as well.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

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‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ Pauses Production Due To Positive COVID-19 Test

Early this morning, it was announced by Warner Bros. via The Hollywood Reporter that they’ve paused filming on Fantastic Beasts 3 due to COVID-19, production was taking place at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in Watford, England. An undisclosed person working on the film has tested positive (likely because of the extra contagiousness of the UK variant) and are halting production for the time being. Their timeline for the small shutdown wasn’t given but we’ve seen similar shoots in the UK pause for two weeks (14-days) after positive tests.

“A team member from Fantastic Beasts 3 has tested positive for COVID-19,” Warner Bros. told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement, without confirming the team member’s identity. “The diagnosis was confirmed as a result of required and ongoing testing that all production employees receive, and the team member is currently in isolation. Out of an abundance of caution, Fantastic Beasts 3 paused production and will be back up in accordance with safety guidelines.”

Using the term “team member” is likely to prevent people from knowing if the person in question is part of the cast or on the crew.

The UK government has decided that while the new contagious strain of the virus is dangerous it’s apparently still a good idea to keep having large groups of people working on film and television sets. I wouldn’t be terribly shocked if we end up seeing more of these pauses in the coming months and into the summer.

Production on Fantastic Beasts 3 started in September after the pandemic delayed it’s early 2020 shoot, they also replaced Johnny Depp with Mads Mikkelsen as the franchise’s villain, Gallert Grindelwald. Last year, during the shoot for The Batman, Robert Pattinson tested positive for COVID-19 leading to that production being paused until it was safe for the actor to return to work. Jurassic World: Dominion also had to pause filming as well.

Two more Fantastic Beasts sequels are in development stages.

The studio recently bumped the release date to July 15th, 2022 allowing them some wiggle-room for future production delays like this.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

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‘Ready Player One’ Production Designer Adam Stockhausen Confirmed For ‘Indiana Jones 5’

The Ronin has been able to verify that production designer Adam Stockhausen has indeed joined the crew for Lucasfilm’s Indiana Jones 5 which will star Harrison Ford as the titular hero one more time as the new film will be a continuation rather than a reboot, as reaffirmed by studio head Kathleen Kennedy back in 2020.

Adam is a frequent collaborator with directors Wes Anderson and Steven Spielberg as his credits include films such as The Grand Budapest Hotel, Ready Player One, Bridge of Spies, The French Dispatch, Isle of Dogs, Moonrise Kingdom, Widows, and West Side Story.

He earned an Oscar for his work on Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Logan and Ford v Ferrari director James Mangold last year took over for Steven Spielberg when the filmmaker exited the project and is also rewriting the script for the sequel. James recently hinted on Twitter that the fifth installment might take place in the 1960’s.

Concrete plot details for Indiana Jones 5 are being kept under lock-and-key.

One thing we can likely rely on is that Shia LaBeouf won’t be returning as Indy’s estranged son Mutt given the recent allegations of abuse made by an ex-girlfriend making the idea of having him return a PR nightmare for the studio and headache they can avoid.

Disney has given the untitled Indy film a release date of July 29th, 2022 and suggested back in December production could begin shooting in late spring.

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Mantis Actress Pom Klementieff In Sydney Getting Ready For ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’

Yet another cast member of Guardians of The Galaxy franchise has arrived in Sydney, Australia for the shoot of Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love & Thunder, which is currently filming as the first set photos started rolling in.

Canadian actress Pom Klementieff, who plays Mantis, has announced on Instagram she’s arrived in Sydney in what looks like a video of her on the balcony of the quarantine hotel. Pom had been previously shooting scenes for Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible 7 and Mission: Impossible 8.

She joins fellow Guardians actors Chris Pratt, Karen Gillan, Dave Bautista, and Sean Gunn. The rest of the cast consists of Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, Christian Bale as Gorr The God Butcher, Jaimie Alexander, Matt Damon, and Taika Waititi reprising the Korg role.

SOURCE: POM KLEMENTIEFF

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‘Buck Rogers’: Skydance Developing A Competing Movie As Legendary Is Hit With Legal Threats From Buck Rogers Estate

Deadline is reporting that Skydance Media is going to be making their own Buck Rogers project after there was news of Legendary hiring Brian K. Vaughn to write a new live-action series with George Clooney set to produce and possibly star as the titular Buck. This is certainly odd given that Legendary had announced it secured animation, film, and television rights to the sci-fi pulp hero.

But there seemingly have been ongoing legal issues and claims surrounding the property for ages.

Skydance is apparently developing a feature film with the Buck Rogers Estate sending a cease-and-desist letter to Legendary in the hopes of them nixing their projects claiming they’ve already signed away the property rights to Skydance. However, it doesn’t sound like Legendary is actually taking the threat of legal action seriously.

This isn’t the first or last time that a IP’s rights have been fought over.

SOURCE: DEADLINE