Category: News

Posted on in Film News, News

‘John Wick’ Actor Ian McShane Says ‘Ballerina’ Reshoots In Budapest Meant To Hit Chad Stahelski’s Standard & Protect The Franchise: “They Want To Make It Better”

This week it was announced by Lionsgate that their high-profile “John Wick” spinoff “Ballerina” would be getting a full-year delay as they hope to beef up the action sequences on the pic led by Oscar-nominee Ana De Armas (“Blade Runner 2049,” “No Time To Die”) and directed by Len Wiseman (“Underworld”). News came not too soon after the reveal that director Chad Stahelski would be the main overseer of both “Highlander” and “John Wick” franchises for Lionsgate moving forward.

The BBC chat show “The One Show” was able to speak with actor Ian McShane, who has been playing the character of Winston for four “John Wick” installments and will be reprising the part alongside Keanu Reeves and the late Lance Reddick in the spinoff. McShane gave some brief insight into the reshoots that will have Stahelski’s involvement, and they’re adding new scenes to, as he put it, “protect the franchise.”

“Then we go on to Budapest. It’s not reshoots it’s new shoots, new shooting for ‘Ballerina’ which is the spinoff with Ana de Armas of the ‘John Wick’ franchise. It’s like they’ve got to protect the franchise and…I did it a year ago, we did the movie, ‘Ballerina,’ and they’ve looked at it and Chad’s come in. The guy who directed all the ‘John Wick” movies and they want to make it better because…Keanu is in it as well and it takes place between ‘John Wick 3’ and ‘John Wick 4.'”

If you’re not aware of what the spinoff is about it will focus on the character of Rooney, who was briefly seen in “John Wick 3” but played by a different actress. Like John, she was adopted into the Ruska Roma, a criminal syndicate connected to Russian/Belarusian organized crime. They take in orphans and turn them into skilled assassins over decades, in the case of Rooney she was trained as a ballerina, hence the title. We’ll see Rooney navigating her own path in this world of assassins including the return of Anjelica Huston as The Director alongside new additions like Norman Reedus (“The Boondock Saints”) and Gabriel Bryne (“The Usual Suspects”).

When asked about the Starz spinoff prequel series “The Continental,” McShane had a surprise reveal about how little participation the film folks had on the show despite it focusing on a younger version of his character.

The Continental: From the World of John Wick (TV Mini Series 2023) - IMDb

“They never asked anyone about it, they just went and did it…they never asked us about it.”

“Ballerina” has been delayed a full year with the release date pushed to June 6, 2025. You can view that brief segment on The One Show with McShane below, thanks to Twitter user Adam Khan.

SOURCE: THE ONE SHOW VIA TWITTER

Posted on in Film News, News

Vin Diesel Confirms Return For Universal’s ‘Fast & Furious’ Grand Finale Despite Lawsuit From Former Assistant Accusing Him Of Sexual Battery

The “Fast & Furious” franchise is chugging along with screenwriters Christina Hodson and Oren Uziel tasked to write the script for the next film with French action director Louis Leterrier (“The Incredible Hulk”) returning after being a replacement for longtime franchise creative/helmer Justin Lin (“Star Trek Beyond”) when he exited “Fast X” over creative differences leading the studio to hire a new director while in the middle of an expensive production.

Franchise star/executive producer Vin Diesel, who is facing a lawsuit from his former assistant Asta Jonasson surrounding sexual battery allegations, took to Instagram to reveal that he’s part of creative meetings with the studio and writers for the eleventh installment that is being referred to as the “grand finale.”

There had been some questions if Diesel would be kept on the franchise moving forward as we’ve seen some Hollywood studios dumping actors from high-profile projects due to racist, antisemitic, violent, and criminal behavior/allegations to avoid PR nightmares or end working relationships before further revelations are revealed. Diesel had been keeping a low profile since the lawsuit was announced last year and Universal had previously etched in the release for “Fast X: Part 2/Fast & Furious 11” for April 4, 2025. That date would signal a shoot starting up this spring or summer unless the studio decided to delay it.

You can see that post from Diesel below.

SOURCE: VIN DIESEL VIA INSTAGRAM

Posted on in News, Television News

‘The Hedge Knight’: HBO’s Latest ‘Game Of Thrones’ Spinoff Series Exploring The ‘Tales Of Dunk & Egg’ Aiming To Premiere In Late 2025

While HBO has a fleet of “Game of Thrones” spinoffs in various stages of development alongside the second season of “The House of Dragon,” we got a great update on when we can expect “A Knight of The Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight” (We assume the title could be knocked back to something simpler like “The Hedge Knight“) will premiere.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav shared the update via The Hollywood Reporter stating we could be getting the show that already had a full series order to premiere sometime in late 2025. The show is based on George R.R. Martin’s trio of novellas referred to as “Tales of Dunk & Egg” which focused on the adventures of Sir Duncan The Tall (Dunk) and Egg (The future King, Aegon V Targaryen).

“[Creator and executive producer] George R.R. Martin is in preproduction for the new spinoff, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which will premiere in late 2025 on Max,” Zaslav said.

Here is the show’s official logline from HBO:

“A century before the events of ‘Game of Thrones,’ two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros … a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes, and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends.”

We’re still waiting on writers besides Martin alongside a list of actors and directors for “The Hedge Knight” as the 2025 premiere would suggest that filming could begin by the end of the year.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News, News

‘Shang-Chi’ Director Destin Daniel Cretton Turning Beloved Manga/Anime ‘Naruto’ Into A Live-Action Movie At Lionsgate

While just the other day it was reiterated by “Shang-Chi & The Ten Rings” actor Simu Liu (“Barbie”) that writer/director Destin Daniel Cretton would still be developing/directing “Shang-Chi 2” for Marvel Studios once he wraps up with his Disney+ series “Wonder Man.” It sounds like Cretton has landed another big martial arts project and this time it’s a manga/anime adaptation.

The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Cretton, who recently exited “Avengers 5,” has been hired by Lionsgate to write and direct a live-action film based on “Naruto.” Given Cretton’s experience with “Shang-Chi” and “American Born Chinese,” he seems like one of the best choices to put together this feature film adaptation.

Naruto Fans Are Toasting the Series' 21st Birthday

A coming-of-age story focused on a young and enthusiastic ninja named Naruto Uzumaki who wants to grow up to be the leader of his ninja village but also happens to have the spirit of a dragon inside him. 

“Naruto” creator Masashi Kishimoto had the following to say about the hiring of Cretton for the live-action feature film incarnation:

“When I heard of Destin’s attachment, it happened to be right after watching a blockbuster action film of his, and I thought he would be the perfect director for ‘Naruto,’” said Kishimoto in a statement mentioned in THR’s article. “After enjoying his other films and understanding that his forte is in creating solid dramas about people, I became convinced that there is no other director for Naturo. In actually meeting Destin, I also found him to be an open-minded director who was willing to embrace my input, and felt strongly that we would be able to cooperate together in the production process.”

However, the one questionable aspect of the project is that Avi Arad is producing, who has been behind a string of dud “Spider-Man” spinoff movies and a “Metal Gear Solid” movie at Sony that keeps stalling despite having scripts, a director with Jordan Vogt-Roberts, and Oscar Isaac playing the lead role of Snake. We’re a little more hopeful that “Naruto” doesn’t linger in limbo with Cretton now involved.

Lionsgate of late has been really making a push to bring back their status as the action genre studio with things like a “Highlander” reboot from Chad Stahleski (“John Wick” franchise) expected to shoot this year with Henry Cavill in a lead role, Guy Ritchie‘s WWII commando action-comedy “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” led by Cavill, their “Guardians of The Galaxy” proxy film “Borderlands” (Had reshoots from “Deadpool” director Tim Miller after Eli Roth bailed to make “Thanksgiving” instead of finishing his film), “The Crow” remake from Rupert Sanders (“Ghost In The Shell”), their “John Wick” spinoff movie “Ballerina” led by Ana de Armas, and a new satirical action flick “Boy Kills World” starring Bill Skarsgård.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News, News

Oscar-Winning Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu & Tom Cruise Teaming Up For New Mystery Film That May Land At Legendary/WB

After reports that action star Tom Cruise is looking to book roles with more acting-focused projects and working with auteur filmmakers, a new report from Deadline seems to have revealed what one of those first movies could end up being. Legendary and Warner Bros. are said to be in negotiations to acquire the newest English-language film from Oscar-winning director Alejandro G. Iñárritu (“The Revenant”) with Crusie attached to star.

This news comes after Cruise signed a deal with Warners and is expected to include the long-delayed sequel to “Edge of Tomorrow” from director Doug Liman. Cruise and Liman are also partnering on a sci-fi film at Universal that is going to film sequences in space at the International Space Station. Other projects on Cruise’s plate are finishing up the titleless “Mission: Impossible 8” and Paramount is already developing “Top Gun 3” that will see director Joseph Kosinski return for the follow-up to the billion-dollar hit, “Top Gun: Maverick.” There have been indications that Quentin Tarantino‘s “The Movie Critic” might have a role for the actor as well.

Iñárritu has won four Academy awards for his previous English films “Birdman” (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay) and “The Revenant” (Nabbed a second Best Director statue). Plot details about this new film are unknown but the director co-wrote the script from 2023 with Sabina Berman, Alexander Dinelaris, and Nicolas Giacobone. “The Revenant” was a bit of a financial hit as the period survival thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio ended up making a hefty $500 million at the global box office and with a star like Cruise attached they could end up replicating that success.

It wouldn’t be the first time Oscar-caliber directors have worked with Cruise as some of his acclaimed credits include Martin Scorsese‘s “Color of Money,” Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Outsiders,” Paul Thomas Anderson‘s “Magnolia,” and the late iconic Stanley Kubrick on the thriller “Eyes Wide Shut.”

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News, News

‘Boy Kills World’ Trailer’: Bill Skarsgård Stars In Wildly Inventive Blood-Soaked Satirical Action Flick Coming To Theaters In April

Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions has released a first-look trailer for their upcoming action flick “Boy Kills World.” A mature satirical fantasy actioner that sees Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård (“John Wick 4”) playing a deaf-mute protagonist (Bill’s brother Alexander sort of played a similar character in Duncan Jones’ cyberpunk thriller “Mute”) who is on a path of revenge in a wild violent sci-fi world that would perfectly fit within an episode of “Rick & Morty.” It debuted last year at the Toronto International Film Festival and hails from German director Moritz Mohr, who is obviously going to be on a lot of studio radars after “Boy Kills World.”

The rest of the cast of this awesome-looking action pic includes Jessica Rothe, Michelle Dockery, Brett Gelman, Andrew Koji, Isaiah Mustafa, Famke Jensen, Sharlto Copley, and Yayan Ruhian. Also, Boy’s inner dialogue showcased in the trailer is provided by comedian H. Jon Benjamin, who you will likely recognize from the popular Fox cartoon “Bob’s Burgers” and the goofball animated spy series “Archer.”

Boy Kills World (2023) - IMDb

Here is the film’s official logline:

Bill Skarsgård stars as “Boy” who vows revenge after his family is murdered by Hilda Van Der Koy (Famke Janssen), the deranged matriarch of a corrupt post-apocalyptic dynasty that left the boy orphaned, deaf, and voiceless. Driven by his inner voice, one which he co-opted from his favorite childhood video game, Boy trains with a mysterious shaman (Ruhian) to become an instrument of death and is set loose on the eve of the annual culling of dissidents. Bedlam ensues as Boy commits bloody martial arts mayhem, inciting a wrath of carnage and blood-letting. As he tries to get his bearings in this delirious realm, Boy soon falls in with a desperate resistance group, all the while bickering with the apparent ghost of his rebellious little sister.

This isn’t the only big action project starring Skarsgård, as he’s also leading Lionsgate‘s remake of “The Crow” from director Rupert Sanders (“Ghost In The Shell”) that will be heading to theaters this summer on June 7. After taking over the release date of “John Wick” spinoff “Ballerina” it was pushed to June 6, 2025, as there are additional reshoots that are being planned for later this year.

“Boy Kills World” will be unleashed on April 26 in theaters and you can watch that aforementioned trailer below.

SOURCE: LIONSGATE/ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS

Posted on in News, Television News

‘The Gentlemen’ Trailer: Guy Ritchie Expands His British Crime Comedy With New Spinoff Series Coming To Netflix On March 7

Netflix is behind a series spinoff of the Guy Ritchie film “The Gentlemen” focusing on a drug cartel that uses the properties of British aristocrats to help hide their pot operations to keep the law off the sent of these criminal enterprises. The streaming giant has released a new trailer (See below) that gives more insight into the new story and cast led by Theo James, who plays the Duke of Halstead, Eddie Horniman, the estranged son of an English aristocrat who finds himself embroiled in a world of criminality.

“The Gentlemen” reunites Ritchie with footballer turned actor Vinnie Jones, who played witty street-tough characters in “Lock, Stock, & Two Smoking Barrels” and “Snatch.” We’ll also see veteran actor Ray Winstone (“Sexy Beast”) in the role of a heavy in the show named Bobby Glass, the father of Kaya Scodelario‘s Susie Glass, and Giancarlo Esposito (“Breaking Bad”) is showing up as well. New footage from the trailer revealed that Peter Serafinowicz (“John Wick 2”) is appearing too.

Here is the British gangster show’s official synopsis via Netflix:

THE GENTLEMEN sees Eddie Horniman (Emmy-nominated Theo James) unexpectedly inherit his father’s sizeable country estate – only to discover it’s part of a cannabis empire. What’s more, a host of unsavory characters from Britain’s criminal underworld want a piece of the operation… Determined to extricate his family from their clutches, Eddie tries to play the gangsters at their own game.

You can watch that brand-new trailer for “The Gentlemen” below and all 8-episodes will drop on March 7.

SOURCE: NETFLIX

Posted on in Film News, News

‘Weapons’: Josh Brolin Returning To Horror As He’s In Talks To Replace Pedro Pascal In Zach Cregger’s Follow-Up To ‘Barbarian’

Writer/director Zach Cregger is finally gearing up on his next film after a sensensational reaction to his horror pic “Barbarian.” The new project titled “Weapons” landed at New Line Cinema/Warner Bros. after a heated bidding war, however, it recently lost their main star and they’ve now found a potential replacement. The Hollywood Reporter states that Josh Brolin (“Sicario”) is now in talks to take the role originally meant for Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”) after the actor had to leave due to scheduling issues.

Pascal had to exit because of his commitment to Marvel‘s upcoming reboot of the “Fantastic Four” which is expected to shoot at Pinewood Studios UK over the summer with director Matt Shakman (“Wandavision”) casting Pascal as Dr. Reed Richards, aka, Mister Fantastic. The rest of the cast includes Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm (The Invisible Woman), Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm (The Thing), and Joseph Quinn as Sue’s brother Johnny Storm (The Human Torch).

Not much is known about “Weapons” but is said to be an interrelated, multistory horror epic that tonally in the vein of Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Magnolia.” This wouldn’t be Brolin’s first entry into horror with projects such as Guillermo del Toro’s “Mimic,” Robert Rodriguez’s “Planet Terror,” Paul Verhoeven’s modern take on “The Invisible Man” with “Hollow Man,” and the serial killer thriller “Nightwatch” where he co-starred with young Ewan McGregor.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in News, Television News

‘True Detective’: HBO Announces Fifth Season Moving Forward With Showrunner Issa López Returning After Signing An Overall Deal

This month saw the finale of “True Detective: Night Country” wrap up the fourth season of the acclaimed crime anthology series. Well, now, HBO has made the official announcement that “True Detective” is coming back for a fifth season with showrunner Issa López returning as well, who replaced series creator/writer Nic Pizzolatto and ended up writing/directing the new season that starred Oscar-winner Jodie Foster and newcomer Kali Reis dealing with a group of murders in a rural mining town in Alaska during the time of the year where the area is in constant darkness without the sun.

López also has signed an overall deal with HBO, allowing her to keep working on the series for years to come and could see her develop other projects in the future as well.

It’ll be interesting to see where the fifth season goes and who they end up putting together for the next whodunnit. Traditionally, the series moves on to new locations and characters but they might consider doing a follow-up to “Night Country,” yet, that’s doubtful given what audiences/fans would expect from the next season. The crux of the show is that each season does something completely different which allows creatives to play in the genre but not repeat themselves.

I binge-watched the series this week in a single sitting and had a great time trying to figure out who committed the murders. However, some story elements didn’t get fully explained leaving some holes that didn’t get filled and the paranormal aspect didn’t always work for me. But, the overall experience was on par with the other seasons, including the finale, while I think the mystery of it all seemed to be a little more compelling than the last two seasons. It stands to reason why the show ended up being the most-watched season out of the four.

Sadly, executive producer Pizzolatto recently threw shade on the new season online and has sort of signaled bitterness toward his replacement and not being allowed to continue with the show on a creative level. Hopefully, his nasty attitude will change over time but we won’t be holding our breath.

SOURCE: HBO

Posted on in Film News, News

‘John Wick’ Spinoff Movie ‘Ballerina’ Starring Ana De Armas Delayed To June 2025 As Additional Action Scenes Will Be Shot

Yesterday, Lionsgate announced that the studio would be delaying their highly anticipated cinematic spinoff to the “John Wick” franchise. The upcoming film titled “Ballerina” will focus on a deadly assassin named Rooney from Wick’s adoptive family, The Ruska Roma, a criminal syndicate that takes in orphans like John to train them over years into skilled killers that will end up earning for the organization. Cuban-American actress Ana De Armas (“No Time To Die,” “The Gray Man”) will be leading the film as Rooney, the titular ballerina, with a supporting cast that consists of Norman Reedus (“Boondock Saints,” “The Walking Dead”), Gabriel Byrne (“The Usual Suspects”), Anjelica Huston returning as The Director, Keanu Reeves appearing as John Wick, franchise alumn Ian McShane back in the Winston part, and the late Lance Reddick having shot scenes as Charon.

The studio revealed that “Ballerina” has moved from its prime June 7, 2024, spot to June 6, 2025. This would delay the action pic an entire year. It’s directed by Len Wiseman (“Live Free or Die Hard,” “Underworld” franchise), and multiple trade reports, such as the one from Deadline, are citing the delay is that newly minted franchise overseer Chad Stahelski can amp up the spinoff with some additional action scenes.

A big reason for the return of Wick and Charon is the events of the spinoff are set between “John Wick 3” and just before “John Wick 4.”

This popular action franchise is known for adding actors from various beloved action movies from the past and “Ballerina” is no different. We’re expected to have a cameo from French actress Anne Parillaud, who played the lead role in Luc Besson‘s own iconic 1990 assassin film “La Femme Nikita.” An action movie we’ve long assumed had a huge impact on Stahelski’s visual style for the franchise and could be a reason why the last installment took place in Paris.

Taking that open June 7 spot will be Rupert Sanders‘ (“Ghost In The Shell”) remake of “The Crow” which has Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård (“John Wick 4,” “Atomic Blonde”) playing Eric Draven, a talented rock musician murdered alongside his girlfriend Shelly on Devil’s Night only for Draven to be brought back to life by a crow to enact revenge against their killers. Speaking of Stahelski, the stuntman turned director worked on the original 1994 feature incarnation of the comic book film that sadly saw the death of star Brandon Lee after a stunt with guns went wrong. Lee’s death led filmmakers like Stahelski to engage in greater safety standards on sets when it comes to weapons like firearms. While you might not realize this at first glance, most of the gunfire in the “John Wick” movies is mostly done with digital effects to achieve the muzzle flashes and smoke.

SOURCE: LIONSGATE & DEADLINE