While we’re still waiting on updates concerning Rian Johnson’s sequel to Knives Out and his original Star Wars trilogy, there is a new project that was just announced yesterday. Deadline revealed that Rian and Russian Doll actress Natasha Lyonne are going to be teaming-up for new mystery series, titled Poker Face, at Peacock.
Rian Johnson will write and direct Poker Face as the project has been given a straight-to-series order by Peacock and will get 10-episodes.
However, there are currently no details about the series in the outlet’s report.
Yesterday, it was confirmed by Deadline that Scott Frank (Get Shorty, The Queen’s Gambit, Out of Sight, Logan, Godless) will indeed be moving forward with his Sam Spade series. The project is featuring Oscar nominee Clive Owen (Children of Men, Closer, The Knick) as the hard-boiled private detective best know from the classic noir film The Maltese Falcon.
The series will be titled Monsieur Spade and primarily be shot in France with Scott directing all the episodes. They’ve also hired Tom Fontana (City On The Hill), who will co-write with Frank. They also mention French will be predominantly spoken which would sense given the show’s setting.
We’ll be seeing Spade (Owen) later in life living in the South of France in 1963.
Co-written by Frank and Fontana and to be directed by Frank, Monsieur Spade centers around writer Dashiell Hammett’s great detective, Sam Spade, played by Owen, who has been quietly living out his golden years in the small town of Bozuls in the South of France. It’s 1963, the Algerian War has just ended, and in a very short time, so, too, will Spade’s tranquility.
The project has landed at French production company Haut et Court (The Young Pope) but they’re still seeking a home for Monsieur Spade, but it’s worth pointing out Frank has had some success at Netflix with his series Godless and The Queen’s Gambit. It wouldn’t be terribly shocking if the streaming giant attempted to swoop-up the crime thriller. However, I wouldn’t rule-out HBO/HBO Max given Haut’s relationship with The Young Pope.
Late last year, Frank dished about the project to The Watch podcast revealing he was keen to get Clive Owen in the role along with mentioning they were going to be targeting six episodes. We now know those episodes will be an hour each.
FRANK: “What if you do Sam Spade later in life and he’s 60’s years old?. He’s now an ex-pat living in the South of France. His past comes to his past and finds him in this small town. It’s going to be a six-episode series with Clive Owen.”
THE MALTESE FALCON: In this noir classic, detective Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) gets more than he bargained for when he takes a case brought to him by a beautiful but secretive woman (Mary Astor). As soon as Miss Wonderly shows up, trouble follows as Sam’s partner is murdered and Sam is accosted by a man (Peter Lorre) demanding he locate a valuable statuette. Sam, entangled in a dangerous web of crime and intrigue, soon realizes he must find the one thing they all seem to want: the bejeweled Maltese falcon.
Last week, Cowboy Bebop actress Daniella Pineda, who plays the live-action version of Faye Valentine confirmed on her Instagram account that production on the Netflix series has wrapped production. The filming was taking place in Auckland, New Zealand.
Based on the worldwide phenomenon from Sunrise Inc., Cowboy Bebop is the jazz-inspired, genre-bending story of Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Faye Valentine and Radical Ed: a rag-tag crew of bounty hunters on the run from their pasts as they hunt down the solar system’s most dangerous criminals. They’ll even save the world…for the right price.
The cast of Cowboy Bebop includes John Cho as Spike Spiegel, Mustafa Shakir as Jet Black, Daniella Pineda as Faye Valentine, Alex Hassell as Vicious, Elena Satine as Julia, Geoff Stults (Little Fires Everywhere, 12 Strong), Tamara Tunie (Black Earth Rising, Dietland), Mason Alexander Park (Hedwig and the Angry Inch National Broadway Tour), Rachel House (Thor Ragnarok, Soul), Ann Truong (Strikeback!, Hard Target 2), and Hoa Xuande (Ronny Chieng: International Student, Top of the Lake).
Deadline is reporting that British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir is taking a role in Marvel’s Secret Invasion series opposite Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury and Ben Mendelsohn as Skrull Leader Talos. They claim the One Night In Miami actor will be playing an unnamed lead villain, which could mean he might end up playing a member of a villainous sect of Skrulls.
Filming is expected to take place sometime this year in the United Kingdom and will debut on Disney+ in 2022. However, while Kyle Bradstreet is writing the series a director or directors have yet to be announced.
Marvel now has access to many Skrull characters including Kl’rt aka The Super-Skrull after securing The Fantastic Four rights. The Super-Skrull has the ability to mimic the power-set of the Fantastic Four members, a aspect of the Skrulls that haven’t been able to use until now. This could see Skrulls copying the powers and abilities of existing heroes and villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The big power we’ve seen used multiple times is their ability to shape-shift as shown in Captain Marvel, Spider-Man: Far From Home, and WandaVision.
WandaVision ended with Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau meeting up with a Skrull seemingly teasing her addition to Secret Invasion and potentially the S.W.O.R.D. space station The Peak. There is an assumption that Skrull-centric series will lead directly into Captain Marvel 2, which will include Monica Rambeau, Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers, and Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel. It’s possible the three leading ladies could end up appearing in the show along with Zawe Ashton, who is reportedly playing the villain of Captain Marvel 2 and could easily be playing a troublesome Skrull.
The Skrulls and Secret Invasion could be a launching point to see S.W.O.R.D. becoming a much bigger entity in the MCU (even more than S.H.I.E.L.D. was) moving forward, the group comes from the pages of X-Men comics with mutant characters such as Abigail Brand and Dr. Hank McCoy aka Beast are among their ranks. We still don’t know how and when Marvel will introduce mutants outside of Deadpool 3 (possibly shooting next year) being in active development.
Olivia Wilde (Don’t Worry Darling, Booksmart) is said to be co-writing and directing a Marvel film for Sony Pictures, trades claiming that the character she will be adapting for the big screen is going to be Spider-Woman. If the version they are tackling is indeed Jessica Drew, it’s a character Marvel Studios has access to given that Drew debuted outside of the Spider-Man comics and was established as a agent of S.W.O.R.D. making her a good contender to eventually join the cosmic organization introduced in WandaVision. In Secret Invasion, Jessica Drew is revealed to be the Skrull Queen Veranke, the main antagonist of the comic books that the series is going to be influenced by.
Speaking of The Fantastic Four, we still don’t know how Marvel Studios is going to introduce those characters despite fans wishes that Reed Richards would show up on WandaVision. There is a chance that S.W.O.R.D. could end up becoming the connective tissue as they’ve established the group is doing off-world missions and we clearly saw at the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home that Nick Fury was getting a space station built by the Skrulls. Some are speculating that Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania (coming in 2022) could be another entry point for Fantastic Four because of Jonathan Majors playing Kang The Conqueror, however, we don’t know if that will be the case. Director Jon Watts more than likely will be aiming to do an origin film or at the very least include a new MCU origin for the team in his reboot.
In the last season of The Mandalorian, we saw Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano on a mission to find Grand Admiral Thrawn, a Legends villain that become part of Star Wars canon after appearing in Star Wars: Rebels. This leading many to assume that a live-action incarnation is likely coming in the very near future.
A big fan-cast contender has been Sherlock and Doctor Strange actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who has played villains in the past such as Star Trek’s Khan in the J.J. Abrams movies, The Hobbit’s Smaug The Dragon, and Marvel Comics supervillain Dormammu in Doctor Strange.
While speaking with Collider, Benedict was asked about his interest in the hypothetical role of Thrawn but seems to be turned-off to the idea of being in a makeup chair. A grueling makeup job could easily be a reason someone might want to avoid a role like Thrawn, while others might jump at the chance.
CUMBERBATCH: “That’s a straight no from me, right now. There’s no way I want to be turned blue. I turned the air blue, very recently. No no, seriously, I have precious time with my children and I think sitting in a makeup chair and being painted blue, and the amount of time it would take to do that and then take it off at the end of the day might just… it’s not the right time in my life for that.”
Despite the tease in The Mandalorian, we still don’t know when and where Thrawn could end up appearing officially. Benedict Cumberbatch is currently shooting Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness and is also attached to appear in Spider-Man: No Way Home as well.
Deadline is reporting that Amazon’s untitled spinoff series of their popular dark superhero series The Boys had landed two lead actresses as they’ve tapped Lizze Broadway and Jaz Sinclair (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) for the roles of superheroes Emma and Marie.
The untitled The Boys spinoff is set at America’s only college exclusively for young adult superheroes (and run by Vought International). It is described as an irreverent, R-rated series that explores the lives of hormonal, competitive Supes as they put their physical, sexual, and moral boundaries to the test, competing for the best contracts in the best cities. Part college show, part Hunger Games — with all the heart, satire and raunch of The Boys.
Season 3 of The Boys is currently filming in Toronto.
Based on the bestselling comic by Ennis and Robertson, The Boys, heading int its third season, is a fun and irreverent take on what happens when superheroes – who are as popular as celebrities, as influential as politicians and as revered as gods – abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. It’s the powerless against the super-powerful as the Boys embark on a heroic quest to expose the truth about The Seven, and Vought – the multibillion-dollar conglomerate that manages these superheroes and covers up all of their dirty secrets.
Deadline is reporting that Castle Rock actress Ruby Cruz has replaced Cailee Spaeny in he role of Kit in the Disney+ sequel series based on the 1988 Ron Howard-directed fantasy film Willow.
The rest of the cast includes Warwick Davis reprising the role of Willow Ufgood, Erin Kellyman (The Falcon & The Winter Soldier, Solo: A Star Wars Story, The Green Knight) is said to be up for the role of Jade, English actress Ellie Bamber (Nocturnal Animals) as Dove, and Tony Revolori from the Spider-Man films is in talks for a role.
Jonathan Entwistle, who is attached to direct the Power Rangers reboot, is set to direct the pilot after Jon M. Chu exited the fantasy series from Lucasfilm.
According to Lucasfilm, production on Willow is set to begin this March in Wales.
WILLOW – Enter the world of Willow. Journey to the far corners of your imagination, to a land of myth and magic, where dream and reality live side by side … to a place that never existed, a time that never was. It is a world where a young man named Willow lives out an adventure that explodes beyond the boundaries of his own hopes and fears.
It was announced this week by Netflix that their upcoming anime six-episode series Yasuke from LeSean Thomas and Japanese anime studio MAPPA will be released on April 29th. The series is a remaining of the real-life story about Yasuke aka The Black Samurai, who became one of the first and only foreigners to obtain the rank of samurai in feudal Japan.
Yasuke was a native of Portuguese Mozambique who was brought to Japan as a slave to Jesuit missionaries. The first black man to set foot on Japanese soil, Yasuke’s arrival aroused the interest of Nobunaga, a ruthless warlord seeking to unite the fractured country under his banner. A complex relationship developed between the two men as Yasuke earned Nobunaga’s friendship, respect — and ultimately, the honor, swords and title of samurai.
LaKeith Stanfield will be voicing Yasuke with music from Flying Lotus.
Here is the official synopsis from Netflix.
Yasuke is a six-episode anime series created by LeSean Thomas, set in alternate fantastical Japan during the feudal era. The story follows a samurai warrior of African descent who must return to his life of sword-fighting and violence in order to protect a mysterious girl from dark forces. The story, just like the passionate creative team, transcends borders, cultures and languages and is one that we’re so proud to tell at Netflix and share with the world.
In a war-torn feudal Japan filled with mechs and magic, the greatest ronin never known, Yasuke, struggles to maintain a peaceful existence after a past life of violence. But when a local village becomes the center of social upheaval between warring daimyo, Yasuke must take up his sword and transport a mysterious child who is the target of dark forces and bloodthirsty warlords.
A live-action feature film version had been in the works with Chadwick Boseman attached to star before the actor passed due to his battle with colon cancer.
While their future fates in the Marvel Cinematic Universe seem to be up-in-the-air, WandaVision actors Paul Bettany and Kathryn Hahn are willing to return if eventually called upon by Marvel Studios.
Kathryn recently spoke with The New York Times, revealing she is indeed open to the idea of Agatha’s return but hasn’t heard anything from the studio.
Will we see more of Agatha Harkness in the Marvel universe?
HAHN: “I have no idea. They keep it really tight.“
Well if it’s something you want, I hope you get that opportunity.
HAHN: “Oh, me too. I want to. Now that I have a taste of it, I’m like, ahh. I really, really love it.”
Paul Bettany was a little more blunt when asked by Esquire if he’d be willing to play Vision forever.
Are you going to play Vision forever?
BETTANY: “I love Vision. Yes, I’m in.”
Spoilers ahead.
The Disney+ series ultimately ended with Hahn’s Agatha Harkness being stuck in her nosy neighbor role Agnes in Westview, New Jersey. Bettany’s Vision was erased when the Hex came down and Hayward/S.W.O.R.D.’s reanimated version of Vision (white version) simply flew into the clouds, his return seems extremely likely given he didn’t get a conclusion and Wanda might attempt to resurrect her family via The Multiverse.
Kevin Feige confirmed not too long ago they don’t have current plans to give WandaVision a second season, so we would have to assume the pair might show up in the films down the line.
We know that Wanda’s journey as the Scarlet Witch will be continued into Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness, which is currently filming in the United Kingdom at Longcross Studios.
The Ronin can confirm that Andrew Jones, the production designer of The Mandalorian Season 1-2 will be returning to the Star Wars universe for The Book of Boba Fett. The series is said to be currently filming in California and according to Lucasfilm/Disney, will be debut this December on Disney+.
Jones won an Emmy last year for his work on the first season of The Mandalorian.
Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, and Robert Rodriguez are executive producing the series that stars Tamuera Morrison as Boba Fett and Ming-Na Wen as Fennec Shand. It’s expected the trio of producers will also be directing episodes.
The Book of Boba Fett will be set within the timeline of The Mandalorian and star Temuera Morrison as the titular bounty hunter, along with Ming-Na Wen as Fennec Shand. Robert Rodriguez — who directed Chapter 14 of The Mandalorian, a thrilling installment that reintroduced Boba Fett to the Star Wars galaxy — joins Favreau and Dave Filoni as executive producer.
We’ll be excited to see what the cast ends up looking like.
THE RONIN 