Posted on in Film News

‘Deadpool 3’: Emma Corrin Tapped To Play Villain In MCU Sequel

While we’re excited to see what Marvel’s X-Men reboot will end up looking like, fans will have to wait a bit longer for that. Meanwhile, we’ll be exploring the Singerverse/Fox era one more time with Deadpool 3 (title subject to change) set to bring back not only Ryan Reynolds‘ Wade Wilson but the funny man was able to finally able coax Hugh Jackman out of Wolverine retirement to dawn the claws one more time. It’ll technically become the first official mutant film to release in theaters.

We finally have our first big new casting addition thanks to a report from Deadline. They have revealed that British actress Emma Corrin (The Crown) has been selected to play the sequel’s villain. There is an expectation that filming on the pic that will be helmed by Shawn Leavy (The Adam Project, Stranger Things) will take place in the United Kingdom.

However, there aren’t any character details being mentioned making hard to know for sure if Corrin is playing someone established in X-Men mythology or someone new. There are plenty of female villains that Corrin could be playing such as Spiral, Death, Raven/Mystique, Emma Frost, and Mister Sinister’s cohort Madelyne Prior aka The Goblin Queen. Then again, they could be attempting a new villain or a combination of them from the comics.

Deadpool 3 is officially set to be released on November 8, 2025 and has long been confirmed by Disney/Marvel it’ll indeed keep it’s R-rating, like the previous installments with have a heap of extreme violence and cussing. It’ll be the first of the Marvel Cinematic Universe projects to skew for more mature audiences.

Reynolds, a producer and creative force on the franchise, has officially welcomed Corrin to the Deadpool family with an public post on his Twitter account that you can see below.

SOURCE: DEADLINE/RYAN REYNOLDS

Posted on in Film News

Ridley Scott’s ‘Gladiator’ Sequel Starring Paul Mescal Releasing November 2024

With Ridley Scott‘s historical epic Napoleon starring Joaquin Phoenix and Vanessa Kirby currently in the post-production phase at Apple TV+. The filmmaker has moved on to tackling an equally challenging period piece. His long-gestating sequel to the massively successful film Gladiator that also starred Phoenix and landed Aussie actor Russell Crowe an Oscar statue.

A release date for the tentatively titled Gladiator 2 has been announced via Deadline as they report that Paramount Pictures has locked it in for November 22, 2024. Certainly a wise choice given that will take place over the Thanksgiving holiday season in the United States and a prime time for folks to flock to theaters as they aim for an older demographic given the violent action scenes we are expecting to see in it. This comes after Irish actor Paul Mescal reportedly became the frontrunner to lead the sequel after beating high-profile competition from the likes of Richard Madden, Miles Teller, Austin Butler, and Timothée Chalamet for the part.

Of course, fans of that first installment already know that General Maximus Decimus Meridius, aka, The Spaniard died at the end of the 2000 film with Mescal instead taking on the role of Lucius Verus II, the young son of Connie Nielsen’s Lucilla and next inline to become Emperor of Rome. That role had been occupied by American actor Spencer Treat Clark, who was simply recast with a more high-profile name as Mescal is part of this year’s Best Actor Oscar race thanks to his performance in Aftersun. We’re beyond excited to see who else Scott casts alongside Mescal and if any of those previous contenders are given other roles in the film. These big movies tend to be populated with a multitude of recognizable names and plenty of actors are going to want to be involved with a second Gladiator movie given how it gave both Crowe and Phoenix a massive career boost.

While the original film wasn’t exactly as historically accurate as expected with Napoleon, Scott and his team decided to create a fictionalized version of the Roman Empire with some real figures/events inspired from it. Given the dramatized take on history in the previous film, we really shouldn’t assume that audiences will be getting a true-to-life take on this adult version of Lucius and instead a more entertaining take, possibly just as violent as the original pic. Will the film become more of Roman Empire epic covering other battles as they attempt to keep their power over most of Europe or could it actually make a triumphant return to the gladiator pit? Only time will answer our questions concerning the plot.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News

‘Dune: Part Two’: Dave Bautista Calls Austin Butler’s Performance As Feyd-Rautha “Terrifying”

This year will mark Dave Bautista‘s end in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3 but it’s not the only big studio sci-fi project on the horizon. The actor is also set to reprise the role of the Baron’s nephew Rabban Harkonnen in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two and we’ll get to see even more villainy from that House as Paul will attack them on multiple fronts thanks to his new Fremen army.

Best Actor nominee Austin Butler (Elvis) is one of the new additions to the franchise as his character Feyd-Rautha was strategically missing in the first installment as not to introduce too many characters at once. Bautista is now sharing his experience working with Butler on the sequel to USA Today and sounds like we’re getting to see another side to Butler compared to his performance of Elvis Presley.

“There’s a lot more layers to Rabban, and none of them are good,” the actor teased about the highly-anticipated sequel. Bautista adds that Butler became a chameleon as his villainous younger brother, “I don’t know who this guy was, but it’s not Austin Butler. It’s not Elvis. His voice is different, his look is different. Everything about his demeanor is terrifying.”

To be fair, it’s not like Butler was cute and seductive when he played Manson Family member Tex Watson in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and attempted to butcher the leads in a revisionist version of those horrific events. However, he’ll likely have a lot more screen time in the Dune sequel than he did in that movie.

Butler isn’t the only newbie on the call-sheet we’ll also see Florence Pugh as Princess Irulan, the daughter of Christopher Walken‘s Emperor Shaddam IV. Another interesting addition was French actress Léa Seydoux in the role of Lady Margot Fenring of House Fenring (another Bene Gesserit character), who is married to Count Hasimir Fenring. Other returning cast members are Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Zendaya, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem.

Dune: Part Two is set to be released in theaters on November 3, 2023 and we can’t wait for a teaser trailer from Warner Bros. that is likely going to arrive between now and San Diego Comic-Con.

SOURCE: USA TODAY

Posted on in Film News

James Gunn Says ‘Superman: Legacy’ Is Inspired By ‘All-Star Superman’

I’ve been onboard the James Gunn train concerning his reboot of the Superman franchise and even going back to suggesting days before he was announced as overseeing DC Studios with partner Peter Safran that he should just make Man of Steel 2. While actor Henry Cavill is officially out as the DCU’s Superman, giving the character a new film is still very much a priority. We already know that Superman: Legacy is being written by Gunn and will likely begin shooting by next year as the release date of July 2025 would suggest.

Another nifty little tidbit has been revealed Gunn in a tweet (confirming as the studio head and screenwriter) that Superman: Legacy will be inspired by the Grant Morrison-penned comics, All-Star Superman. What exactly is being taking from those stories is unknown at the moment or could be simply being a tonal thing but it’s not that much of surprise given they used Frank Quitely’s artwork when the film was finally announced earlier in the week during the Gods & Monsters slate presentation.

The series revolves around Superman, who is dying due to overexposure to the Sun, as he accomplishes many heroic feats (The Twelve Labors of Superman) and attempts to make peace with the world before his imminent death.

There are also claims being made by The Hollywood Reporter that the new actor being looked at to play the new Clark Kent will be someone around 25 years of age. Although, don’t expect names announced anytime soon as Gunn has stated they won’t be looking at actors until he completes the superhero pic’s script. Interestingly enough, rumored “contender” Jacob Elordi is exactly 25 currently before his birthday in June.

A director hasn’t been officially announced, even though, there are good signs that Gunn could decide to do it himself as he only directs movies he writes. With a release date of July 11, 2025, Gunn and his team at DC Studios have plenty of time to figure out who is going to wear the boots and cape.

SOURCE: DC STUDIOS/JAMES GUNN

Posted on in Television News

Tom Hardy & Zazie Beetz To Star In Apple TV+’s Serial Killer Series ‘Lazarus’

Apple TV+ has been positioning itself as the streaming service for adults and it’s reflected with the projects they’ve secured since launching back in 2019. This is only highlighted with of the their latest television series acquisition that has been announced as Lazarus that will see Øystein Karlsen write, executive produce and direct the serial killer thriller.

The news first broke at Deadline with the outlet revealing the show’s two high-profile leads will be Tom Hardy (Taboo) and Zazie Beetz (Altanta) with Hardy playing the serial killer at the center of the show that is said to be similar to Silence of The Lambs with Beetz playing a detective that goes undercover in a hospital to learn fate of her sister. Lazarus is a co-production between A+E Studios and Range Studios based on the Joona Linna book series by Lars Kepler that has been popular enough to sell 17 million copies and they’ve provided a synopsis which you can read below.

An emaciated young man is found wandering along a train track. Thirteen years earlier, he and his sister went missing, presumed victims of the notorious serial killer Jurek Walter. To find the sister, police detective Saga Bauer must go undercover in the maximum-security psychiatric hospital where Walter has been kept since his arrest years ago. 

This pairing is certainly not something we would have cooked-up but I wouldn’t be terribly shocked if their scenes together are electrifying. The two actors have comic book projects in common as Beetz is currently working on the sequel to the billion-dollar hit Joker and Hardy is leading his third Venom movie that recently promoted franchise screenwriter Kelly Marcel to director. It’s unclear when Lazarus is expected to being production as that information wasn’t mentioned.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News, Television News

‘The Batman Part II’ Set For October 2025 & ‘The Penguin’ Spinoff Series Is Getting Eight Episodes

DC Studios recently announced their first big slate lineup this week as newly minted co-CEO James Gunn revealed to the world that they would making a new string of film and television projects within the DCU and other things set outside of the DCU being branded as “Elseworlds” like Matt Reeves‘ The Batman being part of that group alongside the Joker sequel.

The biggest sign of confidence for Reeves’ Gotham saga is that we’re going to see multitide of spinoffs and sequels. With the latter getting a title and release date as DC Studios announced that The Batman Part II will be heading back to theaters on October 3, 2025 and should reassure fans that had been worried that Reeves’ vision for follow-ups could have been tainted with DC Studios meddling or trying to merge that version of Batman into their DCU films. Thankfully, they cleared that up real quick by announcing a new Batman project with The Brave & The Bold, focusing on Bruce Wayne and his son Damian Wayne as the new version of Robin.

That’s not all the Batman news going this week. Towards the end of the month, we’ll see the start of production of The Penguin spinoff series at HBO Max and star Colin Farrell has confirmed to Variety’s Awards Circuit Podcast that they aiming to shoot eight episodes.

“It’s going to be an eight-part thing,” Farrell said on the podcast. “Around Oz’s rise to power, filling that power vacuum created when Falcone was killed. Matt’s idea was to have the Penguin show begin about a week after the end of the Batman film. And if it works, if the trajectory is interesting, and the audience goes for it, and we do our jobs right, the second Penguin feature will pick up where the HBO show will end.”

We have to assume that Farrell will also be returning for The Batman Part II, given the series is expected to show his rise to become a major crime figure in Gotham by the time the sequel is released in 2025.

SOURCE: DC STUDIOS & VARIETY

Posted on in Film News

‘Thunderbolts’: Marvel Enlists ‘The Bear’ Actress Ayo Edebiri For Upcoming Action Pic

Marvel is riding high after Black Panther: Wakanda Forever landing the studio’s first Oscar nomination with Angela Bassett nabbing a spot for Best Supporting Actress. It’ll be interesting to see what the fallout of those events will contribute to the plot of something like Thunderbolts as the film will see Julia Louis-Dreyfus return as CIA director Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine. The character was extremely interested in attacks committed by Namor and how they could secure their own stockpile of vibranium for U.S. military purposes as there is quietly an arms race between countries to find the precious metal outside of Wakanda.

The action pic from director Jake Schreier (Robot & Frank) and screenwriter Eric Pearson (Black Widow) has quite the lineup which includes Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Red Guardian (David Harbour), Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and U.S Agent (Wyatt Russell), and Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen). Now, Deadline reports that Marvel has added actress Ayo Edebiri from The Bear in a mysterious role and remains to be seen if she’ll be joining that aforementioned team.

Fans seemed to have been expecting a Thunderbolts project would become a one-to-one mirror image of the comic book incarnations but as with previous MCU films the film studio sort of does their own thing. Some early backlash from the lineup announcement from San Diego Comic-Con 2022 from last summer had some questioning where Baron Zemo was and why the group consisted mainly of super-soldiers. Marvel tends to make choices based on what works best for their projects and haven’t exactly confirmed what the film’s plot is going to focus on or why they’re being assembled.

Another element we’re excited to see executed is Harrison Ford playing Thunderbolt Ross potentially in both Captain America: New World Order and Thunderbolts. There have been rumblings the character formerly played the late William Hurt is now the president of the United States and if the comic books are any indication, he could end up getting his own powers becoming the Red Hulk (almost appeared in Captain America: Civil War).

Thunderbolts is set to begin shooting this year with a release date of July 26, 2024 and we’ll keep our fingers crossed we’ll learn more details this summer at Comic-Con.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News

Henry Golding, Alan Ritchson, Alex Pettyfer & More Join Henry Cavill In Guy Ritchie’s WWII Commando Movie ‘Ministry’

British director Guy Ritchie has been feverishly working since his big Disney film Aladdin from 2019 earned over a billion dollars at the global box office and has allowed him to rollout a string of movies since that certainly speak towards the filmmaker’s love for crime and action. Ritchie is now about to begin production on a period action film, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, about the formation of the first British commando unit during World War II that executed various deadly missions behind enemy lines and with limited supplies/man-power.

Filming on Ministry is expected to kick-off on February 13 and Deadline has revealed some new additions to the cast. The film’s previously announced leads Henry Cavill and Eiza González will now be joined by actors such as Alan Ritchson, Henry Golding, Henrique Zaga, Alex Pettyfer, Cary Elwes. Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Babs Olusanmokun, and Til Schweiger.

Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson, Arash Amel, and Ritchie penned the script which is based on war correspondent and military historian Damien Lewis’ novel of the same name. One of the more interesting people involved with Ministry is mega-producer Jerry Bruckheimer being attached after the billion-dollar success of Top Gun: Maverick.

This wasn’t the first time he’s attempted making films set during WWII. Once upon a time, Ritchie was attached to tackle a Sgt. Rock movie based on the DC Comics character and a remake of The Dirty Dozen but both of those WWII projects dissolved. It’ll be curious to see what the tone of the project will be as the series SAS Rogue Heroes (sort of mirrors Ministry) has a bit of edge/cheekiness to it, but the trailer for Ritchie’s upcoming military thriller The Covenant set in Afghanistan starring Jake Gyllenhaal gives the impression the director is taking this real-life subject matter a tad more seriously than with his other films that have been notably comedic.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News

‘Barbarian’ Director Zach Cregger’s Next Film ‘Weapons’ Lands At New Line Cinema

One of the more interesting horror projects that got released last year was Zach Cregger’s Barbarian, without spoiling things it showcased the filmmaker’s great handling of the satirical horror film with plenty of misdirection and surprises that certainly kept audiences on their toes. Oddly enough, the filmmaker originally comes from the world of sketch comedy being a cast member on the television series The Whitest Kids You Know and has now reinvented himself as potentially the next Jordan Peele. There is finally word on what his feature will be despite a lack of plot details.

The popularity of Barbarian had led to a massive bidding war for his next project, titled Weapons. When the dust has settled, The Hollywood Reporter reveals that Cregger landed a eight figure deal from New Line Cinema to write and direct. He’s also secured final cut on Weapons, backend participation, and the project has already been greenlit. All things considered to be a director’s dream when it comes to getting creative control over a film that will ultimately distributed by a major studio. We’re still waiting on what the film will exactly focus on but a synopsis is likely months away from being announced by anyone.

Also, it was mentioned in the report that if Weapons is a big hit for them they are said to be open to making Cregger a “significant horror voice” for Warner Bros. Discovery/New Line moving forward. Potentially mirror the deal that Peele secured with Universal after Get Out became a massive pulpy landmark in the horror genre leading him to easily have Us and Nope greenlit without a studio meddling with his vision for those films.

Speaking of Peele, according to reports from Deadline the director’s production company Monkeypaw with the help of Universal Pictures attempted to bid on the film but ultimately lost out to New Line when they offered $38 million to buy the pic which includes budget and fees. Universal reportedly offered $7 million less.

Hopefully, we won’t have to wait too long to learn more about Weapons.

SOURCE: THR & DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News

Guillermo del Toro Says His Next Stop-Motion Animated Film Is ‘The Buried Giant’

While Pinocchio isn’t the first time director Guillermo del Toro has dabbled in animation, but the film’s critical success, including recent Oscar nominations, is likely going to push him to continue making films within that media for years to come. Thankfully, del Toro is now giving folks an idea what he’s looking at tackling next and it is yet another adaptation.

During a chat with The Telegraph (via The Playlist), del Toro has explained that while it won’t be his next feature film, he’s looking to turn the 2015 Kazuo Ishiguro (author of Never Let Me Go) novel The Buried Giant into an animated film. Not only that, he’s already working on a script with Dennis Kelly (Utopia, Matilda The Musical) and they’ll begin designing the film in two months. Extremely exciting news for folks that want to see del Toro continue making various animation projects.

“The next stop-motion film I’m making is an adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Buried Giant, which I’m currently co-writing with Dennis Kelly, and we start the design process in two months,” del Toro told The Telegraph “I’m shooting a live-action feature first. But in the meantime, we’re developing a look-book, and in about two years if everything goes well, we’ll start production.”

Below is a synopsis of the novel del Toro intends to adapt:

In post-Arthurian Britain, the wars that once raged between the Saxons and the Britons have finally ceased. Axl and Beatrice, an elderly British couple, set off to visit their son, whom they haven’t seen in years. And, because a strange mist has caused mass amnesia throughout the land, they can scarcely remember anything about him. As they are joined on their journey by a Saxon warrior, his orphan charge, and an illustrious knight, Axl and Beatrice slowly begin to remember the dark and troubled past they all share.

One would have to assume that The Buried Giant could end up on Netflix given del Toro’s strong working relationship with them and signs that his next live-action film will land at the streaming service as well.

What’s On Netflix previously reported that the next live-action film from del Toro is expected to be a version of the classic Mary Shelly novel Frankenstein at Netflix with actor Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina) said to be attached to the horror project as Doctor Frankenstein. I previously discovered last year that the filmmaker is expected to be using existing illustrated artwork for the film from Swamp Thing co-creator Bernie Wrightson (the doctor eerily looks like Isaac) and they have seemingly got permission from the late artist’s estate to do so. Guillermo’s desire to make a Frankenstein movie goes back ages to when he was trying to lineup an adaptation at Universal Pictures, long before their Dark Universe plans.

SOURCE: THE TELEGRAPH