Tag: Justice League

Posted on in Film News, News

‘The Suicide Squad’ Production Artwork Confirms Deathstroke Was Supposed To Appear: Did Bloodsport Replace Him?

The Suicide Squad is getting some positive reactions from fans, critics, and casual moviegoers alike. But despite all the praise the film from James Gunn, it looks like a popular DC Comics character was nixed from the sequel.

Fans have spotted that Slade Wilson, aka, Deathstroke was supposed to lead Team Two in the film via concept artwork (See below) in the production offices. However, we know that Bloodsport, played by Idris Elba, was the character that ultimately chosen. It’ll be interesting to find out why they wanted Deathstroke in the film in the first place and why they pivoted.

I’m sure we’ll see get some insight from James Gunn in the near future.

If you’re not aware, Joe Manganiello was cast as Deathstroke for a button scene in Justice League with the idea he would appear in Ben Affleck’s Batman movie and had a solo film in development from The Raid director Gareth Evans. We don’t know if Manganiello was ultimately going to play Slade Wilson in The Suicide Squad, but it was likely.

Welcome to hell—a.k.a. Belle Reve, the prison with the highest mortality rate in the US of A. Where the worst Super-Villains are kept and where they will do anything to get out—even join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X. Today’s do-or-die assignment? Assemble a collection of cons, including Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, Ratcatcher 2, Savant, King Shark, Blackguard, Javelin and everyone’s favorite psycho, Harley Quinn. Then arm them heavily and drop them (literally) on the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese. Trekking through a jungle teeming with militant adversaries and guerrilla forces at every turn, the Squad is on a search-and-destroy mission with only Colonel Rick Flag on the ground to make them behave…and Amanda Waller’s government techies in their ears, tracking their every movement. And as always, one wrong move and they’re dead (whether at the hands of their opponents, a teammate, or Waller herself). If anyone’s laying down bets, the smart money is against them—all of them.

The film stars Margot Robbie (“Birds of Prey,” “Bombshell”), Idris Elba (“Avengers: Infinity War”), John Cena (upcoming HBO Max series “Peacemaker,” “Bumblebee”), Joel Kinnaman (“Suicide Squad”), Jai Courtney (the “Divergent” franchise), Peter Capaldi (“World War Z,” BBC’s “Doctor Who” ), David Dastmalchian (upcoming “Dune,” “Ant-Man and the Wasp”), Daniela Melchior (“Parque Mayer”), Michael Rooker (the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films), Alice Braga (“Elysium”), Pete Davidson (“The King of Staten Island,” TV’s “Saturday Night Live”), Joaquín Cosio (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” TV’s “Narcos: Mexico”), Juan Diego Botto (“The Europeans”), Storm Reid (“The Invisible Man,” “A Wrinkle in Time”, “Euphoria”), Nathan Fillion (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” TV’s “The Rookie”), Steve Agee (“Brightburn,” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”), Sean Gunn (the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films, the “Avengers” films), Mayling Ng (“Wonder Woman”), Flula Borg (“Ralph Breaks the Internet”), Jennifer Holland (“Brightburn,” upcoming HBO Max series “Peacemaker”) and Tinashe Kajese (TV’s “Valor,” “The Inspectors”), with Sylvester Stallone (the “Rocky,” “Rambo” and “Expendables” franchises), and Viola Davis (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Suicide Squad”).

Posted on in Features

Netflix Should Offer Zack Snyder Their ‘Conan The Barbarian’ Reboot

It was recently suggested by WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff in an interview with Variety that they don’t have plans to continue or restore the Snyderverse. Which means that Zack Snyder is finally free to make all the wacky film ideas he’s been cooking up over the last decade. He’s talked about making action film about George Washington and taking a crack at the Arthurian legend.

What’s interesting is that he’s now established a working relationship with streaming giant Netflix with his upcoming action-horror flick Army of The Dead, that is coming out on May 21, 2021.

This could mean that Snyder and Netflix will continue working on stuff in the future potentially leading to an over-all development deal at some point.

There is a newly acquired IP at the streamer that feels tailor-made for the filmmaker. As Netflix got their hands on the film and television rights to Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan The Barbarian last year. The character has multiple stories written by Howard and other writers that continued Conan’s adventures over the decades including folks like Wheel of Time’s Robert Jordan.

In my opinion, there is really only one solid live-action adaptation and that is the fantastic John Milius movie from 1982 that starred Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Earl Jones. The film got made thanks in part to the books popularity in the 1970’s and the string of comic books that were published by Marvel Comics.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN (1982) – Orphaned boy Conan (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is enslaved after his village is destroyed by the forces of vicious necromancer Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), and is compelled to push “The Wheel of Pain” for many years. Once he reaches adulthood, Conan sets off across the prehistoric landscape of the Hyborian Age in search of the man who killed his family and stole his father’s sword. With beautiful warrior Valeria (Sandahl Bergman) and archer Subotai (Gerry Lopez), he faces a supernatural evil.

I have to assume given Zack’s obsession with John Boorman’s Excalibur that something like Conan The Barbarian might also be a fantasy film that resonates with him and could be an established IP that Netflix could offer Snyder.

We’ve seen with 300 that Zack could bring something visually interesting to a mature fantasy adventure epic like Conan The Barbarian. At it’s core, the 300 comic from Frank Miller and the Zack Snyder film owes a lot to things like Conan.

The world of Conan can be a blank canvas for someone like Snyder to develop something into his own and Netflix isn’t likely going to micromanage because box office isn’t even a factor with their originals as streaming is a complete different. You can tell with his DC stuff that he’s itching to tackle something like this.

The less said about Jason Momoa’s 2011 Conan reboot the better. Since then, the actor has developed a more charismatic on-screen persona with stuff like Game of Thrones and taking on the Aquaman role. I wouldn’t be opposed to giving Jason another shot at playing Conan given that he’s grown as an actor and has an existing relationship with Snyder.

Anyways, I’m hopefully that Netflix’s interest with expanding Snyder’s Army of The Dead into their own franchise means that they’ll at least consider him for other stuff like Conan The Barbarian as it feels like it could be a good fit for him.

Posted on in Film News

WarnerMedia Moving On From The Zack Snyder Era & Unlikely Restoring The Snyderverse

Zack Snyder’s Justice League finally debuted last week on HBO Max and embolden fans to push their next phase of their Snyder campaign with #RestoreTheSnyderverse, however, that doesn’t seem to be really in the cards despite over a year of hucksters pushing bogus scoops that Zack was coming back to make more films and oversee the franchise again.

Variety spoke with WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff, who poured cold water all over that fan speculation as she states that Zack has now completed his trilogy with his original version of Justice League and seem to be more focused on the other things they’re currently working on with their other DC Comics films. Ann also reiterates they never actually planned on releasing Zack Snyder’s Justice League until about a year ago and doesn’t sound like it’s release has inspired them to reconsider having him return to make more films.

SARNOFF: “We wanted to give Zack the opportunity to complete his vision in a four-hour movie, which is impossible to do in theaters. We’re happy that we have HBO Max to let the rope out as it were and allow the fans to see all four-hours of Zack’s vision.”

“I appreciate that they love Zack’s work and we are very thankful for his many contributions to DC. We’re just so happy that he could bring his cut of the Justice League to life because that wasn’t in the plan until about a year ago. With that comes the completion of his trilogy. We’re very happy we’ve done this, but we’re very excited about the plans we have for all the multi-dimensional DC characters that are being developed right now.”

Some fans have been hopeful that Zack would at the very least be able to finish the films he planned to make after Justice League. That seems far-fetched given the vast amount of money spent on Justice League alone and there is a big difference between an extra $70 million to complete an unfinished cut and WarnerMedia spending another $200-300 million a pop for more films that only small portion of people are asking for. The latter seems to be a stretch even more so with the comments from Sarnoff.

As Zack’s relationship with Netflix grows after releasing Army of The Dead, I wouldn’t be shocked if he ended up pursuing bigger projects with them in the future and maybe even superhero stuff since as they have plenty of comic book adaptations.

SOURCE: VARIETY

Posted on in Film News

Zack Snyder Originally Wanted To Use John Stewart’s Green Lantern In ‘Justice League’ But Settled On Martian Manhunter Instead

Director Zack Snyder had confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter this week that he had been dreaming about adding Ryan Reynolds’ Hal Jordan aka Green Lantern to his cut of Justice League (now ready to stream on HBO Max). Further mentioning he wanted to a group of Lanterns that would have included Jordan.

SNYDER: “There was another idea I had for the Green Lantern that wasn’t Ryan, and so I thought that if we had gone down this path of Green Lantern, I would have had to have Ryan as the additional Lantern, filling out the Lantern Corps a little bit more than say just one Green Lantern.”

He names another Lantern he wanted to add.

While speaking with Vanity Fair, Zack Snyder revealed that he originally wanted to use John Stewart, another version of Green Lantern, but wasn’t allowed by studio as they had other plans for him and instead settled on Martian Manhunter.

SNYDER: “We shot a version of this scene with Green Lantern, but the studio really fought me and said, ‘We really don’t want you to do Green Lantern,’ so I made a deal with them, and they let me do this [instead].”

Okay, but which Green Lantern did Snyder want to use?

SNYDER: “It would be John Stewart.They were like, ‘We have plans for John Stewart and we want to do our own announcement.’ So I said all right, I’ll give you that. So [Martian Manhunter] was the compromise.”

The studio ultimately didn’t use Stewart, as you might remember that Warner Bros. had attempted to make a Green Lantern Corps. movie but they decided to go with an HBO Max series. The streaming series will feature DC characters such as Guy Gardner, Jessica Cruz, Simon Baz, Alan Scott, Sinestro, and Kilowog.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League is ready to watch depending where you live in the world.

SOURCE: VANITY FAIR

Posted on in Film News

Former ‘Daredevil’ Actor Ben Affleck Praises Marvel’s Kevin Feige Calling Him “The Greatest Producer”

Before Ben Affleck wore the cowl in Batman v Superman and Justice League, he starred in a Marvel project with 20th Century Fox’s Daredevil feature film which predated the fan-beloved Netflix series starring Charlie Cox. That 2003 film saw Ben Affleck co-star with Jon Favreau, the director of Iron Man and Iron Man 2. Jon became one of the architects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and still plays the role of Happy Hogan in Tom Holland’s Spider-Man trilogy.

As a filmmaker and producer, Ben most certainly was watching the success of Marvel Studios, which has led to some praise to Kevin Feige in a new interview. While chatting on The Hollywood Reporter’s podcast Awards Chatter, Affleck gushed about how successful Feige has been.

AFFLECK: “Fucking Kevin Feige is absolutely, you have to say, the greatest producer, most successful producer who ever lived. He’s the only guy in the world who, if he told me, ‘I know what the audience wants! This is what we’re doing!’ I would believe him 100%.”

“That fucker knows his audience like no producer (ever), he’s a genius. Kevin is like a ringmaster at the circus; he knows exactly how much to wink at the audience, exactly when to pull at the heartstrings, exactly when to do the effects, how many jokes, what the sensibility, what the tone is. Because people didn’t know to run away from the pajamas or embrace it or make it serious.”

Affleck is reportedly set to direct a film Disney with an adaptation Keeper of The Lost Cities and his pal Matt Damon has seemingly joined the cast of Marvel’s Thor: Love & Thunder.

I’m sure fans would enjoy to see Ben Affleck join the MCU in some capacity.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News

‘The Flash’: Ray Fisher’s Cyborg Cameo Reportedly Written Out – Role Won’t Be Recast

It’s starting to look like Ray Fisher and his character Cyborg won’t be appearing in The Flash after all.

The Wrap is supporting a tweet from Forbes writer Mark Hughes that Cyborg’s cameo in the film has been removed and they will not be recasting the part. This news would debunk unreliable online rumors that the studio and director was recasting the Cyborg role specifically for The Flash.

Justice League actor Ray Fisher, who was offered a cameo role last June to appear as Cyborg in The Flash solo movie, has been written out of the screenplay and will not be recast, according to insiders with knowledge of the situation.

However, we aren’t terribly shocked by this news as the Justice League actor seemed to telegraph this update on his character. Ray Fisher made the following statement on Twitter last month signaling he wouldn’t be working with DC Films or Walter Hamada in the future, possibly getting ahead of the reports of his cameo being nixed by the studio. Essentially announcing his exit from the franchise.

DC Films had previously announced a solo Cyborg movie that never materialized as neither a screenwriter or director were ever announced as developing it. The character is also being used in the live-action realm with the series Doom Patrol, played by Jovian Wade.

Andy Muschietti (IT, Mama) is directing from a script penned by Christina Hodson (Batgirl, Birds of Prey) with a cast said to include Ezra Miller, Ben Affleck, and Michael Keaton using a different version of The Flashpoint storyline that will usher-in DC Comics’ own Multiverse.

Filming on The Flash is expected to begin this April at Warner Bros. Leavesden Studios in Watford, England. The facility is currently being used for Fantastic Beasts 3 as it’s been the homestead production stages for the Harry Potter franchise and was used for previous DC Comics movies such as The Batman, Justice League, and Wonder Woman.

It’s release date has been set for November 4th, 2022.

SOURCE: THE WRAP

Posted on in Television News

Zack Snyder’s ‘Justice League: Director’s Cut’ Is Coming To HBO Max In March

In a brief exchange with a fan on Vero, it looks like director Zack Snyder has revealed that his version of Justice League heading to HBO Max next year will be coming out sometime in March.

SOURCE: ZACK SNYDER/VERO

Posted on in Television News

Jared Leto’s Joker and Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke Returning For Zack Snyder’s ‘Justice League’ – Will Be Part of Additional Photography

The additional photography of Zack Snyder’s Justice League for HBO Max will see two Batman rogues make a return.

The Hollywood Reporter says that Jared Leto will be reprising the Joker after previously playing him Suicide Squad and having his role reportedly scaled-down from the original version from David Ayer. Other actors mentioned returning include Ben Affleck as Batman, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, and Amber Heard as Mera.

The Joker and Affleck’s Batman briefly tussled in a scene in Suicide Squad but never shot scenes for Justice League.

Collider also reports that Joe Manganiello will be reprising the role of Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke as well. He was briefly shown at the end of Justice League alongside Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor as a teaser for the Legion of Doom.

The extent of their return isn’t mentioned. However, this news of the inclusion of Leto’s Joker seems to reinforce the project is indeed moving beyond the edit he showed Warner Bros. brass before Joss Whedon was brought-on.

It seems like neither Henry Cavill or Gal Gadot will be part of the new filming.

Snyder’s Justice League instead of being a single film edit will be divided into four hour long segments similar to a miniseries format as confirmed by HBO Max, who is putting up the money.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6512XKKNkU

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER & COLLIDER

Posted on in Film News

‘The Suicide Squad’ Footage May Confirm Cosmic ‘Justice League’ Villain Starro Will Appear

It’s starting to look like the main threat of James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, might not be Earthbound. Folks such as Knight Edge Media have seemingly have spotted a blurry shot of what looks to be one of Starro The Conqueror’s facehugger-like alien creatures on the face of a soldier the Suicide Squad as taken out. 

A villain that has already been previously rumored for the sequel via Splash Report. 

I’ve tried to make the pink creature as clear as possible with my own edited screenshots which you can see below. Images were taken from the sizzle reel/behind-the-scenes video revealed during DC FanDome over the weekend. 

James Gunn could have decided to use Starro as a slight nod to his sci-fi horror film Slither from 2006. While fans have assumed Taika Waititi would be voicing King Shark, there is a good chance Starro could be an option.

There seem to be more soldiers with the pink creature in the background that I can spot but are much harder to make out in the image. 

This wouldn’t be the only alien character in the film as in the comic books Mongal (played by Mayling Ng) is an alien warlord. 

The Suicide Squad is set to be released on August 6th, 2021. 

Posted on in Film News

Henry Cavill “Frustrated” By Superman Rumors/Speculation But Would Love To Reprise DC Comics Role

Not too long ago there was a rumor circulating from Deadline that Henry Cavill was in early discussions with Warner Bros. about reprising the Superman role in a non-solo film, but that seemingly spiraled into a massive amount of fan speculation that ballooned into him coming back for a Man of Steel sequel and folks guessing where he’d show up next. 

While speaking with Variety, Henry Cavill revealed he’s frustrated by those Superman rumors and speculation online, even more so that he can’t publicly comment on them. 

However, isn’t opposed to the regular fans speculating as they normally do. 

CAVILL: “They get wilder and wilder by the day. The amount of speculation, the stuff I read on the Internet, is extraordinary and sometimes frustrating. It’s when you see people stating stuff as fact. Like, ‘No, that’s not the case. That hasn’t happened, and that conversation isn’t happening’. But the important thing is that people are excited about it, and I think it’s important to be excited about a character like Superman. Superman is a fantastic character. If people are chatting about it, and even if they’re making stuff up, it’s okay, because that means they want to see the character again. And in an ideal world, I would absolutely love to play the character again.”

He also mused about using an alias to comment on those rumors. 

CAVILL: “I’m not going to lie; I’ve been very tempted, but there’s something about that, that feels deeply immoral. When it’s about Superman, and if I’m representing Superman, it just feels like the wrong thing to do. I’m just going to let this all play out. Me saying something isn’t going to make a difference. What does it really matter? One day, people will know the truth, and if they don’t know it now, it’s okay.”

Henry is a little busy at the moment as he’s expected to resume production on his Netflix series The Witcher soon in the United Kingdom. 

Superman had a brief cameo in Shazam! which I called back in the summer of 2018 after previously confirming the new movie was indeed set in the DCEU. Because talks broke down between the studio and Cavill he wasn’t able to portray the hero in that scene. There is a good chance since Shazam! established Cavill’s Superman exists in that film having him show up in the sequel would be a good bet to make.

SOURCE: VARIETY