Tag: Marvel Studios

Posted on in Film News

James Gunn Reaffirms ‘The Suicide Squad’ Has “Scratched” His Itch To Make A ‘Thunderbolts’ Movie For Marvel Studios

While James Gunn has been set-out to make multiple Guardians of The Galaxy films, he once mused about the idea of adapting Marvel Comics supervillain team Thunderbolts for the big screen. The group is essentially Marvel’s version of The Suicide Squad and various members have been introduced over the years to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

When Gunn was fired from the third Guardians movie he met with Warner Bros. and led to him writing/directing their sequel The Suicide Squad. During a Q&A session on his Instagram stories, James reaffirmed to a fan that he isn’t looking to make a Thunderbolts movie for Marvel Studios and that The Suicide Squad “scratched that itch.”

This doesn’t mean that Marvel Studios won’t pursue a Thunderbolts project just because Gunn isn’t stepping away from his original idea of adapting the team. As previously mentioned, Marvel seems to be aiming to leave the door open for them to be assembled at some point as Daniel Bruhl’s Baron Zemo ended-up in Thunderbolt Ross’ super-prison The Raft by the final episode of The Falcon & The Winter Soldier series.

Other folks that might be part of the roster could include Sam Rockwell’s Justin Hammer, William Hurt’s Thunderbolt Ross aka Red Hulk, Emily VanCamp’s Sharon Carter, Hannah John-Kamen’s Ghost, Tim Roth’s Emil Blonsky aka Abomination, and the newly added John Walker aka U.S. Agent played by Wyatt Russell. Black Widow’s Yelena Belova and Taskmaster could also be contenders depending on the outcome of that film.

It’ll be interesting to see if Marvel if we’ll see the Thunderbolts introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe before Captain America 4. I’m also curious if the MCU version could combine Dark Avengers and Thunderbolts into one streamlined group.

Gunn has said that Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3 is going to be end of his journey but isn’t ready to say he’s closing the door on making another Guardians project down the line.

SOURCE: JAMES GUNN

Posted on in Film News

‘Fantastic Four’: Emily Blunt Downplays Sue Storm Rumors As Fan-Casting – “I Don’t Know If Superhero Roles Are For Me”

Marvel Studios casting real-life couple John Kraskinski and Emily Blunt for their Fantastic Four reboot from Spider-Man: No Way Home director Jon Watts is starting to feel like stretch given recent comments from the pair of actors.

Emily has been on Marvel’s radar going back to Iron Man 2 as she was originally attached to play Black Widow before 20th Century Fox exercised a contract and pulled her off the film leading to Scarlett Johansson taking the role instead. She was later in the mix to play Peggy Carter with John up for the Steve Rogers, neither landed the project.

Speaking on The Howard Stern Show, Emily Blunt revealed that despite online rumblings neither of them have got a call from Marvel about the reboot and even downplayed her enthusiasm for superhero roles entirely. After striking out twice before you can’t really blame Emily for feeling like the genre isn’t for her. There had been similar rumors about her being wanted for Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel but has since denied multiple times in interviews that was ever a thing.

BLUNT: “That is fan-casting. No one has received a phone call. That’s just people saying, ‘Wouldn’t that be great?’ It’s not that it’s beneath me. I love Iron Man and when I got offered Black Widow I was obsessed with Iron Man. I wanted to work with Robert Downey Jr., it would’ve been amazing but I don’t know if superhero movies are for me. They’re not up my alley. I don’t like them. I really don’t.”

This comes after hubby John Krasinski also nixed rumors last year and has recently landed a deal with Paramount Pictures that will likely keep him busy for ages.

Emily recently worked with Disney for the Jungle Cruise movie based on the theme park ride and if successful will likely spawn sequels. An Edge of Tomorrow sequel has been in the works for ages but as Blunt has stated multiple times it all comes down to scheduling with Tom Cruise and director Doug Liman.

Tenet actor John David Washington has voiced some interest in playing Reed Richards.

Back in February, Deadline reported the production was only early stages of development and didn’t have screenwriters attached. With 2023 release dates dwindling and Blade expected to be third 2023 release, there is a good shot that we won’t see Fantastic Four until sometime in 2024. We still don’t have a timeline as Watts is still seemingly working on the final days of shooting Spider-Man: No Way Home and will have to spend most of 2021 in post-production before it’s December release.

SOURCE: THE HOWARD STERN SHOW

Posted on in Television News

‘She-Hulk’: ‘Lovecraft Country’s Elena Albanese Confirmed As Production Designer

The Ronin can confirm that Elena Albanese is indeed working on Marvel’s She-Hulk as the show’s production designer. Elena’s previous credits as an art director includes Captain Marvel, HBO’s Lovecraft Country, Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.2, and Netflix’s Ozark.

She-Hulk is the heroic alter-ego of defense lawyer Jennifer Walters, who after a blood transfusion develops her own Hulk powers. The series has Rick & Morty’s Jessica Gao as the head writer which shouldn’t surprise people they’re aiming for a comedic bend and will also explore Walters’ job as a lawyer defending various heroes/villains of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The 10-episode series will be directed by Kat Coiro and Anu Valia.

Filming is underway in Atlanta, Georgia under the working title Clover with a cast that consists of Emmy-winner Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer Walters aka She-Hulk, Mark Ruffalo is officially returning to play Jennifer’s cousin Bruce Banner aka Hulk, Tim Roth is finally back as Incredible Hulk villain Emil Blonsky aka Abomination, Renee Elise Goldsberry as Amelia, and Ginger Gonzaga.

I wouldn’t be terribly shocked if William Hurt’s Thunderbolt Ross or Emily VanCamp’s Sharon Carter made appearances.

Other live-action Marvel shows on the horizon include Loki, Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, Hawkeye, Secret Invasion, Armor Wars, Ironheart, Ryan Coolger’s Wakanda series, and a spinoff featuring Hawkeye’s Echo. Loki is set to release on June 9, 2021, moving to Wednesdays instead of Fridays.

Marvel Studios will debut She-Hulk on Disney+ in 2022.

Posted on in Film News

James Gunn Teases Tackling More ‘Guardians of The Galaxy’ Movies – “Never Say Never”

While there had been previous hints by writer/director James Gunn that he might end his Marvel tenure with Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3, the filmmaker has now suggested on Twitter that might not exactly be the case and even leaves the door open for Guardians as well.

https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1390858962778664960

It was thought that his dramatic firing and rehiring might have soured his feelings towards both Disney and Marvel Studios, which might be understandable given that the company eventually backtracked from their choice to remove James from the Guardians sequel. However, the opportunity allowed him to play in the DCEU sandbox making The Suicide Squad for Warner Bros. and the spinoff series Peacemaker for HBO Max, so it wasn’t all bad.

We don’t know for sure if he’ll come back to make more installments of Guardians of The Galaxy or move towards other things he’s been itching to tackle like the Thunderbolts, Marvel’s version of the Suicide Squad.

One of his screenwriting tasks for 20th Century Fox early in his career was working on incarnation of the solo Silver Surfer movie that never materialized. The property now back at Marvel Studios is one project that Ant-Man’s Adam McKay has been keen on developing for a while now. Perhaps, we could see James and Adam join forces for a Silver Surfer movie, that could be rad, right?

We’ll have to see how Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3 ends and if Gunn still has ideas he wants to pursue with those oddball cosmic characters for another wave of feature films or Disney+ projects. He has somewhat teased more DC Comics stuff could be on the way but what that might be is a little unclear at the moment.

The Suicide Squad is set for release by Warner Bros. on August 6, 2021 and Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3 will shoot in the United Kingdom in the near future with a release date of May 5, 2023.

SOURCE: JAMES GUNN

Posted on in Film News

‘The Mandalorian’ Cinematographer Baz Idoine Confirms He’s Working On ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’

Marvel’s Thor: Love & Thunder (working title The Big Salad) has been filming at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia with director Taika Waititi returning to make the fourth installment. The film’s mysterious cinematographer has been officially revealed.

Speaking with New Zealand outlet Kea, Baz Idoine confirmed he is currently working on Thor: Love & Thunder. He is best known for his Emmy-winning work on The Mandalorian series and was the second unit cinematographer on American Sniper and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

IDOINE: “I can’t talk much about them, but I’m working in Australia at the moment on Thor: Love and Thunder which I’ll be working on until the end of 2021. Then, I’ll just see what happens. Personally, my wife and I are hoping to move back to New Zealand next year.”

Taika and Baz previously worked together on The Mandalorian. This could potentially explain why The Book of Boba Fett was placed into production in the fall instead of Season 3 of The Mandalorian as the show’s cinematographer has been busy working on a Marvel Studios movie. I’m curious if the two will reunite on Taika’s untitled Star Wars movie he is developing for Lucasfilm.

Love & Thunder will introduce the cosmic beings known as The Olympians and will feature cameos from many members of Guardians of The Galaxy, one of the final scenes of Avengers: Endgame saw Thor leaving Earth with the Guardians to go on an adventure in space.

The film’s cast consists of Natalie Portman as Jane Foster aka Lady Thor, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Christian Bale as Gorr The God Butcher, Tessa Thompson as King Valkyrie of New Asgard, Russell Crowe as Zeus, Matt Damon as fake Loki, Melissa McCarthy as fake Hela, Sam Neill as fake Odin, Luke Hemsworth as fake Thor, Jaimie Alexander as Lady Sif, Chris Pratt as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Dave Bautista as Drax The Destroyer, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Taika as the lovable Korg, and Sean Gunn as Kraglin.

Thor: Love & Thunder will open in theaters on May 6, 2022.

SOURCE: KEA

Posted on in Film News

Dave Bautista Uncertain About Drax’s Future After ‘Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3’ & Downplays Marvel’s Desire To Make Drax/Mantis Movie

You might remember that Drax actor Dave Bautista was one of the biggest defenders of director James Gunn when Disney originally fired him from Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 3 and threatened not to return as Drax if Gunn wasn’t directing the third installment. Luckily, Disney had a change of heart but at that point, James Gunn was already committed to making The Suicide Squad for Warner Bros. further delaying the Guardians sequel and leading to alterations to the existing script when he ultimately returned. 

Gunn has mentioned publicly that Guardians 3 would likely be his final installment and that could be the case for Dave’s Drax as well. The actor spoke with Digital Spy revealing that while he hasn’t read the latest incarnation of the script, he’s not expecting a big future for Drax after the third pic and downplayed the idea of a Drax/Mantis team-up movie coming together. 

BAUTISTA: “I don’t know what the script of the third film is, to be honest with you. There was a script years ago that obviously is going to have to change because the whole direction of the Marvel universe has changed.”

“There were talks for a while about a Drax and Mantis film. It was really because it was James Gunn’s idea. He really wanted to do a Drax and Mantis film. He laid it out to me. I thought it was such a brilliant idea, but I haven’t heard any follow-up from the studio. I don’t think they’re very interested, or it doesn’t fit into the way they have things mapped out. But other than that, no. I mean, as far as my obligations, I’ve got Guardians 3, and that’s probably going to be the end of Drax.”

Director James Gunn is aiming to begin production on Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3 (working title Hot Christmas) alongside the Holiday Special in the United Kingdom (where the first film shot) before the end of the year as previously mentioned by The Hollywood Reporter back in November. Gunn has been particularly busy with the post-production of his R-rated DC Comics sequel The Suicide Squad and its spinoff HBO Max series Peacemaker (working title Scriptures) starring John Cena, which is still filming in Vancouver. 

Other upcoming projects for Bautista include co-starring with Milla Jovovich in the Geroge R.R. Martin adaptation of his fantasy novella The Lost Lands from Resident Evil filmmaker Paul W.S. Anderson and he’s expected to shoot the alien prison break flick Universe’s Most Wanted next for director Brad Peyton. 

Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3. is officially set for release on May 5, 2023.

SOURCE: DIGITAL SPY  

Posted on in Film News

Marvel’s ‘Blade’ Reboot & WB’s Next ‘Superman’ Movie Courting The Same Directors

Disney and Warner Bros. are reportedly courting the same black filmmakers for their upcoming superhero projects as mentioned by The Hollywood Reporter. As both Blade and the next Superman film produced by J.J. Abrams are expected to be shot by experienced black directors. An exciting era of inclusion given the budgets expected for the two comic book movies.

Apparently, screenwriter Ta-Nehisi Coates’ black Superman project is expected to have a non-contemporary setting, which sounds similar to the studio’s original plans for Supergirl (1980s). However, it’s unclear when in the 1900s they’ll be aiming for. Instead, Supergirl will appear in The Flash movie (filming in the United Kingdom) played by actress Sasha Calle ushering her directly into the DCEU but the Superman movie doesn’t seem to be joining that corner of the cinematic universe.

The Superman film appears to be moving onto its own track and won’t be part of the universe, as of now. Sources tell THR that Coates is crafting a Kal-El in the vein of the original Superman comics and will have the protagonist hail from Krypton and come to Earth. While the story is currently being crafted and many details could change, one option under consideration is for the film to be a 20th century period piece.

THR is claiming that there is a group candidates that have been looked for both movies.

The names mentioned in the report are Steven Caple Jr. (Creed II), J.D. Dillard (Sleight, Sweetheart), Regina King (One Night In Miami, and Shaka King (Judas & The Black Messiah). It’s certainly an excellent group of contenders but it’s unclear if these names are simply suggestions by the outlet or actually in the running.

The former list can include Creed II’s Steven Caple Jr., J.D. Dillard, Regina King — who got raves for her drama One Night in Miami — and Shaka King, who is popular at Warners thanks to best picture Oscar nominee Judas and the Black Messiah. Some potential directors have met with both studios for both films, even as one agent said the process was “phenomenally early.” 

You might remember that Steven is currently busy with Paramount’s latest Transformers movie about to shoot over in Montreal and Dillard had been previously tasked to co-write a Star Wars project for Lucasfilm.

They also mentioned that Blade’s shoot was bumped from September 2021 to July 2022, giving folks over a full year to complete any outstanding projects before jumping to the MCU. Coates is said not to be delivering his script until mid-December suggesting both projects won’t be shooting until 2022.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News

Marvel’s ‘Blade’ Reboot Reportedly Shooting Next July – Assumed To Release Sometime In 2023

It’s interesting to learn that two-time Oscar-winning actor Mahershala Ali (Moonlight, Green Book, Luke Cage) approached Marvel Studios about playing Erick Brooks aka Blade, when they weren’t actively casting or developing a reboot at that point in time. But, the studio seemed game to land Mahershala and announced him for the reboot on the stage at San Diego Comic-Con back in 2019, when large-scale events weren’t panic inducing.

Flash forward to 2021 and we have screenwriter Stacy Osei-Kuffour working on a script with a director expected to be named in the near future.

The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Marvel Studios originally planned on shooting Blade in September but have pushed those plans back to July 2022. They’re also said to be seeking a director for Blade that sees them going head-to-head with DC Films/Warner Bros. who are looking for director to make their black Superman film produced by J.J. Abrams.

Marvel isn’t rushing with Blade, whose start date was pushed from this September to July 2022, so that the studio can spend time working on the Stacy Osei-Kuffour-penned script.

This likely means that Blade won’t be coming out until 2023. There have been signs that they were hoping to shoot Blade in Atlanta, but that has yet to be confirmed. Given the film’s July start, we’re leaning towards the film taking a summer or fall spot.

While Marvel Studios has confirmed that their plan is keep Deadpool 3 an R-rated film, they’ve been less upfront if they’ll keep Blade for mature audiences or not.

Blade was originally one of the more obscure characters of The Tomb of Dracula comics that suddenly got popular when New Line Cinema and director Stephen Norrington brought the character to the big screen back in 1998, two years before X-Men and helped convince studios that Marvel films could be profitable. The character landed a trilogy of movies starring Wesley Snipes, a short-lived live-action television series, and a Japanese anime series.

Released a year before The Matrix, the original Blade had a lot of the similar looks and aesthetics including use of wire-work martial arts known to be extremely common in Hong Kong action films.

BLADE – A half-mortal, half-immortal is out to avenge his mother’s death and rid the world of vampires. The modern-day technologically advanced vampires he is going after are in search of his special blood type needed to summon an evil god who plays a key role in their plan to execute the human race.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News

RUMOR: Marvel Studios Creating Even More Production Companies For Unannounced Projects

Marvel Studios dominated the news on Monday after giving new release dates for Guardians of The Galaxy Vol.3 and Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania alongside the first footage from Oscar-winning director Chloe Zhao’s Eternals. But even more productions are on the horizon beyond 2023.

It’s starting to look like there is another wave of Marvel Studios production companies being established at Disney that we recently came across. While I can’t 100% confirm this list is all Marvel-related at the moment (hence a rumor), I’m leaning heavily towards the majority being for upcoming MCU projects and for some that haven’t been officially announced by Kevin Feige. 

  • BAD EGG PRODUCTIONS LLC 
  • ON YOUR MARK PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • BATTLE ANYONE PRODUCTIONS LLC 
  • ACID POP PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • NATURAL HISTORY PRODUCTIONS LLC 

We know things like Fantastic Four, Deadpool 3, and X-Men are coming in the not too distant future. The last one Natural History sticks out to me as possibly one for X-Men, but that’s simply my own personal speculation. It’s possible that Marvel is aiming to make another lineup announcement over the summer or in the fall.

Other Marvel LLCs previously discovered and commented on by the sleuths over at Murphy’s Multiverse include the following companies below. 

  • BLUEBERRY WAFFLES PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • STANDOFFISH PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • CHANGEUP PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • LOG JAM PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • FREQUENT PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • GRASS-FED PRODUCTIONS LLC
  • SOLVE EVERYTHING PRODUCTIONS LLC
Posted on in Film News

‘The Marvels’: Production Designer Cara Brower Confirmed For ‘Captain Marvel’ Sequel

The Ronin has been able to confirm that Candyman production designer Cara Brower is indeed working on Captain Marvel 2. The upcoming sequel has been newly titled as The Marvels during Marvel Studios’ big Phase 4 presentation yesterday. Cara previously worked with director Nia DaCosta on MGM’s Candyman sequel/soft-reboot produced by Jordan Peele. As an art director she worked with Jordan on his Get Out follow-up Us and the fantastic Hail Caesar! from the Coen Brothers.

Confirming Cara as the production designer comes after cinematographer Sean Bobbitt previously announced he was also on the production team. Bobbitt’s credits include 12 Years A Slave, Judas & The Black Messiah, Widows, Byzantium, Shame, Hunger, The Place Beyond The Pines, and the Oldboy remake. Assembling these two folks would suggest production isn’t that far away.

The Marvels will see three generations of Marvel Comics heroines come together with Carol Danvers played by Oscar-winner Brie Larson, Monica Rambeau played Teyonah Parris, and Ms. Marvel’s Kamala Khan played by Iman Vellani. It’ll be interesting to see how the dynamic works and if we’ll be seeing an Earthbound story or something very much taking place within the cosmic side of the MCU.

British actress Zawe Ashton (Nocturnal Animals, Greta, Velvet Buzzsaw) has been reportedly tapped to play the film’s villain, it’s unclear if she’ll be playing a human or alien foe.

There is a shot that Adam Brashear aka Blue Marvel could also join their ranks as the film could introduce a version of The Ultimates to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Also, there might be a connection to the Skrull event series Secret Invasion as S.W.O.R.D. becomes a crossover organization in future film and television projects.

Disney has given The Marvels a release date of November 11, 2022 and will shoot under the working title Goat Rodeo in the United Kingdom alongside projects like Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania, Moon Knight, Secret Invasion, and Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 3.