Tag: Zendaya

Robert Pattinson To Reunite With Christopher Nolan For Mystery Film Joining Matt Damon & Tom Holland
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Robert Pattinson Reuniting With Christopher Nolan For Mystery Film Joining Matt Damon & Tom Holland

Director Christopher Nolan isn’t taking much of a rest after the massive success of “Oppenheimer” as he’s rounding out the cast for his next feature film at Universal and has landed another high-profile actor the filmmaker has worked with before.

Daniel Richtman revealed on his Patreon page that British actor Robert Pattinson (“The Batman”) would be reuniting with Nolan for the pic, and Deadline is backing up the claim with the actor set to play a character alongside Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, and Lupita Nyong’o.

Pattinson previously worked with Nolan on the sci-fi spy flick “Tenet,” which was at the center of the director’s public frustration with Warner Bros., leading to the severing of his professional relationship with the studio and why he moved on to working with Universal Pictures for the Oscar-winning biopic “Oppenheimer.” From what we understand, Universal is hoping to become the homestead for Nolan and is willing to bankroll movies beyond this next one.

The mystery project already has a prime summer spot on Universal’s July 17, 2026 release slate.

We’re still in the dark about the film’s plot and who these actors will be playing within it. Trade reporters have dismissed the small group of various rumors concerning the plot, including some bonkers theories about vampires. Fans of Nolan are accustomed to his mystery-box element leading up to production, although we likely won’t have to wait too much longer before more concrete details.

Not unlike Holland getting ready to shoot “Spider-Man 4” this summer after wrapping on the Nolan, Pattison is also expected to shoot his own blockbuster superhero sequel later next year with Matt Reeves returning to co-write/direct “The Batman Part II” for a release on October 2, 2026. Colin Farrell recently confirmed he’ll be returning to shoot scenes as Gotham gangster Oz Cobb for the sequel after “The Penguin” spinoff series became a hit on HBO/Max. There is an expectation that Zoe Kravitz, Jeffrey Wright, and Andy Serkis will also be reprising their respective roles as well.

SOURCE: DANIEL RICHTMAN & DEADLINE

'Spider-Man 4': Tom Holland Says Sequel Helmed By Destin Daniel Cretton Shoots This Summer
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Sony Slates ‘Spider-Man 4’ For Prime Summer Release On July 24, 2026

The other day, Tom Holland not only revealed he has been reading a script for “Spider-Man 4” but confirmed on “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon” that they aim to begin shooting in the summer of 2025. We had previously learned in September that “Shang-Chi & The Legend of The Ten Rings” director Destin Daniel Cretton (“American Born Chinese”) would be taking the reins from Jon Watts after exiting “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty,” wrapping on the upcoming MCU series “Wonder Man” starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (“Watchmen”), and actively working on a “Shang-Chi” sequel (Marvel Studios is obviously extremely happy with the director’s output for them).

Another exciting tidbit has been announced: Sony Pictures finally gave “Spider-Man 4” a proper release date of July 24, 2026. A couple of months after the release of The Russo Brothers’ “Avengers: Doomsday,” which is set for May 1, 2026, where there is an expectation we’ll see Holland shoot scenes as both films are said to be mainly shooting in the United Kingdom. The two productions being in such close proximity should make cross-pollination between the MCU projects a lot easier than if they had been shot in different countries.

Cretton is certainly an excellent choice as Marvel Studios obviously sees a partner in the filmmaker, and we’ll see how many “Spider-Man” installments he’ll end up making for them. There was plenty of great action, romance, heart, and charm in “Shang-Chi,” which could easily rub off on “Spider-Man 4.” Also, given the reworking of villains The Mandarin and Dr. Fu Manchu into Wenwu from Cretton, there is some promise we’ll get a fantastic villain as well (The Prowler, Kingpin, The Hand, The Maggia, Scorpion, and Vulture are all suitable choices).

Of course, this is a prime spot for the fourth installment but a bit of a change-up from the previous holiday release for “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which saw the trilogy capper earn Sony a hefty $1.95 billion at the international box office. The Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures collaboration on these solo “Spider-Man” films has been extremely lucrative, with the previous trilogy amassing an impressive combined $2.9 billion.

Meanwhile, the Sonyverse is having a bit of a tough time with critics, and projects like “Morbius” and “Madame Web” turning into punchlines while they had disastrous outings (essentially rejected by audiences). On deck for Sony are “Venom: The Last Dance” (getting mixed to negative reactions in some early press screenings) and “Kraven The Hunter,” while other spinoff productions haven’t been announced for the near future.

SOURCE: SONY PICTURES

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‘Dune Messiah’: Denis Villeneuve Says Script “Almost Finished” But Hopes To Make Another Movie Before Tackling His Last ‘Dune’ Installment

There has been an assumption of what happens next for the “Dune” franchise once the second installment, the other half of the first book, is released in theaters on March 1, 2024, after being bumped from its November date as Warner Bros. fearing the cast wouldn’t be able to promote the sequel due to the SAG-AFTRA strike (A deal with the AMPTP is now ratified by members). Director, co-writer, and producer Denis Villeneuve is giving us a rather large update.

While speaking at an event in South Korea (via Tong Tong Culture) today to promote “Dune: Part Two,” the filmmaker revealed that the script to “Dune Messiah,” aka, “Dune 3” is nearly finished but doesn’t see himself jumping back to Arrakis anytime soon after a “very challenging” shoot on the second pic.

“There’s the dream of making an adaptation of ‘Dune Messiah,’ the third movie that will be the end of the journey of Paul Atreides. It will make absolute sense for me to do this movie. The movie is being written right now, the screenplay is almost finished, but it’s not finished it will take a little time. I don’t know exactly when I’ll go back to Arrakis, but I might make a detour before just to move away from the sand for my mental sanity (laughs), I might do something in between but my dream would be to rule one last time on this planet that I love.”

Villeneuve also seemed to reiterate that the third film is expected to be when he dismounts from as the franchise director, nothing says someone else couldn’t keep the movies going as there are four other novels from Frank Herbert to adapt. Neither Legendary nor Warner Bros. has officially greenlit/dated the third installment. Still, barring any major box office and critical hiccups next year when “Dune: Part Two” is finally released, there is an expectation that the studio will sign off on the next installment of the “Dune” saga.

One of those potential projects Villeneuve could attempt to make between “Dune” installments is his adaptation of the Arthur C. Clarke sci-fi novel “Rendezvous With Rama” and would see him reunite with Alcon Entertainment after working with them on “Blade Runner 2049” and his thriller “Prisoners.” Clarke, of course, was the author and co-writer of the screenplay of the iconic Stanley Kubrick film “2001: A Space Odyssey.” The French-Canadian filmmaker was first announced for the project back in December 2021 in an article from The Hollywood Reporter and screenwriter Eric Roth (“Killers of The Flower Moon“) may have revealed doing some screenwriting work on the project last month without directly naming “Rama.”

“I just wrote a movie for Denis Villeneuve. We’ll see what ends up happening with it, but it’s about space and time, and it’s very lonely. It’s certainly about eternity,” Roth said on the Script Apart Podcast.

Rumors based on a production grid making the rounds online had suggested that his next film could be “Cleopatra” for Sony Pictures. However, this has yet to be confirmed/backed up by Villeneuve (Who has yet to announce his involvement), trades, or Sony themselves. Also worth bringing back up is Villeneuve’s new statement from today about “moving away from the sand” for a production shoot which would suggest he’s not itching right now to make a movie about a historical Egyptian leader.

As mentioned, “Dune: Part Two” will hit theaters on March 1, 2024.

You can watch that full exchange with Villeneuve below.

SOURCE: DENIS VILLENEUVE VIA TONG TONG CULTURE

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Director Denis Villeneuve Shares Update On Status Of ‘Dune Messiah’ Adaptation: “There Are Words On Paper”

Recently, it was announced by Warner Bros. that they would be moving the release of their sci-fi fantasy film “Dune: Part Two” from November 3, 2023 to March 15, 2024. The move stemmed from the studio being upset they wouldn’t be able to get the film’s popular/young cast to help promote the film ahead of release because the actors’ strike has prevented members from doing press/promotion for struck studio work. A key element of the disruptive nature of strikes and how actors could be highlighting how important their contributions are beyond being in front of the camera. Pushing the film into 2024 is an obvious tactic by the studio to a new date when they assumingly believe the strikes could be resolved.

That hasn’t stopped the early promotional campaign for the film such as a new issue of Empire Magazine featuring an interview with co-writer/director Denis Villeneuve and the filmmaker gave a brief update on the status of their third film in a “Dune” trilogy with the adaptation of Frank Herbert‘s second novel, “Dune Messiah.” Something that the director has been talking about making for a while now and seems like there has been some writing taking place.

“If I succeed in making a trilogy, that would be the dream,” the filmmaker told Empire. “’Dune Messiah’ was written in reaction to the fact that people perceived Paul Atreides as a hero,” Villeneuve explains. “Which is not what [Frank Herbert] wanted to do. My adaptation [of Dune] is closer to his idea that it’s actually a warning.”

“I will say, there are words on paper,” Villeneuve said of the status of the third film referred to as “Dune: Part Three.”

There had been previous indications that franchise screenwriter Jon Spaihts (“Prometheus”) had already tossed around ideas, but it’s starting to sound like they might actually be developing an early outline/draft. This wouldn’t be that shocking given Villeneuve has been talking about making his “Dune” trilogy for a while now. The speediness of the development would likely hinge on the material already existing in a book that the public is very much aware of and that fits nicely alongside the last two films. It would also explain why Villeneuve is talking about stepping away from the director’s chair once he completes the trilogy, three films would allow him to accomplish his adaptation without having to wade into the waters of the more wacky elements of the subsequent sequels that got increasingly weirder.

SOURCE: EMPIRE

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Denis Villeneuve’s Highly Anticipated ‘Dune: Part Two’ Officially Delayed To March 2024

There had been some rumblings back in July that Warner Bros., in the wake of the WGA/SAG-AFTRA strikes, was strongly considering a delay for the release of “Dune: Part Two.” The reasoning was said to be due to the studio not being able to capitalize on the young/popular cast members promoting the film and participating in various press interviews to boost audience numbers leading up to the theatrical release. As actors are being asked not to promote projects during the strikes on struck projects. In the hopes for a large financial jump at the global box office from the last film that was directly impacted by COVID.

Well, it looks like that is indeed the case as Warner Bros. has officially bumped the release date for “Dune 2” from November 3 to all the way into 2024 with a new March 15 date. We’ll keep our fingers crossed there won’t be another delay and this one sticks.

It is also assumed Warners will move their DC Comics pic “Aquaman: The Lost Kingdom” (a December movie that is without a trailer) into 2024, but we’re still waiting on official confirmation on that front and the studio seems to be still mulling over that decision despite failing to even start a marketing campaign.

Filmmaker Denis Villeneuve has previously teased his desire to adapt the second Frank Herbert novel, “Dune Messiah,” to round out a “Dune” trilogy. There is also a prequel/spinoff series at Max, “Dune: The Sisterhood,” currently shooting after multiple creative/production hiccups that will focus on the Harkonnen Sisters establishing the Bene Gesserit and is set 10,000 years before the events of the movies.

“Dune: Part Two” will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

The big-screen epic continues the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s acclaimed bestseller Dune with returning and new stars, including Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (“Wonka,” “Call Me by Your Name”), Zendaya (“Spider-Man: No Way Home,” “Malcolm & Marie,” “Euphoria”), Rebecca Ferguson (“Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning”), Oscar nominee Josh Brolin (“Avengers: End Game,” “Milk”), Oscar nominee Austin Butler (“Elvis,” “Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood”), Oscar nominee Florence Pugh (“Black Widow,” “Little Women”), Dave Bautista (the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films, “Thor: Love and Thunder”), Oscar winner Christopher Walken (“The Deer Hunter,” “Hairspray”), Stephen McKinley Henderson (“Fences,” “Lady Bird”), Léa Seydoux (the “James Bond” franchise and “Crimes of the Future”), with Stellan Skarsgård (the “Mamma Mia!” films, “Avengers: Age of Ultron”), with Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (“45 Years,” “Assassin’s Creed”), and Oscar winner Javier Bardem (“No Country for Old Men,” “Being the Ricardos”).

SOURCE: WARNER BROS.

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Denis Villeneuve Says Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen Will Be “A Very Important Character” In ‘Dune: Part Two’

Denis Villeneuve’s first Dune installment held back on introducing too many characters all at once, which likely helped make the film more accessible to a general audience by not showing too many faces all at once and splitting the first book into two parts (the David Lynch film becoming a bit of a bloated mess).

The filmmaker spoke with Empire about Dune in a spoiler-filled interview and explained the reasoning behind making the Spice Guild Navigators mysterious and not introducing “very important” characters like Feyd-Rathua Harkonnen.

“Definitely. That’s a choice that I personally brought on. There was enough characters that were introduced in this first part, and it will be more elegant to keep Feyd for [Dune: Part Two]. It will be definitely a very, very important character in the second part.”

Feyd is essentially Paul’s Harkonnen rival and the two eventually duel. His casting will be highly anticipated alongside new roles such as The Emperor, Princess Irulan, and Alia Atreides.

Villeneuve also clarified that the group seen in the film are simply Guild representatives, and not Navigators, who will be also saved for later. Another important group in the Dune mythology.

“They were Guild representatives. They were not Navigators. We don’t see the Navigators in this first part. That was the one of the challenges of this adaptation – I was trying to keep mystery alive as much as possible. We don’t show the Emperor, we don’t see the Spacing Guild Navigators. There’s a lot of characters that are mentioned or that are in the background that we don’t see right away. I tried to keep all the space-travelling as mysterious as possible, like almost bringing some kind of mysticism or sacred relationship with that part of the movie. Everything involving space is just evocated and very mysterious.”

Casting those key new characters will likely start soon with the studio eyeing a production start of July 18 and a release date of October 20, 2023.

DUNE – A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

SOURCE: EMPIRE

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‘Dune: Part Two’ To Begin Filming On July 18

Dune has crossed $300 million at the global box office and Legendary/Warner Bros. has officially announced the second film, Dune: Part Two, is moving ahead with a release date of October 20, 2023.

We now have a better idea when director Denis Villeneuve will get cameras rolling and should have the returning/new cast ready to go to finish the second half of the story.

Josh Encinias apparently attended a Dune Q&A, where it was revealed that they’ll get production on Dune: Part Two started sooner than expected with a potential start of July 18, 2022. Denis Villeneuve had indicated a possible fall start in interviews before the sequel was greenlit and would suggest they’re ahead of schedule if they started over the summer.

https://twitter.com/joshencinias/status/1457142561575817224

Considering we already know most of the cast and crew are returning, the next big step will be announcing the actors for new roles such as The Emperor, Princess Irulan, Paul’s sister Alia Atreides, and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Villeneuve doubled-down on the idea of making a trilogy and suggests he’s “always envisioned” making three movies. The idea was that he’d adapt Frank Herbert’s second novel, Dune Messiah, for a third movie.

“I always envisioned three movies. It’s not that I want to do a franchise, but this is Dune, and Dune is a huge story. In order to honor it, I think you would need at least three movies. That would be the dream. To follow Paul Atreides and his full arc would be nice.”

“Herbert wrote six books, and the more he was writing, the more it was getting psychedelic. So I don’t know how some of them could be adapted. One thing at a time. If I ever have the chance to do Dune: Part Two and Dune Messiah, I’m blessed.”

I don’t think we’re going to get more than three movies from Villeneuve but he very much could be involved with subsequent series spinoffs like Dune: The Sisterhood and beyond. Having Legendary and HBO Max announcing more Dune shows would be the least surprising thing to happen.

DUNE – A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

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‘Dune: Part Two’: Legendary Officially Announces Sequel To Release October 2023

After Dune’s impressive $41 million domestic opening weekend, Legendary has officially announced that Dune: Part Two is moving forward with a release in October 2023 from Warner Bros. as the sci-fi epic has already earned $223.2 million globally.

Denis Villeneuve had previously said a fall production start next year was “realistic.”

We already know that Dune: Part Two has been in development for the better part of two years with Villeneuve co-writing the script with Jon Spaihts, the latter exiting the HBO Max series Dune: The Sisterhood to focus on the sequel. A clear sign the project was a priority for Legendary.

While they could stop at two movies, Villeneuve has considered the idea of pushing towards a trilogy by using Dune Messiah as the basis of the third movie.

“There is Dune’s second book, The Messiah of Dune, which could make an extraordinary film. I always saw that there could be a trilogy; after that, we’ll see. It’s years of work; I can’t think of going further than that.”

The second installment would allow for more casting additions with roles such as Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, Paul’s young sister Alia Atreides, Princess Irulan, Shaddam IV The Padishah Emperor, and others. Since those characters are being saved and allowed for Dune to give newbies a crash course on the franchise’s deep mythology.

I wouldn’t be terribly shocked if we see a bit of a time jump between the two movies.

Posted on in Film News, News, Trailers

TRAILER: ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Footage Confirms Peter Parker Will Explore The Multiverse & Teases The Sinister Six

After what feels like an eternity of fan speculation of when the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer would drop it’s finally made it’s way online, thanks to Sony Pictures.

For the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a Super Hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.

The cast consists of Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Jamie Foxx as Electro, Alfred Molina as Doctor Octopus, Jon Favreau, Hannibal Buress, Jacob Batalon, J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson, Marisa Tomei, Angourie Rice, Martin Starr, Tony Revolori, Paula Newsome, and J.B Smoove.

We’ve now have concrete confirmations that Benedict Wong and possibly Willem Dafoe’s Norman Osborn/Green Goblin will appear as well. We see a pumpkin bomb show up, someone trying to attack Peter in the shadows, Electro using his powers, and Alfred Molina’s glorious Doctor Octopus.

The Ronin first reported that Paula Newsome would appear and she is seen in the trailer.

The Multiverse was first teased in WandaVision, but fully realized in the Loki series with the TVA and Kang’s variant. It’s currently being explored with the What If…? animated show, however, there is something tonally off with that project compared to previous live-action stuff on Disney+. Hopefully, things will get better as more episodes air.

It seems like there will be a slight break for director Jon Watts, as he’ll be focusing on Fantastic Four next, as Marvel Studios will reboot the superhero team for the MCU. However, since making the announcement in December, they haven’t given any indication when they’ll begin production on Fantastic Four.

This isn’t terribly surprising as we haven’t had an announcement concerning Spider-Man 4 and Holland has revealed he completed his contract with No Way Home (he’s indicated he wants to resign but likely re-negotiate more for money). A small hiatus might be just the break everyone involved in the trilogy of films needs at this point.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is expected to debut on December 17, barring any further release delays.

SOURCE: SONY PICTURES

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‘Dune’: Denis Villeneuve Says ‘Dune: Part Two’ Will See Zendaya’s Chani As The Protagonist

Many might know that Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is on the way, but most might be unfamiliar that the movie is only the first half of a two-part story. Legendary and Villeneuve split the first novel into two films, hopefully, to make the epic fantasy tale more digestible to an international audience.

Screenwriter Jon Spaihts is currently working on a sequel, Dune: Part Two, after being pulled off the spinoff series Dune: The Sisterhood to focus on the next feature film.

Villeneuve has spoken to Italian magazine Il Venerdi (via Secrets of Dune) about the sequel (hasn’t been given a release date) and mentions that Dune: Part Two will see Zendaya’s Fremen character Chani become the protagonist.

While this might seem jarring given that the first film will essentially be told from the perspective of Timothée Chalamet’s Paul Atreides, but it seems the film will end before we see either The Emperor (hasn’t been seen in any promotional materials) or Paul’s sister Alia Atreides.

Paul quickly gains a reputation among the Fremen, the native inhabitants of Arrakis, who eventually see him as part of a local prophecy (a manufactured one created by the Bene Gesserit) and they see him as religious figure worth rallying around to fight against the brutal foreign rulers, House Harkonnen.

Telling the second installment from Chani’s point of view could help establish the character as being just as important as Paul. Not to mention giving the Fremen a bigger voice in the story, given that Arrakis is their planet.

Legendary is also in a unique position as author Frank Herbert penned six dense books before his death, leaving a legacy of work that could be adapted for years to come. There are also subsequent books from Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, so there is a hefty amount of source material to pull from for future films and television shows.

Dune will hit theaters and HBO Max on October 22.

DUNE – A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

SOURCE: IL VENERDI