Industry UPdate--April 6, 2016~Star Wars, Speedy & More

Maz Kanata's Returning for Star Wars

Lupita Nyong'o with the motin capture software on her face to act as Maz

Maz Kanata's was one of several new characters in Star Wars: Episode 7- The Force Awakens. Lupita Nyong'o voices the motion captured 1000 year old cantina owner. Maz Kanata's had Luke Skywalker's light saber he used in his prime hidden away, it eventually gets placed into Rey's hands as she begins to fulfill her destiny as a Jedi. Oscar-award winning actress Lupita Nyong'o has been confirmed to return for Rian Johnson's Star Wars installment along with several others. So Maz will be back!

Speedy Gets His Own Movie??

The mouse we all love is getting his own movie. No, we're not talking about Mickey Mouse. We're talking about his pint sized Mexican cousin, Speedy Gonzales. Rumor has it that Speedy may be getting his own movie. The last Looney Tunes movie to hit theaters was the disappointing Looney Tunes: Back in Action back in 2003.

2018 Will Be Venomous

Alex Kurtz

Alex Kurtzman (Star Trek and Transformers) will be busy the next two years directing. He has The Mummy starring Tom Cruise in 2017, which recently just released on set photos of the project that is well underway, and Venom in 2018. Dante Harper will be the writer slotted for writing the Venom script. He has not professional had a screenplay turned into a movie, it will be interesting to see what this "green" writer has to offer. Nothing else is known about the project as of now. All you Marvel fans stay tuned to see if this dark villain is brought to life.

Marvel Surprises

Fans have had their eyes set on May 6th for the release of Captain America: Civil War since The Winter Solider was released in 2014. Even before Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice hit theaters the newest Marvel flick was overshadowing the DC release starring Affleck and Cavill. Marvel had become a move making machine over the last several years. It always seems like Marvel has the right marketing tools, fun scripts, action packed scenes, & takes viewers on emotional journeys. So of course people are excited. An exclusive clip will drop during the 2016 MTV Movie Awards on April 10th at 8pm, Captain America himself Chris Evans will present it. In the mean time take a look at the latest trailer that was dropped a few weeks ago

Blood Father, could it redeem Mel Gibson?

He's a ex-con daddy who's packing a major punch. Like any respectable guy when it comes to protecting his daughter, going to extreme lengths isn't out of the question. We get to see just that when Mel Gibson (The Expendables 3) goes full on dad mode to protect his rebellious, distant daughter from the dangerous drug dealers that pursue her. Blood Father drops in Australia on August 25th, release dates world wide will be announced at a later date. Check out this intense trailer for Blood Father.

Quickie News UPdate

-Dungeon & Dragons will soon be more than just a game, a movie will soon be made.
-James Cameron is working away on Avatar 2
-Sequels are already be considered for the not even released movies, Assassins Creed and Splinter Cell
-Lily Collins (The Blind Side) joins Jake Gyllenhaal (Everest), Tilda Swinton (Hail, Caesar!), and Paul Dano (Youth) for Okja. The director for the project will Bong Joon Ho (Snowpiercer).
-Fast & Furious 8 will start shooting in Cleveland in May. April 2017 will be the release of this next installment of the car and stunt fueled series, so production is well underway.

Industry UPdate--April 5, 2016

The New Spider-Man

Tom Holland as Spider-Man

 Andrew Garfield got the boot and a younger Spider-Man has been chosen to carry the webbed torch. Tom Holland (The Impossible and In The Heart of The Sea) is the newest Spidey! A possible title may be floating around the inter-web that gives a bit of nod to a 1980s Spider-Man comic. Could "Spider-Man Homecoming" be the possible new web slinger's movie? According to BBC News and cinemablend.com, Sony has purchased the domain name "SpiderManHomecomingTheMovie.

com". It would be a great title considering that this newest Spider-Man is just in his teens and in the middle of his high school career. Also "homecoming" is the title of comic #252 in the Spider-Man comic franchise. Since we'll have to wait a whole year to see a new arachnid inspired movie, check out Holland's cameo as Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War on May 6th in theaters.

Wahlberg's Patriots Day 

Mark Wahlberg

The Boston Marathon bombing happened only three years ago. Mark Wahlberg (Lone Survivor) is a Boston native, so it is only fitting that he is one of the several A-list stars in this real life acct of one of the most horrific events to impact the northeast United States this decade. Patriots Day will be about the Boston Police Commissoner Ed Davis's experiences and "actions in the events leading up to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing" and the manhunt for the terrorists that executed it. Ed Davis will be played by John Goodman (10 Cloverfield Lane). Along side Goodman and Wahlberg will be Michelle Monaghan (True Detective), J.K. Simmons (Whiplash), Kevin Bacon (Black Mass), and Erica McDermott (Black Mass). Patriots Day will premiere January 13, 2017.

Ewan McGregor Trainspotting Again?

Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting

Twenty years have passed since Ewan McGregor played heroin addicted Mark Renton in Trainspotting. So the quest is, will there be a sequel? McGregor said in a recent interview in Scotland that he's up to do a sequel, but has not yet seen a script. He also mentioned that the animosity he had with Danny Boyle (director of Trainspotting) "is a lot of water under the bridge". (cinemablend.com) McGregor also said "I think it might be extraordinary to see a sequel twenty years after the original." So, we know McGregor would li8ke to work with Boyle, but what about JJ Abrams? Well, McGregor did briefly. Abrams request Ewan last minute to do a voice over for The Force Awakens. McGregor says in an interview "I was literally emailed by JJ Abrams...he emailed me out of the blue weeks before the film came out. Like really, weeks, saying, 'I really feel like you should be involved." Ewan replied to Abrams email with a "I've been waiting the call". McGregor continues to show interest in playing the role of Obi Wan again. A project about the Jedi is still in early stage of development. The Force Awakens is out on DVD today. 

Erik Bauersfeld has passed away

Bauerfeld as Admiral Ackbar

 

Erik Bauersfeld who is most famously known for voicing Admiral Ackbar in Star Wars has died at the age of 93. Bauersfeld was a radio producer in Berkley, CA for thirty one years. He also was a voice actor not only in movies, but also in TV & video games. Bauersfeld also voiced Bib Fortuna, Jabba the Hutt's minion (also appearing in the same Star Wars movie as Admiral Ackbar. Bauersfeld also read for the part of Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back, but lost out to Frank Oz. Erik Bauersfeld was born June 28, 1922 and died April 3, 2016. 

Industry UPdate--April 4, 2016

Tom Hiddleston takes on a new role, rumors he may leave another behind

British actor Tom Hiddleston, also known as Loki from the Marvel franchise, Thor took on a new role on Thursday morning. Hiddleston dropped by Fox 32's studio in Chicago to give an impromptu forecast. Hiddleston talks about the nasty weather and may even blame Chris Hemsworth (Thor) for the severe conditions. As someone who works in the news industry I have to say he isn't half bad. Take a look at his meteorology premiere.
Besides for making his debut as a weatherman, the British hunk has been busy working away on several projects including The Night Manager, Kong: Skull Island, and Thor: Ragnarok. Hiddleston's character Loki has become a fan favorite, but an end may be insight for the Marvel bad boy. A year ago rumors began to circulate that Hiddleston may not wear the horned helmet much longer. When a interview mentioned  him talking about dying his hair and thinking he may not be able to much longer a year ago rumors started to circulate about the possibility of retiring the green cloth. Well, now it sounds like rumors are starting to turn into truth. Loki may be no more after Thor 3. Recently in an interview Hiddleston comments "Thor 3 will be cool because I've not done it for four years...This will be my last time out of the gate". While that statement sounds definitive you never know. Don't cry ladies there's at least one more Thor movie, Thor: Ragnorak will be released November 3 of next year.

The Jungle Book Cast And Their Counterparts

The second live action The Jungle Book movie will be hitting theaters in two weeks. The movie was directed by Jon Fabreau (Iron Man Trilogy) and has an all star cast. Here is a list of the cast members and their characters. To the right is a picture with each actor and their character.
Scarlett Johansson-Kaa, Bill Murray-Baloo, Ben Kingsley-Bagheera, Idris Elba--Shere Khan, Lupita Nyong'o-Raksha, Giancarlo Esposito-Akela, and Christopher Walken-King Louie.

Oh, and one fun fact Kaa has typically been a male snake, but in this version Scarlett Johansson takes on the role to make the snake female (this is more realistic because in nature females are more aggressive than males).

DVD Releases This Month

April 5- Star Wars: Force Awakens
April 8- Joy
April 12 (Digital Release)- Krampus, The 5th Wave, and Ride Along 2
April 15 (Digital Release)- Jane's Got A Gun
April 19- The Revenant, 50 Shades of Black, Norm of the North
April 26- Krampus, Ride Along 2, and Jane's Got A Gun

Weekend Box Office

1. Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice $51,335,254
2. Zootopia $19,325,291
3. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 $11,218,055
4. God's Not Dead 2 $7,623,662
5. Miracles From Heaven $7,255,566
 

10 Cloverfield Lane Review--April 3, 2016

What Is Outside?

Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Instead of fighting the crowds last weekend at the box office to go see Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, I decided to give 10 Cloverfield Lane shot. The movie was directed by a fairly unknown director, Dan Trachtenberg. This drama/horror/ mystery flick was written by Josh Campbell (editor, writer, actor) and Matthew Stuecken (writer and producer). JJ Abrams produces this project.

Synopsis

John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, & John Gallagher, Jr.

After getting in a car accident, a woman named Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) wakes up in a shelter and is being held there with two men (John Goodman and John Gallagher, Jr.). Michelle has difficulty remembering the car accident, so when she finds herself confined to a wall in a windowless cinder block room, she is terrified (like any rational person would be). She pleads to leave or to at least call her family, but Goodman's character Howard tells Michelle there is an impending danger outside the underground safe haven. Michelle is skeptical of what Howard is telling her and curious about the relationship between Howard and Emmett (Gallagher, Jr.). From there we see some intense situation and strange events play out.

My Take:

All I knew about this movie prior to seeing it was what the trailers teased (which wasn't much considerin Abrams plays his cards close to his vest) and what friends told me who had already watched Trachtenberg's film. Without spoiling anything both myself and other viewers agreed that the ending is weird. I was left scratching my head wondering what the heck I had just watched. I give this film a 6.5 out of 10.

Industry UPdate--April 1, 2016 (Women's Day, no foolin')

Today's Industry UPdate features several stories about the women of Hollywood. So instead of calling it April Fools Day, today will be Women's Day.

Chris Hemsworth Is For The Ladies

Hemsworth Tag Heuer Event Australia

 According to a recent interview with one of Hollywood's hottest hunks, Chris Hemsworth states that he's a feminist. The Australian actor is starring in two female driven films coming out this year, The Huntsman: Winter's War  and the Ghostbusters reboot. While Huntsman 2 has 'man' in the title, but the fill is filled with three strong leading ladies--Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road), Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow), and Jessica Chastain (The Martian). Hemsworth comments on how badass all three of his female costars are. As for the Ghostbusters reboot, the film has four leading women--Kristen Wiig (Bridesmaids), Melissa McCarthy (Spy), Kate McKinnon (Sisters), and Leslie Jones (House Arrest). Hemsworth plays a secretary, which obviously doesn't happen often at all. He also has said that there is a movement happening now that is starting to promote more female leads and he's all for it!

Finding Dory Is Stacked

New cast members with DeGeneres

It's been thirteen years since we took an adventure with Marlin and Dory to find Nemo. Now it's Dory's turn to find her family, friends, and where she comes from. Ellen DeGeneres and Albert Brooks return to voice Dory and Marlin respectively. Plenty of new voices joint the cast too--Ty Burrell and Ed O'Neill both from Modern Family, Kaitlin Olson (Always Sunny), Euguen Levy (American Pie), Dominic West (The Wire), Diane Keaton (Something's Gotta Give), Michael Sheen (Masters of Sex), Kate McKinnon (Ghostbusters reboot), and Idris Elba (Thor). Finding Dory was written and directed by Andrew Stanton (Wall-E, Monsters Inc., Toy Story, and Finding Nemo). Finding Dory will be released June 17th of this year.

First Look At Wonder Woman

Kongsli, Godot, Neilsen, and Wright as Amazonians

While Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice is getting some major flack from critics, the first image from the anticipated Wonder Woman movie is getting nothing but buzz. Not only because Gal Gadot is looking fierce as Diana, but also because of the three women surrounding her. Lisa Loven Kongsli (Occupied) is rumored to be among the cast along side Robin Wright (House of Cards), and Connie Neilsen (Gladiator). Neilsen is slated to play Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons and Diana's mother. Considering Neilsen's great performance in Gladiator, she should give a promising portrayal. Writght will play General Antiope and Kongsli will play Lieutenant Menalippe--both characters are the ones who will train Diana to become one of the strongest fighters the world will come to know. Chris Pine will also be in the film as Steve Trevor. The cast line up looks fantastic and excitement is sure to build as we get closer to the release date.

According to Hans...

Hans Zimmer 

Hans Zimmer is a household name in the music industry, a name that carries a lot of weight in the soundtrack world. He's been composing music for almost forty years and always seems to impress. Producing beautiful and powerful songs for movies like Inception, Interstellar, The Dark Knight, Gladiator, Sherlock Holmes, Tears of the Sun, and The Lion King. While Zimmer isn't retiring from the soundtrack production, he will be excluding superhero movies from his future list of projects. The Oscar-winning composer has said recently that he's "retired from the superhero business" and that he's burnt out after over a decade of working his magic for the capes and tights genre. Zimmer and Christopher Nolan have developed a long standing work relationship, twelve years worth. They worked together on Nolan's Batman trilogy together, along with Interstellar and Inception. They'll be teaming up again for Nolan's WW2 drama Dunkirk. So before departing from the superhero genre he gave one key of advice or at least something he would like to see, a female composer and female musicians as well. If that were to happen this movie would not only primary be starring/ focusing on women, but also directed by a woman (Patty Jenkins). Hopefully Chris Pine can handle all those ladies.

Robin Wright's Schedule Just Got Busier

Robin Wright

Robin Wright not only has season 4 of House of Cards to work on, but she also is one of the Amazonians in Wonder Woman and she has just been cast along side Harrison Ford and Ryan Gosling for an untitled Blade Runner sequel. Wright has been in the showbiz industry since 1983. She landed bigger roles in The Princess Bride (1987) and Forrest Gump (1994). Wright has major acting chops, so I'm she's getting more roles.

From One Strong Woman To Another: JLaw

Jennifer Lawrence as Raven/Mystique in X-Men: Apocalypse

Does Jennifer Lawrence want to do anymore X-Men movies? Lawrence co-stars in X-Men: Apocalypse as Raven/Mystique along side a star studded cast. JLaw already has two projects on her docet, but will another X-Men movie be one of them? A recent Twitter post from the Kentucky native says an overwhelming yes. She tweeted " I am dying to come back. I love these movies, I love being in them." It looks like we have nothing to worry about. Jennifer Lawrence goes blue May 27th on the big screen.