Chris Pratt could Channing Tatum in his new Ghostbusters film, which might not be as male-centric as reports first suggested. According to Badass Digest, sources at Sony indicate that the Tatum-produced Ghostbusters film, which we just learned of yesterday, isn’t necessarily “guy-centric,” but places its male leads at the center. Those leads could include Tatum and his real-life friend, Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy). Captain America: The Winter Soldier directors Joe and Anthony Russo are currently in the mix to direct the film. The site indicates that Sony plans for Tatum’s Ghostbusters to build on his existing friendship with Pratt. The report notes, “This isn’t a case of ‘everybody wants Chris Pratt in their movie,’ this is a case of these two guys being pals and wanting to make this movie together.” Sony reportedly plans to turn the Ghostbusters series into a “shared universe” wherein Tatum’s film will be complementary to director Paul Feig’s previously announced “female-centric” Ghostbusters reboot, which will star Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy — and to have both casts eventually team-up. The site notes that “the hope is that after Feig’s Ghostbusters is out and after Tatum’s Ghostsbusters is out the next film will see the two teams co-mingling, Avengers-style.” Further, another Ghostbusters film might be in the works and would likely be a prequel.
Archive for March, 2015
Rumor has it that the DC cinematic universe’s next Green Lantern may be played by an actor already known for portraying a different cosmic hero. “The name I keep hearing & floating around, is Chris Pine for Hal Jordan. Yes, Captain Kirk,” according to Latino-Review’s El Mayimbe. “Again, this is still just a RUMOR hence UNCONFIRMED.”
Let’s say for the sake of conversation that Pine is playing Green Lantern then chances are he could make a cameo in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which opens next March. Green Lantern is expected to be in the lineup of the two-part Justice League movie before starring in his own solo movie/reboot slated for 2020.
Rumor has it that the Suicide Squad movie’s Joker is not going to be as lanky and physically unimposing as he is in the comics. Jared Leto’s Clown Prince of Crime is supposedly going to be muscular from working out in prison. His skin will also reportedly be bleached white; he will not simply be wearing makeup like Heath Ledger’s Joker. According to Latino-Review, this film’s Joker is “lean & scarred but his suit does have broad shoulders. Joker works out in his cell like an inmate when he is interrogated by Amanda Waller. He’s doing hand stand push ups so it makes sense that Jared Leto said he is putting on weight.” They add that “Joker has a lot of scenes with HUGO STRANGE! He’s the psychiatrist at the prison & seems to be a part of the story yet I heard nothing of casting or mention of a single casting choice. Hugo Strange has quite a few interactions with the Joker & Harley Quinn. It’s not the regular security. It’s internal one on one thing.” Professor Hugo Strange is a longtime Batman villain who has yet to appear in live-action, although the producers of FOX’s Gotham have said they intend on introducing the character on their prequel series. Latino-Review also Deathstroke is in the film as the hired assassin for the villain network Onslaught. They claim he won’t have super powers, but will have the comic book character’s iconic mask. “He’s a huge part of both of the major set pieces of the film. His introduction is INSANE! He’s badass & almost takes the team down on one mission single handed,” claims the site. “The running gun battle that sources are describing is something else.” They add that Sabotage and True Blood’s Joe Manganiello may be back in contention for the role of Deathstroke as the scheduling conflict he had may have been cleared up.
Marvel Announces Star Wars: The Force Awakens Prequel Shattered Empire
Posted: March 21, 2015 in Books, MovieSchedeenMarvel has revealed a new comic book called Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Shattered Empire. As that mouthful of a title suggests, the series is aimed at exploring the period between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.
No specifics were revealed as far as story direction or creative team, though Marvel did debut this teaser image from artist Phil Noto:
A few details can be inferred from the title and teaser image. Shattered Empire looks to pick up where RotJ left off, with the Empire in disarray after the destruction of the second Death Star and the Rebel Alliance celebrating their hard-won victory on Endor. Presumably this series will focus on Luke, Han, Leia and the rest of the gang as they press their advantage and battle the fractured remnants of Palpatine’s Empire. If the various Expanded Universe books are any indication, that may be easier said than done. Many stories have chronicled the battles between the fragile New Republic and various Imperial warlords like Grand Admiral Thrawn and Admiral Isard. In the case of the Dark Empire comics, they even squared off with clones of Palpatine himself. These Expanded Universe stories now fall under the out-of-continuity “Legends” banner, but it remains to be seen how much inspiration Disney-approved projects like Shattered Empire will draw from them. As announced by Lucasfilm and Disney Worldwide Publishing earlier this week, there will be at least 20 books and comics released this fall that will explore the 30-year period between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. Along with Shattered Empire, Marvel is planning an untitled series that will explore the post-RotJ period from C-3PO’s point of view. The Road to Star Wars: the Force Awakens – Shattered Empire #1 will be released in September 2015. Stay tuned to IGN for more updates on Disney’s ambitious Star Wars plans for this year and beyond.
How much might Batman be mentioned in the upcoming Suicide Squad movie? Rumor has it the Caped Crusader will cast a shadow over the movie’s proceedings.
Be advised of some SPOILERS ahead if this rumor pans out.
According to Latino-Review’s sources, “the film Batman is some sort of big boogeyman that the government REALLY hates. Get this, prior to the events in #BatmanvSuperman, THE JOKER is the only one to really ever meet him or know him and that’s why he’s so important to Amanda Waller.” The site continues, “They have footage of Batman in action which they watch. There is a bit of dialogue where they say Batman is the key to tracking down all ‘the supers.'” We’ve heard rumblings before of Ben Affleck’s Batman being seen in the movie via closed circuit footage. It seems pretty obvious that the world will know for sure that Batman exists once he locks horns with the Man of Steel during the events of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Suicide Squad starts filming next month in Toronto.
Oscar-Winning Harry Potter Composer Alexandre Desplat to Score Star Wars: Rogue One
Posted: March 21, 2015 in MovieDisney has hired Oscar-winning composer Alexandre Desplat (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Parts 1 & 2, The Grand Budapest Hotel) to score the first Star Wars spin-off film, Rogue One. Speaking with Radio Classique’s Culture Club (via Film Music Reporter), Desplat confirmed that he and director Gareth Edwards will re-team for Rogue One, after working together on last summer’s monster mash, Godzilla. Star Wars: Rogue One is set to star The Theory of Everything’s Felicity Jones in an unspecified role, and comes from a script by Chris Weitz (Cinderella, The Golden Compass). No plot details have been revealed as of yet, but Rogue One is expected to launch a series of films to accompany the core Star Wars series. Veteran Star Wars composer John Williams is returning to score Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Rogue One is slated for a December 16, 2016 release.
Disney’s live-action retelling of their animated classic Beauty and the Beast is slated for a March 17, 2017 release in 3D, the studio announced today. Furthermore, Oscar winner Kevin Kline has joined the cast as Belle’s father, Maurice. He joins a cast that includes Emma Watson as Belle, and Dan Stevens as the Beast, Luke Evans as Gaston, Josh Gad as Gaston’s lackey Lefou, and Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts. Disney also announced that Alan Menken, who wrote Oscar-winning songs for the 1991 animated blockbuster, will handle the score. He’ll be writing new original songs to be featured alongside new recordings of the earlier movie’s music. Bill Condon will direct Beauty and the Beast from a script by Stephen Chbosky, and the film will be produced by Mandeville Films’ David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman. Production begins in May at Shepperton Studios in London.
Not a fan of the ‘practical’ Fantastic Four reboot costumes that debuted last month? Good news – Mr. Fantastic himself has revealed the final costumes will be more “traditional”. Speaking to Screencrush, actor Miles Teller, who will play Reed Richards in Josh Trank’s film, explained the costumes we’ve seen in publicity photos are the “beta versions”. “These are the beta versions of the costumes, which is great […] But, yeah it would be very odd if the Fantastic Four didn’t don the traditional costumes. You’ve got to. There is some servicing there. You’ve got to give that to the fans. That’s what it’s all about.” While that suggests we may not see the iconic blue costumes until later on in the movie, at least it won’t be all black jumpsuits. Fantastic Four is due to hit theaters August 7, 2015.
Disney is reportedly looking to bring Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams back to direct the final film of the new trilogy, Star Wars: Episode IX. We already knew Abrams would not be back to direct Star Wars: Episode VIII, which will be written and directed by Rian Johnson (Looper). But Latino Review reports that Abrams might return to helm Star Wars: Episode IX. According to the site, people at Disney who have seen The Force Awakens footage are impressed and have singled Abrams out as the frontrunner to direct the final trilogy installment. With the 2019 release date of Episode IX four years away, anything could happen at this point. Earlier rumors claimed Episode VIII director Johnson might wind up writing and directing Episode IX as well. And even if Disney wants Abrams to return, he might decline the offer.
M.A.G News 