Arnold Schwarzenegger & Jackie Chan to Costar in Fantasy Movie Viy-2
03 November, 2016


Jackie Chan is perhaps the most well known Chinese martial artist, actor, producer, and director currently working in Hollywood. His work on the big screen has ranged from starring in a number of international releases and domestic blockbusters over the course of his entire career – most notably including the Hong Kong foreign language film Drunken Master in 1978 and the Rush Hour action-comedy franchise of the late 1990s and early-2000s. Likewise, Arnold Schwarzenegger has continued to be a persisting force in Hollywood as an action movie icon. His roles in several movies released in the 1980s cemented his status as a go-to action star – particularly for his work in The Terminator franchise and the original Predator.

Thus far, Chan and Schwarzenegger have yet to cross paths in a big way on the big screen, though the very idea of such an unlikely pairing could very well result in a thrilling feature film sure to please fans of each respective performer’s outstanding filmography. On that note, it would appear that Chan and Schwarzenegger are finally set to cross cinematic paths in the forthcoming Russian-Chinese fantasy adventure Viy-2.

According to Variety, Chan and Schwarzenegger have just joined the cast of Viy-2 – the sequel to the 2014 Russian box office hit that made a grand total of $33.2 million in its country of origin – which also includes the likes of Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner) and leading man Jason Flemyng (X-Men: First Class). The film is set to follow the central exploits of English cartographer Jonathan Green (Flemyng), who is tasked with exploring and charting the Russian Far East. Along the way, Jonathan is fated to come into contact with a number of interesting characters and martial-arts masters, as he eventually makes his way to China.


Based on the original horror novella by acclaimed Russian writer Nikolai Gogol, Viy-2 is sure to feature Chan and Schwarzenegger in a big way – per the outsized narrative premise standing behind what is sure to be a wildly original fantasy adventure. Produced by returning filmmaker Alexey Petrukhin, the new Russian-Chinese film may well please genre fans of all stripes when the movie finally makes its way stateside – presumably within the next couple of years.

Moving the backdrop of the fantasy adventure from Transylvania to the Russian Far East and China should result in another compelling foreign language film, and the addition of such well known talents as Chan and Schwarzenegger might just result in some interest from American moviegoers. Only time will tell just how capably Viy-2 will fare when it finally makes its way to theaters around the world.

We'll keep you updated with any information related to Viy-2.

Ant-Man 2 Director Teases ‘Crazy Stuff'; Talks ‘Figuring Out’ Wasp
03 November, 2016


Ant-Man was perhaps the biggest “wild card” released in Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe; between the title character’s relative obscurity – compared to the other superheroes that had debuted as part of the MCU at that point – and original writer/director Edgar Wright stepping down shortly before production was to begin, after spending years of developing the movie. Director Peyton Reed then stepped in and successfully steered the ship to port (with help from others, of course), in the process delivering another generally well-received (and lucrative) big screen MCU adventure.

Reed is now hard at work on the sequel, titled Ant-Man and the Wasp, that Marvel Studios has set for a Summer 2018 theatrical release. Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly are reprising their Ant-Man roles (Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne, respectively) in the sequel too, with the latter finally getting to suit up as the Wasp this time around (as was first teased during Ant-Man‘s end credits). Reed and his collaborators are keeping other details on the sequel pretty close to the chest for the time being, though it has been confirmed that Ant-Man and the Wasp won’t be a superhero heist movie in the vein of the first Ant-Man.

Reed recently spoke with Moviefone about the challenge of not repeating what the first Ant-Man did story-wise in the sequel, but also upping the ante in technical areas – now that Marvel Studios’ Doctor Strange has raised that bar, with its widely-praised psychedelic visuals/action:

Well, it’s a mixed bag. Because, as a comics fan growing up, to see all these heroes brought to life on the screen in such huge fashion is always exciting. As the director of a movie that’s coming like three, four, five movies later, the bar is always raised, and it’s great. It’s a challenge.

Because they’re always making technical breakthroughs, and also just story breakthroughs, one of the great things about Marvel is you want to do movies that are doing something different and not treading on what the other movies are doing. So it’s always exciting because they manage to top themselves.


Giant-Man concept art from Captain America: Civil War

Ant-Man beat Doctor Strange to the punch when it came to introducing more “out-there” visuals and sci-fi concepts into the MCU, by providing a brief glimpse at the Quantum Realm during the movie’s climax. Reed and his Ant-Man and the Wasp writing team – which includes Rudd, who also co-wrote Ant-Man – have planned to push the envelope further in the sequel for some time now, as evidenced by Reed’s previous teases that Ant-Man’s next adventure will be “weirder” and feature things “never seen in a movie before.” Doctor Strange‘s positive reception ought to give Reed all the more incentive to keep pushing Ant-Man and the Wasp in that direction.

Reed told Moviefone that official prep on Ant-Man and the Wasp begins this month (at the time of writing this), teasing that the “crazy stuff” and outlandish concepts that have been cooked up in the sequel’s writing process are now going to be properly visualized, ahead of production getting started next year. The director also promised to deliver fresher – and exciting – twists on both Ant-Man and Wasp’s abilities in the aftermath of this year’s Captain America: Civil War (where Scott Lang showed off his Giant-Man form for the first time in the MCU). Reed indicated the Ant-Man sequel will benefit in this respect by getting to be the first to reveal Wasp in full in the MCU:

Again, that is one of the sort of things where it’s a mixed bag. When I first found out — gosh, I don’t know, two years ago, a year-and-a-half ago — that “Civil War” was going to get the Giant-Man premiere, I was like “No!” But, now, I’ve since recovered, and we have a lot more in store for Scott Lang in this movie.

We get to see the Wasp debut — we’re all about the Wasp and Ant-Man. So I like it, because we spend a lot of time with our different writers and directors, and there’s a lot of crosstalk, and I love that.


Ant-Man and the Wasp is making its way down the pipeline at a time when the drum is beating louder than ever for Marvel Studios to introduce more female superheroes into the MCU. The studio is listening too, what with Wasp co-headlining the Ant-Man sequel, Captain Marvel getting her own movie and the prospect of Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow getting her own solo MCU film looking more likely than ever. Reed, for his part, says he’s just happy to get the chance to introduce Wasp to the MCU and do right by the character, in the process:

Well, I’m just personally excited to get to introduce yet another character into the Marvel Universe. After Ant-Man, now we get to see Wasp, so really designing her look, the way she moves, the power set, and figuring out, sort of, who Hope van Dyne is as a hero — because we know her in a certain context in the first movie, but now she’s going to have her coming out party — that’s exciting!

Lilly has confirmed that she will return as the Wasp/Hope van Dyne in the currently-untitled Avengers: Infinity War sequel, but the future of Lilly’s character in the MCU beyond that remains up in the air. There has already been some preliminary talk of a Wasp solo movie from Ant-Man co-screenwriter Adam McKay, but for now that’s all there is: talk. Longtime MCU fans no doubt recall that movies about characters like Doctor Strange and Black Panther started out as “just talk” too, so there may yet be hope for those excited by the prospect of seeing Wasp on an adventure alone, perhaps sometime in Phase 4 of the MCU.

KEY RELEASE DATES
Doctor Strange release date: Nov 4, 2016
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 release date: May 5, 2017
Spider-Man: Homecoming release date: Jul 7, 2017
Thor: Ragnarok release date: Nov 3, 2017
Black Panther release date: Feb 16, 2018
The Avengers: Infinity War release date: May 4, 2018
Captain Marvel release date: Mar 8, 2019
The Avengers 4 / Untitled Avengers Movie release date: May 3, 2019

Suicide Squad Helps Time Warner Beat Earnings Expectations
03 November, 2016


The DC Extended Universe may still be looking for its first critical hit, but the franchise has done very well commercially. This year, both Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad grossed high numbers, with the latter being a rare bright spot at the summer box office. Opening to record figures in August, David Ayer’s villain/anti-hero team-up scored an impressive $745.2 million globally. In terms of the domestic charts, the film currently ranks as the eighth-highest earning movie of 2016 with $324.7 million. It ended its run as one of the most profitable films of the season, potentially launching a new series starring the colorful collection of characters.

Many were pleased by the film’s performance, including (obviously) distributor Warner Bros., who were very confident in the project’s ability to strike a chord. They had a lot riding on Suicide Squad, and its success brought in a lot of money for WB’s parent company Time Warner. In fact, the corporation’s projected earnings for the fiscal quarter were actually surpassed, with the DCEU deserving part of the credit.

In a report from Variety, it’s stated that for the three-month period that ended in September, revenues rose to $7.2 billion, operating costs increased to $2 billion, and earnings-per-share went to $1.87. Estimates originally indicated that revenue would be a shade under $7 billion, with earnings of $1.37 per share. The film slate had a large role to play in this development, as the period saw $3.4 billion in ticket sales. Suicide Squad was the top gun, but the biopic Sully also grossed more than expected. Though this will likely change soon, director Clint Eastwood’s latest is the only movie this fall to make more than $100 million in America.


There were other factors that contributed to Time Warner’s increased revenues (such as coverage of the presidential election and HBO), however, WB’s output will be key for the company moving forward. As Variety states, the studio had troubles lately due to lucrative cash cows like The Hobbit trilogy and the Harry Potter series coming to an end. They seem to have found a stable franchise that can fill the void; comic book movies are in vogue right now, and there’s much excitement surrounding the Wonder Woman solo movie, Justice League, and Ben Affleck’s The Batman. The DCEU may have some kinks to work out still, but it’s clear there’s a sizable audience for the property. Combine that with the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, WB is in great shape for the future.

Shortly after Batman V Superman premiered, it was said that WB was going to retool their business strategy to focus more on their established properties, limiting the number of original movies they green light. Being more selective about what gets approved could be beneficial for the studio, since fewer films means a greater chance of turning an overall profit. If that’s the case then there’s no reason why this little hot streak can’t continue into the next decade and put Time Warner back on top.

The Avengers: Aaron Taylor-Johnson Willing to Reprise Quicksilver Role
02 November, 2016


When Marvel Studios launched their cinematic universe, it did so without the likes of Spider-Man, the X-Men, or the Fantastic Four – all of whom have been among their oldest and most popular comic characters. Without them, the original Avengers have been turned into some of the most recognizable names in Hollywood, but fans of the comics continued to wait for the day that every Marvel character could live under one umbrella. Spider-Man is now officially a part of the MCU, but the X-Men universe continues to move along with Fox.

This separation has led to Marvel not being allowed to mention “mutants,” which complicated things when they introduced Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Despite their family ties to X-Men super-villain Magneto, both characters fell into a grey area of the legal rights for their ability to appear on the big screen. Fox made a splash with Evan Peters as Quicksilver in X-Men: Days of Future Past, but Taylor-Johnson’s involvement was cut short. However, he is still hoping he can reprise the role in the future.

Taylor-Johnson is currently out promoting his upcoming role in Nocturnal Animals, but Metro.co.uk (via MCUExchange) was sure to ask about the potential for him to once again come back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Despite the abrupt, but heroic, death of the character in Age of Ultron, he enjoyed his time on the project and in this universe and said he “absolutely” wants to come back. However, if this possibility is in the plans, he is unaware of these conversations. He said:

I don’t have any knowledge I could share with you if I did.


Even though Quicksilver’s time as an Avenger was not nearly as long as many suspected, his seemingly permanent death was not always in the cards. Joss Whedon, who directed Age of Ultron, previously revealed that an alternate ending was shot to the film that included Quicksilver’s powers healing him from the bullet wounds he sustained. This was ultimately not used, but it does show that Marvel at one time, however briefly it may have been, considered keeping the character around longer.

Moving forward in the MCU, there are possible ways for Taylor-Johnson to reprise his role, either living or not. Doctor Strange is set to open up a whole new realm of possibilities and alternate realities that could be used to either resurrect Quicksilver or have a Quicksilver from a different world or timeline cross over into the current universe.

His sister meanwhile also possesses the powers to alter reality, depending on how Marvel decides to use her abilities. She has not yet mastered her powers as evident in Captain America: Civil War, so it is plausible that she could snap down the line and bring back her deceased brother at a moments notice.

The biggest possibility for Quicksilver to return soon would be via the Infinity Gauntlet that Thanos, and potentially more, could wield in Avengers: Infinity War and beyond. The Gauntlet has previously been used to bring people back from the dead in the comics, and a situation where the Avengers need more help would be as good a chance as ever to have Quicksilver be brought back. All of these possibilities are simply just that for now, with no indications coming from Marvel that this is part of their larger plan. However if it is, it should be comforting for fans to know that Taylor-Johnson would be happy to return.

KEY RELEASE DATES
Doctor Strange release date: Nov 4, 2016
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 release date: May 5, 2017
Spider-Man: Homecoming release date: Jul 7, 2017
Thor: Ragnarok release date: Nov 3, 2017
Black Panther release date: Feb 16, 2018
The Avengers: Infinity War release date: May 4, 2018
Ant-Man & The Wasp release date: Jul 6, 2018
Captain Marvel release date: Mar 8, 2019
The Avengers 4 / Untitled Avengers Movie release date: May 3, 2019

Disney’s A Wrinkle In Time Begins Production; Zach Galifianakis Joins Cast
02 November, 2016


A Wrinkle in Time was a popular, award-winning sci-fi novel by Madeleine L’Engle published in 1963, that has enthralled generations of children and young adults. It was a rare science fiction book at the time to feature a female protagonist, while also focusing on sometimes complex concepts as the space-time continuum and the Tesseract.

Aside from a Canadian TV production in 2003, there has never been a movie adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time. Disney purchased the rights to do so in 2010, cycling through at least two screenwriters, ultimately retaining Frozen writer/co-director Jennifer Lee. The director of Selma, Ava DuVernay, signed on to direct the live action film earlier this year – becoming the first woman of color to direct a live-action film with a budget of over $100 million. Now, the film is ready for production.

A Wrinkle in Time will formally begin production Tuesday in Los Angeles, Disney announced in a press release. The director talked about the project in the release:

“Since Day One, this experience has shimmered with the promise and possibility, the passion and power that only great stories offer… And Madeline L’Engle’s book is a great story indeed. A cool, quirky tale of an imperfect girl on an otherworldly expedition that has been praised and banned, dissected and celebrated the world over for more than 50 years. On behalf of all the filmmakers, artists and craftspeople in our ‘Wrinkle in Time’ family, we are genuinely thrilled by and truly grateful for the opportunity to make this film together.”


The film has assembled quite a cast, with young actress Storm Reid in the lead role as Meg Murry, with other major roles filled by the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Chris Pine, Andre Holland and – as first announced Tuesday – Zach Galifianakis, who will play The Happy Medium.

Disney currently has a whole lot of projects in development that are based on well-known properties, from remakes of much of its animated stable to sequels to Malificent and The Jungle Book. But A Wrinkle in Time is particularly worth getting excited about. It’s a beloved novel that’s never made it to the big screen before despite over 50 years of popularity, and because the director is a major talent. Anyone who saw Selma knows that DuVernay has exceptional command of cinematic storytelling, and she’ll be aided by a strong cast and screenwriter Lee.

The one question is whether A Wrinkle in Time is one of those properties that’s just plain unfilmable, which may explain why it went unmade for five decades. Whether DuVernay can bring out the magic in this book, we will find out in two years.

A Wrinkle in Time does not have an official release date, but is expected to arrive in 2018.

Johnny Depp Joins Fantastic Beasts Sequel
02 November, 2016


Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – the Harry Potter series prequel/spinoff written by the Wizarding World creator herself, J.K. Rowling – is the next major tentpole on the horizon, following the release of Marvel Studios’ Doctor Strange in U.S. theaters. Early box office tracking for the new Wizarding World adventure is robust enough to suggest that Warner Bros. Pictures wasn’t being overly-presumptious in officially announcing a 2018 theatrical release date for a Fantastic Beasts sequel (one that, like its predecessor, is being written by Rowling and will be directed by David Yates).

It remains to be seen if Rowling’s official plan to write five Fantastic Beasts movies total actually comes to fruition but again; unless Fantastic Beasts significantly performs below the current box office expectations, it seems safe to assume that the sequel is going to happen. We even have our first proper casting news for the next Fantastic Beasts movie, concerning an unexpected A-list addition to the franchise.

Deadline is reporting that Johnny Depp is playing a co-starring role in the Fantastic Beasts movie sequel, though details beyond that are being kept under-wraps for the time being. The Deadline article claims that Depp might even make a “tiny turn” (read: cameo appearance) in the first Fantastic Beasts film, meaning fans may not have to wait very long to find out more about who the actor will be portraying in the Wizarding World. In fact, we might already know he’s playing…

Potential MILD SPOILER for Fantastic Beasts ahead.

Some of the Fantastic Beasts TV spots released to date have referenced Gellert Grindelwald: the dark wizard whom Albus Dumbledore was friends with (and was secretly in love with) when the pair of them were younger – and whom Dumbledore eventually had to defeat in battle, securing control of the Elder Wand in the process. Warner Bros. has even released a video in which Fantastic Beasts costar Ezra Miller recounts these events (as first documented in the book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows), noting that Grindelwald would have been rising to power around the time that Fantastic Beasts takes place, in the year 1926. (Hint, hint.)


Grindelwald won’t be the focus in the first Fantastic Beasts movie. The Dark Wizard rose to power in Europe and Fantastic Beasts takes place in New York – where protagonist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) gets into trouble, after a number of the Fantastic Beasts that he keeps in his magical traveling case manage to get loose, thus setting the film’s plot into motion. Hypable is reporting that Depp will be playing the Grindelwald character properly in the Fantastic Beasts sequel. Hypable also cites “a source involved with the film” that has informed the site that Depp will only be seen from the back near the very beginning of the first Fantastic Beasts, during a shot that can even be briefly glimpsed in one of the official Fantastic Beasts TV spots.

The idea of Depp being cast to play the “big baddie” Grindelwald in the five-movie Fantastic Beasts narrative arc that Rowling is plotting out isn’t too difficult to believe. That doesn’t mean it’s accurate either, seeing as Depp could just as well be playing a different role altogether in the Fantastic Beasts sequel and not necessarily a character who was introduced in the previous Harry Potter movies or books, either. With Fantastic Beasts movie #1 right around the corner though, it won’t be long before we get more concrete information on Depp’s involvement with the franchise… and thus, can better gauge how everyone feels about it.

KEY RELEASE DATES
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them release date: Nov 18, 2016

Escape Plan 2 Moving Forward; Sylvester Stallone to Return
01 November, 2016


In terms of action star resurgences, Sylvester Stallone has been doing fairly well for himself over the past several years. Following his success last year with the critically-acclaimed Creed as well, which he was nominated for an Oscar for, the Hollywood icon is set to dip his toes into the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the first time next year in director James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. In addition to that though, Stallone remains involved in a number of films and franchise sequels in development right now – including the eventual sequel to Creed.

However, it looks like Stallone is going to try and mine a possible franchise out of one of his recent, but comparatively obscure films now – one that initially had quite a bit of hype going behind it, due to it being his first real onscreen team-up ever with Arnold Schwarzenegger, but was a critical dud when it was released. We’re of course, talking about 2013’s Escape Plan.

Deadline is reporting that Escape Plan 2 is in development right now from Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films, and Stallone is set to reprise his role as Ray Breslin from the first movie. This time around, Stallone is said to be taking on a supporting role in the sequel, with Miles Chapman returning to write the screenplay for the film after his work on the first installment. There is no word yet on whether or not Arnold Schwarzenegger will be returning for Escape Plan 2 along with Stallone.


Now, despite being on the receiving end of some negative critical reviews, Escape Plan actually went on to do fairly well at the box office. After making only a lackluster $25 million domestic upon its release, the film was saved in the international market when it made around $112 million additionally, managing to make back its $50 million budget and then some. So financially, cause for a sequel at least seems to be there – though whether or not the public will have much of an interest in seeing a sequel to the film will have to wait to be seen, especially if Schwarzenegger doesn’t return.

This also comes after the recent news that Nu Image/Millennium Films are working on a Rambo reboot, without Stallone involved this time around. Considering that the John Rambo character has always been one of his more iconic too, Stallone’s separation from the reboot was surprising to fans (to say the least). With few to no new details to report on the progress of other Stallone-led sequels right now (see also The Expendables 4), it seems that he may be looking for a fresh franchise with the Escape Plan sequel – lacking in brand recognition, the property may be. No matter what though, it seems like Stallone always has another franchise or film up his sleeve.

Escape Plan 2 does not have an official release date yet. We will keep you updated.