Wednesday, April 29, 2015

4-29-15 Movie News

        Hello ladies and gentlemen, here is some movie news with some of my thoughts and opinions (which will be in BOLD print). So without further ado...


(NOTE: All of these stories come from comingsoon.net)


        TheWrap brings word today that 20th Century Fox is developing a sequel to the Matthew Vaughn-directed film Kingsman: The Secret Service. No official announcement has been made about the film, but with Vaughn set to direct the reboot of Flash Gordon, it’s possible he may not return to helm the sequel. Vaughn is credited as a co-plotter in the original comic book series, which ironically has yet to publish a second volume. Based upon the 2012 Icon Comics miniseries by Dave Gibbons and Mark Millar, Kingsman: The Secret Service tells the story of a super-secret spy organization that recruits an unrefined but promising street kid into the agency’s ultra-competitive training program just as a global threat emerges from a twisted tech genius. The film stars Academy Award winners Colin Firth and Michael Caine alongside Academy Award nominee Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong and newcomers Taron Egerton, Sofia Boutella and Sophie Cookson. Scripted by Vaughn and Jane Goldman, Kingsman: The Secret Service has grossed over $401 million at the global box office. The film will debut on Digital HD on May 15 and later on Blu-ray and DVD on June 9.

        This is great news to hear. Now just to be clear a sequel hasn't been confirmed yet, but it would surprise me if the studio didn't make a sequel. It made a big profit at the box offcie and both fans and critics alike loved so this idea is a no-brainer. I absolutely loved the film and I've been keeping a close eye on it's box office run just to see if it would make enough and I think it did. I hope news is confirmed and we should find out relatively soon. 



        Last month, it was revealed that Sony Pictures was planning to move ahead with a feature adaptation of the anime classic Robotech, citing “the intention of moving quickly toward production of a future global franchise.” Now, The Hollywood Reporter brings word that Furious 7 and The Conjuring director James Wan is in negotations to direct the film. Wan recently made headlines for entering negotiations to direct Warner Bros.’ Aquaman feature, for which he remains in contention in addition to the recently-announced Fast & Furious 8. “Robotech” debuted in the 1980s from Harmony Gold USA and Tatsunoko Productions. A peculiar science fiction amalgamation, the show re-edited and re-wrote the dialogue of three Japanese anime series (“The Super Dimension Fortress Macross,” “Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross” and “Genesis Climber MOSPEADA”) to give the producers enough episodes to air as a daily syndicated series. A sprawling sci-fi epic, Robotech takes place at a time when Earth has developed giant robots from the technology on an alien spacecraft that crashed on a South Pacific isle. Mankind is forced to use the technology to fend off three successive waves of alien invasions. The first invasion concerns a battle with a race of giant warriors who seek to retrieve their flagship’s energy source known as “protoculture,” and the planet’s survival ends up in the hands of two young pilots. Immortals and 300 franchise producers Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton are developing Robotech with Michael Gordon (300, GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra) set to provide the screenplay. This team will “bring their modern sensibility to the tentpole, reintroducing today’s audiences to the Robotech universe.”

        This would be a great choice if they can lock him down. wan has proven himself to be a multi-talented director and I think this franchise would be a perfect fit for him. The thing is though if he does decide to do this film then I think you can almost rule out him doing either Fast & Furious 8 or Aquaman and I would say he is more likely to take the Aquaman job simply because Warner Bros. likes to keep things in house when it comes to their directors so it makes sense for him to direct a DC film. 



        The future of Sony Pictures’ 21 Jump Street-iverse appears to be expanding. A rumor has broken today via The Tracking Board that suggests that Sony has brought aboard “Broad City” writers Lucia Aniello and Paul Downs to draft a female-driven 21 Jump Street spinoff. There’s no word yet, however, on whether the project will follow new characters or will instead turn the spotlight to the existing team of the barely-named undercover officers Fugazy and Jr. Jr., played by Dakota Johnson and Rye Rye in the 2012 original. It is believed that this new project is being developed in tandem with 23 Jump Street, which will see the return of Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum’s officers Schmidt and Jenko. There’s also rumors of a potential 21 Jump Street / Men in Black crossover, which Phil Lord and Chris Miller have even commented on in the past, hinting that they’re quite open to the possibility. Whether or not that would become a separate feature altogether remains to be seen.

        To me this isn't a shock. For one both 21 Jump Street and 22 Jump Street have made a lot of money so why not try a spin-off film. On the other hand I'm not shocked is because Sony is very desperate. After the Sony Leaks they have just come up some of the craziest ideas and a lot of them just don't make sense. I would be fin with a spin-off film of this franchise, but it does make me question myslef of do we need a spin-off film.



        Having already led Furious 7 to an incredible $1.3 billion worldwide box office, Vin Diesel is gearing up for a new potential franchise with the fall release of The Last Witch Hunter, directed by Breck Eisner (The Crazies). The film has today released a teaser, which you can check out in the player below, courtesy of MTV and you can check out the poster below. The modern world holds many secrets, but the most astounding secret of all is that witches still live amongst us; vicious supernatural creatures intent on unleashing the Black Death upon the world. Armies of witch hunters battled the unnatural enemy across the globe for centuries, including Kaulder (Diesel), a valiant warrior who managed to slay the all-powerful Queen Witch, decimating her followers in the process. In the moments right before her death, the Queen curses Kaulder with her own immortality, forever separating him from his beloved wife and daughter in the afterlife. Today Kaulder is the only one of his kind remaining, and has spent centuries hunting down rogue witches, all the while yearning for his long-lost loved ones. However, unbeknownst to Kaulder, the Queen Witch is resurrected and seeks revenge on her killer causing an epic battle that will determine the survival of the human race. Also starring Rose Leslie, Elijah Wood and Michael Caine, The Last Witch Hunter hits theaters October 23.

The Last Witch Hunter


        This was actually a really nice teaser trailer. It wasn't what I was expecting whatsoever and I think this film has a lot potential especially on the release date it has. It will be fun to see Vin Diesel going up against the supernatural and being a witch hunter, but I think he can pull it off. 




        Walt Disney Pictures has announced today that Rupert Sanders’ (Snow White and the Huntsman) live-action take on Ghost in the Shell, a DreamWorks Pictures production, has moved up from its April 14, 2017 release date to two weeks earlier on March 31, 2017. Avengers: Age of Ultron and Lucy star Scarlett Johansson will headline the adaptation of Masamune Shirow’s iconic cyberpunk manga series about the members of a covert ops unit that take on technology-related crime. Ghost in the Shell was famously adapted into an animated feature in 1995. The release date shift is likely inspired by the recently-announced Fast & Furious 8, which is set to debut April 14. Currently Ghost in the Shell opens a week after The Divergent Series: Allegiant Part 2 and the same week as the Untitled The Smurfs reboot. Sanders will helm the feature from a script by William Wheeler with Avi Arad and Steven Paul producing with the backing of Steven Spielberg.

        This move makes a lot of sense. I mean you put yourself out one week after The Divergent Series's last film and two weeks before a film who's predecessor just made $1.3 billion at the box office so you give yourself at least two weeks to make some serious money before you become irrelevant at the box office. It will have some competition from The Smurfs as it will be counter-programming, but I still think it will do well. 

        So there you have it ladies and gentlemen, which of these stories peaked your interest or was there another story that interested you? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.

                                                                                                                                         Jonah Sparks

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