Thursday, January 22, 2015

1-22-15 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)


        X-Men: Apocalypse director Bryan Singer announced on his Twitter today that Alexandra Shipp will play Storm, Sophie Turner will play Jean Grey, and Tye Sheridan will play Cyclops in the May 27, 2016 release! Shipp is known playing KT Rush on the show “House of Anubis” and for headlining Lifetime’s recent biopic “Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B,” Turner is known for her role as Sansa Stark on HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” and Sheridan has starred in The Tree of Life, Mud and Joe. The trio is joining James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Oscar Isaac and Nicholas Hoult in X-Men: Apocalypse, which is scripted by Simon Kinberg, Mike Dougherty and Dan Harris. Said to be the conclusion of a trilogy started with X-Men: First Class and continued with X-Men: Days of Future Past, cameras will start rolling on the next adventure in Montreal beginning in April.

        This is some really great casting. All three of these young actresses and actor are very talented and I think they are the perfect choices for these roles. When Tye Sheridan was rumored for the role of Cyclops he immediately became my choice. As for the other two I'm not really familiar with their work, but I'm really excited for them in this film. 



        The Hollywood Reporter brings word this evening that 12 Years a Slave star Chiwetel Ejiofor is in talks for an undisclosed role in Marvel Studios’ upcoming film Doctor Strange. According to the outlet, some of their sources indicate he could be taking on the villain role of the film while others have refuted that. Ejiofor is no stranger to villain discussions, as he was previously in talks to be the lead villain of the 24th James Bond film, Spectre, though those talks fell through. Scheduled to hit theaters November 4, 2016, Doctor Strange is scripted by Jon Spaihts and is said to follow the story of neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange who, after a horrific car accident, discovers the hidden world of magic and alternate dimensions. Scott Derickson will direct the film, which sees Benedict Cumberbatch in the titular role of the Sorcerer Supreme.

        If this becomes true then this will be an amazing choice. Chiwetel Ejiofor is an amazing actor and he is also an Academy Award nominated actor. Like the article said he's used to playing villains as he was the main villain in Serenity and I think he would be perfect for the film. Doctor Strange is very interesting character and I cannot wait to see what Marvel and Scott Derrickson do for him.



        Despite success stories like The Croods and current Academy Award-nominee How to Train Your Dragon 2, DreamWorks Animation has suffered a series of high-profile failures, including Rise of the Guardians ($83 million in losses), Turbo ($13 million in losses), Mr. Peabody & Sherman ($57 million in losses). Thus, the company has announced a massive restructuring of its core feature animation business, focusing its feature production from three films per year down to two. Under the leadership of newly appointed Co-Presidents of Feature Animation Bonnie Arnold and Mireille Soria, the studio’s core feature animation production will now focus on six specific movies for the next three years – one original film and one sequel each year – including Kung Fu Panda 3 (March 18, 2016), Trolls (Nov. 4, 2016), Boss Baby (Jan. 13, 2017), The Croods 2 (Dec. 22, 2017), Larrikins (Feb. 16, 2018) and How to Train Your Dragon 3 (June 29, 2018). (Boss Baby and How to Train Your Dragon 3 have both been pushed back from their previous release dates.) Captain Underpants, which will be produced outside of the studio’s pipeline at a significantly lower cost, is scheduled for release in 2017. The company’s 2015 release, Home, will open domestically on March 27.

        “The number one priority for DreamWorks Animation’s core film business is to deliver consistent creative and financial success,” said DreamWorks Animation Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Katzenberg. “I am confident that this strategic plan will deliver great films, better box office results, and growing profitability across our complementary businesses.” The overall reduction of DreamWorks Animation’s feature production output will result in a loss of approximately 500 jobs across all locations and all divisions of the studio.  Nothing was said about the decision to move B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations, already in production with a voice cast including Seth Rogen, Bill Murray and Melissa McCarthy, out of its summer 2015 slot, although apparently it’s being moved back into development. There was no word on what will happen with previously-announced projects like the Mumbai Musical from director Kevin Lima (Enchanted), which was originally scheduled for March 10, 2017, Madagascar 4, originally slated for May 18, 2018, as well as the December sequel Puss in Boots 2: Nine Lives & 40 Thieves. 

        This is pretty sad news to hear, The release dates for the films are the main focus of this article, but the fact that DreamWorks has had to let go of 500 people. Listen we live in hard times and I hope that these people get jobs real soon. I hope this plan works out for the studio because they have made so many great films over its 20 year history and I would hate to see anything bad happen it.



        Looks like Yahoo! became “The First One” to hear about En Sabah Nur’s (a.k.a. Apocalypse) appearance in X-Men: Apocalypse while talking to actor Oscar Isaac about the physical requirements to bring the arch mutant villain to life. “It’ll be a mix [of practical and digital],” said Isaac. “I haven’t had a script so I haven’t had a chance to look through the script and see what the exact requirements are, but I think it’ll be a mixture of physical, aided with some robotic technology.” Isaac continues, “After we finish here I’m heading to do a head cast [for ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’], which they do often. You spend 3-4 hours with them putting plaster all over your head and they get a sense of what your face is like and what shape your head is, so they can start figuring out the costume and the make up and all that stuff, which is pretty fun.” You can read what Isaac said about one of Apocalypse’s powers at SuperHeroHype as well. Confirmed to star James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Oscar Isaac and Nicholas Hoult (with more names expected to be confirmed shortly), X-Men: Apocalypse is scripted by Simon Kinberg, Mike Dougherty and Dan Harris. Said to be the conclusion of a trilogy started with X-Men: First Class and continued with X-Men: Days of Future Past, cameras will start rolling on the next adventure in Montreal beginning April, 2015 for a May 27, 2016 release.

        This makes a lot of sense for the character. Look Apocalypse is a huge character and with the technology we have today he could be really awesome. I think that most of the character will be performances capture which I think will be very beneficial for Oscar Issacs, because you you don;t get a guy with this talent to just do voicework. I'm excited that Issacs will be in the role and I cannot wait for the film.



        A new version of cult classic horror film The Blob is in the works, and Deadline reports that action maestro Simon West (Con Air, The Expendables 2) is the man to direct it for Goldcrest Films. Principal photography could potentially begin this summer for producers Richard Saperstein and Brian Witten (Devil’s Knot, Cell). “With modern CGI we can now fully realize the potential of The Blob,” West said. “The world I create will be totally believable, immersive and emotionally satisfying. It’s a thrill to introduce an enduring icon to a wider audience and a whole new era of fans.” The original 1958 film starred Steve McQueen in his first lead role as a teen trying to stop a gelatinous alien goo that descends from a meteorite which exponentially multiplies in size the more people it consumes. Larry Hagman of “Dallas” fame directed the low-budget 1972 sequel Beware! The Blob, while a 1988 remake helmed by Chuck Russell and co-written by Frank Darabont failed at the box office. Rob Zombie announced another remake in 2009, but later abandoned the idea.

        This sounds like a really cool idea and choice. Simon West seems like the perfect person for this film and I'm curious to see what he does with it. As for the film itself everyone knows I'm ok with films being remade and since a lot of you have never seen the original film I think its time for it to be remade. 

        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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