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)
Walt Disney Pictures appears to have found a star for their upcoming Mary Poppins sequel. According to a story today at The Hollywood Reporter, Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow, Sicario) has entered talks to take over the role made famous by Julie Andrews. The move would reteam Blunt with her Into the Woods director, Rob Marshall. Originally the central character in a series of children’s books by P.L. Travers, Mary Poppins was famously adapted for the screen in 1964. Dick Van Dyke co-starred in the Robert Stevenson film, which told the story of a magical nanny who comes to care for a British family, the Banks. The original Mary Poppins was set in the year 1910 and it is believed that the sequel will take place in the 1930s. As reported when the project was first announced last fall, the aim is for the new film to borrow story elements from Travers’ eight Mary Poppins books, including the first literary sequel, Mary Poppins Comes Back. Time will tell if Disney winds up using that as the new film’s official title. The real world story behind Disney’s Mary Poppins was itself the focus of John Lee Hancock’s 2013 feature, Saving Mr. Banks. Scripted by Kelly Marcel and Sue Smith, Saving Mr. Banks stars Emma Thompson as Travers and Tom Hanks as Walt Disney. The Mary Poppins sequel will be produced by John DeLuca and Marc Platt, who also worked with Marshall on Into the Woods.
This is absolutely terrific casting. Emily Blunt is an amazing actress and I think she fits the role perfectly. She's British and she can sing which are just two of qualities that you need to play this character. Back in September when this news first broke I did predict Meryl Streep for the role, but I honestly didn't think of Emily Blunt, but I'm glad she is the choice for Disney. No matter who was cast in this role Julie Andrews was going to be tough to replace, but if anyone can do it then Emily Blunt can.
Alcon Entertainment’s sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1982 masterpiece Blade Runner, to star Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford (reprising his role as Rick Deckard), and to be directed by Denis Villeneuve (Sciario, Prisoners), will be released by Warner Bros. Pictures in North America on January 12, 2018, it was announced by Alcon co-founders and co-CEO’s Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson. Sony Pictures Releasing International will distribute the Blade Runner sequel in all overseas territories in all media. The story, written by Hampton Fancher (co-writer of the original) and Michael Green and based on a story by Fancher and Ridley Scott, takes up several decades after the conclusion of the 1982 original. Principal photography is scheduled to begin in July, 2016. Multi-Oscar nominated cinematographer Roger Deakins (Sicario, Prisoners) will reunite with Villeneuve on the project. Alcon Entertainment acquired the film, television and ancillary franchise rights to Blade Runner in 2011 from the late producer Bud Yorkin and Cynthia Sikes Yorkin to produce prequels and sequels to the iconic science-fiction thriller. Cynthia Sikes Yorkin will produce along with Johnson and Kosove. Bud Yorkin will receive producer credit. Ridley Scott will serve as Executive Producer of the Blade Runner sequel. Frank Giustra and Tim Gamble, CEO’s of Thunderbird Films, will also serve as executive producers along with Bill Carraro (Terminator Genisys, The Golden Compass). The only other film currently dated for January 12, 2018 is Paramount’s Sherlock Gnomes, an animated sequel to 2011’s Gnomeo & Juliet.
This is a really interesting release date. The original Blade Runner film is one of my favorite films and I'm a little shocked with the fact that with the property being pretty well known that it is coming out in January instead of the summer or possibly later on in the holiday season of 2017. January is a month where films basically go to die and I'm shocked that Warner Bros. is placing the film there. Now what I've heard may happen is that the film could come out on a limited release in December 2016 and then go wide on this January date. I'm so excited to see this film and I hope that it deals with Ryan Gosling's character is hunting down Richard Deckard because seeing Gosling and Ford go at it would be awesome.
Lionsgate will release the Keanu Reeves action sequel with the newly-christened title John Wick: Chapter Two on February 10, 2017. The film will take place at least partly in Rome. Also scheduled to open on February 10, 2017 are The Mountain Between Us, The LEGO Batman Movie, and Fifty Shades Darker. Besides Reeves’ title hitman, returning characters include Winston (Ian McShane), Aurelio (John Leguizamo), Hotel Manager Charon (Lance Reddick), Jimmy (Tom Sadowski) and the title character’s deceased wife Helen Wick (Bridget Moynahan). Also onboard the John Wick 2 cast as fresh faces are Morpheus himself Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix trilogy), Ruby Rose (Resident Evil: The Final Chapter), Riccardo Scamarcio (Burnt), Peter Stormare (22 Jump Street) and Common (Smokin’ Aces) playing the sequel’s main villain, the head of security for a female crime lord. “In the follow up to last year’s adrenaline-fueled revenge and redemption thriller,” reads the sequel’s temporarily minimal plot synopsis, “legendary hit man John Wick is back.” John Wick: Chapter Two is directed by Chad Stahelski, who co-helmed the first movie, with John Wick screenwriter Derek Kolstad also returning for the sequel, which will be released through Lionsgate’s Summit Entertainment and is produced by Thunder Road’s Basil Iwanyk. Iwanyk also produced the first film.
First off I really like the title. Sometimes studios will try too hard to come up with sequel subtitles and they often end up being pretty stupid, but this subtitle is perfect for this film because this is a franchise that can be told in chapters to help the narrative. As for the date I think it's going to be tough for the film to make money due to the competition, but the film will be a great medium between both Fifty Shades Darker and The LEGO Batman movie. I think moving the film to September would be a better idea because it won't have a lot of competition and it can do very in that month. The first John Wick came out of nowhere and I absolutely loved it and I'm really looking forward to seeing where the story goes from here.
The Hollywood Reporter brings word that a sequel to last year’s hit disaster film San Andreas is in the works with much of the cast and crew expected to return. Dwayne Johnson starred in the 2015 film as a search and rescue helicopter pilot and will return for the sequel along with Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario and Paul Giamatti. Producer Beau Flynn and director Brad Peyton will also return. The script for the first film was written by Carlton Cuse and Andre Fabrizio and Jeremy Passmore, but New Line has brought on Neil Widener and Gavin James to script the sequel, which upgrades from major earthquakes across California to the entire Ring of Fire in the Pacific ocean. According to the USGS, 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur in the 25,000 mile stretch that borders four continents. In addition, the zone gains its name from the over 450 volcanoes that surround it, which amounts to over “75% of the world’s active and dormant volcanoes.” San Andreas went on to gross over $470 million at the global box office upon its release. Johnson can next be seen in Central Intelligence, set to debut June 17, and can be heard in the animated Disney film Moana, which debuts November 23. He’s also set to work on another film with director Brad Peyton, an adaptation of the classic video game Rampage.
I love this idea. One of the things that sorta made the first film decent was the ridiculousness of everything going on and it just made the film somewhat watchable. This film sounds absolutely ridiculous and the crazy thing is that it will probably work in a lot of different ways. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is starting to make a living on the ridiculousness and insanity of his films and it's a great strategy for him because it gets him more opportunities to be in more action films. I thought the original film was alright and I'm actually looking forward to this film and seeing how this cast grows.
Universal and Legendary Pictures have today announced that their upcoming The Great Wall movie has been delayed three months. Originally slated for release on November 23, 2016, The Great Wall movie will now hit 3D screens February 17, 2017. The Great Wall movie tells of an elite force making a last stand for humanity on the world’s most iconic structure. Set to be the largest film ever shot entirely in China for global distribution, The Great Wall movie stars Academy Award winner Matt Damon (The Monuments Men, Interstellar), Pedro Pascal (Game of Thrones, Narcos) and Willem Dafoe (John Wick, The Grand Budapest Hotel). They will star alongside Chinese actors Andy Lau (Infernal Affairs, House of Flying Daggers), Jing Tian (New Police Story, Special ID), Zhang Hanyu (Taking Tiger Mountain, The Assembly), Eddie Peng (Fleet of Time, Rise of the Legend), Lu Han (Miss Granny), Lin Gengxin (Taking Tiger Mountain, Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon), Zheng Kai (Fleet of Time, The Running Man), Chen Xuedong (Tiny Times 3), Huang Xuan (The Golden Era, Blind Massage), and, in his feature film debut, pop star Wang Junkai. Additionally, director Zhang Yimou will carry on his long-standing tradition of utilizing new faces in his films. Newcomers Yu Xintian and Liu Qiong will play supporting roles in the film. The new date has The Great Wall movie moving away from a crowded Thanksgiving 2016 weekend that includes Bad Santa 2 and the animated Disney musical Moana. The Harry Potter franchise spin-off Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them also hits just a few days earlier, on November 18. The February 17 date has The Great Wall movie opening opposite both Columbia Pictures‘ Bad Boys 3 and 20th Century Fox‘s The Maze Runner finale, The Death Cure.
I really hate this news. This is a film that has fascinated me for a long time mainly due to the premise and how big the production is going to be. In a way I understand the date change because it mean that they need more time due to the big production which would be shocking due to the fact that film is coming up on a year of being in production, but a Thanksgiving release date is something you don't typically give up and plus you can really get a big promotion going. This film could've made a huge Oscar push for next year, but I guess we'll have wait and see how it does in 2017.
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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