Geoff Johns Talks ‘Green Lantern Corps’, Calls It A Reimagining

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July 23, 2018

Geoff Johns may not have his big swanky position in DC Entertainment that he once had, but he’s still plenty busy on the film, TV, and comics sides of the business. And of course he was EVERYWHERE at San Diego Comic-Con talking about his various projects, including the upcoming Green Lantern Corps film he’s a part of.

Johns spoke with IGN about Green Lantern Corps, and he likens it to what he did with the Green Lantern: Rebirth storyline which reimagined much of the GL legacy…

“It’s a complete re-imagining, just like I did in Green Lantern Rebirth with the comics. Hopefully I’m going to be delivering a script that Warner (Brothers) loves and the DC likes, and that they want to make. It’s going to celebrate the mythology and reinvent it in a different way, but also if you’ve read my Green Lantern run it’s very much inline with some stuff we did in there.”

That would fit with what we’ve seen from Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Shazam! up to this point. The DCEU is headed in a new direction and Green Lantern Corps, which has been rumored to be a buddy cop film featuring Hal Jordan and John Stewart, should be a big part of that.

Box Office: Denzel Edges Out Streep as ‘The Equalizer 2’ Takes the Top Spot!

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John Nolan

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July 22, 2018

1. The Equalizer 2 (review)- $35.8M
While Denzel’s sequel only earned 2.5 stars form our team it was still enough to take the top spot edging out the week’s other debut sequel Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! by $1.5M. After the flop that was Roman J. Israel, Esq. it’s nice to see that some movie stars can still deliver returns…if they stay in genre.
2. Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! (Review)– $34.8M
The sequel to 2008’s ABBA inspired surprise hit may not have managed to take 1st place but they did beat the opening weekend of the original by around $7M. Of course, like most surprise hits Mamma Mia came with a slow burn box office and massive staying power, whether the follow up has that kind of juice remains to be seen but if history has any say we can count on this one making it’s money back…and not much more.
3. Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (review)- $23.1M/$91M
Love him or hate him Adam Sandler continues to be a $100M man as the third film in his animated series climbs toward that inevitable 9 figure height
4. Ant-Man and the Wasp– $16.1M/$164M
While it’s not burning up the box office Ant-Man and the Wasp‘s success is a strong lesson to Marvel for future third-tier characters. They don’t all have to be $300 million dollar blockbusters. Make smaller, less expensive genre films between the blockbusters and you’ll keep everyone happy without diluting the spectacle.
5. Incredibles 2– $11.5M/$557M
6. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom– $11.5M/$383.9M
7. Skyscraper– $10.9M/$46.7M
8. The First Purge– $4.9M/$60.1M
9. Unfriended: Dark Web– $3.4M
Even for Blumhouse’s ultra-low budget model this is a disappointing start, BUT, because of that model Unfriended: Dark Web accomplished something none of the other new releases came close to doing, tripling their budget in their opening weekend. With a reported budget of only $1 million it becomes increasingly clear what a gold-mine of a business model that Jason Blum has created. At the end of the day film is a business and in an industry where losing one’s shirt is almost the rule instead of the exception Blum has found a way to ALWAYS turn a profit.
10. Sorry to Bother You– $2.8M/$10.2M

Comic-Con: Get A Look At What Hasbro Brought To SDCC 2018!

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John Nolan

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July 22, 2018

Even with all of the huge studio panels in Hall H and the exclusive parties that follow, the event I look forward to most each year is Hasbro’s Entertainment Brand Preview. As someone whose shelves are already overflowing with Hasbro action figures, it’s a treat and an honor to be invited to check out Hasbro’s upcoming lineup from Marvel (including the awesome First Ten Years Collection), Star Wars, Transformers and Bumblebee specific items, and so much more.

San Diego Comic-Con was the place to be for new looks at Hasbro’s Vintage Collection and The Black Series. For me it was the classic G1 Transformers that caught all of my attention, so much so that I got a bright, totally unavoidable Autobot tattoo on my wrist. It clashes with the Decepticon tat that has been on my on my left arm since I was a teen, but so what? I want all of these Transformers figures and so should you. Check everything out below!

Comic-Con: Rza Goes From Martial Arts To Heist Flicks With Trailer For ‘Cutthroat City’

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John Nolan

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July 22, 2018

While I’m not sure most of Hall H had any idea what they were in for, I was pumped for RZA’s Cutthroat City panel. Just check out the guests that hit the stage to join the Wu Tang Clan member to talk about his upcoming New Orleans crime flick: Shameik Moore, Wesley Snipes, Kat Graham, Denzel Whitaker, 2Pac doppelganger and All Eyez on Me star Demetrius Shipp Jr., MMA’s Tyron Woodley, and Keean Johnson.

Also in the film are rapper T.I., most recently seen in Ant-Man and the Wasp, and Terrence Howard who did send a heartfelt video message praising Rza as a filmmaker. One look at the trailer and you can see this is a far cry from the martial arts-inspired stuff Rza has been doing. Cutthroat City is a heist flick surrounding four friends from New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward, who find the city decimated and job prospects vanished in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Still needing to put food on the table, they take on a dangerous casino heist gig for a local crimelord.

The panel often turned to praise for Rza’s career as a producer and director, while Snipes was shown more than his share of love. A highlight for me came from UFC grappler Woodley who called out fighters who talk a big game but don’t really want to fight. Tops on his list for having big mouths but no desire to fight were Conor McGregor and Colby Covington.

Cutthroat City opens in 2019. Check out the trailer below!

Comic-Con: Lobo Is Coming To ‘Krypton’ Season 2

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John Nolan

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July 21, 2018

It’s taken years for the cigar-chomping DC Comics antihero Lobo to hit the screen, but i doubt anybody thought it would be part of Krypton‘s second season. That’s right, Lobo is making his live-action debut on the Syfy series, although the network didn’t want to reveal who is playing the role.

Warner Bros. has been developing a movie for a long time, first with Dwayne Johnson and director Brad Peyton. Most recently Michael Bay’s name has been attached to direct, although that is still very tentative. For those who don’t know the character, Lobo is often called DC’s version of Deadpool, which is unfair since he predates him. But they do share similarly violent, shit-talking tendencies, not to mention powers that make them very tough to kill. Honestly, I see Lobo as DC’s version of Wolverine.

Krypton is an odd fit for Lobo, though. The series takes place decades before the birth of Kal-El aka Superman, and it follows his grandfather Seg-El (Cameron Cuffe) who must stop Brainiac from destroying the planet. I tried to watch the show but gave up after three very serious, dull episodes. Maybe the addition of Lobo will liven things up.

Comic-Con: ‘Aquaman’ Commands The Seas And Hall H With Splashy First Trailer

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John Nolan

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July 21, 2018

The biggest panel of the week is finally here, and as promised Warner Bros. has revealed the first trailer for Aquaman! They better because star Jason Momoa has been guaranteeing we’d see it.

The trailer is action packed, but what surprised me most was how it felt like epic sci-fi, so different from the typical superhero story. We see a really cool shot of Aquaman facing Black Manta, who unleashes some killer death rays from that helmet of his. Again, this is Warner Bros. changing their tune in a big way, and I love what they’re doing.

Directed by James Wan, Aquaman opens December 21st and co-stars Amber Heard as Mera, Willem Dafoe as Vulko, Patrick Wilson as Orm/Ocean Master, Dolph Lundgren as Nereus, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as the vengeful Black Manta, and Nicole Kidman as Arthur’s mom, Atlanna.

Comic-Con: First Trailer For ‘Shazam!’ Calls Down The Lightning

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John Nolan

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July 21, 2018

Perhaps no film signifies the new, lighter direction of the DCEU better than Shazam! And that new, fan-friendly direction was fully on display during today’s Warner Bros. panel, which included the debut trailer for Shazam!

Zachary Levi stars as the titular hero, who emerges mystically every time young Billy Batson (Asher Angel) shouts Shazam!! So this is really the story of a boy who gets to relive the dream so many of us had as kids, to be an all-powerful superhero! The awe and imagination are there in every image, the colors are brighter, Shazam’s costume is a blazing heroic red with big, cheesy muscles. It’s just a fun looking movie and I’m glad there are rumblings about him becoming a bigger part of the DCEU.

Directed by David F. Sandberg, Shazam! opens April 5th 2019 and co-stars Jack Dylan Grazer, Mark Strong, Djimon Hounsou, Grace Fulton, and Ian Chen.

Comic-Con: First ‘Godzilla: King Of The Monsters’ Trailer

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John Nolan

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July 21, 2018

He’s been stomping his way to San Diego Comic-Con ever since the first Godzilla: King of the Monsters clip a few days ago. And now today the first trailer is here and it’s truly a beast.

The film is only the third step in Legendary’s growing Monster-verse, which kicked off with Godzilla, then last year’s Kong: Skull Island. It will conclude with 2020’s Godzilla vs. Kong, and one component we see running through all of these films is Monarch. The monster-hunting organization has a vital role to play and even in this trailer they’re right in the middle of everything. But Godzilla can’t be the king without opponents to fight, and this trailer gives some incredible glimpses at his iconic foes Rodan, Mothra,and King Ghidora!

Behind the camera is Michael Dougherty (Krampus), leading a cast that includes Millie Bobby Brown, Vera Farmiga, Kyle Chandler, Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe, Zhang Ziyi, O’shea Jackson Jr., Bradley Whitford, Thomas Middleditch, and Charles Dance. Godzilla: King of the Monsters opens May 31st 2019.

Comic-Con: Magical New Trailer For ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald’

By

John Nolan

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July 21, 2018

As hoped, Warner Bros. released a brand new Comic-Con trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, a film that has a ton of questions surrounding it. The sequel stars Jude Law as a young Professor Dumbledore, who asks his former student Newt Scamander (the returning Eddie Redmayne) to help him track the evil Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) before he can recruit an army to start a war throughout the magic and non-magic worlds.

Even with this trailer there remains questions about Depp, who has been in the background for most of the early marketing. Law recently admitted that he doesn’t share any scenes with Depp, which is odd but makes sense if Dumbledore and Grindelwald don’t battle until a later movie. Also, the question of Dumbledore’s sexuality won’t be addressed at all, even though it’s a component of his life that fans are very interested in.

Directed by David Yates with a script by J.K. Rowling, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald opens November 16th.

Reboot of Joss Whedon’s ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ With a Black Lead is in the Works, Helmed by Monica Owusu-Breen

By

John Nolan

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July 21, 2018

Image result for buffy the vampire slayer kendra buffy

Cult classics don’t get much more beloved than “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Sarah Michelle Gellar’s performance is still amazing; Angel was always better than Spike, please don’t try to argue otherwise; and the Willow/Tara relationship was a huge deal in terms of LGBT representation. The show continued in comics form; we all know how showrunner Joss Whedon’s career catapulted to “Avengers” level; and I think most women of a certain age and a certain temperament would name “Buffy” as one of their favorite programs. (Raising my hand here!)

Which means it’s time for a reboot! Deadline has the news that a revamp of the show is in the works from Monica Owusu-Breen, who worked on “Charmed,” “Alias,” “Fringe,” “Lost,” “Brothers & Sisters,” “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” and “Midnight, Texas” — quite a stellar TV resume — and that Whedon will be involved in a producing capacity (although how much he’ll really be involved in the running of the show is unclear).

And, for those fans (like me) who always thought the show had sort of a spotty relationship with diversity (we see that the Slayer line started in Africa, but there’s not much exploration there, and I still think the show could have done more with the Jamaican Slayer Kendra Young, played by Bianca Lawson), here’s the most important news here: that the show will feature a black female lead. Let the casting theories commence! From Deadline:

According to sources, the diversity in the show’s description reflects the producers’ intention for the new slayer to be African American. The sources cautioned that the project is still in nascent stages with no script, and many details are still in flux.

Deadline outlines that the show from Fox 21 TV Studios, the cable/streaming division of 20th Century Fox TV, will be pitched to streaming services and cable networks this summer. Fingers crossed it comes to fruition; I’m ready for some feminist badasses gracing our pop culture sphere again.