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R-Rated ‘Birds Of Prey’ May Shoot In January, But Will Batgirl Be In It?

By
John Nolan
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It’s funny how quickly things turn around. We used to talk about the power Zack Snyder and Ben Affleck held within Warner Bros., especially in the DCEU. Now they are essentially out and that power has gone over to Patty Jenkins, Gal Gadot, and Margot Robbie. The latter has capitalized on the success of Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad to take a more active role in the character’s future development, which she used to make a pitch for the all-girl teamup flick, Birds of Prey. Now Robbie has added some new details in a series of interviews recently, while a big rumor about the film’s cast of characters has surfaced.

Robbie is a producer on Birds of Prey, and it’s been clear from the beginning that she’s going to be a driving force in the movie’s production. In May she said it was pitched to Warner Bros. as an “R-rated girl gang film“, and now she has confirmed it. She added that shooting will “hopefully” begin in January, and that it will have a “much smaller budget” than Suicide Squad.

If they’re serious about making Birds of Prey for mature audiences, then slashing the budget is almost a necessity. Harley Quinn’s popularity surged in the PG-13 Suicide Squad which means some of that audience could be left out.

It’s a risky gamble that could have an effect on more than just Harley Quinn. Another major character rumored to be making her debut in Birds of Prey is Batgirl, who would then be launched into her own solo movie. Presumably Warner Bros. would want her to be an accessible character to girls of all ages, so why would they then have her debut in an R-rated movie? Well, maybe she won’t. While Batgirl is the only other character most closely linked to the movie, The Wrap’s Umberto Gonzalez says she won’t be in it at all. Barbara Gordon might, though…

We should start hearing about casting soon if filming does begin in January, and that should provide us some insight on Batgirl, as well. What we know is that Robbie is aiming to make this a very diverse film, both in front of the camera and behind it. She was key in the hiring of Cathy Yan to direct Birds of Prey, and that diversity will be reflected on the screen.

“Yep, yes exactly, real life isn’t so one specific image,” Robbie confirmed. “We’ve got to reflect that onscreen.”

If you were sick of all the Harley Quinn costumes you saw for Halloween a couple of years ago, get ready because Robbie is already teasing a “total different look” that might catch on in the same way…

“There will be new Halloween costumes out there one day, perhaps,” she said.

Robbie should fly over to Birds of Prey once she finishes up with Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.  [Yahoo/FlickeringMyth]

‘Captain Marvel’ Will Digitally De-Age Samuel L. Jackson By 25 Years For Entire Film

By
John Nolan
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Marvel is taking us on a journey back in time with Captain Marvel, a film that will take place in the 1990s to explain the hero’s origins. While Brie Larson is set to play Carol Danvers, the air force pilot who eventually gains superhuman powers, the film also brings back Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury and Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson. Except this is a story set in the past, and what we didn’t know was how Marvel intended to handle much younger versions of those characters. Well, now we know, and it’s through de-aging technology.

Why is this a big deal when Marvel has used it sparingly for Michael Douglas in both Ant-Man movies, Michelle Pfeiffer and Laurence Fishburne in Ant-Man and the Wasp, Robert Downey Jr. in Captain America: Civil War, and Kurt Russell in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2?  Because this will be the first time the technology is used to de-age an actor for the entirety of the film.  Marvel’s Kevin Feige revealed this in conversation with Slashfilm, and managed to work in a pretty funny bit about Paul Rudd being ageless…

Feige: Well, I think having the option is pretty amazing. And I think having the technology and even without spoiling anything, Sam Jackson is shooting a movie for us right now that takes, where he’s entirely 25 years younger the whole movie [Captain Marvel]. So that’ll certainly be the one–

/: And Coulson, right?

Feige: And Coulson. So that’ll be the first one where it’s a character for the whole movie, as opposed to a glimpse at a certain period of time. It’s the whole movie. So it’s possible, assuming that works. It’s possible. It’s very good when you are starting by the way with somebody like Michelle Pfeiffer or Michael Douglas or for that matter Sam Jackson or Clark Gregg. All four of them–

/: Because you have an abundance of reference material or…?

Feige: You have all the reference material and they have aged amazingly. They’ve not aged like normal humans. It’s like Paul Rudd. These are–

/: Paul Rudd looks like he stepped out of Clueless. I don’t understand it.

Feige: Yeah. He somehow can do that effect in real life.

It used to be that this technology was really clunky, remember when they did it to Jeff Bridges in Tron: Legacy? But that’s no longer the case and Marvel has been using it to great effect. They’ve got so much faith in it to commit an entire movie. The only thing I’m hoping for now is that they de-age Jackson all the way to his character in Juice.  

Captain Marvel opens March 8th 2019!

Terry Gilliam’s Next Film Is ‘Mr. Vertigo’ Starring Ralph Fiennes

By
John Nolan
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Patience eventually paid off for Terry Gilliam as he finally completed the 25-year odyssey to complete The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. Now that it’s done he’s digging into the old desk drawer and pulling out a project that has been gathering dust for seven years, an adaptation of Paul Auster’s novel, Mr. Vertigo, and a star is already in place.

Speaking at the Brussels International Film Festival, Gilliam revealed that Mr. Vertigo was the next project on his list, and that Ralph Fiennes is the star. The story sounds right up Gilliam’s alley, too, taking place in the 1920s and centering on a young orphan boy taught how to levitate and tours the country as part of a circus act. Gilliam told Variety that Fiennes was always his choice but he initially received pushback over the cast because the actor wasn’t deemed bankable enough.  I guess that’s changed.

Here’s the book synopsis: Paul Auster, the New York Times-bestselling author of The New York Trilogy, presents a dazzling, picaresque novel set in the late 1920s – the era of Babe Ruth, Charles Lindbergh, and Al Capone. Walter Claireborne Rawley, renowned nationwide as “Walt the Wonder Boy,” is a Saint Louis orphan rescued from the streets by a mysterious Hungarian Jew, Master Yehudi, who teaches Walt to walk on air. Master Yehudi brings Walt into a Kansas circus troupe consisting of Mother Sioux and Aesop, a young black genius. The vaudeville act takes them across a vast and vibrant country, through mythic Americana where they meet and fall prey to sinners, thieves, and villains, from the Kansas Ku Klux Klan to the Chicago mob. Walt’s rise to fame and fortune mirrors America’s own coming of age, and his resilience, like that of the nation, is challenged over and over and over again.

No official start date has been set, and Gilliam said he wasn’t able to land any solid deals on the film while at Cannes. It’d be foolish to predict anything when it comes to Gilliam. We might see the movie in theaters next year, or maybe in 2028. One thing’s for sure it’s that he won’t stop until he’s finished.

Podcast: Does ANT-MAN & THE WASP Mean Big Things For Marvel’s Future?

By
John Nolan
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Marvel’s stranglehold on the summer continues with the tiniest Avengers of all, ANT-MAN & THE WASP! Following on the heels of the tremendous and vitally important INFINITY WAR, can Marvel’s comedic sequel possibly compare? I’ll be joined by Jeff Lyles of Lyles’ Movie Files to talk about it and the future of the MCU!

Plus, there’s big news on Scarlett Johansson’s latest controversy, and the impact toxic fandom is having on today’s best filmmakers! 
Join in for another great episode of Cinema Royale! And be sure to follow my podcast Cinema Royale here on Blogtalkradio as part of Critical: The Movie Critics Network!

Box Office: ‘Ant-Man & The Wasp’ Buzzes To $161M Worldwide, ‘The First Purge’ Tallies $31M

By
John Nolan
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1. Ant-Man & the Wasp (review)- $76M
Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp opened with $76M over the weekend, that’s $19M more than 2015’s Ant-Man. So what’s the difference? Well, the sequel had the massive Infinity War to follow, and I’ve long expected there would be some crossover. Everybody wants to see what the MCU looks like post Thanos Snap, although that’s not really what this film was about. It actually took place before and during the big fight with Thanos, but not everybody knew that going in. Worldwide the film has already earned $161M, which looks pretty good when set against the $160M budget. On the downside? It’s still the lowest-grossing sequel Marvel’s ever had, and much of that domestic total came from Friday’s $33M and $11M from Thursday night previews. However, if it has legs like Black Panther and Infinity War have had then this is just a minor concern on the way to being another huge Marvel hit.
2. Incredibles 2– $29M/$504.3M
3. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom– $28.5M/$333.3M
Stomping its way to $1.05B, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom next opens in Japan where they love giant destructive lizards.
4. The First Purge (review)- $17.1M/$31M
The politically-charged horror prequel The First Purge nearly tripled its budget with $31M since its Wednesday debut. You can write a check to these movies at this point. The three previous films have all opened at roughly $30M and have usually topped out at around $100M or a little more. The Purge: Election Year leads the pack with $118M, and while I’m not sure this one will hit that mark it doesn’t really need to. We’ll have to see how much, if at all, these films are bolstered by the upcoming TV series.
5. Sicario: Day of the Soldado– $7.3M/$35.3M
6. Uncle Drew– $6.6M/$29.9M
7. Ocean’s 8– $5.2M/$126.7M
8. Tag- $3.1M/$48.3M
9. Won’t You Be My Neighbor?- $2.5M/$12.3M
10. Deadpool 2– $1.6M/$314.5M

Keanu Reeves Confirms ‘John Wick 3’ Title, Teases Plot Details

By
John Nolan
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John Wick has been fighting his way through waves of enemies all throughout his first two movies, but the next one finds him in a battle unlike anything he’s ever seen. After breaking The Continental’s rules about killing on their grounds, he finds himself on the run with a bounty on his head that has attracted the world’s deadliest assassins. And a war like that has inspired a different title for the third movie, John Wick: Parabellum.

The “Chapters” will be gone for this latest action flick, confirmed to Comingsoon by Keanu Reeves himself. And he explains that the sutitle has a specific meaning, “Prepare for War”. 

Reeves said, ” It’s part of that famous sentence, ‘Si vis pacem, para bellum,’ which translates as, ‘If you want peace, prepare for war.’” 


Makes sense, considering the legendary assassin was perfectly at peace before a bunch of thugs attacked him and killed his beloved dog.  If Wick wants to get back to living the simple life he’s going to have to fight like never before.

Reeves also shed some light on the connection between Wick and the new character played by Halle Berry…

“John Wick is fighting for his life and thinks that Halle Berry’s character has some information for him. They have a past, and they get involved with The High Table, this kind of overlording entity.”

John Wick: Parabellum opens May 16th 2019 and co-stars Ian McShane, Halle Berry, Ruby Rose, Common, Angelica Huston,  Yayan Ruhian, Cecep Arif Rahman, Hiroyuki Sanada, and Jason Mantzoukas.

‘A Fantastic Woman’ Director Defends Scarlett Johansson Taking Trans Role

By
John Nolan
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The last few days there’s been an outcry over Scarlett Johansson’s casting as a transgender man in the biopic Rub & Tug. Many trans actresses have spoken out against the decision, and Johansson’s cavalier response to their criticism hasn’t done her any favors. But the point most of them are making isn’t about Johansson in particular, they’re the idea of any cisgender playing a transgender because of the lack of opportunities afforded to the latter. Well, someone has come to Johansson’s defense and it’s A Fantastic Woman director Sebastian Lelio.

Lelio directed transgender actress Daniela Vega in the Oscar-winning A Fantastic Woman, a film totally powered by her performance. Speaking with THR, the filmmaker recognizes the concern some in the  community have over the casting, but says it shouldn’t be “prohibited” for Johansson or any other cis to play a trans…

“It’s true [that] cultural representation has been scarce so far. And it’s also true that the gesture of casting a cisgender actor to play a transgender role can be aesthetically or ethically debatable — but it should never be prohibited.”


The director, who also helmed Disobedence starring Rachel Weisz and Rachel McAdams as lovers, says the casting of Vega in A Fantastic Woman wasn’t him making a statement of any kind. She was the right actress for the role…

“When I decided to cast Daniela Vega to play Marina in ‘A Fantastic Woman,’ it was an act of artistic freedom, not political correctness. I wasn’t telling the world that transgender roles should be played by transgender actors. I was only doing what I felt was right for my film.” Vega would go on to win awards for her role in the film.”

“If I said transgender roles should only be played by transgender actors, I would be implying that Daniela Vega shouldn’t play a cisgender role. And I believe she has every right to play a man or a woman.”

He concludes…“When artistic freedom is threatened, that’s a sign that society is becoming authoritarian, or moving towards behaviors and procedures that start to smell like fascism.”


I’ve said before that it looks to me that Johansson is being singled out because of who she is, a classic  Hollywood beauty, and over her casting in last year’s controversial The Ghost in the Shell. Lelio is right that there should be equality of opportunity, that trans should be afforded the chance to play cis and vice-versa, but Johansson is merely wanting to do her job. She should be allowed to do so without being charged as everything that’s wrong with the Hollywood machine.

What do you think?

‘Star Wars: Episode 9’ Reunites Keri Russell With Director J.J. Abrams

By
John Nolan
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Now that FX’s The Americans is over, Keri Russell has found a new way to pass the time. And wouldn’t you know, it’s all thanks to her old friend J.J. Abrams.  Russell has joined the cast of Star Wars: Episode 9, making this the biggest film franchise of her career. Sorry, Mission: Impossible.

Oh yeah, that’s right. Russell previously starred in Mission: Impossible III, which was Abrams’ big screen directorial debut. They also worked together on her breakout TV series, Felicity, so the connection runs deep. As for her Star Wars role, of course we don’t know jack about it, but Variety does say it will involve “action-heavy fight scenes”.   Hmmm…as long as she’s not Captain Phasma II then we should be good.

Production on Star Wars: Episode 9 begins later this month, with Abrams looking to cast other big roles soon. Stay tuned.

Directors Joe Johnston & Lasse Hallstrom Sharing Credit On Disney’s ‘The Nutcracker’

By
John Nolan
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Something unprecedented has occurred with Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, and for once it has nothing to do with them breaking box office records. Originally directed by Lasse Hallstrom, it was revealed late last year that veteran filmmaker Joe Johnston was coming aboard to helm a month’s worth of reshoots. The plan was to have Hallstrom, who had to leave due to scheduling conflicts, return for post-production.  Additionally, these reshoots would feature brand new scenes penned by Oscar-winning Spotlight writer Thomas McCarthy.

Now it’s been made official that Hallstrom and Johnston have agreed to share directing credit on the film, something that is extremely rare for the Directors Guild of America (DGA) to approve. In the vast majority of cases co-directing credit is only approved for established director teams, so think Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the Coen Brothers, etc. In virtually all other cases only one director is able to receive credit for a film. The DGA told THR they can’t recall a situation when two previously unrelated directors agreed to share credit on a movie.

So think about recent situations where things turned out different. When Joss Whedon replaced Zack Snyder on Justice League he didn’t end up with a director credit. Nope, it still went to Snyder while Whedon was credited as a screenwriter.  Ron Howard replaced Lord and Miller on Solo: A Star Wars Story and they took their names off the project, letting him receive full credit. Bryan Singer was removed from Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, and although Dexter Fletcher came in to replace him it was recently revealed that Singer would still get sole directing credit.

Disney has big plans for The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, which they’ve slotted for November 2nd. The lavish adaptation of the classic story stars Mackenzie Foy, Keira Knightley, and Helen Mirren with a script by Simon Beaufoy and Ashleigh Powell.

*UPDATE* Nicolas Cage Confirmed As Spider-Man Noir In Sony’s ‘Into The Spider-Verse’

By
John Nolan
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*UPDATE: It’s official! Collider has confirmed Nicolas Cage will voice Spider-Man Noir in Sony’s animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, a film that will feature multiple Spideys from many alternate universes. Original story is below.*

Nicolas Cage is a huge comic book fan, and he’s taken quite a few roles in comic book movies as a result. If the latest rumor from Discussing Film turns out to be true, he’s just landed the role of Spider-Man. Well, an alternate universe version of Spider-Man, in Sony’s animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse movie.

Cage would reportedly voice Spider-Man Noir, who first appeared in the eponymous miniseries in 2009. The character shares the alter ego of Peter Parker, except he was born in the 1930s during The Great Depression. He received his powers from a spider released from an ancient spider statue. The character, a much darker take on the contemporary Spider-Man, has since made numerous appearances in comics, TV, and video games.

This would lend credence to the idea that multiple Spideys from throughout time will be showing up in the film. Already confirmed are Miles Morales, making his big screen debut voiced by Shameik Moore; Jake Johnson as Peter Parker; and Hailee Steinfeld as Spider-Gwen.

Add this to Cage’s growing list of comic book roles including two movies as Ghost Rider, Big Daddy in Kick-Ass, and his upcoming voice role as Superman in Teen Titans Go! to the Movies, due out later this month.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse opens December 14th 2018.

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