Last year Netflix scored a social media and pop culture juggernaut with 13 Reasons Why, with the teen series becoming the show most tweeted about in 2017. But there was some concern going into the second season, starting with the first season ending where Jay Asher’s book does, as well. There wasn’t supposed to be more to the story of Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford), but her tale is apparently unfinished because the controversial character is coming back.
The latest trailer starts off with a note that launches the newest mystery: “Hannah wasn’t the only one.” Dylan Minnette returns as Clay Jensen, with the series following him as he continues his quest for answers surrounding Hannah Baker’s suicide, uncovering a much deeper conspiracy in the process. Sounds like the plot of a Bourne movie, not a high school drama about bullying and self-harm. Expect events from the first season to be re-examined in ways that reveal them to be different than we thought.
Here is the synopsis: Season 2 picks up in the aftermath of Hannah’s death and the start of our characters’ complicated journeys toward healing and recovery. Liberty High prepares to go on trial, but someone will stop at nothing to keep the truth surrounding Hannah’s death concealed. A series of ominous polaroids lead Clay and his classmates to uncover a sickening secret and a conspiracy to cover it up.
Netflix will release 13 Reasons Why‘s second season on May 18th.
The original Mamma Mia! opened way back in 2008 and I don’t remember what the prospects for it were but I’m guessing it wasn’t $609M worldwide. That kind of money buys a lot of karaoke machines for fans of the film to sing “Dancing Queen” to until their heart is content. A decade later and the ABBA-inspired musical’s sequel is here, and its trailers seem to be hiding a pretty big secret.
While this “final” trailer for Here We Go Again has more energy than the previous ones we’ve seen, it still skirts around the issue raised by the first, and that is the amount of screen time for Meryl Streep? The legendary actress has clearly ceded the starring role to the returning Amanda Seyfried, with it looking more and more likely that Streep’s character has died somewhere along the way. If that happens I don’t think Pierce Brosnan and Stellan Skarsgard singing “Waterloo” is going to be enough to break us out of the depression.
Here is the synopsis, which again heavily suggests Streep won’t be around much…
Ten years later, in the Greek island of Kalokairi, Sophie is pregnant with Sky and runs her mother’s villa. Self-conflicted because she can’t do it by herself, with Tanya and Rosie’s guidance, Sophie will find out more of Donna’s past and how she owned the hotel, met each one of Sophie’s dads and raised a baby, all on her own – with an unexpected visit of someone she had never met before: her grandmother.
Also starring Colin Firth, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Dominic Cooper, Lily James, Alexa Davies, Jessica Keenan Wynn, Jeremy Irvine, Josh Dylan, Hugh Skinner, Andy Garcia, and Cher (!!!), Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again opens July 20th.
20th Century Fox is having a lot of fun with their Deadpool 2 campaign, and while they may be reluctant to take shots at Disney, they have no problem making fun of themselves. The latest poster features most of the cast and a tagline that calls them out for the ending of Logan. The image features the X-Force squad, Josh Brolin as Cable, and even a flaming kitchen sink suggesting the sequel will throw everything it’s got out there.
But there is one notable face missing. Pretty much everybody is there, including minor characters like Lewis Tan as Shatterstar and Rob Delaney as comic relief Peter W. Who you don’t see is TJ Miller, with Fox probably guessing it’s better to leave off the guy who has been such a public embarrassment lately. Doubtful he comes back for Deadpool 3, or X-Force or whatever the next movie is.
When I saw this news about The Hitman’s Bodyguard I had to remind myself that it came out almost a year ago. Thought it was like 3 months ago or something. The film wasn’t great and obviously wasn’t particularly memorable, but it was a lot of fun and had Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson mouthing off which is when we like them best. People loved it, and for three weeks in 2017 it was the #1 movie in America, grossing $176M on a $30M budget. That’s a long way of saying the sequel has been officially confirmed.
THR reports Millennium Films has hit the Cannes market with The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, with Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson expected to return although they aren’t confirmed. Patrick Hughes will be back to direct, though, and considering the title we can probably assume Salma Hayek to be signed at some point. She played the wife of the hitman (Jackson) with Reynolds acting as her bodyguard this time?
The film is being marketed with the tagline ”The Good. The Bad. And the Batshit cray” which is totally in keeping with the vulgar language that sold the first movie. Smart move to stick with what works.
Millennium is also pushing sequels Rambo 5, Angel Has Fallen, The Expendables 4, and The Mechanic 3, which shows you what their mind set is going forward.
Last week on Supergirl, it was revealed that Lena has been experimenting on Samantha in an attempt to rid her of her Reign World Killer persona. When the Reign gene is activated, it sends Samantha to another dimension, freeing Reign to continue her quest of killing and remaking the world. The third World Killer Pestilence was also revealed as she unleashes a virus that immobilizes people in National City. Pestilence and Purity then find out where Lena is keeping Samantha and break her out just as Supergirl, Mon-El, and J’onn arrive to try and stop them. After they defeat our heroes, Lena’s got some ‘splaing to do.
The episode begins with Lena at the DEO seemingly being interrogated. Lena’s not really worried as she explains that she’s doing what she felt was right. The big problem comes when everyone asks her how she was able to keep Reign at bay. Lena reveals that she had some of Lex Luthor’s secret Kryptonite stash. This rubs Kara the wrong way as she’s been one of Lena’s steadfast supporters as many in National City always associated her with her brother and her mother, both supervillains. For her to keep such a secret, one that can actually kill Kara, is a step too far for her. Even when Lena finally fesses up to James, she’s taken aback. However, he’s a little more supportive of his girlfriend than everyone else.
Meanwhile, the World Killer trio (hence the “Trinity” title) are taking their attack to the next level. Using some sort of unexplained magic, they have managed to block the sun. Being deprived of the sun, Kara starts to feel weak and will eventually die. While she falls unconscious, Kara is transported to the same alternate dimension that Samantha was transported to last week. For a brief moment, Kara runs into Samantha and Julia (Purity), who are slowly losing their minds as Reign and Purity are taking over permanently. Samantha can’t even remember her daughter’s name. Kara realizes that she will need to transport to this new dimensional place, revealed to be called Juru, and try to rescue the two of them. However, she will need help. Alex insists on going with Kara as she’s week, and Lena (despite them not trusting her) convinces them that she can help Samantha as she spent the most time with her. Brainiac-5 (still using the image inducing technology as actor Jesse Rath is probably tired of wearing makeup) creates technology to allow the three of them to go to Juru.
Before they go, Kara asks James to go to Lena’s office as Guardian and break in to confirm if Lena’s supply of Kryptonite was truly depleted as Lena told her it was. James is reluctant, but he realizes that it needs to be done. With Winn’s help, he breaks into her office. However, when it’s time to use Winn’s tech to break into her vault, James lies and says he broke into it and there was no Kryptonite. His feeling for her is very strong as he just can’t will himself to do it. Later on, James confesses this to Lena, where she reveals that the Kryptonite was not Lex’s but she managed to create Kryptonite.
Kara, Alex, and Lena wake up in Juru where they run into weird Kryptonian ghosts before the eventually run into a scared Samantha and Julia. They plead with Samantha to go back to the real world so that she can reveal to them where the World Killers’ Fortress of “Sanditude” is. Samantha manages to hold it together and snap out of it and return back to the real world. Pestilence realizes that she’s not Reign anymore and attacks her. This causes Reign to come back quickly, but not before the DEO learn where the Fortress is. Brainiac-5 pulls everyone into the real world where they then fight against the three World Killers. As Mon-El and Saturn Girl fight Pestilence, J’onn fight Purity, and Kara fights Reign. The fight is pretty even, but then our heroes start losing. Even Alex’s new gun doesn’t give them the upper hand. Alex and Kara plead with Purity (rather plead with Julia) to stand up against her evil persona. Julia manages to take over Purity and faces off against Pestilence. The two end up destroying each other. However, the World Killer spirits leave their dying bodies and then come into Reigns, meaning she now has the power of all three.
Next week, with all World Killer powers, Reign goes on the attack, even on Samantha’s own daughter.
It’s unclear what Robert Downey Jr.’s future as Iron Man is after Avengers 4, but one thing we do know is that he’s returning to another fan-favorite blockbuster franchise. Just weeks after he expressed a desire to return for Sherlock Holmes 3, Warner Bros. has officially dated the film for Christmas Day 2020.
Downey will return as a more action-oriented version of the legendary detective, with Jude Law coming back as his underappreciated partner John Watson. It’s unclear if Guy Ritchie will be back to direct this one as he did the first two movies. He might be too busy with Disney’s live-action Aladdin movie. Narcos creator Chris Brancato wrote the script.
The two previous Sherlock Holmes films have combined to earn Warner Bros. over $1B so you knew they weren’t going to let it just fade away. It’ll face some stiff competition on that date from Avatar 2 which opens just a week earlier.
A romantic survival thriller featuring two big Hollywood stars and set against the power of Mother Nature herself. No, it’s not a sequel to The Mountain Between Us, thank goodness. It’s Adrift, which stars YA favorites Shailene Woodley (Divergent) and Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games) as a couple stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Directed by Icelandic filmmaker Baltasar Kormakur, who directed previous survival stories The Deep and Everest, the film is based on the true story of Tami Oldham and her fiancé Richard Sharp who hit a monumental storm while sailing in the Pacific Ocean. In the aftermath Tami wakes up to find their boat destroyed and Richard near death, and she must find the strength to survive and rescue the only man she has ever loved.
They should be fine. I saw Robert Redford survive worse all by himself in All is Lost. So surely Woodley and Claflin can do the same? Do yourself a favor and try to avoid reading up on the actual events surrounding Oldham and Sharp’s struggle. Based on the trailer it looks like some of the facts are being tweaked to make for a “better” Hollywood story.
Also starring Elizabeth Hawthorne and Jeffrey Thomas, Adrift sails into theaters on June 1st.
On last week’s ballsy episode of Fear The Walking, they killed Nick. Not only has he been on the show since season one, he literally was the first character we met on the show. Nick has gone through the series addicted to one thing or another, in the end, his addiction to revenge ended up getting him killed. His death by “sweet little” Charlie showed that this little girl who was first introduced as helpless, is a true villain. Whatever hopes of redemption we might have had for her went out the window when she put a bullet in our fan-favorite character. However, we all like Dwight on The Walking Dead, and he was a scumbag when we first met him, so anything’s possible.
Nick’s dead, but Alicia, Luciana, and Strand have to keep moving forward. After dispatching the zombies around (and putting a soon to revive Nick down for good), the group tries to mourn their loss of a dear member of their makeshift family. Al being the filmmaker she is, still wants to document their story of how they came to be where they are. As she turns her camera on, each member of the team tells her how Nick’s death could have been avoided.
The good thing about this show existing on two different timelines (now, and before: when they were dealing with The Vultures and their food shortages), is that we still get to see Nick. As they are telling of how they came to where they are, we get to see that the group is suffering under the watchful eye of The Vultures. They really aren’t “bad guys” per se, they are just “vultures,” and they are better at picking up the scraps than our heroes are. Mel, the leader of The Vultures continues to taunt Madison by telling her that her way of doing things will eventually get all of them killed. He tells her a story of his family who tried to do things the way Madison did before, only for all but him and his brother ended up dead. He offers yet again for them to join The Vultures, and once again, she refuses.
She sends her people on runs for food in the hopes that they find places that The Vultures haven’t picked dry. Strand goes off with Cole, as the two are starting to like each other (once again, I like how Fear The Walking Dead shows a gay relationship as “normal” as it should be in modern television). Strand is playing hard to get, and he eventually reveals why. As they find some plants to use, Strand lets Cole in on a little secret. He’s been hoarding supplies on his own. The supplies are enough for two people, and he invites Cole to come along with him and leave everyone else behind. Even though he carries a piece of the dam as a reminder himself not to be selfish, he’s still selfish. Cole doesn’t agree to go along with him, forcing Strand to once again appeal to his angelic side. He takes the supplies back to the baseball stadium. Madison, none the wiser, things he and Cole scored a big haul and thanks him. Strand tells Al that this was one of the biggest mistakes he could have made in hindsight.
Nick and Luciana are going on their own haul in the flashback. He continues to tell her to search a library. She thinks it’s a waste of time as books can’t feed anyone anything. Nick argues that people need more than food. They need knowledge, they need hope. While there, they find a zombie, a man who was hopeless and ended up slitting his wrists. Not wanting to end up like that guy, Luciana finds a book of maps. She tells Nick that the two of them should just leave and go to whatever place they find on a random page of that book. She reveals to Al that she should have never opened up that book, as it led to their downfall.
Alicia goes on a run with newcomer Naomi. The two go to what used to be a former waterpark in search of some churros. The park is infested with zombies, who happened to be in the kiddie pool area. They successfully navigate past many of them and go up the water slide. There, they come across some medical supplies. Naomi finds some car keys and pockets them without Alicia knowing. After she gives Alicia some medical supplies, she tells Alicia that she can see more things to raid in the distance, and she then leaves her alone. Turns out the car she was going to escape with was out of gas, and Alicia catches up to her. Naomi goes back with her, but she’s hopeless. While she believes the stadium will not last, she reveals that she has some nursing experience, and agrees to remain with the camp as a nurse.
In the present, the team goes to “bury” Nick. As they dig up the supposed grave, it’s revealed to be a hidden weapons cache as the team wants to go and kill The Vultures who they blame for their current circumstances. Having not told Al the whole story and not needing her to find the mystery of the flags anymore (as the dead Vulture from before had a map), they are going to enact their revenge. They welcome Morgan, Joe, and Al to come with them. Joe doesn’t want any part of killing but he notices Alicia’s bag, it belonged to his beloved Laura. Turns out “Laura” is really Naomi. A flashback reveals that she has the second revolver that matches his loved one. He asks about Naomi and her whereabouts. Alicia reveals that she’s dead, saddening Joe. Morgan ops too remain behind with Joe as Al goes with the group to look for The Vultures.
Next week, we finally get Joe’s backstory and how he met Laura/Naomi.
I think with all of the various thinkpieces and reveals that have come out regarding Avengers: Infinity War, this interview by the Russo Brothers is as good a place as any to close the book on that stuff. The duo spoke on the Happy Sad Confused podcast and touched on a number of subject, from that killer opening scene, to the various deaths and the potential for comebacks, to the reasons why certain characters acted how they did. So let’s just start right from the top with their thoughts on the film’s first few minutes, which saw the brutal deaths of both Loki and Heimdall…
“We wanted to let people know that the stakes were real and we were going to go to a tonally complicated place,” Anthony Russo said. He then added that Loki’s death is very real and the trickster won’t be popping up again miraculously like he has before. “No resurrections this time,” he added. The interviewer wouldn’t let it go, asking for sure if this is a finality for Loki, to which Russo replied, “Yes.”
As we and others have talked about plenty at this point, Infinity War isn’t so much about the Avengers. It’s Thanos’ journey, and thus there are twists in the story that mess with our expectations. We expect Thor, who has lost Asgard, his brother, and best friend to Thanos, to get his revenge at the end, but Joe Russo says it was all misdirection…
“It’s the misdirection,” Joe said. “You want to believe that this character deserves to win the movie,” he said. “Had he gone for [Thanos’] head he might of [finished him],” explained Joe Russo.
In a separate interview with Comicbook.com, they add that Thor’s actions and those of Star-Lord reveal their human sides, and the decisions they made giving into that had drastic ramifications. Thanos couldn’t have gotten as far as he did if they hadn’t…
“I would argue that the fan base could be equally upset with Thor, who chose to throw that ax into Thanos chest and not his head. Because he wanted to tell Thanos that he got his revenge.” Joe Russo continued, “Had he gone for a kill shot, that snap would not have happened. These are choices that characters who are feeling immense pain make and hopefully, the audience can learn to empathize with those characters because they can grow through stories. Stories can teach us things and that we should try to see every choice from the perspective of the character that made the choice.”
When asked if Star-Lord would ever get his chance at redemption, Joe responds emphatically that he won’t “because he is dead.” Damn, okay. We get it.
One of the most surprising deaths was that of Guardians of the Galaxy member, Gamora, who perished so that Thanos could acquire the Soul Stone. The Russos say they didn’t have to run it past GOTG director James Gunn for approval first…
“No, Marvel is very good about allowing every director to have their freedom,” Joe explained. Anthony continued, “We settle on a story we want to tell and then we present that to Marvel and we got no pushback on that choice. We didn’t have a direct conversation with James about Gamora choice, but certainly, Kevin [Feige] did.”
Many, including myself, have figured Gamora could return because of the connection she and Thanos now have to the Soul Stone. A younger version of the character is seen towards the end of the movie, so does that mean a comeback is imminent? Anthony says nope, “I think it’s a reflection of her spirit and the power required to use all the stones at once is so significant, it sends him into this dream state.”
So what was up with Hulk and Bruce Banner, anyway? First up, the duo acknowledge those trailer scenes featuring Hulk on the battlefield were all just a means of faking out the “predictive” audience. It’s one of many fake-outs that appeared in footage or in set photos that were deliberately cut from the movie, or were never part of it at all.
Ultimately, Hulk won’t do squat to help Banner out of every tight spot he’s in during the movie, and the Russos want to make it clear it’s not because he’s scared of Thanos. Banner and Hulk aren’t friends, and after the events of Thor: Ragnarok they are in greater disharmony than ever…
“These two beings don’t like each other and don’t like helping each other,” Joe said. “We thought it would be more interesting to explore Banner as a hero. We thought it would be more interesting choice to take him down a path where the Hulk is not interested in helping him anymore. That these two have reached an impasse with each other and Banner has to rise to the occasion. I think people have interpreted it that Hulk’s scared,” “[And] certainly, he’s had his ass kicked before and he loves a good fight, but I think it’s really reflective of the journey from ‘Ragnarok,’ that these two characters are constantly in conflict with each other over control. And I think if Hulk were to say why [he didn’t return in ‘Infinity War’], he’d say, ‘Banner only wants Hulk for fighting’. He’s had enough of saving Banner’s ass.”
Finally, what’s going to happen to Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor after Avengers 4? Is this really the end for them? Of course, the directors don’t give a final answer but they do tease different paths for all of them. For some it may be an end, others a new beginning…
“We describe it as, if the first 10 years of the Marvel Universe as a book, these are the final chapters,” Joe said. “A new book will be written, beyond this book, but certainly there will be some endings and some new beginnings.”
“Even for those three characters, we handle differently,” Anthony added. “Everybody is on their own journey and at a different point in their journey and for some, as Joe said, it may be an end. For some, it’s a new beginning. We’ll have to see…”
There’s actually a lot more that gets covered in the podcast so if you want to learn about Infinity War in greater detail it’s definitely worth a listen.
We’re happy to offer our DC readers the chance to attend a free early screening of Life of the Party starring Melissa McCarthy.
SYNOPSIS: When her husband suddenly dumps her, longtime dedicated housewife Deanna (Melissa McCarthy) turns regret into re-set by going back to college…landing in the same class and school as her daughter, who’s not entirely sold on the idea. Plunging headlong into the campus experience, the increasingly outspoken Deanna—now Dee Rock—embraces freedom, fun and frat boys on her own terms, finding her true self in a senior year no one ever expected.
The screening takes place tomorrow, Tuesday May 8th, at AMC Mazza Gallerie at 7pm. If you’d like to attend, simply register at the Warner Bros. ticketing site here and download a pass good for you plus one guest. Please remember that all screenings are first come first served and you will need to arrive early to ensure receiving a seat. Enjoy the show!
