Jade Bartlett to Pen DOCTOR STRANGE Sequel

Jade Bartlett

With anticipation high to see what devilish delights lie ahead in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, now comes an update on who’ll be penning this next outing for Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sorcerer Supreme.

Via Collider, Jade Bartlett has been brought in to write the film for Marvel Studios. Best known for Miller’s Girl and Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know, Bartlett’s most recent work was putting together a draft for horror offering The Turning. And given that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is being pegged as being the MCU’s first foray towards the realm of sinister scares, Bartlett could well prove to be the perfect fit.

Likewise, Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson is the perfect fit to return to helm this sequel, for Derrickson has previously helmed the likes of Sinister and The Exorcism of Emily Rose.

Bar the darker tone, the only real concrete information we have on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is that Cumberbatch will be joined in the picture by Benedict Wong’s Wong and Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch.

At present, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is set for a May 2021 release.

JURASSIC WORLD 3 Adds Mamoudou Athie

Mamoudou Athie

As Jurassic World 3 continues to assemble its core cast, now comes news that Mamoudou Athie has joined the picture.

Via Deadline, the Sorry for Your Loss actor has landed a mystery role in the Colin Trevorrow-helmed return for the Jurassic franchise. This casting news comes shortly after Trevorrow impressed fans with his Battle at Big Rock short that looked to delve deeper into the world of this ginormous franchise.

Already confirmed for Jurassic World 3 are franchise favourites Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum and Laura Dern. Trevorrow – who directed Jurassic World – is co-writing the film’s screenplay alongside Emily Carmichael in addition to taking over the director’s chair from Fallen Kingdom’s J.A. Bayona.

At present, Jurassic World 3 is booked in for a June 2021 release.

Paul Dano is THE BATMAN’s Riddler

The Batman

While yesterday brought word that Jonah Hill had decided to pass on a villainous role in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, one person who has signed on to butt heads with Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader is Paul Dano.

Courtesy of Variety, the Emmy-nommed Dano is set to play the Riddler in The Batman. Dano is likely best known for offerings such as Escape at Dannemora, Little Miss Sunshine, Let There Be Blood and 12 Years a Slave, and he joins a cast that currently features Pattinson’s Dark Knight, Zoe Kravtiz as Catwoman, and Jeffrey Wright as Jim Gordon.

Previously, Hill was in talks to play a villain in The Batman, with reports claiming that the actor and Warner Bros. were hashing out whether Hill would play the Riddler or the Penguin. Whether Hill walking away from talks has anything to do with Dano suddenly landing the Riddler gig, that’s something that we’re sure will be elaborated on at a later date.

In a twist, however, this take on the Riddler reportedly won’t be Edward Nygma. Instead, the Riddler’s real name will be Edward Nashton in The Batman. Why that is, who knows, although we’d hazard a guess that maybe Warners thought the E. Nygma name is a little too on the nose for modern audiences. Either way, so long as Dano’s Riddler is depicted in the right fashion, fans will surely be able to see passed the slight name tweak.

Dano won’t be the first person to play a live-action Riddler, of course, with Frank Gorshin and Josh Astin having played the rogue in the ‘60s Batman series, Jim Carrey amping things up to 11 in 1995’s Batman Forever, and then Cory Michael Smith showcasing Nygma’s descent into madness across five seasons of Gotham.

At present, The Batman is set for a June 2021 release.

Issue 466 – Out Now

466 ns

In the new issue of STARBURST, to celebrate the release of Charlie’s Angels, we head back to the ‘70s with 23 of our favourite telefantasy shows! We also take a look back at the show that inspired the movie.

We have an exclusive interview with Rob Zombie, who tells us all about his latest movie 3 from Hell as well as delving into his career. The stars of Pennyworth, which covers the early years of Batman’s butler Alfred are grilled on the new series. If that’s not enough, the filmmakers behind the upcoming animated version of The Addams Family reveal all.

There’s also the top 10 Treehouse of Horror episodes of The Simpsons to celebrate the show’s 666th edition and we uncover some very schwifty Rick and Morty merchandise.

Plus Horror Obscura looks at another overlooked shocker and you find out more about the worlds of Eve Online.

Plus all your favourite COLUMNS, NEWS, REVIEWS and much MORE from the worlds of SCI-FI, HORROR and FANTASY!

Jonah Hill No Longer in Talks for THE BATMAN

Jonah Hill

While earlier this week we had news that Zoe Kravitz is to play Catwoman opposite Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, now comes word on somebody who will not be a part of the film.

After being in advanced talks for a villainous role in The Batman, Jonah Hill has decided against signing on for the picture. If you remember, Hill and Warner Bros. had been in talks for several weeks about working together on the movie, with the only sticking issue being whether Hill was to play the Riddler or the Penguin.

Courtesy of Variety, the Wolf of Wall Street actor has instead opted to pass on any role in The Batman.

So far, Pattinson and Kravitz are the only confirmed members for this upcoming offering, although Westworld’s Jeffrey Wright is reportedly lined up to play The Batman’s Jim Gordon.

From what we’ve heard, The Batman will look to introduce up to as many as six villains in some form or fashion. Of course, some of these rogues will merely be introduced in a small way with a view to fleshing them out further down the line.

At present, The Batman is booked in for a June 2021 release.

David Duchovny Joins Blumhouse’s CRAFT Remake

David Duchovny

As Blumhouse and Columbia continue to put together the cast for their remake of The Craft, now comes word that a long-time genre fave is set to join the picture.

Via Deadline, The X-Files’ David Duchovny has signed on for a to-be-revealed role in this new take on The Craft. Duchovny joins a cast that features Pacific Rim: Uprising’s Cailee Spaeny, The Society’s Gideon Adlon, Selah & the Spades’ Lovie Simone and 15: A Quinceanera Story’s Zoey Luna as the film’s four core characters, and a role for Chambers’ Nicholas Galitzine.

If you remember, a new Craft movie has been being talked about for several years now, with Honeymoon’s Leigh Janiak working on a sequel three years ago. Janiak has long since left the project, and Sony has tasked Lola Versus’ Zoe Lister-Jones with writing and directing this remake.

For those not familiar with the original ’96 movie, the Andrew Fleming-helmed effort centred on Robin Tunney as she makes friends with a trio of young witches played by Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell and Rachel True.

As ever, expect more on this Craft remake as we get it.

THE MATRIX 4 Circles Jada Pinkett Smith and Jessica Henwick

The Matrix 4

With the recently announced Matrix 4 currently beginning to amass its core cast, now comes word on two names in the frame to join the return of this beloved genre franchise.

Via Deadline, Jada Pinkett Smith and Jessica Henwick are both lined up for this fourth Matrix offering. Smith famously played Niobe in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, while Henwick will be familiar to genre fans for her role as Colleen Wing in Iron Fist.

Smith would of course be reprising that Niobe role for this new movie, and Henwick is said to be up for a lead role that could well be akin to that of Neo’s in the original trilogy.

In addition to returns for Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss and director Lana Wachowski, The Matrix 4 has also moved to add Aquaman’s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and How I Met Your Mother’s Neil Patrick Harris to its ranks.

At this stage, The Matrix 4 has yet to be given a release date, but production on the film is expected to start early next year.

The CW’s CRISIS Adds the Spectre

Jim Corrigan

With barely a day going by right now where we don’t get some fantastic new piece of information on The CW’s upcoming Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover, now comes word that the Spectre is to join the action.

Via IGN, Continuum’s Stephen Lobo has signed on to play Jim Corrigan in the huge Arrowverse event. Corrigan, of course, is the human host of the Spectre, while Lobo is no stranger to the world of DC – for he played The Daily Planet’s Randall Brady for a handful of Smallville episodes back in 2009.

In terms of the Spectre, that character was created back in 1940 by Jerry Siegel and Bernard Baily. After Corrigan – a detective – was killed in the line of duty, his soul refused to pass over to the afterlife and instead was attached to a spirit of vengeance to become known as the all-powerful Spectre.

Right now, Lobo has only been confirmed to be playing Jim Corrigan, with it to be seen whether or not he’ll take on his spookier form.

Crisis on Infinite Earths begins this December, and will feature the characters of Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Black Lightning, Smallville, Birds of Prey, and a slew of other familiar DC faces.

Preview: BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE MUSICAL

Back to the Future: The Musical

“Great Scott!” exclaims Christopher Lloyd as he takes the stage in front of Manchester’s assembled press. “Extraordinary. I feel like I’m at a very momentous occasion.”

He’s been flown across the Atlantic to give his blessing to Back to the Future: The Musical, a forthcoming stage adaptation of the beloved 1985 movie, which will premiere in Manchester Opera House in February before moving on to London’s West End and eventually Broadway, China and Brazil.

The musical is scripted by Bob Gale, producer and co-writer of the film and its two sequels, who is keen to emphasise this is the official continuation of the series: “Lots of people ask, is there ever going to be a Back to the Future Part IV? No. No Part IV, no reboot. Instead, we’re doing this. So people can get more Back to the Future, but we’re not gonna screw up your childhood.”

Back to the Future: The Musical - Olly Dobson as Marty McFly

That doesn’t mean it’s a slavish adaptation of the movie; car and skateboard chases are difficult to pull off on stage, so instead we’ll have musical numbers, and the cast treat us to a preview of some songs. Olly Dobson (whose previous theatre credits include Bat out of Hell and The Selfish Giant) has the rock ‘n’ roller charm necessary to pull off the role of Marty McFly, while Roger Bart (who STARBURST readers will know from A Series of Unfortunate Events and Hostel: Part II) brings all the required eccentricity to the role of Doc Brown.

The musical also promises to dig deeper into side characters; Rosanna Hyland impresses as Lorraine Baines in her solo piece, and there’s a fantastic feel-good song called Gotta Start Somewhere from Cedric Neal as mayoral hopeful Goldie Wilson. Of course, all the classics are here too – our preview ends with a rousing rendition of The Power of Love.

The full show will complement these numbers with state-of-the-art effects, producer Colin Ingram promises, adding “when Marty time travels, you’ll feel it.” If the thrill of the DeLorean reaching 88mph is captured as well as Ingram promises, we’re in for something special come February.

After the show, STARBURST sits down with Olly Dobson, whose energy and excitement for becoming the new Marty is infectious – he deems it “an absolute dream come true” – and the two Docs, Bart and Lloyd.

On what makes the story so beloved, Dobson enthuses: “It’s batshit mad, isn’t it? It’s a crazy show. The essence of your mum wanting to be in love with you, that’s a great story to go on.” Bart is similarly praising: “The movie continues, with all the generations that watch it, to capture our imaginations. The idea that you’re able to travel through time, to go into the past, the future, meet your parents. And the idea that in one moment you could change the total direction of your life.”

We have to ask Lloyd about his memories of making the films. He almost didn’t take the role: “My agent sent me the script, but I’d made up my mind I wanted to go back to New York rather than stay in LA – I didn’t feel that things were going that well. I didn’t even read it.” But after meeting with Zemeckis, history was put back on the right path, and Lloyd fondly recalls working with the director: “Oh, he was great. He knows what to do, he knows how to talk to actors, and he knows the technology of films like the back of his hand.”

Back to the Future: The Musical - Roger Bart as Doc Brown

How is Bart approaching taking over from Lloyd in this iconic role? “My performance honours the movie and Chris’s choices, because the most perfect performance you could have given is his. But you try to make it your own. I don’t want people coming out of the show and saying “you sound so much like Chris” – as lovely as that is, you gotta love it and let it go.” Lloyd pipes in to express how he’s thrilled to pass on the baton: “It feels very good. I’m really happy about it. It feels right, like it’s moving on organically.”

Finally, we have to ask the stars their thoughts on the show premiering in STARBURST’s home city, to which Dobson replies: “If you want to show something new to someone, what better place to do it than Manchester? You guys are so welcoming, you love a rock ‘n’ roll concert and we’re gonna be giving you some hella rock ‘n’ roll.”

Back to the Future: The Musical will premiere at Manchester Opera House for a twelve-week run beginning Thursday 20th February 2020, before moving to London’s West End. Tickets are available now.

An extended version of this article, including our full interviews with Olly Dobson, Roger Bart, and Christopher Lloyd, will appear in a future issue of STARBURST Magazine.

Willem Dafoe Joins del Toro’s NIGHTMARE ALLEY

Willem Dafoe

With anticipation high for Guillermo del Toro’s take on Nightmare Alley, the project has now brought in Willem Dafoe.

Via Variety, the genre fave – who most recently starred alongside Robert Pattinson in The Lighthouse – will play a high-up figure of a travelling carnival who gives Bradley Cooper’s character a job.

In addition to Cooper on headlining duties, Dafoe joins a Nightmare Alley cast that includes Toni Collette, Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara.

Written by del Toro and Kim Morgan, Nightmare Alley will be del Toro’s take on William Lindsay Graham’s 1946 novel of the same name. The source material – not to mention the 1947 movie adaptation – centres on a conman who teams with a female psychiatrist to trick some poor saps out of their money.

As ever, expect more on del Toro’s Nightmare Alley as it continues to develop.