Peter Mayhew 1944 – 2019

Peter Mayhew

In some utterly tragic news, Peter Mayhew has passed away at the age of 74.

Mayhew, of course, is an utter icon of cinema for his duration as Chewbacca in the Star Wars saga.

It has been confirmed by Peter’s family that he passed away on April 30th in his Texas home, with his family by his side.

Much like Peter’s family said, Peter Mayhew put his heart and soul into every single moment he had as Chewbacca. And let’s face it, the world of Star Wars has very few greater characters than Chewie – with so much of that being down to Peter Mayhew.

STARBURST offers its sincerest condolences to the family, friends and fans of Peter.

Rest in peace, sir, and thank you for such glorious memories.

Talks Ongoing for a WILLOW TV Series on Disney+

While news regarding the impending Disney+ streaming service is being dominated by a slew of new Marvel shows being announced for the service, now comes word that an old cult favourite may be being revisited for this upcoming on-demand offering.

Seemingly from out of nowhere, Ron Howard has given indication that Disney+ may find itself housing a Willow sequel series. Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast (as reported by Variety), Howard said that just such a follow-up series was in “serious discussions” to be developed for Disney+ and that he and Solo screenwriter Jonathan Kasdan were handling the project.

Howard, of course, is the person who directed 1987’s George Lucas-produced Willow in which Warwick Davis starred as the titular Willow Ufgood. On Davis, Howard confirmed that he would indeed be reprising the Willow role before adding, “Warwick is so cool and so good and he’s such a good actor that I really hope we get the chance to see the mature Willow in action.”

While no further movies were made past that ’87 favourite, Lucas and the beloved Chris Claremont did team for a trilogy of Willow novels in the ‘90s. In those tales, the action had Elora Danan – the young girl that Willow was protecting in the movie – as the focus of the narrative.

As ever, expect more on all of this as we get it.

Vincent Cassel Joins WESTWORLD

Vincent Cassel

While we won’t be getting the return of Westworld until next year, that’s not stopped the stunning HBO offering from signing up new cast members for its impending third season. And now, there’s word on another new addition for the genre favourite.

Courtesy of Variety, Vincent Cassel is the latest name to join Westworld. At this stage, however, there are no details on just exactly what role the Mesrine and Black Swan star will have in the series. Cassel joins fellow new additions in the shape of Aaron Paul and Lena Waithe.

Production is currently underway on Season 3 of Westworld. As ever, expect more on the return of this marvellous piece of genre television as it continues to develop.

GHOST RIDER and HELSTROM Shows in Development

Ghost Rider Helstrom Marvel

While a whole slew of new Marvel TV shows are currently in development, now comes word on two more Marvel series on the way.

Courtesy of Variety, Marvel’s Ghost Rider and Marvel’s Helstrom are being developed by Hulu. Hulu, of course, is owned by Fox. Which in turn means that Hulu is now essentially owned by Disney.

Having appeared as the Robbie Reyes version of the Spirit of Vengeance in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Gabriel Luna will be headlining Ghost Rider. Ingrid Escajeda is executive producing and will serve as showrunner, with Jeph Loeb and Paul Zbyszewski also on exec producer duties.

 The early official world on Marvel’s Ghost Rider reads:

Marvel’s Ghost Rider, also knows as Robbie Reyes, is a quintessential antihero, consumed by hellfire and supernaturally bound to a demon. Reyes lives on the Texas/Mexico border and when he unleashes the Rider, Robbie brings vengeance to the innocents he encounters, but struggles to control the power he wields.

As for Marvel’s Helstrom, no casting news is known at this stage, although we do have word that Paul Zbyszewski has the showrunner gig. The early blurb on that particular offering reads:

Daimon and Ana Helstrom are the son and daughter of a mysterious and powerful serial killer in Marvel’s Helstrom. The siblings have a complicated dynamic as they track down the terrorizing worst of humanity – each with their attitude and skills.

Marvel’s Ghost Rider and Marvel’s Helstrom join fellow upcoming Marvel shows Marvel’s Hit-Monkey, Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K., Marvel’s Tigra & Dazzler, Marvel’s Howard the Duck, Marvel’s The Offenders, and then the Disney+ outings for Scarlet Witch and Vision, Falcon and Winter Soldier, Loki, Hawkeye, and possibly Lady Sif.

Ghost Rider and Helstrom are both expected to premiere in 2020.

EVE Online’s XVI Anniversary Celebration Brings Free Gifts

eve

CCP Games, the creators of the in-depth and uniquely player-driven spaceship MMO game EVE Online, has announced the XVI Anniversary Celebration, a one-time event to honour EVE Online’s 16th anniversary and reward players with amazing and unique items!

Celebrating 16 years of EVE Online and running from May 2nd – 20th, the XVI Anniversary Celebration will reward players who log in during this time span with free gifts that pay tribute to EVE’s community and history. By logging in across 16 days, players will be able to obtain a series of incredible items and most importantly, logins do not need to be consecutive!

Alpha and Omega pilots can earn 16th anniversary SKINs, apparel, Skill Points and much more. Omega pilots will also be able to obtain high value items such as the legendary Silver Monocle, new Permaband SKINs and a massive 1 million Skill Points. There’s never been a better time to return, celebrating players’ and New Eden’s history and grabbing some fantastic items to set you on your way into the intrepid future of EVE Online.

“EVE Online has defined what it means to undertake a ‘journey’ over the past 16 years” said Bergur Finnbogason, EVE Online’s Creative Director at CCP Games. “We’re sure players will love getting their hands on some seriously cool gear that pays homage to over a decade of EVE Online’s history as we look ahead to all the exciting things happening this year, and that could only happen within the universe of New Eden.”

To find out more about EVE Online’s XVI Anniversary Celebration, visit: https://www.eveonline.com/now/xvi-anniversary.

For more information about CCP Games and the EVE Universe, visit www.ccpgames.com/products.

Noah Centineo Headlining Sony’s MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE Reboot

He-Man Noah Centineo

Earlier this year, reports emerged that Noah Centineo was in talks to spearhead Sony’s long-gestating Masters of the Universe reboot. And now, the actor himself has confirmed that, yes, he does indeed have the power.

Speaking to Jimmy Fallon about playing He-Man in the movie, the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before star enthused, “Yeah, I’m very excited. That’s quite the opportunity.”

This Masters of the Universe redo has been in development for several years now, with John Chu the first director to sign on for the film. From there, he was replaced by McG, who himself was replaced by David Goyer. The last we’d heard, Band of Robbers’ Aaron and Adam Nee took over the director’s chair last April. Since then, Art Marcum and Matt Holloway have been brought in to work on the screenplay.

Masters of the Universe will follow the story of Adam, Prince of Eternia, who has the ability to transform into the ever-smiling uber-hero He-Man as he battles to protect his world from the nefarious threat of Skeletor. Of course, these bitter rivals have most recently been seen shilling financial products for MoneySupermarket.com…

Sony had previously pegged Masters of the Universe for a December 18th, 2019 release, although the reboot now looks highly unlikely to make that release date.

Cast and Directors Revealed for Moffat and Gatiss’ DRACULA

Steven Moffat Mark Gatiss

We’ve known for a little while now that Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss were developing a new Dracula series for the BBC and Netflix, and now we have word on who’ll be partaking in the project.

Courtesy of Variety, The Girl in the Spider’s Web’s Claes Bang has been cast as the titular vamp, with him to be joined by John Heffernan, Dolly Wells, Joanna Scanlan, Morfydd Clark, Luzja Richter, Jonathan Aris, Sacha Dhawan, Clive Russell, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Catherine Schell and Youssef Kerkour.

Behind the camera, Westworld’s Jonny Campbell will be directing the first episode, Killing Eve’s Damon Thomas is helming the second offering, and Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’s Paul McGuigan will direct the third episode.

To be made up of three 90-minute episodes, the Moffat and Gatiss-created Dracula is officially described as:

In Transylvania in 1897, the blood drinking Count is drawing his plans against Victorian London.

With production having now commenced, Dracula is expected to arrive late this year or possibly in early 2020. In the UK, the series will air in the BBC, while international audiences will find Dracula housed on Netflix.

CBS Renews THE TWILIGHT ZONE For a Second Season

The Twilight Zone

With the Jordan Peele-produced return of The Twilight Zone having aired five episodes now in the US, the series has already been picked up for a second season.

CBS All Access are clearly impressed by the series, and they’ve now made the call to renew the show for a second year.

On this news, CBS’ Julie McNamara enthused, “Jordan Peele and Simon Kinberg’s reimagining of The Twilight Zone is off to an amazing start on CBS All Access, driving the most viewers on its premiere day for an original series to date. Jordan, Simon, the creative team and cast have done a phenomenal job translating the series’ legacy of socially conscious storytelling for modern-day audiences. They are master storytellers, and we look forward to bringing fans further into The Twilight Zone with a second season.”

At this point, The Twilight Zone has frustratingly yet to be given a UK home, but hopefully UK audiences will be able to check out the show sooner rather than later.

David Dastmalchian is THE SUICIDE SQUAD’s Polka-Dot Man

Polka-Dot Man David Dastmalchian

With James Gunn’s upcoming Suicide Squad sequel set to introduce several new villains to the antics of Task Force X, we now have word on who’ll be playing one of these newbies.

Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, it’s been confirmed that David Dastmalchian will be playing Polka-Dot Man in the follow-up feature. This isn’t the first time that Dastmalchian will be dipping his toe into the world of superhero shenanigans, for he’s been seen as Abra Kadabra in The Flash, as Kurt in Ant-Man (and its sequel), and in supporting roles in Gotham and The Dark Knight.

For those unfamiliar with Polka-Dot Man, he’s a Gotham-based bad guy who can turn the polka-dots on his body to fireballs. In amongst the plentiful returning faces, Polka-Dot Man, King Shark, Ratcatcher and Peacemaker are joining the action in The Suicide Squad. And yes, the title to 2016’s Suicide Squad is indeed titled The Suicide Squad.

At present, the majority of that first movie’s core characters will be returning for this sequel, although Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn and Will Smith’s Deadshot won’t be back for this adventure.

Written and directed by James Gunn, The Suicide Squad is booked in for an August 2021 release.

Lord & Miller sign MEGA SPIDEY DEAL with Sony

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse producing duo Phil Lord & Chris Miller have signed a five-year mega-deal, worth a reported nine-figure sum, with Sony Pictures Television to develop multiple Spider-Man based TV series.

The Oscar-winning duo, whose Lord Miller Production Company was formally under the 20th Century Fox TV banner, are set to move their studio to Sony and had the following to say about their new relationship:

“We are so grateful to everyone at Sony Pictures Television for choosing to partner with us and expand our enduring relationship with the studio. Together we aim to make groundbreaking work of the highest quality and integrity, and to place that work in convenient proximity to your eyeballs and earholes, wherever you may be.”

Sony Pictures Television president Jeff Frost had the following to say about the deal:

“Phil and Chris have reimagined every medium and genre they have touched. Whether it’s television, features or animation, they have created their own unique brand and style. We are so excited to be working with these brilliant creators and showrunners and are looking forward to collaborating with them in every aspect of television – comedy, drama, animation and beyond.”

Lord and Miller have, of course, have worked with Sony before including with former Sony Pictures Entertainment co-chairman Amy Pascal who still maintains control over its Marvel properties even though she has stepped down from her former position.

If you, like us here at STARBURST loved Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, there is plenty of Spidey goodness coming from Sony to a small screen near you in the not-to-distant future.