Mark Hamill Voicing CHILD’S PLAY Remake’s Chucky

Child's Play

Wait, what?!

After teasing a major new project, Mark Hamill has revealed that he will be voicing Chucky in the upcoming Child’s Play remake.

So first up, does that mean we’re meant to embrace this redo and enjoy it – after all, who doesn’t love Mark Hamill – or are we still okay to question why this redo is happening in the first place? Either way, the addition of brilliant voice actor Hamill is definitely a step in the right direction for Child’s Play.

Hamill appeared on a video at WonderCon to make the announcement, with the fans in attendance reacting positively to this news.

Of course, to date we’ve had Brad Douriff famously voicing Chucky in the Child’s Play franchise. If you remember, this Child’s Play remake from Orion has zero involvement from series creator Don Mancini; Mancini instead working on a Child’s Play TV series and new movie that will continue within the canon of the existing franchise.

In this Child’s Play remake, Aubrey Plaza is playing a mother who gives her son a “Buddi” doll for this birthday. And wouldn’t you know it, said doll just so happens to have a dark and sinister side to it.

To be directed by Polaroid’s Lars Klevberg, Child’s Play is set for a June 21st, 2019 release.

First Official Look at Brec Bassinger as STARGIRL

Stargirl

Straight from WonderCon, we’ve now been given our first official look at Brec Bassinger as the titular heroine of DC Universe’s upcoming Stargirl show.

Be sure to check out Bassinger’s Courtney Whitmore below:

Stargirl

In regards to how this outfit matches up to Stargirl’s comic-book appearance, it’s a relatively faithful depiction that will be sure to please fans of the character.

Joining Brec Bassinger’s Courtney Whitmore, Stargirl will also feature Luke Wilson as S.T.R.I.P.E., Amy Smart as Barbara Whitmore, Henry Thomas as Doctor Mid-Nite, Joel McHale as Starman, Brian Stapf as Wildcat, Lou Ferrigno Jr. as Hourman, and roles for Anjielka Washington and Giancarlo Esposito. On the other side of the fence, the villains of the piece so far will be Neil Hopkins as Sportsmaster, Joy Omanski as Tigress, and Nelson Lee as Dragon as the series gets set to feature the nefarious Injustice Society to do battle with some of the JSA’s finest heroes.

The early synopsis on Stargirl reads:

Stargirl will follow the story of Courtney Whitmore (Bassinger) who is a smart, athletic and above all else kind girl. This high school teenager’s seemingly perfect life hits a major speedbump when her mother gets married and her new family moves from Los Angeles, California to Blue Valley, Nebraska. Struggling to adapt to a new school, make new friends and deal with a new step-family, Courtney discovers her step-father has a secret; he used to be the sidekick to a superhero. “Borrowing” the long-lost hero’s cosmic staff, Courtney becomes the unlikely inspiration for an entirely new generation of superheroes.

The iconic Geoff Johns is on writing and producing duties for Stargirl, with him famously having created the Courtney Whitmore character following the tragic death of his own sister.

As ever, expect more on Stargirl as it continues to develop.

Mckenna Grace in Talks for GHOSTBUSTERS 3

Mckenna Grace

Hot on the heels of impressing in Captain Marvel, Mckenna Grace could well be joining the upcoming new Ghostbusters movie.

Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, the young actress is in talks for a major role in Jason Reitman’s Ghostbusters 3. Grace has previous with things that go bump in the night; her having played the younger version of Theo in Netflix’s mesmerising The Haunting of Hill House.

If Mckenna Grace does indeed sign on for the picture, she’ll join a cast that currently features Carrie Coon and Finn Wolfhard as a single mother and her son. Right now, that is the only information we have on the film at this early stage.

Jason Reitman – the son of original Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman – has put together a screenplay with Gil Kenan, and the plan is for this new movie to head into production this summer ahead of July 2020 release.

The current word is that Ghostbusters 3 will serve as a direct follow-up to the world of Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II but will ignore the happenings of 2016’s female-driven reboot.

Emily Bett Rickards Departing ARROW

Arrow Felicity Smoak Emily Bett Rickards

While we’re all still reeling at the news that Arrow will be coming to an end after its eighth season, now comes word that one of the show’s mainstays won’t be sticking around for that final season.

Taking to her Instagram page, Emily Bett Rickards has revealed that she will be departing Arrow after the series’ current seventh year:

Courtesy of the recent flash-forward scenes, we do have some indication of what will be happening to Bett Rickards’ Felicity in the future timeline of Arrow, but we won’t elaborate any further on that in case you’re not quite up to speed on the Emerald Archer show.

In terms of longstanding cast members, Emily Bett Rickards’ Felicity Smoak has been around since the very first season of Arrow, going on to become a key part of Team Arrow and a pivotal part of the series.

Now it just remains to be seen just how Arrow will write Felicity out of the genre juggernaut.

Angelina Jolie in Talks for Marvel’s THE ETERNALS

Angelina Jolie

With Marvel Studios currently at work on an Eternals movie, now comes word on a huge name potentially joining the project.

Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, Oscar winner Angelina Jolie is in talks to headline the Chloe Zhao-directed Eternals. There are no solid details on who Jolie may be being lined up to play at this stage, although speculation suggests that the Girl, Interrupted actress could be in negotiations to play Sersi.

Created by the iconic Jack Kirby back in 1976, the Eternals comic book title was based around a race of age-old humans created by the alien Celestials with the plan being for these humans to serve as Earth’s protectors against the nefarious Deviants. The big-screen Eternals will reportedly be based around the Sersi character who is an energy-manipulating being who is pretty much immortal.

Expect more on The Eternals as it continues to develop as the MCU progresses further and further through the stars. Like so many upcoming MCU movies, it’s expected that more details on this project will be made public once the landscape-changing Avengers: Endgame his screens next month.

Jim Jarmusch’s Star-Studded THE DEAD DON’T DIE Gets June Release

Bill Murray Zombieland

Jim Jarmusch’s zombie movie The Dead Don’t Die has quietly amassed a stunning ensemble cast, and now the film has been booked in for a confirmed release.

To be distributed by Focus Features and Universal Pictures International, the star-studded offering has been set for a June 14th release. Despite having a release date now set, plot details are still completely unknown for The Dead Don’t Die.

What we do know, however, is that the film will star Bill Murray (pictured zombified in Zombieland), Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Steve Buscemi, Chloe Sevigny, Danny Glover, Rosie Perez, Sara Driver, Caleb Landry Jones, Carol Kane, Tom Waits, Selena Gomez, RZA and Iggy Pop.

As ever, expect more on The Dead Don’t Die as we get it.

Legendary Developing a BITTER ROOT Movie

Bitter Root

Barely a week goes by where we don’t get news of another comic book title being adapted for the big or small screen, and now comes word that Bitter Root is getting the movie treatment.

Courtesy of Deadline, Legendary Entertainment has picked up the rights for Chuck Brown, David F. Walker and Sanford Greene’s Bitter Root title that debuted for Image Comics last year.

In terms of premise, Bitter Root focuses on African-American family the Sangeryes and the life in 1920s New York City. A once powerful force, the now-divided family have to put their problems to one side to battle a supernatural invasion that thrives on prejudice and hate.

At this stage, the movie adaptation is currently on the search for a writer and director, although we do know that Chuck Brown, David F. Walker and Sanford Greene will executive produce alongside Big Machine’s Sean Owolo, Jon Silk and Disney Hall.

Expect more on this Bitter Root film as it continues to develop.

Voice Cast Revealed for BATMAN: HUSH

Batman Hush

For longtime fans of DC’s animated offerings, one project that many have been hugely looking forward to is the upcoming adaptation of Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee’s Hush. And now, we have confirmation on what the voice cast will be for that movie.

We’ve previously heard rumours of who’ll be lending their vocals to the picture, but now it’s been made official by Warner Brothers and DC Entertainment.

To break it down, the confirmed cast reads like:

Jason O’Mara – Bruce Wayne/Batman

Sean Maher – Dick Grayson/Nightwing

Peyton List – Barbara Gordon/Batgirl and Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy

Stuart Allan – Damian Wayne/Robin

James Garrett – Alfred Pennyworth

Jennifer Morrison – Selina Kyle/Catwoman

Bruce Thomas – Commissioner Gordon

Jerry O’Connell – Clark Kent/Superman

Rebecca Romijn – Lois Lane

Rainn Wilson – Lex Luthor

Vanessa Williams – Amanda Waller

Jason Spisak – The Joker

Geoffrey Arend – The Riddler

Adam Gifford – Bane

Dachie Alessio – Lady Shiva

Maury Sterling – Thomas Elliot

Tara Strong – A reporter

For those not familiar with the Hush arc, it’s a twelve-part 2003 story from the beloved pairing of Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee. A who’s who of Batman, the tale features a ridiculous amount of heroes and villains within its pages and introduces a brand new villain in the form of the mysterious Hush. A rogue who seemingly knows everything there is to know about Batman – including his identity as Bruce Wayne – Hush is forever one step ahead of the Caped Crusader as this story unravels in a truly stunning way. Oh, and then there’s that tease that left readers absolutely shell-shocked!

In terms of modern-day arcs – hell, does 2003 really even count as modern by this point? – Hush is one of the very best, and, in case you hadn’t guessed, your humble scribe counts this as arguably his favourite ever Batman story. Heavy praise indeed, right? So now, let’s just hope the marvellous source material can be successfully translated to a feature film.

To be directed by Justin Copeland, Batman: Hush is set to be released at a to-be-confirmed date later this year.

John Simm Amongst GAME OF THRONES Prequel Series Additions

John Simm

As the upcoming Game of Thrones prequel series continues to flesh out its core cast, now comes word on several new additions for the hotly anticipated Naomi Watts-headlined offering.

Courtesy of Deadline, we now have word that genre fave John Simm is leading this most recent batch of casting announcements, with the Human Traffic and Doctor Who star joined by Luke Cage’s Marquis Rodriguez, Collateral’s Richard McCabe, Brexit’s John Heffernan and relative newcomer Dixie Egerickx. In addition to the aforementioned Naomi Watts, the show already has Josh Whitehouse, Miranda Richardson, Denise Gough, Jamie Campbell Bower and Alex Sharp on board.

At this stage, there are no details whatsoever on just which characters any of these names are playing, and details of the prequel effort itself are being kept hush-hush for now. What we do know, however, is that Jane Goldman and George R.R. Martin have developed a story that is set thousands of years before Game of Thrones, with Goldman penning the series. Given the timeline of the prequel show, that means that no existing Thrones characters will be appearing.

If you remember, this is just one of several other Game of Thrones shows in development right now. The Goldman and Martin-crafted series is the only one with any cast in place right now, but a further three further prequel shows set in different periods are also in development.

As for Game of Thrones itself, the main show will return for its final season in only a matter of weeks.

Michael B. Jordan to Headline Warners’ METHUSELAH

Michael B. Jordan

Having been spinning its wheels for over a decade now, Warner Brothers’ long-gestating Methuselah movie has added Michael B. Jordan to its ranks.

As first reported by Deadline, the Black Panther and Creed actor will take on the picture’s lead role that was originally pegged for Tom Cruise.

When Methuselah was first being developed by The WB, the plan was for Cruise to star as a man who has lived for over a century; using that time on Earth to become all-knowledgeable. With Jordan now taking over headlining duties, the film is to be redeveloped to fit around the Chronicle favourite.

The current word on this project is that the hope is for it to be the launching point for a Highlander-esque franchise.

In addition to starring, Jordan and his Outlier Society banner will produce the film along with Jeremy Clifford and David Heyman.

At this stage, the hunt is on for a new writer for Methuselah.