Official First Look at Brie Larson’s CAPTAIN MARVEL

Captain Marvel

Those scamps! For a minute there, we really did think we were going to get a first trailer for next March’s Captain Marvel. Still, while that isn’t the case, we have now been given our first official look at Brie Larson’s suited ‘n’ booted Carol Danvers.

Via EW, the below images have been released:Captain Marvel Captain Marvel

Speaking to the outlet about the character, Larson enthused, “She’s can’t help but be herself. She can be aggressive, and she can have a temper, and she can be a little invasive and in your face. She’s also quick to jump to things, which makes her amazing in battle because she’s the first one out there and doesn’t always wait for orders. But the [not] waiting for orders is, to some, a character flaw.”

Interestingly, EW also has the scoop that Carol Danvers will already have her powers when we meet her in Captain Marvel. Not only that, but she’ll already been up in the stars battling alongside the Kree’s Starforce team in their fight against the Skrulls.

The official word on Captain Marvel reads:

The story follows Carol Danvers as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races.  Set in the 1990s, “Captain Marvel” is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Set in the ‘90s, the film will see Larson’s Danvers joined by Samuel L. Jackson’s two-eyed Nick Fury, Clark Gregg’s Agent Coulson, Jude Law’s Mar-Vell, Lee Pace’s Ronan the Accuser, Djimon Hounsou’s Korath the Pursuer, and Rogue One’s Ben Mendelsohn as the villain of the piece, Skrull leader Talos.

Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Captain Marvel is currently set for a March 8th, 2019 release. After that, of course, Danvers will have a huge part to play in May 2019’s Avengers: Infinity War follow-up.

 

New POLICE ACADEMY Movie in the Works

Police Academy

Ready for a new Police Academy movie? No? Well tough, for star Steve Guttenberg has let us know that one is on the way.

When asked on social media about a possible new Police Academy effort, Guttenberg responded:

To date, there have been seven Police Academy movies, starting with the original 1984 movie. Guttenberg’s Mahoney was often the star of the show for the first four pictures, although Guttenberg departed the franchise after 1987’s Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol. The last Police Academy film at present is 1994’s Police Academy: Mission to Moscow.

At several points over the past twenty years, we’ve heard rumblings of a new movie or a reboot for the Police Academy series, so we guess it’s just a case of “more on this as it develops” for now.

DOCTOR WHO Move to Sundays Confirmed, First Episode Title Revealed

who move

Less than 24 hours after STARBURST reported on the accidental leak from German iTunes suggesting a move to Sunday evening broadcasts for Doctor Who in the UK, the BBC have now officially confirmed the switch – and also revealed the title of the thirteenth Doctor’s first episode.

Jodie Whittaker will debut in an instalment called The Woman Who Fell to Earth, an obvious play on the Bowie film title, but one that also reflects the way Matt Smith’s debut was an incarnation-specific spin on a popular phrase.

BBC correspondent Lizo Mzimba has also speculated that the series will broadcast in a late afternoon / early evening slot, ahead of a solid night of widely watched television on BBC One.

‘With Chris Chibnall at the helm and Jodie Whittaker’s arrival as the new Doctor,’ said Director of BBC Content Charlotte Moore, ‘we are heralding a brand new era for the show and so it feels only right to give it a new home on Sunday nights at the heart of BBC One’s Autumn schedule.’

Meanwhile the BBC have come under criticism from fans for their heavy-handed tactics in trying to stem the leak, which had after all presumably been created after the information had been uploaded to iTunes by a branch of the corporation itself.

Brett Butler and John Finn Join THE WALKING DEAD

Brett Butler John Finn

As The Walking Dead gets ready for its return next month, the genre juggernaut has moved to add a couple of new additions to its ever-expanding ensemble.

Courtesy of Skybound, Brett Butler and John Finn have been brought in to play comic book characters Tammy Rose and Earl, respectively.

The current blurb on this pair reads:

“First introduced in Issue 135, Tammy Rose is an ornery woman who lives at the Hilltop Colony with her husband Morton and son Brandon. Not much is known about her life before the apocalypse, but we do know she is fiercely protective of her family. In fact, the first time we see her she FUMES about her son and friend nearly getting beaten to death by Carl, who was protecting Sophia from getting hit herself. Despite the circumstances, Tammy goes ballistic on Maggie and makes her lock Carl up (which she does). In the comics, Earl is the Hilltop’s easygoing blacksmith who helps create weapons and armor for the colony. Eventually, he mentors Carl and helps protect his neighbors during the Whisperer War. However, the show’s version of Earl will be married to Brett Butler’s Tammy, meaning his character could be remixed with Tammy’s comic husband Morton.”

Of course, the show kinda has a Carl-shaped hole these days, meaning that that element of the characters will be tweaked for AMC’s The Walking Dead. Butler and Finn join other new additions in the form of Samantha Morton, Ryan Hurst, and Cassady McClincy.

The Walking Dead’s ninth season will premiere on October 7th.

Len Wiseman to Direct SWAMP THING Pilot

Swamp Thing

With a new live-action Swamp Thing series currently in development for the hugely anticipated DC Universe streaming service, now comes word on a big genre fave directing the pilot episode.

Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, it’s been revealed that Underworld, Total Recall, and Sleepy Hollow’s Len Wiseman is the person tasked with helming the show’s pilot. Wiseman will also be serving as executive producer on the series.

Len Wiseman

The early word on this new show reads:

The drama follows what happens when CDC researcher Abby Arcane returns to her childhood home of Houma, Louisiana in order to investigate a deadly swamp-borne virus. There, she develops a surprising bond with scientist Alec Holland – only to have him tragically taken from her. But as powerful forces descend on Houma, intent on exploiting the swamp’s mysterious properties for their own purposes, Abby will discover that the swamp holds mystical secrets, both horrifying and wondrous – and the potential love of her life may not be dead after all.

As a character, Swamp Thing began life back in 1971 and has appeared in a whole host of different mediums over the decades. Wes Craven would helm 1982’s Swamp Thing movie, with a sequel following in 1989. On the small screen, a three-season USA Network show ran during the early ‘90s, and there was similarly a far-too-short-lived animated series during those years.

Mark Veriheiden and Gary Dauberman are on showrunner duties for Swamp Thing, with the show tentatively expected to premiere at some point in 2019.

Henry Cavill to Headline Netflix’s THE WITCHER

Henry Cavill The Witcher

Well, this is quite the impressive coup for Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of The Witcher. Yes, as the title suggests, Henry Cavill has signed on to headline the series!

In a press release, it’s been confirmed that the DCEU’s Superman, currently being seen in Mission: Impossible – Fallout, has landed the lead role of Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher.

The early official word on The Witcher reads:

Based on the best-selling fantasy series, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.

The Witcher began life as a bestselling book series from Andrzej Sapkowski, with it then being turned into a massively successful video game franchise. Elsewhere, there has been a comic book title and also a Polish TV take. The loose gist of the property sees it centre on a travelling monster hunter who has to battle his way through a medieval fantasy world.

With Daredevil and The Defenders’ Lauren Schmidt Hissrich serving as showrunner, Netflix’s The Witcher will be made up of eight episodes and is expected to land on the on-demand streaming giant in 2020.

Expect more on The Witcher as it continues to develop.

DOCTOR WHO Moves to Sundays, Start Date Leaked [Updated]

Doctor Who

iTunes in Germany appear to have just given away one of the BBC’s most closely guarded secrets… Their listing for Series 11 of Doctor Who includes the “arrival” date as the 7th of October – despite previous claims elsewhere that Series 11 was going to land during September – and that date happens to be a Sunday. (The pattern for iTunes in Germany has been to release the series episodes on date of broadcast.)

It’s been rumoured for some time that the series would make the move to the BBC’s more consistently watched evening; a start time of around 5.30 would launch the evening line-up of Countryfile, Antiques Roadshow, the Strictly results and then a 9pm primetime drama, in a way that would actually mirror the broadcasting schedule Doctor Who was a part of during its 1970s heyday. Season 12 in 1975 was generally transmitted at around 5.30, with Series 13 moving to 5.45 (and Season 14 6pm), ahead of a popular evening of ‘light’ entertainment.

Could those days be about to come around again, rekindled by the move to Sundays? As ever, we await official confirmation, but it’s looking likely at the moment…

UPDATE:

The BBC has now confirmed the new start date via a graphic on Facebook:

David Cronenberg Developing a New TV Series

David Cronenberg

Well, this is some news that’s sure to put a smile on the face of any and all reading it. Yes, as the headline suggest, David Cronenberg is developing a TV series.

Courtesy of Variety, the iconic Cronenberg is working on a “long-form personal TV project” that he’s unable to talk about just yet.

Cronenberg, of course, is a huge favourite of many a genre fan, with his impressive CV including the likes of Rabid, The Brood, Scanners, Videodrome, The Fly, Naked Lunch, Crash, A History of Violence, and Eastern Promises. In addition to that, the Canadian has also worked on several TV efforts, including helming an episode of Friday the 13th: The Series.

Speaking during a panel discussing the future of cinema, Cronenberg again reiterated his stance about how the cinema experience as a whole is on the downturn, although filmmaking itself is a constantly evolving process. As he put it, “Today TV screens are getting bigger and bigger and therefore the difference between theatre and domestic viewing has become really flimsy. The rule used to be that close-up shots were only done for TV, and not for movies. But today that’s no longer the case.”

While we have zero idea of what this Cronenberg-driven TV series will be, or when it will arrive, just knowing that this ridiculously talented fella is eyeing up a TV show is enough to get us all kinds of excited.

Alan Tudyk is DOOM PATROL’s Villainous Mr. Nobody

Alan Tudyk Mr. Nobody Doom Patrol

Can DC Universe just get here already?! The upcoming on-demand streaming service has a whole host of us genre fans excited for its arrival, and now comes some brilliant news surrounding one of the service’s most anticipated new shows, Doom Patrol.

Courtesy of Deadline, genre fave Alan Tudyk has been confirmed to be playing the villainous Mr. Nobody in the series. A character who debuted back in 1964’s Doom Patrol #86 (initially under the name of Mr. Morden), he’s often been depicted as a part of the Brotherhood of Evil. In terms of abilities, Mr. Nobody’s main power is that he can literally make people crazy; as in he saps the actual sanity from a person.

Tudyk, of course, has long been a favourite of so many genre fans thanks to roles in the likes of Firefly, The Tick, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, Wreck-It Ralph, Dodgeball, and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

The official word on Doom Patrol reads:

Doom Patrol is a re-imagining of one of DC’s most beloved group of outcast Super Heroes: Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Girl, and Crazy Jane, led by modern-day mad scientist Dr. Niles Caulder (The Chief). The Doom Patrol’s members each suffered horrible accidents that gave them superhuman abilities – but also left them scarred and disfigured. Traumatized and downtrodden, the team found purpose through The Chief, who brought them together to investigate the weirdest phenomena in existence — and to protect Earth from what they find.

Part support group, part Super Hero team, the Doom Patrol is a band of super-powered freaks who fight for a world that wants nothing to do with them. Picking up after the events of Titans, Doom Patrol will find these reluctant heroes in a place they never expected to be, called to action by none other than Cyborg, who comes to them with a mission hard to refuse, but with warning that is hard to ignore: their lives will never, ever be the same.

Alan Tudyk joins a cast that includes Bruno Bichir as The Chief, Brendan Fraser as Robotman, April Bowlby as Elasti-Girl, Diane Guerrero as Crazy Jane, and Joivan White as Cyborg, with roles for Jack Michael and Dwain Murphy.

As alluded to, the Doom Patrol themselves will debut later this year in DC Universe’s Titans, before then getting their own 2019 series.

Animated ADDAMS FAMILY Movie Adds Elsie Fisher

Elsie Fisher

Here at Moonbase Alpha, we absolutely love us some Addams shenanigans. And so, the upcoming animated Addams Family movie has us mischievously grinning in a way that would make Gomez himself proud. But with Gomez already long on board, said animated effort has moved to bring in another name to its already impressive ensemble.

Via The Hollywood Reporter, Eighth Grade’s Elsie Fisher has signed on to play Parker Needler, the daughter of Allison Janney’s Margaux Needler. Fisher and Janney are part of cast that also features Oscar Isaac as Gomez Addams, Charlize Theron as Morticia Addams, Chloe Grace Moretz as Wednesday Addams, Finn Wolfhard as Pugsley Addams, Nick Kroll as Uncle Fester, and Bette Midler as Grandmama. See, we told you it was quite the impressive ensemble!

The Addams Family

The early official word on The Addams Family reads:

The film follows the family as they face-off against a crafty reality TV host while also preparing for their extended family to arrive for a major celebration.

To be directed by Conrad Vernon and Greg Tiernan, The Addams Family is set for an October 2019 release.