JUMANJI 3 Set for December 2019

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

With a third Jumanji movie on the way, that threequel has finally been given a release date.

It was left to Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle star – and arguably the biggest box office draw on the planet these days – Dwayne Johnson to reveal the news, confirming that Sony’s next Jumanji effort will hit the silver screen on December 13th, 2019. That date will see the film open a week before Star Wars: Episode IX.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle proved to be a major hit, with many naysayers ultimately eating humble pie as the picture wracked up a box office return of nearly $1 billion from a budget in the $100 million range.

Interestingly, that last Jumanji film also opened opposite a Star Wars movie – The Last Jedi. In a unique move, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle would open at #2 to The Last Jedi in the US, but then quickly toppled the jaunt to a galaxy far, far away the next week and for the next several weeks. Despite initial trepidation of rehashing the Jumanji concept, word of mouth soon spread that, y’know, Welcome to the Jungle was actually a hugely enjoyable film that you really should check out.

In terms of the third Jumanji effort, Johnson will once again be joined by Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black. It’s also believed that Jake Kasdan will be back to direct.

Krysten Ritter to Make Her Directing Debut on JESSICA JONES S3

Krysten Ritter Jessica Jones

With a third season of Marvel’s Jessica Jones confirmed earlier this year, now comes word that star Krysten Ritter will actually make her directing debut in that third year.

Deadline broke the news, with Ritter telling the outlet, “I am beyond thrilled to make my directorial debut on Marvel’s Jessica Jones. The entire crew and cast has become family to me, and I’m so appreciative of the opportunity to work with our incredible team in this new way. I am so grateful that Melissa Rosenberg, Jeph Loeb, Marvel, and Netflix entrusted me to take the reins.”

It’s not yet known which episode(s) Ritter will helm, although production on Season 3 is currently underway in New York City.

Where Marvel’s Netflix-exclusive world is concerned, the second season of Marvel’s Luke Cage landed on Netflix last week, and up next is the hugely anticipated third season for Marvel’s Daredevil – a third season that will pull inspiration from the classic Born Again comic book arc – at a to-be-confirmed date later this year.

Jared Leto to Headline Sony’s MORBIUS Movie

Michael Morbius Jared Leto

Well, this is some rather huge news. Yes, as the headline suggests, Jared Leto has signed on to star in Sony’s upcoming Morbius movie.

As per Heat Vision, Leto will be taking centre-stage in this upcoming Spider-Verse effort. That shared Spider-Verse, of course, kicks off this October with the Tom Hardy-headlined Venom.

To be titled Morbius the Living Vampire, Life’s Daniel Espinosa will be on directing duties for the picture, with this just one of several Spider-Verse films in development. The Silver Sable and Black Cat team-up effort – Silver & Black – has been put on hold, although is still in development. Then there’s a movie in the works for Cindy Moon’s Silk, a character who was gifted with the same powers as ol’ Web-head after being bitten by a spider on the very same day as Peter Parker. Elsewhere, Spike Lee is eyeing a film based around tech-driven hero Nightwatch, and there’s the animated Into the Spider-Verse picture which will see the Miles Morales version of Spider-Man taking the spotlight.

For those not familiar with the vampiric Michael Morbius, he’s a character who debuted in 1971’s Amazing Spider-Man #101. A scientist with a rare blood disease, Morbius ends up with vampiric abilities – and also the bloodlust that comes with being such a being. Over the decades, he’s been both a friend and foe of Spider-Man, and he’s also often tied to Blade.

Reportedly, this won’t have any bearing on Leto’s position as the Joker over in the DC Extended Universe, marking him down as the latest name to have landed a role in both a DC movie and a Marvel effort.

Expect more on Morbius the Living Vampire as it continues to develop.

First Look at Kristen Wiig as WONDER WOMAN 1984’s Villain

Following today’s ‘first look’ at Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, now comes a first glimpse at Kristen Wiig in Wonder Woman 1984.

In the hotly-anticipated Wonder Woman sequel, Wiig is playing Barbara Minerva, aka the nefarious Cheetah. Director Patty Jenkins has offered up the below image:

Kristen Wiig Wonder Woman 1984

Wonder Woman 1984 will be set in the ‘80s, and Gal Gadot’s Diana will be tasked with going up against one of her most infamous comic book foes, Cheetah. Chris Pine will also be back as Steve Trevor, and Game of Thrones’ Pedro Pascal is another on board.

For those not familiar with Cheetah, the first incarnation of the character debuted back in 1943’s Wonder Woman #6. As mentioned, the version of the rogue who will appear in Wonder Woman 1984 is the Barbara Minerva one. 1987’s Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #7 was when Minerva made her bow. A British archaeologist, she is gifted the powers of a cheetah by Urzkartaga – basically, a bizarre kind of plant god. With 2011’s ill-fated New 52 refresh of the DC Comics realm, Minerva was reimagined as a contemporary of Wonder Woman’s at times. This time possessed by the Goddess of Hunt, that’s how she becomes the supervillain Cheetah. Of course, DC wasn’t happy with just one do-over, and The New 52 was scrapped in favour of DC Rebirth in 2016. In that rehashed continuity, Cheetah is again given a fresh lick of paint. A well-travelled archaeologist, her fascination with the Amazons would see her become close friends with Diana and would even help her to learn English. Urzkartaga would again come in to play, this time actually marrying Barbara – and from there, she would become Cheetah and blame Diana for this whole transformation.

Wonder Woman 1984 is currently set for a November 2019 release.

Rebel Wilson to Star in CROWDED Adaptation

Crowded Rebel Wilson

With comic book-driven properties ten-a-penny these days, now comes word on a big-screen take on Image Comics’ Crowded.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Rebel Wilson has picked up the rights to the upcoming Christopher Sebela-written, Ted Brandt and Ro Stein-drawn comic through her Camp Sugar production banner. Wilson will star in and produce the movie, while Sebela is on board in a consultancy capacity.

The first issue of Crowded is due to be released this August, with the official blurb on said debut reading:

Ten minutes in the future, the world runs on an economy of job shares and apps, including Reapr: a crowdfunding platform to fund assassinations. Charlie Ellison leads a quiet, normal life until she’s suddenly targeted by a million-dollar Reapr campaign. Hunted by all of Los Angeles, Charlie hires Vita, the lowest-rated bodyguard on the Dfend app. As the campaign picks up speed, they’ll have to figure out who wants Charlie dead before the campaign’s 30 days—or their lives—are over.

Expect more on Crowded as we get it.

First Official Pic Revealed for Tarantino’s ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD

Hollywood

We’ve got another 14 months until Quentin Tarantino unleashes his next feature unto the world (his penultimate if we’re to believe him!), and with filming on the “Manson-adjacent” tale now underway, we can be assured that we’ll get many more reveals like this along the way (but let’s hope they’re a little livelier than this one). So here it is, stars Brad and Leo, taking it easy, possibly waiting for the craft services to be set up, who knows!

 

Hollywood

 

Joining these two are a whole cavalcade of exciting new faces to the QT family (and Emile Hirsch), such as Margot Robbie (playing Tate herself), Damien Lewis, Al Pacino, Dakota Fanning, Timothy Olyphant, Scoot McNairy, Luke Perry, James Marsden, and Burt Reynolds. Also confirmed to be returning to the fold are QT alum Kurt Russell and, of course, Michael Madsen.

Official Synopsis:

Quentin Tarantino’s ninth feature film is a story that takes place in Los Angeles in 1969, at the height of hippy Hollywood. The two lead characters are Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), former star of a western TV series, and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt). Both are struggling to make it in a Hollywood they don’t recognize anymore. But Rick has a very famous next-door neighbour… Sharon Tate.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD opens August 2019

 

Toby Kebbell to Play BLOODSHOT’s Villain

Toby Kebbell

With Vin Diesel on board to headline the long-gestating Bloodshot movie, now comes word that Toby Kebbell has joined the picture.

As per The Wrap, Kebbell – best known for the likes of Dead Man’s Shoes, Fantastic Four, and Kong: Skull Island – is set to play the villainous Axe in the film. In addition to Diesel, Bloodshot also has Michael Sheen, Talulah Riley, Alex Hernandiex, Sam Heughan, and Eiza Gonzalez on board.

For those not familiar with the Bloodshot character, he’s a comic book act created by Kevin Van Hook, Don Perlin and Bob Layton. A former soldier who was killed and brought back to life with a whole bunch of snazzy technological upgrades, he’s essentially the perfect soldier complete with a healing factor, the power to shapeshift, and the ability to interact with pretty much any and all piece of technology.

Sony previously picked up the cinematic rights to Valiant Entertainment’s Bloodshot and Harbinger characters, with the initial plan being to give each character two solo outings before bringing the pair together in a huge crossover event.

As ever, expect more on all things Bloodshot – and Harbinger, for that matter – as we get it.

HBO’s WATCHMEN Series Adds Jeremy Irons

Jeremy Irons

In some news that’s sure to grab the attention of many a genre fan, Oscar winner Jeremy Irons has boarded HBO’s upcoming Watchmen series.

Deadline broke the news, with Irons to play a new, original character in the show. If you remember back, Damon Lindelof’s Watchmen will a completely new story loosely set in and around what fans know and love about Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ iconic 1986 miniseries. Where Irons is concerned, his role is reportedly that of an “aging and imperious lord of a British manor”.

Recently seen as Alfred in the DC Extended Universe, Irons joins a cast that features The Leftovers’ Regina King, Django Unchained’s Don Johnson, Lincoln’s Tim Blake Nelson, An Officer and a Gentleman’s Louis Gossett Jr., The Brave’s Andrew Howard, and Rectify’s Adelaide Clemens. No details are known on just which characters any of these names are playing, although Regina King is believed to be the lead role of the series.

Watchmen began life back in 1986 as a twelve-issue miniseries from Moore and Gibbons, soon going on to become a hugely acclaimed classic and a tale regularly cited as one of the greatest comic book/graphic novel stories of all time. A big screen adaptation finally happened in 2009, with Zack Snyder directing a huge blockbuster starring the likes of Billy Crudup, Malin Akerman, Jackie Earle Haley, Matthew Goode, Patrick Wilson, Carla Gugino, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.

Expect more on Watchmen as it continues to develop.

AMC Cancels COMIC BOOK MEN

Comic Book Men

Here at Moonbase Alpha, we’re huge, huge fans of Kevin Smith. And so, it’s sad to hear that, as the headline suggests, Smith’s Comic Book Men has been canned by AMC.

Smith himself took to Twitter to confirm the news:

The series proved to be massively popular with Smith fans, and even with those who aren’t all that keen on the work of the Clerks helmer. While good ol’ Kev Smith was initially the draw to many, it was Walt Flanagan, Ming Chen, Bryan Johnson, and Mike Zapcic who largely took centre-stage as the series highlighted the day-to-day life at Smith’s Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash store in New Jersey.

Comic Book Men managed to run for an impressive 96 episodes, and the eight seasons made for some truly fascinating viewing for those with a leaning towards the world of cult entertainment; especially when it comes to collectibles.

At this stage, Smith is working on a whole host of projects, and it appears that the long-awaited Jay and Silent Bob Get a Reboot movie is set to be released at some point next year.

More recently, the much-loved Kev actually has a fun supporting role in Lowell Dean’s Another WolfCop, which is on DVD, Blu-ray, and VOD from July 2nd.

IT: CHAPTER 2 Adds Teach Grant and Jess Weixler

Teach Grant, Jess Weixler IT: Chapter 2

With IT: Chapter 2 having now found its adult Losers Club, the adult version of Henry Bowers has been cast for the sequel – meaning that, yes, he did indeed manage to survive the sinister shenanigans that we saw play out in 1989.

As per Variety, Leprechaun: Origins’ Teach Grant has been brought in to play the adult take on Henry; a character whose younger self was played by Nicholas Hamilton in IT. Additionally, Teeth’s Jess Weixler has signed on to play the wife of James McAvoy’s Bill.

In addition to McAvoy as Bill, the adult Losers Club is made up of Jessica Chastain as Beverly, Bill Hader as Richie, Andy Bean as Stanley, Isaiah Mustafa as Mike, James Ransone as Eddie, and Jay Ryan as Ben. Elsewhere, Xavier Dolan is playing Pennywise victim Adrian Mellon, and Will Beinbrink is Beverly’s abusive husband Tom Rogan. And of course, Bill Skarsgard will be returning to cause chaos and carnage as Pennywise.

IT: Chapter 2 will see the adult Losers Club return to Derry for one last battle with Pennywise, with the action picking up 27 years after the first picture.

To once again be directed by Andy Muschietti, IT: Chapter 2 is currently set for a September 2019 release.