Sigourney Weaver Cast as Defenders Villain

Big news from New York Comic Con. First of all, all four of The Defenders (Daredevil – Charlie Cox, Jessica Jones – Krysten Ritter, Luke Cage – Mike Coulter and Iron Fist – Finn Jones) appeared together for the first time. Awesome.

It was then announced that Sigourney Weaver would be playing a ‘significant but unspecified’ role in Marvel’s The Defenders – although it was disclosed that she would be the villain.

Jeph Loeb, head of Marvel Television, said “Marvel is honoured to have an actress of her caliber and status… she is by definition a class act.”

Sigourney Weaver is no stranger to the geek-sphere, having starred in the Alien movies, the Ghostbusters movies, Wall-E, Paul, Avatar, Galaxy Quest, Chappie and (of course) Finding Dory. This will mark her debut in the Marvel Universe.

Marvel’s Iron Fist will land on Netflix 17th March 2017. The Defenders still appears to be on track for a 2017 release (although this is still TBC)

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The Weekend’s Top 10 Box Office Chart 7th-9th October 2016

Hey movie fans! It’s chart time again. Let’s see what performed well this weekend. While I was in bed with a cold, the long awaited adaptation of The Girl on the Train was released. Did the fan’s go crazy for Emily Blunt‘s performance as the Girl, or did they all just go and see Sully again to keep it in the chart?!? Let’s take a look!

Chart Legend

Rank / Movie Title / Studio

W/E Gross = Weekend Gross /T/Gross= Total Gross /LW= Last Week

Green = UP / Red = DOWN / Blue = No Movement / Teal = New

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BOX OFFICE MOVIE CHART

1. The Girl on the Train/Uni

W/E Gross           T/Gross          LW

$24,660,000       $24,660,000    NEW

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2. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children/ Fox

W/E Gross           T/Gross         LW

$15,000,000        $51,053,483    #1

 

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3. Deepwater Horizon / LG/S

W/E Gross         T/Gross          LW

$11,750,000     $38,518,388      #2

 

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4. The Magnificent Seven (2016) / Sony

W/E Gross        T/Gross          LW

$9,150,000      $75,915,393       #3

 

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5. Storks/ WB

W/E Gross       T/Gross          LW

$8,450,000     $50,118,494       #4

 

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6. The Birth of a Nation/ FoxS

W/E Gross      T/Gross          LW

$7,1000,000    $7,100,000     NEW

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7. Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life/ LGF

W/E Gross      T/Gross          LW

$6,900,000     $6,900,000      NEW

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8. Sully / WB

W/E Gross       T/Gross        LW

$5,270,000    $113,485,432     #5

 

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9. Masterminds/ Rela.

W/E Gross      T/Gross         LW

$4,100,000     $12,788,325     #6

 

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10. Queen of Katwe / BV

W/E Gross       T/Gross         LW

$,618,000        $12,788,325    #7

 

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So there we have it. The Girl on the Train has steamed in to number one, Miss Peregrine lost the top spot after only one week, and Sully is clinging on in the chart for a fifth week. See you next week!

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Power Rangers Teaser Trailer drops

OK I will be the first to admit it; I really want to see this movie. And it’s thanks to the trailer just recently released. This movie does not look cheesy in any way; in fact it looks darker, more up to date with how the times are. It looks bad arse.

You have the chosen ones, but they are outcasts, troubled kids who don’t fit in. Which is a nice change I think. I mean don’t get me wrong, the perky happy go lucky rangers we all grew up with have always been fun to watch, but I think for a bigger fan base, this kind of change was needed. The movie is not super bright, with vibrant colors, all rainbows and sunshine, but it’s dark, deep, and full of grey undertones. If you look at The Avengers, Man of Steel, Ant Man, and so on, they all have a kind of a ‘grittiness’ which brings us into the story more. Makes it feel real and less like we are watching a fantasy. Taking the Rangers to this darker side (hehe the dark side) I feel, will bring more in fan base wise. In other words, all ages instead of just the little ones.

Check out the preview below. It’s pretty sweet. I definitely enjoyed it and can’t wait for the movie to come out this March 2017. I haven’t watched a Power Rangers movie since the very first one (yes I love that movie) and am pretty excited to see this one. ^_^

Star Wars Han Solo Spinoff: Three actresses up for Female Lead

We’re just a couple of months away from the premiere of the first Star Wars spin-off, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.  We now have Han Solo movie news that the studio has narrowed down the list of actresses for the female lead in the movie. 

From the left, Tess Thompson (Creed, Upcoming Thor: Ragnarok), Zoe Kravitz (Divergent Series,Mad Max Fury Road), and Naomi Scott (The Martian, Upcoming Power Rangers Movie) have all auditioned.  Early speculation is that the chosen one will be portraying Sana Solo, Han’s wife, from the Marvel Star Wars comics.

Alden Ehrenreich (Beautiful Creatures, Hail Caesar!) is playing the young Han Solo in the prequel to the original trilogy.  Production is scheduled to start in early 2017.  Phil Lord and Chris Miller will direct.  The movie is set to be released in May 2018.

No word yet if Lando Calrissian will be cast in this movie, but there is a big push for Donald Glover (Community, Atlanta) to take on the role of the smooth talker.

 

War for the Planet of the Apes Teaser Trailer and NYCC News

Big week for Planet of the Apes fans.  The latest movie, War of the Planet of the Apes, release this teaser trailer featuring Caesar, give no a warning that War has  begun…expect things to get dark.

The War of the Planet of the Apes stars Andy Serkis doing his motion capture thing with Caesar again,Woody Harrelson as the Colonel, and Judy Greer as Cornelia. The plot synposis says:

In War for the Planet of the Apes, the third chapter of the critically acclaimed blockbuster franchise, Caesar and his apes are forced into a deadly conflict with an army of humans led by a ruthless Colonel. After the apes suffer unimaginable losses, Caesar wrestles with his darker instincts and begins his own mythic quest to avenge his kind. As the journey finally brings them face to face, Caesar and the Colonel are pitted against each other in an epic battle that will determine the fate of both their species and the future of the planet.

And on Saturday at New York Comic Con, Serkis, Matt Reeves and Dylan Clarke gave the audience more information about the movie and a the first seven minutes of the film.

Serkis said to expect a much darker side of Caesar in this film. “This is where he loses it” Serkis stated, also saying that Caesar feels guilty about killing his ape friend Koba in Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Caesar begins to see the dark side of humanity as his adversary, The Colonel, continues to attack and kill apes.  Caesar guilt turns to anger and Serkis says,  “Caesar’s desire for revenge becomes obsessive.”

Though the story is straying way from a human perspective, Reeves said that it’s through Maurice, the orangutang that we see the most humanity.  Maurice will be the moral compass of the apes as he tries to remind Caesar of his empathy that was instilled in him, because he was raised by humans.

The Colonel represents the human perspective as they fight to survive.  He is not a villain, but an antagonist, Reeves said.  “He’s extreme, but his world is extreme.”  The Colonel will stop at nothing to save the human race.  

Clarke said the film is more like an epic war movie.  Reeves stated that they were influenced by films like Apocalypse Now, Platoon as well as Ben Hur, and westerns like The Outlaw Josey Wells.  

 The film is set to be released July 14, 2017 in the US.

Luke Cage SN1 EP09-‘DWYCK’

Luke’s past turns out to be the key to his survival as we learnt more about what makes Misty tick.

With only four episodes left to go Luke Cage is in a kind of transitional period. Things aren’t quite reaching a climax yet, but we’re getting significant developments for each character that are setting them up for the final stretch. Individually, these plot threads are interesting, as it makes us see characters in a new light. However, combined they make up a less than exciting episode. Not a bad one, but not a great one either. I found this to be the first episode of the show where my attention waned, so things need to pick up moving into the final stretch.

As I said, individually all the elements at play here worked really well. Misty’s interrogation was a particular highlight as it warmed me to the character a bit. Misty has rarely been easy to like throughout the season. We’re conditioned to like her as she’s clearly one of the good guys, but every action the character made in regards to Luke went against that. It’s fine pushing the whole dedicated cop character, but we need context as to why we should view her actions as a good thing. We were finally given this during the episode. In a shining moment that unfortunately reflects the real world, both in past and present, Misty recounts the story that drove her to ‘stalking justice’. Leaving her friend for a moment just to get a drink of Lemonade, saw her friend taken and beaten to death. It was an extremely important moment for the show. It’s in a unique position featuring a primarily black cast, and it should be commended for not shying away from the horrors faced by that community. Yes, this is a Marvel show designed to entertain, but it also has the power to make a statement and to educate in a way that most other shows just aren’t.

It was through this powerful moment that Misty’s character improved. For so long we’ve seen her adamant to take Luke down regardless of whether he’s guilty or not, but the reason why was unclear. Now we know it was to maintain control to make up for days when she had none, the character becomes wholly more sympathetic, as well as a lot stronger. Her vendetta against Luke may not be over, and I daresay I won’t be a fan of what course she takes to pursue that, but for now I see a strong woman determined to do right by the law in honour of those it had let down. I didn’t think it possible, but the writers, in one outstanding moment, made me care for Misty Knight. Not just care. Actively root for.

Mariah also went through a significant transformation this episode. She may have fallen from grace in the political world, but she has risen through the ranks of the criminal world to emerge in one of the top spots. What’s so fascinating about her is that she’s so far from being your typical villain. Her murder of Cottonmouth feels like a one and done kind of deal, whilst she makes it very clear throughout the episode that she doesn’t want to take Cottonmouth’s place. I thought her inner beast had been unleashed as she bludgeoned Cottonmouth to death, but she’s still holding back. Even her advice to Diamondback was done out of fear of being killed, though the excitement and readiness of what she said makes it seem like she sees herself as a part of that world. However, it’s her hesitation that makes her so fascinating. There’s always been a level of ingenuity to Marvel’s Netflix villains, but Mariah is so much more complex. The way she toes the line makes her unpredictable, and that is very exciting indeed.

It’s crazy to think how much of Luke’s past we don’t actually know about yet, but in this episode we came one step closer to learning the truth with the reappearance of Doctor Burnstein. I commented before that I didn’t think the show was done with him, he seemed like an all too important character to appear so briefly. Plus, he is played by an established actor, so it was unlikely he’d agree to a bit part. Whenever Luke ended up getting hurt, it was unlikely that it’d be easy to fix him, so I’m glad to see them mixing his recovery with giving us more details on his past. There seems to be a lot more to Luke’s accident than has been let on. Reva apparently didn’t tell him everything, so hopefully that means we’ll see another appearance by her very soon.

Of course in an episode that saw a man dipped in boiling acid there are bound to be moments I missed, so other notable highlights include:

• Shades rose up, then promptly fell back down again. Only saved by Zip of all people. Looks like he has higher ambitions than Diamondback will allow him to. I sense confrontation. I also sense that Shades will lose. Hard.

• Speaking of Diamondback, he has skills. I imagine throwing a knife directly into a man’s eye is not an easy job. Shades said he was no Houdini but I disagree. He’s the truly formidable villain this show has needed.

• Why do I feel like Luke telling Claire to kill Doctor Burnstein if she has to will turn out to come true? You can’t corrupt Claire!

• Shades mentions the video of Luke throwing a cop went viral. Criminals in 2016: Using viral marketing to get ahead in business.

• So Misty strangled a witness and still got her badge back. I know I like her now and all, but damn if that’s not corrupt!

Overall this turned out to be one of the weaker episodes of Luke Cage. Everything worked really well separately, so you’d think bringing it all together would make for an excellent episode, but unfortunately not. There wasn’t much here to get excited about. We’ve already seen Luke in pain for one episode, so it felt like a lot of that could have been cut out of this one. Likewise, whilst there were some truly shining moments, Misty’s interrogation dragged on too long. There are four episodes left now, but at the moment, there isn’t much reason to be excited about what’s coming up. We know a confrontation between Luke and just about everyone is headed our way, but in the meantime, what’s gonna happen?

Ocean’s Eight will be Released in Summer 2018

The rumours are true! The all-female reboot of the Ocean’s franchise has been green lit and is on schedule to hit cinemas in Summer 2018.

Ocean’s Eight, which will be a reboot of the heist series (which itself was a reboot – picked up by George Clooney in 2002) will feature eight actresses leading the way. Top of the bill is Sandra Bullock, heading up a cast which also includes Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham-Carter, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna and Awkwafina.

The movie is see to be directed by Gary Ross (The Hunger Games) and will be produced by Ocean’s Eleven director Steven Soderbergh.

No details of the plot or characters have been released, however with big hitters like Bullock, Blanchett, Bonham-Carter and Hathaway (as well as the insanely talented Kaling) on board, hopefully it will have some substance as well as style. I really want this to be a worthwhile reboot!

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The Walking Dead Season 7: Traumatising Sneak Peek Released

We are now just two weeks away from ‘The Walking Dead’ Season 7 premiere, and the cast and crew yesterday took to New York Comic Con to talk about what we could expect from the new season. Of course, given the inability to talk about who’s dead or not, there were a lot of non-answers. We do know one person is alive though, and that’s Rick. I don’t think anyone ever believed he would be killed, but a scene from the premiere released by AMC shows some of the aftermath to Negan’s brutal kill.

As you can see, Rick is understandably not too happy. However there are some clues we can gleam from this rather ominous scene. There’s a spattering of blood on the right side of Rick’s face that wasn’t present in the Season 6 finale. This suggests that Negan’s victim was to the right of him, placing Maggie, Abraham, Rosita, Michonne, Daryl and Glenn in the crosshairs. This is all but confirmed as the camera tilts down, revealing a gruesome pool of blood and guts on the floor. In addition, Rick looks to be in further peril as he’s dragged off to the RV by Negan. Whatever goes down in the season premiere, it promises to be a traumatising affair, so we all best prepare for what’s to come.

‘The Walking Dead’ Season 7 premieres Sunday, October 23rd 9pm on AMC in the US, then Monday, October 24th 9pm on FOX in the UK.

Lynda Carter to Attend Wonder Woman Day

The United Nations will be declaring 21st October Wonder Woman Day – a whole day dedicated to Wonder Woman! To celebrate the United States Postal Service is releasing a series of stamps dedicated to the heroine and Lynda Carter will be the guest of honour at the ceremony. In a statement, the original Wonder Woman said, “to honor Wonder Woman and women all over the world is just amazing.”

"I want it to move to the next generation of women, and inspire the next generation of women." https://t.co/I0V8JrmB64

— Lynda Carter (@RealLyndaCarter) October 8, 2016

The stamps, which have been released to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the super heroine, features the art of Cliff Chiang, José Luis García-López, Irving Novick and   Jon L Blummer. The images depict Wonder Woman in the Modern Age, the Bronze Age, the Silver Age and the Golden Age.

Lynda Carter, who has recently been spending her time voicing characters on video games, has a new DC role in the works, appearing as President Olivia Marsdin in Supergirl.

Wonder Woman’s popularity is growing too with Gal Gadot‘s solo outing due next year and her own UN day in a couple of weeks. Not bad for an old lady!

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Luke Cage SN1 EP08-‘Blowin’ Up The Spot’

Diamondback finally made his brutal debut as the villains stepped things up a notch.

For the first half of this season Cottonmouth has been the titular villain, with others such as Shades and Mariah forced into the background. As great as Cottonmouth was, this episode here was superb because of all the interesting characters it started to build upon. Not only did the aforementioned Shades and Mariah emerge from the shadows, but the ominous Diamondback made a serious first impression.

Diamondback has been alluded to for quite some time now, but the man we met in this episode was far from what I imagined. From everything we’d heard about him, he seemed like the kind of man who would let others do his dirty work for him, so it was nice to see him so hands on here. Of course it’s obvious that Luke was a bit more than dirty work to him, as the two surprisingly share a murky past together. Diamondback is clearly unhinged. His disturbing treatment of Misty was enough to show that. However, there was a clear sense that we weren’t getting the whole picture with him. He’s the man who essentially runs Harlem. The man whose name makes everyone fall in line. Building that kind of name takes effort, and more importantly, intelligence. The Diamondback we saw here was a man with a clear vendetta against Luke, and that makes him an all-round fascinating character. For a man of that power to be so obsessed with Luke suggests a rich history, which will be very exciting to explore.

So whilst Diamondback was busy hunting Luke, Mariah and Shades were making sure he’d have no one left to turn to. Their manipulation of the situation was impressive to watch, and revealed a bit more about the both of them. Shades has clearly been biding his time to Cottonmouth’s downfall, and now that it’s come he’s as happy as can be. I’ve mentioned before how his endgame has been unclear. He worked for Diamondback yes, but there always seemed to be a secondary ambition to his time spent around Cottonmouth. Clearly then he wants a piece of the kingdom to himself, and with Cottonmouth gone, is happy to crown himself King. It presents yet another problem for Luke and Co, and a defining problem in general. Take one criminal down, and more will take their place. In fact, given that both Mariah and Shades sprung from Cottonmouth’s death, we might as well apply the old Hydra motto.

Whereas Shades’ ambition is now clear, Mariah became a much more complex character thanks to this ordeal. Since Episode 1 she’s played second fiddle to Cottonmouth, always pushed into the shadows, to the point where it was a wonder why the character was even there. Now she’s taken Cottonmouth’s spot, and events are so much more complicated for it. She’s edging into the ‘gangster’ lifestyle she’s so often dismissed, and whilst it seems a natural fit for the character, what with the way she lies so expertly, something about it felt off. Why would someone who has so often denounced the ways of that lifestyle suddenly become so interested in partaking in them herself? The answer, Shades. As the clever moments with Mama Mabel remind us, Mariah can be quite easily manipulated. Mama Mabel moulded Mariah into the person she wanted her to be, and now Shades is doing the same. He essentially controls her whilst making her believe she holds all the power. It’s a significant shift in the power balance, and it should be interesting to see how long that holds before Mariah takes charge.

Of course there are often lots of moments in an episode worthy of comment, so other notable highlights include:

• Misty, Misty, Misty. I keep going back and forth with that character. Just when I think she’s turning a corner and becoming somewhat good, she goes and pulls a stunt like strangling Claire. Clearly she has a lot of issues, but she’s becoming a serious problem. The character is strong, there’s no doubt about that. The scene with Diamondback was a superb demonstration of that, but it’s too hard to get invested in a character that it’s so easy to hate. There’s gonna be characters like that on every show, and for good reason, but that character really shouldn’t be one of the leads.

• The theatre brawl between Luke and Diamondback felt a little clunky in places. The editing made parts look like it was clearly a choreographed piece.

• Claire’s Ambulance driver friend was the best. He picks up a guy that has been shot in the stomach, has his Ambulance attacked and flipped on its side, and is still pretty cool about it. His first thought was making sure Luke and Claire got out alright. I’d say let’s have him on again, but they’d probably kill him off next time.

• How badass was Claire this episode? Not only did she have a stab at fighting Diamondback (see what I did there) she also had a massive confrontation with Misty. It was so satisfying to watch Claire put Misty in her place, and I would love to see her get payback for the strangling.

• Continuing my praise for Claire, the rapport between her and Luke continues to be the best.

So concludes another episode of Luke Cage, and whilst things are definitely picking up, a certain character is dragging everything back down. The proper emergence of Shades, Mariah and Diamondback as true villains was excellent to watch, as they each have their own distinct styles. Likewise, Claire evolved into an even greater character this episode, whilst some shock reveals about Luke’s past should make things very interesting going forward. Misty unfortunately continues to be a problem, and one I’m not sure the show should put up with much longer.