Doctor Strange Takes $86 Million in Overseas Opening Weekend

Doctor Strange doesn’t open in America until Friday 4th November, however after rave reviews from the critics, Benedict Cumberbatch‘s debut in the Marvel Universe took in a small fortune with the overseas market. The film opened in 33 territories, including the UK, parts of Europe, Mexico, Hong Kong and Korea, taking an amazing $86 million. Unsurprisingly, it was the top grossing film in nearly all markets.

The film, that has been praised for its breathtaking visuals, did particularly well with the IMAX market. Many fans have recommended fans see the movie in IMAX or 4D to get the full impact of the special effects (shout out to the good folks at The Geek Asylum Facebook group who were awesome at sharing their reviews with me on this subject!).

The film will be opening across more big markets across the week; as well as the US, the Doctor will be in for audiences in China, Brazil, Japan and Russia. If it does as well i those areas, it will be one of the biggest successes Marvel has had. Disney has commented that even prior to the American release, Doctor Strange has opened ahead of Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Not a bad performance for a lesser known character.

Doctor Strange tells the origin story of talented-but-arrogant surgeon Stephen Strange, whose life is changed following an accident. He goes on a journey to heal himself, and unlocks his magical potential. It stars Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), Tilda Swinton (We Need To Talk About Kevin), Mads Mikkelson (Hannibal) and Rachel McAdams (Mean Girls).

Doctor Strange is in UK cinemas now and will be released in the USA on 4th November

Follow me on Twitter @pixiewose

The Weekend’s Top 10 Box Office Chart 28th – 30th October 2016

Here we are again, movie fans! Sorry the chart is a day late, but it was Halloween, and as such, I HAD to watch Nightmare on Elm Street and eat sweets. I know you’ve been waiting to find out what’s been going on in the box office. Sadly, we’ll have to wait another week to see the impact Marvel’s latest offering, Doctor Strange, has on the charts as it’s not out in the USA until Friday. It had a fantastic weekend overseas, so it should make for a smash hit next week! Let’s see how the charts changed this week.

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

---

---

BOX OFFICE MOVIE CHART

1. Boo! A Madea Halloween /LGF

W/E Gross         T/Gross          LW

$17,220,312      $ 52,564,655      #1

---

2. Inferno/Sony

W/E Gross         T/Gross          LW

$14,860,425      $ 14,860,425     NEW

---

3. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back/Par

W/E Gross         T/Gross          LW

$9,640,747          $ 39,769,924     #2

---

4. The Accountant/ WB

W/E Gross          T/Gross         LW

$8,481,052          $61,263,224      #4

---

5.Ouija: Origin of Evil/Uni

W/E Gross          T/Gross         LW

$7,110,185           $24,678,810     #3

---

6. The Girl on the Train/Uni

W/E Gross           T/Gross          LW

$4,387,015           $66,035,495      #5

---

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

W/E Gross             T/Gross            LW

$4,073,674            $79,977,854         #6

---

8. Keeping Up with the Joneses/ Fox

W/E Gross             T/Gross           LW

$3,390,107           $10,794,420         #7

---

9. Storks / WB

W/E Gross            T/Gross            LW

$2,851,140            $68,310,752        #9

---

10. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil/ Fip

W/E Gross            T/Gross           LW

$2,190,042            $2,190,042        New

---

So there we have it for another week. The chart is pretty much unchanged this week – 2 new entries, 3 non-movers and 5 gradually sliding down the chart. You just can’t keep Tom Hanks out of the top 10, can you? No sooner has Sully left the ranks, Inferno dashes in at number 2! Join me again next week to see how the charts are looking for the first time in November.

Follow me on Twitter @pixiewose

Simpsons Executive Producer James L Brooks Teases A Simpsons Movie Sequel, But What Should The Plot Be?

Could Spider-Pig soon be returning to the big screen?

Well, it certainly looks like it.

The Simpsons‘ executive producer James L Brooks has teased the possibility of a Simpsons Movie sequel. Speaking to online news site LRM, he teased “Fox very much wants us to do another one, and maybe we will and maybe we won’t – that’s where it is. How do we divide our labours, and do we believe in the idea we have? We may go into a more active exploration of a second movie soon…”

But what should the plot of The Simpsons Movie 2 be? Here are a few ideas I’d like to see on the big screen.

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Movie

You might be wondering why there’s a picture of the Marge robot from the season 13 clip show Gump Roast under the heading ‘Treehouse of Horror‘. Well, that’s because I want to see a Treehouse of Horror Simpsons Movie 2 where Marge becomes a robot. I know this was done in a fantasy sequence in The Heartbroke Kid but I want to see a feature-length version of the idea. Obviously the Treehouse of Horror ‘three stories in one episode’ approach wouldn’t work in a movie, so it would make sense for the focus to be narrowed down on one idea – and the Robot Marge storyline would have plenty of potential. Let’s explore further the idea of Marge becoming a Terminator-esque robot. What if she has to assassinate her own family? Imagine Bart and Lisa running for their lives from their own robot mother. It would be hugely exciting to see and give the writers plenty of ways to parody the Terminator series (which at this point has pretty much become a self-parody of itself).

Sideshow Bob Becomes U.S. President

How much worse can it get than your entire neighbourhood turning being against you?

The entire country, of course.

And who hates The Simpsons more than anyone else?

Sideshow Bob.

So what if Sideshow Bob became president of the United States? In a world where Donald Trump could become U.S. president, this is a very real, very scary and very topical prospect.  The Simpsons is at its best when it’s topical and placing Sideshow Bob in charge of America would create extreme amounts of danger and peril for The Simpsons family. Just imagine a world where the guy who wants to kill you is suddenly voted democratically into the world’s most powerful job role. Sideshow Bob would no longer have to rely on himself to kill Bart; now he’d have the entire army at his disposal.

Hank Scorpio Returns

Who doesn’t want to see Hank Scorpio return? He is an amazing parody of James Bond villains and it’s a travesty the character has only been featured in the series once. A Simpsons Movie 2 could change that. My proposed Scorpio return plot would see Hank team up with Mr Burns on a nuclear weapons project, where the pair scheme to nuke Springfield from the face of the Earth.

The only other person who knows about this plan?

Homer Simpson. And after the environmental problems he caused in the previous film, the other Springfielders (including his own family) don’t believe him.

Nuclear weapons is a major concern at the moment, so to make it a big threat in the next Simpsons Movie would (as with my previous point) help to make the film topical.

Simpsons v Flintstones: Dawn of Bedrock

Crossovers are all the rage at the moment, with the massive Marvel Cinematic Universe showing no signs of slowing down and DC throwing their two most popular superheroes together in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. So why not see the two most iconic animated families meet in a feature-length adventure?

I’d love to see what happens when Homer Simpson meets Fred Flintstone – and a Marge and Wilma friendship would be interesting. The easy option would be for the Flintstones to end up in the present day due to a time travel mechanic, however I’d like to see a time travel experiment by Professor Frink accidentally send the Simpsons back in time to before Bedrock even existed. Essentially this would be a prequel to The Flintstones and a standalone sequel to The Simpsons Movie. Lisa’s reaction to the way prehistoric animals are used in place of modern technology would be fun and there could be some entertaining parallels presented between Homer and Fred. Both clearly have anger management issues. Essentially however the story would be The Simpsons trying to find a way to return to their own time and accept the possibility that they may never be able to return to the modern day. It could be quite a moving story if done right, with plenty of opportunities for witty observations.

Spider-Pig Gains Superpowers

A big part of The Simpsons Movie’s success was Spider-Pig, so why not have a sequel that capitalises on that? I want to see Spider-Pig actually become Spider-Pig. I want to see what happens when a pig is bitten by a radioactive spider. Does he decide to save the very people who eat his kind for Sunday dinner? Or does he turn to the dark side and go on a human killing spree? And if he does go dark, would the Simpsons family be able to stop him?

Superheroes are a big thing at the moment so don’t be surprised if they decide to go down that path. However with The Incredibles 2 and The LEGO Batman Movie both set for release, would it really be wise for Twentieth Century Fox to copy what other animated features are doing?

Those are my ideas for The Simpsons Movie 2, but what would you like to see in a proposed sequel? Let me know in the comments below.

Get Ready To Tuck Into Your Bushtucker! I’m A Celebrity Returns Sunday 13th November

Good news, I’m A Celebrity fans, for ITV have today announced that the popular reality series will return Sunday 13th November at 9:00pm. Ant & Dec will again return as hosts, although there has been no word on whether Medic Bob and Kiosk Keith are back.

Celebrities rumoured to take part this time round include former Coronation Street actor Craig Charles, Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt and UKIP leader-by-default Nigel Farage.

Yeah…I can’t see Nigel Farage going in either. Who knows, though. Former Liberal Democrats politician Lembit Opik took part in the 2010 series and he’s certainly much more likely than Sir Cliff Richard (another rumoured name).

I’m A Celebrity will be taking over from period drama series Tutankhamun, which is due to end this Sunday.

New Guardians of the Galaxy Wallpaper Available Now!

Last week, the internet went crazy for the sneak peek and new poster that James Gunn released for the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy vol 2. To celebrate, geek site ComicBookMovie.com have designed some fab new wallpapers for your desktop or mobile device.

You might want Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) and Drax (Dave Bautista)

or Gamora (Zoe Salanda):

ah, who are we kidding? You’re going to want Rocket (Bradley Cooper) and Groot (Vin Diesel):

You’re only human, after all!

Guardians of the Galaxy vol 2 is due for release 28th April in the U.K. and 5th May in the US.

Follow me on Twitter @pixiewose

Jim Gaffigan Cast in Fargo Season 3

Last month, Fargo fans were treated to news that series three was getting some top drawer cast. Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting) will be playing two brothers, Carrie Coon (Gone Girl) will play the police chief at the centre of the story, Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Scott Pilgrim vs The World) will play a parolee and (my personal favourite) Scoot McNairy (Halt and Catch Fire) will play an as yet undisclosed season regular.

The latest news from the Fargo camp is that the FX show has cast comedian Jim Gaffigan to join season 3, in the role of a police deputy who works alongside Gloria. Gaffigan, who is best know for his stand up comedy and TV Land’s The Jim Gaffigan Show (which Gaffigan and his wife recently left to spend more time with their family), is thrilled to be joining Noah Hawley and co:

@FargoFX @TVLine Sooo excited!

— Jim Gaffigan (@JimGaffigan) October 29, 2016

Season 3 of Fargo is starting production now, and is due for release in 2017.

Follow me on Twitter @pixiewose

Doctor Strange Gets Great Early Reviews

Doctor Strange news has been a bit thin on the ground in the the run up to its release. Benedict Cumberbatch‘s debut into the Marvel universe was released in the U.K. this week, and will open Stateside next weekend, however critics are already talking about it… and they really like it!

Currently, the film is at 93% on review compendium Rotten Tomatoes, denoting similar quality to other MCU favourites Avengers Assemble (92%), Guardians of the Galaxy (91%) and Iron Man (94%). The site, which forms an aggregate score based on both reviewer and audience opinion, has always found Marvel films to rate higher than DC films, where latest outings such as Suicide Squad floundered with a score of 26%.

The reviews are very complimentary about the tone of the movie:

“Yes, Doctor Strange will change the tone of Marvel movies going forward, and that’s a very good thing.”

                            – Rich Cline, Contactmusic.com

the visuals:

“Visually, this is Inception dialled up to eleven, a world-bending, shape-shifting and time-distorting Escher painting filled with heroes and villains duelling over the possibility of immortality.”

                     -Tom Glasson, Concrete Playground

and the leading man:

“Cumberbatch fits Doctor Strange like a pair of snap-tight surgical gloves, in yet another MCU triumph. Beautifully designed, brilliantly executed.”

                                – James Mottram, Total Film

It certainly looks like Marvel Studios might have another hit on their hands, and I’ll be interested to see where it enters the box office charts after its first major weekend. Will the fans love it as much as the critics?

If you’ve seen Doctor Strange and want to share your thoughts, why not tweet us @skatronixxx or leave a comment below?

Follow me on Twitter @pixiewose

Scream Queens S2 EP3 – ‘Handidates’

(From the left) Billie Lourd as Chanel No.3, Emma Roberts as Chanel Oberlin, Abigail Breslin as Chanel No.5

 

This episode left us in shock and despair as a fan-favourite character was found dead. That’s if they are really dead? A girl can hope! 😉

The episode began with the Chanel’s finding wart-covered Tyler’s body, and of course Chanel Oberlin assumes the killer is Chanel No.5, even though she was with them the whole time. They are interrupted by Munsch, who helps them dump the body in the swamp because she doesn’t want the murders to ruin the reputation of the hospital.

Meanwhile, Randall the screamy, jumpy patient from last episode is next to fall victim to the ‘green meanie’.

Chad informs Munsch that Dr. Holt’s hand belonged to a serial killer, suggesting he must be the ‘green meanie’. Munsch not convinced, suggests Holt should have another hand transplant from someone less murdery anyway. This leads Chad to choose some new ‘handidates’ for Holt, which they discuss in yet another shower scene, but you don’t hear us complaining.

While curing a woman (Cheri Oteri) with very frequent orgasms, the relationship between Chanel No.3 and Cassidy gets steamy, even making out in the middle of surgery. As the two open up to each other, we learn why Cassidy is so cold, because he’s dead. Yep, you read that right! He died on his 18^th birthday as he chocked and suffocated on his on vomit, but somehow is still breathing. That is why he became a doctor, to work out how he is alive but also dead, maybe he’s a zombie.

A clue from Hester leads the Chanels, Munsch, Zayday and Denise Hemphill to the only survivor to the Hospital Halloween Massacre. Who believes the killer is the child of the patient whom was left for dead in the swamp the Halloween before the massacre. They deduct the killer must be 30, and is obviously 6ft or taller. This makes the main suspects; Chad Radwell, Chamberlin, Dr. Cassidy Cascade.

This rules Dr. Holt out, meaning he no longer needs a new hand, which is fortunate, as Chad planned to do the procedures awake.

After a heated exchange between Chad and Holt about Chanel, Chad proposes to her. With the wedding planned for the next day, and with no friends left alive, Chad asks Holt to be his best man. Dr. Holt seems very annoyed but they agree the marriage probably won’t last 6 months meaning then Chanel is all his.

As the cured patient (Cheri Oteri) is about to leave alongside Zayday and Chamberlin, the ‘green meanie’ chops off her head and stabs Chamberlin. However, they hesitate to kill Zayday and runaway. Why didn’t they try to kill her too? Does she know the killer?

On the wedding day, Chanel makes it down the aisle but Chad is nowhere to be seen. Then Chad falls through the ceiling, dead. This answers my question from last week, are they brave enough to kill off the much loved main cast this season. Fan-favourite Chad Radwell will surely be missed, his absence will surely be noticed, especially his interactions with Dr. Holt.

At the end, they have given into Hester’s demands as she moves into the hospital, in the hope she will reveal who the killer is.

Some things we still want to know; Why didn’t the ‘green meanie’ kill Zayday? How does Hester know who the ‘green meanie’ is? Will Holt be able to keep his killer hand under control? Where was Nurse Hoffel during this episode? Will Chanel No.3 and Cassidy’s relationship last? Will Dean Munsch survive the season? Who is the ‘green meanie’? And who killed Chad? The ‘green meanie’ or was Dr. Holt overcome with jealousy? Although, I’m not totally convinced he will stay dead, who knows maybe he managed to fake his death, we can only hope!

Do you think you have worked out who the killer is? Let us know your theories in the comments.

Check out a clip for the next episode below:

Lucifer SN2-EP5 ‘Weaponizer’

Last week Lucifer and Decker investigate a serial killer. After the bodies of two young L.A. transplants are found poisoned, Maze convinces Chole to go out for drinks, in which she perceives as an act of friendship, but as we know, it was a bet between Maze and Lucifer.

SN2-EP5 ‘Weaponizer’

This week we meet Lucifer (Tom Ellis) and Amenadiel’s (D.B. Woodside) brother Uriel (Michael Imperioli) when he caused the accident that Chloe (Lauren German) was involved in. Lucifer suspects the accident was the work of his father’s intervention, Lucifer is equally pissed that Maze (Lesley-Ann Brandt) and Chole are still moving in together, Maze has brought some of her essentials (weapons and sex toys) to Chloe ‘s place before the move. Decker and Lucifer arrive at the crime scene and Lucifer identifies the victim as Wesley Cabot, the star of his favourite action movies, the Body Bags series.

Cabot was an eighth-degree black belt with a cocaine problem, but Ella (Aimee Garcia) confirms that Cabot was killed by an awards statue around 7 a.m, Ella still thinks Lucifer is a method actor and as he tries to convince her otherwise he sees his brother Uriel finds him on top of the building. Uriel visit to earth is not a social call, he tells Lucifer he has 24 hours to either bring their mother back to hell or he’ll finish what he started with Chloe.

Maze and Amenadiel try to convince Lucifer that Uriel will not stop until Charlotte (Tricia Helfer) has been returned, but Lucifer thinks he has an ace up his sleeve with Amenadiel, who is powerful enough to keep Uriel at bay. Detective “Douche” Dan (Kevin Alejandro) and Lucifer share something in common with Wesley Cabot and the Body Bag movies…. Could there be a new friendship starting between Douche and Lucifer? Dan finds out that the young kid who seen the car leaving the scene remembers the license plate, it belongs to Jamie, Wesley’s ex-wife. She hasn’t seen her ex-husband in weeks, when she received a messages from him she went to the house but found his body and left quickly. Jamie is married to Kimo how was also in Body Bags 4 with Wesley.

Amenadiel visits Charlotte at work to warn her that she may not know her children as well as she thinks, but Mamma Morningstar isn’t worried now she has her “brave boys” around her. Lucifer and Chloe are staking out Kimo when they spot him about to jump a random guy at the bar and pick him up. Kimo, now an enforcer for the mob is broke, and his prints are on the murder weapon so they arrest him. Amenadiel thinks they should hide Charlotte and Chole until Uriel leaves, but Lucifer reminds Amenidel that he is the first born and Uriel was terrified of him, Lucifer hopes the sight of Amenadiel will scare Uriel off. However, that plan may have worked if Amenadiel wasn’t losing his powers. Amenadiel meets Uriel on the roof and tries to intimidate him into going home. Uriel hits Amenadiel and quickly realises something isn’t right with big brother, Uriel then spreads his wings and attacks Amenadiel.

Dan finds out that Kimo and Wesley shared the same agent and it looks like the agent has set Kimo up for Wesley murder. But he quickly realises that both actors had received the same award and that’s why Kimo’s prints were on the award. Amenadiel beaten and bruised has no choice but to finally tell Lucifer that he is losing his powers. Maze pays Charlotte a visit and that they need to talk. Chole finds herself in the middle of Kimo pointing a gun at his wife and agent, but Chloe is able to talk him down without any incident. Charlotte tells Lucifer she is going back to hell, it will make everything better if she doses, but Lucifer won’t have it.

Lucifer heads to a church to pray when Uriel shows up, he has Azrael’s blade and Lucifer realises that Uriel wants to wipe Charlotte out completely. Lucifer and Maze tag team Uriel , but get out classed and beaten up but when Uriel least expected it Lucifer plunged Azrael’s blade into Uriel and ends him. Lucifer has killed his brother and is mortified at what he has just done, he get home and Charlotte sees Lucifer is in a bad way and asks where Uriel is. “what have I done” Lucifer tearfully asks as Charlotte rushed over to hold and comfort her son.

---

Make sure check back forn next weeks episode of  Lucifer SN2-EP6 ‘Monster’

Lucifer airs Monday’s at 9/8c on FOX

 

Elementary SN5-EP3 ‘Render, and Then Seize Her’

Last week Sherlock was abducted by a local street gang who wanted his help in finding who killed one of their men. Sherlock and Watson also found themselves in the middle of an international hunt to recover a priceless centries-old antiquity “The Jade Seal”.

SN5-EP3 ‘Render, and The Seize Her’

Captain Gregson’s (Aidan Quinn) girlfriend Paige (Virginia Madsen) meets Sherlock for the first time and asks if she can hire him on the sly. We see a naked guy being creepy looking through a window and takes a picture with the phone and sends it. Someone walks up behind him, and he pleads “it not what it looks like” but is shot point-blank. Sherlock (Jonny Lee Miller) is dragging a large bag behind him, Watson (Lucy Liu)is hoping it’s not a body in the bag. The bag in question is full of medical claim and files from a neurologist office who is treating Captain Gregson girlfriend Paige and she believes one of the staff there are engaged in criminal enterprise.

Sherlock receives a text from Marcus (Jon Michael Hill) about a death at a nudist colony. The victim is Kenneth Toland , a regular at the nudist colony. The owner shows them the video that she received from Kenny before he was shot. Watson and Sherlock take the footage to the husband who positively identifies the woman in the video as his wife Beth Stone. They look at the security footage from when Ms Stone was taken, the gun looks to be the same as what killed Kenny, when Watson spots something on the roof of the van, she believes the van used to be a TV news van.

Sherlock has found that three of the clerical staff are double billing however, he is sure the Doctor is clean and is not in on the scam. But Sherlock is troubled by Paige’s file, her insurances has lapsed, she has bounced a check and is now using plastic (credit cards) to pay. Bell finds the van that was used in the kidnapping a burnt out shell and as always nobody heard a thing. Watson gets lucky and finds a phone with the sim card intact with calls to Mr Stone.

Sherlock and Paige meet and he tells her that the clerks are defrauding the office, Sherlock being Sherlock asks Paige about the intentions to Gregson with regard to the future, and if the Captain knows she’s going broke. Marcus, Watson and Gregson arrest Dinatio. But his tell them the footage they saw was not him and that Mr Stone and Dennis came to him looking for an investment, they wanted $800k he says he asked them to make it. Sherlock believed Dennis is the suspect given away by his playlist which was also in the mob footage.

Beth Stone turns up and says she had two kidnappers and Dennis doesn’t fit either of their descriptions. Beth Stone‘s story is a very elaborate one, she was being held in a tent in the woods after the nudist colony. Mr Stone says they asked for $3 million. Sherlock sees a news story about Beth and said her breast are her undoing. Beth was trying to guilt her husband, the software Dennis made would bring in lots of money but Dennis was the one who shot Kenny. We get to see a different side of Sherlock this episode as he shows off his somewhat romantic side as he produces Gregson with some very shiny bling.

See you the same time next week when we recap Elementary SN5-EP4

Elementary airs Sunday 10/9c on CBS