Avengers: Endgame Writers Reveal If Captain America Could Wield The Infinity Gauntlet

Avengers: Endgame Writers Reveal If Captain America Could Wield The Infinity Gauntlet

Spoilers ahead for Avengers: Endgame. Seriously, look away if you haven't seen it.

It's been over two weeks since Avengers: Endgame arrived in theaters, and the fandom is still recovering from the wild ride. The Russo Brothers exceeded expectations and even Infinity War in regards to scope and character-driven story, delivering countless plot twists in the massive blockbuster. Chris Evans' Steve Rogers was the subject of more than one twist, although he never got to wield the Infinity Gauntlet himself.

Avengers: Endgame was largely focused on the surviving heroes, as they attempted an epic time heist to gather the Infinity Stones and reverse Thanos' snap. And throughout the movie's insane third act, both Hulk and Tony Stark himself used the Gauntlet to snap their fingers, to major physical harm. But could Captain America have withstood the power of the Gauntlet? Endgame co-writer Christopher Markus recently addressed this possibility, saying:

I think Steve would be toast.

Despite being worthy enough to wield Thor's hammer Mjolnir, it looks like Captain America isn't quite strong enough to handle the immense power of the Infinity Stones. So if he were to slip on the Gauntlet and snap his fingers, Steve Rogers would have ended up thoroughly dead.

Christopher Markus' comments to THR may puzzle some hardcore Marvel fans, as Avengers: Endgame proved just how powerful Cap has been all along. He faced off against Thanos directly, despite not having the same abilities as Thor and Iron Man. And about halfway through their original scuffle with Thanos, Captain America wielded Thor's signature weapon, and laid the smack down to the Mad Titan.

But if he was the one to steal the Infinity Stones from Thanos in that battle, Cap would have been "toast" At least, according to the Avengers: Endgame's writer. Instead, that honor was given to both Iron Man and The Hulk, and it took a lot of both OG Avengers.

Related: Every Marvel Studios Movie, Ranked By The CinemaBlend Staff

Hulk was the first Avenger to wield the Infinity Gauntlet, or at least Tony Stark's version of it. Bruce Banner thought he was the best candidate to wield such power, as the radiation coming from the Stones was primarily Gamma. And he was right, although Hulk got severely injured in the process. His entire right arm was burnt and shrunken from the Gauntlet, a condition that should remain throughout his future in the MCU.

While Bruce Banner succeeded in snapping his fingers and reviving the fallen, the fight wasn't quite over. Thanos traveled through time with his armies, determined to lay waste to the planet. In order to stop him once and for all, Tony swiped the stoles from Thanos and snapped his fingers to reduce the Mad Titan's army to dust. But the power was too much for an average human, and it was a move that ultimately cost him his life.

On the flip side, Captain America was finally given the ending and happiness he deserved. It was a fitting conclusion to Chris Evans' tenure in the MCU, and one that Marvel fans didn't expect to see come to fruition. And if Cap ended up trying to snap Thanos out of existence himself, he'd never have gotten a chance to live out his life with Peggy Carter.

Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now. Be sure to check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Tony Todd Will Make It Into The Candyman Reboot After All

Tony Todd Will Make It Into The Candyman Reboot After All

There’s a swarm of horror remakes on the way, and Get Out and Us filmmaker Jordan Peele has summoned Candyman to be among them. The “spiritual sequel” to the 1992 classic has been in development for months ahead of its 2020 release date. Now, it looks like the film has eyed the actor at the center of the original franchise: Tony Todd.

While Tony Todd was at Nickel City Con in New York, he disclosed some exciting details about his role in the upcoming film with these words:

Out of the blue I got a phone call from Jordan Peele. We’re still waiting for the contract, but the way he explained it to me was that it’s gonna be applause-worthy moments. That’s his words. No matter what happens with that, it’s gonna just put renewed attention on the original.

This is exciting!! Almost 30 years after first appearing as Candyman in the ‘90s horror film, Tony Todd will in fact be returning to the franchise this time under Jordan Peele’s vision. In addition to Peele being a producer and co-writer on the film, Little Woods’ Nia DaCosta is tapped to direct and Aquaman’s Black Manta, Yahya Abdul Mateen II, has been cast in the lead role.

Tony Todd’s words to Sofa King Cool Magazine emphasize “applause-worthy moments,” which could be taken many ways, but my best guess is he’ll have a nostalgic part in the movie. Considering Jordan Peele’s previous work with the genre, he likes to offer original horror entries.

Additionally, the filmmaker is big on fan service, often hiding in easter eggs to other classics and developing stories to get people talking. For those who loved the original, it’s a natural choice for Peele to bring in Tony Todd back.

Candyman is a film that Jordan Peele attributes as an influence to his love of horror and his own filmmaking, and the movie certainly has components that fit right into his wheelhouse as well. The movie follows Helen Lyle, a grad student who is researching a myth of the Candyman when she accidentally summons him by saying his name into a mirror five times.

Tony Todd plays the movie’s villain, who was previously the son of a slave in love with a white woman. His lover’s father set a lynch mob upon him who brutally cut off his hand, replaced it with a hook and smeared honey on him, attracting hundreds of bees who sting him to death. Once Helen summons him, he haunts the Cabrini-Green housing project in Chicago.

The upcoming film will be set in the same neighborhood, but it has since become gentrified. Tony Todd has previously showed his support for Peele being a part of the remake, expressing how he feels he has the intelligence to tell the story dripping with racial commentary. The actor is also excited to see the original get additional attention as the new film sparks interest when it hits theaters on June 12, 2020.

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Sean Gunn Knew In Advance About James Gunn’s Reinstatement As Guardians 3 Director

Sean Gunn Knew In Advance About James Gunn’s Reinstatement As Guardians 3 Director

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a fairly well-oiled machine at this point, with 21 movies and a decade of filmmaking under its belt. The studio has especially hit its stride with Phase Three, as every single release has been a box office and critical success. But there were a few bumps in the road, especially James Gunn's firing and eventual reinstatement as director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

James Gunn was fired in July after offensive tweets from a decade ago resurfaced, and Disney attempted to distance itself from that narrative. But considering how much of Gunn is infused with the Guardians franchise, it put the future of the threequel in jeopardy. James' brother Sean Gunn plays Kraglin and stands in for Rocket during filming, and therefore discovered the news early. As he tells it:

I was aware before it was announced, a little bit before. I know that they were, they wanted to get the timing right in terms of when the announcement was made. Like I was saying before, in Hollywood, things don't ever happen until they happen, you know? So I was aware that it was probably going to happen, but I was never sure until I actually saw it in the news. But I was pretty sure for, let's just say for a little while.

The public was shocked by James Gunn's return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it doesn't look like Sean Gunn was. He saw the plan in the works for some time before it was official, although he found out about the final decision in the news just like everyone else. I guess it pays to be related to the subject of such a major story.

Sean Gunn's comments to Comic Book show that the deal with James Gunn went back quite some time. It came out of nowhere for the public, but was likely a long process filled with red tape and legalese. It was certainly a bold choice for Marvel to do an about-face, and bring Gunn back into the fold. What's more, the director recently signed on to helm The Suicide Squad for DC, so there was probably extra contracts and scheduling issues as part of the deal.

It stands to reason that Sean Gunn would be privy to more information than most, as its his sibling who is the mind behind the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. On top of hearing about it from his brother, Sean is also an important cast member of the property. While he's not a bonafide member of the member, Kraglin has had a supporting role in the first two movies. What's more, Sean also does the motion capture work for Rocket on set, with Bradley Cooper eventually stepping into the studio to record dialogue, and extensive visual affects bringing the character to life.

Sean Gunn also played Rocket during Avengers: Endgame filming, with the blockbuster arriving April 26th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Danny DeVito Teased Michael Keaton About Dumbo's Batman Returns Role Reversal

Danny DeVito Teased Michael Keaton About Dumbo's Batman Returns Role Reversal

For Tim Burton’s remake of the 1941 Disney classic Dumbo, the prolific filmmaker reassembled his Dark Knight and Penguin from Batman Returns to play alongside the soaring circus elephant. 27 years later, Burton opted to give Michael Keaton and Danny DeVito a different roles in his film to play this time around. Looks like DeVito couldn’t get enough of the role-reversal, per his recent words:

In Batman, [Keaton] plays the good guy. Now in Dumbo, I play the good guy and he plays the bad guy. I needle him about it all the time.

Insert DeVito’s penguin chuckle here. The character actor is well-known for playing a signature baddie, especially in 1992’s Batman Returns, alongside Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman, along with his other iconic roles of Mr. Wormwood in Matilda and his longtime mischief as Frank on It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. He loved the idea of going back to playing a character of a softer, kind-hearted nature with Disney’s Dumbo, especially since Keaton would now be the one he gets to steal the good guy glory from.

In the family-friendly flick, Danny DeVito plays Max Medici, a ringmaster of a financially struggling circus who is approached by Michael Keaton’s V. A. Vandevere, a powerful entrepreneur who has bigger plans and dollar signs in his eyes for his popular spectacle Dumbo soon becomes.

Michael Keaton recently pulled off another villainous role in Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2017, so it’s not a big surprise for audiences. Danny DeVito’s recent comments to Entertainment Weekly seem to indicate a fondness for how the tables have turned since their last movie together. Although, there’s another reason why he was attracted to taking on a more friendly role in Dumbo. In his words:

Sometimes I embarrass my kids. On Sunny, I do a lot of crazy things. Sometimes I cringe when I think about how this is gonna play with my kids. In Dumbo, I think they were all pretty happy. I’m in good shape with my kids.

In recent years, Danny Devito has been seen seldom on the big screen due to his hilarious 13 season stint as Frank on his FX comedy series, where the actor will do or say just about anything for a good bit. As you can imagine, the often twisted humor that’s a regular on the show doesn’t always play well with his children.

It’s certainly nice to see Danny DeVito back in a movie, and with Michael Keaton as they take on opposite dynamics from their Batman Returns roles. DeVito will also star in more family-friendly faire in the upcoming Jumanji sequel alongside Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart and Jack Black coming in December.

As far as Batman and Penguin go, the upcoming new iteration of the character from Matt Reeves is rumored to feature the two adversaries facing off once again, following Tim Burton’s 1992 take.

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Is Detective Pikachu Already Getting A Sequel?

Is Detective Pikachu Already Getting A Sequel?

Detective Pikachu has only been in theaters for about a week and half at this point, but in that short time it has proven to be a real all-around success. Beyond pretty good reviews (arguably great for a video game movie), Detective Pikachu has had a solid box office showing-- particularly internationally. So it would come as little surprise if it got a sequel and according to a new report, that’s exactly what’s happening.

According to Comicbook.com, Legendary is moving forward with a sequel to Detective Pikachu. The idea being that the sequel, which is in the early stages of development at this point, would be the next step for the Pokémon universe on film before expanding out the franchise into other Pokémon movies beyond the Detective Pikachu series.

Apparently as Detective Pikachu developed, The Pokémon Company became more comfortable with characters and elements of the franchise being translated onscreen. That gave it ideas and confidence that a more expansive Pokémon world could be rendered cinematically in an effective fashion. If Detective Pikachu was a proof of concept, it did its job.

This news should be viewed as a rumor for now, until there is more concrete information like an official announcement. But it certainly Detective Pikachu getting a sequel would certainly make sense on multiple levels.

As far as dollars and cents are concerned, even though it released in the massive wake of Avengers: Endgame, Detective Pikachu has found an audience. The film debuted to $54.4 million domestic and has made $94.3 million to date according to Box Office Mojo. Overseas the Ryan Reynolds film has enjoyed two straight weekends atop the charts, earning over $196 million for a worldwide box office that is closing in on $300 million.

As previously mentioned, Detective Pikachu has received good reviews that although aren’t quite gushing. But it still cements it as about the best-reviewed video game movie ever. The movie also fared favorably with audiences, earning an “A-“ CinemaScore.

Beyond those more quantitative metrics, there is the fact that star Ryan Reynolds has expressed interest in returning to the world for another entry. He also touched on the potential that the world of Pokémon offers and on that point he is absolutely right. Detective Pikachu did the one job it had to by showing that Pokémon and live-action humans could be believable together on film and it nailed it.

That means that all the wide world of the property could make its way to the big screen with tons of possibilities and a clear path to a cinematic universe. But the first step towards that, if this rumor is to be believed, is Detective Pikachu 2.

Detective Pikachu SPOILERS to follow so don't read on until you've seen it!

My one major question about a potential Detective Pikachu 2 is how does such a film maintain the same conceit as the first film, specifically, the relationship between a talking Pikachu and Justice Smith’s Tim. At the end of the film it is revealed that Tim’s father Harry had his memory wiped and was fused with his Pikachu, thereby allowing him to talk to Tim.

So with that condition reversed by Mewtwo at the end of the movie, a sequel would presumably not have a talking Pikachu. I think it can still work, but it will be a change. Maybe a sequel would have Tim becoming a detective alongside his dad, played by Ryan Reynolds, and his Pikachu and the three can crack an even bigger case together.

Detective Pikachu is now playing. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to keep track of all this summer’s biggest movies.

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Why Thor Changed So Much In Avengers: Endgame, According To The Writers

Why Thor Changed So Much In Avengers: Endgame, According To The Writers

Spoilers ahead for Avengers: Endgame. If you haven't seen the latest Marvel blockbuster, look away!

Avengers: Endgame arrived in theaters ahead of last weekend, and the internet is current buzz with the massive blockbuster's many surprising moments. The Russo Brothers crafted an emotional movie that kept the fandom on its toes, providing endless plot twists and a movie that should be void of bathroom breaks.

Chris Hemsworth's Thor was the subject of a fair amount of twists, including a drastic physical transformation. Following Endgame's five year time jump, it was revealed that the God of Thunder was wallowing in the time since decapitating Thanos, becoming an overweight alcoholic in the process. It's an unexpected change to the character that stuck throughout the course of Endgame's runtime, and the film's writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely recently explained his twist, saying:

MARCUS: Thor’s on a mission of vengeance. And then we were like, he was on a mission of vengeance in the last movie. This is all this guy ever does! And fails, all the time. Let’s drive him into a wall and see what happens.

McFEELY: He just got drunk and fat.

Well, this does make sense. Thor might have been progressing as a character throughout his long tenure in the MCU, but the guy hasn't had the easiest run. He's lost everything, so it make sense that he would hit rock bottom after his encounters with Thanos.

Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely's comments to The New York Times help to explain how one of the strongest Avengers ended up letting himself go so hard. When the plan to use time travel first comes to fruition, they need to assemble the surviving heroes. Rocket and Bruce Banner travel to New Asgard, and find a Thor that has more interest in Fortnite than saving the galaxy or ruling his people.

His physical transformation is a shocking moment in the movie, as is the fact that The Russo Brothers maintain his new body until his final moments onscreen. Its a constant reminder of how far Thor's character has changed since his first appearance, and how he's truly lost everyone. Besides Korg that is.

In Avengers: Infinity War, Thor spoke with Rocket about all that the God of Thunder had already lost at that point. Odin passed on, while Frigga, Loki, and Heimdell were all brutally murdered. What's more, Thor: Ragnarok saw the destruction of Asgard itself, so his mystical home is gone forever. All he had left was the thirst for vengeance, and wanting to kill Thanos.

And he very nearly did it. He ultimately plunged Stormbreaker into Thanos' chest, gloating over his moment of vengeance in the process. But he didn't aim for the head, and Thanos snapped his fingers and wiped out half the galaxy. That guilt weighed on Thor (literally), and it took some convincing for him to return to The Avengers and join the wild time heist.

Related: Tessa Thompson Says Taika Waititi Might Return For Thor 4

It should be interesting to see what comes next for Thor, as the future of the MCU is largely a mystery. Chris Hemsworth's contract with Marvel Studios is up, but Thor made it out of Endgame with his life. He seemingly joined the Guardians of the Galaxy, although that might have just been his way back into space before a possible fourth Thor movie. We'll just have to wait and see whenever the studio finally unveils its plans for the future post-Endgame.

Thor has already changed quite a bit throughout his long tenure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While his father Odin originally exiled him from Asgard due to his immaturity, he proved time and time again to be one of the bravest members of The Avengers. Sure, he's retained his ego and can sometimes be a bit head strong, but Thor has demonstrated a willingness to sacrifice himself for the greater good.

But ultimately Thor wasn't one of the OG Avengers who lost their life during the course of Avengers: Endgame. Instead, he'll presumably be given some chance to return in the post-Endgame world. And that's probably the right call for Marvel Studios, considering the character was given new life and fan excitement following Thor: Ragnarok and Infinity War.

Taika Waititi broke all the rule with his Thor threequel, destroying Asgard, the Warrior's Three, Odin, and Mjolnir in the process. He also took the character into new locations in space, pairing him with Hulk and Loki in the process. What's more, a series of colorful characters were introduced including Valkyrie and Korg.

The newcomers briefly popped back up in Avengers: Endgame, revealing that the surviving Asgardians are living peacefully on Earth. When the film ended, Thor seems to have given over the reigns of leadership to Tessa Thompson Valkyrie, but what does that mean? Could she ended up wielding the character's power as a female Thor? Or should we expect Val and Korg to pop up in Thor 4?

There's no guarantee that Thor 4 will come to fruition, although fans would love to see Chris Hemsworth have another collaboration with Taika Waititi. Tessa Thompson previously teased that talks are happening at Marvel Studios, although nothing is set in stone and she's not sure what comes next for Valkyrie after Endgame.

The final moments of Avengers: Endgame also seemingly tease that Thor will join the Guardians of the Galaxy, following their chemistry in Infinity War. It's a crossover fans will go bonkers over, so hopefully Marvel Studios will reveal its plans sooner rather than later. The God of Thunder has a particular bond with Bradley Cooper's Rocket Raccoon, so hopefully that's a character pairing we'll see more of in Phase Four.

But since Avengers: Endgame is in theaters, hopefully that means Marvel will reveal its plans soon. Of course, Spider-Man: Far From Home is only a few months away, so the studio may want to wait until after that release before unveiling the next phase of films.

Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now, and making tons of money at the box office. Be sure to check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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When The Batman Will Start Filming, According To Matt Reeves

When The Batman Will Start Filming, According To Matt Reeves

There is so much we don't know about Matt Reeves' new Batman movie. Most importantly, we don't know who will be playing the role of Batman. However, it looks like we may be getting that answer sometime in the next few months as Reeves has now revealed when he expects his film to actually start filming. In response to a fan on Twitter, Reeves says the film looks to be heading toward cameras sometime around the end of this year.

The Twitter conversation starts with one fan asking if Batman will make an appearance in the Batman movie. It's not that ridiculous a question considering that, at this point, we have no idea who is going to play Batman. Ben Affleck finally made official what many had been suspecting for quite some time, that he won't be returning to play the role in the upcoming movie, or any other DC projects that may have plans for the caped crusader. The man who was once going to write, direct, and star in a solo Batman movie will now do none of those things.

However, that decision isn't slowing things down as Reeves now says his movie is still moving forward. In response to another question, he revealed the timeline for cameras to start rolling...

Looking like sometime around year’s end.

If the new movie starts filming around November or December of 2019, it will have plenty of time to get everything done. The film is currently set with a release date of June 25, 2021, which means it will be about a year and a half between when filming starts and when the movie hits screens.

Of course, Reeves says that it is "looking like" the film may start shooting at the end of the year, which makes it sound like things aren't quite set in stone yet. The biggest question is likely regarding the cast. As far as we know, nobody has been cast for the upcoming film, especially a brand new Batman. If Reeves finds a cast that he wants, but one that isn't able to start shooting on the current schedule, there's always the possibility things could change. Alternatively, things may need to be pushed back if Reeves can't find the cast he wants at all.

On the plus side, the movie does have some time to work with. With the extensive post production that usually goes along with superhero movies, it will take about a year or so to go from the start of filming to a finished product. This means the new Batman could start shooting as late as the summer of 2020 and woulds likely still make the current release date.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions about this new Batman movie, but for the first time in a long time, one of them is not, "will this movie actually happen?" It seems quite clear that it will. The rest we'll have to wait to figure out.

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I'm More Excited About The MCU's Future Now That Endgame Is Over

I'm More Excited About The MCU's Future Now That Endgame Is Over

I loved Avengers: Endgame as much as anybody. While I'm not quite ready to say it's my favorite movie ever, though some are, I was absolutely shocked at how satisfying it all was. However, at the same time, as I think about Endgame now, I find myself not so much thinking about what happened as I am thinking about what is going to happen. The best part about Endgame is that it's over and now some really interesting stuff can happen in the MCU.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe takes it cues from the comic books that came before it. The entire interconnected continuity concept was born from the simple idea that all the Marvel comics take place in the same world, and that individual adventures are happening more or less simultaneously with each other.

However, while Marvel's comics have been going on for decades, and a host of interesting stories have taken place, some things have been constant throughout. Mainly, the heroes themselves.

Occasionally, as part of a big story line, we'll see major characters die or otherwise change. Steve Rogers has been killed before and others, like Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes, have taken on the mantle of Captain America. Peter Parker has had his body taken over by the consciousness of Doctor Octopus. Comics are weird.

However, in the case of the comics, the story always returns to the status quo. Steve Rogers is always Captain America again. Peter Parker is always Spider-Man again, even if other, similar heroes are born from these changes.

And this is why Endgame's conclusion has me excited. It certainly seemed going in that the plan was for some parts of the MCU to reach a true end, and while it was always possible the franchise could chicken out in some way, it did not. The way the story ended, it seems like the Marvel Cinematic Universe has done something the comics have never had to do: change permanently.

Tony Stark is dead. Steve Rogers has passed his shield on to Sam Wilson, apparently making him the new Captain America. These changes are almost certainly going to progress through the MCU for a long time, and likely forever.

Even before we knew the ultimate fates of some of these characters, we knew that MCU was going to be a different place in the future because the five year time jump was going to be kept. Rather than resetting the MCU back to at or before Thanos' snap, five years of time has still moved forward for half the universe.

While the possibility of a Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans appearance in the future of the MCU isn't entirely off the table, the fact is that bringing these guys back for the long term would be incredibly expensive. And while the profit on Avengers: Endgame is probably enough that Marvel could afford RDJ for a few more years, that doesn't seem likely to happen.

Part of the problem when Steve Rogers dies in the comics is that you know he'll be back eventually. This makes whatever happens in between feel less important. In fact, frequently, the point of bringing in a new person to play a particular role is get fans back on board with the standard bearer when things begin to get stale.

However, here, the MCU has to try and get the audience to buy into new heroes completely. If you decide you don't like Sam Wilson as the new Captain America, whether or not that's what he's actually called, you can't just wait around until the storyline that brings back Chris Evans gets here. That's not going to happen.

Marvel Studios needs to get the audience on board with these new heroes. These are the people who are going to carry thing for the next several years.

With the new MCU, we simply don't know what's going to happen next. We may still get more Captain America movies, but they will star an entirely new character, and as such will be very different. We might even get a new Iron Man movie at some point, but again, it's not going to be anything like the ones that we've already seen.

In addition to the fact that old characters are moving away and letting characters that had been supporting heroes take the lead, there's also the fact that, with the five year time jump that the MCU received in Endgame, the world looks like a very different place which also means entirely new young heroes. We saw that Scott Lang's daughter Cassie was not eliminated by Thanos' snap. so she's now five years older compared to all those who were brought back to life or stuck in the Quantum Realm. In Marvel Comics, she becomes a hero in her own right and is now just about the right age to do that in the MCU.

I have no idea where things are going in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but there are a few places where I'm confident things won't go, and that's exciting. I'm confident we're not going to simply be brought back around to the beginning. That works on the page, where the characters never need to age, but on the big screen, one way or another, time passes.

This first step, with Sam Wilson carrying the shield and Iron Man gone, among other minor changes, isn't a step into entirely new territory, but because we won't be taking any steps backwards, where things go from here is still mostly uncharted. Every potential change from here on out happens in an MCU where these other changes have happened.

Whatever the MCU ends up doing with the Fantastic Four or the X-Men, they'll never meet Tony Stark or Steve Rogers. These may seem like small details, and maybe they will be, but they could also push the storytelling into entirely fresh directions. The repercussions of a world without the original Captain America can be drawn out much further than they ever have been in the comics.

Phase 4 of the MCU will certainly be a different world, but more importantly, so will Phase 5, 6 or however many more of these we're going to get. Every change has the potential to compound those that came before. I honestly hope the MCU really does keep going because the more things change in real, permanent ways, the more opportunity we'll have to see really inventive stories that we might never see in a comic book world where things never change all that much.

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How Much Money Rocketman Might Make On Its Opening Weekend

How Much Money Rocketman Might Make On Its Opening Weekend

When Bryan Singer was fired, director Dexter Fletcher came aboard Bohemian Rhapsody to steer the film into port. That Freddie Mercury biopic wound up becoming a historic success, and now Dexter Fletcher is back with another musical icon for Rocketman. The Elton John biopic arrives at the end of the month and is currently looking to launch with $20 million.

Rocketman is tracking at a $20 million opening weekend, but according to The Hollywood Reporter, some are predicting that it could enjoy a slightly higher liftoff with $25 million. Either end of that range would be a solid, respectable opening for the Taron Egerton-fronted film, even if it wouldn’t blast the film into the stratosphere in its opening weekend.

Of the new releases opening May 31, a debut of $20-$25 million would likely put Rocketman behind Godzilla: King of the Monsters, which is currently tracking to open in the low $50 million range. Godzilla may win the weekend crown, but Rocketman does provide an interesting bit of counterprogramming for those not interested in the MonsterVerse.

Last year’s Bohemian Rhapsody opened in first place with over $50 million and went on to make $216.4 million in North America and over $900 million globally. Although not a biopic, Bradley Cooper’s A Star is Born also provides a relevant comparison. That Oscar-snubbed film opened in second place opposite Venom with $42.9 million and went on to basically match Bohemian Rhapsody domestically with $215.3 million and a great, but less crazy impressive $434.2 million worldwide.

So Rocketman doesn’t look like it will open quite as big as those two music films. It’s also opening at the beginning of the more cutthroat summer season, but $20+ million would still be solid, and as is proven what seems like every other month, tracking is inexact and things can change. Bohemian Rhapsody was tracking in the mid-$30 million range before it rocked the box office to a much bigger opening.

We don’t yet know what kind of buzz Rocketman will enjoy come release time that could affect its opening weeknd. Bohemian Rhapsody received mixed reviews, but Rami Malek’s performance as Freddie Mercury was praised as worth the price of admission. That film also benefitted from the amount of play Queen’s music still enjoys.

Elton John is no niche, indie artist though, and his recognizable tunes can only help Rocketman. Dexter Fletcher’s film also features a lead performance in Taron Egerton as Elton John that could stir up some buzz since the actor does all of his own singing for the role.

Rocketman debuts at the Cannes Film Festival on May 15 and Fandango is hosting advance screenings of the movie on May 18. So we’ll have a better idea around then of what the word is on the quality of the movie. But the mere fact that advance screenings are happening so close to the world premiere and two weeks prior to the theatrical release date is hopefully a display of confidence in the film.

Rocketman blasts into theaters on May 31. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to keep track of all the movies you’ll want to see this summer.

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Rian Johnson Reveals When He’ll Start Working On His Star Wars Trilogy

Rian Johnson Reveals When He’ll Start Working On His Star Wars Trilogy

The past few years have been very exciting for Star Wars fans. After Disney acquired the rights to the property from Lucasfilm, the generations of moviegoers have been brought a variety of new and exciting content from the galaxy far, far away. This includes both main installments and standalone films, and the beloved space opera isn't slowing down anytime soon.

All eyes are currently on how J.J Abrams will wrap up the Skywalker Saga forever with Episode IX, there are also two sets of movies being developed. One of which is a trilogy by The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson, and now we've got an idea regarding when he'll get to work. Johnson recently presented his upcoming movie Knives Out at CinemaCon, and revealed he'd be going back to the galaxy after that film is released.

This update comes to us from Twitter, and will no doubt excite the generations of Star Wars fans who are eager for information about the franchise after Episode IX. J.J Abrams' still untitled movie will arrive this holiday season, but Disney hasn't shared its future plans with the public. It's currently unclear if any more standalone films are on the way, or when Rian Johnson's trilogy might first arrive in theaters.

The Star Wars franchise has been pumping out new releases every year, so any gaps in time before new content is going to feel excruciating to moviegoers. But Rian Johnson will craft three separate movies, which proves that Lucasfilm was happy with his work on The Last Jedi. So while the project may have subverted fan expectations and received some hate from moviegoers, Johnson is being given even more freedom to put his stamp on the galaxy far far away.

Of course, Rian Johnson isn't the only filmmaker curating new movies for the Star Wars franchise. Game of Thrones creators D.B. Weiss and David Benioff are also developing their own Star Wars flicks, although it's unclear exactly how many we should expect. But considering the work the duo has done in Westeros, it's an exciting development. We're days away from Season 8's premiere, with the upcoming series finale presumably freeing up Weiss and Benioff's schedule to focus on The Force.

It should be fascinating to see what Rian Johnson does with his trilogy of movies, especially considering how many shocking moments were in The Last Jedi. Johnson made liberal changes to the canon with his blockbuster, which is why some fans took umbrage with the risks he took. He made the franchise hero into a jaded recluse, finally gave Leia force abilities, and purposefully cut down various fan theories. By killing Snoke and revealing Rey's parentage, he freed up Episode IX to go into new and exciting places, so it feels like anything could happen with his upcoming movies.

First Rian Johnson will focus on Knives Out, which will arrive in theaters on November 27th. Episode IX will follow shortly thereafter, debuting on December 20th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release to plan your next trip to the movies.

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The Curse Of La Llorona Reviews Are Up, See What Critics Are Saying

The Curse Of La Llorona Reviews Are Up, See What Critics Are Saying

Grown organically out of James Wan’s 2013 film The Conjuring, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema’s Conjuring Universe has become a major force and box office success during horror's ongoing boom period. The supernatural series has grossed $1.57 billion worldwide and it is still growing. The newest film in the franchise, although it isn’t really being advertised as such, is this weekend’s The Curse of La Llorona.

From future director of The Conjuring 3 Michael Chaves, The Curse of La Llorona dives into Mexican folklore for a tale of a mother trying to protect her children from a deadly spirit. Reviews for the film are up, so is The Curse of La Llorona a worthy entry in The Conjuring Universe? CinemaBlend’s own Sean O’Connell gave it 2 out of 5 stars in his review, lamenting that it didn’t live up its potential or the universe it’s a part of. Sean said:

While La Llorona has a stimulating premise and a creepy spirit who is realized with impressive practical effects, the overall execution is tepid and uninspired, putting this chapter below the level of chills we’ve come to expect from the better Conjuring movies.

Sean found some things to like in The Curse of La Llorona, but ultimately it was a disappointment, especially in light of the potential of its premise. The Chicago Sun Times’ Richard Roeper, who gave The Curse of La Llorona 1.5 stars, echoed Sean’s sentiments in his review, saying:

The Curse of La Llorona is the sixth entry in the Conjuring Universe, but it sucks as a stand-alone film, despite a promising set-up.

This was a common thread in the reviews. The rich folklore of La Llorona, or the Weeping Woman, deserved better than the film it got. That disappointment was expressed in Peter Travers’ 1.5 out of 5 star review for Rolling Stone. He addressed how this film arrives at a time when horror is hot at the box office right now, saying:

Still, that’s no excuse for a lazy cash-in like The Curse of La Llorona, which plays too timid for terror and is too lazily constructed to haunt anyone’s dreams.

It isn’t all negative though. While some have dinged The Curse of La Llorona for being far too clichéd and formulaic for anyone who has ever seen a horror movie, the New York Times’ Manohla Dargis found that formula effective. She said in her review:

The scares are plentiful and sometimes ticklishly funny in The Curse of La Llorona, an enjoyably old-fashioned ghost story.

So it sounds like easy to please horror fans will find some scares and some laughs in this film as long as they aren’t expecting much else. The Hollywood Reporter’s John DeFore was hoping for more though and was somewhat bored by the flick. He said:

Curse of La Llorona is a ho-hum horror flick that seems highly unlikely to join producer James Wan's earlier projects into thriller-franchise Valhalla

That The Curse of La Llorona is part of Jame Wan’s Conjuring Universe should be a stamp of relative quality, but this forced connection may actually be to the film’s detriment. Slashfilm’s Meredith Borders called the film “half-baked and lazy” and said:

So many of La Llorona‘s narrative choices feel made by committee for the crassest possible reasons, forfeiting sensible storytelling in favor of in-jokes, flashbacks and Easter eggs. The Curse of La Llorona fails on the most basic level: it never manages to tell a logical story in a compelling way.

Yikes. Clearly The Curse of La Llorona is not for everyone. But with a 35% on Rotten Tomatoes, it is still not the worst-reviewed film in The Conjuring Universe and certainly not the worst-reviewed horror movie out there. So if you’re a franchise completionist or you just want a fun horror film and aren’t expecting a masterpiece, you could have a good time with The Curse of La Llorona.

The Curse of La Llorona opens this weekend. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to keep track of all the movies on the way in the rapidly approaching summer movie season.

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Captain Marvel Directors React To Rumors About Nick Fury Being A Skrull

Captain Marvel Directors React To Rumors About Nick Fury Being A Skrull

Marvel fans have always been attentive - just look at all the references the filmmakers packed into Avengers: Endgame to provide us with a rewarding experience after going out to see MCU movies for over a decade. However, there is such a thing as reading too much into a character’s screen time, which is perhaps what fans have done with a bit from Nick Fury’s backstory in Captain Marvel.

In a scene in Carol Danvers’ origin movie, she sits across from a digitally de-aged Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury as he attempts to convince her that he’s not a shapeshifted Skrull. As they get to know each other, Carol asks him to “name a detail so bizarre a Skrull could never fabricate it” to which Fury opens up about his inability to eat diagonally-cut toast.

The answer sparked a theory when fans referenced a scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron in which Fury is at Hawkeye’s farmhouse, makes himself a sandwich and then cuts the bread diagonally!! So obviously, fans think present-day Fury is a Skrull in disguise.

In a recent interview with ET, the Captain Marvel directors were asked to address the theory and here’s what they said:

Anna Boden: Well, there are two options here. Either Fury became a Skrull or he got over his weird fear of diagonally cut toast, and we'll never know the truth. [Laughs]

Ryan Fleck: He actually became okay with people calling him Nick. So, you know, either he's a Skrull or he just changed, like we all do.

Does anyone else feel like they’re trying to confuse us more? The pair of directors do bring up a good point; Nick may have just changed his mind about diagonally-cut toast between the ‘90s and Age of Ultron, just as he became a more hardened as the years went on. However, the change in his demeanor is much of the reason why fans believe Fury is really a Skrull.

Another supporting idea for the Fury Skrull theory is that four of them landed on the beach in Captain Marvel and only three were ever seen again. Could it be true? The Skrulls did end up to be the good guys in the Kree-Skrull war, but maybe they wanted to be behind the Avengers Initiative? Wouldn’t that be quite the plot twist! The question would then be what happened to the real Nick Fury we met in Captain Marvel? Maybe it would explain why he never called on Carol for help in the previous Marvel films before Endgame.

Or perhaps this is just a random situation that the MCU forgot to fact check before the release of Captain Marvel. It is a pretty deep cut (pun intended) that most fans would not have noticed or remembered upon Fury bringing it up.

Maybe we'll get some answers when Samuel L. Jackson reprises his role as Nick Fury in Spider-Man: Far From Home, coming to theaters on July 2.

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In Defense Of Will Smith’s Big Blue Genie In Aladdin

In Defense Of Will Smith’s Big Blue Genie In Aladdin

There’s been a lot written about Disney’s live action Aladdin adaptation, much of it related to Will Smith’s portrayal of the blue genie. Although many fans haven’t caught the big, all-powerful character in action yet, early looks at the sorcerer in the trailer didn’t have a lot of people pumped. In fact, a healthy percentage of those on social media openly expressed concern or frustration.

During the first look at Aladdin, fans were not impressed by how ridiculously blue the big guy looked. The criticism online got so bad that Disney even felt the need to address it, noting at the time:

We have one of the most anticipated films of the year and are confident that audiences will fall in love with the Genie and all of the characters when it hits the big screen this May.

At Cinema-Con, more people heard from the Genie, who sang, danced and went for it with a hip-hop influenced version of “Friend Like Me,” which Will Smith has also performed on the press circuit ahead of the release of Aladdin. Some of the people around me were openly snickering and talking about how bad they thought it was.

The thing is, Will Smith’s version of Aladdin’s Genie is spectacular.

It would be hard to top Robin Williams in the role, but Will Smith doesn’t even try. Instead he brings his own energy and presence (although he keeps the hairdo). No doubt fans will recognize some similarities to Williams’ original version, particularly in lines like “itty bitty living space,” but for the most part, this is a nice, new creation, brought to life on the back of Will Smith’s lovable and unique energy. The result is one of the biggest reasons why Aladdin is a fun and breezy movie that does bring feelings of nostalgia, but also has a fresh new coat of paint.

The Genie is, by definition, a showy character. He’s loud, fast-paced and frantic. Given that and the fact that fans really liked the Genie in the original animated Aladdin, there’s no way there wouldn’t be some clear overlap between the new and original versions. The much-discussed rendition of “Friend Like Me” illustrates that and out of context, created a stir among those angry fans.

In context, however, it becomes very clear what a great job Will Smith did here. There are enough similarities that fans will recognize and appreciate the Genie, but there are enough clear differences here to feel original and unique. That’s not an easy line to walk. Only someone with the charisma and the grandiosity of Will Smith could pull off the showy, over the top parts of the Genie without feeling like a less impressive karaoke version of Robin Williams and yet still have the acting confidence to play some of his scenes with a much quieter and serious energy. He goes big without feeling like a copy and yet pulls back enough to have some real heart.

Recently, Will Smith revealed that he based his version of the Genie on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air character who helped to kickstart his career back in the nineties. You can see that, but to me, that may be a bit too simplistic. Smith deserves more credit than that. You won’t see this and think, “Oh, that’s just a blue Fresh Prince”. Only after hearing the comparison will you think, “Oh, that makes sense.”

Guy Ritchie and Will Smith definitely put a lot of effort into making the movie feel different. Let’s talk more specifically about some of those differences with minor spoilers. So, if you haven’t seen the movie yet and don’t want to know anything, then go ahead and bail now.

Will Smith’s live action genie strives to be human, but also to find meaning in family. He actually has a love interest just like Prince Ali of Ababwa in the film, played by Nasim Pedrad. The two bounce off one another comedically onscreen, leading to some of the film’s funniest moments. The dynamic between the two also helps us to see a different side of the Genie’s personality that doesn’t typically have a chance to come out.

The basic formatting of the story helps with differentiation too. Guy Ritchie took a long-touted and recently confirmed fan theory and totally rolled with it in this new version, making the Genie the man telling the story of Aladdin, Jasmine, a magic lamp and Agrabah. This choice gives him more agency and allows us to interact with him outside of the narrative framework of the basic story we’re all familiar with.

Those choices, plus a few more I won’t spoil here, all serve to give us a Genie that is familiar and identifiable but also new, different and exciting, which is, I think what we all wanted. It would have been stupid to create a live action Aladdin that was a shot-for-shot remake of the original, filled with the same characters we’ve all around seen. That being said, it would have also been stupid to create a movie filled with characters so different from the original there was no point in even calling it Aladdin.

Sure, he’s big and he’s blue. Sure, the character Will Smith is playing is a little ridiculous and can’t ever possibly eclipse Robin Williams’ beloved original. But he gives a really good performance here, filled with charm and enough originality to keep fans entertained. It’s a performance that takes the zaniness of playing an all-powerful-but-blue being and strikes the balance between going big and pulling back.

Will Smith doesn’t deserve all the criticism he’s gotten over the past few months. He’s good in Aladdin. A lot of fans are going to love the choices he made with his character, and if nothing else, this should serve as a good reminder that sometimes it’s really hard to judge standalone scenes or trailers without the proper context. So, go see it and decide for yourself. Don’t take the grumblings on social media from people who haven’t even seen the movie as evidence you should stay away. I had a good time with his character and the larger movie, and I suspect a lot of others will too.

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The Russo Brothers Respond To Avengers: Endgame’s Pre-Sale Numbers

The Russo Brothers Respond To Avengers: Endgame’s Pre-Sale Numbers

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is coming up on a very exciting time, as 21 movies and a decade of filmmaking are set to collide with Avengers: Endgame. Following the massive success and twist ending of Infinity War, all eyes are on how The Russo Brothers will follow up and continue the MCU's narrative. And clearly moviegoers are excited, as pre-sale tickets recently became available, and essentially broke the internet in the process.

Despite crashing multiple ticket seller's websites and apps, Marvel fans still managed to get their advanced tickets, ensuring they see Endgame without any spoilers ruining the twists and turns. In fact, the pre-sales went on to break records at sellers like Fandango and Atom. Co-directors The Russo Brothers were obviously psyched about this early reception, and took to social media to thank the fans. Check it out.

It looks like The Russo Brothers really appreciate the fandom, and their willingness to shell out money and run to theaters with each new Marvel blockbuster. To co-directors have proven themselves time and time again with their MCU installments, and the entire MCU as we know it will end with Avengers: Endgame.

The Russo Brothers' tweet once again shows how cognizant they are of Marvel fans, and the reception toward the massive shared universe. Marvel Studios always seems aware of fan reception, and has been known to alter things to better fit audiences. For instance, Danai Gurira's name was added to the latest Endgame poster after fans took umbrage with her snub. And just like Marvel is happy to pivot in order to please the audience, The Russo Brother can also celebrate the success and ticket sales of their Avengers movies.

While it's not a surprise that Avengers: Endgame is already breaking records, its still remarkable to see how well the blockbuster is tracking ahead of its release. Marvel movies consistently rake up the cash in the box office, and the anticipation ahead of Endgame is even stronger than normal. Infinity War exceeded all expectations and even picked up an Oscar nomination, but it also left audiences shocked by Thanos' victory. Moviegoers were left to watch in horror as beloved characters faded to dust, and it's been a long year of waiting until Endgame finally arrived to answer our countless questions.

Luckily, the wait is almost over. As such, Marvel Studios has been methodically releasing posters and brief trailers for the upcoming blockbuster. The Russo Brothers also admitted to including fake footage in marketing in order to throw off the fandom, so really anything could happen when Avengers: Endgame finally hits theaters. Which is exactly why so many people rushed to get pre-sale tickets, and break a few records in the process.

Avengers: Endgame will arrive in theaters on April 26th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Halle Berry Knows How To 'F--- Up' People After Training For John Wick 3

Halle Berry Knows How To 'F--- Up' People After Training For John Wick 3

Some minor spoilers for John Wick 3 can be found throughout this article.

By now, John Wick is a full-fledged franchise with an avid fanbase. On May 17, Lionsgate will release John Wick: Parabellum, the latest movie featuring our badass hero. This time around, the franchise is adding Halle Berry, and although she says she talked her way into the role, the training to play Sofia was intense.  At CinemaCon 2019 Berry admitted she feels comfortable enough having trained for John Wick 3 that she could handle herself in any situation. She noted:

It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my entire life… It also changed my life but I learned skills that I can really use. I feel like if someone attacked me on the street, god bless them, because I know some shit now and I will fuck them up.

During the Lionsgate panel at CinemaCon 2019, Halle Berry admitted that even before the script was written for John Wick: Parabellum she knew she was correct for the role. She met with director Chad Stahelski and convinced him she was a good fit for the role.

But then the training started. The actress talked about how grueling working on John Wick: Parabellum was.

It all showed in the final project.

This week at CinemaCon, footage was debuted from the upcoming threequel. In it, Sofia and John Wick are taking on a large lot of bad guys, as people are wont to do in action movies. In one scene in particular, Halle Berry’s character is kicking a bad guy’s ass when another bad guy starts shooting from above. Sofia literally calls her dog, the dog jumps off the back, scales a giant wall and takes down the bad guy from above. Talk about stunts.

Chad Stahelski is known for action sequences and the new look at the movie didn’t disappoint. Look, if you’ve seen the early footage from the trailer for John Wick: Parabellum, or really either of the other movies, you kind of know what you are getting into, but the reaction when Halle Berry let a dog jump off her back was audible, and I hope everyone reading this has the same experience in the theater.

Later in the clip we saw, John Wick is caught in the middle of taking down myriad bad guys. He runs out of bullets just as his opponent does but manages to reload quickly to take out his opponent and another on the ground.

Although this footage isn't out and about yet, the movie is coming and it's coming soon. Catch the movie starting on May 17, and before you do that be sure to take a look at what we know about Chapter 3 of the saga.

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Mark Hamill Is Totally Into The First Joker Trailer

Mark Hamill Is Totally Into The First Joker Trailer

A lot of opinions are flying around out there pertaining to just what to think of the new Joker film that’s set to debut this fall. While fans of the character are certainly one of the most of the most vocal bodies of response out there, someone quite close to the character has just thrown down their two cents. And as you’ll see in the tweet below, Mark Hamill himself is very much on the accepting side of this new film.

If anyone were to pass on the torch of playing this iconic prince of crime, Hamill would certainly qualify as one such party. Portraying the character on and off through voice-over work between 1992 and the present era, Mark Hamill is synonymous with the role of The Joker, as his work on Batman: The Animated Series only further entrenched the already popular character into the pop culture consciousness. So knowing how connected he is to the role, it’s particularly exciting to see him approve of this bold move forward for the character.

Seeing Mark Hamill approve of Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker, via this post in his personal Twitter, is kind of like when Tom Holland, the director of Child’s Play, piped up with his approval of Hamill taking over the role of Chucky for the MGM branded reboot. Though a closer analogue would be if actor Brad Dourif happened to chime in with blessing, that’s the closest example we have to how cool this seal of approval really is. And it is indeed, pretty damned cool.

With Joker’s new incarnation of the character, the proceedings look like they’re going to get grittier and possibly more disturbing than we’ve ever seen before. Or at the very least, the disturbing stuff is going to hit closer to home, as the iconic world of Gotham and its most infamous villain look as grounded as when Christopher Nolan unveiled his version of the character, played by the late Heath Ledger, in his Dark Knight Trilogy.

As history has taught us, this doesn’t always go over well with folks who are as associated with a character as Mark Hamill is. But, in true Hamill fashion, you could picture the man smiling in his chair, waiting to get a load of what Joaquin Phoenix and Todd Phillips will bring to the lexicon of lunacy that Arthur Fleck is about to enter.

Joker smiles for the camera on October 4th, with Child’s Play hitting June 21st. But if you want to get some villainy or heroism into your life a lot sooner than that, you should visit our 2019 release calendar to find it.

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Why Horror Directors Make Great Superhero Films, According To David Sandberg

Why Horror Directors Make Great Superhero Films, According To David Sandberg

There’s a pattern that seems to be forming in the DC Comics film canon, and it’s something that stretches all the way back to Superman: The Movie. As it turns out, some of their biggest ticket directors in the comic realm have backgrounds in horror filmmaking, with Richard Donner and Tim Burton putting in strong efforts in earlier ages, and now Aquaman’s James Wan and Shazam! director David Sandberg getting to continue the precedent in the modern age. All of this builds a case for one pretty awesome conclusion: horror directors are fantastic hires when you want to make a superhero movie.

It’s something that feels right to say after seeing Shazam!, as the mix of superpowered mythos, a heartwarming foster family, and some pretty creepy stuff involving the Seven Deadly Sins all come into frame. While the film is more than likely ok for your kids to see, there’s still some material that might creep them out, as part of the character’s underlying story is the fight of virtue versus evil, with seven figures representing each side of the fight.

While sitting down with CinemaBlend, David F. Sandberg, half of the pair behind the redemption of the Annabelle series with Annabelle: Creation, talked about how the hypothesis of horror directors being particularly adept at the superhero genre could be supported because of the following reason:

Maybe, I mean it takes a lot of work to get horror right. Like a lot of filmmaking skills that all needs to sort of come together. That, I guess, prepares you for other genres as well.

Consider all of the effort that goes into a film like Annabelle: Creation: there’s a lot of effects work, maintenance of the balance of tone and scale, and most importantly, the efforts to make sure the personal story of the characters don’t get lost in the more fantastical pieces of the film’s story. Those are all of the same factors that apply with any comic book movie you can think of.

Spinning all of those plates isn’t easy, and it’s certainly not impossible for a director or writer to pick up on. But if you’re someone like David F. Sandberg, or the many other horror professionals who have jumped from scares to super powers, having experience with the latter helps immensely when you try to tackle the former.

It’s even more amazing when you think about how Sandberg’s previous film, the first sequel in the Annabelle series, operates on a very similar track as Shazam! Both films, at their heart, are tales of orphans who bond through a series of extraordinary events, with one eventually being embued with a special connection to powers greater than themselves. Except while Annabelle: Creation progressed with a more insidious aim at its core and resulted in quite a few fatalities, Shazam! opts for a more friendly and much less scary way of doing things.

Another person who could appreciate the parallels between David F. Sandberg’s theory of why horror directors work particularly well in a superhero project is producer Peter Safran, another teammate from the Annabelle: Creation side of things. Adding some further praise to the efforts that Sandberg had made with Shazam!, Safran said the following:

I think horror filmmakers don’t really get the due that they deserve, in terms of the quality of filmmakers that they actually are. And we’ve found with James Wan, and now with [David F.] Sandberg that these guys can make the jump into the superhero genre really, really well.

Though the deeper historical context of horror directors in the world of superhero films certainly wasn’t lost on David F. Sandberg or Peter Safran, as you’ll be able to see below in the clip from our sitdown at the Shazam! junket.

There’s a lot of moving pieces that go together to make a film like Shazam! work, and thanks to the expertise of Mr. Sandberg, the finished product works as beautifully as it does.

Shazam! is in theaters now. Just say the magic word and use your favorite ticketing app, and you’re there! But if you’ve already seen the film, take a look at our discussion about the end credits scene, and what it means for the series. Also, don’t forget to listen to our ReelBlend interview with Sandberg and Safran, if you’re curious to hear more from the pair. It looks like there’s plenty more fun where this came from.

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The Rock And Karen Gillan Are Rocking Awesome New Costumes In Jumanji 3 Image

The Rock And Karen Gillan Are Rocking Awesome New Costumes In Jumanji 3 Image

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was a massive hit, so a sequel wasn't exactly a huge surprise. However, considering the major ways the film updated the premise of the original Jumanji from over 20 years earlier, it was far from clear how the third Jumanji film would differentiate itself. While we still don't have many of those answers, we do know one thing, our heroes will end up in new costumes in the upcoming film, and that's something. Check out Dwayne Johnson and Karen Gillan's new outfits in the image below.

While new costumes might not be massive breaking news, it would seem to tell us something about the new movie. A recent image of the cast from Karen Gillan had shown the main cast in the same clothes that they wore in the first film. It's unclear if this image was actually from the new movie or the previous one, but either way, it implied that we'd be getting the actors in the same outfits we got before. Although, it did promise things were not as they seemed, so perhaps this was part of the reason. When we actually saw the characters in the new film, they would look a little different.

Since they're playing video game avatars, it would make sense that the characters would end up in the same clothes, and it's possible they may start out that way, but at some point things will change, as the Rock's Instagram picture reveals.

Based on the outfits, it looks like Jumanji 3 may be taking our characters into a colder environment, as they're clearly dressed for keeping warm. Even Ruby Roundhouse as left her Lara Croft inspired shorts and crop top behind for fuzzy boots and long sleeves.

Shifting the setting of the new Jumanji from the tropical jungle to something colder is certainly one way to change things up. The "ice level" is a tried and true element of many great video games, so it would certainly be fitting to have the video game inspired Jumanji 3 use the idea as part of its premise.

The Rock's comment on his Instagram post also appears to confirm that Jumanji 3 will continue the story of the romance between the characters of Spencer and Martha. The teenagers inhabiting the two video game avatars began a relationship in Welcome to the Jungle and it seems the pair are no less awkward even though some time has passed since they got together.

Jumanji 3 is filming right now with a release date already set for this December. It will once again go up against the newest Star Wars movie at the box office, though that battle wasn't a major problem for Jumanji the last time around. With a fan base already looking forward to this sequel, it seems highly likely another big box office hit is on the way.

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What Makes A Good Nude Scene, According To Patricia Clarkson

What Makes A Good Nude Scene, According To Patricia Clarkson

The entertainment world, like the real world, is being looked at with a magnifying glass as of late. Conversation around gender and race inequality have been major talking points, as show business institutions examine the way women and people of color are treated. This includes the handling of love scenes and nude scenes, with new changes helping to ensure everyone on set is comfortable.

Patricia Clarkson has had a long career on both the film and stage, and has had to de-robe a few times. In fact, Clarkson notably had a nude scene with Bradley Cooper in the Broadway revival of The Elephant Man. She recently spoke to what makes a good nude scene, declaring:

Sometimes I do think that nudity is essential to take the character to a different place. Nudity is always difficult. It’s never easy, and it shouldn’t be easy. It should be essential.

Well, that's one way of thinking about it. While nude scenes can sometimes be exploitative or unnecessary, Patricia Clarkson also believes the opposite is possible. She thinks nudity should be approached only when its essential to the story. As such, it has an important role in the narrative, rather than showing the ripped bodies of movie stars. While those scenes likely aren't going anywhere, Clarkson also believes actors baring their bodies could have a profound affect on a project.

Patricia Clarkson's comments come from her Q&A after winning the Precious Gem Award (via THR). The 59 year-old actress discussed various issues in show business, before touching on nudity on the screen and stage. Clarkson has only done a few nude scenes, although one of them was live on stage during the run of The Elephant Man with Bradley Cooper. But as the circumstances of the play warranted her nudity, it was something the actress was happy to do night after night.

Bradley Cooper seems to have similar feelings about nude scenes, if his directorial debut A Star Is Born is any indication. Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper bore their bodies onscreen only briefly during artistic montages of Ally and Jackson's love. That is, until the gut punching bath tub scene in the film's second act. After Ally receives her first Grammy nominations, she and Jackson have an argument while she's in the tub. When he calls hi wife ugly things get especially heated, and Lady Gaga's character stands up, demanding he get out of the room.

This scene was actually the most nudity that Lady Gaga did in A Star Is Born. And ultimately it helped move the story forward, and the nudity is what Patricia Clarkson might refer to se "essential". Ally's vulnerability in that moment is shown through her nudity, as well as the visceral anger she feels in the moment.

Patricia Clarkson was recently seen on the final season of House of Cards, and has two movies in pre-production. Be sure to check CinemaBlend's 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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The Russo Brothers Open Up About Gamora’s Avengers: Endgame Fate

The Russo Brothers Open Up About Gamora’s Avengers: Endgame Fate

MAJOR spoilers ahead for Avengers: Endgame

Avengers: Endgame has been in theaters for weeks, providing countless plot twists and major payoffs for the hardcore Marvel fandom. The Russo Brothers brought an end to the Infinity Saga, killing off beloved characters and bringing back everyone who got dusted by Thanos in Infinity War. But there's one hero's fate that's currently unclear: Zoe Saldana's Gamora.

Gamora perished in Infinity War not through the snap, but by Thanos killing her on Vormir in order to procure the Soul Stone. But the fans were delighted to see her return in Endgame, although it was the 2014 version of the character who was still serving Thanos. She ultimately united with current day Nebula to take the Mad Titan down, although she wasn't seen after the battle ended. Now The Russo Brothers have addressed the ambiguity of Gamora's fate, saying:

Joe: We don't know whether she was dusted or whether she survived. That's probably a question that Guardians [3] will answer.

Anthony: Quill doesn't know either.

Joe: I'm sure future films will answer that question.

Tricky, tricky. The Russo Brothers purposefully didn't reveal whether or not Tony dusted Gamora in the final moments of the Endgame battle. Although since she was so prominently featured in the epic battle and all-female moment, that fate would be a disservice to the character.

The Russo Brothers' comments to Business Insider help to get a glimpse behind the curtain of the MCU, and the co-directors' methodical way of filmmaking. Avengers: Endgame included just about every character imaginable, and the Russos had to juggle countless narratives. But Marvel characters also have their own franchises, so there was a tricky balance regarding how much ownership the brothers could take.

Because of this, Gamora's death in Infinity War it was truly a gut punch. And since she wasn't dusted by Thanos' snap, it didn't seem likely that she'd return from the dead once it was reversed. Luckily, time travel was a major macguffin in Endgame, and allowed for Zoe Saldana's signature Guardian to brought back to life.

Gamora had always hated Thanos, so it made sense that she would help out the future version of her sister, and try to stop him from getting the Infinity Stones again. This also reunited her with Peter Quill, although he was a total stranger to her. Gamora was last seen fighting alongside women of the MCU, as Captain Marvel got the Gauntlet through Thanos' army.

Related: How Does One Return The Soul Stone? We Asked The Avengers: Endgame Writers

The Russo Brothers' tease about Guardians 3 was set up during the final moments of Endgame, as Star-Lord was shown searching for Gamora's location back onboard The Benatar. Smart money says that's a major plot line in the upcoming threequel, as Gamora's family tries to find her. But since she doesn't know any of the motley crew besides Nebula, they'll be starting from scratch. That includes Peter Quill, who had finally broken down her walls and convinced the green girl to dance.

James Gunn is back behind the director's chair for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and has teased some big things for Rocket in the upcoming threequel. But he's no doubt got plans for every member of the group, including Gamora.

It's currently unclear when Guardians 3 will hit theaters, but you can watch Gamora and the rest in Avengers: Endgame now. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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