Ben Affleck Directing and Starring in Solo Batman Film Written by Geoff Johns
Following this week's release of new photos of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice comes news that Ben Affleck will not only don the cape and cowl following 2016's Dawn of Justice and 2017's Justice League, but he'll also direct a solo Batman film co-written by legendary DC Comics writer and Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns.
Johns has had his hand in shaping DC Comics' latest TV series, Arrow and The Flash, as well as having written for Smallville, co-produced and was a creative consultant for Green Lantern, is executive producing Dawn of Justice, and has written many, many DC titles over the years.
Considering the project is years away with two other films serving as buffers in the interim, there are no details on the script. Affleck's next project, a film adaptation of the novel Live By Night by Dennis Lehane, was greenlit by Warner Bros. just this week. However, considering the viability of a solo Batman film, there may be potential for Warner Bros. to switch the two film productions around.
We'll have more information on this rumored solo Batman film when more comes!
[via /Film]
Marisa Tomei Cast as Aunt May in Spider-Man Reboot
In a surprising (but delightful) move, Sony and Marvel have tapped the lovely Marisa Tomei (My Cousin Vinny, The Wrestler) to play Aunt May in the upcoming Spider-Man reboot opposite Tom Holland. While nothing official has been announced, Variety is reporting that the two studios offered the role to Tomei last week.
Aunt May has traditionally been depicted as the older, wise maternal figure in young Peter Parker's life. However, the Ultimate Spider-Man version of the character depicted her as a bit more "street smart" and not as fragile or naive as her counterpart. Ideally, Tomei's Aunt May will be more like the Ultimate Spider-Man version. Tomei doesn't necessarily fit what most are used to as the "Aunt May-type," as can be seen by the online backlash from the comic book community. However, as both a comic and film fanatic, I'd love to see what Tomei can bring to the role and for the Spider-Man reboot to shed the cobwebs (hurr hurr) off of what we've already grown accustomed to to establish a new status quo for this now third reboot of the Spider-Man film franchise.
This'll be an interesting career move for Tomei. The actress typically opts for dramatic roles, my favorite of which was Pam in Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler. Depending on the writer Sony and Marvel find for the film (they haven't found/announced one just yet), this could be the best depiction of Spider-Man on the big screen yet.
[via Variety]
Watch Matt Damon Get Stranded on Mars in Trailer for The Martian
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Ridley Scott is returning to the stars (doesn't he always) with his next film, The Martian. The film has similarities to other major space-bound box office hits Gravity and Interstellar. Matt Damon stars as an astronaut who finds himself stranded on Mars after a dust storm separates him from the rest of his crew. Initially considered dead, he relies on his ingenuity to scrounge up enough resources to survive until he can develop a way to contact help. Elsewhere, NASA and his crewmates must find a way to rescue him.
Damon leads an ensemble cast that also includes Jessica Chastain (Interstellar), Kate Mara (Fantastic Four), Michael Pena (Cesar Chavez), Donald Glover, Kristen Wiig (The Skeleton Twins), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Z for Zachariah), Jeff Daniels (Dumb and Dumber To), and more.
The Martian will be dropping in theaters on November 25th. You can read the film's full synopsis below.
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring “the Martian” home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible, rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney’s safe return. Based on a best-selling novel, and helmed by master director Ridley Scott, THE MARTIAN features a star studded cast that includes Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, Michael Pena, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Donald Glover.
Sony Shortens List of Spider-Man Directors, Actors
Over the weekend, Sony screen-tested their list of six actors to portray Peter Parker/Spider-Man in their next wave of films. The actors, which included Asa Butterfield (Ten Thousand Saints, Ender's Game), Tom Holland (Locke), Judah Lewis (Point Break), Matthew Lintz (Pixels), Charlie Plummer (Boardwalk Empire), and Charlie Rowe (Red Band Society), were flown out to Atlanta (not far from the Captain America: Civil War set) to test in front of Sony and Marvel execs.
However, Deadline is reporting that the list has been lowered to two, with Butterfield and Holland seen as the best candidates for the role. Personally, my money is on Butterfield thanks to his experience with big Hollywood films, as well as his great performance at this year's Sundance film, the aforementioned Ten Thousand Saints. What's more, Butterfield is only 17, which gives Sony and Marvel a primetime actor who they can build a multi-film franchise around well into the 2020s.
Deadline is also reporting that the shortlist of Spider-Man directors has been shortened even more, with Warm Bodies director Jonathan Levine and St. Vincent's Ted Melfi at the top of the list. However, another name has surprisingly joined the fray in Cop Car director Jon Watts. Vacation writers/directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein are still in contention, as well. However, at this point, I would bet on Levine getting the nod.
We'll have more for you once Sony and Marvel make their final decisions.
[via Deadline]
Power Rangers Reboot Delayed to January 2017
When the Power Rangers film reboot was originally announced last May, I was overjoyed with the franchise's potential. Lionsgate has done extremely well with their films over the years, especially in regards to The Hunger Games. A few months after the film's announcement, Lionsgate revealed X-Men: First Class screenplay writers Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz were handling the script. Come fall, executive producer Roberto Orci, who had been attached as an executive producer after departing from the then-active Amazing Spider-Man franchise, left the project due to scheduling conflicts with his directorial debut on Star Trek 3. Then just last month, Lionsgate delayed the film from a coveted July 2015 release date to a less-than-savory January 13, 2017 date.
Needless to say, the reboot has faced a few hurdles since its inception. The move from a primetime summer release to a mid-winter release typically isn't a show of confidence for film studios, with May through August typically represented by the year's biggest films and October through December reserved for prestigious films making a run for Oscars consideration. However, the studio is still confident that the Power Rangers film will be successful, choosing a date where they can capitalize on an otherwise slow weekend. As it stands right now, only two other films are slated for the date: Boss Baby, a comedy starring Alec Baldwin and Kevin Spacey, and The Magnificent Seven, a Western reuniting director Antoine Fuqua (The Equalizer) and Denzel Washington. The Power Rangers film would certainly be able to capture a wider audience than the two films, which is a positive for the project.
Of course, the project found some unintentional competition when the amazing POWER/RANGERS fan film was released this past March., leading SCG Power Rangers, LLC (the company that owns the Power Rangers IP) to take action against the film. The fan film's release could have posed a major problem to the official project, given the incredibly warm reception producer Adi Shankar received for the dark and gritty reimagining. With a director in place (Project Almanac's Dean Israelite) and full support by Lionsgate, the reboot should find success despite (or perhaps due to) the January release date. For all we know, this could be the perfect opportunity for both the studio and the franchise to establish itself in a less-crowded release window. Who knows? Maybe the Power Rangers reboot could jumpstart mid-winter as a prime time for larger studio releases.
[via /Film]
[Trailer] Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
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Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, the stand-out film of this year's Sundance Film Festival, is almost guaranteed to be everybody's next favorite indie film with its perfect mix of drama, comedy, great performances, and writing. Greg (Thomas Mann) is the titular "me," a high school loner who tries hard to blend in with all of the cliques without making meaningful attachments. In fact, he refers to his only friend Earl (Ronald Cyler III) as a "co-worker," who he's shot and filmed over 40 films with since grade school. However, this all changes when his Mom makes him hang out with the "dying girl," Rachel (Olivia Cooke). You can see where this is going...
Yet, the film subverts assumptions, which helps explain why Me and Earl and the Dying Girl won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at Sundance. I've been championing Mann's rise in Hollywood since Project X, and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is the perfect film to help elevate his star to new heights.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl will have a limited theatrical release on June 12th.
Spike Lee's Chicago Film Will Be a Musical Comedy
Spike Lee's upcoming film, which has grown to Voldemort-esque levels of "Film-That-Will-Not-Be-Named" around these parts, will be a musical comedy based on the Greek play Lysistrata by Aristophanes. The play takes place during the Peloponnesian War (431 - 404 BC) and finds the titular character banding other Greek women up to devise a plan to find peace by withholding sex from their husbands and partners to stop the war. The comedy, however, comes in the ironic fact that Lysistrata and her group grow just as sexually-frustrated as the men, creating a dichotomy of mixed feelings. The setup does fall in line with Lee's recent works, and would fit the narrative of a young woman holding out from doing sex until those around her stop the violence in Englewood.
However, looking at Lee's last film, Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, is still alarming, as the film was a spiritual remake of Ganja and Hess, but didn't do anything to separate itself from its source. The film's title, too, does fit in with the proposed narrative, yet it's still insulting to constantly be attached to and defined by war, especially if the film insulates itself completely within Englewood and not throughout the entire city.
Furthermore, the film will be a musical comedy, which I think is being done to further subvert the film's title, yet sugarcoating the real problem just makes matters more problematic. I'm assuming the musical elements of the film will be due to the soundtrack playing more of a role within the film rather than a more traditional musical, but that's just conjecture. On that same note, it's reported that Kanye West, who was courted for the film, won't be appearing, but may still be providing something for the soundtrack.
[via /Film]
[Trailer] Jem and the Holograms
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Art is cyclical, especially in Hollywood, so it was only a matter of time before film studios began to reach into the depths of popular (and semi-popular) '80s properties to find the next big thing. While the majority of '80s rehashes have focused on male-driven franchises (G.I. Joe and Transformers to name a couple), not many female-centric franchises have been tapped for the modern adaptation treatment... until now.
Behold, the first official trailer for Jem and the Holograms. Starring Aubrey Peeples (Nashville, Sharknado), the film is about a teenage girl band staying true to themselves in the face of sudden fame. Sounds very fitting for a contemporary music film, doesn't it? The film is being directed by Jon M. Chu whose notable works include Step Up 2: The Streets, Step Up 3D, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, and the two Justin Bieber films Never Say Never and Believe. Also starring are Stefanie Scott (Wreck-It Ralph), Hayley Kiyoko (CSI: Cyber), and Aurora Perrineau, with Juliette Lewis and '80s icon Molly Ringwald.
Jem and the Holograms has a dedicated fanbase that seems pretty positive over the film. Universal Pictures is definitely pushing the film alongside Pitch Perfect 2 with attention towards Chu's connection with Bieber, helping the film establish itself amongst the tween girl demographic. Hopefully, the film will also appeal to older generations that grew up with Jem and the Holograms. We'll find out just how well the campaign goes when the film hits theaters on October 23rd.