Matthew Monagle
Zack Snyder Shares a Closer Look at the ‘Batman v Superman’ ‘Knightmare’ Costume
Here’s something that bothered me about that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice nightmare sequence: why does he continue to wear the mask? I get the body armor; I can even set aside the whole ‘Batman-doesn’t-kill’ thing and accept the machine gun he wears during the sequence. But why the mask? If we assume that the world has ended, there’s no real reason for him to keep his civilian identity a secret, and it’s not like audiences were going to be confused at who Ben Affleck was playing in the movie. Has Bruce Wayne just gotten used to getting up every morning and putting on eye blac
Warner Bros. Bumps Back Its ‘Aquaman’ Release Date
Listen. I know that the DC Cinematic Universe gets a lot of criticism for its dour visuals and themes, but let’s give credit where credit is due: Jason Momoa’s Aquaman is really shaping up like the sleeper hit of the whole endeavor. With a visual aesthetic stolen directly from an episode of Sons of Anarchy — and perhaps the most talented director of the Warner Bros. slate behind the camera — this is shaping up to be the best movie about people who talk to fish since Disney’s animated adaptation of The Little Mermaid.
A New Studio Could Mean New Problems for ‘The Crow Reborn’
It’s probably fair to assume that if a movie ever made a little bit of money at the box office, someone somewhere is hard at work on a reboot, prequel, sequel, or ‘reimagining’ of the franchise. Back in 2015, for example, we were inundated with rumors that The Crow was getting a reboot, first with Jack Huston playing the undead spirit of vengeance and then Justice League star Jason Momoa in the role. For a lot of movies, this is where the rumors dry up, but for The Crow Reborn, the headaches had just begun. Now Relativity Media has sold the rights to their tortured production and a whole new round of rumors and speculation can begin.
Dwayne Johnson Doesn’t Regret Calling ‘Fast 8’ Co-Star Vin Diesel a ‘Candy Ass’
Dwayne Johnson is a big man in every sense of the word. Physically, he’s a small planet, giving the moon a run for its money as the most important celestial body to be caught in Earth’s orbit. His personality and spirit, though, are even bigger. You rarely if ever hear stories about Johnson losing his cool or brushing off a fan, choosing instead to spend every waking minute of every waking day reminding us that movie stars do still exist in 2016.
‘John Wick’ Director David Leitch Officially Gon’ Give It to You in ‘Deadpool 2’
A few weeks ago, Deadpool director Tim Miller shocked the world — or a nerdier and more profane subsection of the world, anyways — by walking away from Deadpool 2. As reporters scrambled to make sense of why Miller would leave one of the breakout franchises of 2016, reports emerged that Miller and star Ryan Reynolds had very conflicting ideas for the upcoming sequel and that 20th Century Fox had thrown their support behind Reynolds’ vision for the franchise. Deadpool 2 was officially in the hands of Ryan Reynolds now, but the film still needed a director, and the hunt was on.
Go Behind the Scenes with Joker and Harley Quinn in This ‘Suicide Squad’ Featurette
Listen, impressionable young men and women of the world, because this is important: you should not watch Suicide Squad and think that the Joker and Harley Quinn represent any kind of reasonable #RelationshipGoal. This is an abusive and possessive relationship, start to finish, and while there may be a more consensual love story scattered among the footage on the cutting room floor, we won’t know until we see it. This is a pretty important disclaimer to throw out there before we talk about this footage
The First ‘Ghost in the Shell’ Trailer Is a Lurid Dystopian Dream
This past weekend, Paramount Pictures kicked off the publicity tour for its upcoming Ghost in the Shell adaptation with a global launch party in Tokyo. Cast and crew were on hand to talk about the film; exhibitions of the film’s art and costume designs were on display for those in attendance. For the rest of us, something even better was announce: the first theatrical trailer for Ghost in the Shell is here, and it is not exactly short on style.
There Are Whole Seconds of New Joker Footage in This ‘Suicide Squad’ TV Spot
Look, all things being equal, I really didn’t mind Jared Leto’s take on the Joker in Suicide Squad. Yes, the constant news items about what latest “crazy” thing he did to get in character were pretty annoying, and yes, the number of people who seem to think that Joker and Harley Quinn’s relationship is something to emulate is downright disturbing, but Leto seemed like a perfect fit for the gloomy and angst-ridden universe that Warner Bros. has created for its DC Comics characters. At another studio, he’d be woefully out of place. In this one? He’s fine.
Here’s What the New Megazord in ‘Power Rangers’ Will Look Like
Childhood gives you rose-tinted glasses about a lot of things, not least of which is the role toys played on your purchase decisions growing up. I can remember having a large collection of action figures from movies like Aliens and Batman and using them to recreate some of my favorite moments from the movie; if you had asked me then, I would have said that toys were only for playing, never imagining that the toy commercials on TV were probably what spiked my interest in the movies to begin with
‘Captain America: Civil War’ Enters the Award Season Fray
While Marvel fans are no-doubt pleased with the critical and box office success of the movies to date, spend enough time in the comic book communities and you do hear people complain that movies like Captain America: Winter Soldier were not given more consideration for major awards at the end of the year. After all, Marvel has brought in some of the most talented filmmakers and actors working in the business today; why wouldn’t the Academy want to recognize some of the talent on display in these films?
‘Spawn’ Creator Todd McFarlane Confirms a New Movie Is on the Way
With studios green-lighting every superhero property they can think of in search of the next big blockbuster franchise — just what the heck is a Max Steel anyways? — it’s kind of surprising that we haven’t seen a Spawn remake. Not only is Todd McFarlane’s character one of the biggest comic book characters to be created in the last twenty years, he is also one of the few prominent black superheroes (anti-superheroes?) to have already gotten his own movie adaptation. Diversity that comes with an R-rating? Just tell the suits that it’s Deadpool-meets-Black Panther and watch the dollar signs come rolling in.
Rumor: That Standalone ‘Batman’ Movie Won’t Be Set Entirely in Arkham Asylum
One of the hot rumors surrounding Ben Affleck’s standalone Batman movie was that it would serve as a kind of loose adaptation of Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, a haunting graphic novel that features Batman breaking up a riot at Gotham’s notorious insane asylum. Morrison’s comic is a darkly beautiful addition to the Batman mythology and seems to be perfectly in line with the kind of superhero stories Warner Bros. is looking for: for mature audiences and crammed to the gills with as many recognizable faces as possible.