New ‘Men in Black’ Trilogy Coming Without Original Cast

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The Hollywood Reporter caught up with producers Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald while on their press tour for He Named Me Malala and they were asked about the future of the Men in Black franchise and this is what they had to say:

“We’re in the middle of it. It’s very active.” Parkes revealed and when asked if Will Smith would be involved he confirmed that he will not be.

“It will be reinvented as a trilogy,” MacDonald added.

There was word a few months back that Sony was interested in crossing over the 21 Jump Street and Men in Black franchises but that seems to have been put aside for now.

More as it becomes available

Netflix declares “Out with the old, in with the new!” – the latest & greatest

Netflix

A five year deal with EPIX is set to expire at the end of the month and with it, goes some big budget movies including Hunger Games: Catching Fire, World War Z and Transformers: Age of Extinction. This really isn’t too big of a deal because the streaming giant is also gaining some others:

We also have some great family films coming your way, including Minions, Hotel Transylvania 2, and Home through arrangements with Sony Pictures Animation, Universal Pictures and DreamWorks Animation. Starting next year, we will be the exclusive US pay TV home of the latest theatrical movies from the The Walt Disney Company, including Pixar, Lucasfilm and Marvel movies. The majority of these films will arrive on Netflix faster than traditional arrangements had previously allowed.

WAGNER MOURA, JULIAN BUSTAMANTE and PAULINA GAITAN (right) star in NARCOS. NARCOS S01E03 "The Men of Always"

WAGNER MOURA, JULIAN BUSTAMANTE and PAULINA GAITAN (right) star in NARCOS.
NARCOS S01E03 “The Men of Always”

There’s also a bunch of original content that’s out now and releasing by the end of the year. Narcos, which released all 10 episodes this Friday, August 28th, is the latest series to catch my eye. Right out of the gate, the story grabs you with the narration of one of the DEA agents, Steve Murphy (played by Boyd Holbrook who sounds eerily like Johnny Depp from Blow). However, the real star is the man himself, Pablo Escobar, brought to life by Wagner Moura, a well known Brazilian actor, star of the immensely successful Elite Squad movies.

So what’s coming this fall?

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September 18th – Keith Richards: Under the Influence

Beasts of No NationOctober 16th – Beasts of No Nation starring Idris Elba

December – Adam Sandler’s (cough) movies

With Bob and DavidThen without a release date, but set as 2015 is With Bob and David starring Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul) and David Cross (Mr Show, Arrested Development)

So you see? Dry your tears. You won’t even miss Transformers.

Coming to Netflix – Guide to 2015 Premieres of Movies & Series

James Wan in Negotiations to Direct ‘Robotech’ for Sony

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The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that current hot commodity, director James Wan, is looking to fill up his already busy schedule with another high profile film. The trade reports that Wan is in negotations to direct a live action version of the hit animated series  Robotech for Sony.

Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton are producing the project, which is based on 1980s cartoon series from Harmony Gold USA and Japan’s Tatsunoko Productions. The series was re-edited and re-dialogued to combine three Japanese anime series (“The Super Dimension Fortress Macross,” “Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross” and “Genesis Climber MOSPEADA”) to give the producers enough episodes to air as a daily syndicated series.

Robotech is a sprawling sci-fi epic that takes place at a time when Earth has developed giant robots from the technology on an alien spacecraft that crashed on a South Pacific island. Mankind is forced to use the technology to fend off three successive waves of alien invasions. The first invasion concerns a battle with a race of giant warriors who seek to retrieve their flagship’s energy source, known as “protoculture,” and the planet’s survival ends up in the hands of two young pilots.

More as it becomes available

Sequel to Denzel Washington’s ‘The Equalizer’ in the Works

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The Hollywood Reporter has news that Sony is in developing a sequel to the Denzel Washington starring action thriller The Equalizer with the actor set to return.

In The Equalizer, Denzel Washington plays McCall, a man who believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when McCall meets Teri (Chloë Grace Moretz), a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can’t stand idly by – he has to help her. Armed with hidden skills that allow him to serve vengeance against anyone who would brutalize the helpless, McCall comes out of his self-imposed retirement and finds his desire for justice reawakened. If someone has a problem, if the odds are stacked against them, if they have nowhere else to turn, McCall will help. He is The Equalizer.

More as it becomes available…

Sony Announces Animated Spider-Man Movie from Phil Lord and Chris Miller!

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Sony Pictures has announced that a new animated Spider-Man movie is in the works and they have signed Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The LEGO Movie) to direct. The announcement was made by Tom Rothman, chairman of the Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, at CinemaCon, where he commented that Lord and Miller, who will also be writing the treatment and producing the filmwould be “taking Spider-Man back to his graphic roots with the first-of-its-kind animated Spider-Man feature.”

Rothman also stated that the animated film will exist independently of the projects in the live-action Spider-Man universe, all of which are continuing.

The animated film from Lord & Miller, will be released on July 20, 2018 with  Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and Amy Pascal all serving as producers.

Five Actors Up for the Role of ‘Spider-Man’ and We Now Know Who They Are

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It appears that Marvel and Sony are close to settling on a new Spider-Man to replace Andrew Garfield in the MCU! The Wrap has now revealed the names on the shortlist and we now know that Nat Wolff (The Fault In Our Stars), Asa Butterfield (Ender’s Game), Tom Holland (The Impossible), Timothee Chalamet (Interstellar) and Liam James (The Way Way Back) are all in the running to land the role.

The article states that none of the five actors have tested for the roles as of yet, but they have confirmed that these five are strong contenders and are in the mix. Sony expects a decision in the next 2-3 weeks and an announcement of their choice after the deal is agreed upon. Spider-Man is still planned to make an appearance in Captain America: Civil War, and the role will have to be cast by June when the actor will be needed on set.

The new standalone Spider-Man movie is slated to hit theaters on July 28, 2017.

Jeremy’s Review: ‘Video Games: The Movie’ Is an Endearing Documentary on the History and Evolution of Video Games and Their Culture

Video Games-Poster-XLPerhaps I’m dating myself here, but I can easily recall when Pong, the original video game sensation, became a hit, and the Atari 2600 shortly thereafter. And on and on and on. I am a member of the first video game generation and plenty of my life (up to the end college at least) has been consumed by playing, a pastime I have since passed along to my two sons, ages 7 and 9 much to the chagrin of my wife who never played them and fails to see their point. But one can’t deny how pervasive that video games have become in our culture and that’s where a film like writer-director Jeremy Snead‘s fantastic documentary Video Games: The Movie helps show how and why this all came about. Read More →