Movie/TV News (5 Viewers)

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11

SUPERMAN---new trailer released for the movie starring David Corenswet.

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EDDINGTON---trailer released for the dark comedy movie starring Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal.

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BALLARD---trailer released for the BOSCH spinoff tv series starring Maggie Q.

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THE DOGS---trailer released for the horror movie based on the novel.

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WONDER WOMAN---DC Studios co-head James Gunn said DC is developing a new Wonder Woman movie, “We’re working on Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman’s being written right now.” He said the movie is a "separate thing" not connected to the HBO PARADISE LOST prequel tv series set on Themyscira before Wonder Woman.

THE LAST OF US---creator Neil Druckmann said Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) will be the lead character in Season 3, “I can’t believe that they let us structure the series in this way, meaning like, we just ended Season 2, and Season 3 is going to be starring – spoiler alert – Kaitlyn.
I was sure that they wouldn’t let us do this when we started adapting this, but they’ve leaned into what makes, I believe, the story special. And allowed us not only the time but the creative freedom to be able to take these swings.”

THE ADVENTURES OF CLIFF BOOTH---Yahya Abdul-Mateen II will play a Jim Brown-type football star/actor in David Fincher's Netflix sequel to ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD.

PRESUMED INNOCENT---Rachel Brosnahan (SUPERMAN) will star in the Apple TV+ Season 2 which is based on the upcoming Jo Murray novel DISSECTION OF A MURDER. The novel's synopsis says. “When Leila Reynolds is handed her first murder case, she’s shocked at how high-profile it is: the murder of a well-respected, well-known judge. This shouldn’t be the kind of case she’s leading; it’s way beyond her expertise. But the defendant, Jack Millman, is clear. He wants her, and only her.”

NEAGLEY---the Amazon MGM REACHER spinoff series has Maria Sten returning as private investigator Frances Neagley. The synopsis says, “When Frances Neagley learns that a beloved friend from her past has been killed in a suspicious accident, she becomes hell-bent on justice. Using everything she’s learned from Jack Reacher and her time as a member of the 110 Special Investigators, Neagley puts herself on a dangerous path to uncover a menacing evil.”

SPIDER-MAN: BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE---Shameik Moore was interviewed by entertainment creator Liam Saui and was asked about the upcoming sequel. Moore said, "I will be in it! That's all I can say!" Saui said, "He will be in it, twice!" and Moore replied, "Three times!"

TRIVIA---THE FUGITIVE starred Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones and was based on the 1960s tv series starring David Janssen. The movie was the third-biggest grossing movie of 1993 and received seven Academy Award nominations with Tommy Lee Jones winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
In the movie, Dr. Richard Kimble was sentenced to death for murdering his wife, who was really killed by a one-armed man. Kimble escaped and was pursued by US Marshal Deputy Samuel Gerard.
The original script had Gerard hiring the one-armed man to kill Dr. Kimble after Gerard's wife died after being operated on by Kimble. Director Andrew Davis said the original script was, "Screwed up...Getting the story to make sense, to make it realistic, that was our biggest concern."

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JUNE 12

THE DIPLOMAT---trailer released for Season 3.

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IN YOUR DREAMS---trailer released for the Netflix animated comedy movie.

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ALIEN: EARTH---tv spot released for the FX spinoff series.

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SUPERMAN---James Gunn commented on a new character in the movie, “Mr. Handsome is Lex’s creature that he created in a petri dish that drives around on this flying platform that is the ugliest, grossest creature in the world.” Fans speculate Mr. Handsome appeared in the trailers.

JUSTICE LEAGUE---James Gunn commented on if DC Studios is planning a Justice League movie, “Of course, of course. There is no Justice League in this world… not yet.” When asked if a Justice League movie is part of his plan for DCU's first chapter, Gunn replied, “Sure.”

CAPE FEAR---photos posted of Javier Bardem and Amy Adams in the Apple TV+ reboot miniseries filming in Atlanta. The synopsis says, “A storm is coming for happily married attorneys Amanda and Steve Bowden when Max Cady (Bardem), a notorious killer from their past, gets out of prison.”

ALIEN VS. PREDATOR---20th Studios Steve Asbell commented on a new ALIEN VS. PREDATOR sequel, "[You will] probably [see another ALIEN VS. PREDATOR movie]. It wouldn’t be in the way you think. That’s the thing. Not in the way that it will just be called ALIEN VS. PREDATOR or anything like the original movies. If we do this, they’ll be organically created out of these two franchises that we’ve continued with characters that we fall in love with and those characters will combine…perhaps. But we haven’t gotten to that point. And we’re not just going to bang it out."

INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE---Brad Pitt was asked if he would reunite with Tom Cruise for a future movie, "Well, I'm not going to hang my a*s off airplanes and sh*t like that, so when he does something again, that's on the ground."

QUASIMODO---Vincent Cassel will star in the Netflix movie based on the novel THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE-DAME. The synopsis says, “Set in Paris on the eve of the July Revolution (1830), this film reimagines the life of the man said to have inspired Victor Hugo’s iconic character, Quasimodo. As the cholera epidemic spreads through the city, he’s caught between political turmoil and an impossible love.”

A CHRISTMAS CAROL---the NOSFERATU team of Willem Dafoe and director Robert Eggers might reunite for the movie with Dafoe playing Ebenezer Scrooge, but negotiations have not started yet.

A COLT IS MY PASSPORT---Gareth Evans (THE RAID) will reportedly direct the Orion Pictures remake of the 1967 Japanese yazuka noir movie about a crime lord who hires a hit man to kill a rival crime lord. Evans became a fan of the movie during the pandemic when he watched the movie on the Criterion Channel.

TRIVIA---in THE TWILIGHT ZONE episode "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", Leah Waggner played Mrs. Goodman, whose husband, Les, is accused of being an alien invader by neighbors. In realty, Waggner's husband, character actor William Schallert, played alien Bajoran musician Varani, in the STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE episode "Sanctuary".
Perhaps Schallert's most famous role was playing United Federation of Planets Undersecretary for Agriculture Nilz Baris in the STAR TREK episode "The Trouble with Tribbles". Schallert said, "People sure have known me from that for a long time. They knew who I was on that show before I knew who I was on that show. I was invited to a very early STAR TREK convention that was held at the Marriott Hotel at the airport (in L.A.). I arrived there and went through the door into the main lobby, and it was loaded with aliens, with little antennae bouncing around on their heads. As I came through the door, they were saying, 'Nilz Baris!' I’m looking around and they said, ‘No, that’s you!' So that’s how I learned my name from that show. There was no signing of autographs there. I was making a personal appearance. And there was a kid there who was, at the most, eight or nine years old. He had six months to live and he was in a wheelchair, and this was the most important thing he could do in the last six months of his life, coming to this Star Trek convention. I thought, 'Wow, this is amazing. This show has a real hold on people.' He was thrilled to be there. He was being wheeled around and shaking hands with people. I was thinking, 'He’s going to die, and this is the thing he had to do before he died.' It tells you something about the show."

In THE TWILIGHT ZONE episode "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", Leah Waggner played Mrs. Goodman, whose husband, Les, is accused of being an alien invader by neighbors.

In realty, Waggner's husband, character actor William Schallert, played alien Bajoran musician Varani, in the STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE episode "Sanctuary".

Perhaps Schallert's most famous role was playing United Federation of Planets Undersecretary for Agriculture Nilz Baris in the STAR TREK episode "The Trouble with Tribbles".

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, JUNE 13

SPACEBALLS 2---teaser trailer released for the sequel to the 1987 STAR WARS spoof movie. The cast includes Bill Pullman returning as Lone Starr, Rick Moranis as Dark Helmet and Mel Brooks as Yogurt. Lewis Pullman, son of Bill Pullman, is in negotiations to play Starburst, the son of Lone Starr and Princess Vespa. Josh Gad and Keke Palmer also star in undisclosed roles.

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ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD 2---movie insider Jeff Sneider claims Netflix paid Quentin Tarantino $20 million for the sequel script and has offered "millions of dollars" to Leonardo DiCaprio to return for a cameo role.

THUNDERBOLTS*---VARIETY reports the movie has earned $377 million and needs to earn $425 million to break even, which is considered doubtful. Analyst Jeff Bock said, “These lower-tier comic book movies aren’t cinematic slam dunks anymore. THUNDERBOLTS* wrapping up after just a month in theaters is also a concern. These films aren’t legging out like previous iterations.”

STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS---Paramount+ renewed the series for Season 5 which will be the last season.

REACHER---Season 4 is set in New York with Alan Ritchson commenting, “The thing about subway cars is you step on one and you never know what’s going to happen.” New co-stars are Jay Baruchel (HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON) as a small-town cop and Sydelle Noel (GLOW) as a Philadelphia cop.

TOY STORY 5---Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter commented on the sequel, "...Bonnie is now eight, and she's become more concerned about being socially connected and making friends, which is why her parents agreed to get her this LilyPad. It's a new tech tablet, which allows Bonnie to chat with her friends, and play games, and other things too. But Lily can also be a bit sneaky and prickly to be around, because in her mind, it's a lot better to be socialized, and Bonnie needs to move on from toys, so that puts them at odds with our toys. They both have very different opinions on what Bonnie needs."
Slashfilm.com described footage from the sequel, "The first few minutes of the movie paint a picture of something that feels utterly unlike anything we've seen in "Toy Story" before. The footage begins on a purposefully disorienting note: A Buzz Lightyear toy wakes up on some beach, fresh out of his packaging, with no idea how he got there or why. Guided only by a foreboding score and no actual dialogue, we're left to put the pieces together ourselves. This Buzz was part of an entire shipping container full of other Buzz toys, apparently having fallen off a cargo vessel and washed up on this tiny island far from home. The group despondently resigns themselves to their fate ... until the first Buzz looks up at the dusky sky and, like those monkeys in "2001: A Space Odyssey" learning to use tools for the first time, gradually remembers their orders to, "Rendezvous with Star Command." Cue an ending montage of all the Buzzes building makeshift rafts and sailing out into the open ocean with a newfound passion. Destination? Unknown!"

GATTO---Pixar animated movie underway about a black cat in Venice, Italy. The synopsis says, "From LUCA director Enrico Casarosa, the film returns to Italy, following a black cat named Nero. Indebted to a feline mob boss, Nero finds himself forced to forge an unexpected friendship that may finally lead him to his purpose..."

DOCTOR WHO---the BBC is developing an animated DOCTOR WHO tv series for the pre-school channel CBeebies.

SILENT HILL---Kanami is developing remake of the horror movie directed by the Bloober Team (SILENT HILL 2 remake).

TRIVIA---Friday the 13th movie trivia.
In FRIDAY THE 13TH, Harry Crosby played victim Bill. Crosby is the son of Bing and Kathryn Crosby. In Bill's death-by-arrow scene, makeup artist Tom Savini added wetting agent PhotoFlo to the fake blood to make it more realistic. However, some of the fake blood got into Crosby's eyes which caused him to be blind for six months. Fortunately, Crosby regained his vision. Later, it was discovered that PhotoFlo was not a "safe blood" that can be used on an actor's skin. Savini said the accident was "not a proud moment" in his career. Crosby left acting and became a very successful investment banker.

In FRIDAY THE 13TH, victim Bill was played by Harry Crosby, the son of Bing and Kathryn Crosby.

In the death-by-arrow scene, Crosby was blinded for six months after the fake blood, mixed with unsafe wetting agent PhotoFlo, got into his eyes.

 

[dragon53]

MONDAY, JUNE 16

THE NAKED GUN---trailer released for the reboot movie starring Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson.

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OSIRIS---trailer released for the sci fi alien movie starring Linda Hamilton.

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BRICK---trailer released for the Netflix mystery movie.

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SQUID GAME---Netflix released the trailer for Season 3, the last season.

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MIKE HAMMER---the TRUE DETECTIVE team of Matthew McConaughey and writer Nic Pizzolatto are reuniting for a movie based on the Mickey Spillane Mike Hammer private investigator novels.

STAR WARS---the "first print" of STAR WARS was show for the first time since 1978 at the BFI Film Festival in London. Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy said, “It’s incredible folklore. Even when I came into the company, there was endless conversation about where everything was, and what was in fact the first print? And it’s quite remarkable, what you’re going to see is in fact the first print, and I’m not even sure there’s another one quite like it. It’s that rare. There’s so much tinkering that’s gone on over the years, and things that George [Lucas] decided, ‘I’m gonna change this, I’m gonna try that.’ And then, everybody kind of lost track of what it was.”

BATMAN---DC Studios co-head James Gunn commented on Robert Pattinson playing the DCU Batman, "I would never say zero, because you just never know. But it’s not likely. It’s not likely at all. I’ll also say BATMAN PART II is not canceled. That’s the other thing I hear all the time — that BATMAN PART II is canceled. It’s not canceled. We don’t have a script. Matt’s [Reeves] slow. Let him take his time. Let him do what he’s doing. God, people are mean. Let him do his thing, man."

SUPERGIRL: WOMAN OF TOMORROW---James Gunn confirmed the movie's title has been changed to SUPERGIRL.

JAMES BOND---Danny Boyle, who left the 25th James Bond movie due to creative differences, commented on if he would return now that Amazon owns the franchise, “That ship has sailed.”

MOVIE AUDIENCES---audience research firm DiO did a two-year study involving 37,000 movie audience members using facial coding, biometric and cognitive data and found the following:

1. Younger male viewers respond more strongly to character-driven storytelling with narrative depth than to relentless, high-octane action scenes
2. For this demographic, there is a 5% difference in immersion scores between character-driven and action-driven trailers
3. For this same audience segment, there is a preference for female characters who are strong and independent over those who are hyper-stylized or given supporting roles


BREAKTHROUGH---Darren Aronofsky is in talks to direct the movie starring Dwayne Johnson as a manipulative motivational guru.

ANIMA---Sydney Chandler (ALIEN: EARTH) and Takehiro Hira (SHOGUN) will star in the sci fi movie about couple on a road trip with a man suffering from a failing consciousness whose has been treated with experimental memory uploads.

I EAT POOP: A DUNG BEETLE STORY---animated movie underway based on the children's boo. Ryan Reynolds is the producer.

TRIVIA---Father's Day movie trivia.
In INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, Sean Connery played Indiana Jones' father, Dr. Henry Jones, Sr. When villain Walter Donovan shot Dr. Jones, Sr., he used a Walther PPK, the pistol made famous by Connery in the James Bond movies.

In INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, villain Walter Donovan shot Dr. Henry Jones, Sr. (Sean Connery) with a Walther PPK.

Sean Connery made the Walther PPK famous in the James Bond movies.

 

[BHogan]

THURSDAY, JUNE 12

THE DIPLOMAT---trailer released for Season 3.

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IN YOUR DREAMS---trailer released for the Netflix animated comedy movie.

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ALIEN: EARTH---tv spot released for the FX spinoff series.

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SUPERMAN---James Gunn commented on a new character in the movie, “Mr. Handsome is Lex’s creature that he created in a petri dish that drives around on this flying platform that is the ugliest, grossest creature in the world.” Fans speculate Mr. Handsome appeared in the trailers.

JUSTICE LEAGUE---James Gunn commented on if DC Studios is planning a Justice League movie, “Of course, of course. There is no Justice League in this world… not yet.” When asked if a Justice League movie is part of his plan for DCU's first chapter, Gunn replied, “Sure.”

CAPE FEAR---photos posted of Javier Bardem and Amy Adams in the Apple TV+ reboot miniseries filming in Atlanta. The synopsis says, “A storm is coming for happily married attorneys Amanda and Steve Bowden when Max Cady (Bardem), a notorious killer from their past, gets out of prison.”

ALIEN VS. PREDATOR---20th Studios Steve Asbell commented on a new ALIEN VS. PREDATOR sequel, "[You will] probably [see another ALIEN VS. PREDATOR movie]. It wouldn’t be in the way you think. That’s the thing. Not in the way that it will just be called ALIEN VS. PREDATOR or anything like the original movies. If we do this, they’ll be organically created out of these two franchises that we’ve continued with characters that we fall in love with and those characters will combine…perhaps. But we haven’t gotten to that point. And we’re not just going to bang it out."

INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE---Brad Pitt was asked if he would reunite with Tom Cruise for a future movie, "Well, I'm not going to hang my a*s off airplanes and sh*t like that, so when he does something again, that's on the ground."

QUASIMODO---Vincent Cassel will star in the Netflix movie based on the novel THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE-DAME. The synopsis says, “Set in Paris on the eve of the July Revolution (1830), this film reimagines the life of the man said to have inspired Victor Hugo’s iconic character, Quasimodo. As the cholera epidemic spreads through the city, he’s caught between political turmoil and an impossible love.”

A CHRISTMAS CAROL---the NOSFERATU team of Willem Dafoe and director Robert Eggers might reunite for the movie with Dafoe playing Ebenezer Scrooge, but negotiations have not started yet.

A COLT IS MY PASSPORT---Gareth Evans (THE RAID) will reportedly direct the Orion Pictures remake of the 1967 Japanese yazuka noir movie about a crime lord who hires a hit man to kill a rival crime lord. Evans became a fan of the movie during the pandemic when he watched the movie on the Criterion Channel.

TRIVIA---in THE TWILIGHT ZONE episode "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", Leah Waggner played Mrs. Goodman, whose husband, Les, is accused of being an alien invader by neighbors. In realty, Waggner's husband, character actor William Schallert, played alien Bajoran musician Varani, in the STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE episode "Sanctuary".
Perhaps Schallert's most famous role was playing United Federation of Planets Undersecretary for Agriculture Nilz Baris in the STAR TREK episode "The Trouble with Tribbles". Schallert said, "People sure have known me from that for a long time. They knew who I was on that show before I knew who I was on that show. I was invited to a very early STAR TREK convention that was held at the Marriott Hotel at the airport (in L.A.). I arrived there and went through the door into the main lobby, and it was loaded with aliens, with little antennae bouncing around on their heads. As I came through the door, they were saying, 'Nilz Baris!' I’m looking around and they said, ‘No, that’s you!' So that’s how I learned my name from that show. There was no signing of autographs there. I was making a personal appearance. And there was a kid there who was, at the most, eight or nine years old. He had six months to live and he was in a wheelchair, and this was the most important thing he could do in the last six months of his life, coming to this Star Trek convention. I thought, 'Wow, this is amazing. This show has a real hold on people.' He was thrilled to be there. He was being wheeled around and shaking hands with people. I was thinking, 'He’s going to die, and this is the thing he had to do before he died.' It tells you something about the show."

In THE TWILIGHT ZONE episode "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", Leah Waggner played Mrs. Goodman, whose husband, Les, is accused of being an alien invader by neighbors.

In realty, Waggner's husband, character actor William Schallert, played alien Bajoran musician Varani, in the STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE episode "Sanctuary".

Perhaps Schallert's most famous role was playing United Federation of Planets Undersecretary for Agriculture Nilz Baris in the STAR TREK episode "The Trouble with Tribbles".

I'm looking forward to the 3rd season of "The Diplomat" and will be renewing my Netflix subscription to watch it.

Brendan

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, JUNE 17

UNTAMED---trailer released for the Netflix murder mystery miniseries starring Eric Bana and Sam Neill.

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JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH---new trailer released for the sequel.

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CODE BLACK---Jake Gyllenhaal will star in the Amazon MGM movie based on the short story whose plot is described as, "The country’s top heart surgeon is flown to D.C. to perform a high-stakes operation, finding himself led into a trap where his guile and genius become the only way to stop a plot that threatens both his family and the nation."

TOP GUN 3---director Joseph Kosinski commented on the status of the sequel, “Ehren Kruger is writing the script as we speak. It’s a big idea that I spent almost a year developing — working with some friends at the Navy and Lockheed. And yeah, Ehren’s into it now, so we’ll see how it comes along.“

THE ADVENTURES OF CLIFF BOOTH---Carla Gugino has joined the cast of the sequel to ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD in an undisclosed role.

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 6---producer Jerry Bruckheimer was asked if the sequel will have an entirely new cast, "Well, not all new actors. We’ll have some back...I’m not going to tell you which ones — you’ll have to guess."

MOVIE INDUSTRY---James Gunn commented on why the movie industry is failing, "I do believe that the reason why the movie industry is dying is not because of people not wanting to see movies. It’s not because of home screens getting so good. The number-one reason is because people are making movies without a finished screenplay.”
He added about a movie he killed, “Everybody wanted to make the movie. It was greenlit, ready to go. The screenplay wasn’t ready. And I couldn’t do a movie where the screenplay’s not good. And we’ve been really lucky so far, because SUPERGIRL’s script was so f-cking good off the bat. And then LANTERNS came in, and the script was so f-cking good. CLAYFACE, same thing. So f-cking good. So we have these scripts that we’ve been really lucky with or wise in our choices or whatever the combination is.”

THE HUNGER GAMES: SUNRISE ON THE REAPING---Glenn Close will play Drusilla Sickle, "the cruelest escort to the District 12 Tributes" and Billy Porter will play Magno Stift, Sickle's estranged husband, the Tributes' designer.

X-MEN---a rumor claims Sabrina Carpenter has been in talks with Marvel Studios as a candidate to play Dazzler in the reboot movie.

CAN WE TALK?---Natasha Lyonne will reportedly star in the Joan Rivers biomovie.

BRIDE HARD---comedy action movie starring Rebel Wilson. The synopsis says, “For badass secret agent Sam (Rebel Wilson), blending in has never been part of the mission—until she’s maid of honor at her best friend’s extravagant destination wedding. Out of her element and surrounded by high-maintenance bridesmaids and a strict 'no weapons' policy, Sam is determined to prove she can be there for her friend—even if emotional support isn’t exactly her specialty. But when a team of mercenaries crashes the party and takes the guests hostage, Sam is thrown into a fight unlike any mission before—one where she can’t risk blowing her cover or ruining the big day. As she takes on the bad guys in a high-stakes battle disguised as a fairy-tale affair, she realizes the real threat might be closer than she thinks. Now, it’s bridezilla vs. bazookas as Sam dodges bullets, brawls in heels, and tries to survive both the armed assailants and the wedding planner’s wrath. Some missions require the perfect cover. This one just requires the perfect dress."

TRIVIA---the 1967 movie GUNN was based on Blake Edwards' hit private investigator tv series PETER GUNN starring Craig Stevens. In the GUNN scene on The Ark, a floating bordello featuring twin hookers, the piano player is Henry Mancini, who composed the famous theme for the tv series.

PETER GUNN LINK:

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 18

SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE---trailer released for the Bruce Springsteen biomovie.

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I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER---trailer released for the

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CLAYFACE---Tom Rhys Harries will star in the DC Studios movie.

A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE---the synopsis for the Kathryn Bigelow/Netlix movie starring Idris Elba and Rebecca Ferguson says, “When a single, unattributed missile is launched at the United States, a race begins to determine who is responsible and how to respond.”

DUNE 3---Nakoa-Wolf Momoa, son of Jason Momoa, will play Leto II and Ida Brooke will play Ghanima.

LAND OF THE LOST---Netflix reboot underway on the 1970s NBC sci fi series. The reboot plot is described as, “LAND OF THE LOST centers on a father, Rick, and his two children who accidentally go through a portal and find themselves trapped in a world inhabited by dinosaurs, including a Tyrannosaurus rex they nickname Grumpy; primate-like people named Pakuni, one of whom, Cha-Ka, they befriend; and reptilian humanoids called Sleestak."

STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS---co-showrunner Akiva Goldsman said the end of STRANGE NEW WORLDS might lead to a reboot of the original tv series, "My focus is singular. I’m STRANGE NEW WORLDS all the time. But would I like to get us right up to the edge of [STAR TREK-the original series] and then have somebody call us and say, ‘Now make that show!’ We literally have a fantastic cast, and we have incredible sets, and we have all these things right there — it’s a shame to waste it."

PREDATOR--Dan Trachtenberg said he is working on a new PREDATOR movie, "After PREY came out, and I started thinking about sequel stuff, there were three ideas that I had. KILLERS is one, BADLANDS is two and the third one is something else.
The reason why I felt possessed to make them and sort of why I rushed – I did two at once because I could do, I could multitask with animation – was because I was so eager to get to the third thing.”
He added, “There’s a lot of cool ideas out there and none of them are just like, ‘Oh, we have to say the next part of this story because it was successful.’ All of it is like, ‘Whoa, no one has done that in sci-fi. No one has done that in Predator. No one’s done that with the creature’. All of those ideas are generated from that instinct. So, yeah, there is definitely a third thing that I’d love to get to when BADLANDS is finished.”

FIREFIGHTER---Glen Powell will star in the untitled Ron Howard movie about two childhood friends who are firefighters battling deadly fires in Texas.

MINDHUNTER---Holt McCallany said the cancelled Netflix crime tv series might return as movies, "...I had a meeting with David Fincher in his office a few months ago, and he said to me that there is a chance that it may come back as three two-hour movies, but I think it's just a chance. I know there are writers that are working, but you know, David has to be happy with scripts."

HAROLD & KUMAR 4---the sequel is underway with John Cho and Kal Penn "expected to return".

TRIVIA---Patrick Macnee and Honor Blackman starred in the classic British spy tv series THE AVENGERS. Blackman once visited Macnee in California where he invited her for a game of tennis, "I was in L.A. once and Patrick Macnee lives there. He said, 'Oh darling, do come. Come up early because I will be playing tennis and you can watch us... in the nude.' Can you imagine watching them with everything wiggling about! Can you imagine what it would have been like?"

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JUNE 19

PLEASE DON'T FEED THE CHILDREN---trailer released for the Tubi horror movie starring Michelle Dockery and Giancarlo Esposito.

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WEDNESDAY---trailer released for Season 2.

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THE MATRIX---movie insider Daniel Richtman posted a rumor about the Drew Goddard reboot movie, "The idea is to have Keanu Reeves back for the next Matrix movie."

PREDATOR: BADLANDS---casting for the sequel is reportedly Elle Fanning's character, "This casting is for a dual character, and describes both characters. Character identifies as female or non-binary, open ethnicity, mid 20s – mid 40s. Thia has spent most of her life in a laboratory and is now embarking on her first big adventure in the world. She is incredibly smart, witty, enthusiastic, and unflappable. She has an innate disregard for danger, not because she’s fearless, but simply because she’s naive. Strong comedy chops required. The other sister, Tessa, has a militant intensity when it comes to achieving her family’s goals and mission objectives. She will not let anything get in her way, not even her twin sister."

28 YEARS LATER---the zombie sequel has a Rotten Tomatoes critics score of 95% (73 critics) which is the best of the franchise. 28 DAYS LATER has a 87% score and 28 WEEKS LATER has a 72% score.

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE---the original horror movie will return in 4K to theaters on August 18 for the 51st anniversary.

JAMES BOND---Aaron Pierre (REBEL RIDGE) is rumored to be candidate to be the next James Bond.

DRAGON'S LAIR---James Bobin (MUPPETS MOST WANTED) is in talks to direct the Netflix live-action movie based on the video game.

TRIVIA---two students at Wake Forest University in North Carolina both left school early and later became top tv celebrities.
Carroll O'Connor was a student at Wake Forest University, but he left to join the Navy during World War II. Unable to qualify for the Navy, O'Connor served in the Merchant Marine during the war. O'Connor later played Archie Bunker in the classic tv comedy ALL IN THE FAMILY.
David Chase was a student at Wake Forest for two years, but transferred back home to New York University. Chase later was the story consultant/writer on KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER (the inspiration for THE X-FILES), writer/producer on THE ROCKFORD FILES and is best known for creating THE SOPRANOS.

Carroll O'Connor left Wake Forest University and joined the Merchant Marine during World War II. O'Connor later played Archie Bunker on the classic tv comedy ALL IN THE FAMILY.

David Chase transferred from Wake Forest University to New York University and later was the story consultant/writer on KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER (the inspiration for THE X-FILES), writer/producer on THE ROCKFORD FILES and is best known for creating THE SOPRANOS.

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, JUNE 20

ALONE AT DAWN---Ron Howard will reportedly direct the movie based on the book about US Air Force combat controller John Chapman who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor after sacrificing his life to save 23 fellow soldiers in Afghanistan.

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS---Marvel Studios has already started developing the sequel to the reboot movie.

JAMES BOND---Puck said the list of candidates to direct the next James Bond movie are Denis Villeneuve (DUNE), Edward Berger (ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT), Edgar Wright (BABY DRIVER), Jonathan Nolan (WESTWORLD) and Paul King (PADDINGTON). It confirmed Alfonso Cuaron is no longer a candidate.

SGT. ROCK---DC Studios co-head James Gunn commented on rumors the movie based on the DC Comics World War II hero starring Colin Farrell has been cancelled, “I feel like we’re in a pretty good place. We’re still moving forward, but it’s not going to be..So it’s still moving forward, but, yeah, right now it wasn’t exactly where I wanted it to be creatively, and so it needs to change a little bit.”

DOCTOR WHO---showrunner Russell T. Davies commented on the sci fi show's future, “We don’t know what’s happening yet." He added the show is taking "a pause" so "everyone works that out...hopefully, we’ll have news soon”.

THEY WERE NICE PEOPLE---Adam Sandler will star in the Netflix art heist comedy movie about married teachers who moonlight as art thieves.

ROAD HOUSE 2---Dave Bautista will play an ex-fighter in the sequel. It is not known if he will play the villain.

WINTHROP---Carla Gugino and Lou Taylor Pucci will star in the horror movie based on the horror podcast series episode "The Lockbox".

TRIVIA---June 20, 2025 is the 50th anniversary of JAWS, the classic blockbuster movie that won three Academy Awards and vaulted Steven Spielberg into Hollywood's Mount Olympus of great directors. However, Spielberg was not the original director. Universal Pictures co-producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown hired Dick Richards, who had just directed the highly-regard Western movie THE CULPEPPER CATTLE CO. to direct the deadly shark movie based on the Peter Benchley novel. Zanuck said he fired Richards after he repeatedly referred to the movie's shark as a whale, “Richard, who we were meeting for the first time, starts talking about how he’ll shoot the picture. And he says, ‘Now, this is wonderful to have this small town terrified by this whale.’ And I say, ‘Wait a minute, you mean shark.’ And he says, ‘Oh yes, yes.’ And I could see that Benchley, who was working on his fifth drink, had his eyebrow raised.”
Zanuck added: “So Richards went on to tell more about how he would approach the story, and again he said, ‘Then when the whale attacks the boat…’ and I shouted, ‘Shark! Shark!’…When lunch was over, we called Medavoy and said, ‘Everything went great, but we want to get rid of the director because he thinks it’s a whale!'”

Co-producers Richard D. Zanuck (right) and David Brown (left) hired Steven Spielberg to direct JAWS after they fired Dick Richards.

 

[dragon53]

MONDAY, JUNE 23

THE WALKING DEAD: DARYL DIXON---teaser trailer released for Season 3.

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STAR WARS: NEW JEDI ORDER---movie insider Daniel Richtman updated the status of the sequel starring Daisy Ridley, “The Rey movie is on hold once again, as both the Shawn Levy and James Mangold Star Wars films are moving forward first. The project is not canceled — just temporarily on hold.”

HIGHLANDER---Russell Crowe will co star with Henry Cavill in the reboot of the 1986 movie that starred Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery. Crowe's role was not disclosed, but speculation claims Crowe's role is mentor Ramirez, who was played by Connery in the original movie.

SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY---Jon Bernthal is returning as The Punisher in the sequel.

MARVEL STUDIOS---Jake Schreier (THUNDERBOLTS*) will reportedly direct the next X-MEN movie. Also, Marvel is reportedly changing the MCU with “Shows will focus more on grounded level characters like the Defenders for Disney+, and movies will be reserved for major events.” Another report claims Marvel is considering a new JESSICA JONES tv series.
Also, a rumor claims Disney+ cancelled MARVEL STUDIOS: ASSEMBLED.

MEET THE PARENTS 4---Owen Wilson is returning for the latest sequel.

HORRIFIED---Julie Benz and Ron Perlman will star in the horror comedy movie whose plot is described as "...a down-on-her-luck scream queen (Benz) return to the horror convention circuit for fast cash, only to find the pig-masked killer from her old franchise weaponizing her cult legacy against her friends and fans, forcing her to confront past demons and fight for survival in a blood-soaked slasher showdown."

THEATERS---a poll of of over 240 movie industry executives found that over 55% believe "the traditional moviegoing" experience will not be a viable business model within 20 years.

TRIVIA---in Clint Eastwood's World War II comedy heist movie KELLY'S HEROES, a squad of American soldiers go behind German lines to rob a heavily-guarded French bank filled with gold bars. Two actors in KELLY'S HEROES got roles in classic tv comedy series after the movie's filming ended.
In KELLY'S HEROES, Gavin MacLeod played Moriarity, the M4 Sherman tank driver, and then Macleod got the role of tv news writer Murray Slaughter on THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW.
In KELLY'S HEROES, Carroll O'Connor played General Colt, and then O'Connor got the role of Archie Bunker in the classic tv comedy series ALL IN THE FAMILY.

In KELLY'S HEROES, Gavin MacLeod played M4 Sherman tank driver Moriarity, and then Macleod got the role of tv news writer Murray Slaughter on THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW.

In KELLY'S HEROES, Carroll O'Connor played General Colt, and then O'Connor got the role of Archie Bunker in the classic tv comedy ALL IN THE FAMILY.

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 2

***Movie/TV News was unavailable last week due to AT&T internet technical problems.


PROJECT HAIL MARY---trailer released for the Ryan Gosling sci fi movie based on the novel.

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THE RUNNING MAN---trailer released for the remake movie starring Glen Powell.

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EDEN---trailer released for the Ron Howard survival; movie starring Jude law and Ana de Armas.

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THE TERMINAL LIST: DARK WOLF---trailer released for the Amazon Prime prequel tv series starring Taylor Kitsch and Chris Pratt.

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THE CAT IN THE HAT---trailer released for the Warner Bros. animated movie based on the Dr. Seuss book.

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JAMES BOND---Denis Villeneuve is the director and co-writer of the next James Bond movie. Edward Berger (ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT) was reportedly the runner-up. Inside sources claim Amazon MGM Studios is looking for the new James Bond to be a “British [or Commonwealth] actor under the age of 30” and the leading candidates are Tom Holland, Jacob Elordi and Harris Dickinson. The under-30 age limit eliminates rumored candidates Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Henry Cavill, Idris Elba and Tom Hardy.

THE STAND---Doug Liman (THE BOURNE IDENTITY, EDGE OF TOMORROW) will direct the Paramount Pictures horror movie based on the Stephen King novel.

F1---according to “knowledgeable sources”, Apple Studios' “gears are turning on a potential sequel” to the Brad Pitt racing movie.

STREET FIGHTER---David Dastmalchian will play villain M. Bison in the movie based on the video game.

NETFLIX---Netflix renewed RANSOM CANYON and BET.

THE BEAR---FX renewed the series for Season 5.

DOCTOR ODYSSEY---ABC cancelled the series.

THE COMEBACK---HBO renewed the series for Season 3 which will be the last season.

GROSSE POINTE GARDEN SOCIETY---NBC Cancelled the series.

TRIVIA--in Hollywood, a frequent movie or tv scene has someone using a credit card to unlock a door. However, one professional locksmith said the credit card unlocking technique is mostly Hollywood fiction, "The credit card door opening trick is largely a myth perpetuated by movies. While it might work on very simple, interior doors with spring latches and ample gaps, it’s ineffective against deadbolts, tight frames, and beveled latches. Attempting this method can damage your credit card, door frame, or even the lock itself..."

In THE NAKED GUN, Lieutenant Frank Drebin used his American Express credit card to unlock the door to villain Vincent Ludwig's office.

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JULY 3

AFTERBURN---trailer released for the sci fi action movie starring Dave Bautista and Samuel L. Jackson.

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THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS---featurette released for the reboot movie.

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INVASION---trailer released for Season 3.

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SHE RIDES SHOTGUN---trailer released for the action movie starring Taron Egerton.

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CRIMSON TIDE 2---producer Jerry Bruckheimer said he is developing a sequel to the 1995 submarine thriller movie that starred Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman, “We have a really good director and writer talking to the Navy right now about what’s going on under the water."
Bruckheimer commented on if Washington might return for the sequel, “If we give him a good script, I think he’d do it.”

JAWS---for the movie's 50th anniversary, JAWS will be released in IMAX theaters on August 28 and non-IMAX theaters on August 29.

SUPERMAN---James Gunn hinted he is working on a SUPERMAN sequel, "What I'm working on is in some way...I mean, yes, yes, yes, yes. But is it a straight-up SUPERMAN sequel? I would not say necessarily."
He added, "I always leave saying I'm going to direct something till I'm actually done with the screenplay, and then I say, 'Yeah, I want to do this.' But it's probably what I will direct. Yeah, probably, to be totally realistic. Yes, probably."
Gunn replied to a fan question about Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman teaming up in a DCU movie, “Of course, yeah! But, not in the next movie.”

THE LAST OF US---video game creator and co-showrunner Neil Druckmann announced he is leaving the series, “I’ve made the difficult decision to step away from my creative involvement in The Last of Us on HBO. With work completed on season 2 and before any meaningful work starts on season 3, now is the right time for me to transition my complete focus to Naughty Dog and its future projects, including writing and directing our exciting next game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, along with my responsibilities as Studio Head and Head of Creative."

SHERLOCK HOLMES 3---Jared Harris, who played Professor Moriarity, commented on the status of the sequel, “I have no idea. No one’s talking to me about it. And I really wish people would stop asking me… It should be on there. I mean, no one’s talking to me about it. I have no clue.”

NETFLIX---Netflix cancelled THE RESIDENCE and PULSE and renewed TIRES.

TRIVIA---Independence Day movie trivia.
Rance Howard, the father of Ron Howard, appeared in two alien invasion movies in 1996 set in Nevada.
In INDEPENDENCE DAY, Rance Howard played the US Air Force chaplain who married Captain Steven Hiller and Jasmine Dubrow at Area 51, the top secret US Air Force base about 83 miles from Las Vegas.
In MARS ATTACKS, Howard played the Texas investor in Las Vegas.

In INDEPENDENCE DAY, Rance Howard played the US Air Force chaplain who married Captain Steven Hiller and Jasmine Dubrow at Area 51, the top secret US Air Force base about 83 miles from Las Vegas.

In MARS ATTACKS, Howard played the Texas investor in Las Vegas.

 

[dragon53]

MONDAY, JULY 7

JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH---the sequel earned $318 million globally which is second only to JURASSIC WORLD as the highest-grossing movie of the JURASSIC franchise. Also, it made Scarlett Johansson as the highest-grossing actor of all time with her lifetime career movie earnings of $14.8 billion.
Director Gareth Edwards commented on a possible sequel, "Maybe there's something in there. But no, we tried to make this movie like a single standalone. When I look back on sequels, trilogies that I love, what they all have in common is that the first movie was on its own, and then it became a high-class problem of how do we now make the others? I've genuinely never talked about it with anybody. Not a single conversation with David Koepp or Frank Marshall or Universal about a sequel. I think everyone's like (knocks on wood), all they want is for people to really like this movie and make the best film we can, and that's it. And then it's in the lap of the gods, everything else, really."

DEEPER---the Tom Cruise horror movie's status is uncertain after Warner Bros. reportedly offered only a $230 million budget versus $275 million that Cruise wanted. The report claimed Cruise is now "out of love" with Warner Bros. and might movie the movie to Universal Pictures or another studio. The plot has an astronaut encountering a horrific entity while diving in an unexplored deep sea trench. Christopher McQuarrie is the writer and Doug Liman is the director.

DOCTOR WHO---DOCTOR WHO MAGAZINE's former editor, Tom Spilsbury, commented on the future of the tv series, "My guess – and it is just a guess – is that it will be five or six years before we see anything new. At which point, it will be the children of 2005 who will be bringing the show back, just as Russell predicted. As ever, time will tell.
I suspect the show will indeed come back at some point, but as of right now, nothing is commissioned and nothing is guaranteed. Those are the facts. Time will tell, of course, but I don’t get the sense of much optimism for anything very soon from anyone l’ve spoken to…
Everything is moving much more slowly in television at the moment. On the assumption that Disney doesn’t renew before its option officially expires, that will be the point when the BBC can start to shop the show around. And that process could take a fair bit of time – it may require more than one partner just to raise the money needed.
Potential partners who may have some very specific requirements or stipulations. They may need to go back to people whom they turned down last time. Yes, the BBC could go for the ultra-cheap in-house version of the show, but I really don’t think that’s as viable an option as it used to be – the license fee simply hasn’t kept up with inflation over the past few years.”

F1---Brad Pitt commented on a sequel to the racing movie, “I would want to drive again, selfishly speaking. F1 is still the focus. It needs to be on Joshua Pierce – Damson Idris’s character – and the rest of the team fighting for a championship. Where does Sonny fit in? I’m not sure. Sonny’s probably out on the Bonneville Salt Flats, setting speed records or something like that. So I’m not sure beyond that, just yet.“

SUPERHEROES---James Gunn said there are three superhero origin moments he does not want in future DCU projects, "I don’t need to see pearls in a back alley when Batman’s parents are killed. I don’t need to see the radioactive spider biting Spider-Man. And I don’t need to see baby Kal coming from Krypton in a little baby rocket. We have watched a million movies with characters who don’t have their upbringing explained, like when we see Good Night, and Good Luck we don’t need to know the early life of Edward R Murrow to explain how he became a journalist. Who cares?”

ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST---producer Paul Zaentz, nephew of the original movie's producer, Saul Zaentz, commented on the tv spinoff series based on the Ken Kesey novel, “Just now, I’ve signed an agreement with Ken Kesey’s widow to develop a TV series which we’ll make through the point of view of the Chief for the first season. Following the first season, we’ll see what happens to the Chief after he escapes [from the psychiatric hospital].”

JESSICA JONES---movie insider Daniel Richtman claimed Marvel Studios is working on a Jessica Jones tv project, "Marvel is discussing doing Jessica Jones as either a [TV] show or a special of her own."

ROMANTIC COMEDIES---MATERIALISTS director Celine Song commented on the decline romantic comedy movies, “A few reasons, one of which is misogyny. But there’s another part of it. Romance is something that we’re all embarrassed to be obsessed with. OK, fine, it’s a chic flick. That’s often said as if it’s not a serious movie. I always think, well, that’s sad in a couple of ways. You’re saying chics are not serious people."
She added, “Secondly, it’s not the concern of serious people to think about love and dating. But serious people do it, too. They’re very troubled by love and dating. Ask any serious person. And so it’s a genre that is dismissed. People are scared of it.”

TRIVIA---the 1957 Walt Disney movie OLD YELLER was about a young Texas boy and his beloved dog, Old Yeller, in 1860s Texas. At the movie's end end, Old Yeller saved the boy from a rabid wolf, but the dog was bitten by the wolf and became infected with rabies. Old Yeller was shot to end his suffering. The movie was the fifth highest-grossing movie of 1957 and in 2019 was added to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry.
Old Yeller was played by a yellow Mastador named Spike. Before Spike became famous in OLD YELLER, he appeared in the 1956 B monster movie THE SHE-CREATURE in which a hypnotist used hypnotic regression on a woman to regress back to her past life as a prehistoric creature. The hypnotist then used the creature to commit murders. The hypnotist hypnotized Spike into attacking the woman's boyfriend, but she used her own hypnotic power to stop Spike from killing her boyfriend.
The prehistoric creature, nicknamed "Cuddles", was designed by famous visual effects artist Paul Blaisdell, who also designed creatures for other B monster movies including IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE (the inspiration for ALIEN), DAY THE WORLD ENDED, IT CONQUERED THE WORLD and many others. Blaisedell said Cuddles was his favorite creature design.

In OLD YELLER, the dog was played by Spike, a yellow Mastador.

Before becoming famous in OLD YELLER, Spike appeared in THE SHE-CREATURE.

THE SHE-CREATURE's prehistoric creature was designed by famous visual effects artist Paul Blaisdell, who nicknamed the creature "Cuddles".

Blaisdell said Cuddles was his favorite creature design.

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, JULY 8

AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY---spoiler alert (see below).

ERUPTION---Kaz and Ryan Firpo (RUIN) will write the script for the Sony Pictures movie based on the novel by Michael Crichton and James Patterson. The novel's synopsis says, "A once-in-a-century volcanic eruption is about to destroy the Big Island of Hawaii. But a decades-old military secret could turn the volcano into something even more terrifying… Now it's up to a handful of brave individuals to save the island – and the entire world."

HOT WHEELS---John Chu (WICKED) will direct the Warner Bros. movie based on the Mattel toy cars.

THE ODYSSEY---Cosmo Jarvis (SHOGUN) left the Christopher Nolan Greek mythology movie due to a schedule problem and has been replaced by Logan Marshall-Green (PROMETHEUS).

MICHAEL DOUGLAS---Michael Douglas said he has retired from acting, “I realized I had to stop...I had been working pretty hard for almost 60 years, and I did not want to be one of those people who dropped dead on the set...I have no real plans to go back.”

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE---Johnny Depp commented on being fired by Warner Bros. in 2020 due to his libel lawsuit against News Group Newspapers after allegations of domestic abuse against his then-wife Amber Heard, “Listen, they’ve said all kinds of things out there in the world about me, and it doesn’t bother me. I’m not running for office. It literally stopped in a millisecond, like, while I was doing the movie. They said we’d like you to resign. But what was really in my head was they wanted me to retire."
Depp said his reply to Warner Bros. was, “F*** you. There’s far too many of me to kill. If you think you can hurt me more than I’ve already been hurt you’re gravely mistaken.”

SUITS LA---an insider said Meghan Markle's refusal to return as a guest star for the cancelled spinoff may have led to its cancellation, "Meghan would not be in the position she is today if producer Aaron Korsh hadn't cast her in the original show. And it was a bit arrogant of her, not to mention bad karma, to totally turn her back on the franchise that gave her such a huge break. Obviously there's a lot of disappointment among the cast right now. The consensus is that if Meghan had wanted to lend her support it would have made all the difference, at least in terms of perception, but she clearly had other ideas."

INSIDIOUS 6---the latest sequel in the horror franchise is underway.

SEND A SCARE---Robbie Amell and Victoria Justice will star in the Josh Trank horror movie whose plot is described as "...an interactive horror startup that gives thrill-seekers a way to send scares to friends and family… but when potential investors host a demonstration, the experience gets hijacked by a real masked killer with a deadly agenda."

BALLARD---showrunner Michael Connelly commented on a possible Season 2 for the BOSCH spinoff starring Maggie Q, "We don't have a green light yet, we're going to see how the show does. We are very confident that the show is going to do well, because if you've seen it, you know that it's going to appeal to people. So, hopefully we'll get a second season, and then we'll be off.
I think what happened with BOSCH is pretty rare, and I can still remember on the first day of filming BOSCH, I did an interview for Instagram or something, where I asked Titus if he could stick around for five seasons. And he said, 'Yeah', but we got twice that, so we'll see what happens. I think the show does have legs. There are a lot of stories we can tell with Renée and with Maggie, so hopefully we get a chance to do that."

TRIVIA---in CAST AWAY, FedEx systems analyst Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) spend four years stranded on a deserted island in the Pacific before being rescued. After returning home, Noland delivered the angel-winged FedEx package, which had become his symbol for hope and rescue, to its sender in Texas. The sender was not at home, so he attached a note saying the package saved his life. After he left, he encountered a woman in her pickup truck with the identical angel wings on its tailgate and realized she was the sender.
FedEx spoofed CAST AWAY with its Super Bowl commercial in which Noland delivered the package to its sender, a woman who was at home. Noland then asked the woman
what was in the package, and she replied, "Just a satellite phone, GPS locator, fishing rod, water purifier and some seeds----just silly stuff."

FEDEX COMMERCIAL LINK:

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AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY---a "scooper" on the film set in England claimed he received the a full breakdown of what is apparently the movie's first act.

1. Shuri discovers the Incursions and warns Captain America, Wong, Bruce Banner, and Captain Marvel about the imminent threat of universes colliding.
2. The Fantastic Four arrive on Earth-616 and are greeted by the New Avengers. They're searching for Franklin, who has been kidnapped by Doctor Doom. Galactus is mentioned, and Bucky turns to Sam Wilson for help.
3. Shuri gathers Captain America, Wong, Hulk, Captain Marvel, Thor, Bucky, Yelena Belova, M'Baku, Namor, and the Fantastic Four, and they deduce that the world approaching theirs is where Monica Rambeau is stranded.
4. Doom and Franklin are also located on that world: the X-Men Universe.
5. Their mission is threefold: stop the Incursion, rescue Monica and Franklin, and defeat Doom.
6. America Chavez is enlisted by Wong to open the doorway to this parallel Earth, though it sounds like that's the extent of her role in the movie.
7. Some heroes go, and some remain behind. A fight breaks out between the heroes from both realities, though they eventually discover that there's more at play, with Doom, the TVA, and Loki set to be a major part of what comes next.

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 9

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS---film clips released from the reboot movie.

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WEDNESDAY---trailer released for Season 2.

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DUNE: PART THREE---production on the sequel has begun with Denis Villeneuve posting a photo of the sands of Arrakis with the caption, "...on a journey into that land where we walk without footprints."

OBI-WAN KENOBI---movie insider Jeff Sneider commented on rumors that a Season 2 is being developed by saying that Lucaasfilm has "no plans" for Season 2.

WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---a Netflix sequel photo shows Daniel Craig and Josh O'Connor.

NATIONAL TREASURE 3---Chris Bremner (BAD BOYS FOR LIFE) is have been given approval to write the latest draft for the sequel script.

SLOW HORSES---Apple TV+ renewed the series for Season 7.

HARRY POTTER---Jason Isaacs, who played Severus Snape in the movies, commented on fan criticism of the tv series having Snape being played by black actor Paapa Essiedu, "Paapa Essiedu is one of the best actors I’ve ever seen in my life. I’ve seen some people online who are being rude about him. What they’re being is racist. All the cast of the new Harry Potter TV series are amazing. They will be swallowing their tongues, hopefully — you know, their digital tongues – when they see what [Paapa] does on screen.”

THE GARFIELD MOVIE 2---Chris Pratt is returning for the animated sequel.

TRIVIA---for RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, Steven Spielberg offered the role of Gestapo Major Arnold Toht to Klaus Kinski. Kinski commented on Spielberg's offer in his KINSKI UNCUT: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF KLAUS KINSKI, "Steven Spielberg offers me a part in Raiders of the Lost Ark... But as much as I'd like to do a movie with Spielberg, the script is as moronically sh-tty as so many other flicks of this ilk. At the same time, Claude Lelouch is nagging me to do his Les Uns et les Autres (Bolero). I'd be willing to do this project, but not for the shabby pittance that this rat offers me."
After rejecting RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, Kinski chose to star in the movie VENOM because it paid more money, in addition to hating the Indiana Jones script. The movie was about a boy being kidnapped and featured a venomous black mamba snake. Kinski's co-stars included Oliver Reed, Joanna Miles, Nicole Willamson and Sterling Hayden. Director Piers Haggard said, "Because Oliver actually had a sense of humor. I was rather fond of him; he could be tricky but he was quite warm really. He just played games and was rather macho and so on. Klaus Kinski was very cold. The main problem with the film was that the two didn’t get on and they fought like cats. Kinski of course is a fabulous film actor and he’s good in the part, the part suits him very well. They were both well cast, but it was a very unhappy film. I think Klaus was the problem but then Oliver spent half the movie just trying to rub him up, pulling his leg all the way." Haggard said the nicest cast member was the black mamba snake.
Although Kinski was paid more for VENOM than RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, VENOM made $5.2 million worldwide and RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK made $389 million worldwide.
After Kinski turned the Toht role down, it went to Ronald Lacey, who is best remembered for playing Toht.

Klaus Kinski rejected playing Gestapo Major Arnold Toht in RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK to star in VENOM where Kinski fought constantly with co-star Oliver Reed.

After Kinski turned the Toht role down, it went to Ronald Lacey, who is best remembered for playing Toht.

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JULY 10

RED SONJA---trailer released for the reboot movie starring Matilda Lutz.

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ABRAHAM'S BOYS-: A DRACULA STORY--trailer released for the vampire movie starring Titus Welliver that is based on the Joe Hill short story.

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CHIEF OF WAR--trailer released for the Apple TV+ Hawaii miniseries starring Jason Momoa.

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DEVIL IN DISGUISE: JOHN WAYNE GACY---trailer released for the Peacock miniseries about serial killer John Wayne Gacy.

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SUPERMAN---after reviews of James Gunn's SUPERMAN were released, Zack Snyder fans have started a "Fire James Gunn" campaign on social media in an attempt to restore the SynderVerse in the DCEU. SnyderVerse fans posted comments including, “Rotten Tomatoes (you know, the paid review clowns) are rating it high…or they were. The score keeps going down the more time passes and the more reviews come in. #ManOfSteel #HenryCavillSuperman #FireJamesGunn Superman ain’t GOTG" and “Restore the Snyderverse”...“Zack Snyder Will Go Down In History As The Best Movie Director Of All Time. FireJamesGunn #RestoreTheSnyderVerse #SellSnyderVerseToNetflix #SellPowerRangersToZackSnyder.” Another SnyderVerse fan posted, “The signs are all there, #FireJamesGunn is just the beginning of the true reaction to his abomination of a film.”
Also, Dean Cain, who played Superman on the LOIS & CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN tv series, said the movie starring David Corenswet is too woke, “How woke is Hollywood going to make this character? How much is Disney going to change their Snow White? Why are they going to change these characters to exist for the times? For Superman, it was ‘truth, justice, and the American way.’ Well, they dropped that.”
The SUPERMAN movie uses “truth, justice, and the human way" which Cain disagreed with, “I don’t think is a great idea. I think if you want to create a new character, go ahead and do that. But for me, Superman has always stood for ‘truth, justice, and the American way’ — and the American way is tremendously immigrant friendly. But there are rules...You can’t come in saying, ‘I want to get rid of all the rules in America because I wanted to be more like Somalia.’ Well, that doesn’t work, because you had to leave Somalia to come here — so it doesn’t make any sense."
He added, “If people are coming for economic opportunity, let’s take a look at your government and why you don’t have that economic opportunity . . .And there have to be limits, because we can’t have everybody here in the United States . . . our society will fail.”

PROJECT HAIL MARY---co-director Phil Lord and Christopher Miller posted about the Ryan Gosling sci fi movie trailer , “Holy Moly. Thank you all you glorious generous fans of movies / books / near light speed space travel / the Sun for pushing the trailer for Project Hail Mary past 400 million views – the most in one week for a film that’s not a sequel or a remake… ever.”

NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM---Shawn Levy is developing a reimagined version of the movie he directed in 2006 which will feature all-new characters.

TOP SECRET SERVICE---movie underway based on the upcoming comic book whose synopsis says, “When an elite kill team assaults a remote Montana ranch, two young Secret Service agents must protect the retired president they were assigned — only to discover he’s the last living link to a decades-old alien contact cover-up and the key to unlocking dangerous extraterrestrial tech the world was never meant to find.”

STUART FAILS TO SAVE THE UNIVERSE---HBO Max THE BIG BANG THEORY spinoff series about a comic book store owner and his friends who try to save the universe after he accidentally breaks a device that could cause a multiverse Armageddon.

MIDNIGHT SONS---a rumor claims Marvel Studios is developing a movie based on the ****ATION comic books. This will lead to BLADE and "Other projects currently being developed within the Midnight Sons storyline include a continuation to Werewolf by Night, with the goal of bringing in Jack Russell, Elsa Bloodstone, and Man-Thing back into the MCU; a Moon Knight sequel where Marc Spector and Steven Grant would be forced to solve a mystery that would eventually bring them face-to-face with the third personality, Jake Lockley."
The rumor also claims, "And a Strange Academy storyline featuring Wong and America Chavez,"along with some other mystical characters yet to be revealed, some of which we have already met in Ironheart, such as Zelma Stanton and The Hood."

DUSTER---HBO Max cancelled the series.

TRIVIA---Jack Webb and Harry Morgan are known for starring in the revival of the DRAGNET cop tv series which ran from 1967-1970. Webb played Sergeant Joe Friday and Morgan played Officer Bill Gannon. However, Morgan said they actually appeared together earlier in two movies (actually three), "But we're NOT a new team. We've worked together before. Twice, in fact."
Webb and Morgan originally appeared together in the 1950 movie DARK CITY which was Charlton Heston's movie debut. Webb and Morgan reunited for the 1951 Alan Ladd movie APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER. Morgan said, "It's probably a good thing most people don't remember because we played a pair of crooks being chased by the police."
Morgan had a minor uncredited role in the 1955 movie PETE KELLY'S BLUES starring Webb

Jack Webb and Harry Morgan are known for starring in the revival of the DRAGNET cop tv series.

Webb and Morgan originally appeared together in the 1950 movie DARK CITY which was Charlton Heston's movie debut.

Webb and Morgan reunited for the 1951 Alan Ladd movie APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER.

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, JULY 11

SUPERMAN---the reported salaries for the lead cast were released. Also, James Gunn is considering tv spinoffs featuring Mister Terrific and Jimmy Olsen.
Nicholas Hoult---$2 milliion
David Corenswet--$750,000
Rachel Brosnahan---$750,000

TRON: ARES---sequel photo shows villain Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters) and his mother (Gillian Anderson).

BATMAN FOREVER---writer Akiva Goldsman commented on the status of the directors cut of the controversial Joel Schumacher movie starring Val Kilmer, “After Joel died [in 2020], I reached out to Warners and said, ‘There’s a darker version of this movie.’ We found it. It exists and it’s incomplete, but more complete than you would think. Today there would be giant sections where the VFX wasn’t done. In those days, so much of it was miniatures and practical effects — they were done. We were trying to dust it off, and then everybody stopped caring. But I lobby for it.”
Goldsman also commented on the differences between the theatrical and darker versions, “Bruce is having these recurring visions of a red book, which turns out to be his father’s diary. There’s an entry that says, ‘Martha and I want to stay home tonight. Bruce wants to see a movie, so we’re going to take him out.’ So he holds himself responsible [for their deaths]. There’s a section in the movie where he actually is hit in the head. He doesn’t remember that he’s Batman, and he goes back into the cave. There’s this now rather famous Rick Baker bat that he faces.”

X-MEN---movie insider Jeff Sneider claims Elle Fanning may be a candidate to play Jean Grey in the reboot movie.

PETER JACKSON---Peter Jackson was asked if he has retired since his last theatrical movie was THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES in 2014, “No, no. I’m certainly not retired. We are currently working on three different screenplays. I’m at the moment writing three different scripts.“
Jackson added,, “We are producing and have been writing THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM, which Andy Serkis is going to direct next year. I’ve enjoyed working on documentaries, whether they show I’ve grown old or not, and obviously the GET BACK The Beatles project. I’ve enjoyed doing various things with The Beatles, which is great, and that’ll probably carry on.“

ROAD HOUSE 2---Guy Ritchie has left the sequel movie after he replaced Doug Liman who left in a dispute over the movie being streamed instead of a theatrical release. No reason was given for the departure.

SCRUBS---the ABC reboot series is underway with Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke and Donald Faison returning. The plot is described as, “The new series will follow JD Dorian (Braff) and Christopher Turk (Faison), who scrub in together for the first time in a long time — medicine has changed, interns have changed, but their bromance has stood the test of time.
Characters new and old navigate the waters of Sacred Heart with laughter, heart, and some surprises along the way.”

RENTAL FAMILY---Brendan Fraser will star in the movie about a washed-up American actor in Tokyo who gets a job as a rental family member for clients who are grieving or lonely.

MURDERBOT---Apple TV+ renewed the sci fi series for Season 2.

VIRGIN RIVER---Netflix renewed the series for Season 8.

TRIVIA---Jean Bruce Scott appeared in two Donald Bellasario tv shows featuring a helicopter. In MAGNUM, P.I., Scott played Lieutenant Commander Maggie Poole which featured the Hughes 500D helicopter flown by Theodore Calvin's Island Hoppers. In AIRWOLF, Poole played Texas Highway Patrol helicopter pilot Caitlin O'Shannessey which featured the modified Bell 222 attack helicopter.

In MAGNUM, P.I., Scott played Lieutenant Commander Maggie Poole which featured the Hughes 500D helicopter flown by Theodore Calvin's Island Hoppers.

In AIRWOLF, Poole played Texas Highway Patrol helicopter pilot Caitlin O'Shannessey which featured the modified Bell 222 attack helicopter.

 

[dragon53]

MONDAY, JULY 14

OUTLANDER: BLOOD OF MY BLOOD---trailer released for the Starz prequel series.

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SUPERMAN---the movie had a domestic box office of $122 million which is the third highest premiere of 2025 with A MINECRAFT MOVIE earning $162 million and LILO & STITCH earning $146 million. However, the movie's $95 million international box office was a disappointment. Zack Snyder's 2013 MAN OF STEEL had a domestic premiere of $116 million.

SUPERGIRL---photo released of Milly Alcock in the new Supergirl costume.

THE BLACK HOLE---Edgar Wright is reportedly in talks to direct the remake of the 1979 Walt Disney cult classic sci fi movie that starred Maximilian Schell and Robert Forster. Wright will co-write the script with Joe Cornish (ATTACK THE BLOCK).

STAR WARS---Rian Johnson commented on returning for a new trilogy, “Nothing really happened with it. We had a great time working together, and they said, ‘Let’s keep doing it.’ I said, ‘Great!’ I would kick ideas around with Kathy. The short version is KNIVES OUT happened. I went off and made KNIVES OUT, and was off to the races, busy making murder mysteries. It’s the sort of thing if, down the line, there’s an opportunity to do it, or do something else in STAR WARS, I would be thrilled. But right now I’m just doing my own stuff, and pretty happy.”

TWIN PEAKS---co-creator Mark Frost commented on a possible sequel after David Lynch's death, “We had talked a little bit about where a fourth season might go, but with David having left us, it’s hard to imagine doing anything beyond this. It certainly feels like it closed the circle.”

GHOST EATERS---Scott Derrickson (SINISTER) is developing a movie based on the horror novel whose synopsis says, "Erin hasn’t been able to set a single boundary with her charismatic but reckless college ex-boyfriend, Silas. When he asks her to bail him out of rehab—again—she knows she needs to cut him off. But days after he gets out, Silas turns up dead of an overdose in their hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and Erin’s world falls apart.
Then a friend tells her about Ghost, a new drug that allows users to see the dead. Wanna get haunted? he asks. Grieving and desperate for closure with Silas, Erin agrees to a pill-popping “séance.” But the drug has unfathomable side effects—and once you take it, you can never go back."

RESIDENT EVIL---the reboot movie will reportedly based on a new, original story that is not connected to a game in the video game franchise.

DONKEY KONG---Universal Pictures and Nintendo Studios are developing a movie based on the video game.

THE BUNDYS---the planned animated sequel to MARRIED...WITH CHILDREN with the original cast returning has apparently been cancelled.

VIRGIN RIVER---Netflix renewed the series for Season 8.

TRIVIA---the 1969 Western musical movie PAINT YOUR WAGON starred Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood and Jean Seberg and was based on the Broadway musical. Lyricist Alan Jay Lerner wanted actress/singer Anita Gordon to dub Seberg's singing, but after an extensive search, he unable to locate her. Out of desperation, Lerner called the Screen Actors Guild and told the operator he was trying to locate Anita Gordon. The SAG operator replied she was Anita Gordon. After her acting career, Gordon had a mini-career as a "ghost singer" in which she dubbed the singing voices of actresses in movies.

LINK:

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, JULY 15

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS---two new tv ads were released for the reboot movie.

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BUTTERFLY---trailer released for the Amazon Prime spy tv series starring Daniel Dae Kim.

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THE GIRLFRIEND---trailer released for the Amazon Prime miniseries starring Robin Wright and based on the novel.

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CLAYFACE---Nexus Point News gave more information on the DC Studios movie starring Tom Rhys Harries who plays Matt Hagen, “Sources tell Nexus Point News that Hagen is a handsome, up-and-coming actor who’s attacked and disfigured. Originally from Gotham, he moves to Hollywood to escape his troubled past and begin a career as an actor. With his disfigurement, his career and outlet as an actor is ruined and is eventually transformed into a shapeshifting monster.”
The movie's other lead character is Dr. Caitlin Bates, “Bates is the CEO of a biotech startup seeking to create cutting-edge medicine and medical technology. Bates sees Hagen as a way to grow her company and cure his condition. Throughout the process she falls in love with him while her fiance John grows suspicious of their relationship. John is a detective and committed to Caitlin and his job. The antagonist of the film is set to be a crime boss, who like Caitlin and John, is another original character.”
The movie will reportedly not include Batman or other, "...recognizable DC characters and will primarily consist of original characters."

HARRY POTTER---photo released from the HBO tv series showing Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter.

THE BLACK HOLE---Disney sources deny the report that Edgar Wright is in talks to direct and co-write a remake of the 1979 Disney sci fi movie.

THE NAKED GUN---Paramount Pictures released a photo of the reboot movie's theater popcorn "Beaver Bucket" that is a parody of the classic "Nice beaver" joke from the original movie.

JAMES BOND---a British tabloid claims Sydney Sweeney is the top candidate to be the next Bond Girl in Amazon's new James Bond movie directed by Denis Villeneuve, “Sydney is the top name on the casting sheet for Bond. Denis believes she is hugely talented, as well as having an alluring appeal to younger generations, vital in modernizing the franchise.” Sweeney supposedly has strong support from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and Sweeney was a guest at Bezos' wedding last month.

DOCTOR WHO---Ncuti Gatwa, 32, commented on why he left the sci fi tv series, "I’m getting old. My body was tired. My body, my knee. And I’ve now just started doing some ballet. So I’m making really great decisions here. It’s the most amazing job in the world, a job that any actor would dream of. And because it’s so good, it’s strenuous. Takes a lot out of you physically, emotionally, and mentally. So, it was time."
He also commented on if he might return, "Never say never."

MYSTERY OF THE MOTHMAN---Jeffrey Combs (RE-ANIMATOR) will star in the movie about the flying creature with glowing red eyes that was first reported in the night skies of West Virginia in 1967.

TRIVIA---in the opening scene of Robert Zemeckis' WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT, the director of the Baby Herman cartoon was played by producer Joel Silver (DIE HARD, PREDATOR, LETHAL WEAPON, THE MATRIX). Zemeckis and producer Steven Spielberg picked Silver for the cameo as a prank on Disney head Michael Eisner, who was instrumental in getting WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT made.
Eisner and Silver developed a hatred for each other when they clashed over the making of 48 HRS. at Paramount Pictures. To keep his identity hidden, Silver shaved off his beard and
kept his name off cast sheets. When Eisner found out about Silver's surprise cameo, Eisner reportedly said, “He was pretty good.”

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 16

STRANGER THINGS---trailer released for the last season.

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AFTER THE HUNT---trailer released for the movie starring Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield.

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THE ODYSSEY---photo from the Christopher Nolan Greek mythology movie's film set in Scotland shows Matt Damon as Odysseus.

SUPERGIRL---teaser poster released for the superhero movie starring Milly Alcock.

WERWULF---the NOSFERATU team of Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Lily-Rose Depp and director Robert Eggers are reuniting for the werewolf movie set in 13th century England. Taylor-Johnson will reportedly play the werewolf and Depp will play his wife. Eggers had said earlier he asked Willem Dafoe to return in his next two movies.

DCU---Warner Bros. head David Zaslav commented on the studio's future DCU projects, “SUPERGIRL has already been shot. They’re working on Wonder Woman. They’re working on Batman.”

HBO---HBO Casey Bloys commented on a possible THE PENGUIN Season 2, “The number one thing right now that Matt [Reeves] is dealing with is getting the movie [THE BATMAN PART II] going. I believe they’re making progress there. I know that he and [showrunner] Lauren [LeFranc] have talked about various ideas. So, could another chapter be in the future? Definitely possible. Right now, I think the priority for Matt is the movie. But I know that Lauren is thinking of various ideas that might work alongside the movie. I think it’s possible. I just don’t know at this point.”
Bloys also commented on the future of THE LAST OF US with showrunner Craig Mazin, "The series is definitely planned for 2027. Craig is still working it out whether it will be two more seasons or one more long season. It hasn’t been decided yet, and I’m following Craig’s lead on that.”

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON---George RR Martin said he is not happy about the dragons in the tv series, “The Targaryen sigil has two legs, as it should. Why would any Westerosi ever put four legs on a dragon, when they could look at the real thing and count their limbs? My wyverns have two legs as well; they differ from the dragons of my world chiefly in size, coloration, and the inability to breathe fire.”
He added, “The shows got it half right (both of them). GAME OF THRONES gave us the correct two-legged sigils for the first four seasons and most of the fifth, but when Dany’s fleet hove into view, all the sails showed four-legged dragons. Someone got sloppy, I guess. Or someone opened a book on heraldry, and read just enough of it to muck it all up. A couple years on, House of the Dragon decided the heraldry should be consistent with GAME OF THRONES… but they went with the bad sigil rather than the good one. That sound you heard was me screaming, ‘no, no, no.’...No animal that has ever lived on Earth has six limbs,” he writes. “Birds have two legs and two wings, bats the same, ditto pteranodons and other flying dinosaurs.”

STOLEN: HEIST OF THE CENTURY---Netflix documentary about the 2003 heist in Antwerp, Belgium of an estimated $100 million--$500 million in diamonds.

TRIVIA---Tim Russ played Tuvok on STAR TREK: VOYAGER, but he may be most famous for his brief appearance in Mel Brooks's STAR WARS spoof movie SPACEBALLS. In the scene where Russ was one of Dark Helmet's troopers using a giant afro comb to comb the desert for Princess Vespa and her friends, Russ exclaimed, "We ain't found sh-t!"
Russ said, "I'm on VOYAGER for seven years, but most people only remember me from that---four words. That's it. That's it."

Tim Russ played Tuvok on STAR TREK: VOYAGER for seven years.

Russ may be most famous for appearing in SPACEBALLS as Dark Helmet's trooper in the desert combing scene who exclaimed, "We ain't found sh-t!"