Movie/TV News (2 Viewers)

[dragon53]

MONDAY, MAY 27

FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA---the prequel earned about $27 million in its three-day premiere compared to FURY ROAD's $45 million in 2015.

STAR WARS---George Lucas was surprised to be presented an Honorary Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival by Francis Ford Coppola on the 47th anniversary of STAR WARS. Lucas said, “What an honor it is for Francis to appear out of nowhere. I didn’t expect this. He’s a great friend, and a big brother, and a mentor, and I thank him for everything he’s ever done for me. I’d like to thank the Cannes Film Festival, which [Walter Murch,] my co-writer, sound editor, great pal, who came to the Cannes Film Festival… My first professional movie [THX 1138] was shown here 52 years ago, in the first director series. It was pouring rain, and it was one of the greatest moments of our life. We had to sneak into the movie because Warner Bros. wouldn’t have much to do with us. This is a great circle moment.
I can’t thank all of you enough. I’m just a kid who grew up in a vineyard in Modesto, California, who makes movies in San Francisco with my friend Francis. So we spent our entire careers in parallel, and in San Francisco in particular. In fact, I’ve never made a Hollywood film as a director. So it’s a real honor to be here. I can tell you that. Thank you so much."
Later, Lucas said that after he sold Lucasfilm to Disney for $4 billion in 2012, Disney wandered away from his original concepts, “I was the one who really knew what STAR WARS was…who actually knew this world, because there’s a lot to it. The Force, for example, nobody understood the Force. When they started other ones after I sold the company, a lot of the ideas that were in [the original] sort of got lost. But that’s the way it is. You give it up, you give it up.”
He also commented on his controversial revisions to the original movies, “I’m a firm believer that the director, or the writer, or the filmmaker should have a right to have his movie be the way he wants it. We did release the original one on laserdisc and everybody got really mad, they said, ‘It looks terrible.’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I know it did’. That is what it looked like.”

JURASSIC WORLD---a rumor claims new cast members for the dinosaur reboot movie include Tobin Bell (SAW) and Joel McHale (COMMUNITY).

FALLOUT---the Amazon Prime tv series based on the video game had 1.5 billion viewing minutes from April 22-28 which made it Amazon Prime's biggest premiere ever and its only series to make AC Nielsen's top streaming list three times.

THE LAST OF US---Jeffrey Wright will play Isaac, leader of the Washington Liberation Front, in Season 2.

MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE---Giancarlo Esposito said he will star in a Marvel Studios tv series, "The MCU has knocked on my door and it’s a role you won’t predict. It will be teased and there will be a series afterwards.”
Also, a rumor claims Esposito's BREAKING BAD co-star, Bryan Cranston, has met with Marvel Studios to discuss his appearing in a future Marvel project.

DEATH BY LIGHTNING---Michael Shannon will star in the Netflix miniseries about the assassination of President James Garfield.

MY BLOODY VALENTINE---Blumhouse is reportedly make a new version of the 1981 slasher movie, but it is not known if it is a sequel or a reboot.

TRIVIA---Memorial Day trivia.
In THE GREAT ESCAPE, Steve McQueen played Captain Virgil Hilts, an American pilot who was a key part of the Allied POW escape attempt from the German Stalag Luft 3 POW camp. Hilts's character was based on several different POWs, but director John Sturges said Hilts was based mainly on Capt. David. M Jones. Jones was a B-25 Mitchell bomber pilot and a member of the Doolittle Raid, which bombed Tokyo four months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor which led to the US entering World War II. Jones was bombing a German airfield in Tunisia when he was shot down and captured. He was a POW at Stalag Luft 3 for two and half years and, because of his leadership abilities, was chosen to be a leader for the digging team on Harry, one of the three tunnels in The Great Escape.
Jones said after The Great Escape was discovered by the Germans, the Germans released a list of the POWs who were captured and executed, "...had a lot of good friends on it...some people I met when I first got to camp, worked with, lived with...it was a very traumatic time..."
He added, "There were 78 prisoners who actually escaped, three were very successful, escaped. All the rest were collected by the Germans and of that, 50 were murdered."

In THE GREAT ESCAPE, Steve McQueen played Captain Virgil Hilts, an American pilot who was a key part of the Allied POW escape attempt from the German Stalag Luft 3 POW camp.

Director John Sturges said Hilts was based mainly on Capt. David. M Jones (second from left), a B-25 Mitchell bomber pilot and a member of the Doolittle Raid, which bombed Tokyo four months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Jones's Stalag Luft 3 POW card.

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, MAY 28

STAR TREK: DISCOVERY---trailer released for the last season.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w5aEr8rzQs



WOLFS---teaser trailer released for the movie starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcm-oSv1mNs



WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Cailee Spaeny (PRISCILLA) and Josh O'Connor (THE CROWN) will co-star with Daniel Craig in the Netflix sequel. Rian Johnson posted, “I love everything about whodunnits, but one of the things I love most is how malleable the genre is. There’s a whole tonal spectrum from Carr to Christie, and getting to explore that range is one of the most exciting things about making Benoit Blanc movies.”
He added, "We’re about to go into production on the third one, and I’m very, very excited to share the title, which gives a little hint of where it’s going.”

SPIDER-MAN 4---Bilall Fallah, who co-directed the cancelled BATGIRL with Adil El Arbi, commented on rumors they are directing SPIDER-MAN 4, "I can't talk about that."

FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA---George Miller said he has finished a Tinted Black and Chrome version of FURIOSA, “We’ve done it already. It’s the last thing I did on this film, and I call it Tinted Black and Chrome. I must say, it’s really interesting, I’m still trying to demystify why the black and white, for me, has something more elemental to it. I still can’t put my finger on it. It’s not because they look like old black and white movies, it’s something else. It’s like if we took a picture of ourselves right now, it might look a little more dramatic if it’s in black and white.”

MARVEL CINEMA UNIVERSE---George Lucas said Martin Scorsese has changed his mind slightly about the MCU after he criticized Marvel movies in 2019, “Look. Cinema is the art of a moving image. So, if the image moves, then it’s cinema. I think Marty has kind of changed his mind a little bit.”

DAVID LYNCH---David Lynch hinted at a surprise project, “Ladies and gentleman, something is coming along…. for you to see and hear. And it will be coming along on June 5.”

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER---Jennifer Love-Hewitt said she is in talks to return for the latest sequel, ”It’s in the cooker, let me just say that. I’ve done a couple of preliminary phone calls. I keep getting these messages from people going, ‘We’re so excited!’ I’m like, ‘Okay, but the train is moving really fast, and I haven’t gotten there yet.’ But it’s nice to know that people are excited at the possibility. Honestly, it’s wild to even think about. Truly, if it comes together, I don’t even know how I’m gonna feel except extremely overwhelmed and grateful."

TRIVIA---Steve Reeves became Europe's highest-paid actor after starring in the 1958 hit Greek mythology movie HERCULES. When the producers of the first James Bond movie, DR. NO, were looking for the actor to play Bond, they offered the role to Reeves, but he declined the offer because he did not want to be tied down to a multiple-movie franchise.
If Reeves had accepted the James Bond role, ironically, he would have reunited with Luciana Paluzzi, who appeared in HERCULES as Iole's maid in HERCULES and in THUNDERBALL as SPECTRE assassin Fiona Volpe.

Steve Reeves became Europe's highest-paid actor after starring in the 1958 hit Greek mythology movie HERCULES and turned down the James Bond role in DR. NO.

If Reeves had accepted the James Bond role, ironically, he would have reunited with Luciana Paluzzi, who appeared in HERCULES as Iole's maid (left-top photo) and in THUNDERBALL as SPECTRE assassin Fiona Volpe (bottom photo).

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, MAY 29

WOLFS---trailer released for the comedy movie starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6sGIOY8TBs



KINDS OF KINDNESS---trailer released for the comedy movie starring Emma Stone.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0x8IDtrUmA


MOANA 2---trailer released for the sequel starring Dwayne Johnson.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkgkUCqEum4



A FAMILY AFFAIR---trailer released for the Netflix comedy movie starring Nicole Kidman and Zac Efron.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytc2eifpiuQ



LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER---photo released of Rory Kinnear playing Tom Bombaldi in Season 2.

THE MUMMY---Hollywood insider Daniel Richtman claims Universal Pictures is developing a prequel to THE MUMMY, “The Mummy PREQUEL movie now in development at Universal with Wes Tooke (Midway, The Rescue) writing the script.“ It is not known if it will be a prequel to the 1932 movie starring Boris Karloff or the 1999 remake starring Brendan Fraser. However, Comicbookmovie.com claimed it will be a prequel to the Brendan Fraser remake. In 2023, Fraser commented on returning as Rick O'Connell, “I’m not opposed to it, I don’t know an actor who doesn’t want a job. I don’t think I’ve been this famous and unsalaried at the same time in my professional life so sign me up!”

MAD MAX: THE WASTELAND---George Miller commented on the status of his next Mad Max movie, “I’d say that it certainly has a lot of action in it, but it is also a saga. It’s a year-long story. FURY ROAD happened over three days and two nights. You could almost say that the first act, some part of the second act, and the third act mostly play in real time. Quite a different kettle of fish than FURIOSA."
He added, "I’m still figuring out what to do with [THE WASTELAND]. I’m just waiting to see the reception on FURIOSA. If it all lines up, then we’ll go ahead with it.”

NOSFERATU---Bill Skarsgard commented on his vampire character Orlock in the remake of the 1922 movie, “I do not think people are gonna recognize me in it. He’s gross. But it is very sexualized. It’s playing with a sexual fetish about the power of the monster and what that appeal has to you. Hopefully you’ll get a little bit attracted by it and disgusted by your attraction at the same time.”

TRIVIA---Jean Marsh is best known for her Emmy Award-winning performance as maid Rose Buck on the British tv series UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS. Marsh's first US appearance in a major network show was THE TWILIGHT ZONE episode "The Lonely" where she played Alicia, the robot companion to James Corry (Jack Warden), a man convicted of murder and sentenced to solitary confinement on a desolate asteroid.

Jean Marsh is best known for her Emmy Award-winning performance as maid Rose Buck on the British tv series UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS

Marsh's first US appearance in a major network show was THE TWILIGHT ZONE episode "The Lonely" where she played Alicia, the robot companion to James Corry (Jack Warden), a man convicted of murder and sentenced to solitary confinement on a desolate asteroid.

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, MAY 30

WAKE UP A DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Glenn Close, Jeremy Renner and Kerry Washington are the latest co-stars to join Daniel Craig in the Rian Johnson/Netflix sequel.

STAR WARS---THE ACOLYTE showrunner Lesleye Healand commented on fan criticism that THE ACOLYTE is excessively female-dominated, “As a fan myself, I know how frustrating some STAR WARS storytelling in the past has been. I’ve felt it myself.”
She later added, “I stand by my empathy for STAR WARS fans. But I want to be clear. Anyone who engages in bigotry, racism, or hate speech … I don’t consider a fan.”
Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy commented on the fan criticism of THE ACOLYTE's female cast and crew, "My belief is that storytelling does need to be representative of all people. That’s an easy decision for me.
Operating within these giant franchises now, with social media and the level of expectation — it’s terrifying. I think Leslye has struggled a little bit with it. I think a lot of the women who step into STAR WARS struggle with this a bit more. Because of the fan base being so male dominated, they sometimes get attacked in ways that can be quite personal.”

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM---Viggo Mortensen said he has not heard any details about the plot of THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM, but he might be interested in returning as Aragorn, “I would only do it if I was right for it in terms of, you know, the age I am now and so forth. I would only do it if I was right for the character. It would be silly to do it otherwise.”

THE EXORCIST---Mike Flanagan is the writer/director/producer of a "radical new take" standalone sequel to the classic 1973 movie.

YOUNG SHERLOCK HOLMES---THE MINISTRY OF UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE team of Hero Fiennes Tiffin and director Guy Ritchie are reuniting for the Amazon Prime tv series based on the novels about 19 year-old Sherlock Holmes.

JUST CAUSE---Angel Manual Soto (BLUE BEETLE) will direct the movie based on the video game.

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE---Nicholas Galitzine will play He-Man in the reboot movie.

MINECRAFT---Netflix animated tv series underway based on the video game.

TRIVIA---Showtime's DEXTER was based on the Jeff Lindsay novels about Miami Police Department forensic blood splatter analyst Dexter Morgan, who also was a vigilante serial killer. Lindsay based Dexter Morgan on Brazilian serial killer Pedro Rodrigues Filho, who was 14 years old when he killed the deputy mayor of a Brazilian city who fired his father, a city security guard, after he claimed Filo's father was a thief. He then killed the security guard who was the real thief. Filo later joined a gang where he killed rival gang members, including an entire gang whose members killed his pregnant girlfriend. Filho was sent to prison for 34 years for committing 71 murders, but he claimed he killed over 100 people and only killed people who were criminals themselves. While in prison, Filho killed over 40 fellow inmates.
After being released from prison, Filho became a star on YouTube and TikTok. Following the success of Showtime's DEXTER, Filho became known as "The Brazilian Dexter". He was killed in drive-by shooting in 2023.

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, MAY 31

WHAT REMAINS---trailer released for the murder movie starring Stellan Skarsgard.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RW_DYUFyUZw



CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD---a source claims Giancarlo Esposito will appear in BRAVE NEW WORLD as a character described as an “antagonistic agent of chaos” and “a serious thorn in Sam Wilson’s side.”

JURASSIC WORLD---Mahershala Ali is in talks to co-star with Scarlett Johansson in the sequel.

TOP GUN 3---producer Jerry Bruckheimer commented on the status of the sequel, "We had preliminary stuff. We're not there yet. [There's] ways to go."

NATIONAL TREASURE 3---director Jon Turteltaub was asked about the chances of a sequel starring the original cast, “100%. … We do have to hurry because people are both getting older and less interested and lives are changing and all that. And the world changes. Our culture is changing. A lot. Since the first movie was made. Socially, certainly politically, and definitely, our language, and different cultural changes we’ve had. And you’ve got to make sure you’re in touch with all that and moving with it, and doing things the right way. … It’s not as easy to just do another one. You’ve got to take a lot into account. I can tell you, 20 years later Justin Bartha is a lot better looking.“

WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Mila Kunis is the latest cast addition to the Rian Johnson/Netflix sequel.

CRIME 101---Barry Keoghan is in negotiations to co-star with Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo in the Amazon MGM Studios movie based on the novella. The novella synopsis says, “It’s a great crime story in the vein of HEAT. High-level jewel thieves are taking place up and down the Pacific Coast, and police have linked the thefts to the Colombian cartels. Detective Lou Lubesnick has other ideas, and he zeroes in on one perp, a thief looking for a final score.”

TRANSFORMERS---Chris Hemsworth is in talks to star in the untitled TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE crossover movie.

WELCOME TO DERRY---Bill Skarsgard confirmed he will return as Pennywise the Clown in the IT spinoff tv series.

HACKS---Max renewed the series for Season 4.

TRIVIA---in TITANIC, James Cameron explained how he made the Titanic's set appear much bigger than it really was and saved on the budget at the same time, "We only cast short extras so it made our set look bigger. Anybody above 5’8”, we didn’t cast them. It’s like we got an extra million dollars of value out of casting."

 

[dragon53]

MONDAY, JUNE 3

VENOM: THE LAST DANCE---trailer released for the sequel.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__2bjWbetsA



RETURN TO SILENT HILL---trailer released for the horror sequel.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-a9Opfwi0w



STAR WARS: THE ACOLYTE---the NEW YORK TIMES reported that THE ACOLYTE's budget is $180 million for eight episodes ($22.5 million per episode). This makes it the second-most expensive STAR WARS tv series with ANDOR costing $250 million for 12 episodes ($20.8 million per episode).

300---Zack Snyder is in talks to direct the Warner Bros Television series based on the 2007 movie that starred Gerard Butler. There is speculation it will be a prequel to the movie.

GAME OF THRONES---George RR Martin commented on screenplay writers who make movies that are unfaithful to the original book, “If anything, things have gotten worse. Everywhere you look, there are more screenwriters and producers eager to take great stories and ‘make them their own.’ It does not seem to matter whether the source material was written by.
No matter how major a writer it is, no matter how great the book, there always seems to be someone on hand who thinks he can do better, eager to take the story and ‘improve’ on it.
‘The book is the book, the film is the film,’ they will tell you, as if they were saying something profound. Then they make the story their own. They never make it better, though. Nine hundred ninety-nine times out of a thousand, they make it worse.”

AVENGERS: SECRET WARS---Anson Mount commented on rumors he will appear in the sequel as Black Bolt from the INHUMANS tv series, “This is so interesting. Please tell us more about this contract I apparently signed in my sleep. I’m so curious to hear all the juicy details from a feed that is clearly not a click-farm.”

SPIDER-MAN---after Sony Pictures announced it will increase its use of AI in movies and television to reduce costs, producer/writer Chris Miller said no AI will be used in the Spider-Verse, “There is no generative AI in BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE and there never will be. One of the main goals of the films is to create new visual styles that have never been seen in a studio CG film, not steal the generic plagiarized average of other artists’ work.”

LIFE ON OUR PLANET---Netflix is developing an untitled "next iteration" of the documentary series which will focus on the dinosaurs, “where they came from, why they mattered, how they evolved and how they met their ultimate fate.”
Showrunner Dan Tapster said, “This series, covering 170 million years, will immerse viewers in the awe-inspiring world of dinosaurs, capturing the majesty and drama of their lives in unprecedented detail.” The series also includes mammals, invertebrates, plants and other life forms. Morgan Freeman returns as the narrator.

TRIVIA---Fess Parker achieved stardom in Walt Disney's hit DAVY CROCKETT three-episode tv series. Disney originally wanted James Arness to play Davy Crockett and watched Arness in the giant ant sci fi movie THEM!, but Disney was more impressed with Parker playing an airplane pilot who told the FBI agent played by Arness that he saw flying saucers which were really the giant ants in flight. Parker said, "The picture was reviewed by Walt Disney because Jim Arness was already starring in motion pictures, and he was the star of this film...And Disney just happened to see that part of the film and said, 'Who's that?' and no one knew." Eventually a THEM! producer was contacted, who gave Parker's name to Disney. Parker added, "That was my lucky break because he just saw a minute or two of film."
Playing an airplane pilot led to Parker's stardom, but ironically, during World War II, Parker enlisted in the Navy with hopes of becoming a pilot, "I'm 6' 6" and I tried to fly, tried to be in the Naval pilot program and the Army program. 6' 4" was the height limit." His height also prevented him from being a Naval radioman/gunner. Parker then became a radio operator on a minesweeper in the Pacific Theater when the war ended.

Fess Parker achieved stardom in Walt Disney's hit DAVY CROCKETT three-episode tv series.

Disney originally wanted James Arness to play Davy Crockett and watched Arness in the giant ant sci fi movie THEM!, but Disney was more impressed with Parker (center) playing an airplane pilot who told the FBI agent played by Arness (right) that he saw flying saucers which were really the giant ants in flight. Ironically, during World War II, Parker enlisted in the Navy with hopes of being a pilot, but his 6" 6" height made him too tall to be a pilot.

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, JUNE 4

SNOWPIERCER---trailer released for Season 4.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KA_Lq-GjelA



LAND OF WOMEN---trailer released for the Apple TV+ tv series starring Eva Longoria.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpCqgonWyEc



BADLANDS---Elle Fanning is in talks to star in the next PREDATOR sequel with Dan Trachtenberg, who directed the PREY prequel. Reportedly, THE BADLANDS is set in the future.
Also, PREY 2 is in "early development" with Amber Midthunder returning.

GHOSTS OF TSUSHIMA---Hiroyuki Sanada (SHOGUN) is reportedly in talks to co-star in the Chad Stahelski movie based on the video game. Speculation is that Sanada will play Lord Shimura.

GODZILLA MINUS ONE---for the first time ever, the Academy Award-winning monster movie premiered at #1 simultaneously on streamers Netflix and iTunes VOD even though the two streamers did not advertise the movie beforehand.

IRON MAN---Robert Downey, Jr. commented on if he will return as Iron Man in a future Marvel project, “It’s just crazily in my DNA. Probably the most like-me character I’ve ever played, even though he’s way cooler than I am. I’ve become surprisingly open-minded to the idea.”

WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Josh Brolin is the latest cast addition to the Netflix murder mystery movie.

BLACK MIRROR---creator Charlie Brooker said Season 7 will include a sequel to the "U.S.S. Callister" episode, “You’ll see. Yeah, you’ll see. But we continue the story from where we left off. And there are some new characters as well. There is new stuff to do with where they’ve now ended up versus where they were."

LIKE A DRAGON: YAZUKA---Amazon Prime live-action tv series underway based on the LIKE A DRAGON and YAZUKA video games and will be set in 1995 and 2005. The plot involves “the life, childhood friends and the repercussions of the decisions of a fearsome and peerless Yakuza warrior with a strong sense of justice, duty, and humanity.”

TRIVIA---in THE NAKED GUN, Captain Ed Hocken's (George Kennedy) wife is named Ethel, but in the sequel, THE NAKED GUN 2 1/2: THE SMELL OF FEAR, Hocken's wife is named Edna.
In THE NAKED GUN, when Lieutenant Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) and Hocken are searching guests for concealed weapons at the reception for Queen Elizabeth, Drebin accidentally reaches into Hocken's pocket instead of the guest and finds Hocken's wallet with a picture of his wife, Ethel. Hocken thinks the guest is having an affair with Ethel, so he punches the guest out.
In THE NAKED 2 1/2: THE SMELL OF FEAR, Drebin says to Hocken, "Congratulations, I understand that Edna is pregnant again" and Hocken replies "Yes, and if I catch the guy who did it... "

In THE NAKED GUN, when Lieutenant Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) and Hocken are searching guests for concealed weapons at the reception for Queen Elizabeth, Drebin accidentally reaches into Hocken's pocket instead of the guest and finds Hocken's wallet with a picture of his wife, Ethel. Hocken thinks the guest is having an affair with Ethel, so he punches the guest out.

In THE NAKED 2 1/2: THE SMELL OF FEAR, Drebin says to Hocken, "Congratulations, I understand that Edna is pregnant again" and Hocken replies "Yes, and if I catch the guy who did it... "

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5

ALIEN: ROMULUS---new trailer released for the movie starring Cailee Spaeny.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92VYCjslw68



MAXXXINE---trailer released for the horror sequel starring Mia Goth.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4GMm2-44-4



AVENGERS 5---Shawn Levy is Marvel Studio's "top choice" to direct the latest sequel. Inside sources claim the sequel could include over 60 MCU characters with Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo,
Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston, Simu Liu, Karen Gillian and others returning. Also, the sequel will emphasize an even balance among the characters compared to the previous movies which had emphasized a handful of characters leading the team.

MARVEL STUDIOS---Jordan Peele reportedly met with Marvel Studios to discuss directing a future Marvel movie.

HOSTEL---Paul Giamatti will star in the tv series based on the Eli Roth horror movies. The tv series is described as a "modern adaptation...reinvention" of the movies. Roth returns as co-writer/producer.

PEAKY BLINDERS---Cillian Murphy is returning for the Netflix movie that will be a sequel to the tv series. It reportedly might be set during World War II.

WAKE UP A DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Thomas Haden Church is the latest cast addition to the Netflix sequel.

PARAMOUNT---Paramount Global co-ceo Brian Robbins announced new spinoffs are underway, “In tv, new franchise extensions are coming for DEXTER, BILLIONS, and BLUE BLOODS."

ANT-MAN---Evangeline Lilly announced her retirement from acting, “Stepping away from what seems like the obvious choice (wealth and fame) can feel scary at times, but stepping into your dharma replaces the fear with fulfillment. I might return to Hollywood one day, but, for now, this is where I belong.”

TRIVIA---in the STAR TREK episode "Spectre of the Gun", starship Enterprise crewmen, including Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley), are transported into an an alien reenactment of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. In 1957, Kelley played Morgan Earp with Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster in GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL.

In the STAR TREK episode "Spectre of the Gun", starship Enterprise crewmen, including Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley), are transported into an an alien reenactment of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

In 1957, Kelley played Morgan Earp with Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster in GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL.

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JUNE 6

THE KILLER'S GAME---trailer released for the assassin movie starring Dave Bautista.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHK6WghyWGY



ODDITY---trailer released for the horror movie.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLNDvnv8B3A



THE LAST OF US----co-creator Craig Mazin said there might be a Season 4, “We don’t think that we’re going to be able to tell the story even within two seasons [2 and 3] because we’re taking our time and go down interesting pathways which we did a little bit in Season 1 too. We feel like it’s almost assuredly going to be the case that — as long as people keep watching and we can keep making more television — Season 3 will be significantly larger. And indeed, the story may require Season 4.”

SUPERMAN---new photo of James Gunn with cast members including Beck Bennett (second from right) who will play the DAILY PLANET 's brash sports reporter Steve Lombard.

MONSTER HIGH---Universal Pictures and Mattel are developing a live-action movie based on the doll line.

I AM LEGEND 2---Michael B. Jordan commented on the status of the sequel to the 2007 sci fi movie starring Will Smith, who returns for the sequel, “We’re still working on the script and getting that up to par. It doesn’t have a release date or anything like that. I’m not sure exactly where we’re going to be filming that one, but I’m really excited to get in front of the camera with him.
Being somebody that I’ve looked up to for a really long time, to be able to work with Will is something I’m really looking forward to. I’m really excited.”

THE MORNING SHOW---Marion Cotillard joins the Season 4 cast as Celine Dumont, a “savvy operator from a storied European family.”

THE BRIDE!---Jake Gyllenhaal will co-star in his sister Maggie Gyllenhaal's Frankenstein movie in an undisclosed role.

WATCH DOGS---Tom Blyth (THE HUNGER GAMES: THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES ) and Sophie Wilde (TALK TO ME) will star in the movie based on the video game.

ATLAS---the Jennifer Lopez sci fi movie was Netflix's #1 movie for two straight weeks.

TRIVIA---movie trivia for the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
THE DIRTY DOZEN was the fourth-highest grossing movie of 1967 with a cast including Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas, Donald Sutherland, Jim Brown, Clint Walker, Ernest Borgnine, George Kennedy, Ralph Meeker and Robert Ryan.
The movie was based on the E.M. Nathanson D-Day novel. Nathanson based his novel on a story he heard from sources, including his friend Russ Meyer, an Army combat photographer who later became famous for his soft porn movies. Meyer and others told Nathanson about a group of 12 Native American Army convicts, and their white lieutenant, who would be granted clemency if they agreed to participate in a suicidal mission behind German lines on D-Day.
Nathanson's research found the story to be fiction. In reality, The Filthy Thirteen were 13 paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division who were chosen for seven days of additional grueling training. The squad leader was Jake "McNasty" McNiece, who told his men they would not bathe until they completed their training. After the training was completed, they were filthy which accounted for the "Filthy" part of their name.
McNiece explained how the unit's mythology included being convicts, "We never took care of our barracks or any other thing, or sanitation, and we were always restricted to camp. But we went AWOL every weekend that we wanted to and we stayed as long as we wanted till we returned back, because we knew they needed us badly for combat. And it would just be a few days in the brig. We stole jeeps. We stole trains. We blew up barracks. We blew down trees. We stole the colonel's whiskey and things like that."
The true story of The Filthy Thirteen was accurately reported by the STARS AND STRIPES newspaper, but later TRUE magazine's version of The Filthy Thirteen morphed into 12 Native American convicts who refused to bathe until they finished their training for their suicide mission and clemency.
Just before D-Day, McNiece, a part-Choctaw Indian, convinced his fellow paratroopers to shave their heads into Mohawk haircuts and apply face paint to reinforce their image as brave warriors. The Filthy Thirteen's Mohawks and face paint became a famous World War II photo.
On D-Day, of the 13 paratroopers, four were killed, four were wounded and two became POWs.
Filthy Thirteen member Jack Agnew told his daughter, Barbara, that 30% of the movie was accurate. She added, "Dad, when we were little kids, he'd always say, 'I won the war; I know you don't believe me, but someday you'll know."

THE DIRTY DOZEN was the fourth-highest grossing movie of 1967 with a cast including Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas, Donald Sutherland, Jim Brown, Clint Walker, Ernest Borgnine, George Kennedy, Ralph Meeker and Robert Ryan.

The Filthy Thirteen's D-Day Mohawks and face paint became a famous World War II photo.

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, JUNE 7

STAR WARS: THE ACOLYTE---THE ACOLYTE's premiere had 4.8 million views in one day making it Disney+'s most-viewed premiere of 2024.

THE WALKING DEAD: DARYL DIXON-THE BOOK OF CAROL---photos released from Season 2 which premieres on September 29.

GODZILLA x KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE 2---Grant Sputore (I AM MOTHER) has replaced Adam Wingard as the sequel's director.

ALIEN---Noah Hawley said FX is happy about the development of the prequel tv series' Season 1 and is already looking ahead to Season 2, “They’re saying maybe don’t do two things at once on this show. Their hope is to put a season two as close to Season 1 as possible.” The prequel series will focus on the early days of the Weyland-Yutani Corporation.

GHOSTBUSTERS---Sony Pictures Animation announced it is developing an animated tv series for Netflix, "There’s something strange in the neighborhood… Our supernatural comedy series, based on Ghostbusters, is coming soon to @Netflix."

TERMINATOR: ZERO---Timothy Olyphant will be the voice of the Terminator in the Netflix animated tv series.

JURASSIC WORLD: CHAOS THEORY---Netflix renewed the animated series for Season 2.

PALM ROYALE---Apple TV renewed the series for Season 2.

COUNTDOWN---Jensen Ackles will star in the Amazon MGM Studios tv series about an LAPD undercover cop who joins a secret task force representing many law enforcement agencies in order to investigate a mysterious murder.

WHITE COLLAR--the reboot is underway with Matt Bomer, Tim DeKay and Tiffani Thiessen returning. It is not known who will air the reboot.

TRIVIA---Peter Falk, Dorothy Provine and Marvin Kaplan appeared in two 1960s comedy movies in which people race each other for a big reward.
In IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD, people race each other to find $350,000 buried in a California state park under "a big W". Peter Falk played a cab driver, Dorothy Provine played Emeline Marcus-Finch and Marvin Kaplan played Irwin, a gas station co-owner.
In THE GREAT RACE, the NEW YORK SENTINEL newspaper sponsored an international car race from New York to Paris, including two rival daredevils, The Great Leslie (Tony Curtis) and Professor Fate (Jack Lemmon). Falk played Max, Professor Fate's sidekick, Provine played saloon singer Lily Olay and Kaplan played Frisbee, the assistant to the SENTINEL's publisher.

In IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD, Peter Falk played a cab driver, Dorothy Provine played Emeline Marcus-Finch and Marvin Kaplan played Irwin, a gas station co-owner.

IN THE GREAT RACE, Falk played Max, Professor Fate's sidekick, Provine played saloon singer Lily Olay and Kaplan played Frisbee, the SENTINEL publisher's assistant.

 

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MONDAY, JUNE 10

BEVERLY HILLS COP: AXEL F---film clip released from the Netflix sequel.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2r8-8xXlAQ



FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA---World of Reel reported the prequel earned only $4.2 million in its third weekend with an “absolute best-case scenario is $175 million worldwide by the end of its run”. The prequel is projected to lose $200 million.

WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Rian Johnson posted a photo of Daniel Craig returning in the Netflix sequel, "Aaaaand we’re off! Today is day 1 of shooting on the next Benoit Blanc mystery “Wake Up Dead Man” - see you on the other side."

PRACTICAL MAGIC 2---Warner Bros. announced the sequel to the 1998 witch movie is underway with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman in talks to return. Akiva Goldsman is the writer.

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM---Ian McKellen commented on returning as Gandalf in THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM, “There is no script, there is no offer, there is no plan.” He added if the script is good and he receives an offer, he would return on one condition, “If I’m alive.”

ALIEN---the FX tv series' working title is reportedly ALIEN: NEVERLAND and is set 30 years before the original movie.

THE BOYS---creator Eric Kripke commented on criticism that the series is too woke, "I clearly have a perspective, and I’m not shy about putting that perspective in the show. Anyone who wants to call the show ‘woke’ or whatever, that’s OK. Go watch something else.
But I’m certainly not going to pull any punches or apologize for what we’re doing. Some people who watch it think Homelander is the hero. What do you say to that? The show’s many things. Subtle isn’t one of them. So if that’s the message you’re getting from it, I just throw up my hands."

THE TALENTED DR. GRAY---Jared Leto will star in the movie about retired political science professor Dr. Lawrence Gray, who was accused of of being a cat burglar who stole over $1 million in art and jewels. Gray claimed he was set up by the family of his power broker girlfriend, who did not approve of their relationship.

TOKYO VICE---Max cancelled the series.

TRIVIA---character actor Cecil Kellaway appeared in two 1950s movies in which he played a man of science who finds out a giant animal, whom most people doubt exists, is a reality.
In HARVEY, Kellaway played psychiatrist Dr. Willam Chumley, who finds out that patient Elwood P. Dowd's (Jimmy Stewart) claim that his best friend is an invisible 6' 3" rabbit is true.
In THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS, Kellaway played paleontologist Dr. Thurgood Elson, who proves that nuclear physicist Tom Nesbitt was not hallucinating when he claimed he saw a giant Rhedosaurus that was frozen in the Arctic Circle and then thawed out by an atomic bomb test...and the Rhedosaurus is headed to New York.

In HARVEY, Kellaway played psychiatrist Dr. Willam Chumley, who finds out that patient Elwood P. Dowd's (Jimmy Stewart) claim that his best friend is an invisible 6' 3" rabbit is true.

In THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS, Kellaway played paleontologist Dr. Thurgood Elson, who proves that nuclear physicist Tom Nesbitt was not hallucinating when he claimed he saw a giant Rhedosaurus that was frozen in the Arctic Circle and then thawed out by an atomic bomb test...and the Rhedosaurus is headed to New York.

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, JUNE 11

THE DAY THE EARTH BLEW UP: A LOONEY TUNES MOVIE---trailer released for the Looney Tunes movie.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hafVN4-1cxU



GLADIATOR 2---photo released of Paul Mescal as Lucius on the sequel's film set in England.

REBEL MOON---Netflix announced the R-rated director's cuts of Zack Snyder's two-part movie will premiere on August 2, "Delve further into the mythology and madness of Zack Snyder’s epic sci-fi saga in the viciously sexier, bloodier world of REBEL MOON — CHAPTER ONE: CHALICE OF BLOOD and REBEL MOON – CHAPTER TWO: CURSE OF FORGIVENESS. In Snyder’s director’s cut, a peaceful settlement on a moon in the furthest reaches of the universe finds itself threatened by the armies of the tyrannical Regent Balisarius, and Kora (Sofia Boutella), a mysterious stranger living among the villagers, becomes their best hope for survival. Tasked with finding trained fighters who will unite with her in making an impossible stand against the Motherworld, Kora assembles a small band of warriors — outsiders, insurgents, peasants, and orphans of war who share a common need for redemption and revenge. As the shadow of an entire Realm bears down on the unlikeliest of moons, a new army of heroes is formed."

DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE---it was confirmed that rumors of a Taylor Swift cameo in the sequel are not true.

WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY---Tom Hardy denied rumors he has joined the sequel cast, “Nobody’s called me about this. This came out in the Google machine this morning, and even I was like ‘What’s this?’ Someone’s gotta ask me.”

THE BOYS---creator Eric Kripke said Season 5 will be the last season, "Season 4 Premiere Week is a good time to announce: Season 5 will be the Final Season! Always my plan, I just had to be cagey till I got the final OK from Vought. Thrilled to bring the story to a gory, epic, moist climax. Watch Season 4 in 2 DAYS, cause the end has begun!"

SHOGUN---Toda Mariko commented on if she might return for Season 2, “I don’t know. I mean, I love the show. I love the creators. So it would be a dream if they ever called me back. But you know, like her story does end. I think it’s perfect the way it is. So, I’m not expecting anything.”

GRAVITY FALLS---Disney Branded Television executive Meredith Roberts said there have been talks with creator Alex Hirsch for a revival of the animated tv series, “You know, we’re in conversations with Alex. He’s about to publish a book with Disney on his project. And we also do some shorts. So never say never.”

TRIVIA---in Universal Picture's classic FRANKENSTEIN, Boris Karloff played Dr. Frankenstein's Monster which made him a horror icon. However, Karloff's daughter, Sara, said the studio did not invite her father to the premiere of the movie because it felt Colin Clive, who played Dr. Frankenstein, was the real star.

In FRANKENSTEIN, Colin Clive played Dr. Frankenstein and Boris Karloff played the Monster.

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12

PADDINGTON IN PERU---trailer released for the sequel.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ap8GfXXJCNM



MY SPY: THE ETERNAL CITY---trailer released for the Amazon Prime sequel starring Dave Bautista.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xJ1F7yFsnU



I USED TO EAT BRAINS, NOW I EAT KALE---Ryan Gosling will star in the zombie movie based on the short story in which people and zombies co-exist.

STAR TREK: STARFLEET ACADEMY---Paramount+ announced that Paul Giamatti is the main villain for the new prequel series, "Every Starfleet crew has their villain. We are beyond excited to announce that Paul Giamatti has joined the cast of #StarfleetAcademy as a recurring guest star!" Giamatti's villain has “an ominous past connected to one of the Academy’s cadets.”

THE TALAMASCA---AMC ordered its third tv series based on the Anne Rice novels about a secret society that tracks down and battles vampires, werewolves and witches.

THE BATMAN-PART II---DC Studios co-head James Gunn denied rumors the sequel is being cancelled, "Of course not."

WEREWOLF---Frank Grillo stars in this horror movie in which a supermoon triggered a latent gene in humans who are exposed to the moonlight and turned them into werewolves. After a billion people died, a second supermoon is ahead.

POWER RANGERS---Netflix cancelled development of the live-action tv series.

TRIVIA---in THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, Dr. Clayton Forrester destroyed the Martian electronic eye with an axe, but when he took it to his colleagues at Pacific Tech, the electronic eye was in pristine condition.

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JUNE 13

THE INSTIGATORS---trailer released for the heist movie starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5oqpxi3U7M



FIGHT NIGHT: THE MILLION DOLLAR HEIST---trailer released for the Peacock heist miniseries starring Kevin Hart.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw_nbGQXKqI



THE PRINCE---Scott Haze, Nicolas Cage, JK Simmons, Giancarlo Esposito and Andy Garcia will star in the David Mamet movie about “an addict’s tumultuous odyssey through the high-stakes world of power, pleasure, and pain on a transformative journey toward recovery”. Sources claim the movie is loosely based on Hunter Biden's drug problems, but other sources deny this.

GAME OF THRONES---George RR Martin posted the previously-scrapped prequel series, 10,000 SHIPS, is underway with the pilot being written by Eboni Booth, “We’re all very excited about this one… though we’re still trying to figure out how we’re going to pay for ten thousand ships, three hundred dragons, and those giant turtles.”

JURASSIC WORLD 4---VARIETY said the latest dinosaur movie is “a completely fresh take launching a new Jurassic era, following three adults and three teens getting stuck on the Island.” The movie starring Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey has also been referred to as JURASSIC CITY.

BLADE---director Yann Demange left the reboot movie after replacing the departed Bassam Tariq.

POSSESSION---Robert Pattinson will star in the remake of the 1981 horror movie about a spy, his estranged wife and an alien creature. Sam Neill and Isabelle Adjani starred in the original movie.

THE RAINMAKER---USA Network tv series underway based on the John Grisham novel. The 1997 Francis Ford Coppola movie starred Matt Damon and Claire Danes.

TRUST---Kate Winslet will star in the HBO miniseries based on the Hernan Diaz novel.

QUEENS OF THE DEAD---George Romero's daughter, Tina, commented on her upcoming zombie movie, “It takes place over one night, at the beginning of the dead rising. We find ourselves at a big warehouse party in Bushwick. We’ve got a party promoter for whom everything’s going wrong, and her lead act has dropped out. So she needs to call upon a friend — a retired drag queen — to resurrect his drag, to come and save the night. And it turns out to be a night of many resurrections.
And our motley crew of characters find themselves holed up in a Bushwick nightclub, having to decide ‘Do we get out of here or do we board the place up?’ And they’ve got to survive the night. It’s about a group of non-fighters finding the survival skills deep within.”

TRIVIA---in JAWS, shark hunter Quint's first scene had him in a theater creating a disturbance by laughing at MOBY DICK starring Gregory Peck. However, Peck was very unhappy with his performance in MOBY DICK and would not let Steven Spielberg use the scene, so it was removed from the script.

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, JUNE 14

UFO---Emily Blunt is in talks to star in Steven Spielberg's untitled UFO movie. David Koepp is the writer.

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON---showrunner Ryan Condal commented on the series' ending and how faithful it will be to George RR Martin's novel, “We’ve certainly talked about all that. We know where the ending is now. The writing team and I…and when I say the ending it’s really just where the curtain drops in this particular period of Targaryen history. Because, of course, after the Dance of Dragons is over there’s still another 120, 150 years of history before the Mad King is overthrown by Robert Baratheon. Which is really the end of the Targaryen Dynasty, and that leads us into the original series."
He added, “So yeah, we’ve talked about it. I do want to honor as much of what is there in the book, but we also have to find a satisfying to this story that wraps things up in a different and unexpected way for a giant TV audience. You’re always balancing the written history and making television show. But I think the fun of FIRE & BLOOD as a whole is it’s such a deeply rich and textured history that another writer can follow me after this and tell a story from the past before the DANCE OF THE DRAGONS or just after.”

WHITE HOUSE---Idris Elba and Rebecca Ferguson will star in Kathryn Bigelow's untitled Netflix movie set in the White House when nuclear missiles are launched at the US.

THE INSTITUTE---Ben Barnes and Mary-Louise Parker will star in the MGM+ eight-part miniseries based on the Stephen King novel.

MOVIE LOSSES---VARIETY projects THE FALL GUY will lose $50 million-$60 million and FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA will lose $75 million-$95 million.

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER---HBO renewed the series for Season 3.

THE CHOP SHOP---Christine Ricci and Hamish Linklater will star in the true crime series based on the book about David Sconce, who took over the family Los Angeles crematorium and was later convicted of selling body parts, stealing gold filings and stealing from trust accounts.

AMANDA KNOX---Grace van Patten will star in the untitled Hulu miniseries which is “based on the true story of how Knox was wrongfully convicted for the murder of her roommate Meredith Kercher, and her 16-year odyssey to set herself truly free.” Knox was convicted of murdering Kercher by an Italian court in 2009, but her conviction was later overturned.

BLADE---Mahershala Ali's attorney, Shelby Weiser, commented on the reboot movie's many creative shake-ups and the departure of two directors, "That deal was in 2019, and they still haven’t shot it, which is pretty much the craziest thing in my professional experience."

TRANSFORMERS & G.I. JOE---Derek Connolly (KONG: SKULL ISLAND) will write the script for the untitled crossover movie.

TRIVIA---Academy Award-winner Joaquin Phoenix's real name was Joaquin Rafael Bottom. The family changed its last name to Phoenix in 1979, when Joaquin was a child, after the mythical bird that symbolizes rebirth by rising from the ashes of its predecessor.

The family changed its last name to Phoenix in 1979, when Joaquin (second from right) was a child, after the mythical bird that symbolizes rebirth by rising from the ashes of its predecessor.

 

[dragon53]

MONDAY, JUNE 17

AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN---Miles Teller (TOP GUN: MAVERICK) will star in the Paramount Pictures remake of the 1982 movie that starred Richard Gere, Debra Winger and Louis Gossett, Jr. The original movie's synopsis says, "Zack Mayo (Gere), a new member of the U.S. Navy, has a bad attitude. When he signs up for the Aviation Academy, he is met with the strict leadership of Sgt. Emil Foley (Gossett Jr.), who gives Zack a rude awakening in terms of relating with other people. Through Foley’s guidance — and an unexpected romance with Paula (Debra Winger), an outsider who hangs around the naval base — Zack learns some tough lessons and discovers what he truly wants out of life.”

ENEMY MINE---20th Century remake of the 1985 sci fi movie that starred Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett, Jr. is underway with Terry Matalas (STAR TREK: PICARD) as the writer. The original movie was about an Earth pilot and an alien pilot who shot each other down and are stranded on a remote planet where they team up in order to survive.

BLADE---Wesley Snipes posted about the the reboot movie's turmoil in losing its second director.

STARFLEET ACADEMY---producer Alex Kurtzman commented on the prequel tv series starring Holly Hunter, “There’s a specific reason for that. As the father of a 17-year-old boy, I see what my son is feeling as he looks at the world and to his future. I see the uncertainty; I see all the things we took for granted as given are not certainties for him.
I see him recognizing he’s inheriting an enormous mess to clean up and it’s going to be on his generation to figure out how to do that, and that’s a lot to ask of a kid.
My thinking was, if we set STARFLEET ACADEMY in the halcyon days of the Federation where everything was fine, it’s not going to speak to what kids are going through right now. It’ll be a nice fantasy, but it’s not really going to be authentic.
What’ll be authentic is to set it in the timeline where this is the first class back after over 100 years, and they are coming into a world that is only beginning to recover from a cataclysm – which was the Burn, as established on STAR TREK: DISCOVERY, where the Federation was greatly diminished.
So they’re the first who’ll inherit, who’ll re-inherit, the task of exploration as a primary goal, because there just wasn’t room for that during the Burn – everybody was playing defense.”

DOCTOR WHO---showrunner Russell T. Davies commented on the show's low ratings, “In coming back, I wanted to make it simpler and I wanted to make it younger. Those two things are often not discussed – you read reactions to it and people are missing that. It’s simpler and younger – and it is working.
The under-16s and the 16-34 audience as well is massive. It’s not doing that well in the ratings, but it is doing phenomenally well with the younger audience that we wanted.”
He added, “They might not be the ratings we’d love. We always want higher. But they are building over the 28-day period. Episode one, ‘Space Babies,’ is already up to 5.6 million and counting. So it is getting there. And actually, I was brought back to bring in a younger audience. That’s been massively successful.
The audience no one ever gets are the under-30s. They just don’t watch television anymore. But those figures are astronomic for Doctor Who, it’s their top program in that bracket. I never thought it was possible, to be honest. But according to the people who juggle the numbers, all targets have been reached and exceeded. The BBC are running around like mad things.”

THE THREE-BODY PROBLEM---Chinese movie underway based on the novel and directed by Zhang Yimou (HERO). It is not connected to the Netflix tv series.

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN---Austin Butler commented on rumors he will star in the reboot movie, “Oh really, I haven’t heard about that. I loved PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. That just reminded me of when I was a kid. In elementary school, we had to make these posters that had like your favorite music, your favorite actors. And at that time – I don’t know what grade, it must have been fourth grade, third grade or something – but it was — PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN was on there.”

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 8---the sequel budget is reportedly "running well over $300 million". MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE-DEAD RECKONING PART I reportedly lost $100 million.

TRIVIA---Father's Day movie trivia.
In INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, Sean Connery played Dr. Henry Jones, Sr. and Robert Eddison played the Grail Knight.
Ironically, Connery was an anti-aircraft gunner on the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Formidable and Eddison was a lieutenant on the Formidable's sistership, HMS Illustrious, in World War II.

In INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, Sean Connery played Dr. Henry Jones, Sr., and he was an anti-aircraft gunner on the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Formidable.

In INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, Robert Eddison played the Grail Knight, and he was a lieutenant on the Formidable's sistership, HMS Illustrious, in World War II.

 

[dragon53]

TUESDAY, JUNE 18

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON---trailer released for Season 2.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TsVh7yBLoQ



LADY IN THE LAKE---trailer released for the Apple TV+ miniseries starring Natalie Portman.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4V04ptsZ-Jg



SMILE 2---trailer released for the horror sequel.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy7kaI3GKzo



LETHAL WEAPON 5---Mel Gibson announced he will replace the late Richard Donner as the sequel's director, "I'm gonna direct the fifth film in the LETHAL WEAPON series. Richard Donner, who did the other four, sadly passed away and he was a good friend, and he kind of tasked me with carrying the flag home on that one. So it'll be an honor for me to do that. He had gotten a fair way into writing the screenplay and we've used what was there. We kept kind of poking at it, working it and I'm pretty happy with it, it's good, I had a lot of fun doing it."

THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB---Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, David Tennant, Ben Kingsley and Jonathan Pryce will star in the Netflix comedy crime movie about retirement home friends who team up to solve murders. Chris Columbus is the director.

TERRIFIER 3---photo released of Jason Patric appearing in the sequel in an undisclosed role.

UNCHARTED 2---Sony Pictures confirmed the sequel is still under development.

UNDER PARIS---the Netflix movie about a giant shark attacking Paris drew an impressive 41 million views in its first five days. Director Xavier Gens commented on a possible sequel, “Right now, as of today, we’re not on it but there’s a chance that we’ll be discussing it soon. If there is a sequel, it will take place in a Paris that is entirely submerged under water.”

1923---Jennifer Carpenter (DEXTER) has joined the Season 2 cast as Mamie Fossett, who is described as “a highly capable U.S. Deputy Marshall who serves warrants and makes arrests with confidence ahead of her time.”

SHIPWRECKS---untitled Martin Scorsese documentary about ancient shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea is underway. It will be set mainly in Polizzi Generosa, Sicily, the birthplace of Scorsese's grandparents.

TOTAL SPIES---Amazon MGM Studios is developing a live-action tv series based on the animated spy series. Will Ferrell is the executive producer.

TRIVIA---in the COLUMBO tv movie NO TIME TO DIE, Joanna Going played bride Melissa Hays, who was kidnapped after her wedding, and Donald Moffat played her father, Sheldon Hays. Both Going and Moffat co-starred in two sci fi monster movies in which a monster assimilates people and assumes their form.
Going co-starred in PHANTOMS with Ben Affleck and Peter O'Toole in which an ancient monster attacks a small Colorado town and assimilates the local residents and imitates them.
Moffat co-starred in THE THING with Kurt Russell and Wilford Brimley in which a frozen alien monster assimilates the personnel of an Antarctic research station and changes into its victims.

In the COLUMBO tv movie NO TIME TO DIE, Joanna Going played bride Melissa Hays, who was kidnapped after her wedding. and Donald Moffat played her father, Sheldon Hays.

Going co-starred in PHANTOMS with Ben Affleck and Peter O'Toole in which an ancient monster attacks a small Colorado town and assimilates the local residents and imitates them.

Moffat co-starred in THE THING with Kurt Russell and Wilford Brimley in which a frozen alien monster assimilates the personnel of an Antarctic research station and changes into its victims.

 

[dragon53]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19

THE BEAST WITHIN---trailer released for the horror movie starring Kit Harington.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctcLCGbeVZA



SPACEBALLS 2---Josh Gad is the star/co-writer of the Amazon MGM Studios sequel to the 1987 Mel Brooks STAR WARS parody movie which starred Bill Pullman, John Candy, Rick Moranis and Daphne Zuniga. Broooks is returning as the co-producer.

A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS---HBO released a photo from the GAME OF THRONES prequel series showing Peter Claffey as Ser Duncan the Tall. The synopsis says, “A century before the events of GAME OF THRONES, two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros . . . a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends.”

MAD MAX: WASTELAND---Tom Hardy commented on the MAD MAX: FURY ROAD prequel, "I don't think it's happening." The chances of WASTELAND proceeding dropped considerably after FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA bombed at the box office.

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON---Season 2's premiere drew 7.8 million viewers which is a drop of 22% from Season 1's premiere which had 10 million viewers.

THE BOYS---Season 4's Rotten Tomatoes critic scores were similar to previous seasons, but its audience score of 49% plummeted compared to Season 1--90%, Season 20--83%, Season 3---75%. The biggest fan complaint is that THE BOYS has become "woke garbage" which led to creator Eric Kripke telling disgruntled fans to “go watch something else”.

TONY AWARDS---the CBS telecast drew only 3.5 million viewers (excluding Paramount+) which is 14.8% less than the 2023 telecast which had 4.1 million viewers.

GLADIATOR 2---Paramount Pictures President of International Distribution said the sequel has the, “biggest action sequences ever put on film.” Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal and Denzel Washington star.

RESISTOR---Will Smith will star in the movie based on the novel INFLUX set in a dystopian future where the government uses questionable tactics to stop technological advances.

TRIVIA---in the opening credits for THE NAKED GUN 2 1/2: THE SMELL OF FEAR, the police car's flashing light is shown stopping Zsa Zsa Gabor's Rolls-Royce. Gabor gets out of her car, slaps the light and says, "This happens every f-cking time when I go shopping!" The scene was the spoof of the 1989 incident which became known as "The slap heard around the world" in which Beverly Hills police officer Paul Kramer stopped Gabor in her Rolls-Royce because of expired registration tags. While he was checking for other possible violations, Gabor drove off. Kramer stopped her again and then Gabor slapped Kramer. She claimed Kramer shoved her, but Kramer said the slap was unprovoked. Gabor was fined $2,350 for slapping Kramer, $352 for driving with an expired license and $235 for an open container of Jack Daniels.
In the subsequent trial, Gabor contradicted herself repeatedly on the witness stand, claimed Kramer had numerous gay lovers and claimed the police videotapes showing her using obscene language were doctored. Gabor said, “In Nazi Hungary they were fairer than here. Here they don’t kill you. They kill you with words.”
During the trial, the circus atmosphere included a Zsa Zsa impersonator having a mock fight with a man wearing a "Hang Zsa Zsa" t-shirt in the court building and a later bomb scare.
Los Angeles County District Atorney Ira Reiner said, “It started out as a minor incident. But what elevated this beyond . . . a minor case was her conduct over that three-week period during the trial where she made a mockery out of everything. And it wasn’t just a mockery of the criminal justice system . . . the judge, the police officers, the court personnel, the prosecutors, the entire system, which she dismissed as a Nazi-type system because anybody would presume to judge Zsa Zsa Gabor.”
At the end of the trial, the jury found guilty on all counts except for disobeying an officer. The judge fined Gabor $12,937, ordered her to spend three days in jail, perform 120 hours of community service and undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
Gabor commented on her sentence, “I’m disappointed. I can’t believe it. I can’t believe that in a country as great as ours that a 6-foot-4 policeman can beat up a lady of 5-foot-4 and use dirty language as if she was a street walker. I think Russia can’t be worse, or communist Hungary.”
She also commented on spending time in jail, “That would be wonderful. I’d have time to write my book...If I go to jail, Bistro Gardens [a restaurant] said they would serve me food three times a day.”
She also disclosed her immediate plans now that the trial was over, “I’m going home to collapse in my swimming pool.”

 

[dragon53]

THURSDAY, JUNE 20

THE PENGUIN---teaser trailer released for the Max series starring Colin Farrell.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2uSwItbBAg



FLY ME TO THE MOON---trailer released for the comedy movie starring Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRs0vArcAOw



STARTREK: PRODIGY---trailer released for Season 2.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXh5TLAeJqw



THE ABANDON---trailer released for the sci fi movie.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPrao47fD8A



REVELATIONS---director Yeon Sang-ho (TRAIN TO BUSAN) is developing a Netflix movie based on his Korean webtoon about a pastor who receives a divine revelation and teams up with a detective to find his abducted son. Alfonso Cuaron is the producer.

THE NIGHT MANAGER---in addition to Tom Hiddleston, Season 2 returning cast members include Olivia Colman as Angela Burr, Douglas Hodge as Rex Mayhew, Michael Nardone as Frisky and Noah Jupe as Danny (Daniel) Roper.

GREEN LANTERN---Jon Hamm said he turned down the starring role in the DC superhero GREEN LANTERN while he was doing MAD MEN, “That was one I definitely didn’t want to do.” He added that he wants to be part of the rival MCU, “It’s not like they were saying, 'We want you to be Iron Man.' But there were a lot of conversations, and I’m still in those. I talk to the guys that run Marvel and DC. And I’m a comic book nerd. So, we’ll see. Even that part of the industry is changing...But I’ve pitched myself for a couple parts of the Marvel Universe, I don’t want to say what exactly, but it was a part of a comic book that I really liked. I was like, “Are you going to do this story?” And they were like, 'Yeah, we’re actually thinking of that.' I go, 'Good. I should be the guy.' So maybe it’ll work out.”

THE X-FILES---David Duchovny commented on if he will return as Fox Mulder in the Ryan Coogler reboot movie, “I don’t wake up and wonder, ‘Where is the X-FILES stock today?’ But I love that show. I don’t know what my character would be like at my age. It’s an interesting question. That show can address the present as well as it addressed the ’90s. It just depends on [series creator] Chris [Carter] or the other writers. I’m always like, ‘Hey, let’s see.”

THE ADVENTURES OF TIN TIN 2---Andy Serkis commented on the status of the long-gestating Peter Jackson sequel, “definitely still working on it.”

NCIS---the spinoff with Michael Weatherly and Core de Pablo returning will have Tony DiNozzo and Ziva David on the run in Europe after DiNozzo's security company was attacked. Characters will include a“British nanny/bodyguard role,” a “Russian hacker extraordinaire” and a “French Interpol liaison". It will also feature Tony and Ziva’s preteen daughter, Tali.

TRIVIA---in the AIRPLANE! scene where the cockpit crew is sickened by the tainted fish and dragged from the cockpit, Captain Clarence Oveur (Peter Graves) is dragged down the aisle past a female passenger with long brown hair, who is on the right side of the aisle. Seconds later, stewardess Elaine says, "By the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?", which causes the passengers to panic, but the female passenger is now on the left side of the aisle.

In AIRPLANE!, stewardess Elaine tells the passengers there is a problem on the airliner.

Captain Clarence Oveur is dragged down the aisle past a female passenger with long brown hair, who is seated on the right side of the aisle.

Seconds later, Elaine says, "By the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?", which causes the passengers to panic---but the female passenger is now on the left side of the aisle.

 

[dragon53]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21

SNOWPIERCER---trailer released for Season 4.

LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TttfDqzdPK8



ST. ELMO'S FIRE---Sony Pictures remake of the 1985 Brat Pack movie is underway, but it is dependent on being able to reunite the original cast of Andrew McCarthy, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Demi Moore, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Mare Winningham.

THE KILLER---John Woo/Peacock remake of Woo's 1989 movie is set in Paris and stars Nathalie Emmanuel as assassin Zee, the "Queen of the Dead", who teams up with a police investigator to combat a deadly criminal conspiracy. Omar Sy and Sam Worthington also star. Premiere is August 23.

STAR WARS---Lucasfilm's Dave Filoni commented on a possible R-rated STAR WARS project, “Sure, I mean, I don’t know. I think it’s interesting. The bottom line is whatever we do it has to be really well done. I think when you look at something that is taken as different like ANDOR, it’s so well done, and Tony [Gilroy] and his team do such a phenomenal job, that I think that there’s an audience for that. I think also with that audience, I want to still be hitting the imagination of the kids out there, so that they can grow up and appreciate those things.“
Filoni added: “[STAR WARS] encompasses all types of styles, and the creative of the particular story driving it is the most important thing, and they should do something that’s within their comfort zone. Otherwise, we’re to imagine that everyone’s going to come in and pretend they’re George Lucas. I’ve learned from George, but certainly I’m not the same as George when it comes to making movies. He’s a one of a kind generational talent. I like wolves and put them in my STAR WARS. We’re just different and that’s okay. But there are principles about choices and being a good person and being more selfless and getting over your fears that are timeless no matter what style you’re talking about.“

DEXTER: ORIGINAL SIN---Patrick Dempsey will co-star in the prequel series as Captain Aaron Spencer of the Miami Metro Homicide Department.

BLADE---a source said Mahershala Ali is sticking with the long-gestating movie even though two directors have left because he “exercised an inordinate amount of influence over the project, in a way few other actors have on Marvel movies”.
Eric Pearson is doing the latest rewrite of the script. Reportedly, the version that was to be filmed in 2023 was set in the 1920s and "featured Mia Goth as a vampire villain named Lilith who wanted the blood of Blade’s daughter."

SOULM8TE---M3GAN spinoff movie underway in which a man gets a female robot to replace his deceased wife which leads to a deadly relationship.

BATMAN: CAPED CRUSADER---Hamish Linklater will provide the voice of Batman in the Amazon Prime animated superhero series.

MERCILESS---Jonathan Majors stars in this horror movie about a CIA interrogator who must save his girlfriend from a demonic entity. The director is Martin Villeneuve, younger brother of Denis Villeneuve.

PIRANESI---Travis Knight will direct the stop-motion movie based on the fantasy novel.

MONSTERS, INC. 2---Pixar's Pete Docter commented on the status of the sequel, "We’ve been searching for ideas for a MONSTERS, INC. sequel for a long time, and we haven’t seen enough to start working on anything there yet.”

TRIVIA---Yvonne De Carlo, who played Moses' wife in the classic THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, only agreed to co-star in the CBS monster sitcom THE MUNSTERS because her husband, stuntman Robert Morgan, lost a leg while working on HOW THE WEST WAS WON, so she needed the money.
The book YOU AIN'T HEARD NOTHIN' YET mentions De Carlo's unhappiness with playing Lily Munster, “She said when they put her in the green makeup, she burst into tears,” he chuckled. “She said, ‘So it’s come to this?’ She also said, ‘I couldn’t believe it, this has become my biggest hit. Everywhere I go, kids would be pointing at me and asking if I really was Lily Munster.'"
The book added, "After a while, she came to like [playing a monster] because she wasn’t really able to do comedy until then,” he said. “And glamour girls, by the time they’re 40, their Hollywood careers are usually over.”