Hollywood was on temporary pause but productions are gearing back up, release dates continue to be tweaked in preparation for theaters reopening, and things are slowly starting to return to normal – or at least, our temporary new normal. Movie news is once again starting to flow, with us bringing you a few hand-picked stories we think you’ll like.
Let’s hop to it.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson Nabs Lead Role In Sony’s Spider-Man Spinoff ‘Kraven The Hunter’ Movie
After some movement on Sony’s Kraven the Hunter project a few months ago, it was recently announced that Aaron Taylor-Johnson has nabbed the lead role. It was something of a surprise to most, considering Taylor-Johnson has already played Quicksilver in the MCU, it may be seen as double-dipping to cast ATJ as another Marvel character. Beyond that, at 30 years of age, Taylor-Johnson is younger than most were anticipating for the grizzled Spider-Man nemesis and sometimes-antihero. It could be an indication that Sony plans to take a slightly different approach with its version of Kraven, which would make complete sense considering he’s one of Spider-Man’s more colorful characters and hardest to translate to screen in a realistic way – after all, he’s a big-game hunter obsessed with killing Spider-Man, a man who dresses in leopard-print tights and giant fur vest. It will be interesting to see how Sony and Kraven director J.C. Chandor approach the character. With Morbius and Venom: Let There Be Carnage both in the can, it’s certain Sony will be moving on this quickly and we’ll get more news soon.
Henry Cavill In Talks To Star In ‘Highlander’ Reboot
Courtesy of Deadline comes news of Henry Cavill’s next project. The star of The Witcher and Superman in the DCEU is ready to to star in Lionsgate’s reboot of Highlander. He’ll be teaming up with Chad Stahelski (John Wick), who is set to direct off a script by Kerry Williamson. The original cult 1986 classic starred Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery, and Clancy Brown as immortal warriors waging a secret war to defeat one another until only one remains. Highlander‘s “There can be only one,” catchphrase is permanently imprinted upon pop culture for that reason. The project has been long in development, and it’s unknown at this time if Cavill will be playing a new character in the universe or a new iteration of Lambert’s Connor MacLeod character. Regardless, the Cavill/Stahelski combination is an intriguing one. Stahelski has become one of the most sought-after and inventive action directors in Hollywood after the John Wick franchise put him on the map. Likewise, Cavill has proven himself to be more than able to hold is own in physical roles from the aforementioned two to his role in Mission: Impossible – Fallout. It will be fun to see what the pair does.
Timothée Chalamet Cast As Young Willy Wonka
Because every iconic fictional character needs an origin story reimagining now, Willy Wonka is next up for the youth movement. Warner Bros. and the Roald Dahl Story Co. are working on Wonka, a story focusing on young Willy Wonka and his life and adventures before he ever opened up the world’s most famous (and some might argue terrifying) chocolate factory. What’s more, they already have their lead: Deadline broke the news that Timothée Chalamet is set to play the youthful, purple velvet-clad entrepreneur in the role made famous by Gene Wilder. Sources have confirmed that Chalamet will be showing off his pipes and soft-shoe skills; the film is set to include several musical numbers. Apparently, Chalamet had been the top choice for a while but it was only just announced as they had to work in training for those numbers into the prep time and scheduling was an issue for the busy Chalamet. Paul King will direct off a script he wrote with Simon Farnaby, which itself was a revision of earlier drafts from Simon Rich, Simon Stephenson, Jeff Nathanson and Steven Levenson. It’s unclear when the project is set to shoot and there is not yet a release date.
Jonathan Majors In Talks To Star Opposite Michael B. Jordan In ‘Creed III’
Here’s an excellent bit of casting if it goes through. Once again, Deadline does the work of breaking some major news: Lovecraft Country and Da 5 Bloods star Jonathan Majors is reportedly in talks to square off against Michael B. Jordan in Creed III. It should be noted it’s far from a done deal yet, mostly because Majors one of Hollywood’s fastest-rising stars and is becoming increasingly busy; currently, he’s filming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he’ll be playing legendary Marvel villain Kang the Conquerer. It’s not yet clear who Majors would be playing, exactly, but it’s been confirmed that he will be playing Adonis Creed’s antagonist. It’s interesting, as the previous Creed films have made a point to have Jordan’s Creed fighting real-life fighters; if Majors is cast, it will be the first time in the Creed era of the Rocky franchise that a non-fighter has been cast as Adonis’s major opponent. We’ll keep an eye on this and hopefully they end up working out a deal.
‘Thor: Love & Thunder’ Wraps Filming; ‘Indiana Jones 5’ Set To Start
Some production updates for two hugely anticipated films. First, Thor: Love & Thunder. The movie, once again helmed by Taika Waititi, has been filming in Australia since late January. This week, Marvel posted an image on social media of Waititi and star Chris Hemsworth sporting an absurdly beefy physique (it honestly might be time for the God of Thunder to ease up) indicating the production had officially wrapped:
Thor doesn’t need Mjolnir or Stormbreaker anymore. He can simply detach his arm and beat Christian Bale’s Gorr the God Butcher senseless.
Meanwhile, Indiana Jones 5 is finally set to begin production next week in the U.K., notably at the Pinewood Studios and in a few other locations. The film, which will be the first not helmed by longtime director Steven Spielberg, will instead be directed by James Mangold, though Spielberg will still be very hands-on as a producer. Star Harrison Ford is, of course, expected back, along with a star-studded cast including Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Kretschmann, Boyd Holbrook, and Shaunette Renée Wilson.
New Image From Sony’s ‘Uncharted’ Movie
Just to remind everyone it’s still on the way, they swear, Sony has dropped another still from its Uncharted movie adaptation starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg.
And now…
Trailers & Clips of the Week
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It
The final trailer for The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It promises that the third film in the main Conjuring franchise will be just as terrifying as the first two.
F9 – Cameo-Exclusive Car Chase Clip
Just driving cars through live minefields, as F9 does.
A Quiet Place Part II One-Take Opening Scene Breakdown
Here’s a neat video from director John Krasinski breaking down the opening scene of A Quiet Place Part II and showing how he tried to shoot the entire thing in one take.
Loki Behind-the-Scenes Featurette
Lastly, a fun behind-the-scenes clip from the upcoming Disney+ Loki series that promises the God of Mischief’s ability to cause chaos is alive and well.
