So I posted a story a while back about how the Wachowskis are planning on starting up another series of Matrix films, and that actor Michael B. Jordan was involved. Production is proceeding in Chicago under the code name “Project Ice Cream.”

Now, website We Got This Covered is reporting that the new movies are a prequel to the original Matrix trilogy, and that Michael B. Jordan will be playing a young Morpheus.

(…) sources close to We Got This Covered can confirm that the movie will be a prequel, with Jordan playing a young Morpheus. As for the plot, we don’t have specifics just yet, but the film will apparently show us how things became as they were in the original trilogy and how the Matrix came to be.

This news should definitely be treated as a RUMOR, mostly due to We Got This Covered not naming their source. It seems to make sense that Jordan would play Morpheus if this new movie is indeed a prequel, but it would be better if he was an original character, at least in my opinion. I just can’t see Jordan pulling off a convincing Laurence Fishburne impersonation.

Regardless, it certainly seems like “Project Ice Cream” is moving forward. Hopefully, the Wachowskis can break their recent losing streak of making disappointing sci-fi movies and deliver a new Matrix film that people will actually enjoy (and preferably one that doesn’t get bogged down with weighty philosophical baggage).

What do you think? Are you excited for a new Matrix movie? Would you like to see Michael B. Jordan as a young Morpheus? Let us know in the comments!

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Now that director Zack Snyder is done with the DC Universe, he seems to be moving on to other projects, like an anime series based on Norse Mythology for Netflix. Via Variety:

The “Man of Steel” and “Justice League” director is set to co-create and executive produce an original anime series set in the world of Norse mythology for the streamer.

Jay Oliva, a prominent storyboard artist who has a long-standing creative partnership with Snyder which spans a dozen live action features including “Justice League” and “300: Rise of an Empire,” created the prospective series alongside Snyder and will serve as the showrunner, director, and executive producer.

So it seems like Oliva will be quite active in the development of this new anime series, which will join the ranks of Ultraman, Castlevania, and The Seven Deadly Sins among Netflix’s growing stable of adult-oriented cartoons. Snyder’s involvement seems purely on the business end of things, though he may have some creative input as well. But from the looks of things, this is Oliva’s baby.

Oliva has also directed several DC animated films such as Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: Assault on Arkham, Batman Vs. Robin, Justice League Dark, and more. So if those movies are anything to go by, this currently untitled “Norse Mythology” anime should be pretty darn good.

Snyder is currently directing, writing, and producing the zombie thriller original movie Army of the Dead for Netflix, with Dave Bautista and Theo Rossi attached to star in Snyder’s directorial return after he left (or was fired?) from Justice League. It looks like Snyder is moving away from the traditional Hollywood studios and teaming up with Netflix for his future projects. I guess we’ll see how that plays out.

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Good news for Marvel and Thor fans everywhere. It was just announced that the writer/director of Thor: Ragnarok, Taika Waititi, is going to be returning for a fourth installment of the God of Thunder’s saga.

Actor Chris Hemsworth will be returning to play Thor for the 4th installment – though it is unknown if he’ll still be fat or not. Knowing Waititi’s sense of humor, it’s a good possibility, but it’s also not a guarantee since Thor will also be appearing in Guardians of the Galaxy 3, so a lot could happen between then and Thor 4 in regards to the Asgardian’s level of fitness.

The interesting thing about this announcement is that it basically cements Thor as part of Marvel’s Phase 4 roll-out, so we’ll see how that affects the other movies Marvel has planned for its post-Endgame strategy.

Waititi was originally set to direct the big-budget live-action version of the classic anime film AKIRA over at Warner Brothers, but apparently the script for that film was taking a long time to develop, so Waititi decided to commit to Thor in the meantime. However, this meant pushing back the release of AKIRA as Waititi will have to finish work on Thor before he can move back to that project. So this announcement is a bit of a good news/bad news scenario.

In addition to all this, Waititi is also producing the television version of his breakout vampire mocumentary film What We Do In The Shadows for FX, and is also directing a few episodes of the Star Wars TV show The Mandalorian for the Disney+ Network. So he’s one busy guy and a rising star in Hollywood. Already, he seems poised to do for Thor what James Gunn did for Guardians of the Galaxy and what the Russo Brothers did for Captain America.

What do you think of this news? Are you excited for a new Thor film? Did you like Ragnarok? What do you think of Taika Waititi? Let me know in the comments!

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Fans of video games and JRPGs can rejoice. Sony has announced that the Final Fantasy saga is going to be turned into a live-action TV show! Sony Pictures Television plans on creating an original series based on the Final Fantasy XIV MMO. There aren’t many details at this stage beyond the fact that this is apparently happening, but here’s what we do know via Superhero Hype:

“Final Fantasy XIV and Eorzea are the perfect gateway into Final Fantasy for longtime fans and newcomers alike,” Sony Pictures TV Co-President Chris Parnell said in a press release. “This show is about embracing and embodying all of the elements that have made the mythos such an endlessly captivating phenomenon, and it’s an immense honor to be bringing all of Eorzea’s iconic characters, settings, and concepts – including fan-favorites like Cid and, of course, the chocobos – to life for a television audience.”

So it’s confirmed that the series will at least feature the character of Cid, and that it will be an original story exploring “the struggle between magic and technology in a quest to bring peace to a land in conflict” Let’s just hope the actual narrative is coherent, unlike some JRPG stories are.

The series is being produced by Hivemind, which is the production studio behind shows such as Amazon’s The Expanse and Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of The Witcher. Hivemind recently signed a first-look deal with Amazon Studios for event television, so there’s a good chance that a Final Fantasy series will end up there as an original show – though with Amazon spending a billion dollars on a Lord of the Rings series, it’s always possible they’ll pass on a Final Fantasy one. But considering how world-renown the property is, that might be a bad move on Amazon’s part.

So are you excited for a Final Fantasy show? What platform would you like to see it on? What would you like the story to be about? Let us know in the comments!

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Fans of 80s and 90s horror, rejoice! For Hellraiser’s television rights have finally been consolidated and a TV adaptation is now on the horizon! Via Deadline:

It producer Roy Lee and Ready Player One producer Dan Farah have positioned themselves to bring to the small screen for the first time Hellraiser, the iconic horror franchise anchored by the malevolent straight-out-of-hell villain, Pinhead. Those producers have joined forces with producer-rightsholders Lawrence Kuppin, David Salzman and Eric Gardner, who have controlled those TV rights since New World was sold in 1989.

The intention is to use the mythology established in the movie franchise and the Clive Barker novella The Hellbound Heart as a launch pad for a new series that could be anthology, or a more traditional narrative. The producers are underway with a search for a writer-showrunner, before setting it at a network or streamer, at a time when horror is performing strongly.

With the popularity of shows like American Horror Story, The Haunting of Hill House, Stranger Things, and The Terror, it seems like turning Hellraiser into a show is a no-brainer. After all, there is a lot of potential with the concept of the Cenobites, portals to hell, and all that jazz.

It seems like a hard-core horror show would be a great fit for a streaming service that doesn’t have to worry about graphic violence, gore, or language. Probably the worst case scenario is seeing this show end up some some basic cable channel where it can’t really meet its full potential. But now that every major studio and network is trying to create their own streaming service, Hellraiser probably has a lot of options on where to land.

What do you think of this news? Are you excited for a Hellraiser series? Where would you like to see the show end up? Let us know in the comments!

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2019 is certainly the year of Neil Gaiman. In fact, the last few years have been rather kind to the British author, who has seen a number of his properties adapted to TV shows. First we got Lucifer, then American Gods, and most recently Good Omens premiered on Amazon – which Gaiman also produced.

But now it looks like Gaiman’s best-known comic book property is making its way to Netflix as a new original series. Via the Hollywood Reporter:

Neil Gaiman’s beloved Vertigo comic Sandman is finally coming to the screen.

More than three years after New Line’s failed attempt to turn the graphic novel into a feature film, Netflix has signed what sources describe as a massive financial deal with Warner Bros. Television to adapt the best-seller into a live-action TV series. Sources familiar with the pact note it is the most expensive TV series that DC Entertainment has ever done. The drama has officially been picked up with an 11-episode order.

Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman, ABC’s The Catch, Grey’s Anatomy) is set to write and serve as showrunner on the straight-to-series drama. Gaiman, who created the ongoing monthly comic, will executive produce alongside David Goyer. Gaiman and Goyer were both attached to New Line’s most recent attempts to adapt Sandman for the big screen. Gaiman, Goyer and Heinberg will co-write the premiere.

Sandman has long-lingered in development hell, as numerous attempts to make it into a movie since the 1990s have floundered. But the long-form format of a TV series or limited series seems a better fit for the source material.

It’s interesting to note that other big cable channels and streamers passed on the show due to its massive budget requirements. However, the huge price tag for Sandman doesn’t seem to concern Netflix, who are desperately looking for more original content as all the studios pull their movies and TV shows for their own streaming services, making original series that attract and retain subscribers even more important.

Ironically, Warner Brothers – which owns the Sandman IP and is producing the show – is planning to launch its own streaming service, but chose to sell the rights to Netflix as a way of generating some much-needed revenue ahead of the launch of its streaming platform.

My one concern about this news is David Goyer’s involvement. Left to his own devices, Goyer is a terrible writer and mucks up the shows he’s involved in. (Please refer to DaVinci’s Demons for reference.) However, perhaps his collaboration with Gaiman and the influence of Allan Heinberg will help temper his poorer instincts. (Plus, this is an adaptation, so as long as the source material is followed, it should be fairly hard for him to screw up.)

What do you think of this news? Are you excited about a Sandman original series? What do you think of Gaiman’s other adaptations so far? Let us know in the comments!

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Spider-Man: Far From Home is both a sequel to 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming and a denouement to the Infinity War saga. This means that while it continues and expands upon the characters and storylines that were introduced in Homecoming, it also gives us a look at the aftermath of the Marvel Cinematic Universe after Avengers: Endgame, while setting the stage for what is to come in the next phase of the MCU.

In staying true to the spirit of Spider-Man, Far From Home is a light and whimsical adventure with plenty of action and humor in it, along with a great deal of heart. It also keeps alive the tradition of piling on poor Peter Parker in his civilian life, as nothing ever seems to go right for him while he tries to balance a healthy secret identity with the trials and tribulations of being a superhero.

One of the most impressive parts of Far From Home is that the Peter Parker story is just as interesting and engaging as the Spider-Man story, much like it was in Homecoming. Too often in Spider-Man movies, the “Peter Parker” aspect can weigh down the film and get in the way of the more interesting Spider-Man stuff. But here, a good balance is struck, as Peter’s friends and relationships are all very well developed and interesting to watch.

A big part of Far From Home’s “Peter Plot” has to do with him trying to win the affection of the MJ character (played by actress Zendaya). And while Homecoming’s “teen crush” storyline with Liz wasn’t all that engaging, the one here with MJ seems to work – probably because MJ is a more interesting character than Liz was. Plus, the stuff with Peter’s best friend Ned and Betty Brant is fantastic, as these two characters round out the “Spidey” crew in high school.

Indeed, much of what seems to make Far From Home work is the “teen angst” aspect, which is awkward, heartwarming, and relatable. It’s also the source of a great deal of the humor in the movie. But the biggest aspect which gives the movie its heart is Spider-Man’s relationship with Tony Stark.

Since Captain America: Civil War, the character of Tony Stark has taken on the “surrogate father” figure to Peter Parker. Though traditionally, the character of Uncle Ben was the real catalyst which drove Peter to be a hero, in the revamped MCU version of Spider-Man, that role has been largely filled by Tony. And with Tony’s sacrifice at the end of Endgame, his death is far more poignant than Uncle Ben’s (especially considering that we never got to see Uncle Ben or get a sense of his relationship with MCU’s Peter).

Much of Far From Home is about seeing how the world is reacting to the sacrifice Tony Stark made to save them from Thanos, but none feel that sacrifice as acutely as Peter. Not only does he miss and mourn the loss of his mentor and surrogate father, but he also feels the burden of having to “step up” and fill the shoes of the hero that Iron Man was to the world, and for a 16 year old kid, the prospect of that is incredibly daunting.

While Far From Home hits all the right notes in terms of theme, tone, and pacing, one thing it doesn’t quite get right is its central conflict. One of the interesting things about Spider-Man is that his villains are rarely the type that actually threaten the world, and this smaller-in-scale aspect often serves to make the conflict with them more personal. This trend continues in Far From Home as Spider-Man bonds with the mysterious Mysterio – a new supposed hero from an alternate Earth who has come to fight destructive Elementals who have found their way to the MCU Earth.

Though Mysterio ends up being a fine adversary to Peter, and it is interesting to see their relationship develop in the first half of the film, the “big reveal” behind Mysterio (while expected if you know anything about the comic book version of the character) is still anti-climactic and ultimately a little disappointing. That being said, there is no lack for spectacle in Far From Home, as the film has numerous action set-pieces to enjoy – even if they aren’t all as emotionally resonate as they should be.

From here on, I’ll be diving into spoilers for the film, so if you wish to avoid these, simply do not expand the SPOILER area below.

At the end of the day, Spider-Man: Far From Home is a fun superhero action/adventure movie. It’s got great spectacle, great characters, and a great deal of heart to it. It’s yet another solid entry into the MCU, and a good wrap-up of the Infinity saga, while also a good launching point for the next phase of the Marvel Universe. It doesn’t quite reach the heights of Infinity War or Endgame, but it is a step above movies like Ant-Man and Doctor Strange (and a huge improvement over Captain Marvel, for certain).

I’d definitely recommend checking this movie out. Despite a few minor quibbles in terms of its central conflict, all the elements for a good Spider-Man movie are present, and you will not be bored with this film. It gets a solid 3 1/2 stars out of 5 from me.

Have you seen Spider-Man: Far From Home? What did you think of it? Do you agree with my review? Let me know in the comments!

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In a new casting rumor for director Matt Reeves’ The Batman, Vanessa Kirby is being considered for the role of Catwoman – at least according to the website Geeks Worldwide.

You may recognize Kirby as an up-and-coming actress in Hollywood, having starred in films such as Mission Impossible: Fallout and the upcoming Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw film. She was also part of the cast of the acclaimed Netflix original series The Crown.

This, of course, assumes that Catwoman is actually going to appear in The Batman. And if the character actually is, then Kirby is apparently competing with actress Aubrey Plaza, who seems to be lobbying hard for the role.

The last casting news we got on The Batman front was rather controversial, after it was confirmed that Twilight actor Robert Pattinson was officially cast to play Bruce Wayne/Batman. Pattinson’s casting was met with a great deal of skepticism and animosity by comic book fans and Batman fans at large. Reeves’ The Batman has had a rocky road toward production, with original Batman actor, Ben Affleck, originally set to write, direct, and star in the movie before opting to abandon writing and directing duties before eventually walking away from the role entirely.

To date, we don’t have many details on The Batman beyond it will not contain an origin story for Batman and will focus more on how Batman became such an expert detective. The characters of The Penguin and The Riddler have also been rumored to be appearing in the film.

What do you think? Is Vanessa Kirby a good choice for Catwoman? Who would you like to see in the role? Let us know in the comments!

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Back in 2014, the RoboCop franchise was rebooted with actor Joel Kinnaman as everyone’s favorite “Half Man, Half Machine, All Cop”. Unfortunately, the new RoboCop failed to set the box office on fire, pulling in only $58 million at the domestic box office.

Though the film ultimately did okay worldwide, it failed to really catch on the way the original RoboCop did back in the 80s. Though the reboot was sleek and modern, it lacked a lot of the raw grittiness and satirical humor from the original that made that RoboCop such a classic.

So instead of commissioning a sequel to that milquetoast reboot, MGM seems to have decided it is going to make a sequel to the ORIGINAL RoboCop instead, since… you know… people actually liked that one. (Never mind that we already have 2 sequels to that movie, I guess we’re supposed to pretend those don’t exist – which actually isn’t a bad idea when it comes to RoboCop 3, anyway.)

The new RoboCop film is titled RoboCop Returns, and is being overseen by director Neill Blomkamp, who has quite the sci-fi pedigree under his belt with films such as District 9, Elysium, and Chappie. He was also supposed to direct a HALO feature film, which never happened, though he did make a short film/commercial for the video game ANTHEM (which had nothing to do with the game, apparently). Regardless, Blomkamp has some directing chops, and so long as RoboCop Returns isn’t overburdened with South African accents, the outlook for the film being good seems strong.

In an article from Screenrant, Blomkamp actually gave us quite a bit of details for his upcoming take on RoboCop. Here are some of the important takeaways…

• RoboCop Returns is based on a previously unused RoboCop 2 draft from original writers Michael Miner and Ed Neumeier, and rewritten by Justin Rhodes, who also wrote the script for the upcoming Terminator: Dark Fate
• Blomkamp’s sequel would be R-rated. (None of this PG-13 nonsense like in 2014.)
• Blomkamp plans on handling RoboCop Returns as though original director Paul Verhoeven himself was back in the director’s chair.
• Blomkamp will not be utilizing the updated RoboCop look from the 2014 film, opting to go with the design from the original film instead.

So, so-far-so-good on the RoboCop front. The last time this “sequel/soft reboot” strategy was tried was with Superman Returns, which attempted to continue the story of the Richard Donner Superman films, with extremely mixed (and some would argue poor) results. Can Blomkamp pull it off? Possibly. It is a hard prospect to follow a director like Paul Verhoven, who is notorious for his graphic violence, sex, and biting satire.

Here’s what we know about the story of RoboCop Returns, via IMDB:

Robocop must defeat Clarence Bodiker who gets resurrected into a machine with one mission..to destroy all of Detroit. With the help of Emil and Louis, Robocop must go to extreme lengths to ensure the survival of his loved ones and defeat his greatest foe yet.

Hopefully Blomkamp’s take on RoboCop will be good. What do you think? Are you excited for a new RoboCop? Or are you totally over all these reboots/remakes? Let us know in the comments!

The post Blomkamp Gives Update On ‘RoboCop Returns’ appeared first on The Daily Geekery.

A new episode of my monthly podcast, Roundtable Reviews, is now available on my YouTube channel. Roundtable Reviews is a series where me and two other expert guests analyze a movie or TV show from a narrative (writing) perspective.

This month’s episode tackles not just one, but TWO competing sci-fi TV series. Yes, in this episode, we analyse both The Orville and Star Trek Discovery!

My guests this episode are JP from the fantastic The Orville fan channel Egotastic Funtime. JP is an Orville superfan and one of the leading YouTubers who delivers news about all things Orville. My other distinguished guest is Nick Ketwolski, who runs a great YouTube channel devoted to all things Star Trek. The insights and perspectives these two great analysts bring to the table are incredibly interesting, and I hope you enjoy them!

This episode had SO MUCH stuff to discuss, that it runs a bit long – approximately 2hrs 30min long! But trust me, it’s worth listening to, especially if you’re a fan of either series (and even if you’re not!).

What do you think of the Podcast? Let me know in the comments!

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