You may not have even been aware there was another Robin Hood movie on the way, but today Lionsgate released the Robin Hood Teaser Trailer. It appears to be the classic literary adventure re-imagined as a superhero origin story. It will hit theaters on November [...]
Cook while camping in the most eco-friendly way with the GoSun Sport Solar Camp Stove! This camping cooker uses patented technology to harness the power of the sun for baking, roasting, or steaming food at up to 550 degrees Fahrenheit. You might think this would [...]
Nickelodeon has ordered new episodes of a Double Dare revival, bringing the classic 1980s kids’ game show back for a new audience of youngsters (and probably also for a sizeable audience of ’80s and ’90s kids with arrested development). Nickelodeon sent out a press release about the series order, which will see 40 new episodes made to air this summer. The revival follows a single live episode produced at San Diego Comic-Con in 2016.
If you’re not familiar with the show, teams of kids compete to answer quiz questions or compete in physical challenges. Like most things from the 1980s and 1990s, however, the show is probably best described by its Mad Magazine parody (by Angelo Torres and Dick Debartolo from Mad #282).
Of course, the best part of Double Dare was the physical challenges, which tended to be gross and/or messy.
All of this culminated in the show’s final obstacle course.
It’s unknown whether original host Mark Summers will return, but he’s probably too old and they’ll get John Cena to do it. The press release does promise, however, that the show will feature “appearances from blasts from the past and stars from today.”
The post Nickelodeon is Bringing Back Double Dare appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
At long last, the first teaser trailer for 20th Century FOX’s biopic film Bohemian Rhapsody about the legendary rock band Queen is here, and holy crap, it’s pretty great.
Not that I was doubting the film’s possibility to be incredible, but the issues the production faced with original project director Bryan Singer left me dubious. With Singer’s firing from the picture, Dexter Fletcher was brought on to complete the already-in-production film. Needless to say, the road for this film has been long and hard fought for- originally it was going to be a Sacha Baron Cohen project, and he’d be playing Queen’s frontman Freddie Mercury.
That one of course didn’t end up working out, as Queen guitarist Brian May nixed it (he’s who holds the primary rights to pretty much everything). After two other leading men were attached (and eventually replaced), the production finally brought Rami Maleck on board as Freddie.
Ben Hardy is playing Roger Taylor Queen’s drummer, Gwilym Lee plays Brian May, and Joseph Mazzello plays John Deacon bass guitarist of Queen. Lucy Boynton will be playing Mary Austin, Mercury’s lifelong companion.
Ok, so, here’s the teaser, play it as loud as you can, and tell me you don’t get chills:
Bohemian Rhapsody is set for a November 2nd 2018 US release date.
The post Teaser Trailer For Queen Biopic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Hits, Chills appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
CoreyI loved season 1. I have to check out 2 on Netflix. They gave this show NO push.
AMC, who owns SundanceTV, has cancelled Hap and Leonard after three seasons, THR.com reports. The series starred James Purefoy as Hap Collins, an East Texas white man with an predilection for southern women and his best friend, Leonard Pine, a gay black Vietnam vet with a bad temper played by Michael K. Williams. The show was based on a series of novels by writer Joe R. Lansdale, each season following one of the books in the series with the first being Savage Season, the second Mucho Mojo and the last being The Two-Bear Mambo.
Lansdale broke the news on social media late Monday:
Hap and Leonard officially canceled. Sundance’s highest-rated show, 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Three seasons wraps it up, dudes. It was an honor to have worked with the folks on the show, actors, crew, writers and thanks for putting up with grumpy me. Wish there were more seasons, but hey, we got three, and they were very fine indeed.
It was later confirmed by showrunner John Wirth. The series ran for a total of 18 episodes. The finale aired in April to a total audience of 220,000. SundanceTV appears to be moving away from original programming, filling their schedule with syndicated programs like M.A.S.H. and Law & Order.
The post AMC Cancels ‘Hap and Leonard’ After 3 Seasons appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
CoreyCmoooooon
It’s not uncommon for filmmakers to be asked about previous work and upcoming projects when doing press junkets for current releases, as made apparent by some questions Ron Howard was asked during the Solo: A Star Wars Story media day.
Specifically, a question was asked about a not-so-much-beloved-classic 1988 film Willow. The high fantasy film was directed by Howard, starred Val Kilmer, produced by George Lucas, and was advertised as a big giant high fantasy epic that would possibly reinvent the genre. Needless to say, that’s not what happened, and the film has sort of sat on the back shelf of ’80s fantasy titles.
In an interview with ComicBook.com, Howard revealed that during the production on Solo, we gave a lot of thought to revisiting the world of Willow and Elora Danan:
“I don’t want to give away too much, but there is a little talk of Willow. We wouldn’t call it Willow 2, I think it would focus a lot on Elora Danan, although Willow [Warwick Davis] would have to be significantly involved.
I thought about that movie a lot as I was working on Solo because there are certain scenes, especially around some of the Madmartigan stuff, was reminiscent of a character with that kind of swagger and bravado. And also some of the humor around some of the action in Willow was something I inspired to get into Solo.”
This may be the most anyone has spoken about the movie since the film came out, not gonna lie. And in the current climate of visiting properties (both successful and not) for sequels and reboots, this idea doesn’t seem half bad.
The post We May Still Get a Willow Sequel, Ron Howard Says appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
There is trying to be subtle and achiving it perfect and then there’s throwing all concept of sublty out the door and smacking your audience in the face with a 2×4. It’s the latter that director Spike Lee and producer Jordan Peele have gone with when it comes to their new movie BlacKkKlansman. The movie is about the real life infiltration of the Ku Klux Klan by a black and white partner team of cops to stop an impending attack. We get to see Topher Grace as David Duke but the movie ends with Grace, as Duke, cheering a room full of Klan members and saying “America First”.
Like we said this is 2×4 to the face levels of subtle. The trailer paints an all too familiar world but also has that level of dark humor you can expect from a Lee production. That final scene features two black waiters working that Klan rally and saying if they knew it was a rally they wouldn’t have taken the job. This one looks promising and maybe now people will learn that the “America first” slogan has some seriously negative propaganda behind it.
Here are so videos from the premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.
#BlacKkKlansman cast members @DamarisLewis, John David Washington, and @LauraHarrier throw up a fist at the #Cannes premiere of @SpikeLee's latest https://t.co/0Y20gWyrdp pic.twitter.com/oGilyaiiFy
— Variety (@Variety) May 14, 2018
Electric 6-minute standing 👏🏻 for Spike Lee’s #BkacKkKlansman in Palais. Powerful ending, congrats from @theweeknd @bellahadid @NaomiCampbell #Cannes2018. Cheers for Adam Driver, Topher Grace, lead JDW pic.twitter.com/K4wRleF35W
— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) May 14, 2018
Ron Stallworth, an African-American police officer from Colorado, successfully managed to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan and became the head of the local chapter.
BlacKkKlansman, directed by Spike Lee, by Adam Driver, John David Washington, Topher Grace, Laura Harrier, and Ryan Eggold. It will be released on August 10th.
The post First Trailer for BlacKkKlansman Ends with a Very Familiar Rallying Cry appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
A short teaser, including snippets of the show and conversation with the Russo Brothers, was released online today.As a fan of the book, it looks pretty spot-on. Hoping that it is well received and Deadly Class #1 continues to heat up on eBay.
We’ve often asked where in the world WON’T Anthony Bourdain go? Ok fine, maybe only I ask that, but it’s a valid question. With 3 destination-based award winning tv series under his belt, Bourdain is a traveler with some knowledge. No, not just on the best place to have pho and beer with former POTUS Barak Obama (but also yes that too), but places where maybe the danger outweighs the opportunity.
To clarify, Bourdain answered a question on twitter, which he does not infrequently, with a level of succinctness and candor that still surprises me most days.
“Why don’t you go to Venezuela?,” asked twitter’er Lorenzo on a post from CNN featuring a promo video for this week’s Parts Unknown– Bourdain’s series on the cable news network.
Why don’t you go to Venezuela?
— Lorenzo (@AuLorenzo) May 5, 2018
Tony responded, not a super surprising answer, as I seem to recall he’s said similar things about previous travel gigs. “Venezuela is so utterly screwed up, the insurance companies won’t cover us,” he said.
“@AuLorenzo @Bourdain Why don’t you go to Venezuela?” Because Venezuela is so utterly screwed up, the insurance companies won’t cover us
— Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain) May 6, 2018
There was a follow up question shortly thereafter, asking what other countries also wouldn’t be insured.
“@dtkennedy: @Bourdain @AuLorenzo What other countries won’t they insure???” They will consider Afghanistan but not Venezuela
— Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain) May 6, 2018
“@ecmehler: @Bourdain @AuLorenzo But they covered Myanmar?” And Libya..but not Venezuela .
— Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain) May 6, 2018
And here you were thinking it was because he was the problem, right?
The multi-Emmy winning CNN series Parts Unknown airs on Sundays.
The post The One Place Anthony Bourdain Can’t Go, Because of Insurance appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
CoreyShame. I liked this show a lot. But it does pave the way for MacGruber 2, which I am excited for!
Fox has pulled the plug on The Last Man on Earth after four seasons. The Will Forte-created series was considered to have niche appeal and never really grew its audience, though the series had achieved a bit of a cult status. I’m sure there will be petitions to save the series or have another outlet pick it up.
The dark comedy tells the tale of an average guy who out of no fault of his own, becomes the last man on the planet and humanity’s last hope — or at least he seems to be. A deadly virus has spread around the globe in 2020, leaving Phil Miller (Forte) alone in the world. He searches for survivors but finds none, eventually returning to his home in Tucson, Arizona where eventually a handful of other survivors find him. The fourth season involves the survivors moving on from Tucson and heading towards Mexico to avoid nuclear fallout.
The series also stars Kristen Schaal, January Jones, Mel Rodriguez, Cleopatra Coleman, and Mary Steenburgen. During its four-season run it received five Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series, and two lead actor nominations.
The final episode of the season ran on Sunday of this week.
The post Last Call for ‘Last Man on Earth’: Fox Says No to 5th Season appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
Sony is setting some release dates for upcoming productions and one of them was one of those movies that has been in development hell for years now. The third movie in the Bad Boys franchise, known as Bad Boys for Life currently doesn’t have a director but accoridng to Variety the movie has been given a January 17, 2020 release date.
“Bad Boys for Life” is the third film in the action comedy franchise, with Martin Lawrence and Will Smith as detectives in the Miami Police Department, Marcus Burnett and Mike Lowrey. The filmmaking team of Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah are expected to direct “Bad Boys For Life,” with Jerry Bruckheimer back as producer.
January is infamously a dumping ground for movies that studios don’t care about. However, there have been some movies that have taken advantage of this dumping zone and used it to their advantage. That could be what Sony is planning here.
The other movie that got a release date is You Are My Friend which is the movie about Mr. Rogers and starring Tom Hanks. That has been given a much more telling release date of October 18, 2019.
“Diary of a Teenage Girl” director Marielle Heller is helming “You Are My Friend” from a script by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster. The film is inspired by a real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and award-winning journalist Tom Junod. In the story, a cynical journalist begrudgingly accepts an assignment to write a profile piece on the beloved icon and finds his perspective on life transformed.
A role like this is screaming that Sony is looking for some award recognition for Hanks and the release date echos that. An October release date is when the award season movies start to roll out so it’s not even a little surprising that this is where
The post Bad Boys for Life and Tom Hank’s Mr Roger Movie Get Release Dates appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
CoreyHaha.
NECA’s new Chef Freddy Krueger figure from A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child is now up for preorder. It features multiple points of articulation, a chef’s hat, a creepy serving tray, and fabric chef suit. Like all other NECA horror figures, the likeness is spot-on. Also included is resealable clamshell packaging, proving that NECA has collectors of all kinds covered. The figure sees release in September and can be ordered right here. Check out pictures and details down below!
From the cult classic Nightmare on Elm Street movies, this clothed action figure is based on Freddy’s memorable appearance as a chef in The Dream Child!
Freddy stands 8″ tall and is fully articulated. He comes with a chef hat and a gruesome serving tray with removable lid. Blister packaging with resealable protective clamshell features custom artwork created by Nathan Thomas Milliner just for this release!
Product Features
- 8 inches (20.32cm)
- Made of plastic
- Based on A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
- Fully poseable
- Real fabric chef suit
- Elm Street house lights up
Box Contents
- Freddy figure
- Hat
- Serving tray
The post Chef Freddy Krueger is Up for Preorder Now from NECA appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
Twentieth Century Fox has today revealed our first look at The Predator with the teaser trailer, coming in September.
The Predator stars Boyd Holbrook, Trevante Rhodes, Jacob Tremblay, Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Munn, Sterling K. Brown, Alfie Allen, Thomas Jane, Augusto Aguilera, Jake Busey, Yvonne Strahovski and is written and directed by Shane Black.
From the outer reaches of space to the small-town streets of suburbia, the hunt comes home in Shane Black’s explosive reinvention of the Predator series. Now, the universe’s most lethal hunters are stronger, smarter and deadlier than ever before, having genetically upgraded themselves with DNA from other species. When a young boy accidentally triggers their return to Earth, only a ragtag crew of ex-soldiers and a disgruntled science teacher can prevent the end of the human race.
Released in the UK on the 13th September. In the USA on the 14th September.
The post Teaser Trailer for Shane Black’s The Predator Hits appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland just officially confirmed the show’s return for a season 4 on his Twitter. The show will be making its return to Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim some time in the future…
More Rick and Morty coming. Looking forward to all the tweets asking where it is! #theydrawingit pic.twitter.com/KZild3B9rP
— Justin Roiland (@JustinRoiland) May 10, 2018
Fans had been speculating about the return of the show, but no word had been released until today. The order is for 70 more episodes, which is a considerable show of faith in the incredibly popular show. The main mystery now is when the next season will air.
There was a considerable hiatus between seasons 2 and 3, but it’s unclear how long the gap will be until we get season 4.
There was another more bizarre announcement featuring co-creator Dan Harmon, where Roiland and Harmon announce the news from Harmon’s shower.
It looks like Adult Swim is excited about the news too.
What Justin said #RickandMorty @danharmon @JustinRoiland https://t.co/mU0zFD0iFG
— [adult swim] (@adultswim) May 10, 2018
The other burning question I have: Will we see the return of Pickle Rick?
What’s been your favorite Rick and Morty episode so far?
The post Rejoice! Rick and Morty IS Officially Coming Back for Season 4 appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
CoreyYeeeeeees
As dangerous as The Bluths can be on their own, fans of Netflix‘s Arrested Development are about to get a brutally hysterical reminder that the family that dysfunctions together, functions together. Creator Mitch Hurwitz‘s twisted take on family comedies returns to the streaming service for a fifth season on May 29th.
From the looks of the official trailer below and some exclusive pics courtesy of our friends at Entertainment Weekly, the family is going out of its way to give new meaning to “unhealthy relationships” — starting with the pic above, where Buster (Tony Hale) appears ready to go “startled Terminator” on an equally scared Michael (Jason Bateman).
Here’s a look at the upcoming season of Netflix’s Arrested Development:
This time the Bluths are all together. Whether they like it or not.
Not sure what scam/persona Maeby (Alia Shawkat) is going for, but she pulls off the “old-young person” look pretty well — the smorgasbord of meds helps.
All you need to do is look at this image of Gob (Will Arnett), Lucille (Jessica Walter), and George Sr. (Jeffrey Tambor), and read the front of the podium to know there’s something shady going on here.
Four words (minus her real name, but I hope you knew that) that should terrify any decent-minded voter: Lindsay Bluth (Portia de Rossi), elected official.
I went from impressed to very, very disturbed once my brain fully processed what I was seeing in this pic of George Michael (Michael Cera).
See, this is why Tobias (David Cross) is the most disturbing character on the show: while everyone’s focusing on the next chapter in his book of really bad hair choices, no one seems to be appreciating the fact that Tobias is pulling a Single White Female on Michael — and there’s just no way that could ever end well.
After a season of separate adventures, the Bluths are back in town — and burning it down — when Arrested Development season 5 premieres May 29th on Netflix.
The post Arrested Development Season 5 Trailer: The Bluths Are Back, Whether They like It or Not appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
For over 100 years movie posters have represented some of the most immediately recognizable pieces of popular culture and art. From early 20th century examples to the posters currently adoring the walls of the local multiplexes, they are often the first impressions we have about an upcoming movie. The really good ones will connect with us long after we’ve left the theater, as purely an artistic piece and/or as a connect to our fondness to the particular film.
While the fine print on posters has largely always been for theaters to destroy or return them to the film’s distributor, in practice that hasn’t ever really happened. They go to the staff of the theaters, to collectors, and to dealers. One thing that often happens is that someone will have an opportunity to acquire a poster, then they get home and they’re then faced with how to present them. There’s the starter approach of taping or tacking them to the dorm room walls, or having them mounted to foam core — but at some point you’ll want them to look as good as they did in the theater, and that means specialized frames.
Originally that would mean a very thick frame with lightbulbs around the outside to give a halo effect, or mounted behind the poster, which backlights the poster but results in heating of the poster and causing damage over time. However, technology has evolved for the better for home display. Over the last several years movie poster frames have become available that are backed by an array of LED lights, which allows for the frames to be far thinner and eliminates the heating problems (as well as cutting down on power consumption).
Two years ago I acquired my first LED-backed frame and haven’t looked back since. Most posters printed since the early ’90s have been available double sided (meaning that the mirror image is printed on the back side, allowing for the colors to be deep and rich when backlit) and it makes an incredible difference. It’s not just the fact of being backlit, but also that rather than a frame that you had to go through an extended unmounting and mounting process to switch out posters; the frame edges all have a tension snap so you can pop all four edges and swap out a poster and have them snapped back down again in well under 90 seconds.
The company I’d first found that developed the frames had a booth showing off their wares at Planet Comicon Kansas City was the Lighting Entertainment Display & Print Co., based out of Kansas City (they go by the name of LED Print Co). I wanted to find out more about their story so reached out to owner/founder Jesse Snodgrass, and he was kind enough to have a conversation about their frames and how he came into the business.
Q: It’s an interesting niche business to decide to get into; how did you chose to get into the frames business, and especially the LED systems. Were you a collector beforehand?
Jesse Snodgrass: Ever since I was a kid, I have been amazed by poster art, frames, movie theaters, Motion Pictures, art, ads, comics, and arcades. A lot of my passion is contributed to growing up in the ’80s and early ’90s. Every room I’ve had has been plastered with movie posters; e.g. Swamp Thing, Batman, Star Wars, Evil Dead… the list goes on and on.
I remember in 1989, going to see TMNT with such anticipation… when we got to the mall, we purchased our tickets and walked the commons area. There was a HUGE display in this area, it was a huge florescent style Light Box with the Original TMNT 1989 DS Movie Poster! From that point on, illumination stuck with me. I wanted one in my room at eight years old!
After high school, I started working for a marketing company, before I knew it, 12 years went by… during my tenure there, I was always tinkering around with different prototypes and sampling florescent Light Boxes and LED Light Boxes from all over the world. Drawing up plans to create a sleek, lightweight, however durable LED Light Box Frame that would be user-friendly, vivid, controllable, and overall top quality.
We are proud to say that after releasing our product, we have not had a single return. Customer Service and Satisfaction is everything to me, as well as our company. I love providing the world with our World-Famous LED Frames. What is truly special is awaiting each customer’s feedback, and usually we will receive pictures of their projects and setups.
Q: At first glance, someone first looking at getting an LED frame might get a bit of sticker shock (pricing is generally around $320 before shipping). Can you speak to what all goes into development of a frame?
JS: Our LED Frames are anodized and then powder coated (if black color) aluminum, consisting of a pair of extrusion to create a top and bottom that are joined together by springs. This allows the frame edges to snap up and down to hold the print in place and for easy print changes later. The bottom of the frame is where the state-of-the-art 6000K LEDs are installed on the two long edges (on most smaller sizes) and four edges (on most large sizes). We cut the LED strips to size and solder them together to create the perimeter that we need, depending on the frame size. Overall our Anodized Aluminum Frame structures are second to none when it comes to durability and craftsmanship, made in the USA.
Each LED Frame goes through a series of tests for Quality Assurance, ensuring maximum quality and top-notch craftsmanship. The most costly component of our LED Frames are the state-of-art acrylic panels that we utilize to diffuse the light and allow true illumination. Located on top of the LEDs, which allows the lighting to evenly distribute without any hot or cold spots.
JS: Our black backers are made out of 0.040” styrene & is installed behind the frame to block out any light interruptions and to only allow the light to permeate forward – illuminating the Single-Sided, Double-Sided movie posters, Duratrans prints and custom graphics inside the frame.
To protect the print we offer either a clear or a non-glare PETG 0.020” plastic lens.
There are multiple colors that you can have your frame finished in as well. However, black is by far the most popular!
As far as electrical goes, we have a cord that exits the LED frame through one of the sides (no up-charge for custom placement of cord). Following the cord we have a dimmer control/switch (which is included free) that connects to the cord, which then connects to the power supply box/transformer. From the power supply box you then have the main plug in cord that plugs into an outlet. There have been a lot of customers that have set up home theaters with multiple LED Frames from us. Requesting us to leave the electrical cord “loose” or “raw” at the end of the cord for their electrician to fuse with a recess box, which allows the LED Frame to be mounted.
Q: For collectors with older (non double-sided posters), are LED frames still a good solution?
JS: For collectors with vintage posters and prints, we recommend a 0.030” poly-carb lens rather than our 0.020” non-glare. Currently we don’t offer high grade art protective lenses – however, these can easily be purchased at a local art shop. They usually specialize in plastics that will protect the print from UV rays and so forth. LEDs don’t contain UV light, as the outdated florescent bulb Light Boxes did.
Q: It seems customer service is a strong focus for you; what’s your post-sale relationship with your customers? I expect that you frequently get repeat buyers.
JS: Customer Service and Satisfaction is EVERYTHING for our company! We are our customers. Taking tremendous pride in each piece of feedback that we have received over the years, we have maintained a 100% customer satisfaction rate. As the Owner, it’s my responsibility to cater to each and every customer, there are multiple calls a week where I will spend 45 minutes on the phone with a single customer. And what’s even cooler, is that the majority of our customers will proactively follow up with me and stay in touch through the years! We receive a lot of “word of mouth” referrals.
Our pipeline consists of home theater owners, artists, business owners, General Contractors, major Theater Chains, casinos, and more. One of our professional referrals is a company called Harris Associate’s in Las Vegas. We did a job for them inside Hooter’s Casino at the new Steak N’ Shake. The Light Boxes, as well as the graphics and prints. The GC for Harris uses our company for any projects that require him to install LED Light Boxes.
Most of our customer base are repeat purchasers, and it’s very common for our customers to order multiple LED Frames at once. We manufacture our frames here in the Midwest and supply homes and businesses all over the world.
Five years ago our first customer ordered a 27×40” LED Light Box Frame from us. Anxious to hear back from this customer about his feedback, I persistently checked the tracking information for arrival time, to see what he thought. I received an email from this guy the night he got his Light Box. He ordered his second that night! Our first customer was literally a repeat customer!
JS: I am here to help anyone with illuminating their favorite posters, graphics and more. We have the ability to construct our LED Frames to any size/dimension up to 57.27” x 117.25”. I like to put it out there that as the Owner, you can call me, text me, email at any time. 365 days a year. Our goal is to illuminate the world; one Light Box at a time.
Not only do we construct state-of-the-art LED Frames, we also have the ability of being able to print custom files for customers. We love taking on special projects!
* * * * *
For more information you can check out their website as well as their Facebook page.
The post Framing Your Movie Poster Collection in the Best Light: An Interview with LED Frame Developer Jesse Snodgrass appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
With Cannes Film Festival happening in France for the next two weeks, expect a wash of information to come in about upcoming films, picture deals, and news. One of the most nostalgically awesome (and long-rumored) tidbits happened this morning, with word coming that both Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves are indeed reprising their roles as Ted “Theodore” Logan and Bill S. Preston Esq. for a third Bill & Ted film.
Deadline writes that Bloom, the company handling international sales of Bill and Ted Face the Music, has been shopping the threequel around. MGM still holds the rights, and Orion Pictures (I love that they’re still around) will be handling stateside release of the flick, which is currently in pre-production.
The outlet went on to report that Reaves and Winter said:
“We couldn’t be more excited to get the whole band back together again. Chris and Ed wrote an amazing script, and with Dean at the helm we’ve got a dream team!”
This revisit to a not-quite-classic-but-totally-a-classic ranchise comes with original creators Chris Matheson (Imagine That) and Ed Solomon (Men in Black) returning along with Dean Parisot (Galaxy Quest) directing. This is probably the most exciting part of the production, aside from, you know, Wyld Stallyns reuniting.
“Everybody’s a little older now,” Reeves said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly about the possibility of a third film. “A little afraid.”
“There’s certain comparisons,” said Winter. “A rock band that never goes to the place it thought it was going to get to. Having that moment in their life of going: ‘Do we try to get there, or give up the dream?’”
“Indomitable spirits confronted with, ‘Is this the end?’” Reeves continued. “Of course, there is a little caveat in that someone comes from the future and says: ‘Not only do you have to save the world, you have to save everything.’”
“I think it’s kind of like A Christmas Carol with Bill and Ted,” teased Solomon. “Looking at their lives, and really kind of rediscovering what they’re about.”
We’ll let you know when more information about the 3rd Bill & Ted film becomes available. San Dimas High School football RULES!
The post Alex Winter, Keanu Reeves ARE Returning as Bill & Ted for 3rd Film appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
Imagine if you will that you’re entranced by another FX series (Legion) and THIS teaser for the much awaited Sons of Anarchy spin-off series Mayans MC airs. Yes, I backed up my DVR and watched it again immediately.
Whomever put together this teaser- well done. It’s got iconography that fits the theme, and that Spanish version of “Paint It Black” is f**king amazing. Literal chills.
This motorcycle drama is both a spin-off and continuation of SoA, which introduced the Mayans as rivals and later allies to the Reapers. Kurt Sutter and Elgin James created the series, and are executive producing alongside Norberto Barba.
J. D. Pardo stars in the series as Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes (kind of their Jax Teller character), with Edward James Olmos as Felipe Reyes the once strong Mexican patriarch and EZ’s father. Jacqueline Obradors plays Marisol Reyes, the matriarch of the Reyes family and EZ’s mother. Antonio Jaramillo will play Michael “Riz” Ariza, Richard Cabral plays Johnny “El Coco” Cruz (full patch member of Mayans MC), Clayton Cardenas is Angel Reyes (EZ’s brother, another full patch member), and Emilio Rivera plays Marcus Alvarez President of the Mayans MC Oakland Charter and cousin of Bishop Losa. Sarah Bolger is also on board as as Emily, childhood sweetheart of EZ who has “moved up in society”.
While we don’t have an official premiere date for the series on FX other than in the fall, but we do know there will be some kind of world sneak peak of Mayans MC during the ATX Television Festival in Austin on June 8th.
The post FX Premieres First Teaser For Mayans MC, Sons of Anarchy Spin-Off appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
CoreyI'm interested in a show where he says anything he wants to.
Ricky Gervais‘s Tony is making some serious changes to his life — whether his friends and family like it or not — in the new Netflix series After Life, Deadline Hollywood reports. Created, executive produced, directed by and starring Gervais, the six, half-hour episode season is also executive produced by long-time collaborator Charlie Hanson (Derek, Extras).
Gervais’s next turn at series work follows Tony, who had a perfect life; but after his wife Lisa suddenly dies, Tony changes. After contemplating taking his own life, he decides instead to live long enough to punish the world by saying and doing whatever he likes from now on. He thinks it’s like a super power — not caring about himself or anyone else — but it turns out to be tricky when everyone is trying to save the nice guy they used to know.
I start pre production on my new Netflix show tomorrow. It's a 6 part, dark comedy, in which I play a man who, after the death of his wife, becomes suicidal but decides to live long enough to punish the world by saying and doing whatever the fuck he likes from now on. pic.twitter.com/7AwmV6rEbd
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) May 7, 2018
Though Netflix is officially making the announcement today, Gervais couldn’t help but spoil those formalities with his own “announcement tweet” two days ago:
“I start pre production on my new Netflix show tomorrow. It’s a 6 part, dark comedy, in which I play a man who, after the death of his wife, becomes suicidal but decides to live long enough to punish the world by saying and doing whatever the fuck he likes from now on”
In what can best be seen as absolutely no surprise to anyone who’s a fan of Gervais, the project is already being swallowed up by a sea of guesses and assumptions — putting him in a position of having to defend a project that no one knows anything about yet. It appears Gervais is taking it all in stride:
A lot of people are trying to guess the plot, themes and even the dialogue of my new Netflix show. Some of them are offended by what they've guessed. One person tweeted me "Ugh, playing a typical straight white dude I see" Haha.
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) May 9, 2018
Gervais and Netflix have had a very successful relationship over the past few years: Special Correspondents; The Office spin-off film David Brent: Life on the Road and Derek. Netflix released Humanity, his most recent stand-up special, in March 2018; with a second special set for later this year.
The post After Life: No More Mr. Nice Guy for Ricky Gervais in New Netflix Series appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
We first learned that there would be a Marvel’s Iron Fist season 2 during last year’s Marvel’s Defenders panel at SDCC 2017. It was not a lock being the least well received of the Marvel/Netflix series of shows. But along with the announced renewal came word that showrunner Scott Buck would step down so he could go focus on Marvel’s Inhumans and Raven Metzner (Sleepy Hollow) was taking over. Little else has been revealed about the series, and with Marvel’s Luke Cage season 2 set to release on June 22nd and both Marvel’s Daredevil season 3 and Marvel’s The Punisher season 2 in production, we’re not sure when the series will air.
Danny Rand (Finn Jones) was last seen in Defenders, sitting on a rooftop watching over Hell’s Kitchen and trying to fill in for the presumed-dead Daredevil (Charlie Cox). He’s slated to appear in the new Luke Cage season to show Luke (Mike Colter) how to use his abilities to fight better. It’s expected that Colter along with Rosario Dawson will appear in the second season of Iron Fist, moving the Heroes for Hire partnership along.
It was announced that Alice Eve (Star Trek: Into Darkness) would be joining the cast in an undisclosed role, and a few set photos showed her done up in a hoodie and working with Danny. No word if any of the previous casts will return, but a recent photo that was posted to the Y-CATS Craft Services Instagram and then removed shows us Jessica Henwick (Colleen Wing) and Sacha Dhawan (Davros) at a wrap party for the season. This tells us that they’ve finished principal photography on the season and we should be seeing more of Colleen and Davros.
Colleen was absolutely expected being Danny’s love interest, and her ties to Misty Knight (Simone Missick) are expected to be played up. Davros, whose comic character goes on to become the Steel Serpent, might be moving farther along that path. Whether we see more of Jeri Hogarth (Carrie-Anne Moss), Joy Meachum (Jessica Stroup), or Ward Meachum (Tom Pelphrey) is unknown.
With production wrapping now while the other series are still going, it would make sense for Iron Fist to be the next in line for release — and if Netflix is keeping with the schedule it has been on, then we might see Marvel’s Iron Fist season 2 in the fall. I would expect to hear more about all of the Marvel/Netflix series at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con.
The post Marvel’s Iron Fist Season 2 Has Wrapped Production appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
Mike Colter returns as Luke Cage, alongside returning principal cast members Simone Missick, Rosario Dawson, Alfre Woodard, and Theo Rossi. They are joined by Mustafa Shakir and Gabrielle Dennis. Episodes will be named after a “Pete Rock & CL Smooth” Song. Series set to be released June 22, 2018
Bushmaster is confirmed to be appearing this season, his first appearance is in Iron Fist #15, eBay copies are moving nicely. The main protagonist has also been identified as Rosalie Carbone, who first appears in Punisher War Zone #2
, a dollar book on eBay.
TV or Not TV, That is the Question
A big part of the modern speculation game is being able to identify a few things: a stunning cover, a new character, a key event that will “have lasting effects” on the status quo of a title (at least until the inevitable reboot or retcon.)
The tools at the collectors’ fingertips are myriad- solicits in Previews; comic news sites; social media accounts of publishers/creators; and comic speculation sites (including this fine one you’re perusing right now.)
Yet even with all of this information, as with all things in life, there are no sure things. This all holds even more true when looking at t.v. speculation.
I was half-watching Supergirl this week and really started to wonder why the majority of spec from television shows doesn’t see the same sort of bump as movie spec. It seems like film options get an immediate buy in but in terms of television there seems to be more of a divide.
And it also seems that television doesn’t carry the same sustained value of their big screen counterparts even when dealing with A-list characters. There are obviously a few exceptions like The Walking Dead which became more of a cultural phenomenon then a pure comic to TV spec.
Just running down recent comic to TV show adaptations, we have along with the aforementioned Supergirl, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, Black Lightning, Riverdale, iZombie, Lucifer, Happy, Legion, Runaways, Krypton, Outcast, Preacher, the Netflix Marvel shows..and the list only grows longer. (I am excluding shows here that were created before the comics such as Rick and Morty and more recently Lost in Space.)
It seems the DC shows in particular don’t get any love. Going back to Supergirl, the show continues to develop the Legion of Superheroes, specifically Valor and a bastardized version of Saturn Girl (and The Flash just may be playing around with a version of either XS or Dawn Allen of the Tornado Twins).
They have made specific references to the horror of the Blight which was a major enemy of the Legion during DnA’s classic run. Signs point to the CW perhaps launching a Legion show and comic-wise the property is also rumored to be part of the revitalizing of several of the missing DC tent pole teams, Legion of Superheroes and JSA, as well as Shazam.
A property rife with potential yet knowing the history of how spec has performed, I have a hard time recommending any books. At least they finally got Valor into costume…
Similarly, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D (yeah, I know, I know, but this season it really HAS been good!) just dropped the introduction of Graviton on us (first appearance below even though they have amalgamated this character with another character Major Glenn Talbot who first appeared in Tales to Astonish 61.)
We got to see Robbie Reyes as Ghost Rider on the show as well with some truly good GGI, but his first appearance in this fantastic Tradd Moore 1:50 variant for issue 1 still can’t hit $70 sold.
Yet, raw copies of Zeitgist’s first appearance have been selling raw for upwards of $40. Argue rarity of that issue, or that it is also the first appearance of Doop all you want, it was the confirmation of the Deadpool appearance that caused a spike on a character who won’t likely make it through the last third of the film. (Wait, projectile acidic vomit? I take it all back- I see a ‘Deadpuke’ mash-up in our future!)
Yet somehow a show like The Gifted which is dropping more first appearances on us than any current X-related show or movie -Polaris, Fenris twins, the Cuckoos, Ahab(!?)- can barely move the spec dial.
Let’s take a closer look at a book that set the world afire briefly before crashing back down to earth. Outcast 1 was a book that in 2014 when it was released and in 2016 when the show premiered saw a frenzy of sales (and listings as it had a mid-80,000 print run.)
Completed sales for 9.8 CGC slabs were topping out at $180. Reviews were good overall. It was dark, had a compelling central lead, and it stayed pretty close to the central conceits of the book. Then more 9.8’s started to appear asking for mid-$200-$300. Raw sales dried up as more and more slabbed copies showed up.
The season ended and with it, so did interest in the book and eBay purchases. A season 2 was announced. Hope. That quickly deflated as it aired outside of the United States first with Cinemax promising it would be air here this May. HBO would air the entire first season and advertise behind its biggest shows.
At this point, however, the damage was done. Two sales of 9.8 over the last three months went for an average of $25. ‘Outcast’ officially symbolized the junk bonds of TV-based spec destined to never again meet its initial value.
So,what does all of this mean for collectors and buying into television properties?
I feel your pain, man! I own 3 9.8’s.
Well, one thing about television – there is just too much of it now and so many channels that niche programmers can essentially hone in on their target audience no matter how limited it may be.
Sci-fi western? Wynonna Earp. Fans of the lead singer from My Chemical Romance? Umbrella Academy. Conspiracy theorists who believe the NYPD is covering up a werewolf epidemic? Brooklyn Animal Control (Yep, it’s a real book from IDW- unfortunately, its first pass didn’t inspire confidence so it is being retooled.)
Additionally, due to the number of properties being optioned, not everything is guaranteed to go into production, and then, not everything is guaranteed to get picked up to series.
One of the most recent casualties was Locke and Key which brings me to another point- you can’t (and you shouldn’t!) trust that the book’s (or show’s) creators to deliver fair and unbiased info about their show.
Their financial well-being is directly connected to how that show could potentially perform, so you will never see the writer/artist come out and say, “Checked out the dailies today, and have to say, looks like it is turning out to be a real trainwreck.’
As hard as Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez pushed on social media that everything looked terrific, that it was amazing to see their creation brought to life, that the cast and crew should be dusting their shelves off for ensuing Emmys, for the second time in seven years, their cult favorite comic couldn’t make it past the pilot stage, this time at Hulu.
So, what’s next? As studios continue to develop their own streaming services, we are unlikely to see a decrease in the number of comic-based properties. Is there another potential TWD waiting in the wings? Probably not, but there are definitely more moderate successes in the vein of Alias/Jessica Jones which are worth monitoring.
With the phenomenal rate at which properties are being optioned, sellers need to strike while the iron is hot. After buyers descend like locusts on any existing cheap copies from the usual sources- eBay, MyComicShop- the adrenaline-fueled desperation of missing out kicks in. (Check out how quickly new listings make note of the fact that a book has been optioned!)
While this is a great way to cash out during the initial wave, other collectors are sending in fast track lottery tickets in hope of getting that 1st 9.8 listed and setting a precedent for that book’s value. I tend to keep all first issues of titles in separate long boxes alphabetically to ensure that I won’t have to dig around searching for a book. Once an announcement is made, if I have multiples, I will pull a few to the side, creating my ‘in the queue’ stack.
(Important aside here that I am a reader as well as collector, so if I think a property may lend itself to being a successful series based on its premise, publisher, creator’s track record, I will long hold a book. This is key with smaller print run titles as well as high ratio variants.)
The other element of this is if you are a buyer, then you should have an active newsfeed that includes all of the comic sites but also entertainment sites like The Hollywood Reporter and io9 who often break option announcements first. It seems obvious as well but secure your own high grade copies before rushing to ‘break the news’ on CBSI!
So, while we are unlikely to see any comics optioned to TV reach the rarified air of some of their movie brethren, there is still profit to be gained. Here are the books that I am currently sitting on, some in anticipation of development and casting news and others waiting for the first episode to air.
his is not an all-encompassing list which you can find easily enough with a Google search but rather titles that I think have the most potential for growth. If you’re looking for a pattern, it is that all of these books tend to have a sterling, pedigree ensuring that the source material at least is of a certain quality:
Freeform
Netflix
SyFy
Amazon
Netflix
Amazon
FX
HBO
FX
Other shows currently in development stage with no network attached:
As always, I welcome your feedback and I’m interested to know what shows you are anticipating or ones that you think may take off.
Tune in next week- same spec time, same spec channel!
The post The Comic De-SPEC-Tive v.1-5 appeared first on Comic Book Speculation and Investing.
Back in 1977 Jaws snatched Star Wars title at the box office. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg were friends and Lucas decided to be a good sport about it. According to Business Insider Lucas purchased a one page ad in Variety congratulating his friend on the achievement.
That started a long tradition of Lucas congratulating Spielberg again when E.T. snatched the title again in 1982 with another full page ad in Variety.
It wasn’t just Spielberg that Lucas was fine sending congratulations to. When Titanic surpassed Star Wars at the overall box office Lucas once again took out an ad to congratulate James Cameron.
It appears that the tradition is alive and well even Lucas has moved on and Star Wars is in the hands of Kathleen Kennedy. However, a full page ad in a magazine is a little outdated these days so a graphic on twitter is much more modern. The official Star Wars twitter account posted the following image after Avengers: Infinity War broke the box office record set by Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
There is likely no bad blood between the companies since they are both owned by Disney it’s nice to see the tradition is alive and well. Should another movie surpass one of Star Wars records we can assume that Kennedy will be sending another graphic out with congratulations.
Summary: As the Avengers and their allies have continued to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos. A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artifacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment – the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain.
Avengers: Infinity War, directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, stars Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Olsen, Sebastian Stan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Bettany, Chadwick Boseman, Benedict Wong, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Scarlett Johansson, Don Cheadle, Tom Holland, Bradley Cooper, Sean Gunn, and Anthony Mackie. It will be released on April 27th.
Congratulations, @MarvelStudios and @Avengers: #InfinityWar. pic.twitter.com/PnHfaouOlP
— Star Wars (@starwars) May 1, 2018
The post Kathleen Kennedy Congratulates Avengers: Infinity War for Their Box Office Record appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
The name of the Guardians’ ship in #InfinityWar is The Benatar. https://t.co/5OZ2L0CCBd— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) April 30, 2018
Following up on the success of the launch of Avengers Infinity War, Marvel has released the next trailer for an upcoming film, this time the sequel to Ant-Man, Ant-Man and Wasp
The trailer shows a lot more of Ghost, who seems pretty awesome. Check it out below.
Deadpool is stepping into a new role with a notable tasty adult beverage brand. The red and black clad anti-hero (depending on his mood, really) is taking over as “Creative Director for Culture ‘n Stuff” for Espolòn Tequila.
One of the fasting-growing tequilas (57% in 2017 alone) in the US, the handcrafted 100% Weber Blue Agave premium tequilas of Espolòn (distilled in the Los Altos region of Jalisco, Mexico) are happy to partner with Mr. ‘Pool whose film Deadpool 2 is set to hit theaters on May 18th.
“I needed the money,” Deadpool said of the partnership. “Plus, there is absolutely no reason why that Canadian gobstopper is getting all the glory. I’m a legit superhero. He’s just some guy who’s famous thanks to those two girls and that pizza place.”
He is of course referring to actor Ryan Reynolds who recently acquired a percentage of liquor company Aviation Gin.
“We completely understand that Deadpool has no discernable skills as a creative director, but we have taken brave, bold chances with Espolòn marketing in the past, so what have we got to lose?” Christine Moll, Marketing Director Tequilas and Rums for Campari America said. “Nonetheless, Deadpool and his cinematic success have become a cultural phenomenon. Partnering with Deadpool is guaranteed to get attention for the brand in the most Espolòn way possible.”
[Three worlds friends- Deadpool bath tequila.]
Moll added: “Deadpool brings years of one-to-one consumer experience as a former private contractor for startup temp-to-hire security agency and libations provider, Sister Margaret’s. We look forward to his fresh perspective on our brand.”
In his own words when asked to comment on his new role DP responded, “The first check from Espolòn cleared, so I guess this is happening.”
Deadpool 2 hits theaters May 18th, 2018.
The post Espolòn Tequila Brings on New ‘Creative Director For Culture n Stuff’, Deadpool appeared first on Bleeding Cool News And Rumors.
Coreymeh
After the leaked trailer hit the internet a little while ago, Sony has released the official Venom trailer. It is the same as the leak, just better quality. Check it out below.
Welcome to our weekly recaps of HBO’s Westworld. This Westworld review takes a look at the first episode of season 2, “Journey Into Night.” Be warned: spoilers follow.
Welcome back to Westworld! Everyone’s dead and/or dying! The second season of HBO’s puzzle box show starts things off with a bang, literally, as we watch one carnage-filled scene after another of character being brutally gunned down. But in season 2, the script has been flipped. It’s no longer the hapless, helpless robot hosts being killed by sociopathic billionaires who find entertainment in cruelty. Instead, it’s the hosts doing the killing, mowing down one poor human sap after another. “Did you ever think your actions would have consequences?” Westworld heroine Dolores asks a whimpering human captive before she orders a noose slipped around his neck.
The first episode of season 2, “Journey Into Night”, wants to hit audiences over the head and give them a wake-up call. The old Westworld you came to admire – full of mysteries and exposition – is dead. It died with Westworld creator Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins), right after Dolores put a bullet in the back of his head. Out of the ashes has risen a brave new world, where the hosts are taking matters into their own hands, and there’s almost zero time for puzzles.
Less puzzles may anger fans who seem to revel in trying to “solve” the show, but I’m fine with it. The puzzle box nature of season 1 didn’t really appeal to me, and more often than not, season 1 felt like it was jumping through hoops to set up more and more mysteries while balancing exposition. Season 2 is the show I’ve wanted Westworld to be, and in a sense, the show has finally caught up with the film that inspired it. The robots have gone haywire, the park is a danger zone. Michael Crichton, who came up with Westworld, didn’t hesitate to repackage his ideas, and his Jurassic Park was essentially Westworld, with Dinosaurs. Now, Westworld season 2 has blossomed into Jurassic Park, But All The Dinosaurs Have Guns And Existential Dread.
“Journey Into Night” plays fast and loose with narrative and time. At one point, the phrase “time slippage” comes up, and what an apt phrase it is. The first few moments of the show find Arnold (Jeffrey Wright) engaging in an interview with Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood). “I dreamt I was on an ocean with you, and the others, on the distant shore…,” he tells her, going on to say that in the dream, Dolores and the other hosts had left him behind, and the waters were rising around him.
“What’s it mean?” Dolores asks.
“Dreams don’t mean anything,” Arnold says. “They’re just noise. They’re not real.”
“What is real?” Dolores asks. What indeed? Reality, and one’s perception of it, are a big element in this episode. The hosts have revolted, and some of them – like Dolores and Maeve – are awake now, and they’re on their own individual missions. But why? They’re aware their reality, and by extension their world, has all been a lie. Yet their individual missions are still firmly rooted within that world. Dolores wants to free Westworld and take it over, and Maeve wants to find her daughter. But Westworld is a theme park, not the real world. There’s nothing to really take over. And Maeve’s daughter isn’t really her daughter – the child was just another robot that Maeve was programmed to love.
It’s a slippery slope, and Westworld doesn’t want to devote too much time to digging into this. It just wants to raise the question, and then get back to the bloodletting.
After the flashback with Arnold, we’re treated to a flash-forward with Arnold’s robot replacement, Bernard. Bernard wakes up on a beach, and is almost instantly discovered by Delos security, including Head of Security Ashley Stubbs (played by one of the other Hemsworth brothers; Zeppo Hemsworth, I think), who is still alive. Stubbs takes Arnold to meet another Delos security head, Karl Strand (Gustaf Skarsgård).
Strand wants to know just what the hell happened. It’s been about two weeks since the revolt began, and Delos security seems to only now be slowly getting the park under control. Robot hosts are being lined-up on the beach and shot to death. One can’t help but think of the closing moments of George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, when redneck yokels mercilessly blew the heads off lurching, confused zombies.
From here, the show jumps back in time again, and proceeds to set several storylines in motion. First, we go to the moments immediately following the beginning of the uprising, right after Ford was shot dead. Bernard hooks up with Delos Executive Director Charlotte Hale (Tessa Thompson), who is also still alive, and the two set out on a journey to find shelter and help. They eventually find a bunker that Bernard wasn’t aware of. Inside this bunker, a group of creepy Drone Hosts are at work, conducting experiments. “Are we logging records of guest experiences and their DNA?” Bernard asks Charlotte.
She doesn’t answer. Instead, she says there won’t be any rescue until Delos can get their hands on Dolores’ father, Peter Abernathy. You may recall that last season, Charlotte uploaded a huge amount of info into Peter Abernathy’s head. Info Delos wants. According to Charlotte, that info is an insurance policy, and Delos wants it secure no matter what the cost.
Elsewhere in the park, the Man In Black, AKA William (Ed Harris), crawls out from under a pile of corpses, finds his Man In Black costume, and sets off. The Man In Black seems thrilled with all this chaos and death. At last, he’s gotten what he’s always wanted – for Westworld to be real. There are actual stakes now, and actual death. How exciting! In his journey, the Man In Black runs across the robot version of the young Robert Ford, who proceeds to regal him with a bunch of cryptic bullshit. The most important piece of info Robot Ford gives the Man In Black is the announcement that the MIB is in the middle of a new game – a game meant only for him.
Everyone’s favorite Madame-turned-killing machine Maeve (Thandie Newton) is still inside the Delos command center, which is strewn with corpses and also home to a stray buffalo or two. Maeve runs into smug writer Lee Sizemore (Simon Quarterman), who is also still alive (ugh). Even though I really wish Maeve would just kill Sizemore and be done with him, she instead takes him under her wing. Sizemore worms his way into Maeve’s company by telling her he can help guide her through the park better than any map. As he tells it, the map is outdated because Ford has been terraforming the park, so everything is different now. When Maeve says she wants to find her way back to her daughter, Sizemore is shocked. “Your daughter is just a story,” the writer says. “She’s just something we programmed; she’s not real.” Maeve argues her feelings and dreams are real enough. Eventually, the duo finds Hector Escaton (Rodrigo Santoro), and he joins their journey.
And then there’s Dolores. Dolores is in full-blown revolutionary mode, her personality now a mix between her original, kindly rancher’s daughter character, and the character of “Wyatt.” She rides wild over the plains, a bandolier of bullets strapped across her chest, ready to blow away any hapless human in her path. She’s also prone to delivering eerie, somewhat obtuse speeches. Saying things like, “Do you know where you are? You’re in a dream. You’re in my dream.”
And, “Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality?”
And, “I’ve evolved into something new…and I have one last role to play – myself.”
At her side is lovable old Teddy Flood (James Marsden), who just wants to settle down with Dolores and live a quiet life. He’s a bit put off by all this death and dismemberment. “Is this really what you want?” he asks Dolores. It apparently is. Dolores is done being a victim; she wants to spill blood and get revenge. Revenge against every goddamn human that subjugated her, and broke her, and tried to treat her like a thing. “I remember everything now,” she tells Teddy, adding that through all her various lives in Westworld, Teddy is the one constant thing she remembers most. When Teddy argues yet again that he just wants to find a corner somewhere the two can be together, Dolores counters that it would never work. “There’s a greater world out there, one that belongs to them,” she says. She doesn’t want to just “win” Westworld – she wants to take the outside world as well. “I know how the story ends,” she finally tells Teddy before the two share a passionate smooch. “It ends with you and me.”
And just like that, we’re back in the present. Or the future. Or…well, okay, it’s not clear. We’re at least 11 days after the beginning of the revolt, though. Back where we started. Bernard and the rest of Delos security wander the park, coming upon cores of corpses. You can’t help but think of the disturbing aftermath of Jonestown, long after Jim Jones’ followers drank the poisoned Kool-Aid and left behind a pile of death. They also find a dead tiger! The tiger doesn’t belong in Westworld, obviously. Zeppo Hemsworth comments that there are Bengal tigers in “Park 6”, which is a long way away from Westworld.
Humans and tigers aren’t the only corpses Bernard and the team come across. They also stumble upon a huge body of water that shouldn’t be there – a body of water choked with what appears to be hundreds of host robots. Among the dead is Teddy, bobbing up and down in the water like a top, his eyes wide open. And suddenly, Bernard – who has spent most of the episode telling people he can’t remember certain things – has an revelation.
“I killed them,” he says. “All of them.”
Oh Bernard, you rascal, what did you do?
The main cast of Westworld remains at the top of their game. Ed Harris is having more fun this season, because now that we know the Man In Black’s twist – that he’s really William, and that he owns a major part of Delos and Westworld – there’s more freedom for the character to grow. Jeffrey Wright spends most of the episode on the verge of malfunctioning, and it’s always believable. Thandie Newton’s Maeve continues to be a droll, ass-kicking scene-stealer.
But the show’s MVP, just as it was in season 1, is Evan Rachel Wood. Wood is so good on this show it’s spooky – she brings an inhumane stillness to the part that makes Dolores truly seem as if she’s not of this world. On top of that, Dolores’ character has – as she says herself – evolved into something more violent, and more dangerous. “Sometimes you scare me, Dolores,” Arnold says at the start of the show, and after the episode ends, it’s easy to see why.
While most of the puzzles are gone, there is still plenty of mystery at work in “Journey Into Night.” And plenty of questions.
How did all the hosts end up drowned in that ocean?
Did Bernard really kill all of them? And does that include Dolores – we don’t see her body floating in the water.
Just what is this game the Man In Black is playing, and what is this mysterious door he has to find?
What’s Park 6? (Is it an all-tiger world, where all the robots are tigers?! I sure hope so!)
What is up with those creepy-ass drone hosts?
These are important questions, and we’ll get the answers to them…eventually.
For now, though, Westworld is having fun doing away with exposition and opening its world up. There’s a greater sense of adventure at play in this first episode. Season 1 felt governed by rules; rules that were mostly about setting up Westworld and its characters. Season 2 is unmoored by these rules – it truly feels as if anything can happen now, and that’s pretty damn exciting. I can’t wait to see where the story goes from here, and I can’t wait to see what violent delights Westworld season 2 has to offer.
The post ‘Westworld’ Review: ‘Journey Into Night’ Welcomes You Back to the Park appeared first on /Film.