With Zack Snyder’s much-anticipated (as if) cut of Justice League officially in the works and marked for release on HBO Max, attention has turned to a potential re-cutting of another of DC’s cinematic misadventures, 2016’s widely panned Suicide Squad. The film was the subject of drastic last-minute reshoots in the wake of Batman V Superman’s critical mauling earlier that year, reshoots that likely contributed to its messy landing. That left fans with the sense that the movie director David Ayer originally wanted to make didn’t see the light of the day.
The Batman has loomed large on Warner Bros.’ film line-up for some time. Long delayed and potentially further delayed still by the COVID-19 pandemic, the first solo Batman project since The Dark Knight Rises retains. In that time, the villains of Gotham appear to have run riot. The Caped Crusader’s arch-nemesis has had his own stupendously successful outing in Joker. It remains to be seen whether Joaquin Phoenix’s version of the character appears in any other franchises – leaving plenty of room for fan artistes to create their own interpretations. Instagram user @willgray_art has recast Joker for The Batman in this piece of artwork – with Pirates of the Caribbean cave-dweller Johnny Depp stepping into Phoenix’s shoes:
What’s next for Spider-Man? Two blockbuster hits and a threequel fast-tracked – pandemic-related delays to filming notwithstanding. Marvel have big plans for expanding the franchise, with call-backs to previous versions of the character hot on their list. We understand that Tom Holland is pushing for Tobey Maguire to play the MCU’s Uncle Ben. Though Marvel/Sony still want to do a live-action Spider-Verse with Tobey returning, Tom Holland is also still pushing for him to appear in a flashback or two as Uncle Ben.
Everyone from the world of Batwoman is adjusting to the news that leading lady Ruby Rose will be departing after one season. It’s come as a shock to many, and leaves the showrunners with a logistical challenge for the already-commissioned second season. Executive producer Marc Guggenheim has discussed how he thinks the crew will deal with that challenge in a new interview with Collider. Here’s what he had to say about Rose’s departure, and what he sees as a “great creative opportunity”:
Simon Pegg has charted an impressive acting career from British indie comedy to mainstream Hollywood blockbuster. Now, with commercial (and popular) success assured, it looks like he’s tickling his independent sensibility once more. His newest film – a thriller titled Inheritance – releases tomorrow on VOD, and if you didn’t know his name was in the credits, you’d be hard pressed to recognize him.
It’s a cycle for all streaming services. Alongside the myriad shows and movies added to their libraries every month, many will depart, too. So, in the interests of consumer awareness (there’s nothing worse than missing out on a movie because it’s no longer available), here’s an exhaustive list of all the content leaving Netflix in June, starting with those up to the 29th.
Content content content, it’s all about the content. Netflix never stop adding it, even in a pandemic. Though production on new media has ground to a halt, luckily for the service, there’s a mini-history’s worth of classics to mine. Two immensely popular films of yesteryear will be among those made available to stream for American customers this June 1st – E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, and The Silence of the Lambs. The pair have gone down as all-time greats in sci-fi and horror-thriller respectively.
Star Trek: Picard’s first season saw Patrick Stewart return to the role after an 18 year absence. With those 10 episodes in the bank, a question fans will be anxious to know now is how many more we can expect? Thankfully, Picard screenwriter Akiva Goldsman has recently shone some light on that question.
Odd though it seems in a time when film production has ceased, cinemas are empty, actors are trapped in the confines of their own home (in Johnny Depp’s case, in a cave), new movies are still trickling out. Last week we had Capone and make their on-demand debuts – and in 6 weeks time a new Mel Gibson action flic will be making a similar entrance. Force of Nature, also starring Kate Bosworth and Emile Hirsch, is having its direct-to-video release on June 30th. There’s even a trailer to go with it. Look above the text to see Mel in a hurricane of trouble.
