After a rather goofy, clunky start over on ABC, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. got a pretty huge kick of adrenaline when Captain America: The Winter Soldier essentially demolished the titular agency and turned the show's premise inside out. Luckily, the writers thrived under that pressure, creating a much better and more compelling final third to the first season. Now, series star Clark Gregg, who portrays Agent Phil Coulson, is saying that the second season will come back just as strong.
Today brings word that Josh Trank, who previously directed the found-footage superhero flick Chronicle and is hard at work on Fox's upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, has been signed to helm a Star Wars standalone film for Lucasfilm and Disney.
One of the most enjoyable new shows currently on television is definitely Showtime's Penny Dreadful. Though the John Logan-created horror series has aired just four episodes so far, it has quickly carved out a sexy, scary niche for itself over on the premium cable network. Now, Showtime has decided to pick it up for a ten-episode second season.
Amy Poehler and Paul Rudd are two comedians who can really do no wrong. Poehler did a bang-up job hosting the Golden Globes two years in a row (alongside celebrity gal pal Tina Fey), and she's also the star of NBC's Parks and Recreation, one of the funniest shows on TV. And for his part, Rudd has toplined some hilarious films (Role Models and I Love You, Man come to mind), been an integral supporting player in others (Anchorman, Forgetting Sarah Marshall) and has even done great work in dramas (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Prince Avalanche). The actor also has a little film called Ant-Man in the works. So, it's safe to say that Poehler and Rudd are two of the funniest and most enjoyable performers around right now. This summer, they'll share the screen in David Wain's They Came Together - and we've got you covered with exclusive images from the film which we're happy to be premiering today.
From Dexter to Masters of Sex to this spring's Penny Dreadful, Showtime has always prided itself on thinking outside the box with its original programming. Now, we're hearing that the premium cable network has put into development another promising project, this one executive-produced by The Avengers star Robert Downey Jr.
There are some truly terrific thrillers and some wonderful period pieces out there. It's rare, though, to find a film that's capable of being both. The Two Faces of January, from Drive writer Hossein Amini and based on the bestseller by Patricia Highsmith, may just fit the bill. Set in 1960s Greece, the film follows a seemingly happy American couple (Kristen Dunst and Viggo Mortensen) who become embroiled with a shady tour guide (Oscar Isaac) after getting mixed up in a murder. A new clip and featurette from The Two Faces of January hints at a strongly acted thriller that makes an effort to look good too.
Want to get really creeped out this summer? FX has got you covered with The Strain, a vampire thriller series hailing from Pan's Labyrinth creator Guillermo del Toro, who wrote the trilogy the show is based on with author Chuck Hogan. FX has been working hard to promote The Strain with an overload of creepy teasers, and now the action is heating up with the release of another 'extended' trailer for the show.
The Wolf of Wall Street's Leonardo DiCaprio and Locke's Tom Hardy are two of the most stunningly talented leading men working in Hollywood today, and their last on-screen collaboration, Christopher Nolan's mind-bending Inception, was far and away my favorite film of 2010. Now, DiCaprio and Hardy are confirmed to share the screen again, for a film called The Revenant, from Birdman helmer Alejandro González Iñárritu.
When Disney acquired Lucasfilm and co. a while back, Star Wars was the focus, with J.J. Abrams overseeing a seventh installment of the classic series that's due to hit theaters next December. Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher are set to star, alongside a strong cast of fresh faces for the franchise. Though the Star Wars news is undoubtedly exciting, where does that leave Lucasfilm's other enduring franchise: Indiana Jones? If recent rumors are to be believed, Disney is interested in rebooting the classic adventurer for a new set of films - with The Rover star Robert Pattinson inheriting the whip from Harrison Ford.
Peter Berg, all is forgiven. Though the director once brought us the absolutely awful Battleship, now he has completely redeemed himself with Lone Survivor, a gripping and rousing tribute to the United States servicemen who risk their lives each and every day in the name of their country. It feels strange to be reviewing Berg's film - as if I could ever criticize it for attempting to honor those men and women by viscerally depicting just a handful of them making the ultimate sacrifice in combat.
