Review of 2015 from January to August

A couple of months ago we released our top picks for the first half of the year but, with the summer season finishing, we’ll give an overview of the year’s films from a commercial and critical perspective.

Film: Taken 3
Director: Olivier Megaton
Starring: Liam Neeson, Forest Whitaker, Famke Janssen, Maggie Grace, Dougray Scott
IMDb/RT: 6.1/10 – 9%
Budget: $48 million
Opening weekend: $39 million
Box-office: $325 million
Summary: The second highest grossing outing in the series is thankfully the last. There’s been growth since Taken ($226 million) but less than Taken 3 ($376 million).

Film: Blackhat
Director: Michael Mann
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Leehom Wang, Ritchie Coster, Holt McCallany, Viola Davis
IMDb/RT: 5.4/10 – 34%
Budget: $70 million
Opening weekend: $4 million
Box-office: $18 million
Summary: The star of Thor ($644 million) and Rush ($90 million) and the director of Heat ($187 million) and Collateral ($217 million) should have been a match-up to enjoy but somehow Blackhat flopped.

Film: The Wedding Ringer
Director: Jeremy Garelick
Starring: Kevin Hart, Josh Gad, Kaley Cuco Sweeting, Alan Richson, Jorge Garcia
IMDb/RT: 6.7 – 27%
Budget: $23 million
Opening weekend: $20 million
Box-office: $79 million
Summary: A slip up in comparison to Kevin Hart’s 2014 hit Ride Along ($154 million).

Film: Mortdecai
Director: David Koepp
Starring: Johnny Depp, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ewan McGregor, Olivia Munn, Paul Bettany
IMDb/RT: 5.5/10 – 12%
Budget: $60 million
Opening weekend: $4 million
Box-office: $30 million
Summary: This disastrous caper is proof of former superstar Johnny Depp’s dwindling popularity outside of Pirates.

Film: Jupiter Ascending
Directors: Andy and Lana Wachowski
Starring: Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Eddie Redmayne, Sean Bean, Terry Gilliam
IMDb/RT: 5.5/10 – 25%
Budget: $176 million
Opening weekend: $18 million
Box-office: $182 million
Summary: This effort from the creators of The Matrix ($463 million) suffered from its release delays and ridiculously overpriced budget.

Film: Fifty Shades of Grey
Director: Sam Taylor Johnson
Starring: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Eloise Mumford, Jennifer Ehle, Marcia Gay Harden
IMDb/RT: 4.2/10 – 25%
Budget: $40 million
Opening weekend: $85 million
Box-office: $570 million
Summary: Being critically reviled didn’t get in the way of this erotic drama.

Film: Kingsman: The Secret Service
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Starring: Taron Egerton, Colin Firth, Samuel L Jackson, Sophie Cookson, Mark Strong
IMDb/RT: 7.8/10 – 75%
Budget: $81 million
Opening weekend: $35 million
Box-office: $406 million
Summary: The spy thriller from Kick-Ass ($96 million) Vaughn turned out to be his most acclaimed and profitable yet, even out grossing the likes of The Bourne Legacy ($276 million).

Film: Focus
Director: Glenn Ficara, John Requa
Starring: Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Rodrigo Santoro, Gerald McRaney, BD Wong
IMDb/RT: 6.6/10 – 57%
Budget: $50 million
Opening weekend: $19 million
Box-office: $159 million
Summary: A strong performance from Smith renews his popularity after the mediocre After Earth ($243 million).

Film: Chappie
Director: Neill Blompkamp
Starring: Sharlto Copley, Dev Patel, Hugh Jackman, Sigourney Weaver, Die Antwoord
IMDb/RT: 7.0/10 – 30%
Budget: $49 million
Opening weekend: $13 million
Box-office: $102 million
Summary: A let down in comparison to Blomkamp’s more lucrative works – District 9 ($210 million) or Elysium ($286 million).

Film: Cinderella
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Lily James, Cate Blanchett, Richard Madden, Stellan Skarsgard, Helena Bonham Carter
IMDb/RT: 7.1/10 – 85%
Budget: $95 million
Opening weekend: $68 million
Box-office: $542 million
Summary: Branagh’s lavish take on the period fantasy romance has successfully found a new following for the fairy tale.

Film: Insurgent
Director: Robert Schwentke
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Kate Winslet
IMDb/RT: 6.4/10 – 30%
Budget: $110 million
Opening weekend: $53 million
Box-office: $295 million
Summary: The Divergent series has quickly turned out to be the inferior of The Hunger Games.

Film: Home
Director: Tim Johnson
Starring: Jim Parsons, Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Matt Jones, Steve Martin
IMDb/RT: 6.7/10 – 45%
Budget: $135 million
Opening weekend: $52 million
Box-office: $387 million
Summary: Dreamworks are struggling to stand out with their new properties in a market dominated by the likes of Warner Bros’ The Lego Movie or Disney’s Frozen.

Film: Get Hard
Director: Etan Cohen
Starring: Will Ferrell, Kevin Hart, Alison Brie, Tip Harris, Craig T Nelson
IMDb/RT: 6.1/10 – 29%
Budget: $40 million
Opening weekend: $34 million
Box-office: $106 million
Summary: The combination of these celebrated comics ought to have been special but didn’t come close.

Film: Furious 7
Director: James Wan
Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Jason Statham
IMDb/RT: 7.4/10 – 81%
Budget: $190 million
Opening weekend: $147 million
Box-office: $1.512 billion
Summary: The blockbuster sequel made seven times more than the original did 14 years ago ($207 million) but the series might not have much room to grow into for film eight.

Film: The Avengers: Age of Ultron
Director: Joss Whedon
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans, James Spader
IMDb/RT: 7.8/10 – 74%
Budget: $280 million
Opening weekend: $191 million
Box-office: $1.401 billion
Summary: A slight slip up from 2012’s Avengers Assemble ($1.520 billion), the sequel still delivered the goods for the fans.

Film: Pitch Perfect 2
Director: Elizabeth Banks
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Hailee Steinfeld, Elizabeth Banks
IMDb/RT: 6.7 – 67%
Budget: $29 million
Opening weekend: $69 million
Box-office: $285 million
Summary: Pitch Perfect is quickly rivaling Jump Street and Bridesmaids to be the best comedy of the decade so far, while growing from the original’s $115 million.

Film: Mad Max: Fury Road
Director: George Miller
Starring: Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Rosie Huntington Whitely, Zoe Kravitz, Nicholas Hoult
IMDb/RT: 8.3/10 – 98%
Budget: $150 million
Opening weekend: $45 million
Box-office: $374 million
Summary: A stunningly successful return from the road warrior.

Film: Tomorrowland
Director: Brad Bird
Starring: Britt Robertson, George Clooney, Raffey Cassidy, Tim McGraw, Hugh Laurie
IMDb/RT: 6.6/10 – 50%
Budget: $190 million
Opening weekend: $33 million
Box-office: $208 million
Summary: While it polarized critics, concealing many secrets during marketing may have been the financial downfall of the underrated sci-fi adventure and another disappointment for Disney after John Carter ($284 million) and The Lone Ranger ($260 million).

Film: San Andreas
Director: Brad Peyton
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario, Ioan Gruffudd, Paul Giamatti
IMDb/RT: 6.4/10 – 50%
Budget: $110 million
Opening weekend: $55 million
Box-office: $469 million
Summary: The disaster thriller was a success but not a 2012 ($769 million) style smash hit.

Film: Spy
Director: Paul Feig
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Jason Statham, Rose Byrne, Miranda Hart, Jude Law
IMDb/RT: 7.3/10 – 94%
Budget: $65 million
Opening weekend: $29 million
Box-office: $236 million
Summary: After striking big with Bridesmaids ($288 million) and The Heat ($229 million), Paul Feig is continuing to put himself on a good track for the Ghost Busters reboot.

Film: Jurassic World
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Irrfan Khan, Omar Sy, Vincent D’Onofrio
IMDb/RT: 7.3/10 – 71%
Budget: $150 million
Opening weekend: $208 million
Box-office: $1.642 billion
Summary: With a sequel coming in 2018, the franchise (dormant for fourteen years) is now set for big things.

Film: Inside Out
Directors: Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen
Starring: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Richard Kind, Bill Hader, Kyle MacLachlan
IMDb/RT: 8.6/10 – 98%
Budget: $175 million
Opening weekend: $90 million
Box-office: $701 million
Summary: Inside Out has become Pixar’s third biggest original feature.

Film: Ted 2
Director: Seth MacFarlane
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Seth MacFarlane, Amanda Seyfried, Giovanni Ribisi, Patrick Stewart
IMDb/RT: 6.6/10 – 46%
Budget: $68 million
Opening weekend: $33.5 million
Box-office: $180 million
Summary: A very disappointing follow up to 2012’s Ted ($549 million). After the mediocre performance of MacFarlane’s western A Million Ways to Die in the West ($86 million), there’s increasing doubt in the Family Guy creator’s popularity.

Film: Terminator Genisys
Director: Alan Taylor
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, Jason Clarke, JK Simmons
IMDb/RT: 6.9/10 – 26%
Budget: $155 million
Opening weekend: $27 million
Box-office: $352 million
Summary: While it was a healthy opening but the franchise has long lost its previously stellar hype. Still not an improvement on 2009’s Terminator Salvation ($371 million).

Film: Magic Mike XXL
Director: Gregory Jacobs
Starring: Channing Tatum, Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Amber Heard, Jada Pinkett Smith
IMDb/RT: 6.3/10 – 65%
Budget: $14 million
Opening weekend: $123 million
Box-office: $117 million
Summary: The progressive stripper comedy sequel has decreased from Steven Soderbergh’s 2012 original ($167 million) and other raunchy blockbusters have been more profitable – for example Fifty Shades of Grey ($569 million) – but it’s still an impressive tally.

Film: Minions
Directors: Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Pierre Coffin, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Geoffrey Rush
IMDb/RT: 6.7/10 – 54%
Budget: $74 million
Opening weekend: $115 million
Box-office: $1.004 billion
Summary: This triumphant spin off managed to surpass and compete with the previous instalments of the beloved Despicable Me franchise ($543 million – $970 million).

Film: Ant-Man
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll, Michael Pena, Michael Douglas
IMDb/RT: 7.8/10 – 79%
Budget: $130 million
Opening weekend: $57 million
Box-office: $363 million
Summary: It’s an underperformance in comparison to Marvel’s fellow Phase 2 superhero flicks such as Iron Man 3 ($1215 million), Thor: The Dark World ($644 million), Captain America: The Winter Soldier ($714 million) or Guardians of the Galaxy ($774 million) but is a worthy reception for the kings of summer blockbusters.

Film: Trainwreck
Director: Judd Apatow
Starring: Amy Schumer, Bill Hader, Brie Larson, John Cena, Tilda Swinton
Budget: $35 million
Opening weekend: $30 million
Box-office: $123 million
Summary: A traditional fooled-around-and-fell-in-love rom-com might have sank but the presence of rising star Amy Schumer has elevated this to the likes of Apatow’s The 40 Year Old Virgin ($177 million) or Knocked Up ($219 million).

Film: Pixels
Director: Chris Columbus
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Josh Gad, Michelle Monaghan, Peter Dinklage
IMDb/RT: 5.6/10 – 17%
Budget: $88 million
Opening weekend: $24 million
Box-office: $174 million
Summary: This sci-fi adventure’s financial reception didn’t live up to the premise but a budget half the size of Tomorrowland’s means that it may actually breakeven at the box-office.

Film: Southpaw
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Forest Whitaker, Oona Laurence, Naomie Harris, Rachel McAdams
IMDb/RT: 7.8/10 – 60%
Budget: $25 million
Opening weekend: $17 million
Box-office: $67 million
Summary: This sport drama failed to rekindle the mass popularity of boxing flicks such as Rocky ($225 million).

Film: Paper Towns
Director: Jake Schreir
Starring: Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Halston Sage, Jaz Sinclair, Austin Abrams
IMDb/RT: 6.9/10 – 55%
Budget: $12 million
Opening weekend: $13 million
Box-office: $75 million
Summary: A decent opening for the young adult romantic drama but well off the other John Green adaptation The Fault in Our Stars ($307 million).

Film: Vacation
Directors: Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley
Starring: Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Leslie Mann, Chris Hemsworth, Chevy Chase
IMDb/RT: 6.3/10 – 26%
Budget: $31 million
Opening weekend: $15 million
Box-office: $69 million
Summary: The comedy reboot of the adored Chevy Chase franchise didn’t inspire a great amount of nostalgia for fans of the originals.

Film: Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Alec Baldwin
IMDb/RT: 7.8/10 – 93%
Budget: $150 million
Opening weekend: $56 million
Box-office: $445 million
Summary: The Cruise action vehicle builds off the wobble of Edge of Tomorrow ($369 million). The spy series returned in style and will grow throughout the summer.

Film: Fantastic Four
Director: Josh Trank
Starring: Miles Teller, Michael B Jordan, Jamie Bell, Kate Mara, Toby Kebbell
IMDb/RT: 4.0/10 – 8%
Budget: $120 million
Opening weekend: $26 million
Box-office: $134 million
Summary: A superhero reboot full of hope and promise morphed into the year’s most depressing car crash. It was even a decrease from the 2005 film ($330 million) and its sequel ($289 million).

Film: Straight Outta Compton
Director: F Gary Gray
Starring: O’Shea Jackson Jr, Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Aldis Hodge, Paul Giamatti
IMDb/RT: 8.4/10 – 89%
Budget: $28 million
Opening weekend: $60 million
Box-office: $125 million
Summary: The musical biopic has become one of August’s biggest hits but did smaller numbers than 2002’s Eminem effort 8 Mile ($242 million).

Film: The Man From UNCLE
Director: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, Alicia Vikander, Elizabeth Debicki, Hugh Grant
IMDb/RT: 7.6/10 – 67%
Budget: $75 million
Opening weekend: $13 million
Box-office: $57 million
Summary: The star studded spy thriller from the director of the Sherlock Holmes films ($524 million – $545 million) has struggled to find a home with fans.

Jurassic World review

Director: Colin Trevorrow

Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Ty Simpkins, Nick Robinson, Irrfan Khan, Vincent D’Onofrio, Jake Johnson, Lauren Lapkus, Omar Sy, BD Wong, Judy Greer, Andy Buckley, Katie McGrath, Brian Tee

Steven Spielberg was the driving force behind 1993’s Jurassic Park, the adaptation of Michael Chrichton’s techno-thriller novel, but even his presence didn’t rescue the disappointing sequel The Lost World. The franchise went into development hell the further it strayed from the books with various story proposals including Dr Grant investigating dino-related murders. Indie director Colin Trevorrow is behind exhuming a sequel 65 million (or 22) years in the making.

Twenty years after the “InGen Incident” on Isla Nublar, the island has been successfully transformed into a functioning dinosaur theme park experience. As her nephews (Simpkins, Robinson) pay a visit, park manager Claire Dearing (Howard) is set to unveil the latest attraction – a genetically modified creature named the Indominus Rex. Meanwhile, Velociraptor trainer Owen Grady (Pratt) resists the offer from security head Vic Hoskins (D’Onofrio) to weaponise his animals. When the Indominus escapes, Owen and Claire must track it down before it makes its move on the park’s attendees.

Easily the best decision made on this sequel is to properly address what brought its predecessors to a crushing low. Both the second and third instalments purely focus on a group of humans alone in a dino-infested jungle without the wonder of the park itself. The addition of the awe of the original concept in many ways contrasts with and exaggerates the terror.

While Trevorrow’s CV only extends to the indie sci-fi drama Safety Not Guaranteed (a film that nails its depiction of the relationship of its lonely lead protagonists and remains without flashy camerawork), he brings a stunning level of spectacle and visual bombast to the picture with perfect sense of timing and suspense in one of the best indie to mainstream step ups since the Wachowskis released The Matrix.

With the exception of the original film’s Henry Wu (BD Wong), an entirely new cast has been drafted in to replace the likes of Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill. At the centre of the Jurassic mayhem is the odd-couple pairing of laddish ranger Owen Grady (Chris Pratt, Guardians of the Galaxy) and manager Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard, The Help). The portrayal of the couple came under fire, especially from Buffy creator Joss Whedon who labelled it as “’70s level sexism.” with the free spirited man charming the uptight woman. While Trevorrow unashamedly bases the characters on the leads of 1981’s Raiders of the Lost Ark, 1980’s Empire Strikes Back or 1984’s Romancing the Stone, there’s just as much of a likeness to classic romances such Whedon/Shakespeare’s verbally sparring lovers Beatrice and Benedick in 2013’s Much Ado About Nothing.

Also at the heart of the action are Dearing’s estranged nephews, played by rising stars Ty Simpkins (Insidious) and Nick Robinson (The Kings of Summer). Gray and Zach have a fractured relationship with each other and their aunt due to their parents’ impending divorce making them engaging if standard chase fodder.

Any and all human villains are traditionally overshadowed by their scaly counterparts in this series and Jurassic World is no exception. Here the duties of the most venerable actor on the call sheet (an honour previously awarded to acting greats such as Richard Attenborough or Pete Postlethwaite) fall to the excellent and criminally underrated Vincent D’Onofrio – last seen as the villain Kingpin in Netflix’s Daredevil. Sadly, this is one of his weaker performances as the militaristic security head Vic Hoskins who fails to conjure menace or believability.

Rounding off the supporting cast is a hilarious Jake Johnson (TV’s New Girl), finally giving a better name to Isla Nublar’s technicians while still maintaining the morbid sense of humour of Samuel L Jackson and Wayne Knight. Seeing as the talent of Omar Sy and Judy Greer are written out into smaller parts, the only other significant lead is Irrfan Khan’s billionaire investor Simon Masrani who never truly contributes a great amount to the plot.

While the dinosaur exhibits do easily outperform their human inferiors, their portrayal isn’t entirely perfect. As terrifying as newbie the Indominus Rex is (as well as being stunningly brought to life by some truly photorealistic effects), the film insists on not updating on any dinosaur knowledge garnered since 1993 – IE denying the accepted fact of feathered dinosaurs.

The film lacks an unforgettable iconic moment such as the shaking water upon the arrival of the T-Rex but Jurassic World strives when its dinosaurs are at their most awesome: the suspense of the jump scare as the Indominus Rex stalks its prey was a delight; a sequence in which Grady leads his velociraptor pack on a chase is stunning; the brutal attack of the ptersaurs on Jurassic World’s main street evokes memories of the gleeful carnage of Gremlins.

Overall tonally different to its predecessors. Much like the geneticists did with the Indominus Rex, Trevorrow and his co-writers Derek Connolly, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver have engineered a new breed of Jurassic Park packed with as much excitement as there is dark humour. On occasion the scripting and characters are clunky and off key but on the whole this is a stupendous thrill ride of a summer popcorn action flick.

9/10

“Monster is a relative term. To a canary, a cat is a monster. We’re just used to being the cat.”

The Best of 2015 – Half way review

In the first sixth months of 2015, we haven’t quite yet found a release worthy of the prestigious 10/10 score but there’s been no shortage of box-office goods with three films already breaching the $1 billion mark with more to come.

Worldwide:

1. Furious 7 – Director: James Wan – Stars: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker – $1,511,636,779
2. The Avengers: Age of Ultron – Joss Whedon – Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson – $1,372,063,254
3. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow – Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard – $1,259,873,609
4. Fifty Shades of Grey – Sam Taylor Johnson – Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan – $569,651,467
5. Cinderella – Kenneth Branagh – Lily James, Cate Blanchett – $538,986,777
6. San Andreas – Peyton Reed – Dwayne Johnson, Alexandra Daddario – $441,858,144
7. Kingsman: The Secret Service – Matthew Vaughn – Colin Firth, Taron Egerton – $403,788,617
8. Home – Tim Johnson – Jim Parsons, Rihanna – $367,811,449
9. Mad Max: Fury Road – George Miller – Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron – $356,649,491
10. Taken 3 – Oliver Megaton – Liam Neeson, Forest Whitaker – $325,771,424

US:

1. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow – Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard – $514,374,155
2. The Avengers: Age of Ultron – Joss Whedon – Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson – $452,963,254
3. Furious 7 – James Wan – Vin Diesel, Paul Walker – $351,032,910
4. Inside Out – Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen – $200,844,477
5. Cinderella – Kenneth Branagh – Lily James, Cate Blanchett – $200,286,777
6. Pitch Perfect 2 – Elizabeth Banks – Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson – $181,513,690
7. Home – Tim Johnson – Jim Parsons, Rihanna – $174,901,605
8. Fifty Shades of Grey – Sam Taylor Johnson – Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan – $166,167,230
9. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water – Paul Tibbitt – $162,994,032
10. Mad Max: Fury Road – George Miller – Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron – $147,594,972

UK:

1. The Avengers: Age of Ultron – Joss Whedon – Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson – £49,096,981
2. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow – Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard – £39,216,914
3. Furious 7 – James Wan – Vin Diesel, Paul Walker – £38,399,325
4. Fifty Shades of Grey – Sam Taylor Johnson – Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan – £33,065,566
5. Home – Tim Johnson – Jim Parsons, Rihanna – £24,908,077
6. Cinderella – Kenneth Branagh – Lily James, Cate Blanchett – £20,886,693
7. The Theory of Everything – James Marsh – Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones – £20,446,079
8. Big Hero 6 – Don Hall, Chris Williams – TJ Miller, Maya Rudolph – £19.527,404
9. Pitch Perfect 2 – Elizabeth Banks – Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson – £17,466,588
10. Mad Max: Fury Road – George Miller – Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron – £17,260,896

Here’s our personal top 7 for January to June. To give you a taste of our opinions, 2014’s top picks were Interstellar, Nightcrawler, Boyhood, Guardians of the Galaxy and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

8) Into the Woods

Director: Rob Marshall
Starring: Meryl Streep, Anna Kendrick, James Corden, Emily Blunt, Chris Pine
Budget: $50 million
Box-office: $212.9 million

7) Tomorrowland

Director: Brad Bird
Starring: Britt Robertson, George Clooney, Raffey Cassidy, Pierce Gagnon, Hugh Laurie
Budget: $190 million
Box-office: $202 million

6) Minions

Director: Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin
Starring: Pierre Coffin, Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Geoffrey Rush
Budget: $74 million
Box-office: $141 million

5) The Theory of Everything

Director: James Marsh
Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Charlie Cox, Simon McBurney, David Thewlis
Budget: $15 million
Box-office: $121.2 million

4) Still Alice

Directors: Richard Glatzer, Wash Westmoreland
Starring: Julianne Moore, Kristen Stewart, Alec Baldwin, Hunter Parrish, Kate Bosworth
Budget: $5 million
Box-office: $41.8 million

3) Selma

Director: Ava DuVernay
Starring: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson, Oprah Winfrey, Tim Roth
Budget: $20 million
Box-office: $66.8 million

2) The Avengers: Age of Ultron

Director: Joss Whedon
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Elizabeth Olsen, Jeremy Renner
Budget: $280 million
Box-office: $1.3 billion

1) Jurassic World

Director: Colin Trevorrow
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Irrfan Khan, Jake Johnson, Vincent D’Onofrio
Budget: $150 million
Box-office: $1,2 billion

Han Solo spin-off to be directed by Lord and Miller – casting: Aaron Paul? Miles Teller? Chris Pratt?

The development problems of the second Star Wars spin-off began with the quitting of Josh Trank (Chronicle, Fantastic Four) but the latest report states that replacements have been found in the form of Phil Lord and Chris Miller (the duo behind The Lego Movie and the Jump Street movies) and writers Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark) and his son Jon (The First Time). This confirms that Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past) has been given the boot. Additionally, we now know that it’ll be a prequel centred on legendary smuggler Han Solo.

Here’s a list of actors who’ll make awesome Hans.

Name: Aaron Paul
Age: 35
Nationality: USA
Previous works: Breaking Bad (2008-2013), Need for Speed (2014), Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014), Bojack Horseman (2014-)

Name: Chris Pratt
Age: 36
Nationality: USA
Previous works: Parks and Recreation (2009-2015), The Lego Movie (2014), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Jurassic World (2015)

Name: Jamie Bell
Age: 29
Nationality: UK
Previous works: Billy Elliot (2000), King Kong (2005), The Adventures of Tintin (2011), Fantastic Four (2015)

Name: Nick Robinson
Age: 20
Nationality: USA
Previous works: Broadwalk Empire (2012), The Kings of Summer (2013), Jurassic World (2015), Being Charlie (2015)

Name: Dave Franco
Age: 30
Nationality: USA
Previous works: 21 Jump Street (2012), Warm Bodies (2013), Now You See Me (2013), Bad Neighbours (2014)

Name: Michael B Jordan
Age: 28
Nationality: USA
Previous works: Chronicle (2012), Fruitvale Station (2013), That Awkward Moment (2014), Fantastic Four (2015)

Name: Shia LaBeaouf
Age: 29
Nationality: USA
Previous works: Transformers (2007), Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010), Lawless (2012), Fury (2014)

Name: Ellen Page
Age: 28
Nationality: Canada
Previous works: Hard Candy (2005), Juno (2007), Inception (2010), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) (*played Han Solo in an Empire Strikes Back script read)

Name: Miles Teller
Age: 28
Nationality: USA
Previous work: The Spectacular Now (2013), Divergent (2014), Whiplash (2014), Fantastic Four (2015)

Name: Jack O’Connell
Age: 24
Nationality: UK
Previous work: Skins (2009-2013), Starred Up (2014), ’71 (2014), Unbroken (2014)

Name: Taron Egerton
Age: 25
Nationality: UK
Previous works: Testament of Youth (2015), Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015), Legend (2015), Eddie the Eagle (2016)

Name: Bradley Cooper
Age: 40
Nationality: USA
Previous works: The Hangover (2009), American Hustle (2013), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), American Sniper (2014)

Name: Michael Fassbender
Age: 38
Nationality: Germany
Previous works: X-Men: First Class (2011), Prometheus (2012), 12 Years a Slave (2013), Steve Jobs (2015)

Name: Ryan Gosling
Age: 34
Nationality: Canada
Previous works: Drive (2011), Crazy Stupid Love (2011), The Ides of March (2011), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)

Name: Harrison Ford
Age: 72
Nationality: USA
Previous works: Star Wars (1977), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Blade Runner (1982), The Fugitive (1993)

Star Wars Anthology: Han Solo – May 2018

Guardians 2 title revealed and Comic Con lineup announced

Marvel’s third phase has titled its new properties fairly simply – Ant-Man, Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Captain Marvel and Inhumans – while their sequels have received subtitles – Captain America: Civil War, Thor: Ragnarok and The Avengers: Infinity War. The new Spider-Man’s title is yet to have been revealed but the latest news from Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn is that the sequel has been titled: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2.

Gunn directs the cast of Chris Pratt (Jurassic World) as Star Lord, Bradley Cooper (Limitless) as Rocket, Zoe Saldana (Avatar) as Gamora, Vin Diesel (Pitch Black) as Groot, Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men) as Thanos, Karen Gillan (Oculus) as Nebula, Dave Bautista (Riddick) as Drax, Seth Green (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as Howard the Duck and Benicio Del Toro (Traffic) as The Collector

The schedule for the famed San Diego Comic Con 2015 has been revealed.

Thursday:

• Lionsgate: ‘The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2′: 12:00 PM-1:15 PM, Hall H
  Lionsgate presents an exclusive first look at one of the studio’s highly anticipated films coming to theaters this fall. Get a sneak peek into the powerful final chapter of the epic The Hunger Games film franchise. Attendees will be shown exclusive, never-before-seen footage from Mockingjay: Part 2 and treated to a cast and filmmaker Q&A session revealing details on the big-screen finale. Featuring stars Jennifer Lawrence and Julianne Moore and director Francis Lawrence.
• CBS TV Studios Comic-Con Lineup: 12:00 PM-3:30 PM, Ballroom 20
  Exclusive Sneak Previews and Panels for the CBS series ‘Extant’, ‘Zoo’, ‘Under the Dome’, ‘Limitless’, and ‘Scorpion’.
• ‘Doctor Who’: BBC America’s Official Panel: 2:15 PM-3:15PM, Hall H
  Following his record-breaking first season as the Doctor, Peter Capaldi will make his first ever appearance at Comic-Con with stars Jenna Coleman (Clara Oswald) and Michelle Gomez (Missy), and lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat. Doctor Who follows the adventures of the Doctor, the time traveler who will continue to journey through all of space and time in epic adventures in the new season premiering this fall. Capaldi’s first season delivered BBC America its highest rated season ever and is available now on all digital platforms.
• ‘Sherlock’: 3:45 PM-5:15PM, Ballroom 20
  Steven Moffat (co-creator, executive producer, and writer), Sue Vertue (executive producer) and Rupert Graves (actor, DI Greg Lestrade) discuss the latest adventures of Sherlock Holmes and his long-suffering faithful friend, Dr. John Watson. Sherlock will return to BBC in a forthcoming special.
• MTV’s ‘Teen Wolf’: 5:00 PM-6:00PM, Ballroom 20
  Teen Wolf cast members and executive producer are taking Comic-Con by storm for the sixth consecutive year. The pack of MTV’s hit series Teen Wolf will dish secrets, share a sneak peek of the upcoming season, and answer fan questions.
• ‘Damien’: 6:45 PM-7:45 PM, Room 6A
  From executive producer Glen Mazaara (The Walking Dead, The Shield), Damien follows the adult life of Damien Thorn, the mysterious child from the 1976 motion picture who has grown up seemingly unaware of the satanic forces around him. Haunted by his past, Damien must now come to terms with his true destiny: that he is the Antichrist. Starring Bradley James (Merlin), Barbara Hershey, Megalyn Echikunwoke and Omid Abtahi. Get an exclusive first look at the show followed by a Q&A with cast and producers, plus a special guest appearance.

Friday:

• ‘Lucifer’ Pilot Screening and Q&A: 11:30 AM-12:30PM, Room 6BCF
  Lucifer is the story of the original fallen angel. Bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell, Lucifer Morningstar has resigned his throne and retired to the City of Angels, where he owns an upscale piano bar called Lux. When a beautiful pop star is murdered, for the first time in roughly 10 billion years, he feels something awaken deep within him. Is he actually capable of feelings for a human being? The very thought disturbs him. The murder attracts the attention of LAPD homicide detective Chloe Dancer, who finds herself both repulsed and fascinated by Lucifer. At the same time, God’s emissary, the angel Amenadiel, has been sent to Los Angeles to convince Lucifer to return to Hell. But with the City of Angels at his feet and a newfound purpose, Lucifer’s having too much fun to go back now. Sexy, dark and irreverent, Lucifer makes its Comic-Con debut with a screening of the complete pilot episode, followed by a Q&A with series stars and producers. From Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Aggressive Mediocrity in association with Warner Bros. Television, and based on characters created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg for DC Entertainment’s Vertigo imprint, Lucifer premieres Midseason on FOX.
• AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead’: 12:00 PM-2:00 PM, Hall H
  Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Steven Yeun, Lauren Cohan, Danai Gurira, Melissa McBride, Chandler Riggs, Sonequa Martin-Green, Michael Cudlitz and Lennie Jamesjoin executive producer and showrunner Scott M. Gimple, executive producer Robert Kirkman, executive producer Gale Anne Hurd, executive producer Dave Alpert, and special effects makeup supervisor and executive producer Greg Nicotero in a panel moderated by Chris Hardwick (The Nerdist, Talking Dead). The panelists will discuss the shocking finale of Season 5 and what to look forward to in Season 6, debuting this fall on AMC. Join the panelists for a Q&A session and an official sneak preview of Season 6.
• ‘Minority Report’: 1:45 PM-2:45 PM, Ballroom 20
  Be one of the first to take a look at FOX’s new fall sci-fi action thriller. Based on the hit futuristic Steven Spielberg feature, Minority Report follows the unlikely partnership between a man haunted by the future and a cop haunted by her past, as they race to stop the worst crimes of the year 2065 before they happen. Join Stark Sands (Inside Llewyn Davis), Meagan Good (Think Like a Man franchise, Californication) along with other cast and producers for a special screening followed by a Q&A.
• ‘Game of Thrones’ Panel and Q&A: 2:30PM-3:30PM, Hall H
  Based on the bestselling fantasy book series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, HBO’s Game of Thrones concluded its 10-episode fifth season in June and will begin filming its sixth season this summer. The series, executive produced and written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, is an epic story of treachery and nobility, set on the continent of Westeros, where summers and winters can last years. Panelists include (in alphabetical order) Alfie Allen as Theon Greyjoy/Reek, John Bradley as Samwell Tarly, Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth, Liam Cunningham as Davos Seaworth, Natalie Dormer as Margaery Tyrell, Conleth Hill as Varys, David Nutter (director), Hannah Murray as Gilly, Carolyn Strauss (executive producer), Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark, Carice van Houten as Melisandre, and Maisie Williams as Arya Stark.
• Marvel Television Presents: 3:00 PM-4:15 PM, Ballroom 20
  Jeph Loeb (Marvel’s head of television) brings you exclusive news and surprises about your favorite action-packed Marvel series on ABC. Join Jeph, showrunners, and the casts of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter for this can’t-miss panel that’ll have everyone talking! Featuring Clark Gregg and Hayley Atwell.
• ‘iZombie’ Special Video Presentation and Q&A: 5:45 PM-6:45PM, Ballroom 20
  After the shocking events in the season finale of brainy hit iZombie, be among the first to get the scoop on what’s in store for Season 2. Now that Liv (Rose McIver) gave the cure for zombie-ism to Blaine and Major (one that she desperately wanted to take herself!) will Ravi find a way to develop another cure? Will Clive remain in the dark about the existence of zombies? A special video presentation will be followed by a Q&A with series stars as well as executive producers Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars) and Diane Ruggiero-Wright (Veronica Mars). From Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Spondoolie Productions and Warner Bros. Television and based on characters created by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, published by DC Entertainment’s Vertigo imprint, iZombie returns this fall with all-new episodes on Tuesdays at 9/8c on The CW. iZombie: The Complete First Season will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on September 29.
• Lucasfilm: ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’: 5:30 PM-6:30 PM, Hall H
  Lucasfilm president and producer Kathleen Kennedy, director J.J. Abrams, writer Lawrence Kasdan, and special guests provide a special look at Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Featuring Harrison Ford, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o and Andy Serkis.
• ‘Orphan Black’: BBC America Official Panel: 5:45 PM-6:45 PM, Room 6BCF
  Stars Tatiana Maslany (Sarah and the Leda clones), Jordan Gavaris (Felix), Maria Doyle Kennedy (Mrs. S), Dylan Bruce (Paul), Kristian Bruun (Donnie), and Ari Millen (Mark and the Castor clones) and co-creators John Fawcett and Graeme Manson look back at last season before filming begins on Season 4. Orphan Black Season 3 is currently on VOD. For those new to the Clone Club, you can also start watching the BBC America series by streaming the first two seasons on Amazon Prime or download the entire series from any of the major digital platforms.
• Star: ‘Ash vs. Evil Dead’: 6:00 PM-7:00PM, Room 6A
  Original filmmakers Sam Raimi (executive producer, director, writer), Rob Tapert (executive producer), Bruce Campbell (executive producer and star of the series, Ash), Ivan Raimi (co-exeuctive producer), and Craig DiGregorio (executive producer), along with Lucy Lawless (Ruby), discuss the highly anticipated new series and what fans can expect in the premiere season.
• ‘Yoga Hosers’: 7:15 PM-9:00 PM, Hall H
  An evening with Kevin Smith. After all the interesting and exciting movie panels are over, Hall H belongs to a middle-aged loser who dresses like a 12-year-old! Ask Kev questions about AMC’s Comic Book Men and his forthcoming Mallrats sequel Mallbrats, and see the world premiere of the trailer to his new movie, Yoga Hosers. Wrap up a busy Friday with the Clown Prince of Comic-Con! With special guests from the Yoga Hosers cast. Featuring Johnny Depp and Haley Joel Osment.

Saturday:

• Warner Bros.: 10:30 AM-12:00 PM, Hall H
  A “sneak peek” at a few upcoming releases from Warner Bros. Likely including The Man From UNCLE (Armie Hammer, Guy Ritchie), Pan (Hugh Jackman, Joe Wright), In the Heart of the Sea (Chris Hemsworth, Ron Howard), Point Break (Edgar Ramirez), Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice (Ben Affleck, Zack Snyder), Central Intelligence (Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart), Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgard, Margot Robbie), Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur (Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law), Suicide Squad (Jared Leto, David Ayer) and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Eddie Redmayne, David Yates).
• The Weinstein Company: ‘The Hateful Eight’: 1:30 PM-2:15 PM, Hall H
  Academy Award-winning writer/director Quentin Tarantino brings fans an exclusive look at his highly anticipated 8th film, The Hateful Eight. Followed by a Q&A session with the cast: Samuel L Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Bruce Dern.
• Legendary Pictures: 2:30 PM-3:30 PM, Hall H
  Filmmakers and talent from Legendary’s upcoming Warcraft (Duncan Jones, Dominic Cooper, Toby Kebbell) and Crimson Peak (Guillermo Del Toro, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain), distributed by Universal Pictures, will discuss the innovative slate and present never-before-seen material. Chris Hardwick (AMC’s Talking Dead) hosts the panel that will also include surprises from highly anticipated legendary movies, including Great Wall, Krampus, and more.
• 20th Century Fox: 5:45 PM-7:30 PM, Hall H
  20th Century Fox Presentation including Fantastic Four (Miles Teller), Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (Dylan O’Brien), The Martian (Matt Damon), Bridge of Spies (Tom Hanks), Kung Fu Panda 3 (Jack Black), Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds), X-Men: Apocalypse (Jennifer Lawrence), Independence Day: Resurgence (Jeff Goldblum), Gambit (Channing Tatum), and Assassin’s Creed (Michael Fassbender).
• Warner Bros. Television and DC Entertainment Screening Block: 8:00 PM-11:00 PM, Hall H
  Includes Supergirl season 1 (Melissa Benoist), Gotham season 2 (Ben McKenzie), Arrow season 4 (Steven Amell), The Flash season 2 (Grant Gustin) and Legends of Tomorrow season 1 (Brandon Routh).

Sunday:

• TV premieres including Heroes Reborn, American Horror Story, Scream Queens, Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries.

Weekend box-office – 27th of June to 3rd of July 2015 – is it an emotional debut for Pixar’s Inside Out?

Critically, San Francisco’s animating legends Pixar may have wavered in the past few years but financially they’re as strong as ever. They’ve been fairly consistent financially since their debut twenty years ago: 1995’s Toy Story ($362 million), 1998’s A Bug’s Life ($363 million), 1999’s Toy Story 2 ($511 million), 2001’s Monsters Inc ($562 million), 2003’s Finding Nemo ($936 million), 2004’s The Incredibles ($631 million), 2006’s Cars ($461 million), 2007’s Ratatouille ($623 million), 2008’s WALL-E ($521 million), 2009’s Up ($731 million), 2010’s Toy Story 3 ($1 billion), 2011’s Cars 2 ($559 million), 2012’s Brave ($529 million) and 2013’s Monsters University ($743 million). Following a rare two year hiatus, Pixar are back with Inside Out, which challenges the record breaking behemoth that is Jurassic World. You can find last week’s predictions here.

US:

1. Jurassic World – Director: Colin Trevorrow – $106.6 million
2. Inside Out – Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen – $90.4 million
3. Spy – Paul Feig – $11.2 million
4. San Andreas – Brad Peyton – $8.7 million
5. Dope – Rick Famuyiwa – $6.1 million

UK:

1. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow – £11.1 million
2. Take That Live – £1 million
3. Spy – Paul Feig – £0.9 million
4. Mr Holmes – Bill Condon – £0.7 million
5. Entourage – Doug Ellin – £0.6 million

While Jurassic World does keep its first place spot, Inside Out is still a triumph as it’s the biggest opening for an original film since 2009’s Avatar. In this time period, original sci-fi works like Edge of Tomorrow have struggled but filmmakers such as Christopher Nolan (Inception, Interstellar) remain champions of the field. Indie comedy Dope makes a respectable fifth place entry. This week I’ve scored 5/10.

US:

1. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow
2. Inside Out – Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen
3. Ted 2 – Seth MacFarlane
4. Max – Boaz Yakin
5. Spy – Paul Feig

UK:

1. Minions – Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin
2. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow
3. Spy – Paul Feig
4. Slow West – John Maclean
5. Mr Holmes – Bill Condon

Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard in Jurassic World, this week’s UK and US number one.

Weekend box-office – 20th to 26th of June 2015 – Is it a walk in the (Jurassic) park for Chris Pratt?

Starring Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Richard Attenborough, Steven Spielberg’s 1993 sci-fi smash hit Jurassic Park had everything: critical and fan adoration and box-office phenomenon status with over $1 billion in ticket sales. The sequels however didn’t hit the mark with Spielberg’s 1997 follow up The Lost World taking $618 million and Joe Johnston’s 2001 effort Jurassic Park III receiving $368 million, despite additions such as Pete Postlethwaite and Julianne Moore. Jurassic World has taken an unorthodox approach by ditching the original cast for new blood such as underdog actors Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy), Bryce Dallas Howard (The Help), Jake Johnson (TV’s New Girl) and Vincent D’Onofrio (Netflix’s Daredevil) as well as indie director Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed). Last week we predicted it’d be number one but it hardly seems like to team to bring a record breaking smash hit.

US:

1. Jurassic World – Director: Colin Trevorrow – $208.8 million
2. Spy – Paul Feig – $15.6 million
3. San Andreas – Brad Peyton – $10.8 million
4. Insidious Chapter 3 – Leigh Whannell – $7.3 million
5. Pitch Perfect 2 – Elizabeth Banks – $6.4 million

UK:

1. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow – £19.4 million
2. Spy – Paul Feig – £1.5 million
3. San Andreas – Brad Peyton – £0.8 million
4. Insidious Chapter 3 – Leigh Whannell – £0.7 million
5. Pitch Perfect 2 – Elizabeth Banks – £0.4 million

While we had expected Jurassic World to be successful, we didn’t anticipate it stealing box-office records from Avengers Assemble and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. At the beginning of the year, we predicted that Age of Ultron, Spectre and Star Wars: The Force Awakens would be the big hitters with Jurassic World, Ant-Man, Terminator 5, Mission Impossible 5 and others lagging behind but this is just one in a series of upsets including the flops of Tomorrowland and Jupiter Ascending and the successes of Furious 7, Mad Max: Fury Road and Fifty Shades of Grey. This week I’ve scored 8/10.

US:

1. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow
2. Inside Out – Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen
3. Dope – Rick Famuyiwa
4. Spy – Paul Feig
5. San Andreas – Brad Peyton

UK:

1. Jurassic World – Colin Trevorrow
2. Mr Holmes – Bill Condon
3. Spy – Paul Feig
4. The Longest Ride – George Tillman Jr
5. Entourage – Doug Ellin

Chris Pratt in Jurassic World, This week’s US and UK number one.

Mission: Impossible 5 posters, James Gunn teases Guardians 2 title and Star Wars director rumours

The new Disney-owned Star Wars franchise has assembled a brilliant set of filmmakers including writers Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark), Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3) and Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past), producer Kathleen Kennedy (Lincoln) and directors JJ Abrams (Super 8), Rian Johnson (Looper) and Gareth Edwards (Godzilla). When Josh Trank (Chronicle) departed the second spin off film he left a vacancy that’s looking to be filled. The latest rumour indicates that the two directors in contention for the job are Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake, Stardust, Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class, Kingsman: The Secret Service) and Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Zathura, Elf, Chef). Thematically, Favreau is more in tune with the Star Wars spirit but Vaughn’s consistency gives him the edge. The current rumours on this spin off are that it’ll focus on an adventure involving Han Solo and Boba Fett.

Marvel’s entries tend to vary between having a subtitle or not. In one camp there’s the Iron Man trilogy, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Avengers Assemble and the upcoming Ant-Man and on the other there’s Captain America: The First Avenger, The Winter Soldier and Civil War, Thor: The Dark World and Ragnarok and the recent Avengers: Age of Ultron. We’d assumed that the follow up to last year’s smash hit Guardians of the Galaxy would simply be titled Guardians of the Galaxy 2 but in a recent tweet director James Gunn (Slither, Super), who has just finished the script, suggested that there’d be a new title:“No spoilers – not even the title.” We’d suspect that the title will give away a key villain or location in the film.

We’re expecting the cast to include Chris Pratt (Jurassic World) as Quill, Zoe Saldana (Avatar) as Gamora, Vin Diesel (Pitch Black) as Groot, Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) as Rocket, Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men) as Thanos, Benicio Del Toro (Traffic) as The Collector, Dave Bautista (Spectre) as Drax, Karen Gillan (Oculus) as Nebula, Michael Rooker (The Walking Dead) as Yondu, John C Reilly (Chicago) as Denarian Dey, Glenn Close (Dangerous Liaisons) and Seth Green (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as Howard the Duck.

Finally, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation has begun the obligatory character poster campaign. In the spy sequel, Christopher McQuarrie (Jack Reacher) directs the cast of Tom Cruise (Edge of Tomorrow, Minority Report), Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker, Avengers Assemble), Rebecca Ferguson (The White Queen, Hercules), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Stark Trek), Sean Harris (Prometheus, ’71), Simon McBurney (Rev, The Theory of Everything) and Alec Baldwin (Still Alice, 30 Rock).

Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation – July 30th

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – April 28th 2017

Untitled Star Wars Anthology – May 2018

Andy Serkis’ Star Wars character revealed and Gunn drops GoTG2 villain hints

“There has been an awakening in the Force. Have you felt it?”

This opening line from the now iconic Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer belonged to the disembodied voice of Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, The Avengers: Age of Ultron, King Kong) but we had no idea who the character was. It’s now revealed that the master of mo-cap is playing Supreme Leader Snoke, who we’re now presuming is evil.

As well as returning favourites Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and ost of the new roles have been revealed: Oscar Isaac (A Most Violent Year) plays pilot Poe Dameron, Adam Driver (Girls) plays First Order enforcer Kylo Ren, Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones) plays villainous commander Captain Phasma, John Boyega (Attack the Block) is ex-Stormtrooper Finn, Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) plays pirate Max Kanata and newcomer Daisy Ridley is scavenger Rey. However, Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina) and Max Von Sydow’s (Minority Report) roles haven’t been revealed.

While Marvel’s sci-fi smash hit Guardians of the Galaxy was undeniably brilliant it could have done with a more iconic villain than Ronin (Lee Pace) and let Thanos (Josh Brolin), Korath (Djimon Hounsou) and The Collector (Benicio Del Toro). After a recent suggestion that the sequel’s villain be Kang the Conqueror or the Shi’ar Empire but director James Gunn (Slither, Super) shot the rumours down. “Shi’ar and Kang are both owned by Fox. All decisions about who is in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 were made a long time ago.” This isn’t entirely promising for the film but it does mean that maybe Fantastic Four are facing Kang in a future instalment. Or the X-Men might use him to set up the Apocalypse Twins storyline to lead on from next years X-Men: Apocalypse.

GotG2 will likely star Chris Pratt (Jurassic World, The Lego Movie) as Star Lord, Zoe Saldana (Avatar, Stark Trek) as Gamora, Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook, American Sniper) as Rocket, Vin Diesel (Fast Five, Pitch Black) as Groot, Karen Gillan (Oculus, Doctor Who) as Nebula, Dave Bautista (Riddick, Spectre) as Drax, John C Reilly (Chicago, Wreck-It Ralph) as Denarian Dey, Glenn Close (Fatal Attractions, Dangerous Liaisons) as Nova Prime, Benicio Del Toro (Traffic, Sicario) as The Collector and Josh Brolin (No Country For Old Men, American Gangster) as Thanos.

Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens – December 18th

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – April 28th 2017

First still from Scorsese’s Silence, Martin Freeman joins Civil War and Indiana Jones 5 confirmed

Martin Scorsese is a director renowned for his acclaimed crime epics The Departed, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, Casino, Gangs of New York, Shutter Island and The Wolf of Wall Street as well as works like Raging Bull, Hugo and The Aviator. His latest work is a missionary drama titled Silence and we’ve just got our hands on the first image from it. Silence stars Andrew Garfield (The Social Network, The Amazing Spider-Man), Adam Driver (The Force Awakens, Girls), Ciaran Hinds (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Road to Perdition) and Liam Neeson (Batman Begins, Schindler’s List).

Following an iconic debut in Steven Spielberg’s (Saving Private Ryan, Catch Me If You Can, Lincoln, Jurassic Park) 1981 adventure Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones completed a near perfect trilogy with the well liked prequel Temple of Doom and classic sequel The Last Crusade (featuring an ingenious turn from Sean Connery as Indy’s dad). Spielberg revived the series in 2008’s Kingdom of the Crystal Skull but it spoilt the series’ clean streak despite classy additions like Cate Blanchett and John Hurt.

There’s been plenty of chatter about a fifth film and producer Kathleen Kennedy (Poltergeist, Back to the Future, The Sixth Sense, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) has spoken out about the possibility. “”An Indiana Jones film will one day be made inside this company,” said Kennedy. “When it will happen, I’m not quite sure. We haven’t started working on a script yet, but we are talking about it.” Harrison Ford (Blade Runner) and Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy).

Martin Freeman (Fargo, The World’s End) and Benedict Cumberbatch (Star Trek Into Darkness, The Imitation Game) are have turned out to be an inseparable on screen force following playing Watson and Holmes on the hit show Sherlock as well as Baggins and Smaug in fantasy epic trilogy The Hobbit. After Cumberbatch joined the MCU as Doctor Strange, Freeman is following suit by joining the ensemble of Captain America: Civil War. His role is still undisclosed but we’d love to see him play Norman Osborn (former Green Goblin-turned key politician in the Marvel universe).

Civil War stars Chris Evans (Snowpiercer), Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Elizabeth Olsen (Godzilla), Anthony Mackie (The Adjustment Bureau), Daniel Bruhl (Rush), Chadwick Boseman (42), Sebastian Stan (Black Swan) and Robert Downey Jr (Sherlock Holmes).

Silence – 2016

Captain America: Civil War – April 29th 2016

Indiana Jones 5 – 2018?