Disney’s D23 announcements – The Force Awakens, Toy Story 4, Doctor Strange, Finding Dory and more!

If you felt that Comic-Con didn’t lift the lid on Disney’s upcoming works enough than D23 is for you. The expo of all things Disney enlightened us on all of their properties from Star Wars to Pixar to Marvel and all of the studio’s very own animated and live action features. Sadly there’s been no word on the likes of in the works projects such as Wreck-It Ralph 2, Frozen 2 or proposed remakes of Dumbo and Pinocchio. Firstly…

Pixar!

After critical and commercial triumph of Inside Out, the studio is rolling out its slate of six upcoming movies. The Good Dinosaur will tell the story of an alternate reality where humans are the Earth’s secondary species and dinosaurs still rule. It comes from director Peter Sohn (Partly Cloudy) and stars Anna Paquin (X-Men), Jeffrey Wright (Casino Royale), Steve Zahn (Dallas Buyers Club) and Frances McDormand (Burn After Reading). November 25th 2015

Thirteen years after Finding Nemo, Finding Dory will pick up with the characters of the previous instalment when Dory finds herself in a marine study institute. Newly announced cast members include Hayden Rolence (Whom I Fear), Ed O’Neill (Modern Family) and Kaitlin Olson (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia). Andrew Stanton (Wall-E) and Angus MacLane (Toy Story of Terror) direct the cast of Ellen DeGeneres (Ellen), Albert Brooks (Drive), Diane Keaton (The Godfather), Eugene Levy (American Pie), Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Dominic West (The Wire), Idris Elba (Pacific Rim) and Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man). June 17th 2016

Toy Story 4 is also on the way and a teaser poster graced and it was revealed that it will focus on a love story between Woody and Bo Peep. John Lasseter (Toy Story 1-2) and Josh Cooley (George and AJ) direct while we expect Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump), Joan Cusack (Say Anything) and Tim Allen (Galaxy Quest) to star. June 16th 2017

Lee Unkrich (Toy Story 3) has long been developing a film centred on the Mexican celebration of The Day of the Dead. It has finally been given a release date and a title, Coco. No casting announcements have yet been made. November 22nd 2017

Another sequel on the way is Cars 3. No plot details were offered but we do know that John Lasseter (Cars 1-2) will write and we’d expect Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers) and Larry the Cable Guy (Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector) to reprise their roles as Lightning McQueen and Mater respectively. June 15th 2018

The sequel Pixar fans have actually asking for will finally come out, 15 years after they asked for it. Assuming that the studio don’t want two sequels in the same year, The Incredibles 2 will head for a 2019 release. Brad Bird (Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation) will direct while we’d expect Craig T Nelson (Poltergeist), Holly Hunter (The Piano) and Samuel L Jackson (Avengers Assemble) to star.

Next up…

Disney Animation!

Disney’s latest animation Zootopia will portray a metropolis populated by mammals. Jason Bateman (Arrested Development), Ginnifer Goodwin (Once Upon a Time) and Alan Tudyk (Serenity) were already set to star but the latest addition is pop star/actress Shakira. The directors are Byron Howard (Tangled), Rich Moore (Wreck-It Ralph) and Jared Bush (behind the creative team of Big Hero 6). March 4th 2016

Next, the team behind Aladdin, Hercules and The Princess and the Frog arrived to unveil more from their latest work, Moana. Dwayne Johnson (Fast Five) and Alan Tudyk (Serenity) will star in the story of a plucky young woman who is assisted by a demi-god to reach a fabled island. November 23rd 2016

The newest announcement was Gigantic. Tangled‘s Nathan Greno will collaborate with Frozen’s songwriters, Robert and Kristen Lopez to bring the story of Jack and the Beanstalk to Spain in the age of exploration. March 9th 2018

Following that was…

Disney live action (aka Worlds, Galaxies and Universes)

True life disaster thriller The Finest Hours will depict the struggle for survival of a group of sailors in 1952. Craig Gillespie (Million Dollar Arm) directs with a cast including Chris Pine (Star Trek Into Darkness), Ben Foster (Lone Survivor), Casey Affleck (Gone Baby Gone), Holliday Grainger (Cinderella) and Eric Bana (Munich). January 29th 2016

The latest adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book was promoted by director Jon Favreau (Iron Man) as well as Oscar winning stars Ben Kingsley (Gandhi) and Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) and newcomer Neel Sethi. The classic story of an orphan raised by the animals of the jungle also stars Scarlett Johansson (Avengers Assemble), Idris Elba (Pacific Rim), Bill Murray (Ghostbusters), Giancarlo Esposito (The Usual Suspects) and Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter). April 15th 2016

Alice Through the Looking Glass will build upon the established world built in the Lewis Carroll books and the Tim Burton’s 2010 billion dollar hit. James Bobin (The Muppets) directs a cast featuring Mia Wasikowska (Crimson Peak), Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean), Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises), Helena Bonham Carter (The King’s Speech), Alan Rickman (Die Hard), Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat), Michael Sheen (Frost/Nixon), Andrew Scott (Pride), Rhys Ifans (Notting Hill), Toby Jones (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Lindsay Duncan (About Time), Stephen Fry (The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug) and Timothy Spall (Mr Turner). May 27th 2016

Next up was the family fantasy adventure Pete’s Dragon, about a young boy who seeks refuge from his family with a dragon. David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) directs while the film stars Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic World), Wes Bentley (Interstellar), Karl Urban (Dredd) and Robert Redford (Captain America: The Winter Soldier). August 12th 2016

Two films delivered no material as such but were teased or mentioned. Firstly, Queen of Katwe – a drama about a girl from Uganda who trains to become a world chess champion. Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) and David Oyelowo (Selma) will star with director Mira Nair (The Namesake). 2016

Also, Disney’s new iteration of Beauty and the Beast was present. The reboot (telling the story of a relationship between a monstrous prince and a young woman) is directed by Bill Condon (Mr Holmes) and stars Emma Watson (Harry Potter), Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey), Luke Evans (The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug), Josh Gad (Frozen), Gugu Mbatha Raw (Belle), Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting), Stanley Tucci (The Hunger Games), Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wonda), Emma Thompson (Saving Mr Banks) and Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings). March 17th 2017

Finally, there was news from the fifth instalment of a legendary franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. This one will see Captain Jack in search of the trident of Poseidon. Orlando Bloom (The Lord of the Rings) was announced to be returning as Will Turner for the first time since 2007. The duo of Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg (Kon-Tiki) direct an ensemble including Johnny Depp (Edward Scissorhands), Geoffrey Rush (The King’s Speech), Kaya Scodelario (The Maze Runner), Brendon Thwaites (Maleficent), David Wenham (300), Stephen Graham (This is England) and Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men). July 17th 2017

Marvel

We won’t include Marvel’s full extensive line up but two of their instalments next year. Because of the studio’s infamous secrecy, none of the material shown has made it to the public. Captain America: Civil War showed off its trailer to the D23 audience. Anthony and Joe Russo (The Winter Soldier) direct with a cast including Chris Evans (Snowpiercer), Anthony Mackie (The Adjustment Bureau), Scarlett Johansson (Lucy), Daniel Bruhl (Rush), Sebastian Stan (Black Swan), Frank Grillo (The Purge: Anarchy), Emily VanCamp (Revenge), Robert Downey Jr (Sherlock Holmes), Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker), Elizabeth Olsen (Godzilla), Paul Bettany (A Beautiful Mind), Don Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda), Tom Holland (The Impossible), William Hurt (Artificial Intelligence) and Martin Freeman (The Hobbit). April 29th 2016

Doctor Strange is another of Marvel’s latest. Scott Derickson (Sinister) directs the supernatural thriller of which the recent concept art many likened to Inception. Marvel head Kevin Feige (Iron Man trilogy) could neither confirm or deny the rumours of Rachel McAdams joining the film but we do know that Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), Tilda Swinton (Michael Clayton) and Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave). November 4th 2016

Star Wars

Star Wars: The Force Awakens was heralded by this stunning poster from Drew Struzan – the legendary poster designer who craft iconic works for Back to the Future and Blade Runner. JJ Abrams (Star Trek Into Darkness) directs a cast including Harrison Ford (Blade Runner), Mark Hamill (Kingsman: The Secret Service), Carrie Fisher (When Harry Met Sally), Andy Serkis (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes), John Boyega (Attack the Block), Daisy Ridley (Toast of London), Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina), Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave), Domhnall Gleeson (About Time), Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones), Adam Driver (Frances Ha) and Max Von Sydow (Shutter Island). December 18th 2015

The first spin-off has had a full title announcement, cast reveals and first still. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story has added to its ranks Alan Tudyk (Serenity), Donnie Yen (Ip Man), Wen Jiang (Devils on the Doorstep) and Mads Mikkelson (Casino Royale). Gareth Edwards (Godzilla) will direct with the cast of Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything), Ben Mendelsohn (Killing Them Softly), Diego Luna (Elysium), Jonathan Aris (Sherlock), Riz Ahmed (Nightcrawler) and Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland). December 16th 2017

There wasn’t any news on Star Wars: Episode VIII – directed by Looper’s Rian Johnson and coming out May 26th 2017 – or the Han Solo spin off – directed by 21 Jump Street’s Phil Lord and Chris Miller and coming out May 25th 2018.

It was revealed that the third and final instalment of the new sequel trilogy (Star Wars: Episode IX) will be directed by Colin Trevorrow (Jurassic World) but the returning cast members are yet to be announced!

Weekend box-office – 12th to 18th of April 2014 – can Captain America shield its success from Rio?

Last week, Marvel’s Captain America sequel The Winter Soldier made an excellent entry into the UK box office but it was a fair bit behind recent Marvel instalments such as Thor: The Dark World in terms of financial success. We were unsure of its fortune in the US but it seems as if the patriotic hero has triumphed in his home country. Meanwhile in the UK, The Winter Soldier came into its second week in the chart against three huge new entries: animated sequel Rio 2, biblical epic Noah and teen-novel adaptation (and number one US smash hit) Divergent.

US:

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Director: Anthony and Joe Russo – $96 million
2. Noah – Darren Aronofsky – $17 million
3. Divergent – Neil Burger – $13 million
4. God’s Not Dead – Harold Cronk – $7.7 million
5. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson – $6.3 million

UK:

1. Rio 2 – Carlos Saldanha – £2.9 million
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo – £2.8 million
3. Noah – Darren Aronkofsky – £2.5 million
4. Divergent – Neil Burger – £1.8 million
5. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin – £0.9 million

The Winter Soldier has done excellently in the US, a cut above Thor: The Dark World’s $86 million, while Noah is quickly surpassing financial expectations. Quirky comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel made a surprise entry at fifth place and God’s Not Dead, despite possessing no famous stars and no critical acclaim, has now taken eighteen times its small budget at the box-office. Rio 2 has taken the UK top spot while Noah makes a decent debut. Divergent however has fallen surprisingly flat of its expectations. This week, I’ve scored a solid 6/10, taking my running total to 110/230.

US:

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo
2. Rio 2 – Carlos Saldanha
3. Noah – Darren Aronofsky
4. Draft Day – Ivan Reitman
5. Divergent – Neil Burger

UK:

1. Rio 2 – Carlos Saldanha
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo
3. The Raid 2 – Gareth Evans
4. Noah – Darren Aronofsky
5. The Quiet Ones – John Pogue

Anne Hathaway in Rio 2, this week’s US number one.

Chris Evans and Anthony Mackie in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, this week’s US number one.

Alice 2 casts Hatter’s father and Maisie Richardson Sellers added to Star Wars rumours

This month, we’re expecting the cast list for Star Wars: Episode VII to drop dramatically soon as the stars a finally revealed. So far, we know that Michael B Jordan, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Soairse Ronan, Gary Oldman, Jesse Plemons, Matt Smith, Sullivan Stapleton, Jack Reynor, Adam Driver, Jack O’Connell, Matthew James Thomas, John Boyega, Ed Speelers, Ray Fisher, Jason Flemyng, Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Fassbender and Hugo Weaving have been, in some way, rumoured and attached to JJ Abrams’ (Star Trek Into Darkness, Lost, Super 8, Felicity, Alias) reboot alongside the original’s Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Warwick Davis, Billy Dee Williams and Peter Mayhew.

It’s at this point that we introduce Maisie Richardson Sellers, an actress who’s only credit is in short film Our First World. The Hollywood Reporter states that she’s being considered for the female lead in the film. Sellers isn’t at all well known so we can expect that she came into Disney’s radar with the numerous auditions that took place all over Britain. Like I said, we genuinely can’t be too far from the official cast announcements so stay on Tuorhoth Movies for any updates.

The Muppets and Flight of the Conchords’ James Bobin takes over directing duties from Tom Burton for Alice in Wonderland’s sequel Through the Looking Glass. We know that Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska and Helena Bonham Carter will return, Sacha Baron Cohen has been rumoured for a role and we can expect the first film’s Anne Hathaway, Alan Rickman, Matt Lucas and Crispin Glover to return. We can know confirm that The Other Boleyn Girl’s Mark Rylance has joined the cast as Mad Hatter’s (Depp) father. The original’s reception was varied and it’ll have been six long years since the billion dollar success so it’s quite hard to predict what success the film will find.

Through the Looking Glass – May 27th 2016

Star Wars: Episode VII – December 18th 2015

Weekend box-office – 5th to 11th of April 2014 – can Noah flood Divergent away?

Religion focused films seemed to have taken a hold on the recent US box office, despite having no genuine stars in them IE God’s Not Dead and Son of God. Now, genesis story Noah has arrived to take the weekend by storm, with heavy biblical themes, huge star quality and immense directing talent. Last week, we predicted that it’d shove aside the recent strong entries Divergent and Muppets Most Wanted. Meanwhile, The Winter Soldier’s UK debut could tell if the sequel could live up to the financial success of other recent Marvel work.

US:

1. Noah – Director: Darren Aronofsky – $44 million
2. Divergent – Neil Burger – $26.5 million
3. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin – $11.4 million
4. Mr Peabody and Sherman – Rob Minkoff – $9.5 million
5. God’s Not Dead – Harold Cronk – $9 million

UK:

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo – £6 million
2. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin – £2.2 million
3. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson – £0.8 million
4. Non-Stop – Juanne Collet Serra – £0.4 million
5. Need for Speed – Scott Waugh – £0.3 million

Noah has, unsurprisingly, made a deep impression into the box office in the States but the more interesting events are in the UK. A low taking week all-in-all but Captain America seem to have done well. Still, it’s way off from Thor: The Dark World’s initial takings of £8.8 million but the latter has Tom Hiddleston, a hugely popular presence in the UK, in a lead role while the latter, being the most patriotic of all superheroes, should dominate more in the US. Muppets Most Wanted performed well against competition but the previous films total UK earnings were near £30 million – a figure this film can’t hope to achieve. This week’s score of 6/10 takes our running total up to 104/220.

US:

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo
2. Noah – Darren Aronofsky
3. Divergent – Neil Burger
4. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin
5. Mr Peabody and Sherman – Rob Minkoff

UK:

1. Divergent – Neil Burger
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo
3. Noah – Darren Aronofsky
4. Rio 2 – Carlos Saldanha
5. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin

Sebastian Stan in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, this week’s UK box-office number one.

Russell Crowe in Noah, this week’s US box-office number one.

Weekend box-office – 28th of March to 4th April 2014 – will Divergent be dauntless against The Muppets?

It’s likely that this week is the one to cram in your major but risky releases before Captain America arrives to dominate the box office and so we’ve got a battle between sci-fi thriller Divergent and comedy sequel Muppets Most Wanted. On paper, Muppets should triumph due to it’s huge fan base but it’s possible that the young adult novel adaptation Divergent could follow the likes of Twilight and Hunger Games with huge success and not sink like Mortal Instruments, Beautiful Creatures or The Host. Find out what we thought would happen last week before checking out what went down at the box office below.

US:

1. Divergent – Director: Neil Burger – $56 million
2. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin – $16.5 million
3. Mr Peabody and Sherman – Rob Minkoff – $11.7 million
4. 300: Rise of an Empire – Noam Murro – $8.7 million
5. God’s Not Dead – Harold Cronk – $8.6 million

UK:

1. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson – £1.3 million
2. Need for Speed – Scott Waugh – £1 million
3. The Lego Movie – Phil Lord, Chris Miller – £0.8 million
4. 300: Rise of an Empire – Noam Murro – £0.8 million
5. Non-Stop – Juanne Collet Serra – £0.7 million

The Muppets have genuinely underperformed in the US but they’re an international sensation and could attempt to recoup oversees. Divergent’s success however may well have greenlighted it’s sequel, most likely called Insurgent. Anderson’s Budapest Hotel has crept up the box office to the top while Need for Speed, Lego Movie, 300 and Non-Stop have all slipped. This week I’ve scored 5/10 taking my running total to 98/210.

US:

1. Noah – Darren Aronofsky
2. Divergent – Neil Burger
3. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin
4. Sabotage – David Ayer
5. Mr Peabody and Sherman – Rob Minkoff

UK:

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Anthony and Joe Russo
2. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin
3. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson
4. The Lego Movie – Phil Lord, Chris Miller
5. The Legend of Hercules – Renny Harlin

Theo James and Shailene Woodley in Divergent, this week’s US number one.

Ralph Fiennes and Saoirse Ronan in The Grand Budapest Hotel, this week’s UK number one.

Weekend box-office – 21st to 27th of March 2014 – will audiences feel the Need for Speed?

Aaron Paul (better known as Breaking Bad’s Jesse Pinkman) is having his qualities as a big-screen action star with his lead in Need For Speed which bids to make a mark on the box-office this week. It seemed like it had no major competition besides returning favourites Mr Peabody and Sherman, Grand Budapest Hotel and 300: Rise of an Empire. We predicted last week that it’d make a strong start but the real measure of success will be the opening numbers themselves.

US:

1. Mr Peabody and Sherman – Director: Rob Minkoff – $21.2 million
2. 300: Rise of and Empire – Noam Murro – $19.1 million
3. Need for Speed – Scott Waugh – $17.8 million
4. Non-Stop – Juanne Collet Serra – $10.6 million
5. The Single Moms Club – Tyler Perry – $8.3 million

UK:

1. Need for Speed – Scott Waugh – £2 million
2. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson – £1.3 million
3. 300: Rise of an Empire – Noam Murro – £1.2 million
4. The Lego Movie – Phil Lord, Chris Miller – £1 million
5. Non-Stop – Juanne Collet Serra – £0.9 million

Mr Peabody has suddenly bounced into pole position in its second week while 300: ROAE and Non-Stop slipped places Tyler Perry’s Madea Christmas follow up Singles Moms Club made a poor start. Grand Budapest Hotel leaped up a place, thriving in the alternative to the blockbusters that sandwich it. Last week’s predictions score me 2/10 taking my running total to 93/200.

US:

1. Divergent – Neil Burger
2. Muppets Most Wanted – James Bobin
3. Mr Peabody and Sherman – Rob Minkoff
4. 300: Rise of an Empire – Noam Murro
5. Need for Speed – Scott Waugh

UK:

1. Need for Speed – Scott Waugh
2. A Long Way Down – Pascal Chaumeil
3. Starred Up – David Mackenzie
4. 300: Rise of an Empire – Noam Murro
5. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson

Max Charles and Ty Burrell in Mr Peabody and Sherman, this week’s US box-office.

Imogen Poots and Aaron Paul in Need for Speed, this week’s UK box-office number one.

John Boyega part of Star Wars rumour, Helena Bonham Carter for Alice 2 and Rooney Mara is Pan’s Tiger Lily

So far, only Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp and (potentially) Sacha Baron Cohen have been added by director James Bobin (Flight of the Concords, The Muppets), who replaces Tim Burton, to Alice in Wonderland 2, or Through the Looking Glass. It’s now confirmed, by Variety, that Helena Bonham Carter is returning for the sequel.

The two time Oscar nominee and star of Fight Club, Sweeney Todd and The King’s Speech will reprise her role as the villainous Red Queen who was last seen being banished into the woods with Crispin Glover’s Spader. We can expect her to be on a vengeful quest on both Alice and the White Queen (Anne Hathaway) but neither Glover or Hathaway have spoken about returning yet.

Joining Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Gary Oldman, Saoirse Ronan, Michael B Jordan, Michael Fassbender, Adam Driver, Hugo Weaving, Matt Smith, Sullivan Stapleton, Jack Reynor, Jack O’Connell, Jason Flemyng andJesse Plemons as well as original stars Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill on the extensive list of Star Wars: Episode VII rumoured actors is four fresh faces. Attack the Block and Imperial Dream’s star John Boyega leads the way in a new casting net for JJ Abrams’ reboot alongside Downton Abbey and Eragon’s Ed Speelers, Billy Elliot and The Lost Prince’s Matthew James Thomas and theatre actor Ray Fisher, who could be challenging Plemons for the role of an unspecified Jedi.

Atonement and Hanna director Joe Wright is set to be bringing us a new reimagining of Peter Pan in 2015. Hugh Jackman (X-Men, Les Miserables) was cast as Blackbeard, captain to the young private Hook (Garrett Hedlund – Tron: Legacy, Inside Llewyn Davis) but now Oscar nominee Rooney Mara (Side Effects, Her, The Social Network, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) has been cast as Tiger Lily, although this does confirm that they’ll be replacing genuine Native American acting with a prosthetic similar to Johnny Depp’s Tonto in The Lone Ranger. Perhaps this can lead to further speculation as to who could be playing Peter Pan, Tinker Bell or The Lost Boys.

Pan – July 17th 2015

Alice in Wonderland 2/Through the Looking Glass – May 27th 2016

Star Wars: Episode VII – December 18th 2015

The Super-Bowl 2014 Trailers special: Transformers 4, Noah and more!

We’re not venturing into sports just yet but the American Football extravaganza known as Superbowl is a huge event for advertising. With well over 100 million Americans watching, companies have to pay the whopping sum of $8 million dollars just for a one minute advertising slot. Only the biggest of big budget, big star blockbusters can afford to make the cut so you may be quite surprised when I tell you that among the nine titanic efforts trailered last night is the new project from Darren Aronofsky!

But before we get to that, we have the matter of a movie I recently predicted to make over a billion dollars. I speak of the fourquel of a monster series – Transformers: Age of Extinction.

Director Michael Bay (Armaggedon, Pearl Harbour, Bad Boys) returns to the series after a quick, and unsuccessful, break to make Pain and Gain. The franchise hopes to continue it success with an new human cast with Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz and Jack Reynor, replacing the old guard of Shia LaBeaouf, Rosie Huntington-Whitley and Megan Fox. This time, the Autobots are at battle with the villainous Dinobots and the technology tycoon Harold Attinger (Kelsey Grammer), the former is revealed in the very first trailer. The film also stars Stanley Tucci and Peter Cullen. July 10th.

The second instalment in this nine-part epic is Marvel’s very own Captain America: The Winter Soldier. We’ve seen footage from this before but Superbowl unveiled the second trailer, which offers more in depth look at new antagonist The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan). The plot pitches Captain America (Chris Evans) still adjusting to life in the 21st Century as well as working with SHIELD Agents such as Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Crossbones (Frank Grillo) and Falcon (Anthony Mackie) to bring down a new menace who’s terrorising Washington. Cap 2 also stars Emily VanCamp, Samuel L Jackson, Robert Redford, Cobie Smulders, Dominic Cooper, Hayley Attwell and Toby Jones and is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo. March 28th.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is next. Marc Webb returns to direct the sequel which increases the stakes for Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) who has to balance life between his superhero alter ego Spider-Man, who’s battling Electro (Jamie Foxx), Rhino (Paul Giamatti) and the sinister father/son double act of Oscorp (Dane DeHaan as Harry and Chris Cooper as Norman), and normal life with the grieving Gwen (Emma Stone) and lonely Aunt May (Sally Field). The new trailer can be found here. To be honest, I’m not that impressed. April 18th.

Following on from their “Across the Internet” campaign, Muppets Most Wanted has launched a new ad in which the new doppelganging villain Clementine literally reaches out to us Across the Internet. Tina Fey, Ty Burrell, Stanley Tucci, Ricky Gervais, Lady Gaga, Tom Hiddleston, Salma Hayek, Christoph Waltz and Danny Trejo make up the human cast alongside the classic Muppets such as Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Gonzo, Sam the Eagle, Beaker, Dr Honeydrew, Walter and Animal. Flight of the Conchords/The Muppets’ James Bobin directs. March 28th.

With a premise of no CG, just expensive cars going ridiculously fast, video game adaptation Need for Speed is actually in good shape. It sees newly released ex-con Tobey Marshall (Aaron Paul – Breaking Bad’s Jesse Pinkman) getting back into the dragraces that got him locked up for a year. Upon hearing the news, Marshall’s ex racing partner Dino (Dominic Cooper – Marvel’s Howard Stark) puts a bounty on his head. Scott Waugh (Act of Valour) directs a huge cast including Michael Keeton, Dakota Johnson, Scott Mescudi and Imogen Poots. The superbowl spot can be found here. March 12th.

We return to the aforementioned Darren Aronofsky who, after impressing with the likes of Black Swan, The Wrestler, Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, makes his comeback with a huge budget and cast list for his new epic picture Noah. The new trailer is available but I’m shocked that a director as prestigious as Aronofsky would fall to the depths of a Twitter hashtag; this time it’s “#TheFloodIsComing”!. The film stars Russell Crowe, Anthony Hopkins, Jennifer Connelly, Emma Watson, Logan Lerman, Ray Winstone, Kevin Durand, Douglas Booth, Nick Nolte and Frank Langella. April 4th.

Pompeii seems to me like one of the potential box office clunkers of the year with a decent cast list which doesn’t match its huge budget but director Paul WS Anderson (Event Horizon, Resident Evil) may prove me wrong. The new trailer unveils a fair bit of spectacle so the film won’t rely on the cast of Kit Harrington, Carrie Anne Moss, Emily Browning, Jessica Lucas, Kiefer Sutherland, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Jared Harris and Jessica Lucas alone. May 2nd.

3 Days to Kill launched a new trailer too. McG (This Means War, Terminator: Salvation, We Are Marshall, Charlie’s Angles) directs this new action thriller starring Kevin Costner as an dying agent who teams up with his daughter for one last assignment which get him the life saving drug he needs. Also starring Amber Heard, Connie Nielson and Hailee Steinfeld. February 21st.

Lastly, we have another Kevin Costner project. Draft Day sees the manger of American Football’s Cleveland Browns who’s struggling to find the number one draft pick for his team. Costner will star alongside Terry Crews, Jennifer Garner and Ellen Burstyn while director Ivan Reitman (Ghost Busters, No Strings Attached). April 11th

Sacha Baron Cohen linked to Alice in Wonderland, NTV results plus Harrington, Ronan and Mara among Fantastic Four rumours

Director James Bobin (11 time Emmy nominee, director and writer of both Da Ali Gi Show and Flight of the Conchords and director of musical reboot The Muppets) is confirmed to be taking over from Tim Burton as director of the sequel to the billion dollar box office smash hit Alice in Wonderland titled Through the Looking Glass. Mia Wasikowska and Johnny Depp will reprise their roles as Alice and The Mad Hatter. Variety now reports that comedy legend and Oscar nominee Sacha Baron Cohen is in negotiating for a role in the sequel.

The London born star of Borat, The Dictator, Hugo, Les Miserables and Madagascar may be brought in due to familiarity with the cast and crew. Cohen worked with Depp on Sweeney Todd and Bobin on Da Ali Gi Show. We reckon he may fit into Linda Woolverton’s script, of coarse based on Lewis Carroll’s novels, as a villain.

2015 is packed with superhero releases. The Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant-Man, Terminator: Genesis, Chappie and Mad Max: Fury Road are among the most popular, if you count them all as superheroes, and they drove Batman vs. Superman into hiding in 2016. Another major release that hasn’t generated a huge amount of hype as it hasn’t gathered many stars at all, besides director of small budet but huge box office hit Chronicle and rumours of Michael B Jordan (Fruitvale Station) playing Human Torch, is The Fantastic Four but that’s subject to change.

The script is finished and screen tests are imminent. The key rumours are for Soairse Ronan (Atonement, Hanna, The Lovely Bones, Byzantium), Miles Teller (The Spectacular Now, Project X), Kate Mara (American Horror Story, House of Cards, 127 Hours) and Kit Harrington (Silent Hill: Revelation, Pompeii, Game of Thrones’ Jon Snow) but there’s nothing about what roles they’ll be taking on, which, for those unfamiliar with the Marvel comics, are Human Torch/Johnny Storm, Invisible Woman/Susan Storm, The Thing/Ben Grimm and Mr Fantastic/Reed Richards.

Finally, the National Television Award winners were announced in the last few minutes. As well as its fiftieth anniversary, Doctor Who celebrated wins for Best Drama Performance (Matt Smith) Best Drama. Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch beat the likes of Olivia Coleman, David Tennant and Idris Elba to win Best TV Detective.

The Fantastic Four – June 18th 2015

Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There/Alice in Wonderland 2 – May 27th 2016

Depp and Wasikowska confirmed for Wonderland 2 and Elizabeth Olsen officially in for Avengers 2

Elizabeth Olsen starred in indie hits such as Martha Marcy May Marlene, Silent House and Liberal Arts. She’s got three major roles coming up: Spike Lee’s remake of Chan Wook Park’s cult classic thriller Oldboy, with Aaron Taylor Johnson and Bryan Cranston on Gareth Edwards’ epic reboot Godzilla and Joss Whedon’s hopefully stunning comic book sequel The Avengers: Age of Ultron, which Olsen has finally been confirmed for. She’ll play Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch, brother of Quicksilver (Godzilla star Taylor Johnson). The ensemble includes Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Cobie Smulders, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L Jackson, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo and James Spader.

In some ways, Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland was a sequel in its own way. Its story takes place many years after the original animation, and Lewis Carroll’s books, and sees Alice’s return to a world she thought was a dream but it wasn’t adapting Carroll’s actual sequel Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There. James Bobin (The Muppets) will be taking over directing for this adaptation of The Looking Glass and stars Johnny Depp and Mia Wasikowska are set to star in a 27th of May 2016 release date. There’s still no word on Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Anne Hathaway or Matt Lucas.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron – May 1st 2015

Alice in Wonderland 2/Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There/Through the Looking Glass – May 27th 2016