New Star Trek 3 title rumours

The JJ Abrams reboot of the Star Trek franchise in 2009 and the 2013 follow up Into Darkness are two of the most acclaimed films in the series but Abrams had to sit out on the third due to the arrival of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Justin Lin (Fast Five) has replaced him as director while Simon Pegg writes. The latest rumour states that the film’s title is Star Trek Beyond and will see the team go into deep unexplored space.

The cast includes Chris Pine (Jack Ryan, Into the Woods), Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the Galaxy, Avatar), Zachary Quinto (Heroes, Margin Call), Karl Urban (Dredd, The Lord of the Rings), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Mission: Impossible), Sofia Boutella (Kingsman: The Secret Service, Monster: Dark Continent), Anton Yelchin (Like Crazy, Fright Night), John Cho (Harold and Kumar, American Beauty) and Idris Elba (Prometheus, Thor, Pacific Rim.

Star Trek 3 – July 8th 2016

Eisenberg’s Luthor revealed, Russos set for Infinity War, new Child 44 posters and Idris Elba in talks for Star Trek 3

We were worried that The Social Network star Jesse Eisenberg’s performance as the supervillain Lex Luthor (yet another billionaire tech entrepreneur) would be a case of the typecasting that halted Dane DeHaan in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and why great performances such as Heath Ledger’s or Tom Hardy’s come out of the blue and excel. This first look at him in the role is something to get us hopeful however.

Batman V Superman is directed by Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen, Man of Steel) and stars Ben Affleck (Argo, Gone Girl), Henry Cavill (The Man From UNCLE), Amy Adams (American Hustle, Big Eyes), Gal Gadot (Fast and Furious), Jason Momoa (Game of Thrones), Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix, Hannibal), Scoot McNairy (Monsters), Holly Hunter (The Piano, The Incredibles), Diane Lane (Hollywoodland, The Perfect Storm) and Jeremy Irons (The Lion King, Reversal of Fortune).

As Avengers Assemble and Age of Ultron’s Joss Whedon ruled himself out from Infinity War. Now the two parted concluder to Phase 3 will be helmed by Anthony and Joe Russo, the sibling team who behind the Captain America instalments The Winter Soldier and Civil War. We still don’t know ant of the characters that’ll be surviving until the third and fourth Avengers films but we can expect the likes of Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher), Chris Hemsworth (Rush), Josh Brolin (No Country For Old Men) and Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game).

Eric Bana and Benedict Cumberbatch will be a tough act to follow but the newest Star Trek instalment is looking to cast Idris Elba. The star of Prometheus, Pacific Rim and Luther is in talks for the lead villain role for director Justin Lin (Fast Five). The cast includes Chris Pine (Jack Ryan, Into the Woods), Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the Galaxy, Avatar), Zachary Quinto (Heroes, Margin Call), Karl Urban (Dredd, The Lord of the Rings), Anton Yelchin (Fright NIght, Like Crazy), John Cho (American Beauty, Harold and Kumar) and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Mission: Impossible).

Finally today we’ve got our hands on the brand new posters for the thriller Child 44. The film depicts a detective in Soviet Russia who investigates a series of grim child murders. Daniel Espinosa (Safe House) directs the amazing ensemble of Tom Hardy (Inception, Locke), Noomi Rapace (Prometheus, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo), Jason Clarke (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Public Enemies), Paddy Considine (The Bourne Ultimatum, Pride), Joel Kinnaman (The Killing, RoboCop), Vincent Cassel (Black Swan, Trance), Charles Dance (Game of Thrones, The Imitation Game) and Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy).

Child 44 – Apirl 17th

Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice – March 25th 2016

Star Trek 3 – July 8th 2016

The Avengers: Infinity War – Part 1 – April 27th 2018

The Avengers: Infinity War – Part 2 – Apirl 16th 2019

Sam Rockwell in Poltergeist images, Cranston and Paul rumoured for new roles and new Daredevil trailer

“Theeere heeeere!”

Firstly today we have the very first look at the new remake of horror classic Poltergeist, courtesy of producer Sam Raimi (Spider-Man, Evil Dead) and British director Gil Kenan (City of Ember). It’ll depict a family moving into a new home, occupied by evil spirits and will star Sam Rockwell (Moon, Seven Psychopaths, Iron Man 2, The Assassination of Jesse James), Rosemarie DeWitt (The Company Men, Kill the Messenger, Mad Men) and Jared Harris (Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Mad Men, Lincoln, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button).

In 2014, Breaking Bad duo Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul went almost head to head with Godzilla and Need for Speed respectively getting released, the former Japanese beast being the obvious winner. They may be butting heads again as they are both connected with two different roles. Cranston (star of the Best Picture winning Argo) is rumoured for Star Trek 3.

The sequel (after both JJ Abrams and Roberto Orci quit) is on its third director with Justin Lin (Fast and Furious series) now set at the helm and will star Chris Pine (Into the Woods, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit), Zachary Quinto (Heroes), Zoe Saldana (Avatar, Guardians of the Galaxy), Karl Urban (The Lord of the Rings, Dredd), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Mission: Impossible 3), Anton Yelchin (Like Crazy, Fright Night) and John Cho (American Beauty).

Aaron Paul, last seen in biblical epic Exodus: Gods and Kings, may be in the running for the male lead in the first Star Wars spin off. Paul was involved in Star Wars before, playing Luke in Kevin Smith’s New Hope live script read. The subject of the film hasn’t been established but it’ll be directed by Godzilla’s Gareth Edwards and the female lead is in contention between Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything, Like Crazy), Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) and Rooney Mara (The Social Network, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Her).

Finally today we have the first full trailer for Netflix and Marvel’s very first collaboration: Daredevil. This teaser is both surprisingly brilliant and brutal. Showrunner Steven S DeKnight (Spartacus) commands the cast of Charlie Cox (The Theory of Everything, Stardust), Rosario Dawson (Sin City, Trance), Elden Henson (The Hunger Game: Mockingjay), Deborah Ann Woll (True Blood), Ayelet Zurer (Man of Steel, Munich) and Vincent D’Onofrio (Full Metal Jacket, Men in Black, The Judge).

Daredevil – April on Netflix

Star Trek 3 – July 8th 2016

Star Wars spin-off – December 16th

Poltergeist – July 31st

Wyatt, Tyldum, Lin and Duncan Jones in consideration for Star Trek 3 and Mr Turner leads London Critics

Departing to the new Star Wars trilogy, JJ Abrams’ sterling work on the Star Trek reboot series was always going to be hard to replace but the removal of esteemed writer Roberto Orci from the bridge proved the extremity of the task. Next Generation star and writer Jonathan Frakes has been lobbying for the job but those mentioned here are the most likely to succeed Abrams for Paramount’s so far untitled production.

On the shortlist are Rupert Wyatt, Daniel Espinosa, Justin Lin, Morten Tyldum and Duncan Jones. These five can easily be categorised into two camps: Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, The Gambler) and Jones (Source Code, Moon) are representing the sci-fi credentials while Lin (Fast and Furious 5/6) and Daniel Espinosa (Child 44, Safe House) are the action veterans in consideration. Morten Tyldum is an interesting contender. The Norwegian’s roots are with thrillers such as the greatly lauded Headhunters but is gaining acclaim for wartime drama and multi-Golden Globe nominee The Imitation Game.

In terms of who’s likely to get the job, the BAFTA winning Duncan Jones has already ruled himself out. Wyatt is sworn off the traditional blockbuster format and Lin is preoccupied with the next Bourne instalment. Tyldum appears to be embarking on a path to future Oscar glory and perhaps not the Final Frontier and I’m not sure Espinosa’s nuts-and-bolts style suits Star Trek’s uber stylish mould. The cast is yet to have been confirmed but we can expect to see Chris Pine (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Into the Woods), Karl Urban (Dredd, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers), Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the Galaxy, Out of the Furnace, Avatar), Zachary Quinto (Margin Call, Heroes), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Mission: Impossible), Anton Yelchin (Fright Night, Like Crazy) and John Cho (Sleepy Hollow, American Beauty).

Pride was the most obvious leader at the British Independent Film Awards but the London Critics Circle has selected the artistic biopic Mr Turner as its front runner in their own ceremony. It’s followed by the American releases of black comedy Birdman, dark thriller Nightcrawler, intense drumming story Whiplash, whimsical caper The Grand Budapest Hotel and coming of age drama Boyhood as well as the foreign language efforts Ida and Leviathan. Still the homegrown productions of Mr Turner, paranormal mystery Under the Skin and Steven Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything. Here’s the nominations in full.

Film of the Year:

Birdman
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Ida
Leviathan
Mr Turner
Nightcrawler
The Theory of Everything
Under the Skin
Whiplash

Foreign Language Film of the Year:

Ida
Leviathan
Norte, The End of History
Two Days, One Night
Winter Sleep

British Film of the Year:

The Imitation Game
Mr Turner
Pride
The Theory of Everything
Under the Skin

Documentary of the Year:

20,000 Days on Earth
Citizenfour
Manakamana
Next Goal Wins
Night Will Fall

Actor of the Year:

Benedict Cumberbatch – The Imitation Game
Jake Gyllenhaal – Nightcrawler
Michael Keaton – Birdman
Eddie Redmayne – The Theory of Everything
Timothy Spall – Mr Turner

Actress of the Year:

Marion Cotillard – Two Days One Night
Essie Davis – The Babadook
Scarlett Johansson – Under the Skin
Julianne Moore – Maps to the Stars, Still Alice

Supporting Actor of the Year:

Riz Ahmed – Nightcrawler
Ethan Hawke – Boyhood
Edward Norton – Birdman
Mark Ruffalo – Foxcatcher
JK Simmons – Whiplash

Supporting Actress of the Year:

Patricia Arquette – Boyhood
Marion Bailey – Mr Turner
Jessica Chastain – A Most Violent Year
Agata Kulesza – Ida
Emma Stone – Birdman

British Actor of the Year:

Benedict Cumberbatch – The Imitation Game
Tom Hardy – Locke, The Drop
Jack O’Connell – Starred Up, ’71, Unbroken
Eddie Redmayne – The Theory of Everything
Timothy Spall – Mr Turner

British Actress of the Year:

Emily Blunt – Edge of Tomorrow, Into the Woods
Felicity Jones – The Theory of Everything
Keira Knightley – The Imitation Game, Begin Again, Say When
Gugu Mbatha Raw – Belle
Rosamund Pike – Gone Girl, What We Did On Our Holiday

Young British Performer of the Year:

Daniel Huttlestone – Into the Woods
Alex Lawther – The Imitation Game
Corey McKinley – ’71
Will Poulter – The Maze Runner, Plastic
Saoirse Ronan – The Grand Budapest Hotel

Director of the Year:

Wes Anderson – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Jonathan Glazer – Under the Skin
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu – Birdman
Richard Linklater – Boyhood
Mike Leigh – Mr Turner

Screenwriter of the Year:

Wes Anderson – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Damien Chazelle – Whiplash
Dan Gilroy – Nightcrawler
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo – Birdman
Richard Linklater – Boyhood

Breakthrough British Filmmaker:

Hossein Amini – The Two Faces of January
Elaine Constantine – Northern Soul
Yann Demange – ’71
Iain Forsyth, Jane Pollard – 20,000 Days on Earth
James Kent – Testament of Youth

Technical Achievement Award:

’71
Birdman
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Inherent Vice
Leviathan
Mr Turner
A Most Violent Year
Under the Skin
Whiplash

Roberto Orci departs Star Trek 3 and rumours about new Nolan movie

JJ Abrams (Super 8) left a great gap when he parted ways with Star Trek after two brilliant films and traded it for Star Wars. His replacement as director for the third film was the writer Roberto Orci while the production was set for a release in 2016. Deadline have now reported that Orci is no longer attached but the reason is yet to have give an official reason. It still isn’t clear if he’s quit of his own accord or if Paramount gave him the boot. Either way it’s surprising, particularly as The Amazing Spider-Man franchise fell apart with his departure.

The search for his replacement has thrown up the far fetched suggestion of Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim VS The World, Hot Fuzz) while there’s a strong campaign for The Next Generation star/director Jonathan Frakes (Riker). Star Trek 3 will likely star Chris Pine (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, People Like Us), Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the Galaxy, Avatar), Zachary Quinto (Margin Call, American Horror Story), Karl Urban (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Dredd), Anton Yelchin (Like Crazy, Fright Night), John Cho (American Beauty, Sleepy Hollow), Alice Eve (Men in Black 3) and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Paul).

Christopher Nolan, director of Memento, Batman Begins, The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Inception and The Dark Knight Rises, new epic picture Interstellar got a fairly polarized reaction; some acclaimed it a masterpiece but it has gained its fair share of loathers. Warner Bros are now seeking him for sci-fi project Ready Player One, based upon Ernest Cline’s novel.

Part of that Interstellar’s success was based around the fact that Nolan succeeded in shrouding it in mystery completely until its announcement in early 2013. Even then we knew nothing and the film’s true motives were a secret before its release. Nolan may well be reluctant to take up a project whose exact details are already published. Should he sign on, I’d expect a 2017 release but I still suspect that he has his own 2016 project up his sleeve.

Star Trek 3 – 2016

Ready Player One – 2017?

Roberto Orci talks themes of Star Trek 3, Del Toro confirms Pacific Rim 2 and Age of Ultron cast confirmed for Comic-Con

Over the years, the San Diego Comic-Con has cemented its place as the biggest movie related event of the summer, roping in stars to promote the most hyped film and television of the next year. This year we’re hoping for exclusives on The Hobbit’s final chapter, a title for Captain America 3 and of coarse the latest on the sequel to the third highest grossing film of all time (and 16th greatest according to Empire) The Avengers. Its star Mark Ruffalo, who’ll likely play a larger role this time round, has now confirmed that the Age of Ultron cast will grace the convention with their presence, becoming the first guests to be announced to be attending Hall H this summer.

“Yeah, we’re gonna go out there,” the star of The Kids Are All Right and Zodiac explains, “We’re all flying, we’re flying from London. We’re working. We’re shooting. We’re gonna stop and get on a plane and go to Comic-Con together. It’s gonna be amazing.” We’re hoping for more Comic-Con announcements to come soon but there’s nothing the organisers will surely leave some of the lineups a mystery for the fans attending. Age of Ultron will star Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Chris Evans, James Spader, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor Johnson, Samuel L Jackson, Cobie Smulders, Thomas Kretschmann, Hayley Attwell, Don Cheadle, Josh Brolin and Paul Bettany and is directed by Joss Whedon (Firefly, Serenity, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Dr Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog, Much Ado About Nothing, Toy Story).

Even with JJ Abrams “gone leavin”, the fan pressure to make a third instalment to the widely successful rebooted Star Trek series is immense and so Into Darkness writer Roberto Orci is taking up the directing chair this time around and he’s taken some time out to fill us in on how Kirk and Co.’s story will evolve. “In they set out finally where the original series started,” says Orci. “The first two films – especially the 2009 film – was an origin story. It was about them coming together. So they weren’t the characters they were in the original series,” continues the director. “They were growing into them and that continues on in the second movie. So in this movie they are closer than they are to the original series characters that you have ever seen.

“They have set off on their five-year mission, so their adventure is going to be in deep space.” What many Trek fans are after is a story more focused on The Original Series’ theme of discovery, exploration, at least attempting negotiations and moving on but that kind of episodic narrative doesn’t work well with a two hour blockbuster. So long as the Klingon race play a major role (how about a Next Generation cameo or William Shatner finally turning up) and the rebooted cast of Chris Pine (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit), Zachary Quinto (Margin Call), Zoe Saldana (Avatar), John Cho (American Beauty), Anton Yelchin (Terminator Salvation), Alice Eve (Men In Black 3), Leonard Nimoy (The Wrath of Khan), Karl Urban (Dredd) and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World’s End, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol).

Guillermo Del Toro’s epic sci-fi action Pacific Rim became a cult hit with many fans and while it doubled its budget with its international takings and gained an overall of $410 million but wasn’t quite the smash Warners were hoping for. That plus the worry of writer Travis Beacham departing set back a potential sequel by some way but today Del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, Devil’s Backbone, Blade II, Hellboy), who’s now working with The Avengers’ Zak Penn, at last confirmed the follow up and its set in for April 2017. The delay may confuse some but Del Toro is still at work on horror flick Crimson Peak. We hope that Rim 2 will star Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Burn Gorman and Ron Perlman.

Pacific Rim 2 – April 7th 2017

Star Trek 3 – 2016

The Avengers: Age of Ultron – May 1st 2015

Star Trek 3 confirms the new director and Fantastic Beasts sets its release date

When author of the phenomenal Harry Potter book series JK Rowling announced her intentions to scribe a new fantasy adventure set in Harry’s world – based on the thin mock encyclopaedia Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them -, we had very little clue as to its connection to Harry’s story as well as if would be coming any time soon, with no talk of potential directors. The spin-off didn’t seem like it was going to come in the foreseeable future until now. The film has set its release date as the not too distant November 18th 2016. The plot, as we know it, is of daredevil wizard Newt Scamander travelling the globe in order to compile his textbook of Fantastic Beasts seventy years before Harry picks it up at Hogwarts.

With Into Darkness and Super 8’s JJ Abrams busy on some little known space opera called Star Wars: Episode VII, the job for the director of the third Star Trek of Abrams’ recent reboot has been open. Brits such as Rupert Wyatt and Joe Cornish have been rumoured gig but it’s confirmed that Roberto Orci (writer of Star Trek, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Fringe and Sleepy Hollow) will make the sci-fi sequel his directorial debut. Star Trek 3 will likely star Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Alice Eve, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg and Benedict Cumberbatch.

Star Trek 3 – 2016

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – November 18th 2016