The rumour mill immediately started turning as fans took this to mean The Killing Joke movie was getting the dream team back for one last outing. For those unaware, Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill have been the voice of Batman and The Joker together in television, film and computer games since 1992. Their first outing together was Batman: The Animated Series and over the years have worked together on work such as The New Batman Adventures, Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited (Hamill voiced The Trickster on this one). In games, they have voiced Batman and Joker in the Batman: Arkham series.
There has been a buzz about The Killing Joke movie since Collider reported that Hamill had confirmed he would be reprising the role of The Joker. During the article, it’s confirmed Hamill has already recorded his part for the film. The Killing Joke is an award-winning graphic novel, written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland which tells the story of how the Joker believes anyone can turn crazy if they have one truly bad day. The person Joker tries to test this on is Commissioner Gordon, with Batman trying desperately to stop him. The novel also has what some believe the closest thing to an origin story for the Joker, with the novel jumping between the two timelines.
While Mark Hamill has been quite open with his involvement in the movie, Kevin Conroy has yet to confirm his and even replied to a tweet about his by saying “no, no killing joke movie planned.” This could just be to throw people off the scent until an announcement hopefully comes soon.
Fingers crossed that we get the partnership that we are hoping for.
What do you think? Would you like to see them team up again for one last outing or do you have another actor in mind that you would like to hear as Batman? As always please let me know your thoughts in the comments.
If The Witch is anywhere near as nerve-jangling as the trailers have been, horror fans are in for something special. This most recent trailer shows us a little more of the film, but remains perfectly oblique and incredibly unsettling.
Here is the trailer:
The Witch has been around for a year now, premiering at Sundance last winter to rave reviews. Robert Eggers’ film has since been picked up and, rather than getting a limited release, will be released wide February 19. Here is the official synopsis:
In this exquisitely made and terrifying new horror film, the age-old concepts of witchcraft, black magic and possession are innovatively brought together to tell the intimate and riveting story of one family’s frightful unraveling in the New England wilderness circa 1630.
New England, 1630. Upon threat of banishment by the church, an English farmer leaves his colonial plantation, relocating his wife and five children to a remote plot of land on the edge of an ominous forest — within which lurks an unknown evil. Strange and unsettling things begin to happen almost immediately — animals turn malevolent, crops fail, and one child disappears as another becomes seemingly possessed by an evil spirit. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, family members accuse teenage daughter Thomasin of witchcraft, charges she adamantly denies. As circumstances grow more treacherous, each family member’s faith, loyalty and love become tested in shocking and unforgettable ways.
Writer/director Robert Eggers’ debut feature, which premiered to great acclaim at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival — winning the Best Director Prize in the U.S. Narrative Competition — painstakingly recreates a God-fearing New England decades before the 1692 Salem witch trials, in which religious convictions tragically turned to mass hysteria. Told through the eyes of the adolescent Thomasin — in a star-making turn by newcomer Anya Taylor-Joy — and supported by mesmerizing camera work and a powerful musical score, THE WITCH is a chilling and groundbreaking new take on the genre.
A24 studio cemented itself as an exciting new indie studio in 2015 with Ex Machina and Room to its credit. With The Witch kicking off 2016, A24 is starting things off right.
Disney released the first look at Princess Leia in Star Wars: Rebels, Julie Dolan will voice the princess in the premiere of season two, “A Princess in Lothal” that will air January 20.
Executive producer Dave Filoni talked with TV Insider about how they wanted to introduce the character to Rebels.
“We thought we had an opportunity to show her learning to be a leader, experimenting with the personality that becomes the stronger more resolute character you see in A New Hope. One of the complex challenges of depicting Leia in Rebels is that we have to remind the audience that at this point she is part of the Empire. She doesn’t believe in the Empire, but she is acting the part, almost a double agent,” said Filoni.
In the clip below, Kanan and Ezra don Stormtrooper armor to welcome a new ally: Princess Leia.
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 begins filming next month and it appears that Benicio Del Toro will not reprise his role as the Collector in the sequel.
Del Toro spoke with ComingSoon.net about the James Gunn sequel.
“I don’t think so,” Del Toro said when asked about The Collector returning. “They would have told me, I hope… I do hope to play that character again at some point.”
This doesn’t rule out a cameo, as Del Toro next project is produced by Disney as well. Filming begins on Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: Episode VIII.
Here is the confirmed cast for Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2; Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, and Pom Klementieff. Kurt Russell has yet to sign on with the project as Star Lord’s father.
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 will be in theaters on May 5, 2017.
Having been speculated on in the past couple weeks, Marvel Studios have made it official by naming Creed and Fruitvale Station director Ryan Coogler to direct the upcoming Black Panther.
Photo: Marvel Comics
Coogler made a serious impact with his debut feature Fruitvale Station in 2013 and resurrected the Rocky franchise with Creed, both starring Michael B. Jordan. Black Panther will be part of the Marvel Studios Phase 3 slate of films that include Doctor Strange, Captain Marvel, and culminating in the 2 part Avengers: Infinity War.
Anyone concerned that Coogler’s resume isn’t meaty enough to handle this need not be concerned. Both Fruitvale Station and Creed were met with widespread critical acclaim, and Sylvester Stallone just netted a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his reprisal of Rocky Balboa
Black Panther tells the story of T’Challa, the young king of the African nation of Wakanda, who will make his first cinematic appearance in Captain America: Civil War. While plot details are scant, the synopsis given is that T’Challa will be assuming the mantle of Black Panther while investigating the death of his father, who was found dead due to mysterious, and possibly treacherous circumstances.
Starring Chadwick Boseman, Black Panther will be released February 16, 2018.
Disney and Lucasfilm have looked at thousands of actors for the role of young Han Solo, today Variety is reporting that list is down to 12 men.
The rumor mill initially reported that Disney was looking for a teenage Solo, but the list of actors lends to a 20 to 25-year-old smuggler.
According to Variety, Kathleen Kennedy and directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller will begin testing the group that includes Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Dave Franco, Jack Reynor, Scott Eastwood, Logan Lerman, Emory Cohen, and Blake Jenner.
A casting announcement is expected in next few weeks as it appears that Disney would like the actor to make a cameo in Star Wars: Rogue One.
Star Wars: Rogue One is directed by Gareth Edwards, and stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen (IP Man), Jiang Wen, Forest Whitaker, Mads Mikkelsen of Hannibal fame, Alan Tudyk (as a motion capture character), and Riz Ahmed.
Rogue One tells the story of resistance fighters who have united to steal plans to the dreaded Death Star.
The film will be in theaters on December 16, 2016.
The untitled young Han Solo film is set for release on May 25, 2018.
It’s difficult to keep up with advances in space exploration technology, especially considering the confusingly technical nature of these advances. So in order to keep apprised of these changes and report on them with folksy charm, I’ve enlisted the help of a standard model J-573 Mark Twain robot. As with other J-series models, this 573 unit has retained its caustic wit program but, thankfully, its political correctness meter was adjusted in 2010 to weed out the use of any contextually inappropriate verbiage. So, here “he” is to talk about preparations for the launch of NASA/NOAA‘s GOES-R satellite:
The model J-573 Mark Twain robot: a miracle of modern robotics
“I arrived in Littleton, Colorado on the tenth day of the new year with a great deal of expectation. Besides being thrilled at the prospect of seeing an elementary school named for my non-robotic counterpart, during my journey through Colorado my wireless system intercepted a mess of advertisements noting the exceptional qualities of the Lockheed Martin Autonomous Systems facility at which NASA and NOAA’s GOES-R satellite is being prepared for its imminent launch. Upon crossing the town line, my hydraulic lift system seized—I can only imagine why, although I had been trekking across these United States in the dead of winter clothed in nothing but a thin coat of wind-resistant oil-based varnish and a mathematically-perfected bow tie. My hydraulic disorder was, thankfully, short-lived though as upon my arrival at the Autonomous Systems facility I was treated to a complimentary fluid change and inspection. After my tune-up was complete I scanned the facility’s computer network for data on the purpose and progress of the GOES-R satellite’s construction and launch. The facility’s computer having also been assembled in the town of Florida, Missouri, I must admit that we chatted a fair bit.
J-573:
Good day! I’ve been wondering: what is the purpose is of NASA/NOAA’s GOES-R satellite project?
The GOES-R is the latest edition in the GOES project
ASM (Autonomous Systems Mainframe):
THE GOES-R SATELLITE WILL ALLOW SCIENTISTS AT NASA & NOAA TO BETTER STUDY AND FORECAST ENVIRONMENTAL PHENOMENA. THE “R” SERIES IS THE MOST RECENT INCARNATION OF THE GOES (GEOSTATIONARY OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL SATELLITES) PROJECT, THE FIRST OF WHICH WAS LAUNCHED ON OCTOBER 16th, 1975.
J-573:
Wonderful, just wonderful. Is there anything more that you can tell me about the project?
ASM:
IMPROVEMENTS IN INSTRUMENTATION WILL OFFER ADVANCED IMAGING WITH INCREASED RESOLUTION AND FASTER COVERAGE FOR MORE ACCURATE FORECASTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL PHENOMENA LIKE: SEVERE STORMS, FOG, FIRE, AEROSOLS AND VOLCANIC ASH, AS WELL AS REAL-TIME MAPPING OF LIGHTNING ACTIVITY. THE INSTRUMENTS WILL ALSO ENABLE NOAA’s SPACE WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE FORECASTS OF SPACE WEATHER HAZARDS. SCHEDULED LAUNCH: OCTOBER, 2016.
J-573:
Well that would certainly be welcome. If I’d been able to accurately predict today’s weather, I might have applied a thicker varnish before engaging my drive shaft on such a cold, windy day. Autonomous Systems Mainframe, do you think that this project will reawaken the public’s latent interest in space exploration?
ASM:
DOES NOT COMPUTE.
J-573:
Too true. Too true.
Having completed the business portion of our interview, the Autonomous Systems Mainframe and I relaxed, both by performing complex computations and by partaking in a fine bottle of Stranahan’s, the Autonomous Systems Mainframe the former and I the latter.”
*Autonomous Systems Mainframe’s interview answers are paraphrased from this article from nasa.gov.
Kevin Smith announced via Twitter yesterday that he is to direct a future episode from the second half of season two of The Flash.
I think when fans of the show saw this, there was a global fist pump. There is nothing better than getting information that one of your favourite shows will be in the safe hands of a director who himself is a massive comic geek. Smith’s credentials when it comes to knowing about comics speak for themselves. In the past, Mr. Smith has written for many comic characters such as Daredevil when he wrote “Guardian Devil”, an eight issue story arc for Marvel Comics. Following this was Green Arrow for DC Comics, with a 15 issue tenure. Returning back to Marvel he wrote two mini-series called “Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do ” and “Daredevil/Bullseye: The Target.”
More importantly, as Kevin is a huge fan of The Flash TV show, it creates a certain safety blanket to know someone who loves the show as much as the fans do will be behind the camera calling the shots. Purely because he will deliver something, the fans will want to see.
With that in mind, here are a couple of things I think we can expect from the episode:
1. There will be plenty of comedy.
Kevin Smith is a very funny guy; you only have to look at the films he has directed such as Clerks, Chasing Amy, Mallrats and my personal favourite Dogma. When you team this with the writers The Flash has and the particular actors he will have at his disposal (Carlos Valdes I’m looking at you), then it’s safe to say we can expect comedy fireworks to go off.
2. It will be emotional.
The Flash excels in its emotion. You only have to look at the speeches Joe West and Henry Allen – portrayed by the excellent Jesse L. Martin and John Wesley Shipp – have delivered to Barryin past episodes to know this is true. I would never have thought thatKevin Smithwas a very emotional guy, but after watching this video of him while he watches Episode 23: “Fast Enough”, which is the season finale and the one where Barry travels back in time to when his mother died, I’m convinced he can handle it. I get all misty-eyed just thinking about it.
Here is the video[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_lGaBPbJLM[/embedyt]
Something I really hope he gets to direct is the unveiling of Zoom. The episode he is directing is due to air in May, which would set it close to the season two finale. It would be exciting for him to direct this big a plot point as a director, but also, bring in fan’s perspective.
Let me know if you think this is a good thing or whether you have reservations about it.
As of this writing, a little less than an hour ago, I learned that David Bowie has passed away. I’ve been sitting in my bed, almost literally frozen, trying to process it all. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve seen many of my favorite artists pass away. As we get older, they get older with us and they get an opportunity to mark moments in our lives. Whether we’re aware of it or not, they become more meaningful. We come to appreciate them almost as if they were friends. A year or so ago, I got in touch with a friend I hadn’t really talked to in years. She was surprised to learn that I still loved a lot of the music I listened to from when we met as teenagers. But I don’t understand, how could you not? If you love something, I guess you can stop loving it. But the good things often stick around, or you get a shot at discovering them again. Bowie’s music has always been a very good thing for me.
I can’t specify when I first became a fan of Bowie. There’s a chance it may have been before I was thirteen, as my father is a massive music fan. Particularly of any rock music from the sixties and seventies. I’m sure that in long car rides or road trips we shared together, I must have listened to The Rise and Fall ofZiggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars at least once. When I was thirteen, I had already started to watch Late Night with Conan O’ Brien and once, they had an episode that was all claymation. David Bowie was the musical guest, singing “Afraid.” When you listen to something and you love it, it’s hard to articulate why. There’s something about the voice, the lyrics, the melody that just rings right in your head. Everything about “Afraid” just felt right. Plus, in that interview he came across as such a gentleman. A very funny and warm man. Johnny Knoxville was one of the guests and Bowie told him how much he loved Jackass. A year later, I caught Lost Highway on television. A cousin of mine and I stayed up late watching it. There are those haunting opening titles, with Bowie’s “I’m Deranged” playing. I realized I was becoming a fan. Since then, I owe a lot to David Bowie. I have a lot of reasons to say “Thank You” to him.
Thank You, David Bowie for getting me closer to my dad when I was a teenager. I was the cliché of a teenager in that I wasn’t happy with my parents for any good reason in particular. I was angry, depressed and talking to me would be like talking to a wall. Car rides with my parents were filled with awkward silences. One day, my father played The Rise and Fall ofZiggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars and he mentioned that it was by David Bowie. That made me pay attention to it and pay attention to what he was saying. Again, he’d had that album for years up until that point, so I’m sure it wasn’t the first time I’d heard it. But it was the first time I’d actually listened to it. And it gave us something to talk about, with him even joking that I should try to make a film out of it someday, knowing that it’s my dream to make movies.
Thank You, David Bowie for making great movies even greater with your music. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou just wouldn’t be The Life Aquatic without “Life On Mars?” and “Queen Bitch” on it, or those countless covers by Seu Jorge throughout the film. Lost Highway wouldn’t be Lost Highway without “I’m Deranged” playing over the opening titles. “Modern Love” was so perfect for the ending of Frances Ha. Before I Disappear is burnt into my memory thanks to that haunting scene set to “Five Years.” And I’ll never, ever forget the jolt that “Young Americans” gave me right after the ending of Dogville. Even after all the years I’ve known it and listened to it, “Space Oddity” caught me by surprise in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. The helicopter scene just gave it a whole new meaning. Or underscoring “Cat People” to one of the coolest “Getting ready” scenes ever in Inglorious Basterds. A shout-out to this article for including a few right here.
Thank You, David Bowie for those times that you collaborated with other singers, making great songs even better. The Arcade Fire’s “Reflektor” came to me in the perfect time. It resonated because I thought it reflected (no pun intended) some things I was going through at the time. Bowie’s part in it is so minimal, but it was the cherry on top of a great song. His voice was just so haunting and strong. He knew how to knock any song out of the park. Even if it was just one tiny verse.
Thank you, David Bowie for the great life lessons that came to me at the perfect time. The first time I remember actually listening to “Under Pressure” was on a road trip with my cousin. He lent me his Best of Queen album that had “Under Pressure” in it, and of course, this was another time I had actually heard the song before, but not listened to it. And everything about it just felt right, but what really stuck with me were Bowie’s parts of the song. I got the sense that I was being taught an important life lesson. Freddie Mercury asks: “Why can’t we give ourselves one more chance? Why can’t we give love?” Bowie retorts “’Cause love’s such an old-fashioned word, and love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night, and love dares you to change our way of caring about ourselves. This is our last chance. This is our last dance. This is ourselves under pressure.”
Thank you David Bowie, for those times you got me closer to friends; When I was in University, my roommates and I decided to watch Labyrinth. We laughed, eating it up like crazy. It’s a very cool movie, dated in some aspects maybe but one that’s stood the test of time. Getting a little drunk as we were watching it. My favorite part was watching one of my roommates go crazy for David Bowie playing The Goblin King. Any time he’d be on screen, she’d fawn for him. We all laughed about it, and it just made the film better for us. It’s the great thing about movies, about art. Just how it gets people together like that, and give us moments that exist outside the film. Then, there was the time a friend of mine asked me to create an acting reel for her. I told her to propose a song and she went for “Heroes.” I already knew we saw each other eye to eye when it came to music…or most music, but it got us talking a bit about Bowie and lead into a great conversation that got us closer. And later on, during a party with some classmates from my Master’s, I got to sing Under Pressure with a few of them. I was very happy to get all the Bowie parts and they were happy to see me loosen up that way with them, which admittedly, I hadn’t done before.
Thank you, David Bowie for the times you’ve inspired me. Putting in a very throwaway reference to “Life On Mars?” on a short story I wrote for college was the best tribute I could think of. Especially on a story that was partly inspired by that song. Lately, I’ve been writing a lot of Sci-Fi adventures, and in all of them, I’ve turned to listen to his music for inspiration and to set myself in the right mood. Just like Walter Mitty, I find myself jumping into my own tiny helicopters and flying away when I listen to his music.
We don’t get to share time with every artist we love. I feel very lucky to have lived in the same time as David Bowie, and to have gotten the opportunity to listen to his music. And I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s had the same experiences with his music like I have. David, everything sounded better with you. Thanks and rest in peace.
Mark Ruffalo spoke with Entertainment Weekly on Saturday about the potential of Cate Blanchett joining the cast of Thor: Ragnarok. Ruffalo might have revealed too much when mentioned his excitement for Blanchett’s villainous character.
“I’m so thrilled. I saw her at the Governors’ banquet here and heard that maybe she was circling, they were talking to her about the part, so I ran up to her and I was like, ‘Please, please, please make this work!’ She’s just one of the best, and to have her play a baddie is going to be really exciting,” said Ruffalo.
Could Blanchett be cast as Hela ‘Queen of the Dead,’ or Amora the Enchantress?
It sounds like Blanchett is still in the negotiation phase, as Marvel Studios has yet to make an official announcement.
Thor: Ragnarok is directed by Taika Waititi, Christopher Yost and Craig Kyle are working on the script, and the film stars Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Jaimie Alexander, Ray Stevenson, and Anthony Hopkins.
Thor: Ragnarok will destroy the universe on November 3, 2017.
Hela ‘Queen of the Dead’ The three Asgardian goddesses of fate, the Norns, are said to have warned the Asgardian gods that Hela would prove to be a great danger to them. Odin, ruler of the Asgardian gods, decreed that Hela would become goddess and ruler of the spirits of the dead on the day of her maturity. These spirits were in the other-dimensional realms of Hel and Niflheim, two more of the Nine Worlds, both of which Hela ruled. However, Odin himself directly ruled the souls of Asgardians and their human worshippers who died in battle as heroes, and had the palace of Valhalla built in a distant section of Asgard to house them.
Amora the Enchantress Amora was born somewhere in Asgard, her parentage unknown. While still in adolescence, she ran away to the land of the Norns and apprenticed herself to Karnilla, one of the most powerful sorceresses in all the Asgardian dimension. There she studied all the basic arts of Asgardian magic until Karnilla expelled her for being too undisciplined. She picked up further mystical skills from seducing other Asgardian magi and wizards. (source: Marvel Database)
Amora the Enchantress