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Watch The First TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES Trailer

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Warners Bros. Tuesday night, released the first trailer for Teen Titans GO! to the Movies. Check out the trailer below.

About Teen Titans GO! to the Movies:
It seems to the Teens that all the major superheroes out there are starring in their own movies—everyone but the Teen Titans, that is!  But de facto leader Robin is determined to remedy the situation, and be seen as a star instead of a sidekick.  If only they could get the hottest Hollywood film director to notice them.  With a few madcap ideas and a song in their heart, the Teen Titans head to Tinsel Town, certain to pull off their dream.  But when the group is radically misdirected by a seriously Super-Villain and his maniacal plan to take over the Earth, things really go awry.  The team finds their friendship and their fighting spirit failing, putting the very fate of the Teen Titans themselves on the line!

The film will have the voice talents of Will Arnett, Kristen Bell, Greg Cipes as Beast Boy, Scott Menville as Robin, Khary Payton as Cyborg, Tara Strong as Raven, and Hynden Walch as Starfire.

Teen Titans GO! to the Movies is directed by Aaron Horvath and Peter Rida Michail, from a screenplay by Michael Jelenic and Horvath, based on characters from DC.

Teen Titans GO! to the Movies will hit theaters on July 27, 2018.


Are you excited for Teen Titans GO! to the Movies? Comment below.

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Can’t Sleep, Clowns Will Eat Me: Bill Skarsgård Attests to Having Pennywise Dreams

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A typical method actor will absorb the character they are playing into their soul, and that’s exactly what Bill Skarsgård did with his role of Pennywise the Dancing Clown in last fall’s breakout, horror flick IT.

“I liken every character that I do to a relationship that you’re in,” Skarsgård tells Entertainment Weekly. “Pennywise and Bill go into this sort of relationship together, and I’m trying to figure out who he is, and I have to devote so much time and effort to this other person – or thing, in this case – and that goes on for months.”

It Pennywise

Skarsgård’s portrayal of the iconic Stephen King character was sinister and horrifying, and his demonic smirk was an image that stayed with audiences long after leaving their theater seats. Embodying such a menacing character, though, doesn’t come without consequences.

“I was home, done with the movie, and I started having very strange and vivid Pennywise dreams. Every night, he came and visited. It was in the shape of either me dealing with him, sort of Pennywise as a separate entity of me, and then also me as Pennywise in circumstances that I didn’t appreciate,” Skarsgård said. “Like, I’m Pennywise and I’m really upset that I’m out in public and people are looking at me.”

Pennywise the Dancing Clown is only one physical form of the demon of IT, the supernatural entity that plagues the children of Derry, Maine. The character also took many forms in Skarsgård’s head as well.

Despite the crazy dreams, Skarsgård is ready to embrace the clown again in preparation for the IT follow-up film, which is slated to be released in theaters on September 6, 2019. He tells People Magazine, “I did have so much fun with the character, and I’m really looking forward to getting back under that clown makeup for the sequel.”

Pennywise Water

You can welcome Pennywise into your home now; IT is available on Blu-Ray and digital download today.

Do you have a fear of clowns? Has a scary movie character ever haunted you in your dreams?

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One Limb Left: How I As A Gamer With One Arm Play Video Games

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Video games for many people who play them provide an escape from the regular world.  When you spend eight hours or more trapped in a cubicle, nothing says freedom like exploring new worlds in Super Mario while wearing your finest Tanooki attire.  But for gamers like myself who have one arm, or are missing limbs in general, the question on a lot of people’s minds isn’t how we escape, it’s how we execute our escape.  While disabilities and missing limbs differ in all cases, causing playing styles to differ, they all create cause for continuous adaptation during our lifetimes.

Forcing people like myself to think outside of the box in order to solve both simple and complex issues.  From tying my shoes to entering the Konami code, to performing Sub-Zero’s famous spine rip fatality in Mortal Kombat.  But before I dive into my life as a gamer, I must tell you more about my birth so you can get the full picture.  I was born in 1988, five years after the Nintendo Entertainment System was released.

video games

Before I was born my umbilical cord wrapped around my arm cutting off growth just below my elbow.  Causing my right arm to look like a club or a submarine periscope made out of flesh.  It’s perfect for pointing at things.  Before I began playing video games I was introduced to pinball.

Not only did its simplicity make it attractive to play in my eyes, it also helped build my hand-eye coordination.  I would work the plunger and left flipper while one of my parents would press the button to activate the right flipper.  Creating a bonding experience I won’t ever forget.

video games

It was the simplicity of pinball machines that made my transition into video games at five-years-old easier.  My first home console was the Nintendo Entertainment System, which like the machines I grew accustomed to had two action buttons.  Except for this time, I could reach them both with my right stub.  Bringing me to my answer to the question everyone asks me when I tell them I play video games.

How do I play them?  Picture in your mind a standard NES controller (or any other controller if you wish) and divide it down the middle.  I control the directional pad with my fully functional left hand, and I press the buttons with my right stub.  Now I know what you’re thinking.

video games

How do I press the buttons individually and not mash them all like an eight-year-old playing a fighting game?  Well though the end of my stub is round, it consists of bones.  One in particular on the bottom of it is pointy and allows me to individually press buttons with pinpoint precision.  The same goes for when I play PC games like Starcraft and League of Legends.  

What also made learning how to play video games easy was the era of games I grew up with.  A lot if not all of the games were sidescrollers and as games became more advanced in their controls and design, and controllers had more buttons attached to them, I was able to grow with them.  Making the transition from console to console easier outside of the Wii’s motion controllers.   Even though the design of controller’s for the most part change from console to console, a lot of my ability to play comes from muscle memory.

video games

If you play enough then things come naturally.  That being said I still do struggle when it comes to playing certain types of games particularly shooters released on current gen systems.  Most don’t have an auto-aim feature and require me to navigate two sticks at once to aim instead of pulling a trigger and firing.  Which feels like an unnecessary step and results in me taking damage and in some cases dying which leads to frustration and me turning the game off if it happens repeatedly.

When I have to drive a vehicle and shoot at the same time it can also be a bit of a hassle.  As I have to use the sticks to aim and press the right trigger against my right thigh to accelerate.  Which results in my character crashing a lot or missing turns because I can’t slow down.  But whether I’m jumping on enemies, performing stunts with cars, or dunking on an opponent, my love for video games always prevails.

video games

They provide an escape for me and in some cases, they allow me to blow off steam.  Not to mention the worlds they showcase help build the imaginations of both myself and the many others who play them.  They will always be a part of my life and no amount of buttons or terrible motion controls will change that.

 

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Rian Johnson On Lack Of Snoke Backstory In THE LAST JEDI

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Spoilers for Star Wars: The Last Jedi below.

Snoke Spolers

As we know, Snoke was hardly used in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. We expected him to be a vicious leader in the midst of training Kylo Ren. Rather than fitting expectations, The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson decided to make Snoke a mere side character and kill him off in the middle of the film. Johnson explained why he handled the character this way:

“In this particular story, it’s much more like the original trilogy, where with Snoke if you think about the actual scenes, if suddenly I had paused one of the scenes to give a 30 second monologue about who he was, it would have kind of stopped the scene in its tracks, I realized. Even though it could have been interesting, something that fans were interested in, as storytellers, we have to kind of serve what the scenes need to be. It was a tough thing, even though I knew some fans were interested in it I also knew it wasn’t something that dramatically had a place in this movie. Hopefully it can be addressed elsewhere or even J.J. may address it in the next movie. But it’s not something that’s particularly interesting to Rey, so we kind of had to follow through.”

Although I was initially against the decision to sideline the Supreme Leader, I eventually came to appreciate the bold decision. The character was not needed to fit the story being told, and it was fitting to kill him off before fans got to know his backstory.

How did you feel about Snoke dying in The Last Jedi? Comment below, let us know.

The Last Jedi is in theaters now!

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OVERWATCH LEAGUE, Your New Favorite Professional Sport

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We already told you that Blizzard Entertainment announced its inaugural Overwatch League, specifically its 12-team field, but now it’s time to play! Fresh off its announcement that it has signed a two-year deal to stream competitions exclusively on Twitch, OWL is ready to go! See below for your ‘Who, What, When, Where, Why and How’ Primer, to get ready for this awesome new sports league.

What (is the Overwatch League)?

This new eSports league allows some of the best gamers in the world to compete in the popular Blizzard combat game, Overwatch. It was announced at BlizzCon in Anaheim, California, back in 2016. It’s a city-based league designed to standardize and structure the Overwatch eSports platform. You can keep up with the league on a daily basis, HERE.

When (is the Overwatch League)?

Fresh off the preseason, which took place in December, 2017, the schedule will begin with the regular season (consisting of four stages) on Wednesday, January 10, 2018, and continue through June 16. The postseason will run from June 17-July 28. The postseason makes way for the championship playoffs, which will be July 11-22, while a champion will then be crowned after the Grand Finals, July 26-28. Beyond that point, players will participate in an All-Star Weekend, similar to that in traditional sports leagues. Matches run Wednesday-Saturday, each week, in the regular season.

Where (does the Overwatch League take place)?

All matches will take place at Blizzard Arena in Los Angeles, Calif., but will be streamed live on Twitch, for those that do not live in the area.

Who (competes in the Overwatch League)?

There are currently 12 teams that will participate in the inaugural season. The field is split among the Atlantic and Pacific Divisions, which both include six teams each. Teams must have at least six players per roster, with a maximum of 12. Teams are locked heading into competition, but the league will allow for a free agent-type signing period later in the year, allowing for new signees and transfers (or trades). Each player is guaranteed a minimum salary of $50,000 (USD), plus benefits, however, some more prominent and recognized players make much more than the minimum. Contracts also include performance bonuses for winning matches, including in-game accomplishments. The teams competing are as follows:

Atlantic Division

  • Boston Uprising
  • Florida Mayhem
  • Houston Outlaws
  • London Spitfire
  • New York Excelsior
  • Philadelphia Fusion

Pacific Division

  • Dallas Fuel
  • Los Angeles Gladiators
  • Los Angeles Valiant
  • San Francisco Shock
  • Seoul Dynasty
  • Shanghai Dragons

The 12 teams expand over four countries, featuring nine teams from the United States, including two from Texas and Los Angeles, three-total from the state of California, and one each from England, China and Korea.

How (can I be the best fan possible of the Overwatch League)?

The matches will take place at Blizzard Areana, so if you live in L.A., you can attend! Don’t live there? No problem. You can stream all the action live via both Twitch and Major League Gaming (MLG). Click HERE for more information, including the schedule for opening day on Jan. 10. Fans can also root on their team by ‘gearing up’ at the Blizzard OWL Shop, or with in-game skins and tokens. More info on that, HERE. Lastly, don’t forget to download the free app, available on both Android and iOS, for exclusive league content.

Why (are people competing in Overwatch League)?

This league is here because the game is amazing and Blizzard has given players everywhere a platform in which to shine. That’s what makes eSports and leagues like OWL and MLG so amazing, is that anyone can be a pro athlete. Need another incentive because international glory and recognition just isn’t enough? Well, check out the payouts, which consists of a prize pool of $3.5 million, below.

Stage Match Bonuses

  • First place: $100,000
  • Second place: $25,000

Regular Season Bonuses

  • First place: $300,000
  • Second place: $200,000
  • Third and fourth place: $150,000
  • Fifth and sixth place: $100,000
  • Seventh and eighth place: $75,000
  • Ninth and 10th place: $50,000
  • 11th and 12th place: $25,000

Championship Playoffs Bonuses

  • World Champion: $1 million
  • Runner-up: $400,000
  • Third and fourth place: $100,000
  • Fifth and sixth place: $50,000

Still need more? Check out the MLG Preview Show and this Kotaku Viewer’s Guide.

 

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BOMBSHELL! Review: A Doc About Hollywood Legend AND Inventor Hedy Lamarr

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Starting in the late 1930s, actress Hedy Lamarr flashed her beautiful face in dozens of Hollywood pictures, but behind the scenes, she was inventing Wi-fi. No, really. The story of Hedy Lamarr is fascinating from start to finish, and her life is documented in a new film called Bombshell! One of the 62 films featured at the Miami Jewish Film Festival, Bombshell! is a look into a woman who lived in two extremes.

Bombshell! expertly takes viewers into the world Ms. Lamarr who, for lack of a better word, is a superwoman. To the world at large, Lamarr is an actress who starred in some of Hollywood’s earliest blockbusters such as Boom Town, Algiers, and Samson and Delilah. Lamarr was gorgeous, a trendsetter, and a terrific actress.

But Bombshell! delves deeper into the life of the Hollywood starlet. Hedy ended her life as a recluse, but as the documentary reveals, a marvelous life preceded the lonely end. The story is wrapped around four cassette tapes discovered in 1990 that contained the last interview Lamarr ever did. Bombshell! weaves in Hedy’s own words with interviews that include friends, family, and the likes of celebrities like Mel Brooks who idolized the actress.

Lamarr grew up with a curiosity for inventing. At an early age, the young girl would take apart mechanical toys and put them back together. And though she entered the world of filmmaking, that passion never left her. And the documentary includes the story of how Hedy was pivotal in the invention of frequency hopping, even receiving a patent for the idea. If you’re not tech savvy, Hedy’s invention in 1941 is the basis for Bluetooth, military communications, and, yes, wifi!

Hedy’s rise and fall and rise again and fall again is the stuff of legend. The story is something that could easily become a hit HBO series and probably win a few awards along the way.

Writer and director Alexander Dean does a fantastic job of pacing the documentary and punctuating the story along the way with Hedy’s own words. Photos, interviews, and clips from movies and TV fill the 90-minute doc and keep it an intriguing watch for the entire runtime. Suffice it to say, there’s rarely a dull moment in Hedy’s life.

Despite the somewhat sad end of her life, Hedy remained a fantastic example of class and glamour. Nothing says this more than the end of the doc. The final words are a sentiment from the brilliant actress that we should all take deeply within us and live with every day:

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish alternative motives.
Do good anyway.

The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot down
by the smallest people with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and you’ll be kicked into the teeth.
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.

Bombshell! is part of the Miami Jewish Film Festival
running from January 11th to 25th, 2018.

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Marvel’s Runaways Renewed For Season Two

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Marvel and Hulu have decided to bring Runaways back for a second season!  Executive Producer and Head of Marvel TV Jeph Loeb says,

“We’re thrilled about ‘Runaways’ Season 2. Our partnership with Josh [Schwartz] and Stephanie [Savage] and Hulu has been as exciting as the reaction to the show from our fans — both new and old!”

Executive Producers and Co-Showrunners Schwartz and Savage added, “We’re so privileged that Marvel and Brian K. Vaughan trusted us with Runaways, We couldn’t be more excited to continue telling this story. It’s been a blast making the show with the cast and crew. We can’t wait to see where we can take the story in Season 2 and to stay on the run.”

“The conversations with the fans have been gratifying”, they continued.  “We hear and see you. We appreciate your passion and hearing how much the show means to you. Beware the possibility of a dinosaur on the streets of Los Angeles…and earthquakes!”

Marvel’s Runaways premiered on Hulu Nov. 21, 2017.  It follows a group of teens who rebel against their parents after finding out they’re apart of a criminal organization known as The Pride.

The season 1 finale premiered Jan. 9 on Hulu.  What do you expect to see in season 2? Sound off in the comments!

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Hulu and Blumhouse Partner on Monthly Horror Anthology

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Hulu and Blumhouse are set to partner on a first-of-its-kind deal in bringing an exclusive 12-episode horror anthology to the streaming service this year.

Blumhouse, will look to continue its recent successes in theatre horror, with releases like 2017’s Get Out and Happy Death Day, by bringing it straight to your homes.

Each of the 12-episodes will be standalone tales, though a narrative device will connect them all, and will premiere each month, a departure from the standard Hulu format of releasing episodes each week.

The series has yet to be dubbed a title, but marks the first major original-programming deal for Hulu Chief Content Officer Joel Stillerman, who joined the streaming company in May of 2017, after serving as President of Original Programming and Development with AMC and Sundance.

“If there’s been one guiding-principal that is in place from the day I walked in the door, I wanted to look at that Hulu logo and remember that making TV for an over-the-top SVOD platform, if it isn’t today, is going to be a very different proposition than the approach to making television for what is still the majority of the landscape,” Stillerman said. “I wanted to focus on this question of what does it mean to make television for a place like Hulu.”

The partnership has yet to announce writers, producers, directors or a cast, but do plan on releasing the first episode in the series, later this year, in October, 2018.

“At the heart of the deal is an extremely passionate audience and an extremely activatable audience in terms of horror,” stated Stillerman. “It’s not even the larger bucket of ‘genre.’ I would say this falls squarely into the horror bucket.”

Click HERE for the entire interview of the partnership via Variety.

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Review: THE POST Steven Spielberg Crafts a Great Film From a Dreary Script

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Steven Spielberg’s The Post tells the true story of The Washington Post and The New York Times journalists who, in the early 1970s, published the Pentagon Papers, detailing the involvement of the United States government during the Vietnam War. Then, they subsequently went to battle with President Richard Nixon over government censorship.

That synopsis sounds like an Oscar-worthy drama. Add in Tom Hanks as Post editor Ben Bradlee and Meryl Streep as trailblazer Kay Graham, and every bit of the formula is in place. Except the writers (Liz Hannah, Josh Singer) don’t give the actors much to work with. Under any other director, this would be an incredibly dull film, but Spielberg can make a printing press look sexy, powerful, and inject even the most routine elements of a story with a little tension.

Spielberg also knows how to frame a scene, giving an actor a chance to break through the screen and grab the audience. This is the case with Bob Odenkirk’s character, Ben Bagdikian, as he tries to track down a source. Spielberg also gives Carrie Coon, who plays editorial writer Meg Greenfield, a moment to shine as she relays the Supreme Court ruling to the rest of the staff at the paper.

It would be interesting to be a fly on the wall and listen to the conversations with Spielberg and the writers on how much dramatic liberties to inject into the story to give it a little extra juice. But in this time of “Fake News,” this is Spielberg’s anti-Trump film, and he probably thought sticking to the facts as close as possible would most admirably serve his message.

Tom Hanks turns in a spectacular performance as Bradlee, pulling off the gruffness of a man in power in the 70s, but one who always, by all accounts, remained a polite gentleman. But all of Hank’s best lines feel like they’re off camera. Streep’s Graham is subdued, reserved, but Streep is not to blame for the lack drama in her character; this isn’t an Aaron Sorkin film, but one existing on quiet moments more than punchy banter.

Can we talk about the printing press for a moment? In the age of digital, as newspapers crumble left and right, Spielberg manages to capture the power of print media. There are two scenes of just setting print that are beautiful to watch; the journey of a printing press is enthralling in The Post. As a Gen-Xer, I remember the days only a few entertainment choices and the local newspaper dominating the kitchen table during breakfast. The newspaper will never be what it once was, but handing someone a phone to show them breaking news just doesn’t have the same impact.

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‘Deadpool’ Director Tim Miller Developing KITTY PRYDE Solo Film At Fox

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A fan favorite X-Men character is set to return to the big screen. According to Collider, Deadpool director Tim Miller is developing a Kitty Pryde film at Fox.

The character of Kitty Pryde is an X-Men comic staple, first appearing all the way back in 1980. She was featured in all three of the original X-Men films, most famously being portrayed by Ellen Page in X-Men: The Last Stand. The character last appeared in X-Men: Days of Futures Past where she was the mutant who was able to send Wolverine back in time.

It’s still too early to tell if Page would return to the role. Miller may look to do a soft reboot of the character ala X-Men: First Class. It’s also still unknown what time period the film will be set. Placing it in present day may lead Fox to want Page back but setting it before her X-Men days may call for another actress.

Fox currently has an abundance of films in development even with the looming Disney merger on the horizon. The potential $52 billion deal is unlikely to go through for another 12-18 months meaning Fox isn’t able to hold off projects until the deal is finalized.

Although the news of a Kitty Pryde solo film is significant, the main story here is who is attached. Tim Miller left the Deadpool sequel following creative differences and it looked as if he’d moved on from the X-Men franchise. He is set to direct the upcoming Terminator film this year and also has a Sonic The Hedgehog film in development.

Miller returning to the franchise bodes well for a positive working relationship between the director and Fox. Even though it’s a strong possibility the film never hits theaters, we can look forward to Tim Miller returning to the franchise in some capacity.

What are your thoughts on a Tim Miller Kitty Pryde film? Let us know in the comments below!

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