Warner Bros. Television Group revealed some impressive ‘Constantine’ footage to New York Comic Con on Sunday.
Voiced by Matt Ryan, ‘Constantine’ looks to be a brutal and bloody series. The digital series available on CW Seed is unlike anything we’ve seen before, watch the trailer below.
About the show: CONSTANTINE follows DC’s popular comic book character John Constantine (voiced by the live-action series star Matt Ryan), a seasoned demon hunter and master of the occult. Armed with an arcane knowledge of the dark arts and a wicked wit, he fights the good fight. With his soul already damned to hell, he’ll do whatever it takes to protect the innocent. With the balance of good and evil on the line, Constantine uses his skills to face the supernatural terrors that threaten our world and send them back where they belong. After that, who knows…maybe there’s hope for him and his soul after all.
‘Constantine’ is written by J.M. DeMatteis and directed by Doug Murphy. The show is executive produced by David S. Goyer, Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and produced by Butch Lukic.
Hulu released the first trailer for the new original series ‘Castle Rock’ at New York Comic Con Sunday afternoon.
The show takes place in Castle Rock, the small town where many of Stephen King’s television, cinematic, and literary horrors have taken place. The Dead Zone, ‘Salem’s Lot, IT, Cujo, Needful Things, The Dark Half, and The Body (Stand by Me) are just a few of the stories that take place in and around the town.
Watch the trailer below:
J.J. Abrams serves as executive producer with executive producers/writers Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason.
‘Castle Rock’ hits Hulu in 2018.
Are you excited the year of Stephen King will continue into 2018? Comment below.
Warner Bros. put $150 million behind a cult franchise and made a fantastic film that the general public doesn’t care to see, as ‘Blade Runner 2049’ brought a dismal $31 million at the box office this past weekend.
As we mentioned in the podcast below, science fiction fans love ‘Blade Runner 2049,’ but as a big-budget action film, it is excruciatingly boring.
If you look at the players involved it’s hard to justify the budget, and you understand why it failed.
Denis Villeneuve is a fantastic director and his previous film ‘Arrival’ which was nominated for eight Oscars and won Best Achievement in Sound Editing, barely made $100 million.
Last year everyone went nuts for ‘La La Land’ and Ryan Gosling, the film won six Oscars and barely made $150 million at the domestic box office. Overseas it did very well.
If you take out Star Wars and the Indiana Jones franchise, Harrison Ford hasn’t dominated the box office since the mid-90s.
Ridley Scott who directed the first film, couldn’t get the general public excited for ‘Alien: Covenant’ earlier this year as it could only bring in $74 million domestically on a $97 million budget.
Warner Bros. wanted to create a new franchise with ‘Blade Runner 2049,’ but according to the box office draw no wanted this to happen. Which is extremely sad for science fiction nerds around the world.
Why do you think ‘Blade Runner 2049’ failed to gather mass appeal? Comment below.
Although Idris Elba has a supporting role in the Thor films, the actor recently told Entertainment Weekly that he wants a bigger role in the Marvel cinematic universe.
“I like that I have a little part in Thor. I’m neither movie star or day player. It allows me to do other things I love. The last one [Ragnarok] was fun. The others weren’t fun. They’re work. But on this one, Taika [Waititi] was great. I wish I was more present in the Marvel family. I like what I have, but I also wish that I had a bigger character in the Marvel universe.”
Although Elba is happy where he is now, he’d still like to land a bigger part in the universe.
“It’s been great, but I kinda think I need a bit more. I want to be a superhero. I like the idea of that.”
I’m pretty sure every Marvel fan out there would back the idea of Elba playing a larger-scale superhero in the universe. However, with the continuity already set up with him as Heimdall, it will be tricky to get him a bigger part without general audiences being confused.
DC and Warner Bros. have released a brand new trailer for ‘Justice League’. Check it out below.
So it seems like Superman is definitely back. That also featured the trend we’ve been seeing of a decidedly lighter tone than the movie originally projected. And personally, I give it points for the David Bowie song!
What do you guys think? Are you excited for ‘Justice League’? Comment and discuss below!
About “Justice League”
Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Raymond Fisher, Jason Momoa and Ezra Miller star in the action adventure “Justice League.” Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions. “Justice League” was directed by Zack Snyder from a screenplay by Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon, story by Terrio & Snyder. Based on characters from DC Entertainment; Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, Jon Berg and Geoff Johns produced the film, with Jim Rowe, Wesley Coller, Curtis Kanemoto, Chris Terrio and Ben Affleck serving as executive producers.
Opening on November 17 in 3D and 2D in select theatres and IMAX, “Justice League” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.
After the recent media frenzy it’s safe to assume the Szechuan sauce is no longer Mulan’s but Rick and Morty’s. When it was announced MCDonald’s would be bringing back the sauce for a limited time thanks to the online chatter which came from the show’s season premiere, fans were thrilled. A follower of the show myself, this writer looked forward to trying to obtain some sauce.
Let’s Quest!
Arriving at the restaurant 30 minutes early, my wife and I discovered the line was out the door. Most of the chatter from the crowd seemed to be discussing the rumors of the amount of sauce packets which would be available. Some people heard 40, some 50, and the lowest amount was 20. There was also talk of posters to go along with the event. This later turned out to be true but supplies were limited as well. Unfortunately, moral fell when 20 minutes before the event began an employee came out and announced the location only had 18 packets.
As the minutes passed many people got out of line under the belief they would not receive anything. At the same time the line continued to grow with hopeful patrons still thinking they would be able to obtain something. Unable to block the drive thru line the crowd had no choice but to start winding in on itself as the event drew closer.
As the wait continued, the crowd seemed to become more and more desperate. One person began to yell “$60 dollars for sauce” claiming he would actually be willing to pay the amount for the condiment. An individual accepted this deal and the transaction was complete. There was additional talks of someone paying $150 dollars for another’s spot in line.
A passerby allowed my wife to take a picture of the sauce. He admitted he didn’t plan to eat it. Instead saying he planned to go home and post a video of throwing the sauce away or flush it down the toilet. No confirmation if he did or not.
Though it became painfully obvious there would be no sauce, lunch would still be McDonald’s so we pressed on. After finally making it through the line and obtaining my food, it had been an hour and a half. We were gifted with a card for a free meal we could redeem at a later time.
Journey’s Conclusion
In the end the quest to obtain some of the Szechuan sauce was unsuccessful. My order consisted of a 10 piece McNugget combo which I used to try the recent signature sauce. It turned out to be a variation of the Big Mac sauce. It was good but I still would have preferred to get the Szechuan sauce.
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Were you successful in obtaining some Szechuan sauce? Leave a comment below and let us know.
Marvel is adding a two-time Grammy-Award winning artist and six-time Grammy-Award nominee to its roster of comic book writers. On Saturday, The Weeknd announced via his Twitter that he and the famed publisher are collaborating together on a new comic titled Starboy, which shares the name of the musician’s 2016 album. While the book is set to be released in 2018, no official description or synopsis has been revealed. However, the cover image for the first issue was released prior to The Weeknd’s signing at New York Comic Con on Saturday.
This is not the first time the “House of M” has teamed up with a musician for a series. In March, they and Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am announced a new graphic novel titled Masters Of The Sun – The Zombie Chronicles which was released in July. The Weeknd first hit the music mainstream with the release of his three mixtapes back in 2011. Since then the Toronto, Ontario, Canada native has seen a wide-range of success including the release of three studio albums since 2013.
His album Beauty Behind The Madness spent a consecutive 100 weeks on Billboard‘s Top 200 list. While 2016’s Starboyhad the third-largest debut that year, selling 348,000 copies. The two albums that finished ahead of it? Drake’s Views (1.04 million units) and Beyonce’s Lemonade (653,000 units).
Are you excited about this collaboration? What do you think it will be about? What musical artist(s) would you like to see Marvel collaborate with next? Comment below!
In service of not burying the lede; Marvel Comics will not get another dime from me. That’s it. We’re done.
Let me explain.
On Friday, Marvel announced on Twitter that it would be hosting an event at New York Comic Con with defense contractor Northrop Grumman. The presentation was intended to promote a new crossover comic, Avengers, Featuring N.G.E.N. – Start Your N.G.E.N.S! The comicincluded big name Marvel heroes, as well as “Elite Nexus” suits designed by Northrop Grumman. The comic was aimed at all-ages.
Northrop Grumman is the fifth largest defense contractor in the world. They did $23B in arms sales in 2015, including work on the F-35 fighter jet, drones, missiles, etc. However, their largest get was the $80 billion Pentagon contract for 100 B-21 long-range strike bombers. Which, to be crystal clear, makes them war profiteers.
At the very least this makes Marvel Comics extreme hypocrites. Tony Stark/Iron Man, one of their most popular characters, turned away from weapons manufacturing after realizing it was immoral in his origin story. More problematically, it means Marvel comics is using an arms manufacturers to sell comics to children.
After receiving backlash to their announcement, Marvel Comics cancelled their event.
The activation with Northrop Grumman at New York Comic Con was meant to focus on aerospace technology and exploration in a positive way. However, as the spirit of that intent has not come across, we will not be proceeding with this partnership including this weekend’s event programming. Marvel and Northrop Grumman continue to be committed to elevating, and introducing, STEM to a broad audience.
Given this apology/non-apology, it seems that Marvel Comics was intent on ignoring the promotion of the military industrial complex to children. Instead, they wanted to focus on Northrop Grumman’s non-weapons related ventures. Intent aside, the damage is done. This should have never occurred at any level, let alone in an all-ages comic.
But let’s be clear – this isn’t just about an incredibly tone-deaf corporate partnership. Marvel Comics has displayed a consistent track record of disregard for women and people of color.
At a retailers only breakfast on Friday, Marvel encountered resistance to their recent attempts at diversifying its character line, described here by Bleeding Cool:
Two older retailers started raising their voices arguing about diversity and how it does not work. The words “black”, “homo” and “freaking females” were used multiple times, at which point other retailers started to boo those retailers and the room started to turn on itself. Marvel editor Nick Lowe tried to get calm by saying that Marvel try and they tell stories for everyone, that the old heroes are not going anywhere, neither are the new ones, there is room for them both.
The panel ended sharply, with Marvel‘s Senior Vice President of Sales David Gabrielsaying that he would give out his e-mail address to any retailer who still had concerns. And with that everyone got kicked out of the area.
It’s good to hear that there were retailers who disagreed. And Nick Lowe’s clear message that new heroes aren’t going anywhere is heartening. But to think that this is Marvel Comics’ policy ignores all evidence to the contrary.
If Marvel Comics truly wanted to show their commitment to change, to reflecting a population of consumers outside of older white men, then they would stop cancelling series featuring characters of color within six issues. And they would stand up to retailers like these. As of this writing, the company has yet to issue a statement denouncing these retailers.
The fact is, retailers have an entire history of comics to recommend to fans who want to see white, male heroes. Marvel Comics should not be catering to retailers or customers who will not engage because there are women and people of color involved. It does nothing to grow new readership. To the contrary; they are being alienated.
The strongest voice speaking out agains this so far was Stan Lee, who talked about how Marvel stories are for everyone. While Stan Lee is certainly influential, he does not control their editorial policies or creative policies.
Perhaps their issue is on the creative side. In that department, Marvel Comics has also shown little growth. While fantastic new creatives like Gabby Rivera, G. Willow Wilson, and Roxane Gay have come on to write popular and well received books, the company continues to ignore non-white men at large. Look at Marvel Legacy, the cornerstone of their new relaunch. Of 18 creatives, all are men, and nearly all are white.
And this was all just in the last month. This ignores their recent brushes with Nazism. Check out this great Newsarama piece from another writer who broke up with Marvel for their only-slightly older transgressions.
In all honesty, I should’ve known better. I only lasted this long because I wanted to help support excellent books like America, Ms. Marvel, and Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. But the dollars I was spending were going towards Marvel Chairman Ike Perlmutter, a donor and friend of President Donald Trump. And therein lies the key.
Marvel Comics cannot fix their problems by adding more diverse characters, or hiring folks that aren’t white men. Because the problem, like many others, is systemic. It comes from the very top. It doesn’t matter how much you shine the apple if the core is rotten.
So, Marvel Comics, we are done. I encourage any and all who read this to end their relationship with them as well. Choosing to be silent in the face of toxic retailers, continuing to disregard non-white/men/hetero/binary creators, characters, and consumers, and being run by a supporter of the current administration were all more than reasons enough.
Thinking that selling a book aimed at kids that would promote and benefit war profiteers is a good idea? That’s just a terrible cherry on an incredibly disappointing cake.
Do you remember as a kid having to save your allowance to get your favorite toy? The toy had extra meaning as you had earned it, and your dad looked on proudly as you paid the cashier. The opposite can be said when you spend your hard earned money on a toy, and it breaks five minutes after you get home, because it’s a piece of shit. That’s how I feel after watching Taran Killam’s ‘Killing Gunther.’
Killam gave himself a handy and then left you with the bill. The whole reason I wanted to watch this film was for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s comedy, and Killam just kicks me in the nuts for the first hour. The film is only 92 minutes long, but you don’t see Schwarzenegger until 68 minutes into the film. You lied to me, Taran!
‘Killing Gunther’ is a mockumentary about a group of hitmen and woman attempting to kill the best hitman in the business.
Killam wrote, directed, and produced the film, and you can tell this is his first time directing. It felt as if he just let the camera roll for multiple takes and then spliced together randomly. Killam filmmaking skills are amateur at best, and insulting at their worst. The concept has potential, and with another director might have worked.
Hey! Can we stop using CGI fire in films?
It doesn’t look real and it never will!
The film gets very meta for me at the end when Schwarzenegger’s character Gunther gives a speech to Killam’s Blake about having to earn his victories and that it takes time and hard work. ‘Killing Gunther’ feels rushed, and insults the craft of comedy.
Again, this film had potential. The cast is excellent and some laughs were had. Allison Tolman of ‘Fargo’ and Ryan Gaul are brilliant as the brother and sister assassins from Russia. Bobby Moynihan’s Donnie with his drunk karaoke is probably the closest we’ll get to his ‘Drunk Uncle’ character from SNL.
Overall, ‘Killing Gunther’ should have only been 30 minutes long. The final act of the film is decent with Schwarzenegger’s comedy as his presence buried the rest of the cast. Even Cobie Smulders looks depressed during the film.
You can see how Killam sold this film studios, but the execution is so off. ‘Killing Gunther’ was a skit that should have never been a film.
P.S. This concept was done before, and done extremely well. It was called ‘What We Do in the Shadows.’
Even after the negative critical reception of Batman v Superman, fans continue to discuss and argue over Ben Affleck‘s interpretation of Batman, and it seems like many fans agree that the actor delivered a great performance as the caped crusader. That discussion will likely jump into fifth gear in November, when Justice League finally lands in theatres, and fans are given a new look at Affleck as the iconic character.
Ahead of Justice League, and Affleck‘s second (not counting Suicide Squad) outing as Batman, the actor spoke to Geek Magazine and stated that playing the character in Justice League is a “dream come true.” The actor also says that standing next to the other Justice League cast members in costume mad him realise how important the role is.
See what Ben Affleck said below:
Playing Batman was a boyhood dream come true for me, so playing Batman alongside the Justice League? I mean, what can you say? The first time we all stood on set in costume, we just looked around at each other and you could tell it was a big moment for each one of us.
Since the release of Batman v Superman fans have wondered if Ben Affleck is still interested in playing the character in the solo Batman movie. After his comments at comic-con and what he’s now saying to Geek Magazine, it sure looks like the actor is excited about the character and his future in the DC Film Universe.
Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s (Henry Cavill) selfless act, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) enlists newfound ally Diana Prince to face an even greater threat. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to recruit a team to stand against this newly awakened enemy. Despite the formation of an unprecedented league of heroes — Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and the Flash — it may be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.
