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Lived Long and Prospered!
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Beyond a spiffy new poster Robert Downey Jr. has stated that Marvel will have a big announcement in the next 8 days. That would be March 5th or 6th.
You've been good so here's a new #IronMan poster from @Avengers. & on the DL, big announcement in 8 days… #getexcited pic.twitter.com/AdB1tTib7K
— Robert Downey Jr (@RobertDowneyJr) February 25, 2015
Back in November I reported about three actors who ere up for the part of Scott Sommers, well none of the three landed the part. However Ben Hardy, of BBC's Eastenders fame has been added to the cast of X-Men: Apocalypse for a significant role.
It is widely believed the role is Warren Worthington III, aka Angel. Angel, along with Beast, Cyclops, and Iceman were the original X-Men class who were joined by Jean Gray in the first X-Men comics.
Angel, after having his wings clipped by the Morlocks, joins Apocalypse as one of his Four Horsemen under the name Archangel.
In what many prognosticators predict will be a bad movie for superhero films in general, and sci-fi genre at Sony Picture Entertainment, Tom Rothman has been hired to replace Amy Pascal as chair of SPE.
Tom Rothman is most known for his tenure as President of 20th Century Fox where his micromanagement of a number of their Marvel Properties is well documented.
Those on the inside suggest he has been hired for one reason, to help SPE make hits on the cheap, something that Amy Pascal has been extremely unsuccessful at.
His hiring also will bring rumors of a potential sale of the Spider-Man IP back to Marvel in the next 18 months or so.
For the UK release
A number of rumors can officially be put to bed: Hayley Atwell (Agent Peggy Carter), Don Cheadle (Col Rhodes), Anthony Mackie (Sam Wilson), Idris Elba (Heimdall), and Stellen Skarsgard (Erik Selvig) have officially been confirmed by the poster.
There is one new name on the list that may almost slip by:
Additional Music: Danny Elfman
Danny Elfman composed the music for Ang Lee's Hulk and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man Trilogy. While it is entirely possible that Danny Elfman was brought in to help complete the score of the film, ie Randy Edleman in Last of the Mohicans, however bringing in this particular composer will add to the rumor and conspiracy mill as he clearly isn't providing his Hulk Theme from Ang Lee's 2003 movie.
My fellow Spider-Man fanatics, allow me to share with you the latest rumors to gain traction on the InterWeb.
Wow, I just upgraded myself to Fanboi, let me think about that for a moment.
There is a rumor making the rounds that I wanna say makes sense (more sense than a Aunt May Spy Film at least) and I want to acknowledge it publically.
Andrew Garfield is going to appear (or at least his voice talents) in Avengers: Age of Ultron as the costumed Spider-Man and he will have a scene with Tony Stark/Iron Man.
Miles Morales than interacts with Tony Stark and Steve Rogers in CA3: Civil War. The young man cannot decide whether he wants to be a hero or not and if should announce to the world his powers. Someone from SHIELD (Nick Fury) gives Miles a Spider-Man Suit and he decides to be a hero.
Peter Parker than is "apparently" killed in the opening sequence of Spider-Man next movie (Spectacular Spider-Man) by Kraven the Hunter. It is this sacrifice that pushes Miles Morales into truly being the next Spider-Man. Kraven will not be the ultimate bad guy however in the movie, that's Kingpin. We are introduced to Eddie Brock and the Venom Symbiote. An agent from SHIELD is assigned to watch Miles Morales and look for others with the same (similar) powers.
In Venom Eddie Brock determines that it isn't really Peter Parker isn't buried in his grave. The movie is about the Venom Symbiote taking over Eddie Brock. 
We also get the female lead Spider-Verse movie, named after the lead character Silk, which will center on Cindy Moon a young woman hiding her powers be living in a bunker away from the world. She finds a master in .... Peter Parker who trains her to be Silk.The conclusion of the Story is the Sinister Six which in the end has Miles, Cindy and Peter teaming up.
What's Next for Marvel? - Part 2 of 3
Posted by Labels: 20th Century Fox, Marvel Studios, Sony, X-MenThis post gets kind of long so a little summary before looking in depth.
- 20th Century Fox and Marvel Studios (Disney) do not have the best working relationship.
- There are many similarities between Sony's reboot of the Spider-Man and 20th Century Fox's reboot of the Fantastic Four.
- Does Fantastic Four outperform expectations?
- How linked are the X-Men and Fantastic Four at 20th Century Fox?
How does 20th Century Fox take the news of Sony and Marvel Studios agreement?
Sony and 20th Century Fox have over the years had a solid working relationship as film studios, including several unwritten agreements to not step on one another toes or directly compete with one another on numerous projects and sharing of resources. In the Marvel Universe Sony allowed 20th Century Fox to use Kingpin from the Spider-Man IP in their 2003 Daredevil Movie.
The great Sony hack reviled that Sony was well versed on everything that 20th Century Fox was working on, and considering; including details on a potential X-Men - Fantastic Four crossover.
20th Century Fox does not have a good relationship with Disney or Marvel Studios, bad, contentious, ill-willed are probably much better words to describe their relationship.
In 2012 Co-Chair Tom Rothman stepped down leaving Jim Gianopulos as Chair of 20th Century Fox. Tom Rothman by all accounts was not a superhero kind of guy, the jury is kind of out on Jim. However when George Lucas sold LucasFilm Studios to Disney in 2012 without even allowing 20th Century Fox to bid, needless to say Jim Gianopulos was not a happy camper.
The Fantastic Four
In 2012 Marvel Studios (and Marvel Entertainment) were in discussions with 20th Century Fox on the return of the Fantastic Four IP to Marvel. According to rumor at the last moment 20th Century Fox decided to move forwards with production of a reboot, Marvel Entertainment CEO Isaac Perlmutter went beyond ballistic to batshit crazy. To this day their are no posters or pictures of the Fantastic Four in Marvel Entertainments Headquarters.
The rumors continued that Alan Fine, President of Marvel Entertainment, read the script of the reboot and said something along the lines that "this is worse than The Amazing Spider-Man 2."
How well does the Fantastic Four reboot perform?
A comparison of the box-office returns of The Avengers: Age of Ultron to The Fantastic Four will be telling. It goes beyond which movie makes the most revenue, because that is a no brainer, but rather which one outperforms and which one underperforms.
A:AOU may have an outside chance to hit $1 Billion domestically, I am guessing somewhere in the neighborhood of $750 Million is more likely.
The FF movie on the other hand is a complete wildcard. It could be as high as $200 Million or as low as $85 Million with a fair bet that $150 Million is going to be pretty close.
Where this comes into play is how much money the movies make in revenue for the individual studios. Everything from Marvel Studios has turned out well so far, 20th Century Fox on the other hand is only batting .500.
20th Century Fox is not investing big into Fantastic Four, reportedly around $100 Million in comparison Marvel Studios is investing $180 Million for Ant-Man. To turn a profit domestically Fantastic Four needs to earn around $140 to $145 Million, that way any money earned overseas is all profit. With a fair bet that $150 Million, that really doesn't leave any margin for error. A rough formula suggests for every $1 less than $145 million the movie will need to earn $3 overseas. Example if FF earns $120 Million ($25 M Short) it will need to make $75 Million overseas.
20th Century Fox is not investing big into Fantastic Four, reportedly around $100 Million in comparison Marvel Studios is investing $180 Million for Ant-Man. To turn a profit domestically Fantastic Four needs to earn around $140 to $145 Million, that way any money earned overseas is all profit. With a fair bet that $150 Million, that really doesn't leave any margin for error. A rough formula suggests for every $1 less than $145 million the movie will need to earn $3 overseas. Example if FF earns $120 Million ($25 M Short) it will need to make $75 Million overseas.
You can be successful with a decent overseas revenue, see The Wolverine, unfortunately that is the exception not the rule.
The worst nightmare for 20th Century Fox is Fantastic Four earns $115 Million Domestically and $180 Million overseas. While it sounds like a big number it barely makes enough to cover the expenses and not enough to finance the sequel in any way shape or form.
Another item to watch for is Fantastic Four is using OTOY for almost all of its VX (CGI). OTOY is a cloud rendering system that in theory is 1/4 to 1/3 the cost of traditional VX. The question is how well will the VX from OTOY be in comparison to traditional VX used by Marvel Studios. In the trailer we have not seen many VX shots so as an audience we have no way of knowing, yet even Ant-Man has shown us multiple VX shots. I'll just say it is not a good sign so far.
The audience reaction to the Fantastic Four will be another and probably the final key metric for the success of FF. Initially fans of the 2005 FF film were okay with the film, scoring the film with a median score of 6 (on a 10 point scale). After the release of the FF: Rise of the Silver Surfer the median score for the original dropped to a 5. Fan reception below a 8 (The lowest score in MCU excluding Hulk standalone movies) is probably going to be considered a failure.
I can hear it now: That's a lot of discussion on FF, why?
The FF is a reboot of a movie franchise that is not 10 years old so the comparisons to Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man are fairly natural or predictable. With the failures of TASM people are going to want to know did 20th Century Fox learn from Sony's mistakes or not.
To me the answer is, well no, or probably not really. 20th Century Fox is telling an origin story over, trying to tell a coming of age story, and deviating from the accepted story line.
If you had seen Spider-Man (2002), you know any of the 500 times it was on TV before TASM (2012) was released than the rehash of the movie meant that 45 minutes or so could easily have been chopped out. So far this month alone the 2005 Fantastic Four film is on TV 74 times.
Marvel learned this from Hulk to The Incredible Hulk, where the reboot origin story was 5 minutes during the opening credits.
It is interesting that Josh Trank's version of FF is a coming of age story, well not really interesting but some word with similar meaning. Josh Trank's best work thus far is Chronicle, a coming of age story about three friends who get super-powers and what happens to them. So FF is a coming of age story about FOUR friends who get super-powers and what happens to them. See the difference, oh yeah and the budget $20 to $100.
The other problem with a coming of age story is the original story of the Fantastic Four, you know four OLDER individuals who gain powers later in life and how it changes their adult lives.
Which leads to the question, What happens if Fantastic Four underperforms at the Box Office?
For the record I am going to say underperforming is less than $150 million domestically and under $200 internationally.
If FF falls dramatically short, say $115 and $150, I am guessing the second film is delayed or cancelled and 20th Century Fox and Marvel have discussions about giving back the license.
If FF falls short by a little bit, the third movie (crossover) is not going to happen. The Second film may be delayed and Josh Trank replaced.
If FF outperforms expectations than a lot of bloggers are going to have crow for supper for a while.
What are my expectations?
I have a hard time seeing FF outperforming expectations. In the world of Sci-Fi movies, not just super-hero, but Sci-Fi movies in general (including supernatural horror, futuristic, alternative history, monsters and so forth) very few movies, not made by Marvel, have out performed expectations. Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins is on a very short list that includes Avatar and ... well ... that maybe it in the past ten years. A few like Godzilla and Interstellar either barely beat or just missed their expectations but not many movies truly beat expectations. The only question is how far below expectations do I expect FF to fall.
With that in mind I have a hard time seeing Fantastic Four II being released as scheduled in ultra competitive 2017 time frame.
If 20th Century Fox did not control the X-Men IP, I am currently giving it a 25% chance that the license will be returned to Marvel before the next movie is made. A 50% chance that an agreement with Marvel would be made similar to the one between Sony and Marvel. The remaining 25% chance that 20th Century will continue the course with Fantastic Four. The percent chance that 20th Century Fox enters into a deal with Marvel Studios would be much higher if there was not so much animosity between the two groups.
Just Putting this in writing.
I do not anticipate that Marvel has any interest in the Fantastic Four under its current configuration of twenty-something characters.
I want to be one of the first to say that I wouldn't be shocked if Marvel were to look at Ioan Gruffeld, Jessica Alba and Michael Chiklis plus a replacement for Chris Evans if a crossover agreement were to happen.
Enough about the Fantastic Four, what about the X-Men?
The last two X-Men Movies, The Wolverine and X-Men: Days of Future Past, underperformed at the domestic box office ($132 and $233 Million Respectfully). Both movies, on the other hand, outperformed expectations in the international box office ($284 and $511 M).
Executives at 20th Century Fox believed The Wolverine was a solid enough movie to make $65 M opening weekend with an outside chance to hit $75 M and end up in the $175 M range overall before the release of the film. The movie fell roughly 20% short on both numbers. X:Men Days of Future Past also fell 20% short of both opening weekend and total domestic. The two movies combined to be approximately $100 below expectations. That is a lot of jing, considering it was the budget of The Wolverine.
X-Men: Apocalypse is budgeted to be the most expensive film ever made by 20th Century Fox, in the neighborhood of $250 M. There is hope at 20th Century Fox that using the OTOY system in the Fantastic Four can be used of XM:A and a savings of about $50 M can be seen. With XM:A about to go into production I would have expected to hear rave reviews about OTOY and plans to use it wide spread by now. As I have not hear those rave reviews I am thinking there is an issue and that traditional VX is going to be used in XM:A.
To keep up with the increased expenses XM:A will need to earn $270M domestically. With XM:A being released in IMAX (the preceding films were not) it should bring a 10% to 15% increase in domestic revenue as well as the usual ticket price increases. Additionally Deadpool will be released 90 days before. Simply put it will need to sell 50,000 to 100,000 more tickets than XM:DoFP. If Deadpool brings in similar numbers to The Wolverine coupled with the fact XM:DoFP was well received its not hard to imagine XM:A making those numbers. That's not the problem, the fact that XM:DoFP underperformed by 20% puts the real number that XM:A should reach at $320M is the problem and its hard to see the movie hitting that mark.
X-Men: The TV Series
Way back in early 2000's there was a lawsuit involving Marvel Studios/Entertainment and 20th Century Fox concerning the rights both have for the X-Men Universe. The result of the suit clearly indicated there are two sets of rights. Marvel controls the X-Men Universe on TV and similar platforms while 20th Century Fox controls ALL mutants in Theatrically Released Motion Pictures.
So when rumors started circling that 21st Century Fox (20th Century Fox parent Company) was exploring a X-Men TV show for FOX (the TV Network) my ears perked up. In many ways this is similar to the rumors about a Spider-Verse Movie with a female lead, it can only happen if there is an agreement between Fox and Marvel. The rumors have died down lately, but something to watch for.
The Fantastic Four and the X-Men
Before further discussing the X-Men IP the question becomes how linked are these two IPs in the eyes of Marvel and 20th Century Fox. I honestly cannot answer. I can suggest based upon public comment prior to Fantastic Four going into production that there is little or no link, however in the same breath I would add that people at 20th Century Fox would like there to be.
From where I sit writing this I cannot see Marvel Entertainment/Studios coming to an agreement with 20th Century Fox on just one of the two IPs, if it is just one, it will not be the X-Men.
Up above I suggested that there was a 50% chance that 20th Century Fox and Marvel come to an agreement, but that's not a true percentage chance. With the animosity between the two studios that number should be closer to zero, but we aren't talking X-Men, we are suggesting the Fantastic Four.
What could Marvel Use?
Wolverine, Beast, X-23, Professor Xavier, an older Fantastic Four AND villains.
The heroes would be a nice little addition to MCU, its the villains that Marvel Studios needs, especially big time named villains. Doctor Doom, Galacatus, Magneto, Mystique, Jugernaut, and Sabretooth.
Let's cut to the chase: Does 20th Century Fox and Marvel Studios make an agreement similar to the one that Sony Production Entertainment did with Marvel Studios earlier this month?
No.
If they make an agreement it will be a MUCH BIGGER agreement, involving TV rights, marketing and character licenses; not necessarily more money involved.
The odds of that agreement are probably a little less than a coin flip. An under performing Fantastic Four probably will lead to that push, which may occur before the movies release, but I don't think Marvel will go along with it. Let's be clear however if Deadpool and X-Men: Apocalypse are going to beat expectations, and Wolverine 3 as well, than 20th Century Fox needs Marvel's help.
An agreement between the two studios will clearly allow FOX to create and air an X-Men themed TV series, and maybe even a Fantastic Four theme TV series as well.
To me the answer is, well no, or probably not really. 20th Century Fox is telling an origin story over, trying to tell a coming of age story, and deviating from the accepted story line.
If you had seen Spider-Man (2002), you know any of the 500 times it was on TV before TASM (2012) was released than the rehash of the movie meant that 45 minutes or so could easily have been chopped out. So far this month alone the 2005 Fantastic Four film is on TV 74 times.
Marvel learned this from Hulk to The Incredible Hulk, where the reboot origin story was 5 minutes during the opening credits.
It is interesting that Josh Trank's version of FF is a coming of age story, well not really interesting but some word with similar meaning. Josh Trank's best work thus far is Chronicle, a coming of age story about three friends who get super-powers and what happens to them. So FF is a coming of age story about FOUR friends who get super-powers and what happens to them. See the difference, oh yeah and the budget $20 to $100.
The other problem with a coming of age story is the original story of the Fantastic Four, you know four OLDER individuals who gain powers later in life and how it changes their adult lives.
Which leads to the question, What happens if Fantastic Four underperforms at the Box Office?
For the record I am going to say underperforming is less than $150 million domestically and under $200 internationally.
If FF falls dramatically short, say $115 and $150, I am guessing the second film is delayed or cancelled and 20th Century Fox and Marvel have discussions about giving back the license.
If FF falls short by a little bit, the third movie (crossover) is not going to happen. The Second film may be delayed and Josh Trank replaced.
If FF outperforms expectations than a lot of bloggers are going to have crow for supper for a while.
What are my expectations?
I have a hard time seeing FF outperforming expectations. In the world of Sci-Fi movies, not just super-hero, but Sci-Fi movies in general (including supernatural horror, futuristic, alternative history, monsters and so forth) very few movies, not made by Marvel, have out performed expectations. Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins is on a very short list that includes Avatar and ... well ... that maybe it in the past ten years. A few like Godzilla and Interstellar either barely beat or just missed their expectations but not many movies truly beat expectations. The only question is how far below expectations do I expect FF to fall.
With that in mind I have a hard time seeing Fantastic Four II being released as scheduled in ultra competitive 2017 time frame.
If 20th Century Fox did not control the X-Men IP, I am currently giving it a 25% chance that the license will be returned to Marvel before the next movie is made. A 50% chance that an agreement with Marvel would be made similar to the one between Sony and Marvel. The remaining 25% chance that 20th Century will continue the course with Fantastic Four. The percent chance that 20th Century Fox enters into a deal with Marvel Studios would be much higher if there was not so much animosity between the two groups.
Just Putting this in writing.I do not anticipate that Marvel has any interest in the Fantastic Four under its current configuration of twenty-something characters.
I want to be one of the first to say that I wouldn't be shocked if Marvel were to look at Ioan Gruffeld, Jessica Alba and Michael Chiklis plus a replacement for Chris Evans if a crossover agreement were to happen.
Enough about the Fantastic Four, what about the X-Men?
The last two X-Men Movies, The Wolverine and X-Men: Days of Future Past, underperformed at the domestic box office ($132 and $233 Million Respectfully). Both movies, on the other hand, outperformed expectations in the international box office ($284 and $511 M).
Executives at 20th Century Fox believed The Wolverine was a solid enough movie to make $65 M opening weekend with an outside chance to hit $75 M and end up in the $175 M range overall before the release of the film. The movie fell roughly 20% short on both numbers. X:Men Days of Future Past also fell 20% short of both opening weekend and total domestic. The two movies combined to be approximately $100 below expectations. That is a lot of jing, considering it was the budget of The Wolverine.
X-Men: Apocalypse is budgeted to be the most expensive film ever made by 20th Century Fox, in the neighborhood of $250 M. There is hope at 20th Century Fox that using the OTOY system in the Fantastic Four can be used of XM:A and a savings of about $50 M can be seen. With XM:A about to go into production I would have expected to hear rave reviews about OTOY and plans to use it wide spread by now. As I have not hear those rave reviews I am thinking there is an issue and that traditional VX is going to be used in XM:A.
To keep up with the increased expenses XM:A will need to earn $270M domestically. With XM:A being released in IMAX (the preceding films were not) it should bring a 10% to 15% increase in domestic revenue as well as the usual ticket price increases. Additionally Deadpool will be released 90 days before. Simply put it will need to sell 50,000 to 100,000 more tickets than XM:DoFP. If Deadpool brings in similar numbers to The Wolverine coupled with the fact XM:DoFP was well received its not hard to imagine XM:A making those numbers. That's not the problem, the fact that XM:DoFP underperformed by 20% puts the real number that XM:A should reach at $320M is the problem and its hard to see the movie hitting that mark.
X-Men: The TV Series
Way back in early 2000's there was a lawsuit involving Marvel Studios/Entertainment and 20th Century Fox concerning the rights both have for the X-Men Universe. The result of the suit clearly indicated there are two sets of rights. Marvel controls the X-Men Universe on TV and similar platforms while 20th Century Fox controls ALL mutants in Theatrically Released Motion Pictures.
So when rumors started circling that 21st Century Fox (20th Century Fox parent Company) was exploring a X-Men TV show for FOX (the TV Network) my ears perked up. In many ways this is similar to the rumors about a Spider-Verse Movie with a female lead, it can only happen if there is an agreement between Fox and Marvel. The rumors have died down lately, but something to watch for.
The Fantastic Four and the X-Men
Before further discussing the X-Men IP the question becomes how linked are these two IPs in the eyes of Marvel and 20th Century Fox. I honestly cannot answer. I can suggest based upon public comment prior to Fantastic Four going into production that there is little or no link, however in the same breath I would add that people at 20th Century Fox would like there to be.
From where I sit writing this I cannot see Marvel Entertainment/Studios coming to an agreement with 20th Century Fox on just one of the two IPs, if it is just one, it will not be the X-Men.
Up above I suggested that there was a 50% chance that 20th Century Fox and Marvel come to an agreement, but that's not a true percentage chance. With the animosity between the two studios that number should be closer to zero, but we aren't talking X-Men, we are suggesting the Fantastic Four.
What could Marvel Use?Wolverine, Beast, X-23, Professor Xavier, an older Fantastic Four AND villains.
The heroes would be a nice little addition to MCU, its the villains that Marvel Studios needs, especially big time named villains. Doctor Doom, Galacatus, Magneto, Mystique, Jugernaut, and Sabretooth.
Let's cut to the chase: Does 20th Century Fox and Marvel Studios make an agreement similar to the one that Sony Production Entertainment did with Marvel Studios earlier this month?
No.
If they make an agreement it will be a MUCH BIGGER agreement, involving TV rights, marketing and character licenses; not necessarily more money involved.
The odds of that agreement are probably a little less than a coin flip. An under performing Fantastic Four probably will lead to that push, which may occur before the movies release, but I don't think Marvel will go along with it. Let's be clear however if Deadpool and X-Men: Apocalypse are going to beat expectations, and Wolverine 3 as well, than 20th Century Fox needs Marvel's help.
An agreement between the two studios will clearly allow FOX to create and air an X-Men themed TV series, and maybe even a Fantastic Four theme TV series as well.
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| Morena Baccarin Emmy Awards |
Baccarin is current starring in a reoccurring role as Dr. Leslie Thompkins on the TV show Gotham. The Brazilian actress has also starred in Homeland and V.
Per casting call insiders the deal is for Deadpool with studio options for three additional films.
What's Next for Marvel? - Part 1 of 3
Posted by Labels: 20th Century Fox, Marvel Studios, MCU, Sony, Spider-Man Universe
Now that Sony and Marvel Studios have signed an agreement what is next up on the agenda for Marvel Studios.- Part 1 - How does Warner Bros/DC Studios respond?
- Part 1 - Sony's Spider-Man Cinematic Universe
- Part 2 - 20th Century Fox
- Part 3 - Random Thoughts
How does Warner Bros./DC Studios respond?
I really do not know what to expect here.
When newspapers all over the world are talking about the great plans of your rival its has to be nerve racking; considering how little attention you are getting in the first place. Made worse by the fact a major casting in The Suicide Squad was printed on the bottom corner or page 12 of a recent Hollywood Newspaper.
When newspapers all over the world are talking about the great plans of your rival its has to be nerve racking; considering how little attention you are getting in the first place. Made worse by the fact a major casting in The Suicide Squad was printed on the bottom corner or page 12 of a recent Hollywood Newspaper.
What's surprising is how little advertising in general we are seeing from WB for all of their movies. Warner Bros just laid-off in excess of 1,000 people last week over the entirety of the media empire. The company is rumored to be loosing cash at a record rate, there have been calls to spin off several subsidiaries and just shutdown others.
Who is cast as the next Spider-Man?
I have been a fairly vocal critic of The Amazing Spider-Man story arc, basically since Marc Webb was announced as director. With all that venom spilled I will still say the one thing the team at Sony got right was casting. Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Sally Field, Martin Sheen, Dennis Leary and so on were pretty exceptional in their roles, and there was phenomenal chemistry in their onscreen performances. It is to bad the story stunk to the high heavens.
Like many critics I am disappointed that Andrew Garfield is being replaced, but there is a glimmer of hope.
Spider-Man was two (plus) different people in the Ultimate Universe, Peter Parker and Miles Morales. There is a decent chance that Sony/Marvel will look for a Black Latino to play Miles Morales leaving the door open for Andrew Garfield return. How much of a chance is currently debatable at the moment. Insiders are suggesting that Marvel and Sony would really like to use Miles Morales character, the problem is many of the leaked candidates so far are of the Scrawny glow in the dark white 20-something actors. If Miles Morales is the next Spider-Man will Peter Parker Return?
Regardless of I how I feel as a fan I honestly believe that there is only a small percentage chance that Sony/Marvel will choose the Miles Morales (or any of the dozen or other variants); maybe 25% at most. For the sake of argument, however, let assume they do choose Miles Morales, the answer is yes.
The leaked emails from Sony suggest that multiple versions of Spider-Man were (are) being considered with a different core audience suggested for each one.
As a follow up bonus question: Why Andrew Garfield and not Tobey Maguire?
Well um er ahh. Tobey Maguire will is, um er, too old, sort of kind of.
Here is how I would work Tobey Maguire into the story, May "Mayday" Parker, aka Spider-Girl is the daughter of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson. Mayday Parker, like Jessica Drew and Cindy Moon are not a part of the Spider-Man IP controlled by Sony.
Personally I felt Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield made good Peter Parkers for very different reasons, I wish that Tobey would have gotten to work with better VX technology and Andrew better stories. But at this stage Tobey is 39 going of 40 years old and while I believe he could integrate into the Avengers better he is too old for a stand alone film.
Will Marvel Studios be involved in the Spider-Man Universe spin-off movies?
This one is pretty easy to answer, yes at least in a limited way.
The Sinister Six and Venom are being reworked so that they in theory belong in the shared Marvel Cinematic Universe. This doesn't mean they will be canon, rather the story and timeline will fit the MCU timeline in the same way that The Amazing Spider-Man was a part of the MCU timeline.
The Glass Ceiling Project, female lead set in the Spider-Man Universe is another story. Currently it looks like multiple characters form the Marvel Cinematic Universe IP may be popping up in this film including the lead which tends to me to believe this will be more canon than the other two projects.
I should note that there is well placed rumor that Angelina Jolie will be involved in this project as either director or actress.
What about the Spider-Man, Marvel, 20th Century Fox crossover rumor?
This one is complicated.
Rumors of a potential Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends themed movie trended upwards prior to the great Sony Hack of 2014. The hack did not provide much validation to these rumors, yet they continued to grow in volume as well as detail.
In the cartoons the Amazing friends were Bobby Drake, the mutant Ice-Man and Angelica Jones, the mutant Firestar. As an aside Firestar replaced the Human Torch Johnny Storm due to a licensing dispute in 1980.
The rumors on the movie go like this, Spider-Man, Firestar and Tarene (Thor Girl/Tara Olsen) as roommates in college at Empire State University who are dealing with Dr. Doom plot. Yeap just crossed all of the IPs.
Two months ago I would have said very little chance of that happening, maybe less than zero, but I am guessing we might be in the double digits as a percentage chance; however with speculation of Dr. Doom from the latest origin story of Fantastic Four it probably would have a different villain.
A Casting Call sheet fro Wham! (codename for the Deadpool Movie) was posted online the other day. Wham! is the name of Wade Wilson's favorite band in the comics by the way.
[RIDGE] Any ethnicity, early 30s to early 50s. Big, muscular, dangerous, violent, vain, insecure and more than a bit of a dick.... but with a sense of humor. He is not a psychopath, he's practical but morally neutral-he doesn't enjoy torturing people, he just doesn't care. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SEQUEL OPTIONS.
[LINDSAY] Any ethnicity, 20s, attractive and worldly. Smart, tough, beautiful but a little bit broken. Nothing has ever been easy for her and she's developed a thick skin and cynical outlook. But she's not a victim-she may not have a great life but she's holding it together and does what she needs to get by. She's got a great sense of humor but it leans heavily towards irony and sarcasm. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SEQUEL OPTIONS.
[SIMON] Any ethnicity, late 20s to early 40s. Quirky, great sense of humor. Smart, funny, but more than a little bit slippery. Fast talker, always looking to make a buck. He looks out for himself first and foremost, but reveals loyalty at the end of the day. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SEQUEL OPTIONS.
[SHIRLIE] African American, late 60s to early 80s. Worldly, great sense of comedic timing, sarcastic, dry, funny. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SERIES OPTIONS.
[KATHY] Any ethnicity, early to mid teens. World weary, great sense of comedic timing, sarcastic, droll sense of humor. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SERIES OPTIONS.
[KEREN] Any ethnicity, early 20s to late 30s. Serious, big, tough. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SERIES OPTIONS
[ALBERT] Any ethnicity, early 30s to early 50s. Big, muscular, dangerous. ROLE REQUIRES THREE SERIES OPTIONS
Ridge sounds like T-Ray the are variations on who T-Ray is, maybe the original Wade Wilson, longtime antagonist of Deadpool. Believed that Ed Skrein has already signed on for this part.
Lindsay sounds like Domino a female mercenary who's story story of being breed by a super secret US Government program has crossed paths with Deadpool multiple times.
Simon sounds like Weasel Deadpool's Arms dealer. It is assume that TJ Miller has signed on to play this part.
Shirlie sounds a lot like Blind Al, the woman who Deadpool keeps as a hostage as he uses her house as a base of operations.
Kathy is one that has me scratching my head, no clue, maybe a character created specifically for the movie.
Keren is probably Angle Dust, Gina Carano has already been cast and announced. Angel Dust is a mutant who can control the amount of adrenaline in her body giving her short bursts of speed and strength.
Albert could be many characters but Ajax comes to mind as a Weapon X hunter.
Casting News - X-Men
Posted by Labels: Angel Dust, Apocalypse (Film), Colossus, Deadpool (film), Nightcrawler, X-Men |
| Angel Dust |
Gina Carano will play the part of Angel Dust, a mutant with the power to give herself a super human adrenaline rush which for short time gives her super strength, in Deadpool. In the comics Angel Dust is a part of the Morlocks a group of outcast mutants living on the streets of Chicago, her real name is Christine.
Daniel Cudmore has confirmed that he will not be reprising his role as Colossus in Deadpool, a part he has played in X-Men 2, X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men: Days of Future Past. No reason has been given; however it has been speculated that 20th Century Fox was looking for a younger actor for the part.
 |
| Nightcrawler from X-Men 2 |
Kodi Smit-McPhee (ParaNorman, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) has been cast as a younger Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler the teleporting little blue furry dude (fuzzy elf) for X-Men: Apocalypse. Kurt Wagner is the child of Mystique Ravenholme and Azazel.
A rumor this morning suggested that Andrew Garfield had agreed to reprise his role as Spider-Man for an extended cameo in The Avengers: Age of Ultron which was filmed last month at Pinewood Studios just outside of London. The source wrote "Andrew Garfield leant his voice" which I my book suggests that an actor in costume was on set and that Andrew Garfield is just using his voice.
I don't necessarily believe that rumor to be true, as much as I would approve of it, however for your viewing enjoyment, from Screen Crush:
Cinema Sins - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Posted by Labels: Cinema Sins, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Film)I shocking was worried that there only 221 mistakes found.
Andrew Garfield is out as Peter Parker / Spider-Man.
It should be noted that as of last week (and potentially even today) there were still ongoing talks between the joint Sony/Marvel team and Andrew Garfield about him reprising his role ultimately it came down to decision on the script setting of Midtown High or Empire State University. When the final decision was made to set the movie in Midtown High was made, it aged Andrew Garfield out of the role.
A follow up note suggests that if Sony/Marvel decide to go with Miles Morales (a black/latino teenager) than it is entirely possible for Andrew Garfield to resurface as Peter Parker in a later movie.
A short list from a Marvel insider has suggested that Dylan O'Brien and Logan Lerman are the current finalists. The third name on the short list is Daniel Radcliffe, yes Harry Potter himself, I wonder if Emma Watson would be up for Mary Jane.
Please note that the same insider suggests that setting will be Midtown High School and Miles Morales will be Spider-Man. Call it a hunch but I am not sure either Dylan O'Brien, Logan Lerman or Daniel Radcliffe can pull of a scrawny black latino teenager. A Name to watch for is Tyrel James Williams if Miles Morales is the way it goes.
Spider-Man will first appear in at least 1 MCU before his stand-alone movie in 2017. That leaves Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant-Man, Captain America: Civil War, Doctor Strange and Guardian of the Galaxy 2 as possibilities. There has long been rumors that Spider-Man would make a cameo in Avengers: Age of Ultron but with principal filming done hard to see him making more than a quick appearance. Same issue with Ant-Man. Doctor Strange and Guardians of the Galaxy 2 aren't really good fits for Spider-Man, so that leaves the very obvious Captain America: Civil War.
Work on The Amazing Spider-Man 3 has been indefinitely suspend and The Amazing Spider-Man 4 has been cancelled.
No one expects that Sony would return to the TASM storyline; however the new deal is for one movie plus appearances in the MCU, so it is highly unlikely that they would return to that story arc, but not impossible.
The untitled Spider-Man film is scheduled for release July 2017.
The short list for directors include Drew Goddard and Andrew McKay. McKay who has earned praise and admiration from Marvel Studios for his work with Ant-Man Script probably has the upper hand at the moment. A name that has been linked in the past is Joss Whedon, and I am sure that if he wants to direct this movie he will be given the keys, however his life has been MCU for the past six years and he has indicated he wants to take some time off.
Brian Michael Bendis, principal writer of the Ultimate Spider-Man has been linked to a screen play.
Filming is scheduled later this year, late fall(?), in Atlanta Georgia, which makes me believe a number of decisions have already been made but not announced.
The Sinister Six has been delayed.
Drew Goddard is still in the director's chair, however it appears that Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach will be elevated to Executive Producer and replaced by other producers.
No word has been given on the other actors who have been slated for the film, including Chris Cooper, Paul Gaimatti, Felicity Jones, Sally Field, Dane DeHaan).
Work on Venom and Female Lead set in the Spider-Man Universe continues but no release dates have been set for either project.
Alex Kurtzman is still slated to direct and Ed Solomon is still working on a script for Venom.
Writing the Female Lead Spider-Man story is Lisa Joy Nolan (whose name should sound familiar).
Permission has been granted for Sony to use/explore characters from the Marvel Universe within all three movies.
All four Sony films will linked to the MCU with only the Spider-Man film truly being canon.
There has been a rumor that Sony wanted to make multiple Spider-Man stories at the same time, The Ultimate Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Spectacular Spider-Man, amongst other options.
A rumor that has picked up a little steam in the wake of the Marvel Sony partnership is that Sony may make a Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends film. The short lived TV Cartoon series saw Peter Parker (Spider-Man), Angelica Jones (Firestar), and Bobby Drake (Ice-Man) as college roommates and fighting crime. What is interesting about this rumor is that Firestar and Ice-Man are Mutants controlled by X-Men IP at 20th Century Fox, for this rumor to have any validity it means an agreement between Sony and 20th Century Fox needs to be reached; however there is history here as 20th Century Fox's Daredevil (starring Ben Affleck) had Kingpin from the Spider-Man IP.
Vanessa Carlysle is shape-shifting mutant, known as Copycat, that has had an on-again / off-again relationship with Wade Wilson [Deadpool] over the years in the comics. Unlike Mystique Copycat power work at a cellular level allowing her to inherit the mutant powers of any mutant she copies.
Morena Baccarin (Firefly, Gotham), Taylor Schilling (Orange is the New Black), Crystal Reed (Teen Wolf), Rebecca Rittenhouse (Red Band Society), Sarah Greene (Vikings), and Jessica de Gouw (Arrow) are considered to be the short list.
With principal filming expected to start in a few weeks it is easy to surmise that availability maybe a factor in determining who is signed to play the role. If IMDB is correct that would leave Crystal Reed and Sarah Greene on an even shorter list.
A couple of sources have suggested what's the overall framework of the deal between Sony and Marvel Studios.
To start with lets go back to October; several insiders are suggesting that Marvel Studios offered in the neighborhood of $1 Billion Dollars for rights to Spider-Man. That's B as in Boy as in Billion, cash on the barrel. Sony turned it down.
One Source is suggesting Marvel might have offered twice that amount had they thought Sony would sell.
In November Marvel made another offer, the details of which can be found in my post here. Sony gave it a lot of consideration before turning it down.
So, you have turned down $1 Billion Dollars, free financing for your movies, and a gazillion other things....
So what is the agreement?
- Sony receives permission to use characters from Marvel Universe which they do not have rights to. Sony has to get approval from Marvel on who they sign on for those parts or they have to use already signed actors. IE they want to use Tony Stark, than it has to be Robert Downey Jr.
- Sony will pay points on Gross Revenue above certain thresholds set by who they use in the films. For example if they put an A-List actor like RDJ in a Spider-Man Film than they pay 75% of Gross Revenue above $850 Million. (Please note I do not have the actual numbers). While using C List Characters might only cost 25% of Gross Revenue above $850 Million.
- Marvel gets to use characters/locations/events from the Spider-Man Universe in its Movies - for FREE - but they are required to use the Same Actors that Sony Uses.
What characters does Sony want?
To start with Jessica Drew and/or Cindy Moon; and potentially May Parker (Peter and Mary Jane's Daughter) for the movie in the works by Lisa Joy Nolan.
Other Characters on the wish list include Agent Coulson, Elektra, Nick Fury, Iron Fist, Tarene, Tigra, White Tiger and Nova.
Amy Pascal has long wished to do a realistically grounded Spider-Man movie about a troubled high-schooler who has difficulty fitting in because he is a super genius. Could you imagine Agent Coulson as a High School Principal with Spider-Man, Tarene (Thor's daughter), and Nova fighting crime. Hum that sounds like the Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon doesn't it.
I should note there was some discussion on whether Marvel Studios TV branch use of Kingpin was covered before the agreement.
A new actor to play Spider-Man will be signed to a joint deal in the near future. There is a long list of potential actors, however with Spider-Man playing a pivotal role in Captain America: Civil War one can expect a new Spider-Man to be named sooner rather than later.
The joint contract will cover two movies with a studio (Sony) option for a third.
X-Men: Apocalypse: Patrick Stewart says Ian McKellen is "certainly" going to appear in X-Men: Apocalypse as Magneto, although his own character (Professor Xavier) will not. However, Stewart also says he's had discussions about a "very different" sort of Wolverine movie in which he would team up with Hugh JackmanI will take this as confirmation that Ian McKellan will appear in X-Men: Apocalypse and Patrick Stewart will appear in the untitled Wolverine Sequel.
1 - http://www.movies.com/movie-news/fifty-shades-of-grey-imax/17884?wssac=164&wssaffid=news
Who Replaces - Andrew Garfield
Posted by
Let's take a look who could replace Andrew Garfield.
The problem I have creating this list is that I can think of multiple reasons why everyone on this list should not be Peter/Miles/Cindy/Jessica/May rather than why they should be.
First Up on the list - Andrew Garfield. If you read the reviews of TASM2 many/most reviewers gave Andrew Garfield solid marks, along with Emma Stone. Additionally Andrew Garfield is already under contract for TASM3 and will be paid regardless.
I do think it unlikely given all the negatives involving Andrew Garfield that he will return, but not quite impossible.
I would also like to point to a rumor making the rounds for the past couple of months that Spider-Man will be played by multiple actors in multiple story lines - The Spectacular Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Ultimate Spider-Man, Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends.
Lets stay with the idea that Peter Parker will Spider-Man, it is important to note that the press release said Spider-Man not Peter Parker will be joining the MCU.
- Dylan O'Brien
- Matthew Lewis
- Ansel Elgort
- Jack O'Connell
- Thomas Brodie-Sangster
Matthew Lewis, is the old man among the group, best known for playing Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter franchise, which in many ways is a leg up on the others. He also has the look that may fit well as Peter Parker.
Thomas Brodie-Sangster who has voiced Ferb Fletcher in Disney's Phineas & Ferb cartoon is an interesting choice, he clearly has the teenager look.
I tend to think that Ansel Elgort from that list will be given the longest look. Not sure however given his limited experience that Sony/Marvel are going to hand over the keys to $4 Billion dollar franchise.
Ultimate Spider-Man is the primary work of John Michael Bendis, a potential screen-writer for the upcoming movie.
- Donald Glover
- Alfred Enoch
- John Boyega
- Tyler James Williams
Alfred Enoch, a British Actor know for playing Dean Thomas is also approaching 30 and has not had large screen time in anything as of yet.
John Boyega has a solid reputation; however he is committed to the Star Wars Franchise.
Tyler James Williams at 21 years old, is more known as a rapper than an actor.
Lets not forget that these options are out there. Marvel has been criticized heavily for being the White-Boys club and that a female lead has yet to materialize. With notes that Sony has been working on a Female Spider-Man movie you cannot discount these two characters just yet.
- Quvenzhané Wallis
- Zendaya Coleman
- Lupita Nyong'o
- Jenna Coleman
Many people would love to see Lupita Nyong'o get a major leading role in franchise however she is involved in the Star Wars Franchise and her availability may be an issue.
Zendaya has become more of a stage actress of late but has many connections with Disney.
The interesting name that has been bantered about is Jenna Coleman, the British Actress known for playing Clara on Doctor Who.
If Sony is truly interested in the Glass Ceiling storyline (Female Lead) which is being penned by Lisa Joy Nolan with centered on either Jessica Drew (Spider-Woman), May Parker (Spider-Girl) or Cindy Moon (Silk) it becomes a question of which version or flavor of the character do they prefer or can them create some sort of an amalgamation of the different characters together.
Who I think will get it.
Zac Efron
He has already read/interviewed/auditioned for a part and both Marvel and Zac have suggested that if the right part was available they is mutual interest. The one concern I have is Zac Efron is his age, at 30 years old (in 2017) may be an issue.
Marvel's Kevin Feige to Produce Next Installment of the Spider-Man Franchise with Amy Pascal
(Culver City, California, and Burbank, California February 09, 2015) – Sony Pictures Entertainment and Marvel Studios announced today that Sony is bringing Marvel into the amazing world of Spider-Man.Under the deal, the new Spider-Man will first appear in a Marvel film from Marvel's Cinematic Universe (MCU). Sony Pictures will thereafter release the next installment of its $4 billion Spider-Man franchise, on July 28, 2017, in a film that will be co-produced by Kevin Feige and his expert team at Marvel and Amy Pascal, who oversaw the franchise launch for the studio 13 years ago. Together, they will collaborate on a new creative direction for the web slinger. Sony Pictures will continue to finance, distribute, own and have final creative control of the Spider-Man films.Marvel and Sony Pictures are also exploring opportunities to integrate characters from the MCU into future Spider-Man films.The new relationship follows a decade of speculation among fans about whether Spider-Man – who has always been an integral and important part of the larger Marvel Universe in the comic books – could become part of the Marvel Universe on the big screen. Spider-Man has more than 50 years of history in Marvel's world, and with this deal, fans will be able to experience Spider-Man taking his rightful place among other Super Heroes in the MCU.Bob Iger, Chairman and CEO, The Walt Disney Company said: "Spider-Man is one of Marvel's great characters, beloved around the world. We're thrilled to work with Sony Pictures to bring the iconic web-slinger into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which opens up fantastic new opportunities for storytelling and franchise building.""We always want to collaborate with the best and most successful filmmakers to grow our franchises and develop our characters. Marvel, Kevin Feige and Amy, who helped orchestrate this deal, are the perfect team to help produce the next chapter of Spider-Man," said Michael Lynton, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment. "This is the right decision for the franchise, for our business, for Marvel, and for the fans.""Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios share a love for the characters in the Spider-Man universe and have a long, successful history of working together. This new level of collaboration is the perfect way to take Peter Parker's story into the future," added Doug Belgrad, president, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group."I am thrilled to team with my friends at Sony Pictures along with Amy Pascal to produce the next Spider-Man movie," said Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. "Amy has been deeply involved in the realization on film of one of the world’s most beloved characters. Marvel's involvement will hopefully deliver the creative continuity and authenticity that fans demand from the MCU. I am equally excited for the opportunity to have Spider-Man appear in the MCU, something which both we at Marvel, and fans alike, have been looking forward to for years."Spider-Man, embraced all over the world, is the most successful franchise in the history of Sony Pictures, with the five films having taken in more than $4 billion worldwide.ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENTSony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. For additional information, go to http://www.sonypictures.com/.ABOUT MARVEL ENTERTAINMENTMarvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy-five years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing. For more information visit marvel.com. © 2015 MARVEL
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