Movie News

Popcorn season is upon us, and it’ll be up to comic-book heroes, a wise-cracking genie, and a lion who would be king to ensure movie theaters are still the hottest place to spend the summer.

Last summer, blockbusters like “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” Ocean’s 8,” and “The Meg” drove moviegoers to their local multiplex in record numbers. This year could be equally impressive. At the very least, Disney will be a force to be reckoned with as the studio unveils highly anticipated titles, including “Avengers: Endgame,” “The Lion King,” and “Toy Story 4.”

As the dog days approach, Variety took a look five weekends that should have the summer box office sizzling.

April 26: “Avengers: Endgame”

Summer is getting off to an earlier start with “Avengers: Endgame” debuting at the end of April, and Marvel’s epic superhero mashup couldn’t arrive at a better time.

Lorcan Finnegan’s science-fiction thriller “Vivarium” with Jesse Eisenberg and Imogen Poots, Jérémy Clapin’s fantasy-filled animated feature “I Lost My Body,” and Hlynur Pálmason’s Icelandic drama “A White, White Day” are among the 11 films set to compete at Critics’ Week, the section dedicated to first and second films that runs parallel with the Cannes Film Festival.

“Vivarium,” described by Critics’ Week’s artistic director Charles Tesson as reminiscent of “The Twilight Zone” and “The Truman Show,” follows a young couple (Eisenberg and Poots) who have just moved into a new housing development and find themselves in a maze of identical homes and a surreal world.

“A White, White Day” marks Pálmason’s follow up to his 2017 feature debut, “Winter Brothers,” which won three prizes at Locarno and played at a flurry of festivals. “A White, White Day” stars Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson (“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”) as

Even on one of the quietest weekends of the year, new U.S. animated release “Wonder Park” failed to inspire Chinese audiences as much as Hong Kong and Indian movies already in their third weekend in theaters.

Starring the voice talents of Matthew Broderick, Jennifer Garner, Mila Kunis, and Ken Jeong, among many others, the film tells the story of a young girl who has adventures when the amusement park she thought only existed in her imagination comes to life. It is the directorial debut of Dylan Brown, an animator who had worked on films like “Monsters Inc.,” but who was fired by Paramount in January 2018 due to allegations of inappropriate conduct with women and is thus uncredited.

“Wonder Park” came in third with just a $3.3 million debut weekend, according to figures from consultancy Artisan Gateway. The film opened March 15 in the U.S.

With movie choices made up of holdovers and weak new releases,

The other day, on social media, actor Will Smith posted an update about the upcoming “Bad Boys for Life” (aka the long-awaited threequel to the popular Michael Bay franchise), saying that the film has finally wrapped. That means that in less than a year, barring some post-production catastrophe, action film fans will finally get to see the continuing adventures of Smith and his ‘Bad Boys’ partner Martin Lawrence.

Continue reading Joe Carnahan Talks Details Of His “Phenomenal” (But Unused) ‘Bad Boys 3’ Script That Includes Insulting ‘Danish Girl’ Jab at The Playlist.

Having been partially responsible for the Netflix fall out with the Cannes Film Festival, “Okja” and “Snowpiercer” director Bong Joon-ho returns to Cannes competition this year with conventionally- financed “Parasite.” But the Korean-language film is a tragicomedy that Bong says may be too nuanced for the festival.

“Cannes always makes me feel excited, fresh, and nervous. I am very happy to premiere my film, which took so much work, at the hottest, most passionate place,” Bong said at an event held in Seoul on Monday. “But I doubt whether the film could be 100% understood (by foreign audiences). ‘Parasite’ is full of details and nuances that are specific to Koreans. I think the film’s Korean premiere after Cannes will be the most exciting moment for me.”

The themes that Bong has explored in his previous films, such as social class and family dynamics, will again feature. ” “Parasite’ is a story

From writer/director Sally Wainwright, the eight-episode HBO/BBC drama series Gentleman Jack is set in 1832 Halifax, West Yorkshire in England and focuses on landowner Anne Lister (exquisitely played by Suranne Jones), a woman who bucked society’s expectations at every turn. Determined to transform the fate of her ancestral home, Shibden Hall, by marrying well, Lister charms her way into high society and uses her natural charisma to pursue the one she wants, only she has no intention of marrying a man. Never one to pretend to be anything other than exactly who she is, Lister sets …

Fox Searchlight has been developing a movie based on the life of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien for six years, and Tolkien is finally coming to theaters this May. And if you’re a fan of the author and you live in the Los Angeles area, you’re in luck: we’re […]

The post Contest: Win Free Tickets to an Early ‘Tolkien’ Screening, Featuring a Q&A With Cast and Filmmakers appeared first on /Film.

Andrew Garfield’s time playing Peter Parker on the big screen was cut short after the critical and commercial beating “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” took in summer 2014. The Marc Webb-directed superhero movie was so universally loathed that it shut down Sony’s plans for a live-action Spider-Man movie universe and led the studio to partner with Disney and allow the character to be integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where he’s played by Tom Holland. Garfield recently told Uproxx he made it a priority after “Amazing Spider-Man 2” to distance himself from being thought of as a comic book movie actor.

“I think I’ve been aware of that possibility that such a seminal, iconic role can follow an actor around and it takes a lot to shift the consciousness of an audience, and shift the consciousness of people,” Garfield said. “But I feel like I’ve been really

All “Star Wars” fans seem to have their sights set on December and ‘Rise of Skywalker,’ which is putting the finishing touches on the Skywalker Saga that began with the 1977 original film. However, before that film hits theaters, fans of the galaxy far, far away will have their “Star Wars” itch scratched thanks to the new Disney+ series “The Mandalorian,” which premieres in November.

Continue reading ‘The Mandalorian’ Actor Talks George Lucas’ Involvement & Working With The Talented Group Of Directors at The Playlist.

(Welcome to Road to Endgame, where we revisit the first 22 movies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and ask, “How did we get here?” In this edition: Ant-Man and the Wasp is an easy, breezy, meaningless entry.) As the Marvel Cinematic Universe increases in bombast, it needs the occasional palette-cleanser. The bloated Avengers: Age of Ultron was […]

The post Road to Endgame: ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ Breaks From the Marvel Formula, But Does It Matter to the Larger McU? appeared first on /Film.

In a new behind-the-scenes video that sheds light on Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 2, titled “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss clarify some of the story choices that were made. Benioff and Weiss reveal that this episode was always seen as a “what would these characters do with their last night on Earth?” story, as many of the show’s disparate characters have come together to face a common enemy. They begin by discussing the Trial of Jaime Lannister and how Jaime’s arrival in Winterfell affects the characters …

Far from being a forgettable, algorithm-written story about plucky kids trying to make a time machine, See You Yesterday connects its story to current events in what looks to be a powerful and emotional way. Produced by Spike Lee and directed by his protege Stefon Bristol, the Netflix film follows two high-school best friends (Cj and Sebastian) who build a backpack to travel through time -- but that journey takes on a new urgency when Cj's brother Calvin is killed by police, despite being unarmed. From there, Cj and Sebastian's journey (or as the trailer reveals, multiple …

At the very end of “Gentleman Jack’s” first episode, the eponymous protagonist shows up unannounced but fully prepared to start courting a new love interest. Giddy with excitement, “Jack” asks to see the lady of the house and, with a quick pump of the eyebrows, looks directly into the camera.

While far from a revolutionary choice in the golden age of “Fleabag,” a character breaking the fourth wall is still rather surprising in what’s otherwise a by-the-books period drama. Sure, writer-director Sally Wainwright (“Happy Valley”) shows a bit of flair from time to time — a cracking, up-tempo rhythm accompanies the title credits — but she needs to show more. You see, Gentleman Jack is Anne Lister (Suranne Jones), whose decoded diary entries inspire the series of the same name. A music cue here and a fourth-wall break there don’t quite match the swagger of this Lgbtq icon — or

How do you possibly craft a feature film that pays off the journeys of a dozen or more characters over the course of 21 films and somehow pleases the fans and makes $2 billion in the process? That’s the question that plagued writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely when they were presented with a blank document and a ton of expectation before penning the script for “Avengers: Endgame.” And when the writers talk about it, you can tell they were fully aware of the pressure of the situation.

Continue reading ‘Avengers: Endgame’ Writers Talk Writing The Post-Thanos Snap Sequel: “What The Hell Do You Do After That?” at The Playlist.

It’s been said in the past that Phase Three of the McU would conclude not with the epic Avengers: Endgame, but rather Spider-Man: Far From Home. If there was any lingering doubt about this claim, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige sealed the deal recently, confirming that Far From Home would indeed bring Phase Three to an end. But […]

The post Why Does McU Phase Three End with ‘Spider-Man: Far from Home’ and Not ‘Avengers: Endgame’? appeared first on /Film.

The long-discussed battle episode of Game of Thrones’s final season is upon us. Game of Thrones Season 3 Episode 3 will indeed be the Battle of Winterfell episode, whose production has nearly entered the realm of myth. It took 11 weeks to shoot, all involving night shoots, and up to 750 people were necessary to put it all together. At 1 hour and 22 minutes in length, the episode will be the longest in Game of Thrones history, all of which will be battle-oriented, making it the longest continuous battle sequence ever put to film. Game of …

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has kept the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline under lock and key in the lead up to this weekend’s “Avengers: Endgame,” but he did surprise fans at a recent fan event in Shanghai (via Newsweek) by confirming that “Endgame” is not the last chapter in Phase Three of the McU. The upcoming “Spider Man: Far From Home,” set for release this July, is actually the final installment of Phase Three, which began with “Captain America: Civil War” in 2016 and has included such beloved McU entries as “Black Panther” and “Thor: Ragnarok.”

Feige would not speak on the matter outside of responding to a “Far From Home” question by saying, “It’s the end of the third phase.” The executive added this was the first time he was confirming publicly that this nugget of information was confirmed. McU fans have been wondering about the future of the movie universe following “Endgame,

The constant flood of Netflix original films and TV series gives audiences (and filmmakers) a few mixed feelings. First, the good news is that there’s just a ton of content for people to discover. However, that content (no matter how star-studded or high-profile) can get lost in the mix as more and more stuff just piles on top of it. That being said, there’s one pretty great side-effect of this new business model that is a rare thing in 2019 – surprises.

Continue reading ‘See You Yesterday’ Trailer: Time Travel Might Prevent A Tragic Police Shooting In New Netflix Film From Producer Spike Lee at The Playlist.

Despite a few script hiccups here and there, Escape Room ended up being a surprisingly fun horror-thriller with a series of inventive, memorable set pieces. The film did well enough to already result in a greenlit sequel, and now, Escape Room is hitting Blu-ray. In anticipation of this week’s home video release, we have an exclusive Escape Room […]

The post Exclusive ‘Escape Room’ Clip Shows You How the Memorable Escape Rooms Were Created appeared first on /Film.

As we approach the mid-May launch of the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, more and more information is beginning to be announced about what offerings the French event will have this year. No, that doesn’t mean we have any word on the Quentin Tarantino film that everyone seems to be anxious about. Instead, this announcement is about the 2019 Cannes Critics’ Week section that runs parallel to the main competition.

Continue reading ‘Vivarium’ Starring Jesse Eisenberg & Imogen Poots Leads 2019 Cannes Critics’ Week Line-Up at The Playlist.