JARED   LETO   UP   FOR   DOCTOR   STRANGE?
The news of a Doctor Strange has been talked about for the last few years now but in this week the news has really started to surface with Sinister director, Scott Derrickson, reportedly moments away from signing on the dotted line. Now a rumour has broken, by Badass Digest, that Marvel are looking at Jared Leto to star as sorcerer supreme, Doctor Strange.   

If the rumour turns out to be false than Leto can join the likes of Johnny Depp and Matthew McConaughey who were rumoured to be up for the part. If Derrickson is the director then no doubt he will have power over who gets cast, so expect to see more names surfacing in the near future. 

ARONOFSKY   ADAPTING   TRILOGY   FOR   HBO.
The recent trend of film directors moving to television has ranged from Hellboy director Gueillemro Del Toro adapting his own graphic novel, The Strain to Martin Scorsese directing and executive producing Broadwalk Empire. Now Noah director, Darren Aronofsky, is getting in on the game with news surfacing that the director is working with HBO to adapt Maddadam, based on Margaret Atwood's trilogy.

Atwood's trilogy is made up of Oryx and Crake, Year of the Flood and Maddadam which were released over a decade between 2003 to 2013. The trilogy has been described as "speculative fiction" in which in the future governments are owned by corporations and the genetic modification of organisms is perversely ubiquitous. The storyline centres around a Waterless flood that nearly leaves humanity extinct and concentrates on those who caused the apocolypse and those who are trying to cope with the end of the world. It all sounds very complex and complicated so bringing the story to the small screen would work wonders with the ability to spend hours exploring and examining characters episode to episode. HBO have put the project into development with Aronofsky on board as executive producer with the potential to direct. The director is coming of a string of successes with his recent films The Wrestler and Black Swan both getting the attention of the Academy and his most recent film, Noah, brining in well over $300 million at the worldwide box office. The idea of seeing an Aronofsky helmed television series is appealing, even when the director's films aren't as good as their ideas they are still some of the most ambitious films of the last few years.   

JOSH   TRANK   TO   DIRECT   STAR   WARS   SPIN-OFF.
We all knew that when Disney acquired the rights to Star Wars, they were never just going to make a trilogy, so the news of spin-off films between the trilogy came as no surprise to anyone. A few weeks ago news of who would direct the first spin-off surfaced with Godzilla director, Gareth Edwards, getting the gig. New news has broken that Chronicle director, Josh Trank, has signed up to direct the second spin-off. 

"We're thrilled to welcome Josh into the family," says Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. "He is such an incredible talent and has a great imagination and sense of innovation. That makes him perfectly suited to Star Wars, and for this new slate of movies that reach beyond the core characters and storylines to Episodes I through IX".  While we still don't know what the spin-offs will centre on many have speculated that they could be about a young Hans Solo or fan favourite, Boba Fett. The director has this to say, "The magic of the Star Wars Universe defined my entire childhood. The opportunity to expand on that experience for future generations is the most incredible dream of all time." Disney seem to making the smart move of brining on talent who have a real love of the original trilogy with Trank joining Gareth Edwards and J.J. Abrams. Trank first came to people's attention with Chronicle and is currently working on Fox's reboot of the Fantastic Four.

JUPITER   ASCENDING   PUSHED   BACK   TO   FEBRUARY.
The Wachowskis really haven't had it easy since they made The Matrix in 1999. They went on to write and direct two pointless sequels which only diminished the quality of the original, then their was Speed Racer which should be locked in a vault and forgotten about and then last year's Cloud Atlas was a return to form of sorts but the film divided the few people who went to see it. So when they revealed their new film Jupiter Ascending it was met with trepidation by some and pure hatred by me. While the film looks good, the premise is laughable with Mila Kunis playing a caretaker who is unknowingly the heir to Earth, because apparently that's a thing and Channing Tatum wears some elf ears. I have to applaud The Wachowskis for coming up with a big, original science fiction film they could have come up with a far better story. 

The film was originally set for a release date this July but news broke this morning that Warner Bros and Village Roadshow are postponing the release until February due to visual effects delays. The date change could prove to be beneficial for the film after all it will be competing with the likes of Transformers: Age of Extinction and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, two big summer blockbusters that could have easily over shadowed Jupiter Ascending. With a February release date the film would only have to contest with films likes Seventh Son and Johnny Depp film, Mortdecai but it's new release date would pit the film against 50 Shades of Grey which could potentially out shine The Wachowskis latest effort. 

MARVEL EYEING UP DIRECTORS FOR DOCTOR STRANGE.

Ever since Doctor Strange's name was dropped in Captain America: The Winter Solider, the rumour mill has been in full swing with names like Matthew McConaughey and Johnny Depp being thrown in but we haven't recieved any solid news about the new Marvel Studios film. But it has surfaced in the last few hours that Marvel have their eye on Sinister director, Scott Derrickson and The Devil's Knot writer, Atom Egoyan, has landed the role of writer. 

While Derrickson may not be on the top of most people's lists of directors to helm the Strange film, Marvel have had a knack for plucking directors who manage to pull of great looking, well made films. Take for instance Thor: The Dark World director, Alan Taylor, who before the Thor sequel was pretty much unknown to most, having directed the likes of The Sopranos and Game of Thrones but never making it to the big screen. And now Taylor is directing the next instalment to the Terminator franchise, Terminator Genesis. No doubt Marvel have released the news in an attempt to mask any bad press they maybe receiving from the recent news of Edgar Wright leaving Ant-Man and their failure to gain a new director as quick as they would like. It will be interesting to see how Marvel incorporate the character into their Cineamtic Universe which is very grounded in science and the inclusion of a sorcerer should really spice things up a bit, just what the franchise needs in my opinion.

FRIDAY   13TH   REBOOT   MOVED   BACK   8   MONTHS.
In November last year, Paramount announced that their reboot/remake of the retro horror flick, Friday the 13th was set for a March 13th 2015 release and literally no one was too fussed. We have already seen the film undergo a remake with Marcus Nipel's 2009 attempt and it was awful, no scary in the slightest. So news of another reboot of this franchise seemed to do nothing to get people interested and I don't blame you. While I am not against the idea of remaking films, especially when they are of films like the original Friday the 13th which is in no way a classic, this idea seems pointless. Horror remakes happen because the genre is incredibly cheap and immensely lucrative and people really do not expect that much from a horror film. But remakes should be of films that had a great conceit at the heart of them but failed to execute this idea and their isn't a idea at the heart of any of the Friday the 13th films. While they are enjoyable and tense as slasher films, a remake will add nothing more than some CGI because there isn't a way you can expand explore the world of Friday the 13th. Which made the news of a Friday the 13th television series, even more surprising for me. The plan for the television series is to explore the past of Jason Voorhees, a lot like Bates Motel the Psycho TV spin off series. 

News surrounding the reboot has been pretty quiet over the last few months but today Paramount revealed that the film is being pushed back eight months to November 13th. While Paramount have stayed silent on why they have shifted the release date, the reason they have set the date November 13th is because it is the next date after the initial March date that a Friday the 13th falls on. Hopefully Paramount are pushing the film back to give themselves more time to get this film perfect because I would love to be blown away by this film despite the fact history is on my side. But the new date seems like a daft move. Not only is Christopher Nolan's Interstellar coming out on the 7th of the same month but few horror films come out after Halloween. So we could see Paramount breaking out their calenders to see when the next friday happens to fall on the 13th.  

ROBERT   PATTINSON   FOR   INDIANA   JONES?
When Lucasfilm were acquired by Disney last year, the internet went mental with the prospect of new Star Wars films. But while this hysteria was causing the internet to crash many forgot the fact that with Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm they also inherited another believed franchise, Indiana Jones. With Harrison Ford reprising his role as Hans Solo in JJ Abrams' seventh instalment to the Star Wars franchise, it led many to question whether Ford would done his, now famous, whip and fedora to reprise his role. Yet at the ripe old age of 72, it is highly unlikely the greying actor would take on a job that would demand a psychical role. 

So who would take over the role? Not Shia LaBeouf after the mess that was The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and even if he was under consideration for the role he is too busy wearing bags on his head and sitting in rooms to do the film. The news broke today, with The Daily Star and many other publications reporting the news that Twilight Star Robert Pattinson is being eyed up by Disney for the role. An insider has been quoted saying "Disney is looking at its long-term options for the Indiana Jones franchise. They feel that the series has huge potential on many levels, starting with the films leading to other spin-offs like games which can generate more money than movies. Rob is top of the initial list because he has showed his acting stripes away from Twilight. But the competition is stiff." While this is just speculation and cannot be treated as the truth, it is an intriguing casting choice. Many will know doubt take to the internet to berate the actor who made a name for himself as a sparkly vampire in Twilight. But since leaving the franchise Pattinson has taken some interesting career choices such as Cronenberg's Cosmopolis and Map to the Stars and David Michod's The Rover. Although the young actor has talent, we have yet to see him in an action role. It will be interesting to see how this story unfolds. 

HAMM   OR   HARDY   AS   CABLE?
With the recent release of Fox's X-Men: Days of Future Past and it's massive success at the box office, many have speculated that Fox are going to greenlight an X-Force spin off. The X-Force is a popular spin off of the X-Men comics and was conceived by writer/illustrator Rob Liefield in 1991. The team has included some of the most famous mutants such as Wolverine, Nightcrawler and Cyclops but it also features a myriad of mutants that the X-Men films haven't even touch upon such as Doctor Nemesis and Marrow. But the most famous member of the team is Cable, a mutant with telepathic and telekinetic abilities who also has techno-organic body parts which aid him with enhanced strength. The character has been a long standing fan favourite and many are eagerly awaiting his big screen debut. No doubt then original creator, Rob Liefield, has ignited the fans's excitement with a recent tweet, in which the writer stated:

Tom Hardy or Jon Hamm RT @Brendan42: @robertliefeld Fill in the blank: X-FORCE starring "_________" as Cable ?

- robertliefeld (@robertliefeld) June 2, 2014

Obviously this is not casting news or even possible casting but it is interesting to see who Liefield wants to play the mutant. The suggestion of Tom Hardy is as interesting as it is obvious. The actor is one of the few working today who actually looks like a mutant, just look at his physicality in Bronson. But the actor's roster is pretty busy with filming for Mad Max finishing soon and his inclusion in Doug Liman's Splinter Cell. Also the character has already been involved in one superhero film and whether Hardy would want to attach himself to such a demanding and possibly, long-standing role, is questionable. The suggestion of Jon Hamm is also interesting but not as obvious. The actor has yet to establish himself as a strong film actor but thanks to the role of Don Draper in the successful television series, Mad Men, Hamm has become something of a desirable talent. It is not the first time Hamm's name has been specualted for a superhero part, his name was at the forefront of fan's decision to play Batman in Zak Synder's Batman V Superman. Whether the actor was considered for the part at all is unknown. Hamm certainly looks the part, with the aid of some grey hair dye and a few months in the gym. Yet this is just speculation for the moment seeing as Fox haven't even announced an X-Force film or the character's involvement in the forthcoming, X-Men: Apocalypse.

BEN   FOSTER   TALKS   WARCRAFT.
With all the news about the new Star Wars instalment and Marvel films that have been hitting the internet lately, it has become easy to forget that in two years Duncan Jones is going to release a World of Warcraft film, Warcraft. It is understandable why some people lack the enthusiasm for Jones' films after all it is based on a computer game that has an extremely devoted following from the players but if you don't play, like me, you probably have no idea what any of its about, like me. But I have am really looking forward to what Jones can do with this film. This is a director who made the amazing Moon and the even better, for me at least, Source Code, so the film is in safe hands. So I was pleasantly surprised to see Ben Foster, who is set to star in the film, has revealed who he will be playing.  "He's a mage, which is essentially a sorcerer," said the actor. "He came up in a time protecting an area, and the way he protected this area was through magic. As peace returned to this land he took a break. He hung up his staff, so to speak, or let his guns get dusty. We meet him as his friends are returning asking for his help in a battle.

The actor also told the fans they would be instore for one hell of a 3D event, stating: "The way that they're pushing motion-capture - I just saw some of the test footage - it's unlike anything I've ever seen. It's performance-capture. It pushes it to the next level," said the actor, whose own Warcraft alter-ego isn't a performance-capture character." While I am not a fan of 3D, I am intrigued to see what Jones can do with the format, especially in a post-Gravity world. While the film may not be attracting as much coverage as the likes of Star Wars, it does have real potential to be amazing, even if you have never played the game. Jones has picked out a really stand out cast consisting of Ben Foster, Toby Kebbell and Dominic Cooper, an actor for me who has been waiting for the right role to really make him the star he can be. So Jones has got me interested, I just hope the first trailer offers enough to get enough people interested as well.

LUPITA   NYONG'O   AND   GWENDOLINE   CHRISTIE   JOIN   STAR   WARS.

When news first broke about the Star Wars Episode VII cast some people online complained about a lack of female characters in the seventh instalment. Well today news has broken which should please the nay sayers with 12 Years a Slave actress, Lupita Nyong'o set to join the cast along with Game of Thrones actress, Gwendoline Christie. Lucas Film released this statement: Lupita Nyong'o joins the recently announced cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. This year, her breakthrough performance in 12 Years a Slave earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Gwendoline Christie, currently starring in the hit television series Game of Thrones as Brienne of Tarth, has also been cast in the production. She can next be seen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 2. "I could not be more excited about Lupita and Gwendoline joining the cast of Episode VII," says Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. "It's thrilling to see this extraordinarily talented ensemble taking shape." 

The thirty one year old Nyong'o graduated from Yale's drama school and went straight into Steve McQueen's Oscar winning 12 Years a Slave. The actress went onto to win the best supporting Oscar for her role as Patsy, a fearsome field slave who is trapped in the brutal world of slavery. Many speculated that Hollywood might fall to utilise the talent of the young actress but those rumours can be put to bed now the actress will be propelled into the stratosphere in the biggest film this decade. Nyongo's performance was one of the best things about McQueen's film and while it is uncertain who she will play, her inclusion in the cast adds more talent to an already strong cast. Also joining the cast is Game of Thrones actress, Gwendoline Christie. Her performance as female knight, Brienne of Tarth, in George R.R. Martin's HBO series has gained the actress a strong following. A lot of news has been coming out of JJ Abrams' seventh instalment to the world's biggest franchise with set pictures making their way online in the last few weeks.    

ROLAND   EMMERICH   TO   DIRECT   STARGATE.

We all new it was only a matter of time, so it comes as now surprise that the 90's science-fiction film, Stargate, is getting a remake. The original film released in 1994  centred around a circular device known as Stargate, which allowed people to be transported light years to different worlds. 

The 1994 film starred the likes of James Spader and Kurt Russell and was directed by Independence Day director, Roland Emmerich. Now news has surfaced that Emmerich is ready to go back to Stargate's universe and reboot the franchise. In a recent press release MGM and Warner Bros released the news with MGM's chairman and CEO, Gary Barber stated: "We couldn’t be more excited to once again partner with Roland and Dean, the world-class creators of the originalStargate, to bring their reinvigorated vision of this wildly popular property to audiences of multiple generations.” He added, “Stargate is one of the biggest titles in MGM’s vast library, and we look forward to adding this great franchise to our slate.”

Despite the modern film goers dislike of remakes, this is good news. I remember watching the film as a kid, and the subsequent television series, and thinking Emmerich had a brilliant and interesting idea but the film failed to be as good as it's conceit. So second time around Emmerich could learn from his mistakes and create something really interesting. After all the best remakes should be remakes of film's that harboured interesting ideas but didn't quite manage to pull it off first time around and Stargate is a perfect example of that.

HAVE   MARVEL   CAST   THANOS?

Throw a stone in Hollywood and you are bound to hit a handful of actors or actresses who have somehow been involved in a superhero film. Now, according to Latino Review, Josh Brolin can be added to the list with the website reporting that the actor has been cast as the big bad, Thanos. Ever since the infamous villain made a tiny appearance at the end if the credits in The Avengers, many people have been speculating as to when Thanos will make an appearance in Marvel's Cinematic Universe.    

Many fans hoped that Thanos would pop up in this summer's Guardians of the Galaxy, working as a link between Earth's mightiest heroes and the Guardians. It would please the fans than that the villain is set to make an appearance in James Gunn's blockbuster, although we don't know exactly what he will be doing yet. Don't be too disappointed though, Thanos is set to have a major role in Joss Whedon's sequel, Avengers: Age of Ultron. While during his cameo in the post-credit scenes of Avengers the character was played by Damon Poitier, Latino Review are convinced that No Country for Old Men actor, Josh Brolin, is on board as Thanos. Marvel and Brolin's representatives have not confirmed this news yet it is believed that rumours have been circulating since Friday with reliable insiders confirming the casting choice.

Whether Brolin will psychically star or just provide a voice for the villain is also yet to be confirmed, Brolin isn't the worst choice Marvel could make. I have never been that enthralled by the actor having made the likes of Men in Black 3 which ruined the excellent first instalment for me. As well as starring in lack lustre films such as Jonah Hex and the remake of Old Boy. So it has been a while since the actor has experienced a success so becoming part of the Marvel family could be exactly what the actor needs. For now, we have to assume the news is nothing but rumours.  

WILL   SMITH   WALKS   OUT   ON   BRILLIANCE. 

It has been revealed today that the once Fresh Prince, Will Smith, has walked out on the production of Julius Onah's Brilliance. The film is an adaptation of Marcus Sakey's novel of the same name which sees 1% of the population being gifted with superpower abilities such as a girl who can find out your secrets just by the way you fold your arms and a guy who can sense patterns in the stock exchange. Soon enough these people gain the nickname 'The Brilliants'. One of these Brilliants, Nick Cooper, utilises his ability and becomes an expert at hunting terrorists. Jurassic Park screenwriter has writing duties and Legendary and Universal Pictures are releasing the film which is hoping to go into production this summer.

Although production may be halted with today's news of Will Smith walking out on the production. Smith's recent history with science fiction has been less than successful. Last year's After Earth was universally panned by every poor soul that forked out money to see it. Hancock, while being half of a good film, lacked something special and I Am Legend was a poor adaptation of an excellent novel. Without Brilliance Smith's got his hands full with the possibility of sequels to Bad Boys and Hancock, as well as starring alongside Margot Robbie in the Glenn Ficarra/John Requa directed film, Focus. 

NETFLIX  FINDS  IT'S  DAREDEVIL.

Superheroes are big money now and everyone knows it. From DC's attempt to claw back some credibility to Marvel's complete monopoly of the genre. But once in a while interesting news surfaces and for me, the news of Netflix taking on a Daredevil series is very interesting. Now when I say Daredevil, expel every thought in your mind concerning Ben Affleck and that shambles of a film from way back in 2003. In a press release last July, Marvel and Netflix announced: 

"Led by a series focused on Dardevil, followed by Jessica Jones, Iron Fist and Luke Cage, the epic will unfold over multiple years of original programming, taking Netflix members deep into the gritty world of heroes and villains of Hell's kitchen, New York. Netflix has committed t a minim of four, thirteen episodes series and a culminating Marvel's The Defenders mini-series event that reimagines a dream team of self-sacrificing heroic characters." 

And after a year of waiting, Netflix have finally announced who is set to the play the Man without Fear and he comes in the form of Charlie Cox. While his name and face may not be familiar Cox has starred in the likes of Broadwalk Empire and Stardust. I cannot make much comment on Cox' acting ability as I have never seen Broadwalk Empire and can't remember much of his performance in Stardust but the actor does look the part, resembling the comic book character. While he would not have been my first choice, it is nice to see Netflix looking at lesser known actors for their television series rather than looking at Hollywood actors to don the costumes. No doubt in the next few weeks we will hear news about who will play Luke Cage, Jessica Jones and Iron Fist but my first thoughts are positive going by this casting decision and it will be nice to see what Charlie Cox brings to the character. While this is good news, Netflix and Marvel may have felt the need to release the casting decision due to the news from earlier this week about showrunner, Drew Goddard, leaving the programme in order to concentrate on The Amazing Spider-man series' spin-off The Sinister Six. Goddard's place has been filled by Spartacus writer, Steven DeKnight. Many fans were excited about the news of Goddard helming the series after the writer and director's success with the likes of World War Z, Cloverfield and his directorial debut, The Cabin in the Woods. While DeKnight's credentials may not be as strong as Goddard, it will interesting to see what the writer can do.