News Shotgun 1/22
- The Asylum creates an animation division: The mockbuster masters have created a new animation division that will keep up their tradition of putting out cheap copies of big blockbusters. The first film of this new division is called Izzie’s Way Home is a Finding Nemo rip-off that should arrive right around the time Finding Dory hits theaters this summer.
- McG in talks to direct the Masters of the Universe reboot: With a new screenplay recently written, McG is in talks to direct the new take on Masters of the Universe. Director Jon M. Chu was originally thought to be directing but that didn’t pan out.
- Wong cast for Doctor Strange: Doctor Strange’s manservant and martial arts master Wong has been cast and he’ll be played by Benedict Wong, most recently seen in last year’s The Martian.
- Star Wars Episode VIII coming in December 2017, Avatar 2 bows out: Originally planned to arrive in May 2017, Episode VIII has been pushed back to December 2017 and that has caused Avatar 2 to bail out and the release date of James Cameron’s next entry in the series is now up in the air.
- Cate Blanchett may be playing Hela in Thor: Ragnarok: Blanchett was cast in Thor: Ragnorak a while back but now her role may have been confirmed as being Hela, the Norse goddess of the underworld who is a classic Thor villain. The plot may involve Hela and Loki hatching a plot that Thor and Hulk need to stop. There’s also a rumor that Hela could replace Death as the object of Thanos’ affection in the upcoming Infinity War as his impetus for using the Infinity Gauntlet.
- Rob Cohen directing a disaster/heist movie hybrid: Rob Cohen, director of the original Fast & Furious and xXx is directing a movie called Category 5, which finds a team of hackers trying to pull a digital heist but their plan gets complicated when a hurricane arrives, so it sounds like the spiritual successor to Hard Rain.
- Robert Knepper joins Jack Reacher 2: Most likely playing the main villain, Robert Knepper has joined Jack Reacher 2 as a General Harkness, a former Army officer who is now the CEO of a PMC.
- Tom Cruise officially signs on for The Mummy, release delayed: Cruise will star in Universal’s upcoming reboot of The Mummy but the release has been pushed back from March to June 2017.
- New Darkwing Duck comic coming: The terror that flaps in the night is returning in a new comic series with writer Aaron Sparrow and artist James Silvani.
- Madea fighting horror monsters in new movie: Tyler Perry’s most famous character will find herself up against “killers, paranormal poltergeists, ghosts, ghouls and zombies” in Boo! A Madea Halloween, which will arrive October.
- Netflix adapting classic cyberpunk novel Altered Carbon into a new show: Netflix is turning Richard Morgan’s cyberpunk novel Altered Carbon into a new 10 episode series. The novel is set in the 25th century, where humans can transfer their consciousness across the universe into new bodies, rendering death basically non-existent. The main characters is a soldier who transfers his mind into a cop and uncovers a massive conspiracy.
- Netflix developing time travel film ARQ: Starring Rachael Taylor and Robbie Amell, ARQ is set in the post apocalyptic future where a scientist has created a seemingly unlimited source of power but his lab is besieged by masked intruders. The energy source also creates a time loop, forcing the scientist and his friends to keep living the day over and over. The movie is expected to arrive in 2017.
- Archer season 7 premiere date revealed: The gang from the spy organization formerly known as ISIS will return on March 31st on FXX for another 13 episode season.
- Sherlock Season 4 probably won’t arrive until at least 2017: The recent Abominable Bride special will most likely be the only new Sherlock for at least a year according to PBS president Paula Kerger. With Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman’s increasingly busy schedules, it’s been hard to schedule shooting new episodes, which are basically three movies themselves.
- Jessica Jones and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt renewed: Two of Netflix’s leading ladies have new seasons on the way as Jessica Jones got renewed for a second season and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt got renewed for a third season and season 2 arrives in April.