News Shotgun 2/13/21
- Paranormal Activity reboot in the works: The last entry in the franchise Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension, arrived in 2015 but now it seems like the series is getting a reboot from Blumhouse and Paramount. Christopher Landon, who wrote most of the previous entries in the PA series and most recently directed movies like Freaky and Happy Death Day, will co-direct with Will Eubank, who directed The Signal and Underwater. It’s not clear if it will be a found footage movie like the previous entries but it will arrive on March 4th, 2022.
- Mr. and Mrs. Smith reboot coming to Prime Video: Solo co-stars Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Donald Glover are teaming up for a Prime Video series reboot of the Angelina Jolie/Brad Pitt action/comedy Mr. and Mrs. Smith. It seems like it will keep the concept of Waller-Bridge and Glover being a couple that is unaware that they are both highly dangerous assassins for hire, although actual plot details are non-existent right now. Waller-Bridge and Glover will also executive produce the show.
- Clue animated series in development: Fox is apparently developing a new animated series based on the iconic board game Clue. It’s not clear if this is a kid-focused series or something that will join the likes of Family Guy and The Simpsons for Animation Domination or if it will take any cues from the amazing 1985 film version. There was a Jason Bateman directed movie version of Clue that was going to star Ryan Reynolds but it’s not clear what the status of that project is, as it’s been dormant for a while.
- Adam Wingard directing a Face/Off sequel: Originally reported as a remake, Godzilla vs Kong and You’re Next director Adam Wingard has since said he will be directing a sequel to the legendary John Woo action extravaganza, which starred John Travolta and Nicolas Cage at the height of their powers. Wingard will also co-write the script with Simon Barrett. It’s not clear what a sequel will entail or if Travolta and/or Cage would return but the reports are that the leads would be recast.
- True Lies series in development: Another action classic is getting a reboot/remade with CBS looking to develop a TV series based on True Lies. The original was a James Cameron/Arnold collaboration that put Arnold in the role of Harry Tasker, a secret agent whose cover identity led to problems with his marriage to Jamie Lee Curtis. The show version was created by Burn Notice creator Matt Nix and McG will direct the pilot. The show seems to have the same premise where a secret agent’s wife discovers her seemingly bland computer salesman husband is actually a globe-trotting spy and is recruited to join him on his adventures, which seems to lend itself to the episodic nature of most of CBS’s shows.
- Brooklyn Nine-Nine ending with Season 8: After rescuing it from cancellation at Fox, NBC is ending Brooklyn Nine-Nine with its upcoming 8th season. The 8th season won’t debut until 2022 due to delays from the pandemic and the show’s writers trying to figure out how to allow the show to address the systemic racism issues that boiled over last year while maintaining its comedic tone. The 8th season will also be much shorter than normal with only 10 episodes.
- Jamie Lee Curtis and Jack Black join Borderlands movie: The Borderlands movie continues to assemble a stellar cast as Jamie Lee Curtis and Jack Black join the already cast Cate Blanchett and Kevin Hart for Eli Roth’s adaptation of the video game. Curtis was cast as Dr. Patricia Tannis, an archaeologist working on the planet Pandora who helps the Vault Hunters track down the legendary Vault full of weaponry they are questing after while Black will voice the wise-cracking and sarcastic robot Claptrap, who welcomes the Vault Hunters to Pandora and provides them mission updates.
- Joel and Ellie cast for The Last of Us TV series: HBO has found the leads for its upcoming adaptation of Naughty Dog’s incredible The Last of Us. Pedro Pascal will play Joel while Bella Ramsey, best known as Lyanna Mormont on Game of Thrones, will play Ellie. The show is being overseen by Chernobyl’s Craig Mazin as well as Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckman and will adapt the story of the first game will expanding and showing more of the world that is overrun by humans infected by a fungus that mutates them into horrific monsters.
- Gina Carano fired by Lucasfilm: Due to her activity on social media, Lucasfilm fired Gina Carano from all current and future projects. Carano was poised to be the lead of the Rangers of the New Republic Mandalorian spin-off series that was announced at Disney’s Investor Day presentation but it seems like that show is probably not happening now.
- Sonic the Hedgehog 2 release date announced: After the surprisingly fun first movie last year, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is on the way and will arrive in April 2022. Picking up from the tease at the end of the first film, Tails will make his debut and Ben Schwartz will be back to voice Sonic with director Jeff Fowler back to direct. It’s not officially confirmed if James Marsden, Jim Carrey, and Tika Sumpter will return but Carrey at least seems like a sure bet.
- Netflix developing a Redwall animated adaptation: Netflix is adapting Brian Jacques’s beloved Redwall series into a new animated series on their streaming service. The Redwall books are set in the fantasy realm of Redwall Abbey and follows characters who are mice, badgers, and hares as they go on various adventures and battle the evil rats and weasels who live in the surrounding forests. Patrick McHale, who directed Over the Garden Wall for Cartoon Network, is showrunning the Redwall series.
- The CW orders pilot for live-action Powerpuff Girls series: Along with an order for a reboot of The 4400, The CW also ordered a pilot for the live-action Powerpuff Girls sequel series, which would find Bubble, Blossom, and Buttercup as twentysomethings who now resent having wasted their childhood fighting supervillains. If The CW likes the pilot, the series will most likely be given a series pickup.
- Wizard of Oz remake in the works: L. Frank Baum’s classic story is coming to theaters again as New Line is developing a reboot of The Wizard of Oz. Watchmen (the HBO series) director Nicole Kassell is directing the reboot, which is going to be a “fresh take” on the iconic story but may draw in references and homages to the most famous version of the story from 1939. There’s no word on casting yet.
- Disney shuts down Blue Sky Studios: Disney is shutting down Blue Sky Studios, which they acquired in their acquisition of Fox. Blue Sky was most famous for the Ice Age series but also made movies like Rio and Ferdinand. Disney cited the economic stresses of the pandemic as a contributing factor, saying it wasn’t viable for them to operate three separate animation studios. Spies in Disguise is officially the final film made by Blue Sky Studios.
- Dan Harmon developing animated series for Fox: Dan Harmon, Community and Rick and Morty creator, is developing a new animated series for Fox. Details are scarce but the show will be based on Greek mythology and features a family of gods, humans, and monsters that are trying to run one of the major cities in Greece. The show is currently casting for the voice cast.
- Without Remorse gets a release date: Michael B. Jordan’s Tom Clancy movie Without Remorse has a release date of April 30th, 2021, exclusively on Prime Video. Jordan plays Navy SEAL John Clark, previously played by Willem Dafoe and Liev Schrieber, who goes on a mission of revenge with a CIA agent and a fellow SEAL when Russian soldiers kill his family in retaliation for Clark’s role in a top-secret operation. John Clark frequently worked with Jack Ryan but it’s not clear if Without Remorse is in the same universe as John Krasinski’s Ryan, even though both are under the Amazon umbrella.
- Dungeons and Dragons movie adds more cast: The upcoming Dungeons and Dragon movie has cast Michelle Rodriguez and Justice Smith, joining the previously cast Chris Pine. John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, the directors of Game Night, are directing the D&D movie and are also rewriting the script, although it’s not clear if this will be a comedy in the vein of Game Night about people playing D&D or a full fantasy action movie in the vein of a Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones.