Universal has pushed up the release of Wicked, the highly anticipated adaptation of the acclaimed Broadway show. The film was originally slated to hit theaters on November 27th, but it will now be released on November 22nd… the same day as Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II. This could get interesting.

As both Wicked and Gladiator II are courting very different demographics, the new release date is a smart move. It’s also possible that this match could be the Barbenheimer of 2024. Wickiator? On its original date, Wicked would have opened alongside Moana 2. With this move, the animated Disney sequel currently sits alone as the only new major movie set to be released before the Thanksgiving weekend.

Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, “a young woman, misunderstood because of her unusual green skin, who has yet to discover her true power,” and Ariana Grande as Glinda, “a popular young woman, gilded by privilege and ambition, who has yet to discover her true heart.” The official synopsis reads: “The two meet as students at Shiz University in the fantastical Land of Oz and forge an unlikely but profound friendship. Following an encounter with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads and their lives take very different paths. Glinda’s unflinching desire for popularity sees her seduced by power, while Elphaba’s determination to remain true to herself, and to those around her, will have unexpected and shocking consequences on her future. Their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately see them fulfill their destinies as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.“

The film also stars Michelle Yeoh as Shiz University’s regal headmistress Madame Morrible; Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, a roguish and carefree prince; Tony nominee Ethan Slater as Boq, an altruistic Munchkin student; Marissa Bode as Nessarose, Elphaba’s favored sister; and Jeff Goldblum as the legendary Wizard of Oz.

As for Gladiator II, we finally got our first official look at the sequel earlier today with a dozen new images. Set decades after the events of the first movie, the sequel follows Lucius (Paul Mescal), the grandson of Rome’s former emperor Marcus Aurelius, who now lives with his wife and child in Numidia, but when Roman soldiers invade and force him into slavery, Lucius takes inspiration from Maximus and fights as a gladiator to oppose the rule of Rome’s new emperors Caracalla (Fred Hechinger) and Geta (Joseph Quinn).

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It’s been fifteen years since the release of The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day, but The Boondocks Saints 3 is still in the works. In fact, according to star Norman Reedus, the sequel is going to be even bigger than the previous two movies.

“Just that it’s happening, and it’s going to be bigger,” Norman Reedus told ComingSoon when asked about the third film. “Yeah, it’s the group that did the John Wick stuff, so they’re making a big thing of it. Yeah, the opening scene of it, I think they’re keeping the original script idea, which is awesome, you know. So there’s obviously we have to break out of jail. We’re in jail, you know. We’ve been in jail for a long time.“

Written and directed by Troy Duffy, the original film starred Reedus and Sean Patrick Flanery as fraternal twin Irish brothers Murphy and Connor MacManus. After taking out a couple of Russian mobsters in self-defence, the twins set out to rid their hometown of Boston of all crime, but that attracts the attention of an FBI agent played by Willem Dafoe. Although the 1999 film was a box office failure and received poor reviews upon release, it wound up developing a cult following and was a strong performer on home media. A sequel, The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day, was released in 2009.

As for Boondock Saints 3, both Reedus and Flanery are expected to return, but Troy Duffy isn’t involved this time, although he is said to be writing a series of Boondock Saints novels. “I’m thrilled to be working alongside Basil Iwanyk’s Thunder Road Films and Todd Myers’ Dragonfly Films to bring more of the story of the Boondock Saints to audiences,” said Reedus when the project was announced earlier this year. “I can’t wait for everyone to see what we have long been working toward. We are pressing on without our longtime friend and Captain, Troy Duffy on this one. He has decided to write a Boondock Saints book series and I can’t wait to read it.“

Flanery added: “Basil and Todd are the perfect partners to bust the brothers out of prison. With Basil and Todd at the helm, this will be the best Saints yet. So now it’s time for the brothers to break out the pea coats, re-load, and get back to work.“

What do you hope to see from The Boondock Saints 3?

The post The Boondock Saints 3: Norman Reedus teases a bigger sequel appeared first on JoBlo.

Ridley Scott was once attached to direct Blade Runner 2049, but when the time finally came to shoot the sequel, Scott dropped out to focus on Alien: Covenant and Denis Villeneuve was picked to replace him. Looking back, Scott told Vanity Fair that it’s a choice he still regrets.

“I was regretful,” Scott said. “Although [Denis Villeneuve] did a good job.” Although Blade Runner 2049 was praised by critics, it did bomb at the box office, dooming any potential sequel. However, the franchise will soon be revived with Blade Runner 2099, a TV series for Prime Video which Scott is executive producing.

For his part, Villeneuve has said that he has no desire to make a sequel to another director’s work again. “So 2049 was really a love letter to the first film, but it was by far one of the most difficult projects I’ve ever done, and I don’t think I will ever approach someone else’s universe again,” Villeneuve said. “I still wake up sometimes at night, saying, ‘Why did I do that?’ I’d declined a few other projects of that scale, but at the time, I said to myself, ‘It’s a crazy project, but it’s worth the risk of losing everything.’“

Ridley Scott also told Vanity Fair that he was “never asked” to return to direct any of the Alien sequels following the release of the first movie. “I’m the author of two franchises,” Scott said. “Most directors in Hollywood — certainly, let’s say, at my level — don’t let that stuff go. But I did ‘Alien’ as my second movie, so I didn’t have much choice. And ‘Blade Runner‘ was my third movie. So, I had no choice because I had very tough partners. It was kind of ‘Welcome to Hollywood.’“

“I was slow out the starting gate,” Scott continued. “I mean, I should have done the sequels to ‘Alien’ and to ‘Blade Runner.’ You change over the years. At that time, I didn’t want to go through it again. So Jim Cameron came in — and then David Fincher — on ‘Alien.’ I was never told or asked. You can imagine I wasn’t happy.” Scott did eventually return to the franchise with Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, but he has handed over the reins to Fede Álvarez for the upcoming Alien: Romulus.

Would you have liked to have seen Ridley Scott direct Blade Runner 2049?

The post Ridley Scott still regrets not directing Blade Runner 2049 appeared first on JoBlo.

There’s a Star Wars game out there that is hard to play in 2024 because, for whatever reason, it remains trapped on the hard-to-emulate OG Xbox without any official remakes, remasters, or backward compatibility support. That game is Star Wars: Obi-Wan.

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There’s a Star Wars game out there that is hard to play in 2024 because, for whatever reason, it remains trapped on the hard-to-emulate OG Xbox without any official remakes, remasters, or backward compatibility support. That game is Star Wars: Obi-Wan.

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Stephen King has written hundreds of short stories and more than sixty novels, but he has only directed one movie: the goofball 1986 film Maximum Overdrive (watch it HERE). King has avoided directing ever since and star Emilio Estevez has said that not only does he regret working on the movie, but that King has even begged Estevez to forgive him for getting him into that mess. But one cast member who doesn’t share the negative opinion King and Estevez have on Maximum Overdrive is Giancarlo Esposito, who appears in the film as a character called “Videoplayer.”

Esposito, best known these days for his role on Breaking Bad, told Cinema Blend that he thought King did a brilliant job on the film. Esposito said, “I thought Stephen was brilliant in directing that film and thought he would have a long career as a director. He’s prolific as a writer of course, and [I] love what he writes. But that film had… he was really good with the team of artisans who were making it. You know, art department, transpo in that movie was very, very important. Moving parts of lawnmowers and trucks. And, you know, ‘Milli Estevez of course, in that movie as well. And me at that pinball machine, ‘Your Mama!’ [Laugh] And that pinball machine is not acting right. It was a great honor to be there and work with him. And I’m a huge Stephen King fan.“

Based on King’s short story Trucks, Maximum Overdrive has the following synopsis: After a comet causes a radiation storm on Earth, machines come to life and turn against their makers. Holed up in a North Carolina truck stop, a group of survivors must fend for themselves against a mass of homicidal trucks. A diner cook, Bill Robinson, emerges as the unlikely leader of the pack, attempting to find an escape plan for himself and the survivors, who include his boss, Bubba Hendershot, and a newlywed couple.

Estevez and Esposito were joined in the cast by Pat Hingle, Laura Harrington, Yeardley Smith, John Short, Ellen McElduff, J.C. Quinn, Christopher Murney, Holter Graham, Frankie Faison, Pat Miller, and Leon Rippy.

You can watch Esposito’s Maximum Overdrive appearance at THIS LINK – and to hear about the making of the film, check out THIS VIDEO.

Do you agree with Giancarlo Esposito that Stephen King should have continued directing films after Maximum Overdrive? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Maximum Overdrive: Giancarlo Esposito thought Stephen King did a brilliant job directing appeared first on JoBlo.

It’s been over two years since we sadly lost Ray Liotta, but the iconic actor did leave a handful of unreleased projects behind, including 1992, an action-crime thriller in which he stars alongside Tyrese Gibson and Scott Eastwood. Lionsgate has released the first official trailer for 1992, which features an intense final performance from Liotta.

Tyrese Gibsons stars in 1992 as Mercer, a man desperately trying to rebuild his life and relationship with his son (Christopher A’mmanuel) amidst the turbulent 1992 L.A. uprising following the Rodney King verdict. Across town, another father and son (Ray Liotta & Scott Eastwood) put their own strained relationship to the test as they plot a dangerous heist to steal catalytic converters, which contain valuable platinum, from the factory where Mercer works. As tensions rise in Los Angeles and chaos erupts, both families reach their boiling points when they collide.

Directed by Ariel Vromen, the film also Clé Bennett, Dylan Arnold, Michael Beasley, Ori Pfeffer, Tosin Morohunfola, and Oleg Taktarov. Vromen also co-wrote the script alongside Sascha Penn.

Snoop Dogg executive produced the project through his Death Row Pictures banner. “1992 was a life-changing time for me, from Deep Cover to The Chronic. But as things in my life were coming together, everything in L.A. was coming apart. 1992 is a heist movie that really captures all of that,” Snoop Dogg said. “This movie is about an L.A. moment. Ariel made an outstanding film that depicts this moment in time. From my first encounter with Tyrese in Baby Boy to the performance in 1992, I had to be a part of this. And it’s only fitting that the film come out under Death Row Pictures as Death Row is synonymous with LA culture in the ’90s, ya dig?“

In his own statement, Gibson said, “Snoop is one of the most beloved figures in entertainment and I could not be more thankful that he chose to join our project. Ray Liotta blessed all of us in life while doing this film. For 1992 to be Ray’s last offering, we all feel so fortunate to have captured such a masterful and chilling performance.“

Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson added, “I’m grateful to have had a front-row seat to the infectious enthusiasm and talent Tyrese has brought to the many projects we’ve worked on together over the years. And my immense admiration of the cultural icon that is Snoop Dogg has lasted 30 years and counting. So it’s a special thrill that he has come on board to executive produce 1992. He clearly has found a personal connection to the material, which makes his team at Death Row Pictures the perfect partners.” The film will debut on August 30th.

What did you think of the first trailer for 1992?

The post 1992: Lionsgate drops first trailer for one of Ray Liotta’s final roles appeared first on JoBlo.

Highly anticipated RPG Dragon Age: The Veilguard is coming to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S this fall. BioWare has been focusing a lot of its marketing for the sequel on the game’s party of seven heroes, each of whom embodies a different faction within the universe and will be a romance option. But where will…

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Highly anticipated RPG Dragon Age: The Veilguard is coming to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S this fall. BioWare has been focusing a lot of its marketing for the sequel on the game’s party of seven heroes, each of whom embodies a different faction within the universe and will be a romance option. But where will…

Read more…

Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! Oh, never mind, it’s Kite Man. The bumbling villain with a heart of gold is coming to Max for a brand-new animated series in the Kite Man: Hell Yeah trailer. He is eager to make a new life for himself after his breakup with Pamela Isley, and what better way to wipe the slate clean than with a new attitude, a supportive partner, and a new business venture to reintroduce yourself to the criminal element?

In today’s Kite Man: Hell Yeah trailer, the dim-witted, weather-dependent villain tries to run a bar by himself, but that turns out not to be so easy. Created by Bill Finger and Dick Sprang, Kite Man, also known as Chuck Brown, has never been one of DC’s more menacing villains. Sure, he’s given Batman a headache or two, though he’s more likely to be found hanging out with Condiment King than The Joker or Mr. Freeze. Kite Man rose to new heights and recently became a fan-favorite character thanks to comic book writer Tom King and Max’s Harley Quinn.

How Noonan’s Bar came into Kite Man’s possession has yet to be revealed. However, we know from previous episodes of Harley Quinn that Kite Man isn’t living in the lap of luxury. Perhaps Noonan’s is a last-ditch effort to earn an honest living while residing in a city as corrupt as Gotham. Then again, Noonan’s is known for serving the criminal element of Gotham, so I’m not sure that this is all on the up-and-up.

In the Kite Man: Hell Yeah trailer, Kite Man (Matt Oberg) surrounds himself with various villains, varying in popularity and threat level. His new partner, Golden Glider (Stephanie Hsu), is his biggest cheerleader, and she’s ready to go to any length to see Kite Man succeed. As Kite Man tries to up his game, he clashes with Kaiju-sized cats, henches, goons, and the big guy himself, Darkseid. There are plenty of villainous cameos throughout the trailer, so keep your eyes peeled while searching for your favorites.

Kite Man: Hell Yeah! stars Matt Oberg as Kite Man, Stephanie Hsu as Golden Glider, James Adomian as Bane, Natasia Demetriou as Malice, Janelle James as Queen of Fables, Jonathan Banks as Noonan, Keith David as Darkseid, Michael Imperioli as Joe/Moe Dubelz, Rory Scovel as Gus the Goon, Lance Reddick as Lex Luthor, and Judith Light as Helen Villigan.

Are you excited about Kite Man gliding onto Max on July 18? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Villains take flight at a bar where everyone knows your name in DC’s Kite Man: Hell Yeah trailer appeared first on JoBlo.