Month: August 2024

Director Fede Álvarez’s contribution to the Alien franchise, Alien: Romulus, is set to reach theatres on August 16th, so we’re now just one week away from having the chance to see this movie on the big screen. If you like to pre-game by watching behind-the-scenes footage, we have a treat to share with you today, as the YouTube channel FilMonger has uploaded an Alien: Romulus featurette that gives a 12 minute glimpse at the making of the film! There are interviews with the director and cast members, a look at the sets, video of practical effects in action, wonky subtitles that can’t be removed, pretty much anything you could ask for. You can watch it in the embed above.

When Alien: Romulus was announced near the start of 2022, it was said that Álvarez pitched the idea to Ridley Scott years ago and it stuck with Scott. So in late 2021, he called Álvarez and asked if he still wanted to make an Alien movie. Clearly, the answer was yes. 20th Century Studios division president Steve Asbell told The Hollywood Reporter that they picked up the project “purely off the strength of Fede’s pitch. It was just a really good story with a bunch of characters you haven’t seen before.“

It has also been said that the story Álvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues crafted for Alien: Romulus is not connected to the other films in the Alien franchise – but it’s not ignoring any of the other entries, either. Álvarez has been clear about the fact that his story takes place within the established franchise continuity. In fact, it slots right in between the events of Alien and Aliens. It has the following official logline: The sci-fi/horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful “Alien” franchise back to its roots: While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.

The cast includes Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla), Isabela Merced (Madame Web), David Jonsson (Industry), Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Spike Fearn (The Batman), and Aileen Wu (Away from Home). Merced has previously said there’s a scene in the film that’s so disgusting that a lot of viewers will have to look away. Graphic and gruesome is what we expected from this movie as soon as it was announced that it was being made by the director of Evil Dead 2013 and Don’t Breathe. It has received an R rating for bloody violent content and language.

Are you looking forward to Alien: Romulus? What did you think of the behind-the-scenes footage? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Alien: Romulus featurette offers a 12 minute glimpse behind the scenes appeared first on JoBlo.

unstoppable

Amazon MGM has just released the first set of pictures from their upcoming original film Unstoppable. The drama features a star-studded cast with an ensemble that includes Jharrel Jerome, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Peña, Anthony Robles with Don Cheadle and Jennifer Lopez. Unstoppable is an inspiring, true story about Anthony Robles (played by Jharrel Jerome) who defied every expectation to become a national wrestling champion. Unstoppable is produced by Artists Equity, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s production company.

The official plot synopsis from Amazon reads,
“Anthony Robles, despite being born without a right leg, rises to become a NCAA Division 1 Champion wrestler ultimately winning a national championship against the school that rejected him, national powerhouse Iowa. (Based on the book Unstoppable: From Underdog to Undefeated: How I Became a Champion, by Anthony Robles and Austin Murphy.)”

This film marks William Goldenberg’s directorial debut. He is a decorated Academy Award-winning editor for Argo with previous nominations including The Imitation GameZero Dark Thirty, Seabiscuit and The Insider. Anthony Robles himself is seen in the film and credited as “Anthony Robles Double,” performing the complex wrestling moves and stunts. He is also a producer on the film. Jharrel Jerome trained for months and worked very closely with Anthony to establish the physicality and determination required for the role.

The screenplay was penned by scribes Eric Champnella, Alex Harris and John Hindman. The film is produced by Ben Affleck, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, Anthony Robles, Andrew Fraser, Gary Lewis and David Crockett. The sports drama is rated PG-13 and will be making its world premiere debut at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. The movie is due to hit select US and UK theaters in December.

      The post Get a first look at the inspirational sports drama Unstoppable appeared first on JoBlo.

      roundball rock

      There’s no better way to get hype for a basketball game than with a little “Roundball Rock”. OK, so “Sweet Georgia Brown” is up there, too, but John Tesh’s song helped define pro basketball for a generation, with “Roundball Rock” serving as the anthem for NBA on NBC for over a decade. Now, it is set to take the court yet again, as Tesh has delivered another spin on the instrumental.

      John Tesh built up the updated version of “Roundball Rock” during an interview on The Dan Le Batard Show (via The Hollywood Reporter) by saying, “We went back into the studio and got me on Hammond organ and a guitar player named Andrew Synowiec, which was pretty incredible, and the rest of my band…I wrote an extra piece to put on the end of ‘Roundball Rock’, and then we did what’s known as the shredded version.”

      With NBC regaining rights to NBA games, that will allow “Roundball Rock” — or at least the new version of it — to get a new legion of fans when games begin airing in 2025.

      The legacy of “Roundball Rock” supersedes pretty much any other sports show theme — with due respect to Hank Williams Jr.’s work on Monday Night Football. Really, what better way to get ready for a game than the instrumental sounds of John Tesh? That might sound like a jab but make no mistake that the song played a huge part in the game during the entirety of the ‘90s and into the early 2000s. OK, so maybe the Alan Parsons Project’s “Sirius” gives “Roundball Rock” a run for its money thanks to the Chicago Bulls’ championship run in the ‘90s but let’s not forget that we heard John Tesh first.

      John Tesh has been inducted into both the National Radio Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame…but we all know he deserves a special nod from the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

      What do you think of the new “Roundball Rock”? Do you think John Tesh deserves more credit for his role in the NBA?

      The post Josh Tesh slam dunks new “shredded” version of “Roundball Rock” appeared first on JoBlo.