We’re two weekends into January. How’s everyone’s 2025 going? Have you kept up with your New Year’s resolutions? I’m ten days without soda, but less than 30 minutes without an existential crisis about the state of the world. So it’s been a “mixed bag,” as they say. But another one of my resolutions is to play more…
Director Fede Álvarez’s contribution to the Alien franchise, Alien: Romulus (you can read our review HERE), had only been in theatres for a matter of hours before it stirred up a SPOILERy controversy on social media. That’s because one of the film’s cast members has been dead for several years, so Álvarez and his collaborators decided to resurrect them with CGI… and the CGI wasn’t exactly convincing. Alien: Romulus has since made its way to home video – and if you have watched it in the comfort of your own home, you may have noticed that an attempt was made to fix that unconvincing CGI.
Of course, what we’re talking about here is the fact that the android character Rook was given the face of the late, great Ian Holm (with his estate’s permission), who played the android Ash in the original Alien. Discussing the look of Rook, Álvarez told Empire, “We just ran out of time in post-production to get it right. I wasn’t 100 percent happy with some of the shots, where you could feel a bit more the CG intervention. So, for people that react negatively, I don’t blame them.” But, for the home video release, “We fixed it. We made it better for the release right now. I convinced the studio we need to spend the money and make sure we give the companies that were involved in making it the proper time to finish it and do it right. It’s so much better. [Animatronic puppeteer] Shane Mahan actually did this animatronic of Ian Holm based on a head cast from Lord of the Rings, and that was the only one in existence. What we did [for the home entertainment version] was revert a lot more to the puppet. It’s way better.“
It has been said that the story Alvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues crafted for Alien: Romulus is not directly connected to the other films in the Alien franchise (which isn’t exactly true), but it’s not ignoring any of the other entries, either. Alvarez 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).
Did you notice an improvement in the Rook effects, with less CGI used, on the home video release of Alien: Romulus? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.
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If you’re anything like me, your PS5 is probably constantly running out of space. A cool new game comes out, a huge download arrives, or you suddenly have a hankering to revisit an old gem from your backlog and then immediately hit the “not enough space” error when you try to download and install it. All of a sudden…
If you’re anything like me, your PS5 is probably constantly running out of space. A cool new game comes out, a huge download arrives, or you suddenly have a hankering to revisit an old gem from your backlog and then immediately hit the “not enough space” error when you try to download and install it. All of a sudden…
Shatter your banks and collect the couch change, Universal, because the budget for Christopher Nolan‘s The Odyssey is shaping up to be his most expensive film ever. According to Matthew Belloni’s Puck newsletter report, Nolan’s upcoming epic could cost $250 million, similar to The Dark Knight’s $250-300 million budget. While $250 million is on par with Nolan’s second Batman film, that number could go higher as unexpected costs and marketing dollars come into play.
While many of us could only dream about that kind of cash, it reminds me that 2015’s Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens, cost a reported $440 million to produce. Imagine coughing up that amount of scratch for anything, let alone a new Star Wars film. Nolan’s supposed budget for The Odyssey doesn’t come close to the amount for The Force Awakens. Still, the project’s hefty price tag speaks volumes about Universal’s confidence in the filmmaker’s ability to deliver a box-office blockbuster.
The Odyssey is an ancient Greek poem by Homer that tells the tale of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, and his journey home after the ten-year Trojan War. The trip was perilous, including encounters with the Cyclops Polyphemus, the Sirens, and the witch-goddess Circe. At home, Odysseus is presumed dead, and his wife Penelope and son Telemachus must contend with groups of unruly suitors who each want Penelope’s hand in marriage to control the kingdom.
The Odyssey features an all-star cast that includes Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron, Anne Hathaway, and Zendaya. Could Damon play Odysseus? We’ll need to wait and see.
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey plans to shoot around the globe using new IMAX technology, a prospect with cinephiles salivating. Nolan, of course, is one of the biggest proponents of the IMAX film format. He’s known to push the limits of what IMAX can capture on screens, pairing superior visual presentation with dynamic audio design that leaves general theater sound systems in the dust.
Are you at all surprised by the budget for The Odyssey? What do you think the final cost of the film will be? Let us know in the comments section below.
The post The budget for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is reportedly his most costly film to date appeared first on JoBlo.
Sony’s PlayStation 2 had a long lifecycle. It launched in 2000 and the final game released for it arrived in 2013. But the PlayStation 4 might be on track to beat this impressive record. In fact, it might demolish it.
Sony’s PlayStation 2 had a long lifecycle. It launched in 2000 and the final game released for it arrived in 2013. But the PlayStation 4 might be on track to beat this impressive record. In fact, it might demolish it.
2025 marks the 25th anniversary of director Mary Harron’s Bret Easton Ellis adaptation American Psycho (watch it HERE), which has come to be known as a cult classic – and for a while, news reports made it seem that, as an anniversary gift, we’d be getting an American Psycho remake from director Luca Guadagnino, whose credits include Challengers, Call Me By Your Name, Bones and All, Queer, and the Suspiria remake. Guadagnino reportedly signed on to direct the film from a screenplay by Scott Z. Burns (Contagion) back in October, and in December we heard that Austin Butler (Elvis) and Jacob Elordi (Saltburn) were being considered for the lead role of Patrick Bateman, the character who was played by Christian Bale in Harron’s film. But then, Ellis said on his podcast that he thought the remake talk was “fake news” and that deals hadn’t even been secured with Guadagnino or Burns yet. Now, Guadagnino has dodged a question about the project.
Harron’s American Psycho had the following synopsis: Patrick Bateman is a young, handsome, Harvard educated Wall Street success, seemingly perfect with his stunning fiancé and entourage of high-powered friends. But his circle of friends doesn’t know the other Patrick Bateman, the one who lusts for more than status and material things. With a detective hot on his trail and temptation everywhere, Patrick Bateman can’t fight his terrible urges that take him on the pursuit of women, greed and the ultimate crime – murder! Based on the controversial book by Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho is a sexy thriller that sets forth a vision that is both terrifying and chilling. Harron wrote the screenplay with Guinevere Turner.
During an interview with GQ, Guadagnino was asked why he would want to make an American Psycho remake. He replied, “Any director, in this moment, they are all developing projects. Sometimes you develop with Hollywood, sometimes you have material being handed to you by a studio, by a producer. And I think all of us do make two, three, four, five, six, seven developments…” Question successfully dodged. He did add, “Bret Easton Ellis is one of the greatest American writers alive.“
Guadagnino is known to have multiple projects currently in development. In addition to American Psycho, he has the Pier Vittorio Tondelli adaptation Separate Rooms, Christopher Castellani’s Tennessee Williams story Leading Men, the Thomas Mann adaptation Buddenbrooks, the DC Comics movie Sgt. Rock (which would star his Queer lead Daniel Craig and might actually end up being his next film), and he has long been attached to make a new version of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. He’s got a whole bunch of adaptations on his plate.
Would you like to see Luca Guadagnino make an American Psycho remake? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.
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Every Severance fan has Ben Stiller to thank for saving Apple from themselves by preventing them from ruining our favorite show. In the second episode of The Severance Podcast with Ben Stiller & Adam Scott, the co-hosts reveal the story of how Apple didn’t want Scott to play the lead role of Mark Scout, in part…
Every Severance fan has Ben Stiller to thank for saving Apple from themselves by preventing them from ruining our favorite show. In the second episode of The Severance Podcast with Ben Stiller & Adam Scott, the co-hosts reveal the story of how Apple didn’t want Scott to play the lead role of Mark Scout, in part…