Latest Movie News From Moviefone |
- 10 Movie Scenes So Hard to Shoot They Almost Didn't Happen
- Rupert Wyatt to Direct Channing Tatum in 'Gambit'
- Cheyenne Jackson on 'American Horror Story: Hotel': 'It's Scary and Amazing'
- Katherine Waterston Nabs Female Lead in 'Fantastic Beasts'
- It's Official: 'Jurassic World' Stomps 'Avengers' for Best Domestic Opening Ever
- 21 Times 'Jurassic World' Calls Back to 'Jurassic Park'
- Channing Tatum & 'Magic Mike XXL' Cast Dance at L.A. Pride Parade
- 7 Things That Need to Happen in 'Aquaman'
- It's 'A Deadly Adoption' for Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig in Lifetime Spoof
- All 12 'Star Trek' Movies, Ranked
- Benedict Cumberbatch Welcomes Baby Boy With Wife Sophie Hunter
- 27 Times Barney Stinson Was the Best Part of 'How I Met Your Mother'
- The 7 Most Depressing TV Shows Ever
- Is a Rachel Dolezal Movie 'Inevitable'? Mock Casting Suggestions Now Out
- Quiz: How Well Do You Know Monica Geller?
- What's New on Netflix, TV, Digital, and DVD/Blu-ray This Week: June 15-21
- Retired David Letterman Explains Why These 2 Guests Made Him Most 'Anxious'
- 'The Bachelorette' Just Revealed Winner on Snapchat ... Unless She's Trolling
- Chris Pratt Is Signed on for a 'Jurassic World' Sequel (and 37 More)
- Dinosaur Experts Name 2 Pet Peeves About 'Jurassic Park' Franchise
- 'Game of Thrones': [Spoilers] Is Really Dead, But Will He Stay Dead in Season 6?
- Here's How 'Jurassic World' Destroyed Box Office Expectations
- 'Game of Thrones' Finale Recap: Who Died, Who's Blind in 'Mother's Mercy'?
| 10 Movie Scenes So Hard to Shoot They Almost Didn't Happen Posted:  From Tom Cruise's death-defying stunts in "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" to the showdown between the Joker and Batman in "The Dark Night," some movie scenes are hard to shoot. These are the 10 movie scenes that were almost impossible to get on film. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Rupert Wyatt to Direct Channing Tatum in 'Gambit' Posted: Entertainment Weekly reports that Rupert Wyatt, who directed reboot "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," has been tapped to helm the film, which focuses on the New Orleans-born mutant. Tatum is taking over the role from Taylor Kitsch, who appeared as Gambit in 2009's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine." This will be the card-throwing character's first solo flick. Tatum had long desired to see Gambit get his big screen due, though a movie took some time to materialize. First, the studio needed to sign on; then, the flick floundered for months without a director (and was reportedly rejected by high-profile people including Darren Aronofsky and Tatum's "Foxcatcher" director Bennett Miller). But now, it seems that Wyatt is at the helm, and work can finally start on the feature, which is due in theaters later next year. No official word has come down from studio Fox yet. Stay tuned to see what they have to say about Wyatt (and perhaps the rest of the cast). "Gambit" is slated for release on October 7, 2016. [via: Entertainment Weekly] Photo credit: Getty Images This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Cheyenne Jackson on 'American Horror Story: Hotel': 'It's Scary and Amazing' Posted:  How top secret is "American Horror Story: Hotel"? The actors haven't told their families what to expect when the latest installment debuts this October.Moviefone caught up with Cheyenne Jackson June 7 at the Actors Fund Tony Awards viewing party, where the actor serenaded honoree Alfred Molina with a performance of Elton John's "Your Song." So can we expect Jackson to sing on "AHS: Hotel" as well? "I can't say. It's so top, top secret. Literally, not even my mom knows," he said. "I know it's set in a hotel and I know who's in the cast and I know it's scary and amazing. And that's all I know." The cast, by the way, includes Lady Gaga in her her first TV role (she briefly appeared in "Machete Kills"), as well as Matt Bomer and Max Greenfield ("New Girl") and previous "AHS" stars Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Chloe Sevigny, and Wes Bentley. Jackson hadn't even gotten a script yet: Filming starts in about two weeks. "As much as all of us are saying, 'I want to read it!' You've gotta just trust that [Ryan Murphy] knows what he's doing." How did Jackson land the part? "[Murphy] asked me," he said simply. Jackson previously worked with Murphy on "Glee," where he played Dustin Goolsby, the coach of rival singing group "Vocal Adrenaline" on the second season of the Fox show. He's eager to get to work on the fifth "AHS" installment: "I've cleared everything because 'American Horror Story' is going to take up all my time for the next eight months, except for a couple of concerts here and there." Has he met Lady Gaga yet? "No, I haven't, but I saw her and Tony Bennett at the Hollywood Bowl. She was amazing. She's legit, she's the real deal." What does he expect from "AHS: Hotel"? 'I've stopped hoping and dreaming and wishing because I know anything I think of will never be as good as what [Murphy] comes up with," he smiled. "American Horror Story: Hotel" is set to premiere some time in October 2015 on FX. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Katherine Waterston Nabs Female Lead in 'Fantastic Beasts' Posted:  After several weeks of speculation about the actresses in the running for two key roles in the upcoming "Harry Potter" spinoff "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," one of those parts has officially been cast.Katherine Waterston, who turned heads last year in "Inherent Vice," has landed the female leading role opposite star Eddie Redmayne, where she'll be playing a witch name Tina (and yes, that's short for Porpentina, a.k.a. the woman Redmayne's character, Newt Scamander, ends up marrying, according to "Potter" universe lore). In the film, Tina meets Newt in New York City while the magizoologist is touring the United States on his quest to document magical creatures around the globe for his textbook, which gives the flick its name. Waterston reportedly beat out a bevvy of other actresses for the juicy role, including Saoirse Ronan, Dakota Fanning, Lili Simmons ("True Detective"), and Alison Sudol ("Transparent"). Earlier reports indicated that she was instead vying for the role of Tina's older sister, Queenie, which has yet to be cast. Actresses reportedly under consideration for that part include Kate Upton and Elizabeth Debicki ("The Great Gatsby"). "Katherine Waterston is a rising star, who was a revelation in our film 'Inherent Vice,' earning the praise of both critics and audiences. We are thrilled to have her back in the Warner Bros. family, especially in one of our most anticipated titles for 2016, 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,'" said Warner Bros. exec Greg Silverman in a statement announcing the casting. Perhaps Tina was the person J.K. Rowling alluded to that was educated at the American Hogwarts, rumored to be at least mentioned (if not seen) in "Beasts"? We can only speculate at this point, but we're hopeful for more answers about the mysterious magical world of the U.S. "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" is due in theaters on November 18, 2016. [via: TheWrap] Photo credit: Getty Images This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| It's Official: 'Jurassic World' Stomps 'Avengers' for Best Domestic Opening Ever Posted:  "Jurassic World" just can't stop breaking records -- and this time, it's a Marvel-sized one.Fresh off the flick's debut as the highest-grossing international bow of all time, "Jurassic World" has officially beaten "The Avengers" as the biggest domestic opening of all time, too. Early reports suggested that "Jurassic" took in around $204 million in North America over the weekend, just a hair behind "Avengers"'s 2012 total of $207.4 million. Not exactly a disappointing total, by any means. But as new numbers have rolled in from late Sunday showings, it seems that it's actually "Jurassic World" who reigns supreme, boasting a new, Tyrannosaurus-sized total of -- hold onto your butts -- $209 million. Wow. Those figures are still being tweaked, of course, and could change incrementally as the day (and possibly week) goes on. But suffice it to say, "Jurassic" looks to be squarely in first place at the all-time domestic box office, a feat that not even "Avengers: Age of Ultron" could achieve. (That film pulled in a comparatively-paltry $191.3 million, good for third place standings on the all-time list.) Chris Pratt may have been joking when he suggested that he had signed on to star in 38 more sequels, but we're betting that based on this impressive outcome, studio Universal doesn't think that idea is so crazy after all. [via: Vanity Fair] This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 21 Times 'Jurassic World' Calls Back to 'Jurassic Park' Posted: If the box office is any indication, "Jurassic World" is kind of a big deal. Several factors contributed to its crazy record-breaking opening weekend, and high on that list is nostalgia for the original "Jurassic Park." (SPOILER!) In fact, "World" contains several locations and scenes that call back to iconic moments from the first film. In honor of "JW," here are 21 references the blockbuster makes to Spielberg's first trip to Crazy Dinosaur Island.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Channing Tatum & 'Magic Mike XXL' Cast Dance at L.A. Pride Parade Posted:  The Los Angeles Pride Parade attracted some major talent this weekend, but one float in particular had everyone talking.Channing Tatum and his "Magic Mike XXL" costars Matt Bomer and Adam Rodriguez -- joined by a bevy of attractive males -- rode a giant float decked out in promotional materials for the upcoming sequel to the male stripper flick. Tatum was also sporting a rainbow flag bandana and wristband for the occasion. But as soon as Ginuwine's "Pony" began to play -- a signature song for the "Magic Mike" franchise -- things really heated up, as Tatum and co. began to gyrate with the music, putting on quite the show for the excited onlookers at the event. (A special shout-out to the gentleman on his knees, rippling his stomach to the beat. Yowza.) This is just the latest publicity stunt for the flick, which has also promoted itself through a surprise lap-dance performance for a group of fans (led by a disguised Tatum). We're eager to see what else the marketing team has up its sleeve as the countdown to film's debut continues. Check out some video of the parade performance, and a few more photos, below. "Magic Mike XXL" dances into theaters on July 1.
   [via: L.A. Pride]Photo credit: Eric Charbonneau/Invision/AP This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 7 Things That Need to Happen in 'Aquaman' Posted:  While the first images of Jason Momoa as Aquaman are giving us a lot of hope for the upcoming movie, there are some requests we have when it comes to this flick. Check out the seven things we'd like to see happen in "Aquaman." This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| It's 'A Deadly Adoption' for Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig in Lifetime Spoof Posted:  Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig are in for "A Deadly Adoption" in the latest trailer for their upcoming send-up of Lifetime movies (which just so happens to be a Lifetime movie itself).The flick focuses on a picture-perfect couple (Ferrell and Wiig) who are looking to adopt a baby, and wind up with a crazy birth mother ("90210" alum Jessica Lowndes) at their doorstep. It turns out that she's got her sights set on husband Robert, and wants Wiig out of the picture. (In case there's any confusion about that, she literally rips a picture of the couple in half so only Robert's portion remains.) "You're going to have a perfect life, too, someday, I promise," Wiig sweetly tells Lowndes. "I hope it's in a town like this, with a family like yours," Lowndes replies. Cue sinister music, lots of lingering looks at Lowndes's cleavage, a gunfight, and plenty of screaming and crying. It would look exactly like a real, honest-to-goodness Lifetime movie if we didn't already know it was a spoof. And that's the entire point, apparently. While "A Deadly Adoption" is indeed a parody, Ferrell and Wiig take the material deadly seriously (it was written by Andrew Steele, who also penned Ferrell's 2012 telenovela spoof "Casa di me Padre"), playing their characters straight in the face of the heightened ridiculousness that unfolds. We can't wait to watch the entire flick. Check out the trailer (which debuted on Yahoo! TV) below. "A Deadly Adoption" is due on Lifetime on June 20. [via: Yahoo! TV] Photo credit: Lifetime This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| All 12 'Star Trek' Movies, Ranked Posted:  "Star Trek" has been around since the 1960s, so it's no surprise that many have brought the series to the big screen. Live long and prosper and check out the ranking of all 12 "Star Trek" films ever released. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Benedict Cumberbatch Welcomes Baby Boy With Wife Sophie Hunter Posted:  Benedict Cumberbatch is officially a Cumberdad: The actor and his wife, Sophie Hunter, welcomed a bouncing baby boy this weekend.A representative for the couple revealed in a statement that the child -- whose name has yet to be publicized -- was born on Saturday. "Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter are delighted to announce the arrival of their beautiful son," the statement said. "We would kindly ask everyone to respect the family's privacy during these next few precious weeks." This is the first child for both Cumberbatch and Hunter, who married in a Valentine's Day ceremony this year. The couple first announced their engagement last fall (Cumberbatch, proper English gentleman that he is, took out a newspaper ad), and revealed that they were expecting earlier this year. It's been an eventful year for Cumberbatch so far, with a wedding, an Oscar nomination for "The Imitation Game," and his recent distinction as a recipient of a CBE from Queen Elizabeth II, awarding him membership to the Order of the British Empire for his performing arts and charity work. That latter honor was announced only one day before his new son was born; seems like it was quite a good weekend for the actor. Congrats to the happy family. [via: BBC] Photo credit: Getty Images This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 27 Times Barney Stinson Was the Best Part of 'How I Met Your Mother' Posted: Simply put, "How I Met Your Mother" would be nothing without Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris). From his man-whoring ways and unapologetic pick-up lines, to his quotable one-liners, impeccable taste in suits, and undying love for Robin "Sparkles" Sherbatsky, he is a legen -- wait for it -- dary part of HIMYM. So, in honor of Barney Stinson's remarkable contribution to the TV "womanizer" archetype (and "How I Met Your Mother" as a whole), let's take a look back at some of his most enduring quotes and moments.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The 7 Most Depressing TV Shows Ever Posted: Television certainly isn't canned laughter, positive life lessons, hug-filled very special episodes, and happy, sappy-scored endings all the time. It seems like the small screen has gotten increasingly darker over the years, and the storm clouds don't appear to be lifting any time soon. Call it a quest for schadenfreude, call it high-brow, or call it art imitating the awful realities of life, but many shows tend to leave us down in the dumps, and we don't even mind the pain. Need proof? Here are 7 terribly depressing TV shows that make us want to curl into the fetal position and shed tears of hopelessness.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Is a Rachel Dolezal Movie 'Inevitable'? Mock Casting Suggestions Now Out Posted:  According to Variety and BuzzFeed, it is "inevitable" that Hollywood will make a movie about Rachel Dolezal. So they have gone straight into stunt casting, with BuzzFeed suggesting 17 white actresses to play Dolezal -- from Kate Hudson and Lindsay Lohan to Anne Hathaway and Taylor Swift -- with Variety deciding that Amy Schumer was their favorite option.They're having fun with the idea, maybe too much fun, but it does seem like Hollywood won't be able to resist telling this story, whether in a Lifetime movie or big screen biopic. If you've been hiding in "Orange Is the New Black" or "Jurassic World" screenings and don't know, Rachel is the (now former) president of the Spokane, WA chapter of the NAACP whose parents revealed she was born white, not black, eroding a series of details Dolezal had shared about her own past. Celebrities have been weighing in on the situation, with Keri Hilson and Cher taking serious heat for defending aspects of Dolezal's actions, and comedian Dave Chappelle sharing his own thoughtful reaction. (For the record, in a racial draft, one of his most memorable sketches, he thinks she'd be drafted for black.) If there is a movie about this situation, the divided response would probably be part of it. In the right hands, it might not be a terrible biopic. (Maybe Lee Daniels would go for it?) But it could go wince-worthy wrong in a dozen different ways, especially if they don't take it seriously or cast the wrong lead. At the very least, expect some ripped-from-the-headlines stories on this topic to show up on TV shows next season. That's usually how it works. Would you watch a movie on Rachel Dolezal? If so, any serious casting suggestions? Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Quiz: How Well Do You Know Monica Geller? Posted:  On Courteney Cox's birthday, we thought there'd be no better way to celebrate her than with a trivia-filled trip down memory lane. We want to see how much you remember about our favorite neat freak, Monica Geller. Take our quiz to see how much of a "Friends" expert you really are! This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| What's New on Netflix, TV, Digital, and DVD/Blu-ray This Week: June 15-21 Posted:  At a loss for what to watch this week? From new DVDs and Blu-rays, to what's streaming on Netflix, we've got you covered.New on DVD and Blu-ray "Chappie" Dev Patel, Sigourney Weaver, Sharlto Copley (in motion capture as Chappie), and Hugh Jackman star in this thought-provoking sci-fi film from Neill Blomkamp, director of "District 9." The Blu-ray comes with a ton of features, including an alternate ending, extended scenes, and eight featurettes: "Chappie: The Streetwise Professor," "Arms Race: The Weapons and Robots," "Bringing Chappie to Life: The Visual Effects," "From Tetra Vaal to Chappie," "Keep It Gangster," "The Reality of Robotics," "Jozi: Real City and a Sci-Fi Setting," and "Rogue Robot: Deconstructing the Stunts & Special Effects." "Run All Night" Liam Neeson plays a mobster hit man caught between his crime family and his estranged son in this action thriller co-starring Joel Kinnaman, Ed Harris, and Vincent D'Onofrio. The Blu-ray features "Shoot All Night," "Action All Night" -- with the cast and crew discussing the awesomeness of Liam Neeson -- and deleted scenes. "The Lazarus Effect" Medical researchers played by Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde develop a serum -- code-named "Lazarus" -- that's supposed to assist coma patients, but instead it brings the dead back to life like zombies. Oops! Close enough? The movie co-stars Donald Glover, Evan Peters, and Sarah Bolger and includes the special features "Creating Fear: The Making of The Lazarus Effect," "Playing God: The Moral Dilemma" (Blu-ray only), and deleted/extended scenes (Blu-ray only). Here's an exclusive clip on casting the movie's stars.  New on Netflix "Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" You've probably heard of Pussy Riot, the feminist punk group/political activists crusading against Vladimir Putin's regime, but this documentary takes you behind the scenes, through the group's arrest and trial. It's fascinating and educational. See for yourself on Netflix, starting June 15. "Lee Daniels' The Butler" Forest Whitaker stars as a White House butler in this movie loosely based on a real-life story. The huge A-list cast includes John Cusack, Jane Fonda, Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, and the one-and-only Oprah. "The Butler" makes its Netflix debut on June 16. "Cake" See why Jennifer Aniston's performance has earned her high praise and a few award nominations when "Cake" hits Netflix on June 20. Aniston plays a woman embittered by surviving a car accident that killed her child and left her in chronic pain. Co-stars Anna Kendrick, William H. Macy, Felicity Huffman, Adriana Barraza, and Sam Worthington. TV Worth Watching "True Detective" (Sunday on HBO at 9 p.m.) Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson are out, but Rachel McAdams, Colin Farrell, Vince Vaughn, and Taylor Kitsch are in as the highly anticipated Season 2 begins. It's a whole new story, so don't feel like you have to have seen Season 1 to follow along. But watch Season 1 anyway. "The Astronaut Wives Club" (Thursday on ABC at 8 p.m.) This is the big debut of ABC's drama based on Lily Koppel's book, "The Astronaut Wives Club: A True Story." See the story "Launch" on June 18. "Orphan Black" (Saturday on BBC America at 9 p.m.) The third season of Tatiana Maslany's clone war ends June 20 with Episode 10, "History Yet to Be Written." According to the official synopsis, "Kendall may be the key to stop Castor; the sisters appear to be thwarting their most dangerous foe." New Video on Demand, Rental Streaming, and Digital Only "The Gunman" Sean Penn stars as the subject of a deadly international manhunt in this thriller from the director of "Taken." Co-stars the badassery of Javier Bardem, Idris Elba, and Ray Winstone. "The Gunman" debuts on Digital HD on June 16, ahead of its Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand premiere on June 30. "A Most Wanted Man" This British espionage thriller, based on the John le Carré novel, is the last Philip Seymour Hoffman film released in his lifetime. Also stars Rachel McAdams, Willem Dafoe, Robin Wright, Daniel Brühl and Nina Hoss. Catch it on Amazon Prime starting June 19. "Leading Lady" Here's a charming romantic comedy about a British drama teacher and aspiring actress who hopes to land the lead role of an Afrikaans war heroine, so she heads to South Africa to learn more about the history and lifestyle of her potential character. She enlists a stubborn farmer to help her prepare for the role, and in return she agrees to direct the annual concert at his family's farm. "Leading Lady" stars Gil Bellows, Katie McGrath and Bok van Blerk and it's available on VOD and Digital HD starting June 16. Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Retired David Letterman Explains Why These 2 Guests Made Him Most 'Anxious' Posted: Here's Dave's answer:
That definitely seems true about President Clinton. Warren Zevon was on Dave's show several times, and he was the sole focus of the show on October 30, 2002, before the singer died from a form of lung cancer in September 2003. Here's a portion of that episode: This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 'The Bachelorette' Just Revealed Winner on Snapchat ... Unless She's Trolling Posted:  You could get philosophical about what it means to "win" ABC's "The Bachelorette." Haters would argue that anyone who skips the show is winning, but as die-hard fans of this guilty pleasure trainwreck, we still get misty at the manufactured "true love" -- and we lean forward at any sign of juicy drama. This is pretty juicy: Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe is currently stirring the speculation pot with a new Snapchat image making the rounds online.Here's the shot: That appears to be Shawn B., aka the cross between Ryan Gosling and Calvin Harris. So would she have posted that if she did not pick him? Here's where things get even more interesting... *SPOILER ALERT* Reality Steve is the guy who posts spoilers about each season of "The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette," and he previously said Kaitlyn pulls a Brad Womack 1.0 in that she chooses herself in the end. It comes down to Nick Viall and Shawn Booth and Steve had said Kaitlyn left single. He later said Nick was the first out of the limo and proposed, but Kaitlyn rejected him. Steve retweeted the shot above, but so far he hasn't weighed in on whether it changes anything. Maybe Kaitlyn wants to stop some of the fan-bashing by hinting that she does pick someone -- and it's not Nick. Or could the spoiler still be correct and she left single, then decided to try things out in the real world with Shawn? "The Bachelorette" is only up to Week 5 at this point, and that episode airs tonight at 8 p.m. on ABC. So was the pic just PR for the show or a real spoiler? Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Chris Pratt Is Signed on for a 'Jurassic World' Sequel (and 37 More) Posted:  Good news: Chris Pratt is ready to return for more dinosaur action after "Jurassic World." If you cross your fingers and turn around three times, maybe they'll even release the fifth movie within the next few years instead of waiting almost 15 years like the gap between "Jurassic Park III" and the new "Jurassic World."Pratt is basically the king of the world right now, but the "Jurassic" team was smart enough to lock him down in advance in case round four did exactly what it just did -- break box office records. Chris talked to Entertainment Weekly about making the movie, working with Steven Spielberg, and hanging out in Hawaii with his family. Here's where he talks about returning for more dino fun: Nice. He didn't mean that literally, but now we're holding him to it: the next sequel is one, then 37 more. He can maybe negotiate down from there, but we'll never be sick of dinosaurs, so at this point, the more the merrier. Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Dinosaur Experts Name 2 Pet Peeves About 'Jurassic Park' Franchise Posted:  If you taught people about dinosaurs in real life, how would you feel about the "Jurassic Park" franchise?You could see it from either side -- appreciate how much the franchise has done to put paleontology in the zeitgeist or deep sigh over how inaccurate the dino depictions can be. With "Jurassic World" breaking box office records, The Washington Post talked to several paleontologists to get their takes on the dinosaurs, and the folks they talked to were very supportive and excited about the franchise. As one expert put it, "These films bridge the gap between dusty fossils in a museum drawer and the public, who are hungry to know more." However, that's not to say they completely ignored the inaccuracies, and experts pinpointed two main issues for criticism: dinosaurs' lack of feathers and their depiction as noisier than a frat house on Friday night. Here's part of that conversation, from paleontologists Kirk Johnson and Matthew Carrano of The Smithsonian to the Washington Post: The good news is, it sounds like more "Jurassic Park" movies are on the way, with Chris Pratt signed on to return, so the dino experts can keep answering questions from excited fans, while bemoaning the lack of feathers. Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 'Game of Thrones': [Spoilers] Is Really Dead, But Will He Stay Dead in Season 6? Posted:  Warning: Spoilers ahead from the "Game of Thrones" Season 5 finale and "A Song of Ice and Fire" books.The Powers That Be are trying to drive it home that Jon Snow is really dead after that Season 5 finale end scene. Kit Harington and one of the showrunners, David Weiss, told Entertainment Weekly in separate interviews that (David's words) "Dead is dead" and (Kit's words) "I've been told I'm dead. I'm dead. I'm not coming back next season. So that's all I can tell you, really." David added, "We would hope that after seeing the scene and the way it's shot that the answer to that will be unambiguous in the minds of the people watching it. It should be pretty clear what happens in by the time you're done seeing that scene. It's not an, 'Oh what just happened scene?'" And yet it definitely is a 'what just happened?' scene -- or at least a 'what might happen next?' scene. Author George R.R. Martin wrote a version of that scene toward the end of "A Dance with Dragons," the most recently published book (which was still years ago), and he previously told Entertainment Weekly of Jon Snow, "Oh, you think he's dead, do you? My readers should know better than to take anything as gospel." He later added, "If there's one thing we know in A Song of Ice and Fire is that death is not necessarily permanent."  If Jon is indeed revived -- and does anyone really think he'll stay dead, even with the TV show changing so many elements of the book? -- will he have different recoveries on TV than in the next book, "The Winds of Winter"? In "Dance with Dragons," Ghost was referenced as next to Jon, as if he might warg into Ghost. On TV, we didn't see Ghost there, but Melisandre just returned to The Wall, and they've made it very clear that she sees something special about Jon. She may know what Jon doesn't know, and that fans only suspect at this point, that he might have some king's blood in him as well. He has a major part to play in the war to come.What if Mel does what Thoros of Myr did for Beric Dondarrion and brings Jon back from the dead? That seems to be the running theory at this point, especially since there's really nothing else for Melisandre to be doing, and there had to be a reason for all that Mel/Jon foreshadowing. Plus, Melisandre met with the Brotherhood Without Banners back in Season 3, and picked up some revival tips from Thoros. And Jon still needs to learn about his parents. He needs to meet Dany Targaryen. He needs to be one of the three heads of the dragon. It is known. Or suspected, anyway. We'll have to wait for the next book, "The Winds of Winter," and next year's "Game of Thrones" Season 6 for answers on how both the book and TV show tackle Jon Snow's fate. Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Here's How 'Jurassic World' Destroyed Box Office Expectations Posted:  Remember the handwringing over the past couple of weeks, when everyone was worried that May's weak box office meant we were in for a summer slump, one that would leave Hollywood's earnings trailing last summer's by more than $700 million?Well, nevermind. The opening weekend for "Jurassic World," at $209 million, didn't just set a whole bunch of records. (Biggest opening weekend of all time, biggest June opening ever and biggest debut ever for Universal). It also single-handedly lifted Hollywood out of the box office doldrums it's been in all summer. At the end of May, the box office was 17.7 percent behind the same period last year. Now, it's up 7.2 percent over last year (May 1 through June 14). This weekend's total theater earnings were twice the size of last week's. And the next several weekends are full of likely blockbusters -- "Inside Out," "Ted 2," "Magic Mike XXL," "Terminator: Genisys," "Minions," "Ant-Man," "Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation" -- that should help keep up the momentum for the rest of the summer. And all this because of one gross underestimation. Sure, pundits had high hopes for "Jurassic World" going into the weekend. They predicted openings anywhere between $100 million (Universal's own conservative guess) and $125 million. The uncertainty was understandable; after all, the movie got mixed reviews, it followed the previous installment by 14 long years (and the last two installments had squandered a lot of the franchise's good will). Still, the only thing more rare than a $200 million opening weekend is the box office analysts underestimating a film's debut by as much as $75 to $100 million. Maybe $10 million, or $20 million -- or even $30 million, but not this much. The pundits should probably be asking themselves why they keep underestimating this summer's hits by $15 million or more (as they did "Pitch Perfect 2" and "San Andreas"). In the meantime, here's how some of "Jurassic World's" riskier gambles paid off. 1. The Memory Hole  "Jurassic World" asked us to forget that the last two sequels ever happened, positioning itself as the first sequel to the original "Jurassic Park." Its marketing sold the nostalgia factor as well, and the film calls back to "JP" with specific shots and locations. This "ret-con" approach doesn't always work. "Superman Returns" asked viewers to forget "Superman III" and "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace." The two "Amazing Spider-Man" movies wanted moviegoers to neuralyze memories of the entire Tobey Maguire "Spider-Man" franchise.In all of these cases, the willed forgetfulness didn't exactly work -- not because the movies we were asked to forget were so terrific (often, they were not), but because the reboots offered nothing memorable enough to replace them with. Fortunately, "Jurassic World" lived up to the hype (at least as far as audiences were concerned; they gave it an A grade at CinemaScore, indicating very strong word-of-mouth). As a result, it earned more in three days than 2001's "Jurassic Park III" earned in its entire theatrical run ($181.2 million). 2. Chris Pratt  Pratt starred in two of the biggest hits of 2014 -- "The LEGO Movie" and "Guardians of the Galaxy" -- but he still had doubters to win over. Due to all the good will generated by "Guardians," Pratt's popularity amongst audiences helped them turn out in droves, even though the real stars of this franchise are the dinosaurs. After three giant blockbusters in a row, it's safe to assume that we can finally count Pratt as a major box office draw. Surely the nearly-even gender split (Universal's polling indicates an audience that was 52 percent male, 48 percent female) has something to do with Pratt's immense appeal to both men and women.3. Hiring Director Colin Trevorrow  Lately, it's been common for studios to hire indie directors with little mainstream Hollywood experience to step up and direct giant, expensive tentpoles. (See Marc Webb on the "Amazing Spider-Man" movies, Gareth Edwards on 2014's "Godzilla," or James Gunn on "Guardians of the Galaxy.") The theory: Better to have good storytelling and character-developing skills than experience marshaling large productions and special effects. For the most part, such risks have paid off.So it is with Trevorrow, whose last movie was the tiny indie time-travel thriller, "Safety Not Guaranteed." Critics who've grumbled about the sequel's predictable plot and stereotypical characters have been hard pressed to find any of Trevorrow's auteurist stamp on the material. Still, he clearly did what he was paid to do. 4. The IMAX 3D Factor  This is the first film in the franchise to offer first-run screenings in 3D and IMAX. For a long time now, 3D has seemed more trouble than it's worth, with American audiences generally avoiding the extra-surcharge screenings. But this summer's hits -- especially "Avengers: Age of Ultron," "San Andreas," and "Mad Max: Fury Road" -- have enjoyed a box office boost from the 3D surcharges. Speaking of which...5. Saturation Marketing  Universal and parent company Comcast pulled out all the stops with this film, playing a long marketing game that started two years ago with the 3D re-release of the original "Jurassic Park." The re-release not only earned $45 million, but also whetted the public's appetite for three-dimensional dinosaurs.This spring, the studio dropped new trailers that revealed an awful lot of the film's surprises (in terms of the movie's new creatures), but they proved effective because they were scary as hell. They also benefited from a moody version of the "Jurassic Park" theme on piano. And the weekend prior to the release of "JW," Comcast rebroadcast "Jurassic Park" on five of its cable channels. In other words, "Jurassic World" succeeded because there was no escaping its carnivorous maw. It simply ate everything in sight. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 'Game of Thrones' Finale Recap: Who Died, Who's Blind in 'Mother's Mercy'? Posted:  Warning: Spoilers ahead, not only from the "Game of Thrones" Season 5 finale but also the "A Song of Ice and Fire" books.Don't worry! Jon Snow (Kit Harington) is not dead. Or probably not dead. Or not dead for long. Hell, what do we know -- the book that should give us the answer has yet to be published. The "Game of Thrones" Season 5 finale -- Episode 10, "Mother's Mercy" -- had so many deaths it may literally be impossible to count, unless someone has a definitive number on Stannis Baratheon's men. But the name of the book series is "A Song of Ice and Fire" and Jon Snow is the Ice as much as Daenerys Targaryen is the Fire. His watch has not ended.  Here are the deaths we're sure about:o. Selyse Baratheon o. Stannis Baratheon (and the men who didn't ditch him) o. Meryn Trant o. Myranda o. Myrcella Baratheon (we think we're 100 percent about this one. She was poisoned but we didn't see her die) Here are the less certain deaths: o. Jaqen died but did not die because No One died. Let someone else explain it. He's fine. And yet he killed himself. Don't worry about it. o. Jon Snow. He was stabbed repeatedly by his fellow men of the Night's Watch, who consider him a traitor. Even young Olly, Jon's little protege, joined the stabbing. He was the last knife into Jon's body and Season 5 ended with Jon bleeding out, looking dead. In the most recent book, "A Dance with Dragons," the same thing happened, but Ghost was next to Jon and Jon called to him -- suggesting that maybe Jon would warg into Ghost. If Jon does die, or comes close, can Melisandre save him -- she who is essentially useless on all other levels at this point? A crapload of other stuff happened outside of the deaths: Arya is now blind, Cersei had a naked walk of shame, Sam left for The Citadel, Sansa and Theon escaped, Dany is back with a khalasar, Varys returned, etc. Here are highlights from Episode 10:  o. We had the first death within the first five minutes of the episode when Stannis Baratheon was led into the woods to find his wife, Selyse Baratheon had hanged herself. We'd feel worse about it if she hadn't been such a horrible mother up until the point when her daughter was already burning and it was too late to do anything. Stannis also faced a mutiny of men who apparently didn't want to follow a king who was willing to burn his daughter alive. Didn't see that in your flames, did you, Melisandre?o. Stannis continued his sad trombone luck/bad betting on Mel's prophecies, when an army went out to meet him in the field outside Winterfell. They were vastly outnumbered. So the Boltons won, again. o. Brienne of Tarth came upon the wounded Stannis and sentenced him to death. Stannis' last words: "Go on, do your duty." Second death of the episode: Stannis. Unless you count all the men with him. What's Melisandre going to do now? Will she accept that she was wrong or continue her delusions?  o. Sansa watched the battle play out, then worked to make her escape. She was stopped by Myranda with her bow and arrow, next to Theon. While Myranda was threatening Sansa, and about to shoot, Theon pushed Myranda over a ledge and killed her. (When does Sansa get to save herself?) He and Sansa went to escape. o. Sam decided he would serve best as a maester, requesting to be sent to The Citadel, which would also be safest for Gilly. So Jon lost his only friend and was alone as the self-described most hated man in Castle Black.  o. Meryn Trant beat the girls around him, until Arya was revealed as one of them -- she had used one of the faces. She gave it right back to him and then some. Will anyone mourn this pedophile sadist? No. Arya told him she was the first name on her list. Now he's no one. Nothing. His death was gruesome.o. As expected, Jaqen H'ghar was not happy that Arya took a life -- the wrong life. She was deemed, as the other girl said, not ready. She stole from The Many Faced God and now a debt is owed. Only death can pay for life. So Jaqen killed himself. Sort of. He killed No One, and Arya ripped off face after face. Jaqen was still there as someone else, but Arya was made blind -- as in the book. Hopefully it will be temporary, as in the book, but they keep twisting things. At the very least, she'll be blind into Season 6 as part of her punishment.  o. While sailing from Dorne to King's Landing, Jaime tried to tell Myrcella the truth about her father. She already knew. And she was glad. (Gross) However, that was followed by Myrcella having a runny nose -- she was poisoned by the Sand Snakes. Ellaria drank the antidote, but Myrcella didn't get any. Uh oh. Another death?o. Over in Meereen, Grey Worm finally got up for a chat with Dany's boys -- Jorah, Tyrion, and Daario -- along with Missandei. There was a great deal of debate about what to do and how to find Dany. Tyrion was left behind as the guys went looking for Dany, but you know who returned? Varys! He's back to plotting and spying with Tyrion. o. Dany and Drogon were seen out in the grasslands in the middle of nowhere. Dany tried to argue with Drogon that they had to return to Meereen because her people need her, but he did not seem to agree. Or he didn't understand her, 'cause he's a dragon. While out in the grass, she was surrounded by a huge khalasar, similar to in "A Dance with Dragons." She dropped one of her jewels to place her there, in case anyone's looking for her. (Helpful.)  o. Cersei was encouraged to confess and, this time, she was ready -- even if she wasn't sincere about it. She went to the High Sparrow and asked for absolution. He said she could go home ... after her atonement. She was scrubbed naked, had her hair shorn, and forced to go for her "walk of atonement," aka walk of shame -- with a women literally calling out "shame" as she walked. That was soon drowned out by "whore," "c-nt," and other insults from the people of King's Landing, which is straight from the book. (Hearing a version of Rains of Castamere just makes it more poignant.) Can Ramsay get this treatment someday?o. After Cersei was done her walk of shame, Qyburn introduced her to the newest member of the Kingsguard: Ser Robert Strong, aka The Mountain reborn.  o. Up at The Wall, Davos was arguing for men of the Watch to help Stannis. Melisandre returned and when Davos and Jon Snow asked for news on Stannis, Shireen, etc., she just stared at them. They should ... not burn her, 'cause she'd like that, but do something. Another walk of atonement.o. Olly came into Jon's study and said there was a man who said he knew his uncle Benjen, saying he was alive. It was a trap. Jon was taken to a sign that read "traitor." Ser Alliser stabbed him. "For the Watch." Other men joined in, also "For the Watch." Olly was the last to approach Jon. He who killed Ygritte last season. He tearfully stabbed Jon. "For the Watch." Eh tu, traitor?  So now our Does Jon Really Die?! watch begins and shall not end until "Game of Thrones" Season 6 - or at least until "The Winds of Winter" novel is released. Which will come first?Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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