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Doux News Bi-Weekly Roundup: July 29, 2018

Anthony Mackie is the new sleeve, Maria Hill might help Spidey, Leia lives, Mercy will fight the Girl of Steel, 9 to 5 gets a sequel, Dune will be split in two, the Doctor is here and more!

Spider-man: Far From Home is likely to have some S.H.I.E.L.D. agents taking part in the adventure. Rumors have circulated that both Maria Hill and Nick Fury will show up in some capacity. This comes on the heels of the announcement that Jake Gyllenhaal will be playing the villain Mysterio (a strange and potentially awesome character choice since we’ve never seen the character in live action). Michael Keaton will also return as the Vulture.

Anthony Mackie has been cast as Takeshi Kovacs in the new season of Altered Carbon, which makes it sound as if we’re not going to get either Joel Kinnaman or Byron Mann next season as Kovacs which is impossible to explain without spoiling the show. Although the show runner is staying put (Alison Schapker) almost none of the first season cast is expected to return. Which makes sense because the main character is supposedly going to a different part of the galaxy next season.

Speaking of casting news, the official cast has been announced for Star Wars: Episode IX. Starting with the obvious cast first, our leads Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac are all coming back. We're also getting Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo (Chewie), and Billie Lourd. There are a few announced new actors joining the film not yet attached to characters, Naomi Ackie (Doctor Who), Keri Russell (The Americans), and Richard E. Grant (Game of Thrones). We will also get returning original trilogy characters like R2D2 and C3PO (Anthony Daniels), Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian, and Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker. But we’re also going to see the late Carrie Fisher, who will not be a digital creation, but instead will be in the film utilizing unused shots from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, this is being done with the blessing of both her daughter Billie Lourd and her brother Todd Fisher.

Supergirl is getting yet another Superman villain. This time it is Rhona Mitra playing Mercy Graves, Lex Luthor’s assistant and bodyguard that was introduced into common Superman mythology back with Superman: The Animated Series much like Harley Quinn was introduced in Batman: The Animated Series. She was a standout character but never really a focus, so it is interesting that they are making her one of the heavies for the season. This is expected to tie into the Humans First storyline which will be a part of the main narrative arc next season.

This news comes out of the blue for me. Jane Fonda took some questions during a recent promotional trip for her new documentary about an upcoming sequel to the classic 80’s comedy 9 to 5. She is set to executive produce, and along with Dolly Parton and Lily Tomlin will play a role in the film (although doubtfully the leads). The original is a personal favorite of mine, and given how different and yet still the same corporate work environments are nowadays, a sequel like this could be perfect. Fonda mentioned that the movie would still take place in Consolidated, but like many companies they are outsourcing their workforce, so the power structure is confusing and difficult to navigate for real problems that need answers. Add to that social media, and how everything you do can be examined and spied upon, and that gives the project a lot of meat to write around.


Buffy The Vampire Slayer is coming back as a revival, or a reboot, or possibly even a sequel. Initially it was announced as a reboot with an African American actress in the titular role. Fan backlash was quick and harsh, that a reboot would be unacceptable because we've already had our definitive Buffy, Willow, Xander, Giles, Angel, Spike, Cordelia, Anya, Wesley, Oz, Tara, Faith… and there would be no way to recast and redo the series with new actors in those roles. It must’ve been an unexpected nightmare for the studio, since reboots are announced on a somewhat regular basis and few generate much backlash, or if they do, it usually dies down during the production schedule. This however, was enough that they must’ve changed their plan, because the executive producer quickly walked it back, saying that she was a fan of the series, and that she would never try to replace or replicate the original, hinting that we are twenty years later and the world is scarier, so maybe we need a new slayer. This essentially indicates this isn’t a reboot but a sequel, perhaps set in the same universe as the original. If so, that is kind of exciting.

Denis Villeneuve’s (Blade Runner 2049) upcoming adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune is now looking to be split into two films. While this isn’t surprising it is troubling, since a sequel is far from guaranteed. Thankfully Villeneuve is taking this into account, and is somehow going to create the film to work as a standalone but with an obvious way to go with a sequel. This is an interesting idea given the scope that would be needed to properly tell the story, and I hope it turns out as good as Blade Runner 2049 (which was brilliant), but more financially successful.

Last time, I posted the Doctor Who teaser which was painfully short and had no footage from the show. Finally we have a real trailer, which is also painfully short, but at least has our first real glimpse of the new Doctor, her companions, and the tone of the new season.


Bits:

X-Men: Dark Phoenix is getting some reshoots next month, and they sound pretty extensive with entire set pieces being constructed for the filming. Fox (which is in the middle of final negotiations with Disney) is still committed to the February 2019 release date for the film.

In the last Doux News I reported that Chris Hardwick was being removed from his shows on AMC, including Talking Dead. Now it seems AMC has investigated the allegations of abuse from his former girlfriend Chloe Dykstra, and found his return appropriate. He missed his hosting duties at San Diego Comic Con, and a special Talking Dead episode, but will be returning to his usual hosting gig on August 12.

I reported a while back that HBO had up to five different spin-offs in the works set to potentially air after Game of Thrones ended. Well, it looks like those five were literally spaghetti on the wall to see what would stick, because all but one have been cancelled. This is the one George R.R. Martin hinted about last month, a prequel set thousands of years in the past, which tells the story of the fall of Westeros' golden age into a long night.

The long awaited Deadwood film now has both a production date (October start) and a release window of spring 2019. That October start date is not set in stone yet, but the script is written and things have been officially set in motion. I imagine any kind of delay will hinge upon the schedules of the cast, most of which have said they would return in a heartbeat.

As a final cap to my Glass trilogy of reports, here is the official trailer:


Films releasing in the last two weeks:

July 20, 2018

Mama Mia! Here We Go Again - Sequel to the musical featuring music from ABBA, I really don't have more to say about this one.

Equalizer 2 - Sequel (I'm sensing a theme) to the Denzel Washington vehicle about a former CIA agent trying to live a normal life, and failing miserably.

July 27, 2018

Teen Titans Go! To the Movies - Big screen expansion of the widely loved series Teen Titans Go! which features highly exaggerated and cartoonish versions of DC's teen heroes.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout - In the sixth installment of the franchise, Ethan Hunt tries to recover from a failed mission in time to save the world.

Oh, you may be wondering... why the Tiger? Well today (July 29) is International Tiger day and I freaking love tigers so why the hell not, I can do whatever I want in these articles. Also did you know you can Adopt a Tiger?

That's all for now, until next time!

Samantha M. Quinn spends most of her time in front of a computer typing away at one thing or another; when she has free time, she enjoys pretty much anything science fiction or fantasy-related.

1 comment:

  1. Ooh very excited to hear about Anthony Mackie as the new lead in Altered Carbon. I like him, and I really did enjoy the show, although I'm a little uncertain about how this new season will play out. I liked most of our old cast! Still, I'll definitely watch it when it comes out.

    Also very excited for Spiderman news. Jake Gyllenhaal is one of my favorite actors, so I'm happy he's coming to the MCU. Also nice to hear that Michael Keaton will be returning.

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