Of Course Paramount is Contemplating a World War Z Sequel

No revisionist history is coming. World War Z made big bank this weekend. I did not see it coming; props to those who did. At the same time I am not going to back down. The overall marketing campaign was awful. Paramount was hiding the zombies from its own zombie movie and focused on star Brad Pitt and sold it more as a global disaster. That and Pitt went everywhere on Earth in order to sell it hard for the last couple of weeks.

Word of mouth is another matter altogether. But in lieu of the year's worth of bad press, they did the impossible and got their big opening. That is all that matters to the studio. Since they are fat and happy in their well-deserved accomplishment, a sequel is on their minds, says The Hollywood Reporter.

Pitt has never been one for sequels, save the Ocean's 11 movies, and not sure where they would take it since it ended (Queue douchebag SPOILER ALERT warning) with the epidemic under control thanks to a vaccine. I say that with a straight face. This is showbiz. If they want a sequel, they will figure out a way to either make the zombies not fall for the afore-mentioned vaccine or find some other monsters.

World War V; vampires are still the thing, right?

Will Smith Won't Save the World in Independence Day 2

Say Independence Day and certain images come to mind. The alien mothership hovering over famous cities of the world, the White House being destroyed and, chief among them, Will Smith cigar in mouth quipping, "Now that's what I call a close encounter."

That single move told the world Smith, known for his rap career and TV's The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, was a movie-star. He would go to be the King of July 4^th box office filling up audiences with his genuine charisma in between special effects-filled action, one-liners and that oversized box of popcorn and pop. His familiarity and trust with the public even persuaded them into less blockbuster friendly territory like Enemy of the State, Ali, Hitch and The Pursuit of Happyness.

So when the news hit last week an Independence Day sequel was officially happening, everyone assumed Smith would be back. Doing so without him lacks common sense, and all your friends and co-workers will say is, "Hey where’s Will Smith?"

Strangely that is what is going down. Speaking to New York Daily News, helmer Roland Emmerich confirmed Smith will not return to defend Earth again citing his expensive price-tag and being "too much of a marquee name."

That latter kinda makes no sense. By the time it opens (July 3, 2015), it have been nineteen years since the original. That is a long, ass time and the public will want as much familiarity to that ironically cheesy sci-fi actioner as possible. Smith, after all, is coming off the biggest flop of his career in After Earth and is due for something safe.

Altogether possible this is taking contract negotiations public. Or Emmerich and 20^th Century Fox really are that dumb. I mean, no offense, I love Jeff Goldblum as much as the next film nerd, but do you think the public would rather see him return for Independence Day 2 or Will Smith?

Jim Carrey Steps Away From Kick-Ass 2

Jim Carrey took to Twitter to announce he will not promote Kick-Ass 2 in the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy.

The response is split even. Half are commending the actor/comedian for standing up for what he believes. The other half retort if he feels so passionately on the subject, then donate your earnings (Guessing he didn't take much upfront in exchange for back-end points) to charities, anti-gun organizations, victims of shootings and their families, etc.

I, of course, am in the latter category.

If this is truly in his heart, I take no issue. No reasonable human being would. Just hand over the cash; since Carrey is treating it like blood money and to publicly come out to proclaim this move. If he doesn't and keeps harping on his self-righteousness, then you can add him to another in a long line of Hollywood hypocrites. If he practices what he preaches, then he deserves our respect.

One thing we can all agree on. Universal is not happy right now...

Weekend Box Office: June 21-23

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1.  Monsters University - $82 million

2.  World War Z - $66 million

3.  Man of Steel - $41.2 million

4.  This is the End - $13 million

5.  Now Your See Me - $7.8 million

6.  Fast & Furious 6 - $4.7 million

7.  The Internship - $3.4 million

8.  The Purge - $3.4 million

9.  Star Trek Into Darkness - $3 million

10.  Iron Man 3 - $2.1 million

Not even Superman could break Pixar's opening weekend streak, as Monsters University blew away the competition, opening with an estimated $82 million.  Not only did the prequel become the 14th Pixar film in a row to open in first place at the box office, this opening was second only to Toy Story 3's $110 million opening in 2010.  It also beat the $62 million opening weekend of Monsters Inc, although that opened in 2001 and didn't have the benefit of 3D.  With Despicable Me 2 waiting just around the corner, that was definitely the start that Disney was hoping for.

In second place, seemingly against all odds, was the Brad Pitt zombie thriller World War Z, which earned an excellent $62 million.  Despite its reported production problems and massive budget (including having to reshoot the film's entire third act), the movie wound up not only scoring some decent reviews, but cashed in on the current Walking Dead-infused zombie craze, as audiences turned up in droves anyway.  Whether it makes its budget back remains to be seen, but it definitely didn't crash and burn the way After Earth did earlier this month.

And that leaves us with Man of Steel, which had some trouble keeping up with this weekend's newcomers and lands in third place with $41.2 million.  Check out Jamie's excellent wrap-up of what that all means for the franchise here, and don't worry, Superman will be fine.

Proving to be a nice little is This Is The End, which earned $13 million this weekend.  The apocalyptic comedy has earned $57 million domestically so far.  Also holding up well amidsts all of these superheros and zombies has been Now You Can See Me, which looks likely to be passing the $100 million mark at some point this week.

Next weekend brings this year's second White House under-siege action movie, White House Down, along with our second Melissa McCarthy comedy of the year, The Heat.  And they are probably both going to make a ton of money.

What Now for the Superman Franchise?

After all the effort to make Man of Steel the film to steer Superman back on track, this is not exactly the conversation Warner Brothers was hoping for. In the short term, they got what they wanted. It is a hit. A big hit, actually, and they got the big numbers here and abroad. In over a week, it's out-earned Superman Returns and exceeded $400 million worldwide on a path headed to $600-$700 million, according to box-office prognosticators.

Only its second weekend drop stateside was sharper than anticipated losing 65% of its first weekend earnings. A $300 million gross, considered a lock last Sunday, is no longer guaranteed. In all probability, it will get there one look at Warner Brothers' history of saving face has shown. Infamously dragged Returns to the $200 million cross line, ditto The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey last Christmas to $300 million.

Queue fan freak out. "Oh my God! What does this mean for the sequel?" many ask. "I can't go through this again," other proclaim.

Relax. Even it stalls at $270 million, the sequel is still happening. So while Man of Steel is fine and made its bread that puts the next installment in a tricky spot. General public seemed to like it fine. But they saw it and moved on (Stiff competition from Monsters University and World War Z didn't help). It wasn't the Destroying Everything in its Path monster many expected. How do you stabilize the franchise you thought you just fixed... when you kinda didn't but did?

Move it to July; probably the first decision they made, besides re-upping Zack Snyder and David Goyer. Since The Dark Knight phenomenon in 2008, studio has been religious about that date. They haven't had a film in that slot that wasn't a mega hit (Pacific Rim will test that leap of faith).

Continue the Keep it Classy casting trend. If anything this will probably be Christopher Nolan's big role, committing more well-known actors. Expect to see Household name types for Lex Luthor, whoever the supervillain is and Jimmy Olsen. Willing to bet a few bills "Jenny Olsen" (Rebecca Buller; perfectly fine yet forgettable) is a one movie wonder character and replaced by someone like Jonah Hill as Supes' pal.

Address the main criticisms, namely the mass destruction of Metropolis and lack of humor. Not one to listen to fan speculation but, for once, they actually have a good idea. Bring in Luthor and his rebuilding the city as a means to comment on that issue and the presence of the afore-mentioned Olsen can inject a sensor of humor. Man of Steel had a few humorous moments (Supes breaking his handcuffs by simply getting up from his chair and throwing the asshole driver’s truck into a tree) but you can't argue it was a mostly serious affair.

Oh and keep it a self-containded franchise. Ruining your narrative just to segway into Justice League doesn't make for a better movie. Just ask Iron Man 2 and Captain America: The First Avenger.

"Hold Onto Your Butts," Possible Plot Synopsis for JURASSIC PARK 4!

 

Man, what a great week to be a fan of Jurassic Park, huh guys? First we get some news the film is back on track and now, thanks to a source at JoBlo, it appears we have a plot that sounds like it'll be a great excuse to go back to Isla Nublar.

JURASSIC PARK 4, set in present day Isla Nublar, is now an actual theme park, as originally intended by John Hammond in the first film. It garners 10 million visitors per year and is completely safe – until it’s not. The park itself is described as very Sea World-esque and includes an area called the Isla Nublar Lagoon. That means underwater dino’s for the first time. No indication of what kind, but there’s concept art showing one of the aquatic dino’s, as part of a show, jumping out of the lagoon and eating a strung up great white shark like it was a fish for a dolphin at sea world.

The film is also rumored to be shot in 3D instead of post-converted, which is great news to hear, and will also apparently feature a tamed raptor?

As part of a show, you ask? That's right, folks, this will feature "tamed" dino's. In fact, our source indicated that the usually menacing Velociraptors (which will finally be muzzled, along with the T-Rex - until they're not) will actually be used to help fight the threat, which begins in the form of a new dinosaur, not seen in any of the previous films (and not disclosed to us) shows to be much smarter than originally thought and is the main cause of havoc breaking out at the park.

Underwater dinos? I'm shitting my pants already. Still no word on casting for anything of the sort; but I expect that'll be soon.
I'll bet anything our heroes will have to cross the lagoon or something, or probably rescue a downed Army ship that crashed in it; you know, so we can all shit out pants together.

Independence Day 2 to Invade the Planet July 2015

Seventeen years in the rumor-mill, hearing the word come down Independence Day 2 is impending for July 3, 2015, the only feeling to arise is intrigue.

"Is this for real?" many are thinking.

It is, alright. Fox made the announcement along with several other moves (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and X-Men: Days of Future Past swapped their Memorial Day and late July 2014 dates).

Since Roland Emmerich made a name for himself in CG destruction porn and turning Will Smith into a movie-star along the way, status reports on a follow-up are seemingly an annual tradition. It's not all hit-whoring, Internet nonsense. Fox has wanted the sequel for years. Back when Peter and I ran another movie-news site, we reported how Fox had agreed to Smith's demands in the wake of the Avatar phenomenon. That didn't pan out at the time.

Is it fair to say After Earth is to thank here? Facing the biggest financial failure of his career, and signs of his movie-star days are dwindling, safest thing to do is to grab that Independence Day sequel out of your back pocket. This is pure speculation, mind you. The studio announced the release date and nothing more. But it's hard to imagine it without Smith and now is the perfect time to have another close encounter.

Source: Box Office Mojo

Sarah Gadon Might Be Your New Mary Jane Watson (Or Not) in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

It's been a whirlwind past few days for the future of Sony's The Amazing Spider-Man series.

First it was announced that Descendants' star Shailene Woodley was cut from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 for her role to fit in with 3, and now it appears Sarah Gadon of Cosmopolis is officially in the franchise; but as who?

Rumors flew earlier and were seemingly debunked that Gadon would be Mary Jane Watson, taking the role over from Woodley, due to a rumor that Woodley was recast after major back-lash from fans (which is probably bullshit).

ET Canada did just tweet this though: 

Huge news for @sarahgadon - she just confirmed to us that she is joining The Amazing Spider-Man franchise pic.twitter.com/HpRcAMhQGU

— ET Canada (@ETCanada) June 21, 2013

It doesn't confirm her as Mary Jane Watson; but it confirms she's officially in the franchise now.
Will update when more news becomes available.  

Robert Downey Jr. Isn't Leaving Marvel Universe Anytime Soon; Signs Up for Avengers 2 & 3

All that bullshit of Kevin Feige saying Robert Downey Jr. was replaceable was just that. Bullshit.

Downey has struck a new deal to return to the red-and-gold armor for The Avengers 2 and The Avengers 3. Nary a mention made of any more solo Iron Mans. So those days may be over... or Downey and his representation are playing smart with negotiations. Iron Man 3 made over $1 billion after all.

They wouldn't be in this position were it not for Downey, and Jon Favreau let's give credit where it's due. He's earned every penny and as long as this doesn't get into Captain Jack Sparrow level of oversaturation (You laugh at the thought but Johnny Depp's weirdo bullshit routine was the gold standard circa 2005) it's all good.

Source: Marvel

Glimpse at JURASSIC PARK 4 Logo; 2015 Release Confirmed, Director Says Project Is "Very Much Alive"

At the LA Licensing Expo movie fans have seen pictures of banners and logos for upcoming films such as Fast & Furious 7, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and GODZILLA; but we all knew those were happening.

ComingSoon got some exclusive first hand looks, and one standing out is Jurassic Park. Not being titled "4" or "IV"; which might lend some gravity to actor Sam Neill's comments that the new film would be a total re-jig; but it's worth noting that the banner for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a different one that we've scene from filming, and bears the title of the last script, Ninja Turtles.

Nublar. #JP4 pic.twitter.com/OJaDagXvbF

— Colin Trevorrow (@colintrevorrow) May 2, 2013

 What this did confirm is that Jurassic Park is still happening, after production was halted and the 2014 release pushed back just under a month ago, mere days after the first production photo of Isla Nublar (the island from the original) seen above.

Word is hopefully expected soon on the state and maybe plot of the film, all that has been confirmed is that Safety Not Guranteed director Colin Trevorrow is at the helm, with Rise of the Planet of the Apes scribes Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver penning the script.

Jurassic Park fansite JurassicPark4-movie reported that Trevorrow took to Twitter earlier in the month to reply to fans about the state of the film:

@JurassicPark14 No, very much alive. We're writing and designing. More news coming soon.

— Colin Trevorrow (@colintrevorrow) June 2, 2013

@JP4Committee Not at all. More news soon.

— Colin Trevorrow (@colintrevorrow) June 2, 2013

And First Showing reports:

That likely means a summer release, which isn't surprising since someone close to production said the film wasn't delayed indefinitely but rater taking a short hiatus while the studio has a "restructuring of the guard." It sounds like some things needed to be reworked so the film wasn't rushed into production just to meet a release date without a care for quality. In addition, a booklet at the expo reveals the film will shoot in 3D - not a big surprise. Colin Trevorrow (of Safety Not Guaranteed) is still directing the film from a script by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver (of Rise of the Planet of the Apes) with Frank Marshall and Steven Spielberg producing. Hopefully we'll hear more plot details and a specific 2015 release date soon.