- Andrew Lynch
REEL NEWS: AUGUST 10TH-AUGUST 17TH
This week; DC's upcoming DC FanDome online schedule has been unveiled; Halo Infinite has been delayed; Fortnite is going full battle royale on Apple and Google; a new Star Wars Holiday Special in over 40 years; and a look behind filmmaking in COVID-19.
Tron 3 with Garth Davis and Jared Leto
Disney have announced that a TRON 3 is in the works, with Jared Leto set to star.
Garth Davis (Lion) will direct the long-awaited sequel to 2010’s TRON: Legacy, which has been in and out of development for close to 8 years.
Jared Leto announced his involvement and excitement on the project on Twitter.
More on the film can be read here.
Three Men and a Baby Remake on Disney+
Disney are remaking the 80s comedy Three Men and A Baby, with Zac Efron already cast (most likely not as the baby).
Gordon Gray, director of The Rookie and Ben Affleck’s The Way Back, will produce the film but no word on who will direct.
The original film starred Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg and Ted Danson as three bachelors who end up looking after a baby. Let the wacky 80s hijinks ensue.
The remake will be released directly to Disney+ and marks the return of Efron to the Disney family, where he made a name for himself as the basketball-musician-wunderkind Troy in the High School Musical trilogy.
Halo Infinite Delayed
After gameplay footage was shown off at the Xbox Games Showcase, Microsoft have unfortunately announced that Halo Infinite will be delayed until 2021.
The game was intended to be released alongside the upcoming Xbox Series X in November 2020.
In a statement, 343 Industries Head, Chris Lee said, “It is not sustainable for the well-being of our team or the overall success of the game to ship it this holiday”.
Lee sited the challenges of developing and releasing the game in a post-COVID world.
Xbox have assured fans that the Xbox Series X will still be released in November of 2020.
In another statement, fans were informed, “There will be thousands of games to play, spanning four generations, when Xbox Series X launches globally this November”.
Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ‘Gritty’ Reboot
In West Philadelphia, born and raised, is the start of the end of our days.
A ‘gritty’ reboot of the 90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is being developed with original series star, Will Smith, producing.
The reboot is inspired by a fan made video that reimagined the series as a drama titled ‘Bel-Air’.
The video’s creator, Moran Cooper, is partnering with Smith in a producer role and help co-write the series.
The original series, which ran from 1990 to 1996 was primarily comedic but dealt with serious topics including racism, adolescence and (in a heartbreaking episode) masculinity and parenthood.
The reboot series is being auctioned off to various outlets including HBO Max, which distribute the original series, in the US.
The Devil All The Time Trailer
Netflix have released a trailer for their upcoming all-star film, The Devil All The Time.
The film stars (among others) Tom Holland, Riley Keough, Bill Skarsgård, Sebastian Stan and Robert Pattinson and is set between World War II and Vietnam War America and looks at the physical and mental trauma of war.
The film looks to be an eerie, thriller of interwoven stories that deal with faith, masculinity, violence and trauma, both personal and inherited.
This falls into the ‘award calibre’ category of Netflix films much like Da 5 Bloods or The Irishman.
The Devil All The Time is directed by Antonio Campos and will be up on Netflix, 16th September.
LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special
The Star Wars franchise is returning to a place many thought never possible with a LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special premiering on Disney+.
On the Star Wars website, it was announced, “LEGO Star Wars fans are invited to journey back to Chewbacca’s homeworld for a Wookiee-sized celebration of the galaxy’s most cheerful and magical holiday-Life Day!”
This new, animated special is set after the events of Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker and will see Rey, looking to learn more about the Force, be sent through the history of the Skywalker Saga.
Two images have been released which show the Sequel era characters chillin’ on the Millennium Falcon; and characters from all eras of the Star Wars series ready to face off.
Some Star Wars fans may shudder at the mention of the Wookiee holiday as they recall the infamous 1978 TV variety show, Star Wars Holiday Special.
The 1978 Special was a bizarre variety show which includes Chewbacca’s family (including his son, Lumpy), an animated segment which was the first appearance of Boba Fett, and disco-inspired musical numbers.
The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special will be released on November 17th, 2020.
Fortnite Removed from Mobile Stores
The video game juggernaut, Fortnite, has clashed with tech giants Apple and Google after the game was removed from each platform’s store.
Apple removed the mobile version of the battle royale game from its store, after accusing the developers, Epic Games, from violating the store’s in-app payment guidelines.
Google followed soon after and likewise removed the game under the same circumstances.
As a result, Epic Games have sued both companies accusing them of monopolising the distribution of apps and payment systems.
And in a very mature and not at all insensitive move, Epic Games have tweeted a parody of Apple’s ‘1984’ commercial with the call to #FreeFortnite and “stop 2020 from becoming ‘1984’”.
As the world deals with the pandemic and sits on economic collapse and the destruction of democracy in the US, the removal of a wildly successful video game from phones is definitely the last straw and a top priority right now.
Epic Games recently introduced in-game payment known as Fortnite Mega Drop which offered 20% discount on the game’s microtransactions.
This conflicts with Google and Apple’s stores which charge 30% fee for all in-game purchases across their devices.
Epic Games have been against these rulings, even requesting that players install the game on Android, direct from their website and not from the Google Play Store.
DC FanDome Schedule
DC have unveiled the schedule for their upcoming online convention, DC FanDome which starts on August 22nd, 10am PT.
With the announcement, DC have confirmed the slate of movies, TV series and video games that will have a panel at the online event.
Most of the announcements have already been confirmed, however the schedule reveals the title for the upcoming Rocksteady Suicide Squad game.
Based on the scheduled events, the game is titled Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, which combined with the teaser poster, confirms that the game will see Task Force X attempt to take down the JL.
Another reveal is that Warner Bros. Games Montreal, the studio behind Batman: Arkham Origins, will be announcing a new DC game.
From the movie side, Wonder Woman 1984 will begin the event with a panel and The Batman will close it, before the line-up loops to fit the 24-hour window.
Along with those films, the cast and crew of The Flash, The Suicide Squad, Snyder’s Justice League, Black Adam, and Shazam! will be there with footage and reveals teased for each of them.
There is also an event which is TBA, and could be the reveal of a new unannounced movie such as a Justice League: Dark, Supergirl, Batgirl or any number of the rumoured DC films in development.
On the TV side, cast and crew of Legends of Tomorrow, Black Lightning, Titans, The Flash, Doom Patrol, Young Justice, Harley Quinn, Stargirl and Batwoman will recap each shows season and tease footage from upcoming seasons, as well as the world exclusive first interview with the new Batwoman, Javicia Leslie.
All the news and reveals from the online event can be found on Fade To, as they are announced on August 22nd-23rd.
Jurassic World: Dominion BTS Photos
Photos from the behind the scenes of Jurassic World: Dominion have been released which gain an insight into filming in a COIVD world, and some back to basics filmmaking for the dino three-quel.
On the Dominion’s Instagram account, images show the crew filming Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard while wearing masks and even the Boom mic held at an even greater distance, assumedly to adhere with social distancing.
The film recommenced filming in the UK and, detailed in a New York Times piece, have a 107-age safety manual that outlines the precautions including infrared temp scanners and vacuum sealed meals.
Jurassic World: Dominion is one of only a few blockbuster films that has restarted production, including Avatar 2 in New Zealand and Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings in Australia.
One of the other images shows a production member with animatronic, baby dinosaurs which might be reassuring to fans.
The first Jurassic World was criticised for its heavy reliance on CGI effects when the original Jurassic Park blended early CGI and practical effects.
In Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom there was a bit more use of practical effects, and it seems that with the latest instalment, the filmmakers are relying even further on the simple effects of puppets and animatronics.
Jurassic World: Dominion will be released 11th June, 2021.