This Week's Trailers: MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION, ENTOURAGE, SOUTHPAW

Here's my take on this week's trailers (released from Saturday-Friday)...

1. Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation - Three-time Oscar-nominee Tom Cruise is back as MIF agent Ethan Hunt in the fifth installment of the successful film series based on the classic TV series of the same name. I'm a fan of this film series with my favorite being the most recent installment in the series, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011). After that film, which was praise by critics and audience, as well as a box office success, I have been really looking forward to next installment in the series. While I wish Brad Bird came back to direct this, I think Christopher McQuarrie, who directed Cruise in 2012's Jack Reacher, is going to do a great job with this movie as it looks from the trailer. The film also stars Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames and Alec Baldwin. It will be released on July 31st.

2. Entourage - The boys are back in this film adaptation of the hit HBO comedy series of the same name. At the time of me writing this, I'm on season 6 of the show and there are 8 seasons. I love the show, even though it has had some missteps. The thing that's great about the show are not only the brilliant cameos, but the bond between these five friends. All the cast members from the series return, which is great. The show's creator, Doug Ellin is writing and directing the film. I love this trailer, like a lot! I really like how our lead, Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier), wants to start doing directing, but it might not be going down a pretty road, especially for Vince's former agent turned studio head, Ari Gold. Can I just say? If this film is great, Jeremy Piven should get Oscar consideration for his three-time Emmy Award winning performance. I'm serious, he is incredible on the show. We also see the return of Kevin Connolly as Eric "E" Murphy, Kevin Dillon as Johnny "Drama" Chase and Jerry Ferrara as a really skinny Turtle. I couldn't be more excited for the film and it looks that it'll satisfy fans of the show. It will be released on June 5th.

3. Southpaw - Looks like Jake Gyllenhaal could FINALLY get that long-awaited and deserving second Oscar nomination for this movie. The film will follow Gyllenhaal as a boxer who, after his life starts to fall apart, tries to start over and make everything better for not only him, but his family. I love Jake Gyllenhaal and he's been snubbed for the last few years especially recently for his incredible, haunting performance in Nightcrawler. He's going to knock this role out of the park. Another thing about the film that excites is who's writing it. The writer of this film is Kurt Sutter, who created and wrote FX's hit drama, Sons of Anarchy, which is one of my favorite TV shows. Since the show ended in early December 2014, I have been curious to see what projects the cast and crew have coming up in the future. This looks like Kurt Sutter could possibly get an Oscar nomination for the script. The film is being directed by Antoine Fuqua, who made an interesting list of films with my favorite being Training Day. I think this film could be really great. But if it stinks, I will be very disappointed. We got to be optimistic though. The film also stars Forest Whitaker, Rachel McAdams, Naomie Harris, Victor Ortiz and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. It will be released on July 31st.

- BS

FIRST LOOK: Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor in BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE

Entertainment Weekly has released the first official photo of Academy Award-nominee Jesse Eisenberg as Superman's mastermind nemesis Lex Luthor, who will be appearing in next year's highly anticipated Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, which will actually be hitting theaters one year from today.

According to director Zack Snyder, Eisenberg's portrayal of Luthor is unlike any on-screen portrayal of the villain. Eisenberg himself has said that Lex is "a complicated, challenging person." He's also said that he and Oscar-winning screenwriter Chris Terrio (Argo) worked together  "to create a real psychology behind what is, perhaps, in a comic book, a less than totally modern psychology."

Here's the photo...

I have to be honest. I was really skeptical about Eisenberg portraying Lex Luthor since it was announced early last year. I think he's a fantastic actor but this young, fast-talking guy as Lex Luthor?! Hmm... I didn't think he was the choice at first, but now after seeing this photo, my mind has changed. I think he's going to be great as Lex Luthor. The photo shows that he's going to be imitating, villainous and intriguing. Actually, just see Columbus from Zombieland and Mark Zuckerberg from The Social Network with a bald head... that's scary. Haha. But, yeah, I think he's going to nail this role, perfectly!

Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice also stars Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, Diane Lane, Jason Momona, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons and Holly Hunter. The film will be released in theaters on March 25, 2016.

- BS

FROZEN 2 in the works

Yesterday, Disney announced their plans to produce a sequel to critical and commercial hit Frozen, during the annual Walt Disney Company shareholders meeting. Pixar's John Lasseter, Disney CEO Bob Iger and Frozen actor Josh Gad were the ones to make the announcement. 

Frozen directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee will return to develop the sequel along with producer Peter Del Vecho. Josh Gad has also been confirmed to return to the role of Olaf. Idina Menzel and Kristen Bell are expected to reprise their roles as Elsa and Anna. However, other details about the film have yet to be revealed. 

Frozen was released in November 2013 and became the highest grossing animated film of all time, as well as the fifth highest grossing film of all time, making over $1.25 billion on a $150 million budget. The film's soundtrack topped music charts, with the song "Let It Go" winning the Oscar for Best Original Song. The film also took home the Oscar for Best Animated Feature as well. You can see a Frozen short film entitled Frozen Fever before Disney's Cinderella this weekend.

This is not shocking news. We all knew this was going to happen eventually. I loved Frozen when it first came out and I still really enjoy it to this day, but the hype does get a little annoying after a certain period of time. But, with the original cast (we're not sure about Jonathan Groff as Kristoff) and crew coming back, I'm sure this sequel will satisfy hardcore fans of the first film.

- BS

Martin Scorsese to Direct Jamie Foxx in Mike Tyson Biopic

Oscar winners Jamie Foxx and Martin Scorsese are working together at long last!

During an interview with Power 105's The Breakfast Club, Foxx revealed that Scorsese will direct him as Mike Tyson in an untitled biopic. The script will be written by Oscar nominated writer Terence Winter, who worked with Scorsese on The Wolf of Wall Street and HBO's Boardwalk Empire.

Foxx stated, "I just went in with Paramount with Mike Tyson. So I'm going to do the Mike Tyson story. Listen, to be in the same room pitching Mike Tyson to Paramount, Mike Tyson is on one side, I'm on the other side and doing Mike Tyson at the same time. And Martin Scorsese at the helm. This will be the first movie that Martin Scorsese has done since Raging Bull."

This is awesome! Martin Scorsese and Jamie Foxx working together... sign me up. I'm a big fan of Jamie Foxx as an actor, comedian, musician and person. Honestly, he can do any role. He can do comedy, drama, action, musical and even superhero. He's going to be excellent as Mike Tyson. Martin Scorsese is Martin freaking Scorsese. I'm on board with whatever it is he does.

Stay tuned for more updates on the film!

- BS

Felicity Jones to Star In STAR WARS Spin-Off Entitled ROGUE ONE; Release Date for STAR WARS EPISODE VIII Announced

Disney and Lucasfilm have made announcements regarding upcoming Star Wars films at a meeting held today in San Fransisco.

First, Rian Johnson (Brick, Looper) has finally been confirmed as the writer and director of Star Wars: Episode VIII. The film, that's yet to be titled, will be released on May 26, 2017, 40 years and a day after Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope was released in theaters back in 1977.

Gareth Edwards, who directed last year's Godzilla, will be directing a Star Wars spinoff film that's set to be released on December 16, 2016, just about a year after the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The title of the spinoff has been confirmed. The title will be Rogue One. The script will be pen by Chris Weitz, who wrote the script for the latest Cinderella movie. He's also written American Pie, About a Boy and The Golden Compass. It's also been confirmed that recent Oscar-nominated actress Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything) will be starring in the film. Rogue One will be the first of Star Wars stand-alone films.

What else do I have to say? It's Star Wars, I'm pumped! The end. Rian Johnson is a fantastic writer and director who also happened to direct three episodes of Breaking Bad, my favorite TV show. Brick and Looper are solid films, so he's perfect for the Star Wars universe. With the spinoff, I'm also excited mainly for Felicity Jones. I adored her in The Theory of Everything and she's going to be great in the world of Star Wars! This is going to turn out great, hopefully.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be released in theaters on December 18th, 2015. Rogue One is scheduled to be released on December 16, 2016 and Star Wars: Episode VIII is scheduled to be released on May 26, 2017.

- BS

Dan Stevens and Luke Evans in Talks for Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST remake

The Beast and Gaston might have be found.

Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey, The Guest) and Luke Evans (Dracula Untold, Fast and Furious 6) are in talks to be apart of Disney's live-action remake of the 1991 classic, Beauty and the Beast. Stevens is in talks to be playing the Beast, while Evans is in talks to be playing antagonist Gaston. They will be joining Emma Watson, who will be playing Belle. The film will be directed by Bill Condon (Dreamgirls) and is written by Evan Spiliotopoulos, who wrote 2014's Hercules, starring Dwayne Johnson. The film will begin production later this year.

I've been curious about this film ever since Watson was casted as Belle. I really like the actors in this film, but I don't see Beauty and the Beast being re-made. I grew up watching that movie and if they really want to make this, they better not be doing it as a cash grab. If the new Cinderella movie ends up being good, maybe my opinion on this will change from "I don't know" to "Maybe this will be good."

Stay tuned for more updates on the new Beauty and the Beast film.

- BS

INDEPENDENCE DAY 2 Cast Confirmed!

20th Century Fox has green-lit Independence Day 2, which is scheduled to begin production in a few months. That means the sequel looks like it'll be arriving in theaters just in time for the 20th anniversary of the alien invasion blockbuster from director/co-writer Roland Emmerich, who is coming back for the sequel as writer and director. Now, we have our cast! Emmerich confirmed on his Twitter that Jeff Goldblum will be reprising his role as David Levinson in the sequel. He's also confirmed another new cast member. He also announced that Liam Hemsworth (The Hunger Games) will be joining the cast. In an non-social media announcement, it was announced that Jessie Usher (When the Game Stand Tails) will be apart of the cast. Usher will be playing the grown up version of Dylan Hiller, the son of Steven Hiller (Will Smith, who will not be returning for the sequel). The film will take place in present-day, 20 years after the events of the first film. Judd Hirsch and Bill Pullman might be coming back to reprise their roles from the first film.

I really enjoyed the first Independence Day because I've grown up with that film. It's a little sad that Will Smith isn't coming back but since Jeff Goldblum will be back, I'm more excited! It is good that Emmerich will be sitting in the director's chair again, but his last few films haven't been great, but they aren't terrible. 2012 and White House Down were films that could have been really good, but they were just okay. I think with him writing the script and directing is something good about this because Independence Day is like Roland Emmerich's baby. So, when set photos are seen and when we get the first trailer, maybe my interest will go from interested to extremely interested! This is exciting news, for me at least.

Independence Day 2 is scheduled to hit theaters on June 24th, 2016.

- BS

FIRST LOOK: Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Edward Snowden in Oliver Stone's SNOWDEN biopic

The first photo of Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Edward Snowden in Oliver Stone's biopic entitled Snowden was released on Tuesday morning.

 

The biopic will tell the story of Snowden in his pre-whistle-blower days, when he was "an ordinary man who unquestioningly served his country." Shailene Woodley will be playing Snowden's girlfriend in the film, while Nicolas Cage will be playing a former U.S. intelligence officer. The film will also star Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto, Tom Wilkinson, Rhys Ifans, and Timothy Olyphant. Snowden was also known as the main subject of the Oscar winning documentary Citizenfour.

 

I haven't seen Citizenfour, so I can't say that I'm well rounded with the story of this man. But, I'm looking forward to this film mainly for the cast. I'm very mixed when it comes to Oliver Stone because he's made some great films and he's made some not-so-great films. But, I appreciate his passion for filmmaking. This is definitely a film that is up his alley! Joseph Gordon-Levitt is one of my favorite actors working today... he's had an impressive career ever since he was a kid (I use to watch Angels in the Outfield all the time when I was younger). He's also had an impressive career as an up-and-coming writer and director with his debut being 2013's well-received Don Jon. He could even get an Oscar nomination for Robert Zemeckis' The Walk (releasing on October 9th), where he portrays French high-wire artist Philippe Petit. He's definitely going to be great in this movie no matter what. I love the rest of the cast... Shailene Woodley is one of my favorite actresses working today and Nicolas Cage is awesome, no matter how many bad movies he's appeared in. I'm looking forward to seeing this film and I can see lots of awards for this movie!

 

Snowden will be released in theaters on December 25th.

 

- BS



Jennifer Lawrence, Steven Spielberg Teaming Up to Adapt War Photographer's Memoir

It has been announced that Academy Award winner Jennifer Lawrence and three-time Academy Award winning director Steven Spielberg will be teaming up to adapt Lynsey Addario's memoir, It's What I Do: A Photographer's Life of Love and War, whose movie rights were just picked up by Warner Bros. The film will be produced by Andrew Lazar. Addario is a war photographer who spent her time in war zones ranging from Afghanistan to the Congo to Somalia. She is also known as the one of the few females in a predominantly male club and was also kidnapped at one point.

I got to say that I love this idea! Steven Spielberg is one of the best directors and he might be the director that got me into loving movies the way I do. Jennifer Lawrence has been on fire for the last few years, she's a three-time Oscar nominee and she won the Best Actress award in 2013 for her incredible performance in Silver Linings Playbook. She's also having an incredible career in the blockbuster world with her being in The Hunger Games and X-Men films. She's currently filming Joy (releasing on December 25th), her third collaboration with David O. Russell, which is exciting. I think her and Spielberg are a perfect duo and I'm looking forward to this!

- BS

Drew Goddard to write and direct 2017's SPIDER-MAN film

According to Latino-Review, it's confirmed that The Cabin in the Woods writer and director Drew Goddard is in talks to write and direct the new Spider-Man reboot film. Over the weekend, there were rumors speculating that a director for the film has been found, but now Amy Pascal and Kevin Feige's choice has been revealed. Goddard was previously working on a Sinister Six film for Sony, but that was before Sony and Marvel got together to make their big announcement about bringing Spider-Man to the Marvel Cinematic Universe back in February. The site believes the film will be called The Spectacular Spider-Man, though that hasn't been confirmed yet. An unknown actor will supposedly be cast as the iconic superhero. Marvel and Sony are looking for a younger actor for the role as they would like to follow the character while he's still in high school.

I really like this! I was a big fan of The Cabin in the Woods and I enjoyed the unconventional and intriguing script that he co-wrote with Joss Whedon. I've also enjoyed some of Goddard's past work including Cloverfield (which he wrote), World War Z (which he also wrote), and he happened to produce some episodes of Lost (one of my favorite shows) and Alias as well. He's also attached to Netflix's upcoming, highly anticipated Daredevil TV series, which premieres on April 10th and takes place during the MCU. I think he's going to do a good job with a Spider-Man film, if Sony decides to stay back and let the man do his job!

The film will be released on July 28, 2017. Stay tuned for more updates!

- BS

Ethan Hawke reuniting with Denzel Washington and TRAINING DAY director Antoine Fuqua for THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN remake

According to the Hollywood Reporter, four-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke is joining an all-star in MGM's remake of The Magnificent Seven, which will also star Chris Pratt, Haley Bennett (The Equalizer) and two-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington. The film will be directed by Antoine Fuqua. The original 1960 film starred a huge cast of actors including Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and Robert Vaughn. The movie tells of a woman (Bennett) who hires a group of gunslingers to protect her town from rampaging bandits.

I'm really excited for this not only because of the cast and director behind the film. This is FINALLY the reunion with Hawke, Washington and Fuqua who worked on one of my favorite films, Training Day, which came out back in 2001. It also got Washington his second Academy Award and Hawke's first nomination. I think this film is a perfect reunion for these guys and I couldn't be more excited!

Ethan Hawke is on a good track record right now after his Oscar nomination for Boyhood, so it'd be really cool to see him in a Western. I'll be sure to keep you guys updated on this!

- BS