Mark Hamill Reunites With His Lightsaber From ‘Return of the Jedi’

The moment Luke Skywalker wields his green lightsaber from Return of the Jedi in Episode VIII is my most anticipated moment from the next chapter in the Skywalker saga. But it turns out we are in luck as a pop culture collector has reunited Mark Hamill with the original prop that was used in Episode VI.

The clip made available to GeekTyrant comes from the next episode of Hamill’s new streaming series Pop Culture Quest which is available on Comic-Con HQ. The series follows Hamill as he meets pop culture collectors and helps them share their passion with the world. Check it out below!

SOURCE: GEEKTYRANT ( via Comic-Con HQ)

Ben Affleck Says ‘Justice League’ Will Be The DCEU’s Rebirth

After Zak Snyder kicked off the DCEU with Man of Steel — which I think is an absolute masterpiece — Warner Bros. hit some major bumps in the road with Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad, the latter of which was an ultimate misfire. It came as no surprise when it became public knowledge back in June of last year that WB was going to lighten up the tone in Justice League in response to the negative critical reception of BvS.

While promoting his new film Live by Night, Ben Affleck was asked about the experience of filming the upcoming Justice League and said the film is essentially a rebirth of cinematic universe telling HeyUGuys:

“It was great, and there’s a lot of changes and a lot of new stuff. There was a whole feeling of kind of ‘rebirth’ and there’s an exciting group of actors. You know, Ezra Miller and Jason Momoa and guys like that, so much fun, and Gal Gadot who’s great and Henry Cavill. It was a lot of fun.”

A total rebirth within the cinematic universe seems like going a bit too far and signals to me the committee in charge of executive decisions isn’t confident with their creative direction. After cutting corners and rushing to catch up to Marvel with BvS — rather than building out their universe to earn an experience like The Avengers —, my worry is that WB will now try to essentially mirror Marvels formula with their own films. I greatly appreciated that WB went for a more mature audience with BvS as opposed to the glossy popcorn flicks made for everyone by Marvel. Don’t get me wrong, I love Marvel movies. But what works for Marvel, works for Marvel and isn’t exactly going to work for DC.

Does DC need to lighten things up a bit? Absolutely. But it doesn’t need to dramatically alter the tone of their cinematic universe. Take, for instance, the video game masterpiece The Last of Us by Naughty Dog. The Last of Us was an incredibly heavy, dark, and emotional experience. While at the same time it possessed both hope and humor. That’s exactly what the DCEU needs and it already has the characters in place to achieve that. Superman can be the hope while The Flash can bring the humor. The DCEU can be as dark as it wants to be, WB just has to balance it out properly and rather than base their creative direction off of the response to their films, remain steadfast as they push through the growing pains of establishing a cinematic universe.

SOURCE: HEYUGUYS

James Mangold Offers a Look into ‘Logan’ Scoring Session

After Cliff Martinez’s last minute exit as the composer of Logan, myself and many fans were concerned that the score for the film wasn’t going to live up to the quality that has been foreshadowed by the film’s incredible trailer. Fortunately, 20^th Century Fox found a more than satisfactory replacement with composer Marco Beltrami (The Wolverine, 3:10 to Yuma). As of now, Beltrami has already written the score for the film and recording sessions are underway at the Newman stage on the Fox lot.

James Mangold took to twitter yesterday to share a brief look into the recording for what sounds like an intense scene. The music itself feels like a perfect fit for the western tone evoked in both the trailer as well as all the images released throughout the film’s social media campaign. Check it out below!

On the Newman Stage… pic.twitter.com/9F8UnxF348

— Mangold (@mang0ld) January 13, 2017

Lucasfilm Crushes CGI Leia Rumors

Earlier this week, a distasteful rumor that Lucasfilm was going to use CGI (like we just saw in Rogue One) to recreate the late Carrie Fisher for future appearances of Princess Leia in the Skywalker saga began to spread like wildfire when BBC Newsnight reported that Lucasfilm was reportedly negotiating with Fisher’s estate for the continued use of her likeness. But thankfully, Lucasfilm has responded to the rumor, crushing it with their official statement:

We don’t normally respond to fan or press speculation, but there is a rumor circulating that we would like to address. We want to assure our fans that Lucasfilm has no plans to digitally recreate Carrie Fisher’s performance as Princess or General Leia Organa.

Carrie Fisher was, is, and always will be a part of the Lucasfilm family. She was our princess, our general, and more importantly, our friend. We are still hurting from her loss. We cherish her memory and legacy as Princess Leia, and will always strive to honor everything she gave to Star Wars.

Myself, many Star Wars fans, and most importantly Carrie Fisher’s family are still mourning the untimely loss of Carrie. While I don’t think the use of a CGI Leia would be unethical, it would, however, be insensitive this close to Fisher’s death. As we saw just a few years ago, Universal Pictures had to recreate the likeness of Paul Walker using CGI and his brothers, both Caleb and Cody (along with the blessing of Walker’s family) to complete Paul’s scenes in Furious 7 when Paul tragically passed away in a car accident midway through the film’s production. That is now the case, however, with Fisher.

Carrie had already completed her scenes for Episode VIII before she passed away but that doesn’t mean the film won’t be affected. Insiders have told THR that at least two major scenes from the upcoming films (Episode VIII and Episode IX) will be affected including (spoiler warning) a reunion between Princess Leia and her brother, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), and a confrontation between Leia and her son, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), over the murder of his father, Leia’s husband, Han Solo (Harrison Ford). Lucasfilm has already begun to develop a plan to weigh out the options with Episode IX director Colin Trevorrow. Considering Episode VIII isn’t due out until the end of this year, Lucasfilm has plenty of time to come with a way to alter the storyline that not only serves the franchise best but also honors the memory of Carrie Fisher.

SOURCE: LUCASFILM

‘Logan’ Official Synopsis Revealed

After the release of one of the greatest trailers of all time, we have only gotten tantalizing images for Hugh Jackman’s final outing as Wolverine. But thanks to Jackman, the film’s official synopsis has finally been revealed.

In the future, a weary Logan cares for an ailing Professor X in a hide out on the Mexican border. But Logan’s attempts to hide from the world and his legacy are up-ended when a young mutant arrives, being pursued by dark forces.

Unfortunately, the synopsis reveals nothing unknown but that’s a good thing. As we all know, marketing campaigns leave little to be discovered in the theater these days. As a second trailer for the film looms, my hope is that we get to go into this incredible looking film as cold as possible.

Logan hits theaters March 3, 2017.

The film stars Hugh Jackman, Sir Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen, Stephen Merchant, Richard E. Grant and Boyd Holbrook. Written by David James Kelly and Michael Green. Directed by James Mangold.

Official. pic.twitter.com/px1CErclfL

— Hugh Jackman (@RealHughJackman) January 13, 2017

‘Kong: Skull Island’ Japanese Trailer Reveals New Monsters

Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures have released a Japanese trailer for Kong: Skull Island which includes new footage revealing new shots of the skullcrawlers and some freaky giant spiders.

Kong: Skull Island hits theaters March 10, 2017

The film stars Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Mitchell, Corey Hawkins, Toby Kebbell, Tom Wilkinson, Terry Notary, John Goodman and John C. Reilly. Written by Max Borenstein, Derek Connolly, John Gatins, Dan Gilroy. Directed by Jordan-Vogt Roberts.

Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures’ “Kong: Skull Island” reimagines the origin of the mythic Kong in a compelling, original adventure from director Jordan Vogt-Roberts. In the film, a diverse team of explorers is brought together to venture deep into an uncharted island in the Pacific—as beautiful as it is treacherous—unaware that they’re crossing into the domain of the mythic Kong.

SOURCE: WB (via Fresh Movie Trailers)

WB Taps David S. Goyer and Justin Rhodes to Write ‘Green Lantern Corps’

After announcing Green Lanter Corps for their DC slate a few years ago, the film is finally going to come to fruition over at Warner Bros. where it is said the studio is aggressively moving forward on the project. Deadline reports David S. Goyer and Justin Rhodes have been tapped to pen the script. The film will feature both Hal Jordan and John Stewart in what is said to be Lethal Weapon in space.

While that sounds like a perfect influence to bring the two Green Lanterns together, it’s hard to get excited when the entire DCEU is such a mess these days. Goyer knows his way around superheroes but his work is usually hit or miss with hits like Batman Begins and Man of Steel and duds like Jumper. Goyer’s credits also include The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises but in reality he actually had nothing to do with the writing of those films.

As of now, the film does not have a director, however. George Miller has been rumored to be in talks to direct in the past. When Green Lantern Corps was originally announced it was set for release in 2020. That has yet to change but at this point, nothing about the DCEU is certain.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

‘iBoy’ Trailer: Netflix’s First Superhero Film Co-starring Maisie Williams

Like most Netflix movies and TV shows, the streaming service has dropped a trailer for their first original superhero film iBoy out of nowhere. The film stars Bill Miner, Rory Kinnear, and Game of Thrones fan favorite Maisie Williams. Written by Joe Barton, Mark Denton, and Jonny Stockwood. Based on the novel by Kevin Brooks. Directed by Adam Randall.

iBoy hits Netflix January 27^th.

Tom is an average teenager whose world is turned on its head when a violent encounter with local thugs leaves fragments of his shattered smartphone embedded in his brain. He wakes from a coma to discover that returning to normal teenage life is impossible because he has developed a strange set of superpowers. With these new powers he sets out to seek revenge on the gang, who also assaulted his best friend Lucy.

SOURCE: NETFLIX

Woody Harrelson Confirms His Role as a Mentor to Han Solo

Just yesterday, Woody Harrelson officially joined the cast of the young Han Solo film which is getting underway at Pinewood studios in London. The actor has been rumored to play a character who serves as a mentor to the slimy no good swindler but until now that has remained just a rumor.

In a recent chat with Mashable on Facebook, Harrelson confirmed he would indeed be a mentor to Solo but also revealed a new tidbit regarding the character:

“I’m a mentor to Han, but I’m also a bit of a criminal. I don’t think I should say much more than that because the Force is not allowing me.”

Harrelson joins the cast with Alden Ehrenreich starring as the young Han Solo as well as Donald Glover as the young Lando Calrissian. Emilia Clarke also joined the cast recently in a role that is still currently unknown. President of Lucasfilm, Kathleen Kennedy has described the young Han Solo film as a western with a color palette influenced by the paintings of Frederic Remington. The script has been penned by Star Wars writing veteran Lawrence Kasdan and son Jon Kasdan. With cinematographer Bradford Young on board, the film has the potential to have a bold look and feel that could strike a perfect balance between humor and drama.

The Untitled Han Solo Story is slated to hit theaters May 25, 2018, however, there is a rumor the film could be shifted to December 13, 2018.

SOURCE: MASHABLE

‘Power Rangers’ Officially Rated PG-13

The upcoming feature film reboot of the Fox Kids series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is a major departure from the original series. It is essentially a total reimagining featuring a much darker and more mature take as opposed to the colorful and campy children’s series.

Power Rangers Now has reported that the film has officially received a PG-13 rating. As we have seen the in the trailer, the film with real teenage issues such as bullying as the characters struggle to find their place in the world.

After an incredible teaser trailer that got the world’s attention, myself and many fans have begun to temper their excitement having yet to see a full trailer that features the Rangers in their full suits and in action with their Zords with only two months left to go until the film’s release. But chances Lionsgate is saving the premiere of the official trailer until the Superbowl when they’ll have the chance to capture the world’s attention once more.

Power Rangers hits theaters on March 24, 2017.

The film stars Dacre Montgomery as Jason Lee Scott (Red Ranger), RJ Cyler as Billy Cranston (Blue Ranger), Naomi Scott as Kimberly Hart (Pink Ranger), Becky G as Trini Kwan (Yellow Ranger), Ludi Lin as Zack Taylor (Black Ranger), Bill Hader as Alpha 5, Elizabeth Banks as Rita Repulsa, and Bryan Cranston as Zordon.

Saban’s Power Rangers follows five ordinary high school kids who must become something extraordinary when they learn that their small town of Angel Grove – and the world – is on the verge of being obliterated by an alien threat. Chosen by destiny, our heroes quickly discover that they are the only ones who can save the planet. But to do so they will have to overcome their real-life issues and band together as the Power Rangers before it is too late.

SOURCE: POWER RANGERS NOW