Ben Affleck Reassures Fans He Will Direct Solo Batman Feature

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Whether or not Ben Affleck’s solo Batman feature will come to fruition has seemed rather uncertain lately. Just last month Ben Affleck told Variety he was excited about the script for solo Batman feature which they were finishing up and that things were coming together over at Warner Bros. But then in an interview with The Guardian for his prohibition era film Live by Night, Affleck offered a rather alarming update for the solo Batman feature that shook the very foundation of Warner Bros. current version of the DCEU when he said the Batman film wasn’t “a set thing” and that they no longer had a script for the project.

But last night on Jimmy Kimmel Live, while commenting on the latest image released from the upcoming Justice League, Affleck reassured fans the film is still happening and he will indeed be directing —  nearly blowing a gasket as he told Jimmy:

“I’m gonna direct the next Batman, we’re workin’ on it. It’s one of those things that’s really frustrating because like with Live by Night, it took me a year and a half to write it and get it ready and I worked really hard, it’s just nobody gave a shit. No one was like ‘Where’s Live by Night?!’ But with Batman I keep getting the like, ‘Where’s the fucking Batman?!’ and I’m like ‘Bro I’m workin’, give me a second!”

Check out the full clip below.

SOURCE: JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE

‘Stranger Things’ Was Originally R-Rated

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Part of what made the Netflix original series Stranger Things such a smash hit when it debuted last summer was it’s appeal to audiences of all ages. It spoke to older generations who came up during the 70’s and 80’s, people who grew up during the 90’s raised on 80’s cinema, and even the youngest of today’s millennials. But when the series was originally conceived as what was then called “Montauk”, The Duffer Brothers had plans to make the show much less kid-friendly telling Vulture:

Ross:

“The Eleven character, the kind of powers she has and to have a young protagonist that’s violent — it’s not E.T. It’s not a happy situation. She’s killing people, and brutally murdering them. The original pilot was much more violent. It was originally like an R-rated thing.”

Matt:

“Winona’s character was like, ‘Eff this, eff that!’ It felt a little bit unnecessary. I don’t feel like we sacrificed anything by toning it down a little bit.”

The original pilot also featured the death of Barb but as we saw, the creators made the choice to push that back a bit and flesh her character out a little more before buying the farm. It’s a good thing they did because if they hadn’t, Barb (Shannon Purser) may have not become the beloved character she is today.

The final episode also included a longer, grosser version of when Chief Hopper (David Harbour) pulled the tentacle out of Will’s mouth but Netflix had the Duffers cut it shorter. The decision to scale back the violence and profanity was smart, however. I would have liked to see Winona Ryder drop a few f-bombs. It’s a nitpick, but one of my only complaints in the series (which I absolutely love) was when Joyce said “Screw you” to Dr. Brenner in the opening scene of the final episode. It didn’t feel genuine and interrupts me from suspending my disbelief in that moment, reminding me I’m watching a television show in the middle of having a magical experience like watching E.T. or Jurassic Park for the first time again. Here is this sick, twisted man who performs experiments on children asking her for help after her son has been taken by an interdimensional monster thanks to his research. Joyce should have lunged across the table and bit out his jugular.

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SOURCE: VULTURE

‘Star Wars: Episode VIII’ Will Dig Deeper Into The Characters

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When Star Wars returned to cinemas at the end of 2015, the franchise introduced us to a new set of iconic heroes as well as a villain who solidified himself as one of the most flawed and interesting villains in Star Wars history. While everyone was intrigued and captivated by Rey thanks to the powerful performance given by Daisy Ridley, the most interesting and layered character by far was Kylo Ren played by Adam Driver.

Kylo Ren felt more like a real person than most Star Wars characters. Driver portrayed a man who was struggling to be something he wasn’t as Kylo seemed to almost overcompensate with his forceful step through scenes in which he aspired to be as menacing as his Grandfather Darth Vader. He used his mask as a pure intimidation tactic to instill fear in his enemies as he knew his scarless, clean shaven face wouldn’t frighten anybody. Throughout the film, the man formerly known as Ben Solo struggled between the dark and the light side of the force but in the end ultimately made the choice to extinguish the light within him and fully commit himself to evil when he murdered his father, Han Solo.

While Kylo was a fully fleshed out three-dimensional character, the same cannot be said for the other new characters introduced in The Force Awakens. One of the biggest complaints coming out of the film was that the new characters of Rey, Finn (John Boyega), and Poe (Oscar Isaac) were rather thin and as much as I loved them, I have to agree. Adam Driver recently told Larry King that Episode VIII will explore Kylo Ren’s humanity, or what little he has left of it, but now the film’s director, Rian Johnson, while speaking with USA Today offered up new details teasing that the film will dig deeper into the core of the new characters:

“I wanted to know more about each of them, and that doesn’t just mean information or backstory. Figure out what’s the most difficult thing each of them could be challenged with now — let’s throw that at them and dig into what really makes them tick by seeing how they handle that.”

Nothing about the plot for Episode VIII is known at this point other than it will pick up directly where The Force Awakens left off but Lawrence Kasdan, the writer of The Empire Strikes BackReturn of the Jedi, and The Force Awakens called the script for Episode VIII “weird” which is a compliment coming from Kasdan. Adam Driver has teased the film will be “darker” in tone, comparing it to how Empire was a darker film than A New Hope, and John Boyega has said that Johnson has managed to craft a Star Wars film that has an “indie movie” feel. But Johnson has promised that while the film — said to be weird and dark as it digs deeper into the characters — will have the same fun factor that The Force Awakens and the classic trilogy had:

“I want it to be a blast and to be funny and to be a ride the way The Force Awakens and the original Star Wars movies were.”

Star Wars: Episode VIII hits theaters December 15, 2017.

The film stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Oscar IsaacDomhnall Gleeson, Gwendoline Christie, Benicio del Toro, Laura Dern, Kelly Marie Tran, and Andy Serkis. Written and directed by Rian Johnson.

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SOURCE: USA TODAY

Gamora Confirmed to Appear in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’

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Last night at the Golden Globes, Zoe Saldana herself confirmed she would indeed appear as Gamora in the upcoming Avengers: Infinity War while speaking with MTV News, however, the actress revealed she yet to see the script:

“I don’t know when they’re gonna let me read it. I mean, I’m not looking forward to the five hours of green make-up, but every time I finally arrive on set I feel so happy and lucky to be there.”

The film which isn’t due out until May 4, 2018, will undoubtedly be the biggest and most expensive Marvel film in history. At this point, the film is overflowing with characters and if it wasn’t for the fact that The Russo Brothers are at the helm I’d be worried. But the Russo’s already proved with Captain America: Civil War that they can jam pack a film full of superheroes and keep the film well balanced and focused while using each and every superhero effectively.

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SOURCE: MTV NEWS

‘Stranger Things’ Cast and Directors Tease Season Two

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The cast and the creative team behind the Netflix smash hit Stranger Things were in attendance at the BAFTA Tea Party as well as the Golden Globes this weekend. While everyone was careful not to reveal anything about the upcoming sequel season which will drop on Netflix later this year, we did get a few interesting tidbits regarding the follow-up.

Executive Producer and Director Shawn Levy reiterated what we’ve already heard while promising Stranger Things 2 will continue to deliver the same magical Spielberg-like storytelling established in the first season telling Vanity Fair:

“Season 2 is bigger and potentially darker in its stakes. The threat, which in Season 1 was to Will Byers, has grown. That’s all I’m going to say! But, I will say Season 2 has a bigger cast and is definitely loyal to the kind of magical storytelling that we established in the first season. It’s character-based and still about our core group of characters.”

Finn Wolfhard, the brilliant 14-year old actor behind Mike Wheeler, talked about the advantage the actors now have knowing who their characters are and how growing up a little bit since the first season is going to help them evolve in season two:

“Now that we’ve done a season, we know exactly about our characters. We are very conscious of them and can take them to the next level. I think we’ve grown up a little bit, and our characters have too. They have been through a lot and have used those experiences to help them grow and to be stronger in Season 2.”

Possibly the most interesting bit of information came from The Duffer Brothers themselves. While speaking to The Hollywood Reporter on the red carpet at the Golden Globes, Matt Duffer revealed that one of the clues dropped in the announcement trailer for season two has changed:

“This is very cryptic but one of the clues in the teaser has changed because casting.”

My best guess is that the final episode of season two titled “The Lost Brother” is now “The Lost Sister” with the casting of Danish actress Linnea Berthelsen, who plays Roman: an emotionally damaged, magnetic young woman who suffered a great loss as a child. Although she does not live in Hawkins, she is mysteriously connected to the supernatural events at the lab. I’m probably wrong but my theory is that Roman was originally conceived of as a male character. Matt Duffer said the change came due to casting and other than “Mad Max”, “The Boy Who Came Back to Life”, and “The Pollywog”, there aren’t any other titles besides “The Lost Brother” that refer to a character. “The Pollywog” remains a mystery but it’s safe to say nothing has changed regarding the first two episode titles.

Stranger Things 2 picks up a year later in the fall of 1984 and will explore the consequences of Will Byers’ week spent in the upside down as well as the interdimensional portal which is still open at the Department of Energy. The characters are said to be struggling with the desire to return to a sense of normalcy and maybe the impossibility of it.

The series has added Sean Astin (The Goonies, Lord of the Rings), Paul Reiser (Aliens, Mad About You)Linnea Berthelsen, Dacre Montgomery (Power Rangers), broadway star Sadie Sink, and Brett Gelman (Jobs). You can check out descriptions of their characters here. The new characters are said to be compelling but first and foremost in service to the core group of characters introduced in season one.

Stranger Things 2 stars Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb Mclaughlin, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Joe Keery, and Noah Schnapp.

Stranger Things 2 hits Netflix sometime in 2017.

SOURCES: THR, VANITY FAIR

New ‘Baywatch’ Trailer Introduces The Villain

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The second trailer for the upcoming R-Rated film reboot for the classic nineties series Baywatch has hit the web. The trailer introduces us to the villainous oil tycoon Victoria Leeds played by Priyanka Chopra.

Baywatch follows Lieutenant of the LA County Lifeguards Mitch Buchannon (Dwayne Johnson) and lifeguard Matt Brody (Zac Efron) as they team up to foil a criminal plot that threatens the future of the bay designed Leeds. Both David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson who starred in the original series will make appearances in the film.

Baywatch hits theaters May 26, 2017.

The film stars Dwayne JohnsonZac EfronAlexandra DaddarioKelly RohrbachIlfenesh HaderaJon BassPriyanka ChopraYahya Abdul-Mateen IIPamela Anderson, and David Hasselhoff. Written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. Directed by Seth Gordon (Horrible Bosses).

Lifeguard Mitch Buchannon (Dwayne Johnson) and a brash new recruit (Zac Efron) uncover a criminal plot that threatens the future of the bay.

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(via Zero Media)

New ‘Beauty and the Beast’ TV Spot Features More of Emma Watson Singing as Belle

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During tonight’s 74th Annual Golden Globes, Disney dropped a new TV spot for the upcoming live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast featuring more of Emma Watson singing as Belle and it sounds absolutely fantastic. I truly believe Alan Menken is going to outdo his original score for the animated classic with the new version he has made for this remake.

Beauty and the Beast hits theaters March 17, 2017.

The film stars Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, Luke Evans as Gaston, Josh Gad as Le Fou, Ewan McGregor as Lumière, Sir Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, Kevin Kline as Belle’s father Maurice, Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, with a script penned by Evan Spiliotopoulos and Stephen Chbosky, directed by Bill Condor.

In this live-action re-imagining of the fairy tale, a young woman (Emma Watson) takes her father’s place as prisoner in a beast’s castle, only to fall in love with her beastly captor (Dan Stevens), who turns out to be a prince.

Golden Globes 2017 Winners List

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From some pretty bad flubs (you’ll be seeing the hashtag #HiddenFences float around for a minute) to touching tributes to Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds as well as a powerful Trump slamming acceptance speech from Meryl Streep, tonight’s 74th Annual Golden Globes hosted by Jimmy Fallon has been quite an entertaining awards ceremony. While the Globes nor the HFPA doesn’t get the same respect as the Oscars considering the awards are voted on by a small batch of international journalists, the nominations and the winners have been on the money this year… for the most part.

Here is a full list of tonight’s winners:

Best Motion Picture – Drama:
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“Hell or High Water”
“Lion”
“Manchester by the Sea”
“Moonlight” — WINNER

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy:
“20th Century Women”
“Deadpool”
“La La Land” — WINNER
“Florence Foster Jenkins”
“Sing Street”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama:
Casey Affleck – “Manchester by the Sea” — WINNER
Joel Edgerton – “Loving”
Andrew Garfield – “Hacksaw Ridge”
Viggo Mortensen –  “Captain Fantastic”
Denzel Washington – “Fences”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama:
Amy Adams – “Arrival”
Jessica Chastain – “Miss Sloane”
Isabelle Huppert – “Elle” — WINNER
Ruth Negga – “Loving”
Natalie Portman – “Jackie”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy:
Colin Farrell – “The Lobster”
Ryan Gosling – “La La Land” — WINNER
Hugh Grant – “Florence Foster Jenkins”
Jonah Hill – “War Dogs”
Ryan Reynolds – “Deadpool”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy:
Annette Bening – “20th Century Women”
Lily Collins – “Rules Don’t Apply”
Hailee Steinfeld – “The Edge of Seventeen”
Emma Stone – “La La Land” — WINNER
Meryl Streep – “Florence Foster Jenkins”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture:
Mahershala Ali – “Moonlight”
Jeff Bridges – “Hell or High Water”
Simon Helberg – “Florence Foster Jenkins”
Dev Patel – “Lion”
Aaron Taylor-Johnson – “Nocturnal Animals” — WINNER

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture:
Viola Davis – “Fences” — WINNER
Naomie Harris – “Moonlight”
Nicole Kidman – “Lion”
Octavia Spencer – “Hidden Figures”
Michelle Williams – “Manchester by the Sea”

Best Director – Motion Picture:
Damien Chazelle – “La La Land” — WINNER
Tom Ford – “Nocturnal Animals”
Mel Gibson – “Hacksaw Ridge”
Barry Jenkins – “Moonlight”
Kenneth Lonergan – “Manchester by the Sea”

Best Screenplay:
“La La Land” — WINNER
“Nocturnal Animals”
“Moonlight”
“Manchester by the Sea”
“Hell or High Water”

Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language:
“Divines” – France
“Elle” – France — WINNER
“Neruda” – Chile
“The Salesman” – Iran/France
“Toni Erdmann” – Germany

Best Motion Picture – Animated:
“Kubo and the Two Strings”
“Moana”
“My Life as a Zucchini”
“Sing”
“Zootopia” — WINNER

Best Original Song – Motion Picture:
“Can’t Stop the Feeling” – “Trolls”
“City of Stars” – “La La Land” — WINNER
“Faith” – “Sing”
“Gold” – “Gold”
“How Far I’ll Go” – “Moana”

Best Original Score – Motion Picture:
Nicholas Britell– “Moonlight”
Justin Hurwitz – “La La Land” — WINNER
Johann Johannsson – “Arrival”
Dustin O’Halloran, Hauschka – “Lion”
Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams, Benjamin Wallfisch – “Hidden Figures”

Best Television Series – Drama:
“The Crown” — WINNER
“Game of Thrones”
“Stranger Things”
“This Is Us”
“Westworld”

Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy:
“Atlanta” — WINNER
“Black-ish”
“Mozart in the Jungle”
“Transparent”
“Veep”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama:
Rami Malek – “Mr. Robot”
Bob Odenkirk – “Better Call Saul”
Matthew Rhys – “The Americans”
Liev Schreiber – “Ray Donovan”
Billy Bob Thornton – “Goliath” — WINNER

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama:
Caitriona Balfe – “Outlander”
Claire Foy – “The Crown” — WINNER
Keri Russell – “The Americans”
Winona Ryder – “Stranger Things”
Evan Rachel Wood – “Westworld”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy:
Anthony Anderson – “Black-ish”
Gael García Bernal – “Mozart in the Jungle”
Donald Glover – “Atlanta” — WINNER
Nick Nolte – “Graves”
Jeffrey Tambor – “Transparent”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy:
Rachel Bloom – “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”
Julia Louis-Dreyfus – “Veep”
Sarah Jessica Parker – “Divorce”
Issa Rae – “Insecure”
Gina Rodriguez – “Jane the Virgin”
Tracee Ellis Ross – “Black-ish” — WINNER

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television:
“American Crime”
“The Dresser”
“The Night Manager”
“The Night Of”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” — WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television:
Riz Ahmed – “The Night Of”
Bryan Cranston – “All The Way”
Tom Hiddleston – “The Night Manager” — WINNER
John Turturro – “The Night Of”
Courtney B. Vance – “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television:
Felicity Huffman – “American Crime”
Riley Keough – “The Girlfriend Experience”
Sarah Paulson – “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” — WINNER
Charlotte Rampling – “London Spy”
Thandie Newton – “Westworld”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television:
Olivia Colman – “The Night Manager” — WINNER
Lena Headey – “Game Of Thrones”
Chrissy Metz – “This Is Us”
Mandy Moore – “This Is Us”
Kerry Washington – “Confirmation”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television:
Sterling K. Brown – “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”
Hugh Laurie – “The Night Manager” — WINNER
John Lithgow – “The Crown”
Christian Slater – “Mr. Robot”
John Travolta – “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”

New ‘Beauty and the Beast’ Poster Revealed

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Ahead of tonight’s 74th  annual Golden Globe Awards which will feature the debut of a new look at the upcoming live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast, Disney has unveiled a new official poster for the film.

The remake brings to life all of the characters from the original plus a new character: a harpsichord named Cadenza created just for the film, voiced by Stanley Tucci. The film will also include the return of the animated classic’s composer Alan Menken who has composed three new original songs for the film titled “Our Song Lives On”, “Days in the Sun”, and “Forever More”.

Beauty and the Beast hits theaters March 17, 2017.

The film stars Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, Luke Evans as Gaston, Josh Gad as Le Fou, Ewan McGregor as Lumière, Sir Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, Kevin Kline as Belle’s father Maurice, Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, with a script penned by Evan Spiliotopoulos and Stephen Chbosky, directed by Bill Condor.

In this live-action re-imagining of the fairy tale, a young woman (Emma Watson) takes her father’s place as prisoner in a beast’s castle, only to fall in love with her beastly captor (Dan Stevens), who turns out to be a prince.

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(via Dark Horizons)

‘Justice League’ Assembles Plus New Photos From ‘Dunkirk’, “Alien: Covenant’, and ‘Beauty and the Beast’

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USA Today published their must-see films 0f 2017 list this morning which included the unveiling of new photos from some of this year’s biggest blockbusters including a new photo featuring the assembling of the brave and the bold in a new image from Justice League plus new looks at Dunkirk, Alien: Covenant, and Beauty and the Beast.

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Beauty and the Beast

In this live-action re-imagining of the fairy tale, a young woman (Emma Watson) takes her father’s place as prisoner in a beast’s castle, only to fall in love with her beastly captor (Dan Stevens), who turns out to be a prince.

The film stars Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, Luke Evans as Gaston, Josh Gad as Le Fou, Ewan McGregor as Lumière, Sir Ian McKellen as Cogsworth, Kevin Kline as Belle’s father Maurice, Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Plumette, with a script penned by Evan Spiliotopoulos and Stephen Chbosky, directed by Bill Condor.

Beauty and the Beast hits theaters March 17, 2017.

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Alien: Covenant

Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, the crew of the colony ship Covenant discover what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world, whose sole inhabitant is the synthetic David, survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition.

The film stars Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterson, Noomi Rapace, Danny McBride, Billy Crudup, and Guy Pearce. Written by Michael Green, John Logan, and Jack Palgen. Directed by Ridley Scott.

Alien: Covenant hits theaters May 19, 2017.

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Dunkirk

“Dunkirk” opens as hundreds of thousands of British and Allied troops are surrounded by enemy forces. Trapped on the beach with their backs to the sea they face an impossible situation as the enemy closes in.

The film stars Tom Hardy, Kenneth Branagh, Mark RylanceCillian MurphyAneurin Barnard, James D’Arcy, Jack LowdenBarry Keoghan, Tom Glynn-Carney, and Harry Styles.

Dunkirk his theaters July 21, 2017.

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Justice League

Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.

The film stars Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, JK Simmons, Diane Lane, Amy Adams, Amber Heard, Jesse Eisenberg, Willem Dafoe, Jeremy Irons, and Ciaran Hinds. Written by Chris Terrio. Directed by Zak Snyder.

Justice League hits theaters November 17, 2017.