| | | | | | Happy Valentine’s Day! Or for some, Happy New World Order Day, depending on if you’re buying roses or cherry blossoms for your date. The new Captain America movie is out today, and while it’s earning a very mixed grade from critics (51 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), even the dependably positive and effusive stable of fanboy social media influencers are mixed on this one, too. Still, it's doing well at the box office — though the second weekend hold will be the deciding factor on its fate. If you recall, two years ago Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania had a strong start, only to have a second weekend drop so bad it set Marvel movie records. And not the good kind. This is far from a pivotal moment for Marvel, which has two more movies coming this year ( Thunderbolts in May, Fantastic Four in July) and several series, too. And one gets the sense that those are far more indicative to where Marvel is or wants to be heading. There's also a lot of political chatter around this title, and later this weekend, stay tuned to Heat Vision for Richard Newby's unique take on the matter. In the meantime, this is a jam-packed newsletter, with scoops involving two heavy-hitting comic book actors and tidbits from the worlds of DC Studios and Image Comics. — Aaron Couch and Borys Kit. |
BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH IS GETTING SOME BLOOD ON HIS HANDS.
The actor is replacing Tom Hardy in Blood on Snow, the crime thriller hailing from No Time to Die director Cary Fukunaga.
Hardy, who was going to produce and star, departed due to scheduling issues ahead of the film's shoot later this month.
Also new to the call sheet are Eva Green, Emma Laird and Ben Mendelsohn.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson stars as hitman/fixer named Olav who is hired by his mob boss to kill the man’s cheating wife. When Olav convinces himself he’s fallen in love with the wife and doesn’t kill her, it sets off a chain of events with tragic consequences that threaten a bloody mob war.
The doctor is in the house. |
DC STUDIOS HAS BEEN LOOKING FOR A CLAYFACE DIRECTOR SINCE LATE LAST YEAR.
The company was even eyeing J.A. Bayona over the Christmas break. The trail went cold after that, but on Thursday, our (in this case) not-so-distinguished competition mentioned that Jeff Wadlow (Imaginary, Fantasy Island) and James Watkins (Speak No Evil) are in the mix for the gig.
Well, our sources say that Wadlow is NOT in the mix. Never was and never will be. Watkins hasn't met with DC's head honchos yet, but is expected to. This one is still up for grabs.
Mike Flanagan, who wrote script, is unavailable to direct because of commitments to a Carrie TV series and a reboot of The Exorcist.
To us, the biggest question is where will DC shoot this movie?
The compnay has a movie production hub in England, where it shot Superman and is shooting Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.
Clayface, however, isn’t eyed to shoot there (although it could, say if DC hires a British director). The feature is a modest $40 million and sources say the project is looking to set up shop in a variety of locales, Vancouver, Toronto, New Jersey or Atlanta, among them.
To which we say, fiddlesticks.
Clayface, you see, is a Hollywood horror story, according to our sources, using the most popular incarnation of the villain – a B-movie actor who injects himself with a substance to keep himself relevant only to find out that he can reshape his face and form, becoming a walking piece of clay.
Why should a Hollywood story be shot anywhere but in L.A.? Why fake L.A. in Atlanta? We would love to have DC make the brave and bold decision to bring this production where it belongs. People are giving lip service about bringing production back to the city and to California; here's an opportunity to actually back up those lofty slogans.
#StayinLA |
IMAGE COMICS' NIGHTS WANTS TO LIGHT UP YOUR TV SETS. Nights launched last year with a 12-issue arc known as "Season One," which will prove quite appropriate as it moves to animation courtesy of Titmouse, the edgy animation company behind projects such as Big Mouth. Nights "Season One" took place in a 2003 in which supernatural creatures exist alongside humans, and in an America that is made up of just 31 states. Writer Wyatt Kennedy and artist Luigi Formisano will be involved in the animated adaptation. Titmouse is known for work such as Legend of Vox Machina, The Venture Bros. and Star Trek: Lower Decks. Night watch. |
➤ Christopher Nolan loves even his smallest roles to be played by top-notch thespians. Mia Goth is no exception, as her role may not even require speaking.
➤ Goonies never say die ... with a sequel now in the works.
➤ Trailers: It's flame on with How to Train Your Dragon ... Marvel gets its own Suicide Squad with Thunderbolts* ... Paul Rudd and Tim Robinson make a new Friendship.
➤ Masters of the Universe finds He-Man's parents.
➤ Michael B. Jordan says he would work with his Creed III co-star Jonathan Majors again. It's head-turning endorsement that comes as Majors hopes his long-delayed movie Magazine Dreams can kickstart a comeback of sorts when it arrives next month.
Catch up on these Heat Vision interviews...
➤ Mad Max: Fury Road star Courtney Eaton still wants more of Charlize Theron's Furiosa: "I think Anya did an incredible job, but I would just die to see Charlize’s version [again]."
➤ The Gorge director Scott Derrickson is glad that he left Marvel for the Black Phone franchise.
➤ Heart Eyes director Josh Ruben explains how the slasher rom-com has helped him heal after losing his first home in the Eaton Fire.
➤ Love Hurts star Ariana DeBose is grateful that she presented Ke Huy Quan's Oscar "free of any controversy."
➤ Heart Eyes star Olivia Holt talks the awkward icebreaker between her and Mason Gooding. |
One last action news note ... congrats to a trio of Walt Disney Studios executives, whom we have learned landed promotions or new duties.
Allison Erlikhman is now svp, production. The exec joined in 2015, with upcoming titles including Freakier Friday and Princess Diaries 3, and past work including The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, and The Nutcracker. She reports to David Greenbaum, president, Disney Live Action and 20th Century Studios.
Diane Sabatini has been upped to svp, physical production, leading the Disney live-action physical production team. The exec joined Disney in 2020, and has Snow White and Freakier Friday coming up. Past titles included Young Woman and The Sea, Godmothered and Lady and the Tramp. She reports to Philip Steuer president, production under Greenbaum.
Gamze Trygstad, svp, business affairs, will now oversee all business affairs for 20th Century Studios. Trygstad worked for Disney early in her early years, before moving to Fox and then back to Disney after the 2019 merger. She has spent 22 years in total across her career at Disney. She reports to Bernardine Brandis, exec vp, business affairs for Disney Studios. |
A FEW WEEKS AGO, WE BROKE THE STORY THAT DAISY RIDLEY'S STAR WARS MOVIE FOUND A NEW WRITER AFTER YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT
Now Ridley herself is weighing in on the long process that has added scribe George Nolfi to its ranks.
Ridley assures Brian Davids this is all a case of quality over quickness.
"People have talked about it a lot that the release date often affects films and how quickly things go into production. So the freedom to make sure that this script is the best way to tell this story is wonderful, and I don't think any fans would want it to be rushed," says Ridley.
Shawn Levy's Star Wars movie is the next to go into production, with Ryan Gosling starring. As for Ridley, she's now back on screens with Cleaner, about an ex-soldier who now works as a window cleaner and must save a group of hostages in a skyscraper.
You're a Daisy if you do. |
DC'S UPCOMING SUMMER OF SUPERMAN SEEMS TO KNOW NO SEASONAL BOUNDS.
Last week, meaning the start of February, aka, the death grip of winter, the Folio Society unveiled its latest hardcover compilation, DC: Superman.
A handsome, 312-page deluxe book, it collects 12 seminal comics by a host of iconic writers and artists, among them Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Curt Swan, Marshall Rogers, Alan Moore, John Byrne, Dan Jurgens, Paul Dini and Alex Ross.
The stories were selected and introduced by former DC president and publisher Jenette Kahn, and range from 1941 to 1999.
Among the stories are Superman No. 30 (1944), “The Mysterious Mr. Mxyztplk!”; Action Comics No. 583 (1986), “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?”; Superman No. 75 (1993), “Doomsday!” and Peace on Earth (1999). That last one was by writer Paul Dini and artist Alex Ross (see a page below).
The book, on sale for $100, have been reproduced in 10” x 7” treasury format. The set also arrives with a stand-alone replica copy of Superman No. 1, scanned from an original copy held in the DC Archives.
Folio Society is the independent publisher that is dedicated to the art of the book, putting out finely designed or illustrated editions of works by Frank Herbert, George R.R. Martin and Ian Fleming.
It has focused on comics in recent times. In early 2024, it published a great Batman-centric compilation, as well as a tome of Marvel stories curated by Patton Oswalt and Jordan Blum. |
Aaron: Borys, man, you got something interesting for the auction item this week?
Borys: Heck, yeah, I do, Aaron. Check out this cool Doctor Doom piece drawn by Wally Wood. He was this great EC Comics artist in the 1950s who also ended up doing some work at Marvel for a bit. This one is from a story he did in 1971 for Astonishing Tales no. 4.
Aaron: Nice. Anything we can connect it to in the broader comic or movie world? It makes the art piece resonate on a deeper level, man.
Borys: Well, Marvel released the trailer to Fantastic Four just over a week ago. That current enough?
Aaron: Go deeper.
Borys: I mean, Doctor Doom is going to be the villain in the new Avengers movie that shoots this summer. That’s timely and in the air.
Aaron: Deeper.
Borys: OK, what if we tap into the fanboy blahs with Captain America 4 and the current state of the MCU aaaaand what if we say that Doom is speaking for Kevin Feige as he defiantly states, “What I built once, I can build again!” Kevin’s is the power royal, after all.
Aaron: Too deep, man. Let’s rein in back.
Borys: The ComicLink auction start tonight. |
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