Inside the Star Wars stand-alone Rogue One
Before Luke fired the blast that detonated the Death Star, before Leia launched R2-D2 to a remote desert world with secret plans for that battle station, someone had to locate and steal those schematics. Turns out, it was a team effort. In this week’s issue of Entertainment Weekly, we bring you an inside look at Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which explores just how the Rebellion came to possess the information that revealed the fatal flaw in the Empire’s super weapon. It’s a battlefield heist that fans have been imagining for nearly 40 years, described in the opening crawl of 1977’s original Star Wars, with little details scattered throughout. The new film from director Gareth Edwards (2014’s Godzilla) will finally fit those peices together to form a full story – revealing never-before-seen characters while also reintroducing a few classic ones. We’re confirming a big one on our cover: the galactic man in black himself, Darth Vader.
In-Depth With Disney CEO Bob Iger on China Growth, ‘Star Wars’ Reshoots and Political Plans: “A Lot of People Have Urged Me to [Run]”
In an exclusive sit-down, the exec who tops the THR 100 also talks ‘Indiana Jones,’ ESPN and cable’s future, what happened with heir apparent Tom Staggs and who will succeed him after he leaves in 2018. In his 11 years atop Disney, Iger has become the most effective media CEO of his generation. When he was named to the post in March 2005 (a controversial choice, given his lack of film or parks experience), the former weatherman and longtime ABC executive inherited a company whose storied animation studio was in disarray and its stock price at $27.70 a share. Thanks to a management style colleagues describe as respectful yet decisive, growth initiatives at its cable channels and a series of big-ticket deals for Pixar Animation Studios ($7.4 billion), Marvel Entertainment ($4 billion) and Lucasfilm ($4.1 billion).
‘Justice League’: New Details Emerge About DC’s Superhero Movie
Warner Bros. has unveiled the official synopsis, new Batmobile and logo for its upcoming “Justice League” movie, which will bring together Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash. The first look at the new Batmobile was also released on Tuesday. “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,” the synopsis said. “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——it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.”
“Directed by Zack Snyder, this marks the big screen debut of the Justice League, featuring an all-star lineup: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller and Ray Fisher.”
Hannibal Buress Joins ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Hannibal Buress is joining the cast of Sony and Marvel’s “Spider-Man: Homecoming.” Tom Holland will play Peter Parker in the reboot with Marisa Tomei taking on Aunt May. Michael Keaton is also on board for the role of a villain. Other actors who have joined the cast over the last several weeks include Logan Marshall-Green, Donald Glover, Zendaya and Tony Revolori. Sony and Marvel had no comment. Jon Watts is on board to direct with Amy Pascal and Kevin Feige producing. Plot details are still being heavily guarded as is Buress’ character. “Vacation” directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein penned the script.
Production is expected to start this summer with the film hitting theaters on July 7, 2017.
Noomi Rapace Joins ‘Alien: Covenant’
EXCLUSIVE: Even though Noomi Rapace emerged from Prometheus as one of the few survivors and the one who seemed most to want to follow the adventure forward with Michael Fassbender’s character, it was long reported she would not be back to reprise her role as Elizabeth Shaw in Ridley Scott’s next installment Alien: Covenant. Maybe that has changed. Sources say Rapace is in Australia and on the set to shoot weeks worth of scenes in Scott’s film, which brings back Fassbender’s robot character and has a cast that includes Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride and Demian Bichir. Info is on lockdown, so we’ll have to wait for the film to be released August 4, 2017, by Fox to see how it all worked out.
Why Showtime Is Ending ‘Penny Dreadful’
It’s the end of the road for Showtime’s monster drama Penny Dreadful. Sunday’s two-hour Penny Dreadful season three ender ultimately will stand as a series finale, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. The decision to wrap the series, which concluded with the stunning death of Eva Green’s Vanessa Ives, comes as little surprise after the second hour concluded with a definitive “The End.” To hear series creator/showrunner John Logan tell it, the plan all along was for the series — featuring famed monster characters including Frankenstein, Dorian Gray and figures from the Dracula novel — to run three seasons. “John has decided the show really, at its core, has always been Vanessa Ives. John has said three seasons is enough and I think it’s really interesting that we live in this world where every show can have its own rhythm and create its own destiny,” Showtime president David Nevins told THR. “This is a case of your creator says this is the best thing for the show and eventually you just say OK, do it, just do it well.”
‘San Andreas’ Director Teams With James Wan for ‘Malignant Man’ (Exclusive)
San Andreas helmer Brad Peyton has come aboard to direct Malignant Man, a sci-fi/action project being produced by James Wan, who is coming off the strong opening of his horror sequel The Conjuring 2. Malignant Man is set up at Fox and based on a Boom! Studios comic that Wan co-created. Boom!’s Ross Richie and Stephen Christy are producing with Wan, who is working via his Atomic Monster label. Peyton also will produce. The story focuses on Alex Gates, a patient dying of a terminal disease who is resigned to his fate … until he discovers that his malignant tumor is actually a mysterious alien parasite. Now with some incredible powers and a renewed purpose, Gates is tasked with fighting a secret army lurking behind the veils of society while also peeling back his own secrets.
