Paramount Is Remaking Stephen King’s ‘Pet Sematary’
James Gunn to Tackle ‘Suicide Squad’ Sequel for Warner Bros.
Gunn, who was fired from directing the third installment in his Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, has come on board to write Warner Bros. and DC’s Suicide Squad sequel, with an eye to helm. Gunn has closed a deal to pen the script. At this stage, there is no director deal, but talks could proceed depending on the outcome of the scripting process. Disney fired Gunn from his Marvel franchise in July after old tweets from 2008 and 2009 resurfaced in which he made insensitive and controversial jokes about topics like rape and pedophillia. After his firing, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana and other Guardians stars signed an open letter asking Disney to reinstate Gunn, while fans started a Change.org petition asking the studio to do the same. But Disney has remained steadfast in its decision. “The James Gunn decision was brought to me as a unanimous decision of a variety of executives at the studio and I supported it,” Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger recently said to The Hollywood Reporter of Gunn’s firing. He added: “I haven’t second-guessed their decision.”
Chris Evans Officially Wraps Playing Captain America
Chris Evans on Thursday announced he has officially hung up his shield. After playing Captain America for nearly a decade, Evans tweeted that it was over. “Officially wrapped on Avengers 4. It was an emotional day to say the least. Playing this role over the last 8 years has been an honor. To everyone in front of the camera, behind the camera, and in the audience, thank you for the memories! Eternally grateful,” Evans tweeted. The actor previously alluded to retiring the character in a profile in the The New York Times that quoted him as saying, “You want to get off the train before they push you off.” The 37-year-old Evans first played Steve Rogers aka Captain America in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger. He would go on to play the fan favorite in The Avengers (2012), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), and Avengers: Infinity War (2018), as well as cameo in a number of other Marvel films.
Michael Peña Is Mr. Roarke In ‘Fantasy Island’ Film From Sony & Blumhouse
Peña is taking on a role that was originated by Ricardo Montalban when the TV series, from Aaron Spelling, launched in 1978 on ABC. Mr. Roarke, joined by his sidekick, Tattoo (Hervé Villechaize), was the mysterious overseer of the island who granted the fantasies of visitors for a price. Created by Gene Levitt, the series dealt with dark themes and the supernatural as visitors come to the island to live out their fantasy wishes. Wadlow co-wrote the screenplay with Truth or Dare scribes Chris Roach and Jillian Jacobs. Jason Blum is producing with Ryan Turek overseeing for the company, which is also co-financing the project. Wadlow and Blumhouse’s Couper Samuelson will serve as exec producers. Sony holds the rights to property and will distribute.
