Donald Glover And FX Exit Marvel’s Animated ‘Deadpool’ Series
FX is exiting Marvel’s planned Deadpool animated TV series.
The cable network, as well as Donald Glover and Stephen Glover, will no longer be involved in the series. The Atlanta star and his brother were set to write, executive produce and serve as showrunners on what was described as an animated adult action-comedy series originally intended to launch this year on FXX that was to be based on the comic book giant’s Deadpool. It’s unclear if Marvel Television will shop the series elsewhere (or if it could wind up on Disney’s planned direct-to-consumer subscription service).
“Due to creative differences, FX, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover and Marvel Television have agreed to part ways on Marvel’s Deadpool animated series,” FX said Saturday in a statement. “FX will no longer be involved with the project. FX and Marvel have an ongoing relationship through our partnership on Legion, which will continue.”
Picked up straight to series in May with a 10-episode order, Marvel head of television Jeph Loeb and Jim Chory were attached to exec produce. Loeb and his executives are said to have been big fans of FXX’s Archer, and approached FX brass with the idea. FX then approached Glover, a significant talent with increasing geek cred. Following a complex negotiation, the series was set to hail from Marvel Television, FX Productions and ABC Studios’ cable arm, ABC Signature. A voice cast was never set for the project.
FX president John Landgraf told reporters in August that the Deadpool series would feature a “different tone and editorial voice” with the Glovers’ involvement. “We really wanted to make something that was distinctly different from the movie,” he said. Landgraf said the brothers and a writing staff were penning the series during their time in London while Donald Glover was shooting the Star Wars Lando Calrissian movie.
Deadpool is the second Marvel project to be picked up to series and see the network attached bail on the project. Freeform last year dropped its buzzy take on Marvel’s New Warriors, with a new home yet to be determined.
The Deadpool decision comes as Disney CEO Bob Iger has said that the company’s planned streaming service would feature a Marvel original series as well as the comic book giant’s slate of films, which have been pulled from Netflix.
Marvel still has an impressive roster of TV fare spread across multiple outlets on top of its suite of Netflix programming, which includes Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Punisher and Daredevil. In addition to FX’s Legion, Marvel has Hulu’s Runaways, ABC’s Agents of SHIELD (and Inhumans, which is unlikely to earn a second season) and Fox’s The Gifted.
The news comes two months before 20th Century Fox and Marvel’s feature side will bow Deadpool 2.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Tiffany Haddish Set To Voice-Star In New Animated Film ‘Lego Movie 2’
Everything is awesome for Tiffany Haddish.
The actress is joining the voice cast of The Lego Movie 2 as a key new character.
Mike Mitchell is directing the movie, which sees original voice stars Chris Pratt and Elizabeth Banks returning as regular guy turned Master Builder Emmet Brickowoski and Wyldstyle, respectively. Will Arnett is returning to voice Batman, while Channing Tatum will return as Superman and Jonah Hill as Green Lantern.
Plot details are being kept in the box.
Dan Lin is producing along with Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who directed The Lego Movie, the 2014 hit that earned $469.1 million worldwide and helped launch a franchise for Warner Bros. Roy Lee is also producing.
Ryan Halprin and Will Allegra are co-producing. Allison Abbate and Chris Leahy are overseeing for Warners’ Warner Animation Group arm.
The Lego Movie 2 is set for Feb. 8, 2019.
Haddish has been on quite a roll since her breakout in the surprise hit Girls Trip. She will next be seen opposite Tracy Morgan on TBS’ The Last O.G., which premieres April 3, and opposite Kevin Hart in Universal Pictures’ Night School, which opens Sept. 28. She will host the upcoming MTV Movie & TV Awards, and she inked a first-look deal with HBO earlier this year, which followed on the heels of her book The Last Black Unicorn making it on the New York Times best-seller list in December.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Bill Bellamy Set To Host Final Installment Of Shaquille O’Neal’s Comedy Franchise ‘SHAQUILLE O’NEAL PRESENTS: ALL STAR COMEDY JAM: I’M STILL LAUGHING
Comedian and actor Bill Bellamy (Any Given Sunday, How to Be A Player) takes center stage to host the eighth and final installment of Shaquille O’Neal’s comedy franchise, SHAQUILLE O’NEAL PRESENTS: ALL STAR COMEDY JAM: I’M STILL LAUGHING, premiering on SHOWTIME on Friday, March 23 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on-air, on demand and over the internet. Filmed at The Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the new special features comedy veteran and fan-favorite Bruce Bruce (Think Like A Man, The Wash, Idlewild) teaming up with Huggy Lowdown (Tom Joyner Morning Show), Aida Rodriguez (Last Comic Standing, The Comedian) and Brian “Da Wildcat” Smith (2015 Winner of The Nationwide Shaq All Star Comedy Competition) for a hilarious line-up in a high-energy night of comedy.
SHAQUILLE O’NEAL PRESENTS: ALL STAR COMEDY JAM: I’M STILL LAUGHING is directed by Leslie Small and executive produced by Shaquille O’Neal and Jeffrey Clanagan along with producer Valerie Benning Thompson.
Spike Lee to Launch His First Online Filmmaking Class!
Spike Lee will share his insights and experience from three decades of making movies, for just $90.
The filmmaker, one of the leading voices of modern black cinema, will offer his first online class in partnership with MasterClass. Lee’s class is slated to launch in the summer of 2018 on the platform, which hosts more than two dozen other celebrity-led tutorials.
Lee has been teaching filmmaking — in conventional settings — for nearly 30 years. Currently, Spike Lee is artistic director and professor in New York University’s Graduate Film Program (from which he received an MFA in film production). He first joined the NYU faculty in 1993, after teaching a course on filmmaking at Harvard in 1991.
“There are no absolute truths in filmmaking and no one way to be a filmmaker,” Lee said in a statement. “I’ve learned in 30 years things that I can give back. I’m teaching this MasterClass because very few people get to sit in my classes at NYU, so this is an opportunity for me to share what I’ve learned with as many students as possible, no matter where they are in their film career.”
Lee has written, directed, produced, and acted in films ranging from major studio pictures to micro-budget indie films. His movies have had a lasting cultural impact, starting in 1983 with his graduate thesis film “Joe’s Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads.”
Lee’s acclaimed films include “Do The Right Thing,” “4 Little Girls,” “When The Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts,” and “Malcolm X.” Other critical and commercial successes have included “Inside Man,” “25th Hour,” “The Original Kings of Comedy,” “Bamboozled,” and “Summer of Sam.” More recently, he helmed the Netflix revival of “She’s Gotta Have It,” which debuted last fall as a series. Lee heads production company 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks and ad agency Spike DDB (in partnership with DDB Worldwide).
In the online class, Lee will analyze his work both on the page and on the screen, covering the technicalities of writing stories, working with actors, camera angles, financing, and choosing music. He will address the hurdles facing first-time filmmakers, and shares his own experience overcoming obstacles in the film industry. Lee also will discuss how he has tried to affect culture with his movies, and he urges students to be conscious of the relationship between their work and the world.
Pre-registration for Lee’s online class is currently open at the MasterClass website (at masterclass.com/sl). Enrollment for the class is $90 for lifetime access; customers also can pay $180 per year for unlimited access to all existing and upcoming classes.
MasterClass, founded in 2015, also hosts tutorials from Werner Herzog (filmmaking), Hans Zimmer (film scoring), Steve Martin (comedy), Aaron Sorkin (screenwriting), and Shonda Rhimes (writing for television). Upcoming classes are scheduled from Martin Scorsese (filmmaking), Ron Howard (directing), Helen Mirren (acting), Samuel L. Jackson (acting), and Judd Apatow (comedy).
Source: Variety
WATCH: ‘Deadpool 2’ Trailer Released, Features Terry Crews And More!
There have been several trailers and/or teasers for Deadpool 2, but now in its second, full-length trailer, we finally get a taste of some action!
The film stars Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, Josh Brolin as Cable, Zazie Beet as Domino. Other cast members are Morena Baccarin, Terry Crews, T.J. Miller, Brianna Hildebrand, Leslie Uggams, Stefan Kapicic, and Karan Soni. It is still unknown what Crews’ role is.
While this trailer is action-packed, we still don’t know a lot of the plot, but we can gather from it that this film will show the formation of the X-Force. There was a faux synopsis of the film released with this trailer as well, but don’t take it to heart: “After surviving a near fatal bovine attack, a disfigured cafeteria chef (Wade Wilson) struggles to fulfill his dream of becoming Mayberry’s hottest bartender while also learning to cope with his lost sense of taste. Searching to regain his spice for life, as well as a flux capacitor, Wade must battle ninjas, the yakuza, and a pack of sexually aggressive canines, as he journeys around the world to discover the importance of family, friendship, and flavor – finding a new taste for adventure and earning the coveted coffee mug title of World’s Best Lover.”
The sequel, which has reportedly tested higher than the original, will be released May 18.
Source: Shadow & Act
First Official Teaser Released For Sony’s ‘Superfly’ Film, Starring Trevor Jackson
The film was but on an extreme fast track. Director X and Jackson were first announced to be attached to the film last December, with Mitchell and other key casting announcements announced in January, along with the speedy June 2018 release date. Production just recently wrapped in Atlanta.
Jackson will lead the film as Youngblood Priest, with Mitchell set to co-star Eddie, Lex Scott Davis as Georgia, Michael K. Williams as Scatter, Andrea Londo as Cynthia, Allen Maldonado as Litty, Jacob Ming-Trent as Fat Freddy and Omar Chapparo as Adalberto.
Future has curated the soundtrack and is producing with Joel Silver and Steven R. Shore, the son of the original film’s producer Sig Shore, will be an executive producer with Matthew Hirsch, Hal Sadoff and Aaron Ausch. Alex Tse is writing the script.
The original film, which was directed by Gordon Parks, Jr. starred Ron O’Neal as Youngblood Priest, a cocaine dealer trying to get out of the business, and centers on him securing one last deal before getting out. It resulted in two sequels, Super Fly T.N.T. and The Return of Superfly.
Parks, Jr.’s father (Gordon Parks), directed Shaft, which is considered the staple film in blaxploitation genre that took that generation by storm. The original Super Fly’s soundtrack, written and produced by Curtis Mayfield, was even more successful than the film, outgrossing its movie counterpart.
The film itself, now a cult classic, did garner criticism because of its portrayal of black people and drugs.
Director X, whose real name is Julien Christian Lutz, is an accomplished music video director, doing work for the likes of Kanye West, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj and Rihanna. His feature directorial debut was the Canadian drama film, Across the Line, which starred Stephan James.
This Super Fly remake comes as there is a booming development market for blaxploitation remakes. Kylie Bunbury is starring in a Get Christie Love TV series for ABC, Meagan Good is starring in a Foxy Brown series for Hulu, Jessie T. Usher is starring in an Untitled Shaft reboot and Misha Green is writing a Cleopatra Jones film remake — just to name a few.
Skai Jackson To Star In Lee Daniels’ Fox Comedy Pilot Titled ‘Our People’
Disney Channel star Skai Jackson has been cast in a series regular role for the upcoming Fox comedy pilot, Our People, from Lee Daniels and Modern Family EP Vali Chandrasekaran.
She joins The Mayor‘s Bernard David Jones, who is the lead along with Beth Behrs. Charles Parnell and Saidah Arrika Ekulona are also series regulars.
Our People is a single-camera comedy based on the Israeli show, Nevsu: A Young Multicultural Couple. The show will center on “Abel (Jones), a man from a bombastic African family (Jones) who doesn’t have a word in their native language for ‘privacy’ and his fiancée (Behrs) from a mid-western family trying to build a normal life together.”
Jackson will play Abel’s younger sister, Aisha.
She is most known for her roles in the Disney Channel shows Jessie and Bunk’d, as well as the TV film adaptation of The Watsons Go To Birmingham.
Source: Shadow & Act
Tiffany Haddish, Michael Che, Kumail Nanjiani To Perform On Seth Rogen’s ‘Hilarity for Charity’ Netflix Special
Seth Rogen has set an all-star lineup for his upcoming “Hilarity for Charity” Netflix special.
The guest lineup for the comedy special includes: Tiffany Haddish, Sarah Silverman, Michelle Wolf, John Mulaney, James Corden,The Muppets, Post Malone, Nick Kroll, Kumail Nanjiani, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jeff Goldblum, Michael Che, and Craig Robinson & The Nasty Delicious.
Rogen and his wife Lauren Miller Rogen founded Hilarity for Charity in 2012 to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease. This year’s show–which will feature a mix of stand-up, sketches and music–will be the sixth annual “Hilarity for Charity,” but will be the first time the event has streamed on Netflix. It will be taped in front of a live audience in Los Angeles on March 24 and then released on Netflix in April.
“We started the Los Angeles variety show six years ago in order to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s, a disease that has touched so many families including my own,” said Miller Rogen. “Our goal is to educate a younger audience and ultimately create the next generation of advocates for the cause. I am so thrilled to be able to share this year’s show with an even larger audience through our partnership with Netflix and are proud to have them as a partner.”
Source: Variety, Netflix
Watch: YouTube Red Debuts Trailer For ‘Karate Kid’ Comedy Spinoff ‘Cobra Kai’
Thirty-four years have passed, but the rivalry between Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence remains in the trailer for YouTube Red series “Cobra Kai.”
The streaming platform released the trailer for the upcoming “Karate Kid” spinoff, where Ralph Macchio and William Zabka will reprise their roles as adversaries.
The clip opens with a scene from the final “Karate Kid” battle, when Macchio’s Daniel LaRusso defeats Zabka’s Johnny Lawrence before flashing forward to present day. While Daniel is thriving with his own car dealership, Johnny appears to be struggling until he witnesses a teenager being bullied by a group of students.
Johnny defends the helpless teenager and decides to reopen karate dojo Cobra Kai. He then becomes the teenager’s sensei, but Daniel isn’t on board. “He thinks he can bring Cobra Kai back to the valley. Not on my watch,” Daniel says.
The preview ends with Daniel seemingly preparing for a fight and telling Johnny they aren’t done.
The series is written and executively produced by Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg. It is produced by Overbrook Entertainment in association with Sony Pictures Television.
The show debuts at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 24 before premiering on YouTube Red on May 2. Watch the trailer below.
Source: Variety
Watch: New Comedy Trailer ‘The Spy Who Dumped Me’ Starring Mila Kunis And Kate McKinnon
Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon are forced to join the spy game in the first trailer for the Lionsgate comedy “The Spy Who Dumped Me.”
The trailer, released Wednesday, intros the duo as masters of spycraft with the proclamation “In 2018, women are killing it,” followed by a James Bond-style montage with Michael Buble singing Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good.”
That tone is quickly eliminated as Kunis and McKinnon — who play best friends — fail at trying to abscond a car because Kunis cannot drive a stick shift and the car crashes into a newstand at 3 miles per hour.
It turns out that the pair has been unexpectedly thrust into an international conspiracy when Justin Theroux, portraying the ex-boyfriend of Kunis’ character and a former CIA agent, shows up at her apartment with a team of deadly assassins on his trail.
They find themselves on the run in Europe from the assassins and a British agent, played by Sam Heughan. By the end of the trailer, they’re driving like pros and offing villains. “Oh my god, oh my god, I just killed someone,” Kunis shrieks while running through the street.
Susanna Fogel directed from a script she wrote with David Iserson. Ron Howard and Brian Grazer are the producers through Imagine Entertainment. The film was shot in Budapest, Hungary, last summer. “The Spy Who Dumped Me” lands in theaters on Aug. 3.
