Tag: james-spader

  • Watch the Marvel Movies in Story Order

    Watch the Marvel Movies in Story Order

    Marvel Studios' Marvel Cinematic Universe. Photo: Marvels Studio.
    Marvel Studios’ Marvel Cinematic Universe. Photo: Marvels Studio.

    It’s fair to say that the Marvel movies, specifically the Marvel Cinematic Universe releases, have reached “cultural event” status.  And there’s a strong case to be made that the MCU is a currently a pop culture juggernaut, the likes of which we haven’t since the original ‘Star Wars‘ trilogy hit theaters for the first time.

    Now the MCU saga is continuing on TV, starting with ‘WandaVision‘ and continuing  with ‘Loki,’ ‘The Falcon and the Winter Solider,’ ‘Ms. Marvel,’ ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,’ ‘Hawkeye,’ ‘Moon Knight,’ ‘Secret Invasion‘, ‘Echo‘, ‘Agatha All Along‘, and ‘Daredevil: Born Again‘.

    Not to mention the new “Special Presentation” movies that Marvel has debuted on Disney+ including ‘Werewolf by Night‘ and ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.’

    It is a great time to watch the Marvel movies in order now and you can watch them all on Disney Plus in 4K format. You can even plan virtual Marvel movie nights with your friends using Disney+ GroupWatch feature.


    Captain America: The First Avenger

    (L to R) Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan in 'Captain America: The First Avenger'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    (L to R) Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan in ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    During World War II, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is a sickly man from Brooklyn who’s transformed into super-soldier Captain America to aid in the war effort. Rogers must stop the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) – Adolf Hitler’s ruthless head of weaponry, and the leader of an organization that intends to use a mysterious device of untold powers for world domination.

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    Captain Marvel

    The story follows Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races. Set in the 1990s, Captain Marvel is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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    Iron Man

    After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.

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    The Incredible Hulk

    Scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) scours the planet for an antidote to the unbridled force of rage within him: the Hulk. But when the military masterminds who dream of exploiting his powers force him back to civilization, he finds himself coming face to face with a new, deadly foe.

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    Iron Man 2

    With the world now aware of his dual life as the armored superhero Iron Man, billionaire inventor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) faces pressure from the government, the press and the public to share his technology with the military. Unwilling to let go of his invention, Stark, with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and James ‘Rhodey’ Rhodes (Don Cheadle) at his side, must forge new alliances – and confront powerful enemies.

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    Thor

    Against his father Odin’s (Anthony Hopkins) will, The Mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth) – a powerful but arrogant warrior god – recklessly reignites an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

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    The Avengers

    When an unexpected enemy emerges and threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins!

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    Iron Man 3

    When Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr.) world is torn apart by a formidable terrorist called the Mandarin, he starts an odyssey of rebuilding and retribution.

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    Thor: The Dark World

    Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos… but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.

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    Captain America: The Winter Soldier

    (L to R) Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson in 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    (L to R) Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson in ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    After the cataclysmic events in New York with ‘The Avengers’, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), aka Captain America is living quietly in Washington, D.C. and trying to adjust to the modern world. But when a S.H.I.E.L.D. colleague comes under attack, Steve becomes embroiled in a web of intrigue that threatens to put the world at risk. Joining forces with the Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Captain America struggles to expose the ever-widening conspiracy while fighting off professional assassins sent to silence him at every turn. When the full scope of the villainous plot is revealed, Captain America and the Black Widow enlist the help of a new ally, the Falcon (Anthony Mackie). However, they soon find themselves up against an unexpected and formidable enemy—the Winter Soldier.

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    Guardians of the Galaxy

    Light years from Earth, 26 years after being abducted, Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the prime target of a manhunt after discovering an orb wanted by Ronan the Accuser.

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    Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2

    The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill’s (Chris Pratt) true parentage.

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    Avengers: Age of Ultron

    When Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are put to the ultimate test as the fate of the planet hangs in the balance. As the villainous Ultron (James Spader) emerges, it is up to The Avengers to stop him from enacting his terrible plans, and soon uneasy alliances and unexpected action pave the way for an epic and unique global adventure.

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    Ant-Man

    Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Doctor Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.

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    Captain America: Civil War

    Following the events of ‘Age of Ultron’, the collective governments of the world pass an act designed to regulate all superhuman activity. This polarizes opinion amongst the Avengers, causing two factions to side with Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) or Captain America (Chris Evans), which causes an epic battle between former allies.

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    Black Widow

    Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) aka Black Widow confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger.

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    Spider-Man: Homecoming

    Following the events of ‘Captain America: Civil War’, Peter Parker (Tom Holland), with the help of his mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), tries to balance his life as an ordinary high school student in Queens, New York City, with fighting crime as his superhero alter ego Spider-Man as a new threat, the Vulture (Michael Keaton), emerges.

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    Black Panther

    Chadwick Boseman as T'Challa / Black Panther in 2018's 'Black Panther.'
    Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’

    King T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) returns home to the reclusive, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda to serve as his country’s new leader. However, T’Challa soon finds that he is challenged for the throne by factions within his own country as well as without. Using powers reserved to Wakandan kings, T’Challa assumes the Black Panther mantle to join with ex-girlfriend Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), the queen-mother, his princess-kid sister, members of the Dora Milaje (the Wakandan ‘special forces’) and an American secret agent, to prevent Wakanda from being dragged into a world war.

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    Doctor Strange

    After his career is destroyed, a brilliant but arrogant surgeon (Benedict Cumberbatch) gets a new lease on life when a sorcerer takes him under her wing and trains him to defend the world against evil.

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    Thor: Ragnarok

    Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is imprisoned on the other side of the universe and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok, the destruction of his home-world and the end of Asgardian civilization, at the hands of a powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela (Cate Blanchett).

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    Ant-Man and the Wasp

    Just when his time under house arrest is about to end, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) once again puts his freedom at risk to help Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) dive into the quantum realm and try to accomplish, against time and any chance of success, a very dangerous rescue mission.

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    Avengers: Infinity War

    As the Avengers and their allies have continued to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos (Josh Brolin). A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artifacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment – the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain.

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    Avengers: Endgame

    After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War, the universe is in ruins due to the efforts of the Mad Titan, Thanos (Josh Brolin). With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers must assemble once more in order to undo Thanos’ actions and restore order to the universe once and for all, no matter what consequences may be in store.

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    Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

    Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) must confront the past he thought he left behind when he is drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization and his father, Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung).

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    Spider-Man: Far From Home

    Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and his friends go on a summer trip to Europe. However, they will hardly be able to rest – Peter will have to agree to help Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) uncover the mystery of creatures that cause natural disasters and destruction throughout the continent.

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    Spider-Man: No Way Home

    Tom Holland in 'Spider-Man: No Way Home.' Photo: Marvel Studios.
    Tom Holland in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.

    Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a super-hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man. Teaming with other Multiverse Spider-Men (Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield), they must now work together to take out the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina), Electro (Jamie Foxx) and other Spider-Man villains from around the multiverse.

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    Eternals

    The Eternals are a team of ancient aliens who have been living on Earth in secret for thousands of years. When an unexpected tragedy forces them out of the shadows, they are forced to reunite against mankind’s most ancient enemy, the Deviants.

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    Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

    Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), with the help of mystical allies both old and new, traverses the mind-bending and dangerous alternate realities of the Multiverse to confront a mysterious new adversary.

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    Thor: Love and Thunder

    After his retirement is interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale), a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods, Thor Odinson (Chris Hemsworth) enlists the help of King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who now wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor. Together they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.

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    Werewolf by Night

    On a dark and somber night, a secret cabal of monster hunters emerge from the shadows and gather at the foreboding Bloodstone Temple following the death of their leader. In a strange and macabre memorial to the leader’s life, the attendees are thrust into a mysterious and deadly competition for a powerful relic—a hunt that will ultimately bring them face to face with a dangerous monster.

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    Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

    Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M’Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s (Chadwick Boseman) death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda.

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    The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

    On a mission to make Christmas unforgettable for Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), the Guardians head to Earth in search of the perfect present. The special follows Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) as they set out to give Quill the best Christmas ever, after discovering that Yondu (Michael Rooker) ruined the holiday for him as a child.

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    Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3

    Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), still reeling from the loss of Gamora (Zoe Saldaña), must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.

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    Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

    (L to R) Kathryn Newton as Cassandra "Cassie" Lang and Paul Rudd as Scott Lang/Ant-Man in Marvel Studios' 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.' Photo by Jay Maidment. © 2022 Marvel.
    (L to R) Kathryn Newton as Cassandra “Cassie” Lang and Paul Rudd as Scott Lang/Ant-Man in Marvel Studios’ ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.’ Photo by Jay Maidment. © 2022 Marvel.

    Super-Hero partners Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), along with with Hope’s parents Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) , and Scott’s daughter Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton), find themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought possible and pits them against Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors).

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    The Marvels

    (L to R) Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel/Kamala Khan, Brie Larson as Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers, and Teyonah Parris as Captain Monica Rambeau in Marvel Studios' 'The Marvels.' Photo by Laura Radford. © 2023 MARVEL.
    (L to R) Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel/Kamala Khan, Brie Larson as Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers, and Teyonah Parris as Captain Monica Rambeau in Marvel Studios’ ‘The Marvels.’ Photo by Laura Radford. © 2023 MARVEL.

    Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), aka Captain Marvel, has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol’s estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris). Together, this unlikely trio must team up and learn to work in concert to save the universe.

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    Captain America: Brave New World

    Captain America/Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) in Marvel Studios' 'Captain America: Brave New World'. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2024 Marvel.
    Captain America/Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) in Marvel Studios’ ‘Captain America: Brave New World’. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2024 Marvel.

    After meeting with newly elected U.S. President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford), Sam (Anthony Mackie) finds himself in the middle of an international incident. He must discover the reason behind a nefarious global plot before the true mastermind has the entire world seeing red.

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    Thunderbolts*’

    (L to R) Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Bob (Lewis Pullman), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan)in Marvel Studios' 'Thunderbolts*'. Photo by Chuck Zlotnick. © 2025 Marvel.
    (L to R) Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Bob (Lewis Pullman), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan)in Marvel Studios’ ‘Thunderbolts*’. Photo by Chuck Zlotnick. © 2025 Marvel.

    After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap, seven disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts.

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    The Fantastic Four: First Steps

    (L to R) Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic and Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch in 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios' 'Fantastic Four: First Steps'. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios. © 2025 20th Century Studios / © and ™ 2025 Marvel.
    (L to R) Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic and Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch in 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios’ ‘Fantastic Four: First Steps’. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios. © 2025 20th Century Studios / © and ™ 2025 Marvel.

    Against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel’s First Family is forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, while defending Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner).

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    Deadpool & Wolverine

    (L to R) Hugh Jackman, Wesley Snipes, Channing Tatum, Dafne Keen, Ryan Reynolds and Jennifer Garner in 'Deadpool & Wolverine'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    (L to R) Hugh Jackman, Wesley Snipes, Channing Tatum, Dafne Keen, Ryan Reynolds and Jennifer Garner in ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    Marvel Studios’ ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ delivers the ultimate, iconic, cinematic team-up throw-down on July 26.

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    Check out our post where we also ranked all of the Marvel movies from worst to best.

  • Emily Hampshire Joins Marvel’s ‘Vision’ Series as E.D.I.T.H.

    (Left) Emily Hampshire in Caitlin Cronenberg's 'Humane.' Courtesy of Steve Wilkie. An IFC Films & Shudder Release. (Right) Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    (Left) Emily Hampshire in Caitlin Cronenberg’s ‘Humane.’ Courtesy of Steve Wilkie. An IFC Films & Shudder Release. (Right) Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Preview:

    • Emily Hampshire is joining the ‘WandaVision’ spin-off focused on Vision.
    • She’ll play the AI tech system E.D.I.T.H. as seen in ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home.’
    • Paul Bettany returns to star as Vision.

    The cast continues to grow for Marvel’s second spin-off from successful original MCU Disney+ offering ‘WandaVision.’ Though the title has officially yet to be confirmed, we do know that it’ll be focused on Paul Bettany’s Vision following the events of the show.

    And now, via Deadline (though actually confirming a report from regular Twitter scooper Daniel Richtman), word arrives that ‘Schitt’s Creek’s Emily Hampshire will be part of the ensemble.

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    According to both sources, Hampshire is aboard to play E.D.I.T.H., the sophisticated artificial intelligence (the name is an acronym for Even Dead, I’m The Hero), Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr.) augmented reality security and defense system.

    In the MCU, E.D.I.T.H. was originally created by Stark and bequeathed to Peter Parker (Tom Holland) following Stark’s death and seen in ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home.’ It provides access to Stark Industries’ global satellite network along with an arsenal of missiles and drones.

    It remains to be seen how E.D.I.T.H. shows up in the series –– in the Spidey movie, the system was voiced by Dawn Michelle King, who served as first assistant editor and presumably was only going to serve as the initial version of the role, but was good enough that director Jon Watts kept her performance.

    Hampshire’s casting, though, suggests we’re likely to see a humanoid version of the tech.

    Related Article: Marvel’s Disney+ ‘Vision’ Series Adding Actor T’Nia Miller as Jocasta

    What’s the story of the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    There are no concrete plot details about the new show yet, but back when it was first mooted, there was talk of the “White” Vision looking to reclaim his memories, in a continuation of his storyline.

    After Vision died at the hands of Thanos in 2018’s ‘Avengers: Infinity War,’ he returned twice over in 2021’s ‘WandaVision,’ first as a spectral creation by his beloved, Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), through magic powered by grief; then as a rebuilt, nuts-and-bolts android with a ghost white appearance and zero memory of his past life.

    When the two Visions battled in the ‘WandaVision’ finale, Wanda’s Vision restored the “ghost” Vision’s memories, then Wanda allowed her Vision to fade from existence. The new show will take place after those events, as ghost Vision presumably explores his new purpose in life.

    Who is making the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Unlike last year’s ‘Agatha All Along’, (one of Marvel’s bigger successes in 2024) the new show is being handled by someone other than ‘WandaVision’ creator Jac Schaeffer.

    Marvel has hired Terry Matalas, who has worked on shows such as ’12 Monkeys’, ‘Terra Nova’, but rose to acclaim thanks to his efforts overseeing ‘Star Trek: Picard’ Season 3, which definitely pleased fans more than earlier seasons, to run the new ‘Vision’ series.

    His work on ‘Picard’ certainly caught the attention of avowed ‘Trek’ fan Kevin Feige, and so Matalas now has the job. The only people who might be upset are those eagerly awaiting the much-talked-about ‘Star Trek: Legacy’ show seemingly set up by the finale of ‘Picard’.

    Who else is in the ‘Vision’ series?

    James Spader as voice of Ultron in 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    James Spader as voice of Ultron in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    So far, we’ve learned that James Spader, who played the rampaging AI who caused so much trouble for the Avengers in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ and effectively created the original version of Vision, will once more be back in performance capture gear to play the speechifying villain.

    Known for playing stern authoritarian types and generally grouchy personalities (witness his superbly sarcastic –– but ultimately heroic –– Captain Liam Shaw in ‘Picard’), Todd Stashwick will be an assassin who is on the trail of the android and the technology he possesses.

    Faran Tahir will reprise the role of the villainous Raza, leader of the terrorist organization the Ten Rings who tried to kill Tony Stark in ‘Iron Man.’ Though quite how his connection to the Rings organization works in the wake of ‘Shang-Chi’ remains to be seen.

    Then we have Ruaridh Mollica, who will play a character named Tucker.

    And, most recently, ‘Foundation’s T’Nia Miller was added as Jocasta, described as cunning and vengeful, with a grudge against Ultron. In the comics, she is a robot Ultron builds to be his bride who eventually sides with the Avengers. We’d have to imagine that Matalas and his writers have some other ideas for her storyline in the show.

    Where else have we seen Emily Hampshire?

    (L to R) Sirena Gulamgaus, Emily Hampshire, and Enrico Colantoni in Caitlin Cronenberg's 'Humane.' Courtesy of Robin Cymbaly. An IFC Films & Shudder Release.
    (L to R) Sirena Gulamgaus, Emily Hampshire, and Enrico Colantoni in Caitlin Cronenberg’s ‘Humane.’ Courtesy of Robin Cymbaly. An IFC Films & Shudder Release.

    Hampshire played Stevie Budd for the entire run of ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ scoring plenty of acclaim, including several Canadian acting awards.

    But perhaps more pertinently for this series, she was also a key component of the cast for Matalas’ ‘12 Monkeys.’

    Other credits include movies such as ‘The Death & Life of John F. Donovan,’ ‘The End of Sex,’ ‘Self Reliance,’ ‘Humane’ and the upcoming crime comedy ‘Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice,’ which is currently in post-production awaiting a release date.

    When will the ‘Vision’ series land on our screens?

    Disney/Marvel is aiming to have the show arrive on Disney+ in 2026, with filming underway in the UK.

    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Other Movies and TV Shows Featuring Vision:

    Buy MCU Movies On Amazon

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  • ‘Vision’: T’Nia Miller Will Be Playing Jocasta

    T’Nia Miller in 'Foundation', now streaming on Apple TV+. Photo: Apple TV+.
    T’Nia Miller in ‘Foundation’, now streaming on Apple TV+. Photo: Apple TV+.

    Preview:

    • T’Nia Miller has joined the Marvel/Disney+ series ‘Vision.’
    • Paul Bettany is reprising his role from ‘WandaVision’ and the MCU movies.
    • Terry Matalas is running the show.

    While we still don’t know exactly whether Marvel’s second follow-up to ‘WandaVision’ (following ‘Agatha All Along’) is called ‘Vision Quest’ or simply ‘Vision,’ a better idea of the cast is beginning to come together.

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    Via scooper Daniel Richtman, word arrives that British actor T’Nia Miller is the latest addition to the new series, and she’ll be bringing to life a character named Jocasta, who is reportedly cunning and powerful, driven by revenge.

    She’s apparently a main character, and Miller joins Paul Bettany, who plays Vision on the Disney+ series.

    Related Article: James Spader’s Marauding Ultron Will be Back in Marvel’s Vision-focused series

    What’s the story of the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    There are no concrete plot details about the new show yet, but back when it was first mooted, there was talk of the “White” Vision looking to reclaim his memories, in a continuation of his storyline.

    After Vision died at the hands of Thanos in 2018’s ‘Avengers: Infinity War,’ he returned twice over in 2021’s ‘WandaVision,’ first as a spectral creation by his beloved, Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), through magic powered by grief; then as a rebuilt, nuts-and-bolts android with a ghost white appearance and zero memory of his past life.

    When the two Visions battled in the ‘WandaVision’ finale, Wanda’s Vision restored the “ghost” Vision’s memories, then Wanda allowed her Vision to fade from existence. The new show will take place after those events, as ghost Vision presumably explores his new purpose in life.

    Who is making the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Unlike last year’s ‘Agatha All Along’, (one of Marvel’s bigger successes in 2024) the new show is being handled by someone other than ‘WandaVision’ creator Jac Schaeffer.

    Marvel has hired Terry Matalas, who has worked on shows such as ’12 Monkeys’, ‘Terra Nova’, but rose to acclaim thanks to his efforts overseeing ‘Star Trek: Picard’ Season 3, which definitely pleased fans more than earlier seasons, to run the new ‘Vision’ series.

    His work on ‘Picard’ certainly caught the attention of avowed ‘Trek’ fan Kevin Feige, and so Matalas now has the job. The only people who might be upset are those eagerly awaiting the much-talked-about ‘Star Trek: Legacy’ show seemingly set up by the finale of ‘Picard’.

    Who else is in the ‘Vision’ series?

    James Spader as voice of Ultron in 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    James Spader as voice of Ultron in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    So far, we’ve learned that James Spader, who played the rampaging AI who caused so much trouble for the Avengers in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ and effectively created the original version of Vision, will once more be back in performance capture gear to play the speechifying villain.

    Known for playing stern authoritarian types and generally grouchy personalities (witness his superbly sarcastic –– but ultimately heroic –– Captain Liam Shaw in ‘Picard’), Todd Stashwick will be an assassin who is on the trail of the android and the technology he possesses.

    Faran Tahir will reprise the role of the villainous Raza, leader of the terrorist organization the Ten Rings who tried to kill Tony Stark in ‘Iron Man.’ Though quite how his connection to the Rings organization works in the wake of ‘Shang-Chi’ remains to be seen.

    Then we have Ruaridh Mollica, who will play a character named Tucker.

    Marvel Comics character Jocasta. Photo: Marvel.com.
    Marvel Comics character Jocasta. Photo: Marvel.com.

    And in case you need bringing up to speed on how Jocasta will fit into the story, in the comic books, she is a robot Ultron builds to be his bride who eventually sides with the Avengers. We’d have to imagine that Matalas and his writers have some other ideas for her storyline in the show.

    Still, the idea of the character as someone with a grudge to bear against Ultron and the power to carry it out certainly has appeal.

    Where else have we seen T’Nia Miller?

    (L to R) Laura Birn and T’Nia Miller in 'Foundation,' now streaming on Apple TV+.
    (L to R) Laura Birn and T’Nia Miller in ‘Foundation,’ now streaming on Apple TV+.

    Miller has appeared in movies including ‘Obey’ and ‘Dark Corners,’ but might be better known for her work on small screens.

    She’s popped up in shows such as ‘Doctor Who,’ ‘Sex Education,’ ‘The Peripheral,’ ‘The Diplomat,’ ‘Gangs of London,’ ‘Foundation,’ and two of Mike Flanagan’s Netflix horror series, ‘The Haunting of Bly Manner’ and ‘The Fall of the House of Usher.’

    When will the ‘Vision’ series land on our screens?

    Disney/Marvel is aiming to have the show arrive on Disney+ in 2026, with filming underway in the UK.

    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

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  • Todd Stashwick join Marvel’s ‘Vision’ Series

    Todd Stashwick as Captain Liam Shaw in 'Star Trek: Picard' on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Trae Patton/Paramount+. ©2021 Viacom, International Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    Todd Stashwick as Captain Liam Shaw in ‘Star Trek: Picard’ on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Trae Patton/Paramount+. ©2021 Viacom, International Inc. All Rights Reserved.

    Preview:

    • Todd Stashwick is joining the cast of Marvel’s ‘Vision’ series.
    • It marks a reunion for him with ‘Picard’ showrunner Terry Matalas.
    • Paul Bettany returns as the title character.

    Looks like Terry Matalas, the showrunner for Marvel’s next spin-off from ‘WandaVision,’ is looking to work once more with one of his veteran actors.

    Todd Stashwick, who was first cast by Matalas in the ‘12 Monkeys’ TV series, recently reunited with the writer/producer for ‘Star Trek: Picard’.

    And now he’s landed a key role in the still-to-be-officially-titled series built around Paul Bettany’s Vision character, which we recently learned will also feature the return of James Spader as villainous AI Ultron.

    It’ll mark the second spinoff, following ‘Agatha All Along,’ which arrives on Disney+ on September 18th.

    ZYrKLdPjgzbRDTJ7q3EfX6

    What’s the story of the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    There are no concrete plot details about the new show yet, but back when it was first mooted, there was talk of the “White” Vision looking to reclaim his memories, in a continuation of his storyline.

    After Vision died at the hands of Thanos in 2018’s ‘Avengers: Infinity War,’ he returned twice over in 2021’s ‘WandaVision,’ first as a spectral creation by his beloved, Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), through magic powered by grief; then as a rebuilt, nuts-and-bolts android with a ghost white appearance and zero memory of his past life.

    When the two Visions battled in the ‘WandaVision’ finale, Wanda’s Vision restored the “ghost” Vision’s memories, then Wanda allowed her Vision to fade from existence. The new show will take place after those events, as ghost Vision presumably explores his new purpose in life.

    Related Article: James Spader’s Marauding Ultron Will be Back in Marvel’s Vision-focused series

    Who is making the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Unlike ‘Agatha All Along’ (which will be on Disney+ with its first two episodes on September 18th), the new show is being handled by someone other than ‘WandaVision’ creator Jac Schaeffer.

    Marvel has hired Terry Matalas, who has worked on shows such as ’12 Monkeys’, ‘Terra Nova’, but rose to acclaim thanks to his efforts overseeing ‘Star Trek: Picard’ Season 3, which definitely pleased fans more than earlier seasons, to run the new ‘Vision’ series.

    His work on ‘Picard’ certainly caught the attention of avowed ‘Trek’ fan Kevin Feige, and so Matalas now has the job. The only people who might be upset are those eagerly awaiting the much-talked-about ‘Star Trek: Legacy’ show seemingly set up by the finale of ‘Picard’.

    Who will Stashwick play in the Vision series?

    Todd Stashwick as Captain Liam Shaw in 'Star Trek: Picard' on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Trae Patton/Paramount+. ©2021 Viacom, International Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    Todd Stashwick as Captain Liam Shaw in ‘Star Trek: Picard’ on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Trae Patton/Paramount+. ©2021 Viacom, International Inc. All Rights Reserved.

    Known for playing stern authoritarian types and generally grouchy personalities (witness his superbly sarcastic –– but ultimately heroic –– Captain Liam Shaw in ‘Picard’), Stashwick here will be an assassin who is on the trail of the android and the technology he possesses.

    When will the ‘Vision’ series land on our screens?

    Disney/Marvel is aiming to have the show arrive on Disney+ in 2026, with shooting penciled in for early next year in the U.K.

    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Other Movies and TV Shows Featuring Vision:

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  • James Spader to Return as Ultron for Marvel’s Vision Series

    James Spader as voice of Ultron in 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    James Spader as voice of Ultron in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    Preview:

    • James Spader will be back in performance capture gear as Ultron.
    • The ‘Age of Ultron’ villain will reappear for Marvel’s series focused on Vision.
    • Paul Bettany returns as the title character.

    If we’re honest, while ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ didn’t quite match up to ‘The Avengers’, there’s no denying that James Spader’s wholehearted and often kooky performance as the rogue artificial intelligence Ultron was certainly an entertaining reason to watch it.

    And despite his seeming destruction at the end of the movie (more on that below), Marvel is looking to bring him back for the new ‘Vision’ series spun-off from ‘WandaVision’ that will see Paul Bettany retuning as the android hero.

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    What’s the story of the ‘Vision’ series?

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    There are no concrete plot details about the new show yet, but back when it was first mooted, there was talk of the “White” Vision looking to reclaim his memories, in a continuation of his storyline.

    After Vision died at the hands of Thanos in 2018’s ‘Avengers: Infinity War,’ he returned twice over in 2021’s ‘WandaVision,’ first as a spectral creation by his beloved, Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), through magic powered by grief; then as a rebuilt, nuts-and-bolts android with a ghost white appearance and zero memory of his past life.

    When the two Visions battled in the ‘WandaVision’ finale, Wanda’s Vision restored the “ghost” Vision’s memories, then Wanda allowed her Vision to fade from existence. The new show will take place after those events, as ghost Vision presumably explores his new purpose in life.

    Who is making the ‘Vision’ series?

    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    (L to R) Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Unlike ‘Agatha All Along’ (which will be on Disney+ with its first two episodes on September 18th), the new show is being handled by someone other than ‘WandaVision’ creator Jac Schaeffer.

    Marvel has hired Terry Matalas, who has worked on shows such as ’12 Monkeys’, ‘Terra Nova’, but rose to acclaim thanks to his efforts overseeing ‘Star Trek: Picard’ Season 3, which definitely pleased fans more than earlier seasons, to run the new ‘Vision’ series.

    His work on ‘Picard’ certainly caught the attention of avowed ‘Trek’ fan Kevin Feige, and so Matalas now has the job. The only people who might be upset are those eagerly awaiting the much-talked-about ‘Star Trek: Legacy’ show seemingly set up by the finale of ‘Picard’.

    Related Article: Marvel Officially Orders ‘WandaVision’ Spin-Off Led by Paul Bettany

    How will Ultron factor in?

    James Spader as voice of Ultron in 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'. Photo: Marvel Studios.
    James Spader as voice of Ultron in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’. Photo: Marvel Studios.

    With zero plot getting loose from Marvel’s security field, the exact nature of Ultron’s appearance in the show is unknown for now.

    But they certainly have history.

    Ultron created Vision’s original synthetic body as the permanent home for his AI, but the Avengers intercepted it and instead placed Tony Stark’s AI assistant J.A.R.V.I.S. inside, creating Vision. At the end of ‘Age of Ultron,’ Vision confronts and, seemingly, destroys the final robot that contains Ultron’s consciousness.

    Whether the casting suggests some fragment of Ultron survived in the world or is somehow locked inside of Vision’s mind given their connection, we’ll have to wait and see.

    When will the ‘Vision’ series land on our screens?

    Disney/Marvel is aiming to have the show arrive on Disney+ in 2026.

    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios' 'Wandavision' exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
    Paul Bettany as The Vision in Marvel Studios’ ‘Wandavision’ exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.

    Other Movies and TV Shows Featuring Vision:

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  • 22 Things You Didn’t Know About ‘Mannequin’

    Nothing’s gonna stop us now… from celebrating the 30th anniversary of “Mannequin.”

    Since its release three decades ago (on Feb. 13, 1987), Andrew McCarthy and Kim Cattrall‘s “Pygmalion” update about a window dresser who falls for a living department store dummy, has become a cult romantic comedy favorite. Still, there’s a lot you may not know about this ’80s time capsule, from how it was cast to its unlikely trip to the Oscars.
    1. Like his protagonist, co-writer/director Michael Gottlieb got his start in the world of fashion, first as a photographer, then as a commercial director.

    2. He claimed he got the idea for “Mannequin” in 1982 while walking past the window of New York’s Bergdorf Goodman department store and thinking he might have seen the dummy moving.
    3. “Mannequin” would become Gottlieb’s first screenplay (co-written with Edward Rugoff) and his feature directing debut.

    4. Of course, he might also have gotten the idea from the Greek myth of Pygmalion and Galatea, the story of a sculptor who falls for his creation. Or from the 1948 movie “One Touch of Venus,” a musical comedy starring Ava Gardner that set the tale in a modern-day department store. G.W. Bailey, who played security guard Felix Maxwell in “Mannequin,” cited the Gardner film as the 1987 comedy’s inspiration.
    5. Gottlieb is the younger brother of Carl Gottlieb, who co-wrote the screenplay to “Jaws” and played the reporter in the classic shark tale.

    6. If “Mannequin” seems a little formulaic to you, that’s no accident. It was the first movie produced by Hollywood market research guru Joseph Farrell, who perfected the system of focus groups and test audiences that studios often use to tweak films and make them more commercial.
    7. Most notoriously, it was his research that led to the dramatically altered ending in “Fatal Attraction,” setting up a bloody confrontation between Michael Douglas and Glenn Close instead of having her frame him for her own death.

    8. “Mannequin” is the rare Hollywood romance where the lead actress is older than the lead actor. Kim Cattrall was 30 and fresh off “Big Trouble in Little China” when she played Emmy in “Mannequin.” McCarthy was just 24.
    9. Brat Packer Andrew McCarthy had just starred in “Pretty in Pink,” but he wasn’t considered a big box office draw before “Mannequin” went into production. Still, Farrell determined that he had strong appeal to the young girls he’d designated as the film’s target market, so McCarthy won the lead role of Jonathan.

    10. The comedy marked the second time McCarthy had co-starred with James Spader (who played Jonathan’s nemesis, Richards). They’d appeared in “Pretty in Pink” a year earlier. Later in 1987, they’d reunite again in “Less Than Zero.”
    11. McCarthy and Spader weren’t the only stars who had worked together before. Cattrall and Bailey had co-starred in “Police Academy.”

    12. To make the mannequins used in the movie, Cattrall sat for a Santa Monica sculptor for six weeks. The filmmakers used six different dummies, each with a different facial expression.
    13. Designing Women,” when he was cast as Jonathan’s gay pal, Hollywood Montrose.

    14. The filmmakers scouted department stores all over the country before settling on Philadelphia’s John Wanamaker’s, one of the oldest department stores in America, to play the role of Prince’s department store. (It’s still there today, but now it’s a Macy’s.)
    15. The Golden Girls,” when she was cast as store owner Claire Timkin. It was the first major movie role for the 63-year-old actress.

    16. As it turned out, Carole Davis, who played Jonathan’s ex-girlfriend, Roxie, had worked with the real Prince. She was a singer who had co-composed with Prince the song “Slow Love” for his 1987 “Sign o’ The Times” album.
    17. “Mannequin” cost $7.9 million to make. It earned back $43 million, making it the 27th biggest hit of 1987.

    18. Despite scathing reviews, “Mannequin” did earn one Oscar nomination, for Best Song, for Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now.” The tune became a Billboard No. 1 single by April 1987, but it ultimately lost the Academy Award to “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” from “Dirty Dancing.”19. The song marked the first nomination for composer and power-ballad empress Diane Warren; she’s been nominated eight times over the past three decades but has yet to win.

    20. For all the film’s success, “Mannequin” didn’t do much for Cattrall’s career. She auditioned for the role in 1987’s “Sex and the City.”
    21. No one from the original film, except Taylor, returned for the 1991 sequel, “Mannequin: On the Move.” This time, the dummy-come-to-life was yet another “Pretty in Pink” alum, Kristy Swanson.

    22. In 2010, there was talk of a “Mannequin” remake; in keeping with the times, the updated romance would be about a man who falls in love with a hologram. So far, the reboot has yet to materialize.

  • Ryan Eggold Declassifies the Secrets of ‘The Blacklist: Redemption’

    Entertainment Weekly & People Upfronts Party 2016 - ArrivalsThe blacklist is about to get a little longer.

    Fans of “The Blacklist” got a glimpse at new corners of the covert thriller’s expanded world last season, when Ryan Eggold‘s Tom Keen (or whatever his name actually might be) encountered private mercenary contractor Scottie Hargrave (Famke Janssen), a formidable, shadowy force in her own right and the woman who may or may not be Tom’s birth mother.

    The episode “Alexander Kirk” served as a successful backdoor pilot for the hotly anticipated spinoff series “The Blacklist: Redemption,” which launches on NBC on a still-top-secret date early next year and will unite Tom and Scottie once again as he joins forces with her Grey Matters organization and also delves into the mysteries surrounding his own murky past.

    And while much of the direction new series remains as enigmatic as Tom’s origins, Eggold hosted a debriefing session with Moviefone to unveil many of the behind the scenes secrets of the spinoff.

    Moviefone: It must be a fun experience for you to see the world of “The Blacklist” get bigger, and to be right at the heart of that expansion. What got you excited about the prospect of doing this?

    Ryan Eggold: I will tell you truthfully what excites me about the new show is that we could do a show about espionage, and classically so. I’ve got high hopes for it, and I know [“Blacklist” creator] Mission Impossible” TV show.

    We want to do a show that’s like that. We want to do Jason Bourne and those things, but more so than the action, and the fun and all that stuff, which I really want to have because that stuff makes a great show, that classic spy stuff. If we could get into that, then it’s not like we’d be getting into brand-new territory, but we’d getting into a genre that I think hasn’t been really explored so much recently. Or, like the Jack Ryan novels, or just like world. That’d be really fun.

    For you, to do that show, and kind of have that distinct identity, what’s the link that still keeps it “The Blacklist”? What’s that element that keeps it firmly in the franchise?

    Well, a couple of things. First, the question of Scottie and Tom, whether or not she’s his mother — it comes out at the beginning that she is, and we think that’s the truth, and I think that may end up sticking to be the truth. Of course, it’s “The Blacklist” so it may not be!

    But the thing that makes that — “The Blacklist” work, and the thing that this will carry over that I really love is the thematic juxtaposition of discovering one’s humanity and empathy, and connecting with other human beings and wanting relationships, and wanting love and these fundamental human principles, juxtaposed with violence and deception, and corruption and conspiracy, and power and all of that. Those two things meeting together will be, I think, what is the element that crosses over, which is what I like about the show.

    For you, did you have to adjust the way you play this guy? Were there any tweaks that you had to make to move Tom into this new context? Or, are you pretty much picking him right up out of the mothership and dropping him into the new one?

    I would love to let him evolve. My only goal when we shot this sort of back door pilot was to maybe be a little more specific in my choices and maybe try to flesh out this character a little more than I have, and maybe ask myself what’s left to know about this guy. And what have we not done, and maybe get more specific on who he is.

    And then, with the new show, discovering his origins, and why he was orphaned, and if this woman cared or didn’t care, or was protecting him, or wanted him dead, or truly doesn’t know that he’s her son, and she was taken away from him. All those answers to those questions will be so informative — and for me, what I love about the character is just a guy who was abandoned as a kid, who was trained to be really good at one thing, which is manipulation and violence and being a spy, and is now trying to figure out what it is to be a person, as opposed to a tool or a device, or a mechanism, you know? And that’s what I want to get into on the new show.

    Do you get to keep any kind of toe in the mothership show? Do they pop you in and out?

    I think so, yes. I think there will be a good deal of crossover, certainly to start. And then, ideally, the show will develop its own legs and have its own identity. I mean, this sounds probably somewhat cliché, but we want to do that thing where we can introduce the show in a way that if you’re not a fan of “The Blacklist,” you can watch it, and if you are a fan of “The Blacklist,” it will have more sort of tidbits for you that you’ll recognize and things like that.

    How is it building that rapport with your TV maybe-mom, Famke Janssen?

    Yeah, I’ve got to tell you, man, it’s awesome. Famke is terrific. She’s very talented. She’s very sexy. She’s very good at this character. She’s got smart ideas and, most importantly, she is very fun to work with, and she is a great collaborator, and she is easy-going in a way, and she very simply wants to make a good show.

    And so it’s just a lot of fun, truly, to work with her, because she wants to play with good ideas, and she’s excited about the prospect and about the possibility of making an interesting show. So she’s there for the right reasons, and she’s great.

    Is the show sort of built for her to bring her own version of electricity in a way that “The Blacklist” was for James Spader? Does she get to have or be that kind of electric center of every thing that’s happening?

    I think, very much so, they want her to carve out that space of being the sort of master manipulator and being enigmatic, and being contradictory and all those things that make Red interesting, and that they don’t want to do a carbon-copy of Red, but they want it to be Famke’s version of a sort of power player like that, or whatever you want to call it, and in this case someone behind the scenes sort of pulling the strings, making empires rise and fall, manipulating governments, things like that, and how sort of that Blackwater-type espionage comes into play.

    And I think on “The Blacklist,” the dynamic between the two of them will be focused like it is between Red and Liz. But, yeah, man. They want to write a great character for her, and she wants to help create it, and she’s going to kill it!

    I imagine going to work on “The Blacklist,” surrounded by great actors, must have been a little bit of a free Master Class, being paid to watch Spader play Red. What are the lessons that you learned that you’d like to apply and translate into your own performances?

    You know, one thing I like that James does, that a lot of good actors do, is they don’t feel compelled to speak all the time. I think a lot of more novice actors have to be on the line always, and as soon as your line is done it’s my line, and James — like so many good actors — will sit in silence, or with a look, or with a mood, or with a feeling or a thought and not feel compelled to speak or to say something, or even do anything. And I think that comfortability and that sitting in a moment, that’s something I admire and hopefully would like to steal.

    With the espionage aspect, how have you gotten to broaden your skill set, physically? What are the fun things that you’re going to be able to do with your character that you haven’t maybe had room in “the Blacklist”?

    Well, one thing is that I’d like to make the — if we’re going to do a show about a spy who is a highly-trained assassin, I’d like to make him as much of that, honestly, as we can. So, I’d like to train a little bit, if I could, and maybe get better at martial arts, the Israeli martial art Krav Maga, which is very interesting, or different fighting styles, and just sort of train a little bit.

    And, obviously, I’m not going to be joining the UFC tomorrow, but I would love to — and I’ve learned a great deal doing “The Blacklist” and just rehearsing fight scenes and doing them, but I still consider myself a novice in the world of fight choreography and things. I’m very riveted by it. I mean, it’s fun. When you’re in acting class, or whatever, when you’re a kid, you do a dialogue and this stuff is so something else. It’s so physical and more athletic and it’s really fun. So I’d like to get better. I’d like to train and get better at that.

    What was the conversation like when they first broached the idea of taking you to another show? How did they approach you, and what was your immediate reaction to it?

    John Bokenkamp took me out to grab a bite. I was in L.A., and he just said, “Hey, man, I want you to know that like there’s an idea that we’re all talking about, and that’s this show kind of based on your character, and it might happen.” And my first thought was, “Man, that could be so fun. There’s so much to explore with this character. We could really do some fun things, but it’ll never happen,” you know?

    It’s like, it’s Hollywood, everybody wants to do a million things, and there’s a lot of talk, and I was like “It’ll never happen.” And then a few months later they were like, “Let’s do it,” and I was like, “Wow! OK — great. Let’s do it. I’m in!”

    Have you ever had the opportunity to talk to somebody who works in the shadowy world of espionage, anybody that does it as a real vocation? And, if so, how do you find them?

    Exactly, how do you find them? I’ve spoken to police officers. I have spoken to FBI, but I’ve never spoken to, like, a real NSA guy, or a CIA guy, or a real-type spy. The closest I came was one of my parents’ neighbors, actually: her husband was a spy, was a real, actual spy. She’s an older woman, and this man — I believe he’s not with us anymore — he was an actual spy during the Cold War. He was in Russia, spying for the United States, and in real life!

    And, so, obviously she couldn’t tell people. She didn’t know, but she only knew that he would tell her this was when he’d be back, or he’d have to leave, or yada yada — and that was just to get the peripheral experience from her of being married to this man who would go to Russia during the height of this tension and pretend to be someone else, and gain information. I mean, it was really cool to be near the reality of it, and to speak with actually him or someone like that would be amazing.

    What will you miss most about being part of the main “Blacklist” series on a regular basis?

    One of the things I will miss most, hands down, is working with Megan [Boone], because the relationship with Tom and Liz is so complicated, and so romantic on some levels, and kind of funny, and sort of tragic in other ways, and I just really enjoy it, and I enjoy working with her, and I enjoy finding new things to bring to that relationship.

    I enjoy trying to find the truth in it. Even though it’s in this heightened dramatic world, I like looking for the things that we can all relate to in our personal romantic relationships because they’re all fundamentally the same, those problems and things. It’s just on a heightened more dramatic more elevated scale.

    So I will certainly miss that, but you know that relationship I don’t think is going to go away. I think there will be some crossover with Megan on the new thing, and vice versa. So, certainly that, and then just everybody. But I’m not going to be totally jumping ship. I’ll be back before too long.

    “The Blacklist: Redemption” premieres in 2017. “The Blacklist” airs Thursdays on NBC.

  • ‘Pretty in Pink’: 15 Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know About the John Hughes Classic

    Sportsphoto/AllstarThirty years have passed since the release of “Pretty in Pink” (on February 28, 1986), and yet we’re still bewildered by the teen romance’s climax.

    Maybe we need to think of the John Hughes-scripted film as Gen X’s own “Casablanca.” The ending makes more sense if you think of Duckie (Jon Cryer) as Humphrey Bogart, letting the woman he loves (Molly Ringwald‘s Andie) go off with the dull-but-decent guy (Andrew McCarthy‘s Blane) because he’s finally admitted to himself that he’s a chivalrous romantic who values her happiness above his own. Yeah, it’s a stretch, but it’s just one of many interpretations to spin out of this Hughes classic.

    In honor of the film turning the big three-0, here are 15 surprising facts about the best movie ever named after a Psychedelic Furs song.
    1. Hughes wrote the role of Andie Walsh for Ringwald, but even though she’d starred in his hits “Sixteen Candles” and “The Breakfast Club,” Paramount initially wanted someone the studio perceived as a bigger star: Jennifer Beals. Fortunately for posterity, Beals said no.

    2. Before he made his feature directing debut on “Pink,” Howard Deutch was best known for directing music videos for such stars as Billy Idol and Billy Joel.
    3. Hughes and Deutch almost chose the then-little-known Charlie Sheen to play Blane. But Ringwald told them she preferred McCarthy, saying, “That’s the kind of guy I would fall in love with.” Sheen, of course, ended up with a small but key role that same year in Hughes’ “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”

    4. The filmmakers wanted Anthony Michael Hall for Duckie, but he’d done four John Hughes films in two years — two of them with Ringwald — and didn’t want to repeat himself. Fisher Stevens auditioned for Duckie as well before the producers hired Jon Cryer.
    5. Cryer (pictured left) was not Ringwald’s ideal Duckie. She wanted Robert Downey Jr., then a little-known actor who’d played one of the bullies in Hughes’ “Weird Science.” She felt she had more romantic chemistry with him than with Cryer. In fact, she even suggested, a few years ago, that Cryer’s Duckie might secretly be closeted, and that if the movie were made now, he’d be the gay best friend instead of the romantic rival. Ringwald finally got to romance Downey in 1987, when they co-starred in “The Pick-Up Artist.”

    6. Cryer didn’t get along well with Ringwald or McCarthy during the shoot. “I think they were irritated by me from day one,” he said last year. As for the gay-best-friend vibe he gave off, Cryer has said he understands. He often calls himself “an effeminate heterosexual dork” in interviews. Even his wife, entertainment reporter Lisa Joyner, has said she thought Cryer was gay when they first became friends.
    7. James Spader proved he deserved the part of Steff by behaving obnoxiously at the audition. He arrived smoking a cigarette and stubbed it out on the floor. During the shoot, however, Cryer remembered him as “perfectly friendly and lovely to work with.”

    8. Anjelica Huston and Tracey Ullman were both up for the role of record-store manager Iona. Huston turned the role down, while Ullman had yet to master the flat Midwestern American accent.
    9. Hughes ultimately chose Annie Potts to play Iona because he liked her performance in “Ghostbusters.”

    10. Duckie’s record-store dance, where he lip-syncs to Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness,” wasn’t in the script. During his audition, Cryer had done a similar routine, performing both Michael Jackson’s and Mick Jagger’s parts in “State of Shock.” Deutch wanted to have Cryer move like Jagger to the tune of the Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up,” but the filmmakers couldn’t get the rights. Deutch ultimately picked the Redding chestnut and hired no less than choreographer Kenny Ortega (“Dirty Dancing“) to plot Cryer’s dance steps.11. As most “Pink” fans know, the film originally ended with Andie and Duckie getting together, but test audiences rejected that ending, so McCarthy had to return well after the film wrapped to shoot an Andie-and-Blane ending.

    12. But what fans may not know is why McCarthy looks so different in the sequence. Turns out he’d gone on to act in a play, “The Boys of Winter,” for which he had shaved his head, so for the reshoot, he had to wear a wig. He’d also lost a lot of weight for the play and is noticeably more gaunt than in the rest of the film.

    13. The initial ending had been scored to Orchestral Manoeuvers in the Dark’s “Goddess of Love,” but the new ending required a new song. When OMD received the request for a new track, the band was just two days away from going on tour. In 24 hours, the band wrote and recorded the swoony “If You Leave,” which made the sequence and became OMD’s biggest hit.14. Other now-classic songs composed for the movie include Suzanne Vega’s “Left of Center,” New Order’s “Shellshock,” and Echo and the Bunnymen’s “Bring on the Dancing Horses.”

    15. “Pretty in Pink” cost a reported $9 million to make. It earned back $40.5 million in North America.
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  • 8 Times James Spader Was the Baddest Bad Boy of Them All

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    James Spader has been playing Hollywood’s baddest bad boys since the ’80s, and we can’t get enough. Whether he’s popping up on TV or in a movie, we find ourselves drawn in to his deliciously smirky ways. We’re just a pair of star-crossed lovers, it seems.

    Here are 8 of Spader’s baddest bad-boy moments that we’ll never forget.

  • Recap of ‘The Blacklist’ Season 3 Episode 2: Tom Is Back!

    Last time we checked in on “The Blacklist,” Liz Keen had box-dyed her hair a freakishly gorgeous shade of blonde (seriously, what is this dye she’s using?), and was chilling at the Russian embassy — because lest you forget she’s identifying as a FSB agent these days. So, did everyone’s favorite FBI profiler make it to the Mother Land? Not so much. Keep reading to find out what happened to Liz, plus details on Tom Keen’s return from the beyond. (He’s baa-aaaack!)

    Liz Joins Team Russia, Promptly Re-Joins Team USA
    So, Liz’s plan completely fails the moment she crosses into Russia’s embassy. Like, it could not have been more of a failure. The good news is she barters diplomatic immunity using her wit and charm, but the bad news is that her contact is secretly a cabal member, who definitely wants to kill her on the airplane over to Moscow. So, all in all not a great day for Liz.

    Red Takes a Bunch of Randoms Hostage, Ressler Remains Confused
    As we all know, Ressler is the worst FBI agent of all time, and he basically has no idea what he’s doing with himself. Sure, he manages to save Liz by intercepting her ride to the airport, but then he loses her because he has no idea how to run / use his legs. Since Ressler never learned how to chase people, Liz manages to book it over to a coffee shop where she finds Red — but it’s only a few minutes before Ressler shows up and ruins everything. Poor Red’s forced to take everyone hostage due to Ressler’s ineptitude, but he gets a few demands in for good measure. Most important among them? Bring in corrupt lawyer, Marvin Gerard, or a hostage dies every half hour.

    Ressler Continues to Be Terrible at His Job, Miraculously Hasn’t Been Fired
    Spoiler alert: Red is a genius. Turns out he set up the entire hostage situation as a jail break, conning Ressler into getting him a lawyer in the process. Oh, Ress. One day you’ll get better at this job! While we don’t know what purpose Gerard will serve this season, we do know that Liz and Red have set sail to lands unknown. We can only assume they’re traveling to Europe to buy Red some more fedoras.

    Two Words: TOM KEEN
    The best day of your life is here: Tom Keen is back on “The Blacklist,” and showed up just to chat with Ressler. Who knows what these two could have to talk about other than their mutual crush on Liz, but maybe they’ll actually get something done for once. Either way we’re excited — though the fact that Dembe is currently being tortured in a warehouse is kind of putting a damper on things. Will he crack and give the cabal Red’s location? Probably, because the sock weapon he was repeatedly hit with doesn’t look like fun times.

    Burning Questions….
    1. Where are Liz and Red going? We know Red has connections everywhere, but they can’t just peace out to another country without anyone noticing, right?

    2. What does Tom want with Ressler? We assume he’s Team Liz, so hopefully he’s there to change Ressler’s mind. Expect lots of awkwardness since both these men are clearly in love with The Blacklist’s leading lady.

    3. Is Dembe OK? Because we’re getting worried.

    4. Who is in charge of the cabal and what do they want with Red — other than to seek revenge for exposing The Fulcrum?
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