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Tag: karl-urban

CinemaCon 2026: Warner Bros. Presentation
Tom Cruise for ‘Digger’ at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.

Preview:
- Warner Bros. has made its big presentation to the 2026 CinemaCon crowd.
- Among the movies touted were ‘Supergirl’ and ‘Dune: Part III’
- The likes of Tom Cruise and James Gunn showed up to lobby exhibitors.
After a hugely successful 2026 in terms of both box office and awards, Warner Bros. arrives at CinemaCon with a bigger story looming over its head –– the future. With the Paramount merger inching closer, there will of course be questions about the new regime’s plans, even as the likes of David Ellison maintain that the studio’s output will be boosted.
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But the focus, of course, will be on the movies headed our way from the studio, including a couple of DC Studios offerings (‘Supergirl’ and ‘Clayface’), Denis Villeneuve’s new ‘Dune’ entry and that rare beast, a non-‘Mission: Impossible’ job for Tom Cruise in Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s ‘Digger’.

Related Article: 5 Things We Learned At The ‘Supergirl’ Teaser Trailer Press Conference

Host Patton Oswalt at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.

With Patton Oswalt as the host (who joked that he wanted to join the DC Universe), this is what was presented…

Before any of the big announcements, we got word from Warner Bros. film bosses Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy that the studio is launching a new label called Warner Clockwork, whose first production is ‘Anora’ director Sean Baker‘s next project, ‘Te Amo!’.

A sizzle reel celebrating last year’s accomplishments was followed by an even more exciting one for 2027, including some big casting news dropped for ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum’…

We’ve been waiting for you, precious. The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum only in theaters 17 December 2027. pic.twitter.com/FuD8Bh8cpl

— Warner Bros. (@warnerbros) April 15, 2026

‘Digger’

(L to R) Tom Cruise and director Alejandro G. Iñárritu for ‘Digger’ at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.

Tom Cruise and Alejandro G. Iñárritu kick off the 2026 portion of the show with their collaboration, ‘Digger’. Cruise heaped praise on his director, with the filmmaker explaining that he got the idea for the new movie nine years ago and started discussing it with the actor seven years ago. Cruise, according to him was the only choice.

The movie tells of most powerful man in the world as he embarks on a frantic mission to prove he is humanity’s savior before the disaster he’s unleashed destroys everything.
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‘The End of Oak Street’

(L to R) Ewan McGregor as Greg Platt, Christian Convery as Brian Platt, Maisy Stella as Audrey Platt and Anne Hathaway as Denise Platt in in ‘The End of Oak Street’, a Warner Bros. Pictures Release. Photo Credit: Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures.

The new thriller from David Robert Mitchell (‘It Follows’) is a suburban supernatural story produced by J.J. Abrams.

It features the Platt family, who band together to navigate their new surroundings after a cosmic event transports their suburban neighborhood to someplace unknown. Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor lead the cast, but the presentation was mostly an extended trailer.
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‘Evil Dead Burn’

Logo for ‘Evil Dead Burn.’ Photo: New Line.

The New Line segment was kicked off with the next ‘Evil Dead’ movie, this one directed by Sébastien Vanicek, but again it was largely limited to some early footage, which featured some familiar ideas, including the Book of the Dead.
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‘Mortal Kombat II’

(Right) Karl Urban as Johnny Cage in ‘Mortal Kombat 2’. Photo: Warner Bros.

The video game adaptation’s sequel showed off a typically action-packed scene featuring Karl Urban‘s Johnny Cage in action.
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‘The Cat in the Hat’

A scene from 2026’s ‘The Cat in the Hat’. Photo: Warner Bros.

The audience were all supplied with Thing wigs, trumpeting the arrival of a trailer for the new animated take on the Dr. Seuss classic. This one features Bill Hader as the voice of the cat.
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‘Clayface’

DC Comics’ Clayface. Photo: DC Comics.

Next up was DC Studios, with producer and co-CEO Peter Safran on stage to introduce it (director and co-chief James Gunn is a little busy, as production on the ‘Superman’ follow-up ‘Man of Tomorrow’ starts next week.

The first project to cover was ‘Clayface’, about the Batman antagonist, which Safran described as more focused on character than genre. He showed off the first footage from the movie.
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‘Supergirl’

(L to R) Jason Momoa, director Craig Gillespie, Milly Alcock, and producer Peter Safran for ‘Supergirl’ at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.

While we have to wait until October for ‘Clayface’, the next DC Studios film out of the gate is ‘Supergirl’, starring Milly Alcock as Superman’s wilder cousin. She, director Craig Gillespie and co-star Jason Momoa (playing outer space vigilante Lobo) took the stage to talk up the film –– Momoa on a motorcycle! A new scene from the movie was screened.
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‘Practical Magic 2’

(L to R) Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock for ‘Practical Magic 2’ at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.

Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock showed up to tout the witchy sequel, mentioning their shared appreciation for director Susanne Bier and how the production rebuilt the original movie’s house. What can we expect? “Midnight margaritas, jumping off the roof, and also have our past catching up with us,” according to Kidman. “We have our destinies, and the family. I think it’s going to be really, really fun.”

After some talk about how the characters are inspiring, the first teaser trailer was shown.
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‘Dune: Part Three’

Timothée Chalamet for ‘Dune: Part Three’ at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.

The big finish was, somewhat naturally, the new ‘Dune’, with director Denis Villeneuve taking the stage accompanied by Fremen warriors. Villeneuve said he made the movie “1,000%” for the fans, and the audience was treated to the first seven minutes of the movie.

Accompanied by the likes of Zendaya, Momoa and notorious opera-disliker Timothée Chalamet, Villeneuve showed off a battle scene that promises some suitably epic action.
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And that’s all, folks!

(L to R) Tom Cruise and Jason Momoa at CinemaCon 2026. Photo Credit: David Jon @davidjonphotography.
April 14, 2026
‘Safe House’ Exclusive Interview: Lewis Tan
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Available in theaters, on digital and On-Demand beginning October 31st is the new action movie ‘Safe House’, which was directed by Jamie Marshall, and stars Lewis Tan (‘Mortal Kombat’), Hannah John-Kamen (‘Thunderbolts*’), Ethan Embry (‘That Thing You Do!’), and Holt McCallany (‘Shot Caller’).
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Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Lewis Tan about his work on ‘Safe House’, his first reaction to the screenplay, working with the cast, shooting the action sequences and collaborating on set with director Jamie Marshall.

Lewis Tan in ‘Safe House’. Photo: Vertical.

Tan also discussed his work on the upcoming ‘Mortal Kombat II’, Karl Urban joining the cast as Johnny Cage, and if we will see Shatterstar return to the MCU anytime soon.

You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews.

Related Article: ‘Safe House’ Exclusive Trailer

Lewis Tan stars in ‘Safe House’. Photo: Kat Holt.

Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and its action-packed twist on the genre?

Lewis Tan: Me and my team were looking for something smart and grounded. The action work that I’ve been doing previously has been a little more fantasy based with ‘Mortal Kombat’ and ‘Shadow and Bone’, and ‘Wu Assassins’, and this type of stuff. We were looking for something smart, grounded, but still had a very visceral and a powerful storyline that we could make into a great action thriller. Leon Langford wrote a great script. When I first read it, it felt to me like a little bit of ‘Reservoir Dogs’ in a way where it’s about these Secret Service agents that witness a terrorist attack in Downtown LA, and they get stuck inside of a safe house. Once they arrive at this safe house, they realize that one of them could be part of this terrorist organization or a rat. So, they’re trying to figure out who’s the rat while they’re being attacked by terrorists. So, it puts a little bit of a spin on that ‘Reservoir Dog’s pressure. It’s not just the police are coming, it’s like every few minutes there’s something that’s happening, and it just keeps elevating. So, Leon Langford wrote this great script, and I was like, “Oh man, this is exactly what we were looking for.” So, I was very excited. That doesn’t happen often either.

MF: You mentioned ‘Reservoir Dogs’, but the movie also gives off a ‘Die Hard’ vibe. Was that movie an influence on this project?

LT: Well, ‘Assault on Precinct 13’ came to mind, and ‘Die Hard’ came to mind. Things like ‘The Raid’, obviously this isn’t really a martial art action movie, but there’s a lot of action in it. But it’s like this boiling pressure pot constantly, but the pressure is derived by the drama too, and the relationships that these people have in the room, which I’ve never done anything like that before, and I’ve been really looking forward to doing it. Then when I found out who was cast alongside of us, everybody that’s in the cast are just killers. So, it was cool.

(L to R) Ethan Embry, Holt McCallany and Lucien Laviscount in ‘Safe House’. Photo: Vertical.

MF: In the movie, the characters don’t know each other and must learn to trust each other and work together in this heightened circumstance to achieve a common goal, which is not unlike a new cast and crew coming together to make a movie. What was it like working with the cast and getting to know them while the characters are getting to know each other?

LT: I see where you’re going with that. The movie set dynamic can be a little bit tricky because there’s a lot of politics involved, there’s a lot of egos involved, and yes, it does relate to these characters in some way. When you’re on a movie set, at least in my opinion, you try to create a family where you can create something, a piece of art, and you put the ego aside, and you put all these things aside, and you try to create a piece of art together. That’s the way I like to look at it, because I think that’s the way that great art gets made. These characters just don’t trust each other. They don’t trust each other, and they’re all from different parts of the government. They are forced to work together because of violent and life-threatening situations that are surrounding them at every given moment, but they don’t trust each other at all. This cast I trusted very well, Hannah John-Kamen I knew from before, fantastic actor. Lucien Laviscount, I met, but it was interesting because we shot this movie in LA, and it’s very rare to shoot a movie out here in Los Angeles. Who would’ve thought that that would be something that I would say, but it is. We were all just excited because no one’s shot in LA for a long time. So, it was one of those things where it’s like, “Okay, this is exciting. We get to shoot here in the streets of Downtown LA. We’re blowing up cars and doing all this crazy stuff.” We had a very limited time, very limited budget, and we all wanted to make it great. So, as soon as I met and Holt (McCallany) and Ethan Embry and all these guys that are now off doing great things, we were all like, “Okay, guys, we got three weeks. Let’s make this a banger.”

MF: Can you talk about preparing for the action sequences and how involved are you with the fight choreography?

LT: So, Jamie Marshall is no stranger to action. He’s worked on a lot of great movies like ‘Den of Thieves’, and Arnold Chun, the action choreographer/stunt coordinator, is a very close friend of mine. I worked with Arnold on ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End’, when I was doing stunts when I was 18 years old. So, we go way back. He’s super talented, and my approach when it comes to that is I like to work with really great talented people, and then those people mixed with my background in action, we collaborate, and we find a nice middle ground. That’s usually how it works, unless what they present is incredible and doesn’t need to be touched. But it’s nice to put a little bit of the character’s flair on it. So, there was some collaboration. We didn’t have a lot of rehearsal time. We had maybe a few days, which I’m used to at this point, but obviously, you wish for more. My character is a Secret Service agent. He comes from a military background. It’s not martial arts, it’s more realistic fighting and guns, and using whatever you can around you, smart, survival skills that a real agent would use. We had advisors there from SAS and from the police and people that were there to make sure that we were making it look authentic. I did my best to do that.

(L to R) Hannah John-Kamen and Lucien Laviscount in ‘Safe House’. Photo: Vertical.

MF: Do you think that the action says as much about the character as the story does?

LT: That’s a great question. Yeah, 1000%. It was the great Stella Adler that said, “Acting is everything else in between the words.” I agree with that because the words are only one part of it. It’s everything you say in between. It’s the energy that you’re giving off. When it comes to action, nothing speaks louder than action, right? Action speaks louder than words and that’s true. It’s like you can see how people respond and how they think and how their emotions are based on the things that they’re doing. So, that’s why it must be crucial, and it must be definitive and truthful within the character. In this case, it’s more like smart thinking and they’re in a situation where they’re dealing with the unknown and they’re trying to survive, and they’re using all the skills that they must survive. So, we put a little flair on it, you know what I mean?

MF: What was it like collaborating with director Jamie Marshall on set?

LT: Oh, Jamie Marshall is just a legend. He’s very calm and articulate. He’s very patient. He was under a lot of pressure, with a short amount of time, a lot to do, a lot of action, a lot of dialogue, a lot of everything. He was just very calm and collaborative leader of the set. He’s just got a great demeanor about him. He loves movies, and he’s very willing to sit there and discuss things. But we did three intensive days of preparation with the script. So normally, when you get onto a set, people talk, and then two hours go by of people trying to decide whether they’re going to do what the script says that day. But if you do it previously, then you don’t have to have those discussions on set, and things can be much quicker. So, that’s what we did. Jamie was like, “Listen, guys, now’s the time to say anything you need to say before we get to the set. Then we need to go, we need to run and gun because we got a limited time here.”

Lewis Tan in ‘Mortal Kombat’. Photo: Warner Bros.

MF: What can you tell us about ‘Mortal Kombat II’, which is scheduled to be released next year?

LT: Well, the reception we had at New York Comic-Con was incredible. Everybody went crazy over some of the footage that they saw. I believe there was a fight scene that they showed between Johnny Cage and Baraka. The fans are just the best fans in the world. All I can say is this, it was a learning process on the first movie. It’s a big IP. There’s 100 characters, it’s a lot to get right. The producer, Todd Garner, is smart. He listens to the fans, and he listens to what people are saying online. Also, he brought in Ed Boon (creator of the game) to really collaborate with us on the second movie. So, the second movie just feels so much bigger. We have the tournament, they let the fight team really run wild with this, which I was really hoping for, and they deliver. So, the film is beyond what I thought it was going to be. When I first saw it, I left the theater like, “Oh God, that is way better than I thought.” There’s a reason why they just greenlit a third one. That’s all I’m going to say.

MF: What was it like working with Karl Urban and can you talk about his take on Johnny Cage?

LT: Karl’s a gentleman, and a funny guy. He took it very seriously. He worked hard too; he knows the type of pressure that it is to play a character like that in a franchise like this that everybody loves. He’s obviously a seasoned legend, but he did a really great job. He did a different type of Johnny Cage than most people were expecting. He took a big swing on it, and it really paid off. He kills it in the movie. People are going to love this. It’s funny because my character in the first movie was the one that was like, “What is Mortal Kombat?” Now, Johnny Cage is put in that position of “What is this? And then what’s going on? How come he’s shooting flames out of his hands?” But as the film goes on, he sinks into that Johnny Cage superstar, and it comes out slowly. So, it’s a great performance and a good character arc, and it’s got a lot more places to go after this as well.

(Right) Karl Urban as Johnny Cage in ‘Mortal Kombat 2’. Photo: Warner Bros.

MF: Finally, when do you think we will see Shatterstar return to the MCU and is there any other Marvel character that you would like to see him team up with?

LT: I hope so, man. I think Shatterstar is such an interesting character, and if we made a movie about Mojoworld where it had this ‘Mad Max’ meets ‘Blade Runner’ type of vibe, that is very relevant to now, because Mojoworld is all about entertainment. They’ve got to the point in their world where they live stream these death matches, and it’s like watching Channel 9 at 1:00 p.m. in the middle of the day, some soap opera or something. So, I just think that if we’re not careful, we might be heading in that direction. But also, I think it’d be a hilarious and a fun film. So, yeah, man, I’m here. I’m ready to do it. But if not, there’s some other areas into the Marvel world that I could be venturing into. So, we’ll see. That’s all I can say. The Shatterstar character, it’s not been fully fleshed out yet. It’s just been cool cameos and funny scenes, but it hasn’t really been fleshed out, per se. So, I’d like to see it give its proper due diligence.

‘Safe House’ opens in theaters, on digital and On-Demand beginning October 31st .

What is the plot of ‘Safe House’?

Six federal agents in hiding after a Los Angeles terror attack grow suspicious of each other as they realize the perpetrator could be among them.

Who is in the cast of ‘Safe House’?
- Lucien Laviscount as Anderson
- Hannah John-Kamen as Agent Owens
- Ethan Embry as Sorello
- Lewis Tan as Agent Choi
- Holt McCallany as Halton
- Adam Levy as Victor
Lewis Tan stars in ‘Safe House’.

List of Lewis Tan Movies and TV Shows:
- ‘The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift‘ (2006)
- ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End‘ (2007)
- ‘Olympus Has Fallen‘ (2013)
- ‘The Hangover Part III‘ (2013)
- ‘Into the Badlands‘ (2015-2019)
- ‘Den of Thieves‘ (2018)
- ‘Deadpool 2‘ (2018)
- ‘Cobra Kai‘ (2018-2025)
- ‘Wu Assassins‘ (2019)
- ‘Mortal Kombat‘ (2021)
- ‘Shadow and Bone‘ (2021-2023)
- ‘Babylon‘ (2022)
- ‘Deadpool & Wolverine‘ (2024)
- ‘Safe House‘ (2025)
Buy Tickets: ‘Safe House’ Movie Showtimes

Buy Lewis Tan Movies on Amazon
October 28, 2025
Taika Waititi Developing New ‘Judge Dredd’ Movie
(Left) Taika Waititi on the set of ‘Next Goal Wins.’ Photo by Hilary Bronwyn Gayle. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2023 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved. (Right) Karl Urban in 2012’s ‘Dredd’. Photo: Reliance Entertainment.

Preview:
- Taika Waititi is putting a ‘Judge Dredd’ movie together.
- Drew Pearce is attached to write the script.
- The package is out to studios.
UK comics icon Judge Dredd –– the muscular, gruff dystopian lawman who rides a hulking bike and dishes out justice while calling perps “creeps” –– is no stranger to movie screens, having been adapted twice before.
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Now, though, according to The Hollywood Reporter, ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ and ‘Jojo Rabbit’ director Taika Waititi is looking to bring his own idiosyncratic style to the character for a new movie.

And he’s recruited Drew Pearce, the writer/director behind ‘Hotel Artemis’ but more known for scripting movies such as ‘The Fall Guy’ and ‘Iron Man 3’, to handle the writing side of things.

Related Article: Movie Review: ‘Next Goal Wins’

What’s the story of ‘Judge Dredd’?

(L to R) Diane Lane and Sylvester Stallone in ‘Judge Dredd’. Photo: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution.

Created in the late 1970s by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra, the character of Dredd debuted in the pages of weekly British anthology 2000 AD.

He is a police officer in the bleak future metropolis of Mega-City One, part of a law enforcement corps that empowers officers to be judge, jury, and executioner.

The character and his stories were a satire on a judicial system taken to the extreme. Dredd proved hugely popular, engendering several more comics and comics strips, video and board games, books, and even postage stamps in the United Kingdom.

Given what’s happening on America’s streets right now, the concept feels less like satire and more like documentary, but it’s also certainly rich territory for Waititi, who has put his own stamp on even the MCU.

As mentioned above, if it goes through this would represent the third produced version of the character, following the big-budget 1995 adaptation ‘Judge Dredd’ starring Sylvester Stallone that was harshly judged by critics and audiences.

More warmly was the reception for ‘Dredd,’ a 2012 adaptation that starred Karl Urban with a script by ‘28 Days Later’ and ‘Civil War’s Alex Garland.

There are few official details for how Waititi and Pearce’s version will differ, but they apparently both grew up on the comics. Dredd might be more of a risk, though, as Waititi has tried to tackle classic sci-fi in the past, with ‘Akira’ slipping through his fingers.

What else does Taika Waititi have in development?

Taika Waititi on the set of ‘Next Goal Wins.’ Photo by Hilary Bronwyn Gayle. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2023 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.

Waititi has been a little quieter of late since 2023’s soccer comedy drama ‘Next Goal Wins’, but he has new movie ‘Klara and the Sun’ on the way this year.

He’s also attached as a director to a planned prequel series based on ‘Young Frankenstein’.

As an actor, he’ll show up in fantasy adventure ‘Fing!’ and drama ‘Place to Be’.

When will ‘Judge Dredd’ be on our screens?

While we’re sure this will be snapped up by a studio quickly, the Dredd project will likely still take a while to properly come together.

Karl Urban in 2012’s ‘Dredd’. Photo: Reliance Entertainment.

Other Taika Waititi Movies:
- ‘Eagle vs Shark‘ (2007)
- ‘Boy‘ (2010)
- ‘What We Do in the Shadows‘ (2014)
- ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople‘ (2016)
- ‘Thor: Ragnarok‘ (2017)
- ‘Jojo Rabbit‘ (2019)
- ‘Thor: Love and Thunder‘ (2022)
- ‘Next Goal Wins‘ (2023)
Buy Taika Waititi Movies on Amazon
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July 17, 2025
TV Review: ‘The Boys’ Season 4
‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

‘The Boys’ are back, and they’re not pulling any punches. The series returns on Prime Video on June 14 with a 3-episode premiere. Tensions are high as Victoria Neuman inches closer to becoming the Vice President. The Boys’ team morale is fractured as the gang becomes tired of Butcher’s deceits and lies. On top of it all, Homelander now has Becca’s son Ryan under his influence, and Butcher must do whatever it takes to get Ryan away from him.

Related Article: Antony Starr and Chace Crawford Talk ‘The Boys’ Season 4 and The Seven

Initial Thoughts

The story and its characters continues to wow in season 4, with ‘The Boys’, deeply exploring each character’s past and face the consequences of their past decisions. While the first couple of episodes moved a bit slow, the series does ramps up with shocking reveals in later episodes. This season merges a major storyline from spin-off series ‘Gen V’ into the series, and adds a new threat to both supes and humans alike. It’s easy to see why the series continues to gain so much attention and is renewed for a fifth season.

‘The Boys’: Story and Direction

‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

Just as in previous seasons, each episode is filled with an outrageous amount of gore and shocking reveals. In this season, the story focuses on facing the past, as well as one’s own mortality. For Billy Butcher, the consequences of taking temp V have caught up with him. With merely months to live, Butcher re-examines his past decisions and actions when it comes to how he treated Ryan, who is now under the watchful eye of Homelander. Although rare, it’s not the first time Butcher has had a soft spot for someone in his life. When it comes to Ryan, Butcher feels more of an attachment because he’s the last connection Butcher has to his late wife, Becca, and his actions feel more genuine rather than self-serving.

Butcher isn’t the only one facing mortality. This season also sees Homelander confronting the issue from the lens of an all-powerful and essentially indestructible superhero. There are moments where you sympathize with what Homelander is feeling and how lonely he actually is in all of this, though those moments are brief as he goes right back to doing the next terrible thing.

‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

Erin Moriarty’s Starlight takes ownership of her own identity this season, leaving behind her super suit and superhero name. Now going by her real name, Annie January is hard at work to expose Vought but crumbles under pressure when something from her past is brought to light. This season has been the best development for Annie and perhaps the most vulnerable we’ve seen her yet.

Aside from exploring mortality and characters’ pasts, this season introduces a couple of new members of The Seven: Firecracker (Valorie Curry) and Sister Sage (Susan Heyward), who are not afraid to make waves within The Seven.

There is a lot going on in this season, but it doesn’t ever feel convoluted. Every character gets their fair share of screen time, fully explored, and there are still plenty of action and carnage that we all know and love.

Merging the World of ‘The Boys’ and ‘Gen V’

‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

‘The Boys’ spin-off series ‘Gen V’ premiered in September of 2023, fleshing out and expanding the world of ‘The Boys’. Aside from the up-and-coming superhero hopefuls, ‘Gen V’ delves further into Vought’s history and introduces a dangerous virus that can kill the supes. With cameos from a couple of notable characters of ‘The Boys,’ it makes sense that in this season, we see some ‘Gen V’ characters make their own crossover appearances.

As seen in this season’s trailer, Sam and Cate make a cameo, connecting the storyline from ‘Gen V’ to ‘The Boys’. However, this does not mean viewers need to binge the spin-off series (though they should). What has been great about both series is that they explain the backstory without the need for an exposition scene or narrative, and usually, it’s concise and to the point.

‘The Boys’ Season 4: Final Thoughts

(L to R) Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Karl Urban in ‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

This season is filled with the most character growth and arcs yet, which is wild to say because the show has always done a great job exploring and developing its characters. Despite a slightly slow start, the series ramps up and gets more intense with each episode.

Although the focus is on Victoria Neuman’s potential rise to presidency, the series continues to explore and flesh out its characters. This season focuses on certain characters’ mortality, and it’s been interesting to see how each character reacts.

The series continues to surprise and awe. Whether it’s plot twists, carnage, or suped-up farm animals, it keeps its viewers on their toes.

‘The Boys’ season 4 receives 8 out of 10 stars.
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What Is The Plot Of ‘The Boys’?

In Season 4, the world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit) is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander (Antony Starr), who is consolidating his power. Butcher (Karl Urban), with only months to live, has lost Becca’s son as well as his job as The Boys’ leader. The rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it’s too late.

Who Is In the Cast of ‘The Boys’?
- Karl Urban as Billy Butcher
- Jack Quaid as Hughie Campbell
- Antony Starr as Homelander
- Erin Moriarty as Starlight
- Jessie T. Usher as A-Train
- Laz Alonzo as M.M.
- Chace Crawford as the Deep
- Tomer Capone as Frenchie
- Karen Fukuhara as the Female
- Colby Minifie as Ashley Barrett
- Claudia Doumit as Victoria Neuman
- Susan Heyward as Sister Sage
- Valorie Curry as Firecracker
- Jeffrey Dean Morgan
‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

All Series in ‘The Boys’ Franchise:
- ‘The Boys‘ (2019 – 2022)
- ‘Prime Rewind: Inside The Boys‘ (2020)
- ‘The Boys Presents: Diabolical‘ (2022)
- ‘Gen V‘ (2023)
Buy ‘The Boys’ On Amazon
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June 14, 2024
‘The Boys’ Season 4 Interview: Antony Starr and Chace Crawford
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Premiering on June 13th, Prime Video’s hit superhero series ‘The Boys’ is back for another explosive fourth season. ‘The Boys’ is based on The New York Times best-selling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, who also serve as executive producers and developed by executive producer and showrunner Eric Kripke.

Related Article: TV Review: ‘The Boys’ Season 3

(L to R) Chace Crawford and Antony Starr talk ‘The Boys’ season 4.

Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Antony Starr and Chace Crawford about season 4 of ‘The Boys’, Homelander’s exploration into mortality and fatherhood, The Deep’s new outlook on life, and the hierarchy within The Seven.

You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Starr and Crawford, Erin Moriarty, Claudia Doumit, Karen Fukuyama and showrunner Eric Kripke.

‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

Moviefone: Antony, this season deals a lot with the past, and with Homelander specifically, he’s dealing with having to face his own mortality and fatherhood. What has it been like for you to deep dive into that part of the character for the season?

Antony Starr: Honestly, as a non-parent, it was great. I get to go into parenting without dealing with the responsibility of having a kid. I think season 4 started somewhere midway through season three with the idea of mortality and everything that comes along with that. That naturally led to legacy, which is where we pick up in season 4, and that’s all about fatherhood and familial relationship. But I don’t think Homelander is equipped. He just doesn’t understand how that actually works. Loves the idea of it, but he just doesn’t know how to make it function, which is arguably true of many people. I keep saying if you want to look at your present, look at your past. If you want to look at your future, look at your present, right? So the future is Ryan, and the present is him. The past is where we go in episode four, and that is all in order to make himself a better father in his eyes for Ryan, which is a very selfish move, actually. It’s about his legacy. But he does love the kid, so there’s that.

‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

MF: Chase, in this season The Deep gets some words of encouragement from Sage, a new member of The Seven, and after that he finds the courage to speak up. What is something about this season that you’re excited to explore for The Deep?

Chase Crawford: It was exactly what you just mentioned, to be honest. I mean, Sage obviously has super intelligence, hyper intelligence, and she knows how to play 4D chess, and she’s manipulating him a little bit. But I do think it’s funny that any compliment he takes, he’s like, “Thank you.” He really takes it to heart. It means a lot to him if someone, especially another superhero, and then of course, he’s attracted to her after that. Just a sucker for flattery. But I do like that he’s testing the bounds of his emotional world and sort of taking it out on other people. It just makes it interesting that he’s leaning into a bit of what Homelander leans into and being aggressive, and liking it in a way and really saying, “I’ve already done this thing. I’ve already done murders. I’m doing everything.” It’s ridiculous what he’s willing to do for Homelander, but it’s been fun to explore a new dimension of The Deep and also his relationship.

‘The Boys’ Season 4. Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video. Copyright: © Amazon Content Services LLC

MF: Finally, Antony, can you talk about the hierarchy within The Seven and each of their motivations?

AS: It’s such a hierarchy in The Seven, everyone’s trying to ascend. It’s like a wolf pack constantly trying to get over each other. I’m always curious about the motives of the characters on this show because I think it’s always blurred. But I think it’s really interesting that all the superheroes are really self-motivated, and all the anarchists, per se, are really doing something. They’re really altruistic, and they want to do something for the masses, except Butcher, who’s a serial killer who wants to kill me because he thinks I did something that I didn’t do.
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What Is The Plot Of ‘The Boys’?

In Season 4, the world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit) is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander (Antony Starr), who is consolidating his power. Butcher (Karl Urban), with only months to live, has lost Becca’s son as well as his job as The Boys’ leader. The rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it’s too late.

Who Is In the Cast of ‘The Boys’?
- Karl Urban as Billy Butcher
- Jack Quaid as Hughie Campbell
- Antony Starr as Homelander
- Erin Moriarty as Starlight
- Jessie T. Usher as A-Train
- Laz Alonzo as M.M.
- Chace Crawford as the Deep
- Tomer Capone as Frenchie
- Karen Fukuhara as the Female
- Colby Minifie as Ashley Barrett
- Claudia Doumit as Victoria Neuman
- Susan Heyward as Sister Sage
- Valorie Curry as Firecracker
- Jeffrey Dean Morgan
(L to R) Antony Starr (Homelander) and Chace Crawford (The Deep) for ‘The Boys’ at CCXP MX. Credit: Edgar Hurtado/Prime Video.

All Series in ‘The Boys’ Franchise:
- ‘The Boys‘ (2019 – 2022)
- ‘Prime Rewind: Inside The Boys‘ (2020)
- ‘The Boys Presents: Diabolical‘ (2022)
- ‘Gen V‘ (2023)
Buy ‘The Boys’ On Amazon
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June 11, 2024
‘The Boys’ are Back with a Season 4 Teaser
Preview:
- The first teaser for ‘The Boys’ Season 4 is online.
- It’ll be set shortly after events of spin-off ‘Gen V’.
- ‘The Boys’ returns in 2024.
‘The Boys’ universe continues to expand ever outwards, with recent college-set spin-off ‘Gen V’ successfully ending its first season (and already renewed for a second), animated series ‘Diabolical’ out in the world and a potential new spin-off set in Mexico in very early development (with Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal attached to produce and potentially take small roles).

But we know that fans are eager to know what’s going on with Billy Butcher, Homelander and the rest. So now we have a look at the sort of madness we can expect via the first teaser for ‘The Boys’ next season.

Related Article: ‘The Boys’ Spinoff ‘Gen V’ Trailer Promises An Explosive And Bloody Series

What’s the story of ‘The Boys’ Season 4?

Antony Starr as John Gillman / Homelander in Prime Video’s ‘The Boys’ season 4. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

In Season Four, the world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander, who is consolidating his power. Butcher, with only months to live, has lost Becca’s son as well as his job as The Boys’ leader. The rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it’s too late.

Who is in ‘The Boys’ Season 4?

Karl Urban as Billy Butcher in Prime Video’s ‘The Boys’ season 4. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, Colby Minifie, Claudia Doumit and Cameron Crovetti are all back for the new episodes.

Season Four, meanwhile will welcome Susan Heyward (as new Super Sister Sage), Valorie Curry (as Firecracker), and ‘Watchmen’ veteran Jeffrey Dean Morgan in a mystery role.

What do we know about Season 4 of ‘The Boys’ so far?

Here’s what the show’s social media account posted about the new episodes:

While ya wait for 2024, here’s what we can say about Season 4 so far…

– Timeline wise, it takes place about a month after the events of the @genv finale.

– Butcher knows about the virus. Do with that lil piece of intel what ya will.

– Homelander will stand trial for lasering… pic.twitter.com/UswySuFYF7

— THE BOYS (@TheBoysTV) November 8, 2023

How does ‘The Boys’ Season 4 connect to ‘Gen V’?

Susan Heyward as Sister Sage in Prime Video’s ‘The Boys’ season 4. Supersuit Designer: Laura Jean Shannon. Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

For those who have yet to see the first season finale of ‘Gen V’, a quick spoiler alert!

Otherwise, carry on to read what series overseer Eric Kripke had to say to Variety about the links between the ‘Gen V’ season finale and the fourth season of the main series:

“For Butcher, by the time they were making the finale, we were pretty deep into breaking Season 4. We knew that we wanted that virus to be a pretty big part of Season 4, and we knew that we wanted Butcher to be aware of it. It seems crazy that he wouldn’t be aware of it. It became kind of tricky, because how do we show that he knows about it without it just being dialogue? This idea came up that it probably shouldn’t even happen in The Boys, it should happen in Gen V. The value of having the [two shows’ writers] rooms be in coordination is, our room took it to Michele and her room and said, ‘Can we put Butcher in the end, so we can show that he’s really hot on the tail of the virus?’ It was really cool because it does a nice little preamble to what’s coming next. And Karl and Ant both were willing to come in on their days off to go work on the other show. But the Homelander part was Michele’s team.”

When will ‘The Boys’ be back on our TV screens?

According to Prime Video, ‘The Boys’ doesn’t have a locked in return date, but that it will be on screens next year.

Valorie Curry as Firecracker in Prime Video’s ‘The Boys’ season 4. Supersuit Designer: Laura Jean Shannon. Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

Movies Similar to ‘The Boys’ Season 4:
- ‘X-Men‘ (2000)
- ‘X2‘ (2003)
- ‘Sky High‘ (2005)
- ‘X-Men: The Last Stand‘ (2006)
- ‘Hancock‘ (2008)
- ‘X-Men: First Class‘ (2011)
- ‘The Avengers‘ (2012)
- ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past‘ (2014)
- ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron‘ (2015)
- ‘X-Men: Apocalypse‘ (2016)
- ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming‘ (2017)
- ‘Avengers: Infinity War‘ (2018)
- ‘Avengers: Endgame‘ (2019)
- ‘Dark Phoenix‘ (2019)
- ‘Spider-Man: Far from Home‘ (2019)
- ‘The New Mutants‘ (2020)
- ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home‘ (2021)
Buy ‘The Boys’ On Amazon
December 5, 2023
TV Review: ‘The Boys’ Season 3

(L to R) Jack Quaid (Hughie Campbell), Karl Urban (Billy Butcher), Tomer Capone (Frenchie), Karen Fukuhara (Kimiko), Laz Alonso (Mother’s Milk). Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

Debuting with the first three episodes on Prime Video today, ‘The Boys’ returns for its third season having lost none of its capacity to shock and delight in equal measure.

The show about dysfunctional superheroes – and the vigilantes who are dedicated to keeping them in check – is back in a more crowded market for such stories – James Gunn offered plenty of gore and chaos in ‘Peacemaker’ and ‘Invincible’ unleashes animated mayhem with each successive episode.

‘The Boys’ follows a world in which superpowered people (or “supes”) – many of them the creation of the less-than-moral Vought corporation mingle with us regular folk, performing heroic acts and behaving much like movie stars for their adoring crowds. The wrinkle here though is, like some celebrities, they’re also extremely fallible souls, prone to bad behavior and selfish, abusive attitudes, and when you combine that with the ability to lift cars, fly or explode heads, it’s a very, very hazardous combination.

Vought views them as commodities, marketing tools to sell toys and other merchandise, producing movies around “The Seven” core characters. They’re pimped like DC or Marvel’s stable, making public appearances, and signing endorsement deals.

Antony Starr (Homelander). Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

Prime among them is Homelander (Anthony Starr), who believes he’s god’s gift to the world, an emotionally stunted man-child who acts out and causes endless problems for those around him. Starr’s performance is pitch-perfect, smug, and entitled, preening and impervious (literally). There are hints of humanity under the surface, but this season he doubles down on the desperate need to be in control of everything around him.

A sweary ying to his yang is Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), the uncouth cockney leader of the rag-tag opposition group named in the title. The “boys” – plus Karen Fukuhara’s superpowered Kimiko – who all have their reason to dislike supes, and to hold grudges against them. Some, such as Laz Alonso’s Mother’s Milk, lost their parents to Supe activity, whereas Hughie (Jack Quaid, who began the show as the audience’s way into this conflict, (but is now firmly entrenched in it, not least because he’s dating Annie/Starlight, a superhero played by Erin Moriarty), saw his girlfriend exploded into bloody vapor thanks to the careless speedy actions of the Flash-like A-Train (Jessie T. Usher).

As Butcher, Urban holds the vigilante side together, his character is a mix of his own foibles and insecurities, not least because last season he learned that his son was fathered by Homelander. Oh, and his wife died when said son tried to save her from a psychopathic Nazi supe, accidentally wounding his mother.

Season 3 kicks off with the characters in even more disarray – Homelander is facing challenges to his authority, which only serves to make him even angrier, while Billy confronts one of the eternal questions of the show – just how far are you willing to go to achieve your aims? And when does fighting the good fight become an obsessive quest that threatens everyone around you?

(L to R) Karl Urban (Billy Butcher), Antony Starr (Homelander). Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

It’s no spoiler to say that this year Billy gets a real upgrade in his fight, (his glowing eyes are all over the trailer), but we’ll leave the specifics for you to enjoy. It all plays well into the show’s regular obsessions, especially if you ponder what happens when Butcher becomes the thing he hates, even if it’s temporary.

Yet with the space to tell its story (the show is eight episodes this season), ‘The Boys’ has never just been about Homelander and Butcher. Almost every character enjoys a relatively meaty storyline this year, whether it’s Kumiko dealing with her desire to lose her powers, charismatic veteran soldier Frenchie (Tomer Capone) trying to maintain his relationship with her while his past comes back to haunt him or Starlight diving into trying to take down Homelander from within her position on the Seven team.

There are moral compromises, bad decisions, terrible actions, and regrettable turns all over the place, with no one in this world entirely good or entirely bad (well, Homelander’s pretty much irretrievably awful at this point).

Of course, ‘The Boys’ is also still sticking to its house style, adapted from the comic book series by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, itself unafraid to leapfrog over lines that most other stories would be too afraid to cross. If you’ve seen an episode (or, let’s be honest, a few minutes) of this show, you’ll know its propensity for blowing people up, hacking off limbs or causing other horrific injuries, and that continues in fine style here.

Jensen Ackles (Soldier Boy). Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Copyright: Amazon Studios.

There is a moment within the first 10 minutes here that involves someone with the ability to shrink to minute size and another person’s… Well, that would be telling. Suffice to say, we would not suggest eating while the sequence occurs. In fact, that’s probably a good idea through most of the episodes, because a lot of bad stuff happens to various characters, some of it violent, some of it sexual. The commitment to startling vulgarity can sometimes be wearing, but the show balances that out by keeping the cast compelling and the writing fantastic.

Among the biggest developments this year is the introduction of Soldier Boy (played by Jensen Ackles, who worked with ‘Boys’ co-show-runner Eric Kripke for years on long-running CW series ‘Supernatural’. Though he’s more hinted at initially, this twisted take on Captain America, a man that the country has come to view as a great hero who, when you meet him is certainly no Steve Rogers. He’s a drunken, foul-mouthed man out of time, but fits perfectly into the show and becomes a big plot driver for the season.

This is not a series for the faint of heart, or for anyone who prefers their superheroes squeaky clean. But for those who are willing to engage with it, to go with the (bloody, gross) flow, it remains one of the most entertaining and surprising shows out there.

‘The Boys’: Season 3 receives 4 out of 5 stars.

Watch ‘The Boys’: Season 3 on Prime Video now.
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You can watch ‘The Boys’ Season 3 trailer by clicking on the video player above.

June 3, 2022
Chris Pine and Co. Back for New ‘Star Trek’ Movie

(L to R) Anton Yelchin, Chris Pine, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, John Cho and Zoe Saldana in ‘Star Trek’ (2009). Courtesy of Paramount Pictures.

Ever since ‘Star Trek Beyond’ failed to launch at the box office, the big screen flagship of the ‘Trek’ franchise has been lingering in Spacedock, unsure which course to chart. Now, though it appears that Paramount is ready to engage the warp engines again, with Chris Pine and the rest of the current crew busy making deals to return.

The news comes as part of Paramount’s Investors Day presentation, in which it unleashed enough news to choke the Doomsday Machine, including an early season 2 renewal for the ‘Halo’ TV series (which is only just about to debut), lots of future ‘SpongeBob’ movies and more ‘South Park’.

Yet word on a return for ‘Star Trek’ crew who first boarded the USS Enterprise in J.J. Abrams’ 2009 reboot of the franchise is perhaps the most exciting revelation.

It looked for a while as though Pine’s Captain Kirk, along with Zachary Quinto’s Spock, Zoe Saldana’s Uhura, Karl Urban’s Dr. McCoy, John Cho’s Sulu and Simon Pegg’s Scotty might never return to the final frontier, but Paramount is now going at full speed to put them on a new mission.

Abrams himself made the announcement. “We are thrilled to say that we are hard at work on a new ‘Star Trek’ film that will be shooting by the end of the year that will be featuring our original cast and some new characters that I think are going to be really fun and exciting and help take ‘Star Trek’ into areas that you’ve just never seen before,” he said. “We’re thrilled about this film, we have a bunch of other stories that we’re talking about that we think will be really exciting, so can’t wait for you to see what we’re cooking up. But until then, live long and prosper.”

(L to R) Zachary Quinto and Chris Pine in ‘Star Trek’ (2009). Courtesy of Paramount Pictures.

Yet Abrams won’t – as with ‘Beyond’ – be directing (though he’ll produce via his Bad Robot Company). Instead, ‘WandaVision’s Matt Shakman has that job, and he’ll work from a script by ‘Avatar 2’s Josh Friedman and Shakman’s ‘WandaVision’ colleague Cameron Squires. Their screenplay will be based on an earlier draft by Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson-Dworet.

As for what’ll happen in the movie? That’s being kept behind the shields for now, though it’s unlikely to be the rumored time-travel concept that would have seen Kirk meet his dad, played (briefly) in Abrams’ original movie by Chris Hemsworth. Actors’ pay deals reportedly scuttled that idea, though it could be resurrected. (Does anyone have a Genesis device to hand?)

And while they appear to be drifting in a nebula for now, the planned expansions of the ‘Trek’ movie universe by ‘Fargo’s Noah Hawley and cult director Quentin Tarantino are still out there, waiting for their chance.

‘Star Trek’s fortunes have certainly turned around of late, with the TV side of things expanding exponentially, and now some positive forward movement on the theatrical end. Of course, any new movie will have to deal with the tragic loss of Anton Yelchin, who played Chekov in the previous three adventures, and hopefully the team will go the respectful route and have his character off on another mission rather than re-cast.

Still, with luck, a late 2022 shooting start means we could have a new ‘Star Trek’ movie beaming into theaters by the end of 2023. That’s news to even make Spock giggle.
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February 15, 2022
Chris Pine Still Wants to Do ‘Star Trek 4’: ‘I’ll Await the Phone Call’

Paramount Pictures

Show Kirk the money?

You saw the headlines last month that Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth walked away from talks for “Star Trek 4.” Pine was set to return as Captain James T. Kirk, with Hemsworth reprising his brief role from the 2009 “Star Trek” film as Jim’s late father George Kirk. The time travel movie would’ve had father and son meeting for the first time.

Both actors reportedly want a certain amount of money, and the studio reportedly doesn’t want to pay that money.

Variety caught up to Chris Pine at the Toronto Film Festival and snuck in a question about “Star Trek 4”: Is he interested in being in the movie?

“I don’t know. I mean, I’d love to be involved, and we’ll see what happens. I’ll await the phone call. Until then, I look forward to it.”

Would Chris Pine be interested in being a part of #StarTrek 4? #TIFF18 pic.twitter.com/4s3nxMCbtZ

— Variety (@Variety) September 7, 2018

So it’s really up to the agents at this point.

Karl Urban, who plays Bones, recently talked about the salary dispute at Trekonderogo (via TrekMovie.com). He noted that the previous film — “Star Trek Beyond” — made about $343 million worldwide:

“But still, for a movie that cost what it cost to make, the profit margins aren’t that great. And so particularly Chris Hemsworth and Chris Pine subsequently have done big movies, and their quotes have gone up. And so I am pretty confident though that Paramount and those guys, they will figure it out. Because I know Chris. We were all in touch recently and everybody wants to do it and make it happen. So, if Paramount is willing there will be a way to make it happen. So, fingers crossed.”

Chris Hemsworth rocketed to Marvel/Thor fame in the interim from “Star Trek” to “Star Trek 4.” He’s made gobs of money, and ranked fourth on the list of highest-paid actors in the past year. Hemsworth’s quote is probably astronomical. In that time, Chris Pine obviously made three “Star Trek” films as Captain Kirk, and co-starred in “Wonder Woman,” among other films.

It’s hard to imagine this franchise moving forward with a fourth film without Pine. But to get father and son together — and a Hollywood Chris team-up — obviously any studio would salivate at the idea. But they also have a bottom-line to consider.

So now we wait to see if Chris Pine really does get that phone call.

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September 7, 2018
15 Things You Never Knew About Karl Urban’s ‘Dredd’

When “Dredd” came out five years ago this week (on Sept. 21, 2012), it seemed that the box office dispensed Judge Dredd-style summary judgment against the film.

An effort to rescue the futuristic comic book anti-hero from the cringeworthy reputation he’d suffered as a result of the 1995 Sylvester Stallone/Rob Schneider version, the terse new “Dredd” earned a terse new verdict: Flop.

That could have been the end of it, but the movie’s dry satirical wit, stunning 3D effects, and fidelity to the uncompromisingly bleak and violent comic made “Dredd” a sci-fi cult favorite. That the film worked as well as it did was a triumph over its budget constraints and behind-the-scenes conflicts. Here’s how the makers of “Dredd” managed to lay down the law.
1. Judge Dredd originated in 1977, in the pages of British sci-fi magazine 2000 A.D., the creation of writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. The Dirty Harry-meets-RoboCop lawman seemed a natural fit for the big screen, but the 1995 Disney version made several missteps that alienated old fans while failing to attract new ones.

2. Among the movie’s flaws: having Dredd (Stallone) remove his helmet and show his face (something he’s never done over his 35-year history in print), and giving him a comic-relief sidekick (Schneider). When producer-screenwriter Alex Garland (“28 Days Later,” “Sunshine“) began writing a reboot script in 2006, these were mistakes he was determined not to repeat.
3. Garland (above, on the set of “Ex Machina”) consulted with Wagner early on. The Shrewsbury, England restaurant where they met, The Peach Tree, gave its name to the 200-story slum where most of Garland’s movie would take place.

4. Initially, Garland had a much more epic story in mind, one that would exploit the comic’s vast setting, Mega City One, a sprawling future metropolis stretching from Boston to D.C. Eventually, however, he pared it down to one location and one 24-hour period. He also cut out robots and aliens from the comic’s vision of the future.
5. Pete Travis was a social worker who, late in his career, shifted to filmmaking. His stylish, mind-twisty thriller “Vantage Point” landed him the gig directing “Dredd.”

6. Karl Urban was coming off his first turn as Dr. McCoy in the rebooted “Star Trek” films when he heard about the development of “Dredd.” A lifelong fan of the comic, the New Zealand-born actor lobbied for the part and won it (“He knew ‘Dredd’ and he understood it backwards,” Garland said), then settled in for the challenge of conveying emotion with just his voice and his lower jaw, the only part of his face that would be visible beneath Dredd’s visor.
7. Urban became that rare movie star who actually wanted fewer lines of dialogue than he was given. He worked with Garland to revise the script so that he could say less, partly because Dredd is supposed to be a man of few words, and partly because the Eastwood-like rasp he adopted for the role put a strain on his vocal cords.

8. The female pioneers of 1970s punk and new wave served as inspirations for the movie’s two female leads. The creators of the comic based Cassandra Anderson, seen in the film as Dredd’s rookie partner, on Blondie’s Debbie Harry. The filmmakers based Ma-Ma, a fearless crime lord and drug kingpin, on rocker Patti Smith.
9. Originally, Ma-Ma was going to be a lot older and fatter, until the filmmakers cast lithe Game of Thrones.”

10. Even before Garland’s script was finished or Travis was hired, the production team started working on the striking visuals needed to simulate the effects of “slo-mo,” the designer drug in the movie that makes users experience time at 1/100th the normal speed. (Much of the credit goes to the Phantom Flex camera, which can shoot 3,000 frames per second.) It also involved shooting in 3D, something that cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle, who’d just won an Oscar for “Slumdog Millionaire,” had never done before.
11. Even the music was slowed down, with composer Paul Leonard-Morgan simulating the sounds he’d heard on a Justin Bieber track that had been slowed down to 1/800th of normal speed. Getting the effects right was one reason post-production on the film took nearly two years.

12. Did Garland elbow Travis out of the director’s chair? The writer-producer has said that his unusual collaboration with Travis was something they’d worked out in advance. Even so, Urban said that, on the set, he would turn to Garland for direction, rather than Travis. And during the editing process, Travis’ absence led the Los Angeles Times to report that he’d been fired, a contention that Garland denied. Nonetheless, Travis received sole credit for directing “Dredd.”
13. To save money, the production shot in Cape Town and Johannesburg in South Africa. The production was frugal in other ways, too. The rippling-flesh effect when characters get shot was achieved without digital trickery, just by using blasts of compressed air. And for the motorcycle scenes, the filmmakers saved money on a stunt driver; that’s really Urban on the bike.

14. “Dredd” cost a reported $45 million to make, a modest sum for a futuristic action epic with lots of digital effects. It earned back just $13 million in North America and a total of $41 million worldwide.
15. With figures like that, a sequel seemed out of the question. Yet “Dredd” found a following on home video, where it earned at least $20 million. A petition on a Facebook fan site calling for a sequel reached 80,000 signatures. Finally, in May 2017, a “Dredd” follow-up TV series was announced, with Urban revealing in August that he was in talks to reprise his starring role. Fingers crossed, Dredd-heads.

September 6, 2017