(L to R) Russell Crowe and Liam Hemsworth to star in ‘Land of Bad.’
When you title your action thriller ‘Land of Bad’, that points to the fact that things are going to go very wrong for the protagonists. In this case, this will be Russell Crowe and Liam Hemsworth playing two characters thrust into an urgent military rescue mission.
Written by ‘Crypto’s David Frigerio and ‘Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin’s Will Eubank (he’ll also direct), the film is scheduled to start principal photography this September in Australia.
Crowe will play Reaper, an Air Force drone pilot supporting a Delta Force special ops mission in the South Philippines. After the mission goes terribly wrong, he has 48 hours to remedy what has devolved into a wild rescue operation.
Hemsworth will play the rookie air controller who is thrust into the middle of a high-stakes extraction which involves no weapons and no communication other than the drone above. Sounds like a real nightmare.
“Working with such talented actors as Russell and Liam is a dream come true. They are both incredible performers who will showcase the powerful sense of brotherhood between the two lead characters,” says Highland Film Group CEO Arianne Fraser, whose company is producing the new movie.
“I am thrilled to work with Russell and Liam and couldn’t be more grateful to this whole team in helping bring this project to life,” enthuses Eubank.
Russell Crowe in ‘Gladiator’ (Photo by Karine Weinberger/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
“I couldn’t be more stoked to be making this timely film especially with my good friend Will Eubank piloting the ship. I am beyond excited to watch Russell and Liam bring these characters to life. Buckle up!” added Frigerio.
In addition to his ‘Paranormal Activity’ work, Eubank wrote and directed 2014’s ‘The Signal’ and directed 2020’s ‘Underwater’.
Crowe has been busy of late, what with shooting and starring in his second directorial effort ‘Poker Face’ a crime thriller that happens to co-star one Liam Hemsworth. It suffered a shooting delay after a confirmed Coronavirus case amongst the crew caused a temporary shutdown.
As for Hemsworth, in addition to his role in ‘Poker Face’, he has a role in ‘Lonely Planet’, written and directed by Susannah Grant and co-staring Laura Dern.
The cameras are already rolling on ‘Land of Bad’, and Highland Film Group will be selling rights to the film at the Cannes Film Market, which will run alongside the festival between 17th-25th May.
Given that ‘Land of Bad’ doesn’t yet have a distributor, that also means it doesn’t have a scheduled release date on the books.
Chris Hemsworth in Marvel’s ‘Thor: Love and Thunder.’
Taika Waititi brought a lot of heart and humor to his first Marvel Cinematic Universe entry, ‘Thor: Ragnarok’, sending Chris Hemsworth’s title hero in a whole new direction – and giving him a new haircut, to boot. Oh, and he also destroyed Asgard, plucked out one of Thor’s eyes and killed off Anthony Hopkins’ Odin.
Since then, Thor Odinson has been through the wringer even more, thanks to ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ and ‘Avengers: Endgame’, and we don’t just mean in terms of letting himself go, physically.
It makes some sense, then, that the first teaser for ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’, Waititi’s second stab at MCU mayhem, might find the God of Thunder on a journey of self-discovery, figuring out who he is in a universe where he doesn’t seem keen to stay a superhero. He’s getting back in shape to some degree, but the long locks are back.
He’s still hanging around with Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) and the Guardians of the Galaxy (cue much humor between the two), though from the looks of the teaser, he’s soon off on an even bigger adventure.
The much-anticipated teaser is light on story points (as is usual for a shorter trailer like this), but packed with moments, including a flying ship, a glimpse of what we can assume is Russell Crowe as Zeus (in Olympus, we figure) and Thor on board the ship, snogging a blue-haired woman.
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And there’s even a visit to New Asgard on Earth, where Queen Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) is dealing with her own challenges – specifically, a boring council meeting, even though she’s rocking a sharp suit.
But above them all, of course, is that final moment, one to rank alongside Cap catching Mjolnir in ‘Endgame’ – the introduction of the Mighty Thor, AKA Jane Foster, AKA Natalie Portman, who makes her big return to the world of Marvel, looking great in her own godly get-up.
Yet to be properly glimpsed? Christian Bale’s Gorr the God Butcher, who as his name suggests, is going to an issue for our heroes. He’s seeking the extinction of the Gods, and he’s a mightily powerful type, so expect that to be a major part of the plot.
‘Love and Thunder’s first look ditches the Led Zeppelin for Guns ‘n’ Roses, while the tone remains the playful Waititi blend of funny and portentous – he’s proved that he can bring the stakes without losing the laughs and all our fingers are crossed that his new movie lives up to ‘Ragnarok’s blast of entertainment.
Written by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson alongside Waititi and featuring the likes of Jaimie Alexander (back as Lady Sif), Sam Neill, Melissa McCarthy, and Matt Damon (McCarthy joins a returning Neill and Damon as actors playing Asgardian heroes), ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ will in theaters July 8th.
Marvel’s ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ opens in theaters on July 8th.
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The movie stars Karen Gillan (‘Guardians of the Galaxy’) as Sarah, a woman who is recently given a terminal diagnosis from her doctor. So her family won’t feel the pain of her death, she has herself cloned and begins to teach her new self how to be her.
Trouble begins when Sarah goes into remission and is no longer dying. Now, by law, because they cannot both be the same person permanently, Sarah has one year to train before she must fight her double to the death on national TV.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Karen Gillian about her work on ‘Dual.’ The talented actress discussed her new film, director Riley Stearns’ unique vision, how the Marvel movies prepared her to play two characters at once, working with Aaron Paul, if she would ever clone herself, and working with Taika Waititi on the upcoming ‘Thor: Love and Thunder.’
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You can read our full interview with Karen Gillian about ‘Dual’ below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Gillan, Beulah Koale, and writer/director Riley Stearns.
Moviefone: To begin with, how did you get involved with this project and what was your first reaction when you read the screenplay?
Karen Gillan: I think somebody from the production company that was making it sent me the script and said, “You have to be in this. This is one of the best things I’ve read in ages.” So, I was definitely primed for it to be really good and then I read it and I was like, “I totally agree.”
It’s just really unique and it’s in Riley Stearns’ voice. Like it could not have been written by anybody else. Then I went and explored all of his other films and realized that I had to be involved in this. He’s a filmmaker that I really respect who has his own sense of identity and I want to be a part of that.
MF: What was it like working with writer/director Riley Stearns and watching him execute his unique vision for this project?
KG: It was really cool to just watch someone know exactly what they want. That’s a trait that you really need in a good director, somebody who can really take the reins and be like, “This is how it’s going to be.” Then everybody else can kind of get in line with that overall vision. He has that in bucket loads.
He is just somebody who knows how he wants everything, how he wants the hair, how he wants the makeup, how he wants the shot, the acting, everything. That was just really nice to be guided like that and also take on the challenge of fitting into a certain established style that he already has as a filmmaker.
Director Riley Stearns on the set of ‘Dual’ from RLJE Films.
MF: Can you talk about your approach to playing these two separate characters and what was it like acting opposite yourself?
KG: It’s really weird acting opposite yourself and I’ve done it now four times, which sounds ridiculous, but I’m always in sci-fi or time travel things, so I’ve met myself a few times along the way. So, I kind of already was in the zone before this film, which is funny, but it’s tricky because you’ve got to obviously film both sides of the scene.
I had an amazing actress reading me my other lines so I could react off of someone. I’m watching it, thinking, “Okay. I’m going to steal what you did. I’m going to steal that for when I do my coverage and I’m probably going to do it different to the way you did that line.” So, I’m trying to imagine how I would do it in the future and then react off of that. So, it’s a lot of multitasking going on. I was like, “Wow. actually, I know how to do this already. Thank you, Avengers.”
MF: If you were dying, and it was possible to be cloned, would you make the same choice that Sarah did?
KG: We were sort of asking each other that question along the way. I think I was saying yes initially and then it dawned on me how creepy that is. Someone told me that people are having clones made of their pets. I can’t imagine cloning my dog. Apparently the personalities are different. So, I don’t know what I would do. I’m going to probably say I wouldn’t.
It’s really interesting how somebody can have the same genetic makeup as you and yet turn out differently for some reason that we can’t quite grasp. That was really interesting for me to play as an actress. It’s two people who are sort of the same. Like they have the same toolkits, but they’re using them differently.
My character starts off very kind of like low on confidence and self-worth, but the clone comes out extremely confident because she hasn’t been beaten down by life yet. So, it’s the same toolkit, but two different reactions to life.
Sarah obviously starts off very low in self-worth. Then through having to dual her clone in a dual to the death, she starts to work on herself and actually she starts to gain confidence, appreciate her life and she wants to fight for it more and more. The clone actually goes the opposite way and she starts to become more beaten down. So, they switch places at a certain point, which is really fun to play with.
(L to R) Karen Gillan and Aaron Paul in director Riley Stearns’ ‘Dual’ from RLJE Films.
MF: The actual dual in the movie takes place during a televised event, was that a commentary on reality TV?
KG: I mean, I feel like as humans we’ve been doing that for a really long time. Look at the gladiator times. It’s like we have a morbid fascination with watching people tear each other apart. I don’t know where that comes from. Now we’re just seeing it on every reality television show. It’s like if there’s not an argument, it’s not a good episode.
MF: What was your experience like working with Aaron Paul?
KG: Working with Aaron was incredible. He is such an amazing actor and one of the most generous people. Because he’s such a generous person, it makes him a really generous actor. He’s working to make you a better actor and I always love it when I have that type of relationship with other actors where we’re working for each other rather than for ourselves. He is exactly like that. He is so funny in the movie. He’s a wonderful person.
MF: Generally, what are you looking for from a scene partner?
KG: I think in a dream world we’re working for each other. So, if I can work really hard when the coverage is on the other person, if I can work really hard to provoke reactions in that person and help them to where they need to be and then I receive that from them, I feel like it just results in better acting because it’s reacting rather than acting. It makes each other’s job easier, yet you are working harder when you’re not off camera. But it’s like really a nice way to work and a generous way to work.
(L to R) Aaron Paul and Karen Gillan in director Riley Stearns’ ‘Dual’ from RLJE Films.
MF: Finally, I’m sure you can’t talk much about the current Marvel projects that you are working on, but what was it like collaborating with director Taika Waititi on ‘Thor: Love and Thunder?’
KG: It’s exactly like you’d imagine. He’s a whirlwind of brilliant, chaotic, creativity. It’s like a ride or something. You go in and he’s just kind of running around and he’s playing one of the characters in it and then he’s like, “Do this. Say this.” You kind of just need to cast your fate to the wind and go with it and he’s going to shout lines at you. You don’t know what they’re going to be, but there’s something so exhilarating about that. So, I had a really, really good time working with him because you just have to jump in at the deep end almost.
Now, the secret has been revealed: Variety reports Waititi is attached direct an untitled drama based on the 2015 documentary “Next Goal Wins,” which chronicles the true story of Dutch coach Thomas Rongen who attempts the nearly impossible task of turning the American Samoa soccer team from perennial losers into winners.
With Waititi on board, Fox Searchlight reportedly worked aggressively to land the rights. The project has already received a greenlight to begin filming this fall.
The surprise announcement at Comic-Con that Natalie Portman will return for “Thor: Love and Thunder” and become the “female Thor” may have come out of the blue for fans, but it’s been in the works for some time.
Despite reports that Portman was totally done with the “Thor” movies, Marvel boss Kevin Feige revealed to Entertainment Tonight that the relationship never ended.
“She’s amazing, she’s always stayed in contact with us,” he said.
The Oscar winner played astrophysicist Jane Foster in the first two “Thor” movies, but did not appear in “Ragnarok.” Chris Hemsworth’s Thor alluded to their romance ending.
Portman’s supposed aversion to continuing in the MCU seemed to be disproved when she made a voice cameo in “Avengers: Endgame” (though footage of her was used from “Thor: The Dark World”). She also showed up at the “Endgame” world premiere red carpet.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Portman cemented the deal to return for “Thor 4” six months ago. But director Taika Waititi came up with the idea way back while filming “Thor: Ragnarok.”
“One of the ideas, and perhaps the biggest, was the idea of Jane,” Feige said. “We set Natalie and Taika up and in one meeting she agreed to do it.”
