Now, via Deadline, there is news that Cooper may also re-write and direct the new movie, in addition to his acting duties.
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The news comes on the heels of ‘Twisters’ director Lee Isaac Chung stepped away from the movie, citing creative differences with the studio and star/producer Robbie.
Yet Deadline also cautions that Cooper has signed no deals yet, so all this is still up in the air.
The cast of 2001’s ‘Ocean’s Eleven’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
The script remains a secret, though previous stories hinted that it’ll be set in 1962, and focus on a pair of thieves who target expensive earrings during a mansion event followed by a plot to steal precious diamond in Monte Carlo.
Seeking payback after something goes wrong, they recruit a team to sabotage his Monaco Grand Prix victory and swipe the gem. And, if the connection to the ‘Ocean’s franchise holds true, they might just be the parents of Danny Ocean, as played by George Clooney in the main movies.
Carrie Solomon wrote the most recent draft of the screenplay, but Cooper, assuming he does actually end up working on the movie, may start afresh.
When will the ‘Ocean’s’ prequel movie be on screens?
We’ve yet to learn when the film will land in cinemas, and Deadline’s story mentions an attempt to have it shooting before the end of this year, so 2027 is still possible.
Margot Robbie at the Los Angeles World Premiere of ‘Wuthering Heights’. Photo Credit: David Jon Photography.
Margot Robbie is already aboard to star and produce.
Lee Isaac Chung will call the shots.
Looks like the tide is truly turning on the ‘Ocean’s movies. Though perhaps given the true themes of the franchise, it should be the odds are switching in their favor.
But just a few days after George Clooney offered a positive update on the status of the latest main entry, ‘Ocean’s Fourteen’, comes an update on the prequel movie set in the same cinematic universe.
The cast of 2001’s ‘Ocean’s Eleven’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
The script remains a secret, though previous stories hinted that it’ll be set in 1962, and focus on a pair of thieves who target expensive earrings during a mansion event followed by a plot to steal precious diamond in Monte Carlo.
Seeking payback after something goes wrong, they recruit a team to sabotage his Monaco Grand Prix victory and swipe the gem. And, if the connection to the ‘Ocean’s franchise holds true, they might just be the parents of Danny Ocean, as played by Clooney in the main movies.
This marks a change in casting terms –– for a while, it looked like the movie would be a ‘Barbie’ reunion for Robbie and Ryan Gosling, but Gosling has since dropped out of talks. Go back to your mojo dojo casa house, Ken!
Cooper, meanwhile, has wanted to work with Robbie for a while now, and finally seems to be getting the opportunity. He enthused about his future co-star’s worth ethic to Variety:
Cooper’s latest directorial effort, comedy drama ‘Is This Thing On?’ recently premiered at the New York Film Festival.
The movie, inspired by the life of British comedian John Bishop, stars Will Arnett and Laura Dern, with Cooper taking a supporting role.
When will the ‘Ocean’s’ prequel movie be on screens?
We’ve yet to learn when this one will land in cinemas, but the Cooper development suggests it’ll be shooting next year, so 2027 is a likely release year.
Things have been quiet of late –– presumably because the script has proved a tough nut to crack. Still, there is some news to report now, with Deadline bringing word that ‘Twisters’Lee Isaac Chung is in talks to direct the movie.
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Robbie and Gosling are not confirmed for the movie just yet, but if Chung makes a deal, it points to some positive forward movement.
The cast of 2001’s ‘Ocean’s Eleven’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Deadline’s report mentions that the script remains secret, though previous stories brought word that it’ll be set in 1962, and focus on a pair of thieves who target expensive earrings during a mansion event followed by a plot to steal precious diamond in Monte Carlo.
Seeking payback after something goes wrong, they recruit a team to sabotage his Monaco Grand Prix victory and swipe the gem.
Carrie Solomon wrote the most recent draft of the screenplay, but there may well have been others involved since then.
The likes of Jay Roach and Molly Rose have been talked up as directors previously, but it would seem Chung is the current choice given the success of ‘Twisters’.
What else is happening in the ‘Ocean’s world?
George Clooney in ‘Ocean’s Eleven’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
But since those initial stories there has been little update.
Clooney, who is a producer on the ‘Ocean’s franchise in addition to its lead actor, told Uproxx about a development for the future back in 2023:
“We have a really good script for another ‘Ocean’s’ now, so we may end up doing another one. It’s actually a great script. the idea is kind of like ‘Going in Style.’ ”
Glen Powell is starring in a new erotic thriller called ‘Homewreckers.’
It’ll adapt a short story by Neil M. Paik.
Various studios are vying for the rights to produce it.
Though his star has been rising for some time –– partially thanks to a big breakthrough in ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ 2024 can be said to be the year of Glen Powell.
And it looks like it’s ending on a positive note, as a film he’s attached to star in is now at the center of a bidding contest between various studios.
The movie in question is an adaptation of a Neil M. Paik short story called ‘Homewreckers,’ which has been recently picked up by Legendary Pictures.
Paik’s story –– an unpublished three-chapter tale –– is being kept under wraps for now, at least outside of those who are trying to buy the movie project.
Legendary, Lionsgate, New Regency, Sony and Warner Bros. are among the companies making offers and in the mix for the project, which was unveiled to the town earlier this week.
Paik is one of those authors who has developed a talent for turning his short stories into coveted projects: ‘Reawakening,’ published by Six by Eight Press, was set up at Amazon as a series with ‘The Chi’s Lena Waithe overseeing it, also after a competitive situation. Another short story, ‘Rainbowfish,’ was set up at Warners.
With Powell aboard this one, it has an even better chance of making it through development, though obviously needs a writer and director attached.
What else has Glen Powell been seen in?
Glen Powell as Tyler in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
As mentioned, Powell is having a great year –– he began with ‘Anyone But You’ (technically released at the end of 2023 but a box office sensation by the time 2024).
It continued thanks to ‘Hit Man,’ the Netflix romantic comedy thriller, which he also co-wrote and produced.
That landed strong reviews and earned him a Golden Globe nomination earlier this week. And he starred in ‘Twisters,’ Universal’s update to the 1990s tornado flick. It proved popular with summer audiences, whipping up more than $370 million worldwide.
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Despite taking some time out to complete college courses, Powell shows no sign of slowing down, having shot TV series ‘Chad Powers’ and comedy thriller movie ‘Huntington.’
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ is the biggest R-rated movie worldwide.
It has overtaken ‘Joker’ at the box office.
‘Alien: Romulus’ also had a great start globally.
Disney will keep the champagne corks popping this weekend, as a one-two punch of successful movies has given it more reason to celebrate what is turning into a very good year for the company.
To start, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ has entered the record books as the most successful R-rated movie ever, dashing past ‘Joker’ on Friday to take the crown with $1.086 billion at the worldwide box office.
And though it was finally dethroned by ‘Alien: Romulus’ from the top spot at the domestic box office this weekend, Disney will still be happy, as the latest xenomorph outing is also one of theirs since it arrives via 20th Century Studios. In some ways, it’s a victory for properties the company gained by buying Fox, since the new ‘Deadpool’ is an homage to –– and features plenty of –– characters from the Fox/Marvel years.
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What are the latest milestones that ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ and Disney has passed?
Following this weekend’s earnings, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ is now at $1.142 billion worldwide.
Among its achievements, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ had the highest-grossing global opening for an R-rated film ever, surpassing 2016’s ‘Deadpool’. It is the 31st film from The Walt Disney Studios (including three Fox films pre-acquisition) and the 11th title in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (including two for Sony) to have surpassed $1 billion at the global box office.
With ‘Inside Out 2’ and ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ Disney has the top two movies of the year and back-to-back $1 billion earners, becoming the only studio ever to release back-to-back $1 billion films in a given year.
‘Alien: Romulus’, directed by ‘Don’t Breathe’s Fede Álvarez, scored a healthy $41.5 million at the domestic box office this weekend, which saw it nab the top spot.
Globally, the new ‘Alien’ franchise entry has scored $108.2 million and represents the second-best start for the xenomorph-centric horror stories (not accounting for inflation).
It’s all the more encouraging given that ‘Romulus’ was originally destined to go straight to Hulu, much as with ‘Predator’ prequel ‘Prey’ but was shifted to theatrical as filming began. The decision has clearly paid off.
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What about the rest of this weekend’s box office?
Blake Lively attends the “It Ends With Us” UK Gala Screening at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on August 08, 2024 in London, England. Photo: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Sony Pictures.
‘It Ends With Us’ –– adapted from the Coleen Hoover novel –– continued to do well, landing third in its second weekend. It made $24 million, declining just 52% from its huge $50 million debut.
The movie, which stars Blake Lively, has overcome potentially controversial talk of behind-the-scenes drama and remains a strong performer, earning $180 million worldwide on a $25 million budget.
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‘Twisters’ dropped to fourth place, but the disaster movie is also holding well, taking $9.8 million domestically in its fifth weekend.
And even more impressive was ‘Coraline’, with the 15th-anniversary re-release of Laika’s beloved stop-motion animation fantasy film rounding out the top five with $8.9 million domestically. It has grossed roughly $11.3 million in the U.S. since returning to theaters on Thursday.
That result is impressive given that, on its original release, it took in $16.8 million for the first weekend.
Jenna Ortega as Cairo Sweet in the Psychological Thriller film, ‘Miller’s Girl,’ a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Zac Popik.
Preview:
Jenna Ortega is reportedly in final talks for J.J. Abrams’ new film.
Glen Powell is making his own deal to star.
Warner Bros. is backing the new movie.
If we know anything about J.J. Abrams, it’s that the man loves a mystery. In fact, he became famous for his “mystery box’” filmmaking as both a director and producer.
It’s perhaps not shocking then, that much about his next movie –– his first as a director since 2019’s ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’ –– is being kept under wraps.
But according to Deadline, we are at least learning –– assuming it all works out –– who could end up starring, as both Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell are reportedly making deals to appear.
Can the polar bear from ‘Lost’ be far behind? Okay, probably not, but you can already sense Abrams’ old friend and frequent cinematic lucky charm Greg Grunberg waiting to see how he might be included.
(L to R) Composer Michael Giacchino and director J.J. Abrams on the set of ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.’ Photo courtesy of Michael Giacchino’s Twitter.
As we mention above, this one is a big ol’ mystery. No plot details have emerged (there was some chatter about it being a time travel tale, but that has since been denied) and the title remains locked in a vault somewhere.
Abrams wrote the script for the new movie and his Bad Robot company is naturally involved to produce. It’ll be released by Warner Bros’. but beyond that… your guess is as good as ours.
What else are Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell working on?
Glen Powell as Tyler in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Ortega is in high demand of late thanks to her star-making turns in the recent ‘Scream’ outings and Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’.
Next up for her in terms of release date is a reunion with ‘Wednesday’ director Tim Burton for ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’, with the supernatural comedy sequel due to premiere at the Venice Film Festival ahead of its September 6th arrival.
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She’s also part of the cast for Taika Waititi’s sci-fi pic ‘Klara and the Sun’ and Alex Scharfman’s comedy ‘Death of a Unicorn’ which also stars Paul Rudd and Will Poulter. Finally, she’s been busy shooting a second season of ‘Wednesday’.
As for Powell, he’s enjoying success on screen with ‘Twisters’, which is doing solid business. The actor has been working on comedy thriller ‘Huntington’ and will star for Edgar Wright in a remake of ‘The Running Man’ and John Lee Hancock’s legal true story ‘Monsanto’. Plus, he’s been talking of late of having been told the date he’ll need to be ready to shoot another ‘Top Gun’ movie.
When will the new Abrams movie be in theaters?
Among the many details that Abrams and co. are keeping quiet for now is any potential release date for the movie. We have to assume that someone at Abrams’ level can demand not to lock down a date until he’s ready to commit to something, though Warners will no doubt hope this can hit cinemas as soon as possible.
Jenna Ortega attends the world premiere of Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’ on November 16, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Presley Ann/Getty Images for Netflix.
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ has a successful second weekend at the box office.
It dropped just 53% to earn $97 million domestically.
New arrivals, such as ‘Harold and the Purple Crayon’ had a tougher time of it.
Deadpool just keeps on taking aim at box office records and achievements.
While box office pundits were eager to see how ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ might fare on its second weekend of release (traditionally Marvel and other big movies can be front-loaded, and attendance drops in further weekends), the successful superhero outing has proved it’s in the charts for the long haul, earning an impressive $97 million this weekend.
That’s a low 53% drop in income and indicates that fans and general audiences are still happily turning out for the movie.
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What new records has ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ taken down?
With its domestic total now standing at $395.6 million, the latest outing for the Merc with a Mouth has deposed ‘The Passion of the Christ’ (which made $371 million domestically in its run, not accounting for inflation), which should please “Marvel Jesus” no end.
That $97 million now stands as eighth-biggest second weekend in domestic box office history, sneaking past ‘Barbie’, which had that slot after last year’s success.
Globally, the new Marvel effort is up to $824 million globally, with $1 billion and more clearly in sight and likely to be crossed within a few days (‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ has been doing great business during the week as well as the weekend). That is more than either of the previous two ‘Deadpool’ movies achieved in their theatrical runs.
And the movie is currently the third-biggest R-rated movie of all time, behind just ‘Joker’ ($1.07 billion) and ‘Oppenheimer’, which earned $975 million.
Elsewhere, it was a solid week for ‘Deadpool’s veteran chart-mates as ‘Twisters’ took $22.7 million, staying second place in its third weekend of release for $195.6 million domestically. It has served as good counter-programming for adults in search of non-comic book fare who still want a little excitement in their movies.
Third place went to M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Trap’, which is seen as a mildly decent start, though we’re sure Warner Bros. (which didn’t screen the movie for critics) was likely hoping for something bigger. The movie earned $15.6 million this first weekend on release.
Fourth was ‘Despicable Me 4’, proof positive once again that Gru and the Minions mean big business for Illumination and Universal, with $11.3 million for fourth place as it crossed $300 million in its fifth week of release and now stands at $313.9 million domestically.
‘Inside Out 2’ continues to also bring in the family crowd, with $6.7 million in fifth (don’t forget it has been in cinemas for eight weeks now) and $626.9 million in total domestically, which makes it (for now) the highest-grossing movie of 2024 domestically so far.
Struggling in sixth place was Sony’s ‘Harold and the Purple Crayon’ which starred Zachary Levi, which was panned by critics, earned solid scores from moviegoers, but couldn’t even crack the top 5 on release, taking in a dismal $6 million domestically and $9 million globally, which is not great for a $30 million-budgeted movie.
There was other good news for Disney which, thanks to the likes of ‘Deadpool and Wolverine’, ‘Inside Out 2’, ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ and ‘The First Omen’, is the first studio this year to cross $3 billion at the box office, with a running total so far of $3.109 billion.
(L to R) Director Shawn Levy, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman from ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ at San Diego Comic-Con 2024. Photo: Marvel Studios.
Other Movies and TV Shows Similar to ‘Deadpool and Wolverine’:
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ now has the record for the highest-grossing launch of an R-rated movie at the box office.
It made an estimated $211 million domestically and $444 million globally.
The MCU as a whole has now surpassed $30 billion in box office earnings.
It might sound silly to say, but Marvel really needed a hero. And from the looks of the box office results of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’, it got two.
Because the new superhero team-up movie, which stars Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson/Deadpool and Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine has blasted through box office records for R-rated releases and outstripped even enthusiastic predictions for its success, opening across its first three-day weekend (plus previews) to a superb, estimated $211 million.
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What are ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’s box office achievements?
The new ‘Deadpool’ outing was helped –– not that you’d know it from the spoilery promotional materials put out by Disney/Marvel –– by excited fans heading to see it before the movie’s various secrets could be spilled online.
That stratospheric $211 million domestic launch makes it the biggest R-rated opening weekend in history ––pushing past the original ‘Deadpool’, in fact, which launched to $132 million back in 2016. And in more general terms, it’s the eighth-best debut of all time on the domestic side.
Globally, the movie also performed beyond expectations. Scoring a coveted China release, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ opened almost simultaneously worldwide and ended the weekend with $444 million as its global tally.
Marvel boss Kevin Feige applauded the success of the film Saturday night at the San Diego Comic-Con, where a choir belted out “Like a Prayer” (as used in the movie) while Deadpool-themed dancers performed in the aisles. Feige announced that the success of the MCU’s latest movie had pushed Marvel Studio’s cinematic tally to $30 billion –– not bad for 16 years’ worth of releases.
Clearly, audiences wanted more from the Merc with a Mouth.
(from left) Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Tyler (Glen Powell) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Sensibly, no studio put out a wide release to compete with Marvel’s latest behemoth, which took over many screens domestically (4,210 to be exact) and nabbed the lion’s share of headlines.
Last week’s champion, ‘Twisters’, dropped 57% for a $35.5 million second weekend, which is still a success. It has so far earned $154.9 million domestically.
‘Despicable Me 4’ also continued to do solid business, making $14.2 million in its fourth weekend for a $290.9 million domestic total.
And let’s not forget that Disney is already having a good year, with Pixar sequel ‘Inside Out 2’ continuing to bring in families, to the tune of $8.3 million for its seventh weekend. The animated movie has so far made $613.4 million domestically and more than $1.46 billion globally.
We’re fairly sure that idea is already bubbling away among executives at Disney, but unless Reynolds and Jackman feel they have a good idea, we doubt it’ll happen soon, if at all. There’s every chance the duo could show up in other Marvel movies.
(from left) Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Tyler (Glen Powell) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Opening in theaters on July 19th, ‘Twisters’ is real throwback movie making –– which makes sense, since it effectively follows (though rarely directly references) the 1996Jan de Bont-directed original.
Which means you don’t have to have seen the 1990s movie to enjoy the new one, which serves as a callback to that era of filmmaking. It’s sitting firmly in big-scale event-movie territory, and the hand of executive producer Steven Spielberg can be felt, if lightly.
(from left) Lily (Sasha Lane) and Tyler (Glen Powell) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
At one point, it looked as though ‘Twisters’ might be headed down the road of a sequel to the original that would feature the daughter of Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton’s characters. But the path has instead led it to a much more standalone place, drawing only on the concept of storm chasers (and, early on, including a nod to the storm-monitoring device known as “Dorothy” from the 1996 movie).
It’s a smart move, as ‘Twisters’ is allowed to mostly stand on its own, and it provides enough entertainment value to blow past any problems.
‘Twisters’: Script and Direction
(from left) Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell and director Lee Isaac Chung on the set of ‘Twisters’.
With a script that nods back to ‘Twister’ in credits form (the original movie’s writers Michael Crichton and Anne-Marie Martin score a “based on characters created by” mention, the new film is written by Joseph Kosinski (the ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ director flirted with making this a few years back in its development stage) and Mark L. Smith (yes, the man behind ‘The Revenant’).
In many ways, it leans more towards Kosinski’s blockbuster sensibility, in both the positive and negative senses. The screenplay is a slick machine, running you from windy set-piece to spinning scenes of destruction, but taking its foot off the pedal enough to fill in some decent character detail for at least Edgar-Jones’ Kate and Powell’s Tyler.
Yet with that shape come the predictable cliches that always seem to be swept up too. There are shortcuts to emotional drama and some of the supporting characters might as well carry signs reading “uptight martinet” or “nervy reporter” instead of seeming like real people. Still, the movie around them is fun enough to handwave that away.
‘Minari’ director Lee Isaac Chung is probably tired of people being surprised that he went from directing an intimate, personal drama of family struggles to a huge-scale thriller where cars and people go flying. But he brings some echo of his past work to this latest effort, dialing down on what makes the lead characters tick, while, along with cinematographer Dan Mindel and the talented effects team, make the tornado scenes work. And the personal stakes don’t end with our heroes –– there are scenes of locals impacted by the terrifying twisters and even some sneaky chat about climate change.
‘Twisters’: Performances
(from left) Dexter (Tunde Adebimpe), Lily (Sasha Lane), Ben (Harry Hadden-Paton), Boone (Brandon Perea), Dani (Katy O’Brian), Javi (Anthony Ramos), Tyler (Glen Powell) and Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
From the marketing, this could well have been re-titled “the Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell Show”, with a subtitle of “also featuring Anthony Ramos and some other people”. While the focus is mostly certainly on the lead duo, Ramos and one or two others do get moments to shine.
Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kate Cooper
Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kate in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Daisy Edgar-Jones is our focus here, her storm expert Kate enjoys the lion’s share of the characterization, including a dramatic, tragic introduction and a full arc that finds her re-discovering her passion for tackling tornadoes (she’s less looking to chase them, more find a way to shut them down).
And in the actress, Chung could not have picked a more luminous lead –– several moments work because Edgar-Jones’ expressive face make that happen, and she’s certainly got the dramatic chops to carry the storyline. Plus, her chemistry with Powell is palpable, even if the romantic side is more bubbling under than raging storm.
Glen Powell as Tyler Owens
Glen Powell as Tyler in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Between ‘Hit Man’ and now this, Glen Powell is spending 2024 proving that he has full-on star power. His introduction ladles on the smug-but-likeable charm and partly thanks to the actor, Owens has more depths that you might suspect from first glance. Sure, he’s cocky and arrogant, but Powell infuses him with those extra layers.
Anthony Ramos as Javi
Javi (Anthony Ramos) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Anthony Ramos is probably regretting signing on to this latest big-scale film –– after being overshadowed by Optimus Prime in ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts’, he’s now playing third fiddle to his co-stars. Still, Javi is enough of a solid character to prove worthy of the actor.
Maura Tierney as Cathy Cooper
Maura Tierney as Cathy in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Appearing as Kate’s mother, Maura Tierney makes the most of her couple of scenes, playing well against Edgar-Jones and Powell.
Supporting Cast
(from left) Mike (Stephen Oyoung), Peter (Alex Kingi), Scott (David Corenswet), Javi (Anthony Ramos) and Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
As we mentioned in the scripting section, the rest of the characters are largely archetypes, with future ‘Superman‘ David Corenswet essentially a reboot of the snooty, profit-chasing character Cary Elwes played in the original. The rest of Tyler’s storm-chasing team are a fun bunch, but only get the occasional moment to impact the story.
‘Twisters’: Final Thoughts
(from left) Tyler (Glen Powell) and Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
With a film such as ‘Twisters’, there’s always a debate to have whether it justifies its existence. But by not (mostly) looking to reboot the 1996 movie or go the legacy route, it proves to offer enough fun, its nostalgic nature not tied directly to ‘Twister’ but instead the sort of movie that one typified.
It’s driven by two great leads and certainly throws enough at the screen (literally in certain scenes) to make its basic concept work.
‘Twisters’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.
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What’s the story of ‘Twisters’?
‘Twisters’ stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell and Anthony Ramos as equal forces, with opposing motivations, who come together to try to predict, and possibly tame, the immense power of tornadoes.
Edgar-Jones stars as Kate Carter, a former storm chaser haunted by a devastating encounter with a tornado during her college years who now studies storm patterns on screens safely in New York City. She is lured back to the open plains by her friend, Javi (Ramos) to test a groundbreaking new tracking system.
There, she crosses paths with Tyler Owens (Powell), the charming and reckless social-media superstar who thrives on posting his storm-chasing adventures with his raucous crew, the more dangerous the better.
As storm season intensifies, terrifying phenomena never seen before are unleashed, and Kate, Tyler, Javi and their crews find themselves squarely in the paths of multiple storm systems converging over central Oklahoma in the fight of their lives.
‘Wicked’, ‘Twisters’ and more were showcased at Universal’s CinemaCon show.
There was news of sequels to ‘M3GAN’ and ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s.
The likes of Jon M. Chu and Glen Powell showed up to support their films.
Universal enjoyed a successful 2023 on several counts, not the least of which was the explosive popularity of Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’, which did well at both the box office and awards season. Plus there were the horror likes of ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s and the big family hit that was ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’. True, there were also the downsides –– ‘Fast X’ didn’t quite deliver in terms of that giant franchise, while ‘Renfield’ and ‘The Last Voyage of the Demeter’ struggled.
But for the most part, we’re expecting the studio to celebrate its big win, and look forward to a slate that includes giant windy natural disasters (plus star Glen Powell), a new entry for its money-printing ‘Despicable Me’ franchise and what it is hoping will be a magical adaptation of iconic stage musical ‘Wicked’.
And the company is also including 2024 offerings from its Focus arm, so we’re anticipating the likes of Robert Eggers’ vampire tale ‘Nosferatu’.
Unsurprisingly, the studio kicked things off with a sizzle reel highlighting the big names it collaborates with –– Jordan Peele, Christopher Nolan, some youthful chancer called… we want to say, Stevie… Spielberg? –– very much highlighting its relationships and celebrating last year’s big release.
President of Domestic Theatrical Distribution Jim Orr touted the fact that more than 75% of the studio’s releases are original movies, with some hoping to launch new franchises. But his focus was also on ‘Wicked’, letting off a bright green flare and promising that the company will be turning theaters green “you got that, right? Y’all are wicked smart.” Yes, Jim. We got it.
After bringing Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt to CinemaCon last year for ‘The Fall Guy’, the studio kicked off this year’s event with a full screening of the movie, so we doubt there will be too much chatter about it this time around.
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Christopher Nolan sent a video message along –– not, to announce a new film with Universal, but to thank theater owners for their support and reminding them that his journey to promote ‘Oppenheimer’ began at last year’s event.
Now, though to the future…
There was a brief mention of the new ‘Bridget Jones’ movie (more on that here), which is confirmed for February 14th next year.
Illumination boss Chris Meledandri arrived on stage to whip up support for his animated efforts. And yes, he mentioned that a new ‘Super Mario Bros.’ movie is indeed on the way in April 2026, which is hardly shocking given the success of the original.
And, of course, a sequence from ‘Despicable Me 4’, which offers much of the expected madness with Gru and co. (and you’ll have seen some of it in the trailer). Will Ferrell is confirmed as the villain, with word that Stephen Colbert is also in the cast. Pharrell Williams is confirmed to be back providing music.
‘Despicable Me 4’ lands in theaters on July 5th.
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With that complete, time to learn what’s blowing in the wind…
Twin Twisters, in ‘Twisters’ directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
The new movie’s director Lee Isaac Chung is best known for the far smaller, much-respected indie ‘Minari’, so of course he addresses what is foremost in audience’s minds: why tackle a big franchise entry about tornadoes.
Turns out, it’s his Midwest background –– he grew up in tornado territory, so he brings something personal to the movie about Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glenn Powell chasing twisters. Chung’s intent was to make an immersive movie, and to make us all appreciate the terrifying power of nature. He worked with weather scientists and experts to get the details right and had real-life storm chasers on the crew.
He also name drops Steven Spielberg (a tornado obsessive whose first movie was a tornado epic shot in his bathtub), who taught him a lot about filming them.
(from left) Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones), Javi (Anthony Ramos), and Tyler (Glen Powell), in ‘Twisters’ directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos joined their director on stage to offer up the usual anecdotes about filming in blazing heat and being pelted with water, air, ice, and more (to remind us of their commitment, Powell and Ramos once more faced water, fake debris and –– of course! –– a cow, albeit inflatable, on stage).
They’re also here to key up some footage from the film. A rodeo is disrupted, and Powell and co. head off on their chasing mission. There’s a glimpse of Dorothy, the storm-testing device from the original movie.
And the two giant twisters from the trailer combine into one giant super tornado. It’s very much the “‘Twister’… but bigger” energy from the first released footage.
‘Twisters’ heads to theaters on July 19th.
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From natural action to supernatural horror, and beyond…
The next sizzle reel highlighted the studio’s more recent horror legacy, including collaborations with Jordan Peele and James Wan.
And confirmation that sequels to both ‘M3GAN’ and ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s will appear next year –– ‘M3GAN 2.0’ in May, ‘Freddy’s in the fall.
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But the first actual presentation from the genre is for…
Since ‘Wolf Man’ is in production, there was just a brief clip introduced by director Leigh Whannell, featuring stars Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner. It’ll see a father (Abbott) trying to protect his family from a threat. Only… he’s the threat.
‘Wolf Man’ will be in theaters on January 17th, 2025.
James McAvoy in ‘Speak No Evil.’ Photo: Universal Pictures.
Director James Watkins introduced the horror thriller starring James McAvoy, Scott McNairy and Mackenzie Davis about a family invited to spend a weekend at an idyllic holiday retreat, only for things to go very scare shaped when the father of the family (McAvoy) reveals a darker side..
Watkins keyed up the first look at the trailer.
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‘Speak No Evil’ is due in theaters on September 13th.
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Next, it was the turn of Focus Features to showcase its slate, introduced to the music of Amy Winehouse (the focus of upcoming biopic ‘Back to Black’).
Eschewing a bigger presentation, it was largely a sizzle reel of footage from the company’s upcoming releases, including the aforementioned ‘Back to Black’ (due on May 17th) and pope-focused drama ‘Conclave‘ ( November 1st), which stars Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow and more.
Perhaps the most exciting was the first look at footage from Robert Eggers’ new horror, ‘Nosferatu’. The director’s take on the classic vampire tale looks suitably intense and creepy, with Willem Dafoe at the forefront of the clips.
It’ll be in theaters on December 25th –– because Christmas always needs vampires.
With posters adorning the walls outside Caesar’s Palace forum, tulips in all the cupholders and light up green lanyards handed out before the presentation, Jon M. Chu’s big adaptation of the hit stage musical is a two-part gamble on the largest scale.
Jeff Goldblum’s giant golden head kicks things off on screen… and he steps out (from behind the curtain, as befits the Wizard of Oz) to enthuse in true Goldblumian style how “dreamy” the making of the movie was –– practical sets and all.
Producer Marc Platt and director Chu are up next, who in turn introduce members of the cast (including Michelle Yeoh, who chides her ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ and ‘Wicked’ director for always casting her as “mean” characters.
The last to take the stare are stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, who talk about how much the movie(s) mean to them.
Footage from the film encompassed snatches from several of the musical’s big tunes, including ‘Popular’ and act one show-stopper ‘Defying Gravity’. It ends with Erivo’s Elphaba (who will become known as the Wicked Witch of the West) claiming her broomstick. “You can do this, you can do anything,” Grande’s Glinda tells her. “I’m not afraid,” Elphaba replies, “It’s the wizard who should be afraid of me….”
Oh, and we learned that Peter Dinklage is in the movie as the voice of Dr. Dillamond, a goat professor at the show’s Shiz University who befriends Elphaba.
What was shown was certainly impressive and bodes well for fan expectations.
‘Wicked’ is flying into theaters in those two parts –– the first on November 27th this year, followed by the second on November 26th, 2025.
