Deadline is now reporting that Dance will play Christopher Dent, the imposing (and, if lore holds, abusive) father to Harvey Dent, who will be brought to screens this time by Sebastian Stan.
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And we now also know that Scarlett Johansson, whose part until recently has been a mystery, will be Dent’s wife.
Little is known officially about what Pattinson’s Caped Crusader will tackle, but we do know that Farrell is back as Oz Cobb, the villainous gangster nicknamed “The Penguin” while Jeffrey Wright (James Gordon) is also predicted to be back.
We can probably expect to see Batman tackle another menace from his rogues’ gallery, with Barry Keoghan teased as a potential Joker at the end of the original movie, but nothing confirmed about him actually playing the role.
When will ‘The Batman: Part II’ be in theaters?
Following a variety of release date shifts as Reeves and co-writer Mattson Tomlin honed the script, the movie is currently set to land on screens on October 1, 2027.
“It’s a story about Lex Luthor and Superman having to work together to a certain degree against a much, much bigger threat. It’s more complicated than that but that’s a big part of it. It’s as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie. I loved working with Nicholas Hoult. I relate to the character of Lex, sadly. I really wanted to create something extraordinary with the two of them. I Just love the script so much.”
‘Street Fighter’ opens in theaters on October 16th.
Preview
Paramount Pictures made its presentation to the 2026 CinemaCon crowd.
Among the movies promoted were ‘Street Fighter’ and ‘Scary Movie’.
There was also a look at a new ‘Christmas Carol’ adaptation.
Given the tumultuous behind-the-scenes business activity of first the Skydance/Paramount acquisition and now the combined studios’ ongoing mission to buy Warner Bros., it’s fair to wonder how much of that will be referenced at the company’s 2026 CinemaCon presentation.
But as is more likely, we’re expecting a focus on movies including the new ‘Scary Movie’ entry and a fresh take on the ‘Street Fighter’ video game.
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Unlike some of its competition, Paramount doesn’t have many of its big hitter franchises with ready entries, though we’ll likely get something from the early 2027 arrival of the fourth ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ movie.
Following a looong sizzle reel (narrated by Tom Cruise and ending with him chilling out on the lot’s iconic water tower), freshly minted Paramount/Skydance boss David Ellison took the stage to enthuse about storytelling and –– cross it off your bingo card! –– further confirm that a merged Paramount and Warner Bros. would commit to 30 movies a year theatrically, with healthy 45-day release windows.
There was also a lot of chat about the IP-based movies they’re developing –– expect more ‘Star Trek’, ‘Transformers’, ‘World War Z’ and ‘Top Gun’, plus a ‘Call of Duty’ movie. Oh, and following the success of the first film via Neon, the studio is the new home of the ‘Longlegs’ franchise. And we also learned that classic antagonists Shredder and Kang will show up in the ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’ sequel, due in 2027.
‘Sonic the Hedgehog 4’ opens in theaters on March 19, 2027.
There wasn’t much on the fourth ‘Sonic’ beyond a quick video from the set that confirms Jim Carrey will be back. There was also a mention of Kristen Bell, who voices Amy Rose.
Billie Eliish in ‘Billie Eliish – Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D)’. Photo: Henry Hwu and Paramount Pictures.
Eilish and director James Cameron (yes, that James Cameron) took the stage to showcase the tour movie (Live in 3D in case you forgot), with Cameron talking up how they developed new 3D tech to make the film –– and make it look amazing. He calls it a “VIP experience”.
The audience were given 3D glasses to watch some new footage from the tour movie.
Marlon Wayans plays Shorty in ‘Scary Movie’ from Paramount Pictures.
Next to take the stage was the ‘Scary Movie’ cast (well, Marlon and Shawn Wayans and Anna Faris) discuss the new reboot (or sixth film) in the horror spoof series. “Nobody is safe” seems to be the mantra here, and the Wayans introduced some fresh footage from the movie.
(L to R) Anna Faris plays Cindy and Regina Hall plays Brenda in ‘Scary Movie’ from Paramount Pictures.
That “nobody is safe” also applies to the genre titles this one takes pot shots at, including ‘Sinners’, ‘M3GAN’ and more.
2002’s ‘Jackass: The Movie’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
The new –– and final? –– ‘Jackass’ saw main man Johnny Knoxville trying to convince us all that it really is the last one. Guessing they’re all getting a little too old for the crazy stunts.
Jason Momoa in ‘Street Fighter’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
The cast for the latest attempt to kick off a franchise based on the classic video game title arrived on stage to discuss it. Wrestler-turned-actor Cody Rhodes showed up dressed in costume as Guile.
They introduced the first trailer for the movie, which you can see above.
David Corenswet as “John Tuggle” in ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ from Paramount Pictures.
The new movie from Jonathan Levine stars ‘Superman’s David Corenswet and focuses on the enduring impact John Tuggle had on his team and teammates after being drafted by the New York Giants.
Corenswet appeared via video to introduce the film, talking about how he was inspired by Tuggle’s story but was also conflicted as an Eagles fan playing a Giants icon.
David Corenswet as “John Tuggle” in ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ from Paramount Pictures.
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The new David Ayer movie features Brad Pitt as a former Navy SEAL and his retired combat dog who attempt to return to civilization after a catastrophic accident deep in the Alaskan wilderness.
The new movie from Ti West (who has been better known for more brutal horror in the past) features Johnny Depp as Scrooge. Some footage was screened. Unsurprisingly, it’s leaning into the scarier elements of the story. Happy Christmas?
Gina Prince-Bythewood‘s new film adaptsTomi Adeyemi‘s novel, featuring a woman blessed with magical powers by the gods and living in a place where you are forbidden to use them, teams up with a princess to summon the gods and bring down the oppressive regime.
The footage shows Viola Davis‘ Mama Agba and her allies smacking around some tax collectors. The film is a story about the struggle to bring back magic in a kingdom where magic users are routinely executed. The magic users have Targaryen-like white hair. We see one magician summon a tree fighter to battle enemy warriors. The movie looks unique.
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Noticeably absent? ‘Avatar: Ang, The Last Airbender’, which Paramount originally planned for theaters and then decided to shove to its streaming service. But the biggest news? It recently leaked online….
And with that, Paramount is done!
‘Street Fighter’ opens in theaters on October 16th.
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.
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
(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.
(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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
(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.
(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.
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.
Andy Serkis is returning for ‘The Batman: Part II.’
He’ll be back as Alfred Pennyworth.
Matt Reeves is once more directing.
While Andy Serkis already has one big movie job he’s busy with –– that would be preparing to direct and play Gollum once again in new ‘Lord of the Rings’ film ‘The Hunt for Gollum’, (not to mention promoting his animated ‘Animal Farm’) he’ll apparently find time in his schedule to revisit another previous gig.
“I’m pretty certain it’s all going to work out. Yeah, we’re working on it, but I think it’s all looking good. I won’t be joining them immediately, but by the end of the year, I will be”.
(L to R) Director Matt Reeves and actor Robert Pattinson on the set of ‘The Batman’. Photo: Warner Bros.
Little is known officially about what Pattinson’s Caped Crusader will tackle, but we do know that Colin Farrell is likely to return as Oz Cobb, the villainous gangster nicknamed “The Penguin” while Jeffrey Wright (James Gordon) is also predicted to be back.
We can probably expect to see Batman tackle another menace from his rogues’ gallery, with Barry Keoghan teased as a potential Joker at the end of the original movie, but nothing confirmed about him actually playing the role.
Following a variety of release date shifts as Reeves and co-writer Mattson Tomlin honed the script, the movie is currently set to land on screens on October 1, 2027.
‘The Late Show’ host Stephen Colbert will co-write a ‘Lord of the Rings’ movie.
He’ll work with his son, Peter McGee, and Philippa Boyens.
The working title is ‘The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past’.
While he’s a well-known Tolkien scholar and ‘Lord of the Rings’ superfan (who had a cameo in one of the ‘Hobbit’ movies), we still didn’t expect to see comedian and late-night talk show host Stephen Colbert actually writing a movie set in the world of Middle-earth.
What’s the story of ‘The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the past’?
(L to R) Sean Austin, Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis in ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King’. Photo: New Line Cinema.
Here’s Colbert talking about the movie:
“The thing I found myself reading over and over again were the six chapters early on in ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’ that y’all never developed into the first movie back in the day. It’s basically chapters ‘Three Is Company’ through ‘Fog on the Barrow-downs,’ and I thought, Oh wait, maybe that could be its own story that could fit into the larger story. Could we make something that was completely faithful to the books while also being completely faithful to the movies that you guys had already made?”
Andy Serkis as Gollum in ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers’. Photo: New Line Cinema.
Right now, the next ‘Rings’ movie to start production will be the Andy Serkis-directed ‘The Hunt for Gollum’, which has a December 17, 2027 release date on the books.
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.
‘Lanterns’ actor Aaron Pierre is headed to ‘Man of Tomorrow’.
He’ll cross over as his Green Lantern Corps character John Stewart.
James Gunn is writing and will direct the movie.
Looks like ‘Man of Tomorrow’ will truly live up to both connectivity between the big and small screen DC Studios universe and adding in more characters for the ‘Superman’ follow-up.
As first reported by Jeff Sneider and since confirmed by Deadline, Aaron Pierre, who plays Green-Lantern-in-training John Stewart in HBO series ‘Lanterns’ will bring the character to the big screen for the movie.
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Filmmaker/DC Studios boss James Gunn is once again writing and directing the new movie, which is scheduled to start shooting next month.
“It’s a story about Lex Luthor and Superman having to work together to a certain degree against a much, much bigger threat. It’s more complicated than that but that’s a big part of it. It’s as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie. I loved working with Nicholas Hoult. I relate to the character of Lex, sadly. I really wanted to create something extraordinary with the two of them. I Just love the script so much.”
Emilia Clarke in HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones.’ Photo: HBO.
Preview:
The ‘Game of Thrones’ movie is reportedly moving forward at Warner Bros.
‘House of Cards’ and ‘Andor’ writer Beau Willimon is at work on a script.
The movie may be impacted by Paramount buying Warners.
Back before ‘Game of Thrones’ wrapped up its small screen run, there was talk that showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss wanted to end the story with three movies in cinemas, a prospect that HBO bosses shot down.
But the idea of a ‘GOT’ movie didn’t go away, and in late 2024 chatter began about new development. Things have been quiet since then as Warner Bros. focused instead on prequel series ‘House of the Dragon’ and the recent launch of ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’, though news has now arrived of someone actually developing a film.
What’s the potential story for a ‘Game of Thrones’ movie?
HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones.’ Photo: HBO.
Both Page Six and a recent Hollywood Reporter profile of ‘Thrones’ novelist George R.R. Martin have pointed to a focus on Aegon I, who birthed the dragon-happy Targaryen dynasty and united six of the seven kingdoms through bloody conquest about 300 years before the original series (the iconic Iron Throne is forged from swords captured from those his armies defeated in battle).
It’s certainly fertile territory for ‘Thrones’ to explore, and indeed it appears HBO is also looking at a TV take on the idea.
Paramount has seemingly won the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery.
Netflix had seemed to be in prime position but have backed out.
The news sent shockwaves through the industry.
Though it looked in December as though streaming giant Netflix had been successful in its attempt to buy Warner Bros., in a surprise move, Paramount Skydance has swept in to snatch the deal from the company’s hands.
Paramount’s David Ellison and his team had been making overtures to the Warner board, and recently upped its bid to the point where the board decided to go with the new offer.
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Now the big question is whether one media giant –– especially one as similar to Warner Bros. as Paramount, can clear the regulatory hurdles such a deal would generate. But Ellison and his company’s faithfulness to the current administration would seem to be a help to them.
Netflix bosses talk the end of its bid for Warners
Co-CEO and Chief Content Officer at Netflix Ted Sarandos attends the World Premiere of Netflix’s ‘Red Notice/ at Regal LA Live. Photo: Kevin Mazur/Netflix.
Netflix co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters released the following statement about the company’s decision to drop out of the bidding process:
“We’ve always been disciplined, and at the price required to match Paramount Skydance’s latest offer, the deal is no longer financially attractive, so we are declining to match. This transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.”
What next for Paramount and Warners?
Matt Smith in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 2. Photograph by Theo Whitman/HBO.
Pending regulatory approval, Paramount will own not only Warner Bros. and HBO, but also many popular cable networks including CNN, TNT, TBS and Food Network. The deal would represent a major ground shift for the entertainment industry, which is trying to adapt to seismic shifts in audience habits and technology.
Will the giant merged legacy media company be able to overcome competition from Netflix, which has its own sphere of influence? Only time will tell…
