Moviefone Editorial

Tag: zachary-levi

  • One of the ‘IT’ Kids Is Joining DC’s ‘Shazam’ Movie

    No red balloons this time. Please.

    Jack Dylan Grazer has been cast in the upcoming “Shazam!” movie starring Zachary Levi. Grazer, 14, just played Eddie Kaspbrak in the horror hit “IT,” and he played young Alex Riley in the new CBS series “Me, Myself, and I.” (That TV show recently got pulled, which may be why he now has more time for film roles.)

    In “Shazam,” Deadline reports, Grazer will play Freddy, best friend to Billy Baston (Asher Angel), the teen who can transform into an adult superhero by saying “Shazam.” Freddy is the only person who knows the truth about Shazam.

    2017 Summer TCA Tour - CBS Television Studios' Summer Soiree - InsideGrazer only has a few credits on his resume, since he’s just starting out, but he’s certainly had a big year.

    “Shazam!” is being directed by David F. Sandberg. Levi’s lead casting was revealed in late October. At the time, The Hollywood Reporter said “Shazam!” would be the next DCEU movie to go into production, with New Line eyeing a February 2018 filming start in Toronto. According to CBR, “Shazam!” currently has a release date in April 2019.

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  • Zachary Levi Reveals His Final Line Was Cut From ‘Thor: Ragnarok: ‘It Was a Bummer’

    Not that his final line was “It was a bummer.”

    SPOILERS AHEAD

    Zachary Levi‘s Asgardian warrior Fandral returned in “Thor: Ragnarok,” only to die at the hands of Hela (Cate Blanchett) during her Asgard invasion. Fandral, a member of the Warriors Three, was first played by Josh Dallas in “Thor,” then Levi took over the role in “Thor: The Dark World,” and “Ragnarok.”

    During Heroes and Villains Fan Fest, Levi talked about Fandral’s death scene, revealing his character’s final words — which are now on the cutting room floor:

    “For those of you who have watched the movie, you see that Cate Blanchett comes out and she very just willy-nilly throws some knives of demonic purpose, I don’t know, they’re evil knives impaling both me and Volstagg, killing us instantly. The End. What is on the cutting room floor is me charging at Hela and getting impaled and going [rasping, dying voice] ‘For Asgard!’ No sh*t. I had my last line, my last words in the Marvel Universe were ‘For Asgard.’ Cutting room floor. And when I shot that, it was… yeah, it was a bummer. You know.”

    Poor Fandral. Poor Asgard. You tried, man.

    Zachary Levi may be leaving the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he’s about to join the DC Extended Universe as Shazam. And he starts filming pretty soon. So that’s cool.

    [Via: ScreenRant]

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  • Zachary Levi Cast as DC’s ‘Shazam,’ aka the Other Captain Marvel

    Screening Of Disney's 'Tangled Before Ever After' - Arrivals“Chuck” star Zachary Levi has said the magic word and will star as “Shazam” in the DC Extended Universe movie.

    According to The Hollywood Reporter, David F. Sandberg is directing “Shazam” for New Line, with the story following young Billy Batson, who can who can transform into an adult superhero by saying the magic word “Shazam!” Billy Batson has also gone by the name Captain Marvel, which probably won’t happen in this movie since the Marvel Cinematic Universe has its own Captain Marvel in Brie Larson, and she has her own film coming out in 2019, too.

    So just Shazam will be fine.

    Fans are feeling just fine about the casting news:

    Levi is probably still best known from NBC’s “Chuck,” but he also voiced Flynn Rider in Disney’s “Tangled,” had a role in “Heroes Reborn,” and he’ll return as Fandral in Marvel’s “Thor: Ragnarok.”

    John Cena had reportedly met with the director for the role of Shazam, along with Derek Theler, Zane Holtz, Billy Magnussen, and Jake McDorman. (Sorry, guys. Next time.) Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was previously cast in “Shazam” as villain Black Adam, but now instead he’ll star in is own solo film. THR added that “Shazam” is being developed concurrently with The Rock’s film focusing on Black Adam.

    “Shazam” — which may actually keep an exclamation point in its title, like “Shazam!” — is reportedly the next DCEU movie to go into production. That would put it ahead of the “Suicide Squad” sequel, plus the Batgirl movie, Flashpoint,”and all the rest (including a Deathstroke movie, which is still in the early stages).

    THR says New Line is eyeing a February 2018 filming start in Toronto. According to CBR, “Shazam!” currently has a release date of April 2019. If you’re keeping track, “Captain Marvel” opens March 8th, 2019, two months ahead of “Avengers 4.” And “Wonder Woman 2” is set to open December 2019. It’s going to be a busy year for superheroes.

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  • Kimmel and Conan Blast Donald Trump and Zachary Levi for Cancelling at Last Minute

    Careful. If you cancel on a comedian, you get a free roast in your absence. Only “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and “Conan” are airing new shows this week, Fallon and the other late-night guys are on repeats, and both Jimmy Kimmel and Conan O’Brien saw their main Tuesday night guests cancel at the last minute.

    So the hosts did what all decent comedians would do — they burned the guests behind their backs.

    Kimmel is in Brooklyn this week, and even though Donald Trump’s team gave him about a day’s notice to cancel, it’s still a huge blow to lose Trump as a guest. Kimmel told the audience they’re still confused as to what happened. “His people called late last night and canceled on us,” said Kimmel (via The Hollywood Reporter). “They were cryptic as to why he canceled — they said he has a major political commitment. But he did want me to relay the message to you that if he had been here, he would have been great. … I’m dying to find out what this major political commitment was. Usually, it means he had to go on CNN and call someone an idiot or something.”
    Kimmel also jokingly asked, “Why did he cancel? We told him there were cameras here, right?” Trump is supposed to be on the show at a later date, but Kimmel told his October 20 audience not to worry, “Tonight, we’re going to give everyone in the audience a basketball dipped in cologne, so you can fully experience what it would have been like had Donald Trump been here.”

    Nice. Tracy Morgan stepped in for Trump and he hung out with Jimmy at the zoo.

    Conan and Andy Richter also had fun talking about how “Heroes Reborn” but he canceled that day. Why? Conan said it’s very unusual for a guest to cancel the day of the show. Zachary didn’t have a political or other commitment, he just didn’t get on the plane — that they helpfully set up for him, Conan added. The actor had a flight that morning from Toronto that he was supposed to get on, and then he just didn’t make it.
    So Conan asked Andy, in his experience, if he misses a morning flight, what does that normally mean for him? Andy: “I drank too much and overslept.” Conan: “Yes!” Conan said he was curious, so he asked others in the studio (including a stray dog) the same question and got the same answer. So basically they’re just assuming Zachary Levi got drunk and overslept.

    Conan: “Well it’s too bad, because since I began on television in 1993, I’ve been planning all this time to honor my show’s 10,267th guest. See, that’s a sacred number in both Aztec and Irish culture. So this was going to be a huge deal.” Andy said he’s been talking about it for years. Conan said they had some amazing prizes lined up for Zachary, including a multi-million villa off the Amalfi Coast. Since Gabrielle Union actually did show up, she got all the prizes … except the stray dog.

    Check it out:

    Basically, both hosts made lemonade out of the lemons they were dealt. And at least Zachary had the grace to make fun of himself for his boo-boo.

    Here’s Zachary apologizing and promoting Conan’s show:


    Here’s a roundup of what did happen last night on the late night circuit, thanks to the guests that bothered to show up.

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  • Hiro Returns in the New ‘Heroes Reborn’ Trailer

    hiro, heroes rebornYet another new trailer for “Heroes Reborn” is here, and this time, there’s plenty of action.

    Unlike the last teaser, which offered only a bleak look at a world in disarray following the disappearance of our titular saviors, this new promo promises that that’s all about to change — somewhat, anyway. We get close glimpses of new characters (including those played by Zachary Levi and Kiki Sukezane) as well as familiar faces (Jack Coleman and Masi Oka), and lots of fast-paced shots of fights, gunplay, and angsty teenagers.

    The return of Oka’s Hiro is saved for the end of the promo, and he’s a sight for sore eyes after so many years off the air. It seems he may be playing more of a mentor role this time around as a new crop of Heroes are trained, though the specifics are unclear for now.

    “It doesn’t matter how ordinary you think you are,” the new wave of aspiring recruits are told in the clip. “We all have the potential to be heroes.”

    That potential will be realized when “Heroes Reborn” debuts on September 24 on NBC. Until then, check out the trailer below.

    Photo credit: YouTube

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  • A ‘Tangled’ TV Series Is Coming to Disney Channel in 2017

    tangled, tangled series, the disney channelDisney Princess fever has never been hotter — just ask “Frozen” stars Elsa and Anna — and the company is capitalizing on that popularity with a new Disney Channel series based on the studio’s 2010 hit “Tangled.”

    The animated musical starred the voices of Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi, who played Rapunzel and Eugene/Flynn, respectively. Both actors are set to reprise those roles for the series, which will also be called “Tangled,” and also feature original music from longtime Disney composer Alan Menken (who received one of his many Oscar nominations for “Tangled” tune “I See the Light”).

    Here’s the official synopsis for the series, per a Disney press release:

    Set between the events of the feature film and the start of the 2012 short film, “Tangled Ever After,” the animated series unfolds as Rapunzel acquaints herself with her parents, her kingdom and the people of Corona. Her irrepressible spirit and natural curiosity about the world drives her to the realization that there is so much more she needs to learn before she can truly accept her royal destiny. She boldly puts her crown and impending marriage on hold to seek out epic adventures, much to the dismay of the King who, after missing out on Rapunzel’s youth, must accept that his daughter is now an independent young woman. Accompanying Rapunzel on her journey will be Eugene; the plucky chameleon sidekick, Pascal; the no-nonsense horse, Maximus; the Snuggly Duckling Pub Thugs; and newcomer Cassandra, a tough-as-nails handmaiden, who becomes Rapunzel’s confidant.

    The film followed Rapunzel, a young princess who was kidnapped by an evil witch and forced to live alone in a tall tower, where the only means of entry or exit was by letting down her long locks. Rapunzel eventually works up the courage to leave her tower, and embarks on an adventure with the dashing bandit Flynn, with whom she falls in love. (“Tangled Ever After” is centered around their wedding.)

    “Tangled” is set to premiere on the Disney Channel sometime in 2017.

    Photo credit: Disney Channel

  • ‘Heroes Reborn’ Super Bowl Teaser Trailer Is Short and Sweet (VIDEO)

    Heroes, Heroes Reborn
    NBC debuted its first look at new series “Heroes Reborn” during the Super Bowl, and the 15-second clip certainly lived up to the “teaser” moniker.

    But what the trailer lacked in quantity it more than made up for in quality, introducing three characters and setting up a central conflict. The clip features a young girl with special powers, creating a beautiful aurora in the sky; she’s being pursued by H.R.G. (Jack Coleman), who in turn is being watched by a character played by Zachary Levi.

    We don’t know much about how these three are connected, but we expect viewers who loved the original “Heroes” will be intrigued enough by this clip to check out the reboot.

    Watch the clip below, and tune in to “Heroes Reborn” when it premieres on NBC later this year.

    Photo credit: YouTube

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