Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn Elessar in director Peter Jackson’s ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.’ Photo: Warner Bros.
Preview:
Andy Serkis says they’re looking for a new actor to play Aragorn.
Viggo Mortensen is not returning to the role for ‘The Hunt for Gollum’.
The movie will shoot in New Zealand this year.
Though ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum’ features some of the familiar key creative types behind the scenes (including Andy Serkis directing and playing the titular creature and franchise overseer Peter Jackson producing), there will be a key change in front of the camera.
News arrives that Viggo Mortensen, who played the heroic, destiny-heavy Aragorn in the first three ‘LOTR’ movies, is not reprising the role for ‘Gollum’.
“I don’t know what’s out there at the moment, but I know there’s a lot of speculation, but let’s just say we are recasting the role and we are on the way to finding someone.”
While Mortensen won’t be back, Kate Winslet has joined the cast and original franchise stalwarts Ian McKellen, Elijah Wood and others are all rumored to return.
When will ‘The Hunt for Gollum’ be on screens?
Warner Bros. and New Line currently have a December 17, 2027 slot ready for this one.
(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.
List of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Movies and TV Shows:
Director Shane Black at the premiere of ‘Play Dirty’. Photo: Prime Video.
Preview:
Shane Black will co-write and may direct ‘The Executioner’ for Sony.
It would be based on Don Pendleton’s novels.
Joel Silver is aboard to produce.
Known for bringing tough guys to the screen in entertaining fashion, Shane Black has found one more to focus on –– The Hollywood Reporter brings word that he’s aboard to co-write a movie based on the pulpy action thriller books originated by writer Don Pendleton under the blanket title ‘The Executioner.’
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With producer Joel Silver –– who has a long connection to Black and has his own history trying to adapt the book –– also involved, the new movie is coming together because Sony managed to snag the rights.
Director Shane Black at the premiere of ‘Play Dirty’. Photo: Prime Video.
The book series that told the muscular and bullet-filled adventures of Mack Bolan, a sniper turned one man army fighting against the Mafia, the KGB, terrorists and cyber-criminals, or whoever were the bad guys of his latest book’s era.
Initially the books were written by Pendleton but later ghost writers were hired as he licensed out the books, which at their height were being churned out upwards of two a month and in the end numbered 464 books. The series ran from 1969 to 2020 (Pendleton died in 1995), selling hundreds of millions copies worldwide, spawned spin-off book lines, a magazine and comics.
Who else has tried to adapt ‘The Executioner’ series?
Bradley Cooper attends Netflix’s ‘Maestro’ LA special screening at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on December 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Netflix.
(Left) ‘The Batman’ director Matt Reeves at CinemaCon 2022. Photos: Eric Chardonneau. (Right) Melanie Griffith and Tom Hanks in ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Preview:
David E. Kelley is adapting ‘Bonfire of the Vanities’ into a series.
While we would assume Reeves would be spending all his time preparing to shoot ‘The Batman’ sequel, he seems to have the bandwidth to work on another project –– and chances are the show might not be ready to go before cameras until he’s done with the main production on the movie.
What’s the story of ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’?
(L to R) Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis in ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Wolfe’s 1987 novel follows a Wall Street bond trader named Sherman McCoy, the quintessential master of the universe, who lives a charmed life until he takes a wrong turn, ends up in the Bronx, and his frightened mistress takes the wheel and runs over a Black man who approached the couple. Cue chaos!
What else are David E. Kelley and Matt Reeves working on?
Kelley is still aboard ‘Presumed Innocent’, which is going the anthology route for its second season, switching up the story and cast to include Rachel Brosnahan as the lead.
Reeves, as mentioned, is in pre-production on his ‘Batman’ follow-up, but he’s also a prolific producer, attached to various DC properties and others.
(L to R) Director Matt Reeves and actor Robert Pattinson on the set of ‘The Batman’. Photo: Warner Bros.
Oliver Stone has set up his first narrative film in a decade, called ‘White Lies’.
Josh Hartnett will star.
Leila George is also in the cast.
After an absence from narrative filmmaking for a decade (though he has been busy with documentaries and being his usual, outspoken self), ‘Platoon’ and ‘JFK’ filmmaker Oliver Stone is back, and targeting something a little different from some of his past work –– a dysfunctional family drama.
We say “finally” because this is a project Stone has been trying to make for a couple of years now, with a previous incarnation falling apart despite Benicio del Toro aboard to star.
The movie follows Jack Freeman (Hartnett), a child of divorce now repeating his parents’ mistakes in his own marriage and with his own children.
Feeling trapped, he embarks on a lust-filled journey to free himself — only to find himself more lost than before. When he meets a woman, whose life is the opposite of his own, he begins an unexpected journey of rediscovery.
“After nearly 10 years away from features, I feel really like I’m starting again, as when I made ‘Platoon’ and ‘Salvador’ in 1986. ‘White Lies’ will find its natural home because it’s an eternal story of love.”
And here’s Hartnett on his feelings about the collaboration:
“Oliver explores a universe in ‘White Lies’ that feels personal and entirely new material from a filmmaker I have long admired and am excited to work with.”
Aubrey Plaza in ‘The White Lotus’ season 2. Photo: Fabio Lovino/HBO.
The actual plotline for the season remains unknown for now, but if past seasons are anything to go by, it’ll once more see the clientele of a White Lotus resort (this time with Château de La Messardière in Saint-Tropez, France rumored as a main location) dealing with issues of wealth, privilege, dysfunction and, of course, probably a death or two.
Walton Goggins in ‘The White Lotus’ Season 3. Photo: Fabio Lovino/HBO.
2013’s ‘Super Buddies’. Photos: Walt Disney Pictures.
When the five puppies stumble upon the Five Power Rings of Inspiron (alien artifacts abandoned on Earth 16 years ago), they all develop super powers, and are enlisted in Captain Canine’s (Colin Hanks) battle against the evil Darkon alien Commander Drex (John Michael Higgins).
(Center) Zendaya as Lola Bunny in ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy.’ Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
When LeBron James and his young son Dom (Cedric Joe) are trapped in a digital space by a rogue A.I. (Don Cheadle), LeBron must get them home safe by leading Bugs, Lola Bunny (Zendaya) and the whole gang of notoriously undisciplined Looney Tunes to victory over the A.I.’™s digitized champions on the court: a powered-up roster of professional basketball stars as you’ve never seen them before. It’s Tunes versus Goons in the highest-stakes challenge of his life, that will redefine LeBron’s bond with his son and shine a light on the power of being yourself. The ready-for-action Tunes destroy convention, supercharge their unique talents and surprise even ‘King’ James by playing the game their own way.
After he’s grounded by an injury, a high-flying bachelor (Jim Gaffigan) is saddled with two wide-eyed orphans (Zendaya and Lance Lim) as they come face-to-face with the dangers and beauty of the outside world.
A bright young yeti (Channing Tatum) finds something he thought didn’t exist—a human. News of this “smallfoot” throws the simple yeti community into an uproar over what else might be out there in the big world beyond their snowy village.
Zendaya in ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
Following the events of ‘Captain America: Civil War‘, Peter Parker (Tom Holland), with the help of his mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), tries to balance his life as an ordinary high school student in Queens, New York City, with fighting crime as his superhero alter ego Spider-Man as a new threat, the Vulture (Michael Keaton), emerges.
(L to R) John David Washington and Zendaya in ‘Malcolm & Marie.’ Photo: Netflix.
As a filmmaker (John David Washington) and his girlfriend (Zendaya) return home from his movie premiere, smoldering tensions and painful revelations push them toward a romantic reckoning.
(L to R) Zendaya and Tom Holland in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’. Photo: Marvel Studios.
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and his friends go on a summer trip to Europe. However, they will hardly be able to rest – Peter will have to agree to help Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) uncover the mystery of creatures that cause natural disasters and destruction throughout the continent.
Zendaya in ‘The Greatest Showman.’ Photo: 20th Century Fox.
The story of American showman P.T. Barnum (Hugh Jackman), founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence-a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential-only those who can conquer their fear will survive.
From visionary filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, ‘Challengers’ stars Zendaya as Tashi Duncan, a former tennis prodigy turned coach and a force of nature who makes no apologies for her game on and off the court. Married to a champion on a losing streak (Mike Faist – ‘West Side Story‘), Tashi’s strategy for her husband’s redemption takes a surprising turn when he must face off against the washed-up Patrick (Josh O’Connor – ‘The Crown‘) – his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend. As their pasts and presents collide, and tensions run high, Tashi must ask herself, what will it cost to win.
(L to R) Zendaya and Tom Holland in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’. Photo: Marvel Studios.
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a super-hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.
Follow the mythic journey of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) as he unites with Chani (Zendaya) and the Fremen while on a path of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, Paul endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.
Production company Spyglass is backing the project.
While the reviews were decidedly mixed, the most recent ‘Scream’ outing –– this past February’s ‘Scream 7’, which saw original writer Kevin Williamson direct for the first time –– has defied expectations and surged to more than $200 million at the global box office, a record for the venerable horror thriller franchise.
Neve Campbell stars in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group’s ‘Scream 7.’
Nothing is known about the new ‘Scream’ just yet. ‘Scream 7’ saw the return of Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott, who had to battle against more terror from a Ghost Face killer while also struggling to protect her family.
There’s a strong chance Sidney might return for the eighth film, and let’s not forget that Courteney Cox has played journalist Gale Weathers in every entry of the franchise.
When will ‘Scream 8’ be on screens?
Neither Spyglass nor regular studio Paramount has said anything about a release date for the new movie –– but we’d presume it’ll take a couple of years.
(L to R) Neve Campbell and Courteney Cox star in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group’s ‘Scream 7.’
(L to R) David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson in ‘The X-Files’. Photo: 20th Century Fox Television.
‘The X-Files’, originally created by Chris Carter, aired on Fox from 1993-2001 before being revived at the network for two more seasons in 2016 and 2018. It starred David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson as FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, who investigate cases that lean towards the paranormal and otherwise unusual.
Two movies were made based on the original show, but there’s no word yet on whether either Duchovny or Anderson will appear in any capacity. As for the new potential series’ logline? “Two highly decorated but vastly different FBI agents form an unlikely bond when they are assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena.”
Deadwyler and Patel will be playing a new original characters –– we’re assuming at this point they’ll be the main agents.
Coogler is aboard to write and direct the pilot, but should the show go to series, ‘The Copenhagen Test’s Jennifer Yale will be overseeing it.
Coogler, an avowed fan of the supernatural, has spoken previously to Variety about his feelings for the show:
“Like my relationship with ‘Rocky’ with my dad, ‘The X-Files’ is one of those things with my mom. My mom means the world to me…so this is a big one for me. I want to do right by her and the fans. My mom has read some of the stuff I wrote for it. She’s fired up.”
I(L to R) Adam Rosette, Michelle Raimo Kouyate and Tyree Dillihay seen at the ‘Goat’ Movie: Family Roarball Experience for Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation’s ‘Goat’ at Intuit Dome on February 01, 2026 in Inglewood, California. Photo: Eric Charbonneau/Sony Pictures via Getty Images.
‘GOAT‘ was a big hit with families, becoming one of the best-grossing movies in the genre earlier this year. Now, the film is available to rent or purchase digitally. Moviefone was invited to attend a press day to learn more about the making of this new Sony Pictures Animation film in support of the digital release. We learned how to draw Will Harris, stepped into the recording booth, and listened to the creatives discuss character creation, arena design, and more.
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Moviefone also attended an in-person press conference with filmmakers Tyree Dillihay and Michelle Raimo Kouyate. Here are five things we learned from them.
When talking about coming up with the real life basketball moves that are used in ‘GOAT’, director Tyree Dillihay reveals that they could not have done it without the help of basketball legend Andre Iguodala.
Tyree Dillihay: Anybody know the name Andre Iguodala? He’s won a few championships. He played with Stephen Curry. He’s had an illustrious basketball career. He’s our basketball consultant. He’s a genius. We call him a beautiful basketball mind. And the reason why is because he accomplished more in two hours than we could have accomplished in months. That’s how long we were kind of banging our heads.
2) Cutting Great Scenes Is Not Easy, But Can Be Necessary
Tyree Dillihay at ‘GOAT’ filmmaker digital release press conference. Photo: Tessa Smith.
Along with the digital release of ‘GOAT’ comes bonus content, including deleted scenes. One scene in particular introduces the Thorns players and was a favorite of the filmmakers, but after a lot of debate, they decided it needed to go.
Tyree Dillihay: That’s the first time you actually see the locker room. We wanted the audience to experience the locker room and this fulfillment of being a professional through Will’s eyes. If you see it too early, it kind of ruins the surprise. Whereas if you hold it long enough so you can experience it through Will’s eyes, we feel it had greater impact.
Michelle Raimo Kouyate at ‘GOAT’ filmmaker digital release press conference. Photo: Tessa Smith.
Michelle Raimo Kouyate: We also wanted to meet the team through Will’s eyes. Jett, that was a different story because she was the second lead. But the rest of the team, we needed to meet through his eyes.
3) Steph Curry Had A Lot Of Input On ‘GOAT’
(L to R) Ayesha Curry and Stephen Curry at the World Premiere of Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation’s ‘Goat’ at AMC Century City on February 06, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Sony Pictures via Getty Images.
Producer Steph Curry is a busy man, but he still found time to help the filmmakers make ‘GOAT’ the best it could be.
Michelle Raimo Kouyate: He was really instrumental in helping us figure out the reality of the game play. Even though it’s animals, he really helped us with that. He gave us thoughts on what it was like to be a new player that was different from everyone else and breaking new ground. He also gave us input on what it’s like to be a superstar with all the pressures that come along with that. And he’s an incredible voice actor. He voices Lenny. So he was very influential.
4) Tyree Dillihay’s Relationship With His Mother Had A Huge Impact On Will Harris’ Story In ‘GOAT’
(L to R) Michelle Raimo Kouyate and Tyree Dillihay at ‘GOAT’ filmmaker digital release press conference. Photo: Tessa Smith.
The story of ‘GOAT’ went through a lot of revisions, over 2,000 to be exact. Tyree Dillihay’s relationship with his mother was a big inspiration when rounding out the character of Will Harris.
Michelle Raimo Kouyate: Tyree grew up with a single mom and it was really the essence of that story, Tyree’s story, that mom who believed in him, in a dream that a black kid from Inglewood would become an artist. His mom really believed in him in that way so that was the underpinnings of the story. It was always in what we understood of the character, but we didn’t always have it in the movie. We realized when we were screening it that we needed to bring that into the movie. It gave the character a whole other reason and it gave you an understanding of who he was and how much rode on him.
5) ‘GOAT’ Is A Love Letter To All The Things Tyree Dillihay Loves
For Tyree Dillihay, ‘GOAT’ is a dream project. He put blood, sweat, tears, and everything he loves into making this film.
Tyree Dillihay: This movie is a love letter to all the things that I love. I love basketball. I love sneaker culture. I love fashion. I love tech. I love the game. I love cartoons. Like everything that I love is in this movie. Talk about a dream project. This is mine. This is me. I’m very happy to be in every single frame of the film because I wanted to feel everything that I love. I hope it exudes through the film. You ever watch a piece of the film and you might get goosebumps? That’s what I’m talking about. There’s been times where we’ve looked at the film, Michelle and I. We’ve cried numerous times. We’ve seen this thing a million times and we keep crying.
The story follows Will, a small goat with big dreams who gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot to join the pros and play roarball – a high-intensity, co-ed, full-contact sport dominated by the fastest, fiercest animals in the world. Will’s new teammates aren’t thrilled about having a little goat on their roster, but Will is determined to revolutionize the sport and prove once and for all that “smalls can ball!”
Ryan Gosling will star for directing team Daniels’ latest.
The untitled sci-fi comedy will follow their Oscar-winning ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’.
Universal is backing the film.
UPDATE! Not so fast, we’re afraid. Variety reports that while Gosling was certainly in the midst of deal talks for the movie, that old problem of scheduling issues has reared its head, and he’s no longer involved. Boo!
Gosling will lead the ensemble cast for the mysterious new movie from the unique directors and producer Jonathan Wang, with Universal locking the filmmakers into a deal even before ‘Everything Everywhere’ secured its awards glory.
(L to R) Directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert on the set of A24’s ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once.’ Photo Credit: Courtesy of A24.
As with their previous film, Kwan and Scheinert are keeping their cards close to their chest. But the former did tell Collider that it’ll be: “fun sci-fi, action comedy with a big heart. Very existential. All those things that you would hope that one of our movies would be. One of the reasons why it’s taking so long is because what we’re feeling and what we’re hearing from the world is very complex and really nuanced, and there’s so much paradox. To kind of reconcile all those things and put them into one movie, it takes time.”
So… yes… We’ll have to wait and see what their inventive brains have spawned this time.
When will the Daniels’ new movie be in theaters?
Fortunately, we won’t have to wait forever: Universal has scheduled the movie for release on November 19, 2027.
