Disney’s Live-Action Little Mermaid Adds The Undoing’s Noma Dumezweni

After revealing its full star-studded cast last month, Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid is expanding its roster a little further with the addition of The Undoing alum Noma Dumezweni as a character not seen in the beloved animated original, according to Deadline.

RELATED: Little Mermaid Cast, Plus Pinocchio & Peter Pan Films Go to Disney+

Halle Bailey will portray Ariel in the movie with Javier Bardem set to play King Triton, Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder, Awkwafina as Scuttle, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian and Melissa McCarthy, who will play the role of the sea witch Ursula.

Mary Poppins Returns director Rob Marshall will helm the film which features a script by David Magee (Life of Pi, Mary Poppins Returns). No stranger to musicals, or working for Disney, Marshall was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director for his feature film debut, Chicago. Since then, he’s directed the likes of Memoirs of a Geisha and Nine. Marshall has also made his last three films at Disney, including Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Into the Woods, and the Poppins sequel.

Purchase the original animated film here.

For their new version of The Little Mermaid, Disney is pairing Lin-Manuel Miranda and Alan Menken to create a blend of old and new songs that will be featured in the upcoming big screen version. Miranda and Marshall also worked together on Mary Poppins Returns.

RELATED: Javier Bardem in Talks for King Triton in Disney’s Little Mermaid

Disney’s animated The Little Mermaid made over $211 million at the box office and became a bestseller on home video, popularizing songs like “Under The Sea” and “Part of Your World.” Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s Danish fairy tale, it tells the story of a 16-year-old mermaid princess named Ariel who longs to be human.

(Photo Credit: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions)

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Orson Welles’ Magnificent Ambersons being reconstructed via animation

With all the news coming forward about Zack Snyder’s Justice League, it seems that another marred masterpiece may yet get its day in the sun. According to Wellesnet, the long-lost original cut of Orson Welles’ 1942 film The Magnificent Ambersons is getting a reconstruction from documentary filmmaker Brian Robert Rose (When I Last Saw Jesse), who will use animation to complete the footage originally excised by RKO that is now considered lost.

Click here to purchase The Magnificent Ambersons on Criterion Blu-ray!

RELATED: CS Interview: Peter Bogdanovich on The Other Side of the Wind

Based on the Pulitzer Prize–winning 1918 novel by Booth Tarkington, The Magnificent Ambersons traces the downfall of the wealthy Midwestern American family of the title with the onset of the automobile age. It starred Joseph Cotten, Dolores Costello, Anne Baxter, Tim Holt and Agnes Moorehead, and was Welles’ followup film to his now enshrined Citizen Kane. The director’s original cut ran 132 minutes in length and got a mixed response in previews, particularly for its dark, elaborate ending. While Welles was away in Brazil shooting the (later abandoned) documentary It’s All True, RKO effectively seized the film from him and, with the help of editor (and later acclaimed director) Robert Wise trimmed the film down to a lean 88 minutes with a jarring, crudely shot happy ending tonally inconsistent with the rest of the movie. Although a print of the original cut was sent to Welles in Brazil it has never been recovered, and the footage was ultimately destroyed by the studio.

“Many scenes could be recreated thanks to surviving frame enlargements,” Rose told Wellesnet. “For other scenes where more complex camera movements were involved, I relied upon stills, diagrams of camera movement and the layout of the sets which, when reconstructed in a 3D space allowed a greater degree of understanding as to how Welles filmed. This enabled a high degree of certainty in capturing what was lost in a way that will hopefully do justice to Welles’ original vision, so much so that it will be possible, for the first time, to see Ambersons in its entirety — all 132 minutes. The version I have created is now in exact synchronicity to the cutting documents of March 1942 and runs 131 minutes and 45 seconds. But the characters at this point are only the first sketches, what in animator terminology are called pencil tests. The task now is to fine tune the performances, aided by critical feedback by many individuals who have offered scholarly and artistic advice on this project. The film must next go through a period of revision, after which it will enter the ‘ink and paint’ stage where all the characters will be refined with added details, along with further details in the sets, background characters and so on.”

Rose says he believes the remaining work on the reconstruction could take at least another two years, and will hopefully be ready in time for the film’s 80th Anniversary in 2022. One snag in the works is that Rose does not technically hold the rights to the film, which he is embarking on as a scholarly project. He hopes that it will be authorized for proper distribution by the time it is completed. This is similar to the “Recobbled Cut” of Richard Williams’ animated movie The Thief and the Cobbler, which was done by fans and is now considered to be the definitive version of that unfinished masterpiece. Another notable example of this is Turner Classic Movies’ reconstruction of lost silent film London After Midnight, which utilized the original script and film stills to give viewers a close approximation to the original.

RELATED: CS Interview: Frank Marshall on The Other Side of the Wind

Welles had at one point years after the debacle attempted to film a new ending from scratch with the then still-living cast members 20 years later, but the project never came together. In 2002 filmmaker Alfonso Arau (A Walk in the Clouds) directed a remake of The Magnificent Ambersons supposedly based on Welles’ original script, but the poorly-recieved A&E television movie starring Madeleine Stowe, Bruce Greenwood and Jonathan Rhys Meyers contains the same tacked-on happy ending as the original. Variety referred to it as, “Just one more sad step in the tragic film history of ‘The Magnificent Ambersons.’” On a brighter note, Welles’ film was a major inspiration for Wes Anderson’s 2001 smash The Royal Tenenbaums, which also chronicled the downfall of a -far quirkier- family.

Are you excited to finally be able to experience the Orson Welles cut of The Magnificent Ambersons? Let us know in the comments below!

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Tiffany Haddish in Talks for Landscape With Invisible Hand

After reigning the world of comedy since her breakout turns in Girls Trip and The Carmichael Show, Emmy winner Tiffany Haddish is gearing up to explore the stars as she has entered final negotiations with MGM to lead the film adaptation of M.T. Anderson’s Landscape with Invisible Hand, according to Deadline.

RELATED: Tiffany Haddish Joins Nicolas Cage’s The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

Published in 2017, the novel is set in the near future after an alien species known as the Vuuv have essentially taken over the planet as their technology has eliminated a number of jobs and caused the global economy to collapse. The story centers on aspiring artist Adam as he and his neighbor Cleo hatch a plan to pretend to be romantically involved and stream their dating life to the aliens, who are fascinated by the human concept of true love, for money to support their families but as the pressure begins to take a toll on their psyches, they struggle to keep the plan going without causing their families to go bankrupt.

Click here to purchase the acclaimed 2017 novel!

The film is being written and directed by Cory Finley, who first broke out to rave reviews with his directorial debut Thoroughbreds and followed it up with the Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney-starring HBO drama Bad Education, which took home the Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie.

The project is being produced by Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment and Annapurna Pictures, who jointly acquired the rights to the novel in 2017 and developed it together before bringing the package to MGM, which will be releasing the title theatrically in the U.S. via United Artists Releasing.

RELATED: Homecoming Queen: Tiffany Haddish to Star in Amblin Partners’ New Comedy Film

Haddish, who was most recently seen alongside Rose Byrne in the Paramount comedy Like a Boss, will next be seen in the road hidden camera comedy Bad Trip, the third installment in the SpongeBob film franchise Sponge on the Run, the Jerrod Carmichael-helmed On the Count of Three and Nicolas Cage action comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.

(Photo Credit: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix)

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Exclusive Don’t Tell a Soul Clip Starring Rainn Wilson & Jack Dylan Grazer

ComingSoon.net has an exclusive clip for the upcoming thriller Don’t Tell a Soul starring Emmy nominee Rainn Wilson (The Office, Utopia, Super), Jack Dylan Grazer (IT, IT Chapter Two, Shazam!), Fionn Whitehead (Dunkirk, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, Voyagers), and BAFTA nominee Mena Suvari (American Beauty, What Lies Below, American Woman). You can check out the clip now in the player below!

RELATED: Exclusive Love and Monsters Deleted Scene Clip Starring Dylan O’Brien

While stealing money to help their sick mother (Suvari), teen brothers Matt and Joey (Whitehead and Grazer) are surprised by Hamby (Wilson), a security officer who gives chase and is then trapped in a well. Over the next few days, Joey and Hamby forge an uneasy relationship. Hamby tells Joey he’ll keep quiet if Joey sets him free. But Hamby holds another secret, one that will threaten Joey and his family, in this twist-filled, cat-and-mouse thriller.

Don’t Tell a Soul is written and directed by Alex McAulay (Flower, Cult). Producers include Chris Mangano and Merry-Kay Poe, with Matt Bronson and Steve Poe executive producing.

RELATED: Exclusive Traces Clip Starring Martin Compston & Molly Windsor

The movie will arrive in select theaters, on Digital, and On Demand on January 15.

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Guy Ritchie’s Five Eyes expands cast with Cary Elwes

After beginning the expansion of his Jason Statham-led cast with the addition of Parks and Recreation alum Aubrey Plaza last month, Guy Ritchie is keeping the casting train rolling for his spy thriller Five Eyes with the addition of The Princess Bride star Cary Elwes, according to Deadline.

RELATED: Aubrey Plaza Joins Jason Statham in Guy Ritchie’s Spy Thriller Film

In the film, MI6 guns-and-steel agent Orson Fortune (Statham) is recruited by a global intelligence alliance ‘Five Eyes’ to track down and stop the sale of a deadly new weapons technology that threatens to disrupt the world order. Reluctantly paired with CIA high-tech expert Sarah Fidel, Fortune sets off on a globe-trotting mission where he will have to use all of his charm, ingenuity, and stealth to track down and infiltrate billionaire arms broker Greg Simmonds. Elwes, who was recently seen in the latest remake of the slasher cult classic Black Christmas, is set to star as Fortune’s overseer, Nathan Jasmine.

The film will be directed by Ritchie from a script written by Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies (The Gentlemen, Wrath of Man), with revisions by Ritchie. This project marks the latest collaboration between Ritchie and Statham, who have previously worked together on Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch and Revolver as well as the upcoming action thriller Wrath of Man.

RELATED: Miramax’s Fletch Reboot Taps Jon Hamm to Lead & Produce!

Five Eyes will be produced by Bill Block for Miramax, which is also fully financing the film. Ivan Atkinson also serves as producer. STXfilms has secured worldwide distribution rights to the film. STX will distribute directly in the US, UK, and Ireland, and STXinternational will launch sales to foreign buyers at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival. STXfilms had great success earlier this year with Ritchie’s The Gentlemen, which grossed $115 million at the worldwide box office.

(Photo Credit: Rich Fury/VF20/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)

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REPORT: Michael Keaton Will Be the DCEU’s Main Batman

With production set to finally begin on Warner Bros.’ standalone Flash movie in just a few short months, a new development may see Michael Keaton’s version of the Dark Knight beyond a one-shot appearance in the Andy Muschietti-directed film. According to New York Times writer Brooks Barnes, who recently did a profile of DC Films president Walter Hamada, a quote from the WB exec actually indicates that moving forward Keaton will be the main Batman in the DCEU, effectively replacing Ben Affleck through a multiverse handover that will no doubt occur in Flash’s solo outing.

“Coming up, for instance, Warner Bros. will have two different film sagas involving Batman — played by two different actors — running at the same time,” Hamada stated in the profile.

When someone asked Barnes for clarification on the other Batman Hamada meant besides the separate Robert Pattinson trilogy, Barnes confirmed…

Keaton

— Brooks Barnes (@brooksbarnesNYT) January 2, 2021

This is music to the ears of fans who thought Keaton’s take on the character deserved a few more cinematic outings than the two he got with 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Returns. It also could imply that Keaton’s elder Bruce Wayne could be explored in films that adapt either the popular animated series Batman Beyond or the Frank Miller comic book classic “The Dark Knight Returns,” which itself has had several print sequels over the years.

RELATED: Micheal Keaton Won’t Confirm Involvement in The Flash

Production on The Flash is currently set to take place at Leavesden Studios in the United Kingdom in April. Currently, that studio is serving as the home of another highly-anticipated DC movie, The Batman. The Flash’s casting process is underway with Rich Delia and Kate Ringsell presiding. Delia isn’t a stranger to DC projects, having been the casting director on Shazam!, DC Universe’s Swamp Thing, and The CW’s Stargirl. Ringsell also worked as a casting associate on the original Wonder Woman movie.

So far, The Flash’s cast includes Ezra Miller as the title character, with Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck playing two alternate versions of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Additionally, Billy Crudup is reportedly set to reprise his Justice League role as Barry Allen’s father, Henry. However, Ray Fisher’s return as Cyborg seems very unlikely. Earlier today, Fisher said that he will not work with DC Films’ Walter Hamada.

Recommended Reading: Flashpoint

The Flash will hit theaters on November 4, 2022.

Are you happy to hear that Michael Keaton’s Batman is coming back in a big way? Let us know in the comments down below!

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Zack Snyder Reveals There Are No Plans for a Justice League Sequel

Filmmaker Zack Snyder was recently interviewed on ComicBook Debate (which you can view in the player below) and revealed that he no longer has any plans to develop a Justice League sequel following the highly-anticipated release of Snyder’s director’s cut of the movie on HBO Max this year.

“Look, I never thought I’d be here doing this. I didn’t think I’d be finishing Justice League,” Snyder said. “The truth is, and it’s been widely reported, and I have no issue, this is an old movie. This is a years-old movie I’m working on. The DC universe has gone and branched off and done its own thing and that’s fine. As far as what I did and as far as what my vision for what I wanted to do with these characters and the journey I wanted them to go on, it’s well known that I planned on more movies, five movies or something, but I’m busy. I’ve got a lot going on. Is it cool that the fans have so much faith in the trajectory? Yes, it’s amazing, and I couldn’t be happier and I’m excited for them to see Justice League so they can really drink the entire elixir of Justice League. But, would I continue? I have no plan to. But as I said, I didn’t think I’d be here, so who knows?”

RELATED: Zack Snyder Teases “Super Rad” Wonder Woman Action in Justice League

Zack Snyder’s Justice League will reportedly cost around $70 million in order to properly finish the editing and visual effects of the director’s original vision, as well as the additional photography. The original post-production crew is also expected to return along with the cast members to record additional dialogue for the cut. 

It was revealed at DC FanDome that the movie will release on HBO Max in 2021 by being broken up into four one-hour parts that will also be released as one four-hour film.

Fueled by the hero’s restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Justice League sees Bruce Wayne enlist the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg, and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.

Justice League, which features a screenplay from Chris Terrio from a story by Snyder and Terrio, stars Ben Affleck as Batman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Willem Dafoe as Nuidis Vulko, Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor, Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth, Diane Lane as Martha Kent, Connie Nielsen as Queen Hippolyta, with J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon, and Amy Adams as Lois Lane.

RELATED: Zack Snyder Seemingly Confirms March Release Date for Justice League!

Released in November 2017, the film earned mixed reviews from critics and audiences alike, praising the action and performances from Gadot and Miller while criticizing every other aspect of the film, namely the inconsistent tone that many fault Joss Whedon (The Avengers) for after taking over directorial duties from Snyder. With a large budget of $300 million and a break-even point of $750 million, the film is considered a box office bomb having grossed only $658 million.

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Enter ComingSoon’s Love and Monsters Giveaway From Paramount!

Ahead of Love and Monsters’ arrival on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD on January 5 from Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures has provided ComingSoon.net with a kit that includes colored pencils, a custom Monster Apocalypse Survival Guide designed to look like Joel’s book from the film and showcasing the director’s monster sketches on the first page, a can of bug spray, a custom T-shirt with a design that reads “Don’t Settle (Even at the End of the World)”, a target practice game consisting of a toy crossbow and cutouts of monsters from the film, a custom water bowl for dogs, and a can of Minestrone soup with a custom “Joel’s Minestrone” label. To win the Love and Monsters kit, all you have to do is email your name with the subject line “LOVEMONSTERS” to [email protected] and the winner (must be within the U.S.) will be selected by Wednesday, January 6!

RELATED: CS Video: Dylan O’Brien & Jessica Henwick Talk Love and Monsters

Click here to purchase Love and Monsters on Digital!

Click here to pre-order Love and Monsters on Blu-ray!

Starring Dylan O’Brien (Maze Runner franchise), the post-apocalyptic adventure Blu-ray bonus content includes:

• Deleted Scenes
• Bottom of the Food Chain: The Cast of Love and Monsters
• It’s a Monster’s World: Creating a Post-Apocalyptic Landscape

In Love and Monsters, seven years after the Monsterpocalypse, Joel Dawson (O’Brien), along with the rest of humanity, has been living underground ever since giant creatures took control of the land. After reconnecting over the radio with his high school girlfriend Aimee, who is now 80 miles away at a coastal colony, Joel begins to fall for her again. As Joel realizes that there’s nothing left for him underground, he decides against all logic to venture out to Aimee, despite all the dangerous monsters that stand in his way.

The movie also stars Michael Rooker (Guardians of the Galaxy), Jessica Henwick (Iron Fist), Arianna Greenblatt (Avengers: Infinity War), and Dan Ewing (Occupation).

RELATED: CS Video: Love and Monsters Interview With Michael Rooker

Love and Monsters is directed by Michael Matthews and produced Shawn Levy through his 21 Laps banner along with Dan Cohen. The screenplay is written by Brian Duffield and Matthew Robinson from a story by Duffield.

The post Enter ComingSoon’s Love and Monsters Giveaway From Paramount! appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

Mondo Announces Slate of DC Film & TV Series Vinyl Soundtracks for 2021

Kicking off a new year, Mondo has announced plans to celebrate the heroes of the DC Universe throughout 2021 with the premiere vinyl pressings of soundtracks to multiple DC films and TV series. Leading the charge, Aquaman will be available beginning Wednesday, January 6 at MondoShop.com and will be followed by Shazam!, Doom Patrol Seasons 1 and 2, and a re-issue of John Williams’ 1978 masterpiece Superman arriving later in the year. You can check out images from the Aquaman vinyl in the gallery below!

RELATED: CS Unboxed: Mondo MOTU Man At Arms Action Figure

Mondo, in partnership with WaterTower Music, is proud to present the premiere vinyl pressing and premiere physical release of the Deluxe edition of Rupert Gregson-Williams brilliant score for the 2018 global sensation Aquaman.

“James Wan’s Aquaman is one of my favorite comic book films of the last 5 years,” says Mo Shafeek, Mondo Creative Director of Music. “It’s a film that I personally had to see multiple times on the big screen just believe what I saw. And that achievement is equally owed to the brilliant Rupert Gregson-Williams for juggling the nearly impossible-to-replicate tone of the film. Always sincere, never ironic, always a good time – we are honored to celebrate this film and its score.”

This Deluxe edition release features the complete score from the film as well as a disc of Bonus Tracks and Remixes, and includes the songs “Everything I Need” performed by Skylar Grey and “Ocean To Ocean” performed by Pitbull featuring Rhea.

Pressed on 3x 180 Gram Translucent colored vinyl with splatter, the release features all-new original artwork by Pascal Blanché and is housed in a tri-fold jacket.

Aquaman – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Deluxe Edition 3XLP Tracklist: 

Side One
1. Everything I Need (Film Version) Performed by Skylar Grey 3:16
2. Arthur 4:41
3. Kingdom Of Atlantis 3:26
4. It Wasn’t Meant To Be 3:22
5. Atlantean Soldiers 3:35

Side Two
1. What Does That Even Mean? 3:24
2. The Legend Of Atlan 1:57
3. Swimming Lessons 3:03
4. The Black Manta 2:50
5.What Could Be Greater Than A King? 5:23

Side Three
1. Permission To Come Aboard 2:16
2. Suited And Booted 4:25
3. Between Land And Sea 2:55
4. He Commands The Sea 3:34

Side Four
1. Map In A Bottle 2:16
2. The Ring of Fire 4:58
3. Reunited 1:32
4. Everything I Need – Performed by Skylar Grey 3:21
5. Ocean To Ocean – Performed by Pitbull featuring Rhea 2:25
6. Trench Engaged (From Kingdom Of The Trench) 2:30

Side Five – Bonus Tracks
1. MeraMontage 2:04
2. Home Invasion 2:48
3. Saving Pops 3:04
4. Ahab Waves 1:30
5. Ask the Sea 1:59
6. Obligation 1:25
7. Dunes 2:04

Side Six – Remixes
1. Suited & Booted (Our Empire Remix) 3:57
2. The Black Manta (Future Funk Squad Remix) 5:10
3. Atlantean Soldiers (Glen Nicholls ‘March in Formation’ Remix) 5:00
4. Kingdom of Atlantis (Glen Nicholls ‘Escape to Atlantis’ Remix) 6:37

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Director Chloe Zhao Reveals She’s Also the Writer for Marvel’s Eternals

It looks like director Chloe Zhao is taking full creative liberty with Marvel’s Eternals. In her previous works, the Chinese director was both writer and director. While talking about the importance of writing to her filmmaking process, Zhao revealed that she worked on the script of the upcoming Marvel’s Eternals movie as well, previously credited to documentarians Kaz and Ryan Firpo (via SuperHeroHype).

“I am the writer on Eternals,” she said to Margaret Gardiner. “The credits just aren’t updated yet. I don’t know what it would be like if I don’t write the film, that I’m not a huge part of the writing process. I haven’t experienced that in my career. I’m scared of that if it does happen one day.”

You can watch the full interview in the player below.

RELATED: Chloe Zhao’s Eternals Has Completed Filming Reshoots

She then praised Marvel for letting her bring in her sensibility into her works, as always.

“I think what Marvel has been so incredible at, that Kevin [Feige] and Nate [Moore] and the whole team, they knew from the moment I pitched the film I really wanted to, you know, the scope and the scale, at the same time, the intimacy, they knew I wanted both,” she stated. “And they have been so incredible holding my hand through the entire process of allowing me to go as far as possible and as small as possible, and how that fits into the whole MCU. It’s been a pretty incredible process.”

In her recent interviews, Zhao claimed that she wants to push the story even further than Avengers: Endgame. According to Disney’s plans, Eternals will hit theaters on Nov. 5.

What do you think about Chloe Zhao contributing to the writing of Eternals? Let us know in the comments section below.

Recommended Reading: Eternals by Jack Kirby: The Complete Collection

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