William Friedkin hits back at rumors he’s involved with the Exorcist reboots. Barry Jenkins talks about why he took on Disney’s Lion King prequel. HBO Max’s The Suicide Squad spinoff Peacemaker expands its cast. Plus, a new clip from Chaos Walking and what’s to come on Doctor Who. Spoilers, away!
The Exorcist
In a recent Twitter post, William Friedkin denied his involvement in the upcoming Exorcist reboot, decrying “there’s not enough money for motivation in the world to get me to do this.”
The Lion King Prequel
In conversation with Variety, Barry Jenkins discussed his decision to direct the upcoming prequel to Jon Favreau’s live-action Lion King.
I read the script and about 40 pages in, I turned to Lulu [Wang] and I said, ‘Holy shit, this is good.’ And as I kept reading, I got further away from the side of my brain that said, ‘Oh, a filmmaker like you doesn’t make a film like this,’ and allowed myself to get to the place where these characters, this story, is amazing. What really pushed me across the line was James [Laxton], my DP, said, ‘You know what? There’s something really interesting in this mode of filmmaking that we haven’t done and that not many people have done.’ That was when I went back to the powers that be and said, ‘I would love to do this, but I’ve got to be able to do what I do.’ And they said yes!…And knowing that Chloé Zhao had gone from one of the most beautiful films of the century with The Rider to making a Marvel movie, I was like, ‘Oh, shit. If she can do it, I can do it,’
The Green Knight
A24 has now scheduled The Green Knight for a July 30, 2021 theatrical release date. [Bloody-Disgusting]
Luck/Spellbound
Apple is rumored to acquire Skydance Animation’s Luck and Spellbound according to a new report from Variety.
Chaos Walking
Lionsgate has released a new clip from Chaos Walking as the release date is pushed back to March 5, 2021.
Clarice
In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Alex Kurtzman confirmed Hannibal Lecter will not appear in the upcoming Silence of the Lambs series at CBS.
I’m still trying to understand how the rights are divided. But it’s been quite liberating because we have no interest in writing about Hannibal — not because we didn’t love the films and the show, but because it was done so well by so many people that it didn’t feel fresh for us.
Superman & Lois
Deadline reports Adam Rayner has joined the cast of Superman & Lois as an all-new, all different incarnation of Morgan Edge. Formerly played by Adrian Pasdar on Supergirl, the incoming post-Crisis version is described as “an intelligent, eloquent and impassioned self-made mogul whose innate ability to motivate is the means to his success and others’ demise.”
Star Wars: The Bad Batch
In a new interview with StarWars.com, Ming-Na Wen confirmed she’s reprising her Mandalorian role as Fennec Shand in the upcoming Bad Batch animated series.
Do you know how long I’ve had to keep silent about Fennec coming back? This is the first time I’ve been able to talk about it! Dave [Filoni], if you wanted to keep it a secret you shouldn’t have put me in the trailer! Everybody is saying they just want the confirmation. So, yes, it is Fennec! It’s a younger Fennec and she is voiced by me and I’m thrilled and beyond happy that Dave wanted to create more of a backstory for her. She’s cutting her teeth as a bounty hunter in The Bad Batch…She’s still a loner, a drifter…. There’s just a sense of more recklessness about her, just bravado. You know, a young punk. She’s more adventurous and willing to take greater risks because she doesn’t know what the consequences are.
Brand New Cherry Flavor
Jannah Levien, Leland Orser, and Patrick Fischler will star alongside previously announced cast members Rosa Salazar, Catherine Keener, Eric Lange, and Jeff Ward in Brand New Cherry Flavor, an upcoming horror series at Netflix from Nick Antosca. Based on the novel by Todd Grissom, the story concerns an aspiring filmmaker enacting supernatural revenge on the producer who abused her. [Deadline]
Peacemaker
THR reports Lochlyn Munro (Riverdale), Chukwudi Iwuji (Underground Railroad), Annie Chang, and Christopher Heyerdahl have joined the cast of the Peacemaker series in undisclosed roles.
Midnight Mass
Mike Flanagan has wrapped production on Midnight Mass.
Doctor Who
Finally, the trailer for Revolution of the Daleks has been whittled down into a TV spot.
Banner art by Jim Cooke
DISCUSSION
So, Clarice without Hannibal sounds like a bog-standard police procedural.
Is Dick Wolf involved, by chance? DUN DUN