The Hellboy Reboot Will Surprise A Lot Of People, Ian McShane Says

The Hellboy Reboot Will Surprise A Lot Of People, Ian McShane Says

It's no secret that superhero movies are everywhere. Comic book adaptations have been proven the most profitable and popular genre in the business, with plenty of studios making their own attempts at box office supremacy. Guillermo del Toro adapted the Hellboy comics back in the early 2000's, and now a reboot is heading to theaters starring Stranger Things' David Harbour as the title character.

Joining David Harbour in the new Hellboy cast is Ian McShane, who has been seen in the John Wick and Pirates of the Caribbean franchises, as well as Game of Thrones. McShane is taking on the role of Hellboy's father figure Trevor Bruttenholm, which was played in the original Hellboy movies by John Hurt. According to the 76 year-old actor, the new movie is going to pack plenty of surprises. He recently said:

Hellboy, yeah! I think that’s going to surprise a lot of people. David [Harbour of Stranger Things] is a marvelous actor. He just fills out the role. It was nice and bittersweet taking over [Professor Bruttenholm] from a dear old friend of mine, John Hurt. But it’s not Part 3. It’s a complete reboot of [Guillermo del Toro’s] Hellboy, and I think they picked the right guy in David. It was a pleasure to work with him and be in Bulgaria for three weeks, a country I’ve never been to before. Greatest fresh vegetables I’ve ever tasted. And the scripts are funny and smart and bright, and the action is fantastic, and I have grandkids who love all that. They can’t wait.

It looks like Hellboy is going to be a blockbuster that somewhat defies genre, at least according to Ian McShane's description of the project. The script will feature comedy and brightness, while the R-rated reboot will also be far more violent and bloody than Guillermo del Toro's set of films. So basically, there's no telling what's coming down the pipeline.

Ian McShane's comments to the New York Times are sure to excite fans of Hellboy, as well as moviegoers who are curious about the new adaptation. Comic fans are always looking to how accurately the work on the page will be adapted for the silver screen. Guillermo del Toro brought the colorful world to life through his movies, but the PG-13 rating prevented them from being as brutal as the title character is wont to be. So that'll likely be one big way the upcoming movie will surprise audiences.

But Ian McShane also referenced how comedic and light Hellboy will be at the same time. The trailers showed how much attitude David Harbour will have as the big red guy, and it'll be fascinating to see how "funny and smart and bright" the bloody superhero adaptation ends up being.

All will be revealed when Hellboy arrives in theaters on April 12, 2019. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Watch Aladdin’s Will Smith Belt Out ‘Prince Ali’ In New Clip

Watch Aladdin’s Will Smith Belt Out ‘Prince Ali’ In New Clip

Ahead of Disney’s next live-action remake stomping into theaters next weekend, a clip featuring Will Smith’s Genie as gives a disguised Aladdin a grand entrance in the memorable big number from the 1992 animated musical has been released. Make way for Prince Ali and take a look:

Ring bells! Bang the drums! Are you gonna love this guy? The new clip gives fans a look into the new “Prince Ali” sequence, though it doesn’t feature the entire song, it starts midway through the epic number and leaves the grand finale to the imagination.

The new clip from IGN does offer up a bit of Will Smith’s own take on Genie, previously and belovedly played by Robin Williams. Smith’s spin unsurprisingly denotes a more hip-hop flavor to the Disney classic, though the actor is actually singing rather than rapping for much of the sequence.

The main difference is instead of comedic quips on the side such as “don’t they look lovely June” or magically turning into other forms such as tiger or child as the animated movie does. Instead, it focuses more on the song, dance and CGI animals. The massive scene featuring 1000 dancers and extras has the eyes of the city of Agrabah taking notice, namely Naomi Scott’s Jasmine and Nasim Pedrad’s new character, Jasmine’s handmaiden. The latter looks a lot more impressed by the entrance then the princess Aladdin has his sights on.

But why does Will Smith say the line “when it comes to exotic-type mammals” while riding an Ostrich… birds aren’t mammals? Anyways, fans took to Twitter to voice some strong feelings about the clip. Take a look at @Ameligatha’s comments:

These comparisons were bound to happen. Some fans will never be pleased with anything other than the original, yet her comments display an interest in the movie moving away to rapping to differentiate it from the source material. According the Will Smith, he will be rapping in the flick, we just have yet to see it in the film yet. On the flip side, @stacydtwit defended the clip below:

So far, the new Aladdin has sought to offer a mix of nostalgia for the original Disney flick and bring a whole new world to moviegoers as well. The addition of Will Smith in of itself will bring a different kind of Aladdin and apparently he did a bit of improv on the film with Mena Massoud.

First reactions for the new Aladdin have been fairly positive, as early viewers have called Smith’s Genie a lot of fun and not worth the concern brought on since his blue look was first revealed.You can check out Aladdin in theaters on May 24. Are you excited for the film after a look at this “Prince Ali” clip? Let us know in the comments below!

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Shazam! Box Office: DC's Latest Is Off To An Impressive Start

Shazam! Box Office: DC's Latest Is Off To An Impressive Start

Things weren't looking so good for the DC Extended Universe after the release of Zack Snyder's Justice League. Not only did it receive a rather serious thrashing from critics, but it also failed to meet box office expectations. Fortunately, however, the franchise has been on a much better path ever since. Released last December, James Wan's Aquaman has become the most successful DC Comics adaptation ever made, and now David F. Sandberg's Shazam! is off to a fantastic start as well. Check out its numbers, as well as the rest of the Top 10, below, and join me after for analysis!

The numbers aren't exactly record-shattering, but after its third day in wide release Shazam! is definitely in a good place, and Warner Bros. must surely be happy about the performance. Early estimates suggested that the film wouldn't only make $40-$50 million during its opening weekend, and it was able to not only clear that bar, but add a few extra million on top of it. Add in the fact that it's one of the less expensive modern day superhero blockbusters - made for a reported $100 million - and you have the makings of a legitimate winner in the DC Comics realm.

What surely helped in a major way with this one is just the buzz that the film has received. The studio clearly knew they had a winner with this one, and thanks to a whole lot of early screenings Shazam! has been riding high on positive word of mouth for quite a while now. It's received the second highest Rotten Tomatoes score of any DC Extended Universe title, with its 91% only just a little below the 93% earned by Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman back in 2017. On top of that, audiences are also showing some very real appreciation for it, as CinemaScore is reporting an "A" grade for the release - which makes a whole lot of sense when you consider what a crowd-pleaser the feature is.

Adding to the good news is that Shazam! is also off to a wonderful start in foreign territories as well. The movie is now out in most places, and ticket sales from abroad have already significantly bolstered the worldwide box office totals. To date it has made $102 million abroad, which brings its global total to $158.8 million. When you factor in publicity and advertising costs, it still probably has to make a bit more money before it gets to be called profitable, but this is a great place for the film to be after just three days. It's technically the slowest start for a DC Extended Universe title, but the previous film with that distinction was Aquaman, and we know how things turned out with that.

Perhaps part of the reason why Shazam! didn't open bigger is because it had some real competition at the box office, as Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer's Pet Sematary also put up some legitimate numbers this past weekend. Critics (61% on Rotten Tomatoes) and audiences ("C+" on CinemaScore) didn't respond to it quite as well as the big new superhero release, but the $25 million it brought it is nothing to shake a stick at. Not only did the horror film only cost $21 million to make, but it actually had the second best opening ever for a Stephen King adaptation - which is a pretty big deal when you consider how popular King is, and how many movies have been made based on his books. Obviously it came nowhere close to Andres Muschietti's IT, which pulled in a shocking $123.4 million during its first three days back in September 2017, but it made enough to take the second place spot away from Mikael Hafstrom's 1408, which made $20.6 million back in 2007. It's also doing pretty well in foreign territories, having made $17.3 million outside of North America so far.

Robin Bissell's The Best Of Enemies was the only other big title to hit theaters this weekend, though it had a relatively small wide release with only 1,705 theaters showing it. Still, with the star power of Taraji P. Henson and Sam Rockwell, and a powerful true story to tell, the movie managed to take sixth place over all, and make $4.5 million in its initial release. That's not too shabby when you consider the $10 million budget. It won't ultimately be as big as The Upside, which made $107.6 million for STX Entertainment earlier this year, but it may still wind up making some money for the studio.

Beyond the new releases, unfortunately, there wasn't a ton of good news for Hollywood this time around. After winning the box office last week with a disappointing $45 million take, Tim Burton's Dumbo fell by 60.4 percent in its second Friday-to-Saturday stretch. As of now it $213.7 million globally, which seems like a lot, but that number doesn't look so great when you consider that it was made with a $170 million budget. It's going to be seriously tough for the film to be ultimately considered profitable - but the good news for Disney is that they still have Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck's Captain Marvel performing exceptionally, having crossed the $1 billion milestone earlier this week.

Jordan Peele's Us is also starting to fade a bit, but at this point ever dollar the movie makes is pure profit. Made for just $20 million, the horror hit has already brought in $216.6 million worldwide, which is only just a big short of the $255.4 million that Get Out made when it was released in 2017. That's absolutely remarkable.

Next week we will once again be seeing a lot of variety hitting the big screen nationwide, with Neil Marshall's Hellboy, Tina Gordon Chism's Little, Laika's Missing Link, and Jenny Gage's After all arriving in wide release. Collectively they should all do a pretty nice job shaking up the Top 10, so be sure to tune in next Sunday to see how it all turns out.

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How Godzilla: King Of Monsters Is Different Than Other Movies In The Franchise

How Godzilla: King Of Monsters Is Different Than Other Movies In The Franchise

After traveling back to 1973 to tell King Kong’s take in Kong: Skull Island, the MonsterVerse is jumping back to the present day this summer for Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Due to the events of 2014’s Godzilla, the public now aware of the Titans’ existence, and King of the Monsters will see more of these giant beasts awakening to wreak havoc on the world. But monsters are just one half of the equation in these kaiju movies. There are also the human players directly involved, and according to King of the Monsters star Vera Farmiga, a big way this sequel distinguishes itself from its predecessors is that it places a mother/daughter relationship front and center. In Farmiga’s words:

The previous Godzilla really focused on the relationship of a father and a son. At the heart of our film is this relationship between a mother and daughter.

Obviously the main draw of these types of movies is to see monsters battling one another, but the human stories also help keep the narrative grounded, so to speak. In Godzilla, the relationship between Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Ford Brody and his father Joe, played by Bryan Cranston, was explored during the first half of the movie, and for the sequel, we get to see Vera Farmiga’s Dr. Emma Russell interacting with her daughter Madison, played by Millie Bobby Brown. Emma’s ex-husband and Madison’s father, Kyle Chandler’s Dr. Mark Russell, will also appear in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, but as Farmiga told Syfy Wire, it’s Emma and Madison’s relationship will get a lot of attention.

Godzilla didn’t have much time to focus on Ford and Joe Brody’s dynamic since Joe died after the awakening of the first MUTO, but it doesn’t look like Godzilla: King of the Monsters will repeat that formula. The sequel sees Emma and Madison Russell being kidnapped by a mysterious organization, presumably due to Emma’s work on communicating with and possibly controlling the Titans. Strangely, though, the first King of the Monsters trailer framed Emma as a seemingly willing participant in whatever this group has planned, and both Madison and Mark expressing disappointment and disgust at her actions, although admittedly, it could just look that way thanks to how the preview was edited.

Either way, Emma and Madison will be among the main human characters getting the spotlight in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and since the previous MonsterVerse movies, let alone most monsters movies, don’t highlighted mother/daughter relationships, this makes for a nice change of pace. That said, while both Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler are confirmed to appear in Godzilla vs. Kong, Vera Farmiga has not been announced as part of that cast. It’s possible that Farmiga’s involvement either hasn’t been cemented or she’ll have a smaller role in the fourth MonsterVerse entry, but perhaps, just like how Ford Brody lost his father, Madison will lose her mother during King of the Monsters. That’d be tragic, but in the MonsterVerse, tragedy comes in large supply.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters rampages into theaters on May 31, so stay tuned to CinemaBlend for continuing coverage. Don’t forget to look through our 2019 release schedule to learn what other movies are coming out this year.

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First Look At James McAvoy’s Bill Denbrough In IT Chapter 2

First Look At James McAvoy’s Bill Denbrough In IT Chapter 2

2017 brought us the first installment of director Andy Muschietti’s adaptation of Stephen King’s legendary novel IT. It also brought the suspense of having to wait for the second half of the story, as the doorstopping length of that source book inspired Muschietti to split the story into two parts.

The first chapter delivered the childhood portion of the story, and now with a brand new photo from the director himself, we have our first look at the adult form of Bill Denbrough in IT: Chapter 2, played by James McAvoy:

While it’s not a full-body shot of McAvoy’s adult incarnation of the character originated by Jaeden Lieberher in IT, it looks like we’re seeing Bill indulging in one of his old habits. As the posture of James McAvoy’s body in the photo suggests, it looks like Bill’s riding a bike, more than likely his childhood steed Silver.

Bill is certainly going to need that bike, and any other support from his childhood memories he can get, as he and the entire Loser’s Club gang are reuniting in Derry to take on the evil known as Pennywise The Clown once again. After thirty years of relative peace, with his group of friends being scattered all over, it’s going to take more than just a slingshot to defeat the greatest fears of Bill and the rest of the gang.

With Andy Muschietti previously confirming that a lot of detail went into finding actors that could look and feel like their childhood incarnations, we’re starting to see that work really pay off. See for yourself, by comparing the photo of James McAvoy above with this photo of Jaeden Martell’s version of Bill from IT:

While we’ll have to wait until later this year to see how McAvoy’s performance captures the essence of Lieberher in IT: Chapter 2, there’s certainly a strong resemblance between the two actors in this photo from Andy Muschietti’s Instagram. This isn’t the first we’ve seen when it comes to the adult versions of The Losers Club, as we were treated to some footage of another scene at this year’s CinemaCon.

Through the clips shown to us from IT: Chapter 2, it sounds like James McAvoy isn’t the only example of adult actors sticking the landing on their aged portrayals of their younger counterparts. With a lot of that particular look at the film showing us Jessica Chastain’s Bev, and a few snippets of other Losers being shown, it feels like the fires of hype surrounding this momentous finale are starting to be stoked higher than ever.

IT: Chapter 2 invades our dreams, nightmares, and local theaters, on September 6; but if you want to see what else is heading our way in the months prior to the return to Derry, head over to the 2019 release schedule for further information.

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Wonder Park's Opening Beat Expectations But It Could Still Lose A Lot Of Money

Wonder Park's Opening Beat Expectations But It Could Still Lose A Lot Of Money

Wonder Park just opened in theaters with no credited director. It took five years to get it to the big screen. It reportedly cost close to $100 million even before marketing and distribution. Critics ripped it, and moviegoers seemed to think it was just OK.

But at least they watched it!

Wonder Park was initially expected to make around $10 million for its opening weekend, per THR. Instead, it opened to $16 million. That's not one of the world's great success stories, but the PG film overperformed from projections.

Wonder Park made $16 million at the domestic box office and another $4.3 million in 19 international markets. So the current worldwide total is $20.3 million. The film clearly has a long way to go to recoup the $80M-$100M it reportedly cost to make the movie even before distribution. But it could've been worse! Just saying. Find those silver linings where you can.

Wonder Park managed to take second place at the March 15-17 box office, behind repeat winner Captain Marvel but ahead of fellow newcomer Five Feet Apart.

In other good news, Wonder Park has a B+ CinemaScore from moviegoers polled on opening night. In less good news, Wonder Park currently has a 30% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 42% rating from the audience. That 30% from critics is even lower than our own CinemaBlend projection.

In January 2018, when Wonder Park was still called Amusement Park, director Dylan Brown was fired from the movie. Multiple women accused him of "inappropriate and unwanted conduct" in the workplace. Paramount responded by saying they conducted a thorough investigation and Brown was no longer employed by the company.

No one else was hired as a director so the film opened on March 15, 2019 with no credited director.

Wonder Park features the all-star voice cast of Jennifer Garner, Matthew Broderick, John Oliver, Mila Kunis, Kenan Thompson, Ken Jeong, and more. In the movie, a young girl named June (Brianna Denski) and her mother (Garner) dream up a magical amusement park run by animals, called Wonderland. June ends up transported from her room to a life-size version of the park.

André Nemec, a screenwriter and producer on the film, told EW about the plan for making the movie:

We thought it would be really fascinating to have that amusement park be a product of the girl’s imagination, to see when children are freed from the constraints of the everyday world around them and they get this opportunity to create and design. There’s this beautiful freedom to this idea that an amusement park on a life-size scale could be built in the image of a girl whose buildings blocks are the things we find at home, in the way that kids learn how to build.

Wonder Park is now playing in theaters as one of the many movies packing theaters in 2019. A Wonder Park television series based on the film is still expected on Nickelodeon in 2019.

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Meagan Good Loves A Very Specific Part About Her Top Secret Shazam Role

Meagan Good Loves A Very Specific Part About Her Top Secret Shazam Role

Warning: This story contains major SPOILERS for Shazam!

In one of the best kept superhero movie secrets in recent memory, the end of Shazam! saw Billy Batson transform his foster siblings into the Shazam Family to help him defeat Doctor Sivana. This necessitated adult actors to play the grown up, superhero versions of the kids. Among them was Meagan Good, who plays the superhero version of Faithe Herman’s Darla Dudley.

CinemaBlend got to speak with Meagan Good in St. Louis while she was promoting her new film The Intruder. During the conversation, the actress spoke about the very specific part she loved about her top secret Shazam! role. She said:

More action. More action, more fighting. I also love, because I definitely wanted to do the action and be kick-ass, but I love that I get to be a little girl. I love that I get to show the goofy side of myself because I don’t get to show that in most of the characters that I play, so it’s kind of like the best of two worlds.

Like most actors it seems, Meagan Good was thrilled to do all of the fun action and fighting that her superhero role required, but the part that she really loved was that her character was a kid. Although Superhero Darla may look like an adult on the outside, on the inside she was still just the sweet and precocious little girl that we had seen throughout the film.

The nature of the role allowed Meagan Good to let her inner kid come out, have fun with her performance and act goofy. As she said, her goofiness is not the kind of thing that she usually gets to show in most of her roles, and certainly not in something like The Intruder, which is a thriller that pits her against an insane Dennis Quaid.

You see that goofiness in Meagan Good’s performance in Shazam! and it really sells the fact that this is a little girl that has suddenly found herself with incredible powers in an adult superhero body.

So the actress loved her secret cameo as Superhero Darla in Shazam! because it gave her something different to do than what she generally does from an acting perspective, while also allowing her to express herself and show a side of her personality that people don’t often get to see.

Combine that with the opportunity to do a bunch of kick-ass action, and it really made Shazam! a rewarding experience for Meagan Good. Hopefully that experience gets to continue and play an even bigger part of the story in Shazam! 2. Although a sequel hasn’t been confirmed as of yet, there are some signs that it is in the works and it would be a shame if we didn’t get to see more after one of the DCEU’s best films to date.

You can listen to Meagan Good speak to CinemaBlend about her top secret role in Shazam! in the video below:

While we don’t know when you’ll be able to see Meagan Good back in the superhero realm, you can still catch the actress on the big screen now in The Intruder. Next year she stars in the video game adaptation Monster Hunter. For everything heading to theaters this year, check out our 2019 Release Schedule.

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