Dark Phoenix Director Explains Why The Hellfire Club Wasn’t Included

Dark Phoenix Director Explains Why The Hellfire Club Wasn’t Included

Superhero movies are everywhere, but there was a time when the genre seemed like a serious gamble for studios. Before shared universes became commonplace, 20th Century Fox (RIP) brought X-Men to theaters back in 2000. The property hasn't been far from theaters in the nearly two decades since, although it will all come to an end with Dark Phoenix.

Dark Phoenix is the franchise's final run in theaters, and the second attempt at adapting the titular comic book story. On the page, the Hellfire Club is an integral part of the plot, manipulating Jean and the dark power that lives inside her. But they won't be in the upcoming blockbuster, and director/writer Simon Kinberg explained this choice, saying:

I think if I had four hours to tell this story I would've included the Hellfire Club, I might've included Lilandra. Because I wanted it to be so focused on Jean and I wanted to really tell a character story a little differently than we have in the past in the X-Men. In the past it's been a little more horizontal, meaning there was a breadth of character, there was a bunch of characters. In this one I wanted to go a little more vertical, I wanted to go deep with our main characters, and especially with Jean.

Simon Kinberg has been a long-time producer in the X-Men franchise, so he clearly knows the mutants and their adversaries very well. And while he may have liked to include the Hellfire Club and cosmic character Lilandra in Dark Phoenix, the full story is simply too dense for one movie. Instead, he pivoted his focus onto the psyche of Sophie Turner's Jean Grey, giving the title character the chance to carry the movie.

Related: Why Dark Phoenix Reshot Its Original Ending, According To Simon Kinberg

From the looks of Dark Phoenix's trailers, Sansa Stark is going to be given the true focus of the movie, with Sophie Turner getting the chance to show off a different side of her acting abilities. This should hopefully streamline the narrative, while also allowing the other mutants to split in their allegiances in the wake of Jean's dark power. Even if that means comic book characters ended up on the cutting room floor.

In his same conversation with Digital Spy, Simon Kinberg went on to explain how The Hellfire Club's inclusion may have weighed down Dark Phoenix. As he put it:

So while I loved the Hellfire characters and their role in the Dark Phoenix saga in the comics, and I loved the Lilandra storyline in the comics, all of those felt like they were going to start to compete with the main story of Jean and her emotional crack-up and the break-up of the X-Men family. And I didn't want to draw away from that main emotional through-line.

Simon Kinberg may be making his directorial debut with Dark Phoenix, but he's been working on the franchise since the very beginning. As such, he's seen all the peaks and valleys of the X-Men movies over the years. This no doubt helped his creative process with the upcoming blockbuster, as well as his decision to exclude certain comic book characters.

Members of the Hellfire Club have already appeared in an earlier installment in the franchise, so adding them to Dark Phoenix would make the timeline a bit more confusing and convoluted. Sebastian Shaw and Emma Frost were antagonists in X-Men: First Class, and that's a timeline that is still being utilized in Dark Phoenix. The characters have a relationship with the Hellfire Club, especially Professor X, Mystique, and Magneto.

While Lilandra hasn't been adapted to live-action, there were many thought that Jessica Chastain would be playing the character in Dark Phoenix. Chastain's role still hasn't been revealed, although the trailers show her manipulating Jean to give into her new dark persona. Only time will tell who she ends up playing, and how similar to Lilandra the character ends up being.

All will be revealed when Dark Phoenix arrives in theaters on June 7th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Zack Snyder Saw Shazam! Late, But Still Shared What He Thought

Zack Snyder Saw Shazam! Late, But Still Shared What He Thought

While he’s not part of the inner workings of the DC Extended Universe, director Zack Snyder is still a figure that fans of the DCEU like to consult from time to time. And when not asking him about whether or not the Snyder Cut will ever be released, or pouring over the details of what Darkseid would have looked like in Justice League: Part 2, fans have taken to asking Snyder about his thoughts involving the current state of the film franchise meant to give Marvel’s Cinematic Universe a run for their money. Which is why it’s pretty awesome to hear that when asked about Shazam!, not only did Snyder respond, he actually seemed to like the film.

Previously, Zack Snyder was asked to provide his opinion on the David F. Sandberg directed film, and unfortunately for the fan who had asked he hadn’t seen it yet. Though it was only a handful of days before the Justice League director actually did go and see Shazam!, which prompted him to respond that he thought the movie was fun.

The exchange took place through Snyder’s preferred social network, Vero, and what’s even more surprising is the fact that Zack Snyder responded to the user who’d asked him without any prompting. So while the man may be busy preparing to return to the world of zombies with Netflix’s Army of the Dead, he’s not too busy to take some time out and answer some fan mail.

While not the uber-blockbuster success that Aquaman found itself to be, Shazam! has made a pretty generous bankroll at $347 million in international grosses. With a fifth place showing in the first week of Avengers: Endgame’s box office conquest, it’s not a bad place to be for a movie that’s already been out for about a month in theaters. Though with the new superpowered competition in town, it probably won’t last too much longer once May’s would be blockbusters take the field.

So it’s probably a good thing that Zack Snyder went and saw Shazam! now, before it left his local movie house. Especially since there were fans out there that really wanted to know what the director thought of Billy Batson’s origin story.

It’ll be interesting to see what Zack Snyder thinks about the future of the DC Extended Universe, with films like Joker and Wonder Woman 1984 in the pipeline. In fact, if there was any film that fans would probably want to know Snyder’s reaction to, it’d be the Todd Phillips directed head trip about the potential origin to Gotham’s clown prince of crime. So if you’re a Vero user, and you’re connected with Zack Snyder, you might want to keep your eyes peeled for the next chance to ask him about those films, when they hit theaters.

Shazam! is in theaters now, should you want to return to the world of DC Comics after Avengers: Endgame.

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Daniel Craig Has Been Working Out For 12 Hours At A Time For Bond 25

Daniel Craig Has Been Working Out For 12 Hours At A Time For Bond 25

If you're a good worker, you do what you have to in order to get the job done. Maybe it's putting on a tie around the office and being a good listener, or making sure your emails have that polished sheen of professionalism that gets the point across. The point is, when you give 150% to your chosen profession, you're going to do what needs to be done. And if you're Daniel Craig, it's apparently working out in multiple 12 hour power sessions to become physically fit for his fifth, and presumably last, outing as James Bond in Bond 25.

Apparently some of Craig's co-workers on the set of the latest 007 film have noted that the man who's played the suave asskicker since 2006's Casino Royale has paid important attention to keeping his physique in tip top shape. On top of working out for basically half a day, Daniel Craig has also been keeping a strict diet regimen that is helping give him the look that he's rocked in all of his outings as the character.

Keep in mind, this isn't just Daniel Craig cramming in a bunch of exercise to get ready for Bond 25. The man certainly hasn't let himself go by any means. True, it's been almost four years since Spectre brought the action, but with work in other projects like Steven Soderbergh's Logan Lucky, and this year's Knives Out with Rian Johnson, it's safe to assume that Daniel Craig hasn't been slacking off.

Still, James Bond movies must attempt to go above and beyond what the public is expecting. So this report from the Daily Mail stating that Mr. Craig is undergoing several 12 hour workout sessions in a week is no surprise. It's certainly not the most insane plan we've seen, as Dwayne Johnson probably has Daniel Craig beat out in that respect. But it definitely highlights why Bond 25 is probably going to be Craig's last time out in the role.

Playing a character like James Bond is much like the experience that Hugh Jackman had while playing Wolverine in his X-Men films and spin-offs. There's opportunity to stretch the acting legs in-between goes, but ultimately there comes a time when you want to ditch the diets and the workouts and just play the field of acting in a much less physically demanding way. Perhaps the most important part of such a decision, especially in the Bond franchise, is to quit while people still believe you're able to do the stunts.

When all is said and done with Bond 25, Daniel Craig will have given roughly 15 years and five movies to the franchise that helped skyrocket him to the megastar that he is today. And he'll have paid for it with the crazy sorts of diet and exercise routines that he's currently working with. It's an insane method, but the results for sure cannot be argued with.

Bond 25 will cross the gunbarrel in theaters on April 8, 2020; but you can see Daniel Craig much sooner when he takes part in Knives Out on November 27th, 2019.

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Zoe Saldana On The Process Behind Shaping Her Missing Link Character

Zoe Saldana On The Process Behind Shaping Her Missing Link Character

Zoe Saldana, best known for playing iconic modern-day heroines such as Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy, Uhura in the Star Trek films and Neytiri in Avatar, brought her strong will to Missing Link as Adelina Fortnight, a unapologetic “Gibson Girl” who ends up joining adventurer Lionel Frost (Hugh Jackman) and a Sasquatch named Susan (Zach Galifianakis) on their quest to find his long lost cousins, the Yeti, in the mysterious land of Shangri-La.

Saldana has ventured into the world of animation before for Book of Life in 2014 and My Little Pony: The Movie in 2017, but she’d never been part of the process behind crafting a character with the stop-motion studio, Laika. During the Missing Link press day I recently attended for CinemaBlend, the actress admitted it was a bit more of a lengthy job this time around. In her words:

It took a little more time than the animation projects I’ve been part of before. One animation I did in a year and a half, this one took two and a half years I believe of going back into the studio and recording her voice. Sometimes the tweaks were happening because Adelina and the story was continuously being shaped even though [writer/director] Chris Butler had a clear idea of what the story was.

The actress apparently worked on the character with Laika for over two years! Now this isn’t uncommon these days with all of the detailed work animated films go through. There was a primary focus on getting Adelina just right. Zoe Saldana continued by explaining what exactly changed about her character through the making of Missing Link:

Her accent. At first Chris really wanted her to have a dense accent and then in our following recording session, he knew that he wanted to shave it off a little bit and still have Adelina feel comfortable navigating the English language and conveying her feelings. It was very important that her dynamic toward Lionel was evident. So, I liked those little adjustments that Chris continued to make for her.

Adelina is an immigrant and widow who is in possession of the map Lionel and Susan need to find the Yeti. She is nothing but a “damsel in distress” as she ends up going on the journey with them across half the world and serves as the voice of reason amongst the selfishness of Lionel and light and fluffy personality of Susan. Check out Zoe Saldana discussing her character:

Zoe Saldana’s character in Missing Link will certainly win tons of hearts when it opens in theaters this Friday but for a reason: her character went through a lot during the filmmaking process before arriving on screen. Tune in with CinemaBlend to see how Missing Link does this weekend alongside new titles Hellboy and Little.

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Buffy Actress Kristy Swanson Shares Sweet Photo Tribute To Luke Perry

Buffy Actress Kristy Swanson Shares Sweet Photo Tribute To Luke Perry

Since ‘90s heartthrob actor Luke Perry passed away earlier this week, his family, friends and former co-stars have shared an outpour of grief and love for the late actor, who died at the age of 52 on Monday after being hospitalized for a “massive” stroke a few days prior. During Perry’s early Beverly Hills, 90210 fame, the actor starred in the first crack at Buffy the Vampire Slayer before Joss Whedon developed it into the fan-favorite teen drama.

Luke Perry played Oliver Pike, the love interest to Kristy Swanson’s Buffy in the 1992 movie. In response to Perry’s passing, Swanson took to her Instagram to share a sweet photo of the pair together in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, along with sweet note in tribute to him. Take a look:

What a touching eulogy to the ‘90s actor. Kristy Swanson posted her reaction to hearing the sad news along with genuine word about how she found out about his passing – just after she thought about him and couldn’t sleep, she heard the news. She said the “tears won’t stop and never ever will”, and described their close friendship.

The 49-year-old actress also reminisced about her time on set of Buffy the Vampire Slayer with Luke Perry, with a behind-the-scenes photo of him with some crew members. She pointed out how he was unbothered by 20th Century Fox’s insistence on a clean-shaved face and donned a soul patch for the film. Here’s her second Instagram post:

Kristy Swanson has been friends with Luke Perry since before their starring roles on the ‘90s film. She recently penned an essay to The Hollywood Reporter where she discussed their friendship and expressed his positive vibes on set. Here’s how she put it:

I remember Luke telling me once that in high school he’d been the mascot during football games. That made total sense to me. I was playing a cheerleader in Buffy but he was really the on-set cheerleader while we were making that movie. He was always telling people how great they were doing. He was always positive and uplifting. He made everyone smile. And everybody loved him for it.

Additional to Kristy Swanson’s comments, Luke Perry’s family on CW’s Riverdale, where he played Archie’s father Fred Andrews since the show premiered in 2016 will dedicate the remainder of the third season to the actor’s memory. In a statement from the show’s executive producers, they described him as “father figure and mentor to the show’s young cast” along with other reactions from others who knew him.

Luke Perry is still best known for his decade-long role as Dylan McKay on Beverly Hills, 90210, but his role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer is also a career highlight. The highly-successful show that came after the movie is getting the reboot treatment, but don’t count on Buffy actress Sarah Michelle Gellar joining in.

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Bohemian Rhapsody Editor Drops F-Bomb Over Viral Mocked Scene

Bohemian Rhapsody Editor Drops F-Bomb Over Viral Mocked Scene

Although it has a bevy of awards to its name and made almost $1 billion at the box office, Bohemian Rhapsody has faced quite a bit of criticism. The aspect of the film that has perhaps received the most criticism is the editing, particularly in the scene where Queen first meets manager John Reid, played by Mr. Chaos is a Ladder himself, Aidan Gillen. And that scene has been held up as evidence that Bohemian Rhapsody did not deserve all of its many accolades.

The scene, which was the subject of a viral video that garnered millions of views, was mocked for the seemingly haphazard way it was edited-- with extremely rapid and jarring cuts. The film’s editor (and composer) John Ottman, who won an Oscar for his editing, is well aware of the criticism of the scene and in a recent interview he dropped an F-bomb over it. John Ottman said:

In fact, I went to Fox the other day and had them fire up the Avid and all the media. Because I wanted that scene how I originally cut it. So someday I’m going to do a fucking dissertation and show ‘here’s how I cut it originally, and now here’s what happens when too many cooks get in the kitchen and are paranoid about pace’

Wow, John Ottman might have earned an Oscar for his trouble, but he is clearly still frustrated at how that scene turned out and the ensuing backlash, which has naturally landed on him as the film’s editor. As he told Epicleff Media’s Score: The Podcast, he was so frustrated that he actually went back in the editing bay just to recut the scene and see it again how he originally intended.

That seems to be the major source of frustration for the Oscar winner. He has spoken before about how the scene makes him want to put a bag over his head and the reason for that is that it is not what he wanted it to be. He is not proud of that scene because, as he said, that is not how he originally cut it.

John Ottman may have been the editor on Bohemian Rhapsody but that doesn’t mean that he had complete and total authority on how the movie was cut. Although he went on to say that the director change was not the culprit behind the scene, John Ottman was still constantly getting notes from the studio about the edit.

John Ottman admits was the final cut of that mocked patio scene was his, the result of “too many cooks”, and notes from the studio that forced him to shave down the scene. The studio was worried that the first act was getting too long and it wanted to maintain the pace of the film without slowing down for the scene where Queen meets John Reid.

Describing the effect that had on the scene, John Ottman said:

I took the original version that I cut and all the nuggets and cool things in it we wanted to preserve…so I kept hacking it down, hacking it down, faster, faster, faster, cut things out of it. But if there’s a look or something you want to keep it in there. So what happens is by trying to keep all the old stuff in, but having the scene be half the length, it made it too fast.

So what happened was John Ottman had to take a scene that was much longer, and edit it down with quicker pacing-- all while maintaining pivotal elements of the original scene. The end result of those somewhat opposing objectives is the action-movie/montage pacing of the mocked patio conversation scene.

Around Oscar time there was talk that John Ottman basically saved Bohemian Rhapsody in the editing room and given what he said here, I’d be very curious what his ‘Editor’s Cut’ of the film would look like. It seems unlikely we’ll ever get that, but maybe one day he’ll get to do his “fucking dissertation” on the effect studio notes and too many cooks can have on a movie.

While that scene may always be a thorn in John Ottman’s side, he still was a big part of a massively successful movie and he got his first Oscar out of it, so I’d say it’s a net win.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all the latest movie news and check out our 2019 Release Schedule to keep track of the biggest movies you can look forward to this summer.

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Godzilla: King Of The Monsters Director Has Big Ideas For What Happens Right After His Movie Ends

Godzilla: King Of The Monsters Director Has Big Ideas For What Happens Right After His Movie Ends

Warning: SPOILERS for Godzilla: King of the Monsters are ahead!

The general public wasn’t aware that the Titans existed before the events of Godzilla, but the giant reptile’s clash with the MUTOs changed everything. Five years later, Godzilla’s collision with Rodan, Mothra and King Ghidorah in Godzilla: King of the Monsters resulted in even more destruction across the world, and now the public is fully in the loop on these beasts since Monarch shared the information it’d collected about them over the decades.

So how does humanity go forward from here? Obviously we’re not done with Titan fights by a long shot, as Godzilla vs. Kong is less than a year away. But in terms of the overall status quo, Godzilla: King of the Monsters director Michael Dougherty told CinemaBlend’s own Jeff McCobb that the population will need to heed the late Dr. Ishiro Serizawa’s (played by Ken Watanabe) advice and make peace with the Titans’ existence. As Dougherty put it:

I feel like humans have no choice but to live by Serizawa’s words, which is that we have to learn how to coexist with the Titans. Now that the genie’s out of the bottle, we have no choice but to accept the fact that mankind is no longer at the top of the food chain.

During Godzilla: King of the Monsters, there was a debate over whether it was better to learn to coexist with the Titans or if we were better off killing them. The U.S. government certainly tried its best to kill both Godzilla and King Ghidorah with its Oxygen Destroyer, but the weapon only seriously harmed Godzilla, with King Ghidorah barely being fazed.

Had Dr. Ishiro Serizawa not sacrificed his life to revive Godzilla so that the reptile could defeat his arch-nemesis once and for all, Earth would be destroyed. So as Thomas Middleditch’s character, Sam Coleman, mentioned early in the movie, there are some Titans that are here to help us, and some that are here to threatens us. It’s great to learn which is which, but humanity now needs to learn that the beasts have been here longer than us and are here to stay.

Judging by the Godzilla: King of the Monsters credits, it looks like a lot of folks are getting used to this. Along with Monarch publishing all its research, it was also revealed that some cruise ships have passed by Godzilla himself, prehistoric plants are popping up that some consider to be “superfood,” and Earth is starting to be healed thanks to the Titans no longer being influenced by King Ghidorah, who wasn’t even native to our world.

Still, that doesn’t mean that everything is all fine and dandy in the MonsterVerse now that King Ghidorah is gone. It was also noted in the Godzilla: King of the Monsters credits that Skull Island has started to become unstable, with many new Titans setting up shop there, which will undoubtedly not sit well with the island’s ruler, King Kong.

This sets the stage for Godzilla vs. Kong, which will see these two behemoths clash for the first time in an American production. While their battle will be the main draw, the fourth MonsterVerse entry will also show Monarch delving into the Titans’ origins and a conspiracy to wipe out these creatures being uncovered.

You can listen to Michael Dougherty’s full remarks about the post-Godzilla: King of the Monsters MonsterVerse in the video below.

Be sure to read CinemaBlend’s review of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and stay tuned for coverage on Godzilla vs. Kong, which hits theaters on March 13, 2020.

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