Keri Russell's Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker Character Finally Revealed In New Image

Keri Russell's Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker Character Finally Revealed In New Image

While we’re still pretty much in the dark when it comes to details on Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s plot, there’s plenty of other information that’s slowly being put out into the universe. Today brings one of the most beautiful traditions linked to the modern era of Star Wars film’s: the Vanity Fair spread.

Among the new character reveals that took place in this latest version of that time-honored happening is our first look at Keri Russell’s new Star Wars character, Zorri Bliss. As you’ll see in the photo below, she was absolutely right to say that she had the coolest costume in the film:

This first look at Zorri and her costume has us thinking that Keri Russell is playing a bounty hunter character, or at least someone who swims in the same dark circles as Boba Fett. Then again, if anyone shows up in the Star Wars universe with weapons and a helmet obscuring their face, it’s not a hard stretch to think that this person would be looking to apprehend any person, object, or information for the right price.

With a gold helmet that looks like The Rocketeer joined Daft Punk, and a crimson/purple jumpsuit that complements further gold and bronze accents, Zorri is definitely ready for action. The inclusion of her dual pistols only makes us want to hang out with her more, knowing that at any given moment, a fight could break out and Zorri Bliss would end it just as quickly.

Not only was the first look at Zorri’s costume shared by Vanity Fair, but some details about Zorri’s character were also given. Sure enough, we’re not the only people that see a smooth criminal in the Star Wars galaxy, as their write up mentions that the fresh war raging throughout the new trilogy has continued to allow the criminal underworld to flourish. Which certainly explains the fancy threads on Zorri Bliss.

As Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is set up to conclude the Skywalker Saga, the two trilogies of stand-alone films that won’t deal with that particular corner of the storied universe are on the horizon, and will need new characters to play around with. Which means that between Rian Johnson’s new films, and those being undertaken by Game of Thrones’ masterminds David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, there’s a chance that Zorri Bliss could appear again down the line.

That's speculation, of course, but should Keri Russell’s new character make a big enough impression, this just might be the future we’re looking at. We’ll have to wait until Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker arrives in our galaxy on December 20th to find out. In the meantime, you can take a look at what all we know about the upcoming flick so far.

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Why Annabelle Comes Home Is Very Much A Homecoming For The Conjuring Universe

Why Annabelle Comes Home Is Very Much A Homecoming For The Conjuring Universe

In the last six years, The Conjuring Universe has become one of the most successful active franchises in Hollywood. It all started when James Wan’s The Conjuring turned out to be a massively huge hit in the summer of 2013, and since then the brand has expanded to include multiple spin-off series, which have actually mostly performed as well or better than the core titles.

As the franchise has continued, it’s expanded in interesting ways and gone to some exciting new places – and it’s in recognition of this that Gary Dauberman’s upcoming Annabelle Comes Home holds a special place the brand’s direction. It turns out the title has a semi-double meaning, as in addition to the movie featuring a plot that sees the titular doll come to live in the Warren house, it’s also seen by the filmmakers as a homecoming of sorts for the entire Conjuring Universe.

This was a sentiment shared by producer Peter Safran during an interview late last year when I had the chance to visit the set of what was then only called Annabelle 3:

The idea bringing it back to the Warren family was something that we've been toying with for a while. We had the Perrons, we had the Hodgsons, we took it all away to Romania – a totally different vibe and feel for The Nun. And we just liked the idea of bringing it closer to home, back to ordinary people and extraordinary circumstances, which was kind of the touchstone for it. And it just really made sense.

To fill in the gaps for the uninitiated, The Conjuring started the franchise with a story that actually spent a fair amount of time in the Warren home, in addition to following an investigation of the relatively-local Perron household. But the movies have slowly moved away from that ever since. Annabelle was really only a slight crawl away as a prequel story with a direct link-up featured at the end, but then The Conjuring 2 took Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga’s Ed and Lorraine Warren to England for the infamous Enfield Poltergeist case with the Hodgson clan. Annabelle: Creation then took audiences back nearly 20 years before the events of The Conjuring; and then The Nun doubled down on both elements of setting by not only going further back in time (by three years), but also by featuring events primarily set in the Vatican and Romania.

It’s been six years since audiences have seen any legitimately spooky action inside of the Warren’s house, but Annabelle Comes Home will break that streak when it’s released this summer. Set over the course of one night, the story centers on Ed and Lorraine’s daughter, Judy (McKenna Grace), as she spends the night with a babysitter (Madison Iseman) the night Annabelle is brought into household’s notorious artifact museum. Unfortunately for them, it’s evil winds up having a very strong influence over the other objects in the room, unleashing all kinds of terrors.

Further discussing the approach of bringing the action back to the Warrens’, Peter Safran explained that there has long been a creative curiosity when it comes to the aforementioned artifact museum, and Annabelle Comes Home will finally be the movie that sees the potential there explored. Plus, he added, it’s an opportunity to directly follow-up on the very first case that audiences were introduced to in the first Conjuring. Said the producer,

We always loved the idea of the artifact room being the potential source of more stories. The idea of actually setting a film around that was something, again, that we had in our mind for a while, and Gary [Dauberman] and James [Wan], and myself just thought this was the opportunity – that the third Annabelle movie is the opportunity to really raise the stakes. And that was it. Also the opening scene of The Conjuring is so iconic when it opens up on the half face of Annabelle, we just always liked the idea of, what happened after they left there? We see them taking the doll, what happens? It was actually something other people had asked us in the past as well. We just thought we will explore that story.

There will still be plenty more opportunities for The Conjuring Universe to explore new cities, countries, and time periods, as there are multiple projects actively in development, but Annabelle Comes Home is specifically being made as the film that brings us full circle.

The directorial debut of Gary Dauberman – who previously wrote the scripts for Annabelle, Annabelle: Creation, and The Nun – Annabelle Comes Home is scheduled to freak out audiences this summer with its June 28th release. And be sure to stay tuned here on CinemaBlend, as I have plenty more stories coming your way in the coming days from my time visiting the set.

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James Gunn Had A Really Good Time Writing The Suicide Squad

James Gunn Had A Really Good Time Writing The Suicide Squad

Within the span of eight months, James Gunn was fired from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and then rehired onto the threeequel. During that span of time, he was selected by Warner Bros to write and direct The Suicide Squad, and even now that he’s back on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Gun will still be overseeing Task Force X’s next cinematic adventure.

While we’re still a ways from seeing James Gunn’s take on the Suicide Squad in the DC Extended Universe, apparently he didn’t suffer from writer’s block when penning the story, calling it one of his best writing experiences in a while. In Gunn’s words:

The Suicide Squad, it just instantly started flowing. I don’t think I’ve had as much fun writing a script since maybe Dawn of the Dead. That’s what this whole movie has been like.

Just so we’re all on the same page, the Dawn of the Dead remake came out in 2004, and James Gunn wrote the script the year prior. So The Suicide Squad marks the most fun he’s had writing a script in over a decade and a half! That ideally bodes well for The Suicide Squad’s quality, though understandably, Gunn did not provide any specifics on what to expect from the movie while speaking with Deadline.

While 2016’s Suicide Squad, which was written and directed by Fury’s David Ayer, was unquestionably a commercial success, making nearly $747 million worldwide, it didn’t fare well on the critical side of the spectrum. With Ayer initially stepping away from directing Suicide Squad 2 to helm Gotham City Sirens (he’s since kept busy with Bright, its upcoming sequel and The Tax Collector), that opened the door for a new creative mind to put their own stamp on the Suicide Squad mythology, a doorway which James Gunn stepped through once his time at Marvel Studios looked like it was done for good.

Although it was initially described as a g The Suicide Squad will have ties to its predecessor, as evidenced by the return of Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller. That said, rather than being a traditional sequel, The Suicide Squad is being framed as more of a ‘relaunch,’ which undoubtedly allowed James Gunn more creative freedom.

One of the ways The Suicide Squad will distinguish itself is by featuring a lot of new faces. Idris Elba will play someone who’s not Deadshot, David Dastamalchian will play Polka-Dot Man and Daniela Melchior will play Ratcatcher, while John Cena is in talks to play Peacemaker. King Shark will also reportedly be a member of this new Suicide Squad, although Michael Rooker has denied that he will voice the character.

The Suicide Squad charges into theaters on August 5, 2021, and production is slated to begin this fall. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for updates on its progression, and don’t forget to look through our DC movies guide to learn what else the DCEU has coming up.

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Mark Ruffalo's Marvel Behind-The-Scenes Tribute Video Will Make You Feel All The Feels

Mark Ruffalo's Marvel Behind-The-Scenes Tribute Video Will Make You Feel All The Feels

Ending a run of films as big as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Infinity Saga is bound to be emotional for both fans and cast members alike. This is especially true when it comes to fans making tribute videos in honor of films like Avengers: Endgame that are so touching, people like Mark Ruffalo just have to share. That’s exactly what the big guy has done with the video below, complete with a beautifully emotional message, take a look:

Comprised of outtakes from what looks like almost every film from Marvel Studio’s first cinematic arc, there’s plenty of goofing around from cast members included in this tribute reel, set to ELO’s “Mr. Blue Sky.” Among some of the highlights are the many funny faces that Chris Evans has been known to make, even in costume as Captain America. You'll also see a lot of smiles from cast members ranging from Chadwick Boseman and Scarlet Johansson, to of course, a lot of Robert Downey Jr. smiling mischievously and making faces that might not make it into a Disney-produced picture!

So yeah, it’s a video that’ll make Avengers: Endgame fans totally emotional, as it acts as kind of a family scrapbook of moments that led to the huge finale that fans had been waiting for across the span of 11 years and 22 movies. With the finale also marking the end of Joe and Anthony Russo’s current tenure at Marvel Studios, the reaction seems to indicate that emotional isn’t even the word for how folks may be feeling at the moment.

With Avengers: Endgame poised to surpass Avatar at any moment in the near future, this Twitter post is a good reminder of just how and why the Marvel Cinematic Universe has hit with the folks that helped make it possible. Even Mark Ruffalo knows that as he shares this video, honoring both his co-stars and the moviegoers who made their collective job an honor and a privilege.

The future of the MCU, and just what its next saga will entail, is still up in the air to a certain point. We’ll probably receive a lot of clues with Spider-Man: Far From Home acting as the official end of Phase Three, and the first step into a post-Infinity Saga world. Even then, the announcement of whatever Phase Four and beyond hold will be the ultimate clue as to where fans will be headed next.

So long as Marvel Studios and the cast of those upcoming movies continue to uphold the believe that fan and actor alike are what make this enterprise truly special, the success is likely to follow in both the undertaking and release of such projects.

Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now; with the final flick in the phase, Spider-Man: Far From Home, webbing up the box office on July 2nd. However, if you’re ready to look for another movie to entertain yourself with, you can take a look at the 2019 release schedule to see what other options are open.

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Captain Marvel's Stan Lee Tribute Is Perfect

Captain Marvel's Stan Lee Tribute Is Perfect

The following contains minor spoilers for Captain Marvel**.**

When we lost Stan Lee at the end of last year, Marvel fans were in shock. when it wasn't necessarily an unexpected turn of events, the man who helped bring so many of our favorite heroes to life was loved by many who never met him that everybody felt it. Since then, we've seen tributes to Lee included in Once Upon a Deadpool and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, but the one included in this week's Captain Marvel may be the best of them all. It doesn't wait until the credits roll where some might not see it. It drops it right into the opening seconds of the movie, by making Stan Lee the focal point of the Marvel Studios logo.

If you've seen any Marvel movie you're familiar with the Marvel Studios logo that plays either at the very beginning of every film, or after a short cold open. The current version of the logo is a collage of brief clips of various MCU films showing off all our favorite heroes in action. We see Captain America and Iron Man and Black Widow and the Hulk all looking awesome while the camera pulls back to reveal the Marvel Studios logo.

The one in front of Captain Marvel, however, is slightly different. It functions exactly the same way, only instead of seeing our favorite Marvel heroes, we get clips of Stan Lee in all of his various MCU cameos that he's made over the years. We don't see any other characters. No Iron Man. No Thor. It's just Stan. All Stan. As the logo fades away a text briefly flashes on the screen to say thank you to Stan Lee, then our movie gets underway.

It's an incredibly lovely way to say goodbye, one that touched the entire audience at my screening. The audience erupted in cheers and applause as soon as everybody realized what we were seeing. It was glorious. There may have been tears. From other people, I mean.

Of course, that wasn't the only time we saw Stan Lee in Captain Marvel's run time. Lee filmed his requisite cameo for the film before he died. It comes fairly early in the film. Vers (Brie Larson) has chased a Skrull onto a city bus and she's trying to figure out which of the humans on the bus is now the hiding Skrull. One of the people on the bus is Stan Lee.

Interestingly, unlike most of Stan's cameos, where he's playing a random nameless character, in this cameo he's actually playing Stan Lee. We see Stan on the bus reading a movie script and trying to learn his lines. Specifically, he's reading the script to Kevin Smith's 1995 comedy Mallrats. Yes, Stan Lee's cameo makes reference to another Stan Lee cameo.

We understand that Stan Lee filmed his cameo for Avengers: Endgame as well, so we'll likely see him again at least one more time. As it's only a couple months from now, maybe Stan Lee will be in the Marvel logo again then. It will be fitting to be sure Stan Lee gets a proper thank you during the film the entire MCU has being building towards. I certainly wouldn't mind seeing that again.

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18 Popular Cult Classic Movies That Are Perfect For Movie Night

18 Popular Cult Classic Movies That Are Perfect For Movie Night

It’s movie night, the shades are drawn, the popcorn is ready and your feet are up, now all you have to decide is what to watch. You could check out the latest streaming movie or see what new releases are out, or you could be a bit more adventurous and check out a cult classic movie that you haven’t seen before or need to revisit.

Cult classics are named such because they have gained a dedicated and passionate following over the years. These are films that fans know by heart, and have stood the test of time. Their popularity and cult status gives some level of guarantee that they are worth your time. Fortunately, cinematic history is full of cult classics for you to discover and ones that fit every type of movie night, no matter the mood you’re in or who you are watching with.

So here are 18 popular cult classics that are perfect for movie night.

Date Night

Part of the fun of being in a relationship is sharing interests and discovering things together. That’s why going to the movies is such a staple of date night for new couples, and those who have been together a long time. Many of the cult classics on this list could work for date night, but if you want something with a bit of romance for you and your significant other, these titles might do the trick and add some chill to your movie night.

Romeo + Juliet

The ending might be a bit of a downer, but there’s a reason William Shakespeare’s tragic tale of star-crossed lovers has been around since the 16th century, it works. Yet despite the countless retellings, few are as unique and memorable as Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. Romeo + Juliet eschews Shakespearean stuffiness in favor of a modern setting with a fun soundtrack, colorful aesthetic, guns instead of swords and plenty of humor. It oozes with a style made for the MTV generation, anchored by the magical chemistry of the two leads.

10 Things I Hate About You

Arriving in the glorious 1999, 10 Things I Hate About You is a loose adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, set in a modern American high school. The romantic dramedy stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Cameron, a new student at who wants to date Bianca, played by Larisa Oleynik (Alex Mack!). The only catch is, according to her father’s rules, Bianca’s older sister, the ill-tempered Katarina has to date first, so Cameron enlists Heath Ledger’s rebellious Patrick to woo her. 10 Things is a classic high school movie filled with great characters that feel real and not like an adult’s version of what adolescence is like.

The Princess Bride

Romance, comedy, action and adventure, you get all of that in this 1987 fantasy film from director Rob Reiner and writer William Goldman, based on the latter’s novel. The film tells a love story in a renaissance world populated with delightful characters played by talented actors. The Princess Bride was unremarkable upon its release but found new life on VHS, and more recently it has provided great fodder for the internet thanks to its endlessly quotable lines. Even if you haven’t seen this movie, an inconceivable position, you’ve seen and heard a lot from it, even if you didn’t know it.

Scary Movie Night

Whether it’s Halloween time or not, anytime is a good time to gather friends and family together to shut out the lights and watch a scary movie. The horror genre is enjoying a renaissance on the big screen right now, but its illustrious past is full of popular cult films worth revisiting or discovering for the first time. Films that frighten, disturb and sometimes even make you laugh.

Army of Darkness

What started as a pure horror film with Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead eventually became a time-traveling horror/comedy with Army of Darkness, a film that cemented Bruce Campbell’s Ash as a true horror icon. The fantasy horror flick tells the story of Ash Williams, a man who is accidentally transported to the Middle Ages where he must battle an army of the dead called ‘Deadites’ and retrieve the Necronomicon to get back to his time. With the one-liner spouting Ash, Army of Darkness isn’t a particularly scary scary movie, but it is entertaining and funny as hell. It’s also the kind of movie that would have a hard time getting made today, so go enjoy this cult classic.

The Lost Boys

Joel Schumacher’s 1987 teen vampire movie did sexy vampires long before Twilight gave the creatures of the night sparkles. The Lost Boys is dark and violent, but also campy and fun. It is not only a cult classic, but The Lost Boys is also considered to be among the best modern vampire movies. The film follows two brothers who move to a new town and discover that it is a haven for a gang of young, brutal vampires. With a new TV series reboot recently green-lit, there’s no better time to check out the original cult classic.

Videodrome

If you are in the mood to have some gnarly nightmares, you couldn’t do much better than watching Videodrome on scary movie night. David Cronenberg’s 1983 science fiction body horror film is a surreal story about the sleazy CEO of a UHF TV station, played by James Woods, who discovers a signal broadcasting gruesome violence and torture. Videodrome was amazingly prescient about how the horror genre would develop, but also about many aspects of modern society, from reality TV to social media to virtual reality. For terrifying horror that messes with your head, Videodrome is a classic every film fan should check out.

Family Night

Not every cult classic is suitable for children (see above), so as beloved as Kevin Smith’s films are, sometimes you need something the whole family can enjoy. These movies may not be as widely watched as Disney and Pixar titles, but they are unique and charming and they are just as enjoyable for adults as they are for kids.

The Goonies

The Goonies is one of those cult classics that it feels like everyone has seen and loves, but that doesn’t make it any less essential or perfect for a movie night. Alongside films like E.T. and Stand By Me, The Goonies is a pillar of childhood adventure movies. The film from Richard Donner, Steven Spielberg and Chris Columbus follows a group of kids who call themselves ‘the Goonies’ who are facing the foreclosure of their homes. They discover a treasure map and set out to save their homes and what follows is a grand adventure. Goonies never say die, and this film’s cult status continues to gain new converts year after year.

Matilda

This forgotten Roald Dahl adaptation from director Danny DeVito has a fanbase as loyal, if not as large as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (there was even a viral #MatildaChallenge last year). Matilda is a genius bookworm who is ignored by her family like cupboard Harry Potter, but has telekinetic powers like the X-Men’s Jean Grey. The elementary schooler uses her powers to fight back against her ignorant parents and the downright sinister principal Trunchbull. Matilda gets dark at times, but it is also full of whimsy and honest emotion and teaches that being smart is a good thing. Netflix’s Roald Dahl event series will have a lot to live up to if it wants to compare.

The Last Unicorn

Based on the novel by Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn is much darker and stranger than many animated kids movies. It can be disturbing and scary (it’s been called nightmare fuel) but it also tells an incredibly beautiful story. The deeply melancholy tale of a unicorn searching for the rest of her kind, chased off long ago by the Red Bull, deals with heavy themes for a kids movie. But the generation that grew up with it have turned it into a cult classic, so it must not have messed them up too much. It also features a stunning voice cast including Alan Arkin, Mia Farrow, Jeff Bridges, Christopher Lee and Angela Lansbury. It baffles me this hasn’t been remade in live-action yet.

Cult Comedy Night

There is no shortage of great cult comedies that have found second-lives on home video long after they disappeared from cinema screens. Movies like The Big Lebowski, Clerks and Monty Python and the Holy Grail all have loyal and deserved followings. They’re not the only cult classics that are infinitely quotable and completely hilarious. If you’re looking for laughs on movie night, you can’t go wrong with these titles.

Beerfest

The Broken Lizard gang may be best known for Super Troopers, which finally spawned a sequel last year, but that’s not their only cult film as the 2006 comedy Beerfest also has a devoted legion of ‘not that drunk’ followers. The film follows two brothers who, while visiting Germany, stumble upon an underground, international beer-drinking competition. They return home to put together an American team and hilarity ensues. It’s silly and raunchy in all the best ways, and if you went to a party in the years following its release, you’ve definitely seen it referenced. If you’re ever training for a drinking competition remember “maybe training alone on a rooftop drinking ram piss isn’t the way to go.”

Office Space

Mike Judge’s Office Space just celebrated its 20th anniversary last month. so there is no better time to revisit the hilarious and incisive satire of an office workplace that gave us the term ‘ass clown’. Pretty much anyone who has ever worked at a place can relate to the story of three office drones that decide to rebel against the dehumanizing software company they work at, as well as the desire to unleash your wrath on a perpetually jammed printer. This film’s cult status began on DVD and cable TV, but it has only grown thanks to its meme-worthiness. It is a true cult classic so if you could go ahead and watch Office Space that would be great.

Grandma’s Boy

A stoner comedy that is also a great movie about gaming, Grandma’s Boy remains one of the most memorable and rewatchable movies from Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions. The story of a 35-year-old video game tester who has to move in with his grandmother and her roommates and the personal and professional struggles he goes through is inclusive and sweet and completely hilarious, even if you’re sober. Sure, it’s lowbrow and I wouldn’t expect to see it on the AFI top 100, but if your desire is to have a movie night where you can just relax and laugh, you can’t go wrong with Grandma’s Boy.

Old Friends Night

We love Stranger Things because it has a nostalgic quality to it that reminds us of the power and importance of the friendships in our lives. Old Friends Movie Night is much the same idea, movies that have great friendships at their center we look back fondly upon. It helps if you grew up with these movies and shared them with friends, but even if you didn’t invite some friends over and give them a watch.

Dazed And Confused

You need a cult classic to watch on movie night? Alright, alright, alright. Richard Linklater’s 1993 comedy flopped at the box office, only to now be recognized as a classic coming of age film. Set on the last day of school in 1976, Dazed and Confused follows various groups of suburban teenagers as the summer begins and they do their best to get stoned, get laid, party and survive the challenges of adolescence. Dazed and Confused has an unbelievable ensemble cast of future stars including Ben Affleck, Matthew McConaughey, Milla Jovovich, Joey Lauren Adams, Renée Zellweger, Jason London, Cole Houser and Parker Posey.

Romy And Michele’s High School Reunion

This 1997 comedy about two inseparable friends who hit the road together for their high school reunion and the strife that causes between them is not for everybody, but people who love it really love it. Romy and Michele is goofy and kind of weird at points, but it features a heartwarming and genuine female friendship between Lisa Kudrow and Mira Sorvino’s characters. The comedy is super witty and the message of not giving “a flying fuck” what other people think is empowering and timeless. Plus it has that iconic dance sequence with Alan Cumming. Romy and Michele is a great movie to watch with friends old and new.

Empire Records

It’s fascinating how a movie that barely cracked a quarter million at the box office can go on to be so adored years later, by generations that lived through the era it depicts and those that didn’t. Empire Records is a cult classic in every sense of the word, a coming of age dramedy that tells the story of a group of friends and record store employees who over the course of a day, try to prevent their store from being swallowed up by a large, overly-sanitized chain. The teen misfits and their relationships still resonate in a film that could be called The Breakfast Club of the 90’s.

Action Night

Sometimes, or let’s be honest, lots of times, you just want to see things go ‘boom’ and people get punched. That’s where action movies come in. And if you want use movie night to try out a new surround sound system, there is no substitute for a great action movie. The following cult classics are the kind of movies that have more than earned their cult status, offering entertaining characters, fun action and clever stories.

The Fifth Element

George Lucas couldn’t make Flash Gordon so he made Star Wars. And Luc Besson couldn’t make Valerian (yet) so he made The Fifth Element. Both of those situations worked out pretty well I’d say. One of the hallmarks of a cult classic is that fans quote the film’s dialogue and if you’ve ever heard “Chicken… good,” “I am a meat Popsicle,” or “Mul-ti-pass” that’s The Fifth Element. Hilarious and action packed, with a kickass heroine and one of Bruce Willis’ best roles, this colorful sc-fi adventure is perfect for action night or really anytime it happens to be on TV.

The Warriors

“Warriors, come out to play-ay-ayy!” Walter Hill’s action-thriller is set in a near-future NYC that is overrun with gangs. When a gang leader named Cyrus bids to unite the gangs to take over the city, he is killed and the Warriors are blamed for it. They must outrun all of the city’s gangs and make it back home if they are to survive. The Warriors is incredibly stylish and a bit cheesy and is the definition of a cult classic film that was critically panned and later developed a massive following. The Warriors was supposed to be getting a Hulu series from the Russo Brothers, but we haven’t heard much on that in a while.

Starship Troopers

Paul Verhoeven, director of Robocop again used sci-fi action film to say something with his adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein’s book; it just took a while for people to catch on to what that was. On the surface,Starship Troopers is a typical sci-fi action movie, with a fun group of pretty heroes fighting an intergalactic war against a race of alien bugs. This meta film is considered to be a scathing indictment of fascism, colonialism and the military industrial complex, but if you just want to turn your brain off and have fun, it works on that level too and the action and special effects are great.

This is just a small sampling of the popular cult classics out there that are perfect for movie night or really any time. Give them a watch to see what all the fuss is about and let us know in the comments what your favorite cult classics are.

Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to see all the biggest movies headed to theaters this year and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all your movie news.

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A Marvel Movies Timeline To Watch From Beginning To Endgame

A Marvel Movies Timeline To Watch From Beginning To Endgame

Growing since 2008, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has established itself as one of the great blockbuster feats of all time – doing more than any franchise ever to establish a big screen continuity unlike anything audiences have ever seen. Mixing both period and contemporary stories, the movies have allowed fans to have a fascinating perspective on the history of the fictional world, with each new release adding a bit more to the larger picture. Of course, after more than 20 films things have gotten pretty damn complex, so for those of you who get a bit lost in it all we’ve specially designed this feature.

There are basically two ways to enjoy the timeline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and we will take a look at both in this piece. The first approach is to watch all of the titles in the order in which they were released in theaters, a.k.a. Release Order; while the second is to take in all of the stories based on the times they are respectively set, a.k.a. Chronological Order. Read about both below, and you can choose the methodology that best suits you in the run up to Avengers: Endgame this summer.

Iron Man (2008)

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

Iron Man 2 (2010)

Thor (2011)

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

The Avengers (2012)

Iron Man 3 (2013)

Thor: The Dark World (2013)

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014)

Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015)

Ant-Man (2015)

Captain America: Civil War (2016)

Doctor Strange (2016)

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Black Panther (2018)

Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

Ant-Man And The Wasp (2018)

Captain Marvel (2019)

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

In the establishment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios made specific choices regarding what characters they wanted to introduce to audiences and when, and if this is the part of their specific creative process that you personally take into consideration when watching the movies, then Release Order is probably the best choice for you. It’s not only the logical and most straightforward way to go about things, but it’s also likely the order in which most audiences have already seen the films anyway (for obvious reasons).

What we’re looking at here, however, is more than 40 hours of entertainment, and not everybody has that kind of time to spend rewatching movies. The good news is that not every single film is absolutely necessary viewing in the run up to the end of Phase 3, and taking certain shortcuts could save you some time without hampering any of your comprehension.

Take, for starters, the year that kicked the whole thing off: 2008. The first movie of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jon Favreau’s Iron Man, is truly necessary viewing to understand the full breadth of this franchise, given that it introduces/establishes arguably the most important character (Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark); some of the most important supporting players (such as Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury, Clark Gregg’s Phil Coulson, and Gwyneth Paltrow’s Pepper Potts); the world’s advanced technologies/science-fiction rules; and the larger tonal approach to the material. You don’t really have full context for the MCU until you watch Iron Man.

Louis Leterrier’s The Incredible Hulk, on the other hand, is a different story. While it’s true that the film does exist within the continuity, and Bruce Banner/Hulk remains a massively important character in the franchise, the reality is that Marvel Studios’ second film isn’t exactly key within the larger legacy. Not only is the story very insular and self-contained – ultimately introducing only two characters who would return in later movies – its main star isn’t actually a part of the Marvel family anymore. Edward Norton was replaced by Mark Ruffalo going into the making of Joss Whedon’s The Avengers, and that blockbuster by itself does a fine job establishing the hero/monster (more on that particular title in a bit).

Jon Favreau’s Iron Man 2 is another film that isn’t absolutely vital to the construction of the MCU, beyond further establishing the key characters mentioned earlier (and introducing Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow), but Kenneth Branagh’s Thor and Joe Johnston’s Captain America: The First Avenger are two titles that should be rewatched. Origin stories are important in understanding where a hero is coming from, and that is very much true in watching the physical transformation of Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers, and the emotional maturity of Chris Hemsworth’s Thor. It’s also worth noting that both films bring major narrative elements to the franchise as well, with the former giving audiences a taste of the universe beyond Earth, and the latter introducing the Tesseract a.k.a. the Space Stone.

Circling back to The Avengers, it should probably go without saying that the team-up movies are absolutely vital viewing in reflection on the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and this includes Whedon’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron as well. It takes massive world-changing events to bring all of these disparate heroes together – ones that fans should witness and understand to get a full grasp on the big picture – and the blockbusters also expose the nature of relationships key to the future. Some of this is cute stuff like the history between Black Widow and Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye, and the budding romance between Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch and Paul Bettany’s Vision, but it’s also massively important stuff like the serious friction between Iron Man and Captain America.

Moving into Phase 2 there is once again a mix of must-sees and skippables – with the 2013 features falling into the latter category. Shane Black’s Iron Man 3 is certainly fascinating from a character perspective, as it shows how Tony Stark has seriously changed following a full-scale alien invasion, but it’s also very much its own thing and doesn’t leave too many threads hanging. Alan Taylor’s Thor: The Dark World is a bit of a different situation, as it is the film that brings the second Infinity Stone – the Aether a.k.a. The Reality Stone – into the mix, but the overall story doesn’t really provide anything to the larger story unfolding in the MCU, so it’s one of the titles you can probably relive just by reading a plot recap.

Joe and Anthony Russo’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a film that is a bit on the fence in this conversation, as it very much is at its heart mostly a Captain America story, but there is enough significance that I would argue that it should be a part of any Marvel Cinematic Universe catch-up. It may not play around with Infinity Stones, but the developments with Black Widow, Sebastian Stan’s Winter Solider, and Anthony Mackie’s Falcon are definitely important to understand, and there is a pretty damn big happening that goes down in the form of S.H.I.E.L.D. being totally destroyed. Plus, it also happens to be one of the best MCU films to date.

Leaving Earth behind, James Gunn’s Guardians Of The Galaxy films then came along to add another key piece to the larger comic book movie universe, but in looking back on everything fans can probably get away with only watching the first one and not Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2. While the 2014 release gives us our first adventure with the titular team, brings the very important Power Stone into the mix, and gives us our first real look at Josh Brolin’s Thanos, the sequel is definitely more about advancing the core ensemble and telling a specific story with those characters.

Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man and Scott Derrickson’s Doctor Strange then return us to the origin story conversation, and it’s the same situation with the titles mentioned before. Both films not only do a great job giving us a sense of exactly who the heroes are and what they fight for, but also add to the larger understanding of the fantastical elements of the universe – specifically with shrinking powers, alternate universes, and the legitimate existence of magic.

Much like The Avengers films, the fact that Joe and Anthony Russo’s Captain America: Civil War features as many heroes and big world events as it does is why it needs to be a part of any Marvel Cinematic Universe recap. Even more so than Avengers: Age Of Ultron, this is the title that advanced character relationships to where they needed to be in the run-up to the Russos’ Avengers: Infinity War, and the emotional changes that they go through are necessary to understand where they are mentally going into the ordeal that winds up changing life as they know it.

Obviously Avengers: Infinity War is the big daddy that absolutely must be seen leading into the events of Avengers: Endgame, but the selection of titles released in 2017 and 2018 in regards to rewatch is basically up to individual viewers. Jon Watts’ Spider-Man: Homecoming, Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok, Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther and Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man And The Wasp all have fun individual stories that wonderfully expand the specific worlds of the titular characters, updating audiences on where they all stand following the events of both Avengers: Age Of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War, but they also don’t individually quite change the entire face of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it. I would certainly put more emphasis on watching them over Incredible Hulk, the Iron Man sequels, or even Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2, but they also aren’t must-sees.

Finally we have Marvel Studios release #21: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s Captain Marvel, which is most definitely a film that needs to be seen in advance of Avengers: Endgame. The film not only introduces what will certainly be one of the most important heroes in the entire franchise – Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers – but also once again shows audiences a side of the universe that no previous release has shown us. Those who see the movie prior to Avengers: Endgame will get to learn a whole lot more about some of continuity's most serious intergalactic conflicts, not to mention a peek into the pasts of some key characters, such as Nick Fury and Phil Coulson. And, of course, the blockbuster also provides some very important information about the modified pager that Fury can be seen using in Avengers: Infinity War's post-credits scene.

This is definitely the most straight-forward and logical way for any casual fan to reacquaint themselves with the stories of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but if you’re looking to change things up a bit and perhaps have a new experience, you may want to give Chronological Order a try.

Captain America: The First Avenger

Captain Marvel

Iron Man

Iron Man 2

Thor

The Incredible Hulk

The Avengers

Iron Man 3

Thor: The Dark World

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Guardians Of The Galaxy

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2

Avengers: Age Of Ultron

Ant-Man

Captain America: Civil War

Spider-Man: Homecoming

Doctor Strange

Thor: Ragnarok

Black Panther

Ant-Man And The Wasp

Avengers: Infinity War

Avengers: Endgame

While watching the Marvel Studios releases in the order they came out makes plenty of sense, it should be noted that doing so results in viewers bouncing all around the franchise timeline with very little rhyme or reason from a larger narrative perspective. In contrast, there is a way to watch the movies linearly – you just have to know the proper order. Fortunately, we have you covered, and can guide you through the process of watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe chronologically.

Technically the furthest back in time we’ve seen in these movies are the flashback sequences at the start of Thor: The Dark World (2988 B.C.) and Thor (965 A.D.), but the full story set furthest into the past is Captain America: The First Avenger – an adventure that entirely takes place towards the end of World War II. Spanning about two years (1943-1945), the story takes us from the transformation of Steve Rogers into Captain America, to his bold sacrificial move in the Arctic Circle that led him to being frozen in ice for decades.

After that, the next bits on the timeline come from flashbacks in Ant-Man And The Wasp and Ant-Man, namely scenes set in the 1980s with Michael Douglas’ Hank Pym and Michelle Pfeiffer’s Janet Van Dyne. Black Panther and Captain America: Civil War also have pieces from the past, with notable sequences set in the early 1990s – but the second full feature to watch in the chronological order approach is Captain Marvel. With the exception of some moments set in the late 1980s, which is when Carol Danvers had her accident and made her way into space for the first time, the majority of the story takes place in 1995.

Skipping ahead a few decades there is then the grouping of Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, and The Incredible Hulk. The reason the movies are put in that specific order is because there are key clues in each one that tell you when they are set in context to the others. Iron Man and Iron Man 2 are obviously connected, as the second picks up exactly where the first leaves off. We can tell that Thor plays out in the second half of Iron Man 2, however, because Phil Coulson leaves his Tony Stark babysitting duty to investigate the Mjolnir crash in New Mexico. As for The Incredible Hulk, you can actually see a news broadcast from the first half of that film in the background of Iron Man 2’s second to last scene.

Set in 2012, The Avengers is the full narrative that follows the events of The Incredible Hulk – but squeezing into the aftermath is also the opening of Spider-Man: Homecoming, which takes place during the cleanup following The Battle Of New York. Unfortunately, there is a bit of controversy here, though. For a reason that’s not yet clear, the web-slinging feature follows that bit up with a title card that says “Eight Years Later,” despite the fact that Spider-Man: Homecoming is set only four years later, in 2016. There is hope that continuity error will eventually be cleared up, but it hasn’t happened yet.

From 2012 to 2014 the release order synced with chronological order for a few years, but then the next change came with the arrival of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2. While the sequel was released a little less than three years after its predecessor, the story picks up just two months later after its predecessor, which means that the two films are better watched back-to-back when experienced in the grand scheme of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Since then, most of the films released have also mostly been set around the time of their theatrical debut – though given the clear relationship in their stories and a bit of fun overlap, Captain America: Civil War and Spider-Man: Homecoming are two titles also best viewed together. It should also be noted that viewings of Ant-Man And The Wasp and Avengers: Infinity War should be flipped, given that the mid-credits sequence of the July 2018 release reveals that the events of the main body of the feature take place before Thanos’ invasion.

No matter the order in which you decide to watch the films, one thing that’s for certain is the fact that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has spun an epic big screen story so far in its decade-plus existence – and it’s not stopping any time soon. While Avengers: Endgame will be a film that puts a cap on everything we’ve seen from the franchise so far, we’re now just a few months away from the start of a new generation, Phase 4, and surely those titles will also do their part to change the way we view this gargantuan franchise.

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