Star Wars: Episode IX Is Really Aiming To Please Fans Of The Original Trilogy, And It's Working

Star Wars: Episode IX Is Really Aiming To Please Fans Of The Original Trilogy, And It's Working

Say what you will about most other entries in the Star Wars saga, but that original trilogy of films is still the strongest bedrock that the franchise has ever had to call its base. While the series needs to appeal to the fans it’s won in the more recent years, there’s always going to be that fanbase that came to the dance starting with 1977’s initial offering.

I became a Star Wars fan while growing up through the Original Trilogy and a smattering of now de-canonized Expanded Universe material. But I’d always heard that story of that fabled first and third trilogy to round off the saga, and longed for the day they’d exist.

Now, we see the close of the third trilogy coming with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and it looks like director J.J. Abrams and all involved are looking to please those dyed-in-the-wool fans. Here some reasons why that not only feels like the approach that’s being executed, but also why I think it’s working out rather well.

It Promises The End Of The Skywalker Saga

As I mentioned before, one of the biggest sticking points in Star Wars lore was the fact that George Lucas has allegedly planned out three trilogies in the Skywalker Saga. The prequel trilogy scratched the itch fans had for seeing Anakin Skywalker’s origins as Darth Vader, and for a little while, it felt like the last three episodes of the entire nine-part saga would never come.

Even with Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ big reveal, it wasn’t certain that we’d see the end of the line, as George Lucas was out of the process altogether, and episode numbers were eventually dropped.

Why It Works: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker being the definitive end of the Skywalker clan's story frees the series for new ideas to take root. But more importantly, it brings that storied end to the legacy of the very family that started the Star Wars franchise, fulfilling a promise from long ago.

Leia Will Finish Out Her Role In The Star Wars Universe

Due to the untimely passing of Carrie Fisher, another big question was whether or not General Leia Organa would be brought back in some shape or form to close out her own story. After a period of long thought and deliberation, it was confirmed that Fisher’s General Leia would return in previously filmed outtakes from the last two Star Wars films, The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi.

The context of her place in the story, and how much shooting around the footage that was available will affect that is yet to be seen, but this decision is just as important as the one that allowed Luke Skywalker to return.

Why It Works: Seeing our first look at Leia’s return in this final film is pretty convincing stuff. While how the pre-existing story will work with what specific footage they have of Carrie Fisher’s previous performance is definitely a bit of a challenge, it’s good to see the General back for one last adventure. And if the Skywalker Saga is about to end, both of Anakin and Padme’s twins deserve proper closure.

It Looks Like We’re Going Back To A Familiar Desert

The trailer for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker shows a lot of one particular element that’s always been important to the saga’s storytelling environment: sand. With Rey’s big lightsaber flip and some action between Finn and Poe being showcased in the recent teaser, there’s a lot of the rough stuff primed and ready for action.

Which means we’re probably going back to one of two places. Either Jakku or Tatooine are in the mix for the ninth episode of the Skywalker Saga, but either way, this is a pretty big deal when it comes to wrapping up the story started in the Original Trilogy.

Why It Works: Much like the Original Trilogy’s story, bringing our heroes back to where the action started is a classic move of resolution. Anakin and Luke had to return to Tatooine before becoming the men they set off to be, and Rey will more than likely be heading back to Jakku in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. More powerful than when she left, this new Force user will more than likely learn some important knowledge about her origins, before setting off on whatever big battle she’s marching towards.

Lando Calrissian Is Back And Flying The Millennium Falcon Again

One of the most criminally underused characters in the Star Wars galaxy has to be Lando Calrissian. A dashing charmer with a criminal past, Billy Dee Williams’ iconic supporting player is one of those figures that has always been brought up when questioning what moves the next Star Wars films would take to connect the future of the franchise to its historical past.

With so much room for his character to be expanded and enhanced upon in the brand new canon, especially after the discarding of the now-reclassified Legends line of Expanded Universe material, it was a pleasant given that the decision to reinstate Lando would be made.

Why It Works: If there’s a character whose legacy has positively loomed larger than his actual screen time in the Star Wars saga, it’s Mr. Calrissian. While the return of some characters seems more like an exercise in fan service than in storytelling (C-3PO, we’re looking in your direction), having Lando return is a smart way to close the story in the absence of Han Solo. Not to mention, there’s always a spot reserved for a roguish smuggler in the Star Wars universe.

The Series Is About To Go On Hiatus After The Rise Of Skywalker

Some Original Trilogy fans have been worried that the Star Wars franchise of films has overextended its reach a little bit. While Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was a hit and seemed to do pretty well overall, the reaction to Solo was way more tepid than usual. Even Disney CEO Bob Iger realized that the pace of the series was unsustainable, which lead him to announce that the series would go into hibernation after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Why It Works: Fans are always going to show up for the Skywalker Saga entries in Star Wars’ cinematic universe. That said, it’s going to take some time and tweaking to realize just what the fans will want out of the series outside of that now-ending run. It’s nice to see the studio management to realize that, and learn the lesson if you want to keep your fanbase happy, sometimes absence makes the Force grow stronger.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will define the legacy and its storytelling approach for some, while proving whether it adheres to the rules that the Original Trilogy played by for so long. As long as the rest of the decisions made in telling this story match up to the quality of those listed above, there should be a good chance that fans of the Original Trilogy will be very pleased with the finished product.

That’s an investment that should pay off long after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20. Though, that doesn’t mean the Star Wars fun has to end, as Disney+ will undoubtedly keep the fires stoked as The Mandalorian debuts on the platform’s launch date of November 12.

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Sarah Connor Utters The Iconic ‘I’ll Be Back Line’ In New Terminator: Dark Fate Video

Sarah Connor Utters The Iconic ‘I’ll Be Back Line’ In New Terminator: Dark Fate Video

As far as sci-fi properties go, there are few quite as beloved as the Terminator franchise. James Cameron brought the titular robot to the big screen back in 1984, and its never been far from theaters in the decades since. But out of the entire series, Terminator 2: Judgement Day remains the undisputed fan favorite. Plus, it's the last movie that Cameron was intimately involved in. That is... until now.

The franchise is coming back to theaters with Terminator: Dark Fate, which will be a direct sequel to T2. James Cameron is involved as a producer, and the new movie will also welcome Linda Hamilton back to her signature character Sarah Connor. The first Dark Fate trailer was super exciting, and a new clip has Sarah Connor uttering the most iconic line from the entire franchise: "I'll be back." Check it out below.

Does anyone else have chills? On top finally uttering the line made by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the original Terminator, Linda Hamilton does so in perhaps the most badass way possible. Namely, by popping a grenade as she did it, and calmly walking away from the impending explosion.

This new clip just hammers down what a total badass Sarah Connor has remained since we saw her in Terminator 2: Judgement Day. Linda Hamilton had a massive transformation between her two appearances, with T2 taking her from victim to deadly mental patient. And she's remained just as capable through the decades, as the first trailer for Dark Fate showed her going toe to toe with Gabriel Luna's new Terminator model.

The Terminator franchise may have never really left theaters, but the various sequels lacked the same tone as the first two. These movies resulted as a combination of James Cameron and his stars Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger. And now that the trio have once again collaborated on Terminator: Dark Fate, and it looks like there will be plenty of references to the start of the franchise. That includes using some iconic lines of dialogue that are synonymous with those movies.

Aside from including lines like "I'll be back", Terminator: Dark Fate will also deeply connect to Terminator 2 through the use of flashbacks. The upcoming sequel will include new scenes of a younger Sarah Connor and her son John-- who is noticeably missing from the film's cast. CGI will be used to de-age Linda Hamilton, while the same type of visual affects will bring Edward Furlong's likeness as John back to the silver screen. It's an exciting concept, especially as movies like Captain Marvel and Rogue One have proven how far that technology has come.

Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger Looks Totally Badass In First Terminator: Dark Fate Image

Given the footage from the above video, it should be interesting to see if more iconic Terminator lines end up making their way to Dark Fate. "Come with me if you want to live" seem like an easy bit of dialogue to fit into such an action-packed sequel. And with the original Terminator and Sarah Connor reuniting, there's also the opportunity for Arnold Schwarzenegger to say "I'm a friend of Sarah Connor." We'll just have to wait and see what Deadpool director Tim Miller has up his sleeve for the generations of Terminator fans.

All will be revealed when Terminator: Dark Fate arrives in theaters on November 1st. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Idris Elba Has A Flamethrower In New Hobbs And Shaw Image

Idris Elba Has A Flamethrower In New Hobbs And Shaw Image

The life of the Fast and the Furious franchise has been fascinating. What started as car racing movies has become one of the biggest action franchises in the world, consistently making a ton of money at the box office. And it's showing no signs of slowing down, with a variety of different projects coming down the line. The franchise is breaking new ground with Hobbs & Shaw, the property's first spinoff starring The Rock and Jason Statham.

The many Fast and the Furious fans are eager to see the franchise branch out, especially as Hobbs & Shaw will focus on a pair of fan favorite badasses. There's some serious talent attached to join the duo of actors, with the most notable being Idris Elba as the superpowered villain Brixton Lore. Brixton has been genetically engineered to have superpowers, and that's not going to be the end of his badassery. Because a new image just dropped featuring Elba with a massive flamethrower. Check it out.

What. A. Badass. This image reiterates that Hobbs & Shaw is leaning into the over the top action that the larger franchise has become known for. And the title characters have one seriously tough enemy to unite against when the spinoff arrives in theaters.

This new image comes to us from producer Hiram Garcia's personally Twitter page. While the Fast and the Furious franchise is known for being larger than life, Idris Elba is taking things to another level as Brixton Lore in Hobbs & Shaw. The villain's superpowers is a game changer, and arguably taking the franchise farther from reality than ever before. Rather than trying to ground the character in other ways, he's going to be even bigger. Like giant flamethrower big.

Idris Elba's latest photo as Brixton is undeniably badass, and will likely add more fuel to the rumors about his possible involvement in the James Bond franchise. With Daniel Craig leaving the role of 007 after Bond 25, the franchise will soon have to find a replacement to take on the mantle. Fan lists have been happening for years, and Elba is usually toward the top. While the actor has shut down these reports, seeing him with a flamethrower is sure to cause endless more rumors.

Idris Elba's starpower has been steadily building over the past few years, so it's a great time to play the central villain in a Fast and the Furious movie. The franchise is insanely popular, and there will be a mass of moviegoers who shell out cash to see all the action on the big screen. Aside from fans of the franchise, Elba was also recently named the Sexiest Man Alive, which should excite more casual moviegoers.

Aside from Hobbs & Shaw, Idris Elba has another big blockbuster coming in the form of James Gunn's The Suicide Squad. Elba will be playing the role of Deadshot, the character played by Will Smith in the original film. He also recently wrapped up his tenure as Heimdall in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, playing the Asgardian in all three Thor movies and two Avengers appearances.

Hobbs & Shaw will arrive in theaters on August 2nd, complete with Idris Elba's flamethrower-toting villain. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Avengers: Endgame’s Jeremy Renner Shares Set Photo From That Black Widow Scene

Avengers: Endgame’s Jeremy Renner Shares Set Photo From That Black Widow Scene

It’s been a little over a month since Avengers: Endgame hit theaters. Fans are finally on the road to recovery, even though all those major character deaths still may sting. Then Jeremy Renner has to post sentimental pictures such as this one and get us all emotional once more.

Check out the Hawkeye actor’s latest reminder of Endgame’s MCU culmination below:

I’m not crying, you’re crying! The Instagram picture has Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner sweetly holding hands on set during their big scene together that ends tragically for Black Widow. Renner refers to ScarJo as the “goddess” that she is with this behind-the-scenes image of their scene on Vormir.

In Avengers: Endgame, the dynamic duo team up once again to retrieve the Soul Stone, with the cost unknown to them. Once Red Skull explains that one of them will have to sacrifice their life in order to complete their mission, the two compete to keep the other alive. Black Widow ends up with the short stick when she falls off the cliff and shares the same fate as Gamora did in Infinity War.

Jeremy Renner previously addressed the scene on social media, admitting it was a difficult day to film but one of the best. The pair actually shot another version of the scene on Vormir that would have had Hawkeye and Black Widow fighting off Thanos’ soldiers together before Scarlett Johansson goes for the cliff. Instead of Endgame including a final battle alongside each other, it was cut down, likely due to the movie’s pacing.

The scene certainly is one fans have debated since Johansson’s Black Widow is finally getting a standalone movie in Phase Four. Perhaps it’s a prequel? Some think that when Captain America goes back to Vormir at the end of Endgame to return the Soul Stone, Black Widow may also be resurrected.

The Endgame writers called the trade an “everlasting exchange,” so Black Widow’s technical future could be bleak. The Black Widow movie has already cast a few stars for the flick including Stranger Things’ David Harbour and Fighting For My Family’s Florence Pugh, and is rumored to begin filming in June, so the film will likely be one of Phase Four’s early entries.

Additionally, Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye will be explored on an original series for the new streaming service Disney+. It is reportedly set after Endgame and will follow Clint Barton training Kate Bishop to be the new Hawkeye.

Even though the characters will still live on in these upcoming projects, their time on Vormir in the scene pictured above could potentially be the last time Black Widow and Hawkeye share the screen. At least they’ll always have Budapest!

Keep checking back with us for more news on the future of the MCU as they are revealed!

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My Spy Trailer: Watch Dave Bautista Show A Kid How To Be A Secret Agent

My Spy Trailer: Watch Dave Bautista Show A Kid How To Be A Secret Agent

From his wrestling career to his various action-packed movie roles, Dave Bautista has proven himself to be a badass numerous times, and it’s no different for the upcoming My Spy. In this action-comedy, though, Bautista’s character is forced to teach a clever young girl the skills required to be a spy, and you can see how this amusing turn of events unfolds in the first trailer for My Spy below.

My Spy (I see what they did there) sees Dave Bautista playing JJ, a hardened CIA operative who’s not a people person, but believes is good at his job. Unfortunately for him, following an operation gone wrong, he’s demoted and has one more strike until he’s permanently barred from intelligence work. Making matters even more complicated is that the 9-year-old daughter of the family JJ’s been sent to spy on, Sophie, played by Chloe Coleman, learns what he’s up to. Further showing that JJ’s not the sharpest tool in the shed, he fails to remember that Chloe’s standing nearby and recording him while contemplating killing her to prevent her from blowing his cover. Not a good look, dude.

In exchange for Chloe keeping silent about his mission, JJ must teach her how to be a spy, and fortunately he has the good sense not to start her off with something like firearms training or walking away from explosions. Still, Chloe’s a smart girl, and she takes to the more cerebral elements of spy-dom quite well, like the lie detector test and creating a distraction to get past JJ (poor fishy).

As was the case with Vin Diesel in The Pacifier and Dwayne Johnson in Tooth Fairy, My Spy is Dave Bautista’s opportunity to play out the ‘tough guy who shows his softer side while spending time with kids’ kind of story. So while JJ will teach Chloe secret agent skills, she’ll show him how to have fun around people, even if it results in awkward, Shrek-like dances. However, it will be interesting to see what happens to their relationship as JJ gets deeper into his mission and learns how Chloe’s family is connected to the people he needs to apprehend. My Spy’s cast also includes Ken Jeong, Kristen Schaal and Parisa Fitz-Henley.

Along with this trailer, STX Entertainment released the first poster for My Spy, with Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman rocking cool, leaning poses, which I suspect is another thing spies are taught to do.

Directed by Get Smart’s Peter Segal and written by Red’s Jon and Erich Hoeber, My Spy hits theaters later this year, so check back with CinemaBlend on where it ends up being specifically placed on the calendar. You can also scan through our 2019 release schedule to find out what other movies are coming out later this year, including other Dave Bautista releases like Avengers: Endgame and Stuber.

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Fifty Shades Of Grey’s Jamie Dornan Reveals Why He Does Push Ups Between Takes

Fifty Shades Of Grey’s Jamie Dornan Reveals Why He Does Push Ups Between Takes

Fifty Shades of Grey actor Jamie Dornan is known for going shirtless in a lot of scenes. Previously, his co-star Dakota Johnson revealed he liked to do push ups – or press ups as people in the U.K. say – before sex scene takes.

Now, however, the actor has spoken out about why he does push ups between takes, and apparently, it’s not just for sex scenes. Although, he did tell Out To Lunch with Jay Raynor he definitely does push ups before his abs are on display, He starts out admitting he does a lot of exercise between takes before noting why,

Oh yeah, Jesus, yeah, yeah, yeah [I do a lot of push ups]. I’ve done that for various reasons. I’ve done that for reasons of I’m about to have my top off, and everything they film is committed to celluloid forever. Why not try to look as good as I can in that moment?

So, yes, Jamie Dornan does put effort into moments such as those that crop up time and time again in the Fifty Shades movies. He also worked to get more and more into shape as the franchise wore on, particularly for the second two movies, which filmed back-to-back.

In addition, apparently Jamie Dornan also does push ups for other reasons. He spoke out about doing push ups when he was tired during his TV series The Fall, for example. He also says he practices press ups when he is bored on set and scenes aren’t moving swiftly.

I’ve also done it sometimes when I’m particularly spent and exhausted after a scene where I’m running in The Fall or whatever. Sometimes I do it because I sometimes just have a lot of energy and I don’t know what to do with it. They’re fucking hanging around, ‘Oh, I just gotta fix this light, sorry Jamie.’ I’m good to go, champing at the bit to get rid of some of this energy, so I’ll drop and just do press ups just for something to do.

All in all, his press up habits mean that he can do quite a bit of push ups at a time. He told Jay Raynor that he doesn’t do “that many,” revealing that he can do 100 push ups.

Not that many… right.

Regardless of how many push ups he does on the average day, Jamie Dornan was really fit for the final flick in the franchise Fifty Shades Freed and he doesn’t seem to be slowing down in the fitness realm these days. Which is good, because we'll be seeing him onscreen quite a bit more coming up. For example, the actor has a Drake Doremus movie and Synchronic opposite Anthony Mackie coming out in 2019.

If you’d like to learn more about Jamie Dornan’s comments to Jay Raynor, we have you covered. Of course, if you're more interested in what is heading into theaters in the near future, take a look at our CinemaBlend's 2019 movies schedule.

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Sean Gunn Explains Why Brother James Wasn’t At The Avengers: Endgame Premiere

Sean Gunn Explains Why Brother James Wasn’t At The Avengers: Endgame Premiere

Last night was the premiere of Avengers: Endgame. It was an event over 10 years in the making and nearly everybody who has ever been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was in attendance to see how the story came to an end. However, one person who was conspicuous by his absence was James Gunn. The Guardians of the Galaxy director did not attend the gala event last night, but according to his brother, Sean Gunn, explained that he was there in spirit.

To be fair, James Gunn certainly does have a lot of work on his plate right now. He has not one, but two blockbuster comic book team up movies to write and direct in the coming months. One of those, the sequel to Suicide Squad, is set to go before cameras before too long, so it's very possible that Gunn just couldn't pull himself away. If that script isn't ready, then there is work that needs to be done.

At the same time, for many, James Gunn is a man as directly linked to the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise as any filmmaker is to any part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sean Gunn isn't just talking when he tells THR that James Gunn's thoughts are at the premiere, that has to be true. The director called the script to Guardians 3 "his heart" when he finished it.

James Gunn has certainly had one of the more interesting career paths of the last 10 months. The writer was fired from his position as director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 last July, following the unearthing of some less than flattering statements but was then rehired sometime later, though that fact only came to light recently. In the interim, Gunn had made the deal to write The Suicide Squad, and he will direct that movie before moving on to do Guardians 3 after all.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, James Gunn has kept something of a low profile ever since the events that led to his firing. Gunn used to be incredibly prolific on Twitter, but he left the service after issuing yet another apology for the tweets that got him in trouble. Since then, he's only tweeted three times. Once to thank the people who supported him after the news of his return to Marvel had been announced, and twice to help promote the upcoming film Brightburn which he helped produce.

Whether Gunn is still simply trying to stay out of the limelight, or he's truly buried in work, or some combination of the two, is hard to know, but it likely won't last too much longer. Once The Suicide Squad goes into production it will be hard to keep a low profile. The promotional machine, including social media, will be in full swing and DC likely won't want Gunn to stay quiet at that point.

If anything, it's too bad James Gunn wasn't at the premiere because by all accounts the movie is something special.

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