Director Robert Zemeckis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt have wrapped production on their new film called The Walk. The movie tells the story of Philippe Petit's journey to walk across the twin towers on a tightrope. Today marks the 40th anniversary of that adventure. In celebration, two photos have been released from the movie, and Gordon-Levitt released a video where he talks about the movie. 

The Walk also stars James Badge Dale, Ben Schwartz, Charlotte Le Bon, Clément Sibony, and César Domboy. Above you'll find a photo of the cast. This is truly an incredible story, one that will make for a great movie, especially with all of the amazing talent that came on to help bring it to life.

Twelve people have walked on the moon, but only one man has ever, or will ever, walk in the immense void between the World Trade Center towers. Guided by his real-life mentor, Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley), and aided by an unlikely band of international recruits, Petit and his gang overcome long odds, betrayals, dissension and countless close calls to conceive and execute their mad plan. Robert Zemeckis, the director of such marvels as Forrest Gump, Cast Away, Back to the Future, Polar Express and Flight, again uses cutting edge technology in the service of an emotional, character-driven story. With innovative photorealistic techniques and IMAX 3D wizardry, The Walk is true big-screen cinema, a chance for moviegoers to viscerally experience the feeling of reaching the clouds. The film is a love letter to Paris and New York City in the 1970s, but most of all, to the Towers of the World Trade Center.

The Walk opens on October 2nd, 2015.

You may have heard that Studio Ghibli is having some financial issues and are currently taking a break from making anymore films until they can figure things out. According to veteran Studio Ghibli producer, Toshio Suzuki, Legendary anime director Hayao Miyazaki may come out of retirement to "make something again."

He went on to explain in a TBS documentary, that Miyazaki had talked to him about making a short film for the Ghibli Musuem in Mitaka, Tokyo. “This is my guess, but I’m thinking it will be something short.” 

Suzuki also appeared on the NHK morning show “Asa Ichi” to clarify his earlier statements about the animation studio saying:

“We’re changing the way we make (animation). We wanted to make a dream company. We thought we would make what suited us and not make what didn’t suit us. We were able to realize (that dream) to some extent and we’re very happy about that. But now we’re at a point where we’ve got to think about what we’ll do next.”  

I love the films that Studio Ghibli has made over the years, and it's truly sad to see them in this predicament. I really hope that they can figure it out, and bring the studio back to life in full swing. As for Miyazaki, the guy deserves the retirement that he's earned, but if he does come back to create a new film, I won't complain. 

Source: Variety

I would have never thought that Chris Pratt could pull off Indiana Jones, but after seeing this photoshopped image of Pratt as the legendary archeologist, I can see that he's actually kind of perfect for the part.

If Disney and Lucasfilm ever do decide to reboot Indiana Jones and cast a younger actor in the role, Pratt could be their man. I'm not saying that they should reboot Indiana Jones, I'm just saying that if the studio did, they might as well cast someone who fits the part.

After seeing him as Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy, I've heard a lot of people compare the actor to Harrison Ford. It's going to be really interesting to see what happens to Pratt's career now that he's blowing up. 

Thanks to CBM for the tip.

We've got a new trailer to share with you for the Guillermo del Toro-produced animated feature The Book of Life. This is a very different and unique looking movie that I hope audiences will embrace and enjoy. The movie had a panel at Comic-Con and it seemed like it was well received by the the audience in attendance. 

The movie was directed by Jorge Gutierrez and it has a wonderful voice cast that includes Diego Luna, Channing Tatum, Zoë Saldana, Ice Cube, Ron Perlman, Christina Applegate, Kate del Castillo, Cheech Marin, Placido Domingo, Hector Elizondo, Ana de la Reguera, Eugenio Derbez, Gabriel Iglesias, Ricardo "El Mandril" Sanchez, and (of course) Danny Trejo. 

THE BOOK OF LIFE is the journey of Manolo, a young man who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart. Before choosing which path to follow, he embarks on an incredible adventure that spans three fantastical worlds where he must face his greatest fears. Rich with a fresh take on pop music favorites, THE BOOK OF LIFE encourages us to celebrate the past while looking forward to the future.

The movie is set to be released on October 17th!

Here are a few unused posters for Stanley Kubrick's The Shining that were design by legendary poster artist and title designer Saul Bass. What's cool about these is that they also include notes from Kubrick on why they didn't work for the film. It gives us a little insight into how the illustrator worked with the filmmakers to get the right poster design that best represents the movie. The last poster at the end is the one they ended up using. Thanks to Firstshowing for the heads up!

The CW has released a new TV spot for their series The Flash, which is sure to be a big hit. I saw the first episode at Comic-Con last month, and I was really happy with how it turned out. The series has a lot of potential, and I think fans are going to enjoy what they are doing with this superhero character. 

After a particle accelerator causes a freak storm, CSI Investigator Barry Allen is struck by lightning and falls into a coma. Months later he awakens with the power of super speed, granting him the ability to move through Central City like an unseen guardian angel. Though initially excited by his newfound powers, Barry is shocked to discover he is not the only “meta-human” who was created in the wake of the accelerator explosion — and not everyone is using their new powers for good. Barry partners with S.T.A.R. Labs and dedicates his life to protect the innocent. For now, only a few close friends and associates know that Barry is literally the fastest man alive, but it won’t be long before the world learns what Barry Allen has become…The Flash.

The series is set to premiere on October 7th.

After seeing Chris Pratt as Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy, it's hard to imagine anyone else in the role. He was perfect, but he almost didn't take the role! He actually passed on the role when it was first pitched to him because of a bad audition he had for G.I. Joe years ago. He talked about all this in a recent interview with Esquire saying:

“When Guardians of the Galaxy was pitched to me, I said, 'I don't think so.' I just didn't picture myself getting the role. I didn't want to go and embarrass myself like I did when I auditioned for G.I. Joe a couple of years previously. I went in there, and halfway through I saw the director's eyes just glaze over. It made sense — I was a little heavy and out of shape. I was not gonna play someone from G.I. Joe. I did not look like a G.I. Joe action figure come to life.”

I'll just say that I think he's better off having never got that G.I. Joe role. Director James Gunn saw the potential in Pratt though and cast him, and he ended up getting in shape and looking great. This is what he had to say about being in shape:

“I can do 40-inch box jumps now. Action-hero physical stuff. Jumping that high feels really good. You see a giant hillside, and you think, I wanna get up that. You see a building, you think, I could climb that. When you get in shape, the world around you becomes things you wanna jump on and climb up.”

I'm glad that he got past the failed G.I. Joe audition and took the Guardians role. It was one of the best decisions he could have made, and he was awesome in the role! 

Here's an amusing art series called "Happy Little Bad Guys." It was created by Florey and it features several different homicidal movie icons prancing around with big smiles on their faces. 

Samuel L. Jackson is in talks with Screen Gems to star in an action comedy called The Black Phantom. Jackson will replace Jamie Foxx, who had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts.

The movie is being directed by Tim Story and it will also star Kevin Hart. The movie is described as "an outrageously inappropriate comedy where no topic is off limits in an odd partnership formed between a clever double-crossed mob hitman (Hart) and the notorious hit man The Black Phantom, who has been hired to kill him."

I'm really curious to see how inappropriate this movie goes, but it seems like Jackson will be a perfect fit for it. 

Source: Deadline

Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment have picked up the rights to Anne Rice's book series The Vampire Chronicles. Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are set to produce the films which will center on an 18th century French nobleman-turned-vampire. 

According to THR, "the acquisition encompasses the entire body of existing and future novels in the series, including the adapted screenplay for Tale of the Body Thief written by Rice’s son Christopher Rice, which Imagine optioned two years ago. There are 13 books in the main series, with another --Prince Lestat -- hitting shelves in October."

A couple of Rice's other books have previously been adapted into feature films such as Interview with the Vampire, which was based on the first book in the series, and Queen of the Damned.

I loved Interview with a Vampire, and I guess there's a chance that it could eventually get remade now that Universal and Imagine have secured the rights to it. It will be interesting to see how they handle this series. 

"The Collector’s Gift" is a beautifully animated modern day fairytale that follows a young girl who discovers the key to creating a new world. It was created by Ryan Kravetz as his Master's Thesis at USC. It's a fantastic short that I think many of you will really like. 

The film was a regional finalist for the 2013 Student Academy Awards, and it has been included in over 25 festivals and screenings around the world, including The Hollywood Film Festival, Palm Springs International Short Fest, the British Animation Film Festival, Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, BAM Kids, and the Barbican Centre in London.

Enjoy the show!

Westerns are a dying breed. I grew up on westerns, I love the genre, and it makes me sad that very few people watch them anymore. I'm hoping that Tommy Lee Jones' upcoming film The Homesman will help people get back on board with westerns. It looks like a stunning movie, and today we have a new UK trailer for you to watch. 

Jones directs and stars in the picture, and the story follows a down-and-out man (Jones) who is saved from dying and recruited to take three literally insane women on an odyssey from Nebraska to Iowa.

The movie also has an impressive cast that includes Hilary Swank, Hailee Steinfeld, Meryl Streep, Tim Blake Nelson, James Spader, William Fichtner, and Jesse Plemons. 

There's no distribution for the film yet, but it premiered at Cannes and received positive reviews. 

Check out this insanely impressive Diablo 3 barbarian cosplay! Andy Rae is the cosplayer and that costume she's wearing is simply badass. I love all the detail that she put into it. The photos were taken by ZRB, and I came across them over on Cosplay Blog.

Josh Brolin is perfect casting for Thanos, and I'm so happy that Marvel was able to wrangle him into their cinematic universe. It didn't take much convincing, though. In a recent interview with IGN the actor spoke about playing Thanos and how he got the part. He also talked about story, "Death," and taking on Iron Man.

When asked what attracted him to the villain, he said,

"First and foremost, I have a really good friend who I've known for years who's the co-president of Marvel, Louis D'Esposito. I knew Louis as a first AD, and he's the one who initially called me, and then [producer] Jeremy Latcham. Then I talked to Kevin Feige, ultimately. But there's something about them that's so insular and so geeky and so real. I loved it -- because I've turned down a lot of those types of movies. Not Marvel, but I've turned down a lot of those types of movies. When they started telling me the story about them getting together in Palm Springs, nine of them flipping burgers and talking about what Thanos was going to do and going, 'What do you think?' like, 'Captain America's going to show up here!' Then, 'Oh my God, what if the Hulk came in at that point?' and all that -- I love that sh**. I love it, because those guys are absolutely saturated with that world, and they love story. Another thing that I really loved is, they said that they didn't use directors that did music videos and all that in the past. They would always look for people who had done stories. If you look at James Gunn's oeuvre, he's done even web series, but they're all stories."

He went on to talk about his source of inspiration for the character, saying that he channeled Marlon Brando's Colonel Kurtz in Apocalypse Now. Then he said,

"I start thinking of all those things, but that's after the fact. I want to know that these guys are really into what they're doing. It's not just like, 'Oh, Marvel's hot right now. Do you want to do a Marvel thing?' Well, no, I don't want to do a Marvel thing, because that can have the opposite impact, and you can actually work less and people go, 'Oh, why'd you get him for that?' I ask, 'Do I see myself as this thing and could I do this thing?' Not that I'm ever 100-percent sure, but we had constructed this small thing, Kevin Feige and I and Robert, and going on-stage at Comic-Con. Then it became something else. Once I got on-stage, it sort of became its own improv. I knew at that point, because I saw the rivalry between Robert [Downey Jr.] and I, and I thought, 'I get this. I suddenly really get it.' So I feel like I'm more inside it than I was. It was more a display to me before that. It was more cosmetic. Now I think I'm starting to get who the guy is a little bit." 

Brolin expanded a little bit more on his rivalry with Downey Jr.'s Iron Man, and he's looking forward to facing off with him,  although it's "not necessarily because we're personally connected… It's just, we're both in very different parts of our lives. He's fun. He's smart, and I like playing off of somebody smart, because it's challenging. I like the challenge a lot." 

Then, of course, there's Thanos' relationship with Death in the comic books, about which he said,

"His relationship with Death, who is actually the woman, I love that. You can take Sin City [in which Brolin plays a man obsessed with a dark-hearted woman] and pump it full of steroids, and then you have Thanos. I like that he's motivated by that -- not just motivated by destruction or death or this or that. He's motivated by a very identifiable, human trait."

When asked about taking on a multi-film story arc the actor said,

"Having done different series and all that, it's like doing the best series you could ever do. You know you're taken care of, you know the manifestations are good, you these people are at the top of their game. I've been involved in series where I couldn't wait to play a character and watch the character go through this trajectory, and then you would say, 'Why would you do that?' Like, you're doing that based on a model of what you think people want. 'Oh, we need a love interest now. Oh, we need this.' This is already set up, and it's set up brilliantly. It's like, 'Okay, now how are you going to utilize it in a way that's within Avengers, within Guardians, within that?' I don't know if there's anybody better than them [Marvel Studios]. They understand it. They live it. I can tell you live it too, and it's that kind of a thing. It's like, I'm catching up to you guys, and I love the idea of catching up to somebody. You know, there are movies that I've done where I feel like I have a better understanding before I even started than the filmmakers do. And that's disconcerting because they're the filmmakers. They're like, 'Well, what do you want to do?' It's like,'What do you mean what do I want to do? What do you want me to do?' We can go back and forth with it, and maybe I'll have my two cents over here and they go, 'Oh my God, that would be great. Even though that's not really a part of Thanos, it would be a great addition to Thanos, to make him even more Thanos,' or bring even more humanity to Thanos -- whatever it is. So I'm in the learning stages that is really exciting. When I first said yes, they sent me so much frickin' research. I was in the middle of doing Everest, and I was focusing more on Thanos than I was on Everest. But it's an exciting prospect, truly." 

Brolin says that he doesn't know what the full Thanos arc that the studio has planned, but he does have an idea saying:

"I know what one appearance is going to be for sure. There's one or two that I don't know."

One thing we know for sure is that one day Thanos' epic villainy will eventually be displayed on the big screen. When it is, I don't see how there can be a happy ending. Thanos will kill so many people, and I can't help but think that some of our favorite heroes will die at his hand. 

There's a lot of action going on over at Warner Bros. right now. The studio recently shifted the released date for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, out of the way of Captain America 3. They also announced release dates for 11 of their upcoming films which have been rumored to include two LEGO movies, two Harry Potter movies, and some DC films.

Dan Fellman, the president of domestic distribution at Warner, recently did an interview with EW addressing the recent actions that the studio has made. He first talked bout the release date change for Batman v Superman, which was moved up from May 6th, 2016 to March 25th, 2016, saying:

"In terms of going back and reviewing the situation, it looked to us—and maybe our reconnaissance wasn’t great—that they were not going to have a movie [ready] on that date. Just that they held onto it and they might not be able to deliver. But they took another position.

"The reality now is there really isn’t a bad week to open a movie. If you look at the summer box office this year, you can see that there were so many movies, one after the other. You can start with Spider-Man, two weeks later Godzilla, and then Maleficent, and then Edge of Tomorrow, and then Jump Street and Transformers. And the one thing they all had in common, not one of them did over $250 million. We’ll be the first one up [in 2016], which is very important, and we’ll have six weeks before Captain America comes in."

It really does make sense that they changed the released date. It not only will benefit Warner Bros., but it will also benefit Marvel as well. Fellman also talks about the untitled movies that they have planned through 2020 saying, "some of those untitled DC movies should begin to be announced later this month." He then teased that the Zack Snyder-directed Justice League movie might be closer than we think. When asked if they will release a quick sequel to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016 instead of waiting the usual two to three years, he replied, "While it hasn’t been officially announced, I think it’s a pretty good bet."

LAIKA has released a delightful new trailer and poster for their fantastic-looking new stop-motion animated adventure The Boxtrolls. The movie is based upon a book by Alan Snow called Here Be Monsters, and it is being directed by Anthony Stacchi and Graham Annable. The trailer below is the same one that was presented to fans at Comic-Con.

THE BOXTROLLS is a family event movie from LAIKA, the creators of Coraline and ParaNorman, that introduces audiences to a new breed of family – The Boxtrolls, a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead Wright of Game of Thrones) in the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge.

When the town’s villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnie (Elle Fanning of Maleficent). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs’ family.

Bond 24 is in the process of gearing up for production. The last we heard was that Skyfall co-writers, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, were brought on to polish up the script with some humor. The latest news comes from Schmoes Know, who say that Lea Seydoux (Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, Blue is the Warmest Color) is the top choice to take on the female lead opposite Daniel Craig in the film.

There's no official word on who she would play in the film if this rumor turns out to be true, but the site does speculate that the character is Miranda Frost. A source close to the production revealed earlier this year that producers were looking for the following: "Lead Female (30-40) Attractive, sophisticated, cool and calm secret agent." According to the site their source said that this was the breakdown for the Frost character, who first appeared in the movie Die Another Day.

If this is true, then I'm sure it will be a different version of the character. Here's a description of her from Bond Wiki:

Miranda Frost is a fictional character in the James Bond film Die Another Day. Frost is a double agent working for MI6; however, her true allegiance lies with Gustav Graves, the main villain of the film. She is played by Rosamund Pike. She is one of the Bond Girls in the film.

This is all just speculation at this point as there's no confirmation that this character will be in the film. But if Seydoux does end up being cast in the movie, she seems like she would make a perfectly manipulative Bond girl. She's definitely got the look.

One of my first real jobs was working as an assistant to a illustrator who did movie posters for Disney. I saw firsthand the process that he went through with the studio to get the exact poster they wanted. There are several concept posters that are created before the studio picks the one they want to go with.

I have several pieces of unused poster art here from John Alvin, who is responsible for creating over 130 movie posters over the course of his career. The designs you see here feature posters for Jurassic Park, Tim Burton's Batman, and Joel Schumacher's Batman Forever.

These are a part of an upcoming new book from Titan Books called The Art of John Alvin. Thanks to THR, CBM, IGN, Movies and Flavorwire for the art!

I would have loved to have watched an awesome new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie this week, but, unfortunately, that didn't happen. I went into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles hoping that it would be better than the disaster I was expecting. The movie could and should have been so much more enjoyable. I don't understand what's so hard about developing a solid story and script for a movie like this. Why can't these supposedly "talented" people get it right? People actually got paid lots of money to make this movie, and the studio threw hundreds of millions of dollars into it, and this is what they deliver to audiences? It makes me sad.

Yes, it had some entertaining, action-packed scenes in the film, and the special effects were fantastic. But what's the point if the story is crap? All they tried to do was give audiences eye candy. The original 1990 movie had terrible special effects, but you know what? It had a solid story, a decent script, great character development, and charm. This new Ninja Turtles movie had none of that. The plot of the film is simple and it follows the Ninja Turtles as they try to stop Shredder and his Foot Clan from poisoning New York City so they can take it over. It's actually very similar to the plot of the first Amazing Spider-Man movie when the Lizard wanted to poison New York City and Spider-Man had to stop him. 

There was no soul behind these terribly redesigned characters, and Megan Fox is just the worst. I couldn't stand it whenever she was on the screen. It was like fingernails on a chalkboard. There are a hundred other actresses out there that could have played the role of April O'Neil better. As for the turtles, there was nothing about them that I liked. They were just annoying, and I hate that this movie made me feel this way. As for the villain Shredder, I honestly don't know what to say about him because he was so uninteresting in every way. The only character I actually liked was the one played by Will Arnett, who played O'Neil's cameraman and provided some comic relief. 

What drives me even more crazy about this whole thing is that it's still going to make a ton of money. It doesn't matter what I say about it, a lot of you are still going to see it because you're curious. It's just one of those movies. I'm not judging, because I would do the same thing. Because of that though, I'm sure we are going to see some sequels in the near future. The question is, regardless of how bad this first movie is, will people turn out in droves to watch the sequel? Probably, the Transformers franchise is proof of that. 

If you can enjoy the movie for what it is, you are a stronger person than myself. I always try to find the good things in films and enjoy what it has to offer. But Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles just bugged the hell out of me. Michael Bay and Jonathan Liebesman ruined a franchise that I loved, and they didn't have to. They could have made an incredible movie, but they didn't.

My two little girls absolutely loved the flick though. They were entertained from beginning to end, and all they wanted to do was eat pizza after it was over. So there is an audience out for this movie that are going to enjoy it... because they don't know any better. 

Lifetime has released the first clip from their TV movie The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story. The movie gives a behind-the-scenes look at the all the drama in the series that we never saw on screen. On camera you would think that Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Dustin Diamond, Tiffani Thiessen, Mario Lopez, Lark Voorhies, and Elizabeth Berkley were all best buds. Apparently that wasn't the case, and off camera their relationships may have been hostile, as suggested in this first clip. I actually thought it was pretty amusing. 

The made for TV movie is reportedly inspired by Diamond’s 2009 book Behind the Bell, which is a tell-all that claimed that when the cast wasn't shooting the show, they were getting crazy with drugs, sex, and wild parties.

It stars Dylan Everett (Mark-Paul Gosselaar / Zack Morris), Alyssa Lynch (Tiffani Thiessen / Kelly Kapowski), Julian Works (Mario Lopez / A.C. Slater), Tiera Skovbye (Elizabeth Berkley / Jessie Spano), Sam Kindseth (Dustin Diamond / Screech Powers), and Taylor Russell McKenzie (Lark Voorhies / Lisa Turtle). 

The Unauthorized Saved By the Bell Story will air on Lifetime September 1st. Having grown up watching this show, I have to watch this movie.