What the hell is going on? According to a report from THR, movie attendance has hit its lowest level in North America in the last 20 years! This is kind of sad, especially since 2014 was a pretty damn good year for movies! 

The report offers preliminary estimates that reveal "roughly 1.26 billion consumers purchased cinema tickets between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31. That's the lowest number since 1.21 billion in 1995 and not that far ahead of 1994 (1.24 billion). The last time admissions fell below the 1.3 billion mark was in 2011, when only 1.28 billion people when to the movies."

I can only image that the rising ticket prices at the movie theaters are keeping people at home. It's getting pretty damn expensive out there, especially with the additional costs of 3D, IMAX, and other specialized movie theater experiences. The last time I took my family to a movie in California, I paid about $75 for tickets. On top of that we can add an additional $40 for popcorn, soda, and candy. That's an expensive movie night! It would have been a lot cheaper to pop in a Blu-ray at home, and maybe that's what people are opting to do — wait for movie to come out on Blu-ray/DVD or even pirate them. 

The report goes on to reveal that "overall revenue for the North American box office in 2014 is expected to finish at roughly $10.36 billion, down 5 percent over 2013 and marking the biggest year-over-year decline in nine years." The international box office is thriving though, so there is some good news. 

I freakin' love going to the movies, and I hit up my local theaters at least once a week. I'd much rather watch a movie on the big screen than at home. I just enjoy the movie theater going experience so much more. I'll never stop going to the movies, it's just one of my favorite things to do.

Have you cut down on the number of times you go to the movies in theaters? If so, I'm curious to know what your reasons are. What do you think should be done to get people to go back to the movies and raise attendance? 

Artist Orlando Arocena has created an amazingly awesome series of geek pop culture art that was inspired by many of the websites he visits. Those sites include GeekTyrant, Geeky Nerfherder, Crome Yellow, I Got Birds, Poster Posse, We Geek Girls, Xombie Dirge, and Blurppy. All of the illustrations here are fantastic, and I especially love the piece that he did for our own site. Thanks Orlando, it's awesome! 

This is a note from the artist:

2014 was an INCREDIBLE year for me!

I took a year off from my Vector Fine Art, and took a risk to explore the cinema pop-culture scene.

Pushed myself creatively as far as I thought I could go, but found myself going further than expected, greatly due to YOUR SUPPORT, and the support of many online Pop-culture/ Geek blogs and on-line destinations. Made MANY friends.
 
Here's my vector way of saying "Thank You", with a creative vector parody tribute - some associated with the silver screen, others a more personal interpretation.
Please forgive me if you don't see your page represented - there's only so much I can do in just 5 days...

Either way, YOU ALL ROCK!!!!! and the appreciation and support has always been mutual.

Cheers & I hope you all have a great & productive 2015!

Paramount Pictures has released five TV spots for their upcoming found footage time travel film, Project Almanac. The movie centers on a group of teens who embark on an adventure when they discover a time machine. While they screw around with it trying to get things out of life that they've always wanted, things go badly for them. That's just what happens when you play with time travel. You'd think they'd learn something from all of the time travel stories that have been told. 

I enjoy a good time travel film, but this just doesn't look good. It was a cheap movie for the studio to make, and it looks cheap, but it will probably make a decent box office return. Project Almanac comes out on January 30th, 2015. Does it looks like a film you might enjoy watching?

Some rare polaroid photos from the original Star Wars: A New Hope have surfaced that give us some candid shots from the set of the legendary film featuring a few recognizable people, including Mark Hamill, David Prowse, and Carrie Fisher. These are part of an exhibit at the British Film Institute called "On-Set: Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope," and they were owned by crew member Ann Skinner, who was the script supervisor on the production. The exhibit will be available to the public through January 4th, 2015. I love coming across stuff like this! 

Images are all credit BFI National Archive/© & TM Lucasfilm Ltd.

Via: Laughing Squid. 

If you've been following the entertainment news cycle for the past few years, you've undoubtedly seen the proliferation of the "trailer for a trailer" phenomenon: studios will release a ten or fifteen second snippet of footage from an upcoming trailer with a release date attached, and the fan community will go nuts over it. Most of the time, these honestly aren't worth watching, but leave it to Marvel Studios to shake up the formula and think outside the box in order to get us talking about their upcoming projects.

Their latest piece of marketing madness comes in the form of an "ant-sized" teaser trailer for the upcoming first Ant-Man trailer. Get ready to bust out your magnifying glasses and check this out:

Pretty clever, right? We'll see how long it takes some intrepid fans to zoom in close enough to figure out what the heck is going on in this teaser, but if you don't feel like playing a game of "enhance" with your computer, the first full trailer for Ant-Man will debut on ABC this Tuesday, January 6th, during the two hour premiere of Agent Carter.

I loved that final Death Star space battle sequence in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. That was one of the most mind-blowing things ever when I was a kid! Now, I didn't have a problem with the Ewoks when I was a young geek. I loved the little furballs! But they did keep interrupting that epic space battle I was enjoying. You can now watch that entire scene in HD with the Ewoks cut out of the equation. It was re-edited by Prometheus4Vids, and it is absolutely glorious! Some of the cuts are a little jarring, but it's still awesome. 

The epic space battle above the moon of Endor. The Rebel Alliance gathers up its entire fleet of cruisers and fighters led by Lando Calrissian in the Millennium Falcon and overseen by Admiral Ackbar in the Mon Calamari Cruiser Home One to destroy the second Death Star. Unfortunately by the time they get to the "incomplete/nonoperational" Death Star the shield generator hasn't been disabled by the Rebel ground troops on Endor led by Han Solo. The fleet then encounters a fleet of star destroyers and countless TIE fighters. They soon find out the Death Star is operational as it fires its main laser and destroys the Mon Calamari Cruiser Liberty and an Unidentified MC80 Home One type Star Cruiser. Once the shield is down Lando and Wedge Antilles fly inside the Death Star and destroy the core. During the battle a few A-Wings take out the Super Star Destroyer Executor. Wedge and Lando take out the core and fly out as the second Death Star explodes and the Galactic Empire falls and the New Republic is born. 

The video was uploaded to YouTube in 2013, but thanks to Gizmodo, this is the first time that I'm seeing it. If you haven't seen it yet either...enjoy! 

Artist Jeff Victor has released his first illustration in 2015 and it is a cartoon-style evolution of Russell Crowe and the movies he's made over the years. Crowe is a solid actor that has played some great characters. Two of my all-time favorite films that he's been in are Gladiator and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. I'm also really happy to see that the artist included his character from Romper Stomper, a film you should see if you haven't already. Here's a note from the artist:

Russell Crowe is one of my favorite actors, and here are some of my favorite roles he's done over the years. Which performances do you think are his best? 

An interesting but silly rumor has surfaced about who could be taking over for Robert Downey Jr. in a possible Iron Man 4. We know that Robert Downey Jr. won't play the character forever, and that Marvel will have to find a way to replace him or remove the character from the MCU completely. Fans love Iron Man, and I imagine the studio will want to keep him around for as long as they can. 

A website called Bam Smack Pow (via Cinema Blend) has reported a silly rumor that 14-year-old Ty Simpkins could be up for the role of Iron Man in a film that will be released in 2019. Simpkins is the same kid who played Harley Keener in Iron Man 3 and who will also appear in the upcoming Jurassic World. So by the time they make the movie the actor will be 17 or 18, but would Stark actually want this kid to take his place?

It's really hard to believe that there is any truth behind this rumor. If fact I think it's absolutely absurd. Hell, at this point we don't even know if Marvel is even planning a fourth Iron Man film! For all we know, Marvel has a story arc in place that will lead to the farewell of Tony Stark through Avengers: Age Of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War. 

I just can't see Marvel handing the torch off to a teenager. The fans would go crazy! That's just too much of a risk. Then there's the fact that Iron Man isn't Iron Man without Tony Stark. 

What do you think Marvel should do with Iron Man when Downey Jr. is finished playing him? 

2015 is here, and it's going to be an incredible year of movies. I'm so stoked about a lot of the movies coming out this year, and I thought I should share my fifteen most anticipated films. There are other films aside from these fifteen I'm excited about seeing, but the ones mentioned here hit me with a heightened thrill, so let's run through the list. 

In The Heart of the Sea - March 13th

I'm a big fan of director Ron Howard, and this looks like it could be his biggest and most epic adventure film yet. The story is based on the 1820 event that inspired Moby Dick, following a whaling ship preyed upon by a giant sperm whale. Its crew ends up stranded at sea for 90 days, thousands of miles from home.

Furious 7 - April 3rd

Director James Wan has proven to be an incredible horror movie director with films such as Insidious and The Conjuring. It's going to be so cool to see what he does with an action film like this. This is also the last film Paul Walker made before his death, and fans of the franchise are going to come out in droves to show their support.

Kingsman: The Secret Service - February 13th

Matthew Vaughn has a knack for bringing audiences hardcore, fun and unique action films. This movie looks like it's going to be a ridiculously fun time. It's also going to be great to see Colin Firth in a role where he kicks some major ass! 

Terminator: Genisys - July 1st

As a huge fan of the first two films in the franchise, it's hard not to be excited for this sci-fi action film. The fact that James Cameron loosely contributed to the story, and that Arnold Schwarzenegger is back to reprise his role as an older T-800, intrigues me. I'm also really curious to see how the story plays out, especially since it's connected to the first two movies.

Insidious: Chapter 3 - June 5th

This has become one of my favorite horror film franchises. The first two movies were amazing, and I loved how they seamlessly connected with each other. I have high hopes for this third chapter, and I hope it offers up another great story with some solid scares. 

Inside Out - June 19th

We didn't get a Pixar film in 2014, but fans will be treated to one this year and it looks wonderful. Pixar has a knack for telling good stories, and Inside Out is based on a unique idea that features people's emotions as the main characters. 

Crimson Peak - October 16th

I'm just so freakin' happy that Guillermo del Toro is make another R-rated horror film! This is actually his first American-made horror film, and I'm hoping for complete and utter greatness. The film has been described as a gothic horror haunted house tale, and I'm anxiously awaiting the first trailer. The stuff we were shown at Comic-Con last year looked really good, and I think this movie is going to blow horror fans away.

Tomorrowland - May 22nd

This Disney film started out with a great viral marketing campaign that sparked a lot of interest. From that moment on the project gained a lot of steam, culminating with the release of the first teaser trailer. There's still a lot of mystery and intrigue surrounding the movie, but it looks like it will deliver Disney fans something special. 

Ant-Man - July 17th

Even though Edgar Wright didn't direct the movie, I'm still looking forward to seeing Marvel's vision of the film realized on the big screen. I especially love that fact that Paul Rudd is playing Scott Lang (a.k.a. Ant-Man) in the movie, because it seems like he'll be perfect for the part. While we wait for the actual trailer, here's a hilarious teaser.

Spectre - November 6th

It's James Bond! How can I not be excited about a Jame Bond flick!? The script leaked online, but I haven't read it, so I still don't know very much about this one yet. I've heard certain things about the film from people that have read the script, but I'm trying not to listen or pay attention. I'm just excited that the team that brought us Skyfall is back to give us another 007 movie. 

Jurassic World - June 12th

How cool is it that we are getting another Jurassic Park movie!? The last time I watched Jurassic Park was when it was re-released in IMAX 3D, and it was just as awesome as the first time I saw it. It got me really excited for the potential of Jurassic World, and it looks like the filmmakers developing the sequel are taking the story in the right direction this time around. 

The Hateful Eight - November 13th

This is the western that Quentin Tarantino is making. It takes place in post-Civil War Wyoming, with a group of bounty hunters trying to find shelter during a blizzard. In the process they get "involved in a plot of betrayal and deception." The acclaimed writer/director almost didn't make this film because of the script leaking out online, but I'm so glad he decided to move forward with it. I'm a huge fan of westerns, and Tarantino is the perfect modern day filmmaker to make them.

Mad Max: Fury Road - May 15th

Seriously...have you seen the trailer for this movie? Who wouldn't be excited out of their minds to see it! This is sure to be the most hardcore and badass movie of 2015.

Avengers: Age of Ultron - May 1st

Joss Whedon's Avengers: Age of Ultron is sure to take the Marvel cinematic universe to a new level. It looks like it has the potential to set a new standard for Marvel films, but Marvel always seems to be upping the ante with every new film that they release. I think the footage and images we've been shown from this film at this point is just the tip of the iceberg for what's to come, and I couldn't be more pumped up to see how this story plays out for these characters.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens - December 18th

I've been waiting for this film to happen ever since I learned that George Lucas had planned to make Episodes VII, VIII, and IX. I was a teenager when I first heard about that, and the fact that it's actually happening now is still kind of blowing my mind. It's hard to believe that this is the year we are actually going to be able to sit in a movie theater and watch this film unfold before our eyes. I'll probably break down and cry.

Tim Burton's filmography is full of strange, off-kilter movies, and embracing that sense of zaniness and weirdness is what has made him a successful director. But by relying too much on style over substance, and by continuing a creative partnership with Johnny Depp that's spanned decades, Burton fell into a rut and nearly devolved into self-parody in recent years. After a string of live-action films that range from misfires to creatively bankrupt catastrophes, Burton's new film Big Eyes shows that not only is the director still capable of telling a story with a relatable human at the center, but he actually excels at it. Swapping a bug-eyed Depp for an expressive Amy Adams, Burton dials back his trademark quirkiness and delivers his most affecting film since Big Fish.

Adams plays Margaret, a single mom with a young daughter to support. In 1958 San Francisco, this isn't exactly a socially acceptable situation ("The man is the head of the household," a priest tells Margaret, "so maybe you should trust his judgment"), and Margaret, a painter who specializes in unique portraits of children with deep, striking, immense eyes, quickly begins a whirlwind romance with a local artist named Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz). Keane is a charming rogue, and while there's definitely a mutual attraction, their marriage seems to be built more on mutual benefit than true love.

Taking on the role of Walter isn't exactly a tall order for Waltz, who essentially plays the same kind of delightfully charming guy you love to hate that we've seen him play a handful of times already. That description may be a bit too dismissive of some of his better moments here, though, most of which involve his pathetic descent into denial and the sad desperation that lurks under the surface due to the fact that he's not a real artist. He gets most of the film's laughs, especially in a memorable courtroom sequence that immediately enters the conversation when it comes to the most entertaining courtroom scenes ever committed to film. His bombastic personality is great when it comes to marketing, but he can't escape the fact that he's a talentless hack who has to steal his wife's work to feel accomplished.

With Big Eyes, Burton has once again made a film about real characters, not just caricatures. While collaborating with Depp proved fruitful in the early days of both of their careers, films like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Dark Shadows revealed that their partnership turned into little more than an excuse for Depp to wear bizarre hats and make ridiculous faces. While many may argue that Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice, or Batman is the most important movie of Burton's career, I'd say that honor belongs to Big Eyes because it proves he's still capable of doing something different.

Hollywood often rewards artists who carve out a niche and repeat their own formulas again and again, but it's nice to see Burton isn't content with sitting back and making the same kind movie for the rest of his life. He could have easily chosen to stick to his usual aesthetic and stay in his comfort zone, only choosing to direct films that fit into his established visual style. But thankfully he seemed to sense he was falling into a rut, and having that self-awareness and actually doing something about it is a huge step forward for an artist. By now we know he could probably direct something like Sweeney Todd in his sleep; thanks to Big Eyes, there's a refreshing sense of unpredictability to him, and I can't wait to see if he capitalizes on that over the next few years and continues to expand his career into interesting directions.

Looks like the X-Wing wasn't the only Star Wars spacecraft to get a redesign in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Some concept art has surfaced featuring a redesign of a TIE Fighter, and as you can see, it looks pretty damn cool. I love seeing stuff like this because it proves to us how much we really don't know about what we will see in J.J. Abrams' film. 

This seems like a much larger TIE Fighter ship, and it includes some additional engines on the wings. There are a couple of Imperial Guards standing outside of it, and the only time I recall seeing the red-cloaked Imperial Guards in the films is when the Emperor was around. Does that mean the Empire has a new Emperor? Who is it that has taken over for Palpatine? Is Palpatine still alive!? I don't know.

Then there's the question of who would be flying this TIE Fighter? There's a possibility that it could be Gwendoline Christie's Stormtrooper Commander, which you can read more about here. Or it could be the ship that the villainous character Kylo Ren is getting around in. All will be revealed later this year when the movie is released on December 18th! Thanks to Indie Revolver for the photo.

Some new images have been released for Guillermo del Toro's gothic haunted house horror film Crimson Peak. These are scans from the latest issues of Total Film and Empire magazines, and they give us our first look at Tom Hiddleston and Mia Wasikowska in the movie. One of the articles provides some additional story details:

"A young woman (Wasikowska) is swept off by her feet by a charismatic suitor (Hiddleston) and taken back to his ancestral home. There she finds more than she bargained for, including a jealous sister (Chastain) and more than a few skeletons in the closet."

This is one of my most anticipated films of the year, and I truly think that del Toro is going to give us something terrifyingly wonderful. When talking about the film and the role that the haunted house plays in it, the director said: 

"The house decays. We needed to have the house feel a little bit like an organism. There's a line I already cut in the editing room where it says it lays down like an animal and it goes slowly mad. The house in the screenplay and in the movie has certain features that make it seem like a living organism. So, it's decaying. It's sitting in the middle of a field, rotting.

"We knew that the top needed to be sort of the most weathered part of the house. The bottom and the areas where you received visitors are live and slightly more kept. But the top is the head. The people in the movie are insane. So the head is all rotted away."

I love the characteristics of the house, and it's sure to add a very creepy detailed element to the film. You can watch the director give a tour of part of the house here, and below you can find a previously released synopsis for the film:

In the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds…and remembers.

Crimson Peak will be released on October 13th. You can check out the rest of the photos below. 

Via: CBM

Are you ready to return to Westeros? After the shocking conflicts of last season — The Mountain vs. The Viper, the Hound vs. Brienne, Tyrion vs. Tywin, etc. — HBO's Game of Thrones has a lot to live up to in its upcoming fifth season. Luckily, fans won't have to wait until the season premiere in April to find out what's in store for them. Winter is Coming (via Uproxx) points out that HBO has scheduled a thirty minute block for a special called A Day in the Life for 7:30pm on February 8th. That's almost exactly one year after last year's special, Ice and Fire: A Foreshadowing, which was a short look ahead at the events of the fourth season.

I won't be watching this new special because I prefer to go into the new season cold and not have anything spoiled for me (I'm caught up with the show, but only halfway through George R.R. Martin's second book in the series). April isn't THAT far away, and I'd much rather roll into the fifth season with some of the show's biggest visuals preserved for me rather than have them blasted at me out of context in a montage video ahead of time... but that's just me. For those of you who have already read all of the books, or those who don't care about spoilers, you should definitely mark your calendars for February 8th. This Game of Thrones special should be a great way to kick off the night: The Walking Dead premieres at 9pm, the series premiere of Better Call Saul airs at 10pm, and John Oliver returns with a new season of Last Week Tonight at 11pm.

Take a look at last year's special below:

We've seen our fair share of realistic Popeye fan art over the years, some of which you can see here, here, and here. Today we have an awesome "realistic" figurine of the character for you to check out, and it's kind of terrifying because of his strange proportions. He just looks like a scary dude!

Tenacious Toys is currently taking pre-orders for the 12-inch tall limited edition figure. It was designed by Head Toys, and for those of you interested in purchasing this muscle-clad beast of a character, it will set you back $300.

Via: Geekologie

ABC has released two "Proper Lady" etiquette clips from Marvel's Agent Carter. The first is called "A Proper Lady Never Hails Her Own Cab," and the second is "A Proper Lady Always Lets the Man Lead." I've also included a few new promo photos of Hayley Atwell as the title character, looking determined. The awesome-looking series is set to premiere on January 6th.

Curious to know what the top twenty websites have been every year since 1996? Well, we have a nifty chart for you that that gives you that information. It’s really interesting to see how the internet has changed over the years by seeing what sites have been visited the most of the years. GeekTyrant is nowhere to be found, but that’s ok! You don’t want to be too popular… you know what I’m sayin’?!

Via: Washington Post

Gotham returns to Fox on Monday, January 5th, and we have a new clip from the upcoming episode, "Rogue's Gallery." The scene features Jim Gordon, who is now an officer working at Arkham Asylum, meeting Dr. Leslie Thompkins, played by Morena Baccarin, for the first time. Baccarin talks about her character and tells EW that they start out as friends, but they could end up being more than that.

“I’m a physician. I’m working at Arkham, but we’re not sticking too close to the original mythology. We are having her team up with Jim Gordon instead of the Wayne family and Bruce. Eventually, who knows—it could go in that direction, but it hasn’t yet.”

She also goes into a little more detail on what we can expect to see in the relationship of these two characters, saying:

“She gets out [of Arkham] which is really fun and her and Jim kind of pair up and have this really great relationship. I think it’s important. Arkham is a really kind of iconic and dark and crazy world but I don’t think you want to spend too much time in there. Jim finds an ally in her, which I think is important for him at this point. He’s beaten down by the system and he’s been fighting this one-man operation to make Gotham not as corrupt. I think it’s really important that he finds that relationship in Leslie.”

As for the type of person that Thompkins is...she doesn't take any shit from anyone:

“She’s just one of those people who doesn’t take shit. She doesn’t really care what anybody thinks. She’s a good person. She doesn’t do anything terrible, but she’s not going to cater to stupid people, so it can be disarming but it can also be infuriating to certain people.”

I've been eagerly anticipating the return of this show, and it will be nice to start watching it again.

It looks like the Guardians of the Galaxy will be joining Howard the Duck in his recently launched comic book series. The amusing cover of the second issue features Howard grudgingly taking a selfie with the superhero team, and if you couldn't tell, they are all making duck faces. Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso tweeted the cover art that was created by artist Joe Quinones.

Yesterday we got an ant sized teaser for Ant-Man, which I thought was incredibly amusing. Today Marvel has released a full size version of that teaser which offers a 17-second preview of a longer teaser trailer that will be released during the two-hour series premiere of Agent Carter on Tuesday, January 6th. This brief video gives us our first real look at the movie though, which includes including Hank Pym's lab, Hope van Dyne, Scott Lang, Darren Cross/Yellowjacket, and a brief shot of Ant-Man on the run. I can't wait to see more! 

The next evolution of the Marvel Cinematic Universe brings a founding member of The Avengers to the big screen for the first time with Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man. Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym, protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.

The movie stars Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll, Judy Greer, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Pena, John Slattery, and Hayley Atwell. It's set to be released on July 17th, 2015.

A clip has been released for Bruce Willis’ upcoming sci-fi action film Vice, which also stars Thomas Jane. The movie looks like it has the potential to be really good, but I'm the kind of guy that enjoys the kinds of films Willis makes. It’s also great to see Jane in another big screen feature. 

Julian Michaels (Willis) has designed the ultimate resort: VICE, where anything goes and the customers can play out their wildest fantasies with artificial inhabitants who look, think and feel like humans. When an artificial (Childers) becomes self-aware and escapes, she finds herself caught in the crossfire between Julian's mercenaries and a cop (Jane) who is hell-bent on shutting down Vice, and stopping the violence once and for all. 

The film was directed by Brian A. Miller from a script that was written by Andre Fabrizio and Jeremy Passmore. Lionsgate will release the R-rated film in theaters and On Demand January 16th, 2015. Thanks to Comingsoon for the clip.