Once upon a time in Hollywood, there was no such thing as a remake or a sequel. Yes, we know that was a long, long time ago, but such a time did exist. And that’s what makes Quentin Tarantino so old-school. When the writer/director, who’s won a pair of Oscars for his screenplays, approaches a new project — like his new movie, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood — he prefers to start it from scratch, with an entirely new idea. (Click on the media bar below to hear Quentin Tarantino)
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood opens in theaters this Friday.
These days, people (and the media) like to put labels on just about everything. So, because it was developed by a Latina producer — Eva Longoria — and features a largely Hispanic cast, there have been those who have labeled Grand Hotel as a “Hispanic show.” Longoria thinks that kind of labeling is not just unfair, but inaccurate, because the territory covered by the show is universal. (Click on the media bar below to hear Eva Longoria)
When the original version of The Lion King was released, Seth Rogen was a 12-year-old kid, still five years away from his breakthrough with Freaks and Geeks. When he left the theater singing Hakuna Matata (as so many of us did), Rogen couldn’t have imagined that he would someday be singing that song as the voice of Pumbaa the warthog in Disney’s remake. But here we are, 25 years later, and that’s exactly what’s happened. It’s a joyful turn of events for Rogen, who loved the original movie. The only problem, he told us, was that it was difficult to keep the old movie out of his mind as he was making the new one.(Click on the media bar below to hear Seth Rogen)
The Lion King is now playing in theaters everywhere.
What started out as a summertime experiment 11 years ago — an American version of a crazy Japanese TV show — has turned into something huge. American Ninja Warrior has succeeded beyond expectations, lasting for over a decade and spawning an entirely new industry: All over the country, there are Ninja Warrior-themed gyms where you can train like the show’s competitors. Co-hosts Matt Iseman and Akbar Gbaja-Biamila say it’s been amazing to see how the show has grown into a full-fledged phenomenon. (Click on the media bar below to hear Matt Iseman & Akbar Gbaja-Biamila)
American Ninja Warrior airs Mondays at 8/7c on NBC.
It’s been 11 years since Katy Perry kissed a girl and became a pop superstar. Since then, she’s sold more than 40 million albums and 125 million singles worldwide. Considering she’s only 34 now, you’d think the American Idol judge had a pretty easy time achieving success. However, the way she tells it, the story was much, much different. Her path to fortune and fame was actually a pretty rocky road, she says, including a low point where she was dropped by her label! But she told us all those tough times actually made her much stronger over the long run. (Click on the media bar below to hear Katy Perry)
Perry’s current single Never Really Over is currently climbing the music charts.
Apparently, Disney can do no wrong this summer. Aladdin and Toy Story 4 did very well, but their results were just appetizers compared to the feast The Lion King took in during its record-breaking opening. It raked in $185 million this weekend, easily surpassing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 to become the biggest July opening ever.
Of course, The Lion King’s dominance brought Spider-Man’s run at the top to an end, though $21 million and a second-place finish in its third week is a nice consolation prize.
Toy Story 4’s $14. 6 million box office take was good enough for third place but, more significantly, also pushed the franchise past the $1 billion mark in worldwide grosses.
Crawl didn’t exactly stand tall in fourth place, but it did earn $6 million.
At Number 5, the Beatles-inspired movie Yesterday held steady, showing some staying power in its fourth weekend with $5.1 million.
Rounding out the Top 10: The action-comedy Stuber made $4 million ; Aladdin surpassed the $340 million domestic mark with a $3.8 million take; Annabelle 3 scared up another $2.6 million ; Midsommar took in another $1.5 million ; and after seven weeks, The Secret Life of Pets 2 still has some life with $1.5 million.
When The Dark Crystal was released in 1982, it came as quite a shock. Yes, it was from director Jim Henson’s studio, but these creations certainly didn’t look anything like the Muppets we were used to seeing from Henson. This movie was dark, and even kind of scary! It’s taken nearly four decades, but that world is going to be explored again, in a new series, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, that will serve as a prequel to the original film. Even though computer graphics have come a long way in the last 37 years, the series will be performed in old-school fashion, with puppeteers, but this time, the voices will come from an all-star cast that includes names like Helena Bonham Carter, Mark Hamill, Lena Headey, Harvey Fierstein, Sigourney Weaver, Andy Samberg, and Taron Egerton, among others. The Rocketman star Egerton says he vividly remembers seeing The Dark Crystal for the first time, and it was an experience that stuck with him. (Click on the media bar below to hear Taron Egerton)
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance will debut August 30 on Netflix.
The CW certainly loves to do crossovers with its DC properties, which has produced some of its series’ most memorable episodes. Now that there are five Arrowverse shows airing on the network — The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, and the new Batwoman — the crossover is going to be bigger than ever. How big? So big, it’s going to take two different actors to play Superman! Interestingly, the two actors both have experience playing the Man of Steel. Tyler Hoechlin has had a recurring role as Superman on Supergirl. And Brandon Routh, who now stars as Ray Palmer/The Atom on Legends of Tomorrow, played Clark Kent and Superman in the 2006 film Superman Returns. Now that Routh will be putting on the cape and tights again, we asked him what it felt like to step into that iconic costume for the first time. (Click on the media bar below to hear Brandon Routh)
The five-part Arrowverse crossover will begin this December and conclude next January on The CW.
It looks like all of the elements are in place for Terminator: Dark Fate to win back fans of the franchise who were disappointed in Salvation and Genisys. Arnold Schwarzenegger? Check. Linda Hamilton? Check. A film gritty enough to earn an R rating? Check. At Comic Con, director Tim Miller confirmed what many had been hoping: The series is returning to its R-rated roots, and he told us why. (Click on the media bar below to hear Tim Miller)
Terminator: Dark Fate will open in theaters on November 1.
For The Lion King, its well-known opening number is also somewhat of a prophecy: The Circle of Life is playing out, as fans whose parents took them to see the movie when they were young will now be taking their own kids to Disney’s new remake. That’s not just holding true for fans — even the movie’s new voices are feeling it. Donald Glover, the new voice of adult Simba, says the Lion King experience has become so much more meaningful now that he’s got a son of his own.
The Lion King is now playing in theaters everywhere.
Once upon a time in Hollywood, there was no such thing as a remake or a sequel. Yes, we know that was a long, long time ago, but such a time did exist. And that’s what makes Quentin Tarantino so old-school. When the writer/director, who’s won a pair of Oscars for his screenplays, approaches a new project — like his new movie, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood — he prefers to start it from scratch, with an entirely new idea. (Click on the media bar below to hear Quentin Tarantino)
