Are prop-makers in London being locked in for Indiana Jones 5? Find out who played Rocket Raccoon on the Guardians of the Galaxy set. Emma Watson describes the hazardous conditions on the Noah set. And Hugh Jackman talks fighting X-Men: Days of Future Past's Sentinels. Plus casting news from Supernatural: Tribes, Agents of SHIELD, Vampire Diaries and more. Spoilers now!
Guardians of the Galaxy
James Gunn explained that, along with certain characters, Marvel doesn't exactly own the movie rights to certain aliens either:
Marvel only partially owns Skrulls, and also for the record, we don't own the Badoon either. So people were asking why we have the Sakaarans in the film, we don't own the Badoon.
It's probably Fox that owns the Badoon — who are a major threat in the Guardians comics — given that Fox has the Fantastic Four and Silver Surfer. And it sounds, reading between the lines, as though the Skrulls are in a gray area (which could be why we saw the Chitauri in Avengers.) Gunn also described who played Rocket Raccoon on the set, since they hadn't cast Bradley Cooper until after they'd finished filming:
My brother Sean Gunn wore a little green suit and he waddled around and he acted out Rocket. I think all of the guys will attest to the fact, and they have in all their interviews, that he was a great part of the team, and it really was Zoe, Dave, Chris, and Sean who sort of like created the energy that people will see in the movie between these four characters, who are usually at odds and sometimes find common ground. Sean was a big part of that energy and creating that, not only was a he doing a great job performing himself, but also gave the other actors something to work off of so they're not working with a tennis ball.
Listen to the interview below. [Coming Soon]
Star Wars/Indiana Jones 5
Pinewood Studios is reportedly in the process of building a full scale Millenium Falcon, as well as a number of lightsaber hilts. This fits in both with the idea that Episode VII will show a lot of the touchstones from the first trilogy, as well as the reported emphasis on practical props.
Den of Geek is also reporting that the modelmakers are being offered seven-year contracts, covering all three movies of the trilogy and some of the standalone ones. Also reportedly on the table for this contract is Indiana Jones 5, which is no confirmation that it's happening — just that it might. [Den of Geek via Slashfilm]
And then there's the deeply unlikely rumor that they're looking into recasting Princess Leia. Jedi News has a tip that there was a casting call for that part in London, but Slashfilm very logically pointed out that other auditions had the actors reading scenes from the older movies. Plus, they could very likely be using the name as a placeholder, while looking for a similar type of character (possibly a daughter?). [Jedi News, Slashfilm]
Noah
Emma Watson said that the film's got an environmental message, which sounds like it's "fear the flood we'll be seeing if we don't act," that impacted filming a bit:
Because of the storm, Douglas [Booth] and I ended up shooting most of our scenes between 4am and 7am - and at that time I never function well. Because the film has a pro-environment message, Darren didn't want anyone drinking from plastic water bottles on set either. So that made things slightly harder.
Everything we used had to be recycled or recyclable. Having no water bottles on set at five in the morning, when you're exhausted and delirious, wasn't ideal. I was so tired one morning I picked up a mug from my trailer and drank some stagnant water that had been there for the duration – so three months. I was so ill.
Watson also told Wonderland magazine that the heat of filming in New York in summer also affected actor Ray Winstone:
We started filming in the summer in New York. It was so hot that Ray Winstone at one point, who wore a beard and heavy make-up, nearly fell down a flight of stairs. His make-up was literally melting off his face.
[The Guardian]
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Hugh Jackman revealed that he'd be fighting both the past!Sentinels and the future! ones in the film, saying:
Yes, you do see battling and I'll tell you, you see battling in the future and in the past. And not just me battling them, but all the characters. It's exciting after doing two Wolverine movies in a row to see how the X-Men work together, so I'm trying to give you a little something without giving you much, but they need to work together in order to bring down the Sentinels.
Can you talk a little bit about the Sentinels in the past and the future and how different they are?
I was just told I can't tell you about the future! You guys have seen the past, right? You've seen the past Sentinels.
We saw Bryan's pictures… And there have been pictures as part of a viral marketing campaign.
All I can tell you… is that in the future, the Sentinels are formidable. They're formidable in the past, but in the future it is a very dire situation for the X-Men. (Laughter) [Unit Publicist] Joe's happy, no one else is! Sorry!
He also talked about how Wolverine will be different in this movie, versus how we've seen him before:
Well, it very much follows on from The Wolverine. You get the feeling that he's come to terms with who he is – I'm a warrior, I'm Wolverine and that's who I am, for better or worse, it's not all going to be pretty, but here we go. And then soon after, as you saw in the teaser, he gets approached. Now, actually, it's all hands on deck, it doesn't matter which side you're on in terms of mutant politics, it's about survival. So he's on board, but he's very much in the center of it in terms of the team, so to speak. And then he's sent back to try and fix things and, as he says, I'm the last person in the world who should be sent back on this mission. If you want someone to go back to take someone's head off, fantastic, but he's really got to go back and almost act in parts as inspiration, as mentor, as guide, because he can't do it all on his own, which is always his preferred method, but he can't here because of the nature of the story. So he has to become, not necessarily a leader, because I'd still call Xavier the leader here, but in a way he has to become a facilitator for everyone to come together. Which is not his normal modus operandi and it's certainly not easy for him.
[Slashfilm]
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay
A casting call went out from CLCasting for "thin framed men and women, ages 18+ for 'Untitled Trilogy,'" which is the title they use for The Hunger Games movies. They required the men to be willing to get a haircut and would pay extra for those that agreed to do a "wet" scene.
The dates were this week and last, from February 14-18. Based on the description and the scenes that were being filmed earlier this month, I'm betting these "thin" people are playing the food-rationed denizens of District 13. The haircut requirement also makes sense, since it would give all the men a uniform look. [Hollywood Hills]
Divergent
Here's the preview that aired during the Olympics:
Transformers 4: Age of Extinction
Like Mark Wahlberg before him, Titus Welliver is pointing to this movie as giving him instant cachet with his children, but he also warns that it's not a "kids movie":
I've now won the hard earned respect of my children because I'm in a Transformers film, and I've always wanted to work with Michael Bay and certainly Mark Wahlberg and Kelsey Grammer.
It's a bit more of a darker vision of the Transformers world… It's not a kids movie, I'll tell you that much.
[Transformer World]
The Last Witch Hunter
This film has been in development hell for years, with Breck Eisner attached to direct in 2011. However, it look like it may be inching forward, as Vin Diesel posted a photo of some concept art to his Facebook page and reporting that he had a good meeting. Written by Corey Goodman, The Last Witch Hunter has Vin Diesel starring as a man clearing out Manhattan's witch infestation. Because of course he is. [Cinema Blend]
Arrow
According to Stephen Amell, there's a bit of a hierarchy to the Arrow cave, with everyone but Oliver, Felicity, and Diggle being "just kind of a visitor," and Roy and Sara being "part of the team will a lower-case 't.'" Colton Haynes agreed, saying that Roy will resent being treated like an "errand boy." Sorry, Roy.
David Ramsey previewed March 19th's "Suicide Squad," saying:
There's a bigger story with the Suicide Squad and ... their involvement perhaps with Team Arrow in the future. There's a lot of set-up for the season finale.... Big stuff.
Ramsey also said that Diggle and Felicity will be training, sort of in parallel to how Roy and Oliver will be.
The other big episode, in terms of comic-name-recognition, will be "Bird of Prey," which'll have the Huntress taking hostages, including Laurel.
Viewers shouldn't be holding their breath that Slade Wilson's going to hang around as the main villain forever, according to EP Marc Guggenheim:
We knew that John Barrowman's character [of Malcolm Merlyn] would be the Big Bad of Season 1. And we knew that if Manu [Bennett] worked out, in success he would be the Big Bad of Season 2. So this was always the plan. And it's exciting, because we are literally shooting stuff, and moments, that we talked about over a year ago.
That sounds like his storyline's set to resolve by the end of the season, like Merlyn's did in season 1. More information at the link. [TV Line]
Amell also hinted that episode 2.14's going to end on a major cliffhanger, when he answered a question about which episode he's most looking forward to seeing:
It's a tie between the end of 14 ("Time of Death"), and Episode 15 ("The Promise"). The end of 14 is one of those, 'Oh my God, why can't it be next week already?!' situations.
[TV Line]
Speaking of "Time of Death," here a preview of that very episode:
American Horror Story
Jessica Lange knows just as much as we do about what the next season has in store, telling NJ.com:
Ryan keeps things very close to the vest, so I don't know. Although apparently I'm going to have a German accent!
[NJ.com]
Agents of SHIELD
The March 4th episode will be introducing two recurring SHIELD agents to the show. The first is the already-announced Bill Paxton. The second is B.J. Britt (One Tree Hill, Being Mary Jane) as Agent Triplett, an associate of Paxton's character. [TV Line]
Once Upon a Time
Once will explain early on in its return why Emma and Henry are living in New York, and not in Emma's last place of residence before Storybrooke, Boston.
Belle's "plan" apparently results from her realizing something about his confrontation with Pan and needing to get more information about Rumplestiltskin. [TV Line]
We'll actually be visiting the land of Oz — and the producers are figuring out what they can use that comes from the books, rather than the movie or the Broadway musical. We'll mostly see stuff that comes straight from the books, like the flying monkeys. [E! Online]
Supernatural: Tribes
The spinoff has cast Lucien Laviscount (Episodes, Skins) as one of the leads. He'll play Ennis Roth, a police academy trainee whose fiancée dies as a result of the monster war. This is what leads to him being a hunter, and all of this is likely to happen in the backdoor pilot in this season of Supernatural.
Also cast is Nathaniel Buzolic (The Vampire Diaries) as the regular character David Hayden, a "shapeshifter from one of the ruling monster families who's been living as a human, having given up the monster life years ago." [TV Line]
Under the Dome
Sherry Stringfield (ER) has joined the cast in the recurring role of Pauline, "a mysterious woman who may be connected to the origins of the dome." Everything else about her is being kept secret. [TV Guide]
The Vampire Diaries
Heather Hemmens and Chris Brochu have been cast in The Vampire Diaries. Hemmens will play Maggie, the love interest of Enzo's who was described in episode nine. And Brochu will play Luke, a gay Whitmore college student with a secret agenda who befriends Elena and Caroline. Also, Luke has a sister on campus that he'll do anything to protect. We'll eventually learn that Luke has come into the girls' lives for "mysterious and dangerous reasons that has to do with the growing tension between the witches and the travelers." [E! Online]
Separately, Raffi Barsoumian will play "Markos, an imposing and charismatic presence with supernatural origins." [Deadline]
Forever
Judd Hirsch has joined the cast of ABC's upcoming supernatural thriller as the best friend of immortal protagonist Henry. Hirsch's character Abe is the only friend of Henry, a medical examiner whose studies into death are the result of his immortality. [TV Guide]
Beauty and the Beast
The winter finale, "About Last Night," will have Cat and Vincent revisiting a romantic location from their past. [TV Line]
Here's the synopsis for March 3rd's "Catch Me If You Can":
CAT AND VINCENT FIND THEMSELVES IN A COMPROMISING SITUATION — Feeling pulled between her current boyfriend and her ex, Cat (Kristin Kreuk) has to decide between Gabe (Sendhil Ramamurthy) and Vincent (Jay Ryan). While Cat and Vincent work together to save Sam's (guest star Tom Everett Scott) latest victim, Cat's decision gets complicated when she and Vincent find themselves in a compromising situation. Nina Lisandrello and Austin Basis also star. Norma Bailey directed the episode written by Eric Tuchman (#215).
[K Site TV]
Teen Wolf
Allison seems to be moving on with Isaac, and meanwhile Scott has his eye on someone new: Kira, the new girl at Beacon Hills High. [E! Online]
Here's the extended promo for episode 3.20, "Echo House." [via SpoilerTV]
The Originals
Here's a preview for "The Long Way Back from Hell":
Here's the synopsis for March 11th's "Farewell to Storyville":
TRAPPED IN THE CITY OF THE DEAD — Despite Klaus' (Joseph Morgan) rage, Elijah (Daniel Gillies) is determined to protect Rebekah (Claire Holt) while the three of them are trapped in the City of the Dead cemetery by a witch's boundary spell. Klaus and Rebekah trade bitter accusations until Elijah steps in to reveal a long-held secret from the family's past. Meanwhile, Marcel (Charles Michael Davis) races to free Rebekah, ultimately finding himself forced to make a deal with Genevieve (guest star Elyse Levesque). Finally, Rebekah and Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin) connect over their shared concern for Hayley's unborn baby. Jesse Warn directed the episode written by Michael Narducci (#116).
[K Site TV]
Star-Crossed
Here's the press release for the fourth episode:
And Left no Friendly Drop" — (8:00-9:00 p.m. ET) (TV-PG, DV) (HDTV)
SWIM MEET — Roman (Matt Lanter) is furious when the sector guards ransack his family's pod looking for restricted technology. However, he is taken aback when his mother (guest star Susan Walters) shows him a secret cell phone she found hidden in his late father's things. Roman takes the phone to school in hopes of retrieving the data and finding out what his father was hiding. Turning to a friend he trusts, Roman asks Julia (Malese Jow) for help and she introduces him to Lukas (Titus Makin, Jr.), a tech genius. Emery (Aimee Teegarden) notices Roman's newfound closeness to Julia, but since Julia had promised to keep Roman's secret, she deflects Emery's questions, causing tensions between the friends. Grayson (Grey Damon) asks Emery to forgive him for the incident at the sector, but she's not sure she can trust him. Meanwhile, with Emery's encouragement, and under Teri's (Chelsea Gilligan) watchful eye, Sophia (guest star Brina Palencia) decides to join the swim team and blows everyone away with her speed. Unfortunately, not everyone is thrilled to have Brina on the team and when she is poisoned by rivals, an all-out brawl ensues. The Trags give Drake (Greg Finley) a mission. Harry Sinclair directed the episode written by Robert Hewitt Wolfe (#104).
[SpoilerTV]
Penny Dreadful
Here's a behind-the-scenes featurette for Penny Dreadful. [Coming Soon]
Additional reporting by Charlie Jane Anders and Emily Stamm
onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Why We May Never Meet the Skrulls in the Marvel Films. Plus Arrow News!