Was This Chris Evans' 'Stupid' Final Line For Avengers: Endgame?

Was This Chris Evans' 'Stupid' Final Line For Avengers: Endgame?

Spoiler Warning: I think we all know the drill by now. Enter at your own risk!

Avengers: Endgame is still sweeping its way through the world, and while it hasn't quite taken the No. 1 spot from Avatar yet, it's taken the No. 1 spot in our hearts (or mine at least). Now that the movie has finally been seen by, like, trillions of people, longtime mysteries about Endgame are getting solved -- including one involving Chris Evans' last "dumb" line as Captain America.

Way back in October of 2018, Chris Evans was asked about what his last day on set was like and what the last line he ever recorded was. While the day itself was emotional for the actor, the last line he delivered was totally unmemorable. In fact, he said it "was something really stupid, it was something really dumb."

The line happened during reshoots, which are meant to give the film whatever it's missing. The line wasn't substantial at all, and the only other detail Chris Evans gave was that he thought it was in reaction to something that Paul Rudd's Ant-Man said.

Now that Avengers: Endgame is finally out, it's not too hard to see what's the "stupid" line. It's more than likely the now infamous "America's ass" joke that got audiences laughing, but is pretty stupid on paper.

The scene happens about halfway through the film when Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Scott Lang have time-traveled to the Battle of New York in 2012. The group inevitably observe their past-selves, and Tony makes the comment that Captain America's Avengers costume "didn't do anything for your ass."

Ant-Man replies that he thinks it looks fine and that it's "America's ass." Later, 2023 Steve ends up fighting 2012 Captain America, and his younger self is left lying ass up on the ground. After a quick observation, 2023 Steve says, "That is America's ass." End scene.

So, you can see why that's not a super memorable way to end an almost decade-long run as Captain America, especially when Robert Downey Jr.'s last line was so fitting.

The "America's ass" joke is Marvel having a bit of meta fun. Endgame co-writer Stephen McFeely previously said that the line was a reference to the Avengers Cap costume being the worst one, and it was meant to be a fun wink at how far the costumes have come. Captain America definitely got better outfits in later movies.

Maybe Steve said some other stupid lines to Scott in Avengers: Endgame, but this seems like the strongest contender. Maybe we'll all just have to see Endgame for the fourth time, out in theaters right now. For everything else hitting theaters for the rest of the year, be sure to check out our 2019 movie release guide.

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Scarlett Johansson Might Make More Money For The Black Widow Movie Than We Thought

Scarlett Johansson Might Make More Money For The Black Widow Movie Than We Thought

While Avengers: Endgame may have signalled some emotional goodbyes to fan favorites when it opened over the weekend, there is still a standalone Black Widow movie in the works over at Marvel once Phase 4 kicks off. Although the new line-up hasn’t yet been officially confirmed by the studio, it looks like Scarlett Johansson may be picking up a bigger paycheck for her first solo outing then earlier reports have projected.

The Black Widow actress might be earning a whopping $20 million range for starring and producing in her own Marvel flick. This is quite the jump from last year’s forecast of $15 million she was said to be receiving. Scarlett Johansson has come quite the way from her over $1 million she made for 2012’s Avengers.

The paycheck would eclipse Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans’ earnings of $15 million for their solo films Thor: Ragnarok and Captain America: Civil War. The two actors also reportedly made the same sum for Infinity War and Endgame.

Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow reported pay would also be significantly higher than Robert Downey Jr’s 2008 Iron Man first outing of $500,000, Chadwick Boseman’s $2 million and Brie Larson’s $5 million Captain Marvel earning. The difference here is Scarlett Johansson is already an established MCU character who has starred in seven other flicks from the studio, whereas these other lump sums were given for first appearance roles.

No other salary will likely top that of RDJ’s, who makes money on the backend of Avengers movies.The Hollywood Reporter projects the actor walked away with at least $75 million after the success of Infinity War and Downey also apparently received $5 million a day for three days as Iron Man on 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming.

The Black Widow movie that has started assembling a cast that could include Stranger Things’ David Harbour, Fighting With My Family’s Florence Pugh and The Favourite’s Rachel Weisz, will be directed by Cate Shortland and written by Jac Schaeffer and Ned Benson.

According to David Harbour, the movie may start shooting this June, making it awfully likely that Black Widow will be one of the earlier Phase Four releases. Many speculate we’ll be seeing it on the big screen in 2020, though all Marvel announcements are on hold until Spider-Man: Far From Home hits theaters in July.

The actress’ shot at her own Marvel flick has certainly been a long-time coming, as it’s been almost a decade since she first made her appearance as Natasha Romanoff in 2010’s Iron Man. Avengers: Endgame broke just about every box office record in the book with its recent $1.2 billion global opening weekend. Fans may have a similar anticipation coming into Black Widow, so Johansson’s projected $20 million looks like a fair paycheck.

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New Angry Birds 2 Trailer Has Birds And Pigs Teaming Up

New Angry Birds 2 Trailer Has Birds And Pigs Teaming Up

When it comes to Angry Birds, most people are familiar with the general premise: birds don't like pigs because they steal eggs, and so they aim to take the oinkers down by launching themselves with a slingshot. The bird vs. pig conflict is at the center of the whole thing, which is why it's a bit surprising to see them fighting on the same side in this new trailer for The Angry Birds Movie 2.

Written by Peter Ackerman (The Americans), and the feature directorial debut of Adventure Time and Camp Lazlo! writer Thurop Van Orman, The Angry Birds 2 seems to start with the famous aforementioned animosity still in place, but things start to change when the birds and pigs are united against a common enemy. It's not really made clear in this trailer, but it seems that this common enemy is a different race of birds who are tired of living on their frozen wasteland of an island.

Many of the actors from the original are coming back, including Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Danny McBride, Bill Hader, and Peter Dinklage, but there are also a ton of newcomers joining the fray, including Rachel Bloom, Leslie Jones, Sterling K. Brown, Awkwafina, and Eugenio Derbez.

The first Angry Birds Movie, released in 2016, didn't exactly get the warmest reception from critics, but a sequel was definitely inevitable. Young audiences ate it up, having already been hooked on the brand courtesy of the popular mobile game, and the result was major box office success. Made with a $73 million budget, the film crossed the century mark in America with a $107.5 million gross - but that total balloons to $352.3 million when you also include all of the cash flowing in from foreign territories.

The Angry Birds Movie 2 won't exactly be following in the path of its predecessor, which got a May release when it hit theaters, but there may be significant chance for the sequel to hit even bigger when it comes out this summer. It's one of the few major movies coming out in the latter half of August this year, and that could lead to a lot of tickets being sold as parents try and figure out what the hell they should do with their kids in the weeks leading up to the start of the new school year.

This trailer has some funny moments, and the cast is certainly spectacular, so we'll just have to wait and see if The Angry Birds Movie 2 can outpace its predecessor in multiple areas. Sony Pictures Animation definitely hasn't been shy about promoting it, as this is our second full trailer, and there are still four months to go before the thing hits theaters. Perhaps they are just riding high on confidence following their big Oscar win for Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse last year.

The Angry Birds Movie 2 will be arriving in theaters on August 16th, and to see what else is coming up on the big screen in the months ahead, please check out our 2019 Movie Release Calendar.

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Why It Was Terrifying Pitching Toy Story 4 To Tom Hanks, According To The Director

Why It Was Terrifying Pitching Toy Story 4 To Tom Hanks, According To The Director

With the way things ended in 2010’s Toy Story 3, it’s no wonder a lot of folks thought that movie marked the end of the adventures of Woody, Buzz Lightyear and the rest of the gang on the big screen. However, nine years later, they’re back for Toy Story 4, which was directed by Josh Cooley, who’s been part of Pixar since he worked as a storyboard artist on The Incredibles.

Tom Hanks, on the other hand, has been playing Woody for over two decades, so when it came time to pitch what Toy Story 4 would be about, Josh Cooley was terrified because he was worried about whether or not Hanks would approve of the story. Cooley recalled while speaking with CinemaBlend’s own Sean O’Connell:

I know that I was nervous to give them a pitch of the story for the first time, a pitch of what was ultimately the story we were going to make. In fact, when Tom came up to Pixar and he was like, ‘Okay, what's going on? What's happening here?’ Because we had already been working on it for a couple of years already. And so I said, ‘Well here, I'm going to give you a picture of everything we're doing.’ And you know, it's Tom Hanks. He's been doing Woody for 25 years. And so I was just kind of naturally thinking, ‘Geez, I hope he likes this idea because that would be nice.’ … I got through the pitch to [scene where] Bonnie's in a classroom and she's sitting there alone and Tom said, ‘All right, you got me. Okay.’ He goes, ‘I don't know how you guys are doing this. You got me already!’ That was a huge kind of a relief. I felt like he was totally engaged.

So it turned out that Josh Cooley didn’t need to worry about if it’d be difficult impressing Tom Hanks with Toy Story 4, as he was captivated relatively early into the storytelling process. And things would only get more engaging for Hanks from there, because before he went in to record his lines, Woody’s voice actor got some texts from Buzz Lightyear’s voice actor, Tim Allen, warning him about the emotional ending.

Speaking of Tim Allen, Josh Cooley noted that he had a similar reaction as Tom Hanks’ hearing the pitch for Toy Story 4. In the director’s words:

The same thing happened with Tim. Our first session, I walked him through the story and he's laughing and really having a great time listening to it. I respect those guys so much that it was just such a relief to hear them and see them kind of light up and be thrilled to be part of it.

While Toy Story movies have always been filled with colorful characters, Woody and Buzz Lightyear have been the main players since the beginning. Judging from the Toy Story 4 trailers and marketing, it doesn’t look like Buzz will be lacking for things to do, but it’s been teased that the movie will change Woody in a major way. If Tom Hanks had a difficult time reading his final lines as the character, then I can only imagine how many tears will be shed when people see Toy Story 4 on the big screen.

It should be noted that while the possibility of a Toy Story 5 hasn’t 100% been ruled out, it seems like Toy Story 4 stands a better chance of being the definitive end to this franchise, at least movie-wise. There’s also the fact that in the coming years, Pixar will be releasing only original movies rather than sequels, so even if the Toy Story saga could continue, it would be a long time before it would be picked back up. So be prepared for the chance that you’ll be saying goodbye to these characters for good come next month.

Toy Story 4 opens in theaters on June 21, and for those of you curious about what movies will be coming out afterwards, you can find that information in our 2019 release schedule.

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Fans Will Have To Wait A Long Time To See Alita: Battle Angel On DVD And Digital

Fans Will Have To Wait A Long Time To See Alita: Battle Angel On DVD And Digital

This past February, Alita: Battle Angel made its debut in theaters worldwide, fulfilling a dream decades in the making. Starting as co-writer/producer James Cameron’s baby, and eventually being transferred to the loving care of director Robert Rodriguez, the film went on to score an impressive gross at the box office, as well as a vocal internet fandom.

Those fans are going to have quite a bit of a wait to endure in order to see Alita: Battle Angel again, as the physical and digital releases are both set to drop throughout the month of July. While the digital release is set for July 9, fans won’t be able to grab a physical copy of the film until July 23, which comes a little over five months after the film’s February 14 theatrical debut.

While we’re not particularly sure about why there’d be such a delay in the release of Alita: Battle Angel, it might be because of the Fox/Disney merger that also caused delays, reshufflings and in some cases cancellations to come down on projects that the now joined studios had on their respective dockets. But what we can be sure of is that when it finally does hit shelves this summer, there are going to be quite a few awesome extras along for the ride.

As promised, Robert Rodriguez is including one of his patented “10 Minute Cooking School” segments, this time teaching the audience at home how to make the Iron City chocolate that Rosa Salazar’s Alita fell in love with as one of her first food experiences in the world. Also included are various features that detail the story of Alita: Battle Angel’s extended development process, complete with a concept art gallery from James Cameron’s work on the film back in 2005.

Most promising, though, is the inclusion of three motion comics that flesh out the world of Alita: Battle Angel: “The Fall,” “Iron City,” and “Rules of the Game.” Each of those shorts will help the audience learn more about the infamous events that preceded those of the film, as well as draw more depth into the city itself, and the sport of Motorball.

While the chances of a sequel are still up in the air when it comes to the live-action adaptation of author Yukito Kishiro’s work, there’s always the possibility that impressive rental and sales figures could boost those chances significantly. So if you happen to be a fan of Alita: Battle Angel, or have been curious to see what the fuss is all about, these details will help you become battle ready for the home video release of this imaginative epic of future combat.

Alita: Battle Angel will be on Digital HD on July 9, with 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD releases all rolling out on July 23.

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J.K. Rowling Went Into More Detail About Dumbledore And Grindelwald’s Relationship

J.K. Rowling Went Into More Detail About Dumbledore And Grindelwald’s Relationship

The Harry Potter novel and film franchises might have ended years ago, but J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World has continued expanding. This has been done through Pottermore, the Cursed Child plays, as well as the Fantastic Beasts movies. Rowling has planned five prequel movies, which should help illuminate the world Harry and his friends occupied in the original series.

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald had a ton more connections to the Harry Potter franchise, with the inclusion of Mcgonagall, Nagini, and Jude Law's younger Albus Dumbledore. J.K. Rowling has previously discussed the complicated relationship that Dumbledore shares with Johnny Depp's villain Grindelwald, which is at least partly romantic in nature. Now Rowling has expanded her thoughts on this love/hate dynamic, saying:

Their relationship was incredibly intense. It was passionate, and it was a love relationship. But as happens in any relationship, gay or straight or whatever label we want to put on it, one never knows really what the other person is feeling. You can’t know, you can believe you know. So I’m less interested in the sexual side – though I believe there is a sexual dimension to this relationship – than I am in the sense of the emotions they felt for each other, which ultimately is the most fascinating thing about all human relationships.

It looks like there's a lot left to unpack regarding Dumbledore and Grindelwald. As such, we should expect this to be a major part of the narrative as the Fantastic Beasts franchise continues on. After all, they didn't even share a scene in The Crimes of Grindelwald.

J.K. Rowling's new comments come from the special feature of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (via Radio Times). Rowling has been known to be more open and vocal about the denizens of the Wizarding World after movies are already released, expanding the universe even if not every scene makes it to the big screen. That's also the case when it comes to the current franchise's villain, and his complicated feelings toward Albus Dumbledore.

Dumbledore's sexuality was revealed by J.K. Rowling years ago, and sent the fandom reeling. The news was met with some backlash, as his romantic life would never be seen on screen anyway. But that changed with Fantastic Beasts, as his personal life will directly affect the events of the franchise. His fallout with Grindelwald is no doubt motivating the dark wizard's evil quest, and the twist ending of Crimes of Grindelwald also revealed yet another personal Dumbledore connection.

Ezra Miller's Credence Barebone ultimately joined Queenie and the rest of Grindelwald's forces during the film's third act. What's more, Johnny Depp's villain revealed that the powerful obscurial was actually Aurelius Dumbledore, Albus' brother. Credence's phoenix seemed to prove this, and it should be fascinating to see how Grindelwald continues to manipulate the young wizard, while attacking Dumbledore.

It's currently unclear when the third Fantastic Beasts movie will arrive in theaters, but be sure to check back with CinemaBlend for the latest on the Wizarding World. What's more, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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Wait, Was Kraglin In Avengers: Endgame?

Wait, Was Kraglin In Avengers: Endgame?

Once Captain America says the words “Avengers Assemble” in Endgame’s final battle sequence, the big screen crowds with MCU characters from every corner of the universe including the Wakandans, Masters of the Mythic Arts, the Valkyrie and the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy. There’s so much happening that we certainly missed the entire roll call of Marvel characters.

In celebration of the movie’s release, Robert Downey Jr. took to Instagram to share the massive amount of people involved in the scene, with a four-photo wide group photo of the cast and crew. In the second shot, Sean Gunn is dressed in character for Guardians of the Galaxy’s Kraglin. This is awkward… was he in the movie? Take a look:

If you’re having trouble finding the fan-favorite Ravager, Sean Gunn can be seen behind and to the right of Chris Hemsworth’s Thor – just look for that braided beard. This is a bit of a surprise because Kraglin didn’t have a big moment in Endgame. Perhaps he was in the background while our eyes were focused on another dominant character and we missed him?

Just about every character showed up for the battle scene, so it’s not tough to imagine that the new leader of the Ravagers came out to assemble for battle. Fans spotted a Howard the Duck cameo during the sequence, and there were tons of unexpected MCU characters in the movie, including Robert Redford’s Alexander Pierce, Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster, Harley Keener from Iron Man 3 and Edwin Jarvis from ABC’s cancelled Agent Carter series.

Perhaps you spotted Sean Gunn’s Kraglin fighting the good fight in Endgame? According to Fandom’s MCU Wiki, the character led the Ravagers into battle through one of the portals. Kraglin certainly wasn’t in Infinity War, so the group shot had to be from Endgame.

For the finale scene, the Russos likely shot more moments including various MCU characters then what made the final cut so while Kraglin didn’t have a particularly memorable moment in Endgame, he may have still filmed one.

If Sean Gunn wasn’t donning Kraglin’s gear (with a new fin) in the picture, we could easily count him in for his work as Rocket the Racoon. While Bradley Cooper voices the furry Guardian, Gunn has played the stand-in on set since the 2014 film and did so again for Infinity War and Endgame. Since he’d be on set already for Rocket, it would be easy for him to make a quick change to Kraglin for a scene in the battle.

While now we’re second guessing Kraglin’s appearance in Avengers: Endgame, he’ll likely return to the upcoming Phase 4 film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, to be helmed by his brother James Gunn. Did you see Kraglin in Endgame? Tell us in the comments below.

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Hollywood Icon Doris Day Has Died At 97

Hollywood Icon Doris Day Has Died At 97

If you're a fan of classic Hollywood films, it's pretty safe bet that you're a fan of Doris Day. Day was one of the top box office attractions of the 1950s and 60s starring in such hits as Pillow Talk, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Move Over, Darling. Day passed away this morning at her home at the age of 97 following a brief fight with pneumonia.

Born Doris Mary Kappelhoff on April 3, 1922, Day's goal as a child was to be a dancer but a serious car accident when she was very young cut those dreams short. Instead, she turned to singing. She performed with some of the most popular bands of the 1940s and recorded several hits.

Singing success then led to screen opportunities and Day was cast in her first film, 1948's Romance on the High Seas. While she never stopped singing, releasing an album as recently as 2012, it would be her film work for which she would become best known.

Doris Day would come to be known as the "girl next door" or the "Virginal Queen." Most of her most popular film roles were romantic comedies, and while sex was always in the subtext, Day's characters always remained pure.

Doris Day starred in three such films opposite Rock Hudson, including Pillow Talk for which she would be nominated for her one Academy Award. She also starred opposite James Garner in Move Over, Darling, a 1963 comedy in which Day performed a role that had been intended for Marilyn Monroe, who died during the film's initial production under the title Something's Got To Give.

While Doris Day may have been best known for comedies, she made her share of serious drams as well and showed no less of an aptitude for them. 1951's Storm Warning dealt with the violence of the Klu Klux Klan. In 1956 she would star opposite Jimmy Stewart in Alfred Hitchcock's The Man Who Knew Too Much.

Day made her last film in 1968 and transitioned to television, where she starred in The Doris Day Show, which ran until 1973. Following her retirement from the screen, Doris Day became somewhat reclusive, dedicating her time to her passion for animals, founding the Doris Day Animal Foundation, in the 1970s. The Foundation announced her death this morning.

There was a rumor a few years back that Day might actually come out of retirement to make a movie with Clint Eastwood, but nothing ever came of it.

Doris Day outlived her only child, record producer Terry Melcher, who died of melanoma in 2004 at the age of 62.

Doris Day was the definition of a Hollywood legend. Her career spanned decades and she was always at the top of her profession. Her best performances have truly stood the test of time. Check out a great scene from Pillow Talk below.

Doris Day will truly be missed by those who knew her, even if many of us only knew her through her music and her movies.

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Detective Pikachu Has Screened, See What People Are Saying

Detective Pikachu Has Screened, See What People Are Saying

Pokemon is a worldwide phenomenon with millions of fans but up until now, fans have only seen it in an animated form. Now, the first group of people have had a chance to see the new live-action Detective Pikachu and if you thought the film looked cute, funny, and fun, based on the trailers, it seems that the first group of critics is confirming that the entire movie is that way.

Terri Schwartz at IGN says this is the perfect movie for Pokemon fans, as it is a loving recreation of the world of Pokemon, including remarkable creature designs.

I just got out of Detective Pikachu and my first thought is OMG HOW DID THEY MAKE PIKACHU SO CUTE!!! It completely nails the world of Pokémon, and just seeing their amazing live action creature designs is worth the price of admission. If you love Pokémon, you’ll love this movie.

This has to be great news for fans who have been waiting for the Pokemon franchise to receive this kind of treatment. It's probably fair to say that nobody quite expected Pokemon's first live-action movie to be inspired by the video game franchise off shoot Detective Pikachu, or that the title character would be voiced by Ryan Reynolds, but as unusual as that may have seemed, from the first trailer there was a clear charm permeating what we saw.

Collider's Dave Trumbore was also among those who got a chance to see the new film last night, and if given the chance, he's ready to move in.

Just saw Detective Pikachu here in Tokyo and, man, I wish Ryme City was a real place because I really want a Pokémon pal.

The biggest question of Detective Pikachu might be just how popular the franchise is with the general public. While a generation has grown up with the pocket monsters, it might still qualify as a niche property. Of course, if enough of those fans turn out, the movie will still be a massive hit. According to Nerds of Color, those fans will be rewarded because there is plenty of nostalgia to get them excited.

Detective Pikachu is adorably funny & takes you deep into the world of Pokemon, which every Pokemon fan will appreciate. The nostalgia is real. Detective Pikachu will have you laughing & tearing up a bit too. Ryan Reynolds & Justice Smith are golden in this.

Of course, if all you're expecting is awesome Pokemon and action, you might be surprised. It sounds like the movie also has some heart to it, as Nerdist's Dan Casey admitted to getting a little emotional at parts.

Detective Pikachu is a pure joy from start to finish. It’s a heartfelt, relentlessly charming story filled with excellent worldbuilding. Plenty of deep cuts for Pokémon fans. There must’ve been a grass-type in the theater because I got surprisingly misty-eyed in parts.

Pretty much every review from the recent Detective Pikachu event in Japan sounds pretty much the same. The Pokemon are adorable. The movie is funny. Really what else do you need? It sounds like this really is the Pokemon movie that fans have been waiting for. They don't have to wait too much longer, as Detective Pikachu hits theaters May 10.

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Why Dumbo Actually Needed A Remake

Why Dumbo Actually Needed A Remake

Disney has become fully invested in making live-action remakes of its popular animated films. In the past few years we've seen Maleficent, The Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast, and we're going to get three remakes this year alone with Dumbo, Aladdin, and The Lion King. Many have questioned why many of these movies are even being remade in the first place, considering the fact that the original films are considered classics in their own right - but if there's one Disney movie that is certainly in worthy of being remade, it's Dumbo. The original is a movie with some serious issues that need to be fixed, and a modern update is a great way to execute those changes.

There are a couple of sequences in Dumbo that simply haven't aged well. The first, you may very well be familiar with, as it has become one of the more notorious sequences in the Disney canon. Near the end of the film, when Dumbo finds himself up a tree with no memory of how he got there (because Dumbo got drunk, you see), he meets a collection of crows. The crows speak jive, and modern audiences have widely labeled them as racist caricatures. The leader of the small gang is even named Jim Crow, which... isn't great. The crows don't represent the worst we've seen from Disney, as Dumbo isn't quite on the level of Song of the South, but they do lean heavily into African-American stereotypes. That sort of thing wasn't uncommon in the 1940s, but looking back on it we can see it's wrong.

However, the crows aren't the only problematic racial element in Dumbo. Earlier in the film, we see Dumbo's circus move to a new town and begin to be constructed. This is all done to a Disney tune called the "Song of the Roustabouts." The roustabouts are singing to, and about, themselves, while putting up the circus tents. We see a change in the animation from the previous scene, which shows Dumbo and the other elephants in perfectly clear detail, to a look where the roustabouts are mostly obscured. None of them have a clear face to distinguish them as independent characters. The only thing that's clear is that they're all not white.

Beyond that, the lyrics of the "Song of the Roustabouts" are also troubling. They sing about how they are all uneducated, and that they can't read or write. They also sing about how once they get paid they'll just throw their money away, implying they wouldn't know how to do anything else. Take a listen.

However, beyond simply making a new version of Dumbo that removes these elements, there are other reasons that the Walt Disney Animated classic is a film that deserves to be remade.

Dumbo was the fourth theatrical feature released by the animation studio back in 1941, however, calling Dumbo a feature is actually being more than a little generous. The film has an official run time of only 64 minutes. It's shorter than some episodes of Game of Thrones.

The length of the film is one symptom of larger issues that Disney was facing at the time. Specifically, there was an intentional move by the studio to make Dumbo on the cheap. Since, in the case of animation, making a longer movie is simply more expensive to produce, one of the ways Dumbo was kept inexpensive was by keeping it short.

In addition to making a shorter movie, the detail work of the animation that was done clearly suffered. If you compare Dumbo to something like Pinocchio, which came before it, or Bambi, which was released after, it's clear that less detail work was done on the backgrounds and the characters, and that they don't look quite as "real" as the other animals or people in the movies Disney created in the era.

The reasons for making Dumbo cheap were simple: Walt Disney Animation Studios was in trouble. In May of 1941, 200 members of the company went on strike in an attempt to get the animators to join the Screen Cartoonists Guild. The strike lasted for nine weeks, during what would have been a prime period of work on Dumbo.

Beyond that, there were other issues. The studio's previous theatrical release, Fantasia, had bombed. This was largely due to the fact that with the start of World War II Disney movies were not seeing wide release overseas. Europe was pretty much entirely closed off, and since countries like England had been a big part of Disney's success with other films, the end of that market hit the company hard.

As such, the Disney studio had begun to make a hard turn toward creating other types of films. Even before Dumbo hit theaters Disney had been commissioned to make short film to promote the sale of Canadian War Bonds and instructional videos on aircraft construction. A large part of what the studio produced in the early 1940s were training films for military use and propaganda shorts. The U.S. would enter the war officially only a couple of months after Dumbo hit theaters and from that point until the end of the war the studio was largely focused on the war effort. The studio itself was commandeered by the U.S. Army and soundstages were used to repair military equipment.

The simple fact is that Disney wasn't able to give Dumbo the attention it deserved during its creation. You can tell that the movie is far too short considering the movie ends at the point where most films would just be getting started. The resolution between "Dumbo learns he can fly" and "Dumbo becomes the star of the circus and everybody lives happily ever after" happens within only a couple of minutes.

And Dumbo is a story worth telling right. When I watched every animated Disney movie a couple years ago in chronological order, Dumbo was the first one to make me want to tear up. The "Baby Mine" sequence is beautiful, but it's one moment a story that otherwise feels like it was put together in much more haphazard fashion. It's clear from the trailers that there's a lot more going on in this new version and that, at least in theory, is a good call.

There's certainly an argument to be made that not every animated Disney movie needs a remake. Just what did the live-action Beauty and the Beast really add to the story? However, if there's a Disney movie that could truly benefit from a remake, it's Dumbo. Now I just hope it's actually good.

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What We Want To See From The Star Wars: Episode IX Trailer

What We Want To See From The Star Wars: Episode IX Trailer

It has been roughly 1 year and 4 months since Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the last film in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, hit theaters. In all that time we have yet to see so much as a single frame from the next and final film in the trilogy, J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode IX. Fortunately, that long wait will soon be at an end.

Star Wars Celebration begins this week in Chicago, and with a Star Wars: Episode IX panel featuring director J.J. Abrams and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy scheduled for Friday, April 12, the prevailing wisdom and expectation is that is when we will finally get the trailer for the film. A trailer for a new Star Wars film would be eagerly anticipated regardless, but this one has even more riding on it.

This trailer, which is for the final movie in the Skywalker Saga, comes after the bumpy patch of Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Solo: A Star Wars Story. Those factors mean that this trailer has to deliver. So what do we want from the Star Wars: Episode IX trailer to make it worth the wait? Here are a few things we’d like to see.

A Title

This one is obvious and pretty much a given (how weird would it be if we got a trailer but no full title?) but that doesn’t diminish the fact that we want to know what this movie is called. This will be the latest we have found out the title of any movie in the Sequel Trilogy and while the title doesn’t matter insofar as the quality of the film is concerned, on a macro level, it is important. This is the end of the Skywalker Saga and an over 40-year journey, the concluding chapter title is more than a point of speculation. It should have weight and meaning and sound cool.

In our long wait for the title reveal, there have been a ton of rumored and potential contenders thrown out there, from Son of Darkness and The New Order to Balance of the Force and Skywalkers. We’ll soon find out if any of these guesses were right. I expect that this title reveal will be done as it was for Avengers 4, with the title being revealed at the end of the trailer. If it’s a banger, it will be a heck of a way to close out the first trailer for Star Wars: Episode IX and send fans into a frenzy.

The Knights Of Ren

Glimpsed in the first full trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Rey’s lightsaber vision in the film) and talked about in both Episode VII and Episode VIII, we still have yet to see the enigmatic Knights of Ren in person in the sequel trilogy. Rumors have indicated that Kylo Ren’s coterie of force-wielders will finally show up in Star Wars: Episode IX and if that’s true, they need to be in the trailer.

At this point, the villains are just Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, General Hux, and a bunch of faceless First Order soldiers. The Star Wars: Episode IX trailer could up the stakes and the threat level in a major way by giving us a group of badass darksiders showcasing some serious skills and powers or doing something menacing. J.J. Abrams introduced the idea of the Knights of Ren all the way back in 2015’s The Force Awakens, its time to finally deliver and that should happen starting with the Episode IX trailer.

The Original Trilogy Characters

In the official Star Wars: Episode IX casting announcement, Lucasfilm let us know that Mark Hamill would be reprising his role as Luke Skywalker, Billy Dee Williams would be returning to the franchise as Lando Calrissian, and the late Carrie Fisher would appear as Leia Organa thanks to unused footage from the previous two films. Although the focus of this film will likely be on the new characters like Rey, Finn, and Kylo, the trailer for Episode IX, the end of the Skywalker Saga, should honor its history by showing these Original Trilogy characters.

Lucasfilm made the bold decision to reveal that Luke Skywalker would be back (in some form) in Episode IX, choosing not to keep it a secret despite his death in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. With Luke returning being public knowledge, we should see him in the trailer. With regards to Leia, without knowing how much footage they had to work with, I wouldn’t want too much revealed ahead of time, but just a shot or two would be enough. And Donald Glover’s Lando stole the show in the Solo trailers, and just seeing Billy Dee Williams as Lando again in the Episode IX trailer would be great.

Lightsaber Moments

There are few inventions in fiction as cool and beloved as the lightsaber, and seeing an awesome lightsaber ignite or some signature lightsaber combat is a great way to have people freaking out over a trailer. Just think back to the trailer for Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace when you saw Darth Maul whip out a double-bladed lightsaber or in the teaser for The Force Awakens when Kylo Ren pulled his jagged crossguard lightsaber. The trailer for Episode IX should have a similar ‘Holy Shit!’ lightsaber moment.

I know Rey’s/Anakin’s blue saber is/was broken and I’m not saying we need to see a new kind of lightsaber in the trailer, but it feels like we do need to see some kind of lightsaber moment that surprises you and has you pumping your fist. The Last Jedi didn’t feature any lightsaber on lightsaber battles but I hope and expect J.J. Abrams to give us plenty of that in this film. If we could see some of that in the trailer it would help get everyone back on board with this saga and hyped about this film.

The New Characters

Star Wars: Episode IX may be the last film in this trilogy and the Skywalker Saga at large, but there are still new faces that will be introduced. Richard E. Grant, Keri Russell, Dominic Monaghan, and Naomi Ackie are all joining the cast in roles that are yet to be officially revealed. There is also still something of an open question whether or not Matt Smith is in this movie. Exciting new characters interacting with our faves and doing cool things is a good way to build the hype for the film and hopefully the Episode IX trailer does just that by showing them.

That said, there is a caveat to this wish list item; if any of the new characters or their roles in the film are meant to be a surprise, like Yoda in The Last Jedi, I’m fine with omitting them from the trailer, as I don’t think any of us want major plot beats spoiled. But we should be able to see at least some of these new characters in the trailer, if only enough to whet our appetites and give us something to speculate over until December.

An Idea Of The Story

Generally speaking, I’m a huge advocate of trailers that go light on plot details and heavy on establishing the tone of a film, and while that latter part is also important, I think that the first trailer for Star Wars: Episode IX needs to really give us an idea of what the story is. This isn’t a teaser that’s arriving a year before the film releases, this is a trailer that’s giving us our first anything from this film a mere eight months before its release.

Unlike The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi didn’t leave us with a cliffhanger or a ton of huge questions in need of answering, so the story feels wide open with where it could go in Episode IX. This trailer needs to give us some idea of where it is going, what’s at stake in this film and what the characters will be up to. Obviously it will be a battle between The First Order and the Resistance, but what’s the current dynamic between those forces after the time jump? What are the characters up to and what’s going on with Kylo and Rey? Is there a new enemy or a quest that must be completed? I feel like tone alone isn’t enough; we need at least a few plot details (nothing too spoilery, of course).

These are just a few of the things that we’d like to see in the Star Wars: Episode IX trailer. The wait alone for this trailer has built up a ton of anticipation and that means expectations are sky high. This is the last time we'll ever see the first trailer from a Skywalker Saga film for the first time. That's momentous and the trailer should convey that.

Whatever it includes or doesn’t, this trailer has a lot of work to do to get everyone excited and on board for a new Star Wars film after the past two entries haven’t been universally beloved. The Episode IX trailer can do that by delivering on some of these elements, feeling epic and maybe even including a surprise or two.

Star Wars: Episode IX blasts into theaters on December 20. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule for all of this year’s biggest movies. We’ll keep you updated on all the latest Star Wars news as it drops and let us know in the comments below what you want to see in the Episode IX trailer.

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Peter Jackson Turned Down Directing Aquaman More Than Once

Peter Jackson Turned Down Directing Aquaman More Than Once

When it was originally announced that James Wan was going to direct the first ever Aquaman movie, it actually made quite a bit of sense. The filmmaker not only had some tremendous success with the making and release of Furious 7 (his debut in the blockbuster realm), but also had established a great working relationship with Warner Bros. (specifically by launching The Conjuring Universe). That in mind, it may surprise you to learn that he apparently wasn't the studio's first choice for the gig, as Peter Jackson was originally pitched on the project... not once, but twice.

This revelation comes from the latest issue of Empire, though exactly how the subject came up in conversation with the filmmaker isn't entirely clear. The director apparently was pitched on the underwater superhero adventure by Former Warner Bros CEO Kevin Tsujihara - with whom he worked on theHobbit trilogy - and an attempt was apparently made twice because the executive seemingly forgot Peter Jackson's response the first time he was asked. Said the director,

[Former Warner Bros CEO Kevin Tsujihara] said, ‘Are you a fan of Aquaman?’ I said, ‘No.’ Six months later: ‘Peter, are you a fan of Aquaman?’ I said, ’No, Kevin, I already told you this’

One can understand why Kevin Tsujihara was interested in having Peter Jackson make the Aquaman movie, given the fact that the filmmaker both has a lot of experience with giant blockbusters, and because he has a lot of ambition when it comes to the realm of visual and special effects - both of which were definitely needed in the making of the DC Extended Universe title. But apparently it just wasn't a job that appealed to Jackson, to the point where he shut down the opportunity twice.

So why did he turn down the gig? Apparently stories about costumed vigilantes just aren't really his thing - though he obviously doesn't have anything against the comic medium at large. After all, he had a major hand in developing Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn as a producer. That, however, was very much a passion project for the New Zealand-born writer/director, and he simply didn't connect with the material that inspired Aquaman in the same way. He explained,

I’m not a superhero guy. I read Tintin… Look, films are hard. I only want to make something that I have a deep passion for.

As a result, things turned out quite well for James Wan, who did connect with the adventures of Arthur Curry and made a movie that reflects that. Aquaman not only ultimately got a warm reception from critics, but now stands as the highest grossing DC Comics adaptation of all time - making more than a billion dollars at the global box office.

So if he's not making superhero movies, what is Peter Jackson doing these days? Right now we can't say with any certainty what his next narrative feature will be, but a lot of his focus and attention as of late has been in the documentary realm. Last year we saw the release of They Shall Not Grow Old, which showcases immaculately restored footage from World War I, and right now he is working on a documentary about one of the greatest and most beloved bands in rock and roll history: The Beatles.

Being big fans of Peter Jackson's work , we here at CinemaBlend will update you with all the latest news about his developing projects - and also deliver the latest about what's happening with Aquaman on the big screen. So stay tuned!

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What Excites X-Men Producer Hutch Parker The Most About The Team’s Move To Marvel

What Excites X-Men Producer Hutch Parker The Most About The Team’s Move To Marvel

Although The New Mutants is still set to be the last X-Men franchise movie released that was given the green light when 20th Century Fox was still its own studio, Dark Phoenix will be the last installment of the main X-Men film series. Now that the X-Men and the Fantastic Four are at Marvel Studios, it’s expected that somewhere down the line, these properties will be rebooted to fit within the Marvel Cinematic Universe continuity.

Hutch Parker, who’s been a producer on the X-Men franchise ever since 2013’s The Wolverine, is excited to see these mutant heroes and villains operate in the MCU because it allows new filmmakers tot put their own stamp on their characters. As Parker told CinemaBlend’s own Sean O’Connell during the press junket for Dark Phoenix:

[Marvel Studios is] incredibly gifted and they’ve done great work. And to see their interpretation of these characters, part of the fun of doing the X-Men movies has been seeing different filmmakers’ takes on these characters, and that’s the opportunity we going to see with Marvel, is to see their take on what they would do with these characters, and I can’t wait to see.

No doubt a lot of superhero movie fans share that sentiment, and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has made it clear that the X-Men will eventually be utilized within the MCU, though that won’t happen for a long time. Nevertheless, Hutch Parker acknowledged that Marvel has delivered a lot of great content over the years, and he’s eager for new creative minds to step in and adapt the X-Men in ways that are different from what we’ve seen in the Fox era.

As far as the main X-Men film series is concerned, half of it has been directed by the same man: Bryan Singer, who kicked off the franchise in 2000 and ended his run with X-Men: Apocalypse in 2016. Brett Ratner directed X-Men: The Last Stand, Matthew Vaughn directed X-Men: First Class (he was going to stick around for X-Men: Days of Future Past, but he left to work on Kingsman: The Secret Service) and Simon Kinberg, who’s been attached to the franchise since The Last Stand, is making his directorial debut with Dark Phoenix.

However, movies like Deadpool and Logan showed that you can deliver X-Men-related movies that feel neither like the main X-Men entries or ‘regular’ superhero movies. With this genre’s popularity showing no signs of dying down, it’s become more important for these kind of movies to try to stand out, particularly when it comes to tone, and the X-Men franchise was getting a good handle on that.

There were a number of X-Men spinoffs in development before Fox was purchased by Disney, such as Gambit, X-Force and X-23, but aside from Ryan Reynolds being kept around as Deadpool, it looks like Marvel will be starting from scratch on the X-Men mythos. So Dark Phoenix and The New Mutants mark the end of an era, but considering everything that MCU has churned out over the last 11 years, it will be interesting to see what kind of spin this franchise eventually puts on the mutants.

You can listen to Hutch Parker’s full remarks on the X-Men’s cinematic future at Marvel in the video below.

As for Dark Phoenix, it picks up nearly a decade after the events of X-Men: Apocalypse and sees Jean Grey being corrupted and turned into the movie’s namesake. It remains to be seen if audiences will be more impressed with this adaptation of The Dark Phoenix Saga than they were with the first one, X-Men: The Last Stand, but commercially speaking, it’s looking to come in second place at the box office this weekend, trailing behind The Secret Life of Pets 2.

Dark Phoenix opens in theaters this Friday, June 7, and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for any updates on what’s in store for the X-Men within the MCU. For now, you can look through our 2019 release schedule to learn what other movies are coming out later this year.

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In Just 10 Days, John Wick Chapter 3 Is Already The Biggest Winner In The Franchise

In Just 10 Days, John Wick Chapter 3 Is Already The Biggest Winner In The Franchise

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum had a lot of buzz going into its opening weekend. It was one of the first big releases after Avengers: Endgame started its juggernaut run (Detective Pikachu was the other), and it was the third movie in an already-popular franchise. It was also the first major R-rated action release in a while (unless you're counting that one scene in Long Shot) at the time it hit theaters.

Needless to say, we thought it would have a good run.

However, I’m not sure I realized John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum would have the incredible run it’s actually managed so far. In just 10 days, the movie has made just under $101 million domestically. Worldwide, the number is heftier, as Chapter 3 has brought in $175 million.

Those totals may not be impressive standing up next to a movie like Avengers: Endgame, but they are bests for the franchise, both domestically and worldwide, particularly given the third movie was estimated to have a budget of only $75 million. It's also cool that domestically the movie is the first in the franchise to make over $100 million domestically, a cool milestone we touched on earlier this weekend.

OK, so hitting franchise-best numbers is not that much of a surprise. John Wick: Chapter 2 did better than the first movie and as the franchise is still popular, it stands to reason the next one would do well --and likely better -- too. Still, hitting a franchise best in 10 days is incredibly shocking, wonderful and noteworthy.

It also means the ultimate total box office for John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum should be far and away the best of the franchise and not just a little bit bigger than its predecessors. Although the movie will face other big competition at the box office heading into this weekend, which sees Rocketman and monster-hit-of-the-summer Godzilla: King of the Monsters hit theaters, the movie has made plenty of money so far and that number will only grow in the weeks to come. With the added competition, it will be interesting to see what John Wick 3's final total ends up being.

Even better news? John Wick: Chapter 4 has already been greenlighted by Summit Entertainment and Lionsgate and has been given a 2021 release date. Director Chad Stahelski has also said he’d be happy to continue making John Wick-based movies until the end of his career, noting,

Keanu and I have ideas for days. It’s a fun world. I could live here for the rest of my career. If people like it and want to watch more, I could think of way worse ways to spend your career.

So, if the numbers keep steadily improving or even looking as good as they do now, we could expect quite a few more John Wick movies in the future.

For now, you can catch John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum in theaters and keep an eye on CinemaBlend’s release schedule to see what competition the action flick has coming up. Meanwhile, should John Wick officially retire after Chapter 4?

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Space Jam 2 Just Added A Star Trek: Discovery Star

Space Jam 2 Just Added A Star Trek: Discovery Star

In the last 10 years, Sonequa Martin-Green has done a fantastic job making a name for herself on the small screen. Her run started with a multi-episode run on Army Wives, but in the years since has played significant roles on The Good Wife, NYC 22, Once Upon A Time, The Walking Dead, and most recently Star Trek Discovery. She has done some film work as well, but nothing that compares to the project for which she is now signing up: Space Jam 2.

After years of being stuck in development, the LeBron James-starring sequel finally started turning its gears earlier this year, and now Variety is reporting that Sonequa Martin-Green is now in negotiations for a key role. Specifically, the actress will be playing James’ wife in the movie - though it's not entirely clear how that will rope her into the larger plot... mostly because we don't really know much about the larger plot. It's also worth noting that the NBA star is married in real life to his high school sweetheart Savannah James, but it's unclear if Martin-Green will be playing her, or an entirely original character.

When it comes to the plot of the movie, we know that Looney Tunes characters will be teaming up with basketball players again, but everything beyond that is basically a mystery. A teaser poster has revealed that the live-action/animated hybrid blockbuster will headline both Bugs and Lola Bunny - the latter having been first introduced in the 1996 original.

Production on Space Jam 2 is scheduled to start up this summer, with Terence Nance attached to make the movie as his second feature after the 2012 animated indie An Oversimplification of Her Beauty. More recently Nance has also been making a name for himself on television, as he is the creator of the HBO series Random Acts of Flyness. In addition to LeBron James and his partner Maverick Carter producing through their SpringHill Entertainment label, Ryan Coogler is also backing the film.

Although cameras will be rolling on Space Jam 2 in just a couple months, those excited to see it will have to exercise a bit of patience. As is the case with all animated material, Warner Bros. is going to need a little time to get the film done even after all of the live-action material is shot and cut together. Because of this, the anticipated follow-up won't be heading to theaters until July 16, 2021.

That being said, we're surely going to be getting a lot more details about the project in the coming weeks and months, as there are going to presumably be a lot more people in this film beyond just LeBron James and Sonequa Martin-Green. We'll keep you updated with all of the latest casting news from Space Jam 2, and, as always, you can check out our 2019 Movie Release Calendar to see all of the movies that actually will be hitting screens near you soon.

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Netflix's Unicorn Store Trailer Gives Brie Larson And Samuel L. Jackson A New Mission

Netflix's Unicorn Store Trailer Gives Brie Larson And Samuel L. Jackson A New Mission

Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson clearly had a great time making Captain Marvel, and they are back for a very different movie in Unicorn Store. Larson not only stars in the comedy, she also directed and produced it. In the Netflix film -- which starts streaming April 5, the same day Shazam! hits theaters -- a woman named Kit receives a mysterious invitation that would fulfill her childhood dreams. Samuel L. Jackson's character, The Salesman, invites her to The Store, a place that sells "what you need." To Kit, that's a unicorn. Check out the trailer:

Unicorn Store kind of has a Willy Wonka/Stephen King's Needful Things vibe about it, at least from the trailer. It also stars Joan Cusack, Bradley Whitford, Karan Soni, Mamoudou Athie, Mary Holland, and Hamish Linklater.

Unicorn Store marks Brie Larson's feature film directorial debut. The comedy actually filmed in late 2016, before Captain Marvel, and screened at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2017. It's probably getting a prominent release now on Netflix because of that soon-to-be-billion-dollar movie starring both Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson.

Brie Larson shot to worldwide fame as Captain Marvel, who is about to lead the MCU, but she got the role hot off her Best Actress Oscar for Room. And some of us have loved her since she played Toni Collette's troubled teen in the Showtime series United States of Tara. This Unicorn Store role as whimsical, immature, lost soul Kit seems like a great contrast to Larson's more serious strength as Carol Danvers in the hit Marvel movie. It'll be refreshing to see her in a comedy in the middle of her back-to-back MCU movies.

Of course, fans are already having fun cracking jokes about how this movie looks like Captain Marvel on drugs, and Thanos must've really messed with reality to put Carol Danvers and Nick Fury in this unicorn movie. There are also plenty of Goose jokes, wondering where the Flerken cat might be in this movie. 'Cause it's not a true teammup without the real hero.

Unicorn Store, written by Samantha McIntyre, currently has a 68% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but that's just from 19 reviews. Fans can judge the movie for themselves when it streams April 5. Here are more movies headed to Netflix in April, and don't forget all of the incredible movies headed to theaters in April, like another one starring Brie Larson called Avengers: Endgame.

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Shazam! Director Points Out A Joker Easter Egg Some Fans Missed

Shazam! Director Points Out A Joker Easter Egg Some Fans Missed

Shazam! just topped the box office for a second week in a row. How many of this weekend's fans were repeat viewers, watching a second or even third time to try and catch all of the Easter eggs? Director David F. Sandberg is doing his part to get even more fans into seats to see the DC movie. When a fan pointed out a key little nugget in the background of a scene, Sandberg shared it as an argument for people to go back and watch Shazam! again:

Since David F. Sandberg seemed fine with this fan sharing a screenshot of his movie, here's a larger shot of the Easter egg in question, visible in the top right corner:

Yes, that ACE Chemicals logo ties to the Gotham storyline, specifically the Joker. According to the DC story, the Joker fell into a vat of chemical solution at ACE and transformed into the villain we know and love to hate today.

The ACE logo was shown during Shazam!'s warehouse scene, when Billy and Freddy tried to figure out the extent of Billy's new powers. Some fans replied to the original tweet saying they missed this particular Easter egg when watching the movie.

Another tie to the DCEU is where the empty warehouse was filmed. According to ScreenRant, they used the Hearn Generating Station outside of Toronto -- the same location used for ACE Chemicals during Suicide Squad.

Since David F. Sandberg pointed out the Easter egg himself, he probably hoped some fans would put the pieces together, even if it took multiple viewings. The director has been sharing little Easter eggs for the past year, long before the movie even opened -- including nods to Man of Steel, and a copy of The Daily Planet in Freddy's room, with a report on Lex Luthor.

As you probably know by now, Shazam! had originally hoped for a cameo from the DCEU's current Superman, Henry Cavill, but scheduling issues got in the way. Shazam! still managed to include a version of its intended scene, in honor of superhero-obsessed Freddy. You might consider the Shazam! director's own cameo in the movie an Easter egg, since it's not at all obvious.

Shazam! is a movie that lends itself to repeat viewing, and also post-viewing research. For example, here's some help deciphering the end credits scene. And don't forget how all of this ties into Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Black Adam movie, which he said would start filming in about a year. The producers said they will probably move pretty quickly on a sequel to Shazam! and not just because of fan demand.

Shazam! is owning April so far, but don't forget (as if you would) Avengers: Endgame is coming April 26. Keep up with everything headed to the big screen with our 2019 movie release date schedule.

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The Marvel Cameos We Never Expected to See in Avengers: Endgame

The Marvel Cameos We Never Expected to See in Avengers: Endgame

Warning: Spoilers for Marvel's latest are in play. If you haven’t seen the film yet, use the Time Stone to rewind and see the film before reading this piece. And if you have seen the film, please make sure not to spoil the Endgame for those who haven’t made it out yet.

Amidst all of the madness, time travel, and heroic sacrifice that makes Avengers: Endgame this year's blockbuster to beat, there are a lot of surprising faces that made their way back into frame in the MCU. Much like Red Skull’s return to the fold in Avengers: Infinity War, there are some head-turning cameos that we, quite frankly, never saw coming.

Which is why we’re providing this list of the cameos from Avengers: Endgame so insanely out of left field, they made us smile after pulling a double take. There’s even one that’s so surprising, we had to see the film again to make sure we’d seen what we thought we saw. How surprised were you when you saw the following faces make their appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s latest megahit?

Korg And Miek

It’s not that Thor: Ragnarok’s twin comic reliefs were unwelcomed in Avengers: Endgame, as both Korg and Miek were welcome additions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But at the same time, we really didn’t expect to see them on Earth, or even in a film for that matter, as their fate weren’t exactly clear after the Asgardian wreck we saw at the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War.

But thankfully, when Thor was revealed to be in New Asgard, acting like Norse Mythology’s answer to The Dude, Korg and Miek (and Valkyrie) were there to help lighten the mood. Though Korg may have been going a little too far calling Thor in to shout down Fortnite user N00bKiller69. That’s what the dabbing emoji is for, Korg.

Alexander Pierce

When you have a villain like Alexander Pierce make such a big impact in the world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you kind of never expect them to rear their heads again; despite the fact that we really wanted him to. But the fact that said Captain America: The Winter Soldier baddie was played by esteemed actor Robert Redford had us severely convinced that he’d never pop up in future films. And yet, here we are.

During the big time heist at the center of Avengers: Endgame, we’re treated to one mass cluster of cameos as the Battle of New York winds down, and one of them happens to be Pierce who was on hand to recover the Tesseract and Loki’s scepter when it all went down. Add some comedic confusion, and a little bit of bureaucratic dancing, and you’ve got a pretty hilarious return to the screen. Of course, he wasn’t the only dirty S.H.I.E.L.D. operative on hand that day.

Brock Rumlow and the S.H.I.E.L.D. Strike Team

Going back to Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the infamous elevator fight scene is one of the most iconic moments that ever took place in the action-packed world of the MCU. Captain America taking on an enclosed room full of opponents, including Brock Rumlow (aka Crossbones) was pretty damned impressive, and made a mark in such an early phase of the universe’s development.

Which means that when that exact same strike team gets walked in on by Cap during the retrieval of the Tesseract and the scepter in Avengers: Endgame, a lot of people thought a rematch would be in order. And yet, being the good time traveler that he was, Steve Rogers conned that entire group to make the hand off with two words: “Hail Hydra.”

Agent Jasper Sitwell

Naturally, you can’t have a HYDRA reunion from Captain America: The Winter Soldier without including some more of the bureaucratic faces that weren’t named Alexander Pierce in the proceedings. The Battle of New York was a large enough happening that a lot of S.H.I.E.L.D. movers and shakers were present, so obviously seeing someone like Agent Jasper Sitwell popping in to help wasn’t a total surprise.

But at the same time, much like that surprise panning shot of Brock Rumlow getting off the elevator, we didn’t see Jasper’s return to the fold coming. All told, the huge reunion of traitors to S.H.I.E.L.D. made our timeline’s Steve Rogers’ job a lot harder, and made our enjoyment of his actual triumph all the more hysterical. Seriously, getting him to pretend to be HYDRA in front of those guys checked a lot of boxes.

Frigga

One of the most bittersweet cameos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was that of Thor’s dearly departed mother, Frigga. Played by Rene Russo in both Thor and Thor: The Dark World, the kindly queen of Asgard was sadly taken during an enemy assault on Asgard in the latter film’s crucial moments. But since those moments were on the list of events to burgle through time, they were slightly altered.

That alteration included a moment where a much bigger Thor spoke with his mother, who clearly saw that not all was well with her son. But on top of that, Frigga knew that the future would hold her death, and warned her son to let it happen as intended. It added an emotional beat for Thor’s story, and gave us a little more time with a character that definitely deserved the screen time.

Jane Foster

Yes, this one seemed pretty much like it happened merely through the magic of digital footage, but we actually saw Jane Foster appear in Avengers: Endgame through the time heist’s segment taking place during the events of Thor: The Dark World. It was still quite a bit of surprise seeing Natalie Portman’s face show up in a Marvel movie again.

While Jane really didn’t do anything or get many lines, we still saw her carrying the essence of the Aether in her, which counted for the Reality Stone in need of heisting. Something Rocket Raccoon did off screen, with an extractor. Seeing as Portman and Marvel aren’t as at odds as they used to be, what with her presence at the Hollywood premiere for Avengers: Endgame, this kind of feels like a proper burying of the hatchet. Not to mention, it’s a key to closing off Thor’s story in the event he doesn’t return to theater screens.

Howard Stark

While Hank Pym’s cameo in Avengers: Endgame wasn’t exactly under the circumstances people predicted it would be, Pym still showed up. And with his return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe fold, it was decided that another very important figure in the world of MCU science show up for some closure: huge industrialist and father of Tony, Howard Stark. During a time travel mission to 1970, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers try to steal the Tessaract out of that point in space time, leaving them both very important pieces in the same objective.

While Tony steals the actual Infinity Stone itself, he runs into his own father, expecting his infant self to be born any day now. After a talk about having kids, and the excitement and terror that follows, Howard says goodbye to the man he thinks is named “Howard Potts,” and starts to ask some serious questions about why that man looks familiar.

Edwin Jarvis

History was made with a very important cameo that was not only a surprise, it was the first time a character specifically created for Marvel’s TV shows came into the cinematic world. Edwin Jarvis, Howard Stark and Peggy Carter’s loyal friend and often co-conspirator, was seen for the first time since Agent Carter went off the air, and he was seen with Howard Stark.

In the record-breaking hit of this past weekend, Jarvis pops up as Howard is about to climb into his car to leave Camp Lehigh, wondering where he’s seen the man he’s been chatting with for several minutes of Avengers: Endgame’s runtime. Jarvis hasn’t a clue, but we already know that Howard was really talking to his own son. So it’s nice to see Edwin, possibly for the last time, doing what he does best: being as helpful as possible.

Howard The Duck

Now here’s a cameo audiences had to look really closely for, as somehow, Howard The Duck joined the battle for good in Avengers: Endgame in a small, but still pretty awesome manner. Basically, while he hasn’t shown up since Guardians of the Galaxy’s end credits stinger, Howard was seen in Endgame’s climactic battle in the third act.

There are specific directions as to where you could find him in the film, but it’s pretty much a given. This basically confirms that everyone we ever wanted to see from the MCU appears in Endgame. The Bingo card is full. Except Darcy. Poor Darcy.

Harley Keener

Quite possibly the deepest cut when it comes to Marvel Cinematic Universe cameos, Tony Stark’s funeral saw a nearly unrecognizable young man standing among the ranks of the mourning. While thoughts may have turned to questioning if some new character was joining the MCU in a sneaky cameo, it was actually a heartbreaking callback.

Harley Keener, the young man Tony befriended and gifted an entire lab to in Iron Man 3, was standing at the lakeside ceremony that saw the dearly departed Avenger honored with a weep worthy sendoff. Whether it be a hint that maybe someone else could take up the mantle of Iron Man in the future, or just someone who Tony happened to touch paying his respects, it snuck up on audiences and is just now nailing in that last bit of heartbreak into the total package.

While Marvel cameos have been a pretty recurring thread through the MCU, these particular appearances made Endgame stand out even more above the films that had preceded it. We may never even see this big of a happening in the history of Marvel Studios again, so it’s even more of a feat to behold while we can.

Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now, making one hell of a racket towards possibly becoming the biggest movie in history. We’ll see if it can go the distance, but we’d like to think that it can be done.

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No, Avengers: Endgame Doesn't Need An Intermission

No, Avengers: Endgame Doesn't Need An Intermission

How hotly awaited is Avengers: Endgame? Well, it's the only film I can remember in recent memory where the unveiling of the running time has been a cultural event. That revelation happened this morning, as it was noted that the end of the arc now known as The Infinity Saga is going to run three hours and two minutes. But even in the hyping of that eventual revelation, there was a somewhat common thread that kept cropping up in commentary about the film's impending release: the demand for an intermission to run somewhere during the film. I think that's a bad idea.

While intermissions have been used for epic event movies in the past, and even most recently in The Hateful Eight's roadshow edition, it's a practice that isn't used too often. Quite frankly, the outcry for an intermission in Avengers: Endgame's theatrical exhibition is rather weird, and I don't think it's a requirement for enjoyment of the film. In fact, I firmly believe that to put a useless intermission in Avengers: Endgame is to ruin the experience of how the film will play out.

Let's jump back quickly to a film that will probably be cited quite often during this piece, which is Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight. Running at a brisk two hours and 48 minutes in its standard version, there was a 70mm “Roadshow” version that QT put out with a slightly longer running time of three hours and two minutes. Yes, that's exactly the same running time as Avengers: Endgame; however, there's a big difference between these two cases of exactly the same length – and it's all in the storytelling.

While The Hateful Eight runs the same length as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's big tentpole title, that film's use of an intermission was baked in from day one. The film was written in a style that sort of mimics a stage play, and even in how the overture and intermission are presented, it feels like a crucial part of the experience. You leave the story at the right moment, only to pick up at a time that feels like a natural place to pick back up after a short interval.

It's highly doubtful that the Russo Brothers, and their Avengers: Endgame writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, have written an intermission into the tale that will be told on the big screen this April. So including one randomly, without any particular story reason, just doesn't feel like a good idea. What it does feel like is an extended commercial break that would step on the pacing, and make the entire film feel disjointed. If an intermission was absolutely crucial to the enjoyment of Avengers: Endgame, it would have been better to hear about it sooner than a month before the film's release date.

Originally, intermissions were meant to give the theatrical projection equipment a break, either because the film was a truly epic in its length or because it was in the early days of 3D where twin film projectors were being used. While seeing something like Lawrence of Arabia, It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, or The Sound of Music in your local movie theater required a break in the extended action, it also helped that those films were of the proper length and structure in order to use an intermission to their advantage.

Then, as the intermission began to be removed from theatrical releases, films learned to get along without having to use them. The Godfather trilogy, and even The Lord of The Rings trilogy never ran with an intermission in their over three-hour running times; and those were films dense enough that they could possibly have used such a break. Yet, audiences were able to enjoy them without such an interruption, because they evolved with the disappearance of the practice.

Plus, the greatest argument against an intermission in Avengers: Endgame is rooted right in the very aspect where the demand for one started: its running time. Consider this: Avengers: Infinity War ran for 2 hours and 29 minutes when it hit theaters last May. As we learned today, Avengers: Endgame is clocking in at 3 hours and 2 minutes of emotional sobbing/ass-kicking action. Comparing the runtimes between the two films, that's only a 33 minutes increase in showtime that folks will need to be in their seats for. Right now, I don't feel that's nearly enough to warrant an intermission in this scenario.

Now if you were to run Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame back-to-back in a seamless, almost six-hour mega epic, that's a situation that most definitely would call for a break in the middle. In fact, you could probably run that event for the first week, and people would volunteer in a heartbeat to witness it. But Endgame as a solo film is an occasion that just doesn't require a short five-minute suspension of plot and action in order for the audience to either take a break or decompress from what they've seen. Again, unless the inclusion of an intermission is organically written into Avengers: Endgame's story, I don't believe throwing one in for the sake of having one isn't going to do the audience any favors.

We are currently in a culture that binge-watches shows and movies for hours on end without getting up, even while being in the comfort of our own homes and able to pause on demand. Also, moviegoers have gotten used to grand spectacles that run without intermissions, and at lengths longer or similar to what Avengers: Endgame will be approaching. So, the sudden demand for one into this latest Marvel Cinematic Universe product is rather surprising, and at least in my eyes, a frivolous demand.

But, of course, should the public raise enough of a demand for such a device's inclusion, it may possibly find its way into the film somehow. In which case, I politely suggest that the intermission be placed before any hypothetically gigantic 40-minute sequence where every Avenger runs Thanos into their own individual car of the collective pain train. If there's any moment that requires preparing one's body, soul, and snack supply for the show stopping action this film is promising, then that would undoubtedly be it.

Avengers:Endgame will do whatever it takes to close out The Infinity Saga on April 26th.

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