This Week In Movie News - 2/2/2018

Here's your weekly round-up of the latest movie news, where this week we discuss: Cloverfield 3 moving to Netflix, Captain Marvel's suit reveal, Call Me by Your Name 2, Steven Spielberg's next big project, the Black Panther backlash, the Super Mario Bros film, and Chris Pratt's Cowboy Ninja Viking. Once you've had a look at what's been going on, let us know your thoughts on these stories in the comments below.

CLOVERFIELD 3 GOING TO NETFLIX?

The first story of the week concerns the third film in the Cloverfield series, where new Paramount chairman Jim Gianopulus is reportedly in talks to sell the film's distribution rights to the streaming giant Netflix. This comes after he sold 'Annihilation,' in the same way last year, and overall the move signifies a stripping​ down of their smaller theatrical release schedule in favour of streaming services.

'#Cloverfield 3,' (or 'Cloverfield Station (2018)' or 'God Particle,' as it is also known) is directed by Julius Onah and stars Daniel Brühl, Elizabeth Debicki, David Oyelowo, and #, and was initially slated to have an April 2018 release date. This may still be the case whether a deal is reached with Netflix or not, but the interesting point about this is how Paramount are looking to put their smaller films straight onto streaming services, which again opens up the debate as to when theatrical releases are necessary and whether cinema will suffer as a result of this kind of change.

What do you think? Would you be disappointed by 'Cloverfield 3,' not getting a release in cinemas? Let us know in the comments below.

CAPTAIN MARVEL SUIT REVEALED

The second story of the week is one that sparked lots of discussion, as the first real look at Captain Marvel's costume dropped thanks to a photo from the set of 2019's 'Captain Marvel (2019).' Largely though, fans were surprised by what they saw, as unlike the classic blue and red colors that many were expecting, the suit is mostly a light green.

This got many people very concerned, but in reality this reveal is either a sign that the suit will be digitally enhanced in post production, or most likely that she will don the classic costume at some other point later in the film. Marvel Studios' 'Captain Marvel,' will be the twenty-first film in the MCU and will see Brie Larson as the iconic titular hero in action for the first time. It is directed by TV-directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck and will also star Ben Mendelsohn, Jude Law and Samuel L. Jackson, and will be released 6th March 2019 between 'Avengers: Infinity War,' and 'Avengers 4.'

What are your thoughts on the costume? Let us know in the comments below.

CALL ME BY YOUR NAME 2 DETAILS ANNOUNCED

At the end of last year, 'Call Me by Your Name (2017),' director Luca Guadagnino hinted at plans for a sequel to his oscar-nominated film, and this week he spoke to The Hollywood Reporter in more detail about what might be in store. In an interview he said he'd like to focus on the AIDS epidemic that was prevalent at the time in which the first film is set, and that he would like Elio (Timothee Chalamet) to open the movie "in a theater watching Paul Vecchiali's 'Once More.'"

This 1988 movie was the first French film to deal with the subject, and in the book on which 'Call Me by Your Name,' is based, the future years of Elio and Oliver's lifes are discussed, so it could be a brilliant opportunity to delve into this subject within modern cinema.

Guadagino went on to say that "if the first one is a story of coming of age and becoming a young man, maybe the next chapter will be, what is the position of the young man in the world, what does he want — and what is left a few years later of such an emotional punch that made him who he is?"

Do you like the idea of a 'Call Me by Your Name,' sequel? Let us know in the comments below.

SPIELBERG DECIDES ON NEXT PROJECT

Next up, the legendary director Steven Spielberg recently put out a surprise casting call for a remake of 'West Side Story,' after finally acquiring the rights to the film, which got many fans concerned that this would clash with his 2020 'Indiana Jones,' project. Worries of him delaying that in favor of something he's been wanting for ages were quickly put to bed however, as it was announced that he'd be making 'Indiana Jones 5,' before 'West Side Story,' but that he was still casting the leads for the latter project now so that they could get it right.

The news about 'West Side Story,' is still very significant regardless, as it will not only be the first time the 71-year old filmmaker has made a musical, but the casting call also suggests that he'll be choosing authentically with the ethnicity of the written characters, as the lead role of Maria and many others have thankfully been advertised to 'Latina actors who can sing and speak Spanish.'

The next project he'll be fully sinking his teeth into however will indeed be Lucasfilm's 'Indiana Jones 5,' where we will see Harrison Ford reprise his titular role with George Lucas producing and John Williams writing the score. Also, with the oscar-nominated 'The Post,' out in theatres now and his almost-complete 'Ready Player One,' coming soon, this is as busy a time as any for Spielberg, and it's great to see him continuing to work hard to deliver more entertaining films for us to enjoy and engage with.

What are your thoughts on the prospect of his 'West Side Story,' remake? Let us know in the comments below.

BLACK PANTHER

The next story to grace us with its presence this week was the news that a group of individuals were rallying online to bring down the 'rotten tomatoes' audience-score of Marvel Studios' upcoming 'Black Panther (2018),' citing parent-company Disney's "manipulation of the press into creating a negative buzz," for DC comics' equivalent universe as the reason. Unfortunately these unsubstantiated accusations are nothing new, as many fans have sought to find a reason that their beloved properties are being reviewed negatively by critics ever since only 27% of critics on the rotten tomatoes review aggregator liked DC's 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.'

In response to this recent development however, the website have issued a statement saying "we at Rotten Tomatoes are proud to have become a platform for passionate fans to debate and discuss entertainment and we take that responsibility seriously. While we respect our fans’ diverse opinions, we do not condone hate speech. Our team of security, network and social experts continue to closely monitor our platforms and any users who engage in such activities will be blocked from our site and their comments removed as quickly as possible." The group organising the movement have also been removed from Facebook.

What are your thoughts on this story? Let us know in the comments below.

SUPER MARIO BROS FILM ANNOUNCED

In other news this week, Nintendo have announced that they'll be developing an animated Super Mario Bros film with 'Despicable Me,' and 'The Secret Life of Pets,' creators Illumination Entertainment with Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto producing. This is very exciting for fans of the franchise as the last foray to the big screen for this famous character was in the 1993 live-action film starring Bob Hoskins, and an animated offering could really suit this franchise and make for one of the best video-game based movies in recent years.

No details have been released about plot details or anyone else involved creatively at this point, but what are your thoughts on a Super Mario Bros film? Let us know in the comments below.

CHRIS PRATT'S COWBOY NINJA VIKING FINDS DIRECTOR

The final story of the week sees Chris Pratt and Universal's 'Cowboy Ninja Viking (2019),' film find a director in the form of 'Game of Thrones,' and 'Breaking Bad's Michelle MacLaren, which has got fans of the graphic novel on which the film is to be based very excited. Yes for those who are unfamiliar with this source material, the Image Comics novel revolves around a government program to assist the war on terror which leads to a man with multiple personality disorder manifesting the skills of three different personas: a cowboy, a ninja, and a viking.

The film adaptation (which is due to be released in 2019) has been penned by Craig Mazin ('Identity Thief,' 'The Hangover Part II,') and already has Chris Pratt on board to produce and star, and getting MacLaren on board is a real win. The big question now is what kind of film they're really going for, as the novel and MacLaren are known for their seriousness, whilst having Chris Pratt involved with this writer could potentially point to something more light-hearted.

What are your thoughts on the director choice for 'Cowboy Ninja Viking,'? Let us know in the comments below.