Detective Pikachu Doesn't Actually Use A Ton Of Green Screen

Detective Pikachu Doesn't Actually Use A Ton Of Green Screen

The Pokemon franchise has experienced a resurgence of popularity in recent years comparable to its heyday in the late ‘90s and early 2000s. That’s only going to increase in the future, particularly with the Detective Pikachu movie coming out this summer. Over two decades after the world was introduced to these Pocket Monsters, they’re finally appearing in a live action movie, although the Pokemon themselves are obviously CGI creations that strike a weird balance of looking realistic and cartoonish simultaneously. As it turns out, though, even with all this VFX work, Detective Pikachu didn’t rely on green screen too much. According to star Justice Smith:

There wasn’t a lot of green screen. Our director, Rob Letterman — I’m getting better at saying last names, Rob Letterman — wanted to shoot on location as much as possible. We shot in London, and for like a week in Scotland which is like a desktop background. He had this vision to put the Pokémon up against this urban backdrop and use this gray, grainy filter. We shot on film so it gave it that natural grain.

Given how VFX-intensive making a live action Pokemon movie is, it would have been easy enough for the Detective Pikachu cast and crew to get most of their work done on green screens, similar to what the Star Wars prequels did. But no, director Rob Letterman decided to take everyone out on location frequently, resulting in much of Detective Pikachu looking less artificial. Justice Smith added that the use of film and the grainy filter made Detective Pikachu feel like a noir and that the Pokemon actually “pop more” against this realistic backdrop.

Even though the Pokemon in Detective Pikachu are put together with CGI, the crew did design incredibly detailed statues of how many of these Pokemon would look in the final cut. Continuing in his interview with Vulture, Justice Smith recalled how he reacted when he first saw these designs, saying:

When I first saw them, I freaked. The inner child in me was having a field day. They brought in a statue of Pikachu that was all covered in fur and it was soft and everything. Its nose was rubber and wet. It was so lifelike, and I was just like internally crying, because I was like, ‘This is exactly how I wanted to see them portrayed.’ It was a childhood dream come true.

Starring Justice Smith as Tim Goodman and Ryan Reynolds as the voice of the deerstalker hat-wearing, amnesia-suffering Pikachu who only Tim can understand, Detective Pikachu follows these two joining forces to find Tim’s dad, Harry, who has mysteriously disappeared. The cast also includes Kathryn Newton as Lucy Stevens, a reporter also looking into Harry’s disappearance who is accompanied by her Psyduck; Ken Watanabe as Detective Yoshida, a colleague of Harry’s who has a Snubbull; Paul Kitson as Harry and Omar Chapphro as Sebastian, a Pokemon trainer running a battle area who has a Charizard.

Detective Pikachu opens in theaters on May 10, and a sequel is already in the works. If you’re curious about what other movies are coming out this year, look through our 2019 release schedule.

The Rocketman Scene That Deeply Moves Taron Egerton When He Watches It

The Rocketman Scene That Deeply Moves Taron Egerton When He Watches It

This May, the next chapter in a recent string of high profile musical films arrives in the form of Rocketman. The film stars Taron Egerton as Elton John in a fantasy musical that chronicles the life of the international superstar. Speaking about the film recently, Taron Egerton highlighted one scene in particular that really moves him to watch: the sequence at Dodger Stadium, as he explained:

We are phenomenally proud of it. It feels weird for me to say it, and narcissistic but it moves me when I watch it.

Taron Egerton was almost bashful when he spoke about the Dodger Stadium scene to AMC Theatres. He seemed like he really wanted to talk about the sequence because he was so proud and excited about it. But he also didn’t want to be boastful or spoilery. Fully aware of how it might come off though, Egerton couldn’t help but admit that the scene at Dodger Stadium genuinely moved him.

As has been glimpsed in the trailers, one of the scenes in Rocketman shows Taron Egerton’s Elton John playing Dodger Stadium. In 1975, Elton John played two sold-out shows on back to back nights in Dodger Stadium to over 100,000 fans combined. Elton John was the first musical act to perform in the stadium since The Beatles in 1966 and these massive and historic concerts were career defining for the man born Reginald Dwight.

Taron Egerton is actually doing all of the singing as Elton John himself in Rocketman, so that must have made him especially proud of his work in the film and in this huge scene. Given the magnitude of the concert being replicated, this enthusiasm and pride is exactly what you want to hear from Taron Egerton about the Dodger Stadium scene in the movie. We want to be sitting in the audience of a theater and be moved and blown away by the spectacle, the music and the performances on display.

It’s impossible to hear Taron Egerton pump up the Dodger Stadium sequence in Rocketman and not draw comparisons to Bohemian Rhapsody and its Live Aid sequence. That film, which Rocketman director Dexter Fletcher came on to finish (although the final sequence was directed by Bryan Singer), built towards the climax of the 1985 Live Aid concert. That concert was the centerpiece of the film and even some of those that didn’t like Bohemian Rhapsody overall still found a lot to love in the thrilling concert that closed the show.

Hearing how Taron Egerton feels about the Dodger Stadium sequence in Rocketman, it’s easy to get hyped to see what he and Dexter Fletcher have put together. And unlike Bohemian Rhapsody, which some criticized for glossing over certain elements of Freddie Mercury's life, Rocketman is said to not be holding anything back. Perhaps it will capture the brilliance of the Live Aid scene while adding a little more substance in other areas.

Rocketman opens in theaters on May 31. That’s only one of the exciting movies too look forward to in the coming months, check out the rest in our 2019 release schedule.

Iron Man 3 Star Reveals What Harley Was Thinking In Avengers: Endgame Funeral Scene

Iron Man 3 Star Reveals What Harley Was Thinking In Avengers: Endgame Funeral Scene

Almost every MCU character that you can think of appears in Avengers: Endgame, and perhaps the most star-studded moment in the film is the funeral scene. Just about anybody who's anybody attends Tony Stark's funeral, but the one outlier is Harley Keener, aka The Kid From Iron Man 3. Ty Simpkins reprised his role for the scene, which was a momentous occasion for the actor, who took his real-life love of Iron Man and used it to fuel his acting.

Audience members were likely surprised to see Harley in the funeral scene, but even Ty Simpkins was surprised to get the call. He recently talked about the moment he first got wind he was in consideration to appear in Endgame, and how Iron Man meant so much to him as a kid.

I was about to do an audition and my manager at the time called me and he said they were thinking about putting me in, and I was screaming so much in the car with my mom. My mom is like, 'What? What is it?' And I just didn’t tell her because it wasn’t confirmed. I didn’t want to jinx it or anything. [...] I got the call when I was waiting to go to baseball practice that they were confirming it, and I just remember — because they told me what the scene was about — tearing up and just feeling so nostalgic about everything. ... Iron Man [was] probably one of the first movies I saw in theaters. I was 6, sat in the front row and I was just looking up, and that’s all I can remember. Iron Man was so inspirational and just meant so much to me. That’s how I felt.

Originally, The Russo Bros. were concerned about having older teen Harley appear in that scene because barely anyone in the test audiences knew who he was. However, the directors figured that easter eggs like this were half the fun of the MCU and kept Harley in the scene. That's obviously good news for Ty Simpkins. He told HuffPost what filming the scene was like and what Harley was thinking about during the funeral.

I didn’t get a script, but [the directors] came up to me and were like just think about what Tony meant to you and how he impacted your character’s life and your life. So I just thought about what I said earlier, how Iron Man is very sentimental to me and how he felt to Harley. I imagine Tony was really Harley’s only father figure and that they would’ve stayed in touch over the years. I just kind of took that sentimental part of my real life and Harley’s life into the scene.

Ty Simpkins, now 17, said he and Robert Downey Jr. have kept in touch over the years, and they texted after it was revealed that Ty would be part of Endgame, so it felt nice to be included again for RDJ's final goodbye.

Ultimately, Harley does feel like a pretty random inclusion for the scene, seeing as how he has never been mentioned once since he debuted in Iron Man 3. This has led some fans to speculate that Marvel is setting Harley up for future appearances, possibly as a new Iron Man-type hero or being in a Young Avengers-style team-up movie. Here's what Ty Simpkins had to say about that possibility:

I mean, I’d love that. I have no idea if it would happen, but I love that.

I'm not sure what the future holds for Harley in the MCU, but stick with CinemaBlend and we will keep you updated.

Detailed Photo Of Anakin’s Burn Makeup From Revenge Of The Sith Resurfaces

Detailed Photo Of Anakin’s Burn Makeup From Revenge Of The Sith Resurfaces

When Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith came out in 2005, there was one moment that a lot of Star Wars fans were looking forward to: the epic fight between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi that would result in the former being horribly injured. The end result didn’t disappoint, as in addition to most of his libs being sliced off, Anakin was burned beyond recognition. Now a photo from Revenge of the Sith’s production has resurfaced providing a closer look at Hayden Christensen wearing this burn makeup. Check it out!

Say what you will about the Star Wars prequel trilogy, but on the makeup, art design and costumes front, those movies did a tremendous job. This makeup applied to Hayden Christensen (as posted on Reddit) in particular looks good, and serves as a reminder to those in the Star Wars universe why Mustafar is not a popular vacation spot. In all seriousness though, I can’t imagine it was fun to Christensen to sit for however long it took to make him look like a burn victim, but since Anakin only appears like this for at most a couple minutes in Revenge of the Sith, at least this wasn’t something he and the makeup team had to spend an exorbitant time on during principal photography.

In case it’s been a while since you last watched Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi locked lightsaber blades on Mustafar after nearly all the Jedi in the galaxy has been killed by Order 66 and Anakin slaughtered the Separatist leadership on the lava planet. After seeing Anakin start to kill Padme Amidala with a Force choke, Obi-Wan, having snuck aboard the Naboo senator’s ship, realized that his apprentice was too far gone, and one lightsaber duel later, Ob-Wan came out victorious by finding the high ground. He believed Anakin would die from his injuries and massive burning, but because Emperor Palpatine arrived in the nick of time, Anakin was brought back to Coruscant and turned into the cybernetic Darth Vader we love and fear… more the latter.

While Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith was Hayden Christensen’s final appearance in the Star Wars franchise, within the Star Wars timeline, he’d appear once more. Starting with the 2004 DVD release of the original Star Wars trilogy, Return of the Jedi now features Christensen as Anakin Skywalker as a Force ghost alongside of the phantasmic Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda in place of the original actor, Sebastian Shaw. And just like with Shaw, Christensen’s Anakin was no longer scarred and burned, looking as he did in his prime. This is further proof that it pays to turn back to the light side of the Force at the last minute.

The Star Wars saga continues on December 20 with the release of Star Wars: Episode IX, the final chapter of the Skywalker Saga. If you’re interested in learning what other Star Wars projects are in the works, look through our handy guide.

How Detective Pikachu May Set The Stage For Major Pokemon Character Ash Ketchum

How Detective Pikachu May Set The Stage For Major Pokemon Character Ash Ketchum

Warning! The following contains spoilers for Detective Pikachu. Read at your own risk!

Detective Pikachu is a great movie, and a wonderful nostalgia trip for those who were a part of Pokemon's original run 20-plus years ago - but there are bits of the film where older fans may have been a bit out of the loop. Those only familiar with the franchise up to the 151st Pokemon may have missed some of the deep cut references to successive games, not to mention been unfamiliar with some of the new species that are prominently featured. It still makes for a fun time at the cineplex, but imagine if there was a movie that focused on the Pokemon of the late 1990s.

Not to get anyone's hopes too high, but there's a possibility something like that could happen now that the new film is a hit. You may have missed it, but Detective Pikachu has a very subtle reference to past stories that very well could tie the movie into the anime world of Pokemon and the franchise's most famous human character. To spell it all out, below you'll find the details behind the reference that some may have missed, and an exploration into how it may set the stage for a popular figure who didn't appear in the film: Ash Ketchum.

Detective Pikachu's Reference To The Pokemon Anime And Pokemon: The First Movie

Detective Pikachu does a lot to establish Rhyme City as a part of the greater Pokemon universe, and surprisingly added a bit that may tie in the movie with the actual canon of the Pokemon anime and Pokemon: The First Movie. The moment comes when Tim, Pikachu, Lucy, and Psyduck explore Clifford Industries' lab, and learn more about the mysterious origins of the Pokemon, Mewtwo.

In a bit of dialogue, it's revealed that Clifford Industries managed to catch Mewtwo after it escaped the Kanto region 20 years ago. In the Pokemon anime, Mewtwo was in the possession of Viridian City Gym Leader and leader of the Team Rocket syndicate Giovanni, who operates in the Kanto region. Giovanni used Mewtwo (who was subdued with electronics) to defeat Ash's rival Gary in a gym battle. Mewtwo escaped shortly after that, which became the basis for Pokemon: The First Movie.

What makes this reference all the more interesting is the revelation that it happened 20 years ago, which is essentially how long it's been since Pokemon: The First Movie was released in theaters. It could be a coincidence, but there's something really intentional about that time frame that seems to show Detective Pikachu is wanting to align itself with the show's original canon.

Why Didn't Detective Pikachu Reference Ash Ketchum Then?

If researchers knew of Mewtwo's escape, then why didn't they know about Ash, Misty, Brock, or Team Rocket? Better yet, considering Tim believed he was going up against one of the strongest Pokemon in existence, why didn't he ring up one of the world's most prolific Pokemon trainers for some advice on how to bring him down?

There's actually a rather simple explanation for this: Ash Ketchum and his friends don't remember their encounter with Mewtwo. The powerful psychic Pokemon ended up wiping everyone's memory following the climax of Pokemon: The First Movie, and the characters resumed their lives as though nothing had ever happened. So, if Ash saw the news about Mewtwo in Rhyme City, he was probably just as shocked and as oblivious as anyone else who may have seen it.

While Mewtwo doesn't make any reference to Ash in Detective Pikachu, there are parts that imply he lived through the events of Pokemon: The First Movie. For example, he seemed far less ruthless and more forgiving of human kind in Detective Pikachu, whereas the version featured pre-Pokemon: The First Movie would've turned all the humans he encountered to stone really quickly. Fortunately, he only had to turn Ash to stone that one time to figure out it was a terrible idea he should never replicate.

Where Is Ash Ketchum In The Detective Pikachu World?

Ash was a little older than 10 when he faced off against Mewtwo, which would make him around 30 years old when the events of Detective Pikachu go down. Like most cartoon characters, Ash is basically ageless in the Pokemon anime, but while that would be an absolutely riveting plot point to tackle in a Detective Pikachu sequel, it feels more likely he would show up as an seasoned Pokemon Trainer played by an adult actor.

Ash travels around a lot, and he's gotten into some crazy situations. If Tim managed to run into Ash in the midst of some big mystery it wouldn't be the least bit surprising, and the two might even join forces. Of course, the question is, is there really a need for Detective Pikachu 2?

It would appear that Tim's issues are largely resolved with his father back in his life. Tim could still have some adventures with his dad and a non-speaking Pikachu sidekick, but that doesn't sound nearly as cool as the general premise. Ash Ketchum would certainly sweeten the deal, but maybe not enough that audiences would sign on for another Detective Pikachu where Ryan Reynolds isn't the voice of the yellow mouse.

Will Detective Pikachu Lead To A 90s Pokemon Film?

Detective Pikachu's mention of Mewtwo's origins could be the link needed for the franchise to take a trip back in time, making a movie that could potentially use Ash Ketchum as a way of telling the origin story of Mewtwo once again. Yes, it would essentially be a live-action remake of Pokemon: The First Movie, but could be completely different than the film with which American audiences are familiar.

For those that aren't aware, the story differences between the Japanese and American versions of that Pokemon movie are substantial. In fact, it's fair to say they're basically entirely separate movies, as the American version of Pokemon: The Movie was heavily edited and had its script changed to cater to American audiences. Had they stuck with the original, Americans could've had a deeply nuanced story about Mewtwo, his existential crisis, and a movie that honestly made the diminutive Mew seem like the true villain.

It's a story far better than what the American version of Pokemon: The First Movie delivered, which essentially stated that fighting is wrong in a franchise where the world's entire economy revolves around fighting. Now, Detective Pikachu has presented an opportunity to tell that story right if it wants to, and the company could retcon a very bad Pokemon feature and give America its first live-action Ash Ketchum in the process. Sounds like a win-win to me!

Should Ash Ketchum appear in the next Pokemon movie? Is remaking Pokemon: The First Movie a good idea? Sound off in the comments below, and be sure to stick with CinemaBlend for all updates regarding movies, television, and pop culture.

It Doesn't Look Like Keanu Reeves Is Retiring From John Wick Anytime Soon

It Doesn't Look Like Keanu Reeves Is Retiring From John Wick Anytime Soon

When the John Wick franchise started, John Wick was a retired man, and he had every intention of staying that way until Theon Greyjoy’s poor decision-making seeped across franchises and brought him out of retirement. That set off a series of events and now John Wick is back, and even with John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arriving this month, Keanu Reeves doesn’t look to be retiring from the character anytime soon. Speaking about the franchise's future, Keanu Reeves said:

It’s not really up to me. Well, eventually. But the opportunity to do it was up to the audience, right? And that’s up to if whether we made a film that people enjoy or not.

There you have it, folks: if you want to see more John Wick, the answer is to vote with your dollar, because that’s what gives Keanu Reeves the opportunity to keep playing Baba Yaga. As long as the audience still cares, enjoys these movies and goes to see them, John Wick can keep racking up kills for years to come.

Keanu Reeves said it’s not up to him how long the John Wick franchise goes, and that's true in many respects. That said, if it were up to him, it seems that he would choose to keep playing the character for the foreseeable future as he seems to genuinely enjoy it.

Eventually the actor may run out of steam since John Wick is certainly a more physically exhausting role than Keanu Reeves’ rom-com parts or Duke Caboom in Toy Story 4. But at the moment, he’s good to go and hasn’t lost any interest in playing John Wick, and thus has no plans on retiring from him anytime soon.

This is bad news for the character John Wick, who at this point has to be in desperate need of a nap, a shower and serious medical attention, but it's good news for fans of the franchise. As much as we all want John Wick to find happiness and walk off into the sunset, his dog by his side with no more deaths left to deal, John Wick being back in the hitman business is too entertaining to call for his retirement just yet.

Keanu Reeves has expressed his enthusiasm for the John Wick franchise before, and his John Wick: Chapter 3 co-star Ian McShane figures it could go for another decade. That’s quite a lofty prediction, but considering that John Wick: Chapter 2 basically doubled the domestic and worldwide box office of the first film, and Parabellum is tracking to open even bigger than its predecessors, who knows, maybe in a few years John Wick will be Keanu Reeves’ most iconic character instead of Neo.

In his conversation with Uproxx, Keanu Reeves mentioned that the continuation of the franchise is dependent on the audience and ultimately whether or not the film is good and people enjoy it. At least on that end, it would appear that requirement has been fulfilled.

The early reactions to John Wick: Chapter 3 are very positive and indicate that the threequel continues to up the ante for cinematic action while expanding the scope and world of the film, opening up possibilities for future installments in the franchise. That bodes well for John Wick's retirement being postponed indefinitely.

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum opens in theaters on May 17. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to see all of the big movies you can look forward to this summer.

Why Us Kicks Off With That Hands Across America Ad

Why Us Kicks Off With That Hands Across America Ad

The following contains spoilers for Us.

Three's a lot of odd, strange, and bizarre stuff going on in Jordan Peele's new film Us. However, one of the strangest things has to be the movie's opening scene. The film opens on a little girl watching television in the 1980s. Specifically, she views a commercial for the 1986 fundraising event Hands Across America. The ad isn't entirely random, as the event has a part to play in the larger story of Us. In fact, it sort of sets the tone for the entire movie, which is apparently why Jordan Peele decided to open the movie with it.

In addition to the Hands Across America commercial being important to the plot of Us, it also mirrors the film itself, because while the ad wants to be full of hope and optimism, Jordan Peele actually had a very different reaction to it. It seems that ultimately, it was the commercial which helped the writer and director figure out what he wanted to do with the movie, which is why he decided to open the film with it. According to Peele...

Old creepy commercials also come up in both, ones from the ’80s. In conceiving this movie, I arrived at the Hands Across America commercial from one of these moments of feeling as opposed to thinking. I found a real Hands Across America commercial — I don’t know what I was searching to find it, but I just had this feeling of dread watching the amusing, bright optimism on display. It took me back to a time where I was also afraid and young and vulnerable, and didn’t really know what was going on. So I probably said, ‘what if this was the first scene in the movie?’ And that began to answer questions about what I was working towards.

I'm old enough to remember the actual Hands Across America, but I'm never going to be able to think about it the same way again thanks to Us. The unwavering optimism of it all is almost terrifying, which is part of the point. Everything looks good but there's a feeling of something wrong underneath, which is exactly was Us is trying to say.

The first part of Us takes place in 1986, the same year that Hands Across America took place, but as we learn later in the movie, the commercial wasn't simply set to help set the time and place. The actual event has a part to play. Based on what Jordan Peele tells Polygon, it sounds like connecting his story to Hands Across America helped him figure out where to take the characters in his script, as he'd still had some questions previously.

It was certainly a unique and interesting way to open a movie, not to mention effective. The choice to use the commercial makes the audience wonder just what they're seeing and why, throwing them a little off balance for the story that is to come.

Us is in theaters now.