Kevin Smith Was 'A Blubbering Mess' After Captain Marvel's Mallrats Scene

Kevin Smith Was 'A Blubbering Mess' After Captain Marvel's Mallrats Scene

Spoiler Warning: If you don't want to get spoiled on a very specific part of Captain Marvel, come back after you've seen the film!

It's a Marvel tradition to include a cameo from comics legend Stan Lee. As the first MCU film to feature a Stan Lee cameo after his passing, Captain Marvel's was bound to feel special and that turned out to be especially true for Kevin Smith. The cameo features Lee reading the script for Mallrats, Smith's film in which Lee makes an appearance. The cameo hit Smith like a ton of bricks, and he took to social media to share what a "blubbering mess" he was.

For a little extra context, Mallrats is Kevin Smith's second film. It premiered in 1995 and featured two slackers who spend all their time in a New Jersey mall and try to win back their girlfriends, who are fed up with their juvenile attitudes. One of the slackers (played by Jason Lee) is obsessed with comics and superhero genitalia. In probably the most memorable moment in the film, Stan Lee appeared as himself to give Lee's character some much needed wisdom on relationships.

In Captain Marvel, Stan Lee can be found reading the script for Mallrats on a train, rehearsing his lines under his breath. It's a super fun moment that works perfectly in the '90s set movie. The moment was bound to make some fans teary-eyed considering Lee passed away last year, but Kevin Smith might have had the most significant reaction.

The filmmaker took to Twitter to share his reaction to seeing his work referenced in a Marvel movie and by Stan Lee no less. Kevin Smith said that he was a "blubbering mess" with a photograph to prove it. The filmmaker also wrote that "after a lifetime spent referencing the movies, the movies just referenced me!" It's a pretty great way to have your work referenced and it no doubt means a lot to Smith.

Kevin Smith also asked, since he's now officially part of the MCU, did he survive Thanos' famous snap? Well, he's got a 50-50 shot at least!

Of course, this wasn't the only way that Marvel Studios paid homage to the co-creator of its iconic superheroes. The opening Marvel Studios logo replaced the Avengers with Stan Lee and all of his cameo appearances. It was the perfect way to respect Lee. The Marvel legend had filmed a few of his cameos before he passed, so we have at least one more to look forward to in Avengers: Endgame in a few short months.

You can catch Stan Lee and his wonderful cameo in Captain Marvel, which is out in theaters right now. For everything else in theaters, check out our 2019 movie release guide.

Could We See A Toy Story 5?

Could We See A Toy Story 5?

Many a fan will tell you that Toy Story 3 had a perfect ending. It wrapped up a trilogy in a perfect way, bringing the story of the characters to a wonderful close. However, while we all assumed that Toy Story 3 was the end of the franchise, the story is now moving forward once again with Toy Story 4. If Toy Story isn't a simple three act trilogy, does that mean that we could see even more movies after Toy Story 4?

I asked the director and producers of Toy Story 4, that exact question when I had an opportunity to speak with them last month. Unsurprisingly, nobody was quite ready to call Toy Story 4, the definite ending of the series, though they did all agree that if it turns out that way, they think fans will be happy with where the story ends. According to producer Jonas Rivera, who was an intern at Pixar back during the original Toy Story...

Honestly, if this were the end, it would be a satisfying ending.

Of course, what's most interesting about this statement is that people were pretty much satisfied with the ending of Toy Story 3, so much so that many seem to have real concern about the idea of making the fourth film in the franchise in the first place.

Of course, without knowing how Toy Story 4 ends, it's hard to really know what the team is referring to. I certainly have my suspicions where the story is going based on some of the footage I was able to see at Pixar Animation Studios, but I'm far from certain.

What I can say based on the footage I saw, without getting into spoilers, is that I very much do understand why Toy Story 4 was made. It's easy to be cynical about it, but the people in charge clearly found a story worth telling that would only really work within the world of Toy Story.

Of course, while Toy Story 4 could very well be the final chapter of Woody's story, producer Mark Nielsen, who has worked on the franchise as far back as the second film, knows this isn't the first time everybody thought the Toy Story franchise was over, according to him...

To be fair, let’s talk out of the other side of our mouths for a minute, we felt that [it was the end] at [Toy Story] 2.

It seems that with every Toy Story movie, even the very first, there was a feeling by many at Pixar that no sequel was necessary, but then the idea for one came along and that eventually eventually saw support grow. With the conclusion of Toy Story 3 and the end of Andy's story, it's clear that feeling was even stronger, and yet, Pixar seems that much more convinced that Toy Story 4 is a valuable addition to the franchise.

Tim Allen has previously stated that he's in favor of a fifth movie. Maybe, if the complete story of Woody and Buzz isn't over in one trilogy, maybe it needs two.

What's certainly clear is that, while Pixar is certainly looking for a satisfying ending, there's no need to make one that's definitive. The possibility that there's more story to tell will always be there, and if somebody can come up with one, Toy Story 5 is certainly something that could happen.

Of course, for that to happen, audiences will need to first embrace Toy Story 4. They'll have their chance when the new film arrives June 21.

Chris Evans Doesn’t Think Thanos Is An ‘Evil Guy’

Chris Evans Doesn’t Think Thanos Is An ‘Evil Guy’

Avengers: Endgame has officially been in theaters for one week, and moviegoers are still recovering from the blockbuster's wild events. The Russo Brothers pulled no punches with the final installment in the Infinity Saga, giving fitting endings to a variety of characters. The blockbuster also took bold narrative choices with Thanos, who was the undeniable protagonist of the last film.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been criticized for the handling of its villains before, but Josh Brolin brought a nuanced performance to the Mad Titan, which helped to elevate the overall quality of Avengers: Infinity War. But according to Captain America actor Chris Evans, he's not a villain at all, but a misguided and extreme figure. As Evans puts it:

It’s easy, when the villain is so clearly bad, to hate him. Marvel Studios have done this strange thing with Thanos where they gave him a logical point of view, in my opinion. He’s a sort of masked misanthrope or something cloaked in a binary logic about the greater good. He’s not just this evil guy. He thinks he’s doing a good thing, which makes him sympathetic to some degree. Brolin really grounds him in this kind of human way so you don’t see a monster or a villain. You see a person who thinks they’re doing something good.

Listen to Cap, everyone. While he didn't share a ton of scenes with Thanos throughout the last two Avengers movies, he sees how significant the performance and writing were toward his characterization. Josh Brolin brought humanity and heart to Thanos, while the audience watched him lose everything to accomplish his goals.

Chris Evans' comments come from Avengers: Endgame - The Official Movie Special (via ComicBook), and show how much thought the actor has put into his tenure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Aside from the transformative performance as Steve Rogers, the actor is also privy to the work of his co-stars, and the work crafted by The Russo Brothers and writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely.

Related: The 25 Most Emotional Moments In Avengers: Endgame

Thanos was ultimately a character who had quite the tremendous arc, despite not appearing in nearly as many movies as a villain like Loki. While his goal was mass murder, he didn't do it out of malice. Instead, he believed he was saving the galaxy from overpopulation and mass famine. And he succeeded, but at great cost. He had to kill Gamora to acquire the Soul Stone, and all of The Black Order died at the hands of The Avengers.

Josh Brolin's character went more unexpected places in Avengers: Endgame, although the survivors were the true focus of the sequel. And despite losing so much, his resolve never faltered. Because without his signature terrifying world view, who is Thanos?

Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now, so you can see if Chris Evans' comments were correct. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

To 3D Or Not To 3D: Buy The Right Captain Marvel Ticket

To 3D Or Not To 3D: Buy The Right Captain Marvel Ticket

Nick Fury sent out a mysterious and desperate page in the end-credits scene of Avengers: Infinity War and at long last we get to meet the hero he called out to in the eleventh-hour with his retrofuturist pager. Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers is making her cinematic debut in Captain Marvel and getting us up to speed on her origin before she hopefully shows up to provide some support in Avengers: Endgame. And like all big screen superheroes, you can enjoy Captain Marvel in 3D.

If you want to know how Captain Marvel stacks up as a film, you can check out our official review. Here, we’re discussing whether you should put on a pair of 3D glasses to go along with your neon windbreaker, Nirvana t-shirt and LA Lights sneakers as you journey back to the 1990s for Captain Marvel. Can you reach out and pet Goose? Does Nick Fury’s eyeball come flying out of the screen? Read on to find out what ticket you should buy for Captain Marvel.

Superhero movies with all their special effects and action are particularly well-suited to a 3D presentation and that holds true for Marvel’s first female-led superhero movie. As you’ve seen from the trailers, Captain Marvel has all kinds of action, from hand-to-hand combat to car chases to dogfights to space battles and that all makes it a very good fit for a 3D presentation. The only reason this is not a “5” is because the film isn’t quite a brightly-colored feast as something like Thor: Ragnarok or an animated movie and it also has a fair amount that takes place on the ground that doesn’t beg for 3D.

Captain Marvel may be a great fit for 3D, but I don’t think this conversion was a huge priority for Marvel. That’s not to say that it’s bad, it’s just doesn’t take full advantage of the format. The lack of images coming off the screen in particular was noticeable and there were no real standout sequences in the film where the 3D really shined. The fact that the live-action film did so well with the brightness is admirable, but it feels like Marvel just gave Captain Marvel a light dusting of 3D magic versus really taking the time to really make it dazzle. But maybe that was the intent.

This is the element of Captain Marvel’s 3D presentation that I found the most lacking, at least from a frequency of use perspective. I don’t necessarily need objects, or in this case photon blasts, flying off the screen and into my lap, but I was expecting a bit more to take place in front of the screen than actually did. There were actually several instances where given the action that was taking place, I was anticipating a very noticeable use of this technology that would wow the senses but those moments passed without much 3D effect at all. Times when the environments and the action did stretch off the screen were done well, like during the third act and when Carol gets her powers, they just were few and far between compared to what I would expect for the material.

Many of the best uses of 3D, particularly in live-action, incorporate the technology to provide depth to the image, to make it feel as though you can walk through the screen to knuckle up a Skrull wearing an old lady suit along with Carol Danvers. Captain Marvel does this well, but it is not as pronounced as some of the very best uses of the technology. Marvel seemed to be going with a less-is-more approach. Focus is deep and crisp throughout, but the depth didn’t quite reach the levels that the best 3D films do. What the depth of the image did do though was to give a nice punch to the image, making it really pop no matter what was on screen. Simply put, it looked good.

Live-action movies often falter in this category compared to their animated counterparts but I can happily say that Captain Marvel succeeds with flying colors. The image was bright throughout and I never found myself squinting or struggling with the dimming effect of the 3D glasses. There are a few notable scenes in Captain Marvel, particularly in the beginning and the end that are definitely on the dark side but, having seen the film in both 2D and 3D, I can safely say that the dark scenes in the 3D version are no harder to distinguish. Your mileage may vary of course depending on what type of 3D screening you see and the theater and projector itself. For what it’s worth I saw this in a premium format and overall I was quite impressed with the brightness.

Here is where the light touch of the 3D in Captain Marvel was particularly apparent. When you take your glasses off and the image looks blurry, that means a lot of image manipulation is taking place. When I took my glasses off periodically throughout different scenes in Captain Marvel, the image looked relatively normal other than the color shift. That means that the 3D effect was fairly minor. Given what I saw, you could probably watch the 3D presentation without wearing the glasses and you wouldn’t have any trouble making out what is going on nor would you suffer from any eyestrain.

The score here in many ways reflects the implementation of the film’s 3D and for me personally, this was a smooth presentation. Despite Carol Danvers pulling absurd g-forces at times, no barf bag is necessary for Captain Marvel. The crispness of the image resulted in no real eyestrain. That and the subtle nature of the 3D effect, even during the fight scenes where the camera was moving everywhere, meant that I didn’t feel any disorientation from the 3D. This is a subjective measurement but the 3D effect just isn’t intense enough here to give problems and I would wager that people who usually get nauseous with 3D might be fine with Captain Marvel.

This is a tough movie to judge because the 3D wasn’t bad; the 3D that was there was solid, there just wasn’t a lot of it. It won’t satiate the biggest lovers of 3D but it isn’t diminished by the format as some conversions are. I don’t think a 3D ticket is necessary for Captain Marvel in the way it was for the must see in 3D Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse or (I would argue) Alita: Battle Angel. If you do go to a 3D screening, especially in a premium format, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed because the image quality was top notch with a bright presentation and nice depth. Captain Marvel just isn’t a 3D movie, it’s a movie that happens to be in 3D.

Be sure to check out our full To 3D Or Not To 3D Archive.

New Mutants: What We Know So Far

New Mutants: What We Know So Far

The X-Men franchise is seriously expanding. It's true that we will no longer see any more Wolverine movies, but thanks to the success of Deadpool, 20th Century Fox has started developing big plans for the future of its flagship comic book series. A huge part of this equation is the New Mutants film that has been in development for a couple of years, and now that project is less than a year away from release. But what exactly is New Mutants? The answer to that question is what we're here to provide.

As we do with all major upcoming releases, the following What We Know So Far guide has been constructed as a means of collecting all of the information that is currently available about the New Mutants movie. When is it coming out? Who is directing it? Who are the main characters? We address all of those queries and more below, so read on... but first, give the teaser trailer a watch!

What Is The New Mutants Release Date?

While 2017 marked the first year that Marvel Studios had three comic book movies in theaters, 20th Century Fox's X-Men franchise was trying not to lag too far behind. The studio announced plans to have their own trio of blockbusters in 2018 -- with the first on the docket being New Mutants, which had a release date of April 13, 2018. Unfortunately, two big scheduling changes in early 2018 lead to New Mutants getting pushing back twice by the studio by the time early April rolled around. First, the film was pushed to February 22, 2019. Then, a couple of months later, the horror-themed superhero film was delayed again, this time until August 2019. The 1990s-set X-Men: Dark Phoenix was also moved into 2019, meaning that the only X-movie fans will see in 2018 will be David Leitch's Deadpool 2.

While an August debut might seem a bit late to capture the attention of comic book movie fans, let's remember that Guardians of the Galaxy hits screens on August 1, 2014, and matching the success of that film would certainly be considered a big win for The New Mutants.

What Is The New Mutants Rating?

Unlike the other major comic book movie franchises, the X-Men titles are the first to really experiment when it comes to exploration of different ratings. Most of these films stick to PG-13 as a way of ensuring that teenage fans can buy tickets, but both Deadpool and Logan have proven that there is a whole lot of money to be made making these titles strictly for adults. Because of these successes, it's entirely suspected that 20th Century Fox will continue making R-rated superhero flicks for many years to come... but it doesn't look like The New Mutants will be one of them.

The MPAA doesn't actually hand down a movie's rating until the nearly-completed product is getting ready to arrive in theaters, but there hasn't been any indication that The New Mutants will be aiming for a restricted label. As we will get into later in this article, the film is expected to feature a few shocks and scares, but signs have been pointing to this blockbuster getting made with audiences 13 and older in mind.

Who Is The New Mutants Director?

Looking at the past work of director Josh Boone, you might not necessarily pin him as the director of the next great superhero blockbuster. After all, he made his directorial debut in 2012 with the romantic comedy Stuck In Love, and primarily found himself garnering a lot of attention for his 2014 hit cancer drama The Fault In Our Stars. It turns out, however, that Boone is actually a big-time comic book fan, and utilized that passion to land the New Mutants directing gig.

Josh Boone first became attached to the X-Men blockbuster when it was first announced back in May of 2015, and has been working towards getting it made ever since (with only his plans to adapt Stephen King's The Stand serving as a distraction). Now, however, he has cleared his schedule, and is using 2017 as his year to bring The New Mutants to life on the big screen.

Danielle Moonstar a.k.a. Mirage

It was revealed in November 2016 that the New Mutants movie would adapt one of the comic series' most notable arcs, The Demon Bear -- and from this we can glean that Danielle Moonstar will be the central character in the upcoming film. And while we don't yet know who will be playing the mutant heroine in Josh Boone's blockbuster, we can get a solid idea of what to expect from the movie in general by exploring Moonstar's role in the story.

Danielle Moonstar is a Native American mutant with a number of impressive mental powers -- including telepathy and psionic abilities -- but they manifested in a rather horrific way when she was a young girl. Specifically, she caught a psychic glimpse of her parents being killed by a demonic bear -- and then a few weeks later both her mom and dad disappeared. She was taken in by her magically-inclined grandfather, Black Eagle, and while she continued to have nightmares about the Demon Bear, they were kept at bay thanks to Black Eagle's spells.

These horrific dreams return to Moonstar during her tenure as a member of the New Mutants team, but rather than repressing them, she prepares to take on the evil ursine. Unfortunately for her, this horrific entity proves to be far more than she can face by herself, and she turns to her teammates to assist her in her battle.

It was only just about a week before the start of production on New Mutants that the film cast its star to play Danielle Moonstar, but at least they got it done under the wire. In early July 2017, it was reported that the comic book movie blockbuster had hired newcomer Blu Hunt to take on the key role in the 2018 flick. The film will actually be her big screen debut, though she does have some notable experience in that she plays a recurring role on the CW series The Originals.

Rahne Sinclair a.k.a. Wolfsbane

Thanks to Mystique and Beast in previous X-Men movies, fans have seen plenty of mutants who have the ability to physically transform on the big screen... but Wolfsbane's particular power is a tad more traditional than what we've seen. After all, she is basically a mutant lycanthrope -- able to either turn herself into a human/wolf hybrid or go full wolf-mode.

Like most of the New Mutants team, Wolfsbane a.k.a. Rahne Sinclair was created by Chris Claremont and Bob McLeod, and her backstory involves a strictly religious upbringing in Scotland that was followed by horrific persecution. She was nearly burned at the stake, but was rescued and eventually adopted by Moira MacTaggert (who was played by Rose Byrne in X-Men: First Class and X-Men: Apocalypse). Sadly, at this stage we don't know how much of this narrative will find its way into the New Mutants movie.

What we do know, however, is the identity of the actress who will be playing the first live-action version of Wolfsbane. It was reported all the way back in April 2016 that Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams was being considered for the part, and Josh Boone basically confirmed the casting himself in February 2017 by posting concept art of a part-wolf Williams. Considering that the writer/director has been discussing the horror elements of the movie he wants to make, hopefully we can expect some very cool transformation sequences.

Illyana Rasputin a.k.a. Magik

Actress Anya Taylor-Joy caught a lot of people's attention extremely fast thanks to her fantastic performance in the 2015 indie horror movie The Witch, and her star has only been rising ever since. She played the lead role in M. Night Shyamalan's 2017 hit Split -- and now she is confirmed to be a part of her second superhero franchise. It has been confirmed that Taylor-Joy will be playing Magik a.k.a. Illyana Rasputin in Josh Boone's New Mutants.

If that last name looks familiar (beyond the notorious Russian mystic), it's because Magik is actually the younger sister of Piotr Rasputin a.k.a. the metal-covered mutant Colossus. They grew up together in Russia, though Illyana was kidnapped and brought to the United States when she was only six years old. It was after her rescue that she was first brought to the X-Mansion - though she spent most of her adolescence in the Limbo dimension being trained in the ways of magic and combat.

It was after leaving the Limbo dimension that she returned to Earth and joined the New Mutants (she was 10 years older than when she left, but no time had passed since her departure). In addition to her learned skills, her mutant power allows her to teleport -- though what sets her apart from, say, Nightcrawler, is that she can teleport through both space and time, both future and past. It's not a power that's easily controlled, and significant screw-ups have occurred -- but that should just make for great story fodder in the New Mutants movie.

Bobby da Costa a.k.a. Sunspot

Most of the characters who will make up the titular team in The New Mutants will be making their live-action debut -- but Sunspot is the exception. Director Bryan Singer enlisted actor Adan Canto to play the part in X-Men: Days of Future Past, using him as one of last surviving mutants in a future that has been destroyed by the Sentinels. Of course, the timeline shift that occurred at the end of that movie means that he's technically not part of the canon anymore, which opens up the possibility to use him in Josh Boone's New Mutants.

Hailing from Brazil, Sunspot a.k.a. Roberto "Bobby" da Costa has the mutant ability to soak in solar power and redirect it. While he ordinarily looks like a normal person, when he is in his energized state his entire body turns into a non-reflective black color, allowing him to most efficiently absorb the sun's energy. Actor Henry Zaga, who recently earned attention for his part in the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, will be playing the part in The New Mutants, and the project will be his biggest to date. We're excited to see what he does with it.

Sam Guthrie a.k.a. Cannonball

As far as adapting mutant powers for the big screen, the introduction of Cannonball in New Mutants should be quite interesting. In the most basic terms, he has the power to fly at super speeds -- but what makes that possible is that he can release thermo-chemical energy from his skin, and basically turn the lower half of his body into a jet propulsion system. Because of this, he can fly around incredibly fast, create blast fields, and really just kick all kinds of ass.

So who will be playing the southern-fried, Kentucky-born mutant in New Mutants? For a long time it was suggested that the role could go to Nat Wolff, who previously worked with Josh Boone on The Fault in Our Stars, but that rumor hit the wastebasket in May 2017. Instead, it looks like Cannonball a.k.a. Sam Guthrie will be played by Stranger Things star Charlie Heaton. Can he pull off the accent? We'll find out soon enough!

Dr. Cecilia Reyes

Initially it was expected that Rosario Dawson would be playing the role of Dr. Cecilia Reyes in The New Mutants - the actress previously having a close relationship with comic book material through projects like the Marvel Netflix shows and the animated Wonder Woman movie. Scheduling conflicts forced her to drop out, however, leaving the production with a casting gap to fill. Fortunately, they landed on the talented Alice Braga to play the part.

As you would expect, Dr. Cecilia Reyes is a mutant herself, in addition to being a doctor, and was introduced to Marvel Comics in 1997. Her special ability is the creation of psioplasmic bio-fields... which basically means that she can generate an incredibly strong energy barrier around herself that can protect her from outside attack. It's worth noting that she doesn't really have a big connection with the New Mutants in the source material, but this would hardly be the first time details were fudged in an adaptation. Based on the trailer, it looks like she will be the primary caretaker for the titular characters as they adjust to their dangerous abilities.

Will John Wick Chapter 3 Beat Out Avengers: Endgame At The Box Office?

Will John Wick Chapter 3 Beat Out Avengers: Endgame At The Box Office?

We all knew that Avengers; Endgame was going to be the movie to beat at the box office this year, but somehow the film still surprised us. It set every opening weekend record there was to set when it debuted and it has remained at the top of the box office ever since. However, that spot can't last forever and it looks like Keanu Reeves may be the man to finally take down the Avengers, as John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum has a serious shot and taking the box office crown.

Avengers: Endgame finished last weekend with $63 million, a 57% drop over the previous week. That's about the same percentage drop that the film saw between its first and second week of release. If that pattern holds up and Endgame drops another 57% or more, then it will finish next weekend with around $27 million. This would put it well behind John Wick: Chapter 3, as the movie is currently tracking to do $30 million or more in its opening weekend.

John Wick: Chapter 3 looks like it will finish next weekend with something between $30 and $35 million, though Variety says some analysts are putting the number as high as $40 million. That's a solid number, to be sure, but it's a number that would have put the film in third place behind Detective Pikachu if it had come out last weekend. However, it looks like John Wick may have waited the perfect amount of time as Avengers: Endgame hysteria has now dropped to a somewhat manageable level.

Of course, there is always the possibility that these numbers won't end up looking quite the way that projections are suggesting. Detective Pikachu was, at one point, tracking for an opening weekend close to $100 million last weekend and ended up doing more like half that.

It's unclear if that happened because people just wren't as interested in the Pokemon movie or if Endgame really ate into the movie's box office more than expected. If the issue was the latter, we could potentially see John Wick underperform in the same way that Pikachu did.

If John Wick: Chapter 3 does perform as expected it will likely see a franchise best opening, as Chapter 2 opened to slightly more than $30 million.

In this day and age it's unusual for a single movie to hold the box office for even two weekends in a row, as every weekend has at least one major release looking for an audience. If Avengers: Endgame is somehow able to win the box office again next weekend it will become the first movie since Black Panther to do that four weekends in a row (Panther was actually able to win the box office for five weekends).

Of course, even if Avengers: Endgame doesn't win the box office, we can be fairly certain it's not done bringing in the box office. It will likely continue to bring in several million over the next several weekends. The movie is the second highest grossing movie of all time worldwide and third highest domestically. All of those records are still very possible for Endgame.

Aladdin Director Guy Ritchie Responds To The Genie Backlash

Aladdin Director Guy Ritchie Responds To The Genie Backlash

Aladdin is one of Disney's most popular animated features, so anticipation and curiosity were at a high when the first looks at the new live-action adaptation began to arrive. However, the first responses to Will Smith's Genie weren't all that excited. There was a general feeling that he actually looked pretty terrible.

Guy Ritchie, the director of the new Aladdin, appears to have been mostly surprised by the reaction, simply because the sort of instant feedback that the internet provides wasn't something he was used to. According to Ritchie...

There was a Sonic The Hedgehog / Genie frog. Everything is under such critical scrutiny. I came up in an era where there was no internet. It’s a new thing that I’m trying to get a handle on.

I feel like the comparison between the Genie and the recent Sonic the Hedgehog trailer is a bit rough. The Genie may have had some issues, but he was no Sonic. People may have not loved Genie, but the Sega mascot's look in the new movie got such backlash the producers are now promising to make changes.

Guy Ritchie is no stranger to making movies in the age of the internet but he's never made a movie quite like Aladdin. It's a movie with a built in fan base that's very invested and is going to be very vocal about its opinions. It's a far cry from the stylized English gangster movies that Ritchie is still best known for.

And the audience was far from kind. "Nightmare fuel" and other such phrases were used to describe what the big blue Genie version of Will Smith looked like. Big movies like this rely on the buzz that the marketing creates but that plan only works if the buzz is positive, and in this case it wasn't.

However, as the new Aladdin continued it's promotion. Attitudes seemed to soften a bit. While the big blue Genie still isn't looked at in the best light, we know that the Genie won't have that look the entire time and other aspects of the movie were looking good enough that the questionable CGI might be easy to overlook.

In addition, as is frequently the case. Not all the CGI was even finished when the first trailer hit, which meant that as those effects were finished up, the Genie himself began to look better. Guy Ritchie tells Empire than now even some of those who were the harshest critics of the Genie are walking back their comments...

It even came with apologies from the cynics who were so adamant initially. I’ve never seen apologies in that world. I thought, ‘Oh well, great, we’re back to where I’d hoped we’d be’.

The History Of The Color Changing Genie

It does seem like the new Aladdin can't catch a break in the Genie department. The first look we ever got of Will Smith in costume he wasn't blue at all. He was just Will Smith in a Genie costume, and that set people off because of the way it seemed to be changing the source material. Then, when we finally got Will Smith in action in his first trailer, he was blue, and everybody freaked out again.

It seems that the plan for the film is that the Genie will spend a significant amount of time looking human in the new film rather than blue. This way the character can blend in with the rest of the players and interact with them rather than spending the entire movie locked in the lamp. It also helps the budget for the movie stay down.

If you haven't had a good look at what the Genie, and the movie as a whole, looks like now, check out the trailer below.

It makes a lot of sense to include a lot of Will Smith, blue or not. Robin Williams worked for scale when he recorded his voice for the original Aladdin and I'm guessing Will Smith did not. If you're paying him millions of dollars, you'll want to get everything out hf him that you can.

The earliest reactions from the few who have seen the new Aladdin have actually been pretty positive, and while the blue Genie might not work, it seems like the rest of the movie works well enough to make up for that.

The Aladdin Remake Was Always Going To Have Problems

The deck was always stacked against the Genie. The casting of Will Smith seemed designed to attempt to prevent any Robin Williams comparisons before they started, and yet, such a thing is ultimately impossible. Williams' Genie is one of the most iconic characters in the history of animation. His casting in the role played a huge part in the fact that most animated films are now cast with big Hollywood stars.

It's a difficult balancing act. As with any remake, there are elements that fans love from the original that they'll want to see translated into live-action, or re-done with modern effects or whatever new thing the remake is trying to bring to the table. Some will be disappointed if they don't get a new and improved version of whatever their favorite bit was.

Unfortunately, it has to be said that, so far, the movie looks very much like a "shot-for-shot" remake of the animated version. In fact, only Will Smith's Genie looks to be a significant change from the original animated classic. While bringing back all the old songs and adding a couple new ones certainly makes sense, I'm certainly hopeful that there's more hiding in this movie that is different compared to what we've seen so far.

At the same time, if all you're really doing is making the same movie over again, then why bother. The original is a classic because everybody has already seen it, and they can watch it again on DVD anytime they want.

I'll be entering the new Aladdin the way I do most movies these days, with cautious optimism. I want every movie I see to be good and Aladdin is one of those movies that I loved as a kid, and I want any remake to be good as well. If the new movie brings something actually new to the story that can make it worthwhile in its own right, that would fantastic.

The new Aladdin hits theaters Friday.