New Spider-Man: Far From Home Photo Puts Nick Fury And Maria Hill Back In Action

New Spider-Man: Far From Home Photo Puts Nick Fury And Maria Hill Back In Action

Although Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark will not be showing up for Spider-Man’s next big screen adventure, two MCU vets will be joining Tom Holland’s Web-Slinger for his very own Eurotrip. Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury and Cobie Smulder’s Maria Hill will be enlisting Peter Parker’s help against the Elementals. A new photo from Spider-Man: Far From Home shows us these two spies back in action. Check it out:

Poor Peter Parker, he just wanted to enjoy a fun vacation seeing the sights with his friends, and instead he’s in a conference room getting scowled at by Nick Fury and getting the ‘I’m not mad, I’m disappointed’ look from Maria Hill. Presumably Spider-Man screwed up in some way or isn’t taking his mission seriously enough for Nick Fury’s taste. He’s probably not especially receptive to Spidey’s humor either.

This image from Reddit shows that Nick Fury and Maria Hill are very much on the job and counting on Spider-Man to execute some important task towards uncovering the mystery of the Elementals and stopping their attacks. We don’t know why they need him specifically, but it must be something that requires his skillset and can’t be achieved with their own guns and spycraft. Fury even gives Peter a new Stealth Suit so that nobody knows that Spider-Man has left his neighborhood.

It’s shaping up to be great year for Nick Fury. Although we don’t know if he’ll show up in Avengers: Endgame, he got his most substantial MCU adventure earlier this year in Captain Marvel. Although Nick Fury and Maria Hill showed up in Avengers: Infinity War end-credits scene, they have been largely absent from Phase 3.

So it will be good to see them back in action again, and it appears as though they will play a significant role in the events of the film. We don’t get nearly enough of Cobie Smulders’ Maria Hill, and even the actress herself wanted people to know that she is actually in this movie, despite a blink-and-you-miss-it appearance in the first trailer.

Based on that trailer, it looks like she and Nick Fury will be in the field of battle and not just calling plays for Spider-Man. That’s exciting, as Spidey will need all the help he can get and their presence ties this universe together and reminds us that even when we don’t see them, Fury and Hill are constantly working to combat threats.

With Avengers: Endgame arriving next week, hopefully a new trailer for Spider-Man; Far From Home (maybe with more Maria Hill) isn't far behind. There are still a lot of questions we have about this film, like when it takes place in the timeline. We have heard that it picks up right after Endgame, but Marvel has misled us before in order to keep its secrets.

Sony has bumped up its release date a few days and Spider-Man: Far From Home will now swing into theaters on July 2. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to see all the big titles headed your way as we enter the summer movie season.

How Much Men In Black International Could Make In Its Opening Weekend

How Much Men In Black International Could Make In Its Opening Weekend

It's been seven years since the last installment of the Men in Black series, and when the franchise returns in June, it will be with an almost entirely new cast. Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson will take over from Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. While we're still almost two months out, the first projections on the box office are coming out now, and MiB: International is currently tracking toward an opening weekend around $40 million.

While these numbers are early, and are certainly subject to change, BoxOfficePro expects Men in Black: international to end up somewhere between $30-$50 million at the start on the way to a $107 million domestic box office. That would put the new movie at the bottom of the Men in Black franchise from a box office perspective, Mien in Black 3 opened at close to $55 million on the way to a domestic total of almost $180 million, probably not where the new film wants to be.

On the other hand, Men in Black 3 is actually the highest grossing film in the franchise globally, because the international numbers for the film were much higher than the previous entries. In the 10 years between Men in Black 2 and Men in Black 3, Hollywood had made great inroads in international distribution, especially in China, where MiB 3 made $77 million. Today China is an even more important part of the global box office. If the new MiB does even better there, the movie could pay for itself in China alone.

Based on the fact that the new film is actually called Men in Black: International, one gets the impression that the foreign box office is really where the focus for the new movie is. The simple fact is that the film doesn't have to do particularly well in the U.S. if it gets embraced in enough other places.

Men in Black: International won't be the only franchise returning to the big screen in mid-June as the film will open on the same date as the new Shaft movie with Samuel L. Jackson. MiB is currently tracking to be the box office winner of the two, but only by a few million dollars, so anything is possible.

Both movies will have to also contend with The Secret Life of Pets 2, which opens the previous weekend. Animated family movies tend to have better staying power at the box office than other types of films, so both movies could lose the box office crown to a rabbit voiced by Kevin Hart.

It will be interesting to see how the first Men in Black movie without Will Smith does at the box office. We don't really know if he's so close to this franchise that it really needs him or not. We'll find out in June.

James Gunn And Michael Rooker May Be Re-Teaming For Suicide Squad 2

James Gunn And Michael Rooker May Be Re-Teaming For Suicide Squad 2

James Gunn and Michael Rooker have already worked together once in the superhero realm through the first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies. While Rooker’s time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is over, now that Gunn is also lending his talents to the DC Extended Universe, it’s looking like these two might get to reunite in Suicide Squad 2, a.k.a. The Suicide Squad.

According to The Wrap, Michael Rooker is currently in talks to play King Shark in Suicide Squad 2. He’s been a part of the officially-designated Task Force X in recent years, particularly during the New 52 era, and it was reported last week that he’s one of the characters that will make up the team when it returns to the big screen.

Introduced in 1994’s Superboy #0, King Shark, a.k.a. Nanaue, is said to be the son of the Shark God, and he flip-flops between being a straight-up super villain and a tragic anti-hero. His abilities include superhuman physical attributes across the board, breathing underwater, enhanced senses, a regenerative healing factor and, of course, razor-sharp teeth.

Outside of the comics, King Shark’s most prominent appearance has been on The Flash, where he was originally a marine biologist named Shay Lamden who was transformed by the particle accelerator explosion on Earth-2. King Shark has also popped up in DC Super Hero Girls, Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and Batman: Assault on Arkham. He was originally supposed to appear in 2016’s Suicide Squad, but he was eventually replaced by Killer Croc.

Joining Suicide Squad 2 would allow Michael Rooker to keep up his streak of acting in all the movies James Gunn has directed. Along with his time as Yondu, Rooker is also well-known for playing Merle Dixon on The Walking Dead, and his recent projects include appearing two episodes of True Detective and starring in the upcoming Fantasy Island movie from Blumhouse.

Although it was initially described as a ‘total reboot,’ Suicide Squad 2 will still be tied to the previous Suicide Squad movie, as evidenced by the return of Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Jai Courtney’s Captain Boomerang and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller. However, the better term for this movie is ‘relaunch,’ as it will mostly feature a brand-new cast of characters.

Assuming Michael Rooker finalizes a deal for Suicide Squad 2, he would join Idris Elba, David Dastmalchian and Daniela Melchior as one of the new faces. Elba was originally supposed to replace Will Smith as Deadshot, but he’ll now play a new character, while Dastmalchian and Melchior have been tapped to play Polka-Dot Man and Ratcatcher, respectively. John Cena is also being eyed to portray Peacemaker.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for word on if Michael Rooker does indeed join Suicide Squad 2, as well as any other major updates on the project. If you’re curious about what other DC movies are currently in development, look through our handy guide.

No, Indiana Jones 5 Does Not Begin Filming Next Week

No, Indiana Jones 5 Does Not Begin Filming Next Week

In the last four years, moviegoers have reunited with Han Solo and Rick Deckard, two of Harrison Ford’s most popular characters. And the actor’s not done with this nostalgia tour just yet, as he’s been attached for years to reprise Dr. Henry Jones Jr. in Indiana Jones 5. That said, contrary to recent news, the next installment of the whip-wielding archaeologist’s franchise will not begin filming later this month.

In case you missed it, last week Harrison Ford appeared alongside Mark Hamill, George Lucas and Billy Dee Williams at the grand opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland, during which time he also spoke with Variety and said that Indiana Jones 5 will begin shooting “sometime next week.” This was a surprising update, to say the least, as Indiana Jones 5 isn’t scheduled for release until 2021, and usually there's chatter months ahead of time on when a movie will specifically begin filming.

However, Variety has now updated Harrison Ford’s quote, which now says that Indiana Jones 5 will begin shooting “sometime next year.” It’s unclear if this misunderstanding is the result of a transcription error or if Harrison Ford misspoke and a Disney representative cleared up the matter (I’m guessing the latter), but either way, we’re still aways away from Indiana Jones 5 rolling cameras. Ford also said the following about the highly-anticipated movie:

I’m looking forward to it. Things are coming along well.

It is worth remembering that Indiana Jones 5 was initially slated to come out much earlier. Back in 2016, Walt Disney Studios scheduled it for July 19, 2019, so had the studio stuck with that plan, we’d be only a little over a month away from seeing Harrison Ford don the fedora again. Then in 2017, Disney pushed Indiana Jones 5 to July 10, 2020, and then in 2018, it was pushed back once more to its current July 2021 slot due to script rewrites.

It’s entirely possible that Indiana Jones 5 could be delayed yet again, but for now, it appears production will commence next year. By the time the movie comes out, it will have been 13 years since we last saw Harrison Ford play Indiana Jones, which was in the fan-derided Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

No plot details have come out for Indiana Jones 5, although it has been confirmed that Shia LaBeouf will not reprise Mutt Williams, a.k.a. Henry Jones III. The last big update on the movie came last week, when it was revealed that This Is Us’ Dan Fogelman was tackling the latest draft of the script.

As for the future of the Indiana Jones franchise after Movie #5, Harrison Ford made it perfectly clear that he doesn’t want anyone else playing Indy after he’s finished. There’s been talk in the past about Chris Pratt taking on the role, and Ford even told someone to break the bad news to Chris Pine, who’s played Jack Ryan, another role that used to belong to Ford.

It’ll be a long time before we learn if an Indiana Jones 6 is a possibility, if the franchise will be rebooted or perhaps, as rare as this happens nowadays, if no more Indiana Jones movies will be made. For now, fingers crossed that Indiana Jones 5 at least delivers a worthwhile conclusion for Indy, or at least one better than Kingdom of the Crystal Skull delivered.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates concerning Indiana Jones 5 as we slowly move closer to its July 9, 2021 release date. For now, you can plan your trips to the movie theater this year accordingly by consulting our 2019 release schedule.

Marvel's Kevin Feige Confirms Shang-Chi Is Coming In Phase Four

Marvel's Kevin Feige Confirms Shang-Chi Is Coming In Phase Four

With Spider-Man: Far From Home now representing the end of the MCU’s Phase 3 and not the beginning of Phase 4 as we once thought, the future remains shrouded in mystery. But even though Marvel hasn’t made formal announcements or said much about what happens after Avengers: Endgame, there have been reports about projects that are casting or in development. One of those projects is Shang-Chi.

At a fan event part of the press tour for Avengers: Endgame, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige was asked if there would ever be a Chinese superhero in the MCU and his response is exciting for fans eager to see Shang-Chi on the big screen. Feige told the Shanghai audience:

This is not an Endgame question, this is a question about the future. I'm not supposed to answer questions about the future but in this case, I will because the answer is yes.

Not exactly leading by example on the secrecy front are we Mr. Feige? The Marvel Studios President thought it was okay to divulge a little about future plans here, and his response to an elated Shanghai crowd basically confirms that Marvel’s most proficient martial artist is on his way. So it’s probably safe to get your hopes up that we will be seeing Shang-Chi in the next few years as a part of the MCU’s still largely mysterious Phase 4 slate.

Given the reports on a Shang-Chi movie, Kevin Feige’s response is expected, but also welcome. He was asked a question and was able to give an audience who it meant a lot to the answer that they wanted to hear. That crowd’s excitement and the huge importance of the Chinese box office should make it clear that a Shang-Chi movie is both the obvious move and the right one.

The movie for Marvel’s master of Kung-Fu is slowly coming together, with Short Term 12 writer and director Destin Daniel Cretton signed on to helm the project. The screenplay is being written by the very in demand Dave Callaham, who wrote The Expendables, Amazon's Jean-Claude Van Johnson as well as being attached or contributing to the scripts for the upcoming films Wonder Woman 1984, Zombieland: Double Tap and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2.

That's an exciting start and shows that Marvel is taking their first Asian superhero seriously, bringing in Asian-American talent and hoping for the kind of cultural impact that Black Panther achieved with a similar method. With Kevin Feige now speaking more openly and publicly about Shang-Chi and with Avengers: Endgame arriving this week, hopefully this is a sign that we’ll begin to hear more about this film, like casting, before too long.

Of course, before we get to Shang-Chi, the Avengers have a score to settle, whatever it takes, in Avengers: Endgame, arriving in theaters this weekend. We’ll keep you updated on all the latest news about Shang-Chi and the MCU’s Phase 4 as it develops. In the meantime check out our 2019 Release Schedule to plan out your moviegoing as we enter the packed summer season.

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.

The Huge Amount The Lion King Could Make In Its Opening Weekend

The Huge Amount The Lion King Could Make In Its Opening Weekend

The summer kicked off with a bang with Avengers: Endgame, currently the second highest-grossing movie of all time. Analysts and movie buffs are trying to find what the next big hit of the summer will be and all evidence is pointing toward The Lion King. The remake of the classic film is due to hit theaters in July and when it does, it will do so with a roar. Current projections for The Lion King have it opening to $201 million and a total domestic gross of $650 million.

Disney is no stranger to remaking the most iconic animated films in its library. It's found massive success in films like The Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast, both of which were one of the highest-grossing films of the respective years they were released. So, no one was surprised when The Lion King was called up to the plate, with Jon Favreau leading the charge with cutting-edge photo-realistic technology.

The Lion King is beloved by multiple generations and those fans will turn out big time when the remake arrives in theaters. According to BoxOfficePro, The Lion King could open within the range of $180-$230 million. If that happens, the 2019 Lion King would top Beauty and the Beast's $174 million as the biggest opening weekend of any Disney "live-action" remake.

There are multiple factors working in The Lion King's favor. First off, the reaction to the trailer for The Lion King has been well received. The first trailer received 225 million views in the first 24 hours, which was ranked second all-time among all studio releases at that time. For comparison, Beauty and the Beast's trailer scored 128 million in its first day.

Additionally, in a recent Fandango survey, the film ranked as the most anticipated summer family film, ahead of Toy Story 4, Aladdin, and The Secret Life of Pets 2.

The original Lion King was the second-highest grossing film of 1994 with $312.9 million. After adjusting for 2019 ticket prices, that number jumps to over $680 million -- not including the 2011 re-release that scored $94.2 million domestic. Accounting for inflation, it's the second highest original run by any animated release, behind only Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (over $700 million).

In short, people love The Lion King. The animated movie won two Oscars, a Golden Globe, and two Grammys, and it has a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie checks a lot of boxes and appeals to a very wide audience. The 2019 Lion King is the last family friendly movie until November, so it has ample room to stretch its legs and build up a nice total.

The only real thing working against The Lion King, is that Disney has proven to not be bullet-proof with its remakes. Just earlier this year, Dumbo underperformed with $112 million domestic, while this weekend's Aladdin is still unclear.

However, it seems inevitable that The Lion King will reign supreme from Pride Rock when it releases on July 19, 2019.