M. Night Shyamalan Is Working On His First Movie Post-Glass

M. Night Shyamalan Is Working On His First Movie Post-Glass

After becoming an outcast from Hollywood’s good graces for almost a decade, M. Night Shyamalan has recently earned himself a successful comeback by continuing the story he started in 2000’s Unbreakable with Split and Glass. With his unexpected trilogy spanning 18 years now concluded, Shyamalan is starting fresh with a brand new project.

The Sixth Sense writer/director took to Twitter to tease this about the upcoming movie:

Exciting! The filmmaker has explored tons of different themes throughout his career and it looks like he’s itching to go back to tackling sci-fi this time around. His recent success with the Unbreakable trilogy has leaned toward being psychological thrillers, with commentary on comic book culture. He has made movies that lean in the science fiction genre before such as with Signs and After Earth - though these titles were met with different responses from audiences.

Whatever it may be, will the film continue Shyamalan’s winning streak? Only time will tell. The filmmaker is in the most early stages of developing his next project, working right now on the outline. So it will be years before we see what he has in store, and he’ll have to line up all the logistical ducks in a row that comes with movie-making as well.

Following his public movie failures in The Happening, The Last Airbender and After Earth, M. Night Shyamalan started financing his movies himself. He took out a $5 million loan on his Pennsylvania estate to fund the 2015 film The Visit before it made $100 million worldwide, and $9 million for Split before it racked up an impressive $278 million worldwide. He even financed Glass, which cost $20 million to develop and was an early 2019 success with a $246 million haul worldwide.

One Glass lead is already ready to sign up for Shyamalan’s next project. Take a look:

Sarah Paulson is in if he needs her! The actress who played Dr. Ellie Staple in the filmmaker’s most recent movie is smart to put her name in while he’s outlining the script too! There’s a better chance he’ll think of her as he develops the movie from the ground up.

Glass suffered poor reviews from most critics that led it to receive a 37% score on Rotten Tomatoes and Shyamalan shedding some tears over that. Fans of the writer/director liked it a lot more and went out to see it despite the reviews, contributing to the movie’s success.

In addition to this new movie he’s just getting started on, M. Night Shyamalan has a television series with Apple’s upcoming streaming service in the works called Servant. It’s said to be a psychological thriller about parents who hire a young nanny to take care of their newborn but “things are not quite as they seem”. Six Feet Under’s Lauren Ambrose and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’ Toby Kebbell will play the couple. Game of Thrones’ Nell Tiger Free, the nanny and Harry Potter’s Rupert Grint will also star.

Are you excited to see M. Night Shyamalan take on another science fiction movie? Let us know in the comments below!

What Makes A Good Nude Scene, According To Patricia Clarkson

What Makes A Good Nude Scene, According To Patricia Clarkson

The entertainment world, like the real world, is being looked at with a magnifying glass as of late. Conversation around gender and race inequality have been major talking points, as show business institutions examine the way women and people of color are treated. This includes the handling of love scenes and nude scenes, with new changes helping to ensure everyone on set is comfortable.

Patricia Clarkson has had a long career on both the film and stage, and has had to de-robe a few times. In fact, Clarkson notably had a nude scene with Bradley Cooper in the Broadway revival of The Elephant Man. She recently spoke to what makes a good nude scene, declaring:

Sometimes I do think that nudity is essential to take the character to a different place. Nudity is always difficult. It’s never easy, and it shouldn’t be easy. It should be essential.

Well, that's one way of thinking about it. While nude scenes can sometimes be exploitative or unnecessary, Patricia Clarkson also believes the opposite is possible. She thinks nudity should be approached only when its essential to the story. As such, it has an important role in the narrative, rather than showing the ripped bodies of movie stars. While those scenes likely aren't going anywhere, Clarkson also believes actors baring their bodies could have a profound affect on a project.

Patricia Clarkson's comments come from her Q&A after winning the Precious Gem Award (via THR). The 59 year-old actress discussed various issues in show business, before touching on nudity on the screen and stage. Clarkson has only done a few nude scenes, although one of them was live on stage during the run of The Elephant Man with Bradley Cooper. But as the circumstances of the play warranted her nudity, it was something the actress was happy to do night after night.

Bradley Cooper seems to have similar feelings about nude scenes, if his directorial debut A Star Is Born is any indication. Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper bore their bodies onscreen only briefly during artistic montages of Ally and Jackson's love. That is, until the gut punching bath tub scene in the film's second act. After Ally receives her first Grammy nominations, she and Jackson have an argument while she's in the tub. When he calls hi wife ugly things get especially heated, and Lady Gaga's character stands up, demanding he get out of the room.

This scene was actually the most nudity that Lady Gaga did in A Star Is Born. And ultimately it helped move the story forward, and the nudity is what Patricia Clarkson might refer to se "essential". Ally's vulnerability in that moment is shown through her nudity, as well as the visceral anger she feels in the moment.

Patricia Clarkson was recently seen on the final season of House of Cards, and has two movies in pre-production. Be sure to check CinemaBlend's 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Robert Downey Jr. Shares Inside Look At Tony’s Most Epic Scene In Avengers: Endgame

Robert Downey Jr. Shares Inside Look At Tony’s Most Epic Scene In Avengers: Endgame

Warning: SPOILERS for Avengers: Endgame are ahead!

We knew going into Avengers: Endgame that this was going to be an especially big movie for Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark since it was the culmination of a story that he helped kick off in 2008’s Iron Man, as well as the fact that this was the final movie on Downey’s Marvel contract. Sure enough, Endgame saw Tony making the ultimate sacrifice to vanquish Thanos and his forces, and Downey has shared a behind-the-scenes look at Tony’s last act in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Following in the footsteps of Thanos and The Hulk, Tony Stark became the third individual to channel the power of all six Infinity Stones on screen, only like his buddy Bruce Banner, Tony inserted the Stones into his own nanotech Infinity Gauntlet. Alas, Robert Downey Jr. was not wearing such a glove in real life, as you can see from the above picture he posted on Instagram. That was completely CGI.

Nevertheless, this was one of the most epic moments in Avengers: Endgame, as just when it seemed like the Thanos from 2014 was going to erase the entire universe and replace it with a new one, it turned out that Tony Stark had swiped the Infinity Stones from Thanos’ gauntlet to put in his own. One snap later, and Thanos and his forces all turned to dust. Unfortunately, a normal human wasn’t meant to use all the Infinity Stones, so Tony lost his life to save all of existence.

Since Robert Downey Jr. knew going into Avengers: Endgame that this would be his last Marvel movie, you have to imagine filming these scenes were emotional for him, especially Tony Stark’s Infinity Snap. Not only does Tony deliver one last heroic act in the MCU, his utterance of “And I… am Iron Man” reminds of when Tony told the press that same thing at the end of the first Iron Man movie, setting the stage for a franchise unlike any ever seen before.

Tony Stark would stick around long enough to say goodbye to War Machine, Spider-Man and his wife, Pepper Potts, but that snap ended his story. All the major characters we’ve met in the MCU over the years attended his funeral, and while his daughter Morgan is only 5 right now, perhaps she’ll become an important player in this franchise later down the line, carrying on where her father left off.

But Avengers: Endgame didn’t close the book on Tony Stark’s story. It also capped off the tale of Steve Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America, who chose to stay in the past with Peggy Carter and passed on his vibranium shield to Sam Wilson, a.k.a. Falcon, as an elderly man. Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. Black Widow, also died during Endgame, but because her solo movie is coming up, we’ll at least get to learn more about her pre-Avengers years.

Be sure to read CinemaBlend’s review of Avengers: Endgame and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates on the future of the MCU. If you’re curious about what movies are already lined up, look through our handy guide.

Netflix Has Finally Agreed To Remove Bird Box's Disaster Footage

Netflix Has Finally Agreed To Remove Bird Box's Disaster Footage

Three months ago, Netflix’s viral release Bird Box rocked the boat when Canadians recognized the movie included footage of Lac-Megantic Rail disaster, and demanded the streaming service remove the tragedy killed 47 people in 2013 from the film. After Netflix previously disagreed to do so, the company is no longer taking a blind eye to the controversy.

The streaming giant has now told The Canadian Press that they will now remove the images of the train disaster from Bird Box in the next two weeks, and will be replacing the footage with a new clip for the scene illustrating the chaos all around Europe to Sandra Bullock and Sarah Paulson’s characters before the sci-fi phenomenon that forces a group of survivors to don blindfolds hits home.

Netflix paired this announcement with an apology to the Lac-Megantic community, who have been outspoken about the potential harm the film has to family and friends to victims of the rail disaster. The town’s mayor, Julie Morin, who joined in on demanding Netflix remove the footage offered her satisfying reaction to Netflix’s new decision. In her words:

Yes, there was a delay, but I think in the end, what’s most important for me, is that we have a solution to this situation we felt was important to settle.

When requests were initially made to the streaming service about taking out the footage in Bird Box, the company responded with an apology and promise to do better in the future, but a refusal to delete the footage. Netflix cited the inability to make alterations to finished content to justify the decision.

Canada was so displeased with the rail disaster footage that the country’s parliament passed a motion asking Netflix to pay the Lac-Megantic community for their grief following the film’s release. The streaming site never seemed to address this motion, but are pulling back on their initial decision to keep the insensitive footage in Bird Box.

The same footage was also previously featured in an episode of Netflix’s Travelers television show, though the show producers agreed to remove it back in January. It’s unclear as to why Netflix took so long to comply to the Bird Box situation that angered many ­– perhaps the studio needed time to find a replacement clip or was waiting for the Bird Box pop culture high to wind down.

Bird Box faced multiple controversies after it was released in December 2018, including a trending Bird Box Challenge, which proved dangerous when people placing blindfolds and attempting tasks such as driving caused concern. Netflix had to issue a warning for fans to refrain from ending up “in the hospital due to memes”. Otherwise, the film was one of the streaming sites most-watched original films ever.

Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker’s Ending Was Changed During Filming

Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker’s Ending Was Changed During Filming

Although it’s important for a script to be finished by the time a movie starts shooting, that doesn’t mean certain elements of the story won’t change during filming. In Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s case, its ending went through various changes in the creative process, including as the cameras were rolling on the final installment of the Skywalker Saga. As Daisy Ridley recalled when asked how she found out about The Rise of Skywalker’s ending:

J.J. had told me and then I read the script, and then it was sort of shifting. The ending was always pretty similar, and then I was told there was a new, I guess, a slightly different beat added that I was told, which was awesome. Because it's nice to be told a thing, and then you can experience it with the filmmaker. But also, we don't always know how it's going to turn out. We did the thing on this side of the camera, but we don't know how it's going to turn out. So I'm as excited to see it as everyone else.

So going off what Daisy Ridley told Fox 32 anchor and ReelBlend cohost Jake Hamilton, while the overall scope of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s ending sounds like it will be the same as what J.J. Abrams told the actress who knows when, there were some minor adjustments made during the course of production. Even then, given that there’s still a lot of postproduction work to finish, plus any time that might be set aside for reshoots, maybe even more changes will be implemented.

Of course, given how secretive Disney and Lucasfilm are when it comes to upcoming Star Wars movies, even in comparison to other major film franchises, we probably won’t get any inkling of what Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s ending holds in store through advertising and marketing. Ideally after the movie has come out, Daisy Ridley, J.J. Abrams or someone else on the cast and crew will be forthcoming about how the final ending differed from what was originally put on paper.

Taking place approximately a year after the events of The Last Jedi, no specific plot details for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker have been revealed yet. That said, the trailer did reveal some interesting tidbits, like how the protagonists will be visiting a site containing some Death Star wreckage and that Emperor Palpatine will somehow fit into the proceedings.

Daisy Ridley’s Rey is joined by other familiar faces from the Star Wars movies, like John Boyega’s Finn, Oscar Isaac’s Poe Dameron, Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren, Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker and Billy Dee Williams’ Lando Calrissian, while unused footage of Carrie Fisher from The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi will allow Leia Organa to be included. As for new characters, Naomi Ackie’s Jannah will be along for the ride, as will Keri Russell, Richard E. Grant and Dominic Monaghan’s still-to-be-identified players.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opens in theaters on December 20. If you’re interested in learning what else the Star Wars franchise has coming up, look through our handy guide, or browse through our 2019 release schedule to find out what movies not taking place in a galaxy far, far away are coming out this year.

The Original 6 Avengers’ Most Defining Scenes In the MCU

The Original 6 Avengers’ Most Defining Scenes In the MCU

We’re in the endgame now. The Avengers movie we’ve been awaiting, theorizing about, obsessing over and anticipating more than any other movie for quite some time is finally coming to theaters this week. Avengers: Endgame has been marketed as the culmination of over a decade of Marvel films revolving around the core six who kicked this whole thing off. The original six Avengers also just happen to be some of the few heroes left after Thanos’ snap.

Since it's distinctly possible we’ll be saying some goodbyes to the heroes at the center of this franchise phenomenon, let’s take a trip down memory lane to the moments in the MCU that were instrumental in defining the climax we’ll soon be witnessing. Avengers Assemble!

I Am Iron Man

Iron Man kicked off the MCU back in 2008 with an unforgettable bang from Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark when he broke the superhero cardinal rule: announcing your identity… oh, and on live television. It was already a different kind of origin story about a billionaire playboy’s journey into creating his own tech to undo the damage his weapons company had created. The final moment of the film showed the new Marvel universe wouldn’t be playing the same game as Superman or Batman and making a mark of its own.

I Told You, I Don’t Want To Join Your Super Secret Boyband

After Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury makes his first appearance during the post-credit scene for Iron Man, the Avengers ringleader came back for the sequel to give Tony Stark a bit of an intervention on his recklessness midway through the film. He brings along Black Widow too on her first ever appearance in the MCU. It’s a funny scene that has Fury calling Stark out for what he’s doing wrong and helping him out on his hero work. While Stark is great at playing it off, he probably needed a dose of S.H.I.E.L.D. on his side at that moment before he had the Avengers.

If He Be Worthy

Chris Hemsworth’s Thor has certainly come a long way since having bleached eyebrows and Natalie Portman’s Jane on his arm in his 2011 origin story. The quirky action flick introduced audiences to the complicated relationship between brothers Thor and Loki, culminating in the scene where Thor stands up to his brother (who's controlling The Destroyer) by sacrificing himself in order to save the people on Earth. While he takes a pretty bad hit, it earns him the right to his iconic hammer from Odin. At the same time, it angers Loki further which later kicks off the events of The Avengers.

Peggy, I’m Gonna Need A Raincheck On That Dance

This scene gets me every. single. time. It’s the moment when Cap must force down the plane in order to save everyone while on the line with Peggy Carter. It’s also the scene that signals Steve Rogers’ ultimate sacrifice to become a hero, which he ends up needing to live with nearly 70 years later when he is dug out of some ice. As Cap’s journey continues, the past that could have been haunts him and his relationship with Peggy is an important one (even alluded to in an Endgame trailer).

I’m In The Middle Of An Interrogation

It’s crazy to imagine that just a few years ago in 2012, a showcase of female badassery such as Black Widow’s at the beginning of The Avengers was something new to be introduced on screen. Since we have Rey in Star Wars, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel and so on, but I distinctly remember the way Scarlett Johansson lights up this scene in particular feeling special. It was the start of an era for action flicks and this defining scene was certainly part of it. From her snark and the skilled choreography, this is the moment when we were all sold on Black Widow.

That’s My Secret Cap, I’m Always Angry

Aside from the snap, this might just be the most iconic moment in the MCU to date. As Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow and Hawkeye deal with the chaos attacking New York, Bruce Banner later rides up on a motorcycle to help. While the character’s fear of losing control to the “other guy” is brought up throughout the film, here he embraces it with the above line and completes the Avengers team once he Hulks out. That iconic shot of the six of them in a circle taking on the alien army showed the power of the MCU as the team was successfully brought together.

I’m Not Going To Fight You, You’re My Friend

Skipping to Captain America: Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers grapples with his past in a big way when he ends up in a showdown fight with his ol’ pal Bucky (a.k.a. Winter Soldier) in the finale of the film. A brainwashed Bucky is beating Cap up real good, but he refuses to fight with his best friend, even trying to jog his memory to help him remember. It’s a clever work of irony that the one piece of his past he can have is the person who he is at odds with. While the relationship between them never seem to feel like the ‘40s, an ounce of Bucky does come through when he saves Cap from drowning.

Did You Bring Auntie Nat?

The MCU has always struggled a bit to give Hawkeye a story arc for the audience to care about, especially when he wasn’t given a movie of his own prior and his abilities are objectively less impressive than his fellow members. Avengers: Age of Ultron helped turned that around when it was revealed that Hawkeye has a family of his own living out somewhere in a safehouse set up by Fury. His wife (Linda Cardellini) and kids surprise the other Avengers when they turn up to the house and Natasha has a cute banter with them. The scene helped to humanize Clint and get us more interested in his double life.

We’re Still Friends, Right?

Fans were divided into Team Cap and Team Iron Man in the event film Captain America: Civil War that had a bit of the old and new team of heroes fighting against each other based on principle. It will be hard to soon forget the airport battle that had Spider-Man, Ant-Man and Black Panther being featured in the mix, along with most of the original Avengers punching it out in a dynamic we’re not used to. Black Widow and Hawkeye going head-to-head was really fun, along with Cap and Spidey, but when Rhodey got hurt, it took a turn for the serious.

I Can Do This All Day

Civil War went for another unexpected match-up of hero versus hero when Iron Man and Captain America ended up getting into a heated fist fight over what should be done with Bucky, who is revealed to be the killer of Stark’s parents, but is still Cap’s old bestie. It was a heartbreaking moment to watch as the heroes who once worked side-by-side were violently going at each other until Cap pins Iron Man on the floor and walks away with Bucky as he yells “That shield doesn’t belong to you. You don’t deserve it. My father made that shield.”

Are You Thor? The God of Hammers?

After Thor: Ragnarok delivered a completely different (and welcome) side of Odinson thanks to Taika Waititi’s direction, the third Thor film also upgraded his powers as well to someone much more powerful than a big hunk with a hammer. After Hela rips out his eye and looks to be doing quite well for herself in taking over Asgard, Thor is able to see a vision of his father, who tells him that the hammer isn’t the source of his power, but a way to wield it. To “Immigrant Song,” Thor comes out with this thunderous powers and with some help from Hulk and the gang, takes down her army. His newfound powers come in handy for Thanos, but aren't quite enough…

You Should Have Gone For The Head

This scene brings us up to speed to the jaw-dropping events of Infinity War where the Avengers actually fail to stop Thanos from possessing all the Infinity Stones and wiping out half of all life in the universe. The scene when the core Avengers have to watch as heroes all around them turn to dust and they are powerless to stop it is truly one we won’t soon forget, especially since it’s so untypical for them to not save the day. The ending was a complete shock at the end of the movie, especially when they were so close to victory. It showed the Avengers are flawed and not at a place of unity.

What’s next for the Avengers? We’ll know soon when Endgame hits theaters on April 26. What are your favorite moments in the MCU so far? Let us know in the comments below!

How Much Hellboy Made On Opening Night

How Much Hellboy Made On Opening Night

The newly rebooted Hellboy made his debut to audiences last night and while things are looking good for the big red guy to be the top performer of this weekend's new releases, the early screenings totals certainly didn't blow anybody away, as the film apparently earned about $1.4 million last night.

While making over $1 million over just a couple showings per screen last night is certainly nothing to sneeze at, it's a far cry from the numbers that comic book movies tend to put up. For comparison, last weekend, Shazam! ended up doing a better than expected $5.9 million, or more than four times what Hellboy did last night.

To be fair, Hellboy was never projected to do as well as Shazam! the expectations has been that the movie will likely do about $17 million domestically this weekend and the Thursday night numbers would still put it on track to do about that much. Variety points out that Resident Evil: The Final Chapter did about $1 million on its opening night on the way to a $13.6 million opening weekend, so Hellboy is on track to improve on that. Still, if Shazam! sees a second weekend drop of 50% or less, or even slightly more, it will still win the weekend box office.

Of course, if the numbers do shake out as expected, it will put the new Hellboy movie behind the two previous films in terms of box office. Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy saw an opening weekend of gross of $23 million when it hit in 2004. The follow up, 2008's Hellboy II: The Golden Army, improved on that with $34.5 million.

Clearly, expectations had to have been higher for the reboot. Unless the brand new Hellboy was incredibly inexpensive to produce, it's going to have a hard time making its money back unless the film is a massive hit overseas. Guillermo del Toro tried and failed multiple times to find a studio willing to finance the third film he always wanted to make. The fact that a studio was willing to produce a reboot means somebody thought it was a safer bet than making another film in the existing series.

Hellboy's box office concerns match the film's critical problems. Hellboy currently has a 12% positive rating on review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes. Critics pretty much universally loathe the movie. While I don't think Rotten Tomatoes has quite the power to sway audiences that some give it credit for, it's certainly true that numbers like that don't help the situation any.

Baring surprises, it seems that Hellboy will continue his struggle at the box office. The character may not be as popular as your average marvel or DC hero, but he certainly has big fans that would love to see him succeed. Those fans may need to continue waiting.