Shazam's Editor Reveals The Scene That Was The Toughest To Get Right

Shazam's Editor Reveals The Scene That Was The Toughest To Get Right

Warning: SPOILERS for Shazam! are ahead!

As one expects from a superhero movie, Shazam! was packed with a lot of action-packed moments, all of which came with their own unique challenges to pull off. As a result, just because a scene or sequence was envisioned in a particular way on script or while shooting doesn’t mean it came together looking exactly like that when finally assembled.

One of those sequences was the final battle between the eponymous protagonist and the Seven Deadly Sins-powered Doctor Sivana, which led to Billy sharing his power with his adoptive siblings so they too could become adult superheroes. I learned this when I recently spoke with the editor of Shazam!, Michel Aller, as this was her response when I asked what scenes changed the most from how they were initially shot to how they were edited together:

The end battle, really, was the biggest one that evolved. It had so many moving pieces that we had to work with and figure out, showing these new characters, the adult family, and giving them enough screen time, and still having the screen time between Sivana and Shazam. That end sequence, I wouldn’t say it’s just one scene, but the whole end battle was the one evolved the most.

There’s definitely a lot going on in that final Shazam! battle. It would be one thing if it had just been a straightforward fight between Shazam and Sivana, but not only did Mary, Freddy, Eugene, Darla and Pedro joining the fray widen the scope, but there was also the fact that the Seven Deadly Sins were able to separate from Sivana and go their own ways. So there were numerous things to keep track of within that carnival battleground.

As a result, not only was the final Shazam! battle the sequence that evolved the most during the editing phase, it was also the hardest one to cut together. In Michel Aller’s words:

It was probably the hardest, because you want to balance all these characters, telling everyone what’s going on, where they’re at, and keeping them interested and keeping the story moving forward. It was definitely the end battle. You have a lot of moving pieces to work with.

Even with all those moving pieces to track, ultimately the battle culminated with the showdown between Shazam and Sivana, adversaries that have been fighting on the printed page and in other media for eight decades. Remembering that main antagonist loses his powers if all of the Sins are out of his body, the superpowered Billy Batson managed to goad Envy out of Sivana, leaving the chrome-domed baddy helpless. Upon taking the Eye of Sin from Sivana, Billy imprisoned all of the Sins back within it, and the Shazam family redeposited the artifact back at the Rock of Eternity.

While this sequence had to go into the Shazam! final cut no matter what, there were 20-24 minutes of scenes that were taken out. However, Michel Aller expects you’ll be able to watch most of these when Shazam! comes out on Blu-ray and DVD later this year, with some of these excised scenes possibly including one where Mary confronts Billy as he’s sneaking out of the Vasquez house and the original version of Sivana’s murder spree. For now, catch Shazam! in theaters while you can, as the next DCEU movie isn’t coming out until next February (although Joker is holding down the overall DC fort in October).

Be sure to read CinemaBlend’s review of Shazam! and stay tuned for updates on how Shazam! 2 is coming along. Those of you interested in learning what other DC movies are in development can find that information in our handy guide, or you can look through our 2019 release schedule to plan when you’ll be going to the movie theater later this year.

Admiral Ackbar Actor Calls His Death In Star Wars: The Last Jedi A Huge Disappointment

Admiral Ackbar Actor Calls His Death In Star Wars: The Last Jedi A Huge Disappointment

The past few years have been very kind to Star Wars fans. Once Disney acquired Lucasfilm, there's been a variety of new and exciting projects hitting theaters, expanding the galaxy far, far away in the process. Standalone films and the upcoming Mandalorian TV series broke new ground for the property, although the main focus on the generations of fans is on the main franchise.

J.J. Abrams' kickstarted the story back up with The Force Awakens, which saw plenty of familiar faces return to the big screen. This includes the always meme-worthy Admiral Ackbar. But the iconic rebel met a swift end in The Last Jedi, and that's a decision that seriously upset the puppeteer who brought him to life over the years. Tim Rose is the man behind Ackbar, and recently expressed his disappointment about the character's handling in the sequel trilogy. He said:

After The Force Awakens -- for whatever reason, length of picture, whatever -- it all got cut out. So after waiting 30 years to reprise Ackbar I was a little disappointed with Ackbar's role in that picture. So in The Last Jedi, I was quite looking forward to maybe them giving him something more juicy. We were only given the script on the day when we were shooting that piece of script, so each day I would come to work going, ‘Is today the day when Ackbar gets something a bit more involving?’ And I looked at my script and I went, ‘Oh, Ackbar's going out of the window. Well, that's that then!’ I wasn’t quite dead yet.

Yikes. It turns out that Admiral Ackbar had a larger role in The Force Awakens, but it ultimately landed on the cutting room floor. There was a decent amount of world building to get through in Episode VII, so Tim Rose understood. At least, until he was killed off in The Last Jedi's opening sequence.

Admiral Ackbar might not have been as popular as franchise favorites like Han Solo or General Leia, but his role in the Star Wars franchise goes back to 1983's Return of the Jedi. As such, Tim Rose was hoping he'd have a meaty role once the sequel trilogy finally happened. Unfortunately, Ackbar's presence was mostly tertiary, and he got an unceremonious death scene.

Related: All The Major Star Wars: The Last Jedi Character Deaths

Ackbar was killed along with the rest of The Resistance Leaders when the First Order attacked the fleet, and a TIE fighter blew up the commanding ship's bridge. Leia was able to use her dormant Force Abilities to save herself, but the rest of the leadership wasn't so lucky.

In his same conversation with Jamie Stangroom, Tim Rose described how salt was rubbed in his wound on the set of The Last Jedi, saying:

We finished all of our bits and they asked me to come down to camera. And I thought, ‘Oh well, maybe they’re going to say thank you for being one of the heritage characters and giving 30 years and all that.’ But what they did was, they gave me a Millennium Falcon sign that had the day and the date on it, the scene number, and they said, ‘Can you look at camera and say "It's a wrap?" Because that would be really funny.’ … I was actually in tears in the suit because I thought - after everything, after hoping there’d be something, after knowing there wasn't going to be anything else, Ackbar's final moment before he went in to the box was a big joke about ‘It's a wrap.’ They just thought ‘Wouldn’t it be funny?’ And that was the sum total of my life as Ackbar.

Ouch. While the Resistance Leaders were killed off in The Last Jedi in order to move the story forward, Tim Rose's feelings were hurt in the process. And when he was asked to film some B-roll for special features/sizzle reels, there was an extra level of betrayal for the puppeteer.

As a reminder, you can check out the scene below. Ackbar isn't featured, but can be seen behind Leia before the bridge is destroyed.

Aside from his onscreen appearances, Admiral Ackbar has had a life on the page and small screen. Plus, his iconic "It's a trap!" line from Return of The Jedi has been meme-d more times than one can count. So while Tim Rose might have been disappointed with his tenure as the character, Ackbar will still live on forever with the generations of Star Wars fans.

The next installment in the Star Wars franchise is The Rise of Skywalker on December 20th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

How The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter Creates Harry's Patronus In The Sky

How The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter Creates Harry's Patronus In The Sky

Earlier this year, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Hollywood debuted a new nighttime show called Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle. The 8-minute show uses projection mapping onto the castle to tell a story dedicated to the darker side of magic, the kind they won’t teach you at Hogwarts. The grand finale of the show sees Harry Potter’s stag Patronus light up the night sky in a beautiful display that seems like magic.

It is obviously (and sadly) not real magic though. It is actually achieved thanks to the magic of technology, specifically dozens of drones that emit the bright lights that makeup Harry’s brilliant stag Patronus. According to Forbes, Universal Studios Hollywood partnered with the Intel Drone Group, which had experience putting on drone light shows, with the express purpose of lighting up the sky with the stag Patronus that Harry Potter shared with his father James.

You can’t just go to the local electronics store, buy a bunch of drones and hope you can make them form a pattern in the sky though, and that’s why Universal Studios reached out to Intel in the first place. There are a lot of variables and calculations that have to be made to get the desired effect and have it be as magical as possible.

In addition to getting approval to use the airspace where the drones would be flying, Intel Drone Group also needed to account for the environment, where the drones would launch from and what the animation is that they would have to perform. It’s an involved process that can take months to realize and undoubtedly part of why Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle was in development for over two years.

Universal Studios Hollywood’s Senior Director of Entertainment Production Stephen Siercks wouldn’t divulge the specifics of exactly how they pull off the show’s phenomenal Patronus finale, but did say that it is a “really complex program that blends both technology and choreography.”

While the technical side of such spectacles is always fascinating, it is sometimes cool to not know how it works and just suspend your disbelief as much as possible and allow yourself to be immersed in a fantastical world. Although I imagine a video doesn’t do this justice, you can check out Harry’s Patronus in the sky in the video below.

Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle ran for 15 days earlier this year and returned to the Wizarding World at Universal Studios Hollywood for Memorial Day weekend. The show next returns to the park on June 22 and will run through August 11. Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle is also coming to Universal Studios Orlando, but dates have not yet been announced.

Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to see what movies will be creating magic on the big screen this year and let us know what your Patronus is in the comments below.

There’s A Wild Star Wars Rumor About Rey’s Parents

There’s A Wild Star Wars Rumor About Rey’s Parents

The last few years have been very kind for Star Wars fans, as new and exciting properties have been introduced to help expand the galaxy far, far away. Standalone films broke new ground for the property, while The Mandalorian will be the first live-action TV series set in the galaxy. But the true attention of the fandom is one the main franchise, as The Rise of Skywalker is only months away.

J.J. Abrams will return to the director's chair for Episode IX, which will be in the final chapter in the Skywalker Saga. The movie will also wrap up the narrative that Abrams started with The Force Awakens. Rian Johnson revealed in The Last Jedi that Rey's parents were nobodies who abandoned her on Jakku, but some fans thought this might be red herring. Now a new rumor has been swirling, claiming that her father is none other than Harrison Ford's Han Solo.

This new rumor comes to us from Making Star Wars' Patreon podcast. The publication is a go-to source for all thing Star Wars, and touched on the new theory that Han is actually Rey's true father. The story is that when Leia was busy training with Luke in the wake of Return of the Jedi, Harrison Ford's smuggler had an affair--leading to the birth of the sequel trilogy's hero.

If this rumor comes to fruition, it would truly blow the minds of the generations of Star Wars fans. Rey's parentage has been a major point of conversation with the sequel trilogy, with endless theories arising in the years between The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. But the latter movie consistently subverted fan expectations, and that includes Rey's bloodline.

If Han Solo were Rey's father, it would make a great deal of sense. He served as a mentor and father figure in The Force Awakens, and the two characters hit it off quickly. What's more, Rey's piloting of the Millennium Falcon came extremely easy to the emerging Jedi. She's still the person in possession of the iconic vessel, and has a close relationship with Chewbacca as well.

Related: All The Major Theories About Rey's Parents

When J.J. Abrams signed on to direct The Rise of Skywalker following the departure of Colin Trevorrow, fans were excited to see how Abrams will wrap up the story that he began with The Force Awakens. And if he didn't agree with Rian Johnson's creative choice regarding Rey's lineage, then perhaps the director will retcon that out of the canon, and reveal a larger twist.

There was certain doubt about Rey's parent reveal in The Last Jedi basically as soon as the movie arrived in theaters. It was Kylo Ren who revealed that Rey came from a pair of unremarkable parents. But could he have been lying in an attempt to bring Rey to her side and rule the galaxy together? It doesn't seem out of the question.

You can check out the scene in question below.

As you can see, Adam Driver's villainous Ben Solo doesn't reveal how he knows about Rey's parents. Instead, he prays on Rey's biggest insecurities, and simply fills in the blanks after she admits she came from nothing. So it would be pretty easy for J.J. Abrams to do an aboutface, and give her a more epic family tree.

All will be revealed when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Wait, Did Vin Diesel Join The Avatar Sequels?

Wait, Did Vin Diesel Join The Avatar Sequels?

Right now, under the strictest measures of security, writer/director James Cameron is making the sequels to his record breaking opus Avatar, in anticipation of the releasing the first follow up at the end of next year. And while taking a break from the rigors of that gargantuan task, Cameron decided to record a short video on set with a new friend, Fast and Furious lead and celebrity uber-nerd Vin Diesel. But, wait a second, could this mean that Diesel has joined the ranks of the cast for this big ticket event franchise?

This prospect seems to be pretty likely from where we’re standing, as this feels like one of the only reasons that the stereotypically cryptic James Cameron would even let Vin Diesel glimpse at what he considers top secret materials of a sensitive nature. Sure, there’s a possibility that Diesel and Cameron are mutual fans of each others’ work and just wanted to hang out, but this doesn’t seem like the kind of place to do that unless some sort of Avatar business was involved.

In addition to that speculation, and between the lighthearted joking and friendly patter shown on display between the two titans, there were some choice remarks made by Vin Diesel that have us questioning if some sort of big announcement is coming our way in the future.

Specifically, Diesel said the following, which set off alarm bells in our heads:

It’s long overdue. There is one person in Hollywood I’ve always wanted to work with, and learn from. … All things come, I guess, to those who wait.

Cue some shenanigans with funny voices and references to Kung Fu, and you’ve got a perfect recipe for a cute viral video that could lead to a lot more if the implications are correct. But there’s another interesting point to make, as this Instagram post’s contents snuck in one more potential bit of news.

Right at the beginning of the video, James Cameron announced that he and Vin Diesel were on the set of “Avatars 2, 3, 4, & 5,” which is interesting considering those last two sequels don't have an official green light just yet. While this doesn’t particularly mean anything, seeing as how Cameron is probably more than optimistic he’ll get those last two films off the ground, it wouldn’t be surprising if that was another featured bit of news coming down the pike in the near future.

With the Disney/Fox merger now complete, and the Aliens filmmaker more than entrenched with both halves of that corporate cookie, this new alliance could be the moment everyone was waiting for before pulling the trigger on Jake Sully’s continuing adventures. And with new sequels come new cast members to help flesh out the 5 film story James Cameron has planned.

You can parse out the action for yourself, as we’re providing the entire video for your viewing pleasure below:

Now we must remind you dear Avatar fans that this isn’t an official announcement of any sort of partnership or deal for Vin Diesel to join on for Avatar 2-5, or that the entries 4 and 5 are confirmed to be officially in the works. Hell, we can’t even tell you if the titles that supposedly leaked are legit or not. All we can say is that Diesel has been spotted on the set with James Cameron, and it really sounds like the two are thick as thieves, plotting an otherworldly adventure that could change the movie world again.

What we can tell also you, among other things, is that Avatar 2 is scheduled for release on December 18, 2020; and that you can visit the attraction Pandora – The World of Avatar at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom. Which will probably be super easy to access once that other big Disney Parks attraction opens at various periods this year.

Minions Sequel Gets A Title, May Actually Be An Origin Story

Minions Sequel Gets A Title, May Actually Be An Origin Story

The Despicable Me movies have always been a hit with fans and brought in serious box office dollars, but the first film in the franchise to cross the $1 billion mark was actually the spinoff title, Minions, which focused on the little yellow creatures that work as henchman for Despicable Me's Gru.

It looks like the forthcoming sequel to Minions, will bring things around full circle and also act as an origin story for the Steve Carell voiced "bad guy", as, according to Deadline, the movie now has an official title, Minions: The Rise of Gru.

The first Minions movie ended with the yellow freak shows first being introduced to a much younger Gru. Since Minions apparently live to serve bad guys, they decide that Gru is the leader they need. It appears, based strictly on the title, that the new movie will pick up right where the last one left off and watch Gru grow from small time thug to moon stealing supervillain.

It seems the idea here is for the new film to be both a Minions sequel as well as a Despicable Me prequel, though one assumes that this one will be told from the perspective of the Minions.

Based on the title, one assumes Steve Carell will be returning to voice Gru in what will be a significant part, though it's possible he could spend most of the movie in the background and the story will instead focus on what the Minions are doing behind the scenes into order to make Gru a success.

Based on the box office success of the franchise as a whole, and the first Minions movie specifically, it's actually the highest grossing animated film franchise ever, it would seem that there is an audience that is going to be very excited for this new movie.

Beyond the title we know essentially nothing about what the new movie will actually be about. The project was easily green lit following the stellar box office success of the first film, but this is the first real news we've received about it.

Illumination is about to drop another sequel to a popular franchise. The Secret Life of Pets 2 will hit next month. Once that happens, one assumes we'll start to get more info about the Minions sequel as Minions: The Rse of Gru is the animation studio's next project, set for a July 3, 2020 opening. A sequel to Sing is also one the way a year after that.

It's even possible we could see a teaser trailer for the movie in front of Pets 2. With the film being just over a year away there is probably enough work done to put something together to start to get fans excited.

I'd by lying if I said I was one of the people who was excited for Minions: The Rise of Gru. I've never found the franchise to be particularly engaging, but there are certainly those that feel differently and good for them. I'm glad they're happy that we'll be up to our neck in Minions come next July.

Johnny Depp Allegedly Asked Warner Bros. Boss To Fire Amber Heard From Aquaman

Johnny Depp Allegedly Asked Warner Bros. Boss To Fire Amber Heard From Aquaman

Johnny Depp's $50 million defamation suit against Amber Heard alleged her words got him fired from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Now a completely separate lawsuit from Depp against his former lawyer alleges Depp tried to get Heard fired from Aquaman.

Johnny Depp is alleged to have personally asked former Warner Bros. chairman Kevin Tsujihara to remove Amber Heard from her role as Mera in DC's Aquaman, and also block her from getting other WB projects.

What's interesting is that Kevin Tsujihara is the one who was recently ousted, although he did get to resign, after a casting couch sexual misconduct scandal.

Johnny Depp filed this initial lawsuit against former attorney Jake Bloom in 2017, THR reports, claiming Bloom collected more than $30 million in fees without a signed contract. Bloom countersued, and Amber Heard only got her name brought in when Bloom's attorney, Bryan Freedman, brought up how Depp's team had started to accuse Bloom's side of "malpractice in connection with Depp's divorce from Amber Heard."

In part, Johnny Depp's lawsuit claimed that Jake Bloom gave Depp bad advice regarding the actor's split with Amber Heard. But Bloom reportedly isn't the only one who advised Depp to settle with Heard, just the only one being sued right now, which is apparently why so many of Depp's former advisors and lawyers were just asked to testify.

Johnny Depp's current lawyer, Adam Waldman, shared a statement with THR calling it bewildering that the Bloom side claims they've been accused of malpractice related to Amber Heard. They don't understand what evidence Heard's ex-boyfriend Elon Musk or former Warner Bros. boss Kevin Tsujihara could possibly present related to their $30 million legal malpractice suit.

Be that as it may, Elon Musk and Kevin Tsujihara are among the many who've been dragged into this and asked to give testimony.

Kevin Tsujihara will reportedly be asked to testify under oath on whether or not he played a role in trying to blacklist Amber Heard at Warner Bros. As THR noted, there's been no evidence presented yet that he tried to do so, and it would've been tough for even the studio chief to remove Heard from the role of Mera, since she already played it in Justice League. (They could've always recast the role, though, just like they could recast Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts if they wanted to.)

Amber Heard did previously allege that, following her split with Johnny Depp, "I lost a part for a movie in which I had already been cast." And she wrote in her op-ed piece -- the one Depp later sued her over -- that she was worried about being blacklisted.

Johnny Depp was also back in headlines recently when unnamed sources claimed Warner Bros. execs were worried about Depp continuing in the Fantastic Beasts franchise. That was in reaction to his other major lawsuit -- the $50 million defamation suit Depp filed against Amber Heard. He alleged her abuse allegations against him were a hoax.

Amber Heard recently responded to that defamation lawsuit with court documents describing the alleged abuse in graphic detail. The back-and-forth from the lawsuits is reportedly worrying to Warner Bros. execs, who manage both the Fantastic Beasts and DC/Aquaman franchises.

Johnny Depp previously sued his former business managers at The Management Group for more than $25 million, accusing them of fraud and negligence in mishandling his money; TMG then responded with a cross-complaint claiming that Depp's own overspending was the real problem. That lawsuit was reportedly settled in summer 2018.

Meanwhile, Amber Heard seems to be continuing on as Aquaman's (Jason Momoa) lady love Mera wherever Aquaman goes after the billion dollar success of the James Wan movie. She also has a role in the movie Gully, which is expected to premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 27. Johnny Depp appears to be continuing on as Gellert Grindelwald in the Fantastic Beasts franchise, which is filming Fantastic Beasts 3 in late fall, for a currently unknown release date.