WB has not only revealed that Barbie will be released in theaters on July 21, 2023, but it also shared a first look at Margot Robbie as a live-action version of the iconic toy from Mattel.

Shared at CinemaCon 2022, the live-action take on the beloved toy will hit theaters next year. In the first look image you can see below, we see Robbie's Barbie with a big smile in a pink convertible.

Robbie will be joined by Ryan Gosling, who will play Ken, and Will Ferrell, who will reportedly play the CEO of a toy company.

Lady Bird and Little Woman director Greta Gerwig is directing the film and is a co-writer alongside Marriage Story's Noah Baumbach.

In a past interview with British Vogue, Robbie said a project like this "comes with a lot of baggage! And a lot of nostalgic connections."

“But with that come a lot of exciting ways to attack it,” Robbie added. “People generally hear ‘Barbie’ and think, ‘I know what that movie is going to be,’ and then they hear that Greta Gerwig is writing and directing it, and they’re like, ’Oh, well, maybe I don’t…’”

Other cast members include Simu Liu, Kate McKinnon, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Mackey, and America Ferrera.

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

The long-in-development Overwatch 2 finally went live with a PvP beta this afternoon. Soon after launch, the first Overwatch broke its previous record of total Twitch viewership in mere hours.

In honor of the sequel beta, several high-profile twitch streamers such as Lirik, Myth, and most notably, xQc streamed the first Overwatch. The game peaked at around 450,000 views today, and xQc's amassed over 150,000 views of Overwatch on his own.

Overwatch fans have been dying to see if they were selected for the Overwatch 2 PVP beta. The only way of accessing a beta key is to watch partnered streamers for a certain length of time while having their Blizzard battle.net account linked on Twitch. Lucky users can pick up a PC beta key only until May 17th.

In a tweet from Nathan Grayson of the Washington Post, sources have stated that Overwatch has suffered from Activision Blizzard’s aggressive demands for both a sequel and an esports league. The company’s well-reported workplace lawsuits haven’t helped either, and there have been several high-profile exits from the company in the past several years.

With over fifty million units sold in the original Overwatch, there is a whole lot riding on Blizzard for developing a worthy sequel. For years, fans of Overwatch had been seeing issues from delayed hero releases to seeing Jeff Kaplan, Overwatch’s original game director, leave the company entirely exactly one year ago.

Christian Angeles is a freelance writer for IGN.

The long-in-development Overwatch 2 finally went live with a PvP beta this afternoon. Soon after launch, the first Overwatch broke its previous record of total Twitch viewership in mere hours.

In honor of the sequel beta, several high-profile twitch streamers such as Lirik, Myth, and most notably, xQc streamed the first Overwatch. The game peaked at around 450,000 views today, and xQc's amassed over 150,000 views of Overwatch on his own.

Overwatch fans have been dying to see if they were selected for the Overwatch 2 PVP beta. The only way of accessing a beta key is to watch partnered streamers for a certain length of time while having their Blizzard battle.net account linked on Twitch. Lucky users can pick up a PC beta key only until May 17th.

In a tweet from Nathan Grayson of the Washington Post, sources have stated that Overwatch has suffered from Activision Blizzard’s aggressive demands for both a sequel and an esports league. The company’s well-reported workplace lawsuits haven’t helped either, and there have been several high-profile exits from the company in the past several years.

With over fifty million units sold in the original Overwatch, there is a whole lot riding on Blizzard for developing a worthy sequel. For years, fans of Overwatch had been seeing issues from delayed hero releases to seeing Jeff Kaplan, Overwatch’s original game director, leave the company entirely exactly one year ago.

Christian Angeles is a freelance writer for IGN.

WB has officially announced a sequel to Matt Reeves' The Batman, confirming that Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Reeves, and crew will be back for another adventure.

Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich shared the news at CinemaCon 2022, and while nothing further was revealed as far as plot or release window, we now officially know a sequel is on its way.

Reeves came on stage to help announce The Batman, saying more details will be revealed “in a CinemaCon to come.”

The Batman was released on March 4, 2022, and we gave it a rare 10/10 in our review, saying, "Matt Reeves’ violent, thrilling, darkly beautiful take on The Batman more than justifies its place in the franchise’s canon."

If you have yet to see The Batman, you will be happy to know it is currently available at no extra cost to all HBO Max subscribers. If you have watched it and need more films like it, be sure to check out our list of the movies you need to watch after The Batman.

For more, check out The Batman's big deleted scene featuring that villain, why that villain looks the way the way they do, and our explainer of the film's ending.

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

WB has officially announced a sequel to Matt Reeves' The Batman, confirming that Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Reeves, and crew will be back for another adventure.

Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich shared the news at CinemaCon 2022, and while nothing further was revealed as far as plot or release window, we now officially know a sequel is on its way.

Reeves came on stage to help announce The Batman, saying more details will be revealed “in a CinemaCon to come.”

The Batman was released on March 4, 2022, and we gave it a rare 10/10 in our review, saying, "Matt Reeves’ violent, thrilling, darkly beautiful take on The Batman more than justifies its place in the franchise’s canon."

If you have yet to see The Batman, you will be happy to know it is currently available at no extra cost to all HBO Max subscribers. If you have watched it and need more films like it, be sure to check out our list of the movies you need to watch after The Batman.

For more, check out The Batman's big deleted scene featuring that villain, why that villain looks the way the way they do, and our explainer of the film's ending.

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Veteran Fast franchise director Justin Lin will no longer direct the upcoming Fast X. Production has halted so that the studio can find a replacement director.

According to Deadline, Lin — who previously directed The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Fast & Furious, Fast Five, Fast & Furious 6, and F9 — was tapped to direct the two-part finale Fast X and Fast & Furious 11. However, although filming on Fast X already started, Lin will step down from the director's seat over creative differences, while still remaining a producer on the films.

In a statement, Lin says, "With the support of Universal, I have made the difficult decision to step back as director of FAST X, while remaining with the project as a producer." While Lin didn't elaborate on his decision to step down, he thanked the actors and stunt team, and added "On a personal note, as the child of Asian immigrants, I am proud of helping to build the most diverse franchise in movie history."

Production on Fast X had just begun, but there will be a brief pause to find Lin's replacement. A decision is likely to happen soon as the studio is reportedly already talking to replacement candidates.

Lin is highly-regarded among fans for having directed some of the most critically-acclaimed entries in the Fast franchise, including Fast Five and Fast and Furious 6 (and cult favorite Tokyo Drift). Lin oversaw the series' transformation from its early movies into the globe-trotting blockbusters they are today. After leaving the series in 2013, Lin returned to the franchise in 2021 for F9 and was set to finish out the franchise before today's news.

It's unclear who could replace Lin, though there have been several directors who have tackled the Fast series including James Wan.

Fast X would have concluded the Fast franchise and includes most of the key Fast cast members as well as newcomers like Jason Momoa and Brie Larson.

Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.

(Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for Universal Pictures Home Entertainment)

Veteran Fast franchise director Justin Lin will no longer direct the upcoming Fast X. Production has halted so that the studio can find a replacement director.

According to Deadline, Lin — who previously directed The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Fast & Furious, Fast Five, Fast & Furious 6, and F9 — was tapped to direct the two-part finale Fast X and Fast & Furious 11. However, although filming on Fast X already started, Lin will step down from the director's seat over creative differences, while still remaining a producer on the films.

In a statement, Lin says, "With the support of Universal, I have made the difficult decision to step back as director of FAST X, while remaining with the project as a producer." While Lin didn't elaborate on his decision to step down, he thanked the actors and stunt team, and added "On a personal note, as the child of Asian immigrants, I am proud of helping to build the most diverse franchise in movie history."

Production on Fast X had just begun, but there will be a brief pause to find Lin's replacement. A decision is likely to happen soon as the studio is reportedly already talking to replacement candidates.

Lin is highly-regarded among fans for having directed some of the most critically-acclaimed entries in the Fast franchise, including Fast Five and Fast and Furious 6 (and cult favorite Tokyo Drift). Lin oversaw the series' transformation from its early movies into the globe-trotting blockbusters they are today. After leaving the series in 2013, Lin returned to the franchise in 2021 for F9 and was set to finish out the franchise before today's news.

It's unclear who could replace Lin, though there have been several directors who have tackled the Fast series including James Wan.

Fast X would have concluded the Fast franchise and includes most of the key Fast cast members as well as newcomers like Jason Momoa and Brie Larson.

Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.

(Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images for Universal Pictures Home Entertainment)

It looks like Sony Pictures has found a new director to captain its Robotech live-action film. Deadline is reporting that Rhys Thomas has signed on to direct the film, fresh off his stint as a director on Marvel's Hawkeye series. Thomas directed the first, second, and final episodes of the Disney+ series. Prior to that, his work was mostly in the comedy vein, directing Documentary Now and many segments on Saturday Night Live.

Robotech has been in development at Sony Pictures since 2017. The current iteration of the film is based on a script by Art Marcum and Matt Holloway, with a subsequent rewrite by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka. The film is being produced by Mark Canton and Gianni Nunnari, who previously produced 300, Immortals, and 300: Rise of an Empire together.

The live-action film is based on the Robotech property owned by Harmony Gold. The 80s animated series was comprised of three different Japanese animated series — Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber Mospeada — that were redubbed and recut to have a single overarching storyline. This unique genesis has been a part of the legal battle between Harmony Gold and advertising firm Big West, who owns the original Japanese series Macross. Both companies came to an agreement in 2021, allowing the Robotech live-action film to move forward.

Robotech has been in development in Hollywood since 2007, when Warner Bros was seeking to develop a live-action film with Tobey Maguire's production company. Sony Pictures picked up the project in 2015 with the intention of "moving quickly toward production of a future global franchise."

At the time, Aquaman director James Wan was slated to direct the film. Wan told IGN that he intended to be "respectful to the origin of the material," while also telling a more modern story. Stephen King's IT and The Flash director Andy Muschietti stepped up to helm the franchise when Wan left to direct the first Aquaman. Muschietti even visited Harmony Gold's offices to promote the film.

It remains to be seen whether Robotech will finally make it to the big screen after all this time. At the very least, the legal battles are done, giving the film a long, clean runaway for takeoff.

Blogroll image credit: Matt Winkelmeye / Getty Images

Mike Williams is a freelance writer at IGN.

It looks like Sony Pictures has found a new director to captain its Robotech live-action film. Deadline is reporting that Rhys Thomas has signed on to direct the film, fresh off his stint as a director on Marvel's Hawkeye series. Thomas directed the first, second, and final episodes of the Disney+ series. Prior to that, his work was mostly in the comedy vein, directing Documentary Now and many segments on Saturday Night Live.

Robotech has been in development at Sony Pictures since 2017. The current iteration of the film is based on a script by Art Marcum and Matt Holloway, with a subsequent rewrite by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka. The film is being produced by Mark Canton and Gianni Nunnari, who previously produced 300, Immortals, and 300: Rise of an Empire together.

The live-action film is based on the Robotech property owned by Harmony Gold. The 80s animated series was comprised of three different Japanese animated series — Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber Mospeada — that were redubbed and recut to have a single overarching storyline. This unique genesis has been a part of the legal battle between Harmony Gold and advertising firm Big West, who owns the original Japanese series Macross. Both companies came to an agreement in 2021, allowing the Robotech live-action film to move forward.

Robotech has been in development in Hollywood since 2007, when Warner Bros was seeking to develop a live-action film with Tobey Maguire's production company. Sony Pictures picked up the project in 2015 with the intention of "moving quickly toward production of a future global franchise."

At the time, Aquaman director James Wan was slated to direct the film. Wan told IGN that he intended to be "respectful to the origin of the material," while also telling a more modern story. Stephen King's IT and The Flash director Andy Muschietti stepped up to helm the franchise when Wan left to direct the first Aquaman. Muschietti even visited Harmony Gold's offices to promote the film.

It remains to be seen whether Robotech will finally make it to the big screen after all this time. At the very least, the legal battles are done, giving the film a long, clean runaway for takeoff.

Blogroll image credit: Matt Winkelmeye / Getty Images

Mike Williams is a freelance writer at IGN.

While explaining how graphics drivers work, it seems that Nvidia couldn't help taking a jab at AMD in the process.

In a new video (and accompanying blog post) intended to explain Nvidia's arduous process of creating it's "Game Ready" drivers, Nvidia Senior Product Manager Sean Pelletier detailed how graphics drivers work and why it's important to ensure the right drivers are available when new games release.

Towards the end, Pelletier noted Nvidia doesn't release beta drivers because of how "integral the driver is to the overall experience." He likened the drivers to video games, saying that fully released games are "held to a higher standard" than the beta version of the same game. He seems to be inferring that Nvidia's Game Ready drivers, which are typically released on the same day as a game's launch, are superior to beta drivers that AMD may put out.

From the blog post:

Only once all this work is completed do we launch the driver via GeForce.com and GeForce Experience. And because the Game Ready Driver Program and our promise of quality relies on all of this work, we don’t release sub-par beta drivers with minimal testing, let alone multiple conflicting beta drivers forked from different development branches that support different games and products, which confuse customers.

Of course, astute PC gamers already know that despite Nvidia's in-depth testing and verification process, the company still deals with occasional driver problems. Sometimes, Nvidia has to release an updated driver to fix problems that the original driver caused.

Despite the jab at AMD, the video itself is well-made and does a good job outling the process of driver creation from beginning to end. The Game Ready program was started in 2014 as a way to optimize drivers by interacting directly with game development teams.

Nvidia also bragged about every single Game Ready driver being Windows Hardware Quality Labs (WHQL) certified. That said, WHQL certifcation is certainly appreciated but focuses more on Windows functionality rather than specific games.

Finally, releasing "beta" drivers isn't necessarily a bad thing. By definition, a beta is a trial of software or any product by a third party during the final stages of development. It allows people outside of the development to put fresh eyes on the product and may lead to finding bugs that were otherwise undiscovered by the development team.

Of course, being a video about drivers, Nvidia has also released its latest 512.59 Game Ready drivers which contains optimizations for Dune: Spice Wars. It also includes ray tracing support for the Chernobylite survival game and adds DLSS support to JX3 Online and Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodhunt.

David Matthews is a freelance writer specializing in consumer tech and gaming. He also strongly believes that sugar does not go in grits. Follow him on Twitter @shortblktechie