Hayley Atwell on What Drew Her to Howards End
MCU star Hayley Atwell recently appeared at the Television Critics Association press tour (where she also spoke briefly to us about wanting her own Peggy Carter Marvel movie) to appear on a panel for her new Starz miniseries, Howards End.
Atwell spoke about what was different about this four-part adaptation of E.M. Forster's famous novel given that it's been adapted for the screen before, most famously in a 1992 movie starring Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson.
Mostly, Atwell was attracted to the fact that Manchester by the Sea's Kenneth Lonergan was the one molding the work this time around. "I think Kenny Lonergan’s adaptation is very fresh," she said. "It has a lot of energy to it, and there are many scenes of overlapping with the dialogue. So, although we stuck to the script, the script had this fantastic kind of lightness to it and this wit, which meant that despite the constrictions of the costumes and the period, we did feel that we wanted to make it as accessible as possible to modern audiences by not making it feel mannered or held."
Are the Valérian Comics Really a Big Influence on Star Wars?
If you’re a Luc Besson fan, you’ve likely seen at least one of the flashy trailers for his latest movie, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Like many big-budget movies these days, Valerian is based on a comic. If the Valérian and Laureline comics don’t ring a bell, that’s okay: you’re not alone in not knowing about the French source material.
The thing is that while the trailers for Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets may look like a colourful Star Wars prequel rip-off, the reality is that the Valérian and Laureline comics were birthed a decade before the original Star Wars movie hit the big screen in 1977.
There’s been a lot of discussion about just how much of an influence Valérian was on Star Wars. It’s a controversial topic because though Star Wars creator George Lucas acknowledged many influences for his juggernaut sci-fi creation – including Flash Gordon, Toshirô Mifune, Akira Kurosawa, mythological heroes, old series and even comics – Valérian has never been mentioned. No one else who’s worked on the Star Wars movies seems to have listed the preceding adventures of Valérian as an influence, either.
AMC Greenlights Blumhouse Horror Anthology TV Series
Today at the Television Critics Association press tour, AMC announced several scripted and non-fiction projects that are currently being developed as part of its "scripts-to-series" initiative.
Shock Theatre, a new sci-fi horror anthology series from The Walking Dead executive producer Greg Nicotero is on the horizon, as well as a non-fiction horror anthology series from Blumhouse Television called Wicked West.
Other greenlit projects include an untitled project from Rainn Wilson (The Office), a series based on Victor LaValle's fantasy novella The Ballad of Black Tom, and more. See a list of all seven projects and their accompanying descriptions below:
- Untitled Rainn Wilson Project - A one-hour scripted series that follows an alien entity which takes over the body of a poly-addicted, middle-aged man living in the San Fernando Valley.
Why James Cameron, Robert Kirkman and Eli Roth Made a TV Show
Some of the foremost creators in genre storytelling have come together for a new special series called AMC Visionaries, which spotlights the industries they're most passionate about.
Robert Kirkman, Eli Roth and James Cameron (via satellite) gathered at the 2017 summer TV Critics' Association press tour to set up their various hour-long series segments. Each will be six episodes long, with Kirkman helming Robert Kirkman’s Secret History of Comics, Cameron spearheading James Cameron’s Story of Science Fiction and Roth heading the newly announced Eli Roth’s History of Horror (working title).
My Hero Academia Episode 30 Review
Warning: Full spoilers for the episode below.
My Hero Academia has been moving along at a remarkably swift pace the past couple of weeks, and "Climax" continues that momentum, delivering a thrilling conclusion to Iida's ill-conceived quest for vengeance against Hero Killer: Stain.
Once again, Bones must be praised for its incredible animation work, which shines in each character's facial expressions, adding an emotional weight to the stellar writing. The music that accompanies these sequences only heightens the emotional impact, mirroring Iida's internal triumph. A somber piano score plays while Iida lies paralyzed on the ground, and when he finally rises to his feet and comes to Todoroki's aid, the music switches to a rousing beat of drums and brass. The sound then builds to the climactic moment when Deku regains control of his body to join Iida in simultaneously delivering a crushing blow to Stain, which resonated so profoundly on an audio/visual and emotional level.
Pokemon Go Live Events in Europe Delayed
Four live Pokemon Go events in Europe have been delayed for a few months.
Developer Niantic announced today that the Safari Zone events scheduled for August 5 in Copenhagen and Prague, and August 12 in Stockholm and Amsterdam have been delayed until sometime later in the fall.
However, the event in Yokohama, Japan on August 14, as well as the events in France, Spain and Germany on September 16 are still on schedule.
Niantic explained the delay was to ensure "the best possible gameplay experience for European Trainers." To make up for the postponement, the company has promised Pokemon that have been rare in Europe will be appearing more often in a few European cities for a limited time.
Capcom Planning More Nintendo Switch Games
Thanks to the strong performance of Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers, Capcom is reportedly planning more games for release on Nintendo Switch.
According to Capcom's latest financial report, the Switch fighting game "made an excellent start and proved to be a smash hit."
Additionally, the Wall Street Journal's Takashi Mochizuki took to Twitter to report that Ultra Street Fighter II exceeded Capcom's expectations with 450,000 units sold in Q1, and as a result, the company is "starting to prepare" several titles for Switch.
Metroid: Samus Returns’ Fusion Mode Is Amiibo Exclusive
Four amiibo unlock extra content in Metroid: Samus Returns, and Nintendo has now confirmed this content can only be accessed by using the NFC figures.
The new squishy Metroid amiibo not only lets you reveal the location of nearby Metroid on your map, when you beat the game it will also unlock a new "Fusion" difficulty mode where Samus has her suit from Metroid Fusion.
Speaking to Eurogamer, a Nintendo rep confirmed you'll need the figure to access this bonus mode, saying, "this unlockable content is only unlocked using amiibo."
Star Wars: Gwendoline Christie Talks Captain Phasma’s Backstory
Captain Phasma is a Star Wars character who didn't get explored to great depth in The Force Awakens, but one who fans will get to learn much more about in the coming months. In addition to the December release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the chrome Stormtrooper will be at the center of an upcoming companion novel, Phasma, and a comic book series -- and no one is more excited about this than Gwendoline Christie.
IGN had the chance to sit down with Christie at the summer 2017 TV Critics' Association press tour while she was promoting her role in Top of the Lake: China Girl, and she was bursting with excitement about the upcoming releases which will explore her Star Wars character more. She hasn't had the chance to read the novel or comics yet -- "I haven't been allowed entry to it" -- but she did admit, "I have been following