Daybreak CEO Steps Down, Will Return in a Different Role
Daybreak Game Company CEO John Smedley has stepped down from his position as Chief Executive Officer to take a leave of absence. In his place, former COO Russel Shanks will step in as president.
Previously called Sony Entertainment Online, Daybreak is the publisher behind open-world survival game H1Z1 and the fantasy MMO EverQuest and has played important roles in the development and publishing of others, such as Planetside 2 and DC Universe Online. Due to overwhelming online harassment, Smedley is leaving his position and the company for a short time and will later return in a yet-undetermined role.
Smedley helped the studio transition from the Sony-owned Sony Online Entertainment to becoming Daybreak Game Company once it was purchased by a private-equity group and made independent earlier this year.
X-Men Director Teases Fantastic 4 Crossover
If a recent tease by X-Men: Apocalypse director Bryan Singer is any indication, a Fantastic Four/X-Men crossover film could be on the horizon.
Singer spoke to Yahoo Movies and said he has been chatting with the team behind the Fantastic Four reboot about a potential collaboration in the future. "Those ideas are in play," he said. "That would be a natural match-up because they’re both ensemble films and there is a natural mechanism by which to do it."
When asked about his vision for how the crossover movie might play out, Singer added: "It deals with time. That’s all I’m going to say."
Sons of Anarchy’s Michael Beach Joins The 100
Michael Beach, known for his recent role as T.O. Cross in Sons of Anarchy, among many other credits -- including ER, Third Watch and Stargate Atlantis -- has been cast to play an Ark native in The 100: Season 3.
Michael Beach (seen here in Sons of Anarchy).
According to EW, Beach plays Pike, a "tough and charismatic member of the Ark with a staunch moral code." He will serve as a recurring guest throughout the show's third season.
NASA Discovers Earth-Like Planet, and It Could Have Life
NASA's Kepler mission has discovered the first confirmed Earth-like planet in the hospitable zone of its parent star. The planet, called Kepler-452b, is around 60% bigger than our Earth.
Kepler data analysis lead Jon Jenkins said "we can think of Kepler-452b as an older, bigger cousin to Earth." Jenkins and his team determined the planet has spent 6 billion years in its sun's hospitable zone," giving it "substantial opportunity for life to arise."
The planet orbits its star in the hospitable zone, a sort-of Goldilocks distance that is neither too hot nor too cold, but instead is just right for the hypothetical existence of liquid water. Don't pack your trunks just yet, though. While a promising candidate for Earth-like conditions, Kepler-425b is 1400 light years away in the Cygnus constellation.
Homeland: Season 5 Premiere Date Revealed
Showtime has announced that Homeland: Season 5 will premiere October 4 at 9:00pm ET/PT, followed by the Season 2 debut of The Affair at 10:00 ET/PT.
The fifth season of Homeland will take place two years after Season 4, with Carrie Mathison (portrayed by Claire Danes) in Germany. Showtime notes that the show is currently shooting in Berlin, and Homeland is the first American TV series ever to film an entire season in Germany.
A new poster for Homeland: Season 5 also has been revealed, as seen below.
How They De-Aged Michael Douglas in Ant-Man
When Michael Douglas shows up in Ant-Man's opening as a young Hank Pym in 1989, the Oscar-winning actor looks like he shot the scene just after filming Wall Street.
So how did Marvel rewind time with Douglas? According to Vulture, it was a company called Lola VFX that de-aged the 70-year-old actor. The company actually broke out onto the scene of de-aging with X-Men: The Last Stand (remember the opening scene with Professor X and Magneto?), but Lola VFX has worked with Marvel before, as when they created the skinny version of Steve Rogers in Captain America: The First Avenger.
Fallout, Elder Scrolls, More on Sale for QuakeCon Weekend
There's a massive game sale starting today and continuing throughout QuakeCon weekend, so if you're looking to get a good deal on games in the Fallout, Elder Scrolls, and Doom series, now's the time.
Below is a list of when and where you can get each game in the QuakeCon sale.
Thursday, July 23 - The Elder Scrolls
- The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind - Game of the Year Edition - $6.80
- The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Game of the Year Deluxe Edition - $12.50
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Legendary Edition - $20.00
- The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited Imperial Edition - $53.59
Jurassic World Sequel Gets a Date
Surprise, surprise. After the huge success of Universal’s Jurassic World this summer, the studio has decided on a release date for a sequel. Jurassic World 2, or whatever it winds up being called, will hit on June 22, 2018.
Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard will return for the film, with Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow co-scripting with his writing partner Derek Connolly (who also worked on JW1).
Steven Spielberg will executive-produce the film through Amblin Entertainment.
Jurassic World became the third highest-grossing film of all time this week, surpassing The Avengers with a billion and a half dollars in sales.
Via Variety
App Store Update: July 23
Every day hundreds of new apps make their debut on the App Store, and hundreds more are updated or reduced in price. We have sifted through the noise and highlighted those select few that might be worth your attention.
Note: The prices and deals compiled below are accurate at the time we published this story, but all are subject to change.
To-Fu Fury – ($1.99)
Amazon Game Studios continues to add to their library of original game designs, this time publishing the adventure of stretchy tofu warrior:
Game Scoop!: Capcom’s Super Turbo Ultra Surprise
Welcome back to Game Scoop!, IGN's weekly video game talk show. This week we're discussing Capcom's surprising new strategy for Street Fighter 5 and Square Enix's philosophies on launching new franchises. Watch the video above or download the podcast below.
Download Game Scoop! Episode 352
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Daemon