So much news this week. So many trailers. So much so that, on principle, we’re going to skip announcements from a certain streaming service that denied future subscribers the opportunity to watch teaser trailers for their most anticipated future series. Anyway…
Film
There’s no question that the most watched movie trailer of the week, if not the month, belonged to Spider-Man: No Way Home. This third movie in the Tom Holland-fronted Spider-Man series embraces the concept of the Multiverse, with Peter Parker enlisting Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to cast a spell that will cause the world to forget his secret identity. Of course things go wrong…
Sony Pictures is still refusing to reveal whether previous Spider-Men Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield are in No Way Home, but with the latest trailer, and recent posters, we now know that Sam Raimi-era Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina), the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) and Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) feature, along with Jamie Foxx’s Electro, and Rhys Ifans’s Lizard.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is coming to cinemas exclusively from December 17.
We’re already obsessed with Pixar’s next, Turning Red, about Mei Lee, an overachieving Toronto teen whose puberty coincides with her turning into a giant red panda whenever she gets excited. That ability is due to an ancient family curse. Turning Red is the first Pixar film directed solely by a woman –namely Domee Shi, responsible for the Oscar-winning short Bao. Turning Red releases in March 2022.
In a complete genre 180, there’s the first trailer for Downton Abbey: A New Era, the second movie featuring the cast of Julian Fellowes’s feel-good BBC historical series. Set in 1929, two years after the events of the first film continuation, the aristocratic Crawley family head to a villa in the south of France because of Maggie Smith’s family matriarch, and her mysterious past. Downton Abbey: A New Era arrives in cinemas on March 18, 2022.
Finally, in some production news bites, it’s likely that Mel Gibson will not only star in Lethal Weapon 5, but direct as well – replacing filmmaker Richard Donner, who died in July this year. Meanwhile, anyone excited about Patty Jenkins’s Star Wars Rogue Squadron movie should dial back their enthusiasm. The space fighter project has been delayed, apparently due to Jenkins’s packed schedule.
Streaming television
The good first. After jaw-dropping photos months ago of Lily James and Sebastian Stan as Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee respectively, this week we got our first trailer for the project that features the eerily convincing transformations. Hulu’s upcoming miniseries Pam and Tommy is a dark comedy drama about the couple’s sex tape scandal – arguably the first online viral video in history. The series releases in early February, and also stars Seth Rogan, Nick Offerman and Taylor Schilling. I, Tonya’s Craig Gillespie directs.
Now, the bad. This week, two days before Season 4 of Star Trek: Discovery was supposed to hit Netflix in international markets, the series, and all previous seasons, were pulled from the streaming service. Discovery is now exclusive to Paramount+, which is currently only available in North America, therefore shutting out Trekkies who don’t live in the region. Paramount+ will only launch in a handful of other markets in 2022.
Angry Trekkies, and sympathetic allies, are threatening to boycott the new streaming service, which will also home the upcoming Halo live-action series. For the record, the original Star Trek, Next Generation, Voyager, Deep Space Nine and Enterprise all remain on Netflix… for now.
Gaming
Whether you agree with the shortlist or not (Cyberpunk for anything? Really?), The Game Awards are always a talking point on the annual gaming calendar. The 2021 Game Awards, covering 30 categories, are being announced December 9, with a streamed live show. This week saw the announcement of all nominees, chosen by a voting jury of 103 media and influencer outlets across the globe. Winners will be determined by a blended vote between the jury again (90% voting weight) and public fan voting (10%). We’re just happy to see The Artful Escape and The Forgotten City being recognised for the gems they are.
Move over Super Smash Bros., Brawlhalla and Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl. Warner Bros. is jumping into the free-to-play platform fighter arena as well. The first-look reveal for MultiVersus, dropped this week. The cross-platform release will feature a continually updated roster of fan-favourite WB characters – including everyone from DC Comics heroes to the Looney Tunes to Game of Thrones, with even Scooby-Doo’s Shaggy appearing for good measure. In many cases, the characters’ original voice actors will return as well. MultiVersus releases in 2022.
Comics
Back in September, news dropped that big changes were coming to digital comics platform ComiXology. Specifically, the platform is becoming more integrated with its owner Amazon. In addition to an updated ComiXology app, arguably the other biggest change is the introduction of a “revamped digital comics shopping experience on Amazon where you’ll be able to browse, buy, and borrow books to read on either the comiXology or Kindle app.” ComiXology.com will redirect to the new Amazon experience on launch.
Yesterday David Steinberger, Co-founder and CEO of comiXology – and GM Digital Comics, Amazon – sent an email update on the changes, which were supposed to kick in during Q3 2021. He says, “While we remain really excited about unveiling the updates, we wanted to take just a little extra time to incorporate feedback we received from our community. With this goal in mind, we decided to hold launch until early next year.”