TRON 3 (Update)

• TRON 3

Recently Joseph Kosinski appeared at WonderCon 2013 to promote Oblivion (which opens in theaters later this month, and I’m real excited for), but had some encouraging things to say about where the script development process is at – and what he expects TRON 3 to have, which Legacy did not:

Olivia Wilde as Quorra

“… I think I’m two weeks away from getting the draft. This is a story we’ve been working on since 2009, so that’s four years now. I’m really excited about the idea that we have for it. I think it delivers on the promise that both TRON movies have made. It opens the movie up, in a way that I think is going to give it a much broader appeal. Whereas [the previous film] really, ultimately, in the end, catered most to TRON fans, this idea broadens it some more, in really exciting ways.”

Kosinski’s right, when he indicates the movie was more successful in giving steadfast TRON fans what they want – in terms of light-cycles, disc battles and the Grid setting realized through modern effects – but that it falls short, as far as appealing to moviegoers who don’t care so much about the dazzling bells and whistles go:

“But, it’s all about the script and making sure that that story is compelling enough to get all of us back together.  Those movies are hard to make.  It’s a two-and-a-half to three-year journey.  So, to go back in there and go back to the Grid, it’s going to have to be a pretty spectacular script.  We’ve got a great writer on it, so we’ll see.”

That 2-3 year production timeline puts TRON 3 on course to arrive by either 2015 or 2016, in keeping with longtime reports about filming getting underway by 2014. A late 2015 release date seems feasible, possibly setting the threequel on course to arrive almost exactly five years after Legacy opened in December 2010.

Lastly, here’s what Kosniski said about the official title:

“It has a working title, yeah.  TR3N will be our code name.  We have an idea, but nothing is set in stone yet.  We have some exciting ideas.”

TR3N seems unlikely to serve as the official title, as most casual movie goers are unaware that Legacy is, in fact, a sequel to the 1982 movie (starring Jeff Bridges as the younger Kevin Flynn). Similarly, there’s a strong possibility that the new installment will revolve largely around Quorra (Olivia Wilde) and her experience, so the title should reflect that in the same way Legacy references Sam Flynn’s (Garret Hedlund) journey in that film.

DARK UNIVERSE (Update)

• DARK UNIVERSE

This past weekend at WonderCon, Guillermo del Toro offered a few details about his in-development DC Universe project, Dark Universe (He also hinted that it may ultimately be called Justice League Dark).

DC's Dark Universe

Del Toro has written a story bible for the film and they have a writer to adapt the screenplay that they hope to announce very shortly. The project won't happen, however, until after del Toro's next, the horror story Crimson Peak.

The film will follow John Constantine (who, Del Toro promises, will be blond this time) as its protagonist, and will include the previously announced Swamp Thing, the Demon, Deadman, the Spectre and Zatanna as well.

"He is basically trying to recruit," says Del Toro of the "Hellblazer" hero.

Though the film's through-line will feature Jason Blood's history with Merlin and the Knights of King Arthur, bringing a threat to present day.

Del Toro stressed that he didn't want any of the heroes' origins to be delivered up front and, instead, will be explored throughout the film.

"Swamp Thing is at peace with who he is," says Del Toro, "but Deadman is still trying to find out who shot him."

When Dark Universe ultimately heads to the screen is still anyone's guess, but fans can catch Del Toro's Pacific Rim in theaters July 12.

GI JOE: RETALIATION (Sequel talk)

• GI JOE: RETALIATION 

Lorenzo di Bonaventura is the producer behind both the Tranformer franchise as well as the G.I.Joe franchise. Both franchises are part of Hasbro company.

Di Bonaventura recently spoke with the guys over at CinemaBlend about the latest G.I. Joe film, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, when the producer revealed some interesting info about the future of the film, and the possibility of a third film that could even bring back some cast members from the first film.

When asked if his been thinking about the future of the film, di Bonaventura said that:

“I, as a rule, don’t ever look ahead to the next movie until the first one is done, because it’s hard to make the first one good enough or the second one good enough, in this case. So the idea that I could spend a lot of time thinking about something else until you’ve got this one right. On the one hand I think it’s kind of arrogant to presume you’re going to be successful, but more specifically, it’s, you just don’t have that much creative bandwidth going on around you and what’ll be interesting is when we see it released and we all hope it’s successful and hopefully we get to a third movie, but I think things change after making a movie where you go like... I feel some about certain things and certain characters right now in a certain way.

Three or four weeks from now, I might feel slightly different and three months from now, I am going to feel different. Which ones am I really going to hold onto and which elements am I going to really hold onto and it’s sort out there, after the fact, where you go, “Well, that really is...” You’re not caught up in the moment. That’s the thing that really stood out and had resonance. I wasn’t... What’s interesting is the scenes, the domestic scenes or the buddy scenes between Channing and Dwayne. I wouldn’t have said before making that movie that having that sort of almost intimate buddy moment was really part of this franchise. Now I’d say to you, “I think we could do a lot more of it.” You know? Now, will I feel the same way a few months from now? Probably. But that’s all part of the learning process. “

He was then asked if it would possible to see a Transformer and G.I.Joe crossover, as both franchises originate from Hasbro, owned by Paramount and are produced by him.

“I guess it’s possible,” di Bonventura said. “I don’t know. I think I probably at this moment, I resist it. I don’t know necessarily why, but I just think there’s so much that’s so rich in the mythologies that I don’t think they need to draw from the other. I think, I didn’t rule it out for me and I think those things have somehow for me, sort of in the past, they made me feel like a little bit cynical exercises in just drawing money out of something. It’s not to say you couldn’t do it well, but both these properties have such rich mythologies with so many characters, that you could go a lot of movies before you start running out of ideas of what to do. But it’s not to say, if we found the right... I’d hate to set out to do that, but if I heard a story where we went, “Oh my God...,” I could see a story right now about machination, machination of war and that could lead you sort of intrinsically to a Transformer.”

Catch G.I. Joe Retaliation in a Theater near you.

THE HOBBIT: DESOLATION OF SMAUG (Preview)

• THE HOBBIT: DESOLATION OF SMAUG

If you purchased The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on Blu-ray or DVD Comb Pack, you would have received a special access code to watch Jackson’s Live Event. He answered fans questions, previewed conceptual art and showed behind the scenes footage from the second installment, subtitled The Desolation of Smaug.

If you didn’t buy the Blu-Ray or incase you missed the live event, here is a a 6 minute clip from the evenet, that has been made available for all to see online.

In addition to Jackon’s Q&A, you can also see some artwork depicting the Middle-Earth location known as Mirkwood, behind the scenes material from The Desolation of Smaug. We also got a bit ofa sneak peek at new characters like Bard the Bowman (Luke Evans) and the Elf warrior Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly), as well as Orlando Bloom once again wielding arrows as Legolas.

Many fans felt that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is the weakest of Jackson’s Tolkien adaptations so far, however looking at whats in store in The Desolation of Smaug, we sure many fans will be more the pleased.

This second installment diverges into two overlapping story threads, with Gandalf setting off to battle The Necromancer (Benedict Cumberbatch) while Bilbo and the dwarfs prepare to face the eponymous dragon (also played by Cumberbatch). Not to mention, the unseen parts of middle earth will be revealed, as well as some new Elves!

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug opens in theaters on December 13th, 2013. The Hobbit: There and Back Again completes the trilogy on December 17th, 2014.