Grammer is Officially Expendable

It has been floating around that Kelsey Grammer was in talks to join the already large cast of The Expendables 3.  Recently, Yahoo movies has confirmed that audiences will get to see Grammer in the upcoming installment of the action franchise.

He will play Bonaparete, a retired mercenary recruited by the Expendables.  Originally Nicolas Cage was up for the role, but for whatever reason, that didn’t pan out.  Grammer is an interesting casting choice because he hasn’t had many action roles (I can’t think of any besides X3: The Last Stand).  But I think he will play the part well.  He has many years of experience from sitcoms that will offer much comedic relief.

The Expendables 3 is set for release on August 15, 2014 with Patrick Hughes in the director’s chair. Grammer will join Expendables veterans Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews, and Jet Li, as well as fellow newcomers Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson, Antonio Banderas, Milla Jovovich, and Wesley Snipes.

WB confirms “12 to 14” films from DC

Not surprisingly, Warner Bros. and DC has confirmed they have more movies planned besides the upcoming Man of Steel sequel.

According to comicbook.com, Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara discussed WB’s future projects last week.  Tsujihara stated “We have Batman Vs. Superman coming out in 2015, but there are going to be in the coming months a lot of announcements regarding the future movie, television, games and consumer product pieces that are going to be coming from DC.”  He also added “I think the basis, foundation of those 12 to 14 pictures are going to be coming from DC Entertainment.”

Right now they are playing catch-up to Marvel and their cinematic universe, using Man of Steel as a springboard to kick of their movie universe.  Personally, I think they should use television to introduce their characters, then use the movies to bring them together, whether it be pairings or a full fledged Justice League movie.  DC has had success on the small screen in the past with shows like the 1970s Wonder Woman, 2000s Smallville, and the recent Arrow.  A Flash series is already set to spin-off from Arrow, introducing super powers into the series.  The grounded atmosphere of Arrow is similar to the feel of Man of Steel and I’m assuming in other films going forward, too.  It wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to make Arrow, The Flash (or whatever the series may be called), and Man of Steel in a shared cinematic universe, to steal Marvel’s terminology.  DC can play to their strengths and use the small screen to their advantage.

Also, interestingly, Tsujihara uses “Batman Vs. Superman” rather than “Man of Steel 2” or “Man of Steel sequel.”  Granted, Batman Vs Superman has been the placeholder title until one is officially confirmed, but could this be that confirmation?

Man of Steel 2 is scheduled to be released in theaters July 17, 2015, directed by Zack Snyder with Henry Cavill reprising his role as Clark Kent/Superman and introducing Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne/Batman.

Transformers 4 title and poster revealed

The next Transformers movie will be titled Transformers: Age of Extinction.  The title reveal also comes with the release of the first official poster (courtesy of Yahoo! Movies):

The Dinobots have been confirmed, though not through an official press release, to make an appearance in the film.  Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura told Tformers.com, “I can not disclose the specifics, but you can be sure that the arrival of the Dinobots will give the audience a lot to be excited about.”  Not much else is known about the plot of the movie.

In the Generation I Transformers cartoon, the Dinobots consisted of Grimlock (Tyrannosaurus Rex), Sludge (Brontosaurus), Slag (Triceratops), Snarl (Stegosaurus), and Swoop (Pterodactyl).

Dinobots Roar by *KevingRaganit

The Dinobots are a great addition to Transformers 4.  They were some of the best characters from the origianl 1980s cartoon and is a logical next step for the franchise.  Revenge of the Fallen saw the constructicons and their combining into Devistator, as well as Optimus Prime using parts from another Autobot.  And in Dark of the Moon we got a glimpse into the more Cybertronian looking characters.  Now we get a wider variety of characters besides vehicles.

I’m looking forward to this movie.  A lot.  I really enjoyed the other movies (yes, even Revenge of the Fallen despite its shortcomings).  But with a fresh cast and no overarching story to abide to, Transformers: Age of Extinction should be a great addition to the franchise, and will hopefully kick off another set of films.

Transformers: Age of Extinction stars Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Kelsey Grammer, Nicola Peltz, Sophia Myles, and TJ Miller.  Michael Bay returns to directing duties.  The film is slated for a June 27, 2014 release.

Rocket Raccoon has a voice

Marvel released earlier today that Rocket Raccoon in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy will be voiced by Bradley Cooper. Cooper joins Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, and Vin Diesel.

 

Marvel has been killing it in casting recently.  They have had a history with getting A-List talent for their movies, and that trend shows no sign of stopping.  Rocket Raccoon is a comedic character and Cooper is a perfect fit.

Guardians of the Galaxy will be released in theaters August 1, 2014.

And Ultron is…

…James Spader.

Marvel released this morning that James Spader will play the villain of their next Avengers movie.

I’m pretty excited by this casting.  Spader is an excellent actor and he can bring the dark tone needed for a villainous killer robot.  Even though Paul Betteny isn’t voicing Ultron (as previously rumored), I’m still going with the “Ultron is a rogue JARVIS” theory.

Avengers: Age of Ultron hits theaters May 1, 2015.

Ben Affleck is the new Batman

So as I’m sure many of you have heard by now (it’s all over the web), Ben Affleck will be playing Bruce Wayne/Batman in the Man of Steel sequel.

My initial reaction was “Really? Affleck?”  Affleck played the titular character in Daredevil, which most are still trying to forget.  I can see him playing Bruce without a problem, but I’m not sure about Batman.  However, I try to keep an open mind about such news.  Who knows, maybe he will be terrific in the role.  Newsarama thinks casting Affleck as the caped crusader is a brilliant choice by WB.  As IGN pointed out, Heath Ledger got similar backlash when it was announced he was going the be the Joker in The Dark Knight.  Look how that turned out.

In the end, Warner Bros. is going to do whatever they want and we will just have to roll with the punches.  As fans, we can only hope for the best.  Man of Steel 2 is scheduled to be released in theaters July 17, 2015.