Rounding up the big news stories from the weekend…
LANDO CALRISSIAN AND DARTH VADER JOIN THE LION KING
Director Jon Favreau has revealed the first casting for his upcoming remake of the animated Disney classic The Lion King, with Donald Glover set to voice Simba and James Earl Jones reprising his role from the original as Mufasa. It marks the latest high profile role for Glover, who is currently shooting Disney and Lucasfilm’s Han Solo Star Wars Anthology movie. Read more here.
Warner Bros. is certainly having a few issues when it comes to directors and the DC Extended Universe. They’ve already lost Michelle MacLaren, Seth Graheme-Smith, Rick Famuyiwa and Ben Affleck, and now comes word that Affleck’s replacement on The Batman, Matt Reeves, has exited talks after failing to agree a deal with the studio. It’s said that there is a chance negotiations could resume, or Warner could turn instead to Ridley Scott (Alien: Covenant) or Fede Alvarez (Don’t Breathe). Perhaps WB will have better luck with Mel Gibson on Suicide Squad 2 and David F. Sandberg on Shazam.
FIRST LOOK AT EGO THE LIVING PLANET
New York Toy Fair took place this weekend, meaning we got a glimpse of a host of upcoming tie-in products for the likes of Marvel, DC, Star Wars, The Dark Tower, Despicable Me 3, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Transformers and more [check out all of our coverage here]. However, the biggest reveal of all is our first look at Star-Lord’s father, Ego the Living Planet, played by Kurt Russell in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2; see Ego in action figure form here.
In some rather exciting news for fans of Stephen King, it’s been announced that Hulu and J.J. Abrams are teaming up for a new anthology series entitled Castle Rock, named after the fictional Maine town that appears in many of King’s works. The show will “weave together characters and themes from those novels that use the Castle Rock location. Each season will follow a different set of characters and storylines while interjecting themes and specific characters from previous seasons.” Watch a teaser here.
It’s a question I’m sure has been nagging away at you since we last saw him in Revenge of the Sith, and now it has been answered. Yes, the new novel Star Wars: Aftermath – Empire’s End has revealed the fate of the reviled Jar Jar Binks, and you can find out for yourself here.
With Mad Mel in talks to direct Suicide Squad 2 for Warner Bros., Anghus Houvouras has shared his thoughts on the possibility of Gibson joining the DC Extended Universe in his latest op-ed entitled ‘Mel Gibson Directing Suicide Squad 2? So Crazy It Might Work‘. Check it out here.
Originally published February 20, 2017. Updated December 16, 2019.
