After years and years of development, Warner Bros. may have finally halted their plans (for now) for a live-action remake of the classic anime film,Akira, which until this week had been scheduled for May 21, 2021. WBentirely, and instead scheduledThe Matrix 4for that date. Both Carrie-Anne Moss and Keanu Reeves are attached to return in their roles as Trinity and Neo, which is especially significant when we look at what other film is also scheduled for that release date:John Wick: Chapter 4, which isalsothe fourth entry in a Keanu Reeves franchise. One of the new actors signed to co-star inThe Matrix 4is Yahya Abdul-Mateen (Aquaman, HBO’sWatchmen), and this week, he was also joined by Jonathan Groff (Mindhunter,Frozen). Taika Waititi, who had been attached to direct theAkirareboot for 2021, will instead next direct the true-story soccer movieNext Goal Winsbefore moving on to directThor: Love and Thunder(11/5/2021).yanked Akirafrom its release calendar

In 1989, futureThe Shieldstar Michael Chiklis starred inWired, an adaptation of the best-selling book by Bob Woodward aboutSaturday Night Livestar John Belushi’s battles with drug addiction that ultimately led to his death in 1982. Although ostensibly “about” John Belushi, that movie however had an otherwise narrow focus on just one aspect of Belushi’s life, so it arguably isn’t a true “John Belushi biopic.”?However,?onehasbeen in development for several years (since 2013), and is now finally moving forward as an independent production. One has to presume that a major obstacle has been in finding an actor who can credibly portray John Belushi (sort of the point, one would presume) andBroadway star, who will soon wrap up his run asin June.Belushiwill be directed by, whose most famous movie was probably 2006’sThe Devil Wears Prada(Certified Fresh at 75%), itself?widely believed to be inspired byVogueeditor Anna Wintour.the role has finally gone toAlex BrightmanBeetlejuiceDavid Frankelbased on a roman à clef

In addition to San Diego Comic-Con and Disney’s annual D23, another annual event that is increasingly becoming a showcase for major movie news is the CCXP comic book convention in S?o Paolo, Brazil. This year, Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios traveled south to CCXPfrom next year’sThe Eternals(11/6/2019). That footage hasn’t yet appeared online (and probably won’t anytime soon), but descriptions of?it were reported byCollider,which you can read. It sounds like the scenes shown were relatively short, and were also “raw footage” without too much post-production effects. Instead, the focus was mostly on costume descriptions for characters like Thena (Angelina Jolie), Ajak (Salma Hayek), Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani), and Druig (Barry Keoghan). The event also confirmed thatThe Eternals(as their name suggests)over a period of 7,000 years, and that in addition to the Celestials, another group that will be featured is the Deviants, who in the comics are the Eternals’ more monstrous counterparts.to show off early footageright herewill take place

Early horror writer H.P. Lovecraft’s works have had such an impact on the genre that “” is nearly a subgenre in itself, but Lovecraft’s actual writings, despite the efforts of directors like Guillermo del Toro (whose attempt atIn the Mountains of Madness). Instead, we’re soon going to get the, and two of HBO’s most famous showrunners are also taking Lovecraft on, somewhat more directly. Now thatGame of Thronesis done, and theirStar Warsproject has been set aside, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss now appear to have more time on their hands, and one of the things they’re newly devoted to, which imagines a world in which H.P. Lovecraft’s disturbing science fiction stories were not fictional, but based upon his actual encounters with creatures like Cthulhu.Lovecraftian horrorhaven’t really been directly?adapted into?filmswas infamously derailedHBO series Lovecraft Countryis an adaptation of the Vertigo comic book Lovecraft

Taika Waititi’s World War II satire?Jojo Rabbit?arguably introduces most audiences to three new young stars (including Roman Griffin Davis and Thomasin McKenzie), and this week, one of them landed an iconic role in a new Disney+ movie. Ten-year-old Archie Yates, who plays Jojo’s best friend Yorki,by Disney+ to star as the new Kevin McCallister in their reboot of the classic Christmas?film?Home Alone. The evil criminals who try to invade Kevin’s home haven’t been cast yet, but we do also know that Kevin’s parentsEllie Kemper (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) and relative newcomer?(Catastrophe). The?Home Alone?reboot will be directed by Dan Mazer (, Rotten at 11%) from a screenplay co-written by?Saturday Night Live?star Mikey Day.has been castwill be played byRob DelaneyDirty Grandpa

We’ve known for a while now that the third movie in the mainThe Conjuringseries (not counting the various spinoffs likeThe Nunand theAnnabellemovies) is scheduled for release next year on September 11, 2020. This week, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinemathat the title will beThe Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, which most infamously is a legal defense sometimes used by criminals accused of particularly vile acts. Although a common defense now, the moviethe “first” time this argument was made in a court case, which,, was the 1981 case of Arne Cheyenne Johnson. Real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (to be played once again by Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson) were recruited by Johnson’s family in an effort to rid Johnson of his demonic influence.Aquamandirector James Wan, who directed the first twoConjuringmovies,calledMalignant, so this third film will be directed by Michael Chaves (, Rotten at 29%) instead.officially announcedwill apparently attempt to depictaccording to Wikipediawill be busy with a new filmThe Curse of La Llorona

Earlier this month, some movie fans?may have been surprised?when?Aladdinstar?revealed?following the film’s box office success of over $1 billion worldwide. Relatively unknown beforeAladdin, Massoud had won that role as part ofthat Disney staged for the characters of both Aladdin and Princess Jasmine in 2017. Considering how much attention his revelation made last week, you might think Disney would’ve held back on this week’s news, because the two stories together don’t paint a particularly pretty picture. Nevertheless, Disney+for anAladdinspinoff movie starring Billy Magnussen as Prince Anders, a minor character who didn’t exist in the original animated film and was newly created for the live-action adaptation. It’s not yet known if any otherAladdinco-stars will also be cast.Mena Massoudhe hadn’t yet had a single new auditiona massive casting callhas announced plans