Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 337

April 15, 2024

Bethesda’s Todd Howard Reveals FALLOUT Series Place in the Timeline, Teases FALLOUT 5

Video game fans have been safely enjoying the excitement/terror of a post-nuclear wasteland since 1997. That’s when Fallout and its ’50s-era Cold War aesthetic first came to stores. Since then countless sequels and spinoffs have turned the game into one of genre’s most successful franchises. Now Fallout is ready to conquer another medium entirely. It’s getting its very own show from Amazon. What kind of story can gamers expect from the Prime Video Fallout adaptation? Who’s behind it, and who will star in it? And when will we get a chance to see it?

Most recently, Bethesda director Todd Howard, who is also an executive producer on the Fallout series, shared how the series and the show fit together. Howard especially noted that the Prime Video Fallout series moves the timeline of the games forward, but it is not Fallout 5. (Although Fallout 5 is coming.)

He shared, “Oh no, the show is not Fallout 5. But we approached it in the way we do a game. What would another next story be? We move the timeline forward and Fallout forward. We pick a location that’s unique. We have all new characters, so we approached it the same way, but clearly, no, it’s not Fallout 5. There will eventually be.”

Fallout has now released on Prime Video. Below you can find a non-spoilery rundown of everything there is to know about Prime Video’s Fallout series.

Title

Bethesda

Prime Video’s adaptation will share the same name as the original game, Fallout.

Fallout‘s Plot

We officially have our first full look at the Fallout series. Prime Video released the first trailer for the show and it teases a dangerous wasteland of a world. But it’s clear the show understands its dark humor as well.

Prime Video

Prime Video has shared an official Fallout series synopsis, setting us up for what’s to come. It reveals, “Based on one of the greatest video game series of all time, Fallout is the story of haves and have-nots in a world in which there’s almost nothing left to have. 200 years after the apocalypse, the gentle denizens of luxury fallout shelters are forced to return to the irradiated hellscape their ancestors left behind — and are shocked to discover an incredibly complex, gleefully weird, and highly violent universe waiting for them.“

📍 Vault 33
Location: Los Angeles

Fallout, an original series, coming to Prime Video in 2024 pic.twitter.com/tlHh2WutF4
— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) August 23, 2023

Additionally, we know that the series is “set in the future post-apocalyptic Los Angeles.” It will also tell an “original story based on Fallout that will be part of the canon of the games.”

Prime Video

The first image from the show featured a glimpse at the franchise’s all-new Vault 33. And more recent looks have revealed Fallout‘s main characters including Walton Goggins’ The Ghoul, Ella Purnell’s Lucy, Aaron Moten’s Maximus, and Kyle MacLachlan’s Overseer Hank.

Click To View Gallery Walter Goggins as The Ghoul in Fallout

Prime Video Lucy emerges from the vault and holds her hand in front of her face to block the light

Prime Video Four people in power armor suits in Fallout

Prime Video The Brotherhood of Steel looks up at Vertibirds in Fallout

Prime Video Lucy looks out onto a wasteland

Prime Video Oversee Hank looks over Lucy's shoulder inside a vault in Fallout

Prime Video Jonathan Nolan stands by Ella Parnell behind the scenes of Fallout

JoJo Whilden

There will also be an adorable animal involved. In the Fallout games, a dog called Dogmeat exists as an NPC companion character that accompanies players on their adventures. According to a blog post from Amazon, the live-action Fallout series’ cute canine isn’t called Dogmeat, but instead is named CX404. But this pup, too, will serve “as a companion navigating the post-apocalyptic world.”

pic.twitter.com/k0WzPezPiN
— FALLOUT⚡️ (@falloutonprime) December 2, 2023

Behind the Scenes

Fallout comes from Bethesda Game Studios, Bethesda Softworks, and Kilter Films. The latter is the production company of executive producers Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan, creators of HBO’s Westworld.

Writers Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner will also serve Fallout co-showrunners and executive producers. Nolan directs the first three episodes.

Fallout‘s Cast

The show stars: Ella Purnell (Yellowjackets), Walton Goggins (The Hateful Eight), Aaron Moten (Emancipation), Moisés Arias (The King of Staten Island), Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks), Sarita Choudhury (Homeland), Michael Emerson (Person of Interest), Leslie Uggams (Deadpool), Frances Turner (The Boys), Dave Register (Heightened), Zach Cherry (Severance), Johnny Pemberton (Ant-Man), Rodrigo Luzzi (Dead Ringers), Annabel O’Hagan (Law & Order: SVU), and Xelia Mendes-Jones (The Wheel of Time).

Fallout‘s Release Date

The Fallout show began its post-apocalyptic adventure on April 11, 2024. All episodes of Fallout released at once.

The end of the world is coming, just a little sooner than expected. FALLOUT, now arriving April 10 @ 6 p.m. PT. pic.twitter.com/9AcWR9uAqQ
— FALLOUT⚡️ (@falloutonprime) April 9, 2024

Originally published on October 23, 2023.

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Published on April 15, 2024 09:06

Geena Davis Will Not Return in BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE

For decades now, we’ve heard rumors about a sequel to Beetlejuice, Tim Burton’s 1988 hit, which cemented his signature style. The story of a young goth girl (Winona Ryder) who tries to help two ghosts in her haunted home scare her parents away. The ghost they hire is a “Bio-exorcist” named Beetlejuice to do the deed. A cult classic to this day, plans for a sequel have always been rumored. During the ’90s, they even floated “Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian” to Kevin Smith.

But now, some 35 years after the original hit theaters, a sequel to the adventures of the “Bio Exorcist” is finally on the way. Original star Michael Keaton, director Tim Burton, and Scream and Wednesday star Jenna Ortega have all signed on.

Jenna Ortega could join Michael Keaton and Tim Burton in Beetlejuice 2 sequel movie (1)

Warner Bros./Netflix

But one original actor we won’t be seeing in the Beetlejuice sequel is Geena Davis. Speaking to Entertainment Tonight about the possibility of her return in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Davis confirmed she would not be back. The actress noted, “No, I’m not. I’m not in the remake. Oh, you were expecting that I would be? Yeah, no, you know what? Because my theory is that ghosts don’t age… Not that I have.” Davis played Barbara Maitland in the original Beetlejuice movie. Barbara Maitland was a ghost that haunted the Deetz home alongside her husband Adam Maitland, who was played by Alec Baldwin.

And so, let’s bust out that Handbook for the Recently Deceased; here is everything we know about the upcoming Beetlejuice sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

Title

As we hoped, the title for this movie is Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice! We love it, because this way, if they ever make it a trilogy, they can call the third one Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice! and Michael Keaton will magically appear when summoned, just by saying the title.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’s Plot

The Beetlejuice sequel will center on the daughter of Lydia Deetz from the first film. And somehow, the previously unknown wife of Beetlejuice will play a part as well. We think it’s safe to say that both ghosts and the afterlife will play a rather large role. The teaser trailer also finally have our first look at Ortega and Keaton in their roles.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice sequel first look image Michael Keaton

Warner Bros. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice sequel first look image Jenna Ortega and Winona Ryder

Warner Bros.

The official synopsis for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice sheds more light on the plot, sharing:

Beetlejuice is back! After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it’s only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice’s name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.

The sand worm from the movie Beetlejuice.

Warner Bros.Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’s Cast Michael Keaton as Beetlejuice and Winona Ryder as Lydia Deetz in Tim Burton's original Beetlejuice.

Warner Bros.

The cast for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is shaping up to have a combination of stars from the original, and other actors Tim Burton has recently worked with. Michael Keaton will return as the titular character, joined by Jenna Ortega, who recently worked with Burton on Wednesday, as the daughter of Winona Ryder’s Lydia Deetz character from the first film. Winona Ryder is returning as well, as so is Catherine O’Hara as her stepmother. Other original cast members, like Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin, are likely not returning.

split photo of lydia deetz and wednesday addams goth girls

Warner Bros./Netflix

New to the cast is Willem Dafoe, who is playing a law enforcement officer in the afterlife. Another new face is Justin Theroux, in an as-yet undisclosed role. Also new to the world of the afterlife is Monica Bellucci, who will play the previously unknown wife of Beetlejuice. This will be the first time working on a Tim Burton project for all three actors.

Behind the Scenes Michael Keaton in his striped suit as Beetlejuice.

Warner Bros.

Returning behind the camera is original filmmaker Tim Burton. Al Gough and Miles Millar, the creators of the hit Netflix Burton/Ortega collaboration Wednesday, wrote the screenplay for the sequel. Tim Burton’s longtime friend and collaborator Danny Elfman is returning to compose the score. It just wouldn’t feel like Beetlejuice without an Elfman score, would it?

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice‘s Release Date

The long-awaited sequel to the Tim Burton horror/comedy classic Beetlejuice hits theaters on September 5, 2024.

Originally published on May 15, 2023.

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Published on April 15, 2024 08:31

DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE Is Not DEADPOOL 3, Says Director Shawn Levy

After years of speculating, in 2022, Marvel Studios confirmed that Deadpool would officially join the MCU for a third installment of the R-rated comic book franchise at the start of Phase Six. This would mark the first official character of the Fox X-Men universe joining the MCU (although Patrick Stewart as a variant Professor X in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness kinda counts too, we suppose).

Marvel Studios

While originally, Deadpool & Wolverine was called Deadpool 3, director Shawn Levy wants to make sure fans understand that the title change is not just cosmetic. Levy notes to Screen Rant:

As far as crafting the Deadpool & Wolverine story, I just felt privileged every day because you’re talking about two massive movie stars in their most iconic roles. It also gave me an opportunity. It’s the third Deadpool movie, but it’s not Deadpool 3. It’s a different thing that’s very much Deadpool and Wolverine. And it’s not trying to copycat anything from the first two movies. They were awesome, but this is a two-hander character adventure.

There you have it: the third Deadpool movie is not Deadpool 3. Instead, Deadpool & Wolverine is a different beast altogether, one that focuses on this explosive duo and their journey. We can’t wait to learn more about this two-hander.

Here is everything we know so far about Deadpool & Wolverine.

Title

Thanks to a Super Bowl trailer (check it out below!), we know that this film, formerly called Deadpool 3, is actually Deadpool & Wolverine.

Deadpool & Wolverine‘s Plot

The plot of Deadpool & Wolverine remains a mystery. All we know is that Hugh Jackman is returning as Wolverine, and that it takes place before the feral X-Man’s death in Logan. In fact, Jackman has confirmed that time travel will be involved in the threequel in a big way.

As most folks know by now, Deadpool’s third solo film will reunite him with his X-Men Origins: Wolverine co-star. Deadpool and Wolverine will work together, although they have made it very clear that these two characters “hate each other.” It will not be a love-fest in this story. But the fact that Deadpool & Wolverine is smack in the middle of the Multiverse Saga should give us all a clue as to what’s going to go down, and probable multiversal shenanigans will ensue.

Dogpool, of course, will also star.

Make sure to follow him on Instagram.

We also now know what Deadpool & Wolverine‘s new official logo looks like thanks to a fun poster.

full poster for Deadpool & Wolverine movie with a friendship heart locket with character masks on it and words best friends

Marvel StudiosDeadpool & Wolverine‘s Cast Hugh Jackman returns as Wolverine in the MCU Deadpool 3 movie

20th Century Studios

We know Hugh Jackman will return, along with the very obvious Ryan Reynolds. Here’s who else we know about: Karan Soni, cab driver Dopinder, Leslie Uggams, Emma Corrin, and Matthew Macfadyen. In exciting news, Morena Baccarin and Stefan Kapicic are reprising their roles as Vanessa and Colossus in Deadpool & Wolverine. So are Rob Delaney’s Peter, Brianna Hildebrand (Negasonic Teenage Warhead), and Shioli Kutsuna (Yukio). Jennifer Garner’s Elektra from the 2003 Daredevil Marvel Fox movie is also reported to reprise her role in this MCU film.

split image of Vanessa and Colossus from Deadpool franchise returning for Deadpool 3

20th Century StudiosBehind the Scenes

Deadpool & Wolverine‘s director for this third outing will be Shawn Levy, most recently known for his work on Stranger Things. This would be a reunion for Levy and Reynolds, as the pair previously worked together on the movie Free Guy. Levy is also known for the time travel movie The Adam Project.

On the writing side of things are Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin, writers for the popular animated series Bob’s Burgers. The writers for the first two Deadpool films, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, are also contributing to movie number three’s screenplay, as is Ryan Reynolds himself.

Deadpool & Wolverine Release Date First look at Hugh Jackman Wolverine MCU suit from Deadpool 3, his yellow costume form the comics in high quality. Deadpool and Wolverine walking.

First look at Hugh Jackman Wolverine MCU suit from Deadpool 3, his yellow costume form the comics in high quality. Deadpool and Wolverine walking.

Marvel Studios

Deadpool & Wolverine will arrive on July 26, 2024.

Originally published on January 4, 2023.

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Published on April 15, 2024 08:18

Ryan Gosling Gets Mad About AVATAR’s Font Again in SNL Sketch

In 2009 James Cameron released Avatar. It did pretty well! It’s only the highest grossing film of all-time. Yet, despite that record, to this day people still argue about whether or not it made any kind of cultural impact. But SNL fans know there’s no debate. It did. The movie led to one of the funniest sketches in Saturday Night Live‘s history. In 2017, Ryan Gosling starred in “Papyrus,” a pre-taped sketch about a man obsessed with the big budget fantasy’s uninspired title font. Now, in a lot less time than it took for Cameron to deliver his own sequel, SNL made its follow-up. Ryan Gosling’s return to SNL hosting duties at Studio 8H included starring in “Papyrus 2,” yet another Avatar sketch.

Two SNL alums also returned to the show this past weekend to help Gosling deliver a sequel to the memorable 2017 sketch. Former cast member Kyle Mooney came back to play the man responsible for Avatar‘s logo font, in a sketch written by original “Papyrus” scribe and former Saturday Night Live writer Julio Torres.

This time Gosling found himself struggling with a different type of Avatar-related problem. He’d spent years seemingly overcome his deeply held issues. Only, the franchise and its font wasn’t quite done with him just yet. Avatar: The Way of Water was hiding a bold secret.

Ryan Gosling with long hair and glasses outside in SNL's

NBC

From there the sketch goes from a traditional comedy sequel to more of an arthouse indie film, as madness takes over and things get weird and deeply emotional. Turns out Gosling’s character has been hiding his own secrets. His font problems go far beyond how the letters of a movie look.

Our only problem is that this didn’t air during the episode. It was an online-only release. Torres had some thoughts on why. On Instagram he wrote, “Not sure how this was “cut for time” just bc it’s 3 times the length of a regular sketch and also I don’t work at @nbcsnl anymore but here this is in case you need it?”

We can debate whether or not SNL should have aired this Ryan Gosling Avatar sketch during the show or not, but it should once again end all debate about whether or not Avatar is culturally relevant or not. How many other movie franchises have ever made us care about the Papyrus font?

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Published on April 15, 2024 07:33

April 12, 2024

STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS to End with Season 5

One beloved series in the Star Trek franchise is set to continue boldly going, while one is coming to an end. Paramount+ revealed that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, currently in production for its third season, will return for season four. The streamer also announced that the animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks will conclude its run with the upcoming season five. Season five, the final season of Lower Decks, premieres this fall. This means two Trek series are ending this year, as Star Trek: Discovery is also wrapping up at the end of the current season.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will return for a fourth season.

The final season of Star Trek: Lower Decks arrives on @paramountplus this fall. pic.twitter.com/FaRy7X8NnI
— Star Trek on Paramount+ (@StarTrekOnPPlus) April 12, 2024

In a statement, CBS Studios President David Staff said the following:

Lower Decks and Strange New Worlds are integral to the Star Trek franchise, expanding the boundaries of the universe and exploring new and exciting worlds. We are extraordinarily proud of both series as they honor the legacy of what Gene Roddenberry created almost 60 years ago. We are so grateful to work with Secret Hideout, Alex Kurtzman, Mike McMahan, Akiva Goldsman, Henry Alonso Myers and the cast, crews and artists who craft these important and entertaining stories for fans around the world.

The casts for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and the principal characters from Lower Decks.

Paramount+

Right now, it feels like the Star Trek franchise is contracting and not expanding. Both Discovery and Lower Decks are ending after five seasons. In the modern streaming era though, most view five seasons as a decent run. Paramount+ canceled Prodigy, but its second season found a home on Netflix. A third season remains in doubt. Section 31 went from series to film. Picard ended on a high note with season three. Yet there has been no news about a proposed follow-up series, Star Trek: Legacy. The only other live-action Star Trek series going into production soon is Starfleet Academy. All of this may have more to do with Paramount’s financial uncertainty than anything else. However, if Star Trek has proven to be anything over nearly 58 years, it’s that it will survive any studio downturn.

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Published on April 12, 2024 13:48

DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Gets Second Companion with ANDOR’s Varada Sethu

We’re only a month away from new Doctor Who. We got to know Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor in “The Church on Ruby Road.” That 2023 Christmas special also introduced Millie Gibson as Ruby Sunday, his companion. The duo is set for all kinds of adventures in season one of Doctor Who. Before we even got to those adventures though, we heard rumors in early 2024 stating Millie Gibson had already departed the role ahead of the second season and that the Doctor would get a new companion. And on Friday afternoon, we got confirmation from Bad Wolf and BBC that Andor‘s Varada Sethu would be joining the series as the Doctor’s new companion in season two.

Millie Gibson, Ncuti Gatwa, and Varada Sethu in a photo from the Doctor Who season 2 table read, revealing two companions for season 2

James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC Studios

The news states Sethu’s joining the show “alongside current companion Ruby Sunday.” So, Gibson is not leaving the show after all. A photo from a season two table read shows Sethu with Gatwa and Gibson. We love that the Doctor will have two companions by his side throughout season two, and we can’t wait to see them all in action.

In a statement, Sethu said, “I feel like the luckiest person in the world. It is such an honour to be a part of the Whoniverse, and I’m so grateful to the whole Doctor Who family – because that is what they are – for welcoming me with open arms and making me feel so at home. I couldn’t ask for a better team than Ncuti and Millie to be on this adventure with. This is SO much fun!”

The Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) stands between the open TARDIS doors and looks directly at camera.

BBC/Disney+

Showrunner Russell T Davies, who has worked with Sethu before, said, “Right now in the studio, shooting for 2025, we’ve got Ncuti, Millie and Varada fighting side by side—we need all three, because the stakes are higher than ever!”

Doctor Who season one will hit Disney+ on May 10, 2024 with its first two episodes. The second season is currently set to come our way in 2025.

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Published on April 12, 2024 12:22

Youtooz FALLOUT Figures Celebrate the Wasteland

Are you ghoul enough for these Fallout Youtooz figures? If you’ve already inhaled all eight episodes of Prime Video’s series adaptation of the beloved gaming franchise, you just might be. (Although, if you still have your nose, this miniature version of Walton Goggins’ The Ghoul might judge you.) The Fallout TV series is bringing a lot to the table. It gave Vault Boy an origin story, offered an answer to a major franchise mystery, and much more. Whether you’re a longtime die-hard Fallout fan or you’re just coming to the series, you’ll likely want to celebrate it. And the perfect way to do so is with these adorable Fallout Youtooz figures which specifically honor the Prime Video show. You can choose from a Youtooz version of Fallout‘s The Ghoul, Lucy MacLean, or Maximus. The Vault Boy Youtooz figure is sold out… for now.

Youtooz

Prime Video’s Fallout series brings to life the games’ unique blend of dark humor, outright absurd silliness, and poignant tragedy. So these Youtooz Fallout figures, which take some relatively tragic and dark characters and make them perfectly cute, fit right into the franchise’s overall energy. We know Walton Goggins’ Ghoul was supposed to be kind of sexy, but now he is just so cute, we cannot stand it! The only thing missing is a Fallout Youtooz figure of CX404, otherwise known as the Prime Video series version of Dogmeat.

Youtooz

As always, these Fallout Youtooz figures think of everything. Maximus is ready for action in his power armor suit. Meanwhile, Lucy wears her Vault-Tec uniform, complete with the markings of Vault 33. She’s got her Pip-Boy and a big smile, but don’t test her. Her firearm training stats are high.

Youtooz

Of course, there’s Fallout‘s The Ghoul Youtooz figure. He is missing his nose, but it’s a good look for him. Thankfully, he has his hat and his rifle. We wouldn’t cross The Ghoul, cute Fallout Youtooz figure or not.

Youtooz

Lucy, Maximus, and The Ghoul are now available to order on Youtooz’ website. Lucy’s figure is a limited edition release.

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Published on April 12, 2024 11:53

SASQUATCH SUNSET Is the Most Accurate Bigfoot Movie Ever

Recently, Nerdist was excited to attend the New York premiere of Sasquatch Sunset, a truly one-of-a-kind movie that features no human characters or spoken language at all. Instead, the movie tells its tale from the perspective of a Sasquatch family navigating life as they understand it. While the movie centers on these mythical beings, it also aims to capture the human experience.

A igfoot looks at a butterfly on his hands while another looks up at the sky in Sasquatch Sunset

Bleecker Street

At the premiere of Sasquatch Sunset, filmmakers David Zellner and Nathan Zellner and cast members Jesse Eisenberg and Christophe Zajac-Denek dove deep into the inception, creation, and execution of the film. Kicking things off, David Zellner spoke about how Sasquatch Sunset came to be. He noted that initially, he viewed the movie as a cathartic exercise never meant to see daylight, but it quickly became something more.

Zellner shared of Sasquatch Sunset, “I wrote it in a fever dream. It happened quick. It was the most joyous writing experience I’ve had. If someone was watching me, I would have looked like a madman, just because I was cackling to myself. It was a great cathartic thing to do when some other projects had been on hold. But then, we couldn’t let go of it. We knew it was a more challenging film to get off the ground than the other ones, but we kept kind of circling back. We’ve been obsessed with Bigfoot since we were kids. And Jesse [Eisenberg], we’ve known for almost 20 years, and kind of sheepishly slipped it to him. Thankfully, he liked it and got on board, and that really helped move things along.”

Bleecker Street

Meanwhile, Nathan Zellner chimed in on why Bigfoot and Sasquatches were such a resonant topic to explore. He shared, “I think it’s the connection between humans and nature that goes back centuries. It’s a myth that has sustained itself in so many different cultures and so many different places across the globe that are all unconnected. There must be something to that, something about man’s desire to remember where they came from and to reconnect with nature. And just the mysteriousness of the fact that something like this might exist out there. And I think we’re always kind of hoping that there’s something more to this world than what we’re seeing in front of us and the wonder of that all. I think that is what keeps this folklore alive.”

But, of course, a movie where actors never speak and act covered entirely in thick prosthetics has its challenges. Both of the lead actors of the movie, Jesse Eisenberg and Christophe Zajac-Denek, spoke about the challenge, but also the beauty of the Sasquatch Sunset scenario.

Eisenberg offered, “For me, it was a real challenge to be able to really convey something without speaking. And it was like two-fold; on the one hand, it was like this amazing relief… there’s this freedom because you’re unselfconscious. On the other hand, I did sometimes feel like in order to convey the right feeling, I had to, like, overact, do a thing I’ve been training myself not to do. To feel something and have that be expressed the right way through having felt it first and sometimes that didn’t convey the right thing here, it was just like basically nothing. Because the prosthetics are there, and they’re so overwhelming that any subtly can get lost.”

Bleecker Street

Meanwhile, Zajac-Denek added, “As soon as I read the script, I absolutely loved the tone, and I felt like I got what David and Nathan were going for. I think it’s brilliant to act as a Sasquatch in the most real way, and then have the circumstance and the realness of the character bring out the absurdity and the ridiculousness of the situation. I play a lot of creatures in my career, and this honestly was the most challenging and the most rewarding. Not only was I in full prosthetics, but you also had to emote with your eyes and your face and find the balance between what’s too much and what’s right.” Zajac-Denek laughingly refused to answer whether Nathan Zellner dressed as a Sasquatch directing him was more surreal than being directed by David Lynch.

Despite the prosthetics and the lack of spoken word, the creators of Sasquatch Sunset wanted their Sasquatches to have a codified and coherent vocabulary of sounds and physical motions. To do this, they hired a movement coach who is also an expert in vocal techniques. Eisenberg reveals, “I had a movement coach from a movie where I played a mime, Lorin Eric Salm, who studied under Marcel Marceau and just does like all these very eccentric things. He’s an expert in movement and, in this case, in vocal techniques.”

Eisenberg continues, “We had this boot camp thing where we were in an office, in our costumes, and we created a dictionary, like a vocabulary for how these characters might speak in different circumstances. We basically had to come up with like a consistent species, so that the characters are different from people, of course, but they’re the same amongst each other.” A truly fascinating process. The filmmakers chime in to add, “This was literally the most accurate Bigfoot movie ever made.”

Bleecker Street

Of course, though, there’s a humor bend to the film, Sasquatch Sunset looks to explore a deeper vision of these popular creatures. Nathan Zellner shares, “There are lots of Bigfoot films made, lots of children or family films or horror films, and they’re always from the perspective of the human, and what was interesting to us was immersing us in their world without judgment and just showing the whole spectrum of behavior… They represent this missing link and gray area between human and animal behavior.

He adds, “There is so much comedy and pathos from that that was uncomfortable in a beautiful way that we loved… And it was just an intuitive process beyond that, you know, some things felt like they would be broader and slapstick at times, and then with equal measure, we wanted to embrace the more tragic and poignant moments and handle those with absolute reverence. To show the full spectrum of their existence.”

And finally, David Zellner concludes, “From the start, it was always about Sasquatches and giving into their interior world and taking it wherever it would go. In the beginning, we wanted it to feel like this pristine, almost primordial world. We shot in the Redwood forests of Humboldt County, which are some full-growth forests that are thousands of years old. They gave almost a timeless feel to their locale. And there was a purity to that. As [Sasquatch Sunset] goes on, there are signs of humanity that we see, chopped down trees and all of that. So, there was no way to avoid it becoming more and more melancholic as they encountered the impact of humankind. From the start, we never wanted to have any humans in it; we thought it was more interesting to see the impact of humankind [on the Sasquatches and the world] rather than seeing them.”

Sasquatch Sunset releases nationwide on April 19.

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Published on April 12, 2024 11:14

The Biggest Questions We Have After FALLOUT’s First Season

Prime Video’s Fallout has provided definitive answers to longtime franchise mysteries both big and small. We now know who dropped the nuclear bombs that began The Great War. The series even showed how Vault Boy got his signature thumbs up pose. But Fallout also raised plenty of new questions that season two (and hopefully beyond) will need to address.

From secret Vault-Tec plans and ghoul medicine, to powerful energy sources and family drama, these are the biggest questions we have after Fallout‘s first season.

Lucy in a vault in her blue suit on Fallout

Prime Video[image error]Who Is Pulling the Strings for Vault-Tec in Fallout? And Why Are They Living in New Vegas? Budd Askins of Vault-Tec

Prime Video

Fallout saved its biggest unanswered question for the very end—after we’d learned exactly how evil Vault-Tec has always been. The conglomerate that owned “half of everything” destroyed the world, so its executives could one day rule/manage society as they saw fit. Its vaults are not civilization-saving bunkers; they’re a way to control mankind.

The Ghoul already knew, from his past as the actor and Vault-Tec spokesperson Cooper Howard, just how evil the company has always been. But he also knows someone is “pulling the strings” for everything that has happened for more than 200 years. To stop Vault-Tec, he needs to stop them. Of course, Fallout‘s finale sets up the major question: Just who is in charge of Vault-Tec’s post-apocalyptic activities?

The Ghoul—whose unique past and insight makes him as well-prepared to fight Vault-Tec as anyone— has a plan to find the mastermind. He shot a tracker into Lucy’s dad, Hank MacLane, rather than killing the Vault 33 overseer in Fallout‘s final episode. The Ghoul let the Vault-Tec executive flee in a Brotherhood power armor suit because Coop knew Hank would go straight to his boss.

Golden sky over New Vegas and the desert in Fallout

Prime Video

The world’s puppet master is not just anywhere, though, they’re in New Vegas. That’s the site of the Fallout New Vegas video game and where a major war for control of the Hoover Dam took place. The presence of Fallout‘s New Vegas opens up a whole new can of questions. For instance, when and why did the company choose that site as its base of operations? How might the company’s plans connect to the game? And, most importantly, as mentioned, who actually is the person pulling the strings that have kept society under Vault-Tec’s thumb?

The answer might be connected to another major question from season one of Fallout.

Where Is the Ghoul’s Family? Cooper Howard's wife Barb suggesting Vault-Tec drop the first nuclear bombs of the great war

Prime Video

Coop was with his daughter when the bombs went off, but we had no idea what happened to her until The Ghoul demanded information from Hank about his family’s whereabouts. Little Janey is not dead. Coop seems to know that, somehow, both his ex-wife and child survived the Great War and are alive somewhere.

This knowledge given to viewers by Fallout‘s finale yields the following follow-up questions for us about the Ghoul’s family. Are Janey and Barb Howard both in stasis like other Vault-Tex executives? If so, is each woman waiting to take their place as a Vault overseer? Are they instead both ghouls like Howard? Or is one (or both) of them the person pulling the strings in New Vegas?

Cooper in his sheriff outfit with his child

Prime Video

Coop’s wife was at the forefront of Vault-Tec’s evil plan. She didn’t just take charge during the meeting when Vault-Tec execs decided to kill the world, Barb Howard was the one who said the company would drop the bombs themselves. It certainly makes us question whether she is indeed the great evil in Fallout‘s world.

Will Chet or Anyone Else Rescue Norm From Vault 31?

While Hank’s daughter is now heading to New Vegas to hunt down her dad and his boss, Hank’s other child is trapped in Vault 31. No human is living there. It’s merely a holding station for Vault-Tec executives in stasis. Since poor, astute Norm now knows everything about Vault-Tec and the people who come from 31, the brain of Bud Askin’s won’t let Norm leave. And with no food or water Norm seemingly has no choice but to use his dad’s former pod to survive until someone lets him out.

A scared Norm in his blue Vault-Tec suit

Prime Video

Who could that be? The only other Vault dweller who has any inkling of malfeasance in Vault 31 is the “coward” Chet, de facto husband of a Vault 31/Vault-Tec executive wife. If Chet, a former gatekeeper capable of breaking into 31, can’t find the courage to help his friend, is there anyone else who could? We’ll have to wait and see if season two of Fallout answers that question.

How Will Vault Dwellers React to the Truth About the Overseers and Vault-Tec? Three Vault dweller leaders at a table on Fallout

Prime Video

Genuine Vault dwellers, like the people born and raised in 33, are passive individuals not equipped for conflict. It’s why they always, without realizing it, vote people from 31 in the role of overseer.

So how will they react to finding out the terrible truth that their entire existence is a lie told by monsters who want to reshape the world in their image? Will Fallout‘s Vault dwellers fight back when everything is revealed eventually? Will they fight for their home or flee for the harsh surface? Or will they give in to the evil Vault-Tec willingly rather than stand up for themselves and civilization?

What Will the Brotherhood Do With Unlimited Power? How Can Maximus Stop The Brotherhood? The start of a blue cold fusion reaction on Fallout

Prime Video

The Brotherhood of Steel might think of itself as noble Knights, but the militaristic group is no better than the other evil organizations that want to rule the world with an iron fist. Unlike other entities, though, the Brotherhood now contains the greatest power the world has ever known: unlimited energy. In Fallout‘s season one finale, Moldaver unlocked cold fusion power, which in theory should mean an end to humanity fighting over limited resources. (Dwindling resources helped push the world to annihilation centuries ago.)

Unfortunately, that planet-changing tech fell into Brotherhood’s hands in the season one finale, and there’s no reason to think the organization will do anything with it but oppress and control society.

Free cold fusion might mean the Brotherhood is now unstoppable, but if anyone can prevent its dominance its own members. A dying Moldaver told Maximus, now the Brotherhood’s greatest hero, that he might be the only one who can stop them. Even if he ultimately can’t, she said he has to try, but what exactly does trying even mean? What can he do? Who, if anyone, can he even trust to help him? Unlimited energy means unlimited power. And so we have to question, what is a single Knight, even Fallout’s Maximus, to do against that?

What Would Unlimited Free Energy Actually Mean for the World? Two people from a destroyed building look out at lights coming on in the city on fallout

Two people from a destroyed building look out at lights coming on in the city on fallout

Prime Video

If Maximus can stop the Brotherhood in Fallout and give the world the unlimited free energy Moldaver created, it begs the question, what will actually happen to the world? Will it heal itself and end war forever? Will it lead to the utopia so many have dreamed of, only without terrible people in charge? Or will cold fusion be yet another disappointment in mankind’s story as people find new, different reasons to fight one another?

Why Did the Enclave Have Secret Vault-Tec Technology? A woman takes something out of a dad man's head with a big needle on Fallout

Prime Video

The Enclave was one of the least explored groups on Fallout and so we have many questions about them. But the agency founded by former government officials has long been a major antagonist of the video game franchise. As the Prime Video series hinted, surface dwellers despise the heinous group with good reason. The genocidal, racist organization wants a world of only “pure” humans.

Like every other organization in Fallout, The Enclave also wants to rule over society. That would seemingly put it in direct conflict with Vault-Tec, and in Fallout video games, that has seemingly been the case. The Enclave, which began with a deep state within the government, has spied on Vault-Tec and its underground Vaults from the surface for centuries. That’s how Wilzig knew everything about Lucy MacLane.

But none of that explains exactly how The Enclave ended up with arguably Vault-Tec’s most valuable technology in Fallout. Did The Enclave steal Vault-Tec’s unfinished cold fusion tech? If so, why didn’t it use it? The Enclave was sitting on the possibility of unlimited power, but instead kept it locked away?

Vault Boy on a green screen next to blue liquid on Fallout

Prime Video

It’s possible that The Enclave simply did not have the code to access the technology. But alternatively, Fallout invites us to question whether The Enclave did not use its greatest asset because it’s not actually competing with Vault-Tec and never has. Were the government officials always conspiring with Vault-Tex executives? The company basically ran/owned the United States before The Great War. Was it controlling the deep state that became the Enclave, which is actually just another branch of Vault-Tec? Or are the two groups part of one larger secret entity run by the mastermind in New Vegas?

Wilzig’s efforts and sacrifice to steal back Moldaver’s cold fusion technology (which still bore the name of Vault-Tec on it) raises the possibility The Enclave was hiding it on behalf of the people who were most desperate to keep it locked away. We need to know exactly why The Enclave did that and what it means for its relationship with Vault-Tec.

Is The Enclave Hiding Mutants? Scientists wheel a body with a green hand coming out from the sheet on fallout

Prime Video

The Enclave might be hiding another big secret in Fallout‘s universe. The group’s aim is to kill all “non-pure” humans, yet scientists at the organization’s highly guarded laboratory were seen wheeling out the dead body of a mutant. Mutants are a group of green, super-powered, transformed humans well-known from the Fallout games. Mutants are created by something known as the Forced Evolutionary Virus.

While the Enclave has employed super mutants before, seeing one wheeled through its halls is something entirely different. What kind of experiments are they doing in the Enclave? Are its residents keeping mutants? Turning people into mutants? Trying to build an even stronger race of them to use as soldiers in a coming war?

That shot of a green hand hanging out of a hospital sheet was a “blink and you’ll miss it moment,” yet it raised some tantalizing questions about the sinister Fallout organization that could have big payoffs as a new war looms on the wasteland’s horizon.

Does the Existence of Ghoul Medicine Also Mean There’s a Cure for Ghouls? Walton Goggins Ghoul on Fallout

Prime Video

Prime Video’s series introduced an all-new, very important item to the Fallout franchise. The Ghoul takes a valuable medicine that keeps him from going feral, the fate that ultimately awaits himself and his fellow ghouls without it. So long as he doesn’t get shot in the brain, that medicine assures Cooper Howard can continue roaming the wasteland as a noseless gunslinger forever.

But the show also revealed there’s a medicine (possibly the same one) that heals terrible injuries by turning people into ghouls instantly. Though we have many questions, we don’t know what these Fallout ghoul medicines are, where they came from, or who made them just yet. However, we do know from Fallout video games that there were pre-Great War ghouls created via radiation experiments. People wanted to unlock immortality and keep themselves safe from radiation poisoning so they could survive nuclear war.

Thaddeus reaches for medicine on Fallout

Prime Video

Squire Thaddeus’s transformation into a ghoul isn’t an entirely new concept to the franchise, only the medicines used to create those mutants and keep them from going feral are. But the better question raised by his Fallout transformation and Coop’s anti-feral inhalers has nothing to do with those medicines, their creators, or their own origin. It’s that their very existence raises the possibility that a ghoul cure might also exist in Fallout‘s world.

If you can make something that turns someone into a ghoul and keeps them from going feral, you might also be able to create a medicine that reverses the process entirely. The Enclave and/or Vault-Tec was sitting on one world-changing technology. Why couldn’t they also be sitting on another one?

How Was Moldaver Still Around, and Who Helped Her? Moldaver sits back in her chair at a table in a ruined Observatory in Fallout

Prime Video

Ghouls can outlive humans for a long time in the wasteland, which is how Cooper Howard is still alive centuries after he should have died. We also know longterm stasis is how Vault-Tec executives are still in charge of their Vaults centuries later. But season one of Fallout didn’t actually explain how Moldaver was around more than 200 years after she first met Coop inside a mausoleum, leaving us with a big question mark around her existence.

Was Moldaver the healthiest ghoul in the world? That seems unlikely since a bullet to the abdomen killed her. Multiple gunshot wounds did nothing to Coop since ghouls have super-healing abilities. So, who put her into stasis long ago, and who woke her up in the present? Who was aiding Moldaver in her continued quest to stop Vault-Tec? Was it someone within the organization itself? If so, could that mean Barb Howard isn’t the puppet master in New Vegas but someone trying to atone for her monstrous past? Or could her daughter have been the one who woke up Moldaver?

Civilization’s greatest champion might be dead, but Moldaver’s story still has a big role to play in Fallout’s future—a future full of questions we need answers to.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist strangely intrigued by Fallout’s ghoul medicine. You can follow him on Twitter and Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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Published on April 12, 2024 09:52

CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD First-Look Images Reveal Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford

Steve Rogers is either dead or a very old man, but the world still needs Captain America. Fortunately for Earth, someone just as worthy of that title as Steve took on the job. No, not John Walker. (Definitely not John Walker.) On The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Sam Wilson finally accepted the mantle his friend tried to give him at the end of Avengers: Endgame. Now Anthony Mackie is ready to lead the superhero franchise into the future with the MCU’s fourth standalone Captain America film.

At CinemaCon, Marvel Studios reveled the first footage from Captain America: Brave New World, while that’s not available for us to see at this time, Entertainment Weekly does reveal two first-look images from the movie, including one of Ford and Mackie acting together.

Anthony Mackie officially headlines his own movie opposite Harrison Ford's Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross in EW's exclusive first look. https://t.co/tSjvvHYhhU pic.twitter.com/Pm2BkiUgn1
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) April 12, 2024

Additionally, Entertainment Weekly shares a description of the clip, offering that it starred Anthony Mackie speaking with Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, now played by Harrison Ford and president of the United States. Ross wants Sam Wilson to reassemble the Avengers. But their conversation is interrupted. The publication reveals:

Ross welcomes Sam to the White House, thanking him for his past heroic actions. Though he admits he isn’t too fond of superheroes, he says even he can recognize Sam’s goodwill and tasks the military veteran with reforming Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. But, as they soon realize, there’s a leak in Ross’ inner circle.

A strange sound — an old timey song — interrupts Ross’ presentation at a White House event, triggering sleeper super-soldiers in the room to attack the President, including Carl Lumbly’s Isaiah Bradley, returning from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Mackie notes of the film, “It made more sense for it to be more of a grounded espionage action movie as opposed to aliens and airplanes coming through portals and s—. Even though I’ve been in so many of them and have seen it all now, the opportunity for Sam to really establish himself as a true action star and Avenger comes with this movie.”

See Anthony Mackie officially headline his own 'Captain America' movie opposite Harrison Ford in EW's exclusive first look at 'Brave New World.' https://t.co/FLAEc9PWe8
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) April 12, 2024

Additionally, he shares the film is still a bit of our a double act, although not the Falcon and the Winter Soldier — Part 2. This time Mackie’s Sam Wilson is teaming up with Danny Ramirez’ Joaquin Torres, another version of the Falcon. Mackie shares of the relationship, “They’re evenly yoked… They’re both military guys. I was his commanding officer. We have more of a friendship as opposed to the way I admired Steve or the way I didn’t like Bucky.”

Here’s everything we know about Captain America: Brave New World.

Title

Sam Wilson stands holding the shield of Captain America looking somber in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Marvel first announced Captain America 4‘s official title as part of its Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2022. It was originally called Captain America: New World Order. But in June 2023, Marvel changed the movie’s name. It is now called Captain America: Brave New World.

Captain America: Brave New World‘s Plot

Marvel has yet to reveal many details about the film. Thus far, the title is our best clue about the film’s plot. It echoes both the main conflict of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier and Aldous Huxley’s dystopian classic. Marvel executives have shared some tasty breadcrumbs, though.

That began with Nate Moore, VP of Production & Development at Marvel Studios, talking about how Harrison Ford will replace the late William Hurt as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in Brave New World. In an interview, Moore said:

Well, look, Sam Wilson’s Captain America, he is going to bring his own team to play. It’s no secret that Samuel Sterns is making his return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which is fantastic because Tim Blake Nelson’s the best. Harrison Ford is taking on the role of General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, and to see Sam Wilson and Thunderbolt Ross, which if you remember actually threw him in prison at the end of Civil War because he violated the Sokovia Accords. There’s going to be some natural sparks there, which I think are going to be really fun.

Behind the Scenes

Malcolm Spellman (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) and Dalan Musson are co-writing the film. Matthew Orton will also contribute to the writing. Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox) is set to direct.

Ca ptain America: Brave New World‘s Cast Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) somberly stands in front of a banner of Captain America in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) somberly stands in front of a banner of Captain America in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

In addition to Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier‘s Carl Lumbly will return as Isaiah Bradley. As will Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres.

Additionally, Brave New World will bring back Samuel Sterns (Tim Blake Nelson) from The Incredible Hulk. Sterns, of course, is also known as The Leader. He will likely act as the film’s villain. Shira Haas will join the film as Sabra. Xosha Roquemore has joined the movie in an unknown role, and WWE wrestler Seth Rollins was spotted in costume on set.

Another original MCU star will also return after a long absence, too. Liv Tyler will reprise her role as Betty Ross. She originated the role in The Incredible Hulk.

Liv Tyler as Betty Ross in The Incredible Hulk stands in front of trees, looking worried

Marvel StudiosCaptain America: Brave New World‘s Release Date Sam Wilson tries to pull Captain America's shield out of a tree in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier