Newstime: The Stories You Might Have Missed This Week

From film to TV, gaming to comics and everything in between, here’s what you might have missed in pop culture news this week.

TV

BBC One has officially announced Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ Dracula. Three 90-minute episodes plan to re-introduce The Count to a modern audience; so don’t be surprised if the lead is someone the pair has worked with in the past. Dracula will be co-produced by Netflix, streaming it to viewers outside of the UK. No release date has been mentioned, though a late 2019 arrival seems realistic.

This year’s Arrowverse crossover has yet again been teased by the CW with a new poster. Revealing the Elseworlds storyline, what we know so far is that Barry Allen and Oliver Queen switch roles, and Superman will be donning the iconic black suit. The special three-night DC crossover event will take place in early December.

We’ve also been given a first look at Elizabeth Tulloch as Lois Lane via Supergirl Melissa Benoist’s Instagram.

With Daniel Craig departing the Bond series in the near future, it appears Game of Thrones actor Richard Madden is tipped to play the spy next. Madden is known for his portrayal of Robb Stark, so perhaps this is one way of seeking revenge for his sudden and unexpected departure from the hit show.

Netflix has announced the cancellation of Iron Fist, though it may not be the end for Danny Rand. Speculation has suggested that a Heroes For Hire series could be a worthy replacement, though at this point it is probably just wishful thinking.

Right when we thought we had enough prequels in the making, a Batman prequel show has cast its Alfred. Jack Bannon (The Imitation Game) will portray a younger version of the Butler, tapping into his relationship with Thomas Wayne and his militant history. The series will not be canon to current series Gotham,nor will it be directly tied to the films.

FILM

New producers have taken over upcoming Australian paranormal mystery-drama Poor Boy, with Angie Fielder and Polly Staniford of Aquarius Films (The Other Guy, Lion) signing on for the project after Wildheart Films’ Al Clark and Andrena Finlay were initially listed as producers. The film will be Guy Pearce’s directorial debut, with the acting legend also starring in the film. As the film’s official synopsis reads, “Poor Boy centres on two families whose lives become mysteriously linked by events that occurred seven years earlier.”

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Ryan Coogler will return to Wakanda, as writer and director of the Black Panther sequel. The film’s release date is yet to be announced.

While at Fan Expo Vancouver this week, Benedict Wong stated that he hoped to start shooting on Doctor Strange 2 at the end of the year, initiating speculation that the film could be slated for a 2020 release and that the production phase isn’t far off.

Spider-Man: Far From Home wrapped on principal photography this week, with Tom Holland posting a few on-set pics to celebrate the last day of shooting.

The Russo Brothers were at it again on Twitter this week with another cryptic tweet after wrapping on Avengers 4 additional shoots, teasing fans everywhere.

But that’s not all, with Wonder Woman 84 also wrapping up production this week.

Meanwhile, the standalone Flash movie has reportedly been delayed. According to Variety, it apparently isn’t ready for production and will also be slowed down further due to Ezra Miller’s commitment to shooting the third Fantastic Beasts film, with cameras expected to roll from July 2019.

Written and directed by Joe Cornish, the first trailer for upcoming adventure fantasy film The Kid Who Would Be King has been released. It hits Australian cinemas on January 17.

While Godzilla: King of The Monsters isn’t due out till next year, casting for its sequel, Godzilla Vs Kong, has already begun. Returning cast members include Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler and Ziyi Zhang. New cast members Demián Bichir (The Nun), Julian Dennison (Deadpool 2) and Brian Tyree Henry (Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse) have been announced. Adam Wingard (You’re Next) will be taking the helm as the sequel’s director.

Sylvester Stallone’s next project has been revealed; he’s currently filming what he calls the final Rambo film (even calling it Last Blood), and has his sights set on producing and starring in a superhero film, Samaritan. The only detail so far: that production will have “dark, fresh take on the genre”.

Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga were confirmed this week to be returning as The Warrens in the Conjuring spinoff, Annabelle 3 via Deadline. Production is slated to begin this coming week and the sequel will be hitting cinemas next year.

Chris Hemsworth confirmed via Instagram that shooting for the MIB reboot has finished.

GAMING

Players will be able to get their hands on three new Spider-Man suits, with PS4 game Spider-Man‘s first DLC pack. ‘The Heist’ is one of three episodic expansions, centred on Peter Parker’s love interest/ villain, Felicia Hardy… aka Black Cat.

#SpiderManPS4‘s first DLC pack includes some new duds for the wall-crawler, including one brand-new original suit and two others that fans might recognize: https://t.co/7fdIAZKbfn The Heist launches October 23 pic.twitter.com/DeE5uYaPVe

— PlayStation (@PlayStation) October 17, 2018

COMICS

DC has cancelled the current Suicide Squad run, with issue #50 set to be the last of the series. In similar unfortunate news, the publisher has cancelled one of the New Age of Heroes Titles spinning off from the acclaimed Dark Knights Metal event earlier this year. The eight issue of The Unexpected will be the last of the series, joining The Immortal Men which finished its run in September.

Marvel comics have unveiled three new members of the Guardians of the Galaxy. A teaser image depicts Ghost Rider (the confirmed leader) alongside Moondragon, Gladiator and Beta Ray Bill.

Eric Powell has announced a new The Goon comic series, celebrating the series 20th anniversary, expected to hit stores in 2019. Powell’s publishing house Albtross Funnybooks will premiere the first issue which will see the first original The Goon story since a Halloween one-shot from Dark Horse in 2015.

THIS WEEK’S PICKS

Simpsons Comics #245 (Bongo) – After 25 years, The Simpsons comics comes to an end! Make sure you pick up this special send-off issue!

Lucifer #1 (DC/Vertigo) – Lucifer is missing in this brand new ongoing series following the exploits of Neil Gaimann’s Prince of Lies. Written by Dan Watter with art by Sebastian Fiumara and Max Fiumara.

Rise of the TMNT #1 (IDW) – A new ongoing series on your favourite pizza munching ninjitsu trained reptiles based on the current Nickelodeon cartoon. Written by Michael K Manning with art by Andy Suriano.

Marvel Zombie #1 (Marvel) – Fans of the legendary Marvel Zombies need look no further than this spin-off/sequel of sorts Written by W. Maxwell Prince with art by Stefano Raffaele.

Shuri #1 (Marvel) – The scene-stealing Princess of Wakanda/tech-genius gets her own new ongoing series. Written by Nnedi Okorafor with art by Leonardo Romero.