From film to TV, gaming to animation and more, here’s what you might have missed in pop culture news this week.
TV
Last year’s Stranger Things ended with a post-credit scene which hinted that Sheriff Jim Hopper may still be alive and held captive in a Russian prison, and now the show has officially confirmed his return in season four by means of a new trailer.
Fans of Lucifer will be pleased to hear that Netflix are reportedly in talks with Warner Bros. to extend the show past its previously announced final fifth season. Originally cancelled on Fox after three seasons, Netflix stepped in to revive the show and released season four last year, and season five is expected to drop later this year.
The streaming wars are set to get a whole lot busier, with Warner Bros. now set to get in on the action with their own HBO Max platform which launches this May in the US. A new trailer highlights the platform’s content, like rival platform Disney+, HBO Max will be launching with a wealth of existing content from an extensive back catalogue including Game of Thrones, Friends, Harry Potter, The Matrix, and DC just to name a few. Warner Bros. has also announced a new studio dubbed Warner Max, which will be developing new content designed specifically for the platform. No word exists on when Australian audiences will be able to access the platform, or what it will mean for Foxtel who currently hold the Australian TV rights to much of HBO’s original content, though official Australian trademarks were registered for HBO Max earlier this month, so it’s probably going to be here sooner rather than later.
Apple TV+ has released a new trailer for their next streaming series, a revival of legendary director Steven Spielberg’s ‘80s anthology series Amazing Stories. Spielberg himself is returning as an executive producer on the new series now being helmed by Once Upon a Time’s Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz.
The 1992 film A League of Their Own which starred Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Madonna and told the story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League is reportedly getting a TV series reboot courtesy of Amazon. The show will begin with the formation of the League in 1943 and will follow the players as they seek to keep the game alive in a trying time in US history.
Battlestar Galactica is getting another revival courtesy of Mr. Robot writer/director Sam Esmail, though reports are that the new series will be somewhat of a continuation or spin-off of the 2004 Battlestar Galactica reboot. Ronald D. Moore, the writer who helmed the 2004 reboot for SyFy, has confirmed that Esmail had reached out to tell him that “he wanted to do something in the same universe”.
Filming on season two of The Witcher is just around the corner, and as we get closer, we are hearing even more casting rumours. Most recently it has been reported that the show’s second season will see the introduction of two new Witchers, Lambert (played by Peaky Blinders’ Paul Bullion) and Coën (played by Young Wallader’s Yasen Atour). There is no official word as to whether Geralt’s mentor Vesemir will be appearing, though rumours are that fan favourites Michael Keaton, Mads Mikkelsen and Mark Hamill have all been eyed for the role.
Disney+ has revealed that Emilio Estevez will be reprising his role as Coach Bombay in its new Mighty Ducks TV series. It has also been revealed that Gilmore Girls’ Lauren Graham will take the role of a mother who starts a new team when her son is cut from the Ducks who are now considered the most prominent team in the area.
NO. CHILL. 🚨❄🏒 #EmilioEstevez is BACK as Gordon Bombay! Check out this photo from production on The Mighty Ducks, an Original Series coming soon to #DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/SSVEDUuO4w
— Disney+ (@disneyplus) February 13, 2020
FILM
Get ready to return to Jurassic World. Since being replaced as the director on Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker, Colin Trevorrow has been busy returning to the Jurassic World franchise and prepping for filming on the third film in the trilogy. Thanks to a new tweet, we now know that everything is now ready for production to officially begin.
Ready. pic.twitter.com/mkTbGYbaGV
— Colin Trevorrow (@colintrevorrow) February 17, 2020
A new behind-the-scenes video taken from the set of The Matrix 4 reveals Keanu Reeves’ Neo and Carrie-Anne Moss’ Trinity have officially reunited, as the filming reveals a bearded Reeves riding on the back of motorcycle driven by Moss.
Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne motorclice action in the new matrix 4@abc7newsbayarea @MoviesMatrix @keanuplanet @KeanuReevess_ pic.twitter.com/1kVLevmJdM
— marcos vedovetto (@vedoveto37) February 16, 2020
Guillermo del Toro is currently working on a stop-motion Pinocchio adaptation for Netflix, and actor David Bradley (Game of Thrones, Harry Potter), who is providing the voice for Geppetto, has recently revealed that other big named actors, Ewan McGregor, Tilda Swinton, Christoph Waltz and long-term del Toro collaborator Ron Perlman, will also be lending their talents to the film.
Disney seems to love their new live-action adaptations of their animated classics. Recently we learnt about Back to the Future’s Robert Zemeckis helming his own live-action version of Pinocchio for the Mouse House, and now news is that Disney also has its sights set on a live-action Rapunzel with screenwriter Ashleigh Powell (The Nutcracker and the Four Realms) attached to pen the script. It is not known if this new film will be a direct adaptation of Disney’s previous Tangled film or not, however The Punisher’s Ben Barnes has been quick to put his hand up to play a live-action Flynn Rider.
I am so up for this @DisneyStudios …even down to the little chin beard! #Tangled https://t.co/oBx8g7pIJW
— Ben Barnes (@benbarnes) February 16, 2020
Last week, director Matt Reeves revealed Robert Pattinson’s new Batman costume, and fans were quick to point out that the Bat symbol on his chest appeared to be made from a melted-down gun – most likely the one responsible for killing Bruce Wayne’s parents. If true, this wouldn’t be a new addition to Batman canon, as for Detective Comics issue #1000, filmmaker and pop-culture connoisseur Kevin Smith wrote a story which had Wayne melt down the gun and include it into his Batsuit. Smith himself has caught wind of these rumours and hopes them to be true.
As the author of a certain @JimLee story in #Detective1000, I pray to SMod this is true… https://t.co/iN1VPlaBMh pic.twitter.com/yH4Irsw9m9
— KevinSmith (@ThatKevinSmith) February 14, 2020
Director Wes Ball, who has been tasked with taking over the reins on The Planet of the Apes franchise from Matt Reeves, now that Disney officially owns the rights, has recently shot down rumours that his new film will be another reboot.
It’s never been easier for film journalists to actually get in touch with the actual people who actually know… but maybe it’s the point to NOT fact-check these days?
Regardless. Don’t worry. I won’t ruin the surprises, but it’s safe to say Caesar’s legacy will continue…🤫— Wes Ball (@wesball) February 17, 2020
GAMING
In the latest Nintendo Direct, we revisited the exciting new features in Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons and everything else we can expect from the island getaway title. A big emphasis has been put on customisation, literally everything, the island, your getaway home and your character are completely customisable. You’ll also be able to fly in up to seven friends from the local airport to help build your island into a tropical paradise, or share your island with up to three friends or family members on a single Switch.
There’s no shortage of goals on the island either, with the Nook Mileage Program which will give players the opportunity to test their skills with different activities and help pay off their island with Miles. Planned events will also be available to keep things fresh on your island, such as fishing competitions and bug catching contests, the first event will be available at launch with a Bunny Day event scheduled for April. There’s also a hint towards Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas themed events in free updates!
An accompanying app will also be available for New Horizons called NookLink, which will allow you to download custom designs via QR codes and communicate with your other real-life Animal Crossing residents by text or voice chat.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons drops on March 20 for Nintendo Switch.
CD Projekt Red has revealed a new update for Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on Nintendo Switch. Update 3.6 will allow file save integration from PC copies on Steam and GOG over to the Switch and has also added touch control support – the former proving to be useful for hardcore Gwent players. Also amongst the update notes is improved graphical options, gameplay and visual optimization and other fixes to improve the game’s performance.
Update 3.6 for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on Nintendo Switch is now available!
It introduces save file integration with GOG and Steam, and adds more graphical settings, making it possible to customize visual fidelity, among others.
Full list of changes: https://t.co/6xOMPNE5HK pic.twitter.com/iGGxJeBrI7
— The Witcher (@witchergame) February 18, 2020
A rare prototype of the Super NES CD-ROM System is being auctioned off by Heritage Auctions. The dual-branded prototype is believed to be the last of 200 models that were produced by Sony and Nintendo in the early ’90s and is reportedly in functioning order.
The Only Known Nintendo PlayStation Is Up For Auction – Here’s Its Story: https://t.co/AGeVBlyTMU | The auction will commence on March 5, with bidding beginning on Valentine’s Day! #Nintendo #retrogamer #retrogaming #videogaming
— Heritage Auctions (@HeritageAuction) January 14, 2020
Late last week the official Pokemon Twitter account posted a teaser for a newly discovered Pokemon. The silhouette of the mysterious Pokemon is the only official information we have so far, but it is believed the new addition to the Pokedex will be introduced in Pokemon the Movie: Coco, which will release in Japan on July 10. Until then we’ll just have to sit tight for more information.
New Pokémon Discovered?!
Stay tuned, Trainers… pic.twitter.com/UBKI2CfQHz
— Pokémon (@Pokemon) February 15, 2020