Godzilla Fan Dies Before Drive-In King Of Monsters Screening Can Be Arranged

Godzilla Fan Dies Before Drive-In King Of Monsters Screening Can Be Arranged

It's a scenario we've seen several times in the last few years. Somebody is a huge fan of a particular movie property, excited to see the next installment that's set to come out. Unfortunately, this fan is terminally ill and may not live until the official release date. Social media then picks up the call to try and make an early screening happen. It's remarkable how frequently these stories have had happy endings. Unfortunately, the most recent example has had no such result. George Root III, who wanted nothing more than to see Godzilla: King of the Monsters, has passed away before having a chance to do so.

It was only within the last couple of days that the story of George Root III broke through the noise of the internet to really get noticed. Root had stage four cancer and was a massive fan of two things, Godzilla and the Transit Drive-In in Lockport, New York. Root was friends with the theater's owner, Rick Cohen and it was Cohen who attempted to get his friend's dying wish to come true and get a screening of the upcoming Godzilla: King of the Monsters to screen at the theater for Root.

Unfortunately, almost as soon as the request began to pick up steam, it was announced that it was already too late. George Root III died Thursday of the cancer he'd been fighting for four years.

Part of what makes this all the more heartbreaking, is that there's a pretty decent chance that if Root had lived, he would have received his wish. This is far from the first time that a terminally ill person has made a request like this and frequently, those requests have been granted. Disney has granted personal screenings of both Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Avengers: Endgame to under similar circumstances. Studios have been remarkably willing to accommodate these requests so there's no reason to believe this one would have been any different.

Yesterday Godzilla: King of the Monsters director Mike Dougherty retweeted a post referencing George Root's struggle, after he had passed, which means the director had been made aware of the situation. Things really might have worked out if only the timing hadn't been so tight.

Considering that we're dealing with terminally ill patients, it's actually remarkable just how often these stories have happy endings. Of course, that makes it all the sadder that this one does not.

Still, those that picked up the call for George Root III aren't done simply because he's gone. According to the Buffalo News, those that were once campaigning to get him a screening are now campaigning to get him added to the credits of Godzilla: King of the Monsters. It would certainly be nice to see a dedication or "In memory of" added to the beginning or end of the film. Such a tribute would probably mean the world to the loved ones he left behind.

We'll have to wait and see if anything like that happens. Godzilla: King of the Monsters will be in theaters May 31.

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Dark Phoenix’s Reshoots Changed The Climax In A Big Way

Dark Phoenix’s Reshoots Changed The Climax In A Big Way

Like many blockbusters before it, Dark Phoenix set aside time for reshoots, with cameras rolling last fall, almost a year after principal photography had wrapped. Sometimes the extra footage gathered from reshoots is only meant to make minor changes to the movie, but in Dark Phoenix’s case, it was part of a bigger overhaul that included shifting the location of the climax.

When Dark Phoenix was rolling cameras, the plan was for the final battle to take place out in space, but once reshoots came around, the entire third act was changed and it now has the X-Men characters being kidnapped and imprisoned aboard a military train instead. We’ve seen snippets of this sequence in past trailers, and it ultimately leads to the corrupted Jean Grey lifting the train into the air while everyone is still on board.

Although Dark Phoenix is a relatively more grounded adaptation of The Dark Phoenix Saga, this version definitely has more of a cosmic feel, namely because Jean’s transformation into Phoenix occurs during a rescue mission in space and Jessica Chastain’s still-unidentified character is an alien shapeshifter. So it’s peculiar that rather than keep that cosmic flavor going in the climax, it was decided ahead of reshoots to keep the action Earthbound instead.

It wasn’t specifically explained why Dark Phoenix’s climax was changed during reshoots, although it wasn’t the only major adjustment implemented later in the game. During postproduction, the look of the Phoenix was also revamped to look more “cosmic” and less “flamy,” which is a departure from the entity’s appearance in the source material.

Director Simon Kinberg also spoke with EW about how difficult it was to make his directorial debut on Dark Phoenix, saying:

I think the biggest challenge is modulating the film so that we have the big scale and visual-effects action that these movies require, but balancing that in a way that feels calibrated with the drama. You have these big space sequences and trains flying through the air and people firing lightning bolts, but you also have a lot of emotional, four-page dramatic dialogue scenes.

Simon Kinberg confirmed at the beginning of the month that Dark Phoenix will be the last installment of the main X-Men film series that began in 2000, thus paving the way for the mutant property to be rebooted within the Marvel Cinematic Universe down the line. So ideally Dark Phoenix ends things with a bang, and while that train sequence will surely be filled with action and excitement, it feels awfully similar to what we’ve seen in past X-Men movies.

A clash in space, on the other hand, would have been unique, special and tangentially faithful to the comics, so I’m curious as to why that was tossed out during reshoots. Evidently budget wasn’t an issue if the crew had the money to film an entirely new sequence, so maybe after Dark Phoenix has been released, we’ll learn the specific reasoning for why the climax was so drastically changed.

Dark Phoenix opens in theaters on June 7, so stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more coverage. You can also check out our 2019 release schedule to find out what other movies come out later this year.

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Upcoming Disney Movies: Full List Of Titles And Release Dates

Upcoming Disney Movies: Full List Of Titles And Release Dates

Disney has had some of the biggest box office years of any studio in the history of time over the last few years. While the studio only has a handful of films planned for 2019, almost every single one of them is poised to be a major blockbuster. And then, of course, there's everything they have planned after that.

Between all the different studios that Disney owns, and with another having recently joined them, there's a nearly endless stream of movies planned for the rest of this decade. Here is everything currently on the official Disney release calendar, animated, live-action, comic book, and science fiction, even a documentary just to balance things out. This is your one-stop shop for all things Disney, including upcoming Fox projects.. Here's everything that has to yet to be released by the House of Mouse.

Aladdin

Release Date: May 24, 2019

Early looks at Aladdin had a lot of people worried. Whether it was Will Smith's Genie not being blue or the Genie being a little strange looking while being blue, fans of the animated original were less than thrilled. With the release of the first trailer, the fear seems to have largely calmed down. Considering how popular the original movie is, you can be sure Disney has high expectations for this one.

Dark Phoenix

Release Date: June 7, 2019

The X-Men haven't joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe quite yet, but the final movie in the current franchise will technically be released by Disney now that Fox is owned by the Mouse House. This one has seen several delays, making many wonder just how good it will be, but it seems we'll finally find out in June.

Toy Story 4

Release Date: June 21, 2019

Many would consider the first three Toy Story movies one of the finest trilogies in recent memory. The mere idea of a fourth film sends people into cold sweats, and yet, that film will be here soon. The story will see Woody reunited with his old flame Bo Peep as he and new friend Forky try to get back to Bonnie. The film appears to deal with questions of identity and purpose. There may be something left for this franchise to say after all.

Spider-Man: Far From Home (Sony Produced MCU Movie)

Release Date: July 5, 2019

Technically, Spider-Man: Far From Home isn't a Disney movie, but rather a Sony film. However, since it's still part of the marvel Cinematic Universe, and that's all Disney, we're going to include it here. Exactly how Spider-Man will make it from the end of Avengers: Infinity War to here we don't yet know, but however it works, it will see Peter Parker visiting Europe with school friends, where he'll be pressed into service by Nick Fury.

Stuber

Release Date: July 12, 2019

Another of the new "Disney" releases, by virtue of the fact that they own Fox, Stuber is a comedy that will follow Kumail Najiani as an Uber driver who gets caught up in the work of a cop chasing a killer. It looks like a pretty funny movie that will allow Dave Bautista (the cop) to show off his humorous side.

The Lion King

Release Date: July 19, 2019

The original Lion King is still one of the biggest hits Disney Animation has ever had. One can only imagine what will happen when the story returns to the screen via the same CGI/animation style that brought the animal of The Jungle Book to life. Donald Glover will voice Simba, Chiwetel Ejiofor will voice Scar, and James Earl Jones will be back to reprise his role as Mufasa. The last time this movie nearly made a billion dollars at the box office. This time that number might be low.

The Art Of Racing In The Rain

Release Date: August 9, 2019

The Art of Racing in the Rain is a movie based on a book of the same title. It will star This is Us' Milo Ventimiglia as a race car driver but the story will be told from the perspective of the character's dog, Enzo. Enzo believes that if he handles his life properly, he will be reincarnated as a human, and so he learns all he can about being human from his owner. It sounds like a heartwarming story which is right up the ally of Disney, even though this is actually a Fox product. Disney gave Racing this release date and pushed Artemis Fowl into 2020.

Ready Or Not

Release Date: August 23, 2019

Thriller's aren't exactly the genre that one associates with Disney. However, Fox Searchlight will release Ready or Not in August. It will star Samara Weaving as a new bride who gets forced to take part in a terrifying game by her new in-laws. Don't expect to see the actual Disney name anywhere near this one.

Ad Astra

Release Date: September 20, 2019

Originally scheduled for a Memorial Day Weekend release, this one wasn't pulled from that date until late April, but considering it was a Fox project scheduled to go up against Aladdin that certainly wasn't going to happen. Instead, this Brad Pitt science fiction story has been pushed into the fall where it won't conflict with any of the major Disney tentpole projects.

The Woman in the Window

Release Date: October 4, 2019

Another of the existing movies on the Fox slate that Disney just bought, The Woman in the Window stars Amy Adams as a woman who witnesses a crime, but us hesitant to report it as she discovered it wjhile spyinmg on her new neighbors. Amy Adams stars as the witness. Julianne Moore and Gary Oldman co-star as the neighbors. With a cast like that, this one looks like it could be quite strong.

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

After waiting years for the follow-up to the hit Maleficent Disney has decided not to waste any time. Originally set for a 2020 release, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil has been pushed up to the fall of 2019. It will be the first time we've seen Angelina Jolie in front of the camera in years. If she's as deliciously evil and fun as she was he first time around, this one will have been worth the wait.

Release Date: October 18, 2019

Ford v. Ferrari

Release Date: November 15, 2019

James Mangold directs Matt Damon and Christian Bale as a team tasked with building a brand new Ford automobile that will be capable of beating of the dominant Ferreri car at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France in 1966. An accomplished director? Oscar winning actors? Based on a true story? a November release date? Did Disney just buy an Academy Awards contender from Fox?

Frozen II

Disney is going to be competing with itself for the box office crown this year. While it seems like Avengers: Endgame will be rthe movie to beat, one should not discount the possibility that Frozen II could play spoiler. The first movie is Disney's biggest animated hit ever and the love that many have for that movie still hasn't died down all these years later. The trailer for the sequel looks to take things down a darker path, but if it has even just one song to become the new "Let it Go," that could be all it needs to be another big hit.

Release Date: November 22, 2019

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Release Date: December 20, 2019

At the end of 2019, a trilogy many of us thought we'd never see will be coming to an end. The third Star Wars trilogy, will finally give a conclusion to the story of Rey, Finn, Poe, and our classic favorites from the original films. The Last Jedi was a movie that split fans. It will be interesting to see if the new film tries to unite them, or continues to carry Star Wars in to new and different places as the franchise continues to grow.

Spies In Disguise

Release Date: December 25, 2019

Will Smith is a super spy who is accidentally transformed into a pigeon. It's not exactly what you'd expect from an animated Disney movie, but this is another Fox project that actually comes from Blue Sky, the animation studio responsible for the Ice Age movies among others. Originally the film was set for September, but Disney has moved the movie to Christmas.

Underwater

Release Date: January 10, 2020

This Fox project stars Kristen Stewert as one member of a team of underwater researchers who have to find safety after their underwater lab is damaged by an earthquake. T.J. Miller and John Gallagher Jr. costar.

Untitled Kingsman Movie

Release Date: February 14, 2020

The next Kingsman film is set to be an origin story of sorts that is set prior to the events of the existing film by a couple of hundred years. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes are among those who will have roles in the film. The project was previously being referred to as Kingsman: The Great Game, but the most recent listing for the film from Disney/Fox is leaving it as yet untitled.

Call of the Wild

Release Date: February 21, 2020

It shows just how crowded the release calendar is for Disney after buying Fox that only one week after the new Kingsman movie, the animated Call of the Wold that stars Harrison Ford, Dan Stevens, and Karen Gillan will be released. We haven't seen this one yet, so it's too early to tell how it looks, but it's based on the calssic Jack London novel and has a remarkable cast so far.

Onward

Release Date: March 6, 2020

There's a lot of what we don't know about Onward. The know cast is made up of Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Octavia Spencer and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, It's being refereed to by Pixar as a "suburban fantasy" film. That's about the extent of what we know. Maybe we'll get a real look at once Toy Story 4 is out.

Mulan (Live-Action)

Release Date: March 27, 2020

Disney's first live-action remake will be a new version of Mulan. Chinese star Liu Yifei will lead an all Asian cast.

The New Mutants

Release Date: April 3, 2020

The New Mutants has been delayed so frequently that there have been significant questions about whether or not the world will ever see it. The newest release calendar from Disney has pushed the movie off yet again. Originally set to release in April of 2018, it's now set to hit screens two years later.

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: May 1, 2020

The first MCU movie of Phase Four is still set for May of 2020, despite that, less than a year before it is set to open, we don't know what movie it is.

Artemis Fowl

Release Date: May 29, 2020

Artemis Fowl is based on a popular book series, but it's not exactly one on the level of Harry Potter. As such, it's hard to gauge how big this one will be. It could be a serious X-factor in the Disney schedule. If it hits as big as most of the movies on this list, it will almost certainly be the birth of a new franchise. If it doesn't it will likely be a footnote on an otherwise impressive box office year. We'll have to wait and see. Originally set for a late summer 2019 release, it's now the Memorial Day weekend release in 2020.

Untitled Pixar Animation

Release Date: June 19,2020

Free Guy

Release Date: July 3, 2020

Ryan Reynolds stars as a bank teller who realizes he's actually a character in a video game.

Bob's Burgers

Release Date: July 17, 2020

In what might be the strangest thing to happen since Disney bought Fox, the release date that was set for a Bob's Burgers movie two years ago has remained unchanged.

Jungle Cruise

Release Date: July 24, 2020

Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt co-star in a movie based on the classic Disneyland attraction.

The One And Only Ivan

Release Date: August 14, 2020

Based on a children's book about a silverback gorilla that lives inb captivity, The One and Only Ivan stars Bryan Cranston, Angelina Jolie, and Sam Rockwell.

Death on the Nile

Release Date: October 9, 2020

The follow up to Kenneth Branaugh's Murder on the Orient Express will again make him the director and star when he plays Agatha Christie's famous detective Hercule Poirot. As the title suggests, the story will find the famous detective solving a murder in Egypt.

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: November 6, 2020

Ron's Gone Wrong

Release Date: November 6, 2020

A new U.K animation company called LOcksmith tells the story of a child and his robot best friend who begins to not quite work right.

Untitled Disney Animation

Release Date: November 25, 2020

West Side Story

Release Date: December 18, 2020

Steven Spielberg's remake of the classic musical.

Cruella

Release Date: December 23, 2020

The origin story of the 101 Dalmatians villain starring Emma Stone.

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: February 12, 2021

Nimona

Release Date: March 5, 2021

Blue Sky's animated version of the popular web comic by Noelle Stevenson, showruner of the Netflix version of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: March 12, 2021

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: May 7, 2021

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: May 28, 2021

Untitled Pixar Animation

Release Date: June 18, 2021

Untitled Indiana Jones

Release Date: July 9, 2021

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: July 30, 2021

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: October 8, 2021

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: November 5, 2021

Untitled Disney Animation

Release Date: November 24, 2021

Avatar 2

Release Date: December 17, 2021

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: February 18, 2022

Untitled Pixar

Release Date: March 18, 2022

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: May 6, 2022

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: May 27, 2022

Untitled Pixar

Release Date: June 17, 2022

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: July 8, 2022

Untitled Marvel

Release Date: July 29, 2022

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: October 7, 2022

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: November 4, 2022

Untitled Disney Animation

Release Date: November 23, 2022

Untitled Star Wars

Release Date: December 16, 2022

Untitled Disney Live Action

Release Date: February 17, 2023

Avatar 3

Release Date: December 22, 2023

Untitled Star Wars

Release Date: December 20, 2024

Untitled Avatar 4

Release Date: December 19, 2025

Untitled Star Wars

Release Date: December 18, 2026

Untitled Avatar 5

Release Date: December 17, 2027

Recently Released

Captain Marvel

While Captain Marvel is the big MCU movie set in between the two-part Avengers finale, it was set in the 1990s, predating most of the franchise. It introduced us to Brie Larson's new intergalactic hero, who promises to be a major part of Avengers: Endgame and beyond. It gave us a young Nick Fury and answered a couple of questions about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, while, of course, creating several more questions in the process.

Release Date: March 8, 2019

Dumbo

The first of three big Disney live-action remakes to hit the screen in 2019 was Dumbo. The earliest Disney animated theatrical film to receive the live-action treatment, the story about the flying elephant was spearheaded by Tim Burton and told a significantly different story, which created a collection of human characters around the baby elephant. While many praised the CGI which created the title character, the rest of the film was not viewed as favorably by many.

Release Date: March 29, 2019

Penguins

Release Date: April 12, 2019

Disney's next big release isn't likely to set pre-sale ticket records or smash the box office, but for a studio that has been in the documentary business almost as long as it's been in the animation business, it's nice that the studio still makes movies designed to educate even more than they're designed to entertain. You may not find this one easily at your major multiplex, but there's nothing wrong with seeking it out.

Avengers: Endgame

Release Date: April 26, 2019

It all comes down to this. After 22 films and 11 years the Marvel Cinematic Universe will come to a head with Avengers: Endgame. While the MCU will continue moving forward, we have no idea just what sort of shape it will be in. Who will live? Who will die? We certainly have no idea, and the only way to know for sure is to watch it and find out.

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Keanu Reeves' John Wick 3 Circuit Workout Actually Looks Pretty Easy

Keanu Reeves' John Wick 3 Circuit Workout Actually Looks Pretty Easy

Keanu Reeves is one of those action stars who does most of his own stunts, and that was the case again for John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, which is coming out in two weeks. The John Wick films are "very hard on his body," trainer Patrick Murphy said. That makes sense, since John Wick is literally on the run for his life in Parabellum, and he's had to fight and shoot his way out of every situation in each movie. It's exhausting to even think about.

So trainer Patrick Murphy's job was to come up with a John Wick workout routine that would build up 54-year-old Keanu Reeves's muscle endurance without overtaxing him.

The result was a non-stop "circuit" workout that just keeps going, like John Wick himself. That said, based on the list of activities -- and the video Men's Health shared showing off the workout -- it actually seems doable for Average People like me. (Hopefully Keanu Reeves doesn't pull a John Wick and shoot me for suggesting his workout was easy. I just expected it to be something darn near impossible -- or at least as crazy as his impressive weapons training.)

Here's the routine Patrick Murphy created for Keanu Reeves, per Men's Health:

(Perform 20 reps of each exercise consecutively as a circuit, with as little rest as possible between moves. After finishing the round, rest for 2 minutes. Repeat for 6 total rounds.)

• Reverse Lunge Front DB Raise

• Bosu Lunge Shoulder Press

• Reverse-Step Resistance Band Row

• Squat with TRX Shoulder Iso-Hold

• Stability Ball Dynamic Plank

• Banded Lateral Walk Pallof Press

As Patrick Murphy explained of Keanu Reeves' routine to get fit for John Wick 3:

I would fit in, within the hour and a half, five to six circuits. Just think of Keanu Reeves performing a thousand reps a workout, minimal rest, and it was just go time. ... He wasn't lifting crazy heavy weights -- it was getting his body moving, getting his muscular endurance and stability -- it was just a mindset. He would leave the gym exhausted, but feeling great. Where his body got beat up was in all those scenes [filming the movie].

For a visual, here's the video with trainer Patrick Murphy showing some of the routine:

Keanu Reeves apparently has a history of injuries, so they wanted to be careful with that and not stress his body too much. But he still had a lot to do in John Wick 3 -- running, shooting, horseback riding, apparently even climbing some sand dunes in Morocco.

Franchise newcomer Halle Berry said she actually got injured trying to keep up with Keanu Reeves. She broke three ribs in rehearsals and needed a break. But after her own intense stunt work was all over -- including training with her character Sofia's own dogs -- she felt pretty badass herself.

Here's one of the training videos she recently shared on Instagram:

As she put it, through panting:

This is how hard you have to work in order to be in the John Wick world.

In Halle Berry's wrap post, after finishing her role, she emphasized that age is just an insignificant number. She and Keanu Reeves might be in their 50s, but they can kick ass like any 20-something.

So far it sounds like fans appreciate the results. Early reactions to John Wick: Chapter 3 have been very positive. The movie opens May 17. Keanu Reeves said he's up for continuing the John Wick franchise "as far as my legs can take me," so hopefully he keeps his legs in good shape for more.

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Hellboy Can’t Have Sex With Humans Says Actor David Harbour

Hellboy Can’t Have Sex With Humans Says Actor David Harbour

The upcoming Hellboy movie is an entirely new take on the character compared to the version created by Guillermo del Toro. While we know the movie will be more violent, as it has achieved an R-rating, many of the other details regarding how this new version of the character will be different from the one movie fans know have yet to be revealed. However, David Harbour, who plays the title role, says one way his character is different is that he won't have a love interest, because apparently he can't have sex with humans.

This isn't an entirely random piece of Hellboy trivia. Well, it is, but it seems that there's a reason these things are being considered. It seems that Hellboy's lack of human...connection will be part of the reason that he feels so isolated among humans, which will therefore make the idea of Hellboy bringing about the apocalypse potentially more attractive to him. According to Harbour...

The other thing that we explore somewhat is — I mean, one of the interesting things to me about the Guillermo del Toro movies was that he had a love interest, right? And she was like a fire starter, and but I just think that Hellboy can’t have a human being. He probably can’t have sex with a human being because it would probably end disastrously, because of his demonic parts or whatever. So I just feel like what I wanted to explore was that loneliness, and you know, there’s the temptations that you have to, if you do create a darker world as the beast of the apocalypse, you can have sex. You can have a girlfriend. You can live your life. But to live in the human world and to protect humanity, you have to sacrifice some of your nature, and your actual nature, as opposed to this concept of destiny, just that your actual nature somewhat gets sacrificed.

In Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy, the title character had a relationship with a pyrokinetic woman named Liz, played by Selma Blair. The relationship was, complicated, but it was one of the things that grounded Hellboy and kept him strongly in the anti-apocalypse camp.

The actual mechanics of Hellboy's relationship in a physical sense is never dealt with in the previous films, but David Harbour tells JoBlo that his version of the character absolutely can't have sex with humans. To be fair, it's as good a motivation as any for bringing about the end of the world.

It seems that we won't be seeing Hellboy have a relationship like that this time around. Instead of being a character who embraces humanity and wants to be and act more human. Hellboy will instead feel alone. He has no connection to the demon world, but he also can't simply join the human world.

Hellboy is destined to bring about the apocalypse in the comics. Whether he chooses to embrace or reject that destiny is potentially much more relatable when you consider it in these simpler terms. Hellboy may love the human world but he also may want to live in a place where he can feel stronger connections, so maybe the end of the world wouldn't be so bad.

Hellboy hits theater April 12.

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Zac Efron Had Trouble Separating Himself From Ted Bundy In Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, And Vile

Zac Efron Had Trouble Separating Himself From Ted Bundy In Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, And Vile

Zac Efron will always be known for breaking into song as teen heartthrob Troy Bolton in the High School Musical movies, Link Larkin in Hairspray, or alongside Hugh Jackman and Zendaya in The Greatest Showman, among his other acting projects. Getting the catchy showtunes of his past out of his head was nothing compared to playing his darkest role yet, serial killer Ted Bundy.

During the recent London premiere of Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, And Vile, the actor opened up about how portraying Bundy became a challenge due to its sinister subject. In his words:

I’ve never played a role in which I really have to separate myself from [him] when I go home at night, and it was almost impossible. I’d like to say that I did it successfully, but I couldn’t.

It’s no surprise that getting into the frame of mind to play a serial killer would mess with one’s head a bit, and Zac Efron experienced this firsthand while working on his upcoming Netflix project. The drama chronicles the crimes of the infamously attractive Bundy, who later confessed to 30 homicides he committed across the United States in the ‘70s.

In Zac Efron’s interview with Daily Mail at the premiere, he talked about his initial concern with taking on the dark role and why he ultimately decided to sign on to play Ted Bundy:

I really wasn’t interested in playing a serial killer, I’m not in the business of glamorizing a horrendous person or his acts, but there is something unique about the way we went into the psyche of Ted, and his longtime girlfriend Liz. It’s a different perspective and not your run-of-the-mill serial killer cliché -- body count gets higher and higher and oh the guy you always knew did it, did it.

Looks like Zac Efron was intrigued by the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, And Vile script and how it tells the story from the perspective of Ted Bundy’s girlfriend Liz (played by Lily Collins). The film has been criticized for glamorizing the criminal with the casting of the former Disney teen idol, but the actor has previously explained the responsibility he feels to not celebrate the killer through the role. It’s instead meant to serve as a cautionary tale to the young generation who often mistakenly trust attractive men.

The film’s director Joe Berlinger (who also recently helmed Netflix’s Conversations with a Killer: Ted Bundy Tapes) said he felt casting Zac Efron was an intentional choice geared toward the demographic crushing on actors such as Efron who may feel like he could do no wrong due to his good looks. Ted Bundy manipulated and lured women with his charm, so the film seeks to show this firsthand with Efron’s performance.

After premiering earlier this year at Sundance, the R-rated drama was purchased by Netflix for $9 million. Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, And Vile will hit theaters and the streaming platform on May 3.

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My Spy Trailer: Watch Dave Bautista Show A Kid How To Be A Secret Agent

My Spy Trailer: Watch Dave Bautista Show A Kid How To Be A Secret Agent

From his wrestling career to his various action-packed movie roles, Dave Bautista has proven himself to be a badass numerous times, and it’s no different for the upcoming My Spy. In this action-comedy, though, Bautista’s character is forced to teach a clever young girl the skills required to be a spy, and you can see how this amusing turn of events unfolds in the first trailer for My Spy below.

My Spy (I see what they did there) sees Dave Bautista playing JJ, a hardened CIA operative who’s not a people person, but believes is good at his job. Unfortunately for him, following an operation gone wrong, he’s demoted and has one more strike until he’s permanently barred from intelligence work. Making matters even more complicated is that the 9-year-old daughter of the family JJ’s been sent to spy on, Sophie, played by Chloe Coleman, learns what he’s up to. Further showing that JJ’s not the sharpest tool in the shed, he fails to remember that Chloe’s standing nearby and recording him while contemplating killing her to prevent her from blowing his cover. Not a good look, dude.

In exchange for Chloe keeping silent about his mission, JJ must teach her how to be a spy, and fortunately he has the good sense not to start her off with something like firearms training or walking away from explosions. Still, Chloe’s a smart girl, and she takes to the more cerebral elements of spy-dom quite well, like the lie detector test and creating a distraction to get past JJ (poor fishy).

As was the case with Vin Diesel in The Pacifier and Dwayne Johnson in Tooth Fairy, My Spy is Dave Bautista’s opportunity to play out the ‘tough guy who shows his softer side while spending time with kids’ kind of story. So while JJ will teach Chloe secret agent skills, she’ll show him how to have fun around people, even if it results in awkward, Shrek-like dances. However, it will be interesting to see what happens to their relationship as JJ gets deeper into his mission and learns how Chloe’s family is connected to the people he needs to apprehend. My Spy’s cast also includes Ken Jeong, Kristen Schaal and Parisa Fitz-Henley.

Along with this trailer, STX Entertainment released the first poster for My Spy, with Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman rocking cool, leaning poses, which I suspect is another thing spies are taught to do.

Directed by Get Smart’s Peter Segal and written by Red’s Jon and Erich Hoeber, My Spy hits theaters later this year, so check back with CinemaBlend on where it ends up being specifically placed on the calendar. You can also scan through our 2019 release schedule to find out what other movies are coming out later this year, including other Dave Bautista releases like Avengers: Endgame and Stuber.

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Hey DC, Sebastian Stan 'Would Love' To Play This Villain

Hey DC, Sebastian Stan 'Would Love' To Play This Villain

Sebastian Stan is best known for playing Bucky Barnes in the Marvel movies. Bucky went from good guy to villain and then back to good guy again. It's unclear how much longer Stan will play Bucky, but if he ever wants a change of pace, he knows the next comic book character he'd like to play. Stan would take a trip across the bridge to DC to act as, surprisingly enough, the Riddler.

After making his MCU debut in Captain America: The First Avenger, Sebastian Stan has appeared as Bucky Barnes in four more Marvel movies. With a Disney+ series called The Falcon and the Winter Soldier on the way, we can likely count on seeing Stan in the MCU for the foreseeable future. However, if Stan ever needs a break from being bros with Captain America, he thinks that he'd like to torture Batman with increasingly difficult word puzzles.

While appearing at Jus In Bello in Rome (via CBR), Sebastian Stan was asked what other comic book characters he'd like to play. Stan opted to go with the classic Batman villain the Riddler, who is about as far from the Winter Soldier as you can possibly get.

I would love to try and play The Riddler. That's an interesting character. I don't know how you'd play that one actually, that would be very hard to be honest, because you couldn't be like crazy crazy crazy. You would have to be kind of much darker than that, but that's an interesting character.

Edward Nygma, better known as the Riddler, is an iconic member of Batman's rogues gallery, having fought the Dark Knight for decades. His whole shtick is that he thinks he's smarter than Batman and tries to prove it by planning elaborate schemes and traps. He has never ever beaten Batman.

It's certainly an interesting pick for Sebastian Stan, but it's unclear when he'd get a chance to prove his stuff as the Riddler. While the character has enjoyed a healthy TV run as a series regular over on Gotham, he hasn't been seen in a movie since 1995's Batman Forever. In that film he was played by Jim Carrey with maximum camp.

There's a new Batman solo movie that will be making its way to theaters in 2021. It was recently revealed that Robert Pattinson is the frontrunner to play Batman, while reports suggest that Penguin and Catwoman will be the villains. It doesn't sound like the Riddler will be involved, but these reports could always turn out to be inaccurate, or the filmmakers could change the villains.

Maybe Sebastian Stan will get his shot as the Riddler but, for now, you can see him in Avengers: Endgame and the upcoming The Falcon and The Winter Soldier series on Disney+. The series doesn't have a release date yet, so stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all the updates.

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Why Us Kicks Off With That Hands Across America Ad

Why Us Kicks Off With That Hands Across America Ad

The following contains spoilers for Us.

Three's a lot of odd, strange, and bizarre stuff going on in Jordan Peele's new film Us. However, one of the strangest things has to be the movie's opening scene. The film opens on a little girl watching television in the 1980s. Specifically, she views a commercial for the 1986 fundraising event Hands Across America. The ad isn't entirely random, as the event has a part to play in the larger story of Us. In fact, it sort of sets the tone for the entire movie, which is apparently why Jordan Peele decided to open the movie with it.

In addition to the Hands Across America commercial being important to the plot of Us, it also mirrors the film itself, because while the ad wants to be full of hope and optimism, Jordan Peele actually had a very different reaction to it. It seems that ultimately, it was the commercial which helped the writer and director figure out what he wanted to do with the movie, which is why he decided to open the film with it. According to Peele...

Old creepy commercials also come up in both, ones from the ’80s. In conceiving this movie, I arrived at the Hands Across America commercial from one of these moments of feeling as opposed to thinking. I found a real Hands Across America commercial — I don’t know what I was searching to find it, but I just had this feeling of dread watching the amusing, bright optimism on display. It took me back to a time where I was also afraid and young and vulnerable, and didn’t really know what was going on. So I probably said, ‘what if this was the first scene in the movie?’ And that began to answer questions about what I was working towards.

I'm old enough to remember the actual Hands Across America, but I'm never going to be able to think about it the same way again thanks to Us. The unwavering optimism of it all is almost terrifying, which is part of the point. Everything looks good but there's a feeling of something wrong underneath, which is exactly was Us is trying to say.

The first part of Us takes place in 1986, the same year that Hands Across America took place, but as we learn later in the movie, the commercial wasn't simply set to help set the time and place. The actual event has a part to play. Based on what Jordan Peele tells Polygon, it sounds like connecting his story to Hands Across America helped him figure out where to take the characters in his script, as he'd still had some questions previously.

It was certainly a unique and interesting way to open a movie, not to mention effective. The choice to use the commercial makes the audience wonder just what they're seeing and why, throwing them a little off balance for the story that is to come.

Us is in theaters now.

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Quentin Tarantino Asks Moviegoers Not To Spoil Once Upon A Time In Hollywood Ahead Of Its Release

Quentin Tarantino Asks Moviegoers Not To Spoil Once Upon A Time In Hollywood Ahead Of Its Release

Usually you can count on movies being released to select audiences before the general public can view them. Sometimes that just means that critics can check out said movies days or even weeks early, while other times it means attendees can see them at a film festival months beforehand. Quentin Tarantino’s latest flick, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, falls into the latter category, as it’s about to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.

Ahead of this screening, Quentin Tarantino has asked those who will see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood not to spoil anything about the movie afterwards. Here’s what his message said:

I love cinema, You love cinema. It’s the journey of discovering a story for the first time. The cast and crew have worked so hard to create something original, and I only ask that everyone avoids revealing anything that would prevent later audiences from experiencing the film in the same way.

Not spoiling a movie is just a matter of common decency, but I imagine it goes further than that for Quentin Tarantino. The script for his last movie, The Hateful Eight, leaked online in early 2014, and after that happened, Tarantino considered not making the movie at all and would publish it as a novel instead. Eventually he changed his mind and The Hateful Eight was filmed, released to the masses and earned numerous awards, but Tarantino, like a lot of filmmakers, is still concerned about spoilers getting out for other projects.

That brings us to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which is premiering at Cannes two months before the public gets to see it. That’s a lot of time for someone to be a buzzkill and post information about what happens in the movie online. So to help decrease the chances of that happening, the director used Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’s social media platforms, including Twitter, to politely ask that people at Cannes stay quiet about what they saw until everyone else gets to see it. That’s a reasonable request for any movie lover to honor, right?

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is arguably Quentin Tarantino’s most star-studded movie yet, with its main actors including Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie, and its supporting cast including Al Pacino, Bruce Dern, Lena Dunham, Mike Moh and the late Luke Perry. The movie is set in 1969 Los Angeles and follows an actor and his stuntman embarking to make a name for themselves in the film industry, all while the Manson Family is carrying out its illicit activities.

Assuming you’re not currently at Cannes, you can check out Once Upon a Time in Hollywood starting July 26, and don’t forget to scan through our 2019 release schedule to learn what other movies are coming out later this year.

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Netflix And The WGA Are Disputing Over How Much Its Writers Are Paid

Netflix And The WGA Are Disputing Over How Much Its Writers Are Paid

Last year was perhaps Netflix’s most successful yet when it comes to its original films, with Roma netting Oscar wins and movies like Bird Box and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before proving extremely popular. Now the streaming service’s original films are the subjects of a new dispute with the Writer’s Guild of America over how much its writers are paid.

According to Deadline, the WGA has filed an arbitration claim against Netflix over the residuals it says are owed to the union’s writers of 33 of the streaming service’s original movies. These were Netflix original films that were released in theaters to qualify for awards contention at the same time or close to it that they debuted on the streaming service itself.

The WGA’s dispute with Netflix is over the manner in which Netflix applies residuals formulas to its original films. The residuals for the original films owed to the writers are calculated based on licensing fees. Netflix pays itself to license the films to stream on its platform and the crux of the issue is the way in which Netflix allocates these licensing fees.

Because these films are being released in theaters for awards consideration, they are being licensed for the streaming services and by the sound of it, the WGA thinks that Netflix is handling its licensing fees and calculating residuals in a fashion that is shortchanging the writers who are owed more money than they are being paid.

A whopping 51 Netflix original movies were made under WGA contracts last year alone and the growth of the simultaneous streaming and theatrical release model means that the result of this arbitration claim could impact other streaming services if the WGA wins here. With Amazon, Hulu and Apple also releasing original films in theaters in the quest for golden statues, they too could be targets of the WGA over this issue.

It is interesting how this dovetails with the recent tumult over whether or not Netflix movies and those of other streaming services should be eligible for Oscars after qualifying for contention with limited theatrical runs. Director Steven Spielberg is seemingly against it, thinking that streaming movies should compete for Emmys, not Oscars, because of his belief in the importance of the theatrical experience and a desire to preserve it.

These are just some of the issues that arise in an industry that has been shaken up by the explosion of streaming services. At one point streaming service movies were just for the small screen, but with some movies from Netflix and others now getting to shine on the big screen, the waters get ever muddier and there are no clear answers because these are all new issues.

These conversations and disputes will only become louder and more important because of the increasing share of the industry streaming services command. Netflix alone plans to produce some 90 original movies this year.

To keep track of all the biggest movies coming to theaters in 2019, check out our release schedule and take a look at our guide to see what's headed to Netflix this month.

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Aquaman Producer Explains Time Gap Between Films

Aquaman Producer Explains Time Gap Between Films

After Aquaman exceeded all expectations and became a box office leviathan, a sequel was basically guaranteed, and given the first film’s success, it would be natural to assume that the sequel would be fast-tracked to theaters. But while Aquaman 2 is indeed on the way, it won’t arrive in theaters until 2022, four years after the first film. Aquaman producer Peter Safran explained the reason for the gap between the films, saying:

[Hamada], myself and James Wan always shared the same philosophy, which is: you want to do it right. You don't want to do it fast. You just want to do it right.

Of all the reasons that a film will take a long time to reach theaters, this is basically the most encouraging and the one you want to hear. As Peter Safran told The Hollywood Reporter, he, director James Wan and executive producer and DC Films head Walter Hamada aren’t going to rush Aquaman 2. They aren’t concerned with delivering the film quickly, a move that could be detrimental to the final product. They are purely focused on doing it right.

There is a quote from Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto that says “A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad.” This is the philosophy that Peter Safran is espousing here. Aquaman just came out, so Aquaman 2 isn’t technically delayed, but it was decided to give the movie plenty of time to come together and be the best movie it can be. That way, there's a better chance for it to make the kind of splash that the first film did.

However, the movie business is a business, and Aquaman made over $1 billion at the box office, so you would think that there would be pressure to hurry Aquaman 2 to theaters to capitalize on the momentum from the original. Yet, that is not the case because the producer also told THR that there was no pressure from Warner Bros. to get the sequel done faster.

DC could have rushed Aquaman 2 out after the $1.13 billion grossing original, but as far as Peter Safran is concerned, that shouldn’t be the focus because the ‘what’ is more important than the ‘when.’ DC also has plenty of irons in the fire at the moment, and with the Atlantean now the universe’s crown jewel, it makes sense to protect him and not mess with the desires of the team that made the first one such a hit.

Even though we now have a long four-year wait to see Aquaman 2, that doesn’t mean that we won’t be returning under the sea in the DCEU before that. Peter Safran expects the Aquaman spinoff film The Trench to arrive well before Aquaman 2. That film won’t have Jason Momoa’s Arthur Curry or Amber Heard’s Mera in it, but the horror-tinged spinoff will take place after Aquaman and will return audiences to one of the most exciting areas of that film.

We still don’t know if James Wan will return to direct Aquaman 2 because he was only signed on for the first movie, but it is nice to see DC not making a knee-jerk decision to rush Aquaman 2 here. Four years should give the film plenty of time to churn out a great script, shoot and take all the time it needs for the ridiculous amount of visual effects work these films require.

When it arrives, it will again likely own December. There was a question of whether Aquaman 2 was avoiding a December showdown with the Avatar sequels (December really is the new summer), but it seems that the main concern was just doing the film right.

Aquaman 2 dives into theaters on December 16, 2022. That’s a long way off, so to know what you can see before then, check out our 2019 release schedule.

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Millions Sent Back To Malaysia In Wolf Of Wall Street Case

Millions Sent Back To Malaysia In Wolf Of Wall Street Case

With one of the biggest financial scandals of all time linked to the funding of its production, The Wolf of Wall Street has come back into the public eye. As the trial against former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is proceeding in court, another part of the investigation into Red Granite’s alleged impropriety has proceeded, because Malaysia has been given several million dollars back from its raided 1MDB fund.

The United States government has returned $57 million to the Malaysian government, thanks to production company Red Granite paying $60 million in a recent settlement. The gap in funds returned, amounting to around $3 million, was due to the FBI and Department of Justice recovering funds for their investigative efforts.

While that’s a drop in the bucket when compared to the $4.5 billion that was taken from Malaysia’s 1Malaysia Development Berhad fund, it’s a start to recovering the money that was funneled into Najib Razak’s high living lifestyle, which included funding fancy parties, large ticket purchases of artwork and luxury properties.

Razak also invested in the funding of films like The Wolf of Wall Street, Dumb and Dumber To and Daddy’s Home. Najib Razak was able to do so, courtesy of his step son Riza Aziz, who was one of the founders of the Red Granite company. The scandal was so huge that it's taken almost five years to work through the legal proceedings, and now it feels like justice is finally starting to be served.

The Hollywood Reporter also mentioned in its reporting on this recent development that $322 million has been recovered so far, with another $139 million in the process of being returned back to Malaysia’s government. While it didn’t take too long after the production of The Wolf of Wall Street and Dumb and Dumber To to start the investigation into Red Granite’s financing practices, we’re now finally seeing the concrete results of those efforts being paid back to the people of Malaysia.

Tommy Thomas, Malaysia’s attorney general, is confident that continuing efforts to recover the improperly channeled 1MDB funds will yield more payouts into the country’s investment fund. But for the time being, the $322 million recovered is the start of those promised recoveries.

Even Jordan Belfort himself couldn’t help but feel that The Wolf of Wall Street was being made with illicitly-obtained money, and if that’s not a sign of this entire enterprise being worth the effort, then we don’t know what is. Naturally, we’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for any further developments in terms of the 1MDB funds being returned, and should any other updates come through on the matter, we’ll report back with the findings here at CinemaBlend.

The Wolf of Wall Street is currently available on home video and streaming platforms.

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What Nick Fury And Other Marvel Characters Look Like De-Aged

What Nick Fury And Other Marvel Characters Look Like De-Aged

Technology is continually changing in the world of filmmaking, leading to more in-depth and startling visual effects. Over at Marvel, the movie studio has starting de-aging characters for flashbacks—or in Captain Marvel’s case more like the whole movie—instead of using different actors to play characters in past decades. (Point of clarification: Other actors do play younger versions of Brie Larson's Carol Danvers.)

Obviously, it’s a lot of work to satisfactorily de-age an actor for an entire movie, and we’ll see how it pans out when Captain Marvel hits theaters this weekend. However, from the early looks at Nick Fury and Agent Coulson, a lot of work was put into the task.

This isn’t the first time that Marvel has attempted de-aging work, however. Plenty of other MCU actors have been treated to the process, including characters in the Ant-Man narrative and Iron Man before he became a superhero. You can take a look at the de-aged characters and their counterparts today below.

Nick Fury - Samuel L. Jackson

The photo on the right is actually from last year’s Avengers: Infinity War, in which Nick Fury has a small cameo. Obviously, the eyepatch and the bald head show Samuel L. Jackson as the Nick Fury that we know and love. Honestly, it’s almost off-putting to see him with two eyes in Captain Marvel, although since Jackson actually has two eyes in real life, that wasn't something that actually needed to have altered digitally in addition to the rest of his new look. Luckily, the technology was there for Captain Marvel, as producer Jonathan Schwartz says the studio never considered recasting.

Samuel L. Jackson is 70 years old and has shown no signs of slowing down yet. Captain Marvel throws Nick Fury right into the action too. While the movie could digitally de-age the actor, I’m sure playing a spry S.H.I.E.L.D. agent wasn’t a total cakewalk.

Agent Phil Coulson - Clark Gregg

Along with Nick Fury, Agent Coulson also got de-aged for Captain Marvel, although he can be seen in fewer scenes as a whole. Still, ridding the actor of wrinkles and adding to his hairline does make the character look younger, especially since some of his scenes are in broad daylight. Still, I'd say Clark Gregg has aged pretty well, or de-aged pretty poorly, however you want to look at it.

In real life, Clark Gregg is 56 years old, but in Captain Marvel, we get a glimpse at the character when he was still very early in his S.H.I.E.L.D. career. Prior to Captain Marvel, Clark Gregg last appeared on the big screen in The Avengers, but he's endeared himself on the small screen thanks to being resurrected on ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Tony Stark - Robert Downey Jr.

Tony Stark had already been Iron Man for quite some time before Captain America: Civil War was released. That movie, however, was tasked with de-aging Tony Stark to a time well before he ever took on the popular superhero mantle. In fact, we saw him as a young man while BARF technology is being used, talking to his parents in the time before they were killed by the Winter Soldier.

In real life, Robert Downey Jr. is actually 53, and so the de-aging has to take off a lot of years in Captain America: Civil War, but the de-aging technology is not so far off from how Downey Jr. looked earlier in his career in movies like Soapdish or Less Than Zero. Still, compared to the way Nick Fury was de-aged, a lot has changed with technology in a few short years.

Ego - Kurt Russell

Kurt Russell plays Ego The Living Planet in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. While it was fun to watch his interactions with an adult Star-Lord, it was also ridiculously fun to see him hanging out at a Dairy Queen years prior. As Ego, Kurt Russell sported a fine head of hair, no matter which age he was playing -- although I personally am more impressed with the Ego with the beard.

In real life, Russell is 67 years old. He’s also sported longer hair plenty of times during his career before the de-aging sequence in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Those include but are not limited to Escape From New York and Overboard. Technically, Ego would not have had to present himself as older to his son and his son's friends, but that could have meant a lot of additional de-aging work (read: production cost) for Vol. 2 as well.

Janet Van Dyne - Michelle Pfeiffer

Playing Janet Van Dyne should have been a pretty cool gig for Michelle Pfeiffer. Not only did she get to play a mysterious character who had been lost in the Quantum Realm in Ant-Man and the Wasp, she also got to be de-aged for the movie too. The early version of Janet Van Dyne was certainly younger looking and sported hair fitting to the period although, like some of the other actors on this list, Michelle Pfeiffer was famous when she was that young in real life too!

These days, Michelle Pfeiffer is 60 years old. She actually only got back into the acting game a couple of years ago after a brief hiatus, appearing in the Ant-Man sequel and Murder on the Orient Express. Not a bad comeback tour.

Dr. Hank Pym - Michael Douglas

We’ve seen Hank Pym in multiple movies, but in Ant-Man and the Wasp we got to see the character de-aged for some scenes with his lost partner Janet Van Dyne. At first glance, honestly I never think Michael Douglas looks all that de-aged. Then, I see the Hank Pym we know and love and that's when it really hits home for me that a lot of time has passed since Michael Douglas was the young actor on the block, although he still looks great with the glasses and beard.

In real life, Michael Douglas is 74 years old, making him the oldest actor to be de-aged on this list. For Ant-Man and the Wasp, he was de-aged to look around 45 or so. Not a bad job, Marvel, not at all.

Technically, Marvel has done some digital aging as well as de-aging, as Agent Carter gets the treatment so she can be killed off in Captain America: The Winter Soldier; still, it’s de-aging that seems as if it would be more difficult and has captured my fascination more than ever, particularly now that Nick Fury has been given the treatment for a huge chunk of Captain Marvel.

You can check out the visual effects for yourself very soon. Captain Marvel hits theaters on March 8. In addition, you can see a de-aged Nick Fury right now thanks to the trailer for the flick.

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