Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin casts a mysterious new character. Rian Johnson talks Kylo Ren’s adolescent anger in The Last Jedi. Get a look at Frank Castle’s past in a new Punisher image. Plus, Supergirl is getting some flashbacks next season, and clips from Inhumans and the season finale of Preacher. To me, my spoilers!
Bond 25
Page Six reports the new movie could, in essence, take a leaf out of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service‘s book — and will allegedly begin the with the murder of Bond’s wife. The unlucky lady meeting her untimely demise? Lea Seydoux’s Madeline Swann from Spectre.
“The film’s like Taken with Bond,” says the source, who adds that the suave spy is trying to avenge his wife’s murder.
Aladdin
Billy Magnussen has been cast in an undisclosed, but brand-new role created specifically for Guy Ritchie’s live-action Aladdin according to THR.
Justice League
Madeline Vall Beijner (who played a currently unnamed Amazon in Wonder Woman) has revealed on Instagram she’ll be returning to Themyscira for some reshoots on Justice League, so expect some extended flashbacks to the Amazons’ war with the Parademons glimpsed in the trailers.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Speaking with Empire, Rian Johnson confirmed the mystery behind Emperor Snoke is going to remain unsolved for the time being.
We got the whole story of Palpatine’s rise to power in the prequels, but in the original films he’s exactly what he needs to be, which is just ‘The Emperor. He’s a dark force: the scary thing behind the thing. That was entirely how I approached Snoke. I wasn’t interested in explaining where he came from or telling his history, except where it serves this story.
Johnson also went on to state that Kylo Ren is the opposite side of the same coin to Rey:
Writing Kylo Ren is just so much fun,” says Johnson. “Star Wars boils down to the transition from adolescence into adulthood. That’s the heart of these films and Rey is most obviously the one that hangs on. But it’s also Kylo. In the originals you project entirely onto Luke, while Vader is the scary other — he’s the minotaur. The fascinating thing about Kylo and Rey is that they’re two sides of something. We can all relate to Kylo: to that anger of being in the turmoil of adolescence and figuring out who he’s going to be as a man; dealing with anger and wanting to separate from his family. He’s not Vader — at least, he’s not Vader yet — and that’s something I really wanted to get into.
Hellboy
Omega Underground (via My Entertainment World) uncovered a brief synopsis for the film, which reportedly plans to shoot in the UK and Bulgaria.
The film is about Hellboy going to England, where he must defeat Nimue, Merlin’s consort and the Blood Queen. But their battle will bring about the end of the world, a fate he desperately tries to turn away.
Supergirl
Izabela Vidovic and Olivia Nikkanen have been cast as teenage incarnations of Kara and Alex for flashbacks in season three. [TV Line]
Locke & Key
Deadline reports that It actor Megan Charpentier has been cast in the role of Kinsey Locke, described as the “transformational” daughter of the Locke family.
The Good Place
The Hellbound have their minds wiped in “Everything is Great!”, the two-part season premiere of The Good Place.
Having had their memories erased by ambitious master architect Michael (Ted Danson), Eleanor (Kristen Bell), Chidi (William Jackson Harper), Tahani (Jameela Jamil) and Jason (Manny Jacinto) again settle into the Good Place, unaware of what has previously transpired…except that Eleanor discovers the one clue she had left for herself and attempts to piece things together.
The Punisher
Empire has a photo of Frank Castle back in his military days.
Inhumans
Medusa gives Black Bolt a status report in a new clip from the pilot — interesting to note that the two no longer have the telepathic abilities they use to communicate in the comics.
Gotham
Two new banners for the show’s return give us another look at Lil’ Bruce’s weird proto-Batman outfit. [TV Insider]
Preacher
Finally, Herr Starr records Jesse on an iPhone vertically — the swine! — in a clip from “The End Of the Road”, the season two finale of Preacher.
Banner art by Jim Cooke.