Monthly Archives: January 2019
Bird Box Challenge Causes YouTube to Change Its Guidelines
The rise in popularity of the Bird Box challenge, based on the popular Netflix movie of the same name, has caused YouTube to change its guidelines.
The Hollywood Reporter explains YouTube has updated its policies to ban challenges that can cause physical injuries or deaths. The platform also advises that it doesn't allow pranks that cause people to believe they're in real danger.
YouTube's page for policies on harmful or dangerous content also has an update.
Marvel Rewrites Wolverine History (Again)
Marvel Comics Presents made its big return to the comic book stands this week, and the first issue has added dramatic new details to the histories of two major heroes.
Warning: this article contains spoilers for Marvel Comics Presents #1!
Following the example of the original Marvel Comics Presents from the '90s, this new series features a serialized Wolverine story called "The Vigil" that aims to reveals new details about the mutant hero's life throughout the decades. This chapter unfolds during the heart of World War II, as Logan teams up with Dum Dum Dugan to rescue a French woman and her daughter from the Nazis. As it turns out, these Nazis want the woman, Marie, to use her magical abilities to summon a demon and provide Hitler with a new weapon in which to end the war.
Netflix vs. Hulu: Comparing the Two Fyre Fest Docs
Competing projects, or the "Twin Films" phenomenon," is nothing new for Hollywood. Whether we're talking about Armageddon vs. Deep Impact, Volcano vs. Dante's Peak or the time there were two Lambada movies or dueling Prefontaine films, the mechanisms of showbiz sometimes line up to produce movies with similar plots released in close proximity to one another.
Now we're experiencing it in the world of streaming, with competing documentaries about the Fyre Festival fiasco of 2017. Netflix had been touting their exposé, FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened, which is set to premiere January 18, for a few months now. This past Monday, Hulu dropped its own Fyre Festival documentary, titled Fyre Fraud, seemingly out of nowhere, as a passive aggressive ploy to kick up some dirt and fire a shot across Netflix's bow.
Will PS4’s Biggest Exclusives Come Out in 2019?
Beyond and hello, everyone!
On this week's episode of IGN's weekly PlayStation show, Beyond!, host Jonathon Dornbush, Max Scoville, and Lucy O'Brien follow-up on last week's discussion about when we'll see the PS5 to take a look at PS4's upcoming major exclusives. The trio discusses when we think we'll see The Last of Us Part II, Death Stranding, and Ghost of Tsushima, and whether they could also become PS5 games.
And while those titles remain unconfirmed for release this year, we also run down our excitement for the confirmed PS4 exclusives of 2019. Plus, Jonathon offers an exclusive Kingdom Hearts 3 preview and becomes a real gamer before ending the episode in a Resident Evil trophy test.
What the Ending of Netflix’s You Means for Season 2
This ending explainer contains spoilers for the Season 1 finale of You, which is now streaming globally on Netflix, and the Caroline Kepnes book of the same name.
Joe Goldberg, as it turns out, is NOT the perfect boyfriend born from the dream diary of a manic pixie bibliophile. He’s a murderer, plain and simple. Of course, after the absolutely bonkers Season 1 finale of Netflix and Lifetime’s You, some out there may be wondering: what the heck does that finale twist mean, and how does it differ from the books? Allow us to explain.
It Doesn’t Matter That Spider-Man’s Trailer Spoils Avengers: Endgame
It took a bit longer than expected, but the first trailer for Spider-Man: Far From Home has hit the Internet. The good news is that fans have their first look at the next chapter of Peter Parker's journey in the MCU. The bad news is that the very fact that we're looking at a post-Avengers: Endgame Peter Parker telegraphs the fact that he's due to return to life in Endgame.
A lot of MCU fans are understandably frustrated that Marvel is spoiling the next Avengers sequel months before it hits theaters. But ultimately, does it really matter that Far From Home gives away this resurrection? In this case, the spoiler isn't the point.
Every M. Night Shyamalan Movie Rotten Tomatoes Score
M. Night Shyamalan's 20-year-long film career has seen some soaring highs and a few crushing lows. Critics may have adored early works like The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, but more recent fare like The Happening and The Last Airbender hasn't fared nearly as well.
Shyamalan's latest effort, Glass, falls somewhere in the middle. The film currently sits at a disappointing 40% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 83 reviews. While far from "fresh," at least this number is nowhere near the lowest Tomatometer rating Shymalan's work has earned over the years.
According to Rotten Tomatoes, "movies and TV shows are Certified Fresh with a steady Tomatometer of 75% or higher after a set amount of reviews (80 for wide-release movies, 40 for limited-release movies, 20 for TV shows), including 5 reviews from Top Critics."
What Those Rumored DLC Characters Could Bring to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Recently, certain rumors have suggested who the mystery DLC characters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate might be. If these rumors are to be believed, we would be getting Erdrick from Dragon Quest, Ryu Hayabusa from Ninja Gaiden, Steve (the default character in Minecraft), and the Doom Marine from Doom.
Honestly, some of these sound pretty far-fetched, but I also didn’t believe we were getting a duck and a dog from a forgotten NES game, and that they’d just end up calling the fighter “Duck Hunt” – so what do I know? And hey – the inclusion of Joker and Persona 5 R also began as rumors – so there may be some truth to this prediction.
The Witches: Anne Hathaway May Star in Robert Zemeckis’ Remake
Anne Hathaway is reportedly gearing up to star in the upcoming remake of The Witches, based on the novel by Roald Dahl.
According to Variety, Hathaway has signed on to the project, which will be directed by Oscar-winning director Robert Zemeckis. Hathaway will star as the Grand High Witch in the new adaptation.
Variety reports that the new version of The Witches will hew closer to the source material than the 1990 film adaptation. Alfonso Cuarón and Guillermo del Toro are set to produce.
The previous movie version of The Witches starred Anjelica Huston in the role of the Grand High Witch and was directed by the late Nicolas Roeg. While the film fared poorly at the box office, it has become something of a cult classic.
Turns Out Dan Aykroyd Spoiled the Secret Ghostbusters Sequel in 2018
Despite the announcement on Tuesday that a new Ghostbusters movie is in the works at Sony, Dan Aykroyd let it slip this past November that a third movie was in fact in development, reported by THR.
In an interview with Dan Rather in November 2018, Aykroyd – one of the writers and stars of the original Ghostbusters movies – said, "I think we have a story that's going to work and it's being written right now by really good filmmakers. I can't say their names."
One of the writers Aykroyd was speaking of ends up being Jason Reitman who will be helming the film, and also happens to be the son of the original Ghostbusters director, Ivan Reitman, who will also be a producer for the third film. Gil Kenan from Monster House is also working on the script.