Monthly Archives: January 2019
Final Destination Reboot in Development With Saw Franchise Writers
A Final Destination reboot is on the way, and two of the Saw franchise writers are reportedly at the helm.
According to THR, New Line Cinema wants the latest Final Destination film to be a reimagining of the series. Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, who wrote Saw IV through Saw 3D, will be writing the script for the sixth installment.
No plot details have been revealed as of yet. Each film in the original franchise follows a group of people who, after escaping death, are then the victims of unforeseeable — and often random — fatal accidents.
Gears Boss Explains How Drake, Minnie Driver Were Nearly in Gears 3
Head of the Gears of War franchise Rod Fergusson has confirmed that rapper Drake and actress Minnie Driver (Good Will Hunting, The Riches) were both nearly voice actors for Jace Stratton and Samantha Byrne in Gears of War 3.
Initially revealed in a Twitter thread that revolved around memorable video game quotes, Tony Rowe, a tester on the game Jurassic Park: Trespasser, said he remembered a cut line in that game where Driver said “They should’ve sent a policeman or a ninja.” After Driver was tagged in the tweet, she came in to respond to Trespasser producer Seamus Blackley, asking why shy was fired from Gears of War. Fergusson and Cliff Bleszinski quickly hopped on the tread thereafter confirming she was, in fact, once involved with Gears 3.
Iron Man Writers to Script He-Man and Masters of the Universe Movie
Art Marcum and Matt Holloway, writers on 2008's Iron Man, are in finals talks to write a new draft for the upcoming He-Man and Masters of the Universe movie.
As reported by Deadline, Marcum and Holloway are set to join director Adam Aaron Nee on the film that is based on the famous He-Man toyline that began in the 1980s.
The toys were only the beginning, as he He-Man made his television debut in a series of the same name as the upcoming film from 1983-1985, and then again from 2002-2004.
Coming to America 2: Eddie Murphy Back, Empire Director to Helm
A sequel to the 1988 comedy classic Coming to America is officially in the works, with Eddie Murphy set to reprise his role as Akeem and Craig Brewer (Empire, Hustle & Flow) poised to direct.
Reported by Deadline, Paramount Pictures, the studio responsible for the original film, is looking to feature much of the original cast in the film, which includes Arsenio Hall as Akeem’s aide Semmi, Shari Headley as Akeem’s love interest Lisa McDowell, John Amos as her father Cleo McDowell, and James Earl Jones as Akeem’s father Jaffe Joffer, king of Zamunda.
Gearbox CEO Accused of Taking Alleged Secret $12 Million Bonus
Randy Pitchford, CEO of Gearbox, and a former general counsel for the game studio are in a legal battle in which the counsel accuses Pitchford of allegedly receiving "a secret $12 million bonus from publisher Take-Two Interactive as an advance against Borderlands profits."
As reported by Kotaku, the legal battle was sparked when Gearbox sued its former counsel, Wade Callender, for "fraud and breach of fiduciary duty."
According to the lawsuit, Gearbox alleged that Callendar, who worked at the company from 2010 until 2018, borrowed money and destroyed evidence for a home loan, borrowed money for tuition, and paid back neither in full.
How PS5 Can Define Next-Gen
While Sony revealed strong sales numbers for the PlayStation 4 over the 2018 holiday, rumors and discussion of the next generation have already begun. But what can the next set of consoles really do to define itself as distinct from the current crop of systems?
On IGN's weekly PlayStation show, Beyond!, host Jonathon Dornbush, along with panelists Lucy O'Brien and Brian Altano, discuss what they'd like to see from the PlayStation 5. Watch the clip above as the trio discusses what sort of leap, if not a graphical one, the PS5 could make from the PS4 to interest us, and how the system can learn both from the PS4 and the Xbox One, with the latter's backward compatibility and Xbox Game Pass.
Netflix Sued by ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ Rights Holder Over Bandersnatch
Netflix has been sued over Black Mirror: Bandersnatch by a children's book publisher who owns the trademark to "Choose Your Own Adventure."
As reported by THR, Chooseco, LLC, who owns the previously mentioned trademark, filed a lawsuit in Vermont federal court today and said that while it and Netflix had been in "extensive negotiations that were ongoing for a number of years," the streaming company was never granted a license to use its trademark.
OPINION: What the Bungie/Activision Split Means for Destiny
Without the backing of Activision, my immediate response was that the industry-rattling divorce between Activision and Bungie this is great for the future of the Destiny franchise. The studio seems happy, based on the inside-sourced tweets from Kotaku’s Jason Schreier. But while Activision was labeled the big bad for many, they did add a lot of support that is now gone. “We know self-publishing won’t be easy,” Bungie said in a company statement. “There’s still much for us to learn as we grow as an independent, global studio, but we see unbounded opportunities and potential in Destiny. We know that new adventures await us all on new worlds filled with mystery, adventure, and hope. We hope you’ll join us there.” While it’s wonderful that Bungie has managed to regain creative control of its intellectual property, there are a lot of challenges ahead for the studio to think about. Here are a few questions we have as Bungie wades into these new waters.
Amazon Reportedly Working on New Video Game Streaming Service
Amazon is reportedly working on a video game streaming service, but it isn’t likely to be launched until 2020 at the earliest.
Reported by The Information (via GamesIndustry.biz) sources indicate that the service will be similar to what Microsoft and Google are currently building with Project xCloud and Project Stream, respectively.
This service looks to eliminate the need for expensive hardware to run graphically taxing games. Instead, like its competitors, the games would be run inside powerful data centers and streamed to various devices, including smartphones, tablets, smart TVs and more.
Here’s When You Can Play as Geralt in Monster Hunter World
Geralt of Rivia, the main protagonist of The Witcher series, will be playable in an update coming to Monster Hunter World on February 8.
Revealed in a tweet from the official Monster Hunter account, this free update is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, with no definitive word on if it will make its way to PC in the future. The news that Geralt would be playable in Monster Hunter World came last month, at which time it was revealed that Geralt would be fully voiced by original voice actor Doug Cockle.