Monthly Archives: January 2022

Andrew Garfield Would Return to Play Spider-Man Again ‘If It Felt Right’

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home!

After appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home, it looks as though Andrew Garfield would return to the role of Spider-Man once more, but only "if it felt right".

During an interview with Variety, the 38-year-old former Spider-Man revealed that he would consider returning to the iconic Marvel role under the right circumstances.

“I mean, yes, definitely open to something if it felt right,” he said. “Peter and Spider-Man, those characters are all about service, to the greater good and the many. He’s a working-class boy from Queens that knows struggle and loss and is deeply empathetic. I would try to borrow Peter Parker’s ethical framework in that, if there was an opportunity to step back in and tell more of that story, I would have to feel very sure and certain in myself.”

Andrew Garfield first suited up as our friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man in The Amazing Spider-Man back in 2012, with his most recent stint as a cameo appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Now, after finally getting what they wanted in No Way Home, fans want to see even more of his webslinger back on the big screen.

Recently, the hashtag #MakeTASM3 (as in, 'Make The Amazing Spider-Man 3') began trending on Twitter, with fans eager to see Garfield finish off his own Spider-Man trilogy. But with the multi-dimensional crossover in No Way Home originally planned as a post-credit scene, would Marvel be interested in putting resources into a franchise that has long been killed off? Of course, Sony has its own, somewhat separate universe of Spider-Man villains, so there's always a chance of a Garfield Spidey appearing there.

Whether he returns again or not, Garfield seems thrilled that he was able to return to play the character at all in the era of the MCU.

"I am so grateful," he told Variety. "I’m just really, really grateful that I got to tie up some loose ends for the Peter that I was playing. I love that character and I’m grateful that I got to work with these incredible actors, this incredible director, and Marvel in conjunction with Sony. It was joyful, and a feeling of closure for me. There was so many unanswered questions for my Peter, where we left it. I got to step back in and get some healing for him. And also really supporting [Holland’s] Peter, and honoring his character completing that trilogy, not distracting or detracting from it."

It’s no secret that Spider-Man: No Way Home is now Sony’s highest-grossing film of all time, having scored a massive $257 million opening weekend. It’s these kinds of numbers that may well convince Marvel and Sony that additional Spider-Man movies have legs. Whether or not that means Andrew Garfield will return, however, remains to be seen.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Andrew Garfield Would Return to Play Spider-Man Again ‘If It Felt Right’

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home!

After appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home, it looks as though Andrew Garfield would return to the role of Spider-Man once more, but only "if it felt right".

During an interview with Variety, the 38-year-old former Spider-Man revealed that he would consider returning to the iconic Marvel role under the right circumstances.

“I mean, yes, definitely open to something if it felt right,” he said. “Peter and Spider-Man, those characters are all about service, to the greater good and the many. He’s a working-class boy from Queens that knows struggle and loss and is deeply empathetic. I would try to borrow Peter Parker’s ethical framework in that, if there was an opportunity to step back in and tell more of that story, I would have to feel very sure and certain in myself.”

Andrew Garfield first suited up as our friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man in The Amazing Spider-Man back in 2012, with his most recent stint as a cameo appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Now, after finally getting what they wanted in No Way Home, fans want to see even more of his webslinger back on the big screen.

Recently, the hashtag #MakeTASM3 (as in, 'Make The Amazing Spider-Man 3') began trending on Twitter, with fans eager to see Garfield finish off his own Spider-Man trilogy. But with the multi-dimensional crossover in No Way Home originally planned as a post-credit scene, would Marvel be interested in putting resources into a franchise that has long been killed off? Of course, Sony has its own, somewhat separate universe of Spider-Man villains, so there's always a chance of a Garfield Spidey appearing there.

Whether he returns again or not, Garfield seems thrilled that he was able to return to play the character at all in the era of the MCU.

"I am so grateful," he told Variety. "I’m just really, really grateful that I got to tie up some loose ends for the Peter that I was playing. I love that character and I’m grateful that I got to work with these incredible actors, this incredible director, and Marvel in conjunction with Sony. It was joyful, and a feeling of closure for me. There was so many unanswered questions for my Peter, where we left it. I got to step back in and get some healing for him. And also really supporting [Holland’s] Peter, and honoring his character completing that trilogy, not distracting or detracting from it."

It’s no secret that Spider-Man: No Way Home is now Sony’s highest-grossing film of all time, having scored a massive $257 million opening weekend. It’s these kinds of numbers that may well convince Marvel and Sony that additional Spider-Man movies have legs. Whether or not that means Andrew Garfield will return, however, remains to be seen.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Fallout TV Series Begins Production in 2022, Westworld Co-Creator to Direct Pilot

After a year of silence, Amazon is opening the vault on some details for the upcoming Fallout TV series. In a new report, we've learned that the series based on the post-apocalyptic RPG is set to begin production later this year.

Deadline reported the production time and revealed Jonathan Nolan is set to direct the series premiere. Nolan is the co-creator of HBO's Westworld, which shares some similar dystopian themes with the world of Fallout.

Additionally, Captain Marvel Writer Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Portlandia and Silicon Valley's Graham Wagner will serve as the series showrunners. There is still no word on the cast or the plot for the Fallout show.

The Fallout TV series was first announced in 2020, with Nolan and Joy attached to the project. We also know that Fallout developers Bethesda Game Studios will be involved with the show, and series director Todd Howard is on board as an executive producer.

Fallout is an RPG video game franchise that takes place in the aftermath of a nuclear war. The franchise started as an isometric RPG series, but Bethesda transformed it into a first-person RPG juggernaut after acquiring the IP in 2007.

Fallout's unique take on Americana and Bethesda's bold first-person interpretation of the series has made it one of the most popular and beloved western RPG franchises.

For more on the Fallout TV show, check out our picks of the best Fallout stories for Amazon's new show.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

Fallout TV Series Begins Production in 2022, Westworld Co-Creator to Direct Pilot

After a year of silence, Amazon is opening the vault on some details for the upcoming Fallout TV series. In a new report, we've learned that the series based on the post-apocalyptic RPG is set to begin production later this year.

Deadline reported the production time and revealed Jonathan Nolan is set to direct the series premiere. Nolan is the co-creator of HBO's Westworld, which shares some similar dystopian themes with the world of Fallout.

Additionally, Captain Marvel Writer Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Portlandia and Silicon Valley's Graham Wagner will serve as the series showrunners. There is still no word on the cast or the plot for the Fallout show.

The Fallout TV series was first announced in 2020, with Nolan and Joy attached to the project. We also know that Fallout developers Bethesda Game Studios will be involved with the show, and series director Todd Howard is on board as an executive producer.

Fallout is an RPG video game franchise that takes place in the aftermath of a nuclear war. The franchise started as an isometric RPG series, but Bethesda transformed it into a first-person RPG juggernaut after acquiring the IP in 2007.

Fallout's unique take on Americana and Bethesda's bold first-person interpretation of the series has made it one of the most popular and beloved western RPG franchises.

For more on the Fallout TV show, check out our picks of the best Fallout stories for Amazon's new show.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

New Battlestar Galactica Movie Will Be In a ‘Shared Universe’ With Peacock TV Series

The upcoming Battlestar Galactica movie from X-Men veteran Simon Kinberg is still lightyears away, but we now know the film will take place in the same universe as the Battlestar Galactica reboot coming to Peacock.

Speaking to Collider, Kinberg said he is in "constant communication" with Sam Esmail, the executive producer of the Peacock series. "In terms of the situation with Sam and the show, I can't say too much about it other than there is synergy between the two enterprises and constant communication between us," Kinberg said.

"We've become close and been having a really good time together and there will be, for lack of a better phrase and it's an overused phrase, a shared universe."

This indirectly confirms that the movie will also be a part of the universe that Ron Moore's Battlestar Galactica series takes place in because we previously learned that the Peacock series would tell a new story in that same universe. Unless plans have changed, it seems both projects will continue the mythos of the beloved 2004 show.

The Peacock series doesn't yet have a release date. The last we heard, Michael Lesslie is on board to write and executive produce the series. Lesslie was the showrunner for AMC's The Little Drummer Girl, and writer for the Assassin's Creed movie.

As for the movie's progress, Kinberg says it's still a long way away, adding that they are hoping to find a director for the project this year.

"It's a megillah, humongous film and the prep will be a very long prep period so I would imagine even if we attached a director today it would take six, nine months to prep this movie properly," Kinberg said. "So at the earliest, we'd be shooting at the end of this year. We'd probably be shooting at the beginning of next year."

It's been a long road for the Battlestar Galactica film reboot, with rumblings of its production going back to 2009, when Moore's series ended. In 2020, we learned Kinberg would write and produce the film. Kinberg has been part of the X-Men film series since 2006.

And, speaking of Kinberg, the filmmaker recently commented on the future of the X-Men coming to the MCU, saying Marvel producer Kevin Feige, "knows what he's doing with the MCU."

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

New Battlestar Galactica Movie Will Be In a ‘Shared Universe’ With Peacock TV Series

The upcoming Battlestar Galactica movie from X-Men veteran Simon Kinberg is still lightyears away, but we now know the film will take place in the same universe as the Battlestar Galactica reboot coming to Peacock.

Speaking to Collider, Kinberg said he is in "constant communication" with Sam Esmail, the executive producer of the Peacock series. "In terms of the situation with Sam and the show, I can't say too much about it other than there is synergy between the two enterprises and constant communication between us," Kinberg said.

"We've become close and been having a really good time together and there will be, for lack of a better phrase and it's an overused phrase, a shared universe."

This indirectly confirms that the movie will also be a part of the universe that Ron Moore's Battlestar Galactica series takes place in because we previously learned that the Peacock series would tell a new story in that same universe. Unless plans have changed, it seems both projects will continue the mythos of the beloved 2004 show.

The Peacock series doesn't yet have a release date. The last we heard, Michael Lesslie is on board to write and executive produce the series. Lesslie was the showrunner for AMC's The Little Drummer Girl, and writer for the Assassin's Creed movie.

As for the movie's progress, Kinberg says it's still a long way away, adding that they are hoping to find a director for the project this year.

"It's a megillah, humongous film and the prep will be a very long prep period so I would imagine even if we attached a director today it would take six, nine months to prep this movie properly," Kinberg said. "So at the earliest, we'd be shooting at the end of this year. We'd probably be shooting at the beginning of next year."

It's been a long road for the Battlestar Galactica film reboot, with rumblings of its production going back to 2009, when Moore's series ended. In 2020, we learned Kinberg would write and produce the film. Kinberg has been part of the X-Men film series since 2006.

And, speaking of Kinberg, the filmmaker recently commented on the future of the X-Men coming to the MCU, saying Marvel producer Kevin Feige, "knows what he's doing with the MCU."

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

Star Trek: Picard Forced To Pause Production After More Than 50 Test Positive For COVID-19

Star Trek: Picard has been forced to shut down production following a COVD-19 outbreak that has seen more than 50 crew members test positive for the virus.

As first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, production is said to have been on pause since Monday. The show reportedly hopes to resume filming early next week.

COVID-19 has been wreaking havoc across Hollywood since fear appearing in early 2020. Vaccines and other measures raised hopes that the entertainment business could return to something resembling business as usual in 2022, but the emergence of the highly-contagious Omicron variant has forced productions to reevaluate.

The pandemic has forced further delays and other problems, with John Wick 4 among the movies to get pushed all the way into 2023 despite filming already being completed.

Star Trek: Picard last aired in early 2020, with Season 2 set to premiere on Paramount+ in Febuary. Star Trek: Picard is currently filming Season 3, which is expected to release in 2023.

Star Trek: Picard follows the adventures of Jean-Luc Picard as he comes out of retirement to solve new mysteries and battle forces threatening the Federation. In his review of Star Trek: Picard, reviewer Scott Collura called Season 1 "uneven," with a "rushed climax and some head-scratching moments." However, "thematically it all ties together quite nicely."

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

Star Trek: Picard Forced To Pause Production After More Than 50 Test Positive For COVID-19

Star Trek: Picard has been forced to shut down production following a COVD-19 outbreak that has seen more than 50 crew members test positive for the virus.

As first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, production is said to have been on pause since Monday. The show reportedly hopes to resume filming early next week.

COVID-19 has been wreaking havoc across Hollywood since fear appearing in early 2020. Vaccines and other measures raised hopes that the entertainment business could return to something resembling business as usual in 2022, but the emergence of the highly-contagious Omicron variant has forced productions to reevaluate.

The pandemic has forced further delays and other problems, with John Wick 4 among the movies to get pushed all the way into 2023 despite filming already being completed.

Star Trek: Picard last aired in early 2020, with Season 2 set to premiere on Paramount+ in Febuary. Star Trek: Picard is currently filming Season 3, which is expected to release in 2023.

Star Trek: Picard follows the adventures of Jean-Luc Picard as he comes out of retirement to solve new mysteries and battle forces threatening the Federation. In his review of Star Trek: Picard, reviewer Scott Collura called Season 1 "uneven," with a "rushed climax and some head-scratching moments." However, "thematically it all ties together quite nicely."

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN

E3 2022 Cancels In-Person Event, While Digital Show Remains Uncertain

The ESA has canceled its in-person event for E3 2022, according to a statement shared with IGN by the ESA. But, while they point to upcoming announcements, the future of the show this year and beyond remains unclear.

"Due to the ongoing health risks surrounding COVID-19 and its potential impact on the safety of exhibitors and attendees, E3 will not be held in person in 2022," reads a statement sent to IGN by the ESA. "We remain incredibly excited about the future of E3 and look forward to announcing more details soon.”

This effectively means that currently, E3 2022's very existence is uncertain. With no dates set and no physical event planned, that would theoretically leave a possibility for a digital showcase. But in a follow-up communication with IGN, the ESA added that it could not confirm at this time whether or not there would be a digital event this year instead of the physical event, as there was in 2021.

The ESA’s announcement arrives in the middle of an ongoing, deadly, global pandemic that just saw a record number of new cases in the US. When the ESA made its announcement around a physical event last year, vaccinations were still slowly ramping up, and many observers believed that in-person gaming events at a larger scale would resume in 2022. They did, briefly, with a smaller PAX West taking place in the fall and The Game Awards in December happening without incident. But the rise of new coronavirus variants and ongoing concerns about testing availability and mask mandates have made prospects dicier for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, E3's future has been a question mark for some time now. Its 2022 show never had firm dates set and was never on the official LACC calendar, despite past shows’ physical and digital being scheduled over a year in advance. An in-person E3 2022 had been planned officially since the opening of last year's show, per a speech from LA mayor Eric Garcetii. But its official Twitter and website have been uncharacteristically silent since then, and multiple sources with ties to E3 speaking to IGN under conditions of anonymity suggested that the ESA had given up on trying to hold a physical show much earlier, possibly as far back as fall of last year. Other industry sources suggested that while they would typically have heard about formal plans for E3 by now — digital or physical — the ESA's silence on the matter had been deafening, and they are unsure what the plan is at all, if any.

Concerns about the show go beyond just its ability to hold a 2022 showcase, too. In August of 2019, the ESA leaked the private details of over 2000 journalists, YouTubers, and analysts who had attended E3. The following month, a GameDaily.biz report shared a pitch for an overhauled plan for E3 2020 as a "fan, media, and influencer festival" focused around "experience hubs" and featuring "queuetainment," or marketing targeted toward people stuck waiting in line. Just a few months later, Geoff Keighley announced he would no longer participate in E3 for the first time in 25 years and would not run its E3 Coliseum event. The month after that, Iam8bit resigned as the creative director of E3 2020.

The efforts since haven't inspired confidence either. The E3 2021 companion app garnered widespread criticism for being both barren and riddled with bugs. The digital event itself was crowded between numerous other similar digital events that publishers put on without the help of the ESA. Many of them had gotten test drives the prior year, when there was no E3 at all, leading former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé to suggest back in February in 2021 that if the ESA wasn't able to put all the elements together for a successful E3, that gap would be filled some other way — perhaps by Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest, which Keighley just announced will return this year. Multiple others we spoke to echoed that sentiment, with many remarking on the numerous successful digital events that took place without the ESA's support both in 2020 and 2021.

It currently remains unclear whether E3 in any form will take place in 2022, and if it does, what the show will look like or when it will even be.

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.

E3 2022 Cancels In-Person Event, While Digital Show Remains Uncertain

The ESA has canceled its in-person event for E3 2022, according to a statement shared with IGN by the ESA. But, while they point to upcoming announcements, the future of the show this year and beyond remains unclear.

"Due to the ongoing health risks surrounding COVID-19 and its potential impact on the safety of exhibitors and attendees, E3 will not be held in person in 2022," reads a statement sent to IGN by the ESA. "We remain incredibly excited about the future of E3 and look forward to announcing more details soon.”

This effectively means that currently, E3 2022's very existence is uncertain. With no dates set and no physical event planned, that would theoretically leave a possibility for a digital showcase. But in a follow-up communication with IGN, the ESA added that it could not confirm at this time whether or not there would be a digital event this year instead of the physical event, as there was in 2021.

The ESA’s announcement arrives in the middle of an ongoing, deadly, global pandemic that just saw a record number of new cases in the US. When the ESA made its announcement around a physical event last year, vaccinations were still slowly ramping up, and many observers believed that in-person gaming events at a larger scale would resume in 2022. They did, briefly, with a smaller PAX West taking place in the fall and The Game Awards in December happening without incident. But the rise of new coronavirus variants and ongoing concerns about testing availability and mask mandates have made prospects dicier for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, E3's future has been a question mark for some time now. Its 2022 show never had firm dates set and was never on the official LACC calendar, despite past shows’ physical and digital being scheduled over a year in advance. An in-person E3 2022 had been planned officially since the opening of last year's show, per a speech from LA mayor Eric Garcetii. But its official Twitter and website have been uncharacteristically silent since then, and multiple sources with ties to E3 speaking to IGN under conditions of anonymity suggested that the ESA had given up on trying to hold a physical show much earlier, possibly as far back as fall of last year. Other industry sources suggested that while they would typically have heard about formal plans for E3 by now — digital or physical — the ESA's silence on the matter had been deafening, and they are unsure what the plan is at all, if any.

Concerns about the show go beyond just its ability to hold a 2022 showcase, too. In August of 2019, the ESA leaked the private details of over 2000 journalists, YouTubers, and analysts who had attended E3. The following month, a GameDaily.biz report shared a pitch for an overhauled plan for E3 2020 as a "fan, media, and influencer festival" focused around "experience hubs" and featuring "queuetainment," or marketing targeted toward people stuck waiting in line. Just a few months later, Geoff Keighley announced he would no longer participate in E3 for the first time in 25 years and would not run its E3 Coliseum event. The month after that, Iam8bit resigned as the creative director of E3 2020.

The efforts since haven't inspired confidence either. The E3 2021 companion app garnered widespread criticism for being both barren and riddled with bugs. The digital event itself was crowded between numerous other similar digital events that publishers put on without the help of the ESA. Many of them had gotten test drives the prior year, when there was no E3 at all, leading former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé to suggest back in February in 2021 that if the ESA wasn't able to put all the elements together for a successful E3, that gap would be filled some other way — perhaps by Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest, which Keighley just announced will return this year. Multiple others we spoke to echoed that sentiment, with many remarking on the numerous successful digital events that took place without the ESA's support both in 2020 and 2021.

It currently remains unclear whether E3 in any form will take place in 2022, and if it does, what the show will look like or when it will even be.

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.