How Rogue One Bridged the Gap Between the Prequels and the Original Trilogy
Like so many of us, Doug Chiang grew up loving Star Wars, but his path would lead to him having a huge impact on the series he adored. Thanks to his time at ILM -- where he contributed to many films throughout the 1990s -- Chiang eventually got to work for George Lucas directly on both The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones as design director, and he then returned to the franchise for The Force Awakens. On Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Chiang had his most crucial role yet, as one of the film's production designers, working to seamlessly blend in new elements into the iconic world introduced in the original Star Wars movie in 1977.
With Rogue One hitting Blu-ray this coming Tuesday, on the heels of its digital HD release this past week, I spoke to Chiang about his work on the film. Chiang discussed what it was like diving into such a specific and important part of Star Wars history and how the film helped bridge the gap between the prequels and the original trilogy from a design perspective.
5 Things Joss Whedon’s Batgirl Movie Should Borrow From the New 52 Comic
The DC Extended Universe continues to grow, with WB reportedly moving forward with a Batgirl movie to be written and directed by Joss Whedon. Whatever your thoughts on the DCEU, that's a pretty exciting prospect.
Entertainment Weekly is also reporting that the movie will draw heavily from DC's New 52 Batgirl comics, specifically those written by Gail Simone. That gives us a pretty good idea of what to expect from the new film in terms of tone and subject matter. If you're not familiar with Simone's Batgirl run, here are five ways her work could wind up inspiring the new movie.
Star Trek: Discovery Casts Rainn Wilson as TOS Character
The Office alum Rainn Wilson has been cast in Star Trek: Discovery.
Wilson will play the charismatic interstellar con man Harry Mudd, though it is currently not known how many episodes Wilson will appear in of the new series. Mudd was part of the original Star Trek series where he had a few run-ins with the crew and was portrayed by the late Roger C. Carmel.
Rainn Wilson in The Office.
Harry Potter star Jason Isaacs was also recently cast as one of the leads, Captain Lorca, the captain of the Starship Discovery. The rest of Star Trek: Discovery's cast includes The Waking Dead star Sonequa Martin-Green, Doug Jones (Hellboy), Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), Mary Wiseman (Longmire), Anthony Rapp (A Beautiful Mind), Shazad Latif (Penny Dreadful), Mary Chieffo (Shelby's Vacation), Chris Obi (Ghost in the Shell), and James Frain (True Detective).
These Custom Zelda Amiibo Are Spot On
Krystyne Escalambre (or GandaKris) has been making custom amiibo for years now, and her latest set focuses on Breath of the Wild's unique assortment of heroes.
Check out the gallery below, featuring Link in his Gerudo Outfit, Princess Zelda, Mipha, Urbosa, Daruk, and Rivali. Click right to see them all:
The amiibo are hand-sculpted out of clay or polymer (using as much of the original amiibo as possible), then hand-painted and sealed.
Regarding her love of customizing amiibo, Krystyne told IGN: "I've been making custom figures since high school, and my favorite part is personally handing over the custom to its new owner. There's an instant gratification... just knowing my work will be cherished in their home for years to come."
Total War: Warhammer 2 Coming Later This Year
Sega announced Total War: Warhammer II, the second installment in the Total War: Warhammer trilogy, is coming to PC before the end of 2017.
Total War: Warhammer II features four races, the High Elves, Dark Elves, Lizardmen, and "a fourth yet to be revealed," all based on the Warhammer Fantasy Battles setting.
Players who own the original Total War: Warhammer and purchase the sequel will receive a "huge combined campaign map" with regions from both the old and new world settings of the game "shortly after release."
Game director Ian Roxburgh said Total War: Warhammer II represents "our vision for the most incredible fantasy strategy series ever made. The success of the original game "increased our ambition" for a sequel.
Rocket League: Fate of the Furious DLC Announced
Dominic Toretto’s Dodge Ice Charger from The Fate of the Furious is coming to Rocket League, developer Psyonix has announced.
The Charger will be available for $1.99 on April 4, ahead of The Fate of the Furious’s April 14 release in theaters. The DLC will also include six unique decals. Check them out, as well as the Charger, in the gallery below:
The Charger is another in a line of licensed cars that have come to Rocket League, including the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Batmobile and Back to the Future’s DeLorean.
Batgirl: 7 Actresses Who Should Play the DCEU Heroine
With word coming that Joss Whedon was in talks to jump ship from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) to write, produce, and direct a standalone Batgirl movie. Whedon has a great track record when it comes to developing strong female characters, both on his own in series like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly as well as with established properties like Black Widow. But this will mark the first time he actually gets to make a female-centric comic book movie.
While it’s unknown at this time which version of Batgirl he’s going to be adapting for the DCEU, we’ve gone ahead and selected a few actresses who we think Whedon should definitely consider. Check them out in the slideshow below:
9 of the Best Cyborgs Ever!
You know you love them -- all those sci-fi human heroes and villains with a little bit extra where it counts. Get your minds out of the gutter, I’m talking about cyborgs! Part human, part machine, and ready for action! Oh, never mind…
Before we begin, it’s best to clarify our criteria for this list. Having co-written entire books about various film genres (Zombiemania, Cinema and Sorcery), I’ve learned that it’s extremely important to let your readers know why you’re selecting the films you’ve chosen to include; even if they wind up disagreeing -- and they will -- then at least you’ve demonstrated your thought process. And in this case, we need to know precisely how we’re defining a cyborg in order to justify these character choices. We’ll go straight to Merriam-Webster, which defines “cyborg” as:
Beyonce Reportedly Top Choice to Play Nala in Lion King
Disney's live-action remake of The Lion King may have found its Nala in Beyonce Knowles.
According to Variety, the Grammy-winning artist, who is currently pregnant with twins, is the top choice of director Jon Favreau. While Beyonce has not yet signed on for the voice-acting role, Favreau and the studio are reportedly willing to do anything they can in order to work around her schedule.
Beyonce Knowles, Image Credit: Jamie McCarthy/WireImage.com
New to Amazon for April
April's upon us, so let's check out what movies and TV shows will be streaming over on Amazon's Instant Video platform - free for all Prime members.
There are flicks like RoboCop, Almost Famous, There Will Be Blood, Tommy Boy, The Ghost and the Darkness, Days of Thunder, and more. Plus, a new film from Oldboy's Park Chan-wook - The Handmaiden!
On the Amazon Original front, there's third seasons from both Bosch, starring Titus Welliver, and Catastrophe, featuring Rob Delaney and Sharon Horgan. And for purchase, there're movies like Rogue One and Office Christmas Party.
Here's the full list for April...
IGN SPOTLIGHT
- There Will Be Blood