News Round-Up: Idris Elba Cast in ‘The Jungle Book’; ‘Smurfs’ Release Date; and More
Happy Thursday everyone! On Thursdays, I usually compile all of the latest week’s news. For this week’s post, I’ll have a fair amount of casting, one release date, and some misc. news. More specifically, Idris Elba has been added to The Jungle Book, Rooney Mara joined Pan, and Jason Sudeikis will star in Fletch Won. Another The Smurfs movie (a reboot) nabbed a 2015 release date. In other news, I’ll talk about Black Phantom, The Last of Us film adaptation, and The LEGO Movie sequel director.
If you’ve missed the previous posts this week, check out the latest trailers, posters, and photos.
Although Jon Favreau (Iron Man) is on the brink of a different release (Chef), plans are coming together for his next film. He’ll be in charge of the live-action adaptation of The Jungle Book! It was announced this past week that Idris Elba (Pacific Rim) would play (or voice rather) the tiger Shere Khan. A release date hasn’t been set yet, but I’d guess sometime in 2015. (Source: Yahoo)
From The Jungle Book to Peter Pan, Rooney Mara’s (Side Effects) named was brought up with Joe Wright’s (Anna Karenina) movie Pan. This film will also be a live-action adaptation, and it is set to come out July 17, 2015. The film has a confirmed cast that includes Hugh Jackman and Garrett Hedlund. (Source: EW)
The interwebs were ablaze with the news that Jason Sudeikis (Horrible Bosses) would be the next Fletch character. Following Chevy Chase’s turn as the iconic character in the 1980’s, Fletch Won (as the newest movie will be called) will be just another reboot…or re-imagining…or whatever you want to call it. Add it to the list I guess. It does appear this movie will be an origin story. Since the script is still in development, a director and release date haven’t been announced yet. We’ll keep you updated. (Source: THR)
Speaking of reboots, Fletch Won wasn’t the only one. If you’re a Smurfs fan, you are in for more! Despite last year’s sequel, a reboot is in order thanks to Sony’s release date announcement. Unlike the more recent ones, this one will be completely animated (thank God). The movie will be directed by Kelly Asbury (Shrek 2) and is set to release on August 14, 2015. (Source: THR)
Tim Story (Ride Along) will apparently be directing a duo that includes Kevin Hart and Jamie Foxx. The film will be called Black Phantom. The story revolves around a double-crossed hitman. More, like a release date, isn’t quite known yet. (Source: Variety)
If you’re a Playstation player, you probably know all about The Last of Us. Well, guess what? The video game is apparently going to become a movie someday. “Someday” is the key word, though, as Screen Gems nabbed the rights to the game. Now they’ll be countless debates about whether this is an adaptable story or not. As you can probably tell, no actors, director, or release date is currently available. (Source: Deadline)
Even though I’ve been dogging on the movies so far this year, the one bright spot has been The LEGO Movie. Even before it released, news came out that a sequel was most likely in order. Now we know that Chris McKay (the animation co-director of the first film) will direct the sequel. As master builder, he will have plenty of time to create the animated movie before it releases May 26, 2017. (Source: Deadline)
Come back tomorrow for the weekly Clip Mania.
Follow me on Twitter @jmacle
