Nerd Rating

Tag: Disney

  • Star Wars Episodes VIII And IX Have Their Screenwriters

    New Trilogy Begins To Take Shape.

    You thought Disney was on the ball by getting Michael Arndt so quickly to begin work on Episode VII? Well here’s proof that they aren’t playing around with getting this new trilogy into theaters.

    Disney has gotten Lawrence Kasdan and Simon Kinberg to serve as writers and producers on Episodes VIII and IX. If you are unaware as to why this is a big deal, Kasdan was the screenwriter for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi as well as writing the script for a tiny film called Raiders of the Lost Ark. Kinberg has also written some top notch films as well including: Sherlock Holmes, X-Men: First Class and the upcoming sequel X-Men: Days of Future’s Past. 

    Let the Matthew Vaughn speculation begin anew with Kinberg being involved with second and third movies. Having the First Class scribe is only going to give that rumor more traction that the director may take over duties on at least one of the flicks.

    While Kasdan and Kinberg are now officially involved their exact roles are not known. It seems like they both will be producing Episodes VIII and IX and may either work on the scripts together or split the movies between the two of them.

    This delights me to no end that Disney could get Kasdan to come back and be involved in such a big way with this new trilogy. Now if we could just get past that whole wanting to bring back Darth Vader thing I think all would be well.

     

  • Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2 Has A “Mighty” Easter Egg

    It seems there is a rather cool Easter egg awaiting players of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. With just a little exploration you can find Mjolnir, hammer to the God of Thunder, Thor.

    The hammer is on the mission called Celerium. It is hidden away in a cave embedded in a chunk of rock. It appears that nothing can free the hammer but you never know what Treyarch may have in store . No word yet on any other Marvel items lurking about in the game but Black Ops 2 was just released yesterday.

    Take a look at the video walkthrough below to see how to find Mjolnir.

     

  • Take It Home Tuesday. November 13, 2012.

    Vaughn, Stiller And Hill “Watch” A Bomb Go Off.

    [amazon_link id=”B005LAIHZY” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Brave[/amazon_link]

    Disney and Pixar’s latest about a Scottish girl, Merida, who goes against her parents wishes of being a highborn lady and causes a curse to come upon her family after she makes a deal with a witch. Reviews were mostly middle of the road for a Pixar offering.

    [amazon_link id=”B005LAII30″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Watch[/amazon_link]

    With this kind of star power is there anyway to not call this movie a box-office disappointment? Did anyone go see this during its short run? Four neighborhood watch volunteers begin trying to watch over their community but become involved in an alien invasion.

     

    [amazon_link id=”B005LAII9O” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Savages[/amazon_link]

    Oliver Stone tries to recapture some of his Natural Born Killers magic in this tale of two dealers who refuse to join a major drug cartel and have to take on the group when their girlfriend is kidnapped.

    [amazon_link id=”B008Y1YK0I” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Lawrence of Arabia[/amazon_link]

    The classic tale of  T.E. Lawrence’s time in Arabia during World War 1 and winner of seven Academy Awards gets remastered and released on Blu_Ray to celebrate the film’s 50th anniversary. It is a movie that should be experienced by everyone at least once.

    [amazon_link id=”B0093LE2OC” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure[/amazon_link]

    Now onto a different kind of “classic” releasing on Blu-Ray this week. The time traveling exploits of Bill S. Preston, Esquire and “Ted” Theodore Logan are here in high def just in time for all the rumors of a third movie. “Want a Twinkie, Genghis Khan?”

     

  • Star Wars Episode VII May Have A Writer

    When it was announced last week that Disney was officially making Star Wars Episode VII and they were releasing it in the summer of 2015, my first thought was “they better start hurrying up”. Looks as though Disney is doing just that. Reports are that Oscar winning writer Michael Arndt already has a 40-50 page story treatment for the film and is already at work on the script.

    Ardnt is reportedly a huge Star Wars fan and his writing credits include: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Toy Story 3 and Little Miss Sunshine for which he won an Academy Award. It certainly seems like Disney is not taking any process of a new Star Wars film lightly.

    Rumors are still rampant on what the story of Episode VII will be. Will it involve older versions of Luke, Han and Leia or new characters all together? There is also the possibility that the movies will negate a lot of the past 30 years of Star Wars novels which would be a calculated risk on Disney’s part.

    Having a writer the caliber of Arndt on the project should relieve some fans about the new movie. It certainly does for me. The dude made me tear up in the theater for Toy Story 3.

    Really.

     

  • Disney Buys Lucasfilm For $4 Billion Dollars. New Star Wars In 2015.

    So this bit of insanity just happened.

    It is being reported that Disney has bought Lucasfilm lock, stock and barrel from George Lucas for the cool sum of 4.05 billion dollars. And that is not the biggest news.

    Disney has announced that a brand new Star Wars movie is in development.

    Yeah stew on that for a second.

    Star Wars: Episode 7 will be looking to release during the summer of 2015. Which with The Avengers 2 and Justice League may officially make it the biggest summer movie season in history.

    Here is the press release in case the reality of this has not set in yet.

    Continuing its strategy of delivering exceptional creative content to audiences around the world, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) has agreed to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd. in a stock and cash transaction. Lucasfilm is 100% owned by Lucasfilm Chairman and Founder, George Lucas.

    Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney stock on October 26, 2012, the transaction value is $4.05 billion, with Disney paying approximately half of the consideration in cash and issuing approximately 40 million shares at closing. The final consideration will be subject to customary post-closing balance sheet adjustments.

    “Lucasfilm reflects the extraordinary passion, vision, and storytelling of its founder, George Lucas,” said Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. “This transaction combines a world-class portfolio of content including Star Wars, one of the greatest family entertainment franchises of all time, with Disney’s unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple platforms, businesses, and markets to generate sustained growth and drive significant long-term value.”

    “For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next,” said George Lucas, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lucasfilm. “It’s now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers. I’ve always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime. I’m confident that with Lucasfilm under the leadership of Kathleen Kennedy, and having a new home within the Disney organization, Star Wars will certainly live on and flourish for many generations to come. Disney’s reach and experience give Lucasfilm the opportunity to blaze new trails in film, television, interactive media, theme parks, live entertainment, and consumer products.”

    Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of Lucasfilm, a leader in entertainment, innovation and technology, including its massively popular and “evergreen” Star Wars franchise and its operating businesses in live action film production, consumer products, animation, visual effects, and audio post production. Disney will also acquire the substantial portfolio of cutting-edge entertainment technologies that have kept audiences enthralled for many years. Lucasfilm, headquartered in San Francisco, operates under the names Lucasfilm Ltd., LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic, and Skywalker Sound, and the present intent is for Lucasfilm employees to remain in their current locations.

    Kathleen Kennedy, current Co-Chairman of Lucasfilm, will become President of Lucasfilm, reporting to Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn. Additionally she will serve as the brand manager for Star Wars, working directly with Disney’s global lines of business to build, further integrate, and maximize the value of this global franchise. Ms. Kennedy will serve as executive producer on new Star Wars feature films, with George Lucas serving as creative consultant. Star Wars Episode 7 is targeted for release in 2015, with more feature films expected to continue the Star Wars saga and grow the franchise well into the future.

    The acquisition combines two highly compatible family entertainment brands, and strengthens the long-standing beneficial relationship between them that already includes successful integration of Star Wars content into Disney theme parks in Anaheim, Orlando, Paris and Tokyo.

    Driven by a tremendously talented creative team, Lucasfilm’s legendary Star Wars franchise has flourished for more than 35 years, and offers a virtually limitless universe of characters and stories to drive continued feature film releases and franchise growth over the long term. Star Wars resonates with consumers around the world and creates extensive opportunities for Disney to deliver the content across its diverse portfolio of businesses including movies, television, consumer products, games and theme parks. Star Wars feature films have earned a total of $4.4 billion in global box to date, and continued global demand has made Star Wars one of the world’s top product brands, and Lucasfilm a leading product licensor in the United States in 2011. The franchise provides a sustainable source of high quality, branded content with global appeal and is well suited for new business models including digital platforms, putting the acquisition in strong alignment with Disney’s strategic priorities for continued long-term growth.

    The Lucasfilm acquisition follows Disney’s very successful acquisitions of Pixar and Marvel, which demonstrated the company’s unique ability to fully develop and expand the financial potential of high quality creative content with compelling characters and storytelling through the application of innovative technology and multiplatform distribution on a truly global basis to create maximum value. Adding Lucasfilm to Disney’s portfolio of world class brands significantly enhances the company’s ability to serve consumers with a broad variety of the world’s highest-quality content and to create additional long-term value for our shareholders.

    The Boards of Directors of Disney and Lucasfilm have approved the transaction, which is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, certain non-United States merger control regulations, and other customary closing conditions. The agreement has been approved by the sole shareholder of Lucasfilm