News Around the Net!
I was very sad to read that D.C. Fontana has passed away. Ms. Fontana was one of the key creative voices on Star Trek the Original Series, and also in the early days of The Next Generation (she co-wrote “Encounter at Farpoint”). She wrote 10 of the 79 Original Series episodes, and she was hugely important in shaping so much of what we know of as Star Trek, especially the character of Spock. She also was a key player in running Star Trek: The Animated Series, and she wrote “Yesteryear,” which is generally agreed to be, by far, the best episode of that series. You can read more about D.C. Fontana here, and also here are David Gerrold’s beautiful remembrances of her.
We have our first trailer for Bond 25: No Time to Die:
That’s a spectacular trailer. A great trailer doesn’t mean a great film, but I really hope it can redeem Spectre. I am excited to see the stories and characters that have been running through these Daniel Craig Bond films continuing here. I’m very happy to see Christoph Waltz back as Blofeld. I hope he has a major role in the film, and this isn’t just a cameo. (I really really want Blofeld to be the dangerous threat to Bond that he failed to be in Spectre.) I’m pleased to see Léa Seydoux back as Dr. Madeleine Swann, in what appears to be a significant role. Her romance with Bond was unconvincing for me in Spectre, but I am glad this new film isn’t forgetting about her and that it looks like she’ll have a significant role here. (I’d assumed she’d be dead by the time the opening song began. I’m very pleased the film isn’t taking that predictable and lame route.) I’d love for this film to develop the Bond-Madeleine story in a more satisfying way that Spectre did. I’m pleased to see Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, and Ben Whishaw all back (as M, Monneypenny, and Q), and I was also happy to catch what I think was a glimpse of Rory Kinnear’s Bill Tanner. I am THRILLED to see Jeffrey Wright back as Felix Leiter (for the first time since 2008’s Quantum of Solace a decade ago) and I’m also supper-excited for Captain Marvel’s Lashana Lynch as a new double-oh agent. (Is she Bond’s replacement as 007??) Ana de Armas was amazing in Blade Runner 2040 and in Knives Out, so I’m excited to see what she can do as a Bond woman. This is all great stuff so far in this trailer. I hope the film is good!!
Here’s a new trailer for Black Widow’s long-awaited solo film:
That looks solid! I’m excited for Scarlett Johansson to headline her own solo film as Black Widow! It’s well-deserved. I am curious to learn more about where exactly this film falls in the MCU timeline. The fight with Florence Pugh (Outlaw King) is great. It’s cool to see a de-aged-looking William Hurt (reprising his role as General Ross). I was delighted to see David Harbour (Stranger Things) as a fat version of Red Guardian!! I’m curious who Rachel Weisz is playing. Is that Taskmaster as the villain? I hope they do justice to that great villain from the comics. The trailer’s score was great and I like the title treatment. I’m excited for this!
Curb Your Enthusiasm season 10 is coming in January?? That’s a great surprise! I can’t wait.
I’m also excited for this upcoming sci-fi comedy on HBO, Avenue 5, from Veep’s creator and show-runner Armando Iannucci:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Emu0I2hNfUk
That’s a great trailer, and the show has a terrific cast! I see a lot of potential here.
I’ve never watched any of the Arrowverse DC shows… but how can I not watch this awesome-looking Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover?
A new Planet of the Apes film is in the works? I’m excited to learn more. I assume that Disney will be rebooting the series from scratch, rather than continuing Fox’s excellent three-film Apes saga. I loved those films and would love to see additional films set in that continuity. I’m also very open to a new interpretation. I just hope it’s good!
Noah Hawley (Fargo, Legion) is going to write and direct the next Star Trek film? That’s fantastic news. I adore Mr. Hawley’s TV work and I’m excited to see what he could do with Trek.
David Fincher and Robert Towne are making a Chinatown prequel… as a Netflix series…?!! OK, color me intrigued! I generally hate prequels, but David Fincher working in the world of Chinatown sounds very cool.
I’ll leave with this: Josh Trank posted a review on Letterboxed of his terrible 2015 Fantastic Four film. Weird!! It’s definitely worth reading. (It’s hard to know how much blame Mr. Trank deserves from the film, since apparently there was all sorts of chaos during production and post-production and the film was dramatically reworked before its release. Read more about that here. Here’s my original review.)