Bleeding Fool |
- Hell Hath No Fury: ScarJo Sueing Disney for Breach of Contract
- How Archie Comics Shapeshifted from Kid-Friendly to Satanic Horror
- Comics Legend Frank Miller Cancelled by the Safe Space Brigade
- Transformers: The Movie Returning to Theaters for 35th Anniversary
- If You Can’t Beat ’em: Lucasfilm Hires Deepfaker Who Smoked Them
- Watch: Marvel Studios Drops a New ‘Shang-Chi’ Trailer
- John Romita Jr. Showcases Marvel’s ‘First Family’ Through the Ages
| Hell Hath No Fury: ScarJo Sueing Disney for Breach of Contract Posted: 30 Jul 2021 08:15 AM PDT
Disney’s unilateral decision to debut "Black Widow" on Disney Plus at the same time movie was released in theaters has triggered a legal struggle with MCU actress Scarlett Johansson. According to a report in Variety, attorneys representing Johansson filed a lawsuit yesterday in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging that the star’s contract was violated when the studio chose not to release the film solely in theaters, a decision they believe harmed ticket sales for the Avengers spinoff. Much of Johansson’s pay was related to the success of “Black Widow” at the box office – if it met certain targets, bonuses would be paid.
In other words, she was to receive a portion of the theatrical release profits, which she contends were suppressed by Disney’s decision to release the film the same day on their streaming platform, of which Johansson receives no bonus from. Obviously the film did not perform as well as hoped.
According to Variety, Scarlett’s legal team is claiming that:
"Disney intentionally induced Marvel's breach of the agreement, without justification, in order to prevent Ms. Johansson from realizing the full benefit of her bargain with Marvel," the suit reads. Disney announced in March that "Black Widow" would premiere simultaneously on the studio's subscription-based streaming service, for a premium $30 price, as well as on the big screen. The move was made as the movie theater industry was rebounding from COVID-19 closures and capacity restrictions. On July 9, "Black Widow" set a pandemic-era box office record with its $80 million debut in North America and earned an additional $78 million overseas. It also pulled in $60 million on Disney Plus. Ticket sales steeply declined in subsequent weeks and currently stand at $319 million globally, putting "Black Widow" on track to become one of the lowest-grossing Marvel movies of all time.
The Wall Street Journal reports that a spokesperson for Disney claims the suit has no merit and is "especially sad and distressing in its callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the Covid-19 pandemic."
The company said it "fully complied with Ms. Johansson's contract and furthermore, the release of Black Widow on Disney+ with Premier Access has significantly enhanced her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20 million she has received to date." The suit could be a bellwether for the entertainment industry. Major media companies are giving priority to their streaming services in pursuit of growth, and are increasingly putting their high-value content on those platforms. Those changes have significant financial implications for actors and producers, who want to ensure that growth in streaming doesn't come at their expense. "This will surely not be the last case where Hollywood talent stands up to Disney and makes it clear that, whatever the company may pretend, it has a legal obligation to honor its contracts," said John Berlinski, an attorney at Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP who represents Ms. Johansson.
Disney began distributing movies on Disney+ and in cinemas at the same time, partly due to the Covid-19 outbreak, when theaters were shuttered or had restricted capacity, as well as to promote its brand new streaming platform. At the same time, AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia, which controls the HBO Max streaming service, began employing a similar technique for the full 2021 Warner Bros. film slate. NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast Corp., followed suit, releasing "The Boss Baby: Family Business" in cinemas as well as on its Peacock streaming service.
The WSJ report continues:
According to the complaint, Ms. Johansson's representatives sought to renegotiate her contract after learning of the dual-release strategy for "Black Widow," which she has said is her ninth and last Marvel movie. Disney and Marvel were unresponsive, the suit said. The decision to put the movie on Disney+ is projected to cost Ms. Johansson more than $50 million, a person familiar with details of her contract claimed.
Variety learned that the Johansson’s management had been trying to reach Disney from moment her people learned about the dual release, and were ignored:
Johansson legal team said that representatives for the actress were worried that "Black Widow" would debut on Disney Plus even before coronavirus brought life to a standstill. As part of the suit, they share emails from the star's management group that asked the studio to guarantee that "Black Widow" would premiere exclusively in cinemas. In response, Marvel Chief Counsel Dave Galluzzi promised a traditional theatrical bow, while adding "We understand that should the plan change, we would need to discuss this with you and come to an understanding as the deal is based on a series of (very large) box office bonuses."
Well, Disney did publicize that they broke $200 million opening weekend, so they made bank, according to their internal reports. This particular feud is somewhat unusual in that Johansson’s character is (spoiler alert) dead in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the actress has stated that she has no plans to reprise the role. In short, she has nothing to lose by going up against Disney. However, if she wins or reaches a settlement, the case might serve as a litmus test for other actors considering similar claims.
And given that studios have embraced streaming while cinemas have closed, there could be a lot of them. This will surely not be the last case where Hollywood talent stands up to Disney and makes it clear that, whatever the company may pretend, it has a legal obligation to honor its contracts," Johansson’s lawyer stated.
Looks like Johansson has a case. We look forward to updating this story when Disney decides to settle out of court. The post Hell Hath No Fury: ScarJo Sueing Disney for Breach of Contract appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
| How Archie Comics Shapeshifted from Kid-Friendly to Satanic Horror Posted: 30 Jul 2021 06:15 AM PDT
In this Valdosta Daily Times puff piece, they went about normalizing the recent change of Archie’s Sabrina series when Netflix adapted it:
And by that, they mean horror-themed storytelling. If anything, what this terrible fluff can tell us is that Netflix really is a bad influence on much of modern entertainment, and the tinkering doesn’t stop at just the publishers’ forced and contrived decisions. For all we know, if this is the direction they’re taking now, chances are that, for as long as Archie continues its existence, Sabrina may never be a humorous comic ever again. Like many other famous icons, it’s been exploited by modern ideologues who’ve forced in the concept of darkness as much as they have politics into entertainment. And these press sources will never complain about the lack of brighter, more optimistic storytelling free of political influence.
Originally published here.
Editor’s note:
What’s peculiar to note that Archie Comics is one of the only mainstream publishers to have created over a dozen Christian titles throughout their history that featured their beloved legacy characters. Back in the early 70’s, Spire Comics was a rare Christian comic imprint led by Al Hartley, who had been subtly infusing Christian morals into Archie Comics for years when he worked for the publisher. When Fleming H. Revell publishers eventually hired him in 1972 to work on adaptations of popular Christian novels like The Cross and the Switchblade and The Hiding Place. Hartley and Revell launched Spire Comics with the intent to publish comics for Christians and to be used as ways to reach out to Non-Christians. Al also reached out to John Goldwater, the President of Archie Comics to ask about using the Archie characters in these comics. And Goldwater agreed.
The Spire Archie comics were unabashedly Christian, and quite earnest, and since Hartley had been an Archie artist for years, they looked great, although these stories haven’t aged well.
Not at all like what has occurred in recent years, with the hard lean into what could be described as “anti-Christian” material. Which really doesn’t seem to be working out as well as the publisher may have hoped.
The post How Archie Comics Shapeshifted from Kid-Friendly to Satanic Horror appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
| Comics Legend Frank Miller Cancelled by the Safe Space Brigade Posted: 30 Jul 2021 04:45 AM PDT
Following a public uproar over a decade old comic called ‘Holy Terror’, The Thought Bubble Comic Con has publicly cancelled Frank Miller off its program. Once the undisputed king of modern comics, Frank Miller has a somewhat controversial career that includes being accused of “misogyny” for his popular Sin City series, and branded an “Islamophobe” for his Holy Terror graphic novel that was originally developed as a Batman versus Al-Qaeda terrorists in the wake of 9/11.
Back when his appearance was officially announced for the November UK convention, the salt flowed on Twitter.
In unrelated news, everyone of those complaining on Twitter find it necessary to list “preferred pronouns” in their Twitter bios. Could there be any correlation between those who virtue signal their preferred pronouns and the easily triggered, emotionally immature, adult-children who require public safe spaces? I’ll let you decide. Predictably, the U.K. comics convention soon announced that it would no longer be hosting Frank Miller as a guest in response to backlash from attendees and other guests.
Presumably, the campaign to cancel Miller was launched by little known indie publisher ShortBox Comics, a Patreon supported webcomics publisher launched by Zainab Akhtar (and chock full of titles of a certain Tumblr aesthetic). ShortBox been pressuring the convention behind the scenes for weeks to drop Miller, and it seems they could be the main reason for the public dust up, especially since they took credit for it. And as expected, the preferred pronoun Twitterati were oh so thirsty for the outrage.
What seems to be lost on these pearl-clutching “comic fans” are the comments that Frank Miller himself shared back when his ‘Holy Terror’ graphic novel came out. While at the San Diego Comic-Con International, Miller was quoted as saying, “I was raised Catholic and I could tell you a lot about the Spanish Inquisition but the mysteries of the Catholic Church elude me. And I could tell you a lot about Al-Qaeda, but the mysteries of Islam elude me too.” Does that sound especially “Islamophobic” to anyone? But after the critics insisted that the book was anti-Islamic, Miller eventually walked back his confident remarks years later and confessed that he regretted Holy Terror, saying, “I don’t want to wipe out chapters of my own biography. But I’m not capable of that book again.”
Your apologies don’t matter to these clowns, Frank. They will never forgive you anyway.
Thankfully comic book publishers like Marvel, Dark Horse, DC, Oni Press, Legendary Comics, Last Gasp, Eclipse, and of course DC Comics had long ago forgiven the legendary creator who is still best known for classic stories such as Daredevil: Born Again, The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: Year One, Sin City, and 300. In fact, DC Comics has continued to hire Frank Miller as recently as 2019 for a third sequel to his seminal Batman story, Dark Knight Returns: The Golden Child. And the San Diego Comic-Con even inducted Miller into the Eisner Awards Hall of Fame (after his previous 12 Eisner Awards).
But even with an industry that still praises and hires him, these fragile babies can’t stomach the thought of being in the same room as a talent that once made Islamic terrorists the villains in his poorly received graphic novel over a decade ago.
On second thought, it’s clear that the Thought Bubble Festival doesn’t DESERVE Frank Miller.
The post Comics Legend Frank Miller Cancelled by the Safe Space Brigade appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
| Transformers: The Movie Returning to Theaters for 35th Anniversary Posted: 29 Jul 2021 04:15 PM PDT
This fall, Transformers: The Movie will be re-released in theaters. Fathom Events has partnered with Hasbro to bring the beloved animated feature back to the big screen in celebration of the film’s 35th anniversary this year. However, it will only be a two-night event. Those expecting to see the Autobots and Decepticons in a theater again will have a rather short window to do so.
The screenings will be held in theaters across the United States on Sunday, September 26 at noon and Tuesday, September 28 at 7 p.m. local time. In addition to the film, those who attend these special screenings will be treated to some brand-new exclusive content. Fathom Events CEO Ray Nutt had this to say about it.
Directed by Nelson Shin, the animated movie takes place in the same continuity as the beloved 80s animated series. It features an A-list cast that includes Judd Nelson (The Breakfast Club), Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek), Eric Idle (Monty Python), Robert Stack (The Untouchables) and even Citizen Kane director Orson Welles as the evil Unicron. Adam Biehl SVP & GM of Action Brands at Hasbro, Inc., had this to say.
Earlier this year, the movie was re-released in 4K with special steelbook packaging. Aside from that, the franchise is alive and well. Multiple animated shows are currently in the works, with the War for Cybertron trilogy getting ready to wrap up on Netflix. On the big screen side of things, Hasbro and Paramount recently announced Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which is currently filming. The movie will take the action to the 90s and bring Beast Wars into the mix. The studio has, or at least had at one point or another, several other projects related to the franchise in development as well. Tix for the Transformers: The Movie 35th anniversary screenings will be available later next month through FathomEvents.com. The post Transformers: The Movie Returning to Theaters for 35th Anniversary appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
| If You Can’t Beat ’em: Lucasfilm Hires Deepfaker Who Smoked Them Posted: 29 Jul 2021 02:25 PM PDT YouTube is an very weird world. Singing stars have been discovered, little kids have been transformed into celebrities simply by opening a box of toys, and now it appears that the deepfake video we reported on in December, has resulted in the creator being hired at Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light and Magic. While this isn’t something that happens very often, it appears that one video released by YouTuber Shamook, in which he created a deepfake movie to improve Luke Skywalker’s image in The Mandalorian Season 2 finale, drew enough attention to secure him what can only be described as a dream job.
His deepfake took footage from The Mandalorian featuring a de-aged Mark Hamill and significantly improved the quality. The scenes were panned for appearing too phony and digital, and Shamook’s version fixes many of the flaws in the original material. Shamook developed the clip in just under four days and published it in December. It has since racked up over two million views.
Anyone else think that the original version looked a WHOLE lot more like Sebastian Stan than Mark Hamill? There may be an unspoken reason for that, as we reported last December.
Shamook recently posted this on his channel: “As some of you may already know, I joined ILM/Lucasfilm a few months ago and haven’t had the time to work on any new YouTube content. Now I’ve settled into my job, uploads should start increasing again. They’ll still be slow, but hopefully not months apart. Enjoy!”
IndieWire confirmed this after contacting ILM who stated, “[Industrial Light and Magic is] always on the lookout for talented artists and have in fact hired the artist that goes by the online persona ‘Shamook’. Over the past several years ILM has been investing in both machine learning and A.I. as a means to produce compelling visual effects work and it’s been terrific to see momentum building in this space as the technology advances.”
In recent years there has been a surge in the use of digital de-aging of celebrities, with varying levels of success. Similar to the technology that was used to create a digitally rendered version of Carrie Fisher and actor Peter Cushing in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, de-aging is being used to allow an older actor to play a younger version of themselves without the need for another actor to be cast in the role. How successful the process turns out seems to sporadic and individual to each instance. The post If You Can’t Beat ’em: Lucasfilm Hires Deepfaker Who Smoked Them appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
| Watch: Marvel Studios Drops a New ‘Shang-Chi’ Trailer Posted: 29 Jul 2021 12:15 PM PDT
Now just over a month away from the premiere of the next big screen adventure from Marvel Studios, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, the studio has unveiled a new teaser trailer for the film.
Can we say beefcake? Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings arrives in theaters on September 3rd. The post Watch: Marvel Studios Drops a New ‘Shang-Chi’ Trailer appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
| John Romita Jr. Showcases Marvel’s ‘First Family’ Through the Ages Posted: 29 Jul 2021 09:55 AM PDT This year, Marvel Comics proudly celebrates the 60th anniversary of the Fantastic Four with a giant-sized issue worthy of the iconic super hero's team monumental legacy! Joining series writer Dan Slott will be legendary artist John Romita Jr., marking his highly-anticipated return to Marvel with this thrilling issue. In addition to drawing a story within this epic issue, Romita Jr.'s beloved style will also grace the issue in the form of an incredible wraparound cover. Highlighting Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny's transformation since Stan Lee and Jack Kirby first created them, the artwork serves as both a celebration of Fantastic Four's journey and a teaser of the story inside: a showdown across Fantastic Four history against the master of time travel—Kang the Conqueror! "I was lucky to begin my career with Marvel and now am extremely lucky to re-connect with Marvel. That's an enormous amount of good fortune. I sincerely thank all the folks up at Marvel, and Disney, who worked for this fortunate re-connection to happen.," Romita Jr. said. "To add to all this, and I hate to add a third section to my good fortune, is the opportunity to start off with a huge project, which is the 60th anniversary of the Fantastic Four! It is an honor and extreme privilege to be asked to work on this along with a friend and former collaborator, Dan Slott! Along with ink artist JP Mayer, I am looking forward to this being up for viewing in August!" Home to concepts and characters that revolutionized comic book storytelling, the Fantastic Four have enjoyed one of the most memorable sagas in comic book history. Check out John Romita Jr.'s cover below along with some never-before-seen artwork and be there for one of their greatest adventures yet when FANTASIC FOUR #35 hits stands on September 1st.
The post John Romita Jr. Showcases Marvel's ‘First Family’ Through the Ages appeared first on Bleeding Fool.  |
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