Best Stories Of The Week: Point Break, Doctor Strange, Jonny Quest, Andy Serkis In ‘Star Wars’ & More
Did Memorial Day weekend throw you off enough that you missed some of the bigger entertainment stories this week? Well, don’t fret, because it’s time to take a look at theBest Stories of the Week.
This week we’ve got updates onGambitwithChanning Tatum, Marvel’s developingDoctor Strange, an interview withPete Docterabout Pixar’sInside Out, a new director forJonny Quest, trailers forThe End of the Tourand the remake ofPoint Break, and much more. Hit the jump to get caught up on a week’s worth of the biggest stories.
Update:The news of Disney shutting downTron 3broke after this roundup was published, but definitely factors into the big news of the week. We’ve added that below.
#26. Tobey Maguire Plays Chess in First Pawn Sacrifice Trailer
The movie gets a limited release starting on September 18th.
#25. Channing Tatum Says Gambit Movie is an Origin Story
We already knowGambitwill hit theaters on August 16, 2025 if 20th Century Fox sticks to their schedule, but details on the developing film have been slim. However,Channing Tatumrecently opened up a bit about the project and revealed it will be an origin story, but it will play with the familiar tropes of superhero movies a bit.Read Tatum’s full quotes over here.
#24. First Look at Matt Damon in The Martian
The first photos ofMatt DamoninThe Martianwere unveiled.See more right here.
#23. Could We See a Wolverine Cameo in Deadpool Next Year?
Even thoughHugh Jackmanis ending his long run as a mutant inThe Wolverine 3(and will hopefully have some small role inX-Men: Apocalypse), there’s a chance we might see him in one more 20th Century Fox comic book flick. As fans know,Deadpoolhas a long history with the adamantium-clawed mutant, andRyan Reynoldsrecently teased thatWolverinemight have a cameo in the Merc with a Mouth’s movie coming in 2016. Get more details on the potential cameoin our original story.
#22. Veteran Make-Up and Effects Wizard Rick Baker is Retiring
While you may not knowRick Bakerby name, you undoubtedly know his work. Baker is known for creating make-up effects for films such asStar Wars, An American Werewolf in London, The Rocketeer, Gremlins 2, Men in Black, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Harry and the Hendersonsand Michael Jackson’s iconicThrillermusic video. He’s also worked on special effects for films likeHellboyandThe Exorcist. But now Baker is retiring from Hollywood, and some of his props and workwent on sale in an auction today in Los Angeles. Read what Baker had to say about his retirementright here.
#21. Two Kids Steal Kevin Bacon’s Cop Car
The film hits limited theaters on August 7 and VOD on August 14.
#20. George Miller’s Abandoned Justice League Gets a Doc
BeforeGeorge Millerfinally got to work on the fantasticMad Max: Fury Road, the director was set up to adapt the DC Comics superhero assembly of Justice League. A case was even ready to go withArmie Hammer(Batman),D.J. Cotrona(Superman),Megan Gale(Wonder Woman),Adam Brody(The Flash), andCommon(Green Lantern) as the titular team. Now a new documentary aims to be “an unbiased account of the project’s development, preproduction and cancellation, as well as the impact on the Australian film industry.” Get more details on thedeveloping project over here.
#19. Dwayne Johnson Plays Hard in New Ballers Trailer
The new series premieres on HBO on June 21st.
#18. Interview: Pixar’s Inside Out Director Pete Docter
Russ Fischerinterviews directorPete Docterabout how Pixar has advanced in animation, the influence of his daughter on the story ofInside Out, and getting in touch with the emotions of the summer release.Check out the full interview right here.
#17. Teen Sexuality Explored in Diary of a Teenage Girl Trailer
The movie hits theaters on August 7th.
#16. Page 2: When Did Everyone Stop Enjoying Disaster Movies?
Peter Scirettawonders when everyone stopped enjoying disaster movies, and remembers back when people used to love movies likeIndependence Day. Have people just gotten sick of these kind of movies, or are there just not many that are actually good any more? Read some of Peter’s thoughts and thenadd your own two cents in the discussion.
#15. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Getting Rebooted
When a comic book movie fails, that just means movie studios get to reboot it some years later. And the latest to get a new big screen adaptation will beThe League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, the movie property that sadly sent Sean Connery into retirement. Originally, Fox was hoping to make a TV series out of the comic book, but now it’s a movie again.Get the scoop here.
#14. Robert Rodriguez to Adapt Classic Cartoon Jonny Quest
Since his adaptation ofThe Jetsonsis dead in the water, directorRobert Rodriguezis moving onto another iconic cartoon for the big screen. TheMachetedirector is taking on the action adventureJonny Quest. Find out who will be rewriting the script for Rodriguez and Warner Bros.in our original post.
#13. Germain Lussier Ranks the Narrative Films of Cameron Crowe
In honor ofAloha(or dishonor if you look at therating on Rotten Tomatoes), our own Germain Lussier ranked the narrative films ofCameron Crowe. (Who has also directed several music documentaries.. Personally, I think his Top 3 are in the wrong order, but you’ll have to judge for yourself afterchecking out the list over here.
#12. Jason Segel Aims for an Oscar in The End of the Tour Trailer
The film arrives this summer, on July 31.
#11. Actress Shortlist for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
A shortlist of actresses has been revealed for two different key female roles in theHarry Potterspin-offFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. The actresses in consideration include incredible talents likeSaorise Ronanand mind-blowing, terrible candidates likeKate Upton.Find out who else is in the running for the film right here.
#10. Tilda Swinton to Mentor Doctor Strange for Marvel
Marvel is doing some gender-swapping for a key role in the developing Phase Three filmDoctor Strange. WhileChiwetel Ejiofor,Morgan Freeman,Bill Nighy, andKen Watanabewere previously said to be in consideration for this role, now the producers have set their sights onTilda Swintonfor the role of the Ancient One, a Tibetan mystic who becomes Strange’s mentor. DirectorScott Derricksonalso hinted at another interesting character popping up in the film, butyou’ll have to check out our original post for that tidbit.
#9. Everything We Know About Independence Day 2 So Far
There have been many additions to theIndependence Day 2cast over the past month, including returning cast members likeJeff GoldblumandBrent Spiner, and new cast members likeWilliam FichtnerandLiam Hemsworth. We round up all the casting additions so far as well as what we know about the story.Find out everything you need to know about Independence Day 2 right here.
#8. What Other Disney Characters Need Live-Action Spin-Offs?
Disney is furiously going through their fault to turn animated hits into new live-action favorites. So our ownAngie Hanwent through The House of Mouse’s animated film catalog to figure out what other Disney characters deserve their own live-action spin-off films.UrsulafromThe Little MermaidandNalafromThe Lion Kingmake the cut, but who else needs their own movie? Check out the full list right here.
#7. Stoner Heroes Emerge in American Ultra Trailer
The film hits theaters on August 21.
#6. Bumblebee Might Get His Own Transformers Spin-Off
There’s a rumor going around that the Autobot affectionately known as Bumblebee might get his own spin-off from the Transformers franchise. This wouldn’t be surprising since Paramount wants a whole Transformers universe to come together. You can read more about the rumorin our original story.
#5. Counting Down the Top 15 Best Natural Disaster Movies
WithSan Andreashitting theaters this weekend, our ownEthan Andertondecided to rank theTop 15 Best Natural Disaster Movies. He set some strict rules in order to leave out alien and monster attacks, post-apocalyptic movies where the disaster has already happened, but he broke some of his rules in order to highlight some worthy movies worth including. See if your favorite natural disaster movie made the cut bychecking out the full list over here.
#4. Chris Pine May Be Saved by Wonder Woman
After once beingrumored for the role ofGreen Lanternin the developing DC Comics universe,Chris Pinemay end up with a pivotal role in another DC hero’s movie. Pine is in talks for the role of Steve Trevor, the love interest ofWonder Woman. That likely means he’ll also end up needing saving from the Amazonian hero. Get more details over here.
#3. Andy Serkis' Character Name Revealed in The Force Awakens
We finally have a name for the characterAndy Serkiswill play inStar Wars: The Force Awakens. In addition, a photo of Serkis on the motion-capture set where his performance happened was also officially revealed. So who is Serkis playing? You’ll have tocheck out our original postfor that detail and to see the menacing picture of Serkis on set.
#2. Director Cary Fukunaga Leaves Stephen King’s It
If you were excited about havingTrue DetectivehelmerCary Fukunagatake on Stephen King’sIt, then you’ll probably be mad to hear that he’s left the project. Following creative differences, Fukunaga departed the project last week, and now New Line has pushed back the entire production. To find out what the argument between the studio and Fukunaga was about,check out our full report on the matter.
#1. The Only Law is Gravity in Point Break Remake Trailer
The film opens on Christmas Day.
#0: Disney De-Rezzes Tron 3
Finally, the last big breaking news of the week (hitting after this roundup was published) was the shutdown ofTron 3at Disney. This third film was reportedly set to shoot in Vancouver in October, withJoseph Kosinskireturning as director andGarrett HedlundandOlivia Wildereprising their roles. We only know some info behind the shutdown, but theories point towards the failure ofTomorrowlandas one factor. What we do know, along with info on a couple other actors Disney was pursuing to join the sequel,is all in our full Friday report.
That’s it for theBest Stories of the Week. Stay tuned to see what happens next week!
