First Official Trailer For THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PART 2

Lionsgate has released the first The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 trailer for director Francis Lawrence‘s final installment of the franchise. In the conclusion, Panem has gone to war, and Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and President Snow (Donald Sutherland) have come to their final confrontation.

As this is just a teaser trailer it doesn’t reveal too much, but it’s clear that Francis Lawrence is closing out this franchise with an honest-to-goodness war picture. We see glimpses of the rebels preparing for battle, as well as the descent upon the Capitol and even a look at Gwendoline Christie‘s character, and it all looks fantastic.

Check out the new The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 trailer below. The film also stars Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright, Willow Shields, Sam Claflin, Jena Malone, Stanley Tucci, and Julianne Moore.

With the nation of Panem in a full scale war, Katniss confronts President Snow (Donald Sutherland) in the final showdown. Teamed with a group of her closest friends – including Gale (Liam Hemsworth), Finnick (Sam Claflin), and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) – Katniss goes off on a mission with the unit from District 13 as they risk their lives to stage an assassination attempt on President Snow who has become increasingly obsessed with destroying her.  The mortal traps, enemies, and moral choices that await Katniss will challenge her more than any arena she faced in The Hunger Games.

First Z FOR ZACHARIAH Trailer; Robbie, Pine, & Ejiofor Are Survivors

Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions have released the first Z for Zachariah trailer. The film stars Margot Robbie as a young woman living in a fertile valley that has somehow been spared from nuclear war. One day, she meets a fellow survivor (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and they begin to form a bond, but their relationship is strained when another man (Chris Pine) enters the picture.

While this trailer plays up the love triangle aspect of the story, it does give us a glimpse at what it will be like and what type of theme it is presenting, human frailty. It is also showing the underlying tension between the characters and their situation.

In the wake of a nuclear war, a young woman survives on her own, fearing she may actually be the proverbial last woman on earth, until she discovers the most astonishing sight of her life: another human being. A distraught scientist, he’s nearly been driven mad by radiation exposure and his desperate search for others. A fragile, imperative strand of trust connects them. But when a stranger enters the valley, their precarious bond begins to unravel. Z FOR ZACHARIAH is inspired by the novel of the same name by Robert C. O’Brien, published posthumously in 1974, and was created by Pall Grimsson and adapted for the screen by Nissar Modi (Breaking At The Edge).

Keanu Reeves To Return for JOHN WICK 2!

Lionsgate has officially confirmed today that it plans to produce a sequel to 2014’s critically-acclaimed revenge thriller John Wick. Keanu Reeves will return as Wick along with directors David Leitch and Chad Stahelski and screenwriter, Derek Kolstad. John Wick 2 will be released through Lionsgate’s Summit Entertainment and will be produced by Thunder Road’s Basil Iwanyk, who produced the first film.

“With such tremendous fan and critical support for ‘John Wick,’ we knew that there was still so much more of this story to tell,” says Jason Constantine, President of Acquisitions and Co-Productions. “We are thrilled that Keanu, David and Chad have re-teamed with us and promise to bring audiences even more excitement the second time around.”

Produced on a modest $20 million budget, John Wick earned more than $78 million at the worldwide box office.

“In the follow up to last year’s adrenaline-fueled revenge and redemption thriller,” reads the sequel’s temporarily minimal plot synopsis, “legendary hit man John Wick is back.”

Jason Constantine and Eda Kowan at Lionsgate will oversee the project on behalf of the studio. Lionsgate International will be selling the picture internationally at the upcoming Cannes Film Market.

ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING Trailer Gives Simon Pegg God-Like Power

Lionsgate UK has released the first official trailer for Terry Jones‘ (Life of Brian, Monty Python and the Holy Grail) new sci-fi comedy Absolutely Anything. The film stars Simon Pegg as Neil Clarke, a cynical school teacher who is granted the power to do anything as a part of an alien examination to judge the good and evil in humanity. Clarke uses his abilities in a number of silly and selfish ways including spying on his attractive neighbor (Kate Beckinsale), giving himself ripped abs, and granting his dog the power of speech, voiced by Robin Williams in one of his final roles.

Absolutely Anything reunites Jones with his Monty Python colleagues John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle and Michael Palin for the first time since 1983’s The Meaning of Life. The comedic legends lend their voices to the power-hungry aliens who judge Pegg’s character from space, determined to end the world if Clarke doesn’t fails to use his abilities for the greater good.

Absolutely Anything also stars Rob Riggle, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Eddie Izzard, Joanna Lumley and Robert Bathurst and arrives in U.K. cinemas August 14. There is no U.S. release date currently set.

THE LAST WITCH HUNTER Trailer Released; Vin Diesel Doesn’t Care for Covens

Lionsgate has released the first The Last Witch Hunter trailer online.  Directed by Breck Eisner (The Crazies), the film stars Vin Diesel as Kaldur, an immortal witch hunter who partners with his natural enemy, a female witch (Rose Leslie), to stop the covens of New York City from unleashing a plague on humanity.

Check out the trailer below.  The Last Witch Hunter opens in theaters on October 23rd, and also stars Elijah Wood, Michael Caine, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, and Julie Engelbrecht.

Here’s the official synopsis for The Last Witch Hunter:

The modern world holds many secrets, but the most astounding secret of all is that witches still live amongst us; vicious supernatural creatures intent on unleashing the Black Death upon the world. Armies of witch hunters battled the unnatural enemy across the globe for centuries, including KAULDER, a valiant warrior who managed to slay the all-powerful QUEEN WITCH, decimating her followers in the process. In the moments right before her death, the QUEEN curses KAULDER with her own immortality, forever separating him from his beloved wife and daughter in the afterlife. Today KAULDER is the only one of his kind remaining, and has spent centuries hunting down rogue witches, all the while yearning for his long-lost loved ones. However, unbeknownst to KAULDER, the QUEEN WITCH is resurrected and seeks revenge on her killer causing an epic battle that will determine the survival of the human race.

POWER RANGERS Movie Release Date Delayed

Lionsgate has delayed the release of their upcoming Power Rangers film reboot by several months.

The film will now hit theaters on January 13, 2017, almost half-a-year later than the original release date of July 22, 2016. Lionsgate did not provide a reason for the set-back. But, with little more than a year until the original release date, it’s possible that the studio felt like they didn’t have enough of the movie assembled for a summer 2016 opening. Indeed, no director or cast has been confirmed yet. Only Dean Israelite has been mentioned as a potential director, but he is far from confirmed.

PROJECT ALMANAC’S Dean Israelite In Talks To Direct POWER RANGERS

“Project Almanac” filmmaker Dean Israelite is in negotiations to direct the “Power Rangers” movie for Lionsgate and Saban Brands, TheWrap has learned.

Israelite is an up-and-coming filmmaker who is a huge fan of the franchise and aims to bring a fresh voice to the property. He has been courted for several tentpoles around Hollywood since but he has turned them all down while waiting for the right one.

With the time travel-themed “Project Almanac,” Israelite proved he can get strong results out of a young ensemble and a limited budget for an original sci-fi movie.

First announced in September, “Power Rangers” was written by Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz, whose credits include Marvel’s “Thor” and “X-Men: First Class.”

Source: TheWrap

Trailer For Zombie Drama MAGGIE Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger

Maggie is an upcoming zombie drama which sees Arnold Schwarzenegger play a devoted dad who Midwestern farmer who cares for his teenage daughter as she slowly turns into a cannibalistic zombie.

To me it shows us Aronld Schwarzenegger first dramatic role(look at some of the review snippets) he plays a Midwestern farmer who cares for his teenage daughter (Zombieland and Little Miss Sunshine’s Abigail Breslin) as she slowly transforms into a zombie. Based on the first look at footage below, the movie will be a rather sombre outing, and it’s definitely an intriguing premise.

‘The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2’ Set For IMAX 3D Release

MAX Corporation and Lionsgate, a premier next generation global content leader, today announced that The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, the next installment of the global blockbuster Hunger Games franchise, will be digitally re-mastered into the immersive IMAX® format and released in IMAX® 3D theaters domestically for the film’s November 20th rollout.

Director Francis Lawrence said:

“I’m thrilled Mockingjay – Part 2 will be in IMAX theaters. Fans will now have the chance to see the film in any format they want, which is exciting; we recently saw the 3-D version of Mockingjay – Part 1 before its release in China, and the new level of immersion was really fantastic.”

Greg Foster, Senior Executive Vice President, IMAX Corp. and CEO of IMAX Entertainment added:

“It’s exciting to be back in The Hunger Games world and once again team up with our partners at Lionsgate, director Francis Lawrence and producers Nina Jacobson and Jon Kilik on what we believe will be a thrilling, action-packed finale to this blockbuster franchise. The fan enthusiasm and cultural impact that this series has generated has been truly remarkable and we are thrilled to offer audiences the opportunity to experience the last chapter in IMAX 3D.”

The IMAX® 3D version of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 will be digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® with proprietary IMAX® DMR (Digital Re-mastering) technology. The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX’s customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, create a unique environment that will make audiences feel as if they are in the movie.

The blockbuster Hunger Games franchise has taken audiences by storm around the world, grossing more than $2.2 billion at the global box office, and it was the #1 movie of the year two years in a row domestically. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 now brings the franchise to its powerful fourth chapter in which Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) now fully realizes the stakes are no longer just for survival — they are for the future.

With the nation of Panem in a full scale war, Katniss confronts President Snow (Donald Sutherland) in the final showdown. Teamed with a group of her closest friends – including Gale (Liam Hemsworth), Finnick (Sam Claflin), and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) – Katniss goes off on a mission with the unit from District 13 as they risk their lives to stage an assassination attempt on President Snow who has become increasingly obsessed with destroying her.  The mortal traps, enemies, and moral choices that await Katniss will challenge her more than any arena she faced in The Hunger Games.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 is directed by Francis Lawrence from a screenplay by Peter Craig and Danny Strong and features an acclaimed cast including Academy Award®-winner Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks,Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright, Willow Shields, Sam Claflin, Jena Malone with Stanley Tucci and Donald Sutherland reprising their original roles from The Hunger Games and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. The impressive lineup is joined by The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1co-stars five-time Academy Award®-nominee Julianne Moore, Mahershala Ali, Natalie Dormer, Wes Chatham, Elden Henson and Evan Ross.

Source: IMAX Corporation / Lionsgate

Lionsgate Hopes for a Whole ‘John Wick’ Franchise

The Keanu Reeves action film John Wick could have been a one-and-done affair, but it looks like Mr. Wick will definitely be back again. Earlier this week the film’s writer/directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch said they had ideas for a sequel and . Now, during a studio earnings call, Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer says they envision a John Wick franchise, which suggests multiple sequels, rather than just one.

Variety reports on Feltheimer’s comment. There isn’t much to it, but he’s fairly explicit:

We see ‘John Wick’ as a multiple-title action franchise.

So not just one sequel, but probably multiple additional films, which could also mean that the concept could eventually veer away from having Keanu Reeves as the lead, and into stories that do more to highlight the other violent occupants of Wick’s world.

That said, part of the film’s appeal was that it felt very self-contained. There was obviously an open door left for a potential sequel at the end, but John Wick is a film that feels very complete on its own.

Earlier this week Stahelski said,

We’re in development right now [on a sequel]. We have ideas for days and without blinking twice we know we can outdo the action from the original. It’s the matter of story and how much you like the character. That’s always the most important. If there’s great action but you have a character that no one likes and doesn’t have charisma you’re not going to watch it.

Source: Variety