Whether you’re an avid moviegoer who checks out all of the latest releases at the earliest opportunity, or somebody who prefers to be a little more selective with how they spend their cinema cash, there’s one thing that everybody who enjoys watching films can relate on: the love for checking out all of the freshest rumours from the industry.
That’s why this month, we’re kicking off a regular new series of articles that collects some of the biggest movie rumours we’ve recently seen or heard. It’s important to remember that everything we talk about in these articles are rumours, and cannot be proven to be completely accurate or based in reality. Take everything you read here with a grain of salt.
6. Could Disney be looking to replace Kathleen Kennedy with a new Star Wars head?
Disney CEO Bob Iger is a man forever interested in change. Some of the latest mutterings from Beyond the Trailer’s Grace Randolph suggest that he’s now interested in bringing in somebody to replace Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, who has been at the head of the company since George Lucas sold to Disney, and in doing so, will be allowing a new face to head up the Star Wars franchise as a whole. What Randolph suggests however, is that Iger is actually really struggling to find someone willing to commit to such a massive role.
J.J. Abrams is said to have been offered the position, but allegedly turned it down, along with a whole host of other big names. Iger also reportedly has to deal with a number of staff at Lucasfilm who are loyal to Kennedy, as well as those who wouldn’t mind seeing her gone. It’d be fair to say that, if this rumour holds any weight, the organisation is split right down the middle.
All of this comes after spinoff movie Solo became the first ever Star Wars movie release to actually make a loss. Despite Han Solo being such a fan-favourite character, promising his origins story wasn’t enough to bring in the big bucks at the box office, which is a shame as it’s reported to have forced the studio to put all of their other planned spinoffs on hold.
5. Matt Reeves’ solo Batman flick could be connected to DC’s upcoming Joker origins film
Comic book podcast The Superhero News Show has often been cited as breaking some huge news, and one of the latest things discussed on a recent episode of the show suggests that if the Joaquin Phoenix-led Joker origins film is a success for DC, then the Matt Reeves-directed upcoming movie The Batman will crossover with the movie. This means that neither film would officially be a part of the unofficially-titled DC Extended Universe, and may even serve as the foundations for an entirely new DC Universe within the world of movies.
The rumour comes from Forbes journalist Mark Hughes, who co-hosts the podcast, and whilst he stresses that what he’s heard is simply an idea being thrown around right now, it would certainly make a lot of sense. We already know Ben Affleck won’t be working with Reeves on The Batman, as the movie will follow a much younger version of Bruce Wayne, so why not have it combine with Todd Phillips’ Joker flick?
4. Is Man of Steel 2 on the way?
Another podcast makes an impact, this time with a 50-minute packed episode of the El Fanboy Podcast. Here, Mario-Francisco Robles delves into a whole bunch of DC gossip he says he’s been hearing, even suggesting that Henry Cavill could soon be suiting up as Superman all over again for his second solo Man of Steel adventure. Though nobody expects DC and Warner Bros. to announce a sequel for the film that saw Cavill make his debut, an announcement may actually be right around the corner.
According to Robles, Warner Bros. are trying to bring Cavill on board for their San Diego Comic-Con 2018 panel, and whilst that may just to be to confirm a rumoured cameo appearance in upcoming release Shazam!, it may also be so that he can reveal the plans for Man of Steel 2. Whatever the case may be, there are two weeks to go until SDCC, so we’ll find out very soon!
3. Ewan McGregor may be returning to the Star Wars universe
J.J. Abrams may not be the only person returning to the Star Wars franchise with the upcoming end to the modern-day trilogy, Episode IX. According to The Sun, Ewan McGregor will be making a return as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the film, though his scenes will be done “secretly”.
Their source suggests: “Disney have been mulling over a stand-alone film for Obi-Wan. There have been concerns about getting the story right.” We imagine that, after the loss of money Solo saw upon release, Lucasfilm are more worried than ever before about branching out away from the episodic film series, and so bringing in McGregor for Episode IX could be the perfect middle ground.
2. Dwayne Johnson’s DCEU debut may be delayed
Now, we wouldn’t usually cite a Twitter user as a reliable source for a rumour, but @DanielRPK has been right so often in the past that we have to start taking notice! Last month, he suggested that Dwayne Johnson would no longer be making his debut as Black Adam in the DC Extended Universe in Suicide Squad 2 next year, but would instead be held back for the future.
The character is somewhat of an anti-hero in the DC Universe, and with a solo movie planned, but no official release date or even year of release confirmed, it could be some time before we see Johnson officially become a part of the DCEU.
1. Chris Pine’s reprising his role as the “real” Steve Trevor in Wonder Woman 2
Another one from @DanielRPK here, as he does his best to lay to rest the rumour that Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) would actually be a villainous character somehow disguised in the upcoming Wonder Woman sequel. Despite Trevor allegedly heroically sacrificing himself at the end of the first movie, Daniel suggests Pine will be playing the “real” Steve, which means he somehow made it out of the first flick alive. Patty Jenkins (director of Wonder Woman) has some explaining to do!