Chris Pratt Confirms He'll Be Joining Bryce Dallas Howard And Ty Simpkins In Colin Trevorrow's 'Jurassic World'

It's times like this that make it truly great to be a movie blogger (Or movie blog reader). Not only is there the sheer excitement of being able to report on the developments of the upcoming sequels to classic movies such as Star Wars: Episode VII, Independence Day 2, Terminator: Genesis, and the upcoming Jurassic World, but we're also seeing the next generation of movie stars shaped right before our eyes. And Guardians of the Galaxy leading man Chris Pratt is one of those very rising talents that's going to make it big in the next couple of years, especially now that he's confirmed that he's signed on as the lead in Jurassic World.

Rumors of Pratt's first emerged after The Wrap brought word that Josh Brolin (Oldboy), who was originally tapped to play the lead role in the film, had dropped out. The site had reported that director Colin Trevorrow was considering Pratt to take over as the character originally intended for Brolin, a role which is being described as a "rugged ex-military dude". It's still unknown why Brolin dropped out of the part, but it's interesting that the studio elected to go with the ten years younger Pratt for the part, which may or may not be a romantic love interest for Bryce Dallas Howard's (The Help) character.
During a press junket for his upcoming film The Lego Movie, Pratt had the following to say about his upcoming role in Jurassic World: “For me, Jurassic Park was really kind of my Star Wars. I lined up at the theatre to see it, I saw it opening night, I saw every sequel, I’ve seen it a whole bunch of times… for me that was my big movie, I think I was 13 or 14 when it came out. And so it’s a big deal for me to be any part of that, let alone this part I’m going to be playing. I’m thrilled about it.” So if anything, it sounds as if Pratt really is a big fan of this franchise, and apparently even it's lackluster sequels.
Pratt joins the aforementioned Bryce Dallas Howard, as well as child star Ty Simpkins (Iron Man 3) as the film's only official cast members as of yet. There's been many names tossed around including that of Nick Robinson (Kings of Summer) as the brother of Simpkin's character, as well as Trevorrow's past collaborator Jake Johnson (Safety Not Guaranteed), and most recently Jason Schwartzman (Inglorious Basterds). The Wrap had also mentioned that Life of Pi and Slumdog Millionaire star Irrfan Khan had been up for a part in the movie, although there still has yet to be confirmation of this from the studio or Khan himself.
So what do you think of Chris Pratt joining Jurassic World? Would you have preferred Josh Brolin in the part? Let us know below!

Marvel Moves Up Edgar Wright's 'Ant-Man' To Former 'Batman Vs. Superman' Release Date Of July 17, 2015

July 17th, 2015 was going to be a monumental day for DC when their two money making power houses were set to collide on the big screen in Batman Vs. Superman, yet they had a change of plans. But Warner Bros. made the surprising announcement last week that the film would be delayed, and not by a few months, but for an entire year.  As if given a sign from the heavens, Marvel has seized the opportunity in order to capitalize on their release for the summer of 2015 by moving one of their biggest gambles, Ant-Man, up a few dates to take the old Batman Vs. Superman date.

For the time being, Marvel is heading into its prime, with nobody to stop it in terms of comic book movies coming out in the upcoming year. It isn't until the year 2016, when DC is going to release the sequel to their film Man of Steel, which in total is about three years. Marvel released their Avengers film in the year 2012 and next year 2015 The Avengers: Age of Ultron is due to come out, yet why does the wait not seem as long? Because Marvel has individual films coming out within months of one another. Yet, despite how bad things seem to be, DC is planning to reign during the later years-well nobody knows exactly when-but with films such as Batman Vs. Superman, Justice League, and a newly announced independent Wonder Woman solo film, it will be interesting to see what happens in the years to come.
While movie goer and fans alike were skeptical when Ant-Man release date had first been moved from November to July, it seems Marvel really does have a lot of confidence in selling the film as a summer blockbuster, which if anything is quite reassuring. Being that Ant-Man has cast fan favorite Paul Rudd (Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues) as Scott Lang, and power house Michael Douglas (Behind the Candelabra) as former Ant-Man Hank Pym (Which has stirred up it's fair share of controversy among comic book fans), as well as the possibility of Michael Pena (End of Watch) and Clifton Collins Jr. (Pacific Rim) playing villains in the film, there seems to be a bright future ahead for the upcoming film.
From what we know so far, things seem to be playing out very similarly to the original draft of the script Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish had back in 2006, which included an older Hank Pym mentoring Scott Lang to become the new Ant-Man, and was sort of a spy thriller, a genre Marvel Studios has yet to test with any of their other characters. With the charismatic Rudd as the film's lead, and Douglas is a supporting role, many signs are pointing to this film being the studio's Iron Man, as in taking a non-a-list superhero and turning him into a character audiences will be begging to see join The Avengers line-up in the near future.
So what do you think about Marvel moving on up into the old Batman Vs. Superman date? Is it risky, groovy, or could you care less? Let us know below!

Warner Bros. Announces Zack Snyder's 'Batman Vs. Superman' Film Will Be Delayed Until May 2016

To add insult to injury, the 2015 release date for Batman Vs. Superman (Supposed title) is being snubbed back, all the way to May 6, 2016. Previously said to be taking place during summer of 2015, up against Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron, DC's Man of Steel sequel involving a battle between the Caped Crusader and the Man of Steel is now being shoved back, almost a full ten months to May 2016. In place of the film, as announced by Feldman, the Peter Pan adaption "Pan" will be coming out in summer of 2015.

Fans were initially hoping for a glimpse of the Dark Knight's new suit for the film, along with the rumored Wonder Woman armor to appear, yet with this set back fans will be forced to postpone their celebration for another two years. On a positive aspect, DC does give themselves lead way, with Marvel having heavy hitters such as Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Ant-Man coming out, DC now has some time to regroup and re-establish their vision of developing a Justice League film (Which is suppose to take place directly after Batman Vs. Superman).
Currently the cast has only added new comers Ben Affleck as Batman and Gal Gadot as the first ever screen adaption of Wonder Woman. Due to an extended filming date, now these two individuals have time to work out a little bit more in order to compensate for the extremely demanding roles, not only physically, but mentally as well. Developing more distinct personas that can be defined as Bruce Wayne and Princess Diana will make all the more beneficial for the people.
DC also then has a good range of time to market the Batman Vs. Superman film, being that many fans will begin to choose sides on who would win the brawl between the two. But as of now many fans are some what sorrowful that the epic battle will be pushed back two years, it would be smart of WB/DC to start accumulating their Justice League cast and developing their standalone films. With rumors floating around that Snyder's planning on filming Batman Vs. Superman and the Justice League film back to back (Similar to what Peter Jackson did with the Lord of the Rings films), it's possible Snyder and Goyer needed more time to organize both scripts and casts.
So how do you feel about the decision to move the film's date from a 2015 release to a 2016 release date? Sound off below on how you feel about the change.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Reveals He's Met With Warner Bros. For A Future DC Role, But Who Is He Playing?

With the announcement that Gal Gadot will be playing Zack Snyder's Wonder Woman in the upcoming Batman Vs. Superman film, and Vin Diesel confirming his role as Groot in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, it seems many stars of the Fast and Furious roles have been landing comic book movie roles. Well now you can add Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to the growing list, as the actor's now confirmed via his Twitter that he has in fact met with Warner Bros. to discuss a potential role in an upcoming DC film that will apparently be filming this year. But does this mean The Rock will be joining Batman Vs. Superman?

Now of course while it's easy to draw a correlation between Johnson's announcement and the aforementioned Man of Steel sequel that'll begin filming in just a few months, there's still a possibility that he's talking about another property entirely. It's worth noting that DC has recently announced that they'll be releasing some other films in the coming years that will be based on their less well known character and produced on lower budgets. These films will reportedly be godfathered by Man of Steel screenwriter David S. Goyer, and we've already seen DC move forward with these plans with Joseph Gordon-Levitt set to direct and star in an adaption of Sandman, and Matt Damon and Ben Affleck both adapting DC and Vertigo's Sleeper for Warner Bros.
So where does The Rock come to play in all this. Well Johnson's been attached to a film based on the DC character Lobo for quite some time now, which would've been from director Brad Payton who recently directed Johnson in Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. But early last year it was reported that Johnson had left the project for unknown reasons, with the film since being put on the back burner. But it's possible that with DC's new set plan for their cinematic universe, Johnson may now be on board once again to play the iconic antihero. But with Johnson's tweet teasing that that production for the DC project he's working on will begin this year, it's possible Johnson could be making an appearance as the Lobo character in Batman Vs. Superman. While the characters inclusion doesn't seem all that likely, given the recent rumors that many other character from the DC universe will be showing up, we wouldn't count it out of the realm of possibility.
Of course if Johnson is in fact being considered for a role in Zack Snyder's team-up film, there's cavalcade of characters that he could be portraying. He could be possibly up for the same role as Game of Throne's Jason Momoa, which was rumored to be that of Superman villains Metallo, Doomsday, or Justice League member Martian Manhunter. But it's also possible (To a much larger stretch) that Johnson could be one of the many actor being considered for the film's primary antagonist; Lex Luthor. We've seen a number of different actors of varying ages and ethinicty rumored for the part including Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Denzel Washington (2 Guns), Idris Elba (Pacific Rim), and Joaquin Phoenix (Her). While it'll definitely be a concept hard to grasp for some people, Johnson could definitely make for a much more physically menacing version of the character than we've ever seen onscreen (If anything).
But surprisingly enough, the recent buzz on the rumor mill has been that Snyder's looking at Johnson to take on the role of John Stewart, the man who becomes Green Lantern after Hal Jordan. While it may be a bit hard to grasp at first, the rumor itself isn't to far fetched considered how awful the original Green Lantern film which featured Jordan (Played by Ryan Reynolds), it's not surprising that Warner Bros. isn't interested in bringing him back, and may be wanting to start on a clean slate with an entirely new Lantern. Just a few weeks ago there was buzz from the site Nuke the Fridge that Washington was being looked at for this specific role as well, but at this point that's all purely speculation. A year ago Johnson had actually dropped a hint via his Twitter that he was interested in the role of John Stewart after a fan asked him how he felt about playing the character, so could that have been an early signal that Johnson was already circling the part? It sure as hell is a possibility.
So how do you feel about Johnson joining the DC cinematic universe? What role would you prefer to see him play?

Marvel Confirms That Paul Rudd Will Be Their Leading Man In Edgar Wright's Upcoming 'Ant-Man' Film

Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, and Thor are usually the first names that come to mind when you think of the current line-up of Marvel heroes on the big screen. But one that isn't very well known to general audiences is original Avengers member Ant-Man, who will be getting his own solo-movie in 2015 directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World)  While Joss Whedon has already confirmed the character won't be making an appearance in the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron, that hasn't stopped the momentum the film's been getting since the first piece of footage leaked, and of course, once casting rumors started making the rounds.

While we went months with no word on who Edgar Wright would be selecting to tackle the lead role of Ant-Man himself, just a few months back many sites were reporting that Paul Rudd (This Is 40) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Don Jon) were the top choices Wright and Marvel were considering. Levitt has since gone agreed to direct, write, and star in DC's upcoming film adaption of the character Sandman, so that basically took him out of the running. Although Rudd himself played dumb when asked whether he was up for the role in and interview for Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (Which isn't exactly uncommon behavior from an actor up for a big role), Marvel themselves has now confirmed through a press release (Which you can read in full here) that Rudd has landed the part.
Wright's Ant-Man film, which is written by Joe Cornish (Attack the Block), has been in development at Marvel since way back in 2006, even before Jon Favreau's first Iron Man film entered production. While the film now finally has a set release date on July 31, 2015, there's been very scarce details revealed about the film and it's plot. Wright once described that the film would move back and forth between the original Ant-Man; Hank Pym, and current Ant-Man; Scott Lang. But Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige has said that film film has undergone rewrites to fit in the current Marvel Cinematic Universe, so it's unknown how much has been changed from Wright and Cornish's original script.
Rudd isn't exactly the first person to come to mind when you think of the Hank Pym version of Ant-Man, especially in comparison to fan favorites such as Adrien Brody (King Kong), Ewan McGregor (Star Wars: Episode III), and Joss Whedon alumni Nathan Fillion (Firefly). Many assumed Rudd would be playing one of the two more comedic version of the Ant-Man character, Scott Lang or Eric O'Grady, as he's much more well known for his comedic roles as seen in the Anchorman films, I Love You Man, This Is 40, and Our Idiot Brother. Personally I think Rudd will be able to bring a good balance between the brainier side of Pym, and the more light hearted side, which are traits perfect for a character that will soon be joining the ranks of Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark, and Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner.
With the lead character now cast, there's still many roles that need to be filled out, specifically that of Pym's love interest Janet Van Dyne, the future 'Wasp'. Although it's still unknown whether the character will be transforming into Wasp in the film, it'll likely be an origin story for both characters. The most recent casting rumor in relation to Janet is that Rudd's I Love You Man costar Rashida Jones (The Muppets) is being eyed for the role. There's still likely many more roles to fill such as the film's villain, which many fans have speculated could be played by Wright's frequent collaborator Simon Pegg (Despite the actors denial when asked about it). There's also the casting of Scott Lang, who at this point may or may not be included in the film, but the most recent rumor has been that Jamie Bell (Snowpiercer) may be up for that part.
So are you happy with Rudd playing Ant-Man? Would you be fine with Rashida Jones playing Wasp and Jamie Bell playing Scott Lang? Sound off below.

First Teaser Trailer For 'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' Hits; Caesar And The Apes Take The Humans To War

Back in 2011, Rupert Wyatt's reboot of the classic Planet of the Apes franchise 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes', proved to be a success and revived the series, and now we have it's successor 'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes'. Taking place ten years post the release of the viral ALZ-113, the human world is at it's knees. Apparently majority of the population began to die off, while the others fought one another and the apes for survival. With Wyatt now being replaced by director Matt Reeves (Cloverfield), and none of the first film's cast returning (With the exception of Andy Serkis), there's been a lot anticipation as the sequel nears it's release. Now we finally get our first look at the film, and the return of Caesar himself. 

Here's the teaser trailer for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes:
This trailer basically shows us very little of any actual footage; a forest destroyed, Commissioner Gordon getting grumpy,  people running from a tank. But the most interesting part of the trailer is actually seeing the apes themselves, Caesar most of all. No longer that happy joyful monkey we once saw playing with James Franco, but now more of a torn war like figure, wearing war paint and leading an army of apes once again into battle. But the question is, battle against who? The humans are at an all time low, and the way the apes are looking, it could possibly be a massive blow out, so could the humans possibly be getting some help from ape allies?
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes definitely has a lot going for it despite it's distance from it's successful predecessor, and it seems much more somber tone that suits the survivor and war focused plot well. While fans may be concerned that the film will suffer from the absence of the first film's impressive cast members such as Franco, Frieda Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire), Tom Felton (Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2) David Oyelowo (Jack Reacher), and John Lithgow (Interstellar), rest assured that the new film has quite the ensemble of it's own. With veteran actor Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight Rises) seemingly playing a key role, and Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty) and Keri Russell (The Americans) as the film's leads, it should enough to keep fans at ease.
Director Matt Reeves has already described the film as a much more personal story for Caesar's character, who will apparently be leading the entire civilization of apes, and will reportedly even have a love interest (Played by Judy Greer) and family in the film. Given that the apes have now evolved into genetically enhanced beings, we can expect them to now have complete dialogue in the film, which is an endeavor that hasn't been attempted on screen since Tim Burton's 2001 film (And we all remember how that went). None the less, Reeves seems to have a good grip on what made the Apes franchise so successful in the first place, and will hopefully give us characters equally as in impressive on both the human and apes side of the spectrum. Below are the all new posters for the film which feature Caesar and other apes who's identities are still unknown:
So what do you think of the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes teaser trailer? Do you think it'll be better or worse than the first film? Sound off below.

Redband And Greenband Trailers For '22 Jump Street' Debut; See Jenko And Schmidt Go Undercover In College

If you would've told me just two years ago that the upcoming 21 Jump Street reboot was going to be a major success, and one of my favorite comedy films of the past few years, I probably would've laughed in your face. But sure enough, it went onto to become a surprise hit among audiences, and proved that the unlikely pairing of Channing Tatum (Magic Mike) and Jonah Hill (This Is The End) was a recipe for success, so who can blame Sony for automatically green-lighting a sequel. Now Jenko and Schmidt are back, and this time they're going undercover in college. Check out the first Redband and Greenband trailers for the film below.

Here's the Redband trailer for 22 Jump Street:
And here's the Greenband trailer:
While the the trailers don't give off too much information about the film's plot, we do see a lot of familiar faces making a return from the first movie. Dave Franco (Now You See Me) and Rob Riggle (The Internship) who were both the antagonists of the last film make an appearance at the end of the trailer, although it's unknown whether this is just a cameo or if they'll actually play a large role. Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation) once again returns in his smaller role as Deputy Chief Hardy, and of course Ice Cube (Ride Along) is back as the hilariously foul-mouthed Captain Dickson, and it seems he'll be getting more involved with the action this time around.
The film seems to be following a similar plot line to the first film, with the main difference of course being the setting, but this may leave some fans concerned. As we've seen through The Hangover series, one of the main problems with sequels to such successful comedies is the filmmakers playing it safe and making the follow-ups nearly identical story wise to their predecessors. While the old "don't fix it unless it's broken" saying may apply to many things, sequel in a comedy genre isn't necessarily one them. None the less, judge by the recent synopsis the studio released, it seems that this time around Tatum's Jenko may be the one finding love and getting in with the popular crowd, where as it worked vice versa in the previous film.
And here's the official synopsis for the film released by Sony: 'Officers Schmidt (Hill) and Jenko (Tatum) go deep undercover at a local college to crack a crime ring within a fraternity. But when Jenko meets a kindred spirit on the football team and Schmidt infiltrates the bohemian art major scene, they begin to question their partnership. In addition to cracking the case, the two freshmen must figure out if they can have a mature relationship like real men.'
So what did you think of the trailers for 22 Jump Street? Are you worried that the sequel may be to similar to the first? Sound off below.