Abrams Not Directing Star Trek 3, Details a Hidden Into Darkness Cameo

News has hit the web of J.J.Abrams confirming he won’t be directing the next installment of Star Trek; it is hardly surprising, considering he now has the chance to play in a whole other universe with Star Wars Episode VII. And now that Star Trek‘s characters have been well-established it will be nice to see how someone else runs the rebooted franchise. In an interview with Collider, Abrams had this to say about the direction the Star Trek franchise would be heading without him:

[quote]”It’s a little bittersweet. But, I will say that I’m going to be producing the movie. Whomever it is that directs the film will be someone we all know is going to keep the cast and crew in good hands. I feel very lucky to have been part of it, and it definitely feels like the right time to let someone come in and do their own thing. I certainly don’t want someone to come in and try to do what I would have done. We want to hire someone who’s gonna come in and bring their own sensibility. I’m very excited to see what comes next, despite feeling jealous of whomever that person is.”[/quote]

Moving onto news from Yahoo Movies, it is no secret that fans love finding Easter eggs in their beloved movies. Apparently J.J.Abrams does too: He let slip that Star Trek Into Darkness featured a cameo that may have passed the audience by:

[quote]”R2’s really been in all of the movies I’ve done, really for no other reason than I’m a huge fan, and when I was a kid I realized that R2 was also in ‘Close Encounters. Actually, I’m putting a ‘Star Wars’ character into ‘Star Trek’ as an homage to ‘Close Encounters.’ So there you go.”[/quote]

Below is the scene in question and it’s a doozy [Second image below]. Just for fun there is also a cameo by R2 from the first Star Trek movie [Pictured first below].

 

Incidentally this is not R2D2’s only appearance in other movies. Take a look at the images below to see the little guy popping up in other great films:

Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Photo from http://www.movie-club.net

Transformers. From themovieblog.com

Indiana Jones. Photo from http://www.movie-club.net

More from Indy. Photo from http://www.planetadeaficiones.com

So good news is mixed with bad but the suggestion that a Star Trek character could turn up in the Star Wars universe is certainly intriguing. Jabba’s palace and Mos Eisley cantina seem the most likely of places from the old movies for said character to turn up but who knows? Keep reading Grizzly Bomb for more up to date Star Wars news. Before you go check out Geek Exchange website showing even more of Abrams’s Easter eggs.

SDCC 2013 Rumor Mill: J.J. Abrams May Quit Star Wars?

Here’s some news that may cause massive system shock to Star Wars fans everywhere: Rumors that J.J. Abrams may be contemplating dropping out of Star Wars Episode 7! Dun Dun Dun! It’s pretty much just a rumor floating around the San Diego Comic Con, but still that would be dreadful news from the viewpoint of a geek like me, who thought there would never be another Star Wars movie ever! Then to find out that not only were there more coming, but they weren’t being directed by George Lucas! I love the J.J. Abrams choice for the man in charge simply based off the success of the Star Trek franchise these past 4 years. If he could turn a Star Wars fan like me (who hated Star Trek since first seeing it as a child) into a believer then just imagine what he can do with the galaxy far far away! Check out the rumor from over at IGN below:

 

[box_dark]Badass Digest‘s Devin Faraci claims that while at this past weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con, he kept “hearing tons of rumors that JJ Abrams is on the verge of dropping out of Star Wars”.

Faraci added, “This has been something I’ve heard for a while now, and from multiple insiders. I know that he didn’t want to shoot the movie in England and was overruled, but that happened a while ago. This weekend at Comic Con I continued to hear these whispers. No director for [Star] Trek 3 has been found yet – might Abrams end up coming back after all, leaving Star Wars to someone else? I’m expecting Star Wars news out of the German Star Wars Celebration at the end of the month – if there is some sort of announcement of a title or casting and Abrams isn’t there, start wondering.”[/box_dark]

 

To sort of calm the nerves of Jed-Heads everywhere, Lucasfilm has denied any of these rumors thus far. However much comfort that provides everyone I’m not so sure, because of course they’re not going to admit to any problems with Disney’s newest milking of one of the most profitable franchises ever. Would Abrams departing be the end of Star Wars? No, of course not. Although, they would have been off to a great start to only settle for something mediocre with some of the talent out there nowadays. Here are my three worst case scenarios if J.J. Abrams jets from the project:

1.)    Star Wars, Directed by Brett Ratner

2.)    Star Wars, Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson

3.)    Star Wars, Directed by Stephen Sommers

Please, Disney (and essentially Lucasfilm), spare me any of the above heartbreak or I just may explode into oblivion. I suppose we’ll see in the coming months after the D23 Expo from Disney and the German Star Wars: Celebration if these rumors bear any fruit. Fans are expecting some sort of casting news by the time these geek gatherings occur…. me included.

Terminator and Dumb and Dumber Sequels Are in The Pipe Line But Do We Actually Want Them?

It has been sequel crazy lately with two movies in particular popping up as interesting choices. The one most people will be frothing at the mouth in anticipation for is the Terminator movie that could be in the works. Over at The Wrap they reported that Paramount is trying to get the distribution rights to the franchise. The Terminator trademark is owned by Megan and David Ellison who paid a whopping 20 million to buy it way back in 2011 and have been trying to get Terminator 5 up and running ever since. If you are unfamiliar with these two, they have worked on such projects as Zero Dark Thirty, Star Trek and Mission Impossible. The news that Paramount is showing an interest could mean things are finally coming together.

Then, this news came online from The Arnold Fans about The Terminator himself Arnold Schwarzenegger becoming involved in the movie. Not just involved either, he thinks he will be back to play the role he made famous. In an interview with the website he was quoted as saying:

[quote]“I’m very happy that the studios want me to be in Terminator 5 and to star AS the Terminator, which we start shooting in January and I’m also going to do King Conan – to play that role and also to do another Twins movie. So I feel very proud of that. I feel very happy and I’m looking forward to doing those films.”[/quote]

He seems quite sure of himself that Terminator 5 will have him in the hot seat again (as well as Twins 2 but let’s not get started on that right now). The main problem is that the Ellison’s are on a time frame. The rights switch back to James Cameron in 2019 and though that seems far away now, with casting, production, and advertising seemingly not done yet they really need to pull their fingers out if they want to make a movie before the rights expire.

Then in what can only be described as a shrug your shoulders in dismay news, rumours have surfaced again (via Collider) that the Dumb and Dumber, titled Dumb and Dumber To (no, really that’s how it’s spelled) sequel could still be on as the Farrely brothers search for a new home for their sequel to the hit 1994 comedy. Warner Brothers have passed on it and it seems that Red Granite (Horns) are possibly going to take it on board with them getting the foreign distribution rights. They only have a few movies under their belt though and it makes you wonder if they will have the finance to pull this off. Not much else is known at this stage other than the film will have both Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels reprising their roles and the plot involves a search for Harry’s daughter so they can help with a kidney transplant.

The question that keeps coming up again and again in my mind is “Who Cares?” The Farrelly Brothers have had a bad run of it recently with most of their films getting worse and worse. With films and TV becoming more and more extreme, it seems their cheeky blend of gross out and childish humour is not really needed anymore. It was almost 20 years since Dumb and Dumber was released and with the prequel completely missing the point and entertaining no one I just wonder if there is still an audience for this movie. If there is it has to be a pretty big one to get the Farrelly’s back on top. The original is a fun film and I would rather it stay that way than possibly ruin it with an unnecessary re-launch.

Then we move to Terminator 5 which will have an audience already built in for it. Will fans flock back in their droves to see this new installment even if Arnie is back? Well if we look at the gross from these films I think we get our answer.

Terminator Salvation = $371 million worldwide

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines = $433 million worldwide

Terminator 2: Judgment Day  = $519 million worldwide

It is still making money but it is suffering from the classic case of diminishing returns. They have already tried to go the reboot / prequel route with Salvation and with Christian Bale and a CGI Arnie it still did less than Terminator 3 did. Unfortunately Arnie is not the main draw he once was with The Last Stand under performing at the box office, will his role in this be enough for movie goers to pay out their hard earned cash? And how the heck are they going to make him look like his earlier counterpart because Arnie is showing his age now, he is not the young killer we once saw destroying a police station. Unless this is done on the cheap, I do not see it making back its money. Whether I am right or wrong or whether these films even get made is unclear at the moment, but stay tuned to Grizzly Bomb for more updates as they arrive.

Star Trek Into Darkness: 15 Actors You Might’ve Missed

So with the huge principal cast of Star Trek Into Darkness, it’s easy to overlook some of the smaller roles, but there is some interesting casting here. We thought it was worth noting some of them, see how many you picked out.

Star Trek Into Darkness – 2 AM Text Review

My buddy Aaron is a bartender for a certain movie theater here in Michigan, and on occasion, the theater will have advanced employee screenings for movies prior to the films release. This is his STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS Review as he delivered to my phone Wednesday morning…

Aaron: It’s been 47 years and they still haven’t fixed the grammatical error of, “to boldly go.” What the hell bro?!  – 2:17

Aaron: Anyway, still torturing grammar sticklers with split infinitives is about the only thing wrong with Star Trek: Into Darkness.  – 2:18

Aaron: This was one of my top 3 most anticipated movies of the summer, so I had high expectations. One of my top three already flopped so I was really hopeful  that the USS Enterprise would fair a lot better than Stark Enterprise.  – 2:21

Aaron: 2 hours of amazement. It really looks like the crew knew what made the 2009 Star Trek a success and stuck to the formula. Great visuals, great acting, great script. It’s all there.  – 2:23

Aaron: As a person who has said repeatedly said “3D movies are pointless” finally we get one that is worth a damn. It was a nice touch, but still optional.  – 2:26

Aaron: But I promise you, at one point in the beginning, everyone in the theater will jump in their seats thanks to the 3D.  – 2:27

Aaron: Brand new adventure. No need to see the first to understand the second movie. I think this movie is the 4th in a row with a 0 Boob count (what’s going on here?!?!) but a nice glimpse of a dressed down Alice Eve is a great consolation prize.  – 2:30

Aaron: So go see it. Then go see it. Then go see it again. Whatever rating you gave the first movie, you’ll give the second. So for me, 5 out of 5. That’s an order. Kirk out.  – 2:32

 

 

2013’s Most Anticipated Summer Movies

It’s May and you know what time it is: The Summer Movie season begins! For the last half of my life, I have set out every first week of May (sometimes last week of April) and waited with gleeful anticipation for the first action packed popcorn movie to come out. I would always gather large groups of people in my high school and college days to get together for one giant extravaganza of movie watching. Some movies were great and others were downright terrible (looking at you Spider-Man 3), but it was always big event dating back to when my dad would take me out the first weekend of the season and we’d revel in the events that unfolded on the silver screen. Stars are made in the summer and these movies that myself, Brian, and Amanda went through, should be on the top of your guys’ lists, as well as a few honorable mentions.