ABC will air "Black Panther" tonight uninterrupted from 08:00 a.m. to 10:20 p.m., followed by a special tribute to celebrate Boseman's life and career.
Power, strength, gentleness, grace and regal elegance... May you rest in power and peace, long live in Heaven, King.
“Purpose is the essential element of you. It is the reason you are on the planet at this particular time in history. Your very existence is wrapped up in the things you are here to fulfill... The struggles along the way are only meant to shape you for your purpose.”
DC FanDome delivered big time! Major stars and directors showed up, behind-the-scenes and new trailers dropped in, games played (including stars playing games), select fans popped in from around the world, cool fan arts and cosplay displays made round. The transition from one presentation was seamless, hosts were surrounded by colorful, 360-degree digital background and blaring music. Each panel was quick, 10-30 minutes each, but the experience was as immersive as they could have been for a virtual convention… this is how you hold one! The bar has clearly been raised high.
“Wonder Woman 1984” (October 2, 2020) had Linda Carter sneaking in as a fan and surprised the panel, consisting of director Patty Jenkins, stars Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig and Pedro Pascal. The new trailer wowed! It shows Pascal’s villain casting a spell of trouble, promising people they could have anything they ever dream of, progression of Kristen Wiig’s character, transforming from a mild-mannered worker into a hardened challenger and apex predator, Cheetah with full fur and tail. Diana Prince also has her moments with Steve Trevor (although how he’s still alive remains a mystery), nighttime romantic stroll against the backdrop of the Washington Monument, Steve’s fish out-of-water scenes arriving in the 1980s (no, Steve, you can’t just fly stealthily like you did 70 years ago, there’s something called radar now), Wonder Woman donning and releasing the golden winged armor, soaring through skies stricken with lightning, and high-flying and acrobatic battle with Cheetah.
“Flash” (June 3, 2022) came with star Ezra Miller (Barry Allen), director Andy Muschietti and screenwriter Christina Hodson. The movie will be based on the “Flash Point” comic story, the Flash traveling through time and the birth of the multiverse. The fastest man alive will have a new suit, shown in a concept art, built by Ben Affleck's Batman ("Justice League").
Zachary Levy and stars (Asher Angel, Faith Herman, Jack Dylan Grazer, Meagan Good, and Adam Brody) introduced the title of the next installment of “Shazam!” through a colored poster. Comedian Sinbad also joined the panel. The sequel will be titled “Fury of the Gods” (November 22, 2022).
Dwayne Johnson beamed into a hallway among ancient walls, answering questions from fans for “Black Adam” (December 22, 2021), an anti-hero and one of the most powerful characters in the DC Universe. He comes from a 5,000-year imprisonment and does not practice restraint like heroes do, which appealed to Johnson in the first place. He showed graphic arts of his costume. The movie confirms the existence of the Justice Society of America, with Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo, who made a surprised appearance), Hawkman, Doctor Fate and Cyclone in the team.
“The Suicide Squad” (August 6, 2021) brought in an enormous squad. Director James Gunn appeared with Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Idris Elba, John Cena, Nathan Fillion and a host of others. He brought in an explosive sneak peek with some footage and behind-the-scenes. The movie is described to be a 1970 war movie, Gunn’s style with a twisted fantasy of characters; a massive graphic novel brought to life. Gunn described the movie to be different from any other superhero movie ever made and the making it the most exciting journey of his life.
Director Matt Reeves uncloaked “The Batman” (October 1, 2021) with a surprising teaser trailer, dark and brutal, after Robert Pattinson peaked his head in briefly and gave the floor to Reeves. No one could have known that the movie had only been shot 25-30% before the pandemic shut down production. R. Patz’s Batman will not show an origin story of Bruce Wayne turning into the Dark Knight. It will be his second year as Batman, so he’s got the hang on handling criminals in Gotham City, but still learning and making mistakes along the way. Criminals beware; this is one violent vigilante. The trailer also shows a glimpse of Zoe Kravitz’s Catwoman and possibly Colin Farrell’s the Penguin.
The Hall of Heroes ran an impressive eight hours straight, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and then re-run twice, which is smart, as it would capture all time zones globally. The mega event was originally planned as one day on August 22, 2020, but jammed with content, it’s been split into two days. The second and final day will be held on September 12, 2020. It will cover the WatchVerse, KidsVerse, InsiderVerse, FunVerse and YouVerse, which include the rest of the TV shows (except “Flash” with Grant Gustin and cast, which was held on the first day), such as long-running “Legends of Tomorrow,” breakout show “Star Girl” and upcoming “Superman: Lois and Clark” will be held on this day.
With theaters are playing a roulette against opening dates at the mercy of their cities' regulations in consideration of the fights against COVID-19, ""Mulan" and "Tenet" have finally taken a stand. The two major blockbusters-to-be, originally to be released into theaters on March 27 and July 17, 2020 have been postponed a few times.
"Tenet" now has an international release date (or at least in the countries that allow it) on August 26 and U.S. on September 4, 2020. Christopher Nolan, an ardent supporter of theaters, has been steadfast in his refusal to release the movie straight to streaming or video on demand. Which is understandable - "Tenet" is an 'event' movie, meant to be seen on the big screen.
"Mulan," on the same lines with "Tenet," has a more surprising route. With their theme parks business hammered, Disney+ has been thriving. Disney will release "Mulan," also on September 4, 2020 to Disney+ at $29.99. Subscribers, paying $6.99/month subscription will need to fork out this fee. I can't imagine a movie this scale not released into theaters at some point, however.
"The New Mutants" and "Black Widow" remain firmly on their delayed, respective release dates on August 28 and November 6, 2020.
Meanwhile, having been closed for nearly five months, the two largest theater chains have announced reopening plans. Regal Cinemas will be open on August 21, 2020, premiering a new movie, "Unhinged." Safe reopening measures are posted on its website. AMC will be open sometime mid-late August.
On another major announcement, DC Fandome (DC's first and own version of Comic-Con) looks more exciting that Comic-Con @ Home this year. It's stacked with major star power! Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, Robert Pattinson, Ezra Miller, directors Zack Snyder and Patty Jenkins are among those confirmed to attend. The virtual convention is free and will run all day on August 22, 2020.
