Welcome to The Rundown report (as gathered by Taryn Belle) with Nerd Union for May 14th, 2021.
MOVIES
Knives Out 2 has had quite a week of cast announcements! Deadline reports that Kathryn Hahn has been the most recent confirmation … “Hahn is set to join Daniel Craig in the next installment, which Netflix recently landed the rights too. Dave Bautista, Janelle Monáe and Edward Norton were also recently added to the cast. Deadline first reported in March that Netflix was closing a deal north of $400 million for the next two installments, a historic deal for streamers. Johnson is back to write and direct the pic and will produce with his partner Ram Bergman with Craig reprising the role of super sleuth Benoit Blanc.”
Regina King has locked in another directing deal, per Deadline: “Legendary has closed a deal for Regina King to direct and produce the feature adaptation of Bitter Root, the acclaimed Image Comics series created by David F. Walker & Sanford Greene and indie veteran Chuck Brown. King will also produce with Reina King via their Royal Ties banner, alongside Ryan Coogler, Zinzi Coogler and Sev Ohanian of Proximity Media. Walker, Greene, Brown and Drapetomedia’s Sean Owolo will executive produce. Bryan Edward Hill is currently rewriting the draft.”
Jungle Cruise has officially been given a release date for July 30th, according to Deadline. The film will debut both in theaters and through Disney+ Premier. ”Disney+ Premier means that the movie will be available for in-home purchase to Disney+ subscribers for $29.99 in those territories which have the streaming service. Previously, it looked like the Jaume Collet-Serra directed movie was destined strictly for theaters.”
Disney+ is trying something new out for Marvel movies – weekly watch parties. The Direct reports that: “Each Wednesday, fans are encouraged to watch a specific MCU film featuring the God of Mischief and Tweet along using #LokiWednesday. Here’s a look at the ‘Loki Wednesdays’ Schedule:”
SHOWS & SERIES
The newest poster for Disney+’s Loki features the main cast. According to IGN, the poster “features the God of Mischief front and center. He is surrounded by several of the series characters including a mysterious cartoon clock… The animated anthropomorphic clock appears at the side of the image, overlaying a larger clock-like face that hints at the multiple realities expected to be present in the show. It’s unclear what role the clock will have to play in the series, though it’s plausible that it could be a mascot for the Time Variance Authority, supporting Owen Wilson’s Mobius M. Mobius (also pictured).”
EW has announced that Nickelodeon is kicking off two new podcasts in honor of their most popular series: Avatar: The Last Airbender and SpongeBob SquarePants. “ViacomCBS’ presentation at the IAB Podcast Upfront announced that Nickelodeon is teaming up with iHeart Radio …. Both podcasts will be based around rewatching the shows episode by episode, though their hosts will bring two different perspectives. SpongeBob BingePants will be hosted by superfans Frankie Grande (Henry Danger) and Hector Navarro (Geek & Sundry), while Avatar: Braving the Elements will be hosted by two of that franchise’s voice actors: Dante Basco, who played Zuko on A:TLA, and Janet Varney, who voiced Aang’s successor Avatar on The Legend of Korra.’”
ACTORS
LeVar Burton is being excellent as always; Deadline reports that the new show Tom Swift, a spin-off from a backdoor pilot in the CW’s Nancy Drew, will feature Burton’s voice as “Barclay, Tom Swift’s (Tian Richards) steadfast AI companion and tough-love mentor…Created by the young genius when Tom was eight years old, Barclay has been by his side ever since — nimbly transferring himself to Tom’s smartwatch, his tablet, his laptop and even the screens of his car to offer astute encouragement and lightning-fast analysis. He’s Tom’s Hype Man, Tom’s confidante, and Tom’s friend — with a surprising depth of emotion and a journey of his own to take.”
Additionally, LeVar Burton recently spoke with EW about his new book club: “The LeVar Burton Book Club launches… via the ‘social reading app’ Fable, with selections handpicked by the actor. To start off, he’s chosen three books that ‘represent how my identity as a reader has been shaped,’ he says: James Baldwin’s semi-autobiographical novel Go Tell It on the Mountain, Octavia Butler’s modern sci-fi classic Parable of the Sower, and the essay and poetry collection The Fire This Time, edited by Jesmyn Ward. (Baldwin’s book will serve as the first month’s pick, with three new titles being revealed every three months.)”
GAMING
D&D Beyond is offering pre-orders for Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft through May 18th. The special included additional bonuses: “9 terrifying character sheet backdrops … 8 sinister themes …8 dread portrait frames” ~ sounds delightfully dreadful!
PLATFORMS
Spotify has locked in an exclusive deal with Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast according to The Verge: “All past and future episodes will be available exclusively on Spotify starting July 1st. Along with the exclusive distribution rights to Armchair Expert, Spotify is also signing a first look deal with Armchair Umbrella Network, meaning it gets first dibs on any other shows the network creates. The show will be exclusively licensed to the company for an undisclosed number of years. The terms of the deal were not shared, but the program will move over to Megaphone, a Spotify company, for hosting, and Spotify will handle ad sales in-house”
Discord just celebrated their 6th birthday by revealing an update to their logo, reflecting their expanded user platform, stating: “When we say our new palette is inspired by using Discord on the day-to-day, that doesn’t mean these colors are strictly for our website or blog. When you open up Discord next time, things might feel a bit brighter. We’ve got our logos and colors, along with some new typography and art on the login and registration pages. Once you’re logged in, the changes will be more subtle. New Clyde will be welcoming you on the top-left, just as he always has, and all the colors will be just a bit bolder… Around all our websites and social profiles, you’ll see a new phrase: Imagine a Place… our new mantra that brings to life the fact that Discord means so many different things to so many people around the world.”
THEME PARKS
Japan is the motherland of Godzilla and soon they will be getting a theme park with a dedicated Godzilla ride, according to ScreenRant: “Godzilla is getting a new ride in Japan soon, putting visitors in the middle of a battle against King Ghidorah … When the Seibuen (SAY-boo-en) Amusement Park in Japan reopens on May 19, a Godzilla ride awaits. A trailer for the attraction was recently released (via Godzilla The King), revealing visitors will be treated to a confrontation between Godzilla and his three-headed nemesis.”
MUSEUMS
ComicBook.com reports that the Smithsonian has a new Star Wars exhibit within the National Air and Space Museum, which includes a X-Wing! The “Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar has welcomed an X-Wing courtesy of Lucasfilm. The Star Wars piece is being restored by professionals at the Restoration Hangar, and it plans to join the National Air and Space Museum late next year. According to the report, the X-Wing will be put in the Albert Einstein Planetarium right on the National Mall. The craft in question was used in an actual Star Wars movie …”
CONS
Speaking of Star Wars, StarWars.com has moved up the date for Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 2022! Originally slated for August 18-21, but have now been slated for May 26-29, 2022. For fans who have already purchased tickets on the original dates, “If a ticket holder wishes to request a refund for their 2022 ticket order, they can do so by visiting StarWarsCelebration.com. Ticket refunds requests must be submitted before June 11, 2021. All ticket holders will receive an email with detailed instructions on how to submit a refund request, if they choose to do so.”
Remember to subscribe to Nerd Union’s Twitch, Facebook, or YouTube channels for our live shows, news updates, and our upcoming videos series on movies, games, and more nerd content.
Special shout out to our Nerd Union Patreon supporters, we appreciate your monthly contributions, which helps us put out content like this:
Doug Schumann
Vi Che
Shelby Johnson
Nelle Cherry
About Author
