How Female Fans Made ‘Star Wars’ Their Own


The premiere of “Rogue One,” the first stand-alone “Star Wars” film, is six weeks away, and fans have gathered online to speculate about what treasures the film will hold. What’s the deal with the set photo of a shaggy alien that looks a little like a robo-sasquatch? What are the chances that all the rebel heroes will survive to the end? Is Darth Vader going to murder any of them personally? Oh, and how is this movie going to treat women?
“Rogue One” stars Felicity Jones as Jyn Erso, the newest bold “Star Wars” brunette, and the conventional wisdom is that her very existence confirms the franchise’s recently enlightened embrace of strong female characters. But a vocal group of die-hard female “Star Wars” fans is asking for more. Online, they form a rich community of women who come together to bond over their “Star Wars” obsession, cast a critical eye on the role of women in the films and embrace minor characters overlooked by the fandom at large. In doing so, they’ve created for themselves what the films still don’t quite deliver — a “Star Wars” universe that revolves around women.


In “Rogue One,” Jyn will lead an all-male crew of rebels. In trailers and teasers, the emotional heart of the film appears to be Jyn and her father, and her central conflict lies with a crew of male villains (among them: Darth Vader). Rey, the scrappy heroine in last year’s “The Force Awakens,” and Leia, the tough princess of the original trilogy, were also surrounded by men. So on “Scavenger’s Hoard,” a new “Star Wars” podcast hosted by two female fans, Rachael — who goes only by her first name online — noted that the films have created “these entire worlds populated almost exclusively by men,” so even when a female protagonist is added to the mix, there remains an “absence of any meaningful relationships between women.”
On Twitter, Johnamarie Macias, the proprietor of the popular “Star Wars” site “The Wookiee Gunner,” lamented that the franchise remained stuck on its daddy issues instead of exploring a mother-daughter dynamic. “Super happy that Jyn is the lead,” she wrote, but added: “Why does the father have to be the scientist? GAH!” And on the podcast “Fangirls Going Rogue,” the three hosts discussed the role of Jyn’s mother with guarded enthusiasm. “Mothers tend to get erased, or they’re there to die,” the co-host Tricia Barr said. “Hopefully 

Even a brief glimpse of a female character is enough to send shock waves across the internet. In a “Rogue One” trailer, a black woman in a luminous robe flashed onscreen for perhaps a second. “Who is she? What’s her role going to be like? How did she end up in the rebellion? Is she going to show up in some later media? We need to know!” Lauren Kell, who runs the Tumblr “Women of Star Wars,” said in an interview. “We want all the information about the women of ‘Star Wars,’ no matter how obscure.”
In recent years, a whole world of chatty podcasts, metacriticism, and fan art and fiction has cropped up to satisfy that need. “Fangirls Going Rogue” has done much to elevate the work of female writers and actors at Lucasfilm. It’s part of a podcast sorority that includes “Scavengers Hoard,” “Rebel Grrrl,” “Lattes With Leia” and “Rebels Chat,” on which Ms. Macias and her mother, Maria, discuss the Disney XD animated series “Star Wars Rebels.” On Tumblr, predominantly female fans come together to engage in “shipping” — imagining romantic relationships between characters like Finn and Poe, or Rey and Kylo Ren — and to share fan-created art celebrating their favorite characters. These destinations also have a political bent. Ms. Barr started the site FANGirl Blog to “redirect the tone of the conversation among the fandom aimed at fangirls, which at times had been hostile,” she wrote, and to encourage Lucasfilm to “create more strong female characters.”

Women are conquering the physical “Star Wars” fan landscape, too. Frustrated by the lack of sci-fi-centric fashions at conventions and official outlets, Ashley Eckstein, an actress who voices the character Ahsoka Tano in the animated series “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” and “Star Wars Rebels,” started her own online shop. That shop, Her Universe, now sells a lightsaber-printed skirt and an R2-D2 pendant bracelet, and it also offers a chance for women to connect. The site spotlights a “Fangirl of the Day,” like a lightsaber-wielding first-grader dressed as Rey and a grandmotherrocking an R2-D2 T-shirt and droid-print leggings. Partly thanks to Ms. Eckstein’s deep engagement with fans, her character has become one of the most beloved figures, though Ahsoka Tano never appears on the big screen.
Many such minor “Star Wars” characters have been elevated to greater prominence thanks to their female admirers. On these sites, it’s not all Leia, Leia, Leia and Rey, Rey, Rey. Women may be underrepresented in the “Star Wars” films, but the universe is so vast that female fans have been able to scrape together enough material to work with. Jessika Pava, an Asian female X-wing pilot, has just a few lines in “The Force Awakens,” but on Tumblr, she has become the star of her own stories, where she strikes up a friendship with Poe and pursues a romance with Rey. It seems counterintuitive, but just a glimmer of a female figure can be quite generative for fans, who are then freed to insert their own narratives and analyses that aren’t explored onscreen.

Scroll through Ms. Kell’s Tumblr, and you’ll find what looks like a dynamic, bustling world of female “Star Wars” characters — it’s just that they’re pieced together from different books, series and stories, and then fleshed out by fan art and analysis. In some pieces, white characters are “racelifted” — Rey is drawn as black, or Padmé (the leader played by Natalie Portman in the prequels) as Asian. Women of color are so sidelined in this world that Ms. Kell has seen “an especially fiercely protective love for them” online, she said. “We are willing to just embrace and lift up and celebrate all of the women we can get.”
Speculating about the narrative potential of a black woman who appears in a short section of a trailer may be wishful thinking. But the excitement sends a message to Lucasfilm: Give us these women, and we will love them, celebrate them and buy their action figures, too.
This plethora of female-friendly “Star Wars” destinations can be fun for men, too, who can find perspectives and analyses that are often overlooked on male-dominated mainstream fan sites. The hosts of “Fangirls Going Rogue” estimate that their listenership is equally split between men and women, and Amanda Ward of “Rebel Grrrl” said her podcast was particularly popular among fathers looking to connect with their daughters over the series 
But not every male “Star Wars” fan is excited about this turn. Sites like the Jedi Council Forums, a bustling message board on TheForce.net, can sometimes marginalize contributions from women. “On the boards, there’s real scorn showed toward shipping as a phenomenon,” said Rachael of “Scavenger’s Hoard.”

In her experience on forums, Ms. Barr said, “a lot of women were called outsiders if we had a different opinion from the mainstream.” Even when most men are welcoming, she said, “all you need is one persistent person to make your experience really bad.”
Even officially sanctioned sites have felt off-putting to some. Ms. Kell followed Lucasfilm’s “Star Wars” Tumblr when it started in 2013 but was soon turned off by a masculine bias in its focus and imagery. As she put it: “How many times do you really need to post pictures of overly sexualized droids?” And on mainstream sites like Twitter, women are often belittled by male fans who can’t abide feminist theorizing. When Ms. Macias tweeted asking for more mother-daughter relationships in “Star Wars,” a fellow fan tweeted back: “two straight Star Wars movies with female hero leads. I don’t understand the complaint.”
The dominant cultural image of a “Star Wars” fan may be a lightsaber-wielding fanboy, but women have always been essential creators in the fan universe. They started early fan clubs and mailed out fanzines like Skywalker and Moonbeam, packed with fiction, essays and art. In 1982, Pat Nussman published an essay in the zine Alderaan that described a female fandom so rich and vast that she was prompted to ask, “Where are the men?” She continued, “Male names are rare in columns or fanzine order lists, male faces scarce at media conventions, and the number of men writing or drawing or editing in media fandom so minimal as to be practically nonexistent.”

Female fans had an early internet presence, too. In 1995, a Star Wars Ladies Night was held in an America Online chat room every Tuesday. And in 1997, the GeoCities site the Women of Star Wars promoted discussion of “the female characters we know and love (or hate as the case may be).” Other early outposts include Star Wars Chicks, a site “created in response to the argument that ‘Star Wars is for boys!’” and Club Jade, dedicated to celebrating Mara Jade, a character in the comic books and novels.

The difference now is that these female fans seem to have a more direct line to Lucasfilm and a real chance at reshaping the official “Star Wars” universe into one that looks more like their online one. In the aftermath of “The Force Awakens,” which drew a lot of new and enlightened followers, male and female, “the fabric of ‘Star Wars’ fandom has blown apart on the hinges,” Rachael said.

That shock to the system has made women more central and necessary to the “Star Wars” internet than ever before — not just one woman, not just a little niche of them, but a whole world of them. They’re waiting for the films to catch up.

Suicide Squad Helps Time Warner Beat Earnings Expectations

The DC Extended Universe may still be looking for its first critical hit, but the franchise has done very well commercially. This year, both Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad grossed high numbers, with the latter being a rare bright spot at the summer box office. Opening to record figures in August, David Ayer’s villain/anti-hero team-up scored an impressive $745.2 million globally. In terms of the domestic charts, the film currently ranks as the eighth-highest earning movie of 2016 with $324.7 million. It ended its run as one of the most profitable films of the season, potentially launching a new series starring the colorful collection of characters.

Many were pleased by the film’s performance, including (obviously) distributor Warner Bros., who were very confident in the project’s ability to strike a chord. They had a lot riding on Suicide Squad, and its success brought in a lot of money for WB’s parent company Time Warner. In fact, the corporation’s projected earnings for the fiscal quarter were actually surpassed, with the DCEU deserving part of the credit.

In a report from Variety, it’s stated that for the three-month period that ended in September, revenues rose to $7.2 billion, operating costs increased to $2 billion, and earnings-per-share went to $1.87. Estimates originally indicated that revenue would be a shade under $7 billion, with earnings of $1.37 per share. The film slate had a large role to play in this development, as the period saw $3.4 billion in ticket sales. Suicide Squad was the top gun, but the biopic Sully also grossed more than expected. Though this will likely change soon, director Clint Eastwood’s latest is the only movie this fall to make more than $100 million in America.
There were other factors that contributed to Time Warner’s increased revenues (such as coverage of the presidential election and HBO), however, WB’s output will be key for the company moving forward. As Variety states, the studio had troubles lately due to lucrative cash cows like The Hobbit trilogy and the Harry Potter series coming to an end. They seem to have found a stable franchise that can fill the void; comic book movies are in vogue right now, and there’s much excitement surrounding the Wonder Woman solo movie, Justice League, and Ben Affleck’s The Batman. The DCEU may have some kinks to work outstill, but it’s clear there’s a sizable audience for the property. Combine that with the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, WB is in great shape for the future.
Shortly after Batman V Superman premiered, it was said that WB was going to retool their business strategy to focus more on their established properties, limiting the number of original movies they green light. Being more selective about what gets approved could be beneficial for the studio, since fewer films means a greater chance of turning an overall profit. If that’s the case then there’s no reason why this little hot streak can’t continue into the next decade and put Time Warner back on top.

Beauty and the Beast: Emma Watson Reveals Belle’s New Backstory

Disney is doing incredibly well at the moment, reinventing some of their biggest characters and stories for audiences who want to see them in live-action. Beauty and the Beast is the latest upcoming Disney release being brought to fans in exactly that way, with the company giving everybody their first glimpse at the movie earlier today through a brand new set of first look photos.
Now, EW is offering even more insight into what could be the biggest movie of 2017, with actress Emma Watson teasing some brand new information about the character she’ll be playing; Belle. Explaining that she and the creators behind this new adaptation have been given the chance to expand on the story that everybody knows so well, Watson said:


“In the animated movie, it’s her father who is the inventor, and we actually co-opted that for Belle. I was like, ‘Well, there was never very much information or detail at the beginning of the story as to why Belle didn’t fit in, other than she liked books. Also what is she doing with her time?’ So, we created a backstory for her, which was that she had invented a kind of washing machine, so that, instead of doing laundry, she could sit and use that time to read instead. So, yeah, we made Belle an inventor.”

The news that Belle will be taking up this new occupation may come as a shock, but it’s one that was hinted at when an image showing the character with her father Maurice (Kevin Kline) featured the pair behind a work table covered in music boxes. In this new Bill Condon-directed movie, Maurice will simply be a music box maker, with his job also playing deeply into the story and adding in yet another layer to Belle. Set decorator Katie Spencer explained:
“Kevin Kline as Maurice, is making all these music boxes that have to tell the story of Belle not traveling. She’s overprotected in a way, by her father, because she’s lost her mother. So, we’ve made all these music boxes that represent different countries of the world, so she can see what she’s missing.”
With Beauty and the Beast being such a firm fan-favorite with Disney addicts across the globe, however, this news could come as a punch to the gut. There are many purists who will want to see the story adapted from the 1991 original release with extreme precision, so with Belle gaining a whole new story we could be seeing a lot of disgruntled reactions.
Hopefully though, those fans will be able to take off their blinkers and see the move as a bold and brave one, bringing the story into the modern world despite any pleas that may have begged for the contrary. Disney has in the past been the subject of criticism because of the lack of depth given to their female characters, especially in the earlier movies they released. Now it looks like they’re taking a huge step in the right direction, adding further dimensions to already-established characters in a bid to appease those very complaints.

How Kylo Ren May Become More Like Darth Vader In Star Wars: Episode VIII



In case stabbing Han Solo and letting him fall into a reactor in Star Wars: The Force Awakens wasn't clear enough for you, Kylo Ren doesn't care for his living relatives. The man once known as Ben Solo has turned his back on his former life and dedicated himself to the Dark Side of the Force. By doing this, he has also grown obsessed with his grandfather, Darth Vader. It sounds like Kylo Ren's passion for the long-deceased Sith Lord will only grow stronger in Star Wars: Episode VIII, as he's reportedly taken one of his grandpa's fashion choices for himself.
The folks over at Making Star Wars have provided details on Kylo Ren's new costume for Star Wars: Episode VIII. While his intimidating mask mostly looks the same, this time around his robes will look more like what Luke Skywalker wore in Return of the Jedi. His biggest wardrobe change, however, will be a cape that is said to be just like the one Darth Vader proudly displayed, minus the chain clasps. It's unclear whether Kylo Ren's cape is a replica or if he actually found one of Vader's old capes tucked away in a closet, but now the Knight of Ren has apparently gone one step further towards showing his admiration for Vader.
While the exact circumstances of how Ben Solo learned his grandfather was Darth Vader haven't been revealed yet, Kylo Ren has since looked up to the breathing-impaired cyborg as a role model. He's so enthralled with Vader that he was seen talking to the Sith Lord's burnt helmet in his private chamber in The Force Awakens, commenting on how he aims to finish what he started decades ago. It also remains unclear whether he knows that Anakin Skywalker redeemed himself before dying, though we'd like to think that Luke Skywalker passed along that information to sway him from becoming evil. Whatever the case, Kylo Ren is now one of the First Order's top commanders, and he won't let anyone get in the way of him living up to Vader's legacy. Dressing similarly to him is an added bonus.
When we last left Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, he was worse for wear thanks to a well-aimed blaster bolt from Chewbacca and a few other injuries. Although he escaped Starkiller Base before it exploded, he was unsuccessful in seizing Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber from Rey, which he believed was his inheritance. Disney and Lucasfilm are keeping Star Wars: Episode VIII plot details closely guarded, but at the very least, we'll see Kylo Ren continue his training under Supreme Leader Snoke and lead the First Order in their continuing efforts to bring the New Republic and Resistance to their knees.
Kylo Ren will wreak more havoc when Star Wars: Episode VIII is released on December 15, 2017.

New Doctor Strange Image Gives Marvel Fans Great Look At Baron Mordo, Benedict Cumberbatch

"These dudes," indeed! With Scott Derrickson’s Doctor Strange setting up shop in New York City to film some very public scenes, photos of Benedict Cumberbatch and Chiwetel Ejiofor in full costume as Stephen Strange and Baron Karl Amadeus Mordo started to surface. Rather than run from them, Derrickson embraced the frenzy with this amazing picture :_

Previously, Marvel had shared official photos of Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Stephen Strange, a brilliant surgeon whose hands are irreparably damaged in a devastating car accident. Instead of accepting the loss of his greatest assets, Strange embarks on a journey in search of a healing factor, opening his mind to the mystic arts. While we previously understood that Strange was going to look like this:



But this new image, shared by Scott Derrickson, gives Marvel fans the first real look at Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Baron Mordo, another sorcerer whose role in the Doctor Strange film remains mysterious. This photo (and a few others that are floating around online) suggests that Strange and Mordo are working together in these New York City scenes. Marvel Comics readers might wonder about that, as Mordo has often been a villain on the pages of the Doctor Strange stories. Now we have to wonder if that dynamic might shift for Derrickson’s movie.

The costumes, however, are spectacular. Just incredible. Benedict Cumberbatch was a spot-on choice for Strange, and the touches of white in his hair are beautiful accents that ALMOST distract from the cape that he’s rocking in the photo. Simply put, that IS Stephen Strange. Baron Mordo also looks in line with his comic counterpart, and adding Chiwetel Ejiofor to any ensemble makes it that much better.




Doctor Strange is the first solo Marvel Phase Three movie to introduce a new character, after Captain America: Civil War adds Black Panther and Spider-Man to the MCU. And now we’re wondering if there will be some form of Strange footage tied to Civil War - be it a post-credit sequence, or an official trailer attached to the Marvel movie in May. Scott Derrickson has time, and he’s still filming (as you can tell). In the meantime, Marvel is getting fans ready for Doctor Strange as it opens in theaters on November 4.  

Zack Snyder Talks Batman V Superman Ultimate Cut

Today is the day Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice storms theaters across America. Whether you believe the early critical response or the early fan reaction, comic book fan and DC fanatics will be all over this movie. After all, it’s still Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Lex Luthor, among others, in the rumble which kick starts the DC Extended Universe.
Viewers should be prepared for quite the extended viewing experience, though. They’ll be strapped into their seats for two and a half hours of Batmobileheat vision, Wonder Woman’s reduced but impressive powers, plenty of supervillain scheming, and Justice Leaguer primers. Yet, as the saying goes, ‘but wait, there’s more.’
Director Zack Snyder recently discussed his Ultimate “Director’s Cut” of Batman V Superman with Collider. Not just a dirtied up version of the film, his R-rated version (apparently cut before Deadpool made its splash, according to co-producer Deborah Snyder) will run a full half hour longer than the about-to-be-released film. Snyder even says the extended cut will include more characters such as the chopped Jena Malone part. Snyder delves into the meat of his expansive version:
“We call it the Ultimate Cut because to me it’s a deeper dive into that world and there are storylines in there that get fleshed out by the longer version… I would say that we didn’t really take out much of the Superman/Batman story because I felt like, you know that’s kind of the movie, but there was some sort of interstitial stuff that surrounds the story, that kind of finishes some of the ideas that we trimmed back, and I think that’s what you get.”
So what’s missing from the theatrical release versus the director’s cut? Snyder explains a little bit of what devotees that pick up the Blu-ray/DVD will experience. He says:
“There’s a little bit of action, there’s a little bit of violence that we trimmed out for the MPAA that we put back. The Batman warehouse rescue, there’s a couple shots of Doomsday that were too intense. Then there’s a little bit longer ending, sort of the ending sequence, and the opening of the movie, the North Africa sequence is really much different.”
batman v superman wonder woman powers Zack Snyder Talks Batman V Superman Ultimate Cut
Since initial complaints by critics have derided the film for its lack of time given to character development, Snyder feels that his longer, slightly more violent version will spend more time setting the mood, exploring the characters, and extending the falling action as well as the formation of the Justice League. Snyder illustrates upon the differences between the theatrical and director’s cuts by comparing them it to the different formats of his Watchmen movie:
“If you watch Watchmen on TNT or whatever, the TV cut, it’s the movie, it’s in there, if you watch it you’re like, ‘Oh okay, I get it,’ but all the edges get knocked off of it by the nature of putting something that’s kind of that rough on TV. In a weird way, the theatrical cut is a step up from that, and then the director’s cut [of Watchmen] is really where it’s at, in my opinion. With a movie like that where I was in a, I don’t wanna say I was in a battle with the studio but I was probably more headstrong on that movie because the material was so important to me.”
Making a movie on the scale of Batman V Superman, with the searing expectations of fans, critics, and the studio, is a true balancing act. Snyder, an admitted comic book fan, clearly tried to pack as much into the theatrical release as possible. Including everything he and the fans yearn for simply isn’t possible, as Snyder relates, “when you get over two and a half hours the studio starts getting nervous.” Much like with Watchmen, though, Snyder may have used a longer cut as a leverage point. Even if Warner Bros. balked at a long, R-rated theatrical release, announcing more in-depth version after Deadpool’s success was a smart move which likely will ratchet up home entertainment sales.
Aside from post-theatrical sales, though, Warner Bros. decision to proclaim an extended director’s cut before the theatrical release is a curious and slightly foreboding maneuver. Although Snyder doesn’t mention which cut he prefers, hopefully the missing footage doesn’t detract from the overall flow of the story (as some critics have suggested). Time will only tell, though, since opening weekend is upon us. Here’s hoping when Batman meets Superman, the results are nothing but epic.

X-Men: Apocalypse Images Highlight Angel & New X-Men Uniforms

The Age of Apocalypse is approaching, with X-Men: Apocalypse set to hit theaters in May. As comic book movie fans converge on the Internet to debate whether Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice is bad or merely OK, the time has come for the X-Men franchise to ramp up its own marketing push.
With the second trailer for X-Men: Apocalypse having dropped last week and sparking plenty of discussions, Fox now has to keep the momentum going by showing audiences just enough to keep their interest in the movie going but not too much to spoil it. One way to do that is by offering closer looks at the film’s characters, and now fans are getting exactly that.
The May print edition of Empire is set to have not just one, but nine different coversfeaturing the villains of X-Men: Apocalypse, and an additional cover for subscribers as well. To drum up interest in the magazine they’ve posted all the covers online in advance, and now they have posted some of the pictures from inside the magazine as well. See all four images below:

oscar isaac x men apocalypse X Men: Apocalypse Images Highlight Angel & New X Men Uniforms
ben hardy angel x men apocalypse X Men: Apocalypse Images Highlight Angel & New X Men Uniforms
x men apocalypse cast X Men: Apocalypse Images Highlight Angel & New X Men Uniforms
sophie turner kodi smit mcphee x men apocalypse X Men: Apocalypse Images Highlight Angel & New X Men Uniforms
The pictures offer glimpses both new and old from the movie. For instance, the image of Oscar Isaac as Apocalypse laying on a slap and absorbing some sort of blue energy was seen in the last trailer. The picture of a leather-jacketed Angel, however, is a new one. Storm is included in the picture of Xavier’s assembled X-Men team, which raises the question of when exactly in the movie she makes the switch. We know from previous images and footage that Storm starts off on team Apocalypse, but for how long is still unknown. Finally, there is Sophie Turner as Jean Grey and Kodi Smit-McPhee as Nightcrawler, with both actors being new to the roles.
X-Men Apocalypse will have its work cut out for it coming hot on the heels of Captain America: Civil War, which has seen a strong marketing push of its own. With Marvel, Fox, and Warner Bros. duking it out for the hard-earned dollars of comic book movie fans, moviegoers will continue to have an increasing number of options for getting their superhero fix.

Wonder Woman Movie Image & Details Introduce the Amazons

The early reviews for Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice are… well, not great would be putting it mildly. But while critics are roasting Zack Snyder’s $250 million superhero grudge match for its direction, tone, screenplay, acting and even length, at least there seems to be positive consensus among at least one aspect of the film: Wonder Woman steals the show. Gal Gadot’s avenging Amazon may not play an especially large role in the film (more of a special-guest cameo than a co-star), but she does get to participate in its biggest action scene – and even gets her own signature heavy metal guitar riff theme music. Not a bad tease for the solo Wonder Woman movie due to hit theaters June 2017.
The image (courtesy of EW) marks the first look Warner Bros has afforded at any of the film’s Amazon characters outside of Wonder Woman herself, revealing that while the film preserves touches of the DC Universe Amazons’ traditional grounding in the Greek myth on which they’re based, a broader fantasy/action aesthetic has been adopted as well. The armor and weapondesigns in particular bear a strong resemblance to those seen in the Thormovies, but also the prevailing visual-style of many modern video games and comics as well. Exlains producer Charles Roven:
“Themyscira is influenced by the Greek but it’s clearly more then that. It’s a place that has the ‘you’ve never been to’ kind of feel. But once you’re there you’re not so sure you really want to leave so fast.” The first image from the Wonder Woman solo film has now been released. Fittingly enough, it shows Diana in her pre-Wonder Woman days – alongside the team of Amazons who set out to help Diana find her heroic destiny.
The image (courtesy of EW) marks the first look Warner Bros has afforded at any of the film’s Amazon characters outside of Wonder Woman herself, revealing that while the film preserves touches of the DC Universe Amazons’ traditional grounding in the Greek myth on which they’re based, a broader fantasy/action aesthetic has been adopted as well. The armor and weapondesigns in particular bear a strong resemblance to those seen in the Thormovies, but also the prevailing visual-style of many modern video games and comics as well. Exlains producer Charles Roven:
“Themyscira is influenced by the Greek but it’s clearly more then that. It’s a place that has the ‘you’ve never been to’ kind of feel. But once you’re there you’re not so sure you really want to leave so fast.”
This also counts as the first official look at Connie Neilsen, Robin Wright and Lisa Loven Kongsli as the three Amazons who will figure most prominently in Diana’s development: Neilsen plays Hippolyta, Wonder Woman’s mother and Queen of The Amazons, while Wright’s General Antiope and Kongsli’s Lieutenant Menalippe are in charge of her training. In the original versions of the story, The Amazons living on the secret island of Themyscira are the originals of Greek myth; an exclusively-female warrior race who rebelled against their enslavement and subjugation by the armies of Hercules (as in the myth) and established a hidden society away from Man’s World.
In keeping with the character’s conventional comic book origin, Diana is the only child to have been born and raised on Themyscira, while the others are immortals who have existed since the days of ancient Greece. Traditionally, Diana is “born” from her mother forming a baby out of clay and bidding the goddess Aphrodite to imbue it with life, though recent stories in DC’s “New 52″ comic book continuity have imagined her as a daughter of Zeus. It is not clear which variation (if any) will turn up in the finished film.
Sharp-eyed fans, however, will notice that The Amazons are adhering to at least one decidedly old-school comic book trope when it comes to their costuming: their battle-armor comes equipped with plenty of bare skin and high-heels. And while “impractical” costumes for female superheroes are the subject of frequent criticism today, according to the film’s director Patty Jenkins and costume designer Lindy Hemming, the look is intentional – and serves a purpose.
Said Jenkins, who also clarifies that the heels do in fact get swapped for flats for “heavy fighting” sequences in the Wonder Woman film:
“To me, they shouldn’t be dressed in armor like men. It should be different. It should be authentic and real—and appealing to women.”
“It’s total wish-fulfillment. I, as a woman, want Wonder Woman to be hot as hell, fight badass, and look great at the same time—the same way men want Superman to have huge pecs and an impractically big body. That makes them feel like the hero they want to be. And my hero, in my head, has really long legs.”




Can Batman V Superman Top Deadpool At Box Office?

 Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice is finally here. Easily one of the most anticipated films of 2016, the Man of Steel follow-up is seen as the true launching pad for the burgeoning DC Extended Universe. After years of hoping for DC’s collected superheroes to join forces on the big screen, longtime fans are finally getting that wish fulfilled. Warner Bros. has scheduled a full slate of adaptations for release between now and 2020, indicating they are confident in the franchise’s ability to draw in moviegoers.
Announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2013, Zack Snyder’s 


As the first live-action pairing of pop culture icons Batman and Superman, it has always been expected that Dawn of Justice would do well financially. Tracking indicates that it will bring in about $350 million worldwide during its opening weekend, around $150 million of that domestically. Whether it’s fair or not, many moviegoers will be comparing Batman V Superman‘s box office performance to that of the first superhero blockbuster of 2016: Deadpool. Fox’s mid-budget, R-rated, non-3D project rode strong word-of-mouth to the tune of $132.4 million in its first three days, a February record. Some have set that as the benchmark Dawn of Justice must clear to be considered successful, but can it? Let’s break it down.

At first glance, Batman V Superman should have no issues grossing more than $150 million. For more than 70 years, the Dark Knight and the Last Son of Krypton have been at the forefront of the zeitgeist, each one starring in his own set of hit movies. In particular, Batman is a major draw for audiences; Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy made $2.5 billion collectively very recently. Superman isn’t exactly a slouch either, since Man of Steel‘s $668 million global haul was enough to warrant the green light of an entire series set in the world it established. Bringing them together is something that will generate a lot of interest, making this a true cinematic event. Case in point: it’s already surpassed similar genre titles in terms of advanced ticket sales.


Batman V Superman should also receive a healthy boost from its release date, where there is minimal “competition.” Other than the far-too-late sequel My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, no other films are opening wide this weekend. It appears that the industry as a whole is staying away from Snyder’s movie, paving the way for Dawn of Justice to be a monumental hit. With IMAX 3D premiums, a more-inclusive PG-13 rating, and some of the most recognizable superheroes on the planet, odds are Batman V Superman will be able to meet the high (commercial) expectations and perhaps set a new record for an opening weekend in March, currently $152.5 million by the first Hunger Games.
If there’s anything that will cause the film to fall to the lower end of projections, it’s word-of-mouth. In stark contrast from Deadpool, the early reviews for Batman V Superman have been largely negative. It’s true that Man of Steel was able to gross $116.6 million during its first three days with its mixed reaction, but the response this time has arguably been worse. The Superman reboot scored a 56 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and as of this writing, Batman V Superman stands at a paltry 31 percent. Many moviegoers weren’t pleased with Snyder’s darker take on Kal-El, leading them to be skeptical of Dawn of Justice‘s quality; casual viewers left unimpressed by the first film may choose to sit this round out. Despite that, estimates for Batman V Superman remain high. Box Office says it will make $172 million over the weekend, which would be a great start.
As we’ve said, the poor reviews will prevent Dawn of Justice from surpassing the initial projections, a la Deadpoolor Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The chances of it posting $200 million are slim because of the bad buzz. Still, this is a film that has been greatly anticipated by millions of people for years, meaning that in a way it is “critic proof.” No matter what the pundits said, moviegoers were going to turn out en masse to see Batman and Superman share the same frame in a live-action film. There were never any doubts about its potential box office prowess, the debate was always how high could it go. Given that it’s breaking Fandango records and is coming out during a time with few other blockbusters playing, it would be a shock if Batman V Superman did not top Deadpool, even if it was “only” $140 million domestically.
The far more interesting discussion is how well Batman V Superman will hold in the coming weeks, but that’s a talk for another day.
Next week: Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice takes on the competition in its second weekend!

Kategori

Kategori