First trailer for "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew"

And just like that, after the poster reveal from yesterday, we have our first trailer:

I really have so little skin in the game on this as far as the quality or the box office. I expect it'll make a fair amount of money before it goes to Netflix in April, but with Meryl only having a voice part in this movie, my interest is somewhat muted. That said, I thought the trailer looked pretty good? I happened to notice that the boy character is the actor who played Piggy in the BBC/Netflix production of The Lord of the Flies. He (David McKenna) was excellent in that. 

The special effects are nothing wild. I was wondering if we'd get to hear Meryl as Aslan, but not suprisingly (and maybe shrewdly), they chose to only show a star-silhouetted shape of a lion at the end without letting us hear his spoken voice. Maybe they will in second trailer, or maybe they'll want to get more people to theater to watch it and then complain about it, since Meryl voicing the lion Aslan (who is apparently supposed to be an allegory for Jesus) is like a sign of the apocalypse for some Christians. 

Narnia hits theaters nationwide on February 11, with first screenings on IMAX the day before. 

Poster released for "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew"

A new poster was revealed yesterday for Greta Gerwig's upcoming Narnia movie. Not much to say about it, other than that I like it. Kind of reminds me of fantasy movies from the 80's like The Neverending Story. The film will be released in theaters on February 12.

 

"The Corrections" now reportedly scheduled to start filming in January

The Cinemaholic is reporting that Netflix's limited series of The Corrections is scheduled to begin filming in New York in January of next year. This is two months later than previous reports of November of this year. 

Glad to have news of this, as the more details we get, the more likely I feel that it will actually happen. If the dates are correct from this latest news (Jan 20-July 28, 2027), I think it's very possible that the project won't hit Netflix until 2028. That's six months of filming, and although I have been under the impression that this would be a holiday release (since the thrust of the story is that Meryl's character just wants to get her family back together for "one last Christmas"), that seems like it would be difficult to pull together in the amount of time they'd have available. 

Were it to be a 2028 release, that means we'd have nothing to look forward to seeing Meryl onscreen in throughout all of 2027 (I don't count Narnia because it's voice only)...unless she somehow miraculously films something this fall, which I think is exceedingly unlikely. Hopefully we'll get some casting news sooner than later. 

Still wishing Useful Idiots could have come together. And the Joni Mitchell biopic project has been as quiet as death for months. 

Streep confirmed to voice Aslan in "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew"

Empire is reporting that Meryl has been confirmed as the voice of Aslan in Greta Gerwig's upcoming Netflix film Narnia: The Magician's Nephew. Up until this point, we weren't 100% sure exactly what role (if any) Meryl was playing in the movie. I had been under the strong impression, however, that any participation she  had in this movie would be a voice role. Gerwig, from the Empire article:

“I wanted someone who was profound but not pretentious, who had gravitas but not morose self-seriousness. Someone who could communicate depth and pathos as well as joy and delight. I wanted someone who was older than 70, so there was a wisdom of experience, but who also had the capacity of fresh wonder, like a child. And also to be one of the greatest actors to ever do it. That list is not a long one.”

They also released a cover photo with a close-up of Aslan, the heterochromic eye color apparently a nod to David Bowie:

The movie is set for a theatrical release on February 12 of next year, with a release on Netflix on April 2. 

Jonathan Franzen talks "The Corrections" adaptation

I had to make sure that this was a legit article, but the URL is Netlix.com, so I feel confident it is. Author of The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen, was interviewed and discussed a bit about his involvement in the adaptation of the novel to the screen, which has been picked up by Netflix. The biggest takeaway I had from this is that things seem to be moving forward. And the fact that Franzen is quoted, in reference to Meryl's involvement that, "She was not at the top of the list, she was the only person on the list." 

I'm excited by that fact that Franzen seems to be zeroed in on this story being sort of focused on the motivation of Enid specifically (Meryl's character). It sounds like he's been interested in revisiting this story and set of characters, particularly remarking about Enid, "I wanted to establish sympathy for Enid early and give her more dimensions, more nuance.” 

This makes me excited for the character and of course Meryl's performance. Hopefully we'll get some casting news sooner than later. 

It's a great article. Read it if you have the time, and read the book if you have even more time. 

Streep to lend her voice to "Lincoln in the Bardo"

Sources are reporting that Streep has joined an A-list cast of actors lending their voices to the upcoming live action/stop-motion animation film of Lincoln in the Bardo. Meryl will voice four characters in the film. Colman Domingo, Bill Hader, and Tom Waits have also joined the cast. Tom Hanks will play former U.S. president Abraham Lincoln in the live action portion of the film. From The Hollywood Reporter:

The film employs a unique blend of stop-motion animation and live action to explore one of the most intimate moments of Lincoln’s life, centering on his relationship with his recently deceased eleven-year-old son. Blending history and imagination, the story unfolds through an unforgettable ensemble of characters — living and dead, historical and invented — to explore themes of love, empathy, and the human capacity for connection in the face of unimaginable grief.

The film will be directed by Duke Johnson. George Saunders adapts his best-selling book into the screenplay, examining the death of Lincoln's eleven year-old son, Willie. There was no mention in Hollywood Reporter article on filming dates or any scheduled release. 

Now get me some Corrections casting updates!

Streep, Domingo, Hader

Season 6 of "Only Murders in the Building" set for December 8 release

Sources are reporting that the newest season of Only Murders in the Building will premiere on Hulu on December 8. The story moves across the pond to London this year, with our trio of amateur sleuthers will no doubt encounter fresh treachery to to solve. From Deadline:

...our trio Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) embark on their hardest case yet when the next victim — Cinda Canning — arrives at their doorstep, summoning them to London to catch her killer. Our beloved trio of true crime-solving podcasters must now navigate their way through the home of the cozy murder mystery, replete with a whole new collection of suspicious and particularly English-eccentric characters. But can they follow in the footsteps of the woman whose podcast started it all for them … without having their story end the same as hers?

I've been open about my ambivalence about Meryl's participation in this show at this point. It's felt rather dull for me the last two seasons. But I'm actually kind of interested to see how it looks and plays out in the new U.K. environment, picturing more of a cozy murder mystery, Agatha Christie-style. 

Martin, Short, Gomez