With the success of A Quiet Place: Day One, the future of the series seems promising. especially since there are plans for A Quiet Place, Part Three, though if that sequel actually happens expect the title to change to avoid confusion with A Quiet Place: Day One. Even though A Quiet Place: Day One is the third film in the series it’s actually a prequel to the first film and has little connection to the first two films.
Part of the reason for the success of A Quiet Place: Day One is because it expanded the horrifying world we were introduced to in the first film. We the audience got to see how the worldwide invasion of the blind savage aliens, who are called the death angels, began. While the film was an excellent study about the need for companionship and finding solace in the simple things in life, it still left audiences with many unanswered questions about the alien invaders. We do know they arrived in meteors and their arrival was too abrupt for the authorities to handle before most of humanity was wiped out. We also know from the previous films that ways to defeat the death angels were found and used, which could set up a final confrontation between humanity and the aliens in a future film that concludes the series.
Future films, aside from A Quiet Place, Part Three, should take place in other corners of the world. Having A Quiet Place: Day One take place in New York City was a smart move since the first two films were set in rural communities. Where can other films go? How about a different country? The suburbs? Given that the death angels are vulnerable to water, have a film set in a makeshift community made up of ships filled with survivors and present their plight as they try to get supplies in the ravaged world. How about the perspective of surviving scientists and military trying to devise a means to fight back? That could be the focus of a final film.
But before the series finishes, more explanations about the death angels are warranted. Were they part of an advanced wave meant to wipe out our defenses and soften our world for an actual invasion? Or were they sent to herd humanity for their masters in the same way humans use dogs during hunts? There is evidence for that in that the death angels are never seen eating their victims and as shown in the third film they only ate food that came with them in the meteors. There is so much that needs to be explored with these savage creatures that would captivate audiences and give us some kind of explanation as to their motives. Or maybe they are just uncontrolled animals like the Xenomorphs in the Alien films that have no purpose other than to survive and multiply.
Another appealing aspect with the A Quiet Place films has to do with the characters that we quickly sympathize with, which is vital to get us invested during their dangerous plight. While the focus on the characters must remain in place with the film series, going forward, more development and explorations about the death angels has to be covered. But we don’t have to know everything all at once. We could use a few more terrifying entries like A Quiet Place: Day One before we get our answers. 😀
About five years ago at a Comic-Con appearance, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige eagerly announced that a new film about the vampire hunter Blade would be produced by Marvel Studios to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). What made the announcement even more exciting was that Mahershala Ali would portray Blade, a role made famous by Wesley Snipes. That was then. Now? Nothing. The film keeps getting delayed over and over again to the point that many are asking if the project is cursed.
At the same Comic-Con, several other film and TV projects were announced and they have been produced and released since then. Only Blade remains unrealized; the closest we got to having Blade appear in the MCU was hearing his voice during a post-credits scene in Eternals. There are several reasons why the reboot of the Wesley Snipes film has been delayed, some of it has to do with the pandemic and the recent Hollywood strikes. But the main reason for the delays has to do with the inability to come up with a script and holding onto a director.
Marvel Studios has not been impressed with the scripts. The first one was penned by Stacy Amma Osei-Kuffour in 2021, while Bassam Tariq was chosen to direct the film. Tariq left a year later due to the lack of progress with the film while Marvel Studios brought in other writers to revamp the script. Reports have it that the first script was very light on action, a staple of the Blade films, and supposedly took place in the 1920s. Other writers who took a shot at Blade included Beau DeMayo, who was responsible for the well-received X-Men ’97 animated series, but time and time again Marvel Studios brought more and more screenwriters to turn in a suitable script. Mahershala Ali himself has expressed dissatisfaction with the original script and the pace of the project and it would not be surprising if he winds up leaving the project, even though he approached Marvel Studios with the idea of portraying the vampire hunter.
Meanwhile, Yann Demange, the director who replaced Tariq, left the project a few weeks ago, and no replacement has been announced yet. This is going on as the film is supposedly slated to begin production later this year for a 2025 release. At this rate, it is doubtful the film will meet the deadline or even be made.
Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios recently announced their desire to focus on the quality of their films and TV shows, which is commendable. But the unfortunate result of focusing on quality has been the delay of Blade. This is very frustrating for fans of the character and the original films who wanted to see the MCU take of the Daywalker (as he is called by the vampires he hunts), as well as Ali’s interpretation of the superhero.
It is baffling why Marvel Studios is having a hard time with this project which should be a slum dunk and would have a ready audience for a character with huge name recognition. The Blade films were popular even before the MCU existed and most people were not even aware that the supernatural hero was actually based on a Marvel Comics character. The premise should be fairly simple to produce. Why not just do a remake of the original Blade film Deacon Frost as the villain? The story worked in the first Blade, just throw in some MCU references and call it a day.
The answer to that is that Marvel Studios wants a fresh new take on the character and probably as rumors have it, wants Blade to help launch the Midnight Sons superhero team for the future. This is a great idea, but Marvel Studios has a lot on their plate and it’s anyone’s guess as to when they will get around to it.
Until Marvel Studios decides on a script and hires a solid director (supposedly they are eyeing Jordan Peele or Chad Stahelski who have either shown interest or been approached for Blade), the least they can do is have the character appear in upcoming MCU projects. This would keep fans happy and maybe even Ali, too.
However, the constant delays has become an embarrassment for Marvel Studios. They must settle on a script and director very soon in order to meet the production schedule and release date. Otherwise, Blade is doomed.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the latest entry of the long-running Planet of the Apes franchise. The film is both a continuation of the previous trilogy that came out in the last decade while being a new starting point for a new trilogy that expands the story of the Apes franchise. There will be spoilers for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
For anyone who hasn’t seen any of these films, the world of Planet of the Apes is one where humans have been supplanted by intelligent apes capable of speech, while humanity has become animalistic. The previous trilogy, consisting of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes, served as the origin story for the franchise. The trilogy provided the background for how apes gained human-level intelligence, which came about from efforts to find a cure for Alzheimer’s Disease. The supposed cure, in the form of an artificial retrovirus, instead increased the intelligence of apes. But the retrovirus had the opposite effect on humans. First it spread like wildfire and killed millions of people and caused civilization to collapse. Then the virus mutated and caused the remaining humans to lose their intelligence and the ability to speak, and cemented the apes dominion on Earth.
The main character in the trilogy was Caesar (in a brilliant motion-capture performance by Andy Serkis), who was the first hyper-intelligent ape and the leader of an Ape Rebellion against the humans who tormented his species. Eventually, Caesar tried to live a quiet life as the leader of his ape colony in the forests beyond human civilization, but conflict arose between the two species. By the end of the last Planet of the Apes film, Caesar was able to defeat the humans that enslaved his fellow apes and led them to an oasis to start a new colony, but he died from wounds inflicted during his battle with humans.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes place “many generations” after the death of Caesar and apes have evolved further and multiplied while transforming from a hunter-gatherer society into an agricultural one. Meanwhile, humanity has devolved into mute, animalistic savages, however, Noa (Owen Teague), the lead ape character, meets Mae (Freya Allan), a young human woman who is actually intelligent and able to speak. Eventually it is revealed she comes from a human outpost that is quarantined from the world and located near a satellite base. These humans are still intelligent and by the end of the film have begun efforts to communicate with other humans who have not succumbed to the virus in order to reestablish human civilization. Obviously, this will set up a future conflict between humans and apes if Mae’s settlement is able to jump start civilization.
One of the later elements that made the films in this franchise so compelling was the eternal question of humanity being able to co-exist with another society, which was an obvious, and sadly still an ongoing, allegory to our inability to co-exist with each other. This theme was vaguely hinted at in the second Apes film, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, but was the main focus in the films that followed starting with Escape From the Planet of the Apes. After the violent revolution seen in Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Battle for the Planet of the Apes offered the hope that both species were able to co-exist peacefully, though that was debatable.
In the final moments of that film, which took place hundreds of years in the future, several ape and human children were attending a lecture by an ape teacher, who was narrating the events of the film. Although this ape spoke about the ability of both species living in peace, a young girl and an young ape were seen squabbling with each other, hinting at a future conflict between the two. After this, a statue of the main character in that film (also known as Caesar, this time played by Roddy McDowall) was seen crying. It was left to viewers to ponder if these were tears of joy because the two species at last lived peacefully or if the tears were of sorrow because of a coming conflict between humans and apes.
This idea of trying to live peacefully is touched upon in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes as Noa questions Mae in the final scenes if it is possible to for the two species to share the planet. Mae answers that she does not know, but he doesn’t realize that as she is talking to him, she has a gun ready to shoot him, just in case. Of course, the very notion that she brings a gun with her while coming to Noa’s colony raises the question if she is trustworthy. Throughout the film, she gave little reason to trust her as she lied to Noa and his apes about her true motives from the moment she meets them.
Noa is rightfully suspicious of her and in turn, humanity, but he is willing to work with her during his conflict with Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand), a despotic ape leader from another clan that enslaved his clan. Noa is also more focused on learning and passing knowledge to his people. He learns about Caesar and his peaceful ways as the ape has become a religious leader long after his death. It is implied that Noa will pass on the legend of Caesar to his clan while inspiring them to learn more about the world. This is best illustrated in the final moments when he takes his ape companion Soona (Lydia Peckham) to a decaying observatory and introduces her to the wonders of the universe via an old telescope.
Mae for her part is shown as being worried about Noa and the evolving ape civilization that will prevent humanity from making a comeback. In one scene she silently watches Noa repair a cattle prod that was used by one of Proximus Caesar’s soldiers and is worried at his ability to repair a tool. During the film, she and Noa are captured by Proximus Caesar’s forces and is ordered by the ape tyrant to help him open an abandoned vault used by the human military long ago. She is adamant that apes should not have access to old human weapons and technology inside the vault and was willing to let innocent apes die to prevent their access.
During her mission to enter the vault, Mae killed a fellow human, a collaborator called Trevathan (William H. Macy), who threatened to expose her to the apes. Though it was understandable why she was distrustful of the apes and the collaborator, her actions made her untrustworthy and ignoble. On the other hand, her actions are meant to help resurrect human civilization and it is seen through Proximus Caesar that the apes are not much better than humans and full of humanity’s worst traits.
It will be interesting to see where the Apes franchise will go after Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. It is clear that a new trilogy is been set up that will put ape and humanity into conflict once again. There is also a tantalizing hint that space travel will be involved, as Noa is seen being fascinated by space and images of astronauts. As wild as it sounds, having apes evolve to the point of venturing into space is a great idea. Who knows? Maybe space exploration could wind up being the means for both species to learn how to cooperate and live in peace if space travel is needed to help save the Earth.
It also hints at the possibility of the new Apes films linking back to the original films. Think about it. The very first film featured astronauts who wound up on Earth in the far future and Rise of the Planet of the Apes featured Easter eggs of a lost space mission, which could be these astronauts that could show up again at the end of the new trilogy. Anyway, no matter which direction future films go, the Apes franchise has demonstrated the uncanny ability to move into new and exciting directions as most recently seen with Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
As we move further into this decade, it is apparent that the superhero era in films and TV shows has ended. We all know about the hurdles many recent superhero films and TV show have faced with diminished quality and profit. Guaranteed would-be hits like The Marvels or The Flash failed spectacularly last year and help cement that the superhero films and TV shows are no longer as popular at they were in the previous decade.
This does not mean that there won’t be anymore superhero films or TV shows or that they will never be popular again. There are several superhero films and TV shows in various stages of development and it is possible that a new era could arise. It has happened before. Back in the early 2000s, superhero films became dominant in films thanks to the success of Spider-Man and X-Men, but they then diminished in quality and several films did not perform well. However, as we all know the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) exploded on the scene and launched an even more successful and popular era of superhero films and TV shows. It is similar to what has happened with the comic books that inspired these live-action films and TV shows.
As comic book fans know, comic books have had their ups and downs throughout history with different ages. When they first came into prominence in the late 1930s they sold very well, but by the mid 1950s comic books declined in popularity and sales until the release of Showcase #4, which revamped the Flash and introduced a new age of comic books. Essentially, the eras come and go in cycles with comic books as they reinvented themselves and there is little reason to doubt this won’t happen with superhero films and TV shows. For all we know this year’s Deadpool & Wolverine will usher in a new age of superhero films and TV shows. Or it may be a while as other genres capture the attention of viewers as they offer a fresh new take on superheroes.
So, until then what genre can replace the superhero films and TV shows in terms of prominence and popularity?
It is too early to tell, but we have a couple of contenders: video game-based properties or monster-based properties.
The MonsterVerse based on giant kaijus like Godzilla and King Kong has proven to be unexpectedly popular, while Godzilla Minus Zero blew away audiences and critics with its high quality and success. There are plans for films based on classic movie monsters like the Wolfman and Frankenstein’s monster, which could fulfill the failed promise of the so-called Dark Universe from ten years ago. The only issue with these monster films is their limited scope in terms of story. It is difficult to make compelling stories that focus on giant monsters while ignoring poorly developed human characters. But it is possible, again look at Godzilla Minus Zero.
On the other hand, video games have provided ample material for filmmakers to mine from. The most popular video games are based on science fiction, horror and fantasy and everything in between. In the past, films based on video games fared poorly as filmmakers were unable to translate what made the games so popular into film.
However, there have been many recent films and TV shows based on video games that were wildly successful and were well received. These include Sonic the Hedgehog, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Five Nights at Freddy’s, The Last of Us, The Witcher, Halo and most recently Fallout. Although the quality and success of these projects varied, it is clear that they are becoming more and more prominent in theaters and in streaming services. These properties are just the tip of the iceberg of available video games that are practically begging to be adapted to live-action. There are plans to produce films and TV shows based on The Legend of Zelda, Death Stranding, Borderlands, Minecraft: The Movie, Metal Gear Solid, Mass Effect and Bioshock. Of course, we will also be getting sequels and new seasons like Sonic the Hedgehog 3, The Last of Us, Knuckles, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, and Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft. The subject matter of these projects range from alternate history, hard sci-fi, horror and animated cartoons.
Will these films duplicate the success of the MCU and other superhero films and TV shows? It’s hard to say at this point, but do not be surprised if some video-game based property explodes and captures the public zeitgeist. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was able to do this given that it earned over $1 billion when it was released last year. It’s possible that the sequel could earn more money and cement the Mario Brothers as the next big thing. Or maybe it will be some other video game property. The future is wide open for video game-based films and TV shows to dominate the public consciousness.
Here we go again with the two corporate giants, Sony Pictures Entertainment and The Walt Disney Company, battling over Spider-Man. More specifically the films about the superhero and everyone in his orbit. The colossal failure of Sony’s Madame Web and the delays in producing a fourth Spider-Man film set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) only exacerbated the situation between the two companies.
Past Disagreements
Most Marvel fans know by now the convoluted story of how Sony acquired the exclusive film rights to Marvel Comics’ most popular character, Spider-Man. They also know this meant that Disney’s Marvel Studios could not make its own Spider-Man films. After the failure of Sony’s reboot of Spider-Man in the early 2010s, the two companies decided to share the character and have him appear in the MCU starting with Captain America: Civil War.
Things went well for both companies and the superhero. Marvel Studios produced acclaimed Spider-Man films as the character proved to be even more popular than ever. However, as the saying goes, all good things come to an end. After Spider-Man’s appearances in Avengers: Endgame and his solo film, Spider-Man: Far From Home in 2019, Sony decided to end its agreement with Marvel Studios and prepared to make their own Spider-Man films without the involvement of Marvel Studios and Disney. Following a huge backlash from the public, the two companies decided to play nice and the result was one of the greatest Spider-Man films, Spider-Man: No Way Home. Everything was great. The last MCU Spider-Man film essentially set him up to be a more traditional and grounded loner superhero and plans for a fourth film were underway. This was back in 2021/2022. Nothing has happened since then, and now there are reports of tension between the two companies.
Current Disagreements
Apparently, there are disagreements over the direction of the next Spider-Man film. Marvel Studios has planned a grounded, street-level film for Spider-Man that has him facing off against the Kingpin with appearances by Daredevil and other street-level heroes. However, Sony wants a repeat of Spider-Man: No Way Home where the MCU version of Spider-Man is to reunite with the Sony versions of Spider-Man as the trio would team up for another multiverse story. The reason for this is that Spider-Man: No WayHome was the most successful Spider-Man film and Sony wants more of this. While the idea of expanded multiverses has become part of the Spider-Man comic book mythos, to do the same thing after Spider-Man: No Way Home is creatively lazy and plays it safe. Also keep in mind that the recent releases of Sony’s animated Spider-Man films had similar plot lines where the title character interacted with alternate versions of himself. As tempting as it is to repeat the same thing expecting the fourth MCU Spider-Man film to be just as successful as Spider-Man: No Way Home is wishful thinking on Sony’s part. There isn’t any guarantee that lightning would strike twice. Frankly, doing a grounded Spider-Man story that would be part of a larger MCU storyline where the Kingpin is the mayor of New York City is the logical path for Spider-Man: No Way Home left our hero.
Another issue that is being reported is that Sony wants a Spider-Man film to come out next year. But Marvel Studios has four films already scheduled for release next year and adding the MCU Spider-Man film would strain the bandwidth of Marvel Studios’ resources and be too much for the average filmgoer. This could mean that one of the other scheduled MCU films would suffer at the box office. But Sony does not care, obviously they are only concerned about their own studio, which is desperate for a hit after the failures of Morbius and Madame Web. Marvel Studios could play nice and just delay one of their films next year. But the forthcoming MCU films have already undergone significant delays and Spider-Man will reportedly be a major character in the Secret Wars story, so Marvel Studios is in a pickle over how to go forward.
Sony’s Dismal Track Record
The problem with Sony is that they have proven that they cannot make a good Spider-Man or Spider-Man adjacent film. Yes, the first couple of Spider-Man films done by Sam Raimi were classics but that is largely due to the director, who ended up clashing with Sony over Spider-Man 3 and that film was a letdown compared to the first two films. Aside from an occassional Venom and the animated films, the Spider-Man and Spider-Man-related films were not well done and produced to keep the property with Sony. Apparently, Sony is contract-bound to release a Spider-Man film or one featuring characters in Spidey’s universe every few years. This was part of the reason why Raimi left the Spider-Man franchise because Sony was in a rush to release a Spider-Man film before giving Raimi the time to fully develop it. The tendency of Sony rushing out these films would explain why so many of them are bad. Another culprit is probably studio interferrence because that could only explain why Madame Web was so horrible. Let’s be objective, many of the actors and behind-the-scenes people in Madame Web are clearly talented, but the film was such a bad misfire that reeks of last-minute changes, such as poorly done ADR.
Sony is clearly desperate to create their own cinematic universe as seen with their films like Venom, Morbius, Madame Web and the upcoming Kraven the Hunter. On paper, creating a cinematic universe based on Spider-Man and characters in his world makes sense because throughout the decades the world of Spider-Man has seen many interesting characters that have spun off successfully into their own comic books. But what have we gotten from Sony? Aside from their released misfires, there were attempts to launch their own version of the Suicide Squad only this time with Spider-Man’s enemies, the Sinister Six, which was clumsily alluded to in The Amazing Spider-Man 2; a film about Aunt May as a spy in her younger days (!); and the character everyone has been clamoring for: El Muerto. Seriously, Sony, WTF?! We can understand a film about the Black Cat teaming up with Silver Sable, (which fell apart) but El Muerto? And the upcoming Kraven film has him as some kind of anti-hunting hero who gets his powers from being bitten by a lion! “Sigh”
Clearly, Sony does not know what to do with its superhero cash cow. The problem is that Sony’s ineptness is harming the MCU brand. How can this be? The Sony films are set in different universes except for the MCU Spider-Man films, which is what most fans would point out. But the average person would not know the difference. There are people who still confuse the Marvel films with the DC films! They’re not going to look at the fine print in marketing to see that Morbius was made “In Association with Marvel”, they’re going to see the Marvel logo and think that garbage Sony film is part of the MCU. This has a negative impact on Marvel Studios since the average moviegoer will think the inferior Sony films are made by Marvel Studios, which is the last thing Marvel Studios wants now that they are struggling to come back from recent setbacks with their own products.
Marvel’s Options
What can Disney and Marvel Studios do? Ignoring the Sony films is not working. Well, Disney can try to buy back the film rights to Spider-Man. Naturally, Sony will understandably be hesitant to give up its cash cow unless Disney pays them handsomely. But given the company’s financial hurdles, it’s doubtful Disney has the funds readily available for that feat. Disney can sue Sony with the argument that Spider-Man is so entwined with Marvel that the Sony films are hurting the Marvel brand even if future MCU films completely ignore Spider-Man.
Can Sony be forced to sell the rights back to Disney or at least be forced to remove the Marvel name from their marketing? Who knows at this point, but this cannot continue. Of course, the easiest way to get Sony to relinquish or loosen their hold on the rights would be for people to stop seeing the Sony Spider-Man and Spider-Man-related films. This includes Venom and the animated films. Sony has to be convinced that holding on to the film rights is not worth it if there are diminishing returns for these films. After all, it was the failure of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 that coerced Sony to negotiate with Marvel Studios to bring Spidey into the MCU. So, the ball is in our court.
Starloggers 