Aladdin (Mena Massoud) meets the larger-than-life blue Genie (Will Smith) in Disney’s live-action adaptation ALADDIN, directed by Guy Ritchie.
The first TV spot for Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation ALADDIN is here and includes new, never-before-seen footage. Be sure to check it out and on May 24, 2019 hop on a magic carpet and go see ALADDIN in theaters nationwide.
A thrilling and vibrant live-action adaptation of Disney’s animated classic, “Aladdin” is the exciting tale of the charming street rat Aladdin, the courageous and self-determined Princess Jasmine and the Genie who may be the key to their future.
Directed by Guy Ritchie, who brings his singular flair for fast-paced, visceral action to the fictitious port city of Agrabah, “Aladdin” is written by John August and Ritchie based on Disney’s “Aladdin.” The film stars Will Smith as the Genie; Mena Massoud as Aladdin; Naomi Scott as Jasmine; Marwan Kenzari as Jafar; Navid Negahban as the Sultan; Nasim Pedrad as Dalia; Billy Magnussen as Prince Anders; and Numan Acar as Hakim.
Mena Massoud as the street rat with a heart of gold, Aladdin, and Will Smith as the larger-than-life Genie in Disney’s ALADDIN, directed by Guy Ritchie.
“Aladdin” is produced by Dan Lin, p.g.a., and Jonathan Eirich, p.g.a., with Marc Platt and Kevin De La Noy serving as executive producers. Eight-time Academy Award®-winning composer Alan Menken provides the score, which includes new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and Oscar®-winning lyricists Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and includes two new songs written by Menken and Oscar and Tony Award®-winning songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.
GEMINI MAN, from Paramount Pictures and Skydance, has officially started production. Check out the first images from set on Will Smith’s Instagram page.
Gemini Man is an innovative action-thriller starring Will Smith as Henry Brogan, an elite assassin, who is suddenly targeted and pursued by a mysterious young operative that seemingly can predict his every move.
The film is directed by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ang Lee and produced by renowned producers Jerry Bruckheimer and David Ellison. Also starring are Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen and Benedict Wong.
On the heels of its thrilling second trailer, Bright’s new poster gives a closer look at Officers Ward and Jakoby, the team at the heart of this holiday season’s most heart-pounding action blockbuster.
Will Smith and Joel Edgerton bring their A-game action to the globe in the eagerly-anticipated Netflix film Bright.
Set in an alternate present-day, this action-thriller directed by David Ayer (Suicide Squad, End of Watch, writer of Training Day) follows two cops from very different backgrounds (Ward, a human played by Will Smith, and Jakoby, an orc played by Joel Edgerton) who embark on a routine patrol night that will ultimately alter the future as their world knows it. Battling both their own personal differences as well as an onslaught of enemies, they must work together to protect a thought-to-be-forgotten relic, which in the wrong hands could destroy everything.
The Netflix film stars Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Noomi Rapace, Lucy Fry, Edgar Ramirez, Ike Barinholtz, Enrique Murciano, Jay Hernandez, Andrea Navedo, Veronica Ngo, Alex Meraz, Margaret Cho, Brad William Henke, Dawn Oliveri, and Kenneth Choi. The film is directed by David Ayer and written by Max Landis. David Ayer, Eric Newman, and Bryan Unkeless serve as producers.
Bright will be available in select theaters and on Netflix starting December 22nd, 2017.
On December 22nd, Will Smith and Joel Edgerton bring their action A-game to the globe in the eagerly-anticipated Netflix Original Film Bright. A bold new action-thriller from director David Ayer (known for such box office hits as Suicide Squad, End of Watch and Training Day), Bright follows the story of two LAPD police officers played by Smith (Officer Ward) and Edgerton (Officer Jakoby) who form a most unlikely duo working to keep the mean streets of Los Angeles safe from a sinister underworld filled with gang violence and dark forces at work.
Check out the explosive new trailer for Bright.
The trailer also features the exclusive first taste of two brand new tracks from the film’s original soundtrack: “Danger” by Migos & Marshmello, and “Home” by Machine Gun Kelly, X Ambassadors & Bebe Rexha. These two new songs will be featured on Bright: The Album, which will be available for pre-order on November 9th. Bright: The Album is being produced by Atlantic Records and David Ayer, the creative minds behind the massively successful soundtrack Suicide Squad: The Album. For updates on Bright: The Album, visit https://ad.gt/bright.
Bright will be available in select theaters and on Netflix starting December 22nd, 2017. Visit Bright on Netflix.
Set in an alternate present-day, this action-thriller directed by David Ayer (Suicide Squad, End of Watch, writer of Training Day) follows two cops from very different backgrounds (Ward, a human played by Will Smith, and Jakoby, an orc played by Joel Edgerton) who embark on a routine patrol night that will ultimately alter the future as their world knows it. Battling both their own personal differences as well as an onslaught of enemies, they must work together to protect a thought-to-be-forgotten relic, which in the wrong hands could destroy everything.
The Netflix film stars Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Noomi Rapace, Lucy Fry, Edgar Ramirez, Ike Barinholtz, Enrique Murciano, Jay Hernandez, Andrea Navedo, Veronica Ngo, Alex Meraz, Margaret Cho, Brad William Henke, Dawn Oliveri, and Kenneth Choi. The film is directed by David Ayer and written by Max Landis. David Ayer, Eric Newman, and Bryan Unkeless serve as producers.
Fox Animation, Chernin Entertainment and Blue Sky Studios have announced the voice casting for their upcoming animated film SPIES IN DISGUISE.
SPIES IN DISGUISE is a buddy comedy set in the high octane globe-trotting world of international espionage. Will Smith (Men in Black) voices Lance Sterling, the world’s most awesome spy. Cool, charming and super-skilled, saving the world is his occupation. And nobody does it better.
Almost the exact opposite of Lance is Walter, voiced by Tom Holland (Spider-Man: Homecoming). Walter is a great mind but perhaps not a great socializer. What he lacks in social skills though, he makes up for in smarts and invention: Walter is the scientific genius who invents the gadgets Lance uses on his missions.
But when events take an unexpected turn, Walter and Lance suddenly have to rely on each other in a whole new way. And if this odd couple can’t learn to work as a team, the whole world is in peril.
Directed by Nick Bruno & Troy Quane, SPIES IN DISGUISE is a Fox Animation production, with Blue Sky Studios and Chernin Entertainment. The project is based on Pigeon: Impossible, an original animated short film by Lucas Martell.
SPIES IN DISGUISE hits theaters everywhere on January 18, 2019!
(L-r) WILL SMITH as Howard and Helen Mirren as Brigitte in the New Line Cinemas, Village Roadshow Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures drama “COLLATERAL BEAUTY,” a Warner Bros Pictures release. Photo by Barry Wetcher.
Will Smith heads a star-filled cast, as a father still struggling with overwhelming grief two years after the death of his six-year-old daughter, a man who is visited by three people claiming to be Death, Time and Love, in COLLATERAL BEAUTY.
Actually, the three people are out-of-work actors hired to play the roles of Death, Time and Love by the CEO of the ad agency he co-founded. This twist allows COLLATERAL BEAUTY to skirt the “angels” pitfall of a too-precious Hallmark movie. The film walks this fine line throughout, or at least until the last two scenes, when it falls off its tight rope – two scenes which, ironically, are not necessary to the story. It seems director David Frankel (who directed both MARLEY AND ME and THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA) couldn’t quite make up his mind what kind of movie he wanted to make. He weaves philosophical discussion and some serious thought into the dialog but the film is constantly in a balancing act between serious drama about grief and something more canned and clichéd.
The title refers to the idea of noticing the beauty around you. COLLATERAL BEAUTY does feature a strong cast, including Helen Mirren, Keira Knightley, Edward Norton, Kate Winslet, Michael Pena, and Naomie Harris. The film gives Will Smith an opportunity to show off his dramatic skills but the real show-stealer is Helen Mirren, as the entertaining, boastful actor playing the role of Death and providing most of the comic relief.
Two years earlier, Howard (Smith) fired up clients and employees alike at his New York ad agency. In his innovative approach to advertising, he often talked about three pivotal elements of all human life – Time, Love and Death, saying we wish we had more time, we long for love and we fear death. Since the death of his daughter from cancer, Howard still comes to work every day, but spends his time building elaborate domino structures while avoiding interacting with anyone. Meanwhile, the company he co-founded with Whit (Norton) and Simon (Pena) and ran with the help of protegée Claire (Winslet) has been sinking with its charismatic leader. Worried, they hire a private detective (Ann Dowd) to follow him and discovered he has written letters to Death, Time and Love. They come up with the surprising plan of hiring three actors to portray these concepts and speak to him about the letters. Whit hires out-of-work actors for the parts – Brigitte (Mirren) takes the role of Death, Amy (Knightley) plays Love and young Raffi (Jacob Latimore) is cast as Time.
The idea sounds like it might have some therapeutic value but that is not the reason they do it. While they are all heartbroken about what has happened to their friend, they are also worried about what is happening to the company without Howard. They are in danger of losing all they have worked for if the company goes bankrupt. There is an offer to buy the company but Howard has refused to sign the papers. Aggressively, Whit comes up with the idea of having Howard declared incompetent. Essentially, they are going to “gaslight” their friend, covertly filming him talking to Death, Time and Love, somehow erase the actors from the video, and offer the doctored video as proof of incompetence.
The whole idea takes a quite a suspension of disbelief. However, Smith’s character reacts the way you would expect a real person to react if a random stranger told you they were Death – he tries to get away from the crazy person as quickly as possible. But eventually, as these three people keep turning up, he starts to talk to them and you sense a little belief sneaking in. Meanwhile, Howard is also starting to work through his loss in conversations he has with Madeline (Naomie Harris), who runs a bereavement group.
There is a certain meanness underneath this scheme, which gives the story a little uncomfortable edge, but other factors push it in that too-precious direction. Whit, Claire and Simon are all grappling with their own problems, and each pair up with one of the actors to work through those issues. Even the bereavement counselor has a hidden story.
A film that deals with the death of a child is going to delve into some heavy emotion, and Mirren provides most of the comic relief needed to give the audience a break. Mirren’s Brigitte is a delightful theatrical type, a mix of egotist and wise woman, providing insights and smiles. When Norton’s character Whit is smitten by Knightley’s Amy and follows her into a makeshift theater where the three unemployed actors struggling to create a play,, he expects them to jump at his job offer. Instead, Mirren’s character imperiously demands more money, After Brigitte’s first encounter with Will Smith’s Howard in her role as Death, she brags about her performance while also fishing for compliments.
But having built up a pretty good film that avoids the worst sins of this genre, COLLATERAL BEAUTY blows it all in the last two scenes, going off the edge into “angels territory.” It undermines all the good work before, tipping over the delicate balance so carefully built up over the film, so that it all comes tumbling down into a mess, like all those dominoes structures Will Smith’s character builds throughout the film.
When a successful New York advertising executive suffers a great tragedy he retreats from life. While his concerned friends try desperately to reconnect with him, he seeks answers from the universe by writing letters to Love, Time and Death.
But it’s not until his notes bring unexpected personal responses that he begins to understand how these constants interlock in a life fully lived, and how even the deepest loss can reveal moments of meaning and beauty.
From Oscar-winning director David Frankel, the thought-provoking drama COLLATERAL BEAUTY features an all-star cast, including Will Smith (“Suicide Squad,” “Concussion”), Edward Norton (“Birdman or [The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance]”), Keira Knightley (“The Imitation Game”), Michael Peña (“The Martian”), Naomie Harris (“Spectre”), Jacob Latimore (“The Maze Runner”), with Oscar winners Kate Winslet (“The Reader,” “Steve Jobs”) and Helen Mirren (“The Queen,” “Trumbo”).
Frankel (“Marley & Me,” “The Devil Wears Prada,” “Dear Diary”) directs from a screenplay written by Allan Loeb (“Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps,” “21”).
Frankel’s behind-the-scenes creative team included director of photography Maryse Alberti (“Creed”), production designer Beth Mickle (“Whiskey Tango Foxtrot”), editor Andrew Marcus (“American Ultra”) and costume designer Leah Katznelson (“How to Be Single”). The music was composed by Theodore Shapiro (“Trumbo”).
This December experience COLLATERAL BEAUTY, in theaters December 16.
WAMG invites you to enter for the chance to win TWO (2) seats to the advance screening of COLLATERAL BEAUTY on Monday, Dec. 12 at 7PM in the St. Louis area.
Answer the following statement below with TRUE or FALSE:
HELEN MIRREN has won –
Oscar
Emmy
Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award
Grammy
Tony
BAFTA Award
Golden Globes Award
TO ENTER, ADD YOUR NAME, ANSWERS AND EMAIL IN OUR COMMENTS SECTION BELOW.
OFFICIAL RULES:
1. YOU MUST BE IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA THE DAY OF THE SCREENING.
2. No purchase necessary. A pass does not guarantee a seat at a screening. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. The theater is overbooked to assure a full house. The theater is not responsible for overbooking.
This film has been rated PG-13 for thematic elements and brief strong language.
It’s fun to root for imperfect people that run amok in an imperfect world. Flaws are what makes characters on-screen appear human, and yet, the greater and more abundant the flaws, the more villainous they are usually perceived. You can’t have a strong hero without an equally matched villain. Thankfully, the DC Comics’ universe is populated by the most colorful and deliciously evil around (sorry Marvel).
Amanda Waller is one of those great villains in a film chock full with hitmen, gangsters, and other villains known as “meta-humans.” As a government operative, she wants to protect the public, but does so at a cost. She manipulates evil to defeat even greater threats through a group nicknamed the “Suicide Squad.” She’s the puppet master pulling the strings of these imprisoned villains while offering reduced sentences for their services. It may sound like a sweet deal, but it is very clear that Waller doesn’t care who gets caught in the crossfire to protect the greater good.
On this squad you have Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Deadshot (Will Smith), Killer Croc, Boomerang, Enchantress, Diablo, Slipknot, Katana, and their leader Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman). There’s no need to fret if some of these names don’t ring a bell. Lengthy intros are presented for most of the Squad, though a few are left on the cutting room floor for some reason, despite Deadshot and Harley both getting intros even before the opening credits… and then given another set of intros from Waller at dinner with her cronies not too long after. The real mission is trying to squeeze everyone in along with a Joker (Jared Leto) as the wild card who occasionally shows up. It becomes evident within the first few scenes that this mission of finding balance is doomed for failure.
SUICIDE SQUAD is as sloppily assembled as any major studio film I’ve seen in a while. The first hour is haphazardly edited together and has no structure or sense of rhythm. It becomes a series of music videos where five minutes can’t go by without a pop song blaring – everything from The Rolling Stones to Eminem to The White Stripes is thrown in. It’s like an ADHD child scanning through the radio dial for almost an hour with no regard that the music is actually overtaking some of the dialogue. After an hour of flashbacks and meetings and skipping around between characters in cells, you are finally given the opportunity to see these loose cannons run wild in this twisted playground. Or so you thought. Try as hard as they may, the talented cast is never really let loose to explore their characters or to bounce off each other. The character moments that made the trailers so darkly whimsical are few and far between. They are a team of misfits, but it never feels like an odd-ball team because of a weak script that doesn’t embrace the quirkiness of each of its members.
The mission has the setup of ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, complete with injections into their bodies and a mission to save a secret someone that is trapped in a post-apocalyptic landscape. Sound familiar? Like most of David Ayer’s filmography, the second half becomes a standard issue military film where the mission and macho posturing share center stage. When Rick Flag isn’t barking orders at other military guys who tagged along, he’s at odds with Deadshot while the rest of the squad is relegated to the background. This battle of bravado goes on like a merry-go-round until the next action sequence comes about to show off the fetishized gunplay. In between these darkly lit scenes occupied with (literally) faceless enemy thugs, more humor and character beats could have been injected. All of this eventually builds to a nonsensical final battle where there’s a magical swirling portal that has to be closed. You know the routine: there’s flashing lights, banter from the big baddie, and nothing at stake. At this point, you will be wondering more if there’s a mid-credits stinger than if the gang is going to live to tell the tale.
SUICIDE SQUAD is never as weird as it thinks it is. It should feel exciting or downright a little dangerous to enter into a world where you are forced to root for the bad guys; the type of men and women who would kill or do anything to get ahead in life. Yet, we are given repetitive shoot-outs, a derivative villain, and a lackluster final set-piece that undermines the thrill of seeing these great characters on-screen. In a way, you almost wish that Batman or Superman would show up just to rattle the cage a little (even if I’m still washing out the bad taste from this year’s previous film). It’s important to have two sides to a coin – to pit good vs evil. SUICIDE SQUAD attempts to present a new type of comic book movie: evil vs. more evil. However, this is just a thin facade created by a writer/director who doesn’t truly have a firm grasp of the characters and the property. Whether this is because of producers and studio meddling is yet to be confirmed. Yet, one thing is for certain, this time around, it doesn’t feel good being bad.
Overall rating: 2 out of 5
SUICIDE SQUAD is in theaters everywhere August 5th
From director David Ayer comes SUICIDE SQUAD, starring Oscar nominee Will Smith, Oscar winner Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman and Oscar nominee Viola Davis.
It feels good to be bad… Assemble a team of the world’s most dangerous, incarcerated Super-Villains, provide them with the most powerful arsenal at the government’s disposal, and send them off on a mission to defeat an enigmatic, insuperable entity. U.S. intelligence officer Amanda Waller has determined only a secretly convened group of disparate, despicable individuals with next to nothing to lose will do. However, once they realize they weren’t picked to succeed but chosen for their patent culpability when they inevitably fail, will the Suicide Squad resolve to die trying, or decide it’s every man for himself?
Written and directed by Ayer based on the characters from DC, the film also stars Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood, Cara Delevingne, Adam Beach, and Karen Fukuhara in her feature film debut. It is produced by Charles Roven and Richard Suckle, with Zack Snyder, Deborah Snyder, Colin Wilson and Geoff Johns serving as executive producers.
Ayer’s behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Roman Vasyanov (“Fury,” “End of Watch”), production designer Oliver Scholl (“Edge of Tomorrow”), editor John Gilroy (“Pacific Rim”), costume designer Kate Hawley (“The Hobbit” Trilogy) and Oscar-nominated visual effects supervisor Jerome Chen (“Stuart Little,” “Fury,” “The Amazing Spider-Man” films). The music is by Oscar-winning composer Steven Price (“Gravity”).
Warner Bros. Pictures presents, an Atlas Entertainment production, a film by David Ayer, SUICIDESQUAD. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.
The film opens worldwide in 3D, and in 2D, and in select IMAX 3D theaters August 5, 2016.
WAMG invites you to enter for the chance to win TWO (2) seats to the advance screening of SUICIDE SQUADon Monday, August 1 at 7PM in the St. Louis area.
Answer the following:
What was the name of the graphic novel from Dini And Timm that told the story of how Harley met “Mr. J”?
TO ENTER, ADD YOUR NAME, ANSWER AND EMAIL IN OUR COMMENTS SECTION BELOW.
OFFICIAL RULES:
1. YOU MUST BE IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA THE DAY OF THE SCREENING.
2. No purchase necessary. A pass does not guarantee a seat at a screening. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. The theater is overbooked to assure a full house. The theater is not responsible for overbooking.
SUICIDE SQUAD is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for sequences of violence and action throughout, disturbing behavior, suggestive content and language.
In anticipation of the upcoming Warner Bros. Pictures’ high-octane actioner SUICIDE SQUAD heading into theaters everywhere on August 5, DC’s massive team of Super-Villains will invade this year’s Comic-Con International: San Diego with a major presence both on and off the main floor, including appearances by the film’s stars.
Highlights of the convention’s SUICIDE SQUAD events include:
SQUAD UP!
Fans are invited to enter DC All Access’s (DCAA) “Suicide Squad” online Cosplay Contest starting Thursday, June 9, with their best Squad-inspired look as Deadshot, the Joker, Harley Quinn, Colonel Rick Flag, Amanda Waller, Captain Boomerang, Diablo, Killer Croc, Enchantress, Slipknot or Katana.
Eleven winners, selected by visitors to the site, will then receive an all-expenses-paid trip for four days and three nights to San Diego and passes to the Con, where they will take part in a range of Warner Bros.’ “Suicide Squad” activities throughout the weekend.
Every day of the Con, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., have an immersive “Suicide Squad” experience when we transform 6000 square feet of San Diego’s Hard Rock Hotel into the infamous Belle Reve penitentiary—the very place where the “worst of the worst” were incarcerated before forming the Suicide Squad.
Take part in a live-action virtual reality experience, fighting alongside Squad members in a scene from the film.
Get your own “Suicide Squad” skull “ink” at Harley Quinn’s tattoo parlor.
Take photo ops in a re-creation of one of Belle Reve’s jail cells.
GET UP CLOSE WITH THE “SUICIDE SQUAD”
Catch “Suicide Squad” talent as part of the big Warner Bros. Pictures’ exclusive presentation in Hall H, additional details of which are forthcoming, and connect with them directly at the DC booth, where stars of the film will meet fans and sign movie posters.
The cast will also make a special ensemble appearance on Saturday, July 23, to tape “CONAN,” which will air that evening at 11 p.m. ET/PT on TBS.
From director David Ayer (“Fury,” “End of Watch”) comes “Suicide Squad,” starring Oscar nominee Will Smith (“Ali,” “The Pursuit of Happyness”), Oscar winner Jared Leto (“Dallas Buyers Club”), Margot Robbie (“The Wolf of Wall Street,” “Focus”), Joel Kinnaman (Netflix’s “House of Cards”) and Oscar nominee Viola Davis (“The Help,” “Doubt”).
It feels good to be bad… Assemble a team of the world’s most dangerous, incarcerated Super-Villains, provide them with the most powerful arsenal at the government’s disposal, and send them off on a mission to defeat an enigmatic, insuperable entity. U.S. intelligence officer Amanda Waller has determined only a secretly convened group of disparate, despicable individuals with next to nothing to lose will do. However, once they realize they weren’t picked to succeed but chosen for their patent culpability when they inevitably fail, will the Suicide Squad resolve to die trying, or decide it’s every man for himself?
Check out the SUICIDE SQUAD “Blitz” Trailer!:
Written and directed by Ayer based on the characters from DC, the film also stars Jai Courtney (“Insurgent”), Jay Hernandez (“Takers”), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (“Thor: The Dark World”), Ike Barinholtz (“Neighbors”), Scott Eastwood (“Fury”), Cara Delevingne (“Paper Towns”), Adam Beach (“Cowboys & Aliens”) and Karen Fukuhara in her feature film debut. It is produced by Charles Roven and Richard Suckle, with Zack Snyder, Deborah Snyder, Colin Wilson and Geoff Johns serving as executive producers.
Ayer’s behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Roman Vasyanov (“Fury,” “End of Watch”), production designer Oliver Scholl (“Edge of Tomorrow”), editor John Gilroy (“Pacific Rim”), costume designer Kate Hawley (“The Hobbit” Trilogy) and Oscar-nominated visual effects supervisor Jerome Chen (“Stuart Little,” “Fury,” “The Amazing Spider-Man” films). The music is by Oscar-winning composer Steven Price (“Gravity”).
Warner Bros. Pictures presents, an Atlas Entertainment production, a film by David Ayer, “Suicide Squad.” The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company. The film opens worldwide in 3D, and in 2D, and in select IMAX 3D theaters beginning August 5, 2016.
