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Apple snags JJ Abrams-produced drama starring Jennifer Garner
Apple's slate of TV shows continues to grow and the company's latest acquisition is a JJ Abrams-produced limited series starring Jennifer Garner. My Glory Was I Had Such Friends is based on the Amy Silverstein memoir of the same name and it centers on the friends who supported Silverstein as she awaited a second heart transplant. Karen Croner (The Tribes of Palos Verdes, Admission) will write the series and executive produce, according to Variety.
Hulu’s ‘Castle Rock’ will return for a second season
Hulu's Castle Rock, the anthology series from JJ Abrams and Stephen King, will return for a second season. The streaming service announced the renewal today, just shortly after the first season's premiere. Hulu also said that the show, which will drop its sixth episode on Wednesday, had the most successful first-season launch of any of its originals to date in terms of reach and consumption.
J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot expands into gaming with China's Tencent
J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions, the company behind blockbuster films and TV shows like Star Trek, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Lost and Westworld, is making a jump into gaming. It's joining forces with Chinese gaming giant Tencent, and minority partner Warner Bros. to launch Bad Robot Games. "I'm a massive games fan, and increasingly envious of the amazing tools developers get to work with, and the worlds they get to play in," said Abrams in a statement.
Stephen King's 'Castle Rock' series streams on Hulu July 25th
If you're eagerly anticipating Castle Rock, the new Hulu show from Stephen King and J.J. Abrams, you're in luck. Hulu has revealed a release date of July 25th for the first three episodes of the show, along with a new teaser.
'The Cloverfield Paradox' would be doomed without Netflix
The Cloverfield Paradox would have been a theatrical failure. It's exactly the sort of B-grade sci-fi critics tend to eviscerate. So how do you generate hype for a movie that's practically doomed? If you're Netflix, you unveil a trailer during the Super Bowl with an unprecedented announcement: you'll be able to watch the film right after the game ends. No warning, no early reviews. It's the sort of "holy shit" moment you could only pull off if you're a global entertainment powerhouse. You could think of it as Netflix flexing its marketing muscles and mocking its competitors, "Do you even stream, bro?"
Netflix's 'Cloverfield' sequel starts streaming tonight
Last year Netflix's Super Bowl ad focused on a season of Stranger Things we still had months to wait for, but this year things are different. The streaming company dropped a surprise 30-second teaser for The Cloverfield Paradox, a sequel to the 2008 monster movie that will be available for viewing worldwide tonight, right after the game. As Deadline notes, the Paramount/J.J. Abrams flick had been planned for a theatrical release this weekend, but reports that this agreement with Netflix made the $45 million movie "immediately profitable." Also, on Twitter Netflix revealed a promotional deal that will send snacks directly to viewers in New York, San Francisco, LA and Chicago, in time for the movie's debut after the game. The Cloverfield Paradox is directed by Julius Onah (The Girl is in Trouble), with stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Belle, Beyond the Lights, A Wrinkle in Time) and David Oyelowo (Selma, Queen of Katwe) taking the top credits. Netflix pushed the bar with the release of Bright in December, but this is an all-new mark for its original movie efforts. While Cloverfield may not be as expensive as that Will Smith movie, it's arriving without any of the usual highlights, reviews or press tours. Just one advertisement on the day of its worldwide release. How successful will it be? Since Netflix doesn't release exact numbers that will likely be up to others like Nielsen to estimate, but as the company splashes its $8 billion content budget around we don't expect that this will be the last surprise up its sleeve. Netflix: In the near future, a group of international astronauts on a space station are working to solve a massive energy crisis on Earth. The experimental technology aboard the station has an unexpected result, leaving the team isolated and fighting for their survival. Update: And there it is. As promised, once the game ended, the streaming started. Let us know what you think of this latest addition to the Cloverfield series.
HBO outbids Apple for J.J. Abrams' latest sci-fi thriller TV series
J.J. Abrams' newest TV show, a sci-fi thriller called Demimonde has landed at HBO with a straight-to-series order. While Apple was very interested in the project, Abrams ultimately went with the network because he was impressed with its work on Westworld, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Quentin Tarantino developing 'Star Trek' movie with J.J. Abrams
Quentin Tarantino could helm the next Star Trek film, according to sources who spoke to Deadline. Tarantino has shared his pitch on the long-running sci-fi franchise with producer J.J. Abrams, reports The Hollywood Reporter. The two plan to convene a writers room to develop the film at Paramount, with Tarantino in the director's chair.
Watch Hulu's first teaser for Stephen King's 'Castle Rock'
Ever since Hulu announced Castle Rock, there's been a lingering question: just what would JJ Abrams' take on Stephen King's universe look like? You now have a better idea. Hulu has posted the first trailer for the series, and it makes more than a few references to King's many stories. Shawshank State Prison gets more than one nod, to start. Even the casting pays tribute. It star Bill Skarsgård shows up at one point, while Carrie's Sissy Spacek is returning to King's landscape -- albeit as a different character.
'Star Wars: Episode IX' will be directed by J.J. Abrams (updated)
It's only been a week since Colin Trevorrow left (or was forced out of) the director's seat for Star Wars: Episode IX, but a familiar replacement is already lined up. J.J. Abrams, who you may know from such films as the Star Trek reboot, Super 8 and a little film called Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be writing and directing Episode IX. It's a very safe and familiar choice -- Abrams did an admirable job handling The Force Awakens, skillfully reviving the series after George Lucas' reviled prequel trilogy. Of course, there was also criticism that he played it too safe and essentially remade A New Hope, but all but the most jaded fans found his take on the universe to be a solid return for the long-dormant franchise.
RuPaul's biographical series will stream on Hulu
2017 has been very good to RuPaul. The ninth season of Drag Race notched eight Emmy nods, including for Reality Competition Host which he won last year. RuPaul's streak continued on Wednesday as Hulu announced that it has optioned Queen, a fictionalized half-hour dramedy chronicling his rise to fame, to be produced by JJ Abrams' Bad Robot.
JJ Abrams and Stephen King are creating another Hulu series
The first collaboration between JJ Abrams and Stephen King on an original Hulu series (11.22.63) clearly went well, as the two are coming back for another round. Abrams' Bad Robot studio has teased Castle Rock, another Hulu show based on King's writing -- in this case, the fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine that has served as the backdrop for many of the author's stories. The clip gives away precious little (not even a rough release schedule), but it touches on legendary locations like Shawshank State Prison and characters like Pennywise the clown. In other words, you can expect the show to include plenty of winks and nods toward King's literary legacy.
HBO's 'Westworld' sci-fi series arrives October 2nd
JJ Abrams' and Jonathan Nolan's TV adaptation of Westworld hit its share of snags on the way to release (it was originally supposed to debut in 2015), but it's nearly here. HBO has confirmed that the robot-theme-park-gone-wrong show will debut on October 2nd at 9PM (both Eastern and Pacific). As before, the TV series isn't really a thriller in the vein of Michael Crichton's 1973 movie. Instead, it's more of a philosophical investigation into both simulated experiences and artificial intelligence. If you can do anything you want in a robotic world, what does that say about you? And how does AI grapple with questions of consciousness and self-awareness?
'Hamilton' and 'Star Wars' collide in your dream jam session
Unless you've been living under the proverbial rock for the last year or so, you've likely heard of the musical sensation Hamilton (16-time Tony nominee) and its creator / star Lin-Manuel Miranda. As it turns out, Miranda isn't just an American history buff -- he's also a pretty serious Star Wars fan. He managed to squeeze time into his busy schedule last year to compose a song for The Force Awakens called "Jabba Flow," heard in the cantina in Maz's castle.
The 'Star Wars' holographic chess game is nearly a reality
"Let's be real: Any article you read about Magic Leap or any AR platform, the first thing they talk about is Holochess." That's Mike Levine, the former senior effects specialist at LucasArts and the current CEO of mobile game developer Happy Giant. Levine is working on a new project with Corey Rosen, the former creature-effects supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic, and legendary monster designer Phil Tippett -- the man who created Holochess for the original Star Wars: A New Hope. Together these sci-fi comrades are building HoloGrid: Monster Battle, a tactical collectible card game that takes numerous cues from the classic Holochess scene. Forty years on, Star Wars still exerts a huge influence on Tippett's life. "It's really weird," Tippett says. "It's like being in some kind of time bubble or Groundhog's Day. It keeps coming back."
J.J. Abrams talks to SXSW about how technology has democratized filmmaking
After President Obama's keynote, a SXSW session featuring J.J. Abrams alongside his friend Andrew Jarecki (writer and director HBO miniseries The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst) was probably the hottest panel of the conference. Around 2,000 attendees showed up to get a tease of West World, the HBO series Abrams is executive producing, and hear a conversation between Abrams and Jarecki about how technology has changed filmmaking for the better.
JJ Abrams, Steven Spielberg back day-and-date movie service
The notion of paying $50 to watch new-in-theaters movies at home may sound wild, but it apparently has the support of the biggest directors and producers in the business. Variety sources claim that the already hyped Screening Room service has the financial support of JJ Abrams, Ron Howard, Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg, among other Hollywood luminaries. Only some of them are directly investing money, according to the tipsters, but all of them are shareholders.
Make your own 'Star Wars' short for fun and profit
Watch The Force Awakens or maybe a fan restoration of A New Hope recently and want to leave your own mark on the galaxy far, far away? Well good, because the Star Wars Fan Film Awards are back. The contest is open through April 24th, and should you win, there's one of seven $250 Star Wars prize packs up for grabs and your short film will be posted online for the world to see.
'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' broke several movie records
If you suspected that Star Wars: The Force Awakens would smash box office records when you saw the lengthy queues at your local theater, you made a pretty good guess. Disney expects the adventures of Finn, Poe and Rey to set an all-time domestic debut record with an estimated $238 million haul. The previous best, this summer's Jurassic World, "only" pulled in $208.8 million. On top of that, TFA also broke several other domestic records, including the biggest single-day gross ($120.5 million), biggest Thursday preview ($57 million), best December debut and multiple IMAX records. Worldwide, it's estimated to rake in $517 million over its first five days -- and that $4 billion Lucasfilm purchase suddenly seems like the bargain of the century.
JJ Abrams is working on a game with the makers of 'Infinity Blade'
JJ Abrams' attempt to conquer the gaming world isn't just limited to a partnership with Valve. His Bad Robot studio is teaming up with Infinity Blade creator ChAIR on Spyjinx, an espionage game hitting both PCs and phones in 2016. The two are saying precious little about the title right now, but they're promising a blend of action, role-playing, strategy and even world building -- this is far more than just a Team Fortress 2 game mode. It's as if players will be in the "brainstorming session" with developers, Abrams teases. If that whets your appetite, you can sign up for chance to participate in a closed beta test that kicks off next year.
