Agrabah Comes Alive in First Images from Aladdin

The new Disney live-action adaptations are a visual treat that draws us into worlds of imagination. Things that we dreamed about as children through hand-drawn animation are now coming alive before our eyes. One of the most magical and ambitious to adapt is the 1992 masterpiece Aladdin. Agrabah may not exist, but the first look at the enchanted kingdom from Entertainment Weekly reveals it is as rich in beauty and mystery as ever.

By Kelle Long  |  December 19, 2018
New Hellboy Image Assembles the BPRD

With the Hellboy trailer dropping on Thursday, Lionsgate has started to ramp up their promotion of Neil Marshall’s film, starring Stranger Things‘ David Harbour in the title role. Yesterday they revealed the new, horns-heavy poster, and now a new photo courtesy of Entertainment Weekly includes a fresh image and some plot points from Harbour. The new shot shows Hellboy surrounded by a fellow member of the BPRD (Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense),

By The Credits  |  December 19, 2018

Interview

Special/Visual Effects

Mary Poppins Returns‘ VFX Supervisor on Bad Weather, Mary’s Magical Entrance & More

English weather wreaked havoc on best-laid plans when it came to staging outdoor sequences for Mary Poppins Returns. Director Rob Marshall expected London’s usual overcast skies to accompany Mary Poppins’ descent from the heavens early in the movie. Instead, Mother Nature delivered a perfect sunny day. The UK-based visual effects supervisor Matt Johnson recalls, “It’s supposed to be all wind and clouds but suddenly London had a massive heat wave and we got a clear blue sky.”

By Hugh Hart  |  December 19, 2018
Lady and the Tramp Will Reportedly Feature Actual Dog Actors

Disney’s live-action kick has delivered some gorgeous films. Cinderella is a confectionary concoction of gorgeous scenery and cream puff pastels. Beauty and the Beast is a bit more brooding but just as striking as the Oscar-nominated original. Among the most mesmerizing, however, is The Jungle Book that is arguably an advanced animation, but the visuals were an unexpected joy. Mowgli was played by a live actor (Neel Sethi), but the rest of the animals were CGI.

By Kelle Long  |  December 18, 2018
Elijah Seems to Mastermind a Meeting of Super-humans in New Glass Trailer

It is difficult to recruit fresh blood in your quest for world domination from inside the confines of a mental institution. That is unless you have superhuman abilities of mental manipulation. Then, your followers will come to you. At least, that is the case for Elijah Price who will finally come face to face with The Beast in Glass.

A new trailer for the culmination of M. Night Shyamalan’s stellar superhero trilogy reveals a little bit more about how Kevin Wendell Crumb (James McAvoy),

By Kelle Long  |  December 18, 2018
Todd Phillips Shares a Final Photo From Joker as Filming Wraps

It’s official—Todd Phillips Joker has wrapped production. The very intriguing stand-alone film starring Joaquin Phoenix as Gotham’s most iconic villain began filming three months ago, and throughout the process, Phillips has shared a few choice photos from set. We got a glimpse of Phoenix in a full clown suit, and Zazie Beetz in her largely unknown role, and the very first image which showed Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck.

By The Credits  |  December 18, 2018
Watch Pixar’s Oscar-Shortlisted Bao in its Entirety

Bao director Domee Shi is the first woman to direct a Pixar short, and now you can see her phenomenal, Oscar-shortlisted work in its entirety. Pixar has released the short online (it will be available for one week only), which hits the legendary animation studio’s sweet spot—adorable, bittersweet, offbeat, complex—while also introducing a serious talent in Shi. Many called it the best Pixar short in years.

Shi, who also worked as a storyboard artist for this year’s Incredibles 2 and the upcoming Toy Story 4

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 18, 2018
Why James Wan Chose Aquaman over The Flash

As we near Aquaman‘s premiere this Friday, December 21, one of the more interesting tidbits to come to light is how director James Wan had his choice between taking on the Atlantean superhero or The Flash. Wan spoke with the New York Times and confirmed during the interview that Warner Bros. had given him his choice between the two very different DC characters:

“Having made The Conjuring,

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 18, 2018
Horns Aplenty in the New Hellboy Poster

At some point during director Neil Marshall’s Hellboy reboot, we’re likely going to see the moment Hellboy (Stranger Things star David Harbour) has his horns filed down. That’s because on the new poster just released by Lionsgate, our favorite demon with a heart of gold is sporting two very massive horns, yet in the first image from the film, Hellboy’s horns are no more. The logline is catchy,

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 17, 2018
Gelflings Come Alive Once More in New The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Images

CG technology has brought us a long way for entertainment and opened new worlds and allowed for new kinds of performance in recent years. However, there is a spirit to practical effects that is unmatched. It’s the knowledge that what you’re seeing on screen actually filled real space in the universe. Even though the stories are make-believe, those characters are real objects you can reach out and touch. Jim Henson was an indisputable pioneer of puppetry and one of the masters of fantasy.

By Kelle Long  |  December 17, 2018
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Nets a Major Opening Weekend at the Box Office

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse caught a crazy amount of moviegoers in its web this weekend. The animated sensation pulled down $35.4 million in its opening weekend, which is a superhuman feat for a December release. There’s always a crowded market that targets the holiday family crowd. We got a clue from the critics that this was going to be something extra special, but it wasn’t confirmed until now whether fans would agree.

By Kelle Long  |  December 17, 2018

Interview

Costume Designer

Costume Designer Sandy Powell’s Magic Touch on Mary Poppins Returns

Three-time Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell came to the production of Mary Poppins Returns with fond memories of the 1964 original, which was the first film she ever saw as a child. She was excited to be a part of creating the look of this new incarnation of the beloved nanny, especially the iconic arrival costume. She spoke to The Credits about the challenges and joys of working on one of the most anticipated films of the year.

By Leslie Combemale  |  December 17, 2018
The Downton Abbey Staff is Preparing the Estate Once More

The sheets are being freshened and the furniture situated as we speak. Next year, Downtown Abbey will be ready to receive guests once more. The stately estate glistens in the first teaser for the upcoming motion picture event.

We know every corner and nook of the home from the saloon to the servants’ quarters and everything appears to be in its proper place. The staff seems prepared for arrivals at any moment in their trademark style.

By Kelle Long  |  December 14, 2018

Interview

Sound Designer

Singing Camels & Talking Ceramics: Inside Mary Poppins Returns‘ Sound Design

There is a special type of person who could tell you what it sounds like to dance inside of a ceramic bowl. They could also describe what a singing camel sounds like under a big top circus tent. These people would just as readily know the kind of musical rhythm attributed to a bicyclist dashing through the streets of London. Those who are endowed with this ability are the master sound artists crafting the musical fantasy event of the year.

By Kelle Long  |  December 14, 2018

Interview

Screenwriter

Filmmakers Bring Personal Stakes to Movies About Teen Addicts

Heroin kills and meth destroys, now more than ever. Hollywood has long dramatized the perils of adult drug addiction in films like Frank Sinatra’s The Man With the Golden Arm, Al Pacino’s breakout The Panic in Needle Park, Gus VanSant’s bleak Drug Store Cowboy, and the gonzo Trainspotting. But in the face of a 10 percent uptick in drug-related suicides in America last year according to a recent study,

By Hugh Hart  |  December 14, 2018
Rodan, Mothra & King Ghidorah Revealed in new Godzilla: King of the Monsters Posters

Godzilla is going to have his claws full in the upcoming Godzilla: King of the Monsters. The most iconic beast in cinematic history not named King Kong, Godzilla has been making waves in the movies since the 1950s, and as digital technology has improved (and improved, and improved), so too has the realism and capability of the king of the monsters and his adversaries. A recent trailer revealed Godzilla’s most lethal challenge yet,

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 14, 2018
Here’s the Poster for Jordan Peele’s Next Horror Film Us

Of all the films that you’re excited to see in 2019, we’re going to go out on a limb and say that Jordan Peele’s Us should be at or near the top of the list. The Oscar-winning writer/director of Get Out is back with his new social horror film, and Universal has just released the poster. While little is known about Us, the fact that it’s written and directed by Peele is really the only thing you should need to know to make this one of your must-see films in 2019.

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 13, 2018
Cats Production Begins as Full Cast is Revealed

The adaptation of one of Broadway’s most iconic shows, Cats, is officially becoming a movie. The Oscar-winning director of The King’s Speech, Tom Hooper, is helming the film, with a stellar cast providing him ample star power. It’s Hooper’s first film since 2015’s The Danish Girl.

The adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s show, which is the 4th longest-running in Broadway history, is intriguing for many reasons.

By The Credits  |  December 13, 2018
Watch ILM’s Jaw-Dropping VFX Work on Black Panther & Avengers: Infinity War

One of the most astonishing feats of visual effects this year was the creation of the fictional African nation of Wakanda. Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther introduced us to the high-tech, unconquered and secretive country that T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) is sworn to protect. The look and feel of Wakanda was the work of a huge team of people, including Coogler, production designer Hannah Beachler and costume designer Ruth E.

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 13, 2018
Carl Weathers & Werner Herzog Join The Mandalorian Cast

Apollo Creed himself is heading to space. Deadline reports that Carl Weathers, the iconic Rocky actor (to say nothing of his work in Predator and Action Jackson) has joined the cast of Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian, alongside legendary documentarian (and occasional ace actor) Werner Herzog. The cast list also includes the great Breaking Bad heavy Giancarlo Esposito, Supernatural‘s Emily Swallow,

By Bryan Abrams  |  December 13, 2018