New 'Superman' Muscles to $122 Million at US, Canada Box Office
The movie that introduces David Corenswet as the Man of Steel added $95 million in international markets for a global total of $217 million through Sunday, Warner Bros said on Sunday.
"Superman" is a reboot of the movie franchise based on the hero who debuted in comic books in 1938. The film's performance is critical to the future of Warner Bros and its DC Studios division.
Despite a stable of iconic characters including Batman and Wonder Woman, DC has not been able to match the blockbuster box office power of Walt Disney's Marvel superhero films.
The new "Superman" was written and directed by James Gunn, the filmmaker known for three offbeat "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies for Marvel. Gunn was tapped as co-CEO of DC Studios in 2022, alongside producer Peter Safran, and billed as the hero who could bring consistent success to its film and TV projects.
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Al Arabiya
29 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Movie review: ‘Eddington' is a satire about our broken brains that might re-break your brain
You might need to lie down for a bit after Eddington. Preferably in a dark room with no screens and no talking. Eddington, Ari Aster's latest nightmare vision, is sure to divide (along which lines I'm can't fathom), but there is one thing I think everyone will be able to agree on: It is an experience that will leave you asking WHAT? The movie opens on the aggravated ramblings of an unhoused man and doesn't get much more coherent from there. Approach with caution. We talk a lot about movies as an escape from the stresses of the world. Eddington, in which a small fictional town in New Mexico becomes a microcosm for life in the misinformation age and more specifically during the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests, is very much the opposite of that. It is an anti-escapist symphony of masking debates, conspiracy theories, YouTube prophets, TikTok trends, and third-rail topics in which no side is spared. Most everyone looks insane and ridiculous by the end, from the white teenage girl (Amélie Hoeferle) telling a Black cop (Michael Ward) to join the movement to the grammatical errors of the truthers as the town spirals into chaos and gruesome violence. Joaquin Phoenix plays the town sheriff, a soft-spoken wife-guy named Joe Cross, who we meet out in the desert one night watching YouTube videos about how to convince your wife to have a baby. He's interrupted by cops from the neighboring town who demand he put on a mask since he's technically crossed the border. It is May 2020, and everyone is a little on edge. Joe, frustrated by the hysterical commitment to mandates from nowhere, finds himself the unofficial spokesperson for the right to go unmasked. He pits himself against the slick local mayor, Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal), who is up for re-election, in the pocket of big tech, and ready to exploit his single fatherhood for political gain. At home, Joe's mother-in-law, Dawn (Deirdre O'Connell), spends all day consuming internet conspiracy theories while his wife, Louise (a criminally underused Emma Stone), works on crafts and nurses unspoken traumas. Joe's eagerness to take on Ted isn't just about masking. Years ago, Ted dated his now wife, a story that will be twisted into rape and grooming accusations. Caricatures and stereotypes are everywhere in Eddington, but in this world it feels like the women are especially underwritten – they are kooks, victims, zealots, and the ones who push fragile men to the brink. But in Eddington, all the conspiracies are real, and ordinary people are all susceptible to the madness. In fact, insanity is just an inevitability no matter how well-intentioned one starts out, whether that's the woke-curious teen rattled by rejection or the loyal deputy Guy (Luke Grimes) who is suddenly more than happy to accuse a colleague of murder. Louise will also be swayed by a floppy haired internet guru, a cult-like leader played with perfect swagger by Austin Butler. The problem with an anarchic satire like Eddington, in theaters Friday, is that any criticism could easily be dismissed with a 'that's the point' counterargument. And yet, there is very little to be learned in this silo of provocations that, like all Aster movies, escalates until the movie is over. There are moments of humor and wit too, as well as expertly built tension and release. Eddington is not incompetently done or unwatchable (the cast and the director kind of guarantee that); it just doesn't feel a whole of anything other than a cinematic expression of broken brains. Five years after we just went through (at least a lot of) this, Eddington somehow seems both too late and too soon, especially when it offers so little wisdom or insight beyond a vision of hopelessness. I wonder what world Aster thought he'd be releasing this film into. Maybe one that was better, not cosmically worse. It's possible Eddington will age well. Perhaps it's the kind of movie that future Gen-Alpha cinephiles will point to as being ahead of its time, a work that was woefully misunderstood by head-in-the-sand critics who didn't see that it was 2025's answer to the prescient paranoia cinema of the 1970s. Not to sound like the studio boss in Sullivan's Travels trying to get the filmmaker with big issues on the mind to make a dumb comedy, but right now Eddington feels like the last thing any of us need. Eddington, an A24 release in theaters Friday, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for strong violence, some grisly images, language, and graphic nudity. Running time: 148 minutes. Two stars out of four.
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Take a first look at the new Harry Potter as HBO begins filming series
HBO has officially started production on the highly anticipated Harry Potter TV series adaption, the network announced Monday, also revealing a first look at the titular character. The photo released by HBO shows Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter donning the signature Hogwarts uniform paired with round-rim glasses and a lightning bolt scar, not unlike the iconic costume worn by Daniel Radcliffe in the eight-part film series. The show began production at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in the UK and is expected to debut in 2027. A new round of actors were announced Monday including Rory Wilmot as Neville Longbottom, Amos Kitson as Dudley Dursley, Louise Brealey as Madam Rolanda Hooch, and Anton Lesser as Garrick Ollivander. The network announced in late May that McLaughlin was cast as Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger, and Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley. Several high-profile actors have been announced in other key roles including Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, and Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley. The new series adaption begins production nearly 14 years after the final movie adaption of J.K. Rowling's books, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, was released in theaters. In addition to the blockbuster movies, the franchise has inspired a Broadway play, video games, and theme parks since the first installment was released 28 years ago. The new series will be a faithful adaptation of the beloved Harry Potter books, the network previously wrote, and will feature an exciting and talented cast to lead a new generation of fandom full of the fantastic detail and much-loved characters Harry Potter fans have adored for over 25 years.
Asharq Al-Awsat
a day ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
‘Superman' Aims to Save Flagging Film Franchise, Not Just Humanity
Superman is often called upon to save the world from evildoers, but in his latest big-screen incarnation, he's also being asked to swoop in and save a franchise. James Gunn's "Superman," which opened in theaters worldwide this week, is a reboot aimed at relaunching the so-called DC Universe of comic book-based superhero movies, which also features Wonder Woman and Batman. The celluloid efforts of Warner Bros. and DC Studios have been widely eclipsed by Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe -- the world of Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther and the Fantastic Four, who are getting their own reboot later this month. "Warner Bros. has invested a lot of energy and money in trying to refocus and renew DC Studios, and this is going to be the big release from that," analyst David A. Gross from Franchise Entertainment Research told AFP. The heavy task falls on the shoulders of Gunn, the writer-director who won praise from fans of the genre with Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy" trilogy. The movie's rollout has already encountered several headwinds, including a right-wing backlash to Gunn's comments on Superman's role as an immigrant, and skepticism from fans of the previous Superman films helmed by director Zack Snyder. Gunn has shrugged off the high stakes surrounding the movie's box office success. "Is there something riding on it? Yeah, but it's not as big as people make it out to be," he told GQ Magazine. "They hear these numbers that the movie's only going to be successful if it makes $700 million or something and it's just complete and utter nonsense." The hype around the movie is real -- the White House even superimposed President Donald Trump onto one of the movie's official posters with the caption "THE SYMBOL OF HOPE. TRUTH. JUSTICE. THE AMERICAN WAY. SUPERMAN TRUMP." - 'A diminished genre' - Warner Bros. hopes the DC Universe can catch up with Marvel which -- after years of huge successes with the "Avengers" movies -- has seen more muted box office returns with the recent "Thunderbolts" and "Captain America: Brave New World." Gross explained that superhero films hit a peak right before the Covid-19 pandemic, with box office earnings and audience enthusiasm waning ever since that time. "It's really a diminished genre," Gross said. However, the analyst said early buzz for "Superman" was "really good." The film stars up-and-comer David Corenswet as the new Superman/Clark Kent, with "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" star Rachel Brosnahan playing love interest Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult as arch-villain Lex Luthor. The story follows the Man of Steel coming to terms with his alien identity as he finds his place in the human world. The supporting cast boasts a selection of other DC Comics characters, from the peacekeeping Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion) -- who is scheduled to reprise the role in upcoming TV series "Lanterns" -- to the mace-wielding Hawkgirl. Gross noted that July "is the top moviegoing month of the year," leading tracking estimates to forecast a total of more than $100 million for the film's opening weekend in North America. - 'The story of America' - DC Studios however must shake off a reputation for producing mediocre films that did not score well with audiences. The last round of "DC Extended Universe" films included the well-liked "Wonder Woman" (2017) starring Gal Gadot -- but also box office flops like "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" (2023) and the under-performing "Aquaman" sequel with Jason Momoa. "The success was mixed, and they were spending a lot of money on some of the new spinoff characters who were not working particularly well," Gross said, pointing at 2021's "The Suicide Squad" -- directed by Gunn -- as an example. The last films featuring Superman, starring Henry Cavill and directed by Snyder, were relatively successful for Warner Bros. until "Justice League" -- DC's effort at recreating the "Avengers" vibe -- which lost millions of dollars. Fans of Snyder have stirred up negative buzz for the new "Superman" movie, voicing hope online that the reboot fails out of a sense of loyalty to the previous films. The backlash was further widened after right-wing pundits groaned about Superman's specific characterization as an immigrant, lamenting the superhero had become "woke." Gunn addressed the criticism, telling The Times newspaper that "Superman is the story of America," with the character reflecting those who "came from other places and populated the country." "I'm telling a story about a guy who is uniquely good, and that feels needed now," he added. Ultimately, time will soon tell if Corenswet's chiseled looks and Gunn's directorial vision will be the superpowers that DC Studios need -- or prove to be its Kryptonite.
