MCU IS DOOMED | Jul 30, 2024 001

[00:00:06] Speaker A: What up, everybody? And welcome back to another episode of the Night Genre Report. I'm your host, Pablo. And joining me, as always, is Mister Brian Schultz. Brian is no longer speculation. We were going to do a show about this, and we didn't actually think they'd do it, Brian, because it would just scream. Desperation is the word that most people are talking about right now. That is the word of the day. [00:00:38] Speaker B: Got it. [00:00:39] Speaker A: And there were some announcements, obviously, Sandy with Comic Con, Kevin Feige on the road, and the gang, some announcements that people were waiting for. This was obviously sort of a shock, but I haven't been keeping up. Brian has been keeping up with the updates on what's been announced, what hasn't been announced, what people are expecting, what hasn't happened, what won't happen, I guess so, Brian, could you go down the list of things that were announced? [00:01:12] Speaker B: Look, let's not bury the lead. Let's talk. Let's talk about Avengers and then go in reverse, because I don't know if that anything else really matters. Then we get to that, because a lot of the unclear, uncertainty, chaos stuff around the schedule, I don't think any of that got resolved. So we'll talk about that because that's interesting. But let's talk about the big news so we get official confirmation. Joe and Anthony Russo are back. They are the directors of Avengers five and six. Avengers five has been retitled Doomsday, so that should tell you all you need to know. So what was Kang dynasty is now Doomsday? And then they had a kind of the disciples of doom in a bunch of hoods, brown robes and hoods on stage. And out came doom and sort of his green get up and mask. And the actor pulls off the mask and it's Robert Downey junior saying, new mask, same task, officially back, but now back as the villain for Avengers five and six. So, yeah, let's do. Let's deal with it. Let's deal with all the ramifications. [00:02:19] Speaker A: Okay. If it's a variant of Tony Stark, that is a doom. Your feelings towards that possibility. [00:02:34] Speaker B: Weirdly, I probably like it a little bit more because it kind of leaves the true doom on the table, you and I agree. But it also precludes the real doom from appearing, I feel like in the near term, just because the shadow of RDJ is so big. And so his portrayal, however he takes this, right? I mean, Academy Award winner Robert Downey Junior, however he takes this, is a huge deal and is going to be viewed as a standard of sorts. However, he. Maybe he has it in him because he's a brilliant actor, but he does not embody the Victor von Doom that I envision. So I think that's a huge question, but I do like it a little bit more. And I think it actually becomes a little bit more of an obvious, desperate commercial play. If he's a variant of Tony Stark than if he's Victor von Doom, it's Victor von Doom. [00:03:43] Speaker A: I think I'm completely out. If it was that. If it was that, Brian, I'm going in there with skepticism, quite frankly. [00:03:54] Speaker B: I'm going in with skepticism regardless. [00:03:56] Speaker A: But certainly. But the fact that is, if it's Victor von Doom, I'm going there. Not in. Not in it at all, because it's like, really yo him? And it's like there's no. You can't get a real. You mentioned it before, Brian. I think it's brilliant. [00:04:23] Speaker B: I also told you when Kevin said that on the podcast, he had signed somebody biggest from the ogs already, and it's him. This is it. He clearly said the Hugh Jackman Wolverine template. This is it. Like, they're going to keep doing this. I I don't think what Chris Evans. Spoiler alert. I don't think what Chris Evans did just this past weekend is the only thing where he's going to be doing his. So I think you just start right now. Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner. Just go down the list of every Avenger, major actor that we've had and just start going through who else are they going to play? Because they're all going to come back as some variant of themselves or another character, whether we like it or not. If Star wars couldn't grow past the Skywalker characters, Marvel might be showing that they either don't want to or don't believe they can grow past the original iteration of actors that they use to bring this universe to life. [00:05:31] Speaker A: I think they're under the impression or the illusion or the frustration of feeling that they have no choice but to go back to the ogs because they know that what they got right now ain't gonna cut it. Brian, that's the. That is the reality. The ogs had to come back now, having RDJ come back, Brian, and I hope that show that we did, road to RDJ, gets a little bit of more traction as to what we thought. [00:06:04] Speaker B: You have a show literally titled Road to RDJ. We talk about with this on the pod where he drops on the podcast. And here we are a couple weeks later, RDJ is officially back in a nukefest. [00:06:15] Speaker A: My approach, or some would say many people's approach, who have thought about introducing doom. And I mentioned it before, Brian, on the show, and I think I sent you a link, Brian. I don't know if you ever had a chance to look at it, is the books of doom where he simply is being interviewed. He's being interviewed and he's telling his life story. And it's a great read and it's a series. And I thought that would have been an appropriate way to introduce Doom so that when we get to a doom movie, we know who this guy is, what he's about, how slick he is, and all the things that make Doom doom. So when he meets the Fantastic Four, his defeat is like, doom is just not that easily defeated. He's the guy that just keeps on coming. And he's not a one and done dude. He's a Thanos level dude, Ryan. And this right here is just a show. [00:07:30] Speaker B: Yeah, this is the, this is the. This is the Deadpool Wolverine playbook. On the one hand, I don't totally blame the studio. Like, they are seeing their cash cow dry up before their very eyes. They are desperate. I don't care what they say publicly. They are different. They are losing money on projects. [00:07:55] Speaker A: They just gotta make more than a billion dollars. [00:07:58] Speaker B: Well, and the thing is, if they can't cut the budgets dramatically, the movies have to do well. Now, Deadpool Wolverine has delivered. Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman gave them an event to put in perspective the pressure that was involved there. And it leads back to this discussion. Remember, Deadpool one is a $50 million budgeted movie that made $730 million. There's a lot less pressure when your budget is $50 million than the reported $250 million that Deadpool and Wolverine carried for its budget. So, yes, that movie now looks like it's probably gonna get to a billion dollars. But guess what? It kind of had to get there or pretty darn close for the project to be profitable. They don't want to cut budgets on Avengers movies. They'll cut budgets elsewhere. We know they cut it for blade. They're gonna cut if they ever make it. But Avengers movies, they want to spend, you know, and signing the Russos is sort of a concession to. We're willing to spend. I don't think the Russos would have come back if, you know, especially not the way they spent on other projects. I don't think they would have come back for a hundred million dollar Avengers movie. So that put $300 million apiece in those movies, probably. Which means those movies have to be billion. 2,000,000,005 2 billion. [00:09:12] Speaker A: That's the range. [00:09:14] Speaker B: And the reality is, when you announce Rooster Brothers back, RDJ back, I can't quantify for you what that means, especially in terms of opening weekend box. But it's not small. Like, if I'm being honest, it's probably, what, 200, $300 million? They probably just automatically added to each movie because RDJ is headlining as the villain. But to your point, creatively, storytelling wise, long term, does it make you feel better? I don't think it should. Does it make you feel more excited or feel like you have to be there opening weekend for Avengers five and six? Yes, it does. And that's all I think they're after right now. That's it? [00:09:59] Speaker A: Well, yeah, do it in a way that's. Listen, I'm not saying my way is the right way. I'm just saying my way is a better way. [00:10:08] Speaker B: Yeah. I think there's some evidence, though, whether your story is the story they use. And Fantastic Four was featured in this hall h Comic Con panel, so we'll get to that in a second. I continue to think the breadcrumbs are pointing to whatever universe the Fantastic Four are in. That's the one of the future. And this announcement makes me feel more so in the sense that if this is a very evil variant of Tony Stark acting as Doctor Doom and secret wars leads to the annihilation and reset of the MCU, that kind of lines up, because RDJ is not going to play Doctor Doom, I don't think, for another twelve years. [00:10:55] Speaker A: No. [00:10:56] Speaker B: Right. So he's doing two films to help his boys out and make another massive chunk of cash, which probably, to me, is evidence he's not playing Victor von Doom, because I don't think Kevin Feige is stupid enough. [00:11:12] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:11:12] Speaker B: To use up Victor von Doom in one, two part move. [00:11:17] Speaker A: Absolutely not. If he does, then I'm. [00:11:19] Speaker B: He should be fired. He should be fired. If that's true, he should be fired. [00:11:24] Speaker A: And I want to reiterate my way again. If you saw the RDJ road to RDJ, um, video, my approach is simply this, Brian. If you see the eve, the evolution of Tony Stark throughout the films, every major event that happens, he. There's a change by Iron man three. He's. He has anxiety, he has PTSD. By the beginning of Endgame, he is secluded away from everything. Right? [00:12:06] Speaker B: Yep. [00:12:08] Speaker A: I remember in Iron man three, he wasn't the one in the Iron Man sue saving all those people. He was doing it remote. [00:12:14] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:12:16] Speaker A: And again, he was the first person to say life model decor. That would have been his answer for, I said, I'm done, right? [00:12:27] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:12:27] Speaker A: And the only person that would know would be probably happy or Tony Pepper. That's it. That would be the approach. But they're going this route. And I know, I'm like, I I'm not. I'm just. I'm just not cool with it, but we'll see, bro. [00:12:46] Speaker B: So, yeah, so when he says, new mask, same task, this is how I am. And he says, I like playing complicated characters, was his other quote. [00:12:57] Speaker A: I know where you're going, but go ahead. [00:12:58] Speaker B: And so this is my question, really, that I think is the one I would watch when Iron man one came out. An RDJ on his comeback tour delivers the defining iteration of Tony Stark. The shtick, the style, the charisma, the improvisational dialogue. When that movie became the hit that it became, the entire rhythm, tone, and style of the MCU flowed from his personality. If we're being honest, if you think about it, the through line to every single Marvel movie is really the personality of Robert Downey Junior. It's that quick one liners, a little bit of humor, a lot of style, a lot of panache. They built the entire cinematic universe on the back of his portrayal. When he says new mask, same task, that's the standard that I hold him to. And if he pulls it off, he should actually probably win another Academy Award, even though he'll never nominate it for it. But what I mean by that is Marvel needs a tonal shift. They absolutely do. The same thing is not getting people to the box office anymore. [00:14:19] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:14:21] Speaker B: If he pulls this off, even if it's as Tony Stark from universe, whatever, what I want to see, I don't want to see any resemblance to 616 Tony Stark. I want to see Robert Downey junior in his Academy Award winning bag, doing something entirely different, tonally, in terms of dialogue, in terms of mannerism. And if he pulls that off, my expectation would be that the MCU might again pivot toward whatever style he imparts in the role, and I wonder if that's why. So I'm making a case for. That's the case for, from a creative standpoint, bringing the actor back. [00:15:05] Speaker A: That wasn't what I thought you were going to say, but this is what I think might happen. And all of you said is true. I agree. But I think the approach is, what if he actually succeeded? Because think about Ultron, what he was trying to do there. What if he actually succeeded. And he's the one in that universe that has accomplished that task of putting a shield around the world or whatever the case may be. Right. And he's, that's what I mean. Same mat, a different mass, same task. That's what it points my mind towards what he wanted to accomplish. And perhaps in this universe he does. [00:15:54] Speaker B: I think it's a great point. I mean, in effect, they're riffing on Loki, right? This is the, we're going to pick a point in the timeline that you're familiar with and then this other part of the multiverse that Tony Stark took the fork in the road the other direction. [00:16:11] Speaker A: Right. [00:16:12] Speaker B: And whereas Loki was redeemed in his tv show, this Tony Stark fell from grace into super villainy. [00:16:19] Speaker A: Has, has there been a comic where Tony Stark has played doom? [00:16:25] Speaker B: Good question. I don't know the answer. We know there's evil Tony Stark, but. [00:16:29] Speaker A: I gotta ask Tracy. [00:16:31] Speaker B: We know there's evil. That was the one that Tom Cruise was rumored to be. They remember they were talking about cameos for him. [00:16:38] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:16:39] Speaker B: There was that version of Iron man that was supposed to be in Doctor Strange two. That was the evil version. But as doom. I don't. In the, in the classic green costume. I'm not familiar with that. [00:16:51] Speaker A: I'm asking him. [00:16:52] Speaker B: Now let's, now let's step back and go through the creative, the realistic commercial version of how we got here. Because I think we know how we got here. They, this conversation with Downey we know has been going on for over a year because of said no, of course, because of comments he's made and he's been holding out certainly for. [00:17:15] Speaker A: This ain't, this ain't, this wasn't a blade. This wasn't Maher slowly calling Kevin. [00:17:19] Speaker B: No, this was them go did. This was more like the Avengers in Endgame to your point. Going to the cabin. Except they went to the cabin like twelve times and they're like, this time we have a, this time we have an 18 wheeler full of cash. Next time I was like, next time we got the helicarrier full of cash. Until finally they probably, and he probably said no to all of it until they finally said almost like in the gladiator two trailer when Denzel asked Paul Mescal what could I give you that would satisfy? And he probably said another character, what about, I think, I bet it was his idea. That's what it feels like to me. It feels like an actor who understands the mythos who is like, yes. You know what would be fun? [00:18:08] Speaker A: I think I can do this, but. [00:18:09] Speaker B: For me to do, how about doom? And they said, yes, that's what it feels like to be. And then you got the studio higher ups looking at their box office, looking at all the struggles Disney's having and saying, oh, we leave this guy. So whatever it takes. Like, you know, because they know his. [00:18:26] Speaker A: Involvement will bring box office returns. [00:18:30] Speaker B: But a year ago, 18 months ago, they didn't have that same sense of desperation, right? They had guardians. They still would think Wakanda forever. Like, we're fine, we're fine. We're one movie away. Everyone's gonna come back, we're good. And then as things continue to spiral. [00:18:42] Speaker A: His gone and more negative. Yeah, and we can't. And they can't afford that, right? Because Disney is based on that. And if we lose MCU fans, what the hell is Disney for? Star wars. [00:18:59] Speaker B: It's looking more like it is and bad Star wars at that. [00:19:03] Speaker A: You know what I'm saying? So it's like they can't, they can't mess afford. They can't afford to mess this up. But then I started off the right foot with, I think, MCU fans and get MCU fans, it goes, because those are dwindling. I'm talking about Marvel fans. Those are the ones that know, like, I just asked Tracy, has Tony Stark ever been doomed? In the comments, he said, no, never. He says, that's a, that's an MCU thing. [00:19:35] Speaker B: Yep. But that's what I'm saying. I think it's down. I think it's down. He's like, this is it. Take it or leave it. He's like, you can leave the cash, but leave me the role. And they were desperate enough to say yes. I mean, this entire thing, Russo, Stark, and by the way, Chris Evans is 1000% going to be in Secret wars. Oh, yeah, why? Because you know what? Disney's going to. They're going to want to see some of those original actors fighting Robert Downey. They're going to bet on the emotional weight of last time you saw him sacrifice himself to save all these same actors. This time they're going to have to kill him. [00:20:13] Speaker A: So. [00:20:14] Speaker B: Yeah, which means Robert Downey's on the. [00:20:17] Speaker A: Text chain because they wolverine going behind. [00:20:22] Speaker B: Oh, Hugh Jackman's in the movie. We know that. But that's what I mean. He's there on the text team and he's basically like this. He's like, don't, don't say yes to the, the first offer. Don't say yes to the fifth offer. He's like, you make him give you this, you make him give you that. I mean, these guys are gonna be getting back in on this movie like there's no tomorrow. [00:20:39] Speaker A: All of them. [00:20:40] Speaker B: All of them. And Disney will do it, because even if the margins really thin, they just want it to, Matt. They want it to be spectacle in order to. [00:20:49] Speaker A: But will it be spread into other stuff? [00:20:51] Speaker B: Will it what? It was classic. I don't think so. The Wolverine is spectacle. Great spectacle. It is not classic. And I think it'll be the same with Avengers five. [00:21:01] Speaker A: But people are out there, Brian. Like, this movie is like. [00:21:06] Speaker B: But it became must see. They did it. [00:21:08] Speaker A: Yes, it is must see. It is must see. [00:21:11] Speaker B: But it will fade. It will disappear. Endgame lasts. Infinity War lasts. Avengers one lasts. Ultron disappeared. Ultron faded. Right. It's gonna be more like that, I think, ultimately. [00:21:25] Speaker A: Oh, when I see Ultron and I rewatch it, I really did. There were some really good moments in that, but whatever. Yeah. What else, Brian? [00:21:37] Speaker B: I don't know. You want to make another show of the next ones? You want to just keep going? [00:21:41] Speaker A: Let's keep going. [00:21:42] Speaker B: All right, so let's go in reverse order of importance. Let's do fantastic four. So retro, retro, retro. That would be my. Like, my take is like, we. They brought the. The car. The fantastic car on stage. [00:21:57] Speaker A: Okay. [00:21:57] Speaker B: And it looks very jetsons. It looks very old. [00:22:01] Speaker A: Okay. [00:22:02] Speaker B: The cast, you know, comes out. They showed a little bit of footage. The only thing I noted, really, from the footage was at the very last shot, you see, like, the eyes of galactus apparently looking through, like, a building at them. Other than that, listen, it's still pretty early in the process, but, you know, there was a lot of converse. I will say this. There's a shot of the four of them not in costume. And I will say, the way they've got Jose, I don't know Joseph Quinn as an actor that well, with the way they've got his hair cut and, like, his face when he's. He's pretty much bald or, like, with a little bit of bug, almost like Chris Evans version of Johnny Storm back in the day. Not the one in Deadpool. He does look related to Vanessa Kirby. I was one thing. I was like, if you look at the shot, they kind of look believable. [00:22:49] Speaker A: As siblings, brother and sister. [00:22:50] Speaker B: Yeah. I will say, pablo, though, you continue to be on an island. I look at that photo. I'm sorry. I don't want this to come out wrong. I just don't buy Pedro Pascal as the smartest man in the world. I just don't see it. Shallow. See? I don't see it in the photo. [00:23:04] Speaker A: Shall see. We shall see. I still have faith. [00:23:10] Speaker B: So that's what they. [00:23:11] Speaker A: I think. I think he's just a brilliant actor. That's what I think. And I think he can do it. But we shall see. [00:23:18] Speaker B: So they gave a little bit of a teaser, did that. But really, that thing was this idea of sixties. They're really, you know, almost. The themes they seem to be pushing was almost kind of like WandaVision in a different way. Maybe those first couple episodes were like old school tv. Like, this felt a little bit like that to be like, we really want you to know this is a period. [00:23:37] Speaker A: Piece, so you believe the visual aesthetic of it with regards to color palette, lens being used, that sort of style, you think? [00:23:51] Speaker B: Yeah, I would not be surprised if. [00:23:53] Speaker A: That would be interesting to see whether. [00:23:55] Speaker B: The earthbound stuff will have sort of a vintage look and then even space. I mean, if you think about it, in the sixties here, there was a lot of space, right? 2001 is a 1968 movie, and lost in space was on tv. So Star Trek is in the late sixties, original series. I don't know if they're actually going to go for something that sort of looks like a modern version of that appearance, but it wouldn't surprise you. It really feels like they want to push that as a theme. [00:24:22] Speaker A: Again, I'm going to reiterate my distaste for wanting to get Galactus back in the fold and this version of the Silver Surfer. [00:24:33] Speaker B: But that's changing now, right? Isn't there a rumor she's out already? [00:24:37] Speaker A: Well, it's more like a. Not that she's out, but it's like it's a one and done. [00:24:42] Speaker B: Oh, she's only doing this movie. [00:24:44] Speaker A: Correct. [00:24:45] Speaker B: Okay. Yeah, because I saw that the rumors. Yes. Okay. Which is also weird. So. [00:24:50] Speaker A: Because I think it's only meant for this. And again, it's so it sort of sounds like a redo of the rise of the Silver Surfer. Really? Like, what is she gonna do? Is she gonna thwart Galactus's attempt at destroying, consuming the earth? [00:25:06] Speaker B: Well, that makes me suspicious that Norrin rad is gonna be at the end of this movie. That. Right? Doesn't it? If she's one and done, doesn't it make. Doesn't it make you think that, like, she's nothing, real surfer, she's like the prelude surfer and then the real surfers out there. I don't know whether he's not a movie, but they're holding him back. And he is going to. [00:25:23] Speaker A: Certainly they're holding him back. [00:25:24] Speaker B: He's coming like. [00:25:25] Speaker A: He's like, yeah, I hope to see Zen la. And because Zen La, if you go back to, I don't know, the comics, but in the cartoon, Zen lies and one and done, sort of, I would say, utopia of a world that you only see once, and it's whisked away as a punishment. [00:25:46] Speaker B: Right. [00:25:46] Speaker A: So I don't see why they couldn't go that route, Brian. It shouldn't. Like, I don't want to be earthbound all the time. Why did this with galactic guardians of the Galaxy, you know, I mean, we went to. We went to a sort of earth, right? Yeah, but it wasn't earth. We knew. We knew that it wasn't earth. And that's what I want to see. I want to see different places. I don't see why they can't do that. Why gotta be earth. [00:26:13] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:26:13] Speaker A: So this comparison to rise of the silver surfer, only difference is that we're gonna probably see Galactus this time. [00:26:19] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:26:20] Speaker A: And that's my concern. Let's see. [00:26:24] Speaker B: Yeah, I agree. [00:26:25] Speaker A: What's next? [00:26:27] Speaker B: So they had thunderbolts gather on stage. They showed a teaser. I didn't really garner a lot from that. There was some good banter and humor. David Harbour showed up in costume. No one else did. And he's like, God, didn't you get my email? We're all going to dress up. That was pretty funny. Um, but I still felt like. I felt like even in the. Not seeing all the presentations live, but just kind of feeling the progression of these presentations. Thunderbolt still feels to me like the small, small scale, you know, kind of relative of all this. Right? It's like they had cap four before it. They had fantastic four and then the Avengers and RDJ after it. And kind of is like, you're really trying to. You're not really doing a good job of making me feel like this is a big deal. And that's still how I felt after the panel. I did not see that the particular teaser for this, but I think the task is very tall for this to be relevant and, like, you know, like, I'm hearing. I forget her name, the actress who played ghost in Ant man two. And, like, she's going through, like, oh, here's where we find ghost. And I'm like, does anyone care where we find ghosts? Like, I don't care. There was a forgettable character the first time around. Why do I care? Like, where what you're up to now like, it's just like you're still in a roster spot, man. It's like, you know, then cap four. So cap four, they obviously built it around Harrison Ford, who kind of hammered it up on stage and pretended to hulk out on stage and all sorts, but they added something. And it's interesting. I saw the trailer for cat four in front of Deadpool and Wolverine. And it's slightly different than the one that's online. There's, like, a little bit different. A couple more shots of Isaiah Bradley, like, fighting in his, like, his attack scene. And then there's a little bit more dialogue throughout the course of the trailer with Sam Wilson and Ross. And then in this, they added a line that basically says that Ross is. The thing he's selling Sam on is to assemble, reassemble a new cast of Avengers, which I think was an interesting omission from the. From the online trailer, you know, which is sort of obviously makes that movie a little more. Probably central to what's going to happen in Doomsday and Secret wars. But the way it was phrased made me kind of feel like, who exactly are you calling here? You know, it's like, we kind of have talked about this. Of the existing Avengers. We have. There aren't that many exciting names right now. So was that a hint that, like, maybe there's some cameos in cap four to be on the lookout for that might set the stage for Avengers five and six? But anyway, I thought that was a notable reveal that they put in the comic con footage. [00:29:18] Speaker A: Here's the thing, Brian. They're going to go off nostalgia, because, again, Captain America is not in a world where we meet and regular dudes. Right. We're talking about. We're having discussions and meeting interesting people, important people. Brian, this, to me, sounds like sort of a recruitment task that he's on. [00:29:44] Speaker B: Yep. [00:29:45] Speaker A: And along the way, he's going to get into some adventures with some of these individuals. [00:29:49] Speaker B: And it would have to be a setup, though, right? Because Ross. If Ross is going to be Red Hulk, he's not on the side of justice in this case. So he presumably is tasking him with this, in part to then destroy the Avengers on the inside. [00:30:02] Speaker A: No, it could be corny enough that he just. I don't know if he's gonna be conscious of what he's doing. I think he turns into the Hulk. And this is just the ramification. Okay, he's just a red, and he's just. He doesn't know what he's doing when he's the red. Hulk, he's just a red hook, I think. I don't think they're thinking it that deeply where the red Hulk is thinking about having monologues. You know what I'm saying? [00:30:31] Speaker B: Yeah. Okay. Okay. [00:30:33] Speaker A: So that's where I'm thinking. They're going with it, but they've clicked. [00:30:35] Speaker B: I don't know. They've made Ross seem pretty sinister in the trailer. I mean, he doesn't come across as on the side of good, where he's gonna, like, work with me, Sam. And then he's kind of giving him that funny look before Isaiah kind of attacks him. The implications are he's not on the right side of this, I think. So I would assume his motives for wanting the Avengers reassembled are nothing for the protection of the world. [00:30:58] Speaker A: Yeah, but. [00:30:59] Speaker B: But like I said, when you connect it to Kevin's other commentary about not everyone gets to be in these movies, I think it suggests to me that this recruitment is not limited to, you know, the Shang Chi's and the Captain marvels and the Miss Marvels of the world. [00:31:17] Speaker A: So you'll wait and see. It is a big. There is a bit of curiosity as to who he will go seek assistance from or seek to collaborate with Brian and how he goes about convincing them. Right. If he set with this task and has to get it done. I don't know. Interesting. Let's see, Brian, because, hey, this has been. And we'll get to mister Kevin Feige talking about Blade. They want to make the right movie. They want to be sure that they're making the right movie. This movie doesn't. If you look at its. The timeline of this movie and its production time and all the stuff that's gone on behind the scenes, they don't know if they have the right movie. Perhaps they feel a little bit better about this one, but still not sure. They're probably numb. It happens. [00:32:25] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:32:25] Speaker A: When you become numb to it. And you'd be like, you know what? Just, this is good enough. Let's see, Brian. Let's see if this is good enough. [00:32:33] Speaker B: So I think that ties to the last point I would make about the panels, which is things like blade. Things where there's been a lot of questions and uncertainty as to what's going on. This presentation left all of that untouched. No clarifications, no real timeline commitments on other things. It really just focused on the select few projects that are so I wouldn't. If you're a blade fan, I don't think you walk out of Comic Con feeling any better about its prospects or that it necessarily is going to shoot this fall. They didn't announce a director. You know, there's just nothing. So it's just like these other projects that are in limbo are still in limbo. And maybe D 23 is what they're banking on to address some of that later this year. But it is notable in my mind that there were zero updates on things like that. [00:33:24] Speaker A: Yes or no question. Give me a timeline. Does Mahershala Ali do this movie? [00:33:32] Speaker B: No. [00:33:35] Speaker A: Timeline for him. [00:33:37] Speaker B: Dropping terms of yes, I would say by January 1. Because if it doesn't shoot this fall again, I mean, he already shot the new jurassic world movie. [00:33:52] Speaker A: Okay. [00:33:53] Speaker B: Or he is shooting it now. Actually he is shooting. Sorry. He is shooting it now because they. I actually got a solving the other day, they just move locations. So he's shooting that now. His schedule, which means his schedule still open to shoot Blade this fall, which is what they're targeting, but they don't have a director. The things getting rewritten again. I think if this is not, if this last. If this latest attempt does not lead to an actual movie getting shot in front of the camera, I think he officially is off the part as of next year. I mean, he's, like I said, he's about to be a co lead in what sounds like a pretty intriguing Jurassic park reboot with a pretty high profile cast and great director and great writer. [00:34:41] Speaker A: Who's directing? [00:34:43] Speaker B: Gareth Edwards. [00:34:44] Speaker A: Ah, okay. You must twist him on a hell of an idea. [00:34:49] Speaker B: So. Well, they got the original writer. The guy who wrote the first Jurassic park is writing. This one came back to writing. [00:34:54] Speaker A: Okay. [00:34:55] Speaker B: You know, you got Scarjo, you got him mean, you gotta. You got heavy hitters on that. I'm saying, like, if this comes out and it's good, the movie's gonna make a billion and a half. It will because dinosaurs sell. And, like, if that happens, and he's the co lead of a franchise like that, why is he good? He's not gonna. He's not gonna bother a blade. Not after all this. [00:35:15] Speaker A: No. [00:35:20] Speaker B: And then I guarantee you, he is not happy about Deadpool. [00:35:25] Speaker A: Hell no. I mean, why would you. [00:35:28] Speaker B: The double whammy of the way. Snipe says it. And then Ryan Reynolds looking in the camera like that. [00:35:35] Speaker A: That's. [00:35:36] Speaker B: I don't care if that's in jest. That still shots fired? [00:35:40] Speaker A: Yeah, man. It's still like you're being roasted. But you know. You know. You know the feeling. You know, like, you know, it touched you. [00:35:51] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:35:51] Speaker A: You know, and not in the right way. So I wouldn't. I mean, I'd be like, yo, I ain't doing this. [00:35:59] Speaker B: Do you think he does it? [00:36:01] Speaker A: No, and I think. I don't. I don't know how. I don't know how soon. I mean, I know right now he's emotional. Maybe. Maybe I would be a little bit like, haha. Right. You know, all. And we still don't got a director. We still rewriting this joint. It's been five. There's just too many things that you can point to to be like, yo, enough is enough, yo, you know, this is not where I need to be right now. You know, and they already. They're trying to push this replacement on me. You know, I'm saying? And I haven't even. So it's like, for what, yo, for what? Brian, before we end this, so no Superman trailer, is it over? [00:36:59] Speaker B: What's that? [00:37:00] Speaker A: Is SDC? [00:37:02] Speaker B: Is it over? No, no. It'll still be going through tomorrow. [00:37:07] Speaker A: Are there any big announcements planned to for. [00:37:09] Speaker B: None that. None that we know. I mean, they've already put out. They already did, like Penguin and creature commandos. There's more. There's more tv stuff that they put out there, so. No, not yet. They obviously didn't want in front of Deadpool, Wolverine. So we'll see. [00:37:23] Speaker A: But. But you said that there is an event coming up for. [00:37:28] Speaker B: Well, there's supposed to be a DC event at some point this year. And then there's this Christopher Reeve Superman documentary in September. [00:37:37] Speaker A: Okay. [00:37:38] Speaker B: Which also. Yeah, I'm just. Yeah, okay. I have no basis. I was simply pointing out that it would not surprise me if they looked at the calendar and a company that is hemorrhaging cash and just lost the NBA is might. Might want to get some footage out there of their new flagship franchise. [00:38:01] Speaker A: Wow. That's a separate show right there. That's an interesting show. That's a business show right there. We got to do. [00:38:08] Speaker B: Yeah, I think. I think you're. I think you're. Whether it's the IP or the entire company, I think 2025 will be a fulcrum year for David Zaslav and WB. I think that it's hard to imagine that they can continue on the path they're on without him making moves. I'm not an an. Like I said, I'm not an analyst. I don't. But just the hits to the body that they're taking as a company, where the stock is, the cash, the debt load they're carrying, they're running out of time. So things like, will you sell DC are calls that David Zaslav, I believe, would take that two years ago, he would have hung up the phone immediately. [00:38:53] Speaker A: If I was. If I was Joe, if I was Apple, if I was somebody in Amazon, if I was any of those dudes, I'd be making that phone call. I think it's. [00:39:02] Speaker B: If it's anyone. [00:39:05] Speaker A: They'Ll know August 1. [00:39:07] Speaker B: Like, that's the thing. What do you think they're doing with that? That thing is a, that thing is the definition of, like, a trial run for what they really want. [00:39:15] Speaker A: Prediction after the first two weeks after the release of August of the Batman Cape Crusader on August 1 will be a telling tale as to what Amazon has and what they potentially can have. [00:39:36] Speaker B: Yeah. To be clear, I don't think Amazon, this is just my opinion. I don't think Amazon has interest in all of Warner Bros. But I think Amazon would make the call to buy. [00:39:46] Speaker A: Yes. [00:39:47] Speaker B: And we can have another show about that because they're doing it in a lot of ways. Like on the fantasy, like swords and sorcery side. They are very quietly building an empire. Like they have Lord of the Rings, they have wheel of time. There's a bunch of these books that I don't read, these like, you know, very popular bestsellers among teenagers, among, like, all age demographics, women. Also. Amazon has the rights to all of them. They're optioning all of them as shows. [00:40:17] Speaker A: Wow. [00:40:18] Speaker B: They are built so, like, they're empire building in genre. And things like Caped Crusader are clearly like the prelude to a grander design, which is why they did business with Sony even. They were like, we don't care. We can do this. Like, we can put the Amazon label on all things Spider man, all things Batman, all things DC, and we can make it bigger. That's the bet. [00:40:45] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, I've been talking about that for a long time already. It ain't going to probably be $100 billion, but it'll be a big number. [00:40:53] Speaker B: So back to whether we see a Superman trailer. I still think it's sooner rather than later. Whether it happens this week. I mean, I was guessing this week could be the earliest you would see it, but I still think it happens sooner rather than later. [00:41:04] Speaker A: All right. Yeah. Let us know in the comment section below what you guys think of some of the announcements. That's been, some of the announcement that's been had regarding Marvel and Doom. Robert Downey junior also. [00:41:26] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:41:26] Speaker A: Let us know in the comment section below what you guys think of the announcements Marvel has made. RDJ being doomed. You can't say enough of what we were. You know what we already said. Most people are saying, brian, most people don't like this, but obviously Robert Downey junior wants to take on a role and do something different. And it is totally believable. And I think that is how it went down. He told Kevin or spoke from whoever and said, if you want me back, this is what I'd like to do. And they're like, yeah, I mean, we're bringing the Russos back. We're gonna bring everybody back because the gang you got right now cannot get you to the promised land. I'm sorry. [00:42:19] Speaker B: Nope. I don't think you get them to the playoffs. Playoffs. So you said most people aren't gonna like it. I gotta. If we parse the audience, the nerds, people like us. I think that's what you're talking about. [00:42:40] Speaker A: Generally, yes. [00:42:41] Speaker B: I want to draw that line between the casual audience that got on board for the end game ride. What do they think about it? Are they excited because it's RDJ back in a Marvel role, like RDJ, Marvel villainous. Does that get the casual person interested? Cause that's what gets you to $3 billion, $2 billion. Right. It's not the hardcore fan. [00:43:08] Speaker A: Regardless of the fact, Brian, this is the. This is just, I think is a fact. RDJ brings the bucks. This dude could have came back as anybody. [00:43:23] Speaker B: I agree with you. [00:43:23] Speaker A: People are gonna be excited and see. Just see what he does next with this. [00:43:28] Speaker B: Right. I agree. I actually think the. The artsy critics community will hate this. Hate it. Because I think they're going to say he spent way too long playing Tony Stark when he could have been doing roles like Oppenheimer. And we got the role in Oppenheimer. He wins the Academy Award and what does he do with this new fans fame and notoriety? He goes right back to the MCU. So I actually think it's going to be this separation of different fan groups who are in. Who are either intrigued or factions. [00:44:03] Speaker A: There's going to be factions. But I think overall, I think the majority of all the factions is a negative sentiment towards Disneyland. [00:44:17] Speaker B: And I think if you see the first footage of doom and if he comes off as just like he's riffing on the Tony Stark we know and love, I think everyone will be out. [00:44:27] Speaker A: Of every now, now I'm out now, but I'ma see. I won't be. You know how people like, they. There's a crowd for me and you just peek around to see what's happening, you know, and. And you just walk away. [00:44:41] Speaker B: Exactly. No. Right. This type of stuff right now, because we're in, like, the rubber neck and crowd. We're in the, like, let's see the smoke coming up from the wreckage. You slow down. Yes. You slow down. Right. What's going on over there? There's a lot of, there's a lot. There's a lot of. There's a lot of bad stuff that happened. [00:44:58] Speaker A: Exactly. [00:44:58] Speaker B: Yeah. That's kind of where we're at now. He's. They got us. Tell us that what we're, what we're, what we're driving past is actually not wreckage, that it's actually salvage. See? [00:45:08] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah. Let us know what you guys think of all the Marvel updates, and we'll see you next time on the ninja report, the show. It.