Cinema isn’t just about the latest Disney/Pixar project or Star Wars spin-off. Memorable storytelling is happening all over the film industry, from Hollywood’s box-office-busting superhero smashes to small, innovative indie experiments. The Verge’s film section is here to help you sort through the latest Hollywood news and reviews, from favorite genres like sci-fi, fantasy, and horror to the independent movies that matter.
Sorry, I mean Star Wars: Galactic Racer. A new trailer shows off what appears to be the game’s story mode. The conversations look a little stilted, but who cares — all I care about is the podracing. It’s coming out on October 6th.
Quilty claims to predict box office success.
The original lightsabers in Star Wars were hacked together from antique camera parts, so it’s fitting that folks are still going back to basics to build new ones. As lightsaber home-build videos are exploding right now on TikTok, it’s fun to see Home Depot embrace it. Sure, you can still buy something fancy directly from Disney, but the best lightsabers in the world have always been built by fans.
Fresh off interviewing the chatbot-powered stunt that is Tilly Norwood, the NYT tells us of Martin Scorsese’s advisor and partner arrangement with Black Forest Labs (whose Flux tech has powered xAI’s image generation) in what it calls “a clear sign of Hollywood’s softening stance on artificial intelligence.”
Right now, however, that softening extends only to a test of storyboard creation:
I recently tested this out on a scene and the ability to visualize and immediately share the storyboard was creatively freeing. During the pre-production process, time costs money, and this allowed us to move faster without sacrificing quality or craft.
Prime members in the US will have the chance to watch Spider-Man: Brand New Day in select theaters on July 29th, two days before the movie is widely released stateside. Tickets will be available here, and you can sign up to be notified when they go on sale.
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David Robert Mitchell — the director best-known for the excellent horror flick It Follows — is making the jump to summer blockbusters with The End of Oak Street, in which a suburban block somehow gets overrun with hungry dinosaurs. It hits theaters on August 14th.
Le Vertige is directed by Quentin Dupieux (FKA: Mr. Oizo), and it follows Jacques, a low-polygon model of a man convinced that nothing is real and that all of humanity is living in a simulation. It looks like a surreal blast, but sadly, there’s no US release date yet.
Marcia, 80, was married to George Lucas from 1969 to 1983 and edited many of his early films, including American Graffiti and THX 1138. She also worked with Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese, earning multiple Academy Award nominations along the way.
Filmmakers like Kane Parsons are getting their start on YouTube, before moving to bigger productions.
225 movies will initially join the service, including big hits like The Hunger Games and John Wick, with around 100 more being added this year and early next, Deadline reports.
[Deadline]
The latest trainer for writer / director Jane Schoenbrun’s slasher thriller Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is as spellbinding at it is deeply, deeply messed up.
The agency is looking to partner with filmmakers, musicians, writers, poets, and artists to help tell the story behind programs such as the Artemis Moon missions and the Space Reactor-1 Freedom mission to Mars. But get your proposals in ASAP, the window closes on Tuesday, June 30th.
“I’m very much in favor and in awe of the easy access that we have now to films to be able to immerse ourselves in films and film history,” he told 60 Minutes.
“Power under capitalism comes from capital itself, and we need to figure out how to have collective control of that.”
Critterz — AGC Studios’ animated feature that was produced using OpenAI’s tech — was originally scheduled to make its debut at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. But that’s no longer the case following OpenAI’s decision to shut Sora down back in March.
Michael Jelenic and Aaron Horvath will “develop animated series and films exclusively for Netflix, with first-look rights for live action projects,” according to a press release. Their latest film, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, debuted in April.
The new Star Wars movie isn’t strong enough to get the franchise back on track.
Following its surprisingly successful theatrical run, Markiplier’s Iron Lung adaptation is set to make its YouTube streaming debut on May 31st.
During an interview for his new animated film Tangles, at Cannes, Rogen minced no words about his feelings on AI, calling it “stupid dog shit.” But perhaps more pointedly said that, if you’re using AI to write, just “go do something else,” because you’re not a writer.
The next installment of the Sonic movie franchise just wrapped filming. It won’t land in theaters until March 2027. But to celebrate the milestone, director Jeff Fowler posted our first full look at Metal Sonic, glowing eyes and all.
The new premiere date is April 30th, 2027. Per Nintendo’s X account:
This is Miyamoto. I would like to let you know that the worldwide theatrical release date for the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda has been moved up to April 30, 2027, from May 7. The team is working hard to deliver the film to everyone as soon as possible. There’s less than a year to go until release, so thank you for waiting.
It’s the second release date shift for the film.
It’s time for Josh D’Amaro to lock in.
It sure seems like Laika has another banger on its hands, at least based on the new trailer for the dark fairy tale Wildwood. The stop-motion movie hits theaters at just the right time of year, too, premiering on October 23rd.
I can still be easily sucked into a book of cross section artwork, so it’s fascinating to see the process of how the complex illustrations are made. Artist John R. Mullaney condensed the long process of creating a cross section of The Mandalorian’s N-1 Starfighter into a timelapse that’s four minutes well spent.
Star Wars is making its long-awaited return to theaters with The Mandalorian and Grogu next week, but the galaxy far, far away still has a home on streaming. Disney announced that season 2 of Mando spinoff Ahsoka will premiere in early 2027. That’s more than three years removed from when the show debuted.
During its annual upfront presentation today, Disney announced that Avatar: Fire and Ash will stream on Disney Plus beginning June 24th.
Though HBO’s Westworld has come and gone, Deadline reports that Warner Bros. has tapped Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp to pen the script for a new Westworld movie that probably won’t have much to do with the show.
We’re only a few days out from Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway: The Sorcery of Nymph Circe’s English language theatrical release on May 15th. But if a week is too long a wait, you can check out a sneak peek at the film right here.
Following The Academy Awards saying last week that only humans can get acting Oscars, the Golden Globes’ eligibility rules seem to have slightly more wiggle room allowing for AI to be used for acting awards.
“Performances submitted for acting categories must be primarily derived from the work of the credited performer,” according to the rules, but “the use of AI for technical or cosmetic enhancements” like de-aging “may be permissible.”
The latest trailer for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey shows the sheer scope of the film, from large-scale battles to gigantic mythological beasts. But it also hones in on the personal aspect; namely, Telemachus’ (Tom Holland) need to reunite with his father (Matt Damon). The film hits theaters in July.
A month after the Writers Guild struck a longer-term deal than normal with the studios, the Screen Actors Guild has followed suit. While it hasn’t been made official yet, the deal reportedly includes a sizable contribution to the union’s pension fund, increased streaming residuals, and new AI protections.
“Only roles credited in the film’s legal billing and demonstrably performed by humans with their consent will be considered eligible,” according to the rules for the 99th Academy Awards, which air in 2027. (Sorry, Tilly Norwood.) Screenplays eligible for writing awards must also be “human-authored.”
And if “questions arise” about use of generative AI in a film, the Academy says it can “request more information about the nature of the use and human authorship.“
[The Hollywood Reporter]
The streamer confirmed that one of its biggest upcoming films — Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew, helmed by Barbie director Greta Gerwig — will release in 2027. It’ll be in theaters on February 12th and stream on April 2nd, though it’s not clear just how long the theatrical window will last.
