News Shotgun 3/8/25
Here’s all the movie and TV news you need to know from the past week: it’s the News Shotgun.
Gene Hackman’s cause of death revealed: Around a week after authorities discovered Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa dead in their home in New Mexico, the Chief Medical Examiner announced that Arakawa died of Hantavirus a few days before her husband, with Hackman, who was suffering from Alzheimers died from a combination of that disease and coronary issues.
Sony releasing new Resident Evil movie: Sony is holding onto the movie rights for Resident Evil, distributing the new reboot of the franchise directed by Zach Cregger. Coming off Barbarian, Cregger co-wrote the script with Shay Hatten, who worked on the last two John Wick movies. Sony has set a release date of September 18th, 2026, for the movie, which will lean into the game series’ horror roots.
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit series coming to Disney+: One of Disney’s earliest characters is getting his own Disney+ series as Jon Favreau is developing a live-action/animation hybrid series based on Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Walt Disney created Oswald in 1927, and the character starred in 27 shorts before Universal took over the rights. In response, Disney created a little character named Mickey Mouse to replace Oswald. Disney reacquired the rights to Oswald in 2006, and his most significant appearances since then were in the Epic Mickey games. Oswald is currently a public domain character, having entered that state in 2023.
Michelle Monaghan and Adam Scott join The Whisper Man: Michelle Monaghan and Adam Scott will co-star with Robert DeNiro in the upcoming Netflix crime thriller The Whisper Man. Directed by James Ashcroft, the movie is based on the novel by Alex North and follows a widowed crime writer whose 8-year-old son is abducted. He goes for help to his estranged father, a retired police detective, and finds there may be a connection between his son’s disappearance and a decades-old case involving a serial killer called “The Whisper Man”.
HBO’s Harry Potter close to two new cast members: HBO’s reboot of Harry Potter may be close to two pivotal roles. Janet McTeer is in talks to play Professor McGonagall, while Paapa Essiedu is in talks to play Severus Snape. The series is hewing closer to the novels, with the expanded TV format allowing subplots and characters who couldn’t appear in the film series to be explored. John Lithgow was the first major casting announcement, playing Dumbledore.
S.W.A.T. canceled at CBS: For what will probably be the final time, S.W.A.T. has been canceled at CBS, following two previous cancelations and renewals by the network. The 70s series of the same name inspired the show and starred Shemar Moore as Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson. The 8th and final season is airing and will conclude after 22 episodes.
Amazon orders Viking series Bloodaxe: Amazon has ordered a new series from Vikings creator Michael Hirst called Bloodaxe. The series will follow the rise of the historical figure Eric Bloodaxe as he and his wife, Gunnhild, fight for control of the throne of Norway. The show will not be connected to either Vikings or Vikings: Valhalla.
Adrien Brody in talks for Evel Knievel movie: Following his recent win for Best Actor at the Oscars, Adrien Brody is apparently fielding many offers for roles. One of them is a new Damien Chazelle movie, Evel Knievel on Tour. Leonardo DiCaprio has been working with Chazelle to get the movie into production and is in talks to star.
Monopoly movie finds writers: The upcoming movie based on Monopoly has found writers, with John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein signing on. The pair most recently wrote and directed Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. Lionsgate and Margot Robbie’s production company, LuckyChap, are producing the movie.
Several cast members join thriller Lone Wolf: Several new cast members have been announced for the upcoming conspiracy thriller Lone Wolf, which was previously announced with Bryan Cranston and Lily Gladstone starring. O’Shea Jackson, Jennifer Ehle, Chet Hanks, and Spencer Garrett have signed on to the movie, which follows Gladstone as a troubled Marine vet who gets drawn into a conspiracy involving a mercenary, played by Cranston, who is looking to commit a political assassination. The movie is directed by Mark Pellington, who previously directed films like Arlington Road and The Mothman Prophecies.
Three cast members revealed for comedic thriller Kill Me: As filming wrapped up this week, three cast members were announced as co-starring with Charlie Day and Allison Williams in the comedic thriller Kill Me. Giancarlo Esposito, Aya Cash, and Jessica Harper are co-starring in the movie, which follows Day as a man who wakes up in a bathtub after seemingly trying to kill himself. He doesn’t believe that’s what happened and works with the 911 operator who took his call, played by Williams, to try and figure out what happened.
Sam Worthington starring in new Harlen Coben Netflix series: Harlen Coben has been a goldmine for Netflix, with several adaptations of the author’s crime thrillers being global hits, most notably Fool Me Once. Sam Worthington will star in the upcoming adaptation of Coben’s novel I Will Find You, with the Avatar star playing David Burroughs, an innocent father serving a life sentence for murdering his son, a crime he didn’t commit. When he receives information that his son might still be alive, he is determined to break out of prison and find the truth.
Kathryn Newton joins Ready or Not 2: Kathryn Newton will join Samara Weaving in the upcoming sequel to Ready or Not. Radio Silence, aka Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, are returning to direct the movie and worked with Newton on last year’s entertaining vampire movie Abigail. Plot details for Ready or Not 2 have not been revealed.
The Last of Us Season 2 announces new cast members: As Season 2 of The Last of Us is finally almost here, several new cast members have been announced for the series. Joe Pantoliano, Alanna Ubach, Ben Ahlers, Hettienne Park, Robert John Burke, and Noah Lamanna have all been announced as supporting cast, joining stars Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Kaitlyn Dever, and Isabella Merced. Ahlers, Ubach, and Park will be playing characters created for the TV series while the rest will be playing characters from the video game or, in the case of Pantoliano, mentioned but never seen in the game. Pantiolano plays Eugene, whose cannabis lab Ellie and Dina discover in Seattle, but the character seems long gone. Pantoliano will get an episode similar to the critically acclaimed Bill & Frank episode from Season 1 that will explore the character.
Scream 7 adds David Arquette: With seemingly every major character in the Scream franchise returning for Scream 7, it was revealed this week that David Arquette would return to reprise his role as Dewey Riley. It’s not clear how Dewey will return, as he was pretty definitively killed in Scream (2022), but perhaps there will be flashbacks, or he’ll appear as a sort of a vision/ghost, similar to how Skeet Ulrich returned in the recent Scream entries. Kevin Williamson is directing the movie, and it has a release date of February 27th, 2026.
Three join Russell Crowe thriller Bear Country: Upcoming thriller Bear Country, starring Russell Crowe, has added three new cast members with Aaron Paul, Luke Evans, and Daniel Zovatto. The movie follows Crowe as a club owner who wants to sell off his club and retire with his girlfriend, but an armed robbery foils his plans. Derrick Borte, who directed Crowe in Unhinged, is directing the movie.
RIP George Lowe: Veteran voice actor and comedian George Lowe passed away this past week at age 67. A voice-over artist for TV and radio, Lowe found his signature role in 1994 voicing Space Ghost in Space Ghost Coast to Coast and the subsequent follow-ups and spin-offs. He most recently reprised the role for Max’s animated series, Jellystone.
FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International canceled: CBS has canceled two spin-offs to their flagship FBI with FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International getting the axe. FBI: Most Wanted debuted in 2020 and starred initially Julian McMahon before Dylan McDermott took over. FBI: International debuted in 2021 and starred Luke Kleintank, with Jesse Lee Soffer eventually taking over. Both shows were hits that won their timeslots, and no reason behind the cancelations was revealed. The main series is continuing, with a recent three-season renewal that will take it into at least the 2026-2027 season, and a new spin-off, FBI: CIA, is in development.
