News Shotgun 4/5/25
Here’s all the movie and TV news you need to know from the past week, it’s the News Shotgun.
The Smashing Machine Gets a Release Date: A24 has set a release date for The Smashing Machine as October 3rd this year. The film is the latest from Benny Safdie. It stars Dwayne Johnson as MMA fighter Mark Kerr, a two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion who struggled with substance abuse. Emily Blunt co-stars as Kerr’s girlfriend, Dawn Staples.
Fox Animated Series Get Massive Renewals: Fox announced massive renewals for three of its animation stalwarts, with The Simpsons, Family Guy, and Bob’s Burgers all getting four more seasons. This would take The Simpsons into its 40th season. American Dad, which has been on TBS and TNT, is also coming back to Fox proper and has also got four new seasons. Reruns of the series will still air on TBS, Adult Swim, and TruTV.
RIP Val Kilmer: Val Kilmer passed away this past week from pneumonia at age 65. Kilmer had countless iconic roles, including Tom “Iceman” Kazansky in Top Gun, Doc Holliday in Tombstone, Chris Shiherlis in Heat, Mad Martigan in Willow, and Bruce Wayne/Batman in Batman Forever. He also appeared in films like Top Secret!, Real Genius, The Doors, The Saint, and many more. His final on-screen appearance was in Top Gun: Maverick, reprising his role as Iceman for a poignant scene with Tom Cruise.
David Fincher directing Once Upon a Time in Hollywood sequel: Brad Pitt is returning as Cliff Booth for a sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with David Fincher at the helm for Netflix. Quentin Tarantino is writing the script and this would be the fourth collaboration between Pitt and Fincher. Tarantino was working on The Movie Critic, which would have starred Pitt, but he decided to scrap it.
New Hunger Games prequel film in development: Based on the new Hunger Games prequel, Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins, Lionsgate has a film adaptation in development. Screenwriter Billy Ray, who wrote the script for the first Hunger Games film, is back to write the script, and franchise director Francis Lawrence is back to direct. The novel and movie are set at the 50th Hunger Games, when Haymitch Abernathy became the first ever winner from District 12. The film is set for release on November 20th, 2026.
Several John Wick Universe projects in development: Lionsgate is going all in on John Wick with several new projects expanding the world of the Baba Yaga. The spin-off movie starring Donnie Yen’s Caine was also announced to be directed by the martial arts legend and begins production in Hong Kong this year. There is also an anime prequel in development that will see Keanu Reeves voice the character and detail the events of “The Impossible Task,” where John had to kill all of his rivals in one night to leave the world of the High Table and live an everyday life with his wife Helen. John Wick 5 was also announced, with Reeves and director Chad Stahelski back to direct. It wasn’t clear how John would return from seemingly being killed at the end of John Wick Chapter 4. Ballerina, the spin-off starring Ana de Armas, is out on June 6th this year.
Now You See Me 4 announced: Lionsgate also announced two sequels in the Now You See Me magical heist series. The third film, Now You See Me: Now You Don‘t, will be released on November 14th this year, and a fourth film is in development. Ruben Fleischer directed Now You See Me: Now You Don’t and will direct the fourth film. Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblatt, and Rosamund Pike join the cast along with Justice Smith.
RIP Richard Norton: Martial artist, action star, and stunt performer Richard Norton died this past week at age 75. Norton co-created the martial arts style known as Zen Do Kai, and he was a staple of the 80s and 90s as an action and martial arts movie heavy, co-starring with the likes of Chuck Norris and Cynthia Rothrock. He was also a prolific fight choreographer and trainer, working on movies like Mad Max: Fury Road and Furiosa, Suicide Squad, Blacklight, and The Amazing Spider-Man.
Spider-Man Updates: Sony announced some updates for the Spider-Verse, including a title and release date for the next film starring Tom Holland. Spider-Man: Brand New Day will be directed by Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton and come out on July 31st, 2026. Along with Holland, the only returning cast member announced was Zendaya. Sony also announced that the highly anticipated final chapter in the animated Spider-Verse is delayed until 2027, with Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse now getting a release date of June 4th, 2027. The sequel to Across the Spider-Verse was initially set for March 29th, 2024, but the strikes delayed it.
Four Beatles movies hitting in April 2028: Sony is also developing what they call the first “bingable” cinematic experience for April 2028 with four movies, each one focused on a different Beatles member. It’s not clear if all four movies will drop on the same day or if they will drop each week during that month. Paul Mescal plays Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn will portray George Harrison, Barry Keoghan will star as Ringo Starr, and Harris Dickinson will play John Lennon. Sam Mendes directs each film and anticipates principal photography will take at least a year. The movies have the full rights to The Beatles’ music catalog.
Nathan Fillion appearing in Lanterns: After debuting in Superman this summer, Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner will make the jump to HBO/Max and appear on the Lanterns series. Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre co-star as Hal Jordan and John Stewart, who head to the American heartland to solve a murder. Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King are behind the series.
Coyote vs Acme sold to Ketchup Entertainment: Coyote vs Acme has been saved from death as a tax write-off as Warner Bros. Discovery sold the global rights to the film to Ketchup Entertainment. The exact amount of the deal was not revealed, but it’s believed to be around $50+ million. Ketchup will release the film theatrically next year. The movie features Wile E. Coyote as, fed up with all the failed gadgets he’s bought, sues the Acme corporation. Will Forte plays Coyote’s lawyer, and John Cena is Forte’s former boss who represents Acme. Ketchup recently released The Day The Earth Blew Up in theaters, another Looney Tunes project they saved from Warner Bros. Discovery.
