Film News Wrap Up April 27: 'Snowden' and 'Batman: The Killing Joke'

Today in film news, we have our first look at Oliver Stone's new Edward Snowden biopic. In the trailer, the infamous CIA employee discovers that the NSA is spying on millions of Americans, and he begins making moves to leak classified information. Joseph Gordon Levitt stars as the titular character, although you certainly wouldn't know it was him based on the voice alone. It looks as much like a Bourne film as Jason Bourne, a film which ironically is heavily inspired by the actions of Edward Snowden. Also starring Shailene Woodley, Timothy Olyphant, Zachary Quinto and Nicolas Cage, Snowden hits theaters in September. 

We also have a trailer for Batman: The Killing Joke, the new animated adaptation of Alan Moore's classic comic book. Mark Hamill returns as The Joker, having previously voiced the character in Batman: The Animated Series. This will be the first Batman movie in history to be rated R, not counting the extended edition of Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. In fact, The Killing Joke is expected to be one of the darkest incarnations of the caped crusader yet, which should come as no surprise to those who are familiar with the source material. Hopefully it makes up for the travesty of Batman v. Superman.

You may recall that last week, Kevin Smith discussed his forthcoming battle with the MPAA over the rating of Yoga Hosers, but that situation has now been resolved. Smith planned to appeal the decision to give his latest comedy an R rating and he had a screening scheduled with the MPAA today. However, Smith says the board suddenly cancelled the screening, telling him they re-watched the movie and agree it should be PG-13. No changes will apparently be made from the version that initially received an R rating. This is yet another example of the MPAA's strange inconsistencies, as chronicled in the wonderful documentary This Film Is Not Yet Rated. 

Daisy Ridley has landed yet another role in a major motion picture. According to Variety, the Star Wars lead has just joined The Lost Wife, an upcoming World War II drama based on the novel by Alyson Richman. It follows an art student, Lenka, whose romance with her best friend's older brother is disrupted by the sudden Nazi invasion of Prague. No director or studio has been attached. Ridley also recently landed a part in the J.J. Abrams' produced Kolma, so her hard work as Rey in The Force Awakens is clearly paying off big time.

Warner Bros. is working on a remake of Dennis the Menace and they have just hired a writer. According to Variety, Stacey Menear (The Boy) has been hired to work on this remake of the 1993 film, which is based on the popular Hank Ketcham comic strip. No director has been attached as of yet. Dennis the Menace will presumably be a much different kind of project for Menear, as The Boy was a terrifying horror film about a killer doll. Either that or the Dennis the Menace franchise is being taken in a seriously twisted direction.

Robert Downey Jr. said a few years ago that he was done with standalone Iron Man movies, but he is now changing his tune. In an ABC News Nightline report on Captain America: Civil War, the actor said he would be open to doing one more Iron Man. For now, we'll keep seeing Downey pop up in other Marvel characters' films, such as Captain America: Civil War and Spider-Man: Homecoming.

 

We have our first official photo from the set of Alien: Covenant! In celebration of Alien Day, the franchise's Twitter page posted this image of a Covenant suit accompanied by "The mission begins." This project is not to be confused with Alien 5, the upcoming sequel starring Sigourney Weaver and directed by Neill Blomkamp. Instead, this is the sequel to Prometheus, featuring Michael Fassbender reprising his role as David. It will be released on Aug. 4, 2017.

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