Mike Sampson is the Editor-in-Chief of ScreenCrush. He studied to become a lawyer and worked as an architectural planner after graduating college but neither of these professions afforded him the opportunity to watch movies and TV for a living. He previously served as the Editor-in-Chief of JoBlo.com for 10 years. He lives in New Jersey and probably spends too much time playing video games and overthinking things.
Mike Sampson
‘Batman vs. Superman’ R-Rated Edition May Get Released in Theaters
After a disappointing weekend that saw it lose to a horrible Melissa McCarthy comedy in only its third week of release, Batman vs. Superman looks poised for a total domestic run between $325 and $340 million. That’s below Deadpool, Furious 7 and even American Sniper and certainly not what Warner Bros...
Marvel to Release ‘Star Wars: Rogue One’ Prequel Comic Series
One of the reasons Disney paid $3 billion for rights to Lucasfilm and Star Wars was because they knew they could synergy the s— out of it. No company does cross-promotion quite like Disney does and they’ve already proven adept at using each of their brands to help promote their other brands (remember when the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer debuted on ESPN?). Continuing on the path “Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens” started last year Marvel Comics has officially announced that they’ll be publishing a Star Wars: Rogue One prequel comic series later this year.
Marvel One-Shots Could Return as Exclusive Online Content
Remember the Marvel One-Shots? They were the series of short films set within the Marvel Cinematic Universe that were included as bonus features on the DVD and Blu-ray releases of Marvel films. Five Marvel One-Shots were produced from 2011-2014 including one that served as the inspiration for ABC’s Agent Carter TV series. Then in May of 2014 Marvel announced that the DVD and Blu-ray release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier wouldn’t include a One-Shot. Then the Guardians of the Galaxy DVD was released without one as well. It seemed as if the Marvel One-Shots might be dead, but like Bucky Barnes, they’re not dead, just in a cryogenic hypersleep waiting to be reborn bigger and better.
‘Batman vs. Superman’ R-Rated Cut Will Be Over 3 Hours, Says Zack Snyder
Batman vs. Superman is opening in theaters next week, but an extended, R-rated cut of the film will be included with the DVD and Blu-ray release of the film. While many extended cuts just include a few additional minutes of footage and a couple random edits, Batman vs. Superman director Zack Snyder says his planned R-rated cut will include a whopping 30 minutes of new footage, pushing it past the three hour mark.
Simon Pegg in Talks to Join Steven Spielberg’s ‘Ready Player One’
It’s almost amazing to think that at this point Simon Pegg hasn’t starred in a Steven Spielberg film, but that’s all about to change. Pegg is currently in talks to join the cast of Spielberg’s Ready Player One, which already has Tye Sheridan (X-Men: Apocalypse), Olivia Cooke (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) and Ben Mendelsohn (Star Wars: Rogue One) set to star...
‘Legend of Tarzan’ Trailer: Welcome to the Jungle
Edgar Rice Burroughs published the first Tarzan story back in 1912 with “Tarzan of the Apes”. Over the years, the character has appeared in more than two dozen books, comics, films and TV shows. IMDb lists over 200 titles for Tarzan, the most recent in 2013 with Kellan Lutz though that film was never released in the United States...
‘Suicide Squad’ Ignores the ‘Deadpool Effect,’ Won’t Be Rated R
After Deadpool opened in theaters to over $130 million, the so-called “Deadpool Effect” started trickling through Hollywood. PG-13 movies like Wolverine 3 and X-Force were immediately considered to be R-rated films, and other projects that were R-rated were finding new life in development...
‘Ghostbusters’ Trailer: These Women Ain’t Afraid of No Ghost
Ever since the Ghostbusters reboot has been announced (with an all-female cast) the film has been harshly judged, sight unseen. Today, director Paul Feig has officially revealed the Ghostbusters trailer, so now we can judge the film on its own merits...
How Disney Turned a Cute, Talking Animal Movie Into an Commentary on Race Relations
As the story goes, corrupt government officials intentionally introduced a dangerous drug into marginalized minority communities resulting in increased power for politicians and law enforcement through the manipulated fear of the middle class.
This narrative has been the subject of a number of popular conspiracy theories over the years concerning the CIA’s alleged involvement in the crack cocaine epidemic among the African American community in the mid-80s. It’s also the plot of the 55th Disney animated movie starring a group of cute, talking animals.
Lionsgate Announces ‘John Wick: Chapter Two’ Release Date
It’s very easy to get caught up in all the Deadpool 2 and Guardians of the Galaxy 2 craziness, but don’t let yourself forget one extremely important thing: John Wick 2 is coming. The sequel to Keanu Reeves’ modern action masterpiece is on its way and now, courtesy of Lionsgate, we know exactly what date to circle on our calendars.