Tag: Jon Favreau

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‘The Lion King’ Has Record-Breaking Opening Weekend At Box Office

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Disney has saved the box office once again. Jon Favreau’s ‘The Lion King‘ had its box office debut this past weekend and it made a ridiculous $185 million domestically.

We told you last week that most of the projections were between $150 million and $180 million, but some were worried it would be on the lower end of the scale because of the mixed reviews from critics.

But it looks like the audience doesn’t give a f**k about the reviews when it comes to a classic like The Lion King.

In total, the film has already made over $530 million worldwide. That’s right, in its first weekend at the box office, it already has over half a billion dollars. That’s very good news for Disney.

Disney’s film empire accounts for $7 billion in ticket sales at the 2019 worldwide box office — or as much as 46 percent of the $15.9 billion collected by movies released on more than 1,000 screens, including revenue from titles inherited following the Disney-Fox merger.

With five months left to go in 2019, Disney is just days away from eclipsing the industry record set in 2016 when its movies collected $7.6 billion for the full year. 

Some insiders say Disney could make $10+ billion this year. They are dominating Hollywood and once their streaming service hits, they’ll be dominating your living room.

Disney and Amazon are about to take over the world.

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On This Day 15 Years Ago, The Classic Holiday Film ‘Elf’ Was Released

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‘Elf‘ is a true holiday classic. It’s aired on almost every basic cable channel throughout the month of December. It’s fun for the whole family and is truly a movie you can watch over and over again.

And given how popular it still is today, it’s hard to believe it was released 15 years ago. The Christmas comedy starring Will Ferrell was released on November 7, 2003. It made over $220 million at the box office and has gone on to make much more than that.

Some people don’t remember that Jon Favreau actually directed the movie. That name probably sounds familiar to you. Favreau directed the live-action remake of ‘The Jungle Book‘ in 2016.

David Berenbaum, the screenwriter who created this classic, had just moved to Los Angeles from the East Coast when he wrote the script. He was missing the holiday spirit in LA because it was sunny and in the 80s in December.

So he decided to write a Christmas flick to put his mind back in the holiday season…

 “It was very comforting to write a Christmas movie when you miss the snow, and there’s a heatwave outside.”

And now his words have comforted millions of people across the world every December.

Check out this classic scene from the movie…

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Jon Favreau’s Live-Action Remake Of ‘Lion King’ Reveals Full Voice Cast, Find Out Which Character Beyonce Is Playing!

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Jon Favreau, the mastermind behind the live-action remake of The Jungle Book, is now trying to tackle one of Disney’s most popular films, The Lion King. We knew this live-action CGI remake was coming, but now it feels more real because the full voice cast has been revealed.

We knew Donald Glover would be voicing Simba, and we knew James Earl Jones would be returning to his classic Mufasa role, and now we know Beyonce has joined the cast as Nala.

As you can see in the image above, Billy Eichner, John Oliver and Keegan-Michael Key have also joined the impressive cast. Favreau said in a statement that this cast is like a dream, “It is a director’s dream to assemble a talented team like this to bring this classic story to life.”

The film is scheduled to hit theaters July 19, 2019, so we still have nearly two years to wait. It will be very interesting to see how Favreau pulls this off.

He nailed The Jungle Book, but The Lion King is a completely different beast. The Jungle Book is a classic, but The Lion King is THE classic.

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After The Success Of ‘The Jungle Book’ — Jon Favreau Will Team Up With Disney Again To Create Live-Action Lion King

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I think Jon Favreau is one of the most talented people in Hollywood. He can do it all, and he has done it all. He’s a successful actor, director, producer AND writer. His most recent project, the live-action remake of The Jungle Book, was a huge success.

It scored a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes and earned more than $950 million at the box office. Favreau and the entire production team created something truly magical. It was a beautiful experience. One of the best theater experiences of 2016 for me.

And with all that success, some people were wondering if a sequel might be coming soon. But thankfully, Disney and Favreau have something else in mind. The Walt Disney Company confirmed Wednesday morning that they were developing a live-action retelling of The Lion King.

No release date has been announced, but we do know this version will include songs from the original animated film. It will probably be at least a few years until the movie hits theaters. Making The Jungle Book was a lengthy process, and Favreau isn’t the type to rush things just to meet an unnecessary deadline.

It’ll be interesting to see what direction they take this in. The Lion King will feature all animal characters, so it’ll probably look and feel a little different than The Jungle Book, which benefited from having a human character in Mowgli.

We’ll keep you posted as more information is released.

 

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Andy Serkis Promises His Jungle Book Movie Will Be Darker And Scarier

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A year ago, when we learned the world would be getting two live-action feature films based on Rudyard Kipling’s classic The Jungle Book, we were a little concerned. We had a similar situation happen recently with the multiple movies about Steve Jobs, and not surprisingly, only one of those films had a positive reaction from fans and critics.

We figured the two Jungle Book films would have the same experience. One would be a huge hit, and one would be a huge failure. Well, we already know Jon Favreau’s version of the story is a huge hit. It has already grossed $828 million worldwide, and it received a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

This seems like bad news for Andy Serkis’ upcoming Jungle Book film; however, it looks like the two versions will be so different that they might not impact each other at all. Serkis made it clear while talking with Vulture that there are some major differences between his version and Favreau’s.

“Ours is for a slightly older audience. It’s a PG-13, more a kind of ‘Apes’ movie, a slightly darker take, closer to Rudyard Kipling’s. It’s great to scare kids in a safe environment because it’s an important part of development, and we all loved to be scared as kids, so we shouldn’t overly protect them. Kids are so sophisticated, and that is why our ‘Jungle Book’ is quite dark.”

Certainly sounds interesting, and it’s something fans have been waiting for. This might not please everyone in your family like the version released this year, but at least it’s trying something new and exciting.

In addition to directing, Serkis will play Baloo in the movie. He’ll be joined by Freida Pinto, Matthew Rhys and Rohan Chand in the live-action roles.

It’s scheduled to hit theaters October 19, 2018.

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Watch: The First Teaser Trailer For Disney’s Live Action Jungle Book Looks Incredible

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In Jon Favreau we trust, right? I know it’s only a teaser trailer, but this film looks like it’s going to be absolutely amazing. Even if the movie is just two hours of random action shots like we see in the trailer, I’d still buy a ticket to go watch it.

That’s how beautiful this trailer is. And Scarlett Johansson’s (Kaa) voice guiding us through the entire thing? It’s perfect. I honestly felt like crying. I don’t know what else to say. I mean, am I happy with all the live-action remakes coming out? Not really, but if they all look this magnificent, my opinion might change completely.

Favreau has made it clear that his version of the Jungle Book will be different from the source material, and this trailer proves he was telling the truth. As mentioned above, Johansson’s voice will probably give you chills while watching this trailer. She is joined in the movie by Bill Murray as Baloo, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, Christopher Walken as King Louie, and Ben Kingsley as Bagheera.

It’s nice to see Favreau getting the love and attention he deserves. I fell in love with him when I saw this clip from The Break-Up. I remember watching the extended version of this scene, and it was like 8 minutes of Vince and Jon bouncing jokes off each other. It was probably funnier than the whole movie. And then my love for Jon reached an unhealthy level after watching his 2014 film, Chef. If you haven’t watched it, please go check it out. It’ll make you feel good. I promise.

Anyway, let’s continue this Favreau love train with the trailer you all have been waiting for. The Jungle Book hits theaters April 15, 2016.

 

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Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett And Many More Added To Cast For ‘Jungle Book: Origins’

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Andy Serkis and Warner Bros. have loaded their ‘Jungle Book‘ adaptation with a cast full of stars. We have now learned that Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Tom Hollander and Naomie Harris will all join Benedict Cumberbatch as the animal characters in the movie.

The film, which will feature CG animation, motion capture and live action, will also star the adorable Bad Words actor Rohan Chand as the human boy Mowgli. It’s being reported that Christian Bale will voice the panther Bagheera, and Cate Blanchett will take on the menacing python Kaa.

Andy Serkis, who will be making his directorial debut on the film, will also take on the role of Baloo the bear. The casting is now complete on the film, which means Warner Bros. and Andy Serkis are ready to take on Jon Favreau and Disney. As most of you know, Disney is also mounting their own Jungle Book film, with Jon Favreau in the director’s chair.

Disney’s version has a cast full of stars, as well. Bill Murray, Christopher Walken and Scarlett Johansson have all agreed to join the cast. The film is expected to hit theaters October 9, 2015.

Which version are you looking forward to the most?