Could this be the year that Bruce Willis is the key to cinematic universes? M. Night Shyamalan recently announced that he would be making a crossover sequel for both Unbreakable and this year’s Split, and with Luc Besson’s upcoming sci-fi film Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets about to hit theaters, more than a few people — myself included — have wondered if Valerian would make any passing references to Besson’s The Fifth Element. Another small cameo by Bruce Willis at the end, and suddenly he’s the man holding two separate franchises together.
Even as prospects on The Knick returning for Season 3 had gone dark for a year, the Steven Soderbergh medical drama made headlines with one star seemingly confident in its end. Now, Cinemax confirms Dr. Thackery’s story has died on the table, as the network returns to more action-oriented fare.
When last we heard, Steven Soderbergh had in mind to reboot Cinemax’s The Knick for an additional two seasons, even after an explicit end to Dr. Thackery’s story. Sadly, one series star offers a bleak update on the prospect, claiming “I’ve heard it’s done.”
Commercials have recently gotten a bit of an upgrade. Spike Jonze recently directed that Kenzo perfume ad starring Margaret Qualley that went viral, and now Neill Blomkamp has entered into the fray with his short film, “The Escape,” that also doubles as a slick action-packed BMW commercial. It’s the latest in a kind of series by BMW: a bunch of loosely-connected action shorts all starring Clive Owen as a nameless driver.
At what point does the line between marketing and original film and television content blur completely? For years, automobile giant BMW has been producing a series of loosely connected short films starring Clive Owen as an anonymous character known only as ‘The Driver.’ While these films are obviously meant to help BMW sell cars — or at least sell a certainly lifestyle centered on their cars — they have also pulled in some of the brightest stars Hollywood has to offer. And now BMW Films and The Driver are back.
It’s hard to articulate when exactly an actor or actress is on the verge of losing their A-list status in Hollywood, but my gut is telling me that both Clive Owen and Amanda Seyfried could use a hit. Despite being at very different points in their respective careers, both actors have slipped a little from the days when they were guaranteed money at the box office, and fair or not, Hollywood tends to remember these sort of things.
One of the more intriguing upcoming blockbusters is Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (or just Valerian, for short), Luc Besson’s long-developing sci-fi film based on the classic French graphic novel series. Starring Cara Delevingne and Dane DeHaan as a pair of spatio-temporal agents, the futuristic new project shares some aesthetic DNA with The Fifth Element, as you can see in Besson’s collection of photos from the set.
It’s been a few weeks since the Season 2 finale of Cinemax-Soderbergh medical period drama The Knick, which itself … well, it didn’t leave prospects for the series (or star Clive Owen) in a great place. We’ve heard that Steven Soderbergh might step back for a possible third, even fourth season, but now the revered director envisions it to run as long as six.