Just one week after it looked like Warner Bros.had found a replacement directoronBen Affleck’s standaloneThe Batman, talks with filmmakerMatt Reeveshave stalled out. TheCloverfieldandDawn of the Planet of the Apesdirector was quickly chosen as the replacement for Affleck after the film’s star decided he didn’t want to direct the movie anymore, and Reeves entered negotiations to take the helm last Friday. Now, perTHR, Reeves has exited talks with Warner Bros. The report notes that once things cool off talks could resume, but as of now Reeves is no longer looking to take the helm....

The newBatmanmovie officially has a director. WhileBen Affleckwas poised to take the helm of the new solo featureThe Batman, he opted to step away from the director’s chair a few weeks ago, leaving averyenviable vacancy. Warner Bros. worked quickly to find a new director who could bring something fresh to the DCEU, and they’ve found that person inCloverfieldandDawn of the Planet of the ApesdirectorMatt Reeves. Reeves actually surfaced as the top choice to directThe Batmantwo weeks ago, but late last Friday news broke thattalks between Reeves and Warner Bros....

End-of-the-year lists are a beautiful time to look back at the television and film that most moved you, most inspired you, most defined the promise of a moving picture. Well, never mind all that nonsense, let’s talk about characters trying to beat the absolute shit out of each other. A good fight scene is a bloody work of art, the backbone of any action storytelling worth watching. With blockbusters getting bigger, special effects getting better, and the fate of theentire universeconstantly at stake, it’s harder than ever to stand out from the pack with just a few people doing their best to inflict bodily harm....

As fans of the action franchise patiently await the return ofKeanu Weavesas the titular character with the release ofJohn Wick: Chapter 4next year, an update has been given for the highly anticipated spinoff seriesThe Continental,which will now be moving to a new platform. The Continental, which will serve as a prequel to the beloved franchise, will be moving from Starz to Peacock, where fans can stream the show’s episodes on the streaming service....

While distinctive in their own right, most directors are never as riveting or fashionable as the subjects they put on the screen. Even the most independent, iconoclastic directors whotackle provocative materialbelong to polite society and play the game of Hollywood to some degree. Still, directors, like any artist, are fascinating figures to examine and deconstruct, as filmmakers require a special — if not esoteric — mind that stands out from the rest....

Check out our ever-expanding review coverage of new and returning fall TVhere. Jim Henson’s creations have finally returned to their television roots thanks to a revival in popularity following 2011’s greatMuppetsmovie, and its lesser (but still fine) sequel, 2014’sMuppets Most Wanted.TheMuppetsmovie was a callback to the original film, 1979’sThe Muppet Movie(yes these titles get a little hard to distinguish), focusing on Kermit the Frog getting the gang together despite a host of setbacks....

Horror fans have been eating well lately as a ton of our favorite 80s films have been celebrating major anniversaries. One of those classic films celebrating its 40th anniversary this year isJohn Carpenter’sThe Thing. The body horror thriller just released on4K Blu-ray last yearand iscoming back to theaters next monthto mark the occasion. Now NECA is joining the party with a beautiful new seven-inch action figure. The “40th Anniversary Poster Figure” recreates the iconic haunting poster for the film....

Public toilets may not seem like a feature film-worthy topic. To Oscar-nominated filmmakerWim Wenders, however, the inspiration fromThe Tokyo Toiletproject in a post-pandemic world sparked an idea that would go on to become the critically acclaimed and Oscar nominated moviePerfect DaysstarringKōji Yakusho. In celebration of the film’s Best International Feature nomination, Wenders and Yakusho joined us for anFYC screeningand Q&A atLandmark Theatresin Los Angeles where Collider’sPerri Nemiroffsat down with the duo to discuss their experience turning the original pitch of making four or five short films about public toilets in Tokyo into a deeply moving and widely beloved Oscar nominated feature film....

One of the best things Fox’s procedural crime dramaBonesdid following the departure ofEric Millegan’s intern Zack Addy was replacing him with not one, not two, buta revolving door of ten new interns, who would take turns assisting the Jeffersonian team in solvingincreasingly gruesome murder cases. While each was unique in their way,it was the inclusion of intern Arastoo Vaziri (Pej Vahdat) that brought something special to the long-running series. In what he represented for the characters on screen, but also what he represented to audiences as an Iranian-American — with both halves of that hyphen holding equal importance — and a Muslim man in the late aughts,Arastoo Vaziri was truly a character ahead of his time....

The Venture Bros.has been entertaining fans and skewing genre fare for more than 15 years now and it’s honestly never been better. From the rich character development that spends equal time on heroes and villains, not to mention sidekicks and henchmen, to the razor-sharp satire and multiple entendre that followers have come to know and love, to the impressive animation quality that’s heads above where the show started,The VentureBros. is one of the best animated series going today....

Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for F9. André Breton, a French writer considered to be a chief architect of the artistic movement known as"surrealism,“defined his philosophy and art as surrendering a conscious control of expression in favor of tapping into as pure an expression of the unconscious mind as possible. The “superior reality” is how Breton talked about one’s unconscious mind, and in his 1924"Surrealist Manifesto,“he spoke explicitly about wishing to make the dream state, often “reduced to a mere parenthesis,” the entire sentence....

Genndy Tartakovsky’sPRIMALindulges in the ludicrously pulp appeal of a caveman riding atop a tyrannosaurus rex into battle against a veritable animal kingdom of prehistoric monstrosities and sword-clad conquerors. The series is built entirely on the relationship between neanderthal Spear (Aaron LaPlante) and reptilian apex-predator Fang as they have each other’s backs and survive the savage world around them.PRIMALis a story about survival and the persevering strength of loyalty, in doing so perfecting the archetypal man-and-beast friendship demonstrated by Spear and Fang....

The spread of the coronavirus has hit the entertainment business like a bomb, closing theaters and halting productions worldwide. But there is also no form of entertainment more attached to the “show must go on” mantra than professional wrestling, that traveling circus of tights and testosterone that kept on trucking through 9/11,Jerry Lawler’s on-air heart attack, and the actual in-ring death ofOwen Hartin 1999. In this specific case, both the WWE and fledgling federation AEW have navigated the coronavirus by putting on shows in empty buildings, the performers locking up and promo-ing to empty seats....