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Fri/Sat/Sun July 20~22, 2018

Cher records cover album

Giant statue of ‘sexy’ Goldblum appears in London

MARVEL is preparing to launch a new comic book series cen-tered around T’Challa’s sister, Shuri, months after the char-acter stole the show in Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther” movie.

As revealed at Bustle, the new series — to be called, simply, “Shuri” — will be written by award-winning author Nnedi Okorafor, who penned the digi-tal comic series “Black Panther:

Long Live the King” for Marvel, with art by “Hawkeye” artist Leonardo Romero.

“Shuri is an African young woman of genius level intel-ligence who is obsessed with technology and has traveled spiritually so far into the past that she’s seen Wakanda before it was Wakanda. The Ancestors call her Ancient Future. And she’s super ambitious. What do I love about her? Alllll that

and more,” Okorafor is quoted as saying.

The series will fi t into the continuity of the “Black Pan-ther” comic book series, where T’Challa has moved into space to explore the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda, leaving the actual nation without a leader, which means that Shuri, as the next in line to the throne, has to step up as monarch, whether or not she likes it. (SD-Agencies)

Marvel to launch ‘Black Panther’ spinoff ‘Shuri’

THE iconic image of Jeff Gold-blum in Jurassic Park with his shirt open and a smoldering expression on his face has inspired countless memes, an action fi gure and now — an enormous statue.

To celebrate the 25th anni-versary of Steven Spielberg’s original dinosaur thriller, U.K. streaming service Now TV has erected a giant effi gy of Gold-blum as all-knowing “Chaos Theory” mathematician Dr. Ian Malcolm — in his famous reclin-ing pose — in front of London’s Tower Bridge.

The “Sexy Jeff Goldblum” statue — reported to measure 7.6 meters in length, around 3 meters in height — appeared Wednesday, becoming an instant hotspot for selfi es. One fan declared it to be London’s

“best attraction” on Twitter.Goldblum himself went on

Instagram on Wednesday to declare the statue deserved “10/10 GOLDBLUMS!”

In a recent interview, Gold-blum, who made a cameo in “Jurassic World” sequel “Fallen Kingdom,” admitted that the decision to unbutton his shirt was unscripted and actually his alone.

“It’s supposed to be Costa Rica, right?” the actor told Yahoo. “So things are hot and I’m sure I’m in some sort of fever. All the logic is that we got to get some of these wet clothes off immediately. As I remember, I don’t think anybody fought me on that.”

The statue is set to stay in place until July 26.

(SD-Agencies)

CHER has revealed that she has recorded an entire album of Abba covers, following her appearance in the jukebox musical fi lm “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.”

Speaking to “Today Show,” the 72-year-old singer said: “After I did ‘Fernando’ in the fi lm, I thought it would be fun to do an album of Abba songs, so I did! It’s not what you think of when you think Abba, because I did it in a different way.” No more details are yet available about the project.

Eyebrows were raised at the news that Cher was cast in the “Mamma Mia!” sequel as the mother of the character played by Meryl Streep, who is just three years Cher’s junior. Cher performs “Fernando” in the fi lm alongside Andy Garcia, who plays hotel man-ager Fernando Cienfuegos. Writer-director Ol Parker said that “people brought their husbands, wives, children and dogs” to watch the scene being fi lmed. Tom Hanks, executive producer on the fi lm, said “we were all in awe, and a bit ner-vous” of the veteran actor and singer.

Speaking at the world pre-miere in London on Monday night, Cher explained how she got the role: “The head of Universal used to be my agent, and he called me up and said, ‘You’re doing Mamma Mia!’ And then he hung up. It was beyond fun.” (SD-Agencies)

MOVIE “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” is heading to China. The jukebox rom-com sequel will descend on Chinese cinemas Aug. 3.

Musicals were once thought to underperform in China, but Damien Chazelle’s “La La Land” — perhaps benefi tting from Oscar glow — broke that precedent in 2017, earning US$36 million.

Several major Hollywood tentpoles have yet to be sched-uled for release in China. Marvel and Disney’s “Ant-Man and the

Wasp” is expected to open some-time in August, but still doesn’t have a date.

Universal and Legendary Entertainment’s Dwayne John-son action romp “Skyscraper” landed a rare mid-July release, however, perhaps thanks to Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, which owns Legendary. The fi lm, which dis-appointed in its U.S. debut, will be looking to make up ground in China, where Johnson and pyrotechnic VFX are both big draws. (SD-Agencies)

‘Mamma Mia! 2’ to release in

China on Aug. 3

The giant statue of Jeff Goldblum in London.The giant statue of Jeff Goldblum in London.

TODD PHILLIPS’ stand-alone “Joker” movie, starring Joaquin Phoenix, is set to hit theaters Oct. 4, 2019, Warners and Village Roadshow said Wednesday.

The release date and title were revealed just as this year’s edition of the ultimate fanboy gathering — Comic-Con — got underway in San Diego.

October 2019 boasts a slew of high-profi le titles. Joker will open opposite Paramount’s “Gemini Man” and Fox’s “The Woman in the Window,” fol-lowed a week later by Disney’s “Jungle Cruise” starring

Dwayne Johnson and fellow Warners title “The Goldfi nch.” On Nov. 1, DC and Warners will unfurl “Wonder Woman 1984.”

Last month, Phoenix fi nal-ized his deal to star as the arch-nemesis of Batman. The studio describes Phillips’ fi lm as being an “exploration of a man disre-garded by society that is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.” Phillips and Scott Silver co-wrote the script.

The budget for “Joker” is in the US$55 million range, signifi cantly lower than the tentpoles that dominate the form. And the movie, set to begin production later this year, is meant to be darker and more experimental in tone and content, which is described as being akin to a crime drama. (SD-Agencies)

‘Joker’ movie to land in 2019

A poster for “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.”A poster for “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.”

CherCher

Chazelle’s ‘First Man’ to open Venice festDIRECTOR Damien Chazelle’s “First Man,” an account of the Apollo 11 moon landing, is set to launch at the 75th annual Venice International Film Fes-tival, where it will serve as the opening night fi lm Aug. 29.

The Venice visit, which should serve as a high-profi le awards-season bid, will mark a return engagement for Chazelle, the Oscar-winning director of “La

La Land,” which opened the 2016 edition of the fest.

“First Man,” written by Josh Singer (“Spotlight”), stars Ryan Gosling as astronaut Neil Arm-strong, who became the fi rst man to step onto the moon July 20, 1969, and recounts the prepara-tions for the historic space fl ight as well as the trek itself. Claire Foy appears as Armstrong’s wife, Janet, while Corey Stoll

and Mike Collins play fellow astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Lukas Haas, respectively.

Universal will release the fi lm Oct. 12.

The Venice Film Festival, which is set to run from Aug. 29 to Sept. 8, along with the concurrent Telluride Film Fes-tival (Aug. 31-Sept. 3), marks the beginning of the fall awards season. (SD-Agencies)Ryan Gosling (L) in a scene from “First Man.”Ryan Gosling (L) in a scene from “First Man.” SD-Agencies

Joaquin PhoenixJoaquin Phoenix