30 Seconds to Mars shines a light on the “City of Angels”

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Jared Leto and his 30 Seconds to Mars have released a music video/short film hybrid for the band’s single “City of Angels,” a track off their latest album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams. It’s an ode to Los Angeles, a place where dreams are born and made everyday, at least according to the lineup of celebrities, celebrity impersonators, and street performers that pop up in this 11-minute clip. Leto and his bandmates set up shop near LA’s Griffith Observatory and play the uplifting track as Kanye West, James Franco, Lindsay Lohan, and others open up about coming to and living in the City of Angles.

“As I got older I realized I wanted to make some of my creative dreams come true that I need to go west,” spills Leto. From the sweeping, grand shots of the city to the vitalizing track and the inspirational tales told by the featured guests, Leto has directed quite the PSA for California’s capital.

Justin Timberlake is out for the count in “TKO” music video

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Sexual tension takes center stage in Justin Timberlake’s latest music video for “TKO,” the second single off The 20/20 Experience 2 of 2. Elvis’ granddaughter actress Riley Keough stars opposite Timberlake as she takes him for a not-so-pleasant ride. The clip is visually stimulating but not nearly as engaging as JT’s previous efforts “Mirrors,” “Tunnel Vision,” and “Take Back the Night.”

Download the full 20/20 Experience at iTunes today, and read SpeakSonic’s glowing review of Part 2 right here.

Peter Jackson calls on Ed Sheeran to create “Hobbit” closing track

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Peter Jackson handpicked English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran to compose and produce “I See Fire,” the softly bold track that will close out the second Hobbit film when the credits roll. Jackson posted this video on his Facebook page and here’s an excerpt from his accompanying message to fans:

We have a tradition in our Tolkien films of having a song over the closing credits. It’s very important that the song feels right for the world of the movie – and also carries the emotional resonance of the end of that particular film. The Desolation of Smaug is no different. The ending of this film requires a voice and sensibility that will allow a viewer to process what they have just experienced. It’s always tricky to think of the right person to create and perform these songs. Someone who shares our passion for Tolkien, and somebody who is prepared to respect the film. This year we are thrilled to have Ed Sheeran write and perform our closing song, “I See Fire”.

It was a great experience, and what you will see in this video are moments captured by our behind the scenes team during the creation of the song. But the images are only supporting Ed’s wonderful song. This is his direct emotional response to seeing The Desolation of Smaug, written and performed on the same day he saw the movie.

And his “direct emotional response” turned out to be a thing of beauty. The song balances strength and grace and it’s easy to imagine it play as the second chapter of Jackson’s three-part journey comes to an close.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits theatres December 13. Download “I See Fire” at iTunes today.

‘Star Wars: Episode VII’ gets its 2015 release date

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The next installment in the Star Wars saga will release into theatres on December 18, 2015.

“We’re very excited to share the official 2015 release date for Star Wars: Episode VII, where it will not only anchor the popular holiday filmgoing season but also ensure our extraordinary filmmaking team has the time needed to deliver a sensational picture,” said Alan Horn, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios.

Despite a change in the writing department, Episode VII is on track for its now solidified 2015 release. Two weeks ago Michael Arndt stepped away from the film and director J.J. Abrams and consultant Lawrence Kasdan took over the screenplay duties. Recently Abrams opened up about the switch-up.

“It became clear that given the time frame and given the process and the way the thing was going that working with Larry in this way was going to get us where we need to be and when we needed to be,” he told Deadline. “Working with Larry Kasdan, especially on aStar Wars movie is kind of unbeatable.” He added, “Working with Michael was a wonderful experience and I couldn’t be a bigger fan of his or adore him more. He’s a wonderful guy and was incredibly helpful in the process.”

Mark your calendars, people. We get to revisit that galaxy far, far away in two years time.

[Via Star Wars]

The ‘Entourage’ movie is underway

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And with that tweet, creator Doug Ellin confirms that the long anticipated Entourage movie based on the hit HBO series is happening. According to Deadline, stars Adrian Grenier, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara and Kevin Connolly and producers Mark Wahlberg and Steve Levinson all have deals in place so that Warner Bros. can finally give the greenlit project life. And now we wait for one awesome trailer.

Movie trailer round-up: ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past,’ ‘The Hobbit 2,’ ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ ‘Robocop,’ ‘The LEGO Movie’ & ‘Anchorman 2’

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Bryan Singer returns to the X-Men franchise to direct X-Men: Days of Future Past, a time travel story that pits together nearly all of the X-Men heroes and villains from the movies made thus far.

The ultimate X-Men ensemble fights a war for the survival of the species across two time periods in X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST. The beloved characters from the original “X-Men” film trilogy join forces with their younger selves from the past, “X-Men: First Class,” in order to change a major historical event and fight in an epic battle that could save our future.

The trailer is pretty damn incredible; it sits above and you’ll likely feel inclined to watch it more than once.

Days of Future Past, with Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Halle Berry, Anna Paquin, Ellen Page, Peter Dinklage, Patrick Stewart, and Ian McKellen, opens May 23.

Jump after the break to view more trailers. Continue reading Movie trailer round-up: ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past,’ ‘The Hobbit 2,’ ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ ‘Robocop,’ ‘The LEGO Movie’ & ‘Anchorman 2’ →

Disney & Netflix team up to produce four Marvel superhero series

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If ABC’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn’t enough for Marvel fans, The Walt Disney Co. and Netflix are collaborating on four live-action series to air on the streaming service beginning in 2015. Each series will star a popular Marvel superhero: the first hero coming to the small screen is Daredevil, followed by Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage; click those links to learn more about each of them. A statement promises these four series will take Netflix subscribers “deep into the gritty world of heroes and villains of Hell’s Kitchen, New York.” Now get this: after the four, thirteen episodes series have aired they will culminate in “Marvel’s “The Defenders” mini-series event that reimagines a dream team of self-sacrificing, heroic characters.” It’s like what Marvel did in the movies with all those films leading up to The Avenges. This is neat stuff right here.

“This deal is unparalleled in its scope and size, and reinforces our commitment to deliver Marvel’s brand, content and characters across all platforms of storytelling. Netflix offers an incredible platform for the kind of rich storytelling that is Marvel’s specialty,” said Alan Fine, President of Marvel Entertainment. “This serialized epic expands the narrative possibilities of on-demand television and gives fans the flexibility to immerse themselves how and when they want in what’s sure to be a thrilling and engaging adventure.”

“Marvel’s movies, such as ‘Iron Man’ and Marvel’s ‘The Avengers’, are huge favorites on our service around the world. Like Disney, Marvel is a known and loved brand that travels,” said Netflix COO Ted Sarandos.  “With ‘House of Cards’ and our other original series, we have pioneered new approaches to storytelling and to global distribution and we’re thrilled to be working with Disney and Marvel to take our brand of television to new levels with a creative project of this magnitude.”

As Disney and Netflix begin work on this massive production, stick it here for the latest developments.

[Via Netflix]

FX renews ‘American Horror Story’ for a fourth season

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Ryan Murphy will continue to scare up viewers with a fourth installment of FX anthology series American Horror Story. The third season Coven is the most-watched season of AHS to date averaging 7.7 million viewers.

“Put simply, Ryan Murphy is a master television producer,” said FX head John Landgraf. “Time and time again he reinvents the form. What he, co-creator Brad Falchuk and their producers Dante Di Loreto, Tim Minear, Jennifer Salt, James Wong, Brad Buecker, Jessica Sharzer, Douglas Petrie, Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, Alexis Martin Woodall and the entire production team and cast responsible for the American Horror Story franchise have done is nothing short of extraordinary. Every year, they create a riveting and brilliant new miniseries. AHS: Coven is the best yet, and I have no doubt that the next installment will be even better.”

The 13 episode fourth season is set to debut in 2014. Though the season’s theme and stars are still being kept under wraps, Jessica Lange has publicly confirmed that she will return to the show to step into a new character’s shoes.

AHS: Coven airs Wednesdays at 10PM on FX.

AMC renews ‘The Walking Dead’ for a fifth season

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After clocking in a record breaking 20.2 million viewers for its season 4 premiere, it comes as no surprise that AMC is granting The Walking Dead a fifth season.

“We are very happy to make what has to be one of the most anti-climactic renewal announcements ever: The Walking Dead is renewed for a fifth season,” said AMC president Charlie Collier. “This is a show that has erased traditional distinctions between cable and broadcast. Its expanding base of passionate fans has grown every season, most recently – and most notably – with the season four premiere earlier this month, which broke viewership records for the series and became the biggest non-sports telecast in cable history. On behalf of the incredible team on both sides of the camera, thank you to the fans and here’s to more Dead.”

As of now, Scott M. Gimple will in fact remain the showrunner for next season. But the current season is still young and there’s plenty of time for him to go the way of Frank Darabont and Glen Mazzara, though it’d be nice for Dead to hold onto its showrunner for once.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9PM on AMC.

Fall TV updates: ABC gives ‘The Goldbergs’ & ‘Trophy Wife’ full season orders, cancels ‘Back in the Game’

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ABC has given comedies The Goldbergs and Trophy Wife full season orders; with the back-nine each Tuesday night sitcom will air 22 episodes this season. Averaging 7.5 million viewers and a 2.7 rating in adults 18-49 and 5.7 million viewers and a 1.9 rating, respectively,  The Goldbergs and Trophy Wife will live on at least through May and creatively speaking they deserve it. Both shows are consistently funny and highly relatable family fare.

Super Fun Night isn’t going anywhere. Averaging 7.4 million viewers and a 2.8 rating, the Rebel Wilson sitcom received an additional script order for four more episodes.

One ABC sitcom that didn’t make the cut is Back in the Game. Though the show has admittedly been getting better creatively with each passing week, the ratings failed to make a mark (it’s averaging 7.3 million viewers and a 2.1 rating, landing right between Goldbergs and Wife) and the network is cutting it loose–but not before letting its 13 episodes run all the way through. Note that the cancellation news comes after the alphabet network ordered an additional two scripts for the Bad News Bears-esque comedy; that’s typically a show of confidence from a network but in this case it didn’t pan out.

First look: ‘Sherlock’ returns this January

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Here’s your first look at Sherlock series 3! An ominous Sherlock watches John Watson as the good doctor grieves his friend’s (faked) death. How exactly did the super sleuth survive that great fall? The answer will be revealed when Sherlock returns to PBS on January 19, 2014. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freedman return in three brand new 90-minute installments: “The Empty Hearse” (January 19), “The Sign of Three” (January 26), and “His Last Vow” (February 2).