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James Wan To Produce “Conjuring” TV Series

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James Wan may not be finished with The Conjuring just yet. The multi-hyphenate has had his hands on some of the most iconic horror franchises of the last two decades. As a director, Wan has given us the original Saw film, the first two Insidious films, and the first two Conjuring films. He is also credited with coming up with the stories for many of those films, as well as The Nun and last year’s M3GAN. Wan has even gotten his fair share of blockbuster films. In 2015, he directed Furious 7. Then, in 2018, he directed his first superhero film, Aquaman. The sequel to that film is due out later this year.

The last we saw of the Conjuring universe was in 2021’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. The film follows the main characters Ed and Lorraine as they navigated a complicated trial where the main suspect had been possessed. It garnered mixed reviews but made enough money to warrant a sequel. The fourth film in the series is still in development, but both Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga have been confirmed to return to their roles as Ed and Lorraine. Now, it appears that the Conjuring universe will be expanding to the small screen.

Max, Formerly HBO Max, Rolls Out An Impressive Lineup

Patrick Wilson, Filmmaker James Wan, and Vera Farmiga attend the Los Angeles Film Festival.
(Photo by Todd Williamson/Getty Images)

HBO Max had quite a bit of news today. First and foremost, the streaming service has dropped “HBO” from its name. Second, they had plenty of new series in the pipeline. From the Harry Potter series to Game of Thrones and more, Max is pushing ahead with quite a few franchises. They added the Conjuring series to that list, as well. It was announced that James Wan is in talks to executive produce the series. Peter Safran, who produced the original 2013 film, has signed on to produce the series as well.

There wasn’t much more information made available about the series. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are confirmed for The Conjuring 4, but it’s not known if they will be involved with the television series. However, with so many different stories to choose from, the new series certainly does not need to rely on Ed and Lorraine. They may be central to the plot of the main films, but plenty of spin-offs have faired very well without them. Only time will tell. What do you think of the announcement? Would you watch a Conjuring TV series? Let us know in the comments!

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Harry Potter Series Announced For HBO Max: Watch

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The world of Harry Potter is catching a second wind. Recently, the Wizarding World has hung in the balance. The Fantastic Beasts movies, which began in 2016, have fizzled out. Many fans believed they never captured the magic of the original series. Unfortunately, the movies only lessened in quality as time went on. The third film in the franchise, The Secrets of Dumbledore, was released last year with barely an ounce of the attention and adoration of the others. The reasons for this are debatable, but Warner Brothers made it clear that the third Fantastic Beasts film would be the last. For a time, it seemed like this might be the end of Harry Potter as we knew it.

Since the release of the final film in the original series, there have been murmurs of a television series. WB reportedly explored the idea over a decade ago. However, with the advent of the MCU, every studio began to focus on universe expansion. As such, WB decided to move forward with a prequel Potter series. Sadly, a myriad of issues from bad box office to fans’ disappointment in J.K. Rowling caused WB to cut the prequels short. What was originally intended to be a five-film series was pared down to three. Still, it seems there is hope for Potter fans that want more.

HBO Officially Announces Harry Potter TV Series

Last week, it was reported that WB was once again approaching the idea of a Harry Potter streaming series. The studio had allegedly been in talks with HBO Max about it. The report also stated that the series would focus on the original seven books instead of expanding upon them. It appears that last week’s report was correct because HBO has now released an announcement trailer.

The trailer doesn’t show much, unfortunately, but the prospect of the series itself was enough for fans. Many expressed excitement upon hearing the news. Some, however, approached with trepidation. “[I] always dreamed of a Harry Potter series that would adapt each book,” one fan said. “But now that it’s happened it scares me.” Another chimed in to agree, “Can’t help but think about all the things we won’t be getting: a cinematic release, Daniel, Rupert and Emma, John Williams’ iconic score, etc.” What do you think of the news? Let us know in the comments below!

“Harry Potter” Series May Be Coming To HBO Max

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Things have been a bit rocky for the Harry Potter franchise as of late, but it looks like that isn’t stopping Warner Bros. from pushing forward on new projects. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore was a critical and commercial failure. As such, it was announced that WB had no plans to pursue the production of any further Harry Potter film projects. Previously, it had been announced by J.K. Rowling herself that the Fantastic Beasts series would span five films. However, after plenty of behind-the-scenes drama and an incredibly disappointing box office and audience response, it looked as though WB wanted to cut its losses and move on.

It’s difficult to pinpoint a definitive reason for the failure of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. The second film in the Harry Potter spin-off franchise was already poorly received. Still, the box office was still good enough for WB to have moved forward with the sequel. The production, however, was plagued with negative headlines from the very beginning. First, Johnny Depp was booted from his role as the villain of the series due to abuse allegations. Then, J.K. Rowling was almost universally condemned for comments made that were deemed “transphobic”. Additionally, Ezra Miller had made headlines for their insane antics. So much was working against the film to begin with. So, when it was released to fairly negative reviews, it was the final nail in the coffin. Surprisingly, that was not enough to deter WB completely.

A Second Chance For Harry Potter

Harry Potter
Posters for the ” Harry Potter And the Order Of The Phoenix” film are seen on in Gare du Nord railway station in Paris, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Although it seemed that the world of Harry Potter might finally be coming to a close, WB isn’t ready to give up so easily. Instead, they are exploring other avenues. The film studio is apparently in talks to make a deal with HBO Max for a Harry Potter TV series. Rather than developing further spin-offs, however, it would be based directly on the original series. It appears that WB might have faith in Harry Potter but not in J.K. Rowling’s ability to write further in-universe material.

This is not the first time that a Harry Potter TV series has been teased. For years, a potential series has been talked about. However, as much of the film industry moved towards universe expansion, WB decided to focus on developing other Harry Potter properties. That avenue has proven to be a dead end for the studio, so it appears they are returning to their original plan. While the deal is said to still be in preliminary stages, it’s likely to come to fruition given the success of other Harry Potter properties like Hogwarts Legacy. If there’s money to be made, WB isn’t going to leave it on the table. What do you think of the idea of a Harry Potter TV series? Are you excited or is it time to put the franchise to rest? Let us know in the comments.

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Paul Rudd Explains Why He Shouldn’t Have Been In The “Friends” Finale

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Paul Rudd is taking the world by storm with his role as Scott Lang in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Now, he’s reminiscing about his career. Before he became the household name that he is thanks to popular franchises like Anchorman and Ant-Man, Rudd was in Friends. During his time on the show, he played Mike Hannigan in seasons 9 and 10. Mike was Phoebe’s boyfriend and eventually her husband. He shared recently that he didn’t think the show should have included him in the finale of the show.

Roughly twenty years after the finale aired, Paul Rudd was interviewed by The Heart’s breakfast show. There, he shared that he didn’t think he should have been included in the series’ final episode. It was the fifth most-viewed series finale of all time. Rudd spoke highly of the surreal experience of joining Friends toward the end of the show’s time airing. He explained that being a part of the last episode was incredibly overwhelming for him. Check out the part of the interview where he discussed this below:

Paul Rudd On Heart’s Breakfast Show

He said, “The whole thing was a bit surreal, I must say, to be a part of that — because I came on really at the end… I never knew that I was going to be in as many [episodes] as I was. But it also felt strange. I was in that last episode, and I just thought, ‘I shouldn’t be here. I’m getting a front-row seat to things I’m not supposed to see.’ They were all crying, it was all emotional, and I was just like, ‘woah!’”

While Rudd wasn’t on the show until its last two seasons, Mike Hannigan remains one of the series’ most beloved additions. He was a former attorney with negative views on marriage. Joey (Matt LeBlanc) introduced Mike to Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) after he forgot to find someone to set Phoebe up with. Mike responds to Joey’s random call for a “Mike?” in Central Perk, and the rest is history. Mike and Phoebe’s romance became one of the primary aspects of Phoebe’s character wrap-up on the show. Rudd is an iconic part of Friends, even if he doesn’t entirely think so.

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The Weeknd Is Making Up For His LA Fumble With A ‘Live From SoFi Stadium’ Special On HBO Max

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the weeknd concert
Getty Image

Does it seem to anyone else that all the streamers are investing pretty heavily in concert films? I mean, it makes sense; they’re relatively cheap to produce, they come with a built-in audience, and they tend to have pretty long streaming tails. It’s the rare recent streaming strategy that is a win-win for both the platforms and their viewers — as well as the artists who license their concert footage out.

The latest act to take advantage of this lucrative trend is The Weeknd, whose new concert special for HBO Max, The Weeknd: Live At SoFi Stadium, has a premiere date of February 25.

If ever there was a case of turning lemons into lemonade, this would have to be it. During his After Hours Til Dawn Tour, The Weeknd’s voice gave out during the second Los Angeles show, prompting him to promise a refund to the 70,000 fans in attendance. At the time, he promised to “make it up to you with a new date” after confirming that his voice was “safe.”

It looks like many more fans will get to see the show thanks to the upcoming concert special, which is a pretty cool way to make up for the fumble.

Black Female Producer Expose HBO Max Over Stolen Show

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shay

A Black female writer claims her pitch for a new show was stolen from her by HBOMax and she’s posting the receipts to prove it.

Shay Caldwell wrote:

Unfortunately, today, I feel defeated hearing the news that a project my writing partner @heycassady and I have shopped around Hollywood for the last 2 years has been picked up by HBO Max with a crew comprised of people from my personal pitch deck.

It strikes me as odd that the very project execs believed stood no chance with its title in the climate we live in would go on to find a life with the exact title and very similar content matter. In the thread posted you are seeing the sizzle of the show idea that we paid for out of our own pockets and registration spanning the past few years. To know this work has been taken with no acknowledgment of the people who formulated the Unfriendly Black Hotties story of 4 black female leads dealing with political correctness in a non-monolithic representation of black characters is devastating. I highly respect the players listed in the trades, but it’s peculiar that a story I’ve pitched to people with connections to the parties involved is now coming to light.

It was surreal to see my phone light up with congratulations from my peers and execs who know about my pitch about my project I did not indeed sell. I thought long and hard about making this post, but I derived that we need to share our experiences about the let downs of this industry as up and coming black narrators. We talk so much about spearheading change, but the first step is speaking out when injustice is happening.

I’m trusting that some resolve can be made to rectify this situation. Understanding thoroughly how many hands pitch and script materials can go through from assistants doing coverage, to various production staff, and execs who hold the green light, things can happen. I’m in hopes an amicable reprieve is possible because it’s disheartening to see people you admire become a part of your feeling of defeat. I truly feel for everyone who has dealt with this historically in Hollywood.

At the end of day I’m still a girl from
the southside of Chicago .. what’s t ? 💅🏽☕
@keke @amyaniobi @jermainecrawford @hbomax

CLICK HERE for Shay’s receipts.

Thoughts?

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