The Jake Gyllenhaal-led Road House reboot debuted to Amazon Prime Video subscription holders in March 2024, and along with receiving a decent amount of positive critical reception (our own Eric Eisenberg gave it 4 out of 5 stars in his Road House review), it was a massive hit for the streaming platform. So it was hardly shocking when it was announced that Road House 2 was happening, but apparently that’s not the only Road House sequel in the works. Doug Liman, who directed the reboot, reportedly wants to make his own separate follow-up to the original Road House.

You may recall how Liman criticized Amazon for scrapping Road House’s theatrical run and made it a streaming-only release, saying that “nobody got compensated” for the shift. Now, along with him not returning to helm Road House 2, Deadline reports that the filmmaker has secured the sequel rights for the 1989 Road House, which starred Patrick Swayze and was written by R. Lance Hill. Liman is planning to make Road House: Dylan, though no plot details were revealed.

It’s worth noting that in 2006, a direct-to-video Road House 2 was released starring Johnathon Schaech as DEA Agent Shane Tanner, the son of Patrick Swayze’s James Dalton. Assuming Doug Liman is successful in getting his Road House follow-up off the ground, needless to say it would get a significantly bigger release. As for how it would be possible to have two separate Road House movies be made, that stems from R. Lance Hill filing a federal lawsuit over ownership of the franchise.

Doug Liman met with Hill when he was beginning work on the Road House reboot and, as Deadline put it, “sympathized with his plight” regarding the ownership issues. Hill’s lawyer argued that his client lawfully reacquired the rights to his script on November 11, 2023, 35 years after he sold it to United Artists. Amazon-MGM, however, is arguing that Hill wrote the script as a “work for hire,” meaning he wouldn’t have legal standing to get those rights back. Basically, the Road House property is currently in a weird limbo that allows a sequel to the original and a sequel to the reboot to be pursued separately.

It’s reminiscent of what happened with the James Bond franchise in 1983 with the release of both Roger Moore’s Octopussy, but it's still wild. In that case, the 007 flick is part of the official Bond film series, and separately Sean Connery returned for Never Say Never Again, his second go at a Thunderball adaptation, which was released by Warner Bros.

Maybe Amazon-MGM will eventually reach a number that meets with R. Lance Hill’s approval and convinces him to relinquish his claim over the original Road House script. For now though, we live in a world where both the original Road House continuity and the reboot continuity can continue onwards under supervision from different parties.

As far as Jake Gyllenhaal’s Road House 2 goes, Ilya Naishuler is taking over directorial duties, and the cast also includes Dave Bautista and Leila George. Production has begun on the sequel, but a release date hasn’t been set yet.

Tom Cruise is the biggest movie star in the world. He’s also possibly Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor. The Mission: Impossible actor seems to be romantically linked to every beautiful celebrity he comes in contact with, and this has become the case once again. Cruise has recently been seen in the company of the star of the upcoming John Wick spinoff Ballerina, Ana de Armas.

While we don’t know what the personal status of the couple is, we do know that there is a professional relationship as well. Cruise and de Armas are starring in a movie together, and it sounds pretty exciting.

Tom Cruise And Ana De Armas’ New Movie Sounds Awesome

We have a few details about the new movie and the incredible talent attached. Frequent Cruise collaborators Doug Liman and Christopher McQuarrie will both be involved, with Liman set to direct and McQuarrie taking a pass on a script originally penned by Bright scribe Max Landis.

The film is called Deeper and will star Cruise as an astronaut on an undersea dive who discovered what Deadline calls a “terrifying force.” How de Armas will fit into the story is unclear, but it appears that at least part of the reason the two have been spending so much time together is that they are undergoing dive training for the movie.

We would certainly expect Tom Cruise to do any required undersea diving for a movie himself, but it seems Ana de Armas is following suit. We’ve seen her getting physical in her preparation for Ballerina, and now it appears she’s going to continue down that path. It certainly gives the two something in common if they are actually dating.

Are Tom Cruise And Ana De Armas Dating?

While there have been no official statements from either party or their people regarding a relationship, rumors continue to swirl that Ana de Armas and Tom Cruise may be involved romantically. To be sure, the pair have been seen together multiple times over the last few months. The first time was reportedly on Valentine’s Day, which is the sort of thing that certainly could be a coincidence, but absolutely won’t be completely overlooked.

The duo also had dinner together on de Armas’ birthday, and they both attended David Beckham’s birthday party in London. The actors were spotted leaving together, which seemed to confirm they attended as a pair and weren’t simply both at the star-studded affair.

Of course, previous Tom Cruise has been linked to Hayley Atwell, his Mission: Impossible co-star, and there was never confirmation that there was anything there. It was once suggested he had eyes for Shakira in a situation where there was almost certainly nothing going on. Just because he and de Armas are spending time together doesn’t mean there’s anything going on... unless there is.

Fans of the action-packed Road House remake have reason to celebrate, as one of the best streaming services, Amazon Prime Video, has confirmed that Road House 2. That news came in spite of previous criticism from director Doug Liman about the film skipping theaters. Jake Gyllenhaal is set to reprise his role, bringing back the charismatic energy that captivated audiences in the first film. However, the big question is whether Liman, who breathed new life into the classic, will return to direct the sequel. Now, after he recently criticized the streamer for supposedly not compensating the film's team following its release, Liman weighed in on the follow-up.

Doug Liman has expressed uncertainty about whether he will direct the second installment of the UFC-heavy movie. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Liman said, "I've never done a sequel but am super proud of the character that Jake [Gyllenhaal] and I created." This collaboration allowed Gyllenhaal to step out of his usual dramatic roles and showcase a more commercially appealing side, making him the perfect fit for this new take on the intellectual property that originated in 1989 with Patrick Swayze. The filmmaker continued:

The Swingers helmer has been vocal about his disappointment with Amazon over the streaming release of his Road House remake, which became Prime Video's biggest original hit. He famously boycotted the film's premiere after the entertainment giant announced it wouldn’t hit theaters as initially planned. In a candid letter, Doug Liman criticized Amazon for abandoning their commitment to cinema releases. Despite his initial frustration, Liman attended the premiere, taking his place in the audience to support the film. He later elaborated on his concerns in an interview shared this past week, saying:

Doug Liman also highlighted the issue of Amazon taking all the earnings from the film’s insane streaming numbers, leaving those who contributed to its success without any backend compensation. He contrasted this with his recent experience working with Apple on his new film, The Instigators. He praised the company for being transparent from the beginning, as the film was intended for a digital release and all involved were compensated with a "streaming buyout."

The Wall filmmaker also noted that if Road House had been released in theaters, it would have benefited cinemas financially and provided audiences with a shared viewing experience. He pointed out that the movie had tested exceptionally well with audiences, outperforming his previous box office hits like Mr. and Mrs. Smith and The Bourne Identity. He even added that UFC star Conor McGregor's involvement could have drawn additional theatergoers.

While it's still uncertain whether Doug Liman will join the Road House 2 production, The Instigators is scheduled for a one-week theatrical release starting August 2, before becoming available to Apple TV+ subscription holders on August 9. In the meantime, you can revisit his first venture into the world of bar bouncing by streaming Road House with an Amazon Prime subscription. And, as the year continues to push on, be sure to keep checking the 2024 movie schedule for the latest on upcoming film releases.

Amazon’s Road House remake was a huge hit on streaming earlier this year, becoming Prime’s biggest original ever. The success has begged the question about how the action movie might have weathered if it came out in theaters instead, especially following its director Doug Liman putting Amazon on blast for not bringing it to the big screen just prior to the release. Months later, Liman has more thoughts to share about the Jake Gyllenhaal-led movie going straight to streaming.

As Liman promotes his latest movie, The Instigators, which stars Matt Damon and Casey Affleck as thieves on the run, the director revisited his thoughts on the Road House release and revealed more information about how the streaming studio handled things. In his words:

In an interview with IndieWire, Doug Liman spoke about himself and the other filmmakers and stars of Road House not being compensated on the backend for the movie’s massive success on Amazon Prime. Per his comments, the studio took all the earnings from the millions who viewed the action movie rather than sharing it with those who made the movie possible through their producing, writing, directing and acting.

Additionally, if Road House was a hit in movie theaters, it would have also provided a cut to these theaters as well, along with the collective experience of audiences seeing the remake of the classic ‘80s movie. When Liman originally spoke up about his disappointment about Road House, he claimed that when the deal for the movie was first created, he made it with MGM with the intention of filming it for theaters. However, when Amazon bought out MGM just months before Road House was set to start filming, allegedly the company told Liman to “make a great film” and they’d “see what happens” regarding the release.

Liman also previously shared that Road House tested super high with audiences, too, beating out his early ‘00s box office hit Mr. and Mrs. Smith, along with The Bourne Identity. That proved to be true considering all the positive audience reactions, including CinemaBlend’s Road House review giving the movie 4 out of 5 stars. He also noted the major following UFC’s Conor McGregor could have sent to theaters as well.

Liman’s latest movie is set to hit theaters for a week (August 2) before heading to Apple TV+ subscribers on August 9. Here’s how he compared his experience with Apple and Amazon:

Doug Liman will not be throwing hands for The Instigators’ release, which he credits to working with Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s production company, and who allowed his “rebellious” nature to shine through when making the film. Check out the Apple original starting this weekend.

It was a little over 10 years ago that Edge of Tomorrow first arrived on the big screen (an anniversary Tom Cruise recently celebrated), and while it wasn't initially considered a box office success, it found an audience in the long run thanks to positive word of mouth, and fans have now spent the last decade clamoring for a sequel. There has been a lot of chatter from filmmakers and stars about the potential project over the years – but director Doug Liman is preaching patience as more time wears on, and he compared progress to the long-running Terminator franchise.

Liman recently spoke with Empire about the present status of Edge Of Tomorrow 2, and the filmmaker noted that while things have been moving slow behind-the-scenes, there is still ambition to get the project made. He told the outlet that he has kept in communication with Tom Cruise about the movie, and acknowledged that Hollywood history is full of slow-developing franchises. Said Liman,

Doug Liman certainly isn't wrong here. While there are movies in today's cinematic landscape that produce sequels annually or semiannually, there was a seven-year gap between The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day – and while Cameron wasn't specifically involved, it took another 12 years after that for Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines to hit theaters. (Cameron did notably come back as a writer/producer for the most recent installment of the series, Terminator: Dark Fate, which was released 28 years after T2.)

There have been many updates about Edge Of Tomorrow 2 over the years, from Doug Liman hyping the story idea back in 2018 to star Emily Blunt suggesting last December that too much time has passed for the project to get made. So will it ever actually happen?

For what it's worth, Doug Liman and Tom Cruise are keeping excitement about the follow-up alive by revisiting their previous work. The filmmaker explained that he and Cruise recently screened the movie and left the experience proud of what they had accomplished with it. He laments that Edge Of Tomorrow wasn't an instant box office hit, but it has an impressive legacy nonetheless:

If you would personally like to rewatch Edge of Tomorrow, the bad news is that its not presently available on any of the best subscription streaming services, but it is available for rental and purchase from all major digital outlets, and physical media collectors should pick up a copy of the 4K UHD.

For years and years, there’s been a push to recognize the best action movies, and specifically, their stunt teams at the Oscars. When it comes to projects on the 2024 film schedule, flicks like the well-reviewed Road House would be a shoo-in for that category…if it existed. However, the category is still not part of the Academy Awards, and after people had a chance to see all the wicked action in Doug Liman’s remake of Road House, one of the movie's stars spoke out about The Academy still not honoring stunt performers. 

Dominique Columbus, who plays Reef, one of the Road House’s security guys who is caught in a lot of the action, spoke with Hollywood Life about being part of the action in the movie. He also made sure to give props to the stunt guys he worked with while speaking out about why their work should be recognized at the Oscars:

Road House, which was led by stunt coordinators Steve Brown and Garrett Warren, is jam-packed with high-octane action. Columbus’ character is involved in a lot of it too. His character Reef ends up working at the Road House bar, and he assists Jake Gyllenhaal’s Dalton in getting all the violent fellas out. So, naturally, he was part of shooting a lot of the incredible fights in the film, and he got to see the stunt performers do what they do best. 

He’s also 100% correct, stunt performers do deserve recognition at the Oscars, and people have been pushing for it for years. 

For example, Jason Statham has been a major advocate for stunt people being recognized by The Academy. As an action star himself, he’s aware of all the work that goes into action sequences, and he eloquently explained that it takes years to learn and perfect their craft while also noting that these performers “are putting themselves at great risk for the good of the movie.” 

John Wick’s director Chad Stahelski has been pushing for a stunts category too, using a BTS video from his movie to prove his point. He’s also gone on the record saying something that fits right in with Columbus’ point, as the iconic action director told Deadline:

With a new casting category being added to the Oscars, it became clear that the award show is willing to implement new categories. Also, the fact that Chad Stahelski has been speaking with The Academy about recognizing stunts is encouraging. I know I’m hopeful about stunt performers finally getting the credit they deserve, and it feels like many folks in Hollywood are too.

There was a lot of hype behind the action scenes in Road House, and between their stunt team and stars, including Jake Gyllenhaal and UFC fighter Conor McGregor, the fights in this film are next level. If there were a stunt category at the Oscars, I feel like this movie would be an obvious pick for a nod.

However, at least for the next year, another Oscars will go by without stunt performers getting the praise they merit. Hopefully, someday soon, Dominique Columbus’ hopes will become a reality. But for now, make sure to stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates about this ongoing campaign for stunts at the Academy Awards, and make sure to stream Road House with an Amazon Prime subscription.

There is perhaps no story that better explains where the movie industry is at in 2024 than all the Road House drama. In short, the film’s director, Doug Liman, was so outraged about MGM/ Amazon’s decision to drop the movie directly on streaming that he boycotted the SXSW premiere and released an open letter unleashing his anger. I thought it was a bit dramatic when it happened back in February, but then I saw Road House at a critics screening earlier this week, and I’m now overwhelmed by so many thoughts.

Road House is a crowd pleaser, one we gave four stars in our review. It’s a throwback action movie made in a really crisp and modern way. It’s populated with vibrant characters and tells a relatively straight ahead story of class warfare, boozing, bar brawls and getting the girl. The soundtrack slaps. The villains are quirky and fun. Jake Gyllenhaal is great as always and looks like he’s done nothing but focus on the gym for eight months. It’s not going to win any Oscars, but if you told me I needed to pick a movie that was the most likely to please twenty random adults from all walks of life, Road House would be a great option. 

In short, Road House is the exact type of movie people would have gone with their friends to see at a theater if it was released ten years ago. It wouldn’t have been among the biggest box office winners of the entire year, but it would have solidly won a weekend or two, made a handy profit and eventually settled into a future of Tuesday evening airings with commercials on TNT. But it’s not ten years ago. It’s now. And if Road House doesn’t make sense as a theatrical release in 2024, what does make sense?

I think that’s what Doug Limon was ultimately getting at when he dropped his open letter. In it, he said the following…

Now, I’m going to throw a little cold water on Limon’s statement here. Road House isn’t Jurassic Park. It’s not Mission: Impossible or Fast & Furious. There are tentpole movies with a capital T and there are tentpole movies with a lowercase t. Road House is a tentpole movie with a lowercase t. As a visual spectacle, it doesn’t quite reach the heights of those two hundred million dollar epics, and I think ultimately, that’s what the disconnect is here.

How many movies per year demand to be seen in theaters? I think everyone in the entire industry agrees those big ones, of course, have to have robust theatrical runs, but once you get beyond those superhero movies, disaster films and new installments of major franchises, what else has to go to theaters? Is anything exempt from a straight to streaming release?

The case of Road House is complicated. The movie was already a bit down the road when Amazon bought MGM, and if the stories are to be believed, Amazon allegedly offered the producers extra budget money if they would take it straight to streaming to give the online retailer the exclusive. Why? Because Amazon isn’t necessarily looking to make its profits from a traditional release. They’re looking to get more people to subscribe to Amazon Prime, which makes complete sense from their point of view.

And that’s one of the major problems right now. Hollywood has always been a competitive industry, but until recently, almost everyone involved agreed on what game was being played. You raise money to make a movie, you market that movie and hope people pay to see it in a movie theater. Later on, you hopefully make more money by selling that movie to consumers and DVD rental stores. Then, you use the profits you made to start over with an entirely new movie. Lots of studios and independent financiers were competing with each other for that money, but they were all trying to make it in basically the same way.

That’s not the case anymore. Now, you have companies like Amazon and Netflix, that want to use movies to generate subscriptions. There’s nothing wrong with that. The world changes. The way we want to consume movies changes and will change again, but at the same time, if movie theaters are going to survive, they need movies like Road House. It can’t just be the Iron Mans and Titanics that find their way into theaters. We need those tentpole films with a lowercase t, and if Road House isn’t one of them, what is? 

Nonetheless, I'd still suggest you check out Road House. Jake Gyllenhaal is good as always, and the supporting cast is terrific too, led by an unhinged Conor McGregor. You'll almost certainly have a good time, as Doug Liman did a great job, even if you're not able to watch it on as big of a screen as he'd like.

If I’m challenged to pick my favorite filmmakers, Shane Black will forever be in my Top 5. With a resume that includes titles like Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and The Nice Guys, Black is a genius when it comes to crafting tight, pulp mysteries with “buddy” leads who always deliver banter and comebacks that are the perfect blend of badass and smartass. His movies play in the muck – chock full of bloody violence and foul language – but there is also a deep well of effortless wit.

This is admittedly a strange way to start my review of director Doug Liman’s Road House, because as far as I know, Black had absolutely nothing to do with the feature. But as a fan who annually celebrates Shane Black Christmas, I am well-tuned into his voice, and the new remake of the Patrick Swayze-led cult classic very much sings with it. A glance at the credits help this make sense – as Joel Silver is a producer (having previously produced all four movies mentioned in the previous paragraph), and the script is co-written by Anthony Bagarozzi (the co-writer of The Nice Guys) and Chuck Mondry (who has been working with Black for years on a developing Doc Savage adaptation). But beyond that minutia/logic, what’s most important is that the familiar voice a terrific choice for the material, as the film is ultimately a super successful blend of kick-ass and hilarious.

Skirting around some of the weirdness in the plot of the original (I'm still not clear on how a bouncer gets famous for being a good bouncer), the remake re-envisions the Road House protagonist as Jake Gyllenhaal’s Elwood Dalton – an ex-UFC fighter who has a hustle going using his notorious reputation to scare off would-be challengers at underground competitions and rake in prize money without lifting a finger. It’s an act that catches the attention of Florida bar owner Frankie (Jessica Williams), who offers him a job at her out-of-control establishment. He initially says no, but he reconsiders when thinks the job may give his life some purpose.

Dalton’s calm demeanor, in combination with his vicious punches and kicks, quickly gets people talking in the small town of Glass Key, and patrons of the Road House start to behave – but it is success that also earns ire. Ben Brandt (Billy Magnussen), the son of an imprisoned-but-still-powerful local kingpin, has a vested interest in the bar’s failure and sale in order to complete a massive land development deal. All stops are pulled out when our hero gets in his way, and when the villains take things too far, sending in a mercenary maniac named Knox (Conor McGregor) to ruin the establishment for good, Dalton decides that he needs to burn Brandt’s world down.

Road House is a smart remake with a properly displayed respect for the original.

As a remake, Road House is smartly constructed, as fealty isn’t paid to the 1989 version by having the story play out exactly the same beat-for-beat. The two films share the same vaguely worded logline, but the 2024 movie puts a new spin on the story while not feeling obligated to introduce a new version of Sam Elliott’s character or have throat-ripping being the center stage move for the action (and don’t let that last bit worry you: there are plenty of other examples of special signature violence). It’s the kind of remake you can double-feature with the original and not feel like you’re getting the exact same cinematic experience.

Story-wise, it loses a bit of steam toward the end of its second act, as new wrinkles are added into the narrative to bolster the stakes when the stakes are already clear, but it rediscovers its footing just in time for the launch of the explosive third act, which is a savage delight. The film is also never not compelling thanks to its rough charm, clever dialogue, and two brilliant performances from Jake Gyllenhaal and Conor McGregor (in a head-turning acting debut).

Jake Gyllenhaal does great things with an unexpected energy, and Conor McGregor delivers what will be remembered as one of the year's greatest breakout performances.

Road House is a movie that very much takes advantage of Gyllenhaal’s talent for intensity, as Dalton becomes a scary beast when he disappears into his own anger, but what makes the actor’s turn particularly great is confidence so powerful that it translates to a kind of silly/sociopathic nonchalance. He knows the power of his own rage, but he’s the ultimate bouncer who cools instead of escalates, and bringing that unflappable calmness into a showdown with a full crew of troublemakers is magnetic. Gyllenhaal finds the perfect level of cool.

McGregor, on the other hand, is on the complete opposite end of the energy spectrum, and it’s a phenomenal thing to witness. Knox is a character more aptly described as a chaos demon than a criminal enforcer, as he moves through the world violently opposing any interest than his own (his first scene has him strolling through Italy naked after exiting the window of a married lover and setting a massive fire amid his effort to acquire new clothes). It’s not exactly the most challenging part from a dramatic perspective, but McGregor has standout personality and presence that make the role shine, and he walks away from Road House as the most unforgettable aspect.

Road House never pulls its punches, and it's a brutal good time.

Of course, Conor McGregor’s history as a professional UFC fighter is also a big positive for the production, as the big third act fight between Knox and Dalton will likely be remembered as one of the best action-centric cinematic showdowns when we get to the end of 2024, but that’s just the cherry on the sundae. With a resume that includes The Bourne Identity and Edge Of Tomorrow, Doug Liman is a seasoned genre director, and he works magic with editor Doc Crotzer to craft sequences that are both ferocious and fun. Contrasting beautiful shots of beaches and blue ocean, there is a hefty dose of Florida slime and grime, with excellent injections of intensity delivered with smooth moves into first-person perspective camera work. Liman finds the sweet spot between brutal and awesome.

It’s a shame that Road House isn’t getting a theatrical release, as it’s a movie that would be best enjoyed amid a raucous, “into it” crowd – but that would just be a bonus, as this is a film that has the energy independently to bring that vibe to you even watching it alone in your living room. It’s a thrilling joy and one of the most straight-up enjoyable movies to be released so far in this young year.

Jake Gyllenhaal’s Road House remake has just premiered at Austin, Texas’ annual SXSW festival. So, how is it? Ahead of the Amazon Prime movie’s debut, the action movie was attached to a slew of controversial headlines between director Doug Liman blasting Amazon for having it go straight to streaming and a lawsuit from the original movie’s screenwriter. With the first reviews here, the feedback is mostly positive, and it's Conor McGregor who is getting a considerable amount of praise.

Conor McGregor is an Irish MMA fighter and UFC champion who makes his acting debut in Road House alongside Jake Gyllenhaal, who plays protagonist Elwood Dalton. So in the lead-up to the premiere, it was hard to predict just how McGregor might perform. Well, check out what CinemaBlend’s own Sean O’Connell said about Road House after attending the SXSW premiere: 

While Sean O’Connell shared that he “wouldn’t want a whole movie centered around McGregor’s character,” he felt the movie only reaches its “fullest potential” thanks to his presence. O’Connell is far from the only attendee of the premiere that is gassing up the championship-winning fighter's debut in a major way after seeing Road House. IndieWire’s Christian Zilko also said this: 

The pundit notably knocked Jake Gyllenhaal’s performance in his review, saying the actor doesn’t really sell it as a “conventional ‘80s macho man.” However, he also thought Conor McGregor, who plays the role of Knox, made up for what Gyllenhaal was lacking. On top of that, check out the praise The Guardian had to give the flick:

The publication’s Adrian Horton gave the movie three out of five stars, sharing that it delivers on a “good time” with some “knuckle-crackling fights” throughout. The Daily Beast also added to the praise for the Ireland native, saying this: 

It sounds like the flick is most definitely lucky to have Conor McGregor! The cast also includes Daniela Melchoir, Billy Magnussen, Jessica Williams, Lukas Gage and Post Malone. It’s obviously inspired by the iconic Patrick Swayze film from the '80s but, in this version, Jake Gyllenhaal plays an ex-UFC fighter who takes a job as a bar bouncer in the Florida Keys. Here’s how IGN described McGregor’s performance: 

Overall, following Road House’s buzzy premiere, it sounds like this is an entertaining (but not perfect) revamp of a classic film. All in all, its first audience seems to have had a great time, especially thanks to Con McGregor’s debut as an actor. We'll see if general audiences enjoy his work as much as critics did at SXSW. Road House will be available to stream exclusively with a Prime Video subscription starting March 21. You can also read up on other hardcore flicks on the 2024 movie schedule later this year.

The Road House remake is getting closer to its world premiere at SXSW later this week and while the rest of us will still have to wait a couple of weeks to see the movie on Prime Video, star Jake Gyllenhaal is giving fans a peek behind the scenes. He’s posted a few images and videos from the production of Road House which reveals…well, mostly they reveal his chest.

It appears that Jake Gyllenhaal’s Dalton isn’t going to spend a great deal of time with a shirt on based solely on what he put on Instagram. While there are a couple of shots of him with a shirt on, there are even more of him with his shirt off, so if you’re a fan of Jake Gyllenhaal’s abs, get ready. Check it all out below.

I mean, it’s honestly pretty fitting. Patrick Swayze was shirtless through a lot of the original Road House so it’s maybe only right that Gyllenhaal does the same, the actor says he rewatched Road House a lot in the lead-up to the remake, so maybe this was a call the actor made so the remake fit with the original better.

The new Road House movie sets up Gyllenhaal’s character as a former MMA fighter, and we see some of that in the Road House trailer, so obviously that’s where some of the shirtlessness comes from, but based on these images it does seem to extend beyond that as well. 

Jake Gyllenhaal understands the assignment as he has been working hard to promote the film ahead of its release. The actor was recently quoted as saying that the action sequences in the new Road House were filmed in a different way from traditional movie fight scenes, something that director Doug Liman was very focused on doing. Gyllenhaal also speaks highly of Liman in the post that came with these images, it seems the two got along quite well.

Unfortunately, Liman himself seems to feel very differently about Road House right now. The director has said he will not be attending the Road House premiere because he feels Amazon should have given the film a theatrical release. While some have called Liman “disrespectful” for making his feelings so public, and before the film’s release, Liman feels very strongly about the film, calling it “fantastic” and he thinks it should be seen on the big screen. Certainly, Jake Gyllenhaal with his shirt off probably looks even more impressive on a massive theatrical screen.

Viewers at SXSW will be able to see Road House on the big screen, in what may be the only such exhibition the movie gets. The rest of us with a Prime Video subscription will be able to watch the movie at home on March 21.  

The Road House remake has yet to debut but a lot has already been said about the upcoming Prime Video film. The director has made his frustration with the studio known after Road House was not given a theatrical release, and now we might know why Doug Liman believes this is one of his best films. Jake Gyllenhaal says the movie’s action was done in an entirely new way that is apparently “groundbreaking.”

Speaking with our sister site Total Film (via GamesRadar) Jake Gyllenhaal said that director Doug Liman wanted to film the action in Road House in a way that was apparently somehow different than what we would be used to. It certainly sounds pretty incredible to hear the actor tell it. Gyllenhaal said…

While Gyllenhaal doesn’t go into any specifics regarding exactly how these fight scenes were filmed, it certainly sounds like they did something differently. The original Road House was a pretty straightforward ‘80s action movie. The fight scenes are solid, but nothing to write home about, but not so here it would seem. 

It would be one thing if it were just Jake Gyllenhaal hyping the movie’s action, but stunt coordinator Garret Warren backs him up, saying that these new techniques, whatever they are, are used in every fight scene in the film, and calling them “groundbreaking.” Warren said…

While fans of the original Road House, or just action movies in general, were certainly looking forward to checking out the remake, this puts an entirely new spin on it. Now Road House isn’t looking like just a solid action movie, but something that could change action movies as a genre. 

Road House has been a somewhat controversial film since Doug Liman publicly announced he would not be attending the premiere. He feels the movie should have been given a theatrical release, and if the action is that impressive, it's not hard to understand why he might feel way. Although some have called Liman disrespectful for publicly airing his grievances. 

The Road House trailer shows us some of the film's action, and while nothing we see there looks all that different, it's possible the unique elements are intentionally being held back. Audiences at SXSW will be the first to see these new action scenes when the movie debuts there later this week. The rest of us will have to wait until the Road House release date of March 21. 

Fans are looking forward to seeing the upcoming remake of Road House — with the trailer showing off the ripped physique of Jake Gyllenhaal as his retired UFC-fighting character kicks all kinds of ass in the Road House trailer. But behind-the-scenes drama has stolen some of the movie's fanfare. Director Doug Liman announced in January that he plans to boycott his film’s premiere at South by Southwest in March, protesting Amazon MGM’s decision to release it to Prime Video subscription holders, rather than send it to theaters. Now Gyllenhaal has weighed in with his own view.

Road House — a remake of one of the most iconic movies of the ‘80s — stars Jake Gyllenhaal and real-life UFC icon Conor McGregor and is set to be released on Amazon Prime Video on March 21, just weeks after it makes its festival debut. Doug Liman has put Amazon MGM Studios on blast for denying the movie a theatrical release, but when asked about the brouhaha, Gyllenhaal told Total Film that it was always the plan for the reboot to go straight to streaming. He said: 

The actor, who is portraying Elwood Dalton in Road House, seems to see both sides of the issue. Jake Gyllenhaal said the director’s boycott stems from his love of cinema and his passion for this film. However, the Nightcrawler star also sees the evolution in how people are watching movies, and while Gyllenhaal said he loves to take in a film on the big screen, he also embraces streaming as part of the future. He continued: 

Jake Gyllenhaal seems to think a good story will reach its audience no matter the format, but when you’re dealing with action, as in the Road House remake, one can understand Doug Liman’s viewpoint, given how important the visual component is.

Road House’s SXSW premiere is set for opening night of the Austin, Texas, film festival on March 8, so we’ll have to see if either side is willing to budge on the issue. In the meantime, check out our 2024 movie release calendar to see what is hitting the big screen soon. 

The landscape for movies has changed drastically over the last few years. With the growth of streaming platforms as an option for viewers, that was turbo-charged by a global pandemic closing theaters, the future of movies is in question. While many major projects are still released in theaters, others are earmarked specifically for streaming. Budget is often a determining factor, as movies that spend more often get theatrical releases to help alleviate that cost, but in a strange twist, Prime Video’s Road House remake reportedly got more money to spend on production if it skipped theaters.

Why Road House Isn't Getting A Theatrical Release

Next month Prime Video will release Road House, a remake of the 1989 action movie starring Patrick Swayze. The new film stars Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role, as a former MMA fighter turned saloon bouncer. Considering the original film’s popularity, and the fact that it was a theatrical release, we might have expected the remake to get similar treatment, but Variety reports that the film’s streaming-only plan was part of a deal between Amazon and the producers that gave the movie a larger budget in exchange for the exclusivity.

The Road House remake was in early development at MGM before the studio was acquired by Amazon in March 2022, so at that point, the expectation was that it would be released theatrically. When Amazon bought the studio, however, things changed. The new bosses reportedly gave the filmmakers an option to make the movie for $75 million if the movie went directly to Prime Video. If they wanted a theatrical release, the production would only get $60 million. An unnamed source tells Variety the group took the money.

How Road House's Director Has Responded

However, while that might have been the end of it, it has not been. Last month director Doug Liman published an open letter announcing that when the movie debuts at SXSW next month, he will not be attending as an act of protest against Amazon’s decision to not release the film theatrically. According to him, he was told Amazon would make the release decision based on the film’s quality. And even though he says Road House is fantastic and has tested better than the most successful movies he has ever made, Amazon is sticking with the streaming-only release. Liman says Amazon has promised to support theaters but in not releasing the movie there they are going back on the claim.

Liman’s public statement has rubbed some the wrong way, with one unnamed source saying “It’s so disrespectful” for Liman to air the dirty laundry in public. Clearly, there are a lot of very strong feelings about how Road House should have been handled. In the end, if the movie is as good as Liman says, the audience will be happy. But for those of us who love the theatrical experience, missing a chance to see a great movie on the big screen is always a little disappointing.

As the Jake Gyllenhaal-led Road House remake gears up to hit Amazon Prime this March, its director, Doug Liman, has dropped a bombshell. The filmmaker shared his plans to protest the movie’s premiere, along with provided details regarding how Amazon Studios has decided to make it a streaming-only release, despite Liman allegedly initially signing on to make the movie for a theatrical audience.

Doug Liman put Amazon on blast in a Deadline editorial just as the first poster for the movie dropped online. In his words: 

Road House is set to premiere on opening night of the SXSW film festival in Austin, Texas. However, as Liman shared, he has decided to skip out on being part of the event because he is unhappy with the way Amazon is handling the release of the movie. Doug Liman explained that when he decided to make Road House, initially with MGM, it was going to be a theatrical release. However, Amazon then bought MGM, and the new studio told him to “make a great film” and they’d “see what happens.” Liman continued as follows: 

Amazon closed an $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM in May of 2022, just a few months ahead of the Road House remake officially rolling cameras. As Liman shared, the movie being caught in the crossfires of this has now led to it getting a streaming-only release. The director is frustrated by this for a few reasons. 

For one, he claims the remake tested super high with audiences, therefore having the potential to be a big box office hit. Liman has a solid history of seeing his movies go to theaters and making solid numbers, between 2002’s The Bourne Identity and 2005’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith. However, Liman has seen his share of box office failures for movies too, such as with 2021’s Chaos Walking. 

Liman is bothered that without a theatrical release, Gyllenhaal loses out on awards chances and UFC fans won’t get to see Conor McGregor’s debut performance on the big screen. Liman also said this: 

Jake Gyllenhaal’s Road House physique went viral early last year when the actor turned up at UFC 285’s weigh-in ceremony to film a scene for the movie. The Road House remake has been described as an edgier version of the 1989 movie starring Patrick Swayze, which also featured a professional wrestler with the late Terry Funk among the cast. 

Elsewhere in the editorial, Doug Liman also claimed that Amazon’s decision to not bring Road House to theaters is a bigger problem than his film itself, saying it could be “industry shaping for decades to come” if he hadn’t spoken up. Liman also blasted Amazon for going against its word to bring “the largest commitment to cinemas by an internet company” when Amazon reportedly decided to put billions of dollars into making "theatrical" motion pictures. 

We’ll have to see if Liman’s comments hold any weight in the weeks to come as Road House premieres at SXSW and becomes exclusively available to stream with an Amazon Prime subscription this March 21. 

Tom Cruise isn’t just a massive movie star but he’s a movie star that is so dedicated to his craft that he rarely, if ever, lets a stuntman take over. Cruise has hung from helicopters, done HALO jumps, and jumped off mountains for the Mission: Impossible franchise , and reports are that an upcoming Tom Cruise movie will literally put the actor in space. Now we have a bit of an idea just how much of the movie would put Cruise in space, and while it's not a lot, it should be enough.

In an interview with the BBC, Chairman of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group Donna Langley talks about the project, which would film in and around the International Space Station, and yes, I do mean, around, as the movie, if it happens as planned, would make Tom Cruise the first civilian to do a spacewalk. Langley explains… 

Langley says that that the project is in development, and that it “contemplates” Tom Cruise flying up to the space station to film this movie, so this is clearly far from a done deal. There are likely going to be a lot of potential hurdles in the way of Tom Cruise filming in space and doing a spacewalk, and that’s on top of all the regular hurdles that every major Hollywood production has to overcome in order to actually become a movie.

It perhaps unsurprising to learn that the entire idea of “Tom Cruise goes to space” came directly from the actor himself. Not only is Cruise willing to do all his own stunts, he clearly enjoys doing them and wants to push the envelope and try new things. I suppose after you’ve done a HALO jump for a Mission: Impossible movie, the only way to top that is to increase the altitude until you’re literally in space. 

Assuming this movie does happen, however, fans will apparently need to wait a bit for all the cool outer space action. Langley reveals that it’s only the finale of the movie that takes place in space, but that will of course make the end of this particular movie one for the record books. Langley continues… 

To be fair, getting an entire movie of Tom Cruise in space was going to be a tall order. Of course, once Tom Cruise gets a taste for making movies in space, he may decide he wants to push the envelope even further, and maybe then we will get the first movie shot entirely in outer space where Tom Cruise becomes the first civilian to pilot a shuttle. I’m not betting against it. 

Jake Gyllenhaal seems to be on a bit of a remake kick right now. His last two movies – Antoine Fuqua's The Guilty and Michael Bay's Ambulance – are both English-language versions of overseas films, and now the actor is set to tackle a redo of a beloved Patrick Swayze movie. Amazon Prime Video and MGM are now in the process of developing a new version of the 1989 film Road House, and not only is Gyllenhaal attached to play the lead role, but Doug Liman has come aboard to direct.

Liman most recently made the COVID heist feature Locked Down and the Tom Holland/Daisy Ridley sci-fi thriller Chaos Walking, but he's probably best known for his recent collaborations with Tom Cruise – making the time loop thriller Edge Of Tomorrow with the Top Gun: Maverick star in 2014, and reuniting with him in 2017 for the based-on-a-true-story thriller American Made. In addition to working with those mentioned, the filmmaker has worked with a lot of other movie stars – including Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, and Matt Damon – but Road House will be his first time working with Jake Gyllenhaal.

Directed by Rowdy Herrington, the original Road House tells the story of James Dalton (Patrick Swayze), a bouncer who moves from New York City to a small town in Missouri to take on the head security job at a rowdy bar called the Double Deuce. In addition to Swayze, the film co-stars Kelly Lynch, Sam Elliott, Kevin Tighe, and Ben Gazzara.

This is not the first time that MGM has tried to develop a remake of the 1989 movie, having previously hired controversial filmmaker Rob Cohen to direct a version about a decade ago, and planned a different gender-swapped version starring Ronda Rousey back in 2015. Considering that this version of the project is set to go into production in the Dominican Republic this month, it seems fair to say that the combination of Jake Gyllenhaal and Doug Liman, not to mention the partnership with Amazon, has been the key to finally getting the project into production.

As far as upcoming Jake Gyllenhaal movies go, the actor has completed his work on Guy Ritchie's upcoming thriller The Interpreter, and he is providing a voice in the upcoming Walt Disney Animation Film Strange World, which will be in theaters on November 23. In addition to Road House, he is also attached to a number of other projects, including the post-pandemic action film The Division (co-starring Jessica Chastain) and the comic book movie Prophet (from Extraction director Sam Hargrave).

If you've never seen Road House and want to check it out before the new version, you have multiple digital options. If you have an AMC+ subscription, you can check it out via Amazon or The Roku Channel, and it's also available through Philo. You can also rent and/or purchase the movie through Google Play, Apple, and Vudu.

There are few expeditions adventurers can take that are more daunting, dangerous, and spiritual as climbing to the top of Mount Everest. The tallest mountain on Earth has long been the the subject of films and now the iconic peak will get the cinematic treatment once more with Everest, the upcoming Doug Liman movie featuring Ewan McGregor and Outlander’s Sam Heughan as two rival climbers who set off in 1921 to become the first to stand where no man had stood before: the top of the Earth.

In the next couple of years, Doug Liman, who also plans to shoot a Tom Cruise movie in outer space, will take his star-studded cast, talented production team, and boundless ambition to tell one of the most exhilarating and fascinating stories about a group of thrill-seekers and history makers who wanted one thing and one thing only: to become the stuff of legend.

The Everest Cast Includes Ewan McGregor, Sam Heughan And Mark Strong

When Doug Liman sets off to tell one of the most remarkable adventure stories of all time, he will be joined by a remarkable cast of actors that will certainly help make Everest all the more exciting to watch. Ewan McGregor leads the pack as George Mallory, an early 20th Century English mountaineer who led the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest. Mark Strong will take on the role of Arthur Hinks, a member of the Royal Geographic Society who hand-picked Mallory to make the dangerous yet important trek to the top of the world. You can’t have an adventure movie without a rival and that’s where Sam Heughan steps in as the eccentric Australian climber George Finch, per Deadline.

Everest Will Tell The Story Of The First Attempt To Climb Mount Everest

Now, you might be asking yourself: Wasn’t there a movie called Everest that came out not too long ago? The answer is yes, but Baltasar Kormákur’s 2015 Everest told the story of the horrific 1996 disaster atop the Himalayan Mountains that claimed the lives of eight climbers when a deadly blizzard blew through. Doug Liman’s story, however, will instead turn its focus to the first British expedition to Mount Everest in the 1921, just a few years removed from the end of World War I and a British Empire seeking a victory and glory on the world stage, per The Hollywood Reporter. But for George Mallory and George Finch, the pride of their respective nations comes second to their desire to push themselves to limit.

Production On Everest Is Set To Get Underway January 2022 In The U.K. And Italy

Although we don’t yet have a release date for Everest, we at least know when the cameras will start rolling on what sounds to the latest epic adventure film. According to Variety, Doug Liman will start production on Everest at some point in January 2022 with shooting taking place in the U.K. and Italy. It has yet to be revealed how long production will last or if anything will be filmed on location at Mount Everest, but expect to hear more on this in the coming months.

Doug Liman, An Avid Climber, Intends To Make Everest A ’Dangerous, Dangerous Foe’

Ewan McGregor’s George Mallory and Sam Heughan’s George Finch will be competing against one another to climb to the top of Mount Everest, but the movie’s actual villain and driving force will be the mountain itself. During a presentation at a Pre-Cannes Screenings event in June 2021 (via Variety), director Doug Liman, an avid climber himself, revealed his desire to make Mount Everest seem as formidable as possible, stating:

Doug Liman, who also described Everest as being the “ultimate adventure film,” explained that the expedition that he will be dramatizing in the upcoming movie resulted in the first 11 recorded deaths on Mount Everest.

Everest Has Been A Passion Project Of Doug Liman’s For The Past Decade

When the cameras start rolling on Everest in early 2022, it will be more than a decade after Doug Liman first started working on the project. In September 2011, Deadline reported that Liman, who was also in the early stages of Edge of Tomorrow at the time, had signed on to tell the story of George Mallory and his 1921 attempt to scale Mount Everest. At the time, it was reported that not only was Liman a serious climber but also a longtime fan of Mallory and the mysterious circumstances of his 1924 disappearance during his third attempt to scale the mountain, though it has yet to be revealed if this part of Mallory’s story will be included in Everest.

Screenwriter Sheldon Turner Adapted Jeffrey Archer’s Paths Of Glory Into Everest

The white-knuckles adventure that will be Everest was written by Sheldon Turner, whose work on writing the Up in the Air screenplay alongside Jason Reitman earned him a Golden Globe (as well as an Academy Award nomination) back in 2010, per Screen Daily. Like Doug Liman, Turner has been involved with adapting Jeffrey Archer’s Paths of Glory from page to screen, turning out several versions of the story since then.

The Midnight Sky’s Cinematographer Martin Ruhe Is Shooting Everest

When Everest lands in theaters at some point in the near future, it will feature the camera work of cinematographer Martin Ruhe, per The Hollywood Reporter. Ruhe’s most recent feature film, The Midnight Sky, was full of breathtaking shots and and lighting that complimented the direction of George Clooney. Ruhe’s previous efforts include Ewan McGregor’s American Pastoral, and Anton Corbijn’s The American. Ruhe made his feature film debut with Corbijn’s 2007 Ian Curtis biopic Control, which showed the final days of the influential Joy Division singer.

There is still some time before we’ll get to see Doug Liman’s Everest, but in the meantime you should check out CinemaBlend’s guide to all the 2021 new movie releases so you don’t miss anything at your local theater or streaming.

Back in 2014, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt teamed up with director Doug Liman for the time loop action flick Edge of Tomorrow (or Live Die Repeat, if you prefer), and while the final product didn’t make that much of a splash at the box office, it earned a lot of positive critical reception. That was enough to warrant a sequel being officially announced by spring 2016, but five years later, there’s still no sign of Edge of Tomorrow 2. At this point, Blunt is skeptical the sequel will still happen for one reason: money.

While promoting her latest movie, A Quiet Place: Part II, on Howard Stern, Emily Blunt discussed her time on Edge of Tomorrow with the eponymous host. When Stern inquired about if Tom Cruise had ever asked her to do a sequel, the actress answered:

It’s understandable why Emily Blunt would be concerned about the cost of making Edge of Tomorrow 2. The first movie worked off a $178 million budget and ended its box office run collecting $370.5 million worldwide. It’s one thing for a studio for shell out between $150-200 million on an entry in a massive franchise, like Star Wars or the MonsterVerse, but for something like Edge of Tomorrow 2, Warner Bros might not be as keen nowadays pouring nearly as much money into it as it did with Edge of Tomorrow nearly a decade ago, especially considering that movie’s lukewarm theatrical performance.

But as Emily Blunt also noted, scheduling has also been a major obstacle with getting Edge of Tomorrow 2 off the ground. Back in January, Doug Liman stated that with the script ready to go, it’s just a matter of him, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt all finding the time to finally tackle the sequel. But that’s easier said than done; Cruise is currently working on Mission: Impossible 7 and Mission: Impossible 8, Blunt recently signed on to the BBC and Amazon Studios series The English, and Liman is gearing up to re-team with Cruise on their outer space movie. So yeah, Edge of Tomorrow 2 is clearly lower down on their lists of priorities.

All this isn’t to say that Edge of Tomorrow 2 definitely won’t happen, but as things stand now, its chances of moving into production seem slimmer than ever. Doug Liman once described the project as “a sequel that’s a prequel,” and The Invention of Lying’s Matthew Robinson wrote the most recent version of the script. But even now, we have no idea what Tom Cruise’s William Cage and Emily Blunt’s Rita Vrataski would deal with in their next adventure, other than that it would involve them going backwards in time. With the way things are going, if Edge of Tomorrow 2 doesn’t end up getting made, hopefully we’ll at least learn what in store for these characters.

But rest assured, if it’s announced that Edge of Tomorrow 2 is finally moving forward, we here at CinemaBlend will let you know. In the meantime, you can next see Emily Blunt in A Quiet Place: Part II when it premieres on May 28, followed by Jungle Cruise on July 30. Tom Cruise will return to the big screen for Top Gun: Maverick on November 19, and Mission: Impossible 7 will arrive on May 27, 2022.

Since the mega success of franchises based on books found on the shelves of the YA section of bookstores and libraries like Twilight and Hunger Games, we’ve seen Hollywood quickly take on a ton of popular series at haste. Chaos Walking was filmed around that time in 2017, then had to wait two years for Star Wars’ Daisy Ridley and Spider-Man's Tom Holland to complete additional photography… and then a global pandemic happened. Four years after it originally started production, Doug Liman’s film comes at a time when an old fashioned dystopian thriller is a bit of a novelty, and it has actually benefitted from the extra time.

Chaos Walking is an adaptation of Patrick Ness’ 2008 novel The Knife of Never Letting Go, which has been adapted by the author and writer Christopher Ford (Spider-Man: Homecoming). The story follows Tom Holland’s Todd Hewitt, who is the youngest living in a settlement full of men who have become infected with “The Noise,” a force that reveals their unfiltered thoughts to each other. Todd’s reality is challenged when Daisy Ridley’s Viola crash lands on his planet – the first woman he has ever seen in his life, and the first with thoughts that all remain in her head.

Doug Liman’s take on the bestselling and award-winning book is an introspective thriller that prioritizes its concept over action and dazzle. Chaos Walking is muddled, but it does provide an interesting story about the destructive nature of thoughts, especially when those of the toxic male variety are the loudest sound being heard.

Chaos Walking (mostly) pulls off its challenging sci-fi concept.

Whether or not you like Chaos Walking will have a lot to do with it if you can get behind “The Noise”. It is a complicated and challenging idea to bring to screen, and forces out the typical dynamics we're accustomed to in movies. "The Noise" takes a bit of time to adjust to this new and different world that is built for the movie. For those who latch on to it, Doug Liman does explore it in some compelling ways that is relatable to growing up and may send the audience’s own minds wandering about how sacred our own inner thoughts are to us.

“The Noise” is a main character in Chaos Walking, and its execution is not foolproof. David Oweloyo’s Aaron is most wronged by “The Noise'' as the settlement’s vile preacher, and there are aspects of world-building that leave something to be desired. It does work with Tom Holland’s Todd, who plays a teen who struggles to control his “Noise” throughout the film – not unlike how anxiety may intrude our ability to go about our lives, or how personal feelings about another may block our focus from seeing what’s actually going on.

Tom Holland and Daisy Ridley offer a wholesome dynamic that plays into the familiar.

Chaos Walking comes at an interesting time for fans of Tom Holland and Daisy Ridley, as Holland has been moving out of his comfort zone with films like The Devil All The Time and Cherry, and Ridley has recently completed her Star Wars journey. It’s great to see the pair together in this setting, although they both seem to be playing into the same types of characters we’ve come to know them as. Much like Rey, Ridley once again must play off a mysterious and reserved role as Viola, while Holland’s youthfulness is a key aspect of what makes his character distinctive, like his young Peter Parker is in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Comparisons aside, the pairing is worthwhile as the actors bring some much needed emotion to Chaos Walking and serve as an anchor for the film. There's also some fun moments between the pair that plays off "The Noise," and speaks to each of their charismatic capacities.

Chaos Walking’s double-edged sword is its ruggedness.

Chaos Walking has a quiet and understated texture about it that keeps your attention. It’s a big-budget movie featuring huge stars like Mads Mikkelson, Nick Jonas and Cynthia Erivo, yet has an unexpectedly intimate feel. It doesn’t go for the typical “action movie” routes, but still offers a handful of tense edge-of-your-seat sequences. Some of its strengths do turn into issues that underwhelm in the third act, especially considering the movie has to wrangle a larger storyline from Patrick Ness' Chaos Walking book trilogy.

Overall, Doug Liman's Chaos Walking is a tight dystopian concept packed with something to ponder over, but the result is middle-of-the-road.

Matt Damon was already a well-known name in Hollywood pre-2002, but that year, he became a bonafide action star when he debuted as Jason Bourne in The Bourne Identity, which was directed by Doug Liman. 2002 was also the year that Pierce Brosnan’s tenure as James Bond ended with Die Another Day, and four years later, the Bond franchise was rebooted, with Daniel Craig taking over the 007 mantle in Casino Royale. With a darker tone and edgier, more realistic action, many noted how similar Casino Royale was to the first two Bourne movies. Is this a case of copying?

Doug Liman certainly thinks so. While plugging his new movie, HBO Max’s Locked Down, Liman spoke with Slashfilm about the Bourne franchise’s influence on Hollywood, particularly with regard to the modern James Bond movies. In his words:

It’s worth noting that the’ no American directors’ rule for James Bond movies has been broken since Cary Fukunaga was hired to helm No Time to Die, but that’s beside the point. Considering how critically and commercially successful both The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy were, it’s easy to see why the Casino Royale filmmakers wanted to take a page from those proverbial books. In addition to boasting similar action, Casino Royale also ditched the cool gadgets that were among the Bond franchise’s main appeals. Plus, the 21st James Bond movie also dedicated more time to exploring the main characters inner struggles, not dissimilar to Jason Bourne trying to learn about his forgotten past and come to terms as a living weapon throughout the Bourne movies.

In any case, Doug Liman found the similarities between The Bourne Identity and Casino Royale to be surreal. He continued:

While Doug Liman passed the directing reins to Paul Greengrass for The Bourne Supremacy (Greengrass would return for The Bourne Ultimatum and Jason Bourne), there’s no denying that Liman’s work on The Bourne Identity not only set the template for the mood and feel of the sequels, but also influenced various other action movies, including James Bond’s adventures. Liman also noted in the interview how he was determined to take risks for The Bourne Identity, even if it meant ignoring studio requests, such as having Matt Damon’s character fight only a handful of goons at once rather than dozens of them.

As far as how the James Bond and Bourne franchises are going nowadays, the former is certainly on firmer ground than the latter. The last Bourne movie, Jason Bourne, came out in 2016 and was met with mixed critical reaction, though it did reasonably well for itself commercially. As of late 2019, another Bourne movie was in the works that would tie into the short-lived Treadstone TV series, but there’s been no update on its progress since then. As for Bond, No Time to Die, Daniel Craig’s final 007 outing, is currently set to arrive on April 2, although it’s looking increasingly likely that it will be pushed back again.

Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more updates on both the James Bond and Bourne franchise. If you’re curious about what movies are arriving later this year, scan through our 2021 release schedule.

Do you feel like you're in a time loop? Well, you’re not the only one. Back in 2014, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt suited up for Doug Liman’s epic action movie Edge of Tomorrow. The movie has loads of fans. and there's been chitter-chatter about Edge of Tomorrow 2 plans over the years, but it’s still not clear if or when the trio would return for another time-twisted alien war flick.

Doug Liman’s latest film, Locked Down, just dropped on HBO Max, and in between promoting the Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor-led quarantine movie, the director spoke up about what would speed up the development for an Edge of Tomorrow sequel. In his words to Collider:

To that end, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt are quite busy right now. Liman is about to work with Cruise again and go into space (seriously, actual space!!) for a groundbreaking movie, which is expected to shoot later this year. And Emily Blunt is always hard at work on another project, currently with A Quiet Place Part II and Jungle Cruise expected to come out this year.

Doug Liman explained that it comes down to the actors really clearing their schedule a bit for Edge of Tomorrow 2 and expressing enthusiasm for it. Both of the actors have shared their interest in moving forward before, but Blunt has also confessed some reservations she has with sequels, saying she would only return if it was on par with the original film.

Back in early 2019, reports indicated that Warner Bros was actively developing the sequel, and Doug Liman has previously shared some extensive brainstorming happening for the movie before with wall-to-wall whiteboards of blurred-out plotlines. But according to the director, a lot of the ideas for the original movie got moving on set. In his words:

That’s one way to make a movie. Edge of Tomorrow certainly impressed many people. The 2014 film was based on the Japanese light novel All You Need Is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka. The fact that it keeps coming up certainly shows the continued interest in Edge of Tomorrow 2 moving forward, but based on Doug Liman’s words, it doesn’t seem to be moving smoothly or be high on the actors' lists for now, especially as Tom Cruise finishes filming his next Mission: Impossible films a year after the start date.

Doug Liman’s Locked Down is on HBO Max now, and his YA dystopian adaptation, Chaos Walking, arrives in March.

In a sense, heist movies live or die by their climaxes. There are certainly exceptions, but the vast majority of stories within the genre are all about characters preparing for one massive score, and it’s in the unfolding of the climax that it’s determined whether or not the juice is worth the squeeze. Great films can be destroyed by this, and underwhelming films can be saved by this.

Doug Liman’s Locked Down, starring Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor, is no exception, but is also in many ways a wonderful success. It’s an entirely atypical heist movie that evades the tropes that haunt the genre, but also executes a fantastic climax that is wrought with tension as the big job goes down. So what happens in the HBO Max exclusive, and why does it happen? That’s what we’re here to analyze with this feature.

We here at CinemaBlend love to do a deep dive into films with third acts that are tense, twisty, and leave lingering questions, and Locked Down’s ending makes for excellent subject matter in that regard. But before we dig in…

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Locked Down. If you have not yet seen the film, please continue at your own risk!

What Happens At The End Of Locked Down

Throughout the second and third acts of Locked Down, Paxton (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Linda (Anne Hathaway) repeatedly discuss what they call “The Moment” – which is the point in time in which they must make the decision to go ahead with their heist, or abort the wild idea and simply do their respective jobs. It specifically comes when they have both the real Harris Diamond and the store display replica in hand, and it also arguably marks the beginning of the film’s ending, and it’s where we will begin our recap.

"The Moment"

As the duo get to the fake Harris Diamond on the show floor in Harrods, Paxton uses a step ladder to reach into the tank where the gem is kept – told to be quick by Linda due to the fact that the display houses real piranhas. The motorcycle-loving ex-con successfully makes the extraction without his arm getting bitten off, and when he approaches his ex-partner and notes that the long-awaited moment has come.

Sidling away from the view of the security cameras, they have their brief discussion, and Paxton makes it clear that he thinks that they should take the real Harris Diamond out of its container and pocket it while swapping it for the fake. Linda, who argues with herself out loud throughout the movie, silently takes out the case, drops the £3 million ingot in her purse, and replaces it with the spurious stone.

They only get a moment to reflect on what they’ve done, because as soon as they start the last stage of their plan their excitement is decimated by the arrival of an out-of-breath Donald (Mark Gatiss). Linda’s former employee explains that he got an anonymous call saying that the transport driver for the Harrods job is operating under a fake name – surely the work of Paxton’s enemy, Martin (Sam Spruell) – and that the police are on the way.

The Escape

With time to make an escape now growing excruciatingly close, Linda decides to make a Hail Mary pass. Rather than come up with some kind of lie, she instead decides to totally come clean to Donald and explain everything that they are doing. Fortunately, Donald is still royally pissed off after having been fired, and after unleashing a rage-filled rant against the system he agrees to let them go.

For a moment it seems like they are free and clear, but then an announcement rings out on the PA system looking for Edgar Allan Poe. The urgency to find the exit exponentially increases, and tensions further rise as Linda nearly runs into uptight Harrods employee Michael (Stephen Merchant). Just as they turn in their passes and are prepared to get out the door, the security guard (Marek Larwood) from the entrance approaches them calling out, “Edgar Allan Poe.” For a moment it seems like they’re caught… but it turns out that the guard simply wanted to return Paxton’s badge, which was dropped at some point during the job. Paxton and Linda make their way to Heathrow Airport on the former’s bike, and the job is done.

Back Home

An undisclosed amount of time later, the pair is back at their house, and once again in the middle of a fight. Linda has hidden the flour that Paxton purchased to make bread; Paxton gets chided for holding a funeral for his opium-addicted backyard hedgehog; and an accusation is levied at Linda that she put up a piece of tinsel just to fuck with him. Paxton packs up a suitcase and is all ready to go – the one problem is that lock down has been extended for two more weeks. With no move to make, he flops down on the bed next to her and airs his number one grievance: she has forgotten his birthday. Fortunately, she has a present for him handy: the stolen bag of flour.

Considering what it will be like to be at home for another two weeks, Paxton contemplates another poetry recital for the streets, and settles on “Counting The Beats” by Robert Graves.

Will Linda And Paxton Get Away With It?

One of the coolest things about Locked Down when looked at in contrast to other heist films is that stealing the diamond is, for lack of a better word, easy. As horrible as everything has been for Linda and Paxton, the universe gives them an amazing layup that turns them into instant millionaires. Not only is it coincidental that the two of them happen to be transporting the Harris Diamond with zero oversight, but the circumstances in the aftermath are practically miraculous.

It’s established in the middle of the film that the reason the diamond is being moved is because it has been purchased – namely by an anonymous murderous despot. Under normal circumstances you’d think that pissing off a guy like that would be the last thing on anyone’s To Do list, but it really doesn’t matter. Linda is specifically told that after being put on a plane at Heathrow Airport, the diamond will arrive in New York and instantly be put in a safe – with the owner more interested in owning the stone than actually possessing it. Surely somebody will eventually figure out that what is in the safe is a fake, but by then the trail to Linda and “Edgar Allan Poe” would presumably disappear.

Another instance of the universe working in their favor is the process of actually selling the diamond, given Paxton’s old criminal contact and the fact that Paxton once saved his life. That being said, this is still the least secure aspect of the endeavor given that it means telling a third person about the heist, and, to quote Benjamin Franklin, “Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.” No matter what, there is no absolute security in the transaction.

So will Linda and Paxton get away with the heist? Given the good they plan on doing with a third of the money, and the complete lack of victims other than a corporation and a tyrant, we can certainly hope so. But it’s not guaranteed (and, who knows, if not maybe that will wind up spawning sequel discussions).

Do Linda And Paxton End Up Together?

It’s a tricky question to ask about the consequences of the heist in Locked Down, but far trickier to ask about the future of Linda and Paxton’s relationship. While it’s true that as an audience we only see a fraction of their time together, the time that we do see is heavy on the toxic. They are both individually miserable people who can’t even find solace in being miserable.

There certainly are positive overtones in the end of Locked Down. While Paxton is apparently ready to move out as a result of a cascading fight, the final notes suggest that they are happier together than issue ridden, evidenced in his pleasant reaction when she tells him about the extension of stay at home orders.

But can money totally fix a relationship? It’s hard to say. It certainly reduces their stress, particularly as it allows them to quit their respective terrible jobs and focus on their artistic passions. That by itself is only going to be healthy for their coupling. Unfortunately, however, there are also important fractures to recognize in just who they are as human beings (a standout moment is when Linda notes that she stopped being in love with him when he did as she wished and lost his rebellious spirit). The excitement of pulling off the heist may reignite their flame, but the candle still may not burn forever. Again, there’s plenty of material here to be explored in a potential sequel.

What did you think of Paxton and Linda’s choice at the end of Locked Down? Do you think it was a fitting ending for the film? Hit the comments section with all of your thoughts, feelings, and opinions about the new release, and if you’re interested in checking it out again, the film continues to stream as an HBO Max exclusive.

As is typical with life-changing global events, the movie world has not wasted any time analyzing life during the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s a shared traumatic experience that has touched us all in one way or another, and like any artists filmmakers have taken the opportunity to use their craft to reach a better understanding of humanity in the moment. An unfortunate side effect of this process is that we’re going to see a fair amount of exploitative trash, but balancing that material out we will get works that are both insightful and entertaining.

Doug Liman’s Locked Down is a film of the latter variety, and quite a fantastic one at that. Based on an original screenplay by Steven Knight, it’s a genre movie that tries to wear a lot of hats – including pitch black comedy, romantic drama, and heist thriller – and not only pulls all of them off, but pairs them with a stylish matching mask. Though it doesn’t have the benefit of great hindsight on 2020 (it was shot in the span of a few weeks this past fall), it’s impressive how it taps into the exact formula of equal parts nihilism and optimism in the attitude of the moment, and it’s brought to life by two incredible performances from Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor that are both hilarious and emotional.

Set in London during the early weeks of the pandemic, Locked Down centers on Linda (Hathaway) and Paxton (Ejiofor), a couple that can no longer be called a couple because they have made the decision to break up… a decision made particularly problematic as a result of the fact that they live together and can’t go anywhere. Their cohabitation results in constantly escalating friction, made only worse by their very different professional situations. Paxton, an ex-con who has spent years getting his life on the straight and narrow, is furloughed from his work as a truck driver and is launched into an abyss-like depression. Linda, meanwhile, can’t seem to do anything but succeed as an executive at the soul-sucking corporate job that she hates. They are both completely miserable, but can’t even function well enough to commiserate with one another.

Then, by some grace of the universe, the stars align. As a result of being short drivers without a criminal record, Paxton’s boss (Ben Kingsley) creates fake IDs for him so that he can be brought in for a series of lax security transport runs, with the last being from the famed posh department store Harrods. Linda, meanwhile, is given the responsibility to oversee pandemic-related transactions from her company, including the sale of the Harris Diamond, a stone valued at £3 million… which just so happens to be stored at Harrods.

Without lifting a finger, the protagonists find themselves with the opportunity to pull off what may be the world’s simplest heist – but the lingering question is whether or not they can actually go through with it.

Locked Down goes to some dark places, but it’s super funny throughout.

Doug Liman and Steven Knight make an interesting pair as eclectic director working with an experimental writer, but their styles click in the best way, and while Locked Down is a film that runs the gamut in terms of emotional response it’s best quality is how hilarious it is – particularly when it’s going to some weird and dark places. Paxton’s wit is what saves him from total desolate despair, unleashing drama-filled rants during catch-up video calls with his half-brother (Dule Hill), and Linda’s expressions are priceless as she exasperatingly deals with her totally out of touch boss (Ben Stiller).

It has great boiling-over energy in the main relationship that provides a kind of brilliant awkward funny, and peppers in all kinds of odd and fantastic details (such as Paxton being given the fake name Edgar Allan Poe and being repeatedly surprised when nobody knows who that is).It’s sensibilities could be described as manic – which most certainly is fitting with the overall experience of this past year.

Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor are fantastic together.

Thanks to the convenience of video conferencing, Locked Down sports an ensemble cast packed with talent (I’ve purposefully kept some names out of this review to maintain surprises), but it’s truly Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor’s show, and both carry the day. Linda and Paxton are not easy characters to play, as in the wrong hands their anxiety, self-loathing, and mutual hostility could be sincerely off-putting, but the actors’ awesome charisma and perfect timing in their banter instead make them both engaging and even empathetic. Over the course of the film you get to appreciate them in all varieties of their dynamic – alone, at each other’s throats, remembering the good times, and working as a team – and each step of the way you appreciate what’s unique and what’s utterly real about them during a very strange moment in all of our lives.

In its own way, Locked Down is an impressive cinematic feat.

Equally impressive in it all is also just the impressive craftwork and logistics that brought Locked Down to life. It’s admittedly not exactly scaled like a big blockbuster, and the vast majority of the action takes place within Paxton and Linda’s home, but when you take a step back from it you can marvel at the accomplishment. This is a film that came together with a star-studded cast from first draft to final cut in less than a year, and while doing so it not only manages to capture the chaotic state of affairs, but never feel cheap, or rushed, or undercooked. In spirit it feels like a full-on Hollywood heist movie inspired by unforeseen global events, replete with a big showy third act at a landmark location (albeit without the genre’s most useless tropes). Even though it’s a heightened story, future films trying to capture the moment, even with the benefit of hindsight, will probably struggle to achieve the level of veritas.

It’s all but guaranteed that the next decade is going to feature all varieties of stories set during the COVID-19 pandemic, and what’s perhaps most exciting about Locked Down is the very real potential for quality in that approach. Sometimes limitations and constrictions – like stay-at-home orders and mandated social distancing – can breed wonderful creativity, and with its fun take on multiple genres that excises cliché, the film is bursting with it, and it’s brought home by a pair of amazing performances and smart style.

It's been more than six years since Doug Liman's Edge of Tomorrow (aka Live Die Repeat) arrived in theaters and it remains one of my favorite sci-fi action thrillers in recent years. The adaptation of Hiroshi Sakurazaka's light novel All You Need Is Kill took years to find its way to the big screen -- as adaptations often do -- delivering to us another fantastic performance by Tom Cruise and demonstrating Emily Blunt's versatility as an actress.

Juggling the time-loop element amidst what is effectively a war movie with a heavy sci-fi backdrop was no easy task, but the end result is a fantastic and wholly entertaining adventure, as we see Tom Cruise's William Cage fight aliens in a day that simply won't end, aided by Emily Blunt's badass Rita Vrataski. As a bonus, we get Bill Paxton and Brendan Gleeson among the excellent supporting cast.

From aliens to action sequences, humor and suspense, Edge of Tomorrow has something for everyone, but let's take a look at some of the more fascinating facts that went into the making of the movie.

Tom Cruise Said Up Front He'd Shoot Seven Days A Week For The Movie

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of how this movie got made, let's take a moment to acknowledge that Tom Cruise is fantastic in Edge of Tomorrow. U.S. Major William Cage goes from being a cocky, battle-unready soldier to a full-on alien-killing war machine over the course of a day that never ends. From his excellent acting performance as we see his character's gradual transformation to the impressive stunts performed throughout the film, would Edge of Tomorrow have been as good with another actor in the lead role? Perhaps. But it can't be denied that Tom Cruise's hard work pays off in his movies.

On the blu-ray bonus features, Doug Liman credits his parents for his own hard work ethic, but goes on to add that he learned an even stronger work ethic from Tom Cruise, who was apparently fine working every day if that's what it took. According to Liman:

The Actors Actually Wore 85+ Lb. Exosuits To Film Edge Of Tomorrow's Action Scenes

While some movies might rely on CG to load their character up with semi-futuristic war gear, Edge of Tomorrow took a more practical approach to the exoskeleton suits we see worn by William Cage, Rita Vrataski and the rest of the soldiers. As producer Erwin Stoff explained it on one of the Blu-ray bonus features, Doug Liman wanted to aim for suits and weaponry that were technologically possible:

There were over 170 cast components to each suit. The suits were somewhere between 85 and 90 lbs, not counting the weight of the armor that was added to some of them. On the bonus feature, Tom Cruise talked about working with teams of people to learn how to get in and out of them.

As for Emily Blunt, she literally cried when she first put hers on, according to what she told BBC Radio 1:

They Actually Filmed A Helicopter Landing In Trafalgar Square

Much of the film was shot at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden. The beach, the Louvre and even those bits of Heathrow airport that we see throughout the film were all filmed at the U.K. studio, with green screen technology used to extend the background. But one major location that wasn't recreated to make the movie was Trafalgar Square. That scene near the beginning, where the helicopter lands at Trafalgar Square was shot on location in a matter of hours.

According to TheLocationGuide, landing a helicopter in Trafalgar Square had never been done before in a movie, and for Doug Liman, it was the most challenging thing he'd ever done in his career, from a technical point of view, because they only had three hours to complete the shot.

As for the beach, as mentioned, that was filmed in Leavesden on a back lot. Tons of sand were brought in to create the battleground that serves as a backdrop for many of the movie's scenes. Remember what we said earlier about the weight of the suits the characters wore to battle? Now imagine trudging through sand with an extra 80+ lbs. of armor on you. It's no surprise that Emily Blunt had this to say (on the Blu-ray bonus feature):

At One Point, The Studio Suggested Eliminating The Time Loop Element

This one is hard to believe. Imagine if Edge of Tomorrow would've eliminated the time loop element entirely. Apparently, that was an actual suggestion made by the studio at some point during its development. Per Yahoo, Doug Liman put his foot down when asked if it was necessary to keep the "repeat" element in the story…

Um, yeah. It's impossible to imagine this movie working as well as it does, if not for the Groundhog Day element remaining intact, or Doug Liman directing it for that matter, so let's all be thankful he was firm on that.

The Movement Of The Mimics Helped To Inform The Design

The time loop aspect of the movie is one of the things that makes Edge of Tomorrow a standout among other alien invasion movies. Another aspect that works well is the look of the Mimics. The challenge of creating aliens that aren't too derivative was one of the things addressed in the Blu-ray bonus features, and as it turns out, it was their movements that helped to inform how they would look. The filmmakers wanted to make something that would represent a sort of virus on mankind. In an effort to figure out what they should look like, there were over 4,700 concept illustrations, 276 sketches and also draftings and models.

According to production designer Oliver Scholl, visual effects supervisor Nick Davis suggested they start by animating the movement and go from there:

They did animation tests to solidify the movement and design the sequences we would eventually see play out on the beach. While a lot of the effects on the beach were practical, the Mimics were added later. Emily Blunt described it as organized chaos. The actors had a lot of practical effects to react to during those scenes, but the Mimics were green-suited people running around in place of the aliens we would eventually see on screen.

The Movie's Title Changed Multiple Times

Way back when the movie was being made and we were following updates on the project, the adaptation went by the title All You Need is Kill, which -- as mentioned -- is the title of the book on which the film is based. However, in 2013, just before Comic-Con, a new poster dropped to promote the movie and Warner Bros.' anticipated panel at SDCC, and the new title Edge of Tomorrow was set on the bottom right corner. So that settled that. The film released in 2014 as Edge of Tomorrow. End of story? Not quite.

In 2014, images of the anticipated Blu-ray release surfaced online, seemingly showing off a new new title, Live Die Repeat, which was how the film was marketed for home video. The compromise between the two titles -- at least according to retailers like Amazon (and Warner Bros. website) -- seems to be Live Die Repeat: Edge of Tomorrow, and from what Doug Liman told Yahoo in 2017, it sounds like he wants to keep Live Die Repeat as the header for the potential franchise:

Live Die Repeat didn't exactly come out of nowhere though. In fact, #LiveDieRepeat can actually be seen just below Edge of Tomorrow on that 2013 Comic-Con poster.

Brad Pitt Was Reportedly Originally Eyed For Tom Cruise's Character

It's hard to imagine anyone else playing William Cage in Edge of Tomorrow, but in another timeline, perhaps it was Brad Pitt who led the final battle against the Mimics. Back in 2011, when the movie was still being called All You Need Is Kill, Brad Pitt was reportedly offered the lead. This report came from Vulture, which noted that Paramount had recently pulled the plug on Doug Liman's planned space heist movie, Luna, which was set to star Brad Pitt. At that point, it seems Warner Bros. was originally looking at Pitt to take the lead in Liman's alien movie.

Obviously, that didn't work out, as just a few months after that report, news broke that Tom Cruise was cast in the part.

Christopher McQuarrie Said He Always Wanted The Movie To End With The Helicopter

It's only fitting that a movie that involves a time loop should end where it started, and such was the case for Edge of Tomorrow where - um, spoiler alert -- the movie's final act closes out with Tom Cruise waking up on the helicopter we saw him on at the start of the film. Except, this time, he lands in a much better reality, as his and Rita's efforts to destroy the Omega were successful.

While some people didn't like the happy ending, from what screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie told Film School Rejects, he always argued that the movie should end with Cage on the helicopter, leaving the viewers to wonder if it all really happened. He also seems aware that not everyone was a fan of how the film ultimately wrapped up, but it doesn't sound like there were any regrets there: .

And those are just a few cool things to know about the making of Live Die Repeat: Edge of Tomorrow. If it's been a while since you've seen it, it's well worth revisiting. And here's hoping we get the eventual sequel that may or may not be happening at some point in the future.

Back in May, we learned the surprising news that Tom Cruise would be taking the next leap forward in cinematic history and being the first man to star in a movie filmed in outer space. Now, it sounds like that project is more and more becoming a reality with another big step in production. Here's the latest.

Variety reports that Tom Cruise and director Doug Liman are in talks with Universal Pictures to produce the space movie. Since filming in space could be a daunting task, it’s no surprise the budget is reportedly set at $200 million. Tom Cruise could earn somewhere in the ballpark of $30 to $60 million dollars, covering his services as a star and producer.

Details about the story are scant, but we do know that it’ll be an action-adventure film. To get the movie literally off the ground, Tom Cruise is partnering with both Elon Musk’s SpaceX program and NASA. NASA, for their part, seems rather excited to help Tom Cruise make this movie project a reality. They will host the movie project aboard the International Space Station and hope it will inspire a new generation of future engineers and scientists.

Shortly after the news broke about the space project, it was announced that director Doug Liman had been tapped to helm the wheel. Doug Liman and Tom Cruise have worked together before on the set of Edge of Tomorrow and American Made. So, they have a solid working relationship going in.

It’s hard to say how large the scale will be for this space movie, but considering the tight conditions on the ISS, it seems unlikely they would include a big cast. Still, if they need a co-star, Simon Pegg has come out saying he’d love to venture into space. The two Mission: Impossible co-stars clearly work well together, so we'll just have to wait for more information.

Excitement aside, it can’t be said enough how difficult this project will be, mostly because of the constraints of the ISS, but also because you have to fly a movie crew up to the space station, film in a tightly constrained environment, find a solution to the poor audio, and move around the hazardous space station. Not to mention, they’re going to all have to learn how to use the bathroom up there. The task at first blush seems insurmountable.

Tom Cruise seems more than up for the challenge, though. The Hollywood star has become well-known for the amount of time, energy, and training he puts into all his stunt work. And with every stunt, he seems to want to dial it up a notch.

At this rate, if this space movie is a big success story, one can only imagine the sequel will involve going to the moon.

When you’re someone as iconic as Tom Cruise, you know who the folks you love to work with truly are. And while the Mission: Impossible actor has built big relationships with directors like Christopher McQuarrie and Joseph Kosinski. when it comes to his new untitled space movie, Cruise has apparently tapped another frequent and beloved collaborator. American Made collaborator Doug Liman has been installed as the director of this Elon Musk-enhanced film.

Deadline gained the inside tip on Doug Liman’s hiring, as the man behind Edge of Tomorrow has been recruited to join Tom Cruise’s team on this exciting new project. Seeing as this untitled project is the first blockbuster movie to be shot in outer space, this pretty much makes Liman the first director to make such a film in the final frontier.

Doug Liman’s directing skills have been in the Tom Cruise rotation since the two teamed on the 2014 sci-fi success that eventually came out of Edge of Tomorrow. So right now’s probably a good time to start addressing the mech suit in the room right now, as we have to ask whether or not the sequel we’ve been waiting almost a decade for is finally making some massive moves to becoming a reality.

It’s unfortunately hard to say yes or no for sure, as not only is this new film being kept close to the chest in terms of story details, but at the moment, it’s an independent production. Without the backing of Warner Bros being announced, it sounds like this outer space caper is a fresh prospect rather than a follow-up to the adventures of Tom Cruise’s Major Bill Cage. So unless Emily Blunt is randomly announced as the next star on the picture, this is a possibility we’ll shelve for the time being.

Right now, all we know for sure is that Tom Cruise and Elon Musk’s Space-X are teaming up to make this film, and NASA is apparently really jazzed about this project. With Doug Liman’s hiring as director, no further clues can be gleaned as to what this untitled space action-adventure movie is actually about.

This film is obviously going to take some time to get into production, as naturally Tom Cruise’s most immediate commitments belong to the next two Mission: Impossible sequels. But on the other side of the equation, oug iman has his own project to bring on home, as his long-suffering film Chaos Walking is prepared to lose its previous branding as an “unreleaseable” film in January 2021.

More specifically, you can see Chaos Walking when it’s released on January 22, 2021; provided, of course, that the massive shuffling of the Lionsgate release schedule doesn’t change those plans in the near future.

When Doug Liman was asked late last year about the status of Live Die Repeat and Repeat, the sequel to his widely loved and underseen 2014 film Edge of Tomorrow, the director seemed unsure that it would actually happen given all the variables involved. Despite that uncertainty, it seems that Doug Liman hasn’t stopped working on the sci-fi sequel. Now Doug Liman is teasing the super complicated nature of the story for Live Die Repeat and Repeat. Take a look:

As you can see, there is clearly a lot of brainstorming going on by Doug Liman and company on Live Die Repeat and Repeat. They are basically running out of space and have used up at least three whole whiteboards to map out the story of the film and that’s just what we can see. There are walls in this room that we can’t even see in this picture that might also feature whiteboards covered in red and black ink, a sprawling and convoluted roadmap of where this sequel will take us.

‘How many whiteboards is too many?’ the director asks in his Instagram post. I believe the answer is that there is no answer. There is no upper bound limit on the number of whiteboards Doug Liman can have to map out the story for the Edge of Tomorrow sequel, so if it’s one whiteboard or 100, it doesn’t matter, just so long as this movie actually happens and we get to see whatever is on those whiteboards play out onscreen.

Of course, what is on those whiteboards is the most inscrutable and intriguing part of this picture. It’s clearly time to do some googling and watch some YouTube videos to see if there’s anyway to deblur those whiteboards and see what secrets they hold about Live Die Repeat and Repeat. Doug Liman obviously wanted fans to see that he’s working on the film and how big it is, without actually offering up any real details.

Much of the writing on the whiteboards is blurred out, with the words that we can make out referencing story elements that we already know. We see the names ‘Cage’ and ‘Rita’ referring to Tom Cruise’s Cage and Emily Blunt’s character Rita who we presume will both be returning for the sequel. You can also make out the word ‘Verdun’, which is the site of the battle where Rita had the ability to reset time.

Could we be going back in time to see that? Doug Liman has previously indicated that the film would pick up where the original Edge of Tomorrow left off, serving as both a sequel and a prequel, so it’s a good bet we’re going to see Rita wreck shop at Verdun.

We don’t know what the exact story is for Live Die Repeat and Repeat, but whatever it is, judging by the overflowing whiteboards, it is poised to be super complicated and perhaps 'revolutionary'. Time travel stories are often complicated so it makes sense that this sequel would be. The whiteboards actually remind me of the often-used ‘Pepe Silvia’ meme from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, which you can see below.

Yeah, that’s pretty much how I feel trying to decode the mysteries here. Now it’s just a waiting game. As far as we know the script is all done and was re-written earlier last year by Matthew Robinson, who you can see in the Instagram image. It seems that the real impediment to Live Die Repeat and Repeat is freeing up the schedules of the film’s two very busy leads.

Even if we have to wait a bit, it’s good to see that Live Die Repeat and Repeat is still very much in development and when it arrives we are likely in store for a complicated and mind-bending sci-fi story.

We’ll keep you updated on Live Die Repeat and Repeat as news develops. In the meantime, check out our 2020 Release Schedule to see what movies you can look forward to this year.

While not the flashiest box office performer, 2014’s Edge of Tomorrow received a lot of positive reception, and two years later the sequel was announced. Doug Liman will be back to helm Edge of Tomorrow 2, a.k.a. Live Die Repeat and Repeat, and recently revealed that the screenplay is finished, but at this point, he’s not entirely certain if the sequel will actually get made. When asked what the film’s chances are of becoming a reality, Liman responded:

While plugging his new YouTube series Impulse to Collider, Doug Liman addressed the status of Edge of Tomorrow 2, noting that its two leads being so busy with other projects makes it difficult to get them back together for another timey-wimey sci-fi adventure. The script, which was re-written by The Invention of Lying’s Matthew Robinson earlier this year, is all done, but there’s still a long way to go before cameras start rolling.

Even if Doug Lima felt he was too busy to direct Edge of Tomorrow 2 and was willing to hand off helming duties to someone else, you can’t make this sequel without Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt, and those two are definitely not lacking for work. Blunt recently wrapped filming on A Quiet Place 2 and is next expected to shoot Not Fade Away, and Cruise is gearing up to tackle the next two Mission: Impossible movies, which are filming back-to-back.

So once Mission: Impossible 8 has wrapped, that’s the earliest that Edge of Tomorrow 2 could finally take the next step forward, and even then there could be other complications that could arise. Perhaps a point will eventually be reached where Doug Liman, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt realize they just can’t make the pieces line up and abandon efforts to make Edge of Tomorrow 2. On the off chance that were to happen, fingers crossed this sequel could still be told in another way, like through a comic book series.

While no specific plot details for Edge of Tomorrow 2 have been revealed yet, Doug Liman has previously said that while it picks up where the first movie left off, it’ll also involve traveling backwards in time, thus serving as both a sequel and a prequel. Liman also once boldly claimed that Edge of Tomorrow 2 is going to “revolutionize how people make sequels.”

Along with Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt reprising William Cage and Rita Vrataski, respectively, Edge of Tomorrow 2 will introduce an important character who Doug Liman says is “gonna for sure steal the show.” Lima has also noted that William Cage isn’t really a full-blown hero by the time Edge of Tomorrow concludes, but he’ll have a “proper” and “way better arc” in the next story.

Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more updates on how Edge of Tomorrow 2 is coming along. For now, keep track of what’s heading to a theater near you over the next year in our 2019 release schedule and 2020 release schedule.

With the trend of nostalgia proving endlessly popular and profitable, there is no franchise that seems truly dead. This is especially exciting for the fans, who have hope for their favorite film's future. One major sequel that's currently in development is the follow up to Doug Liman's sci-fi epic Edge of Tomorrow, which hit theaters in 2014. The sequel is currently being titled Live Die Repeat and Repeat, with both Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt set to reprise their roles in the upcoming blockbuster. I got to catch up with Liman at San Diego Comic-Con, where he revealed what's happening with Edge of Tomorrow's highly anticipated sequel. He said,

Well, this is exciting. While it's currently unclear when Live Die Repeat and Repeat will finally arrive in theaters, it seems that the upcoming film's script is getting close to done. So strap on your exoskeleton armor and get ready for another epic sci-fi adventure through space and time.

Doug Liman's comments are sure to excite the many moviegoers who saw and loved Edge of Tomorrow when it arrived in theaters a few years ago. The director/producer crafted a thrilling psychological journey, while also giving Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt plenty of time to kick ass and take names. And considering the first film's complex ending, there's plenty of narrative strings to pull at.

Edge of Tomorrow is set in the not-too-distant future, when alien creatures known as Mimics have invaded planet Earth. Tom Cruise's Major William Cage goes through a sci-fi version of Groundhog Day, where he continually dies, and resets the same morning. Eventually the hero uses this to his advantage, and trains in order to save the planet from invasion.

In the end, Edge of Tomorrow reset once again, presumably giving its heroes another shot at happiness. It's a controversial and somewhat confusing finale, which is why the fandom would love to return to Doug Liman's fantastic world with Live Die Repeat and Repeat. Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt have also continued to work and gain fans in the years since the film hit theaters, and their shared interest in reprising their roles has kept excitement up.

You can check out my full conversation with Edge of Tomorrow director Doug Liman, who was at Comic-Con promoting his new Youtube series Impulse.

Although it's currently unclear when Live Die Repeat and Repeat will arrive in theaters, Doug Liman has been keeping busy with Youtube Red's Impulse, which debuted earlier this summer, and was already renewed for a second season. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

It is no secret that shooting any sort of love or sex scene in a movie can be awkward. There's a camera pointed at you, a director telling you what to do, usually all kinds of crew around and on top of all that you may have to do multiple takes with someone you barely know. This can be a strange and challenging experience for all involved. So, sometimes a little liquid courage goes a long way. This was the strategy employed for the love scene between Franka Potente and Matt Damon in 2002's The Bourne Identity, as director Doug Liman explained:

This is pretty funny considering that, as Doug Liman notes in his interview with SYFY Wire, the scene in The Bourne Identity isn't even a sex scene with nudity. It is just a very intimate hair-cutting scene that turns into a passionate kiss between Franka Potente's Marie and Jason Bourne, but what's implied happens after isn't shown. Yet apparently that was still a bit intimidating for Doug Liman and Matt Damon, who were visibly freaked out. The excellent Run Lola Run actress Franka Potente was apparently unfazed and much better at handling the love scene, so she still helped her co-star and director by providing shots of Jägermeister.

I love that she gave them shots of Jägermeister too, not some smooth vodka or fruity drink, but a true German liqueur. It's a little late now considering The Bourne Identity came out in 2002, but this would have been a great marketing opportunity for the brand. Slogans like 'Jäger: So you can be Jason Bourne ready' or 'Jäger: Helping Jason Bourne get it on since 2002' were ripe for the taking. The Jägermeister shots clearly worked because the scene turned out quite well, as did The Bourne Identity as a whole. Doug Liman still finds shooting sex scenes awkward. You often hear about how strange it is for the actors involved in a love scene, but Doug Liman was quite honest about how weird they are for him as director, saying:

That's an interesting point. As an actor you try to focus on your performance and your interaction with the other person, so perhaps some of the external elements fade into the background. But as a director you are the one watching what is happening and having to judge it as a part of your film and give directions to the actors who are already feeling uncomfortable. That is pretty awkward. Although porn directors do it all the time, so I suppose it just takes practice, or depends on personality.

Doug Liman directed the pilot for the new YouTube original series Impulse. He also recently shot the sci-fi film Chaos Walking, which is set to release next year. He will be directing the Edge of Tomorrow sequel Live Die Repeat and Repeat eventually, as well. For all the latest on how to get through a sex scene and all your movie news, stay tuned to CinemaBlend.

The DC slate has seen several projects come and go over the years, but few quite like Justice League Dark. A gothic take on the DC lore, the film went through several hands over the course of its tenure in development hell, including The Shape of Water's Guillermo del Toro and (perhaps most notably) Edge of Tomorrow's Doug Liman. Justice League Dark got further with Liman than with any other filmmaker before he eventually walked away, but it now sounds like there's a chance that he may finally return to the project. When asked about the opportunity of directing Justice League Dark (or any DC film, for that matter) at TCA 2018 to promote his new YouTube series Impulse, Liman acknowledged the possibility and explained:

File that answer under "diplomatic, but promising." Doug Liman hasn't officially re-entered talks with DC and Warner Bros. to direct the long-gestating Justice League Dark movie, but he hasn't ruled it out yet. To make it happen, he would just need an idea or a version of the project that could balance creativity and blockbuster commercialism in a way that would feel fresh, engaging and exciting. If he ultimately does move back into the DC realm, it will be for a project that (by his estimation) goes against some fundamental conventions of the genre while also embracing others. You'd be hard-pressed to find a DC property more well-suited for that than Justice League Dark

One other specific thing worth pointing out in Doug Liman's recent remarks to Screen Rant about delving back into the DC world is his emphasis on originality. In fact, while speaking to CinemaBlend last year, Doug Liman opened up about his failed attempt at the magic-based superhero story and pointed out how the first script never got to a point at which it felt unique and worth his time. That said, DC has recently made several notable behind-the-scenes changes with the promotion of Walter Hamada to president of DC film production and the streamlining of the development process. If those moves create a new mentality and sense of direction within the DCEU, then it's not entirely impossible to imagine that Doug Liman could be lured back.

Whether or not Doug Liman will return to the DC world to make Justice League Dark a reality remains to be seen, but this revelation makes it clear that the door hasn't entirely closed. As for his upcoming projects, it seems possible that Live Die Repeat and Repeat could end up being his next film, which could very well get him into the franchise state of mind. If you are looking for more information on movies set to debut this year, however, then make sure to check out our comprehensive movie premiere guide!

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Edge of Tomorrow is one of those films that you wouldn't expect to spawn a sequel. The expensive blockbuster didn't really catch fire at the box office despite positive reviews and the star power of Tom Cruise, and the story doesn't even necessarily demand a follow-up. The smart and entertaining film went through a name change late in the game, however, and found and grew its audience on home video, so sequel hopes have been kept alive with Cruise, Emily Blunt and director Doug Liman all on board to return. But will this movie, currently titled Live Die Repeat And Repeat, actually happen, or will it be one of those sequels that is often talked about but never materializes? Well, director Doug Liman spoke about the state of the film, saying:

Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt are both movie stars, so locking in availability for the two leads was obviously a challenge - but it seems that particular hardship is in the past. Speaking with Collider, Doug Liman says they know exactly when they can make Edge of Tomorrow 2, but the roadblock at this point is putting together a script that is good enough to go by that particular date. That suggests that the project is a bit up in the air at the moment, but what's encouraging here is that Liman says that the movie will only happen if he and his stars love the script. Too many sequels are forced into existence or sloppily done to capitalize on the success or name value of the first film, but fortunately that does not sound like it will be the case here.

While the script is still being worked on, the overall story seems to have been in place for some time. Doug Liman previously spoke about how he had no plans for a sequel, but that fan enthusiasm and a great idea got him excited about the possibility. The plot of Live Die Repeat And Repeat is mostly being kept under wraps, but he did say that the sequel would be picking up right where Edge of Tomorrow left off... before going backwards in time. While I loved the first film, I thought the ending was a great way to close this story, and it did not necessitate a sequel. However, if the people behind this feel that there is a story worth telling, who am I to argue? Liman also said that this sequel would revolutionize the way sequels are made, and while I have no idea what that would actually entail, it certainly sounds interesting. With any luck the script will be completed and live up to that lofty goal before this window closes. In the same interview, Liman said it was possible that Edge of Tomorrow 2 would be his next film, so perhaps there is reason to be optimistic that Edge of Tomorrow 2 will indeed happen.

We'll keep you updated with all the latest on this film as it inches its way towards reality. For all of the movies that are definitely happening and this year, check out our release guide.

The following contains spoilers for Edge of Tomorrow/Live. Die. Repeat as well as American Made.

Killing off the hero of a movie can be tricky. When that hero is Tom Cruise, it can get even trickier. However, Doug Liman seems to have a unique understanding of the proper way to kill Tom Cruise on screen. He did it so many times in Edge of Tomorrow that we lost count, but that's not the only time Doug Liman has killed Tom Cruise. The director has become something of an expert at killing off his hero, but Liman feels the key is to do so in a way that doesn't feel like it's punishing the audience. According to Liman...

In the vast majority of movies, the audience gets a happy ending where the hero succeeds at whatever it is they're trying to accomplish and everybody lives happily ever after, to one degree or another. Sometimes, we do see our heroes die, and this can be handled in many different ways. Sometimes it does seem like a character death can exist only to punish the audience, as killing off somebody the audience has become invested in is a sure way to get an emotional reaction, but Doug Liman's comments to Uproxx seem to discount this idea as the right way to do it.

Certainly, in Edge of Tomorrow Tom Cruise's death never punishes the audience, though the reason is that the death never sticks. Every time his character dies, he comes back to life. The final death of Cruise's character in that film looks like it might be permanent, and though it ends up not being so, it's unlikely the audience would have felt punished by it. The entire movie set them up with countless images of the character's death.

Doug Liman and Tom Cruise worked together again in American Made, which is in theaters now. In that film as well, Tom Cruise's character dies. In the case of that movie, the death also doesn't feel like a punishment of the audience, because the death feels very much inevitable. Barry Seal is a character who gets in way over his head with people who are clearly dangerous, and he doesn't seem to give it a second thought. The fact that the character survives as long as he does feels more like luck than anything else. Tom Cruise, who is the human embodiment of the concept of charisma, makes the character as likable and relatable as possible, so the moment still has an impact, but nobody is going to leave the theater feeling cheated that their hero died.

With Doug Liman planning to direct Tom Cruise a couple more times over the next few years, be prepared to see Cruise killed off again, especially since of those movies is the sequel to Edge of Tomorrow.

Matt Damon's Jason Bourne movies have become a major franchise for the actor, but the director of the first film in the series now admits that there almost weren't any sequels, because he considered killing the character off at the end of the first movie. In a recent interview, Doug Liman, who previously killed off Tom Cruise a whole mess of times in Edge of Tomorrow/Live.Die.Repeat, admits there was a discussion on the set of the first Bourne film about killing off Jason Bourne. According to Liman...

Clearly, they decided not to, since Matt Damon would go on to play Jason Bourne three more times, films which Doug Liman would go on to help produce. However, Liman tells Uproxx that the potential for sequels had nothing to do with the decision not to kill off Jason Bourne. Instead, it was simply a question of whether or not the death would have been a satisfying conclusion for the audience. Nobody would have seen it coming, but that reason alone isn't enough to justify killing off a movie's hero, according to Liman.

It certainly wouldn't have been hard to kill off Jason Bourne. The character is very nearly killed at the end of the first movie as it is. If the movie had ended with Bourne's death, rather than the revelation of another layer of conspiracy, it's possible the Bourne Identity could have still ended in an acceptable manner. The hero would have found his answers before dying, and thus the story could have still come to a satisfying conclusion.

Instead, the decision was made to not only let the character live, but give him additional mysteries to unravel, leading to the sequels. This appears to have been the best choice considering that at least the initial trilogy were both critical and commercial successes. One wonders if there were any conversations about killing Bourne at the end of the trilogy. There were no specific plans to make the fourth film at that time and the story had come to something that could have been an end. In that case, killing off the character might have been the better move, as it would have wrapped up the story and, as a side benefit, kept Jason Bourne from ever happening.

Killing off heroes is a difficult thing as generally, audiences don't like to see it, though, when it's handled well, it can feel like the only way a movie could possibly end. What's your favorite movie where the hero dies? Let us know in the comments below.

In the making of the new true-life drama American Made, director Doug Liman was equipped with a shockingly close relationship with the story that the film is based on. While most filmmakers simply read books, watch documentaries or do interviews about the subject matter of their work, Liman actually grew up the son of Arthur L. Liman -- who was the chief counsel for the Senate investigation of the Iran-Contra affair and looked closely into the involvement of one Barry Seal (played by Tom Cruise in the new movie). This close connection to history sparked an extra passion in the director adapting the story, and it actually resulted in a notable conflict between himself and screenwriter Gary Spinelli. Liman recently told me,

I spoke with Doug Liman over the phone earlier this month to talk about the creation of American Made, and learned about his father's very close involvement with the subject matter in the midst of our conversation. Impressed and curious how this ultimately had an influence on the way the story was told, I asked how this inside knowledge wound up changing and influencing the script. Liman told me about the specific incident above, and continued explaining how it led to a serious back and forth between himself and the screenwriter:

Of course, there are parts of American Made that don't fully sync up with reality -- but the truth of the matter is that the entire thing is pretty much a Stranger Than Fiction tale anyway. In the late 1970s, small time smuggler and TWA airline pilot Barry Seal was approached by a member of the CIA and recruited to help them take surveillance photos with a spy plane in Central America. A true opportunist, Seal wound up using this deal to manufacture a side gig with the notorious Medellin Cartel in Colombia to illegally transport literal tons of cocaine... but still found his role within CIA operations increase and his status protected. It comes together as one of Doug Liman's slickest movies, and certainly a crazy big screen adventure.

Movie-goers will be able to watch the full story unfold this weekend, as American Made hits theaters domestically tomorrow, Friday September 29th.

Tom Cruise is known in the industry as a very hands-on star -- one who doesn't just act in his movies but becomes a very active member of the creative team. His latest, the true-life drama American Made is no exception, as he had a big hand in the evolution of the script. When I recently asked director Doug Liman how Cruise's influence changed the development of the film, he told me,

The photograph that Doug Liman was referring to is a shot of Lucy Seal (portrayed by Sarah Wright in the film) visiting her husband, Barry Seal (Tom Cruise), while he is locked up in a Guatemalan prison. Rather than being horrified that her husband is in jail and panicking, instead the picture shows that she has brought him a cake that is being cut with a giant machete. Thanks to Cruise's influence, this moment wound up redefining certain angles and approaches to the story in American Made -- as I learned from Liman talking with him over the phone earlier this month.

Ultimately, the relationship between Barry and Lucy Seal is not too dissimilar to the one between Henry and Karen Hill's in Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas -- in that he goes out to do some hyper-illegal business while she watches her family's station in life vastly improve. Things aren't always great, especially when they have to transpose their life overnight from Louisiana to Mena, Arkansas, but things for the most part are pretty good when they are dealing with so much money that they can't even find hiding places for it on their massive property.

Lucy Seal actually had quite a lot to put up with from an ethics point of view, as she was trying to raise a family while married to one of the most successful drug smugglers in history. As noted by Doug Liman, she spent the longest time thinking that her husband was a commercial airline pilot for TWA, but that all changed when Barry got an offer to start taking surveillance photos for the CIA. He not only began working with Colombia's notorious Medellín Cartel to bring tons of cocaine into America, but also eventually got caught up in early days of the Iran-Contra affair -- one of the most notable political scandals carried out by the United States government.

Movie-goers will soon be able to see the adventures of Barry and Lucy Seal on the big screen, as American Made -- co-starring Domhnall Gleeson, Jesse Plemons, Caleb Landry Jones, and Jayma Mays -- hits theaters this Friday, September 29th.

A huge part of what's sustained Tom Cruise's longevity as a movie star is his immense charisma and likability. He runs real fast and flashes his million-tooth grin, and you're immediately on his side. Even when he's ranging from mischievous to dastardly, there's a part of you who roots for his side. It's a factor that makes Doug Liman's American Made a complex viewing experience, as few titles similarly challenge the audience to simultaneously loathe and love a protagonist like the new movie does with Cruise's Barry Seal.

In reality, Barry Seal was a rather terrible individual (and yes, American Made is based on a true story... or at least based on accounts and reports trying to piece together exactly what happened). As depicted in Gary Spinelli's screenplay, Barry was a thrill-seeking commercial airline pilot and small-time smuggler working for TWA in the late 1970s when he was approached by a member of the Central Intelligence Agency. Introducing himself as 'Schafer' (Domhnall Gleeson), an agent puts an offer on the table to the pilot in a hotel bar: providing him the adventurous life that he seems to seek, Barry would run a front with the brilliantly covert name Independent Aviation Consultants (IAC), and use it as cover to fly missions to Central America and snap secret reconnaissance photos.

Even though the deal requires lying to his wife (Sarah Wright) about how he's spending his days, Barry excitedly accepts the assignment -- but because he is disappointed with government pay and is nothing if not an opportunist, Barry ends up uniting with Jorge Ochoa (Alejandro Edda), Pablo Escobar (Mauricio Mejia) and the Medellín Cartel to start smuggling cocaine out of Colombia and into the United States. This activity fails to slip past the nose of the U.S. government, but still Barry's status is nonetheless raised, the size of his operation is increased, and he ultimately finds himself heavily involved with the start of the Iran-Contra affair, also known as one of the most controversial political scandals in American history.

While relatively short, clocking in at just under two hours, American Made is very much built to essentially be Doug Liman's Goodfellas -- chronicling the epic rise and fall of a criminal enterprise that generated insane cash flow and good times in addition to serious danger and terrifying violence. It's a natural story for cinema, full of enough extreme ups and downs and stranger-than-fiction events to trip out any audiences unfamiliar with the reality that inspired it, and it opens up Doug Liman to a sense of style not really seen before in his movies -- with lots of bold color and strong cinema verite influences providing an almost documentary-esque feel. It's easy to see the motivation to bringing the tale to the big screen in this sense, even while the storytelling feels hampered by its semi-glorification of its central figure.

American Made marks the second collaboration between Tom Cruise and Doug Liman after Edge of Tomorrow, but while it was great to watch Cruise become the fictional slimy jerk Lt. Col. Bill Cage in that movie, it's questionable if he was the appropriate choice for this feature. Because the film relishes so much in the insanity of its true story and the unfettered criminal activity that was allowed to persist, it never takes any time to look at all the people hurt by what Barry Seal was doing, and as a result doesn't take a judgmental stance on him beyond whether or not he is an interesting character. It doesn't even have a strong authority figure trying vigilantly to bring him down. Add in Cruise's presence and aforementioned charisma, however, and it winds up tilting the scales in the wrong direction -- and the result is that you have a lot of fun watching him in the moment (playing the government for fools, making so much money he can't even hide it on his massive property), but are left with an unfortunate after taste in your mouth while leaving the theater.

The politics inherently tied up in the story make American Made a challenging film to recommend, but supplemented with appropriate extra research about the subject matter, I think it can be. After all, at the end of the day, it has one hell of a story to tell, and tells it in a visually arresting way, and sometimes that's enough for a proper cinematic experience.

Tom Cruise's principal brand is being the charismatic big screen hero -- but in recent years he has taken interesting steps to challenge that image. In the last ten years he's played a fat, sociopathic studio chief in Tropic Thunder; a spineless propagandist in Edge of Tomorrow; and most recently real-life drug smuggler Barry Seal in American Made. Some of his choices make it seem like he's been actively drawn towards legitimately hateful characters, and that seems to be confirmed by the fact that he was overjoyed by negative reactions to his latest role. American Made director Doug Liman recently told me,

As noted by the filmmaker, American Made marks the second time that he has worked with Tom Cruise after Edge of Tomorrow/Live.Die.Repeat., and Liman had nothing but effusive comments about the star. I spoke with the director over the phone for a one-on-one interview, and while his collaboration with Cruise came up many times during the conversation, it was towards the end that the subject of test screenings came up. Apparently the actor was very interested in what people thought of Barry Seal, but rather than being upset when people downright hated him, he was instead elated.

Knowing what American Made is about, it's easy to understand why test audiences weren't a fan of Barry Seal -- who back in the late 1970s and early 1980s established himself as one of the most successful drug smugglers in United States history. A former TWA airline pilot, he took advantage of a deal with the CIA to transport Colombian cocaine for the Medellín Cartel, and not only made more money than he knew what to do with, but also totally skated by thanks to his government connections. His story makes for an incredible tale, which is basically why it was turned into a Hollywood film, but Seal was also a rather terrible person, and much to Tom Cruise's delight test audiences recognized that through his performance.

It's not as though Tom Cruise has totally stopped playing immensely likable characters (his sixth adventure as Ethan Hunt in the Mission: Impossible franchise is around the corner), but it is always fantastic to see an actor work outside of their comfort zone. There are decades-worth of films that show that Cruise can be effortlessly likable, and it's easy to appreciate his ambition to try and shatter that image with new roles -- even when he's still playing the protagonist.

Audiences will soon be able to see Tom Cruise at his purposefully most hate-able very soon, as American Made is set to hit theaters this Friday, September 29th. As for my interview with Doug Liman, I have some more great stories from our conversation set to post this week, so stay tuned here on CinemaBlend.

Deaths on movie sets are rare, but the industry is not without its own set of risks, and they do happen. One of the most recent incidents occurred on the set of Doug Liman's American Made, in which two crew members died in a tragic plane crash. The accident has caused a wave of finger-pointing as the film's release date draws near, and now Liman himself has finally opened up about the incident. Per his comments, he seemed just as shocked by the ordeal as everyone else -- though he also acknowledged the inherent risks of aviation. Liman said:

According to Doug Liman's comments to Vulture, he doesn't know the particulars about the accident. All he can speak to is the fact that it did not occur while shooting, as the men in the plane were only moving the aircraft and it had nothing to do with the actual production of the film. As a seasoned pilot (a hobby that he shares with Tom Cruise), he acknowledges the inherent dangers that present themselves every time someone enters the cockpit of a small plane. Beyond that, he doesn't seem particularly eager to discuss the situation.

Of course, Doug Liman's remarks are only the latest in a long line of comments made by the various parties involved in this ordeal. Although several people associated with the production (such as actress Sarah Wright Olsen, who plays Tom Cruise's wife in the film) have come forward and confirmed that American Made took all of the necessary precautions, other parties have not shared that belief. The families of Alan Purwin and Carlos Berl (the two men killed in the accident) have filed legal complaints against the production, citing the director and star's grueling hours and demands as contributing factors. This situation has raised far more questions than answers in recent days, so we will just have to wait and see what happens as more details become available.

For a closer look at just how much aerial photography went into American Made, take a look at a trailer below to see for yourself.

American Made will debut in theaters later this month on September 29. From there, Tom Cruise and Doug Liman will then go on to team-up once more for Live Die Repeat and Repeat, though the Edge of Tomorrow sequel does not yet have a set release date. For more information on all of the movies left to debut over the next year, check out our 2017 movie premiere guide and out 2018 movie premiere guide!

While a lot of fans are excited about Tom Cruise and Doug Liman making Edge of Tomorrow 2, the actor and the director actually have another movie on the way, and it's been embroiled in a bit of controversy. News broke a few days ago that the studios behind American Made are suing S&S Aviation for a plane crash that killed two people related to the production, and there's another ongoing lawsuit from those involved with the crash who are suing each other and those responsible for production. However, now documents from the aviation company have been retrieved, noting that the two men who died had complained about safety measures on the set of American Made and are placing some of the blame on Tom Cruise and Doug Liman.

According to documents, American Made was described as a"high-risk" and "action-packed" production, which I guess shouldn't come as a huge surprise, because Tom Cruise does like to try some things that other actors don't. Reportedly the estates of the two deceased men, helicopter stunt operator Alan Purwin and airman Carlos Berl, are now stating that the demands of filming on the flick, brought about due to long hours and a desire for perfection from Cruise and Liman, actually contributed to the crash. The two men are not being sued individually, but have been cited in recent paperwork.

According to paperwork The Blast got its hands on, one of the executive producers on the movie was also unhappy with how American Made came together, complaining about the number of aerial stunts that were being added to the filming schedule. Per the report:

Of course all of this is coming just a few days after Cross Creek Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, Quadrant Pictures and Vendian Entertainment decided to sue S&S Aviation and a while after the estates of Alan Purwin and Jimmy Lee Garland, who lost feeling across his lower body after the crash, decided to sue each other and the producers. Plus, several other lawsuits related to the crash are in the works. There are a ton of lawsuits and blame going around, and it will be up to the court to get into the nitty gritty of what actually happened on the set of American Made back in 2015.

The original crash that killed Alan Purwin and Carlos Berl, and severely injured Jimmy Lee Garland, occurred on September 11, 2015. So far, people have even disagreed about who was flying the plane at the time of the incident, which suggests there will be a lot of conflicting evidence to work through in the varying lawsuits. The lawsuit from the entertainment companies is suggesting that it was S&S Aviation that was negligent with its safety inspections and other maintenance, for example, while S&S is maintaining there were other factors at play.

We'll let you know how these lawsuits play out. In the meantime, American Made is still heading into theaters, and soon. You can catch the new Tom Cruise starrer on September 29. Be sure to take a look at what else is heading to theaters soon with our full schedule.

Although Doug Liman's Edge of Tomorrow was arguably a box office disappointment when it premiered in 2014, the film has developed a cult following since its release. In fact, that fanbase will soon be rewarded with the highly anticipated sequel Live Die Repeat and Repeat, which will bring Liman, Tom Cruise, and Emily Blunt back into the fray for a follow-up that reportedly defies everything we know about sequels. Enthusiasm for the franchise remains high three years later, and that fan interest is what ultimately spurred Liman to develop Live Die Repeat and Repeat. Liman explained:

Doug Liman is not known for sequels, but he's trying to earn one for this universe that fans will appreciate. Taking what he has to say about Live Die Repeat and Repeat into account, it seems that he has found an idea that's worth exploring, but doesn't necessarily rehash the exact story of the first movie. It capitalizes on the fact that fans want to see more adventures in this world, but it will also (according to Liman) do something with this narrative that fans might not expect (though we're not sure what that means yet). The Bourne Identity director has previously spoken at length about the notion that Live Die Repeat and Repeat is a "sequel that's a prequel," and given the franchise's complicated tinkering with the concept of time, we could be due for a mind-bending story that completely revolutionizes traditional sequel conventions.

Beyond Doug Liman's comments to Flickering Myth about his enthusiasm for Live Die Repeat and Repeat, he has also made it clear there's simply more potential for Edge of Tomorrow's characters. CinemaBlend recently had a chat with him about the highly anticipated sequel, and we asked him how he plans to evolve Tom Cruise's character in this new story. By Liman's assessment, there's plenty of room to maneuver with Bill Cage because the character's arc only takes him from reluctant hero to anti-hero during the events of the first movie. With the move into Live Die Repeat and Repeat, we will see Cage become more selfless and make heroic decisions that don't merely center on self-preservation. Cruise may be well known for guys like Top Gun's Maverick and Mission: Impossible's Ethan Hunt, but this progression could make Bill Cage one of his most enduring characters if Liman manages to pull off this sequel.

CinemaBlend will keep you posted with more information related to Live Die Repeat and Repeat as new developments occur. Make sure to check out Doug Liman's latest collaboration with Tom Cruise when American Made premieres in theaters on September 29.

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Watching a movie is a full-bodied experience. It's not just the story that a director places in front of audiences; it's also a matter of conveying something that affects the senses. Sometimes that means overloading a sense, and other times it means removing something that most other films would typically use. In that regard, I recently had the chance to ask Doug Liman why he chose to make The Wall (which hits shelves on Blu-ray and DVD today) with no musical score or soundtrack, and he explained that it helped create an authentic sense of intensity that music would've ruined. Liman elaborated:

Although conventional wisdom would typically suggest that a sweeping Hans Zimmer-esque score would add to the intensity of a given scene (which can work, in the case of a grandiose war movie like Dunkirk), that's not what Doug Liman wanted for The Wall. To generate the realistic intensity of two snipers facing off against one another, Liman kept the film completely devoid of music, which ultimately helped establish a sense of isolation and seclusion in the middle of the desert. After all, real soldiers don't hear music when they're pinned down by enemy gunfire, so John Cena and Aaron Taylor-Johnson's characters wouldn't either.

The reason Doug Liman was ultimately able to get away with this creative decision was likely because he made The Wall on a relatively leaner budget than the average Hollywood movie. Cheaper movies tend to give studios and filmmakers more flexibility to take risks (as they have to earn less money to become profitable), which means a bigger tentpole blockbuster may not have the opportunity to try something quite so bold. In fact, elsewhere in our conversation, Liman told me that he had wanted to try this technique when he made 2005's Mr. and Mrs. Smith, but that film's substantially larger budget prevented him from being able to do so. Once he was able to get his hands on a smaller scale $3 million movie like The Wall, he was able to give it a shot. Now that we have seen the film, we can definitely say that it paid off.

The Wall is now available on Digital HD, DVD, and Blu-ray. Make sure to pick up your copy today and check out our 2017 movie premiere guide for more information on the rest of 2017's major theatrical releases!

Of course, a lack of music is one of many storytelling elements that make The Wall the intense thriller that it is. Check out an exclusive behind-the-scenes clip on the next page for a closer look at how Doug Liman and the film's crew got Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the zone on the movie's set.

The recently announced DC slate has something for everyone. Wonder Woman 2? Definitely. The Flash: Flashpoint? You bet. There's an avalanche of exciting DC projects on the horizon, but one of the most disappointing omissions from the current DC schedule is Justice League Dark -- which made headlines earlier this year when director Doug Liman stepped down from the project. I recently had the chance to ask Liman why he walked away from the ill-fated DC adventure while talking about the upcoming home release of The Wall, and he explained that the story simply never got to a place where he felt comfortable pursuing it:

If you keep up with comic book movies, then that sentiment should ring true to you. It sounds like Justice League Dark simply never got beyond the development stage, and Doug Liman eventually opted to move on to new projects instead of investing himself in a narrative that he wasn't entirely comfortable with. We have seen what happens when directors and studios allow half-cooked ideas to make it to the silver screen, so his decision to walk away from Justice League Dark seems to show a fair degree of restraint.

For newcomers to the greater DC mythos, Justice League Dark is just that -- a dark take on the traditional Justice League. With a roster filled out with supernatural heroes like Constantine, Deadman, and Anton Arcane (just to name a few) the team deals with magical, demonic threats that the standard Justice League wouldn't be able to handle. They've never appeared on the silver screen before, and it looks like we're going to have to keep waiting a little while longer.

That's not to say that the Justice League Dark team hasn't had a chance to stand out over the last year. In fact, DC Animation released a Justice League Dark animated film earlier this year, and it showed what Warner Bros. and DC are capable of if they combine the gothic team with far more mainstream DC characters like Batman.

Now it just feels like a matter of getting the story right. After all, there's definitely an audience out there who wants to see a Justice League Dark movie. When we look at how popular characters like Swamp Thing, John Constantine, and Zatanna have become with mainstream DC fans in recent years, it doesn't seem entirely outlandish to assume that WB and DC will eventually go back down that road. Doug Liman walked away from the project because he couldn't get it right, but if he ever does, I think it's safe to say that fans will welcome him with open arms. These characters have been in the dark long enough; it's time for them to step into the light.

While there is no Justice League Dark movie on the way at the moment, we will make sure to keep you up to date on all of the latest and greatest DC news as it becomes available. Beyond that, make sure to catch the main Justice League team when they make their silver screen debut later this year on November 17. As for Doug Liman's latest work, The Wall is currently available on Digital HD, and the Blu-ray and DVD editions of the film will hit shelves on August 15.

From top to bottom, Doug Liman's Edge of Tomorrow (a.k.a Live Die Repeat) feels nothing like a traditional Tom Cruise movie. It's a full-blown science-fiction romp, and Cruise's Bill Cage is anything but a hero at the beginning of the film. However, as the story progresses, the character eventually does find the courage to fight the Mimics and become the savior of Earth. During a recent chat with Liman about the upcoming home video release of The Wall, I asked how he will continue Bill Cage's arc in Live Die Repeat and Repeat, and the director revealed that Cruise's character not only has a long way to go, but he's also not a full-blown hero yet. Liman elaborated:

Although Bill Cage technically saved the planet during the events of Edge of Tomorrow, he only did it because it was vital to keeping himself alive. Sure, it was the right thing to do, but he (and Emily Blunt's Rita Vrataski) benefited from his actions. Based on what Doug Liman said to me during our chat, it sounds like the character will slowly but steadily make an even greater transition in Live Die Repeat and Repeat. He will still be an anti-hero in most respects, but the intention now is to add a few more layers of selflessness to his actions and give him an arc that feels even more complete.

So, what exactly does this mean? Considering how high the stakes already were in Edge of Tomorrow, how can Live Die Repeat and Repeat propel Bill Cage even closer to full-blown hero status? It's hard to say, given how little what we know about the film, but it stands to reason that Cage will choose to go to battle for reasons that have less to do with self-preservation and more to do with saving others from the Mimics. The sequel/prequel could involve him traveling back in time to prevent the war from ever occurring, or possibly even going to other timelines in an attempt to help alternate versions of himself save the day. The possibilities are endless when we deal with time travel, so we will just have to wait and see what Doug Liman and Tom Cruise ultimately cook up.

We will bring you more updates related to Live Die Repeat and Repeat as they become available to us. The Wall is currently available on Digital HD, but the DVD and Blu-ray versions of the film will hit shelves on August 15. As for Doug Liman's next collaboration with Tom Cruise, make sure to catch American Made when it debuts in theaters on September 29.

Over the last few years, Tom Cruise has established himself as an actor who likes to form long-term partnerships with directors. We have seen that happen with Mission: Impossible director Chris McQuarrie, and he also seems to have developed a strong connection with Edge of Tomorrow's Doug Liman. The duo's next project, American Made, will hit theaters at the end of the summer, and it sounds like the process of living together during production was the quintessential roommate dynamic. Specifically: Tom Cruise is incredibly Type A, and Doug Liman is a bit more laid back. Liman explained:

I would be lying to you if I said that any of Doug Liman's recent comments on the Happy Sad Confused podcast surprised me. You do not get to be one of Hollywood's top action heroes for three straight decades (and arguably hit your peak in your 50s) while eating frozen pizzas. Tom Cruise clearly understands the importance of taking care of himself, and making sure that he maintains a discipline that allows him to keep going on impossible missions and holding his status as the top gun. It just makes sense. When you're hanging onto the side of a plane or holding your breath for minutes at a time, you don't want to have a stomach full of greasy pizza.

It also sounds like Tom Cruise's hyper meticulous nature bled into the division of household chores as well. Doug Liman continued his explanation to talk about how the actor maintains a very strict standard of cleanliness, saying:

These two men are Hollywood powerhouses, and yet their bickering sounds so familiar to the average person. Let's be honest; we have all been Doug Liman or Tom Cruise in our own family or roommate situations at some point.

Of course, these issues are mundane when compared to the topics tackled by Tom Cruise and Doug Liman in American Made. Centering on a pilot working for the CIA in the 1980s, the film follows the drug war in South America and takes a close look at the adventures (and the human cost) of the campaign. The film also stars Domhnall Gleeson, Caleb Landry Jones, and Jesse Plemons.

Despite their differences, while living together during the production of American Made, it does not sound like the process has driven a rift between Tom Cruise and Doug Liman. The two are currently in the course of developing Live Die Repeat and Repeat (the sequel to Edge of Tomorrow), and all eyes are on them to capture the same magic that made the first film so endlessly watchable. That said, it sounds like they may opt to live away from each other during the production of their next film.

Tom Cruise and Doug Liman's American Made will make its theatrical debut later this year on September 17. Until then, make sure to take a look at CinemaBlend's 2017 movie premiere guide to keep yourself up to date on all of the most highly anticipated theatrical releases of the year.

Despite being four films in with Wonder Woman, the DC Extended Universe is still very much in its infancy. A ton of changes have been made behind the scenes, while the DCEU also has continued to announce new projects for the future. One of the highly anticipated installments that has been long developing for the shared universe is Justice League Dark, which will bring magic to the center of the DCEU. Unfortunately, the film lost its director in Doug Liman, and now the man himself has revealed why he departed the project. It turns out it was all about scheduling.

Director Doug Liman recently spoke to IGN about his various film projects, including leaving the Gambit movie. Regarding Justice League Dark, Liman spoke to how his busy schedule prevented him from helming the DCEU installment, saying:

This explanation actually makes perfect sense, and might help to console DC fans who are disappointed with Doug Liman's departure. But due to how long it takes to get a movie in the can, directors can only take on so many projects at a time. And with an Edge of Tomorrow sequel coming in addition to his other movies, Justice League Dark was just too much for Liman.

Part of the reason why Doug Liman's departure felt like such a hit to DC fans is because of how much behind the scenes drama has already unfolded with the DCEU. Liman is not the first DC director to drop a project during its development. Just a few months ago Rick Famuyiwa departed as the director of the Flash movie, a role which still hasn't been filled. And there were also shakeups coming from further up the DCEU food chain, as Geoff Johns has taken over as the creative visionary behind the shared universe, following the poor critical reception of Zack Snyder's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

With Doug Liman no longer leading the charge, it seems like Justice League Dark will likely spend some time stewing in development hell. There are so many silver screen installments to be produced by DC, so some of the films that have a more put together production team will likely move forward first. I'm looking at you Joss Whedon's Batgirl movie.

DCEU fans can currently catch Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman in theaters. After that, we'll have to wait for Zack Snyder's Justice League on November 17, 2017.

Warner Bros has a lot of DC Comics movies in various stages of development, and one of the more unique offerings coming down the pipeline is Justice League Dark (a.k.a. Dark Universe). Although the project was originally being overseen by Guillermo del Toro, the Pan's Labyrinth helmer left those duties behind in 2015, and a year later, The Bourne Identity's Doug Liman picked up the reins. Now Justice League Dark once again finds itself without a director, as Liman is no longer attached to the magically-charged DC Extended Universe entry.

According to Variety, Doug Liman left Justice League Dark for scheduling reasons, and he's now devoting his full attention to directing Chaos Walking. Warner Bros has reportedly already started meeting with other directors to take his place, and his replacement will be announced soon. Justice League Dark is the second superhero movie Liman has departed, the previous one being Gambit, one of the many X-Men spinoffs in development. Liman is also returning to direct the Edge of Tomorrow sequel, Live Die Repeat and Repeat.

Despite being without a director at the moment, Justice League Dark still has Michael Gilio is tackling the script and Scott Rudin as a producer. While no specific plot details have been revealed yet, Doug Liman told our own Eric Eisenberg a few weeks ago that Justice League Dark will be an "intimate" blockbuster that is primarily character driven. He also mentioned that horror movies like The Exorcist, Carrie and The Omen were inspiring the DC movie. Even though Justice League Dark will remain a horror centric tale like the source material it's based off of, it's unclear how much Liman's departure will change the overall fabric of the movie.

Just like in the comics, Justice League Dark will revolve around supernatural heroes like John Constantine, Zatanna, Swamp Thing, Deadman and Etrigan the Demon battling forces threatening our world that normal superheroes like Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman can't handle. While most of the team's members have been part of the DC universe for a long time, the Justice League Dark team didn't assemble until the start of the New 52 continuity reboot in 2011. Outside of the comics, the team has also starred in their own animated movie, which came out this past February and was the second DC animated movie to be rated R (the first being Batman: The Killing Joke).

Justice League Dark doesn't have a release date yet, but it is reportedly one of the more important entries in the DCEU. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates on Justice League Dark as they come in. Lima's latest feature, The Wall, is now playing in theaters, and his next movie, American Made, will be released on September 22.

Just knowing the premise of The Wall reveals the incredible challenge put before star Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the lead role. The movie is entirely set in one location, with most of the runtime spent following the actor crawling behind a loose assembly of bricks and talking to a voice on the other end of a radio. The fact that Taylor-Johnson puts on such an authentic performance in the film with such a limited narrative and few resources is incredible -- but it's made all the more impressive when you learn that most of the feature's environments were created in post-production. Director Doug Liman recently told me,

The domestic press day for The Wall was held in Los Angeles this past weekend, and I had the pleasure of sitting down with Doug Liman for a one-on-one chat about the movie. When the conversation turned to the performance by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, the filmmaker expressed legitimate awe at the work the actor had put in, and fully explained the incredible challenges that faced him in the making of the feature.

In the Iraq War-set The Wall, based on an original screenplay by Dwain Worrell, Aaron Taylor-Johnson plays a sniper named Isaac who, along with his partner Matthews (John Cena) is sent out to investigate a number of deaths at construction site. After hours of waiting in still silence watching the area, they are convinced that the coast is clear, but this judgement is made too soon. Before long, Isaac finds himself injured, alone and trapped behind a wall with an expert sniper aiming to kill him, and must find some way to escape or kill his enemy before he bleeds to death. The bulk of the movie is Aaron Taylor-Johnson talking with the sniper over the radio while moving slowly around a 20 foot area, and the performance is just that much more incredible when you consider the fact that the actor really had nothing to work with to get him into the moment.

The Wall arrives in theaters this Friday, May 12th -- and for more from my interview with Doug Liman, be sure to check out his comments on his upcoming comic book movie Justice League Dark!

The X-Men franchise has a lot of movies coming in 2018 and beyond to sustain the world of mutants, but there's one movie that continues to elude the big screen: Gambit. Having been in development for several years, the movie starring the Ragin' Cajun has hit numerous setbacks, one of those being when The Bourne Identity's Doug Liman left the directing position late last summer. Nine months later, Liman has shed light on why he didn't want to work on Gambit anymore, attributing his departure to not finding any personal, meaningful ties with the X-Men feature. He explained:

There may be more to this story than Doug Liman's willing to disclose to We Got This Covered, but not finding a personal connection to Gambit is certainly a good reason for not staying on as director. If his heart wasn't completely in telling the card-carrying mutant's solo movie, then it's for the best that he left rather than work on it without the proper enthusiasm. It's better 20th Century Fox and the X-Men movie bigwigs find someone who is all in on making sure Gambit's movie is the best it can be. Gambit is one of the more popular X-Men characters, and with 20th Century Fox clearly wanting him to enjoy the same kind of success as Wolverine and Deadpool, there's little room for error in bringing his cinematic adventure to life.

Doug Liman is the second director to leave Gambit, following behind Rise of the Planet of the Apes' Rupert Wyatt, who dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. While Liman won't be contributing to the X-Men franchise, he's still staying involved with superheroes, as he's set to direct Justice League Dark for DC Comics and Warner Bros, which will see magical protagonists like John Constantine, Zatanna, Swamp Thing and Deadman banding together. As for Gambit, a new director still hasn't been announced yet, but Channing Tatum is still attached to play Remy LeBeau, who was last seen played by Taylor Kitsch in 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Léa Seydoux was also cast as Bella Donna Boudreaux in 2015, but with so many delays, it's unclear whether or not she's still starring in the blockbuster.

Gambit remains unscheduled, but it is expected to start shooting in early 2018. In the meantime, X-Men fans have New Mutants, Deadpool 2 and X-Men: Dark Phoenix to look forward to next year, as well as X-Force being in development. You can also see Doug Liman's latest movie, The Wall, in theaters this Friday, May 12.

For years it was horror maestro Guillermo del Toro who was attached to direct DC Comics' Justice League Dark, but that changed when Doug Liman was handed directorial duties last summer. Given that Liman has never made a movie really built to scare, fans wondered how this would affect the tone of the comic book blockbuster -- but the filmmaker has assured us by noting the era of horror titles that are inspiring his approach. During an interview this weekend, the director told me,

I had the opportunity to sit down with Doug Liman during the Los Angeles press day for his new movie, The Wall, on Saturday, and I used my last question to ask about his work on Justice League Dark. Noting the way that comic book movies have expanded as far as genre in recent years, I asked the director if he was developing a straight horror film -- and in his response he namedropped a few titles in explaining how his project will be a throwback of sorts.

One of the best things about the developing comic book movie world is the way in which the industry has learned to explore genres on beyond simple "Action." For example. Doug Liman notes the influence of 1970s paranoia thrillers on the making of The Bourne Identity, and it was that exact same era and style that Joe and Anthony Russo looked at in the making of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The idea of a project putting a strong emphasis on spooks and scares is most definitely enticing, and it's great to know that it's something that Liman wants to explore with Justice League Dark.

Justice League Dark is a superhero team that was first formed in DC Comics in 2011, featuring supernatural and supernatural-centric characters taking on the supernatural. As the project has been in the works for a long time now and has seen director changes, the only confirmed character to appear is detective John Constantine -- but previous reports have suggested the inclusion of Swamp Thing, Zatanna, Etrigan the Demon, Deadman and more.

Justice League Dark is still in the development stage, with no start of production or release date yet announced. We'll be sure to keep you up to date on all details, so stay tuned, and also look out for more from my interview with Doug Liman about The Wall, which will be in theaters this Friday, May 12th.