When Push Comes To Shove: Warners Moves WONDER WOMAN And JUNGLE BOOK Launches

Some pulling up going on too. WONDER WOMAN is being pulled up to a slated release date 3 weeks earlier to June 2, 2017. Showing us some confidence? I hope so. I really enjoyed Gal Gadot's performance in the role in BATMAN v SUPERMAN - one of the few aspects of that movie that I didn't have any issues.

Meanwhile, Andy Serkis' JUNGLE BOOK: ORIGINS has been pushed out a full year from October 6, 2017 to October 19, 2018. I also view this as a positive with not only giving Serkis more time to deliver on his performance capture promises but also allowing audiences some breathing room from Jon Favreau's THE JUNGLE BOOK offering (which looks amazing) opening next week on April 15. It will feature the voices of Benedict Cumberbatch, Christian Bale and Cate Blanchett among others.

Said Serkis: "I’ve got to say that personally I’m absolutely thrilled that Warner Brothers have changed the delivery date of our movie. The ambition for this project is huge. What we are attempting is an unprecedented level of psychological and emotional nuance in morphing the phenomenal performances of our cast into the facial expressions of our animals."

Further to Warner Bros announcement of these changes, they added dates for a couple of untitled DC Comics launches: October 5, 2018 and November 1, 2019.
 

Benedict Cumberbatch, Cate Blanchett and Christian Bale Head the Ensemble of Warner Bros. Pictures’ 3D Adventure JUNGLE BOOK: ORIGINS

Young actor Rohan Chand to star as Mowgli in the cast, also including Peter Mullan, Tom Hollander, Naomie Harris, Eddie Marsan, and Andy Serkis

Tim here, and I came upon a press release earlier today for Andy Serkis' Jungle Book adaption being handled by Warner Bros., which is not to be confused with the Disney one being directed by Jon Favreau. The press release (below) announces the cast of the Serkis headed movie, and it's quite the impressive cast. If you remember earlier in the year when I interviewed Andy Serkis at CinemaCon we spoke briefly about Jungle Book: Origins, which he had just been announced to direct.

Press Release:

BURBANK, Calif. --(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Warner Bros. Pictures has assembled an impressive roster of stars for "Jungle Book: Origins," its new big-screen, 3D adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's classic The Jungle Book, marking the feature film directorial debut of Andy Serkis. The action adventure, which will blend motion capture and live action, will be released on October 21, 2016. The announcement was made today by Greg Silverman, President, Creative Development and Worldwide Production, and Sue Kroll, President, Worldwide Marketing and International Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures.
The actors performing the roles of the story's central animal characters are: Benedict Cumberbatch ("The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug") as the fearsome tiger, Shere Khan; Oscar winner Cate Blanchett ("Blue Jasmine") as the sinister snake, Kaa; Oscar winner Christian Bale ("The Fighter," the "Dark Knight" Trilogy) as the cunning panther, Bagheera; Andy Serkis ("Dawn of the Planet of the Apes") as the wise bear, Baloo; Peter Mullan ("Hercules") as the leader of the wolf pack, Akela; Tom Hollander as the scavenging hyena, Tabaqui; Naomie Harris ("Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom") as Nisha, the female wolf, who adopts the baby Mowgli as one of her cubs; Eddie Marsan ("Ray Donovan") as Nisha's mate, Vihaan; and Jack Reynor ("Transformers: Age of Extinction") as Mowgli's Brother Wolf. On the human side, young actor Rohan Chand ("The Hundred-Foot Journey," "Bad Words") will play the boy raised by wolves, Mowgli.
The film is being produced by Steve Kloves, who wrote seven of the blockbuster "Harry Potter" films. Jonathan Cavendish ("Elizabeth: The Golden Age," performance capture producer "Godzilla") is also serving as a producer. The screenplay is by Kloves' daughter, Callie Kloves, based on the stories by Kipling.
The story follows the upbringing of the human child Mowgli, raised by a wolf pack in the jungles of India. As he learns the often harsh rules of the jungle, under the tutelage of a bear named Baloo and a panther named Bagheera, Mowgli becomes accepted by the animals of the jungle as one of their own. All but one: the fearsome tiger Shere Khan. But there may be greater dangers lurking in the jungle, as Mowgli comes face to face with his human origins.

Look for production to begin as soon as Andy Serkis wraps up his duties on Star Wars Episode VII. Jungle Book: Origins hits theaters in 3D on October 21, 2016. More details when we get it.