CULTURE

Was That Really the Taskmaster in "Black Widow?"

Comic fans were largely disappointed with the screen adaptation of Taskmaster, but chances are we haven't seen the real character yet.

Photo/Marvel Studios

After years of waiting, Black Widow has finally debuted. And although reviews of the film are mixed, there seems to be one common belief amongst MCU fans: Taskmaster was a huge letdown.

But what if the character we believe to be Taskmaster in Black Widow is actually just another intentional misdirection by Marvel, and the fan-favorite on-again-off-again villain Taskmaster has yet to be revealed?

Keep ReadingShow less
TV Reviews

“WandaVision” Recreates “Malcolm in the Middle” for Episode 6

Spoilers ahead for WandaVision episodes 1 through 6

WandaVision Intro vs Malcolm in the Middle Intro

While an ordinary sitcom would have used this week to give us a Valentine's Day episode, WandaVision exists in a world (inside of a world, inside of a world) of its own.

Anyone following the series is well aware of the show's conceit: each episode finds Marvel characters Wanda Maximoff and The Vision living in a television sitcom "reality," deliberately imitating classic American sitcoms from the 1950s to the present.

Keep ReadingShow less
Film Features

7 Iconic Filming Locations You Can Rent for Your Next Vacation

Because we all need an escape from reality now and then.

via Instagram

Since lockdowns and social distancing have taken over the world since spring, we've had to become more creative about vacations.

For some people that means going on a camping trip or renting a cabin in the middle of nowhere to escape the city and pretend the world doesn't exist for a while. But for those of us who aren't up for roughing it, there are some options for a different kind of escape.

If you would rather relax in luxury, pretending to be a celebrity, or a character in your favorite movie or TV show, these vacation rentals may be right for you...

Keep ReadingShow less
CULTURE

Win a Virtual Date With All Your Favorite Avengers—also, Jeremy Renner

Chris Evans' All In Challenge offers fans a chance to hang out with the stars of the Avengers movies (also Jeremy Renner)

In the latest—and maybe the most exciting—installment of the All In Challenge, Chris Evans (AKA Captain America) is offering a virtual hang out with himself and four of the other A-list celebrities who played the original Avengers.

And Jeremy Renner will also be there.

Keep ReadingShow less
FILM

Chadwick Boseman Announces New Film

The Black Panther star will be playing yet another boundary-breaking action hero.

Deadline announced yesterday that the Black Panther star will be playing the lead in a new movie about the first African samurai, called Yasuke.

The film will tell the true story of its title character, a native of Mozambique who was brought to Japan as a slave in 1579. There, he became an indentured bodyguard to a Portuguese missionary, who eventually gave him to the Japanese warlord Oda Nobunaga in a diplomatic gesture of appeasement. Yasuke developed a complex friendship with the warlord, who eventually helped him to attain the elusive samurai title. He was the first and possibly only African to do so.

Boseman will be co-producing the film, alongside Picturestart and Michael De Luca, and with Stephen L'Heureux and Logan Coles' Xception Content. The script will be written by Doug Miro, co-creator of the Netflix series Narcos.

The Yasuke legend has been on Hollywood's radar for quite a while. MGM announced only a few weeks ago that it will also be releasing a film based on the story, indicating a potential battle-of-the-period-pieces—though it's hard to imagine that any adaption could match one that has Boseman at the helm.

"The legend of Yasuke is one of history's best kept secrets, the only person of non-Asian origin to become a Samurai," Boseman said. "That's not just an action movie, that's a cultural event, an exchange, and I am excited to be part of it."

According to the authors of the biography African Samurai: The True Story of Yasuke, a Legendary Black Warrior in Feudal Japan, by Thomas Lockley and Geoffrey Girard, "People in the streets did not only gape at him. They bowed, heads to the earth, as they addressed him." For a star who has portrayed the king of Wakanda, James Brown, and Jackie Robinson, this progression to a powerful new historical figure seems natural.

Chadwick Boseman, about playing James Brownwww.youtube.com

Boseman will also star in Netflix's Da 5 Bloods, Spike Lee's followup to BlacKkKlansman (2018), and he is currently filming 21 Bridges, a film by Game of Thrones director Brian Kirk about an NYPD detective with a second chance. His latest work, a reprisal of Black Panther's T'Challa in Avengers: Endgame, is in theatres now.


Eden Arielle Gordon is a writer and musician from New York. Follow her on Twitter @edenarielmusic.


POP⚡DUST | Read More...

6 Times Chance Proved He's an American Hero

MCU Is Officially a Multiverse in "Spider-Man: Far From Home"

The Fetishization of "Space Jam": How Lola Bunny Led to Furries

Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash

Welcome back to "Now in Theaters: 5 New Movies for the Weekend."

This week we have Avengers: Endgame. Let's be honest, you don't care about anything else.

WIDE RELEASE:

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame - Official Trailerwww.youtube.com


When Marvel released their first Iron Man movie in 2008, nobody could have foreseen how drastically it would shape the future of Hollywood. While "nerdiness" still reeked of negative stigma, earlier comic book adaptations like Sam Raimi's Spider-Man and Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins proved mainstream successes at the box office. But the concept of a "cinematic universe"––a series of interconnected movies where vast numbers of standalone entries contributed to a massive overarching narrative––had never been done before.

Marvel's formula was wildly successful, turning every movie into an "event" that needed to be witnessed in order to partake in the larger narrative. The best entries turned obscure titles into household names ( Guardians of the Galaxy). The worst entries (Thor: The Dark World) were just small bumps on a longer road. All of it promised to culminate in a massive battle between Marvel's greatest heroes and the intergalactic supervillain, Thanos.

Avengers: Endgame is the conclusion of that battle, the result of all 21 Marvel Cinematic Universe movies that came beforehand. Today's movie market may be oversaturated with superhero fare, especially considering every other company from DC to Universal wants a cinematic universe of their own, but Avengers: Endgame is different. It's not a copycat. It's the original, the real deal, the biggest movie of the decade.

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame | “To the End"www.youtube.com

Normally, I try to use my totally unnecessary film degree to inform you, dear reader, about what movies are coming out over the weekend. I painstakingly comb through trailers on YouTube to bring you the very best viewing recommendations. That means Chinese-language dramas, Bollywood farces, documentaries, and, of course, spooky boys. But this week I got nothing for you. Nobody wants to release their movie the same weekend as Avengers: Endgame. You're either seeing it or you're staying home.

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame | “Found" TV Spotwww.youtube.com


At this point, I'm just attaching random trailers for Avengers: Endgame in order to hit my minimum word count. Is this the one where Hawkeye shoots an arrow? Or the one with a closeup of Nebula looking angry? I don't even know anymore. I attached them randomly, and to be honest, they're all kind of the same. But are you hyped? I'm hyped. All your favorite Avengers are gonna be there––Thor, Spider-Man, Aquaman, Ms. Marvel, Hulk. Maybe Loki will be there too.

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame | "No Mistakes, Kids" TV Spotwww.youtube.com

I have a confession to make. For a long time, I was really gung-ho about attending every Marvel movie premiere. I midnight screened with the best of them, believe me. I still have those stupid Hulk IMAX 3D glasses that were only given out during the first screening of The Avengers. But I'm just burnt out on superhero movies now. So here's the truth. I didn't see Ant-Man and the Wasp. There, I said it. I'm a giant fraud, and I'll be watching Endgame this weekend with only 21/22 pieces of the necessary information.

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel Studios' Avengers: Endgame | “Awesome" TV Spotwww.youtube.com


I don't know if I have enough time to see Ant-Man and the Wasp before Endgame. I really messed up, okay, I admit that. I should have seen it when I had the chance and now it's too late. IT'S TOO LATE. I have a doctor's appointment tonight, so unless I take off work on Friday and watch it in the morning, I literally don't have time. What are the chances that the events in Ant-Man and the Wasp will heavily factor into Thanos's affairs? Does Thanos even care about Ant-Man? Thanos is a space titan with the power to bend time and space, and Ant-Man is just Paul Rudd in a dumb suit. Ant-Man is a pretty lame hero, honestly.

Frankly, I'm freaking out here. I'm at my wit's end. I know, I KNOW Ant-Man and the Wasp probably doesn't matter, but what if it does? What if End Game's climactic sceneinvolves Thanos killing all the other Avengers and then Ant-Man and the Wasp get really small and beat him up and Ant-Man says, "Hey, Thanos, remember (insert reference to events of Ant-Man and the Wasp)?" and I don't understand it because sorry, I had other plans when my friends wanted to go see it?

I tried to read the Ant-Man and the Wasp summary on Wikipedia but it was super boring and I couldn't make it through. So if you're reading this and want to help, PLEASE SEND ME YOUR BEST ORIGINAL ANT-MAN AND THE WASP SUMMARY. Send it to info@popdust.comRE: ANT-MAN AND THE WASP SUMMARY. I will straight up publish it on our site and give you full credit, and you will be apublished author please help.


Dan Kahan is a writer & screenwriter from Brooklyn, usually rocking a man bun. Find more at dankahanwriter.com


POP⚡DUST | Read More...

What Ever Happened to Sam Hyde?

The New John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum Trailer is Literally the Second Coming

Fetishizing Autism: Representation in Hollywood