The Shock of Doom and more Comicon News

Ready to geek out? Celebrate with us as the Marvel Cinematic Universe smashes the $30 billion mark at the global box office! We'll dive into the blockbuster success of "Deadpool and Wolverine" and reveal all the juicy details from San Diego Comic-Con, including the exciting announcements of "Avengers Doomsday" and "Avengers Secret Wars," helmed by the Russo brothers. And here's a twist you won't see coming: Robert Downey Jr. stepping into the shoes of Dr. Victor Von Doom! Plus, get a sneak peek at the scoring of "Daredevil Born Again" by the Newton Brothers and the upcoming "Fantastic Four: First Steps" film. We also touch on the political shift with Kamala Harris securing the Democratic nomination, signaling renewed optimism for America.

Laughs are guaranteed as we go through the big comedy reveals from Comic-Con, starting with "Captain America: Brave New World." Anthony Mackie, Tim Blake-Nelson, Danny Ramirez, and Giancarlo Esposito are set to light up the screen, with Harrison Ford confirmed as the Red Hulk. Kevin Feige promises a gritty, Winter Soldier-like experience, and Esposito's role as Sidewinder in the Serpent Society only adds to the excitement. We also chat about the promising cast of "Star Trek: Starfleet Academy" and the new live-action comedy collaboration between Tawny Newsome and Justin Simeon. Wrapping up, we touch on James Gunn's much-anticipated "Superman Legacy" film, starring David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan.

For comic book, Star Wars, and general geek culture enthusiasts, this episode is packed. From DC's announcement of a new Fourth World and New Gods series by Ram V and Evan Cagle to the climax of the High Republic era in Star Wars with "Fear of the Jedi." Marvel's new titles set between "Return of the Jedi" and "The Force Awakens" also get their spotlight. We discuss the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike against major video game companies over AI issues, affecting titles from Activision and Epic Games. Plus, updates on "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" season two with Daniel Dymere as Tyson, and Mark Hamill's voice role in the upcoming "SpongeBob SquarePants" movie. To honor a legend, we pay tribute to Bob Newhart, reflecting on his illustrious career and his recent passing at 94.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

Tonight. The MCU strikes back, star Trek makes laughs, the High Republic starts to close, more Comic-Con news plus remember Bob Newhart All that and more on this edition of Multiverse tonight Comic books, sci-fi, fantasy and more. If you're looking for a roundup of geeky news, you're in the right place. This is Multiverse Tonight. And here's your host, thomas Townley. Well, hello everyone and welcome to episode 220 of Multiverse Tonight.

Speaker 1: 1:03

And it's been a day for me already. I had to go into wichita to get some salt or the water softener, and oh boy it it. It took me a while, but that's a personal thing, so I think I I really want to relay that story. That's a let's just say it was kind of scatological in nature, if you catch what that word is. Other than that, it's been an amazing week this past week here in America, with Kamala Harris getting the nominee, getting enough delegates to be nominated for the Democratic ticket, and, you know, hope is alive again in America. So other than that, we have plenty to cover today. So let's get on, starting with the Marvel Comics News. And that's an appropriate sounder to start off with, because Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe has become the first film franchise in history to cross $30 billion at the global box office, disney's superhero sequel Deadpool and Wolverine has collected $205 million in its opening weekend, ranking as the eighth best debut of all time, ahead of 2018's Black Panther and behind 2015's Jurassic World and 2012's the Avengers. Only nine films in Hollywood history have crossed the $200 million milestone in their opening weekends. Ticket sales also easily surpassed 2016's Deadpool to set the record for the biggest R-rated opening weekend ever. The 2018 sequel, deadpool 2, now stands as the third biggest R-rated debut, with $125 million, and, among the installment's many benchmarks, deadpool and Wolverine landed by far for the biggest start of the year, overtaking another Disney movie, the Pixar sequel Inside Out 2, which made $155 million in its debut. Internationally, deadpool and Wolverine captured $233.3 million for a staggering global tally of $438 million. After three days of release, the film starring starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, is already sixth highest grossing of 2024. Now, disney spent $200 million to produce and roughly $100 million to promote the movie. So let's just say they more than made their money back opening weekend. On to other movie news, avengers the King Dynasty has been retitled with a full-titled pivot. The next Avengers films will now be called Avengers Doomsday and Avengers Secret Wars, and they'll both be directed by the Russo brothers Directors.

Speaker 1: 4:20

Joe and Anthony Russo, who helmed four titles in the MCU, including Avengers Endgame, are again uniting with Marvel Studios to helm the next superhero team-up feature. On Saturday evening they made the return official by taking the stage at Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con. Joe Russo told the crowd quote when we directed Avengers Endgame, we really believed it was the end for us in the MCU. That four-movie run was incredible and it left us creatively spent. However, in the time since, the duo found a very special story that convinced them to come back. In fact, it's the biggest story that Marvel Comics ever told. It's the reason that Anthony and I are standing up here, and that film is Avengers Secret Wars. But to build towards the epic balance is Secret Wars. The story would need that kind of instrumental character that's required to do Secret Wars justice. So also unveiled at the panel was Dr Von Doom, dr Victor Von Doom, who was unmasked to be played by none other than a returning Robert Downey Jr, the man who helped put the MCU on the map as Iron man slash Tony Stark.

Speaker 1: 5:29

Now the first film is Avengers Doomsday, which will premiere in May of 2026, with Avengers Secret Wars following May 2027. And that was big news, I tell you. The Russo brothers step in for Destin Daniel Creighton, who left Kang Dynasty in November of 2023 to focus on other Marvel projects on his docket, including the prospective sequel to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Again, that was just jaw-dropping news to hear that not only did they change the title of the entire movie, but they're bringing in doom to, of course, replace what they lost when the King the Conqueror actor was arrested and sent to jail. So this might be the correct way to pivot, because they kind of killed off the King character or got rid of him a bit in Loki season 2, which if you haven't seen Loki season 2, go watch that. You'll get informed on what happened but they did a pretty good job of kind of softening it up, so Kang doesn't need to be there Now. He's just more of an element in the background rather than being the main baddie.

Speaker 1: 7:06

Anyway, post-production on Daredevil Born Again is still underway and it's found its composers in a surprising fashion. Andy Grush and Taylor Newton Stewart, best known as the Newton Brothers, are actively scoring this series, according to a new report from Film Music Reporter. Now the duo reportedly handled X-Men 97 for Marvel Studios, but before that the pair scored virtually only horror projects. The horror projects the Newton brothers scored include Doctor Sleep, the Haunting of Hill House, five Nights at Freddy's and the Fall of the House of Usher, among others. Now the series wrapped production on its first nine episodes earlier this year.

Speaker 1: 7:42

After a major creative overhaul saw the series turn into a spiritual season four rather than a soft reboot, marvel's first family assembled at San Diego Comic-Con. Saturday evening, a concept reel for the inaugural Fantastic Four installment in the MCU was unveiled at Hall H, with an introduction by director Matt Shaikman, given fans a taste of the space-age aesthetic that will be incorporated into the superhero feature. An expanded title was also revealed the Fantastic Four First Steps. Shakman told the audience, expanding on the film's period setting while referencing the influential designer. We're doing a retro-future 60s. Cy Mead was an inspiration. The 60s, to me, is all about optimism. I love the Fantastic Four, I love their power set. We want to be true to the comics but we want to be true to life, unquote. Shackman then stepped aside to show a video meant to give fans a taste of the flavor of the superhero film. The footage had a tone of a newsreel, featuring moments such as Mr Fantastic speaking to a very bored classroom under a banner for Fantastic Science, the superhero team's flying Fantasticar spacesuits, a rocket launch and the Thing being featured on a dating show as a mystery contestant. The sequence was capped off with a shot of Galactus, the villain of the film. Also announced at the panel, michael Giacchino, who had scored up and lost, will be scoring the music for First Steps. The panel of actors are flying back to the UK today, on Monday, with production starting soon after.

Speaker 1: 9:27

Despite several voyages into the Marvel cosmos and the introduction of the Nova Corps, the MCU has yet to bring in one of Marvel's biggest cosmic characters from the comics, richard Rider, aka Nova. Now, that's not to say there haven't been attempts to bring him into the universe and there have been plenty of rumors in the past that he was on the way. Comicbookcom's Brandon Davis recently received some clarity on Nova's MCU future in an interview with Kevin Feige. Feige confirmed that not only is the Nova project featuring Richard Rider in development, but it will be a TV series and will be happening in the next three to four years. In development, but it will be a TV series and will be happening in the next three to four years, so perhaps we'll finally see Ryder make his MCU debut.

Speaker 1: 10:09

In the interview, davis asked what was happening with Nova. Feige said it's happening, it's coming together. Richard Ryder yep. Then he was asked where it will be a movie or a show format? He said a show, yeah, yeah. And then of course, he said you know, it's three or four years out now.

Speaker 1: 10:28

It was previously learned that a Nova project was in development, thanks to an interview with Marvel's head of streaming animation and television, brad Wunderbaum, quote we love Nova. We are in really early development on Nova. We have a new system behind the scenes. As Marvel Studios, we're more like a traditional studio now. We're developing more than we actually will produce. There are plans to develop Nova. I love Nova too. I love Rich Rider too. I hope it gets to the screen. The world is always chaos. There's always things. You've got to conjure these things to make them happen. But I would love to see a Nova show one day.

Speaker 1: 11:00

And speaking of Kevin Feige, marvel Studio president Kevin Feige has received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In attendance were numerous actors from the course of the MCU, including Chris Evans, ryan Reynolds, hugh Jackman, catherine Han, simu Liu, hugh Jackman, sebastian Stan, david Harbour, chris Pratt, keihe Wan, brie Larson and more, introduced by his longtime creative partner Luis De Cepesito, feige stepped up to the microphone to deliver some remarks of his own. He had some kind words for his mentor, laura Schuller Donner, and celebrated the presence and passion of nerds from every fandom. His speech was something was quote. Until this day I thought the most nerve-wracking thing was public speaking. Now I know the most nerve-wracking thing is just standing up there while other people speak about you. Thank you everybody. Thank you to the City of Hollywood, to the Chamber of Commerce. Obviously this is a dream come true. My parents I'm so thankful they're here today. They would bring me out here and my sister when I was a kid, from New York. And if you'd like to read the rest of his speech, you can find it on the web. Now let's go on to a little more Marvel news. There's a ton today, folks.

Speaker 1: 12:26

Captain America Brave New World came to Comic-Con Saturday with cast members Anthony Mackie, tim Blake-Nelson, danny Ramirez and Giancarlo Esposito all hitting the San Diego fan event to tease the superhero sequel. But it was the late panel surprise arrival of Harrison Ford that left the biggest impact as he took the stage to massive applause. Footage from the movie was screened during Marvel's presentation and confirmed that Ford's Thunderbolt Ross will indeed be transforming into the Red Hulk in the film. Ford gave the crowd exactly what they wanted, mimicking the Hulk's mighty roar. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige called Brave New World a return to the gritty action of Captain America the Winter Soldier, which put a spandex spin on the kind of paranoid thrillers that were so commonplace in 70s cinema. While Mackie teased that Marvel fans will be seeing a version of Captain America that is more cerebral, mackie noted that Sam Wilson is not much of a muscle bound guy like Steve Rogers, the original Captain America. Esposito also arrived with a bit of news revealing for the first time that he's playing Sidewinder the king of the Serpent Society. See, that's three times fast.

Speaker 1: 13:29

The new footage from Captain America Brave New World at Play in the Hall H began with Force Thunderbolt Ross, who is now President of the United States, addressing the ending events of Eternals and meeting with world leaders at what's called the Celestial Island Summit. It turns out Adamantium has been discovered in the ruins where the dead celestial appeared in the ocean and is now the most valuable element on the planet. Ross recruits Sam Wilson to build a new Avengers team. But things don't go according to plan, and by far the biggest reveal of the footage was confirmation that Ford's President Ross will be ditching the Resolute Desk to become the Red Hulk. The previous trailer confirmed the Red Hulk's presence in the movie, but now Marvel fans are sure that Ross is the man behind the muzzle.

Speaker 1: 14:11

And with that, let's go on to the Star Trek news. And now let's go on to the Star Trek news. Star Trek news starts off with Star Trek Starfleet Academy, and its cast is really shaping up. On Thursday, paramount Plus revealed that it had cast Kareem Dayan and Zoe Steiner and the upcoming exploits of a new class of Starfleet cadets coming to age in one of the galaxy's most storied institutions. Now they just began production on it this summer, as cadets Diane and Steiner join previously announced castmates Carice Brooks, bella Shepard and George Hawkins. Star Trek Starfleet Academy also stars Holly Hunter as the Starfleet captain serving as Chancellor of the Academy, and Paul Giamatti as the first season's villain.

Speaker 1: 15:05

According to the series' official synopsis quote, star Trek Starfleet Academy introduces viewers to a young group of cadets who come together to pursue a common dream of hope and optimism Under the watchful and demanding eyes of their instructors, they discover what it takes to become Starfleet officers as they navigate blossoming friendships, explosive rivalries, first loves and a new enemy that threatens both the Academy and the Federation itself. Star Trek Starfleet Academy has also added some alumni to its facility. Tig Notaro from Star Trek Discovery and Robert Picardo from Star Trek Voyager will be reprising the respective roles of Jet Reno and the Doctor as series regulars in the newest iteration of the venerable sci-fi franchise. They join Mary Wiseman and Odette Fier, who will return as guest stars, playing Sylvia Tilly and Admiral Vance, and Gina Yashiri is also recurring as another member of the facility. I might give that a watch. I might give that a watch Again. The Discovery stuff was never my cup of tea, but I'm willing to give the new show a shot At bringing me in.

Speaker 1: 16:19

But there's more news. Star Trek is preparing to beam up some laughter. Actor-writer Tawny Newsome and writer-director Justin Simeon are developing a new live-action comedy set in the world of Star Trek. The show will be set in the 25th century and according to the official logline it will follow quote Federation outsiders serving a gleaming resort planet find out that their day-to-day exploits are being broadcast to the entire quadrant resort planet find out that their day-to-day exploits are being broadcast to the entire quadrant. Now Newsom and Simeon announced the project, along with executive producer Alex Kurtzman, during the Star Trek Universe panel at San Diego, which Simeon moderated. Newsom was there with the cast of Lower Decks to discuss the fifth and final season of the animated comedy in which Newsom voices Beckett Mariner, one of the junior officers of the USS Cerritos. Simeon, newsome and Kurtzman also wrote, or go write for the show. Aaron Byers, rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth will executive produce. Newsome did not specify whether she would act on the series as well, but she's already worked as one of the writers of the live-action Starfleet Academy and she also played Mariner as live-action in a crossover episode of Star Trek Strange New Worlds.

Speaker 1: 17:32

One of the beans spilled at the Paramount Plus Comic-Con panel by Akiva Goldsman was the possibility of a Star Trek stage musical. In regards to what part of the universe would get the showstopper, that wasn't really detailed. However, the stage musical will likely center around the streaming series Star Trek, strange New Worlds. Alex, kurtzman and Goldsman were asked by a fan if there would be more musical episodes like Subspace Rhapsody, which reaped the sci-fi franchise's first ever music-filled episode. Goldman answered we're in the very early stages of figuring out whether we can bring a version of that to the stage. So, hmm, star Trek the musical. Now let's go on to the DC Comics News, and we begin DC Comics News with, of course, james Gunn providing yet another update on Superman, previously known as Superman Legacy.

Speaker 1: 18:43

The film, which stars David Cornsweet in the title role and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, is getting close to being done with filming after wrapping its six-week Cleveland shoot this past week. The director and co-head of DC Studios has been sharing updates with his fans on threads, where he posted a lengthy thread on the social media platform praising the city of Cleveland for its hospitality while they were in production. Quote hashtag Cleveland the day we are leaving you after six amazing weeks of shooting. From the moment we first came on as a scout a tad less than a year ago and Terminal Tower was lit up with the colors of Superman, I knew you were a special place. I would walk down your streets and someone would stop me and tell me how grateful they were that we were shooting in their city, not once, not twice, but dozens of times. The wonderful background actors on the film were always so fun and funny and they clapped after takes something that reminded us of Hollywood cynics why we make movies in the first place. That reminded us of Hollywood cynics, why we make movies in the first place. The pride you feel in being where Jerry and Joe, siegel and Schuster first created Superman was invigorating. You exemplify his spirit, but just as much as the pride you have in your community, your hometown, your radio stations and restaurants and gathering places. That touched me Unquote. Now, when asked by a fan if they had finished shooting the film entirely, gunn shared that they had a couple of weeks left, adding it's a long shot but we're getting close. Superman began production in February and marks the first feature film under Gunn and Pierre Saffron's reign at DC Studios, which now has a new logo. So I guess I'll have to replace the logo in the video here. Good, because it goes back to the original, the old logo from the 80s. That says DC Comics to me. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 20:39

However, there was some tragedy. Sources tell Deadline. A female member of the Teamsters Union yeah, however, there was some tragedy. Sources tell Deadline that a female member of the Teamsters union working on the James Gunn-directed Superman died by suicide this past Wednesday at Trillis Studios near Atlanta. Reports say the officers and medical personnel responded to a report of an unconscious adult contractor inside a vehicle on the studio property around 6.47 am Wednesday. According to the police statement, the person was found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police say foul play is not suspected and the investigation is not connected to any ongoing studio projects. The vehicle was located in the crew parking lot and we hear filming was not occurring at the time of the shooting, which happened overnight. Sources say when the crowd, when the crew was aware of what had happened, james Gunn gathered everyone to inform them. Counselors would be available if they were needed and said production would be stopping for the day and sent everyone home. Filming resumed later.

Speaker 1: 21:37

Located south of Atlanta, trillis Studios is comprised of a 700-acre site with a 400-acre backlot and 32 sound stages. Originally known as Pinewood Atlanta, trillith has been used to produce many television series, including WandaVision and Loki and Avengers, infinity War and Avengers Endgame. The first production to film at the studio was Marvel Studios' Ant-Man. The studio was named Trillith Studios in October of 2020. Marvel Studios' Ant-Man the studio was named Trillis Studios in October of 2020.

Speaker 1: 22:07

Wiz Kids has announced DC Forever, a new asymmetrical deck-building game based on the DC superhero universe. The new game, made for two to four players, pits rogues and heroes against each other, with rogues attempting to complete various schemes and heroes trying to rescue citizens and thwart the rogues' scheme. The game contains a total of 18 heroes and villains, with each side picking up to four heroes or villains to use in the game. Each character has a unique strategy, so players can decide which characters sync up well together and can be used in different scenarios. Heroes in DC Forever include Batman, wonder Woman, superman, aquaman, the Flash, blue Beetle, cyborg their side to create a starting deck of characters and other characters going into a reserve area on their player's side of the board. Each round consists of three phases, with the rogue and hero characters spending resources on their player's side of the board. Each round consists of three phases, with the rogue and hero character spending resources on their respective phase to activate trace abilities, attach cards to their characters or recruit additional characters. Followed by confrontation phase, where players battle for control over locations and attack opposing characters. During the confrontation phase, rogues can choose whether to advance their schemes by claiming citizens or attacking heroes at a location. If they choose to advance a scheme at a specific location, they pull citizens from that location onto the scheme with the hopes of completing the scheme at the end of the round. Once the rogue is gone, heroes can choose whether to rescue the remaining citizens or attack the villain and attempt to capture them. That sounds unusual.

Speaker 1: 23:44

More Comic-Con news. Jeff Lemire has had a pretty good weekend at the con. Friday was revealed that the writer is returning to DC later this year on Absolute Flash, a new series he's making with artist Nick Robles. The series is part of DC's new Absolute Universe. The publisher's take on Marvel's Ultimate Universe Saturday was revealed. Lemire will also be writing a different series in DC's primary continuity, justice Society of America. In teaser art released for the series, characters from both the JSA and Infinity Incorporated can be seen teasing the title's white ensemble. The series is being drawn by Diego Orletogi. Quote In addition to Absolute Flash, I'm also drawing my all-time favorite superheroes of Justice Society of America. He wanted to reveal that he's drawing connecting variants for Justice Society of America number one and number two.

Speaker 1: 24:38

At today's what's Happening in the DC panel at San Diego Comic Con, the publisher gave some welcome news on the upcoming Elseworlds version of Green Lantern titled Green Lantern Dark. Green Lantern Dark is a new project from the Something is Killing the Children and House of Slard team of writer Tate Brombell and Werther Del Edera that will be making their Elseworlds debut with Green Lantern Dark, and while they didn't share a ton of details, they did reveal that this version was inspired by DC's Tangent version of Green Lantern. As for what attracted them to the project, the duo decided the opportunity to work outside of DC's main continuity and getting a chance to be part of the newly relaunched Elseworlds line. Del Adira is the main artist of Boom Studios. Del Adira is the main artist of Boom Studios Excellent. Something is killing the children and is a perfect fit for the darker take on Green Lantern. Having the bright green light of the lantern piercing the darkness creates an unexpected visual and immediately sets this version apart from anything else.

Speaker 1: 25:39

Dc is returning to the fourth world. By the end of the year, ram V, one of the hottest names in comics, is penning a fourth world. By the end of the year, ram V one of the hottest names in comics, is penning a fresh series featuring the new gods, with Evan Cagle making his DC debut on interior artwork, announced Saturday during San Diego Comic-Con. The series is part of DC's newly announced all-in initiative set to debut later this year. And with that news, let's go on to the Star Wars news, roger roger.

Speaker 1: 26:13

Star Wars news begins with the High Republic coming to its end with Phase 3 and the announcement of a new upcoming project, fear of the Jedi. The Marvel Comics series will serve as the finale to the High Republic Phase 3 Trials of the Jedi, which began late 2023. Star Wars, the High Republic's Phase 1 and 2 chronicled the Jedi and Republic's century-long mission to expand into a sector of the Outer Rim territories that was rife with civil conflict between plants and or different force-user religions. One of those religions splintered off and became the army of galactic raiders known as the Nihil, who inherited the ancient race of force-eating beasts known as the Nameless, able to kill Jedi with ease. Now, phase three of the High Republic has been the darkest chapter yet, as the Nihil destroyed the Jedi and Republic's grand achievement in the Outer Rim Starlight Beacon and used the Nameless to kill off some prominent and powerful Jedi of that era. The bright and hopeful heroes, both young and old, who began in the series the Acolytes, vanestra Roja, jedi Knights, keeve, trannis, bel Zetafir, wreath Salas, masters Avar, chris and and Elzar Mann are quickly becoming more complicated and becoming battle-scarred warriors fighting to free their allies and innocents from a sector of space that Nihil have sectioned off as their own. Meanwhile, the High Republic has turned non-Jedi characters like Nihil, turncoat, lorena Dee or Thief Teya Sirik have broken out into bigger roles, have broken out into bigger roles. All in all, the High Republic has distinguished itself as its own era of Star Wars, but could benefit from wrapping this particular saga, which began in 2021, sooner before, later.

Speaker 1: 27:51

Now, the current timeline of Star Wars comics takes place between events of the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, but with those stories set to conclude, marvel Comics has confirmed new titles will be taking place in the space of time between Return of the Jedi and the Force Awakens, starting with the upcoming miniseries Star Wars. The Battle of Jakku Insurgency Rising will focus on a pivotal battle in the wake of the fall of the Galactic Empire, a conflict which has largely been shrouded in secrecy since it was alluded to. In the wake of the fall of the Galactic Empire, a conflict which has largely been shrouded in secrecy since it was alluded to in the 2015 movie. The first issue of the four-issue series hits shelves on October, the 2nd. Now let's go on through some good, old-fashioned geek news.

Speaker 1: 28:52

And Geek News begins with Sega Afritra going on strike again. This time, the union called for a work stoppage against major video game companies after two years of trying to renegotiate its interactive media agreement. The decision to hit the picket lines comes 10 months after the union's initial strike authorization vote. The strike went into effect July 26th at 12.01am. The 10 companies facing the strike are Activision Productions, blind Light LLC. Disney Character Voices Incorporated. Electric Arts Productions Incorporated. Epic Games Incorporated. Formosa Interactive LLC, insomniac Games Incorporated. Take-two Productions Incorporated. Voiceworks Productions Incorporated. And WB Games Incorporated. Sag-aftra President Fran Dresser said in a statement quote we're not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse AI to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough. When these companies get serious about offering the agreement our members can live and work with, we will be here, ready to negotiate unquote.

Speaker 1: 29:52

In a press briefing following the announcement of the strike. Being called, sara Elmaleh, the union's interactive committee chair and an actor in games like hi-fi rush, addressed the timing of the work stoppage during comic-con, so that after members were allowed to take part in the convention despite the strike order. Now, that flexible stance, she says, stems from the fact that quote this is happening very quickly and our members are going to no doubt take some time to absorb the full scope of the strike order and the rules and all of that other stuff. We feel very passionately that being at ComCon in order to share what it is we need and why we need it is the best way to serve this action, to be visible, to be loud and to be open to conversation". So this, of course, will probably cause salvages to some upcoming games, so if you have a game from any one of these companies that you're really interested in, you might have to wait just a wee bit longer.

Speaker 1: 30:52

Next up, percy Jackson and the Olympians has found its Tyson. Daniel Dymere has been cast in season two of the Disney Plus series as the lovable Cyclops who is also Percy's paternal half-brother, the son of Poseidon and a nymph. Arthur and series co-creator Rick Reardon announced the news via video message at the show's San Diego Comic-Con panel this past Thursday. Daniel Daimyr's enthusiasm and talent brings a whole new dimension to Tyson, and it's going to be an incredible seat to see him in the second season. I can't wait for you guys to meet him and welcome him to the Percy Jackson universe. Unquote. Mark Hamill will voice the flying Dutchman in Paramount Nickelodeon's upcoming SpongeBob SquarePants movie, the SpongeBob movie the Search for SquarePants. The announcement was made during their Comic-Con presentation in San Diego.

Speaker 1: 31:41

Celebrating the franchise, which turns 25 this year, makes you feel old, doesn't it? Alien Rhyme List will be released in theaters in August, but come October comic readers will get even more insight into the tragic doom awaiting the characters that board the Rhyme List space station. Alien Rhyme List number one will will be one shot that answers the one question that viewers won't get from the actual film what was going on aboard the RhymeList to make all hell break loose? The Marvel press release reveals that, quote Alien RhymeList number one will be written by horror master Zach Thompson and drawn by rising star Daniel Picado, a creative team that is clearly familiar with action horror material. Now Zach Thompson said in a statement quote the Alien franchise is responsible for my lifelong love of body horror, so, needless to say, I'm ecstatic to be contributing a small piece to the canon. Working with Fed Alvarez to craft a prequel to Alien Rhymelous was a genuine dream come true and a responsibility I don't take lightly. The result is a thrilling, terrifying story that slowly gestates into something wholly unpredictable.

Speaker 1: 32:52

Amc is selling more shows, including a trio of the Walking Dead spinoffs, to third parties. The company has closed a deal with Netflix in the US to bring 15 shows to the streamer as part of the curated selection of AMC-branded shows. It comes after AMC did something similar to Max last year, a move that saw Fear of the Walking Dead and A Discovery of Witches air on the Warner Bros streaming service as part of a two-month pop-up experiment. Back in November, amc Network's CEO, christian Dolan, said that she was actively exploring more deals along these lines. Some 13 AMC shows will launch on Netflix for a year beginning August 19th, including the first seasons of the Walking Dead, daryl Dixon, anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire, anne Rice's Made for Witches, Monsignor Spade, that Dirty Black Bag and the Terror, three seasons of Discovery Witches, two seasons of Dark Winds, eight seasons of Fear the Walking Dead, two seasons of Gangs of London, three seasons of Into the Badlands, two seasons of Kevin Can't Beep Himself and four seasons of Preacher. You know that's a pretty fair amount. Two additional series the first seasons of the Walking Dead, dead City and the Walking Dead the Ones who Live will be launched on Netflix in January of 2025. Eleven seasons of the Walking Dead are currently available on Netflix.

Speaker 1: 34:12

Master Chief has fought his last battle at Paramount+, the streamer has canceled the video game adaptation after two seasons. The series, based on the Xbox franchise Halo and starring Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief John-117, finished its second season in March. Quote we are extremely proud of this ambitious series and would like to thank our partners at Xbox, 343 Industries and Amblin Television, along with showrunner and executive producer David Weiner, fellow executive producers, the entire cast led by Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief, and the amazing crew for all their outstanding work. We wish everyone the best going forward. Sources say the show's producers, amblin, xbox and 343 Industries, will look to land the series at another outlet for a third season. Paramount Plus is said to be supportive in that move. And now, since there is so much news at Comic-Con, here's some quick hits. Invincible was renewed for Season 4 at Prime Video.

Speaker 1: 35:18

The timey-wimey, wibbly-wobbly world of Doctor who is expanding with a new spin-off announced into the Into the Who-niverse panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday Russell Tovey and Gugu Mothwa-Raw will lead the cast of the five-part series the War Between the Land and Sea. They'll be joined by returning Doctor who cast members Gemma Redgrave as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart and Alexander Deverant as Colonel Ibrahim. The series picked up as a foursome and ancient species emerges from the ocean, dramatically revealing themselves to humanity. An air-shell crisis is triggered and the entire population at risk units steps into action as the land and sea wage war. The Boys universe is expanding with a prequel series titled Vought Rising. It will star Jason Eccles and Aya Cash reprising their boys roles as Storm Soldier Boy and Stormfront respectively. The series will be set in 1950s New York.

Speaker 1: 36:15

In a story trailer for Funko's first ever console game, funko Fusion, the brand's titular Freddy Funko is introduced to the title's supervillain, his evil copycat Eddie Funko, the quote deeply twisted and immensely powerful shapeshifting counterpart to Freddy's, voiced by Invincible star Clancy Brown, who promises Freddy and characters from Shadow of the Dead Five Nights at Freddy's, the Umbrella Academy and more NBC Universal franchises scattered across the game. Quote your worlds will fall, your people will suffer and I will have infinite power. Per Funko's description for the AAA game developed by Tintin Games. Quote With dreams of total domination, eddie wields the dark abilities possessed in the inhabitants of Funko Fusion pop culture-inspired worlds, building an army of corrupted characters inspired by franchises including Jurassic World, back to the Future, thing, chucky and many more. As players strive to fight back, they'll build their own team of playable heroes, each with unique talents for use in combat and puzzles.

Speaker 1: 37:16

Fox just made the San Diego Comic-Con a richer experience for one lucky attendee. During the Thursday night panel promoting the network's upcoming animated series, universal Basic Guys, fox passed out swag bags to everyone in the ballroom. One of those bags had a special sticker randomly awarding that winner $3,000. Actually, because it was shaped like a hot dog, the sticker announced you are a wiener. The $3,000 prize is in line with the concept for Universal Basic Guys, which stars on two brothers who work at a hot dog factory until they lose their jobs to automation and are given $3,000 a month in a new basic income program. The series follows them as they suddenly have a lot of free time and money to pursue some ridiculous adventures. Fresh off the show's first Emmy nomination, fox is piling on more. Crapopolis, the mythical animated comedy set in ancient Greece, has been picked up for a fourth season, which was revealed by Dan Harmon at Comic Con.

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What we Do in the Shadow? Stars and producers showed up at San Diego Comic Con this past Thursday to preview the sixth and final season of the FX Emmy nominatednominated comedy. The footage before the panel was the entire first episode of season six, which introduced a new vampire, played by Michael Patrick O'Brien, named Jerry. Who is Jerry, you ask? He's a former roommate of Nandor Naja and Colin Robinson, who they all remember with great affection as the Vampire's Vampire, until they realize that they've forgotten to wake him from his deep slumber that he entered in 1976. Wah-wah, netflix's film adaptation of the seminal video game Bioshock with director Francis Lawrence is being reconfigured to be a more personal film with a reduced budget. Producer Roy lee revealed at comic-con this past thursday. The adaptation was first announced back in february of 2022 as a partnership between netflix and producers 2k and take two interactive solar opposites has been renewed for a sixth season at hulu. The cast of the show also revealed during the pat, during a panel at Comic-Con, that the show will release a Halloween special on Hulu later this year.

Speaker 1: 39:34

Season 5 of Solar Opposites is due to debut on August 12th. Ghost is adding some new characters for season 4. Mary Holland and Dean Norris are set to guest star in the series. Holland has joined the cast as the recurring role of Patience, a character that has been highly anticipated since last season, and Norris will play Frank, samantha's father. Now Patience is the ghost of a Puritan woman who died in the late 1600s. While alive she was exceedingly severe and judgmental, even by Puritan standards. As such, she was expelled from her village for being a bit too much.

Speaker 1: 40:13

Sausage Party Foodtopia has announced its returning for season two. Sausage Party Foodtopia is already a surprising project in and of itself, as the series was a sequel to the animated film by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg Making its debut with Prime Video this month. The animated series seems to have done well so far to get a second season already confirmed to be in the works, but unfortunately there is very little about what to expect in new episodes of the series in the future. Hulu has revealed that Futurama Season 12 will guest star the likes of Danny Trejo, rene Victor, tom Kenny, anna Hortiz, cara DelVigne, tim Gunn, bill Nye, kyle McLaughlin, levar Burton and Neil deGrasse Tyson and is out now. Hellboy the Crooked man takes us to 1950s Appalachia where Hellboy, played by Jack Kessie, and rookie BRPD agent Bobby Joe Song investigate the sinister Crooked man. Now Kessie is the third iteration of Hellboy, who has been portrayed by Ron Perlman in the Guillermo del Toro duology and David Harbour in the reboot in 2019. The movie is due in September. Udon Entertainment revealed that they have acquired the Master Comic Book license for Mega man across the board, from the classic series to X Legends, zero and ZX, battle Network and Starforce. However, they will not be included in any comic books published under the license agreement as the publishers and owners, capcom, do not have the sole rights to these particular entries and the two titles taking place in separate universes from the main storyline and universes will be featured in the previously noted titles.

Speaker 1: 41:56

Next up, idiocracy is getting a spiritual sequel. The Mike Judge-directed sci-fi comedy has become a cult classic over the years, finding new audiences thanks to the Power of Home video and a very orange president. Despite this delayed success, follow-ups for Idiocracy never got off the ground. That changes. This past weekend has star Terry Crews, who played President Dwayne Elzondo. Mountain Dew, herbert Camacho in the film, is releasing a one-off comic that revisits the world of Idiocracy.

Speaker 1: 42:32

And finally, tonight, bob Newhart, the beloved stand-up performer whose droll, deadpan humor showcased the two critically acclaimed CBS sitcoms, vaulted him to the ranks of history's greatest comedians, died Thursday morning at the age of 94. The Chicago legend, who won Grammy Awards for Album of the Year and Best New Artist for his 1960 breakthrough album. The buttoned-down mind of Bob Newhart died at his Los Angeles home after a series of short illnesses. According to his longtime publicist, the former accountant famously went without an Emmy Award until 2013, when he finally was given one for guest starring as Arthur Jeffries, aka Professor Proton, on CBS's the Big Bang Theory. In 1972, mtm Enterprises cast the modest comic as clinical psychologist Bob Hartley, who practiced in the real-life Newhartburg of Chicago. The Bob Newhart show would become one of the most popular sitcoms of all time, featuring a wonderful cast of supporting characters Suzanne Plagette, pierre Boners, marshall Wallace, bill Daly and Jack Reilly among them. Newhart ended in 1978 after 142 episodes and credibly no Emmy nominations for him and no wins for the show, feeling he had exhausted its bag of tricks. But he was back at CBS in 1982 in front of another MTM comedy, this time in New Heart.

Speaker 1: 43:57

He portrayed Dick Loudon, a New York author, trained proprietor of the Stratford Inn in Vermont. The show was a mainstay for eight seasons, and this one also featured a great cast of Murray Fran, tom Poston, julia Duffy, peter Scolari and the handyman of Larry Darrell and the other brother Darrell, in one of the most admired series endings in history. Newhart wrapped its eight-season run with a cheeky final scene in which Loudon wakes up in the middle of the night as Bob Hartley in bed with Suzanne Plachette in their Chicago apartment, suggesting that the whole series had been one long dream. Newhart's pauses and stammering were among his trademarks and his wry observations were a result of his observant nature. Quote I tend to find humor in the macabre. I would say 85% of me is what you see on the show and the other 15% is a very sick man with a very deranged mind, he said in a 1990 interview with the Los Angeles Magazine. He was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 1992.

Speaker 1: 45:05

He was born on September 5, 1929, in Oak Park, illinois, and grew up a Cubs fan and participated in the team's victory parade during LaSalle Street in Chicago after they took the National League pennant in 1945. He was quite naturally thrilled when the Cubs ended their 108-year World Series drought by winning in 2016. Newhart never dreamed of being in show business. In fact, he was against the grain of being in the Midwest. After attending St Ignatius College Prep, he earned a degree in commerce from Loyola University and spent two years in the Army and then flunked out of law school. He then worked as an accountant with US Gypsum and then the Glidden Company which sold paint.

Speaker 1: 45:46

Quote. Somehow there's a connection between numbers and music and comedy. I don't know what it is, but I know it's there. I know it's a case of two plus two, and two equals five in terms of a comedian. You take this fact and you take that fact and come up with this ludicrous fact, unquote.

Speaker 1: 46:03

Now, to combat the tedium of work, newhart and his friend would amuse themselves by making prank phone calls. You'd find that in his signature comic bit having the one-sided phone conversation with someone at the air end. He and his pal also sold a syndicated radio program which did five-minute comedy routines five days a week for $7.50 a week. In 1959, their friend, who was a disc jockey in Chicago, introduced Newhart to a Warner Brothers record exec. The accountant, now a copywriter, had just three routines at the time but wound up with enough material to land a contract with the record company. Quote. Keep in mind, when I started in the late 50s I didn't say to myself oh, here's a great void to fill. I'll be a balding ex-accountant who specializes in low-key humor. That's simply what I was and that's the direction my mind always went in, so it was natural for me to be that way. The buttoned-down mind of Bob Newhart was recorded live in a nightclub in Houston and became the first comedy album to reach the top of the album charts, selling 1.5 million copies as one of the biggest selling talk albums. The Bits includes such classics as Abe Lincoln vs Madison Avenue and Driving Instructor Coming. At a time when harder-edge comedians like Lenny Bruce and Mort Sahl were taking hold, the button-down mind earned Newhart a third Grammy for Best Comedy Performance and he got booked on the Ed Sullivan Show.

Speaker 1: 47:29

Following two more successful albums, newhart was offered a weekly TV variety series for the 1961-1962 season. There, the Bob Newhart Show won an Emmy for the year's Outstanding Program Achievement in the Field of Humor, as well as a Peabody Award. Newhart soon found himself exhausted, taking on the responsibility of a program seven days a week, 24 hours, despite a full production team. He was offered some sitcoms but turned them down and returned to nightclubs to sharpen his act with TV guest spots, in film work and in TV shows and movies. So he went to do that. In 1992, he embarked on a new series called Bob, playing a comic book artist, but it never found an artist. There's a George and Leo in which he played a bookstore owner opposite Judge Hirsch, opposite Judge Hirsch. More recently, newhart played Judson on a trio of the library and telefilms and then a series for TNT. Newhart also co-starred in Little Miss Marker as the president of Buck Henry's first family, with Gilda Radner as his frisky daughter, and has Papa Elf in Will Ferrell's Elf and in Horrible Bosses. He brought his flat Midwestern cadence to voice work on the two Rescuers films. Chicago honored Newhart with a statue on Mason Avenue near the office building seen in the opening credits of the Bob Newhart Show with his likeness in a chair and an empty psychiatrist couch at his side. It was later moved to the Navy Pier. In 2002, he became the fifth recipient of the Kennedy Center's Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and four years later published his memoirs I Shouldn't Even Be Doing this.

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Newhart was married to Virginia Ginny Quinn from January 6th of 1963 until her death in April of 2023 at the age of 82. They were set up on a blind date by comedian Buddy Hackett. Quote Buddy came back one day and said in his own immutable way. I met this young guy and his name is Bobby Newhart and he's a comic and he's Catholic and you're Catholic. I think maybe you should marry each other, she recalled in a 2013 interview. Now, she was the one who came up with the idea for the brilliant ending of the Newhart show during Christmas party that Plachette happened to also be attending. The Newharts were great friends with Don Rickles and his wife, barbara, and the couples often vacationed together. Survivors include his children, robert Jr, timothy, courtney and Jennifer, and 10 grandchildren. Bob Newhart was 94 years old, was 94 years old, and that brings us to the end of this edition of the show.

Speaker 1: 50:13

Now, please be sure to check us out on social media. We're on Blue Sky and Twitter, at Multiverse, tom Threads, facebook and Instagram at Multiverse Tonight, and if you've gotten some value out of the show and would like to pay it back, please head on over to multiversetonightcom where you can find our Patreon and Ko-Fi links. Check out our show notes, visit the TeePublic store and, while you're there, why don't you leave some feedback and check out articles, other things? Now, if you really liked the show, go ahead and hit that subscribe button. Share it with friends and family. Special thanks to Shane Ivers for the intro music and Lobo Loco for the outro theme music. Thanks for watching this edition of Multiverse Tonight. We'll be back in two weeks with more sci-fi and comic book news. Goodness, now please exit the universe in an orderly fashion. Good night. Multiverse Tonight is a production of Half-Baked Genre Productions. Copy copyright 2024, all rights reserved. This podcast is part of the Pop Goes the Culture podcast network.