Sci-Fi Storm

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 comes out on [sfs=1615]Digital HD[/sfs] tomorrow and [sfs=1616]Blu-ray[/sfs] on August 22nd, and to celebrate, they released a music video with a bunch of cameos…I have no more words to say… 🙂

A few quick tidbits…

The first TV series as part of he multimedia mega-production based on Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series has officially named its showrunner as former The Walking Dead showrunner Glen Mazzara. We also understand that Idris Elba, who plays The Gunslinger in the feature film that opened today, will also be involved at some level.

The series takes place many years previous to the film and tells the origin story of Roland Deschain – a.k.a. the Gunslinger. It takes mostly from the fourth book, [asin=1501161830]Wizard and Glass[/asin], with flashbacks to the first book, [asin=1501161806]The Gunslinger[/asin].

We had a passing…actor Robert Hardy, best known as the Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge in several Harry Potter films and Siegfried Farnon in All Creatures Great And Small, passed away yesterday at the age of 91. His career spanned 70 years, including playing Winston Churchill in 6 separate productions due to the accuracy of his portrayal. I remember seeing him in his first film role, 1958’s Torpedo Run.

Lastly, Mr. Robot‘s return for Season 3 has been announced for October 11th at 10/9c on USA Network, and also that Bobby Cannavale (Ant-Man) will join the cast. See the trailer below…

[Reposted from our sister site, WDW Untangled]

A collaboration between Lucasfilm’s ILMxLAB division (which works on immersive entertainment) and VR experience startup THE VOID, will see a VOID Entertainment Center open at both Disneyland’s Downtown Disney and Walt Disney World’s Disney Springs, which will feature Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire, a fully immersive VR experience, which The Void calls “hyper-reality”.

THE VOID already operates locations in New York City (inside Madame Tussaud’s), Toronto, Lindon, Utah and Dubai, where they have Ghostbusters Dimension.

The Void says Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire “will plunge guests directly into the iconic Star Wars galaxy. They will move freely throughout the untethered, social, and multi-sensory Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire experience in a way that allows them to interact and engage with friends, family and Star Wars characters. This ground-breaking experience will open to the public at two new VOID Experience Centers at Downtown Disney at Disneyland Resort and Disney Springs at Walt Disney World Resort beginning this holiday season.”

“At The VOID, we combine the magic of illusion, advanced technology and virtual reality to create fully immersive social experiences that take guests to new worlds,” said Curtis Hickman, co-founder and chief creative officer at The VOID. “A truly transformative experience is so much more than what you see with your eyes; it’s what you hear, feel, touch, and even smell. Through the power of The VOID, guests who step into Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire won’t just see this world, they’ll know that they are part of this amazing story.”

Vicki Dobbs Beck, executive in charge of ILMxLab, said, “At ILMxLAB, we want people to step inside the worlds of our stories. Through our collaboration with The VOID, we can make this happen as guests become active participants in an unfolding Star Wars adventure. By combining Lucasfilm’s storytelling expertise with cutting-edge imagery, and immersive sound from the team at Skywalker Sound, while invoking all the senses, we hope to truly transport all those who experience Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire to a galaxy far, far away.”
“Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire marks an important milestone in the continued expansion of The VOID, which also joined the 2017 Disney Accelerator earlier this year,” said Cliff Plumer, CEO of The VOID. “Through the power of The VOID, guests can now experience the magic of Star Wars firsthand.”

Expect to have to make reservations FAR in advance…

Star Wars: Episode IX will be getting a rewrite courtesy of Jack Thorne (The Fades, Wonder).

Director Colin Trevorrow along with writing partner Derek Connolly had come up with the initial draft based on a premise from Star Wars: The Last Jedi director/writer Rian Johnson. Little is known, although the cast from Star Wars: The Force Awakens is expected to return – assuming they survive the events of The Last Jedi (because who knows?!?), which opens December 15th.

Production is expected to begin in January, with a planned May 24, 2019 release.

Thorne is currently working on a new BBC adaptation of His Dark Materials and wrote an episode of Philip K. Dick’s Electric Sheep anthology.

The Flash’s longtime ally Elongated Man – a.k.a. Ralph Dibny – will be joining the team on the CW’s The Flash this season as a recurring character, played by Hartley Sawyer (Glory Daze, Miss 2059).

Elongated Man has the ability to stretch his body to extremes. In the comics he gained this ability by refining a drink that was popular among the contortionists he admired. Presumably in the show it will be related in some way to the accident at Star Labs – in fact, he was named in the first season as one of the people presumed dead from the accident.