Arrow Stars in Other Roles

[Sakura12]

Civil War held for 2 weeks, lost the third to Angry Birds. 

TMNT can probably win it's weekend since it doesn't have much competition. 

[SmallScreenDiva]

Trailer for David Ramsey's new film, "Illicit," can be watched here.

Edited May 30, 2016 by SmallScreenDiva
Edited because film's name is NOT "Illicity" :P

[Morrigan2575]

wow. didn't know DR had a film coming out.

[bijoux]

8 hours ago, SmallScreenDiva said:

Trailer for David Ramsey's new film, "Illicity," can be watched here.

I'm pretty sure the poster says Illicit, no Y. Can I show you to the You Know You're Watching Too Much Arrow When... thread? :D

[SmallScreenDiva]

LMAO! Wow ... 

[tv echo]

RILA FUKUSHIMA JOINS SCARLETT JOHANSSON IN THE MOVIE ‘GHOST IN THE SHELL’
Ralin Mae   MAY 30, 2016
http://www.hofmag.com/rila-fukushima-ghost-in-the-shell/155720

Quote

According to Hollywood Reporter, Rila Fukushima appeared in 2013’s Wolverine alongside Hugh Jackman as the female ninja Yukio. Later on, she appeared in The CW’s Arrow Season 3 as Katana. Now, she is set to appear in Ghost in the Shell, a live action Hollywood adaptation of a famous classic manga of the same title.
*  *  *
The movie will revolve around Kusanagi, a cyborg in an elite cybercrime-fighting task force called Section 9. In this action film, Fukushima will join actors Michael Pitt, Juliette Binoche, Pilou Asbæk and Takeshi Kitano among others. Scarlett Johansson plays as the Cyborg Kusanagi, amidst major backlash

According to Vulture, Tokyo-born Fukushima is the first female Japanese in the cast. Her role has not yet been revealed but she will not be replacing Johansson in the leading role so they say. The other Japanese actor, Takeshi Kitano, is playing the Kusanagi’s boss Takeshi Kitano.

This movie is widely being criticized for whitewashing its cast. For one, Motoko Kusanagi in the manga is basically Japanese, though her race is reportedly unclear,  knowing that she is a cyborg. Still, the story arc is of Japanese creation, which makes the casting of Johansson for the role questionable. The same goes for Pitt who is playing as Kuze

In line with this, there are reports that Paramount experimented out visual effects to make Johansson appear Asian. However, the studio claims that it has not yet been tested on the actress herself but on an extra.

Edited May 30, 2016 by tv echo

[Tallis]

I have now seen the Turtles film. My life will continue on, I guess.

Amell's Casey Jones can best be summed up as sweet and slightly dim. He bears no resemblance to Oliver Queen, however he does seem to share Stephen Amell's (less objectionable) fashion sense (minus beanies). If Amell & Fox really don't get on in real life then it doesn't show up in the film although there isn't really much of a love interest vibe. There's about 10 seconds of vaguely flirty flirt at the end and that's it. He's in it a decent amount - probably only slightly less than Fox - and he's fine, just not especially memorable. Sorry Steve.

I did like the giant Lego/Tetris Death Star and the alien intestine monster thing.

Edited May 30, 2016 by Tallis

[Morrigan2575]

That's interesting. I was reading the TMNT board at IMDb and the comments from the NYC screening said the movie focused on the Turtles, BeBop and RockSteady. They said April and Casey Jones didn't have all that much to do. They also said Casey was a "pussy" and really didn't do any fighting except what was in the trailers.

Have no intention of wasting my money on this crap. First one sucked, this one doesn't look much better.

Edited May 30, 2016 by Morrigan2575

[Tallis]

Oh yes, it's definitely all about the Turtles and other CGI characters screentime which is what you'd expect really. Casey gets two fight scenes, one proper one that was in the trailers and one that's more of a chase scene that has had excerpts in the trailers. April and Casey don't have huge amounts to do, the film isn't about them, but they're on screen a fair amount and they do get their own bits of screentime sans Turtles.

Can't exactly say I'd recommend it but at least this one didn't send me to sleep half way through.

[bijoux]

I don't care one way or another about this film, but that's some high level of discourse there.

2 hours ago, Morrigan2575 said:

That's interesting. I was reading the TMNT board at IMDb and the comments from the NYC screening said the movie focused on the Turtles, BeBop and RockSteady. They said April and Casey Jones didn't have all that much to do. They also said Casey was a "pussy" and really didn't do any fighting except what was in the trailers.

[bethy]

I've been watching Neal McDonough in Band of Brothers this afternoon. He's so great as a guy who goes from a confident soldier to one who is struggling with all he's experienced in battle. 

[NumberCruncher]

That was the very first role I ever saw NM perform and ITA with your assessment, @bethy.  Funny enough, I'm currently watching him play a rather snarky criminal mastermind in Justified.  The character he plays there shares a lot of similar traits to DD (other than the magic) and it led me to wonder if this role is why they cast him on Arrow.

[thegirlsleuth]

1 minute ago, NumberCruncher said:

That was the very first role I ever saw NM perform and ITA with your assessment, @bethy.  Funny enough, I'm currently watching him play a rather snarky criminal mastermind in Justified.  The character he plays there shares a lot of similar traits to DD (other than the magic) and it led me to wonder if this role is why they cast him on Arrow.

Seeing him in that role made me so delighted when he signed up for Arrow.  I don't think DD was a well-written character, but Neal did the best he could with what he was given.  Not as good as Justified, but no one does villains like Justified (Mags 4life!).

[NumberCruncher]

1 minute ago, thegirlsleuth said:

Seeing him in that role made me so delighted when he signed up for Arrow.  I don't think DD was a well-written character, but Neal did the best he could with what he was given.  Not as good as Justified, but no one does villains like Justified (Mags 4life!).

Completely agree that NM's villain role on Justified >>>> Darhk on Arrow.  That's not NM's failure, of course--it was poor plotting/writing.  And yes, Mags was amazing in no small part due to Margo Martindale who is amazing in every role she does.

[Sakura12]

NM is known for playing more villainous roles, the only good guy role I've seen him in was Dum-Dum Dugan in Captain America and Agent Carter. 

[NumberCruncher]

I'm well aware of that.  I wasn't saying that NM isn't known for his villainous roles.  What I was saying is that his role on Justified reminded me most of DD and so it wasn't surprising that he was picked to be that guy given those similarities.

[Starfish35]

This was actually the first time I'd ever seen NM in a villain role, although I thought he was great (the writing wasn't, but he was).  The first thing I ever saw NM in was a show called Medical Investigation, back in 2004-2005, where he played the lead role (a doctor of course).  I thought the show was rather boring to be honest, but my next-door neighbor loved it so I used to record it for her.  It only lasted one season.  I always remembered those striking blue eyes, though. 

He also played the Tin Man in SyFy's Oz Tin Man, and then of course Dum Dum Dugan.   But those were the only three roles I had seen him in before this.

Edited June 1, 2016 by Starfish35

[Genki]

I think I saw NM first in Boomtown, and he was intriguing character, can't remember the details.

I also agree the villains on Justified are much better written and fleshed out, but I enjoyed DD on Arrow and I could not wait for his character to die on Justified. lol!!

SA was apparently at the cinema closest to my house on Monday, for his TMNT promotion and I didn't even realise d'oh! 

[lemotomato]

The first thing I ever saw NM in was Angels in the Outfield, where he played a weird baseball player. It's been interesting to see him evolve into all his different roles since then. I think the only common thread in his career is that he often plays some variation of crazy/weird.

[Morrigan2575]

I think Tin Man was the first time I saw NM, or at least the first time I can remember. After that was CA1 and then Red2.

I liked/loved him all all 3 movies.

[JenMD]

The first thing I ever saw NM in was the series finale of China Beach.  1991, wow, 25 years ago this summer, I hadn't even realized it's been that long until just now.  He was a young, injured soldier who was put in a pair of inflatable pants to keep him from bleeding out.  It was heartbreaking.  From then on, for years, anytime either my sister or I saw him in something, it was always, "Hey, it's the boy in the pants"!  I mean, I know he's clearly done tons of stuff since then (although I haven't seen a lot of it) but that role just stayed with me.

[Starfish35]

1 hour ago, Morrigan2575 said:

I think Tin Man was the first time I saw NM, or at least the first time I can remember. 

Oh that's right, it was called Tin Man, not Oz.  Duh.

[Genki]

That Tin Man movie was disappointing to me, it was just no where near expectations, and I didn't even have high ones to begin with.

[tv echo]

Another PSI intro by EBR...

Edited June 1, 2016 by tv echo

[Morrigan2575]

is she a nuw yawker?

[doesntworkonwood]

I watched TMNT2 yesterday, and unless you're below the age of 12, I wouldn't recommend it. I get that it's a childrens film (and I'll admit the only reason I watched it was because I got free tickets and SA) but there was literally nothing there for anyone older. And SA definitely plays the straight man so much better than a character like Casey Jones. I don't think he was particularly bad, but I don't think he was great either. 

[Morrigan2575]

According to The Wrap, rival studios are predicting a $40 million opening weekend for TMNT2.  Paramount is predicting about  $37 million, which is normal the production studios are usually conservative in their estimates.  https://www.thewrap.com/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-sequel-to-top-box-office-but-faces-troubled-waters-ahead/

However, pro.boxoffice.com is predicting a $27 million opening weekend, which is really low. 

http://pro.boxoffice.com/weekend-forecast-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-shadows-popstar-never-stop-never-stopping/

I agree with pro.boxoffice.com on the lack of buzz, this movie seems to have no buzz at all. Rather unexpected.

For reference, TMNT cost $125 million and had an opening weekend BO of $65 million. That movie ended up with $191 million domestic and just shy of $500 million WW.

TMNT2 cost about  $10 million more to make. If it opens significantly lower than TMNT it's not a very good sign, IMO.

Edited June 2, 2016 by Morrigan2575

[Sakura12]

Those projections are lower than I expected. Although you are right I haven't seen a lot of buzz for it. I have no desire to see it, didn't have desire to see the first either. I used a free Redbox rental to see it. 

[Morrigan2575]

1 hour ago, Sakura12 said:

Those projections are lower than I expected. Although you are right I haven't seen a lot of buzz for it. I have no desire to see it, didn't have desire to see the first either. I used a free Redbox rental to see it. 

Yeah, I had no desire to see the first one (waited to watch it "for free") and have even less interest in the sequel. 

I'm curious to see the final box office.  There's a lot more competition in June 2016 then there was in August 2014. If it doesn't open big it's going to have to rely almost entirely on Foreign BO.

[bethy]

Hmm. SA doesn't even get a mention in the A.V. Club's C+ review - http://www.avclub.com/review/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-shadows-michael-b-237616. Maybe that's not a bad thing?

[apinknightmare]

I've read a few reviews where he wasn't mentioned at all. 

[lemotomato]

My co-worker's kid is really excited to see the movie because he saw the toys all over Target and went into a TMNT spiral. I hope it does well for SA's sake. 

[Sakura12]

So he wasn't as memorable as the first Casey Jones. That too bad, I loved Casey Jones in the original movies. 

Edited June 2, 2016 by Sakura12

[Morrigan2575]

31 minutes ago, Sakura12 said:

So he wasn't as memorable as the first Casey Jones. That too bad, I loved Casey Jones in the original movies. 

Yeah, I thought Elias Koteas was great as Casey Jones.

[Trini]

39 minutes ago, Sakura12 said:

So he wasn't as memorable as the first Casey Jones. That too bad, I loved Casey Jones in the original movies. 

How... is that even possible? How much screentime does Amell get?

[Sakura12]

Most reviews don't even mention him, the ones that do say he wasn't needed in the movie. I wonder what SA will say now since he's the one said that worst thing you can be is indifferent. And that's what I'm getting from reviews on his role in the movie.  

Elias Koteas was great as Casey, he made his role memorable. 

[doesntworkonwood]

16 hours ago, Trini said:

How... is that even possible? How much screentime does Amell get?

He and Megan Fox got about the same amount of screen time I'd say, but his character didn't really do much at all. The movie would have pretty much been the same without him.

[Morrigan2575]

Quote

Friday AM Update: Thursday night preshow results are in and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadowslead the way with a soft $2 million compared to the $4.6 million the first Turtles feature brought in from preview screenings in August 2014. A good comparison would be 2014's Hercules, which brought in $2.1 million before opening with $29.8 million. Another would be Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials which brought in $1.7 million on Thursday night before delivering a $30.3 million opening last September.

Warner's Me Before You got off to a solid start, bringing in $1.365 million on Thursday night. 

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=4192&p=.htm

[calliope1975]

Pajiba's review of TMNT. Surprisingly, the reviewer (resident curmudgeon TK - I say that with great love) didn't hate it and singled out SA positively-ish. 

http://www.pajiba.com/film_reviews/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows-review-good-enough-for-kids.php

[BkWurm1]

Ha!  His review is fun to read. 

[Morrigan2575]

Watching Law & Order om TNT this morning. Charlotte Ross showed up in the opening of "Talking Points" she plays and Anm Colter type character. I remember the character and the episode annd my first reaction to her appearance...oh it's the lady from NYPD Blue.   This time my reaction was...wait is that Mama Smoak? LOL

She looks great in the episode but what threw me was her voice, it was a lower pitch then Mama Smoak...more like when Serious Donna is in the scene.

[tv echo]

Some more positive mentions of SA as Casey Jones in TMNT2...

The New York ninjas are back to save the planet in TMNT: Out of the Shadows
Bobby Blakey   June 2, 2016
http://www.examiner.com/review/the-new-york-ninjas-are-back-to-save-the-planet-tmnt-out-of-the-shadows

Quote

... The newcomers to the series are where things really shine. Arrow star Stephen Amell does a great job as Casey Jones despite the missing signature long hair. This might irritate some, but it’s still the early stages of the character so there is a chance of seeing the signature look later. Have no fear he is all Jones when that hockey mask is put on complete with some Friday the 13th jokes that are pretty funny....

9 reasons why the 'Teen-age Mutant Ninja Turtles 2' won't disappoint your teen
Mike Szymanski   June 3, 2016
http://www.examiner.com/list/teen-age-mutant-ninja-turtles

Quote

Of course, the heroes are the secret Ninjas. I was disappointed when they first introduced them as Mikey, Donnie, Leo and Raph! Hey, what happened to the cool names of famous artists? That was only a surprise delay, because the gal who named them, April O'Neil, played by Megan Fox, does come along and give their true names: Michelangelo, Donatello, Leonardo and Raphael. Fox is wonderful to watch in virtually every scene, and she seems very interested in the hockey-masked vigilante Casey Jones (Stephen Amell) who comes on the scene. Amell is a surprise casting for a character well known to the franchise, and does remarkably well as the cute new guy among the heroic guys.

Fun, well-paced Turtle action
by Jeff Ruffolo  June 3, 2016
http://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/94950/fun-well-paced-turtle-action

Quote

The casting of Amell as Casey Jones is spot-on and the chemistry between Jones and Fox’s O’Neil is pure energy. Bottom line: “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows” is a 10 on a 10 scale, a great family film that is best watched in IMAX format and not the standard 35 ft. tall silver screen.

Wait, Is the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Sequel Actually... Good?
Germain Lussier  June 3, 2016
http://io9.gizmodo.com/wait-is-the-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-sequel-actual-1780128569

Quote

If the Turtles are the strongest part of the movie, the humans are the weakest. New and old, they’re little more than set dressing. Megan Fox and Will Arnett reprise their roles and try to bridge many of those huge jumps of logic in the narrative. Laura Linney and Tyler Perry are new additions who do the same, but with a total awareness the movie they’re in is not serious. Then there’s Stephen Amell as Casey Jones; Amell starts strong but his sporadic use in the story makes him feel insignificant, and the performance suffers for it.

Movie Review: ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out Of The Shadows’
June 3, 2016  Dave Taylor
http://sciencefiction.com/2016/06/03/movie-review-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows/

Quote

New to this film were some great additions, most notably Stephen Amell as the hockey playing renegade cop Casey Jones, Tyler Perry darn amusing as the genius bad guy Baxter Stockman, and Laura Linney as the cold-as-ice head cop Chief Vincent. Oh, and Shredders two bad guy sidekicks, the dumb-as-rocks Rocksteady (Stephen Farrely) and Bebop (Gary Anthony Williams), who are hardened cons who get their freedom as part of the plot to break Shredder out of jail. Problem is, when the Ooze shows up, they’re the unsuspecting guinea pigs and turn into monstrous Rhino and Warthog creatures. Both of whom are still off the charts dumb, but now they’re super strong too!

‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows’ review: Sequel gives fans what they want
June 3, 2016 By Rafer Guzmán
http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/movies/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-out-of-the-shadows-review-sequel-gives-fans-what-they-want-1.11872578

Quote

Once again, our four reptilian heroes — team leader Leonardo (Pete Ploszek, providing his own voice this time), rebellious Raphael (Alan Ritchson), tech-geek Donatello (Jeremy Howard) and sweet-natured Michelangelo (Noel Fisher) — are distinguishable mostly by their little color-coded bandito masks. Only intrepid television reporter April O’Neill (Megan Fox, showing skin and batting lashes) and her cameraman, Vern (Will Arnett), can tell the turtles apart with ease. Joining their group is a human newcomer, Casey Jones (a likeable Stephen Amell), whose unusual weapon of choice is a hockey stick.

Edited June 4, 2016 by tv echo

[tv echo]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 - "Casey Jones" Featurette - (2016) Stephen Amell
Published on Jun 4, 2016, by Promo Trailers

[Belinea]

So, is $33 million dollars a good result or a bad one? Because I have a feeling they wanted more money but since the reviews weren't that great, they should be happy with the result, right? I truly don't get box office tracking and studio expectations.

[apinknightmare]

3 minutes ago, Belinea said:

So, is $33 million dollars a good result or a bad one? Because I have a feeling they wanted more money but since the reviews weren't that great, they should be happy with the result, right? I truly don't get box office tracking and studio expectations.

 

Paramount projected $37M, which seemed to be on the low side, so I think it's probably pretty bad that it's not even on track to meet that. And it got a last-minute IMAX run, which would inflate the box office since those tickets are more expensive. So I think this is probably not great, but I don't follow box office that often. 

[Morrigan2575]

15 minutes ago, Belinea said:

So, is $33 million dollars a good result or a bad one? Because I have a feeling they wanted more money but since the reviews weren't that great, they should be happy with the result, right? I truly don't get box office tracking and studio expectations.

I haven't seen the $33 million, I heard $31.5 million projected for this weekend.

Yeah, that's bad.

TMNT 2014 took in $65 million opening weekend on a $125 production budget.  TMNT2 cost $135 million and only opened at roughly 31-33 million dollars. That's just about half of what the last one made. 

On top of that, TMNT2 is opening in June, way more competition than TMNT 2014 had in August.   

I'd say Casey Jones solo/origin movie probably just went up in smoke.

Edited June 4, 2016 by Morrigan2575

[tarotx]

The 33 comes from Deadline but either way, it's a lukewarm opening at best. 

http://deadline.com/2016/06/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-2-me-before-you-pop-star-weekend-box-office-1201766674/

[Morrigan2575]

16 minutes ago, tarotx said:

The 33 comes from Deadline but either way, it's a lukewarm opening at best. 

http://deadline.com/2016/06/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-2-me-before-you-pop-star-weekend-box-office-1201766674/

Thanks. I saw the 31.5 on IMDb but they didn't provide a link.  I checked Box Office Mojo amd they just said 32-35.

[kismet]

Won't they make back a lot of their money on international box offices?

I do find it odd that they released it in early June, when so many of the target audience is still in school. Maybe they'll just hope it sticks around the theaters and eats up the wallets of parents/caregivers of kids looking for something to do with their kids during a long summer day, esp. with the weather being as unpredictable/bad as it is.

[SmallScreenDiva]

Looks like the turtles did pull in the young 'uns: TMNT2 beat out X-Men Apocalypse, earning $35.3 million