Author: Trafficblast

Netflix and US movie theater chain Cinemark have teamed up to bring Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead to cinemas across the US one week before the movie comes to Netflix. If this is successful, it could lead to more deals of this nature in the future, according to Cinemark CEO Mark Zoradi.

“We’re gonna see, how does it do in that week? How does it do the week that it goes into Netflix? We’re going to learn a lot,” Zoradi said during the MoffettNathanson Media & Communications Summit, according to Deadline.

Zoradi said he’s already feeling confident that there will be “several” additional releases from Netflix coming to theaters down the track.

“We don’t believe it’s going to be a large quantity, but a limited number of their high-profile movies where they want to spend the marketing expenditure, they want theatrical exhibition and what comes along with that, we think that there will be future movies to come,” Zoradi explained. “Those might be 14 days, they might be 21 days. I would characterize it as a very progressive and positive relationship with Netflix.”

Should the Army of the Dead deal work for Cinemark, it could lead the theater chain into discussions with other streaming services, Zoradi said.

“As studios make decisions to take things to their own unique platform, perhaps we’re going to find a way to get some things from the streaming services that we otherwise would not have gotten and give them an important theatrical window,” he said.

Cinemark has booked Army of the Dead for 200 of its locations. The movie will also be available to watch at smaller theater chains such as Alamo Drafthouse, Harkins, Cinepolis, and iPic. AMC and Regal, two massive chains in the US, won’t have Army of the Dead.

Army of the Dead is out now in US theaters at Cinemark and it will release on Netflix a week later, beginning May 21. The first 15 minutes of the movie are now online, while you can check out a roundup of review scores for Army of the Dead to find out if you might be interested.

Army of the Dead stars Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera, Theo Rossi, Matthias Schweighöfer, Nora Arnezeder, Hiroyuki Sanada, and Tig Notaro.

As another example of the shifting landscape for movies, Disney. just announced that the Ryan Reynolds movie Free Guy and Shang-Chi will have a 45-day theatrical window.

Netflix’s Cobra Kai recently wrapped production on Season 4, and the upcoming batch of episodes will keep the good times going, according to the show’s creators. Warning, there are spoilers for Season 3 below.

Talking to Collider, co-creator Josh Heald said that they will keep delivering those “good feelings” fans had on the journey so far. “It was really important for us to end Season 3 the way we did with a kind of like ‘yah’ as a feeling as opposed to [‘aw’] where Season 2 went,” he explained. “And we want to deliver on that feeling. We want to keep providing the dopamine that generates that good feeling. We want to make sure we’re delivering on goosebumps, on tears, on belly laughs, and fist bumps.

“It’s the same recipe with different tastes and everything else,” Heald continued. “But it’s even bigger so we’re really, really proud of what we’re making so far. I can’t wait for you to see what everybody’s doing.”

Cobra Kai Season 4 will also introduce new students and finally upgrade characters into featured roles.

Earlier this year, it was reported that both Vanessa Rubio and Peyton List have been promoted to series regulars for this season. Rubio plays Carmen Diaz, the mother of Cobra Kai’s standout student, Miguel, played by Xolo Maridueña. While List portrays the aggressive Cobra Kai pupil Tory, who first joined the show in the second season as a foil to Daniel’s daughter, Sam (Mary Mouser). Meanwhile, Dallas Dupree Young and Oona O’Brien have joined the cast as brand new characters.

Last season already saw a fe, so who knows could make an appearance for the new season as well.

Season 4 of Cobra Kai does not have a release date announced but expected to premiere sometime this fall.

Microsoft is expanding testing for a feature that should make games look better, at least on compatible TVs. Dolby Vision HDR, a feature that should, in the simplest terms, make bright colors brighter and dark areas darker, is arriving for Xbox Series X|S users that are part of Xbox Insider’s alpha ring.

Precisely, Dolby Vision HDR is a proprietary HDR format that promises boosted performance over other HDR options. According to Dolby, the format offers “brightness, contrast, color, and depth that goes beyond even traditional HDR games.”

The Xbox Series X|S will also be the only consoles with this tech available when it launches for Xbox Insiders. Dolby announced last year that, along with bringing its audio format Dolby Atmos to next-gen Xbox consoles, Dolby Vision would be arriving sometime in 2021.

Before you get too excited though, you’ll want to make sure your TV supports Dolby Vision HDR. It’s an increasingly common feature to find in TVs, but not one that’s widely supported just yet. For instance, none of Samsung’s TVs support Dolby’s HDR format.

To check if your TV can handle Dolby Vision HDR, first make sure that your Xbox Series X|S is updated to the latest firmware version. Then, head over to the console’s 4K TV Settings menu. From there, you should see a set of checkmarks or red crosses showing your TV’s compatibility with Dolby Vision at either 4K/60Hz, 4K/120Hz, or both.

Anyone that wants to try out Dolby Vision HDR on their Xbox Series X but isn’t part of the Xbox Insider program can fix that quickly. Simply download the Xbox Insider Bundle App from the Xbox Store, open it up, and hit “Join.” This won’t guarantee access to Dolby Vision HDR, but it’s a step closer to having the feature.

It’s not clear when Dolby Vision HDR will roll out for the bulk of Xbox Series X|S users. That being said, the feature’s addition to the Xbox Insider alpha ring program is a clear indication that Microsoft is looking to roll it out for more players.

For other Xbox Series X|S users, the console’s latest update has improved quick resume, making the feature more stable, reliable, and best of all, faster.

While you have to wait until later in May to watch the Friends reunion show on HBO Max, a marathon of the original series is airing on TBS right now.

Now through June 4, TBS is airing a special event called Friends: From The Beginning, which covers every episode of the show from the beginning, in order. The marathon runs daily on weekdays from 10 AM – 4 PM in your time zone. Alternatively, anyone who subscribes to HBO Max can watch the complete series in any order they want, whenever they want.

Friends: The Reunion then debuts on Thursday, May 27 on HBO Max. It brings back the six members of the cast–Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer–for a one-off special filmed at the show’s original Stage 24 soundstage on the Warner Bros. studio lot in Burbank, California.

There will be lots of special guests, too, including David Beckham, Justin Bieber, BTS, James Corden, Cindy Crawford, Cara Delevingne, Lady Gaga, Elliott Gould, Kit Harington, Larry Hankin, Mindy Kaling, Thomas Lennon, Christina Pickles, Tom Selleck, James Michael Tyler, Maggie Wheeler, Reese Witherspoon, and Malala Yousafzai.

The first teaser trailer for Friends: The Reunion can be seen above. Meanwhile, Kudrow has teased that fans of the show’s iconic opening sequence involving the water fountain will be pleased by the reunion special.

According to a report, all six stars are being paid between $2.5 million and $3 million to appear in the reunion.

The long-running golf arcade game Golden Tee is making its return, and the new version has a modern-looking, sleek design that packs in a feature sure to please hardcore players.

Golden Tee: PGA Tour is the latest iteration of Golden Tee, following the 88-course Golden Tee 2021, and it’s expected to launch in Q2 2021. The new version is compatible via online game modes with the previous game, though a deal in place with the PGA Tour means that Golden Tee 2021 can’t simply be converted.

The game comes equipped with an NFC card reader to make it easy for returning players to sign in and continue from where they left off, so there will be no doubt about who the best Golden Tee player is at the arcade.

The control scheme retains the classic Golden Tee trackball, requiring precise shots, and there is also a small screen on the control deck. There is also plenty of space behind the trackball so you don’t accidentally fling your arm forward on a powerful shot and punch the main display, and there appear to be several cupholders underneath. Golf is not exactly an aerobic workout, but it can’t hurt.

Golden Tee: PGA Tour is the first game in the series to include real golf courses, and “other elements of the golfing world” will be coming down the line via updates. It’s initially only going to be available via commercial sales, but developer Incredible Technologies is planning to roll it out to home arcades in the future.

If you do want Golden Tee in your home right now, there is a 3/4 scale Arcade1Up version available. It features several of the older games going up to Golden Tee 2K, and though it’s slightly smaller, the software is identical to the genuine arcade versions.

Actor Robert De Niro sustained a leg injury while he was in Oklahoma filming the new Martin Scorsese movie Killers of the Flower Moon, Deadline confirmed. He is now headed back home to New York City to seek out medical attention, the report said.

The injury did not happen during production of the movie, and he was already scheduled to fly back to New York on Thursday. As a result, production is not expected to be delayed on Killers of the Flower Moon, which is a massive $200 million undertaking.

There is no word yet on what caused De Niro’s leg injury or how serious it may be.

De Niro plays one of the main roles in Killers of the Flower Moon, as he’s portraying William Hale, a convicted murderer in the killing of Osage Nation people. He stars in the film alongside Leonardo DiCaprio as Ernest Burkhart and Jesse Plemons as Tom White.

It was reported that DiCaprio and Plemons swapped roles, and some speculated that Plemons’ Tom White is the lead character. Writer Eric Roth says that’s not necessarily true.

“I wouldn’t say [Plemons is] the lead. I would say that he was the designated hero,” he said. “But yeah, I think that’s fairer because I think the parts are pretty equal and they were always equal to a certain extent, and Leo’s part is very complicated and very interesting. It’s a smart part for a smart actor to play.”

Killers of the Flower Moon is just the latest high-profile movie headed exclusively to Apple TV+. The company also recently announced the Brie Larson series Lessons in Chemistry, while Ridley Scott’s Napoleon Bonaparte movie starring Joaquin Phoenix is also set up at Apple. The Will Smith slavery movie Emancipation is also coming to Apple TV+.

On the more immediate horizon, Ted Lasso season two is coming to Apple TV+ in July.

Following a promotion that gave away a whole bunch of free games–including Horizon Zero Dawn–to PS4 and PS5 players, Sony will soon be offering a variety of in-game goodies through Play at Home. The promotion begins in just a few days and includes currency and other rewards for nine different games.

Beginning May 17 at 8 PM PT / 11 PM ET, you’ll be able to claim the following items and currency for via on the PlayStation Store.

• Brawlhalla — Play at Home Pack with Rayman Legend, Sir Rayelot Skin with Axe and Gauntlet weapon skins, Shrug emote, Grimm Sidekick
• Destruction AllStars — 1,100 Destruction Points
• MLB The Show 21 — 10 The Show Packs
• NBA 2K21 — Play at Home Pack with MyTeam Series 2 Amethyst Damian Lillard, 5,000 MyTEAM Points, and more
• Rocket League — PlayStation Plus Pack with Blue Notch Wheels, Blue Smoke Boost, Blue Rocks Trail, and Trimpact BL Player Banner
• Rogue Company — Kyoto Undercover Ronin Outfit and 200 Rogue Bucks
• Warframe — 100 Platinum, 100,000 Credits, 7 Day Affinity Booster, Essential Base Damage Mod Bundle, and more
• World of Tanks and World of Warships — Twice the Courage Pack for World of Tanks: Modern Armor, with boosts and seven days of Premium Account. Tier III battleship Arkansas, seven days of Premium Account, and five Rare Boosters of all five types for World of Warships: Legends.

These will be joined by a Call of Duty: Warzone bonus on May 20 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Five Double XP tokens will be available to claim for free at that time through the in-game Message of the Day, and all nine games’ rewards will be available until June 6 at 11:59 PM PT, which is June 7 at 2:59 AM ET.

Because Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition was given out for free during the promotion–and will be free until later this evening–those who haven’t played it yet can prepare before Horizon Forbidden West releases later this year. The sequel will be available on both PS4 and PS5, and it will come more than four years after the previous game.

Actor Dave Bautista has spoken about the great lengths he went to in his campaign to play Marcus Fenix in the Gears of War movie. Speaking to Collider, Bautista said he had a meeting with Universal Studios because they wanted to speak to him about the Fast & Furious franchise. But Bautista shifted the conversation to Universal’s Gears of War movie, which he was personally more interested in.

Bautista said he meant no disrespect to change the subject of the meeting, but his heart wasn’t in Fast & Furious.

“I had a meeting at Universal and they wanted to talk to me about Fast & Furious and I said, ‘I’m not interested. Let’s talk about Marcus Fenix.’ I think they were a little put off. I don’t mean to offend anybody. I’m not playing down anything else,” he said. “I’m just saying this [Gears of War] is way more interesting to me. I don’t want to pretend I’m interested in something that I’m not when there’s something I’m actually really excited about.”

“This is what I love, I’m seriously passionate about this,” Bautista added, recalling that he told the executives that he believed he could do a good job as Fenix. He just wanted to be considered for the part, Bautista said, but apparently it didn’t work out.

“I don’t see any harm in chasing your dreams or being honest with someone and saying this is what I’m really passionate about,” he said. “I think when people are more personally invested, it’s just going to be a better product.”

Bautista brought this up as an example of a second time that he pitched a studio on a part, the first being the role of Bane in the Batman films. Bautista said he loves Tom Hardy’s performance in The Dark Knight Rises, but he would have liked to have a shot at it.

“I think I could bring an interesting twist to it and I think I could do the character justice,” he said. “Not only in performance, but also in physicality.”

Back in 2019, Bautista said on Twitter that he was doing everything he could to get cast as Fenix in the Gears of War movie, but it wasn’t working, for reasons that have never come to light.

More recently, Bautista has been in the news for his comments around Drax, his character from Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy series. Bautista recently said that Marvel “dropped the ball” on giving Drax a proper backstory in the films.

As for the Gears of War movie, it’s been in the works since 2007, but there is still no word on a cast, director, or a filming start-date.

Rod Fergusson, the former studio head at Gears developer The Coalition, said in 2019 that the film “has to be a great movie first and a Gears movie second.”

“Basically the way that we sort of reconciled that was, we said, ‘Oh, the movie should be an alternate reality. It should not be dependent on the game story, nor should it influence the game story,'” he said.