WandaVision Grabs Directors Guild Of America Award Nomination

WandaVision has just ended, but already has its first award nomination thanks to the Directors Guild of America, which also offered up noms for Ted Lasso, the Mandalorian, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and more.

WandaVision‘s nomination comes in the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Limited Series, with the nod going to director Matt Shakman–the first name you always saw as the show’s 10-minute credit sequence began. Other names in the category include Susanne Bier for The Undoing, Thomas Kail for Hamilton, Scott Frank for The Queen’s Gambit, and Lynn Shelton for the Little Fires Everywhere episode, “Find a Way.”

In the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series, Jon Favreau is nominated for the Mandalorian’s “Chapter 9: The Marshal,” the first of two nominations for Favreau. Vince Gillian is up for Better Call Saul‘s “Bagman,” Jason Bateman for the Ozark episode “Wartime,” Lesli Linka Glatter for Homeland’s “Prisoners of War,” and Julie Anne Robinson for “Diamond of the First Water” from Bridgerton.

For the Comedy Series category, both Ted Lasso and Curb your Enthusiasm grabbed two nominations. Zach Braff is nominated for Ted Lasso’s “Biscuits,” followed by MJ Delaney for Ted Lasso’s “The Hope that Kills You.” Susanna Fogel is nominated for The Flight Attendant’s “In Case of Emergency,” Erin O’Malley for Curb Your Enthusiasm’s “The Surprise Party,” and Jeff Schaffer for Curb Your Enthusiasm’s “The Spite Store.”

Other categories include one for regularly-scheduled Variety/Talk-style shows like the Daily Show and Last Week Tonight, Specials like The Late Night with Stephen Colbert’s “Stephen Colbert’s Election Night 2020: Democracy’s Last Stand: Building Back America Great Again Better 2020, reality programs like Jon Favreau’s The Chef Show, and more. The whole list is available on the Directors Guild website. The awardsceremony will be held virtually on April 10.

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Coming 2 America Has The Best Streaming Debut Of Any Film In 2021 So Far

Amazon is no doubt celebrating its late-game acquisition of Coming 2 America, after the comedy sequel saw a huge opening weekend in Amazon Prime Video streams. While reviews for the Eddie Murphy film have been mixed, Coming 2 America managed to snag the top spot in streaming movies for the weekend, with a bigger opening than any other film this year.

Defining success for streaming films is a little more complicated than theatrical releases, without the clear data from the global box office, but Amazon has pointed to figures from 3rd party Screen Engine/ASI’s weekly VOD ratings.

The weekly chart shows Amazon’s Coming 2 America overtaking Paramount+’s The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run and Netflix’s To All The Boys: Always and Forever. Amazon also says the movie has seen the best opening weekend for a movie on a streaming service in all of 2021, and even since the COVID-19 pandemic first shut down cinemas last year. These numbers should be taken with a grain of salt however, as they’re based on viewer surveys rather than raw streaming data–with streamers like Netflix notoriously cagey about its viewer numbers.

Amazon’s marketing campaign for Coming 2 America has been aggressive, featuring a Superbowl ad, the relaunch of the 1988 movie on Amazon Prime, a themed TikTok dance challenge to “I’m a King” from the official soundtrack, and even widespread posters slapped on Amazon delivery trucks, vans, and one plane.

Coming 2 America is a sequel to the 1988 original, with cast members including Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, Shari Headley, John Amos, and Louie Anderson returning to reprise their roles. The sequel has changed up the formula a little, most notably swapping the original’s R-rating for a more family-friendly PG-13. New cast members include Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Jermaine Fowler, and Bella Murphy.

Reactions to the film have been mixed according to Metacritic, with some bemoaning the sequel’s lack of originality, and others arguing the lush, nostalgic spectacle is exactly the kind of film we need right now. Coming 2 America is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video now.

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New God Of War Comic Explores Gap In Kratos’ Story

Dark Horse has announced a new God Of War comic named Fallen God, inspired by the 2018 reboot of the series. The new comic is designed as a prequel, picking up where God of War 3 left off and filling the gap between it and 2018’s Norse-inspired sequel.

In late 2018, Dark Horse published a different 4-part God of War prequel comic, which explored Kratos’ earlier adventures in the Norse wilds alongside son Atreus. The upcoming God of War: Fallen God appears to be going even further back, to explore Kratos’ fate after murdering Zeus at the end of God of War 3.

The team behind the 2018 comic has been reunited for Fallen God, with Chris Roberson writing and Tony Parker illustrating. Also joining them are colorist Dan Jackson and letterer John Roshell, with cover art by Dave Rapoza.

“After conquering Zeus and thwarting Athena, Kratos believes himself to be finally free from his bondage,” Dark Horse’s official description for Fallen God reads. “He sets sail for the desert in an attempt to distance himself from his home and his shame only to find his rage and guilt follow close behind. Kratos rages against the one foe that has proven to be unconquerable—himself. But a war against oneself is unwinnable, and only invites madness.”

A preview of the first issue posted by IGN shows Kratos suffering from the curse of immortality, unable to be free of his suffering–or his signature Blades of Chaos. The first issue is due to release on March 10.

A God of War sequel unofficially nicknamed Ragnarok was announced last year for a 2021 release, though not much has been revealed about the game since then. It’s unclear whether the sequel is still on track to release this year.

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ESO’s Flames Of Ambition DLC Is Live Now On PC

Elder Scrolls Online‘s new year-long adventure Gates of Oblivion has officially kicked off with the Flames Of Ambition DLC, which is live now on PC and Mac. The new DLC brings two new dungeons, which will also kickstart the Gates of Oblivion story in the lead-up to June’s more story-focused Blackwood DLC.

The DLC is being released in tandem with Update 29, a free patch that includes changes and improvements such as a redesigned Champion System and Character Sheet. While the update and DLC are live now for players on PC and Mac, Xbox One and PS4 players will have to wait until March 16 for the new content.

The Flames of Ambition DLC can be unlocked for 1500 crowns (around $15) from the Crown Store, or accessed free through an ESO Plus membership for as long as your subscription is active. The DLC can also be purchased as a Collector’s Bundle costing 4000 crowns, which includes the Falinesti’s Faithful Totem Elk mount, Clearspring Striped Fawn pet, and five Crown Experience Scrolls.

Flames of Ambition includes two new PVE dungeons, the Black Drake Villa and The Cauldron, each with new bosses to battle and loot to unlock. The new dungeons will lead up to June’s Oblivion-themed Blackwood expansion, with The Cauldron featuring a new Daedric cult called the Waking Flame. Black Drake Villa will introduce a new character in wood elf Eveli Sharp-Arrow, while The Cauldron sees the return of Dremora Lyranth.

Fires of Ambition is the first of four DLC packs set to be released this year for the Gates of Oblivion storyline. The next is the Blackwood chapter, which is set to arrive on June 1 for PC and Mac, and June 8 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The last two haven’t had dates or details announced yet, but will be launched in Q3 and Q4 respectively.

Now Playing: The Elder Scrolls Online – Gates Of Oblivion Teaser Trailer

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The Evolution of Unreal Engine (1996-2021)

Throughout its history, the Unreal Engine has maintained itself as one of the most popular development tools in the games industry. From its early days in the mid 90s, to its powerhouse performance as a games and film visual creation engine, the Unreal Engine has powered many of the most iconic video games over the course of nearly three decades–which includes Gears of War, BioShock, and Fortnite.

In this video, we’re taking a look at the evolution of Epic Games’ tech. Starting with 1996’s Unreal Engine 1 tech demo, we look at how Epic Games’ early tech revolutionized the rendering of 3D environments. Then after, we go over how Unreal Engine 2 took things further by adding improved lighting, detailed character animations, and a greater sense of depth in 3D spaces. From there, the video continues on, from Unreal Engine 3 all the way to the current day where we’re now still awaiting the upcoming release of Unreal Engine 5, which adds more realistic visuals and lighting.

Along with this look back at the advances to the Unreal Engine, we’ve also published an extensive video on the evolution of PlayStation consoles. For more information on what’s to come with the Unreal Engine 5, be sure to check back with GameSpot for more details.

Every Autobot From The Transformers Movies

Zack Snyder’s Justice League Accidently Leaks Early On HBO Max For Tom & Jerry Fans

Some users logging in to HBO Max to watch Tom & Jerry: The Movie got quite a surprise. For some that launched the movie on Monday, they were instead met with an accidental showing of Zack Snyder’s four-hour cut of Justice League–a movie that is not out until March 18. This news comes from The Hollywood Reporter, which noted images from the movie appearing on Twitter.

While several people online noted that they were able to access the film, and THR even confirmed it was able to access the film, it appears the problem has since been fixed. So if you were one of the few that got to watch even part of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, consider yourself lucky.

For the rest of us, there are only 10 more days of waiting before you can see the movie properly. In the meantime, several character trailers are being released, covering each member of the superhero team. Thus far, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and Aquaman have each gotten a character spotlight, with only Cyborg left to go.

We already know quite a bit about the Justice League, if you want to be fully prepared for the film. Snyder has revealed the six chapter titles within the lengthy film, while also explaining why he decided to include Jared Leto’s Joker in the project and how many versions of his cut will exist.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League will be on HBO Max on March 18.

Pokemon Go Beldum Incense Day Event Set For March 14

Niantic is holding another Incense Day event in Pokemon Go this Sunday, March 14. The event will run from 11 AM to 5 PM local time and gives players more chances to catch Beldum and certain other Steel- and Psychic-type Pokemon.

Beldum in particular will be plentiful during the event. The Pokemon will appear more frequently when you use an Incense, and you’ll have an increased chance of encountering a Shiny Beldum. On top of that, if you can evolve Metang (Beldum’s evolved form) into Metagross during the event, it will automatically know Meteor Mash, a move it could previously only learn during the Beldum Community Day.

In addition to Beldum, the following Steel and Psychic Pokemon will be drawn to Incense during the event:

Psychic Pokemon

  • Natu
  • Girafarig
  • Meditite
  • Baltoy
  • Munna

Steel Pokemon

  • Alolan Diglett
  • Magnemite
  • Aron
  • Bronzor
  • Shieldon

The aforementioned Pokemon will appear more frequently at specific hours throughout the event. You can see what time each type of Pokemon is more likely to spawn below:

  • 11 AM – 12 PM: Psychic Pokemon
  • 12 – 1 PM: Steel Pokemon
  • 1 – 2 PM: Psychic Pokemon
  • 2 – 3 PM: Steel Pokemon
  • 3 – 4 PM: Psychic Pokemon
  • 4 – 5 PM: Steel Pokemon

Finally, Niantic says it will offer an exclusive item bundle in Pokemon Go’s in-game shop for the event. The bundle will cost 1 PokeCoin and features an Incense. You can read more details on the official Pokemon Go blog.

In the meantime, Niantic is kicking off a Searching for Legends event in the game on March 9. That will feature certain Ground, Rock, and Steel Pokemon such as Nosepass, whose Shiny form will be appearing in Pokemon Go for the first time as part of the event. The Legendary Pokemon Tornadus is also back in five-star Raids until March 11.

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WandaVision’s Kathryn Hahn Wants To Play Agatha Harkness Again

Now that we’ve reached the end of WandaVision, our eyes are looking to the future. We know what’s coming next for Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) and have some hints about what could become of Vision (Paul Bettany). What about Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn), though? While her story was wrapped up in “The Series Finale,” there could potentially be more to her story.

Be warned, the following contains spoilers for the final episode of WandaVision. Speaking to the New York Times, Hahn was asked about whether another project featuring Agatha is in the works.”I have no idea,” she said. “They keep it really tight.” However, it’s something Hahn is definitely interested in. “I want to,” the actress admitted. “Now that I have a taste of it, I’m like, ‘ahh.’ I really, really love it.”

If nothing else comes from the character, though, Hahn is pleased with the conclusion to Agatha’s story. In the finale, her powers were absorbed by Wanda, who left her essentially trapped in the reality of Westview, stuck in her sitcom role as the nosy neighbor.

“I actually don’t think, ultimately, that she minds it,” the actress said. “She needed to rest for a hot second. She’s been very restless. I think she was very lonely, for a very, very long time. She loves having the companionship–loves the mailman, loves Ralph, loves Dottie. For the moment, I think she’s actually OK to just loosen the corset and sit and have a muffin and a latte.”

Hahn also noted that she knew all about the Agatha twist from the beginning. “They pitched it all to me,” she said. “Then I met with Marvel in a general meeting and it was just a couple days later that they called me back to meet with Matt Shakman [the WandaVision director] and Jac Schaeffer [the creator and showrunner], and they had it all laid out.”

From there, she had to actually figure out who this character was. “I had never heard of Agatha Harkness in the comic books, but they gave me a bible on her and I went down a deep dive,” Hahn revealed. “And I was titillated by the ambition of it. I didn’t understand it. I couldn’t quite see it. But I thought that if we could pull it off, it would just be so thrilling.”

All episodes of WandaVision are currently streaming on Disney+.

Wonder Woman: Earth One Vol. 3 Exclusive Preview

DC’s Wonder Woman: Earth One saga is nearly complete, and IGN has an exclusive preview of the third and final graphic novel in the series.

Wonder Woman: Earth One Vol. 3 reunites writer Grant Morrison and artist Yanick Paquette for one last Wonder Woman epic. In this climactic chapter, Queen Diana is forced to lead the charge in defense of her homeland as Max Lord’s army of robots invade Themiscyra. Can Diana remain a force for love and peace when she’s forced to become the warrior her mother designed her to be?

Get a taste of what’s coming and see Diana interacting with Artemis by checking out the slideshow gallery below:

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For those not familiar with the Earth One line of graphic novels, they’re simialr to Marvel’s Ultimate Universe imprint in that they reimagine and modernize familiar heroes for a 21st Century audience, with some heroes changing more drastically than others. The Wonder Woman books offer a fairly unusual take on Diana and her world, as they draw heavy inspiration from the original Golden Age Wonder Woman comics and the themes of bondage and subservience that were so prevalent in the work of creator William Moulton Marston. The first volume even drew controversy for its depiction of Diana being the daughter of Hercules, a choice even Morrison admitted he “struggled” with.

“In this particular story I wanted that tension,” Morrison told IGN in 2016. “I wanted that push and pull, and I wanted Diana to be a bit more impure in the sense that, yeah, there is a little bit of masculinity that has been put into her. Originally, Hippolyta does it just for the reasons that Hercules’ DNA will then go on to destroy women, and there would be no more sons, as Hippolyta said. So it’s actually kind of an act of revenge. Diana is used as revenge on the battlefield, which to me seemed much more this sort of thing that people could relate to. She’s a character who’s so pure and so perfect that it seemed like we needed that little bit of dark in the character to give her a chance to grow and to think about things and change.”

Vol. 2 further shook up the Wonder Woman mythology by depicting long-time DC villain Doctor Psycho as a supervillain pickup artist and a critique of toxic masculinity.

“Part of it was my revenge on having seen [this level of manipulation] actually done to someone. You can see the narcissist type, the sociopath type and how easy it is for them get to people — people you wouldn’t even imagine could be that manipulated by anything,” Morrison told IGN in 2018. “It’s a very real problem for young people in the world. There are people out there who are quite willing to use these techniques so I kind of wanted to draw attention to it, but, you know, on the Wonder Woman scale where the guy is a supervillain. I wanted to put these paragon of femininity up against that threat and see how she deals with it — because even paragons of intelligence and grace I’ve watched having real trouble with people like this. Here are the techniques. If you see anyone using these techniques against you, the warnings should go off.”

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You can check out IGN’s review of Wonder Woman: Earth One Vol. 1 and Wonder Woman: Earth One Vol. 2. DC is also finally releasing the third volume of Batman: Earth One in 2021, which will introduce a very different version of Two-Face and shed more light on this Bruce Wayne’s ties to the Arkham family.

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Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.