1. ‘Avengers: Endgame’ Beats ‘Avatar’ as Highest Earner of All Time
The inevitable has happened. Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Endgame is set to take the crown of the highest-grossing film of all time this weekend, toppling James Cameron’s Avatar. Disney made the announcement on Saturday 21 July. As of Friday, the global pop-culture sensation was only $500,000 behind the $2,789.7 million record set by Avatar way back in 2009. Endgame “will close this gap by tomorrow,” Disney said.
The announcement was perfectly timed as Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige appeared at San Diego Comic-Con, the world’s biggest pop culture fan convention, to reveal Marvel’s upcoming schedule of films and series set in Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
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2. Natalie Portman to Return, Take Over as Thor in ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’
Even before fans could get over the hangover of Marvel's Infinity Saga which culminated in this year’s mega blockbuster Avengers: Endgame, the studio has announced its new slate of films, dubbed Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The highlight of the announcements was the next Thor movie, titled Thor: Love and Thunder, featuring Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson and Natalie Portman.
The sequel, to be directed by Thor: Ragnarok helmer Taika Waiti, was announced during Marvel Studios’ panel at the ongoing San Diego Comic-Con.
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3. Hawkeye, Loki & Winter Soldier: MCU Series Get Release Dates
Marvel Studios has announced the line-up of its upcoming series, including Hawkeye, Loki and WandaVision.
The studio shared the projects on Saturday 20 July at the San Diego Comic-Con. The series are set to premiere on Disney's soon-to-be-launched streaming service, Disney Plus. While Marvel has produced series such as Daredevil, Cloak & Dagger and more for streaming platforms and TV networks, the Disney+ series promise much more connectivity with the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). All the newly announced series feature returning stars from the films, and Marvel Studios has slated them as official entries in Phase 4 of the MCU.
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4. Box Office: Disney’s ‘The Lion King’ to Cross 50 Cr This Weekend
Disney’s live action remake of The Lion King is all set to earn Rs 50 crore in its first weekend at the Indian box office. It has grossed a total of Rs 30.21 crore as of Sunday.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh took to Twitter on Sunday 21 July to share the news, writing, “#TheLionKing is remarkable on Day 2... As predicted, kids and families throng cinema halls, resulting in biz hitting [near] optimum levels at places... Day 3 will be huge again... Eyes ₹ 50 cr+ weekend... Fri 11.06 cr, Sat 19.15 cr. Total: ₹ 30.21 cr. India biz. All versions.”
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5. Gitanjali Rao’s ‘Bombay Rose’ to Open Venice Critic’s Week
Actor-animator Gitanjali Rao’s animated feature, Bombay Rose, will be the opening film of the Critics Week at the Venice International Film Festival on 29 August. Bombay Rose is the first Indian animation film ever to have been selected to open Venice Critic’s Week.
The Venice International Film Festival 2019’s screening will also mark the animation film’s world premiere.
The film marks the feature film debut of Gitanjali, who was last seen in Shoojit Sircar’s October.
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