Did you survive Friday the 13th unscathed? It might not have been a big week for announcements, but this Disney news from this week seemed to cover a fairly broad spectrum. From film and casting announcements to ride malfunctions, this was certainly an interesting seven days for the company.
Hollywood Studios Goes Haywire
It seems that Hollywood Studios missed the memo that July had a Friday the 13th. On Thursday, July 12th nearly every attraction in the park shut down for a few hours due to cooling system problems. Eventually, the system was restored and guests who’d purchased a single day ticket were reportedly offered a full refund or could use their ticket as park hopper for the rest of the day.
Black Widow Movie Gets a Female Director
Deadline reported this week that Cate Shortland has been hired by Marvel Studios to direct a standalone Black Widow film for the MCU. The Australian director is best known for her work on Lore and Berlin Syndrome. Shortland was one of over 40 female directors that the studio considered to helm the project.
Indiana Jones 5 Gets Pushed Back to 2021
This week Disney announced that the fans will have to wait a little longer for the next installment in the Indiana Jones franchise. The film was originally slated for at Summer 2020 release, but has been pushed back a year. Along with this change the company also announced new release dates for Mary Poppins Returns, Jungle Cruise, and Maleficent II.
2018 Emmy Nominations Announced
The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced its nominations for the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards this past Thursday. As you’d expect, a number of Disney programs earned accolades, including nominations for ABC’s black-ish, Jimmy Kimmel Live, How to Get Away with Murder; Disney XD’s Big Hero 6: The Series and Star Wars Rebels.
Billy Dee Williams Returns to the Star Wars Universe
Lando Calrissian will reportedly have a role to play in Star Wars: Episode IX and Billy Dee Williams will be back to reprise the iconic character. The actor has recently had to back out of appearances at sci-fi and pop culture conventions due to filming conflicts, and now we know why. Earlier this year, fans met a very young version of Lando in Solo A Star Wars Story. Donald Glover exceeded fans’ expectations playing the role of the charming smuggler.
D23 to Host Saturday Morning on the Lot Event
Step back to the good old days of animated television at the Walt Disney Studios lot. By good old days we mean, Disney Channel and ABC shows from the 1997–2007 era. D23 will celebrate the characters and show at this very special event. Several show writers, creators, and actors will participate and share their experiences of bringing your favorite cartoons to life. Fans must have a D23 Gold membership to purchase tickets.
Other Stories of Note
Spirit Halloween Stores have Hocus Pocus POP Figures available for pre-sale. We lost our minds this week when we came across these beauties! The brightly colored figures feature awesome detail and we can’t wait to add them to our collection.
Evan Rachel Wood and Sterling K. Brown are in talks to join Frozen 2. The Emmy nominated actors might soon be making their way to Arendelle.
Tickets for Christopher Robin are on sale now. The film premieres on August 3rd and will take the kid in all of us from London to the Hundred Acre Wood and back.
Avengers: Infinity War gets home release dates. The epic film will be available on digital and Blu-ray in July and August, plus Marvel is will release The Avengers and Avengers: Age of Ultron on 4K UHD for the first time as well.