Mr. Miyagi didn’t know Karate at all. Noriyuki ”Pat” Morita, who immortalized Mr. Miyagi into a cultural icon with his signature “wax on, wax off” lessons, had not studied the Japanese martial art prior to taking on the role. Neither did Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) or Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka). The Karate Kid is the most prominent Karate film of all time, and yet none of the lead actors had any Karate skills.  Karate is a martial art that is rooted in Okinawa, although it’s worth noting that half of the Karate that the Cobra Kai TV series demonstrates is Korean. The…

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World. Doomsday is coming. You know it. I know it. And now, thanks to the Leader, Captain America knows it too. In the lone post-credit scene for Captain America: Brave New World, villain Samuel Sterns offers a warning to Sam Wilson, one that points to the next Avengers movie and, potentially, the end of the MCU as we know it. Captain America 4’s Post-Credit Scene Explained As the marketing for Captain America: Brave New World loves to remind us, Sam Wilson is not Steve Rogers. And that’s a good thing. Brave…

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World. Upon first viewing, some fans may leave Captain America: New World Order feeling a bit let down. The final confrontation between Sam Wilson’s Captain America and President Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in Red Hulk form featured prominently in commercials and posters, pretty much spoiling the big reveal. Yet, New World Order‘s connections to little-discussed MCU entries of the past, especially The Incredible Hulk and Eternals, and its important setup for Wolverine of the X-Men, mean that the movie’s ending isn’t quite as simple as it seems. Worry not, True Believers! We’ve…

It is sometimes only a pleasantry when the winner of a major award says they “are so surprised to be here” while accepting the accolade. Yet that sentiment from Sean Baker seemed genuine Friday night when he accepted the Best Picture prize at the 30th annual Critics Choice Awards. Consider that just moments beforehand, his deceptively layered screwball comedy about a sex worker from Brooklyn, Anora, had been largely shut out by the critics. Up until this moment, Anora failed to pick up the CCAs’ Best Director award, nor did it get Best Actress for Mikey Madison. Even the one…

Nearly 15 years ago, DreamWorks Animation’s How To Train Your Dragon soared into theaters. At first, the film appeared to be another quirky idea from the animation studio that once played second fiddle to Disney, a la Bee Movie (2007) or Monsters vs. Aliens (2009). However, Hollywood quickly learned this wasn’t another middling entry into the DreamWorks catalog. In fact, How To Drain Your Dragon flew to new creative heights the animation studio hadn’t seen since Shrek (2001).  The film was an honest-to-goodness smash hit, spawning a trilogy of movies, an animated TV series spinoff, and a plethora of merchandise.…

Captain America was at the forefront of Marvel before it was even called Marvel. The character has stood the test for decades, with a recent resurgence thanks to his rise in prominence in the MCU. And even though Steve Rogers retired in Avengers: Endgame, he passed on his shield to Sam Wilson, a new iteration of the hero who gets his big screen debut in Captain America: Brave New World.  To celebrate the fourth Captain America picture, Den of Geek has compiled a list of the best Cap toys, new and old, starring both Captains Americas.  LEGO 76292: Captain America…

Andrzej Sapkowski, the Polish author who created The Witcher saga in his ‘90s book series, was known to repurpose fairytales for Geralt of Rivia’s adventures, particularly in the short story collection called Sword of Destiny. The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep is based on a tale therein called “A Little Sacrifice,” a version of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid.” So it is perhaps only fitting that the new Netflix animated film of the same name refashions it again to include even more nods to the original tale, its other adaptations… and an ending all Netflix’s own. It might not…

Harrison Ford has only been nominated for an Oscar once in his career. It’s a strange thing to remember when considering one of the most prolific and defining movie stars of his generation. This is the man who was Indiana Jones, Han Solo, and Rick Deckard, to name but a few. For many he also remains the best Jack Ryan, and emanates a world-weary grumpiness that is like a blast from the Humphrey Bogart past—a comparison that Steven Spielberg and Sydney Pollock both invited by casting Ford in Bogie-inspired roles. Yet unlike Bogart, who won an Oscar for The African…

This article contains details from Marvel comics that may be spoilers for Thunderbolts*. There have already been a lot of questions surrounding Marvel’s latest team movie Thunderbolts*. Are these guys the new Avengers? What’s with the asterisks? Who is Bob? The latest trailer for Thunderbolts* resolves one of the big questions, even if the answer isn’t obvious. Throughout the trailer, we see a dark caped figure flying in the sky, zapping people and leaving behind shadowy dust. That is the Void, arch-enemy to the Sentry a.k.a. Bob. Also, the Void is the Sentry a.k.a. Bob. They’re the same person. Created…

Four full minutes. That’s how much time Star Trek: The Motion Picture devotes to a sequence in which Scotty and Kirk take a shuttle to the new USS Enterprise. The Motion Picture gets a lot of guff for its slow pace and its indulgences, and rightfully so. But we forgive the flyby sequence because it’s not just our two Starfleet members admiring their ship. We get to admire it too, lavishing in every line and curve. The Motion Picture wouldn’t have even attempted the sequence were they working with anything other than the Enterprise. More than just the Starfleet flagship…

“Everything you were, everything you’ve done, comes down to this,” intones the mysterious voiceover in the latest Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning trailer. To underscore the finality of this eighth and last entry of the franchise, the promo features shots from previous films, namely Tom Cruise‘s Ethan Hunt plummeting to the floor during the break-in of the CIA computer room. That callback makes sense, given how much the break-in sequence permeated popular culture. However, more curious is a shot in the present of Ethan staring intently at a knife in his hands. That knife is in the style of…

Get ready, bub. Captain America: Brave New World might not really be about Sam Wilson dealing with a secret plot to turn the President into a Hulk. At the center of a battle with Captain America and the U.S. government on one side and the mercenary group the Serpent Society (led by Giancarlo Esposito’s Sidewinder) on the other, with master manipulator the Leader in between, is a special metal directly connected to the X-Men’s most famous member, Wolverine. The trailers for the film have shown that Brave New World pits Cap and the various belligerents in a fight over the…

Vertical lines and black and white stripes. Sullen expressions and pallid skin tones. Disheveled hair and often handcrafted special effects. There are certain staples and motifs that recur in the works of Tim Burton. So much so that 40 years after his directorial career began, Burton’s films remain instantly recognizable and a good gateway to introducing younger audiences to the concept of auteur theory. The singularity of Burton’s work has also earned its share of critics and detractors; those who see the repetition of his muses and Gothic fixations as cause for caricature. And to be sure, the one-time Hollywood…

While we’re all wringing our hands about the identity of the next James Bond, a new video has resurfaced online showing a potential 007 of the past. The clip from 2006 shows Henry Cavill running through lines from GoldenEye as part of a screen test for Casino Royale. Cavill’s lines recreate the first meeting between Bond, then played by Pierce Brosnan, and the villain Xenia Onatopp, originally portrayed by Famke Janssen, with her lines delivered by an unidentified off-screen performer in the clip. Cavill puts a slightly different spin on each of his readings, sometimes hitting a line with more…

On February 7, 1497, Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola and his followers burned objects of art and pieces of literature in the public square of Florence, Italy. Decrying these objects as distractions that turn the people’s attention from God, they called the pyre “the Bonfire of the Vanities.” The phrase has been used time and again throughout history, including the title of a 1987 novel by Tom Wolfe. But never has it been more fitting than when applied to the 1990 film adaptation of that same book, an infamous disaster starring Bruce Willis, Melanie Griffith, Morgan Freeman, and Tom Hanks. The…

Most people watching the first trailer for Jurassic World: Rebirth certainly noticed a shot of a T-rex skeleton in the park visitors center, with a bold banner behind it. The banner, which reads, “When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth,” seems to be coming down, which at first seems like a callback to the ending of the first movie. But in an interview with Vanity Fair, producer Frank Marshall provides some context for the image. It’s not an echo of the triumphant scene from the original movie, showing that dinosaurs rule the earth once again. “Well, the banner’s coming down again,” Marshall…

It’s always a big deal when Captain America says, “Avengers Assemble.” It took four Avengers movies before Steve Rogers said it at the end of Endgame, and who knows how long it will be before his successor Sam Wilson gets to utter the famous line, given that he’s just now getting his own film with this month’s Captain America: Brave New World. But Anthony Mackie knows exactly who he wants coming up on his left when his Captain America calls the Avengers together again. “It has to be the Hulk,” Mackie tells Den of Geek of his first pick for…

It has now been two and a half years since Jennifer Waters confronted K.E.V.I.N. in the finale of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and asked, “When are we getting the X-Men?” According to one reliable scooper, the answer is, “2027.” Jeff Sneider, a journalist with a track record of reliable scoops, recently posted on Twitter that he’s hearing that the MCU’s long-awaited X-Men movie “will begin shooting next year for a 2027 release. That means official casting news likely coming in the next few months… along with a director announcement,” suggesting that casting news might arrive as soon at CinemaCon in…

We cannot lie that it is a bit disconcerting that one of the greatest studios in film history is now licensing some of their deeper cut faves to YouTube. But Max’s loss is about to be everyone else’s gain, as some real obscure gems from Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema’s back catalogs have quietly found their way to the most popular video sharing website on the globe. As of press time, more than 30 Warners-owned films have been dropped in full and for free on YouTube, including John Milius’ underrated The Wind and the Lion (a 1975 movie…

It’s safe to say Ariana DeBose knows her way around the American theater. While the multi-hyphenated talent has been mostly focusing on movies as of late (after all, she won an Oscar for Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story in 2022), DeBose’s career began and will forever be linked with the stage. Before film and streaming, DeBose made her acting debut in the original cast of Bring It On: The Musical in 2011, which in turn paved the way for appearing in various Broadway productions throughout the 2010s, including in the original cast of Hamilton and as the title…