Did You Hear? is a weekly examination of headlines in the entertainment industry and a take on what they could mean for the future of the industry and (often), the little geeky bubble that we occupy.
Cowboy BeBop Finds its Crew
I’ve been waiting about my entire life to get a live action Cowboy BeBop adaptation that was worth a damn and yesterday we finally got some news that suggested this may have finally come to pass. In the wake of #CastJohnCho the man himself was cast as Spike Speigel.
He is joined by Luke Cage alum Mustafa Shakir in the role of Jet Black, Daniella Pineda (Jurassic World), will portray Faye Valentine, and The Boys’ Alex Hassell rounds out the casting announcement as Vicious. No word yet on who will portray Ein – a fan favourite from the anime – and whether or not he will be rendered in live action.
Thus far the show’s casting reflects the original property’s diverse casting and is driving toward presenting us a potential future that echoes the broad spectrum of people currently inhabiting earth.
It may also be worth mentioning that the casting directors haven’t skimped on the nerd cred. A good move for the optics of Cowboy BeBop moving forward.
Per Variety.
And Akira, Too!
In other anime news, the Leonardo DiCaprio-driven Akira project is confirmed to be shooting in California 
following an incredible tax maneuver by Warner Bros.
According to Variety:
“Akira,” produced by Leonardo DiCaprio for Warner Bros., will shoot in California and receive an $18.5 million tax credit, the California Film Commission has announced.
“Akira” was by far the biggest of the 18 tax credit allocations unveiled Tuesday under the state’s Film & TV Tax Credit Program 2.0, which include eight independent projects. The movies will generate an estimated $408 million in qualified expenditures (below-the-line wages and payments to in-state vendors) and employ 2,575 crew, 812 cast, and 29,000 extras/stand-ins over a combined 740 shoot days in California.
It’s a pretty epic move when you consider how much production has moved out of California in the past half-century for cheaper shooting destination from Vancouver to Atlanta to Croatia.
Said Ravi Mehta, Executive VP of Physical Production and Finance for Warner Bros:
We are thrilled with the opportunity to shoot ‘Akira’ in California. The availability of top-notch crew members, plus the wide variety of location choices and predictable weather are second to none.
Fans of the source material, set in a dystopian Tokyo are left wondering if the movie will live up to the already incredible film legacy of Akira or whether it will leave us with a little more Ghost in the Shell feeling.
Black Widow gets a Hellboy
The Hollywood Reporter exclusively revealed Hellboy and Stranger Things star David Harbour would be joining the cast of the long awaited – too long, at over 20 MCU movie installments in my opinion – Black Widow solo movie.
No further details about the who or the what of Harbour’s role in Black Widow, though I do think it’s worth noting his casting comes mere weeks before Avengers: Endgame is set to take over the world.
Is there a chance his character could be making a debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe sooner than we may have been led to believe? If this is the case Harbour is set to ascend to geek royalty as a Marvel star and the eponymous Hellboy which hits cinemas everywhere on April 12th, 2019.
[Captain] Marvel Nets $1 Billion
In spite of some ugly corners of the internet girding themselves to destroy Captain Marvel the first female-led MCU movie is continuing to dominate the box office worldwide according to Variety. The divisive movie is poised to continue its atmospheric ascent hurtling toward Avengers: Endgame and seems unlikely to lose momentum anytime soon.
Take that!
Umbrella Academy Renewed for Season 2
On the show’s official Instagram account this dropped earlier in the week:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvwWnxQhhM6/
Original publisher Dark Horse Comics followed up with the following helpful details:
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Proving it doesn’t take a big two brand to make an impact on the current genre zeitgeist we find ourselves in.
Game of Thrones Season 8 Death Revealed?
This week the cast of Game of Thrones has begun their press tour and Maisie Williams (Arya Stark), appeared on Jimmy Kimmel to promote the final season of the show that launched her career and celebrate April 1st …
Maisie Williams Accidentally Drops a Major Spoiler in Game of Thrones’ Final Season
Maisie Williams shares her top five iconic moments portraying Arya Stark on Game of Thrones and gets upset when she accidentally lets a major spoiler slip ab…
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