Pop Culture

Funko drops, trailer reveals, and panel buzz — Pop Culture brings you entertainment news and fandom updates from across the media universe.

  • ‘Star Wars’ announces new title, release date and director

    Shortly after the release of the latest Godzilla movie in May 2014, the blockbuster film’s director, Gareth Edwards, was recruited by Disney to head one of the Star Wars spinoff pictures. It’s rumoured they will be a sequence of origin stories released between the new trilogy with Boba Fett, Yoda and Han Solo being primary candidates for the tales. But since that announcement 10 months ago, little else has been revealed about the film until today.

  • ‘Zoolander 2’ announced in style at Paris Fashion Week

    There have been a lot of headlines from Paris Fashion Week, but Tuesday’s unique announcement tops them all. At the close of the Valentino show, Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson took to the runway, reprising their Zoolander characters Derek Zoolander and Hansel McDonald to the tune of “Don’t You Want Me.”

  • First glimpse of Vision in new ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ trailer

    If there’s one thing Marvel fans can’t complain about, it’s lack of content. At 6 a.m. Wednesday morning, the official Avengers Twitter account called its followers to action: “It’s go time, Marvelites: Tweet using #AvengersAssemble to unite & unlock an epic new #Avengers #AgeOfUltron Trailer!” Fans answered in full force and the latest peak at the superhero sequel was unsurprisingly published to the studio’s YouTube account earlier this afternoon.

  • Oscar shorts showcase celebrating 10 years with extra screens

    If there’s one program about which Academy Awards audiences tend to feel uninformed, it’s the short film categories. Occasionally the movie is made available online or in the case of Disney/Pixar, it can be seen in theatres before their latest feature film. But that still leaves the majority of the 15 nominees with a tick in the “haven’t seen it” column. Those who are serious about their Oscar pools often feel at a loss when choosing the winner, relying on the buzz or best sounding synopsis to make their choice. In recent years, there’s been effort to erase this blind spot by providing theatrical screenings of the shorts collections prior to the ceremony. This year, the world’s only short movie channel, ShortsHD, is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its famed Oscar shorts release by expanding to a record 450+ theatres across the United States, Canada, Europe and Latin America.

  • Mutants, monsters and kick-ass women dominate Digital Film Fest

    There are those films that you’ve watched more times than you can count, wearing out your VHS copy (if you still remember what those are) and now keeping the tradition alive with regular viewings of the enhanced disc version even though you know every scene like the back of your hand. But there’s that one experience still eluding you — you haven’t seen it on the big screen. Since 1999, Cineplex has been trying to help you remedy this weakness with its annual Great Digital Film Festival. For one week, theatres across Canada play host to Hollywood’s greatest classics and fan favourites.

  • Hulk smashes through new ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ trailer

    Anyone disappointed by last week’s premiere of the first Ant-Man trailer will have their faith in Marvel Studios restored with the debut of the second trailer for Avengers: Age of Ultron. Packed with new images from the anticipated blockbuster set for release May 1, this version includes much more action — though our favourite superheroes appear to be on the losing end of most of it.

  • Anticipation builds in ‘House of Cards’ season 3 trailer (video)

    It’s no coincidence Netflix released the trailer for season three of its award-winning original series House of Cards right after Kevin Spacey accepted his Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series — Drama at last night’s ceremony.

  • ‘Ant-Man’ teaser trailer no small matter (video)

    There are some gimmicks just too good to pass up. Marvel found that to be the case during the promotion leading up to the debut of the teaser trailer for Ant-Man during the pilot episode of the studio’s new television series, Agent Carter, last night.

  • ‘Boyhood’ No. 1 says Cinema Appreciation Society of Toronto

    While there are many Goliath associations and organizations related to film criticism and appreciation, there are also a number of David-sized groups equally well-versed in new releases, independent cinema and festival favourites. CAST, or the Cinema Appreciation Society of Toronto, is one of those more obscure collectives comprised of local film critics, bloggers, podcasters and film enthusiasts who share a passion for movies in all their glory — and sometimes revulsion.

  • Film festival features Canada’s 10 best in cinema

    A new year often means fresh beginnings, but also a look back at the accomplishments of the previous year. At TIFF Bell Lightbox, that entails the screening of the top 10 Canadian features, shorts and student films from 2014. The annual Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival quickly became a staple of great film in the country with many looking forward to catching homegrown offerings they may have missed at festivals or during limited releases.