Nerdist Book Club Takes on Frank Herbert’s DUNE

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Nerdist Announces the Next Book in the Series, to Air in May and June

Hosts of the new Nerdist series Nerdist Book Club closed Wednesday night’s show with the announcement that the next book they will be reading and discussing is Frank Herbert’s 1965 science fiction epic DUNE. Nerdist Book Club launched April 8, brings fans together on multiple streaming channels to join hosts Maude Garrett (GeekBomb), Hector Navarro (DC Daily), and Rachel Heine (Nerdist Editor-in-Chief) to discuss books, wine, pets, and more, and they have just completed their first title, J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit.

Now, for science fiction lovers who have just never gotten around to it, or for readers who have been intimidated by the sheer size of Herbert’s bestselling tome, Nerdist Book Club will take the audience through this essential novel over the course of six episodes and six weeks, a pace that is manageable but will also give readers plenty of time to get excited for the new feature film’s release later this year.

Nerdist Book Club’s DUNE series will stream live on the Nerdist YouTube channel, the Geek & Sundry YouTube Channel, and the Geek & Sundry Twitch Channel from 5-6pm PT on Wednesdays, beginning May 6, 2020. To join the conversation, fans should follow Nerdist on Twitter and subscribe to the Nerdist YouTube Channel.

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Here’s What China’s Reopening of Movie Theaters Will Mean for the U.S.

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China is the second-largest box office region in the world behind the United States, generating $9.2 billion in ticket sales last year for a new national record. Major Hollywood franchises such as the Marvel and Fast and Furious films rely on the country to boost overseas totals.

But with all 70,000 theaters in the Middle Kingdom closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, box office revenue has plummeted in 2020. But while business may soon resume in China, the U.S. remains woefully behind.

On Wednesday, chief of China’s Film Bureau and deputy director of the Community Party’s propaganda department Wang Xiaohui said that indoor entertainment venues such as movie theaters are expected to open in early June, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Wang noted that the government would “offer a series of support policies for the film industry” and that “each regional film bureau will introduce their own support policies as well,” per the outlet. While American theaters have been eyeing a late June or early July re-opening ahead of Christopher Nolan’s Tenet (July 17), China’s path may not be a realistic option for domestic exhibitors.

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Microsoft launches ‘Plasma Bot’ to recruit recovered COVID-19 patients to help treat sick ones

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The antibodies in recovered patients’ blood may be an effective novel coronavirus treatment

Microsoft is launching a self-screening tool for people to check whether they qualify to donate their plasma in the hopes of creating a treatment for those with COVID-19, according to a company blog post. The tool is part of the company’s work with a group called the CoVig-19 Plasma Alliance.

When someone is infected with a virus, their immune system produces antibodies to fight it. Once the infected person recovers, they have these antibodies in their blood.

“The sooner recovered COVID-19 patients donate convalescent plasma, the sooner the Alliance may be able to start manufacturing a potential therapy and begin clinical trials,” according to the post. “These trials will determine if this therapy could treat patients who are at risk for serious complications from COVID-19.”
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‘The Batman,’ ‘Sopranos’ Movie Get New Release Dates

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Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. has shaken up the release calendar for many of its upcoming films — including “The Batman” and “The Sopranos” prequel, titled “The Many Saints of Newark.”

“The Batman,” starring Robert Pattinson and directed by Matt Reeves, was originally expected to debut June 25, 2021, and will now launch in theaters on Oct. 1, 2021.

Numerous films, including “The Batman,” have been forced to put production on pause due to the coronavirus pandemic. Movie theaters in the U.S., and in much of the world, have also mandated to close because of the global heath crisis, causing studios to reshuffle movies scheduled for summer and fall of 2020 and beyond.

As part of Warner Bros.’ announcement Monday, “The Many Saints of Newark” has been pushed from Sept. 25, 2020, to March 12, 2021.
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PlayStation 5 will reportedly be hard to find after it launches later this year, and it could cost as much as $550

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Sony’s new PlayStation 5 gamepad, the DualSense. Sony

This holiday season, next-generation game consoles from both Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox are expected.

Though we’ve seen parts of both consoles, and know plenty of details about both, one major question remains: How much?

In the case of the PlayStation 5, consumers could be looking at a price in the $500 to $550 range, according to a new Bloomberg report.

That unusually high price — $100 more than the launch price of the PlayStation 4 — is reportedly due to the console’s “ambitious specs,” which are driving Sony’s decision to price the console higher than in its previous generation. As a result, Sony is said to be producing fewer launch PS5 consoles than it has in prior generations as the company anticipates lower consumer demand due to the high price.

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How Lady Gaga’s ‘War Room’ Helped Global Citizen’s ‘Together at Home’ Special Come Together in a Flash

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Saturday night’s “One World: Together at Home” special will mark one of the few times in history that three top U.S. broadcast networks have joined together to air the same charity-focused entertainment special — and the first there’ve also been so many ancillary digital platforms on board, too, from Apple Music to Twitter to YouTube. The coronavirus-related cause looms large, of course.

But it’s also not such a hard sell to bring huge blocks of cable networks and streaming services on board for a simulcast when the talent lineup includes Lady Gaga (who gets a “curated in collaboration with” credit), Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, Lizzo, Billie Eilish, Elton John and dozens more.

Variety caught up again with Hugh Evans, the Australian-bred philanthropist who is the co-founder and CEO of Global Citizen, an organization that is campaigning in support of the WHO’s efforts to combat COVID-19.

When we last spoke, it was about Global Citizen’s daily music live-streams, which have produced moments both modest and newsworthy (as when Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello turned up for their first extended joint performance on the spur of the moment — something fans are likely to get more of in Saturday’s more formal telecast).

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The Boys season 2: release date, cast, plot and everything you need to know

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Note: Contains super spoilers for season one of The Boys.

It’s impossible to even think superhero fatigue is a thing after watching The Boys. Just a few minutes in, your eyes will open wide in shock and they’ll stay that way for the eight episodes that follow.

So it’s good news that The Boys has already been renewed for a second season. Announced by Amazon before the first season even aired, this sophomore effort will provide fans with even more opportunities to better understand The Seven while also diving deeper into the comic-book source material.

And Amazon’s commissioning confidence paid off: season one was a huge hit for the streaming service.

Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios, said: “We are thrilled that The Boys have surpassed our predictions for viewing in its first two weeks, and has become one of our most watched Amazon Original series by our Prime Video customers.

“This creates great momentum and excitement for us as we get ready for season two.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/B1MnhC4gt_j/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

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A First Look at Timothée Chalamet in Dune

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The first step of a hero’s journey sometimes begins with a push.

At the start of Frank Herbert’s science fiction epic Dune, the young royal Paul Atreides prepares to leave the comfortable life he knows for a desolate, dangerous mining planet known as Arrakis, where his wealthy family will oversee extraction of a spice vital to the galaxy.

If he only knew the chaos and death that awaited him, he might be even more sorry to leave.

This is the first look at Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides on his native planet of Caladan from this December’s film version of the novel, directed by Arrival and Blade Runner 2049 filmmaker Denis Villeneuve. The 1965 book was so seismic in its influence that its echoes still turn up in sci-fi and fantasy storytelling half a century later. Still, it has stubbornly defied appropriate adaptation itself.

Tomorrow, Vanity Fair will provide an even more expansive exploration of Villeneuve’s quest to bring Dune to the screen, but today we begin with the central hero: Paul Atreides, a child of privilege raised by a powerful family, but not one strong enough to protect him from the dangers that await.
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New Release Dates Announced for “Army of Darkness” – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack from Varèse Sarabande Records

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army of darknessThe captivating soundtrack for Sam Raimi’s 1990’s classic Army of Darkness, with a newly remastered score by composer Joe LoDuca is now available on CD exclusively from Varèse Sarabande Records and will soon be available on double LP in record stores.

The rescheduled CD release date is on April 10, 2020, while vinyl is on June 20, 2020. Previously, the CD and LP was schedule for release on April 18th release for CD and LP. But the LP release will be rescheduled in accordance with the recently postponed Record Store Day, which is now set for June 20th. The CD release has moved up a week to today, April 10th.

This double LP or single disc CD soundtrack for Sam Raimi’s 1990’s classic Army of Darkness film (a continuation of Raimi’s Evil Dead series, which also starred Bruce Campbell as Ash) features the original cover graphics with new notes and images, and a newly remastered score by composer Joe LoDuca. Years later, LoDuca continued to score Evil Dead projects through the Starz series, Ash vs The Evil Dead, which ran from 2015–2018. Army of Darkness is musically distinct, however, in having a secondary composer contribution: Danny Elfman’s (Batman, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, The Simpsons) killer theme “March of the Dead.”

The CD will be available exclusively at VareseSarabande.com and is available now available for purchase. As part of Record Store Day 2020, the vinyl version will be available on the rescheduled date of June 20, 2020 at thousands of independent record stores. A list of participating stores can be found at recordstoreday.com. For more info about the products visit VareseSarabande.com.

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Early coronavirus actions appear to be working in Washington state

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Earlier this week, soldiers from the 627th Army Hospital in Fort Carson, Colorado, were setting up folding panels to create cubicles for a new 250-bed field hospital in a major Seattle, Washington, sports stadium. By Wednesday afternoon, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee had announced that the hospital would be dismantled, and the life-saving health-care resources would be sent to other states that need them more.

In the battle against the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, that was the second time in just a few days that Washington’s governor said he had more help than required. On Sunday he announced he’d also be returning more than 400 ventilators to the Strategic National Stockpile so they could be sent elsewhere.

As the rest of the nation grapples with a rising death toll and the surging spread of coronavirus, early actions appear to be working in the state where the virus first surfaced in the United States.

Both of Inslee’s decisions come on the heels of a projection by modelers at the University of Washington that the state may well have hit peak demand for hospital resources, such as intensive care unit beds, on April 2. That was two weeks after the state shut down public schools and restaurants, and 10 days after the governor ordered residents to stay at home.

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