Pratt, Ice Cube, more debut new footage
By Lindsey Bahr, Film Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP) --Chris Pratt left the CinemaCon crowd in stitches with his irreverent, high-energy and slightly racy comments at the annual conference of theater owners Thursday. The actor, there to promote "Jurassic World" along with director Colin Trevorrow, introduced a sizzle reel of new footage from the dinosaur epic.
In the extended reel, audiences got a glimpse at the hyper-intelligent female dinosaur who throws the amusement park into chaos. She kills people and her fellow dinosaurs without hesitation and dinosaur handler Owen (Pratt) must figure out a way to stop her.
Seth MacFarlane, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Amy Schumer were also among the slew of surprise guests at the Universal Pictures presentation. The studio debuted unseen footage from many of their upcoming films, including "Everest," ''Crimson Peak" and "Straight Outta Compton" to the audience on the closing day of the conference.
Ice Cube, on hand to promote the N.W.A. origin story "Straight Outta Compton," praised Universal and its chairwoman, Donna Langley, for having the courage to make the film.
"We made it possible for artists to be themselves. That's why we're called the world's most dangerous group," said Ice Cube.
Raunchy clips were also shown from "Ted 2," and "Sisters," starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.
"'Ted 2' is a movie you can take the whole family to … if your whole family is over 18 and addicted to drugs," said MacFarlane.
"Everest," meanwhile, focused heavily on the harrowing danger facing the climbers, like Jason Clarke, and the effect on their worried and distant families, including a tearful Keira Knightley.
Guillermo del Toro also showed some frightening footage from his gothic romance "Crimson Peak," starring Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston and Mia Wasikowska.
"I wanted a theatrical, operatic spectacle that could be perhaps closer to a fairy tale in terms of how exquisitely designed it would be," he said before showing the audience the trailer, which features a bathtub spout that pours blood.
The studio furthermore announced official release dates for the "Fifty Shades of Grey" sequel: "Fifty Shades Darker" will be released on Feb. 10, 2017, and "Fifty Shades Freed" on Feb. 9, 2018.
Vin Diesel was also in attendance to announce that the eighth installment in the "Fast & Furious" series will be released on April 14, 2017.
"This was a very personal movie and the stakes are very personal. We really love each other, we really are a family. We felt that in the movie," he said, after a highlight reel of the "Fast & Furious" movies.
"It's hard for me to even watch that clip and come out here without being emotional. But most importantly, I mean it from the bottom of my heart, that you guys, you help us make this special."
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More