"Greatest Showman" Posters Say "This Is... We"

Chris here. I have seen a few folks suggesting online that The Greatest Showman could currently be greatly underestimated in the Oscar race. Sure, we're talking about an opulent original musical with one of the biggest movie stars taking center stage, so dismissing it entirely from the conversation is perhaps historically unwise. While the trailer and first two released songs have gotten a decidedly mixed response, let's not underestimate the financial success of recent musicals during the Christmas holiday window - maybe this is a splashy musical with box office gold in its sights ahead of statues.

But its also perhaps wise to note that the film's promotional campaign is just beginning, and we've got some new character posters to ogle! Let's do just that and drum up some Oscar talk while we're at it...

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movies

• Deadline we didn't believe this would ever actually happen but supposedly James Cameron starts shooting today on his FOUR consecutive Avatar sequels with an estimated budget of over 1 billion dollars
• Cartoon Brew this year continues to be weak for animated features but next year's trailers are already popping up. Peter Rabbit anyone? And, in case you missed it...
• TFE Isle of Dogs trailer
• Cinematic Corner Sati always keeps us up to date on what Hugh Jackman is doing. Apparently he's making a movie called The Front Runner but, alas, it is NOT an adaptation of that famous gay novel that has never managed to get a movie made despite numerous rumors that it would become a movie over the decades. Instead it's a movie about the politician Gary Hart.

• Out how's this for an odd sounding project. Moonlight's writer Tarrell Alvin McCraney is going to script a musical for David Oyelowo and Disney that is a cross between Othello and Cyrano. What the what now?
• Coming Soon Julianne Hough and Tyler Hoechlin among the cast of the new biopic about the fitness pioneer family the Weiders called Bigger
•  Deadline potentially big news for anyone hoping for a Sharon Stone comeback. The actress, previously with Gersh, has now signed with CAA for representation in all areas
• The Atlantic mother! as a descendant of Antonin Artaud’s 'Theater of Cruelty'
• my new plaid pants Luke Evans new film Professor Marsden will be part of New Fest, the LGBT film festival. That's potentially awkward given his history!

tv

• The Ellen Show Sterling K Brown strips down and drives a tractor (?) for Ellen DeGeneres
• The Daily Beast Dynasty's Gordon Thompson comes out in his 70s. But he didn't play the often victimized gay character Steven Carrington on that 1980s blockbuster TV show but his evil half brother Adam.
• Vulture some fun comic nuggets about the new season of Will & Grace

randomness

• Londonist body art of famous painting on five models walking around Britain. The text keeps saying they're naked but they're not. They're all wearing pasties and underwear but it's still a neat art project if not cool "body painting". Give me Keith Haring in the 80s or Demi Moore in the 90s in their altogether. That was awesome body painting!

exit video

• Here's a cool video essay on the scoring of Wonder Woman

How Wonder Woman's theme music went from bombastic to smart from Dan Golding on Vimeo.

First Poster for "The Greatest Showman"

Chris here. Forgive us if festival season has us distracted from some of the bigger budget cinematic events to come in the months ahead. But rest assured that we are still plenty excited about Hugh Jackman's upcoming The Greatest Showman. An original musical so soon after La La Land feels too good to be true - no, this isn't adapted from the Coleman/Stewart musical Barnum - but we're curious if this also has a solid chance with Oscar. All of the design elements, as witnessed in that first trailer, look eye-popping and sumptuous - but will this be more than an entertaining time at the movies this holiday season? Composers Pasek and Paul might at least have a solid chance to return to the Best Original Song race after their La La Land win last year - they're our current trophy hogs after also taking the Tony for Dear Evan Hansen.

Here's your reminder that we've got a splashy musical coming our way - the film's first poster! Why so shy about selling its megastar, I wonder - especially with some of that Logan goodwill to capitalize on...

"Sunset Boulevard" Rumors... Again.

by Nathaniel R

She's baaaa-aaack. It's AS IF WE NEVER SAID GOODBYE

You may have heard that plans are afoot (again) to bring Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard musical to the big screen. It will be a Paramount Pictures production. For giggles, I was attempting to find an old article from the last time rumors spread that Glenn Close was going to transfer her Tony success to the big screen and republish it nearly intact "As If We Never Said Goodbye" to this rumor (haha. I'm here all week.) Alas, the article hid itself though I remember writing it. But what year to even search for such a thing? This rumor is perennial...

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Yes No Maybe So: "The Greatest Showman"

by Nathaniel R

A big moment in Trailerville has arrived! We have the first taste of the second annual Pasek & Paul musical / Christmas Oscar hopeful. Yes, we're pretending it's a franchise now post-La La Land. After the jump let's obsessively break down the first trailer for the Hugh Jackman party known as The Greatest Showman. We'll do it the way we sometimes do it when we're really excited about something since I maybe just watched this 7 times in a row but who's counting?

Curtains up. Hit the lights... 

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