The action’s been fast and furious in the world of geek movies over the past few days, and we round up the news here.

New Mutants

Fox has rounded out their New Mutants cast with newcomer Blu Hunt, who will play Danielle Moonstar, according to The Hollywood Reporter.  Hunt, who is new to acting and whose most notable work until this point is a tiny recurring role on the current season of The Originals, was cast after an international search that prioritized ethnic authenticity for the Native American character. Hunt joins Masie Williams (Game of Thrones) and Anya Taylor-Joy (The Witch, Split) (see “Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy Cast in 'New Mutants'”).

Stranger Things’ Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Bryers) is in talks to play Sam Guthrie, aka Cannonball, THR reports. Rosario Dawson is also in talks for a role in the movie, which is planned as a horror film inspired by “The Demon Bear Saga” (see “Rosario Dawson In Negotiations For 'New Mutants'”).  The film is scheduled for release on April 13, 2018 (see “Best in Shows--Q2 2018”).

Dark Universe
Tom Cruise vehicle The Mummy is set to kick off Universal’s foray into a Marvel-modeled interconnected universe this weekend, and Dark Universe mastermind Alex Kurtzman revealed that the lineup won’t just be the Mummy, Dracula, and Frankenstein’s monster and his bride. Kurtzman revealed to Fandom that he also plans features based on Phantom of the Opera and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.  The interconnected monster movie universe also includes the Invisible Man, Dr. Jekyll, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon (see “Universal Unveils Its 'Dark Universe'”).

The "Dark Universe" moniker may actually prove problematic: Warner Bros. is reportedly mulling legal action because the studio already has plans for a supernatural-themed Justice League movie and a series of comics under the banner, according to THR.

Wonder Woman 2
Now that Wonder Woman has obliterated a number of box office records and proven that there is in fact an audience for woman-led and woman-directed blockbusters (see “'Wonder Woman' Gets Hollywood's Summer Back On Track”), one issue ahead of Warner Bros. is signing director Patty Jenkins for the follow-up, reports THR.  Unlike star Gal Gadot, the studio only signed Jenkins for one film, which is said to be SOP for Warner Bros contracts with directors taking on big-budget projects for the first time.  Negotiations are said to start soon and may cost the studio several million dollars for their lack of foresight if Jenkins’ team decides to strike a hard bargain.

Entertainment Weekly got a peek into the potential sequel in an interview with Jenkins, who revealed she already knows where it will be set: the good ole U.S.A.

The greenlighting of a sequel was first revealed by Zack Snyder on the Shanghai premiere red carpet (via ScreenRant).  There’s no word on when the sequel will resume Diana’s solo adventures, but Batgirl will reportedly hit the silver screen first (see “Joss Whedon to Direct Batgirl Movie”).

Godzilla:  King of Monsters
Legendary’s Godzilla: King of Monsters has added Bradley Whitford (Get Out, The West Wing) to an already stacked cast that includes Thomas Middleditch (Silicon Valley), Aisha Hinds (Underground), Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things), Vera Farmiga (The Conjuring), Kyle Chandler (Super 8), Ken Watanabe (Godzilla), and O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Out of Compton). No details on the character or plot were revealed. Godzilla: King of Monsters will be out March 22, 2019 (see “'Transformers,' 'Godzilla,' 'Witch Boy,' 'Aquaman,' 'Resident Evil'”).

Godzilla:  Planet of the Monsters
Speaking of Godzilla: the first film in a Japanese anime trilogy starring the king of monsters will be featured at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival this month.  The film, Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters, will officially open in Japan in November, and it will stream globally on Netflix before the year is out , per Anime News Network.  The anime centers on Haruo, who is part of a failed expedition to colonize another planet after kaiju take over Earth. He returns to an unfamiliar Earth changed and ruled by Godzilla.  The anime is co-directed by Kobun Shizuno (Detective Conan) and Hiroyuki Seshita (Knights of Sidonia) (see “Toho Plans 'Godzilla' Animated Feature”).

Tokyo Ghoul
{IMAGE_7}FUNimation has acquired the English-language license for the Japanese Tokyo Ghoul live-action film. The film is directed by Kentaro Hagiwara and stars Masataka Kubota (Death Note) as Ken Kaneki and Fumika Shimizu (Kamen Rider Fourze) as Toka Kirishima.  The film is set to debut in Japan on July 29, but Funimation did not reveal when the English subtitled version will be coming to American theaters.  The film is based on manga by Sui Ishida, a dark fantasy set in an alternate reality where ghouls that can only survive by eating human flesh hide among their unsuspecting prey.  VIZ Media has the English-language license for the immensely popular manga (see “'Death Note,' 'Naruto,' 'Tokyo Ghoul,' Junji Ito Collection, More”).