D23 Expo press releases are in, the Hollywood news is heating up, and it's time for a round-up!
Disney also dropped the trailers for Werewolf by Night and Secret Invasion (see trailers below). The Werewolf by Night black and white trailer features a werewolf hunter character named Verusa, who appears to be the leader of the house of Bloodstone. The Werewolf by Night comic book series was rebooted in 2020, presumably in anticipation of the new series (see "'Werewolf by Night' #1").
The Secret Invasion trailer sees the return of Nick Fury, played by Samuel L. Jackson, to Earth to stop a Skrull subversive plot. The trailer also features Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill, Ben Mendelsohn who plays Skrull Talos, and Don Cheadle back as James Rhodes/Warmachine as well as stars new to the MCU such as Kinglsey Ben-Adir, Olivia Colman, and Emilia Clarke. This series is set to drop in 2023 (see "Marvel Movie and TV News").
The Sandman (see "The Sandman’ Trailer") was the #1 streaming series on U.S. televisions in the week ended August 14 with 1.386 million minutes viewed, according to Nielsen’s weekly chart as reported by Media Play News. The series dropped on August 5, making this the first full week of ratings info since release.
Disney+'s upcoming Star Wars: Ahsoka series added Eman Esfandi to the cast, according to The Hollwood Reporter. Esfandi will play Ezra Bridger a force-sensitive ex-Jedi Padawan who turned freedom fighter who appeared in Star Wars: Rebels. This character is a fan favorite that made their first comic book appearance in Star Wars: Kanan The Last Padawan #1 (see "’Kanan: The Last Padawan’").
Negotiations between Warner Bros. and Dan Lin about becoming the new head of DC’s film and TV productions have ended unsuccessfully, according to Variety, and the search continues. Warner Bros. has made the decision to seek a single head to run all DC film and television projects, similar to the role Kevin Feige has at marvel, and felt Lin would be a good fit (see "Leader for New DC Head"). The biggest issue in negotiations was Lin’s role with his own production company, according to the report.