franklyHANK: Melissa McCarthy, Maleficent II, 'The Middle,' 'The Americans'
Hank is back with the latest entertainment news!
MELISSA MCCARTHY
Plainfield native Melissa McCarthy's upcoming film, "The Happytime Murders," has been in an ugly battle all week. Why, you ask? The film centers on humans and Muppets living together and what happens with the Muppets when children aren't around. These are some very adult Muppets. The tag line for the film is "No Sesame. All Street." The folks at Sesame Street thought that would confuse people into thinking this was a Sesame Street-connected film. Not likely based on the Red Band trailer below. On Wednesday, a judge ruled in favor of STX Entertainment, the producer of the film, and said it could continue using the tag line. The judge said Sesame Street could not prove people were confused and couldn't prove anyone had complained. So "The Happytime Murders" gets to keep its tag line. No Sesame. All Street. The film hits theaters August 17.
Check out the RED BAND trailer below, but you have been warned...
WARNING: May contain content offensive to some viewers.
MALEFICENT II
The evil queen is returning. Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning are in London this week as filming began on "Maleficent II," the sequel to the 2014 film. Returning to the film are Sam Riley as Diaval and Imelda Staunton, Lesley Manville and Juno Temple as the fairies. New to the cast are Michelle Pfeiffer as Queen Ingrith and Chiwetel Ejiofor in an unnamed role. No world on plot details or release date, but a good guess would be Summer 2020 as the original took two years to complete from start of filming.
"THE MIDDLE" SPIN-OFF
"The Middle" may be history on ABC ending its nine season run this month, but a spin-off is in the works. The spin-off would focus on Sue Heck, played by Eden Sher. No deals are signed so ABC is keeping mum right now. With the sudden cancellation of "Roseanne," the network will most likely move a midseason show up to the fall. If "The Middle" spin-off was picked up, it would most likely be a midseason replacement.
"THE AMERICANS"
After six amazing seasons, one of my favorite all-time series has come to an end, FX Network's "The Americans." Phillip and Elizabeth Jennings, played by real-life husband and wife Matthew Rhys and Kerrie Russell) are living in 1980's suburban Washington, D.C. They appear to be a normal husband and wife with two kids. They're not. They're Russian sleeper spies. The show is gritty, dramatic, high-stakes and some of the best writing on television. It's MUST-SEE! If you have Amazon Prime Video, you can watch the first five seasons for free. Season 6 is just $24.99. If you have access to the FXNow app, you can watch Season 6 for free! Check out the Season 6 trailer below!
