Karl Urban Rumored for 'Aquaman' Villain Role; Noam Murro could Direct

Warner Bros. is already pushing ahead on their post-Batman v Superman roster of films, and the last couple of weeks have seen constant updates on the casting for Suicide Squad.  But they've also got solo movies coming up like 2018's Aquaman film starring Jason Momoa, and today a rumor has surfaced about who could be joining him on both sides of the camera.

Star Trek and Dredd star Karl Urban is reportedly being sought for a supporting role, possibly as the film's villain. Plot details are still under wraps so speculating on who he could play is premature, but if it's the villain the chances are it could be Black Manta or Ocean Master. A director still needs to be nailed down, and there's an update on that as well.

A couple of months ago you may recall that Jeff Nichols (Mud) was mentioned in leaked Sony emails as the movie's director, and Latino Review keeps his name in contention along with 300: Rise of an Empire's Noam Murro. Zack Snyder and Murro have worked together before and could be keen on doing so again.

So what do you think? Momoa vs. Urban? Aquaman will dive into theaters in 2018.

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Win Tickets to See 'The Loft' in Theaters!

Are you ready to head up to The Loft? We're offering our DC readers a chance to win Admit-Two run-of-engagement passes to see the new thriller, The Loft, starring Karl Urban, James Marsden, Matthias Schoenaerts, Eric Stonestreet, and Wentworth Miller. Directed by Erik Van Looy based on his original Belgian film, it follows five married men who buy a penthouse loft in the city to use for their illicit affairs. When they discover a dead body in the penthouse their sanctuary turns into a nightmare.

The contest runs until Friday, January 16th so enter now in the contest form below! The Loft opens on January 30th.

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James Marsden and Karl Urban keep a Dangerous Secret in Trailer for 'The Loft'

If it seems that we've been talking about The Loft forever that's because we have. The oft-delayed thriller, directed by Erik Van Looy as a remake of his own Belgian film, has been getting kicked around the schedule and between studios for a couple of years, but now it's suddenly on the verge of release so we've got a brand new trailer for it.

Starring Wentworth Miller, Karl Urban, Matthias Schoenaerts, Eric Stonestreet, and James Marsden, this skeezy flick follows a group of douchey friends who purchase a penthouse in the city to hide their extramarital affairs. When a woman turns up dead in their loft, it isn't long before the guys start turning on one another. This one has never looked that good despite all of the talent involved, but as a guilty pleasure it may be worth our time.

Head up to The Loft when it opens on January 23rd 2015.

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New Trailer for 'The Loft' starring James Marsden, Karl Urban, and Matthias Schoenaerts

There has been a lot of conversation lately about seemingly great movies that for one reason or another have been sitting on the shelf. Whether true or not it always throws the quality of the film into question because, obviously, if it was great a distributor would be twisting themselves into knots to get it out at the best possible moment. Right? In the case of The Loft, a thriller which has been bouncing between studios and juggling release dates for more than two years, does all the activity indicate some kind of promise in the material?

Directed by Erik Van Looy and based on the 2008 Brazilian film which he directed, The Loft has a cast worth getting excited about. James Marsden, Karl Urban, Matthias Schoenaerts, Wentworth Miller, Isabel Lucas, Eric Stonestreet, and Rhona Mitra star in a film that sounds like Very Bad Things kicked up a notch. It centers on five dudes who own a "fuck pad" where they can take their extramarital affairs, but when a dead body turns up it that kinda puts a damper on their horn-dogging. The guys start turning on one another, clues are being scrawled in blood, and basically this looks like the kind of low-rent thriller you find on Cinemax at 1am, but with a cast like that there's potential for a guilty pleasure.

We'll see if The Loft can hit its new January 23rd 2015 release date, or if Open Road Films backs down.

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Review: 'Walking with Dinosaurs', Starring Justin Long and John Leguizamo

Walking with Dinosaurs boasts that it's a family film that kids and adults will enjoy while being educational as well. So it's sad and disappointing to report that this film is neither enjoyable nor really all that educational. In fact, it's horrifyingly awful to sit through. With cringe-worthy dialogue and a long and unnecessary story, there's nothing about this film that stands out, which unfortunately shames the late '90s BBC series from which it originates. 

The film starts off with Ricky (Charlie Rowe), who's stuck in Alaska with his sister Jade (Angourie Rice) for vacation time with his uncle Zack (a surprising appearance by Karl Urban). Uncle Zack is a paleontologist who takes his niece and nephew on an excavation. Ricky is completely not interested in digging for dinosaur bones, until he comes across a bird who starts talking to him. Strangely enough, Ricky isn't freaked out by this notion, doesn't even flinch. 

The bird, named Alex (voice of John Leguizamo), then begins to narrate the rest of the story about Patchi (voice of Justin Long), a Pachyrhinosaur, who must survive through lightning storms, losing his parents, migrating south and compete with his brother Scowler (voice of Skyler Stone) for the love of Juniper (voice of Tiya Sircar). And yes, the last part plays out very anti-feminine and melodramatic, which made some of the kids in the theater to complain that they didn't know it was going to be a love story. 

Dinosaurs are interesting creatures. There's no doubt about that. There's also no doubt that this film intended to be better than it is, but there's no helping that now. The CGI is pretty extraordinary... and really, they should have left it at that because that's the only good thing anyone will most likely say about the film. Though it looks like the graphics were completed long before the dialogue was and they added it to better cater to kids. This makes it even worse. The film would have played better as a TV special minus the talking, because even people like Justin Long and John Leguizamo can't save this movie from a wretched script. Half the time, the dialogue sounds forced. It's extremely cheesy to the point of making everyone struggle while listening to the words. 

The story tries to make some drama, making rivals out of Patchi and his brother Scowler. The supposed love story between Patchi and Juniper is forced and a terrible example to give little girls watching because Juniper's only purpose in the story is to be caught between the two males. She doesn't have much of a personality and goes with whoever is running the pack at the time with no real sense of remorse. 

People underestimate children. The original 1999 documentary series is tasteful, educational, intriguing, and no-nonsense. It proves that documentaries about dinosaurs could be entertaining without making them into a children-targeted narrative. Children and parents alike were bored with this film. The dinosaurs never actually move their mouths, and the talking is so awful that watching a silent dinosaur film might have had more entertainment value. 

Besides having an abysmal plot and no mouth-moving seemingly telepathic dinosaurs, the only educational tidbits are the ones given after a new dinosaur is introduced. Alex the narrator will give us the name of the dinosaur, what the name means, and whether or not they're a herbivore or carnivore. Children will be more educated watching something like the original series or The Magic Schoolbus rather than this atrocity of a movie. 

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Karl Urban says a 'Dredd' sequel could still happen

Fans of the Judge Dredd comic books finally got to see their favorite lawgiver done proper cinematic justice in Alex Garland's Dredd. After being saddled with the awful Sylvester Stallone film for so long, Garland's take was perfectly in keeping with the dark, totalitarian vision John Wagner originally envisioned, and Karl Urban proved to be the perfect guy to be under the helmet. Although it didn't do much at the box office, it's rapidly become a cult favorite on DVD, and now Urban says it may be enough to get a sequel green lit.

Collider caught up with Urban to talk Star Trek Into Darkness, and the conversation turned to a potential Dredd sequel. Urban revealed that he had just met with Garland over and the subject came up....

Urban:“Interestingly enough, I did have breakfast with Alex Garland this morning. It’s not off the agenda.  Clearly everyone has woken up to the fact that an audience has found this movie and loves it.  It’s entirely possible, and if people want to see another installment then they should be vocal about that, because, it can happen.  The power of fandom can resurrect projects.  In fact, that’s what happened with Star Trek.  They weren’t going to do a third season until fans did a letter writing campaign and they continued that series.”

He doesn't sound too positive, honestly, but he's right that fans will largely control the sequel's fate. The first film was produced on a relatively small budget, and if there's a significant enough push at this summer's Comic-Con then a studio may be willing to take a gamble on it.

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Vin Diesel rules the dark in the first 'Riddick' trailer!

There probably isn't much demand to see Vin Diesel perform Shakespeare, but make no mistake, people turn up in big numbers to see him on the big screen. Fast & Furious has grown into a decade-long blockbuster largely on the strength of Diesel as the lead, but it's hardly the only franchise with a loyal fan base that he's at the head of. It was 2000's sci-fi sleeper hit Pitch Black that first made him a star, which was then followed up by the box office dud The Chronicles of Riddick. It should have died out there, but the series grew and thrived via video games and anime movies. Diesel always stuck by it, and after years of putting in the work, he and franchise director David Twohy are back with the third chapter, Riddick.

After a long wait, the first trailer has been released, and it definitely bears more than a passing visual resemblance to Pitch Black. Certainly it's less polished than 'Chronicles' was, and the fans were quite vocal that they wanted this to be a grittier, hard R-rated effort. The film sees the Furyan warrior Riddick trapped on a desolate planet inhabited by vicious creatures, and the only way off is to signal a rescue beacon that also alerts his many enemies to his whereabouts. Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy), and Jordi Molla co-star, along with Star Trek Into Darkness' Karl Urban reprising his role as Vaako.

Riddick will open in IMAX on September 6th.


Riddick - Trailer #1 [VO|HD] by addictomovie.com

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The 'Star Trek Into Darkness' trailer has landed!

It's been amazing how tight-lipped all have been in regards to Star Trek Into Darkness, and while that's par for the course on a J.J. Abrams film, it's really been taken to a whole new level this time. We still know next to nothing about it, even with a carefully-worded plot summary released just a few days ago. But now the curtain is being lifted, and we've finally got the first genuine footage from the film, and it's mighty impressive.

Taking a surprisingly dark tone, this one looks like it may be The Empire Strikes Back of Abrams' Star Trek franchise. Death and destruction rule the day as we see Benedict Cumberbatch's villain wreaking havoc on multiple locales, and displaying some imposing fighting ability, as well. We catch glimpses of the Enterprise crew here and there, but this is Cumberbatch's show. And it looks like maybe the Enterprise may be crashing and burning at some point.

With a 9-minute preview and a full trailer arriving ahead of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, I'm surprised they even showed us this much. There's also a Japanese cut of the trailer which has a slightly different ending, so you can check that out below as well. Star Trek Into Darkness arrives on May 17th 2013....

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Olivia Thirlby hopes to make a difference in new clip from 'Dredd 3D'

 

For a film that's going to make its money luring in those eager for some cinematic ultra-violence, the most recent clips from Dredd 3D have been pretty tame. Not sure what the marketing strategy is behind that, but I guess when you've got two talented actors like Karl Urban and Olivia Thirlby you want to show people they'll be doing more than just bustin' caps.

In this brief clip, rookie Judge Anderson(Thirlby) expresses her desire to actually help the people of crime infested Mega City One, rather than just blowing everybody to smithereens. Dredd doesn't seem to quite understand the point. Maybe my ears are deceiving me, but does Urban sound like he forgot to put on his throaty Dredd voice at the beginning? Let me know.

Dredd 3D opens on September 21st. Check out the clip below....[Digital Spy]

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Karl Urban is the law in new 'Dredd' clip

While nobody's expecting Dredd to be a masterpiece or anything, there's no doubt it looks like a more faithful interpretation of John Wagner's authoritarian comic series than that crap Sylvester Stallone gave us back in the 1990s. For a perfect example of how different the two movies are, you need look no further than this latest clip.

Karl Urban stars as the iconic, hyper-violent street judge who keeps the crime infested streets of Mega-City One clean....well, except for all the blood he spills in the name of justice. In this clip, Dredd calmly proclaims "I am the law" to the evil druglord, Ma-Ma(Lena Headey), while trapped in her 200-story vertical slum full of armed goons. Although the footage is brief, Urban seems to have Dredd's menace and moral certainty down pat, without feeling the need to overplay the character's most memorable catchphrase. By comparison, Stallone's was a campy, barely-intelligible bellow.  Dredd opens in theaters on September 21st. Check out the clip below, followed by the Stallone version...

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Extramarital affairs go violently south in the trailer for 'The Loft'

Remember when it was revealed that ex-NYC mayor and 9/11 coattail hangar Rudy Giuliani had his own private sex loft where he'd meet his mistresses? I think it was in one of the doomed WTC buildings or something. Well, take that idea and expand it a little bit and you've kinda got the set up for The Loft, one of those weird psycho-thrillers that was originally an even weirder foreign psycho-thriller.

In this case, it's the original film's director, Erik Van Looy, who is remaking it for our viewing pleasure. He's brought an interesting cast along with him, Karl Urban, James Marsden, Eric Stonestreet(the fat gay guy from Modern Family??), Matthias Schoenaerts(Bullhead), and Wentworth Miller starring as five married buddies who share a private loft(aka the "fuck pad") where they can bring their mistresses. Things go south when a dead body turns up, and shit starts to get Very Bad Things in a hurry.

While the production values seem kinda low, these are the kinds of flicks I really dig into, with a mystery surrounding a bunch of desperate people violently on the brink. Yeah, sign me up for this one. Unfortunately, there's no distribution deal in place, so don't be surprised if it winds up going straight-to-DVD. If it does, we'll let you know. Check out the trailer below, but you might want to watch it at home rather than work....

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Comic-Con News: Red band clip from 'Dredd' ramps up the bloodshed

You see that scowl on Dredd's (Karl Urban) face in the above picture? Maybe that's because he knows the trailer for Dredd, which came out a few weeks ago in late June, was kind of meh. Punch Drunk Critics' own Travis Hopson was somewhat into the trailer - noting how director Pete Travis "seems to have nailed the pulpy tone of the comic" - and he let us know about the new red band clip of the film that showed up at Comic-Con today.

What can you expect from Dredd, according to this clip? Lots of bloodshed, lots of plasma coming at you in 3-D, and lots of Olivia Thirlby still looking awkward as all hell as cadet Judge Anderson. Maybe it's the aggressively bad blond wig (... that hair isn't for real, right?) or her wide-eyed naivete, but something about Thirlby isn't working for me in this role.

Things that are working for me, though: Urban's super-on-point grimace as Dredd, the absurdity of these drug addicts (highness and guns don't mix, kids) and the slow-motion stomach-rippling action beginning at 0:18 in the clip. That unreal skin action is so obviously CGI, you have to respect that the movie is really being honest about its campy intentions. Based on this clip alone, I'm giving Dredd a tentative slow clap.

For the new 1-minute red band clip of Dredd, click below!

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Two new photos from the set of 'Riddick'

You wouldn't think it, but there seems to be some genuine heat behind Riddick, the second follow-up to Pitch Black. The franchise began as an underdog, earning sleeper hit status that year and helping catapult Vin Diesel into a proven franchise star. But big box office never really followed, even as Riddick was spun off into animated films and video games.

A couple of new images have emerged from the set, one of which is pretty freaking' awesome, with Riddick looking badass with what appears to be a massive bone behind his back. It was no doubt taken from one of the creatures he was forced to kill on the planet he was dumped on, to be pursued by every merc in the galaxy with a grudge.

Universal still hasn't pegged Riddick with a release date yet, but we'll likely get it some time in early 2013 when genre movies like this tend to flourish.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

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4 new images from 'Dredd'!

One thing you'll notice immediately after checking out these four new shots from Dredd is that the criminals appear to be dead in both pictures featuring them. Well, in one case it's Olivia Thirlby in the process of splattering one perp's brains all over the wall. There'll be no taking prisoners in this film, with Dredd and the of the elite Street Judges are free to execute thug they deem fit.

It's Thirlby, playing the psychic law enforcer Judge Anderson, that has me most intrigued. Karl Urban...y'know, we're probably not going to hear him say much if Alex Garland's script bears any resemblance to the Judge Dredd comics. And we definitely won't see him without his helmet. Thirlby, who I've always considered the true breakout star from Juno, is the one we're going to have to identify with. It'll be interesting to see her taking on something so vastly different than anything else she's ever done.

Just basing off the images we've seen so far, it looks like director Peter Travis is fixing all the mistakes from the terrible Sylvester Stallone film from 1995, which I might add didn't even have Judge Anderson in it. Pathetic.

 Dredd will open in 2D and 3D on September 21st. Check out the new images below...[2000AD]

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'Riddick' officially begins filming; full cast, plot, and new photo revealed

After what's been months of pre-production on Riddick, the latest in the science fiction franchise starring Vin Diesel that began way with 2000's Pitch Black, and continued with 2004's The Chronicles of Riddick. That film proved to be more of a cult favorite than a box office success, but Diesel has been wanting to keep the adventures of his Furyan warrior going ever since.  A couple of days ago, Vin Diesel's One Race Films, along with Universal, announced that filming on Riddick has officially begun in Montreal with David Twohy writing and directing. 

Along with the above new image the full cast has been revealed, and the end of any speculation regarding the return of Karl Urban as Vaako....

Riddick also sees the return of Karl Urban (Star Trek, The Bourne Supremacy) as Vaako and introduces to the series Jordi Molla (Bad Boys II, Colombiana) as Santana, the arrogant captain of the mercenary ship; Matt Nable (Killer Elite) as Boss Johns, a man looking for answers; Katee Sackhoff (TV's Battlestar Galactica) as the Nordic mercenary Dahl; and Bokeem Woodbine (upcoming Total Recall) as bounty hunter Moss. Rounding out the cast are Dave Bautista (The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption), Conrad Pla (Immortals), Raoul Trujillo (Apocalypto), Nolan Funk (TV's Aliens in America) and two-time Grammy Award-nominated singer Keri Hilson.

 We also got a more in depth plot, and it sounds like Riddick may have bitten off more than he can chew for once....

The infamous Riddick has been left for dead on a sun-scorched planet that appears to be lifeless. Soon, however, he finds himself fighting for survival against alien predators more lethal than any human he's encountered. The only way off is for Riddick to activate an emergency beacon and alert mercenaries who rapidly descend to the planet in search of their bounty.

The first ship to arrive carries a new breed of merc, more lethal and violent, while the second is captained by a man whose pursuit of Riddick is more personal. With time running out and a storm on the horizon that no one could survive, his hunters won't leave the planet without Riddick's head as their trophy.

What sticks out to me about everything is the character of Boss Johns, played by Matt Nable. Cole Hauser's character in Pitch Black was William Johns, and a mercenary who actually had Riddick in custody until circumstances forced them to work together....for awhile. So it's possible Boss is back and looking to get a little revenge for William's death. 


No word on when this will open, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it in early 2013.

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New image of Karl Urban in 'Dredd'

If Judge Dredd ever smiled I bet his face would crack. Then again that's hardly been the character's style, as he always looks like he's constipated or just got called to the principal's office or something. We've seen more than a few images of Karl Urban under the bucket helmet of Dredd, and Total Film has provided one more.

Directed by Pete Travis(Vantage Point), Dredd features the ultra violent lawman, given the authority of judge, jury, and executioner to help clean up the crime ridden streets of Mega City One. Olivia Thirlby co-stars as Judge Anderson, with Lena Headey as the villainous Ma-Ma. 

Dredd  is expected to open in 2D and 3D(of course) on September 21st.

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Karl Urban and Ben Barnes go into Overdrive

Pierre Morel struck action movie gold with his first two flicks, the kinetic street brawler District B13 and then Taken, which made being old and kicking ass cool again. Turns out third time wasn't the charm, though, as From Paris With Love fell into the category of bad John Travolta films where he has even worse hair(or in this case no hair). And while that may have set him back a little bit, Morel still has enough clout to get a film in the works for his protege, Antonio Negret(Seconds Apart), to direct.

Negret will direct Overdrive, a France set action pic which has just landed it's two leads in Ben Barnes(Prince Caspian) and Karl Urban(Star Trek). The script comes from Derek Haas and Michael Brandt, writers of Wanted and 2 Fast 2 Furious. The duo came up with the idea after spending 10 days in France, and discovering that Marseilles is a beautiful, cinematic city. No sh*t. The film was initially taken to Fox, who balked at the $30M budget, and Morel stepped in to fill the void.

The story centers on two adventurous brothers who get more trouble than they bargained for while in the south of France. Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke is in talks to play the female lead. Urban will be seen next in the Judge Dredd relaunch, and will be shooting the Star Trek sequel some time next year. Barnes has The Words, starring Bradley Cooper, and also recently took over the lead in the upcoming adaptation of The Seventh Son. [THR]

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From the Terminator to Judge Dredd; Lena Headey nabs primary villain role

Thanks to my Kevin and Josh Movie Show compadre Brendon Connelly over at BleedingCool for this story, which he picked up from a popular Judge Dredd fansite. Lena Headey, who most of my faithful fanboy friends will remember from The Sarah Connor Chronicles, has won the prime villain role in 'Dredd', the Judge Dredd relaunch directed by Pete Travis and starring Karl Urban and Olivia Thirlby.

Since I'm not much of a Judge Dredd expert, I don't recall if her character, Ma-Ma, was featured in the comics or not. She's described as "a woman in her late fifties or early sixties with a big scar through her cheek and lip."  Ma-Ma is the leader of a gang that takes over the Peach Tree City Block where most of the film will be taking place.

They better not touch that face of hers. Ah who am I kidding, she'll still be hot even with a fat scar across her mug. She's come a long way since I first thought she was awful in the 2000 teen thriller, Gossip. Now she's one of my favorites, and Dredd is turning out to be a film I'm really getting amped for.

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Judge Dredd officially retitled--Synopsis revealed

I'll admit it, the original Judge Dredd is a guilty pleasure of mine. This is not, however, the opinon of the masses. Most disliked if not hated the original flick starring Sylvester Stallone, which is why I found it odd that they were doing a reboot. Well it looks like they are trying to completely wash their hands of any sembelence of the original flick and have officially retitled the movie, Dredd. The film, starring Karl Urban as the helmeted peacekeeper, is already promising to stay true to it's comic roots and be a much less cartoonish, much more violent film and is vying for a hard R rating. Here's the official synopsis:

DREDD takes us to the wild streets of Mega City One, the lone oasis of quasi-civilization on Cursed Earth. Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) is the most feared of elite Street Judges, with the power to enforce the law, sentence offenders and execute them on the spot - if necessary. The endlessly inventive mind of writer Alex Garland and the frenetic vision of director Peter Travis bring DREDD to life as a futuristic neo-noir action film that returns the celebrated character to the dark, visceral incarnation from John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra’s revered comic strip.



Read more: Judge Dredd Movie Retitled ‘Dredd’; Official Synopsis Revealed | /Film http://www.slashfilm.com/2010/09/07/judge-dredd-movie-retitled-dredd-official-synopsis-revealed/#ixzz0yrxfiOCw

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Olivia Thirlby joins Judge Dredd

Oliva Thirlby is my favorite actress working today. Bar none. She was the highlight of Juno for me, not Ellen Page. She hasn't blown up the way Page has, but the roles she's taken since have been far more interesting. I'd count this as one of them, even if she's an odd choice for the part. Thirlby will be co-starring(along with Karl Urban) in the new Judge Dredd film currently in pre-production through DNA Films and Reliance Big Entertainment.

Thirlby will be playing Psi-Judge Cassandra Anderson, a spychic member of the force who's emotions often put her at odds with the rigid Dredd. Anderson is probably the 2nd most popular character in the Judge Dredd universe, having gained enough popularity to spawn her own spinoff series, so it's likely that she will play a pivotal role in the film. 

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