We’ve had a LOT of major geek news within the past week or so, and fans have had plenty to discuss (not to mention the fact that plenty of people are still debating the Game of Thrones finale).
I couldn’t decide on just one topic for my weekly entertainment blog post, so I decided to try to cover all of them. 
I’m sure there will be opportunities to write about some of these in more depth later on, but here are some quick reactions to the biggest recent pop culture announcements.
Robert Pattinson is the next Batman?
From what I can tell, this is still in negotiation, even though entertainment reporters seem confident this deal will be locked in shortly.
The casting news comes as somewhat of a shock, and Pattinson does seem to be something of an unconventional choice.
However, that’s precisely why I’m excited about it. I trust Matt Reeves, director of the new Batman film and also some of the excellent Planet of the Apes reboot films. And it feels like so many times, there has been controversy surrounding the casting of a particular actor in a famous role (Daniel Craig as James Bond, Ben Affleck as Batman, and so on), and then the casting turns out to be spot on.
I love that the next Batman isn’t an obvious choice, and I’m looking forward to being surprised.
Christopher Nolan is directing an espionage film
What do “The Batman” and Christopher Nolan’s upcoming espionage thriller, “Tenet,” have in common?
They will both (apparently) star Robert Pattinson. And the fact that Nolan, one of my favorite directors, has tapped Pattinson to play a role in his new film makes me feel even better about Pattinson as the next Batman.
One of the things I love most about Nolan is that he likes to tackle all these different genres in new and exciting ways. I’m really intrigued by the prospect of an international espionage thriller from him, especially with such a fantastic cast list (John David Washington, Kenneth Branagh, Elizabeth Debicki, to name a few).
I don’t even need to see a trailer for this movie — I’m already excited.
What the new Vanity Fair Star Wars photos tell us about Ep. IX
I spent a long time yesterday (longer than I’m willing to admit) poring over all gorgeous new photos from Vanity Fair’s exclusive “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” photo shoot and trying to analyze what they may (or may not) be saying about the new film.
I know I’ve already looked over the photos multiple times and tried to piece them together with the shots from the trailer. Of course, we probably can’t read too much into many of them (some of them may be posed shots just for the magazine, or even potential misdirections).
But as a big sequel trilogy fan, these pictures make me so happy. I love that Vanity Fair is giving us matching magazine covers with both Rey and Kylo on them. The dynamic between these two characters is my favorite thing about the sequel trilogy, and I’m really curious to see how that plays out in Ep. IX. I also love the image of them fighting in the rain (maybe on the Death Star wreckage?).
It’s cool to catch glimpses of Keri Russell and Richard E. Grant, as a “masked scoundrel” and First Order officer, respectively. I can’t wait to see how these characters will tie into the larger story, and I think both these actors will be perfect for their roles.
I’m also excited to see Finn riding a really cool creature that I’ve been lovingly calling a “space horse” (technically, it’s called an orbak, but I just love saying the word “space horse”). Naomi Ackie’s character looks very cool, as well.
And it appears that the rumors were true and we will get to see the Knights of Ren in the movie! As much as I’d like to catch a peek at them in the next trailer, I’d also be okay if they were kept mysterious until we see the film in December. I’m 99% positive we’re getting a redemption arc for Kylo Ren, which could mean the Knights of Ren will turn on him (maybe they’re serving Emperor Palpatine’s Force ghost/presence/whatever he ends up being?).
Anyway, it feels like it’s been an eternity since “The Last Jedi” came out, and it’s nice to have some concrete, new Star Wars content to chat about!
Bidding farewell to Game of Thrones
As someone who hasn’t been watching Game of Thrones, it has been really interesting to see the audience response to the final season. I’ve heard both positive and negative, but regardless of what side you fall on, I think many of us were troubled to see a petition circulating trying to raise support to remake the final season.
This petition has a 0% chance of actually bringing about a remake, but it does raise some concerns.
While it is okay to be upset with a franchise and to give it a negative review, I am troubled by this recent trend of fan petitions. At the end of the day, creators have the freedom to choose to tell the story they want to tell, and I don’t think they “owe” the fans a certain ending. Again, it is okay to be disappointed with a story and to express those thoughts, but I think fandom is starting to become an unhealthy place, and that makes me sad.
This is too big of a topic to wrap up in just a few paragraphs, and I’m hoping to explore it in more depth sometime in the future, since this issue has popped up in the Star Wars fandom as well.
As a side note, now that Game of Thrones is finally over, I’ve actually just started watching the very first season. I’ve seen pretty much all the major spoilers by now, so I’m curious to watch the series and see how the ending will feel since it won’t catch me by surprise. I’m hoping to write about my experiences along the way, as well.
