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James Gunn has defended the delay to 'The Batman' sequel.
The 58-year-old director - who serves as the co-chairmen and co-CEO of DC Studios - has taken to Threads to explain the delay to the sequel to the Matt Reeves-directed superhero movie, which was released in 2022.
James - whose directing credits include 'Guardians of the Galaxy and 'The Suicide Squad' - said on the platform: "To be fair, a 5 year gap or more is fairly common in sequels. 7 years between Alien and Aliens. 14 years between Incredibles. 7 years between the first two Terminators. 13 years between Avatars. 36 years between Top Guns. And, of course, 6 years between Guardians Vol 2 and Vol 3. (sic)"
Warner Bros recently announced that the sequel will be released on October 1, 2027, which prompted some fans to take to social media to express their frustrations.
The upcoming film is not actually part of the DC universe - but James observed that Matt, the director, will be desperate to do the best job possible, and therefore, he's determined to not rush the creative process.
James - who began his career as a screenwriter in the mid-1990s - said: "Matt is committed to making the best film he possibly can, and no one can accurately guess exactly how long a script will take to write.
"Once there is a finished script, there is around two years for pre-production, shooting and post-production on big films."
Meanwhile, Matt recently teased some details of his much-anticipated sequel.
The acclaimed director explained that there's "there's a lot more gray" in 'The Batman Part II', which will see Robert Pattinson reprise the role of Bruce Wayne.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Matt shared: "In the first movie, Batman views things very simplistically, he sees things in black and white. What he can represent and how he can affect that.
"As we enter into the next movie, there's a lot more gray. There's a lot more people at odds. There’s a lot more division in the city."
Matt observed that the sequel is "a lot more like our world is now".
The filmmaker also noted that Batman has to find his own space amid the "turmoil" in the world.
Matt said: "It's a lot more like our world is now, there's a lot of turmoil because people are in their camps and they're not communicating.
"How does Batman fit into that? Where do you fit? It's not as clear as going, 'Oh yeah, bad guy, I go after bad guys'. And when things are in gray, it makes it very hard to be Batman, so this is part of the challenge as we enter it."
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Packers make major position change in hopes of replacing Jaire Alexander
The Green Bay Packers are going to extreme lengths to replace former Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander, who was released earlier this spring before signing with the Baltimore Ravens. After trying wide receiver Bo Melton out at cornerback during minicamp practices earlier this summer, the Packers appear to have made that position change official, as training camp gets underway. Packers making Bo Melton a cornerback During the first practice of training camp, Melton, who the Packers originally signed in December 2022, was working with the cornerbacks and had officially changed positions. As the summer kicks into gear, the Packers need to figure out how to add quality depth at cornerback, not just to replace Alexander but also to fill out a depth chart at a position that’s critical in defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley’s scheme. Prior to changing positions, Melton had caught 24 passes, through his first 22 career NFL games, for 309 yards and one touchdown. However, given the influx of young talent at wide receiver and a desperate need at cornerback, head coach Matt LaFleur, Hafley and the Packers clearly believe that the 5-foot-11 and 189-pound former Rutgers standout has a clearer path to the field and adds more value in the secondary than at wide receiver.
NBA GM Defends Lakers' Dalton Knecht Amid Struggles
The NBA's summer leagues have quickly come and gone, and if there has ever been a truism about the showcase for rookies and other league longshots, it is this: Let what happens in summer league stay in summer league. For Lakers second-year player Dalton Knecht, that's certainly the hope. After struggling in the California Classic in San Francisco to start July, Knecht and the Lakers went to Las Vegas and there, the former No. 17 overall pick failed to turn around his fortunes. Knecht averaged 10.3 points in three games, shooting 27.9% from the field and 23.8% from the 3-point line. That showing, combined with a streaky rookie year (9.1 points, 46.1% shooting, 37.6% 3-point shooting) has left Knecht's future with the Lakers in some question. In fact, Jovan Buha of The Athletic noted this week that Knecht's stock has plummeted. Lakers Losing Value on Dalton Knecht? Remember, many considered Knecht to be a lottery pick in the 2024 NBA draft, but he fell all the way to the Lakers at No. 17, primarily on concerns about his age (he turned 24 in April) and defense. When the Lakers were set to trade Knecht in a package for Mark Williams of the Hornets last February, along with a future first-round pick, it was seen as the team giving up two first-rounders for Williams. But Buha said in his podcast that Knecht would not eb considered a first-rounder anymore. "Summer League has not helped Knecht's stock, and I don't think at this point he is valued as a first-round pick, in terms of an asset valuation," he said. "That was what I heard in Vegas from talking to multiple people, non-Lakers people, just gauging what would you give for Dalton Knecht? Or if the Lakers are putting Dalton Knecht in a trade, what is he worth? And the feedback I got was, no longer worth a first-round valuation." Dalton Knecht 'Can Shoot, He Has Value' But asked about Knecht's value, one Eastern Conference GM said that the summer did not change anything. "He is a shooter, and he has shown he can shoot," the GM said. "He needs to show he can do something else to get and stay on the floor, for sure. But his value has not gone anywhere, not based on a few summer games. Once you're drafted, it does not matter, no one is thinking of you as, 'You're a first-round pick, you're not a first-round pick.' It's what you can do to help us win. "Knecht can shoot, so that's his value. He rebounds his position. If he can be a better passer, and not be a big minus defensively, he is going to have a nice NBA career."
KOC Vikings nuggets: Dallas Turner, Jalen Nailor, backfield split, more
Prior to the team's first practice of training camp on Wednesday, Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell spoke to the media for a second straight day. Whereas Tuesday's session with KOC and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah focused more on J.J. McCarthy and the big picture, this one saw O'Connell asked about more specific topics, including a variety of different players. Let's take a look at some of the quick-hitting areas he touched on. Year 2 Dallas Turner The hype around Turner's second season has been building for quite some time. Back in minicamp, he made an incredible play in coverage 20 yards downfield, showcasing some of the versatility he brings to the table. He showed up to the offseason program looking bigger. He drew praise from teammates and from defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who said he views it as three starters in the outside linebacker room with Turner alongside stars Andrew Van Ginkel and Jonathan Greenard. O'Connell echoed that idea on Wednesday and said he's expecting big things from last year's 17th overall pick. "He came back from the jump, in the offseason program, just his body, the shape he was in, just looks so strong," O'Connell said. "I think he's gained a lot of strength, I think he's gained a lot of understanding of the role. With two Pro Bowlers at the position, to say that we feel like we've got three starters, we really feel like that. That's a testament to the work Dallas has put in. He's gonna get a lot of opportunities, different personnel groupings. ... Dallas has had a great offseason. I'm expecting a huge jump for him, starting today." Contract year Jalen Nailor Nailor, a sixth-round pick in 2022, broke out with 414 yards and six touchdowns last season. It was a strong year as the Vikings' No. 3 receiver, albeit with a few too many drops. This year, heading into the final season of his rookie contract, Nailor showed up to the offseason program in great shape and ready to go. "He had a great year last year," O'Connell said. "There's always gonna be some plays here and there that you want back, but I thought just the ability for him to step in early after Jordan (Addison) gets the ankle (injury) against the Giants, to have the training camp that Speedy did to be able to handle what we asked of him, not only in the weeks that followed but in that game against the Giants, to basically assume multiple roles, I thought that was really a precursor to what was a great year for Speedy, showing such versatility." Sporting a new number (he changed from 83 to 1), Nailor is in line to reprise his role as the Vikings WR3 in 2025. And if Addison ends up being suspended by the league for 1-3 games to start the season, Nailor would find himself in more of an every-down role again. "We'll see how these first few weeks look, what type of personnel we're gonna have for those games when we get all the information on our group back," O'Connell said. "Speedy could be a huge, huge contributor early and often, all season long, and that's my expectation. He's primed and ready to play a huge role in our offense." Backfield deployment One interesting question surrounding the Vikings' offense is how they'll utilize their two main running backs. Aaron Jones set a career high with 306 touches last year during the regular season, but the Vikings don't want him seeing that much usage this year at age 30. That's why they went out and acquired Jordan Mason from the 49ers via trade. The safe assumption is that it'll be a 1A/1B situation in Jones' favor, at least to start the year. "I think you can look at it a lot of ways with looking at Aaron and Jordan, but how I just said it is how I see it, it's Aaron and Jordan," O'Connell said. "We feel like we've got, truly, a combination that will cause a lot of problems, between having two great backs that are different body types, maybe different skill sets, but they're complete backs. "Aaron Jones can run in between the tackles, he can catch the ball, he can block in protection, he can line up anywhere in the formation. Jordan Mason has proven already to be well ahead of new players in this system from a protection standpoint, and clearly, he's got the body type to be a physical presence. So I really see those guys playing off of each other where we can keep them both fresh, keep them both in attack mode when they're in there." O'Connell also mentioned Ty Chandler, who is third on the depth chart but did some good things in the second half of the 2023 season. And there's fullback C.J. Ham, who is in his tenth season and will continue to have some sort of role in the offense in addition to his special teams duties. He even floated the idea of using Jones and Mason simultaneously. "Maybe we activate some two-back groupings where we've got Jordan and Aaron in the game at the same time," O'Connell said. "There's a lot of things, schematically, that we're gonna try." O-line configuration On Tuesday, O'Connell talked about Christian Darrisaw and Will Fries, the Vikings' two starting offensive linemen who are coming off of major season-ending injuries. Both players did enough in the offseason to avoid needing to start training camp on the PUP list, which is encouraging. Still, they're working their way back and won't quite be ready for team drills right away. Thus, with camp beginning, the Vikings' first-team O-line will look the same as it did during the offseason program: Justin Skule in for Darrisaw at LT, Donovan Jackson at LG, Ryan Kelly at C, Blake Brandel in for Fries at RG, and Brian O'Neill at RT. The interesting thing to follow is what happens when Fries is ready to step back into full participation at right guard. Will Brandel be given a real chance to compete with the rookie Jackson at left guard, or will he be used more as a versatile backup? O'Connell seemed to hint at the latter, even mentioning that Brandel could see time at a non-guard spot (presumably left tackle). "Blake is ultra-versatile," O'Connell said. "So however the reps work for Will, for CD, I see Blake seeing as many as three spots this camp and taking reps in every way possible. Because we want to have the best five out there, but we want to have the most versatile, impactful eight or nine guys that we know we can go to bat with that first game and feel great about however it goes."
The 'NFL QBs with the most 4-TD, 0-INT games' quiz
While rookie Jaxson Dart appears to be the quarterback of the future for the New York Giants, the signal caller of the present looks set to be veteran Russell Wilson. As Giants training camp for the 2025 season began this week, head coach Brian Daboll said Russ will be QB1 to start the year. "These guys will be out here competing, but Russ is our starter," Daboll said. Wilson, who recently said he wanted to play at least five more seasons, is entering his 14th campaign and is with his third new team in as many years. Which brings us to today's quiz. To go along with his Super Bowl title, Wilson has also accumulated 46,135 passing yards and 350 touchdowns. With that being said, can you name the NFL quarterbacks who have the most games with at least four passing touchdowns without an interception? Good luck! Did you like this quiz? Are there any quizzes you’d like to see us make in the future? Let us know your thoughts at quizzes@yardbarker.com, and make sure to subscribe to our Quiz of the Day Newsletter for daily quizzes sent right to your email!
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