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Jeff Bridges bought and lives inside a crazy set from one of his old movies

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Actors sometimes take keepsakes from their sets — an outfit their character wore, or a cool prop.

But after starring in a movie that turned out to be a colossal failure and almost ruined its studio, Jeff Bridges thought bigger. 

Bridges starred in the now-infamous 1980 Michael Cimino movie "Heaven's Gate," an over-three-hour epic that looks at the Johnson County War in Wyoming. When filming wrapped in Montana, Cimino offered up the whorehouse set, known as the Hog Ranch, to his cast.

Bridges jumped at the chance to own the fake whorehouse.

"Every couple of years we'll watch the movie and it's like watching home movies, seeing the ranch on-screen," Bridges told Business Insider recently while doing press for his new movie "Hell or High Water" (out Friday).

heavensgatebdcap6_original united artistsBridges went into a little more detail about the purchase back in 2010:

“We disassembled the buildings, numbered the logs, put them on a flatbed truck, and drove 200 miles south to my and [wife] Susan’s ranch.

“Since that time we’ve added to the buildings a bit, but the core of the main house is built around the Hog Ranch. The bullet holes [from the film] are still in the walls.”

The Hog Ranch was a major location for the movie. The main character, James Averill (Kris Kristofferson), had a relationship with the house's madam, Ella (Isabelle Huppert). It's also the setting at the end of the movie when Bridges' character John and Ella are killed. The gunmen riddle the log cabin with bullets. 

The movie went on to become a box-office disaster that went down in the history books, earning only $3.4 million on a $44 million budget (a large chunk of money back in 1980).

Cimino, best known for the classic "The Deer Hunter," passed away in early July of this year. Bridges also worked with the director on "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot."

Though Bridges admits he hadn't talked to Cimino in years before his death, he believes "Heaven's Gate" has finally become accepted by audiences.

"He got a bad rap on 'Heaven's Gate,'" Bridges told us. "That movie, people are appreciating it more and more as time goes on."   

SEE ALSO: Jeff Bridges says he's all for starring in a "Big Lebowski" sequel: "It's a great idea"

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NOW WATCH: Disney just released 3 minutes of behind-the-scenes footage from the new 'Star Wars' movie


The biggest box-office hit the year you were born

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Back to the Future

Moviegoing has long been one of America's favorite pastimes, with blockbuster box-office earnings serving as a reliable predictor of cultural staying power.

Using both IMDb's and Box Office Mojo's lists of the highest-grossing films by year, Business Insider has compiled a chronology of the biggest box-office hits every year since 1975.

We adjusted global box-office receipts for inflation through 2016 using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' inflation calculator. We've also included critic ratings from Metacritic (on a scale of one to 100) and fan ratings from IMDb (on a scale of 1 to 10) for each film.

Several franchises are represented — "Star Wars,""Harry Potter," and "Pirates of the Caribbean" each make multiple appearances — as are Academy Award nominees and winners such as "Titanic" and "Rocky."

We used '75 as the cutoff because we found that worldwide figures before then were spotty and inconsistent.

Read on to find out the highest-grossing movie released the year you were born:

DON'T MISS: The 30 most expensive movies ever made

AND: RANKED: The 10 movies most likely to dominate this summer

2015: "Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens"

Adjusted gross: $2.07 billion

Unadjusted gross: $2.07 billion

Critic rating: 81

Fan rating: 8.3

Plot summary"Three decades after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, a new threat arises. The First Order attempts to rule the galaxy and only a ragtag group of heroes can stop them, along with the help of the Resistance." 



2014: "Transformers: Age of Extinction"

Adjusted gross: $1.12 billion

Unadjusted gross: $1.1 billion

Critic rating: 32

Fan rating: 5.7

Plot summary"Autobots must escape sight from a bounty hunter who has taken control of the human serendipity: Unexpectedly, Optimus Prime and his remaining gang turn to a mechanic, his daughter, and her back street racing boyfriend for help."



2013: "Frozen"

Adjusted gross: $1.31 billion

Unadjusted gross: $1.28 billion

Critic rating: 74

Fan rating: 7.6

Plot summary"When the newly crowned Queen Elsa accidentally uses her power to turn things into ice to curse her home in infinite winter, her sister, Anna, teams up with a mountain man, his playful reindeer, and a snowman to change the weather condition."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The full trailer for the next Star Wars movie is finally here

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Disney just debuted the first full trailer for "Rogue One." Set before the events of the first "Star Wars" movie, the film tells the tale of the group of Rebels who stole the plans for the original Death Star.

Video courtesy of Disney.

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RANKED: The 10 most successful superhero movies ever

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Superheroes are a crowded business these days.

While they've been with us for a long time, with blockbusters along the way (Superman in the 1970s and Batman through the 1980s, '90s, and '00s), the superhero genre didn't become the many-tentacled beast it is today until Marvel realized the possibilities of its movie universe under Disney.

"The Avengers," in retrospect, was an expensive gamble (for the actors' salaries alone), but it has paid off handsomely even if critics don't always love the franchise's movies. At the same time, DC Comics has struggled to keep up with its major competitor.

"Suicide Squad," DC's latest, is reviled by critics, and it is projected to have a steep drop-off this weekend after a record August opening, which will most likely keep it off the list of the most prized superhero movies.

Below are the highest-grossing superhero movies at the domestic box office of all time:

*Note: figures, from Box Office Mojo, are adjusted for inflation, to keep things fair.

SEE ALSO: The 30 most expensive movies ever made

10. "Iron Man 3" (2013) — $422,680,300

Unadjusted: $409,013,994



9. "Spider-Man 3" (2007) — $423,597,700

Unadjusted: $336,530,303



8. "Avengers: Age of Ultron" (2015) — $463,543,100

Unadjusted: $459,005,868



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The new Han Solo movie is casting a young version of this beloved 'Star Wars' character

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It looks like the upcoming young Han Solo movie is going to include a close friend of the space smuggler.

The movie, which is being directed by "The Lego Movie" and "21 Jump Street" franchise directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, is looking to cast a young Lando Calrissian, according to The Wrap.

The character, immortalized by actor Billy Dee Williams in "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi," has a history with Solo. Calrissian lost the Millennium Falcon to Solo in a card game before we met Solo (played by Harrison Ford) in the first movie in the original "Star Wars" trilogy, "A New Hope."

Lando is a fan favorite, in spite of (or because of?) the fact that, in "Empire Strikes Back," he betrays Han Solo and gives him up to Darth Vader. Though Lando immediately regrets the decision.

No word yet on who Lucasfilm/Disney is thinking of for the role or auditioning, but fans should be excited to see these two characters alongside one another once again. 

Alden Ehrenreich has already been cast as the young Han Solo. The movie will be released in theaters May 2018.

SEE ALSO: How this director went from making small indie movies to Disney's $65 million new blockbuster

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NOW WATCH: The directors of 'Catfish' and 'Nerve' reveal how to make it in Hollywood without going to film school

Matt Damon remembers his incredibly emotional scene with Robin Williams

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In a new interview, Matt Damon gave a moving recollection of a famous scene from "Good Will Hunting" that he acted in with Robin Williams, who died two years ago on August 11, 2014. 

Speaking with JOE.ie, Damon recalled Williams' performance in the emotional park-bench scene.

"I had probably one or two lines in that. It was Robin's scene," Damon said. "And when he was just crushing it on the first take, I just went, 'This is gonna be really good.'"

Damon went on to describe how he recently took his family to Boston Commons to visit the same bench where the scene was filmed. 

"I walked over there with my family and we sat on the bench," he said. "The kids didn't know, they've never seen the movie, they're too young. But it was nice to go back and think about him back there."

"Good Will Hunting" received nine Academy Award nominations in 1998. Damon and Ben Affleck won for best original screenplay, and Williams won for best supporting actor, his first and only Oscar. 

Watch the interview and a clip from the scene below:

SEE ALSO: The 10 best Matt Damon roles that aren't Jason Bourne

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NOW WATCH: The directors of 'Catfish' and 'Nerve' reveal how to make it in Hollywood without going to film school

Legendary director Werner Herzog just gave the most brilliant explanation of Kanye West

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There aren't many people in the world who can captivate like the German filmmaker Werner Herzog.

Known best for his captivating documentaries ("Little Dieter Needs To Fly,""Grizzly Man") and narrative films ("Fitzcarraldo,""Aguirre, the Wrath of God"), he also has a distinct voice that is both poetic and extremely frank.

So who better to provide a commentary on Kanye West's now-infamous music video for "Famous"? The shaky, handheld-shot, 10-minute video shows imitations of some of the most famous people in the world all naked in bed together, with West and his wife, Kim Kardashian, alongside Taylor Swift, Donald Trump, Rihanna, and Bill Cosby.

"I've never seen anything like this," Herzog told The Wrap. "It shows us that the internet can be well beyond 60-second cat videos, although I like them as well."

Herzog's next movie, "Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World" (in theaters August 19), looks at the good and bad of the internet. He sees West's "Famous" video as a perfect commentary on how celebrity is mediated on the internet, what Herzog calls the "inventive self."

"Understanding of self has deeply and radically changed," the director said.

Watch the NSFW "Famous" video below with Herzog's commentary.

SEE ALSO: The 10 most successful superhero movies ever

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NOW WATCH: The directors of 'Catfish' and 'Nerve' reveal how to make it in Hollywood without going to film school

Here's what we learned about 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' from the explosive new trailer

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It's four months and counting until the new "Star Wars" standalone film "Rogue One" premieres, and the excitement and anxiety aren't waning — especially not after the new trailer that aired during the Olympics Thursday night.

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" takes place in between the events of the third and fourth episodes, "Revenge of the Sith" and "A New Hope." It follows a Rebel Alliance mission to steal the plans to the Death Star before the Galactic Empire can use it for evil.

There's no "Inception"-like horn in the new trailer, but there is plenty of imagery of the Death Star, Jedha (which is like the Mecca for believers of the Force), the modern C-3PO comic-relief droid, battles with blasters, and more.

Oh, and we have the first look at Darth Vader.

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" hits theaters December 16. In the meantime, theorize with us about what all of these new images from the trailer mean:

SEE ALSO: Everything you need to know about the next 'Star Wars' movie, 'Rogue One'

DON'T MISS: The Death Star returns in this amazing new poster for the next 'Star Wars' movie 'Rogue One'

A stripped-down, slower, and somehow more intimidating version of "The Imperial March" plays. Could this location be Jedha, the source of the power of lightsabers?

Read more about Jedha.



Our new look at Forest Whitaker's Saw Gerrera. Either they revamped his look in reshoots or Saw aged really quickly from the last trailer. Saw is a "battled veteran," according to the Star Wars Databank, and lives on Jedha to plan a mission against Imperial forces. But this trailer makes him seem a little battered so it's likely Jyn (Felicity Jones) is going to have to convince him to help out.

See Whitaker's look in the first trailer.

Source: Star Wars Databank



The Imperial force is growing, and this Star Destroyer is actually hovering over the city seen in the first image of the trailer — notice the pyramid structure. Considering the Rebel Alliance and Imperial Army are both going to end up fighting over the source for lightsabers, to which Jedha is home, this still is probably right before some major battle within this city on the planet.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

'Sausage Party' directors reveal the one deleted scene too extreme for the movie

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Sausage Party

Warning: This post contains some spoilers for "Sausage Party."

"Sausage Party" is the first computer-generated animated R-rated movie. It wears that distinction as a badge of honor.

But in a recent interview with INSIDER about their film, co-directors Conrad Vernon and Greg Tiernan admit the line had to be drawn somewhere.

For anyone not familiar with the movie, "Sausage Party" takes place in a grocery store come to life. It's like "Toy Story," but a whole lot darker and dirtier. The movie stars a hot dog named Frank (Seth Rogen), a bun named Brenda (Kristen Wiig), and many other edible characters who find out what really happens when they leave the grocery store.

With sex scenes between food items and some shocking violent deaths played for laughs, "Sausage Party" pushes some serious limits. And for the most part, the directors say they enjoyed masterminding those scenes.

"There are too many people lining up out there to censor you, so why censor yourself?" Tiernan tells INSIDER. "Do whatever the hell you want to do first, then start pulling it back where you need to be after that."

Sausage Party

But Tiernan and Vernon admit that a number of "horrific" human deaths just didn't make the final cut. One particularly gruesome scene stands out in their minds.

"[The food] put a woman into a grocery cart and rolled her down an aisle. When she bashed into a counter at the deli section, she went flying through the glass of the rotisserie chicken thing and she got impaled and started turning around like the rotisserie chicken," Vernon told INSIDER.

This moment would have happened in the middle of a scene in which the entire grocery store rebels against their human overlords. The creative team wanted each human to die in "similar ways to how humans treat food." However, they could tell this one was pushing it. So they talked it over with co-writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, who originally came up with the movie's concept about 10 years ago.

Sausage Party

"So, we had a lot of heavy stuff in there where we said, 'you know what? This isn’t funny anymore. This is just getting uncomfortable. So let’s not do that,'" Tiernan said.

Clearly, a movie this gratuitous could only be made by filmmakers this thoughtful.

"We tried to step back as much as we could when it turned gratuitous or it didn’t have anything to do with the story or entertainment value," Vernon added. It seems to have worked — so far, "Sausage Party" is getting great reviews.

"Sausage Party" is now playing in theaters.

SEE ALSO: Seth Rogen's 'Sausage Party' is vulgar and hilarious, but also about something deep

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NOW WATCH: This is how sausage is made

Here's the trailer for Brad Pitt's new World War II spy thriller

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Set during World War II in Casablanca, Morocco, and based on a true story, "Allied" stars Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard as two spy assassins who fall in love during a mission to kill a German official. 

Don't worry, this looks a little better than Pitt's last assassin love story, "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," in which he starred alongside his future wife Angelina Jolie.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump,""Cast Away"), it looks to have eye-popping special effects (he also did the World Trade Center high-wire walk movie "The Walk") and some thriller aspects.

Watch the teaser below. The movie opens in theaters November 23.

SEE ALSO: 15 stars you didn't know used to be on "Saturday Night Live"

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NOW WATCH: Nobody wants to buy 50 Cent's massive $6 million mansion

Donald Glover is reportedly the first choice to play young Lando in a new 'Star Wars'

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Shortly after the news broke on Thursday that the Han Solo standalone movie is looking to cast a young Lando Calrissian, we now have our first report of an actor who could play the part.

"Community" star Donald Glover is the first choice for the role, according to Birth Movies Death.

The actor will star next in the FX series "Atlanta," and is set to star in "Spider-Man: Homecoming."

The Birth Movies Death story states that it's unknown if an offer has been sent out to Glover's camp yet, but from what he showed in "Magic Mike XXL," Glover certainly can pull off the suave hustler style that Billy Dee Williams gave the character in "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi."

For Glover fans out there, the good news is that after going through thousands of actors for the role of young Han Solo, directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller ultimately went with their first choice for the part, Alden Ehrenreich.

So if Glover is in fact their first choice for Lando, and Glover wants the role, this could all be settled soon.

The untitled young Han Solo movie will come out in theaters May 2018. 

SEE ALSO: The 10 best and worst TV shows this summer

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NOW WATCH: 7 things you missed in the new Star Wars Rogue One trailer

Channing and Jenna Dewan Tatum just recreated their 'Step Up' dance

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The most perfect celebrity couple just became even more perfect. Thursday was the 10th anniversary of Step Up, so what better way to celebrate that than by watching Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum recreate their Step Up dance? Yes, it's amazing as it sounds. To be clear, it wasn't the last big number of the movie they danced, but rather than the one where their characters, Nora and Tyler, are on the rooftop being all romantic. The Tatums shared their recreation via Snapchat and wrote alongside the short video, "We had to."

10 years later the chemistry between them is still very much there. Shocking, I know. Dewan Tatum and Tatum are also still fantastic dancers, which just goes to show you that age is just a number. They've only gotten better with time. Not that they're "old" or anything, but you know what I mean.

Back to their recreation, either the choreography is ingrained in them or they re-watched the movie to make sure the dance was exactly like the one from Step Up. Of course, they also danced to the same song from the film, "U Must Be" by Gina Rene.

Now, enough chit-chat. Let's watch their recreation and compare it to the original:

 

 Anyone else get chills? They know how to make me swoon. OK, now for the Step Up version:

If you scroll to the 0:36 mark, you'll see the lift Dewan Tatum and Tatum are doing in their snap. Yeah, it's pretty much the same, save for Tatum holding the Supergirl star rather than setting her down. Oh well, who cares, because both versions are beyond flawless.

Thank you to these two for not only bringing Nora and Tyler into our lives, but for showing us that true love does actually exist in Hollywood.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A nutrition expert reveals how often you should eat to look better

Ex-Warner Bros. employee writes scathing letter to studio head: 'What are you even doing?'

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It has been a mixed year for Warner Bros. Though New Line Cinema, which the studio owns, has done strong with "How To Be Single,""Me Before You," and "Lights Out," the major Warner Bros. titles have suffered.

The DC Comics properties "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" and "Suicide Squad" have been leveled with negative reviews and underperformed after having record-breaking opening weekends.

Now an alleged ex-employee of the studio has written a scathing and widely circulated open letter and posted it on the site Pajiba, laying the blame on studio head Kevin Tsujihara.

The anonymous writer, going by the name "Gracie Law" (Kim Cattrall's character in "Big Trouble in Little China"), explained that after seeing "Suicide Squad" she finally decided to finish the letter that she began a year ago after seeing "Man of Steel."

"You, your executive team, and the vision of your 'extraordinary storytellers' that resulted in the loss of around one thousand jobs seem intent on crashing the ship into as much s--- as you can find in the ocean by making inane decisions over and over again," wrote Law, who states she was at Warner Bros. in 2014 when 10 percent of the workforce was laid off.

zack snyderAnd Law didn't have nice things to say about director Zack Snyder, who directed "Batman v Superman" and is handling the upcoming "Justice League." He's also a producer on all the DC Comics movie titles.

"Zack Snyder is not delivering. Is he being punished? Assistants who were doing fantastic work certainly were. People in finance and in marketing and in IT," Law wrote. "They had no say in a movie called 'Batman V Superman' only having 8 minutes of Batman fighting Superman in it, that ends because their moms have the same name."

Law also doesn't hear good things about the much-anticipated "Wonder Woman" movie, and she once more goes after Tsujihara:

"What are you even doing? I wish to God you were forced to live out of a car until you made a #1 movie of the year. Maybe 'Wonder Woman' wouldn't be such a mess. Don't try to hide behind the great trailer. People inside are already confirming it's another mess. It is almost impressive how you keep rewarding the same producers and executives for making the same mistakes, over and over. 

"If I worked at a donut stand, and I kept f---ing up donuts, I'd be fired. Even if I made a tiny decent one every now and then, it doesn't matter. I'm gonna get fired."

Read the entire open letter at Pajiba.

Business Insider reached out to Warner Bros. for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

SEE ALSO: The list of rumored cut scenes from "Suicide Squad" reveals a much darker original movie

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NOW WATCH: The directors of 'Catfish' and 'Nerve' reveal how to make it in Hollywood without going to film school

How this tech heiress became one of the most powerful movie moguls in Hollywood

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Megan Ellison, the 30-year-old daughter of billionaire Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, has cut a distinctive path in the film industry since she founded Annapurna Pictures, an independent production company, in 2011. 

By financing hit films like "Zero Dark Thirty" and works by lauded directors like David O. Russell, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Spike Jonze, Ellison has earned a reputation as a producer who takes on the potentially great films that major studios won't touch.

Seth Rogen's new animated comedy "Sausage Party" — which critics are loving — would not have been possible without Ellison's financing, and many other successful projects have emanated from Ellison's vision and pocketbook over the past few years. 

Read on to see how Megan Ellison became one of the most influential producers in Hollywood and a savior of great films:

SEE ALSO: Seth Rogen's 'Sausage Party' is vulgar and hilarious, but also about something deep

Megan Ellison was born in Santa Clara County, California in 1986. Her father, Larry Ellison, cofounded the Oracle software corporation in 1977. He is currently the fifth richest man in America.

Source: Forbes



Ellison attended the University of Southern California film school for one year before dropping out in 2005 to pursue low-budget film production for several years.

Source: Vanity Fair



In 2011, on her 25th birthday, Ellison received a check from her father Larry for "what a source says was $200 million, with similar sums soon to come," though some have speculated that it was closer to $2 billion.

Source: Vanity Fair



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Daniel Radcliffe said he would punch someone to work with this director

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Daniel Radcliffe really wants to work with Wes Anderson.

So much so that the actor said he would punch someone for the opportunity to work with the "Grand Budapest Hotel" and "Royal Tenenbaums" director.

"Me and another actor friend of mine once had a conversation about directors we would legtimately maim somebody else to work with — not so that the person would suffer any permanent damage but if you said you can get to work with this person if you just punch someone, would you do it?" Radcliffe said during the Q&A portion of a TimesTalks promoting his new film "Imperium.""And it ended up being Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, Quentin Tarantino, and the Coen brothers, for me. I like people who make weird movies, as is becoming apparent as I list them."

"Imperium" director Daniel Ragussis said his actor of choice would be Daniel Day-Lewis.

"You're obviously just going to get us naming the best people in the world," Radcliffe joked with the audience member who asked which director he'd like to work with.

Radcliffe has expressed his interest in working with Wes Anderson before, when he answered the same question in a Reddit AMA in 2014.

"It's directors I suppose I get more excited about than actors," Radcliffe said in the AMA.

Watch the TimesTalks interview, including the audience Q&A, with Daniel Radcliffe and "Imperium" director Daniel Ragussis:

SEE ALSO: Daniel Radcliffe thinks we should consider calling all gun crimes 'a form of terrorism'

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The directors of 'Catfish' and 'Nerve' reveal how to make it in Hollywood without going to film school


Every character in 'Suicide Squad,' ranked

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It’s time to finally see “Suicide Squad,” one of the most anticipated movies of the summer. But we have to warn you, there are a lot of characters to digest.

From some that show up for what seems like seconds, to others that are on-screen for way too long, and one we wish we could have seen more (we’re talking to you, Panda Man), the latest DC Comics movie throws a lot at you in two hours (don't get us started with all the music queues).

Here we break down all the characters and rank them from worst to best.

Mild spoilers ahead.

SEE ALSO: Here's the biggest problem with "Suicide Squad," and how it could've been fixed

21. Slipknot (Adam Beach)

With one of the most distasteful introductions in movie history as he walks out of an SUV and immediately decks a female guard with a right hook, there's really nothing else memorable from the guy who can climb anything. Might have been best to leave him on the cutting-room floor.



20. Enchantress (Cara Delevingne)

The evil witch who likes to shake her hips is the cause of all the trouble in the movie. But played by an actress who is still learning her craft, the character feels forced.



19. The Flash (Ezra Miller)

One of the last-second additions to the movie, The Flash literally says one line and, like his power, is gone. Just teasing us for Erza Miller coming in "Justice League." 



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

'Suicide Squad' wins the box office for a second week, though with a dramatic decline

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What many feared about "Suicide Squad" in its second week in theaters looks to be coming true.

Following a record-breaking opening weekend, the latest DC Comics release by Warner Bros. only took in an estimated $43.8 million.

That's a disappointing 67% decline in gross from last weekend (previous DC Comics movie "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" had a 69.1% drop its second weekend).

On top of the bad word of mouth "Squad" is receiving, the movie also faced some stiff competition this weekend.

The Seth Rogen comedy "Sausage Party" exceeded expectation with a strong $33.6 million opening weekend, coming in second place.

That's the largest opening ever for an animated movie released in August.

An impressive figure for an R-rated animated comedy about food that learns what their real fate is when humans purchase them from the store.

sausage party dom SPFP 105_rgbSony, which released the movie (produced by Annapurna Pictures), was bullish about their latest collaboration with Rogen and producing partner Evan Goldberg (its previous Rogen/Goldberg release was the now infamous "The Interview," which led to the Sony hacks).

The studio held numerous special screenings in New York and LA before the release that featured prescreening hors d'oeuvre, drinks, and a large sausage mascot walking around. Rogen and Goldberg also hosted had strong screenings at South by Southwest and San Diego Comic-Con.

Then there was the Disney release "Pete's Dragon," which gives a completely different story to the movie of a young boy and his best friend that's a dragon, which originally came out in 1977.

The movie came in third with $21.6 million. Though it's one of the few titles by Disney that will likely not be turned into a franchise, the movie received an impressive 85% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and proved to Disney that director David Lowery, known for his independent film work, can work within their system. They will swing for the fences on Lowery's next project for them, "Peter Pan." 

SEE ALSO: Here's what we learned about "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" from the explosive new trailer

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NOW WATCH: The directors of 'Catfish' and 'Nerve' reveal how to make it in Hollywood without going to film school

Why Hollywood hasn't learned anything from a miserable summer of box-office bombs

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It turns out there isn't mass hysteria at the major movie studios following a weak summer movie season, in which ticket sales were down 10% from last year.

In fact, moviegoers should expect little change in the kinds of movies that are released over the summer in the next few years, according to industry players who talked with Business Insider. So get ready for the endless stream of superheroes and franchises to continue apace.

Last year broke records at the box office. Domestic earnings totaled over $11 billion, and Universal topped all studios after it earned over $5.5 billion worldwide thanks to summer releases "Jurassic World" and "Minions," each of which earned over $1 billion worldwide.

This summer has had a few big hits, too. "Finding Dory" has made over $871 million to date, and "Captain American: Civil War" is the latest Marvel movie to earn over $1 billion worldwide.

But many titles over the summer didn't live up to the hype.

"Warcraft" hasn't even crossed the $50 million mark at the domestic box office. (It's at $47.2 million — though it's done much better overseas at over $385 million.) Steven Spielberg's "The BFG" has puzzled audiences and is one of the rare Disney titles not connecting with them this year, as it has only taken in $113 million worldwide (the worst wide release ever for a Spielberg film). And "The Legend of Tarzan" has done modestly, with $335 million worldwide.

And then there are the poor performances by numerous sequels that, frankly, no one asked for.

zoolander 2 thumb"Independence Day: Resurgence,""Alice Through the Looking Glass,""Zoolander 2," and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows" are some of the major summer sequels that seemed to be made more for business reasons by studios — many of them paying a pretty penny for the intellectual properties — rather than genuine interest from creatives or fans.

"Keeping up with trends is essential for the lifeblood of a studio," Jeff Bock, a senior box-office analyst at Exhibitor Relations, told Business Insider. "This is a message from moviegoers: Stop with the formulaic sequels."

Rotten Tomatoes Editor-in-Chief Matt Atchity looks at this year's summer movie season as a big collection of ideas studios were late on.

"'Independence Day,' we needed that 10 years ago," Atchity told Business Insider. "'Angry Birds' is four years too late, 'Legend of Tarzan,' even 'Warcraft' — I think executives are not all that in touch with what the audience really wants."

Popstar UniversalAnd Atchity notes that when the studios took "risks" (aka original stories) — like The Lonely Island comedy "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping" or the Ryan Gosling/Russell Crowe buddy comedy "The Nice Guys"— they got burnt. Those films have earned $9.5 million and $36.3 million, respectively.

However, some titles broke through this summer without the help of a franchise tag.

Thrillers like "The Shallows" and "Lights Out" had better-than-expected openings, and the comedy "Bad Moms" is the strongest-performing release in the 2-year life of its studio, STX Entertainment.

"I think all of these are performing because there's a level of originality to them, but also these movies deliver a great group experience," Lawrence Grey, the producer of "Lights Out," told Business Insider.

With the immense amount of content now available to binge on streaming services ("'Stranger Things' is talked about as much as any movie at the moment," Atchity said of the Netflix sensation), and the cost of movie tickets, audiences are much more selective about the movies they go to the theater to see.

"Someone who wants to get out of their house and drive to a theater, I think they want to go to have a big, visceral experience," Grey said.

***

But here's the thing: Studios aren't made to survive on modestly budgeted genre hits, even when they overperform. They need the dollars that come with blockbusters, and because of that, they have to continue to create them. Often it's sequels that come from proven franchises that continue to get the green light.

"I don't believe that what we are seeing is evidence that audiences are tired of tentpoles, franchises, and sequels," Adam Fogelson, STX Entertainment's motion picture chairman, told Business Insider.

Bock agrees.

"Despite the massive sequel slump this summer, don't expect continuing sagas to fall off the face of the earth anytime soon," he said. "In fact, the next three summers are already mapped out and look very similar to 2016. The only difference we might see is smaller studio films populating the release schedule as they attempt to make up some of the sequel slack."

lights_out_still_0In fact, Warner Bros. adjusting its summer release schedule is how "Lights Out" found its eventual release.

Grey said that originally the studio was going to put out the movie in September, an ideal time for a thriller. But after moving the tentpole "King Arthur" from its summer spot, executives replaced it with "Lights Out" following the overwhelmingly positive test scores they got from its screenings — which proves you don't have to replace a big summer movie with an equally big title.

But that's a rare case. The summer movie season will continue to be the time of year when studios show off their massive projects, frankly, because even when they are bad, we tend to go in droves to see them.

The latest example is Warner Bros.' DC Comics movie "Suicide Squad," which took in an estimated $135.1 million its first weekend — the biggest opening ever for an August release. Yet the movie has a 26% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Its press has been universally bad.

"For all the audience's complaints about being sick of sequels and adaptations, just look at the top 10 box office for the summer and see how many original stories there are," Atchity said.

The answer would be only two: the animated movie "The Secret Life of Pets" and the Kevin Hart/Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson comedy "Central Intelligence."

It was a summer of slumps. But for Hollywood, the rules of the game remain the same.

SEE ALSO: The 10 best and worst TV shows this summer

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100 movies on Netflix that everyone needs to watch in their lifetime

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BI Graphics_Best 100 Netflix_4x3

Netflix has a lot of titles to choose from. Actually, combining its original content, movies, and TV shows, you could go on an endless binge and never crack the surface.

But narrowing it down to just movies, you can put a good dent in some classics, if you have the right guide.

Well, that’s why we’re here.

We have searched through all of the titles on the streaming giant so you don’t have to, and we put together the 100 movies on Netflix you have to watch in your lifetime. 

Now get binging!

Note: Numerous Netflix titles drop off the streaming service monthly so titles below are subject to unavailability.

SEE ALSO: 20 modern classic TV shows everyone needs to watch in their lifetime

1. "13 Going on 30" (2004)

Jennifer Garner plays a 13-year-old who dreams of being 30. Yeah, we don't get it either, but it's one heck of a romantic comedy.



2. "Almost Famous" (2000)

Loosely based on writer-director Cameron Crowe's adventures as a teenager writing for Rolling Stone, "Almost Famous" follows a young man's journey into 1970s rock and falling in love along the way.



3. "Amadeus" (1984)

The incredible talent of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is showcased in this stunning, Oscar-winning film.



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One of the 'fantastic beasts' in the 'Harry Potter' spinoff is based on an internet meme

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Niffler Still from Fantastic Beasts trailer

"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" will be filled with, well, fantastic beasts. The movie, coming out in November, is a spinoff of the "Harry Potter" series. It takes place about 70 years earlier, in New York, and centers on Newt Scamander, a magizoologist played by Eddie Redmayne.

J.K. Rowling described most, if not all, of the magical creatures that will appear in the movieon Pottermore and in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," her 2001 book "written by" Scamander cataloging the magical animals he met on his journeys.

But the movie's animators still had to come up with convincing designs for the movies. For inspiration, they turned to real-life animals. And as it goes when looking up animals on the internet, they found memes. Take the niffler, for example.

"One of the big inspirations was the honey badger," Christian Manz, one of the movie's visual effects supervisors, told Entertainment Weekly. "We saw some great footage of a honey badger raiding somebody’s house with a completely insatiable desire to find food — and nothing would get in its way."

Some of you might know the honey badger from its fame as a meme. It all started with the viral video "The Crazy Nastyass Honey Badger," of the animal participating in various badass in a National Geographic documentary while a voiceover discusses its badassery.

Since then, the animal itself has become a bona-fide meme, known for its quality of not giving a f---. As far as I can tell, the particular honey badger exploit Manz is referring to comes from this footage from The Daily Mail, of a crafty honey badger basically robbing a trash can.

Looking at a honey badger for inspiration for the niffler makes sense. In the book version of "Fantastic Beasts," Scamander describes it as "fluffy, black and long-snouted." It's also known for being destructive when it's searching for something — kind of like a honey badger.

Tim Burke, another visual-effects supervisor for the movie, told Entertainment Weekly that the magical animals had to be designed so that they could be mistaken for real-life ones. That's how they could live among muggles for so long. To do so, they also mixed in qualities from a platypus.

"As a muggle, you would see this thing in the wild and think, 'Oh it's just a platypus,'" Burke said.

The niffler shows up in the original "Harry Potter" books, too. It first shows up in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," where Hagrid introduces him in his Care of Magical Creatures class as magical beings who have a predilection for anything glittery, like gold coins, and can be destructive when they pursue them. They're also in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" where Lee Jordan levitates a couple into Professor Umbridge's office, so they can tear it apart.

The nifflers, though, never made it onscreen in the "Harry Potter" movies. It looks like one will play a key role in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," as one of Newt Scamander's beasts living in his magical briefcase.

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