D23 Convention News and Rumors thread (Post #24 - Johnny Depp and Guillermo Del Toro)

[skier_pete]

With the D23 convention starting up today, I thought rather than having 20 different threads going like with the Marvel announcement, we could maybe run a single thread where people post links and reactions to the various announcements that come out of the D23 convention.

(Any chance the mods could make this one a sticky for a few days?)

I've been thinking / hoping for a while we will be hearing some major WDW park announcements this week. I would have loved to go, but time / money does not allow.

SkierPete

[TDSAXX]

Let's keep our fingers crossed that something comes out of D23 worth talking about. I agree with you, I hope that they announce some updates or expansions to the parks.

[redboxcar]

I'll be at the Expo tomorrow, reporting from the Karl Holz presentation on the Disney Cruise Line forums. =)

[skier_pete]

Originally Posted by redboxcar

I'll be at the Expo tomorrow, reporting from the Karl Holz presentation on the Disney Cruise Line forums. =)

I am jealous of anyone that will be there! Have a great time and please report back here if you can.

SkierPete

[DC7800]

I'd like to be there, actually, though I'm not expecting much in terms of WDW announcements (oh, how I'd just love to be proven wrong...). I like the one-thread idea, but you just know as soon as something trivial happens, there will several threads started (if one thread is good, half a dozen must be even better, right?) or get moved over here as news.

Star Tours II seems the most promising, along with probably some promotion of the rehabbed Space Mountain.

[redboxcar]

I'll definitely add to this thread for everyone to read, but people on the DCL forum are specifically looking for new destinations and ports of call for 2011 and beyond and the new cruise ships. =)

[MJMcBride]

The Bob Iger future of Disney talk starts at 10am pacific time

[crazy4wdw]

There are several D23 convention items up on the Disney Shopping website. These include several pins and a signed, limited edition t-shirt.

[randomDisneyFan3000]

Originally Posted by MJMcBride

The Bob Iger future of Disney talk starts at 10am pacific time

My predictions for this speech:
Some stuff about Animation coming back to disney
Shanghai Disneyland
Marvel stuff

Some other stuff that I can't think of.

[MJMcBride]

apparently is was irrelevant and brief

no news

I guess we need to wait for Jay Rasulo's speech on Saturday

[skier_pete]

Don't know if these came from D23 or not, but seems an odd co-incidence it would come out today:

http://popwatch.ew.com/2009/09/10/to...imothy-dalton/

The upcoming Toy Story 3 has had Pixar fans foaming at the mouth for ages and ages, and finally, we’ve got some solid details: The film, which starts with Andy leaving for college and deciding which toys to pack up (”Sunrise, Sunset” is now playing in my head), follows our plaything heroes as they’re “sent to a daycare center, where they are horribly abused by the little kids — and after that it’s time for a break-out attempt to find a safe haven, and hopefully a new owner, in a cruel world,” according to Empire. “It looks every bit as good as its titanic predecessors.”

The other big Toy Story news is that Woody and Buzz are getting yet another new buddy: Mr. Pricklepants, voiced by Timothy Dalton. Mr. Pricklepants — which, best name ever — is “a hedgehog toy with thespian tendencies.” Something tells me this is going to inspire some serious tattoos from the fandom. [Disney did not reply to EW's request for confirmation and additional details.]

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2009/09/10...been-revealed/

Many at Pixar acknowledge that "Cars" is not their best, even if it was one of their more kid-targeted and merchandise-friendly efforts, and it's likely they're looking to redeem themselves with the follow-up.

You can get a slight idea if that redemption will occur thanks to Empire, who share plot details for "Cars 2" by way of a Disney presentation in the UK this morning. John Lasseter told the crowd the sequel will focus more on the tow truck character Mater (voiced by Larry the Cable Guy) as he travels with Speed McQueen (Owen Wilson) on a worldwide series of races called the Race of Champions.

With international settings as diverse as Tokyo, Italy, Germany, Monte Carlo, Paris and London, I'm reminded of Blake Edwards' globetrotting comedy "The Great Race," despite "Cars 2" not involving an ongoing race around the world. The locales and variety of races should also be very adaptable to the video game tie-ins.

Anyway, here's where it gets interesting: among the new vehicles, which include a Formula One race car and Land Rovers serving as Buckingham Palace guards, is an Aston Martin-type named Finn McMissile. He is -- you guessed it -- a British spy; 007 as a car, obviously.

Finn and Mater are apparently the subjects of a paranoid thriller subplot described as "Hitchcockian." Basically it sounds like a "North By Northwest" kind of mistaken identity storyline. So, yeah, Hitchcock meets James Bond meets "The Great Race." Already it sounds a billion times better than the simple "Doc Hollywood" rehash of the first "Cars."

The report claims "all the familiar voices will be returning," which is a sad mistake considering three prominent vocal talents -- Paul Newman, George Carlin and Joe Ranft -- have passed on since production of the first film. Meanwhile, there's a logical presumption that Pixar will get one of the Bond actors to voice Finn. If they manage to coax Sean Connery out of retirement for this, I'll have another reason to look forward to this.

[TDSAXX]

Considering the fact that Timothy Dalton is doing voice work on TS3, I wouldn't be suprised if he is the voice of Finn in Cars 2.

[skier_pete]

Not much here either - but the only news I could find....looks like from the schedule tomorrow will be the big day for movies, and Saturday will be the big day for the parks. (Makes sense, as movies are a bigger press draw, and therefore will make the weekend news wire.)

http://movies.ign.com/articles/102/1023572p1.html

Disney's D23 Expo Kicks Off
by Christopher Monfette
September 10, 2009 - Disney kicked off its own personal Comic-Con this afternoon by introducing the D23 Expo, a sizeable gathering of hardcore Disney-philes, passive fans, journalists, executives and talent. Taking place over the next four days at the Anaheim Convention Center in Southern California, D23 offers a number of project-themed booths, screenings and presentations ranging from current Disney hits to future blockbusters, as well as a wide variety of consumer trading areas and merchandise vendors.

Disney's head honcho Bob Iger, who's been hard at work selling the company's recent acquisition of Marvel, was on hand to raise the curtain on the company's mini-Con. The opening presentation kicked off with a quickly-edited montage of Disney properties – from adult TV shows like Lost and children's fare like High School Musical, to movie highlights and music releases. Most notable, perhaps, was the incredibly fleeting inclusion of disparate shots from the upcoming films Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and The Sorcerer's Apprentice. The shots went by too quickly to get any real impression of the footage, but larger portions of both films are expected to be shown at a panel on the company's 2010 feature film slate scheduled for tomorrow.

While Iger's speech was brief and cursory, directed more at the fans than the attending press, he did address the Marvel acquisition by saying simply, "We'll be combining the great characters and storylines of Marvel with those of Disney…Marvel's stories are known for their creativity and innovation. Sound familiar? The possibilities are endless." While hardly a revelation, the statement was enough to unleash a flurry of team-up speculation amongst the attending crowd.

The panel closed with a screening of footage from the upcoming animated release The Princess and the Frog -- more on that after the film's individual panel later this weekend – which stunned audiences with its return to hand-drawn, music-driven animation. With that, Iger closed the presentation and officially welcomed guests to the D23 Expo. We'll be here all weekend, bringing you all the news that's fit to print.

[skier_pete]

Looking at the summary - here is the panel I wouldn't want to miss:

From Saturday, Sept 12th:

Imagineering the Future of Disney Theme Parks, 11 a.m. – Go behind the scenes with Walt Disney Parks & Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo as he unveils the magical entertainment and experiences on the horizon at Disney’s Parks and Resorts around the world … and offers a surprise or two. Arena

Can we only hope for some announced park additions?

SkierPete

[Maistre Gracey]

Honestly, the only park news I want right now is they will bring back PI.

MG