WIRE Buzz: Snake Eyes delayed; The Rental owns box office; Stranger Things one-shot

Paramount was well on its way to making the first strike in what was shaping up to be a new G.I. Joe spinoff movie, when the coronavirus pandemic began prompting studios to recoil from rushing their summer and fall brood of blockbusters into theaters. 

That same fate now appears to have befallen Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, the first in a teased new G.I. Joe spinoff cycle starring Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians) as the titular ninja. Via The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount is slithering Snake Eyes' origin story down the calendar from his planned Oct. 23 debut to an undecided date sometime next year. 

“We're working out the specifics with Paramount,” Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner reportedly told analysts on Monday. Golding, who teased a moody first look at his live action character earlier this year, hinted in January that Snake Eyes represents a first step in relaunching the iconic 1980s toy line for the big screen, saying the studio was “starting a new timeline, a new franchise with the G.I. Joe universe.” 

Co-starring alongside Golding are Samara Weaving (Scarlett), Úrsula Corberó (The Baroness), Iko Uwais (Hard Master), Andrew Koji (Storm Shadow), Steven Allerick (Snake Eyes' Father), Takehiro Hira, and Haruka Abe. Written by Evan Spiliotopoulos (Beauty and the Beast 2017) and directed by Robert Schwentke (Flightplan, Red), Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins reportedly is slated to be followed by an additional G.I. Joe film, with Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse in talks to pen the script. 

Leave it to an indie horror flick about a murderously voyeuristic landlord to stomp out Jurassic Park and throw water on Gremlins at the box office. With only a smattering of theaters open nationwide and drive-ins enjoying a resurgence in popularity, IFC’s The Rental managed to topple those popcorn classics (as well as The Avengers and Back to the Future) to finish atop the weekend’s movie heap.

Deadline reports that The Rental, which opened in only 250 locations nationwide, achieved the top spot in its debut outing with a $403,900 haul over its first three days. Sure, that’s not exactly the 9-figure opening weekend receipts we’re used to seeing from summer tentpoles like last year’s The Lion King, but it’s not bad considering the circumstances — as well as the fact that The Rental is a small-budget genre indie going up against AAA staples.

Directed by Franco (Now You See Me) and starring Dan Stevens (Legion), Franco’s real-life wife Alison Brie (GLOW), Sheila Vand (A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night), and Jeremy Allen White (Shameless), The Rental is showing now wherever theaters and drive-in screens are open, and is also available for streaming via digital on-demand.

Halloween is about to be turned upside down thanks to a new Stranger Things comic from Dark Horse Comics. 

Set a few days before Will Byer's (Noah Schnapp) disappearance kicks off the hit Netflix series — and before we meet the super-powered Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) — the Halloween-themed one-shot will center on Will, Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), and Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), as the four pals celebrate the fright-filled holiday in Will's fort in the woods, aka "Castle Byers." But instead of diving into one of their classic D&D sessions, the crew will be indulging in some candy and trying to scare each other by telling scary stories — as well as revealinganother one of their small town's secrets: the Child-Eater of Hawkins. 

Credit: Dark Horse Comics

The one-shot's creative team features writer Michael Moreci (Wasted Space, Star Wars), artist Todor Hristov (The Forever Maps, Soul Trader), colorist Chris O’Halloran (Ice Cream Man, Immortal Hulk), and letterer Nate Piekos.

The Stranger Things Halloween Special one-shot hits comic book stores Oct. 21 and is currently available for preorder.