It seems that all streamers want an event of their own nowadays. Once upon a time, San Diego Comic-Con served as the home for all things nerdy to be announced, trailers revealed, and for fans to lose their minds in Hall H. However, with every major company developing its own streaming services, the concept of individual events for each service has become incredibly popular. And this past weekend Netflix threw themselves into the mix with their first annual TUDUM (like the sound that precedes Netflix originals). The event gave fans around the world the first look at many of the upcoming Netflix exclusives that will be gracing our screens within the next year or two. While TUDUM provided looks at a plethora of new and returning shows, we here at The Cosmic Circus are recapping those nerdy, sci-fi, fantasy, comic books, or comic book adjacent projects coming from the streaming giant.
Red Notice
The event started off with a clip from the highly anticipated CBM star-studded Red Notice, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Gal Gadot, and everyone’s favorite man-crush Ryan Reynolds. In the film, Johnson’s John Hartley is an FBI profiler that attempts to track down the world’s most wanted art thief. Reynolds and Gadot are Nolan Booth and Sarah Black, two rival criminals in the film. In the clip that Netflix released during the event, we find our three stars locked in a heated fight over a very large, very beautiful egg that resides in a large museum. Gadot indicates that she has two of the three eggs and wants the two men (who seem to be working together) to take a previously proposed deal. The clip does not indicate why the eggs are so important or what the deal was that she proposed. However, we do get a great look at the action that is to come in this film. It looks incredibly well choreographed and showcases each actor’s talents.
Stranger Things 4
Next up, we got a new look at the fourth season of Stranger Things, introduced by the Duffer Brothers (Matt and Ross Duffer) and two of the show’s stars. The clip introduced viewers to the Creel House, owned by Victor Creel played by horror legend Robert England. You know things are gonna be creepy when you land Freddie Krueger for your show. Victor Creel is an individual who committed gruesome crimes in the 1950s and is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital as a result.
After quick glimpses of Victor and his family in the fifties, along with the murder of his wife and child, the clip transitions to our gang exploring the new ruined house. The group looked a bit like the Scooby-Doo Gang exploring another haunted house. However, in this world, the monsters are scarier and very much real. The teaser ends with a slow zoom-in on a grandfather clock that cracks with each tick of the hand. It’s as if the gang is running out of time. Or the fan’s patience is running out, because the show is not set to return until 2022.
The Witcher
Geralt played by Superman Henry Cavill is set to return soon and TUDUM provided us with three clips of the show prior to its debut in December. The first was a trailer for the new season, which like the show, jumped back and forth in time. It included glimpses of what is to come, though showcased more of what already happened in season one. The trailer drove home the point that Geralt’s mission is to protect Ciri (Marta Bitner) who could save the world. As well he enlists help from other Witcher’s, including his old mentor Vesemir (Kim Bosnia), to protect Ciri at all costs. As well, it focuses on the journey Yennefer (Anya Charlotte) took in season one and shows how she may play into the growing story of season two. Even though the trailer was a lot of footage from season one, I still was in awe of the scope of this show. I cannot wait until December 17 for this next season to drop.
The second clip was of an interaction between Geralt and Ciri, who are awakened with a warning from the former. Geralt warns her to flee quickly if things take a turn for the worst because they are currently under attack from an unseen assailant. Bitner and Cavill have excellent chemistry on screen already in this small scene from season two.
The final clip is of Geralt and a new character Nivellen, played by Game of Thrones alum Kristofer Hivju. Nivellen is a man who is cursed to appear as a monster, with a look that is reminiscent of the Beast from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. The two talk about Ciri, witches, and how those who learn magic become monsters themselves.
Cowboy Bebop
Fans of the Cowboy Bebop anime were given their first look at the title sequence for the live-action adaptation! The panel was presented by the star of the show John Cho, who seemed just as excited to star in the project as fans are to see it. There are many things I could say about the title sequence, the Cosmic Circle’s Tucker Watkins sums it up so nicely in his review of the Cowboy Bebop Panel!
Sandman
The Sandman panel was one that I was looking most forward to when TUDUM was announced! And it did not disappoint. The panel was led by Sandman creator Neil Gaiman with a drop-in address from Death herself Kirby Howell-Baptiste. The trailer showcased a group of hooded individuals, perhaps a cult, who are looking to summon Death. However, they actually summon Death’s sibling, Dream (Tom Sturridge). The scene looked like it was ripped straight from the comics, which makes me even more excited to see this project in 2022.
Army of Thieves
This section of the event provided a trailer for the incoming prequel to 2021’s hit Army of the Dead. Produced by Zach Synder, director and star Matthias Schweighöfer tells the story of a “mysterious woman” who hires Ludwig Dieter (Schweighöfer reprising his role from the first film) to help break into three safes in a fast-paced heist. The trailer shows a nice balance between action, adventure, and funny moments. The film is set six years before the events of Army of Thieves when the zombie apocalypse is just in its beginning stages. The film also stars Nathalie Emmanuel as Gwendoline, Gus Kahn as Rolph, Ruby O. Fee as Korina, Stuart Martin as Brad Cage, and Jonathan Cohen as Delacroix.
Extraction 2
The panel for this sequel gave us a mild teaser for what’s to come. Picking up where the first one left off, we see Chris Hemsworth’s Tyler Rake being shot and falling off the bridge to the water below. As he is sinking, a voice-over tells him “Tyler, you drown not by falling into the river, but by staying submerged in it.” At that moment Rake pushes with all his might to reach the surface. Talk about intense. The film will see Hemsworth reunite with director Sam Hargrave and producers Joe and Anthony Russo.
The Old Guard 2
During the TUDUM event, a small update was given about the sequel to 2020s The Old Guard. In the panel, Charlize Theron spoke on her character Andy’s journey in the second film.
“For her, obviously not being able to die was a burden, and so how do you then lose the thing that you don’t want and realize that you actually do want it and you should’ve probably been more grateful towards it?”
Sounds like quite the internal conflict that will be at the center of the film. Unfortunately, most other details about the film are being kept silent during this stage of production.
All this was was just the tip of the iceberg of what Netflix had to offer at this year’s TUDUM. What show and panels were you happy to see? What show are you looking forward to most? Let us know in the comments or on social media!
