Josh Safdie dropped the bombshell on A24’s podcast with Sean Baker: an early Marty Supreme cut flashed forward to Marty Mauser at a 1980s Tears for Fears show with his granddaughter, only for Kevin O’Leary’s Milton Rockwell to lunge from the shadows and sink teeth into his neck.
The team crafted aging prosthetics for Timothée Chalamet, keeping his frame spry to hammer home eternal life minus true purpose, all set to “Everybody Wants to Rule the World.” O’Leary sparked the idea himself, ad-libbing his third-act brag, “I was born in 1601. I’m a vampire” during script tweaks with co-writer Ronald Bronstein.
That line stuck through edits, nodding to the axed horror without committing, while Safdie eyed it as a metaphor for anachronistic music underscoring the past chasing the future. A24 execs balked hard, blurting, “This is a mistake, right?” when they read the fangs-out close.
O’Leary later geeked out to Variety about digital chompers prepped for his bite, calling it poetic payback for Marty’s hustles. The pivot grounded the chaos in human stakes, landing on Marty weeping over his newborn son after ditching wounded Rachel for Tokyo glory.
From Reisman Hustle to Safdie Fever Dream
Marty Supreme riffs loosely on real-life ping-pong legend Marty Reisman, blending his 1974 memoir grit with Safdie’s Uncut Gems frenzy.
Chalamet channels a 1950s New York shoe clerk turned table tennis obsessive, robbing his uncle’s vault, bedding faded starlet Kay Stone via Gwyneth Paltrow, and dodging mobsters for tournament cash.
Odessa A’zion’s Rachel pulls him into domestic traps, Tyler, the Creator, hustles taxis, and Abel Ferrara snarls as a gangster crossed by a runaway pooch.
Safdie, solo-directing post-brother Benny collabs, shot on 35mm with Darius Khondji’s magnifier lenses for sweat-close intensity, ballooning A24’s biggest budget past $60 million. Chalamet drilled ping-pong for months with coaches, even taking real paddle whacks from O’Leary sans stunt double.
Timothée Chalamet (Credit: BBC)
Non-actors pepper the mix, from Philippe Petit’s high-wire-walking cameos to Penn Jillette’s farming fury, echoing Safdie’s street-cast ethos. The vampire scrap joined other trims like post-credits future flashes, sharpening a 150-minute sprint now at 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Box office hit $87 million worldwide by mid-January 2026, making it A24’s UK champ, off a wide Christmas launch, topping charts despite indie roots. Critics crown Chalamet’s “infectiously charismatic” turn a career best, nabbing Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice nods amid top-10 lists from IndieWire to BBC.
Why Ditch the Bite? A24’s Smart Sanity Call
Vampire vibes tied ambition’s curse: win eternal wins, lose soul’s spark, mirroring Marty’s racket regrets amid anachronistic Tears for Fears pangs.
Yet restraint ruled, dodging genre whiplash for the emotional punch that fueled the Golden Globes haul and NYFF secret-slot buzz. O’Leary floated a darker alt, like Rachel dying in labor, but Safdie vetoed excess bleakness.
Fans dissect remnants online, Reddit threads geeking Rockwell’s eternal brag as an Easter egg to the road-not-taken horror.
Chalamet’s promo stunts amplified hype: orange blimps soaring skies, Sphere-top selfies, and Nahmias jackets gifted to Tom Brady and Ringo Starr. Safdie credits the cut for thematic punch, past haunting future without literal blood, letting ambiguity bite deeper.
Awards chatter positions it for the 2026 Oscars clash, with the National Board of Review and AFI top-10 picks underscoring that the grounded gamble paid off.
O’Leary jokes the fangs will lurk in DVD extras someday, while Safdie eyes future wilds tempered by studio reins. For Chalamet, it cements his shape-shifter status, from Wonka whimsy to ping-pong predator eyeing a family fix.
A fresh report lit up social media this week, claiming the screenplay for The Brave and the Bold sat complete, and Warner Bros. eyed 2028 for its debut. Fans grabbed the news from sites like Dread Central, picturing Andy Muschietti’s take on an older Bruce Wayne teaming with son Damian Wayne against Gotham threats.
That buzz built fast amid scarce updates since the film’s 2023 announcement as part of DCU Chapter One: Gods and Monsters.
James Gunn hit Threads quickly to fans, asking if it rang true. His reply cut short the party: screenplay not done. No sugarcoating, just facts from the co-CEO who greenlights nothing until scripts nail his vision.
This marks his pattern of swift clapbacks to keep speculation in check, like past debunkings on casting or test screenings that never happened.
The online chatter exposed how hungry viewers are for DC’s next Dark Knight, separate from Matt Reeves’ Robert Pattinson saga. Gunn’s direct style builds trust but tempers expectations in a franchise racing post-Superman.
Script Stall Fuels Bigger Batman Worries
Gunn calls Batman his top headache across all DC projects right now. Back in mid-2025, he shared details of hands-on collaboration with an unnamed writer, ranking it alongside Wonder Woman as priority one.
No production starts without his full buy-in, a rule holding back pre-production like casting or official dates. September updates hinted at story tweaks around Damian’s backstory, scrapping early assumptions for fresh flux.
James Gunn (Credit: BBC)
Andy Muschietti clings to the director’s chair despite quiet stretches, fresh off The Flash. He teased momentum last fall, hinting at chatter in months but zipping lips on details.
That vibe matches Gunn’s June push: active tweaks to craft something worthy of Batman’s legacy status. Insiders note Warner Bros.’ nerves over handling DC’s crown jewel IP, especially with Reeves’ The Batman Part II filming soon.
Dual Batman universes spark endless debate. Fans split on overlapping releases, with Gunn vowing no same-year clashes to carve space for each.
Reeves builds gritty crime noir; DCU promises family dynamics and super-foes, pulling from comic runs like Grant Morrison’s arcs. Slow script grind tests patience but signals caution after past DC flops.
DCU Path Forward Hangs on Key Choices
The Brave and the Bold slots early in Gods and Monsters, post-Superman but before the swelling slate with Lanterns or Paradise Lost. Gunn eyes two films yearly, so nailing Batman clears the runway for 2027-2028 slots, dodging Reeves’s overlap.
No rush fits his blueprint: quality scripts first, chaos second. Recent YouTube chats and trade talks reinforce that his DCU is not locked forever, tying fate to Warner Bros.’ shifts.
Actor wishlists flood in, from Reacher’s Alan Ritchson to Fallout’s Walton Goggins, everyone eyeing the cape. Gunn shrugs off the noise, noting Batman draws universal appeal no matter who’s asked.
Production on his Superman follow-up kicks off this year, plus Reeves’ momentum is keeping the Batman heat alive without firm moves.
Fan forums pulse with theories: 2028 is still possible if the script locks soon, or it delays to 2029 amid ownership flux. Gunn’s transparency cuts through fog, but prolonged quiet risks fatigue in a Marvel-hot market.
DC bets big on this father-son duo to hook next-gen viewers, blending heart with brutal action. Patience pays if it delivers the f’n awesome take he chases.
