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captainchrisfics · 5 years

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Gaps Between Us

About: Chris Evans and a first person pov narrator have an age gap, sparking a controversy in the public eye, some tension among the MCU cast, and quite a bit of trouble in paradise. Thankfully, RDJ is always there to save the day.

Word Count: 3, 418

Requested By: Anonymous

A/N: Please feel free to submit reqs! My inbox ran dry and I’m always up for some inspiration :)

“Evans, quit hogging the bread!” Jeremy Renner called from the other end of the table. It was quite a stretch to accommodate so many people, almost the MCU’s entire cast was present. Nobody could turn down a dinner invitation from Robert Downey Jr. including Chris and I. We sat together, close to the rest of the original Avengers, even though I was a newer addition to the franchise. Being included at a table of thirty or so of the biggest names in my field was immensely inspiring, the kind of awe-struck moment that made me feel like I was a part of something so much bigger than myself. Robert’s after filming dinners were often like that.

Chris laughed as he picked up a roll, chucking it to his friend like a football. “If you hit the chandelier, I would’ve hit you harder,” RDJ chastised, shooting my boyfriend a playful side eye. Chris laughed harder as he waved a dismissive hand at Downey, insisting he didn’t need diamonds hanging from his temporary home’s ceiling anyway.

He slung an arm around my shoulders, stretching his fingers to grasp the side of my chair. “You aren’t gonna defend my honor, babe?” Chris asked me with faux disappointment and a cocked eyebrow.

I rolled my eyes and reached for my glass, taking a slow sip before responding, “No, you deserved that one.” I didn’t take my eyes off Chris as his face contorted with an incredulous expression and I reached behind his back to high-five RDJ whose hand was already waiting for mine.

“Wise move,” Robert quipped. Chris shook his head before returning to his plate, letting the Iron Man actor win this fight. “I learn from the best,” I countered, shooting RDJ a wink from across Chris’s lap. Over the course of this last film, the older actor and I had developed one of the closest relationships I’d ever had with a co-worker, second maybe only to my boyfriend. RDJ managed to take me under his wing and somehow I’d found a way to keep tagging along. We understood each other in a unique way, almost like we operated on the same wavelength, which was invaluable around someone as charismatic and unpredictable as Chris Evans, as much as I love him.

“You’re gonna regret that later,” Chris promised under his breath, a gruff tone only I heard. I kicked him under the table, insisting that it was all in good fun. “So,” Brie Larson said as she joined the group, dropped her plate from the make-shift buffet on the table next to mine and pulled out the chair beside me. “I’m sorry to talk shop, but I’ve got to tell you, I loved your work during the funeral scene today,” she professed, squeezing my hand with sincerity. Scarlett, who sat opposite of me, nodded in agreement as she added between bites, “Not to date myself, but I don’t think there’s a lot of actors your age who could pull off subtle, intense emotion like that.”

I blushed, staring down at my plate to avoid all of the eyes I felt on me. “Oh, thank you... I appreciate that, but I was just doing my job,” I shrugged. I was the youngest at the table by far, which could definitely be intimidating at times. Knowing my colleagues turned friends respected me and what I did just as much as I admired their work meant more than I could properly thank them for. “You all set a standard I only hope to match,” I added, squeezing Brie’s hand back.

“No, no, don’t bullshit these hacks,” Robert interjected. “I mean, sure, she was convincingly grieving my loss of life. But I expected more from the rest of you. Where were the theatrics? The professions of love now lost? The waterworks?” He shot pointed looks around the table at everyone who was present for Tony Stark’s funeral. Everyone laughed as Gwenyth Paltrow raised her hands in defense as she jokingly protested, “I had a little girl to be strong for.” “Really though, you did so great today,” Chris brought the conversation back to me as he paused devouring his meal to place a kiss on my temple. Down the table, someone groaned in objection to the PDA, which sent a heavy stone to the pit of my stomach. I felt Chris grow tense as well, always more self-conscious of our relationship than I was.

Our age difference made everything that much more difficult. It gave the media access to more insults to throw in their click-bait titles, contributed to the intense scrutiny the public eye had to offer in our line of work, and was always in the back of our minds. Not because we felt like there was anything wrong with it, but because other people did. If you asked any gossip site reader, Chris was in the midst of a mid-life crisis and I was a gold digger looking to capitalize on his vulnerability. Never mind that we were both perfectly of-age adults or that the same people used to praise our friendship all over the internet before they found out it was a little bit more.

“Relax Mackie,” Sebastian Stan teased from that end of the group, around where the groan came from. Seb had a teasing tone, shoving our friend’s shoulder jovially. Especially with them being some of the closest people to Chris on set, I’d gotten to know Anthony and Seb pretty well. Enough to know that they were only kidding, but that they sometimes didn’t know when to stop. I knew Chris inside and out though so when his ears perked up and his head followed the noise, previously furrowed brow raising as if to dare them to continue, I could tell you there would be trouble. “Her age isn’t on the clock anyway. That’s the thing, right?” Stan teased.

Chris smiled wryly with downcast eyes, watching as he spun his glass. Mackie laughed harder, the force of which threw him back in his chair as he prodded Sebastian’s chest in praise. “Just barely,” he shot back between breaths. The two chuckled one last time before the joke died down and they joined the rest of the cast in other topics of conversation. Chris didn’t seem to realize though, with the way he sat so tensely still like he’d draw more negative attention if he moved a single muscle.

I didn’t know the kind of pressure a few years could add until it burdened my chest every time a reporter brought it up on the red carpet, tugged down my soaring heart whenever we held hands in public and I caught people staring, weighed heavy on my mind when I noticed Chris grow as uncomfortable as he was now. All because of a little peck and a murmur that probably lost its original meaning among the translation of our anxieties.

Around us, the conversation amongst the original Avengers shifted to what everyone’s next projects would be now that Endgame’s filming was coming to a close. Chris, usually the most boisterous of the bunch, sat quietly as he shoved broccoli about his plate. His arm that had been wrapped around me sagged back to his side. His leg bounced rapidly like a revving engine, ready to run. I reached to squeeze his hand as a sign of comfort, that I was here and happy to be, knowing that the thought his nerves spiraling rapidly out of control in his head was never a good thing. As soon as my fingers brushed his, Chris pulled away so harshly he shot up from his seat, jostling the table unintentionally and grabbing everyone’s attention.

“I’m uh…” he scratched the back of his neck, skittish eyes bouncing between everyone staring at him. “Gonna go grab a beer. Anyone want anything?” Chris recovered, smooth enough not to raise suspicion if you weren’t within range of the anxious energy radiating from him. Soon, he stepped away from the table with everyone’s requests and escaped to the kitchen, leaving an empty chair in his wake. My eyes dropped to meet Robert’s across the space Chris had been occupying, just as wide with worry as I imagined mine were with eyebrows nearly through the roof.

“I’ll make sure Chris doesn’t fuck up that tall order,” RDJ said with an effortless nonchalance I envied, clasping his hands together as he stood. He turned to me with peaked eyebrows as he added, “Why don’t you join us, kid? Takes a few actors to screw in a lightbulb.” I accepted Robert’s outstretched hand and trailed behind him, following Chris’s footsteps until we found him bent over the kitchen island, fingers gripping the quartz so hard his knuckles were white. “Why does it have to be such a big fucking deal, huh?” he spit cynically. Chris’s face scrunched up with furrowed brows and a tight lip as his eyes, firey with misplaced rage, burned holes through Downey. “Seriously, please enlighten me. Why does everyone else who isn’t a part of this relationship give such a massive shit about it?” His voice stayed quiet as to not raise the others’ suspicion, but by the strained veins in his neck and steely look in his eye held his anger instead.

“In and out, buddy,” Robert said as he clasped a hand on Chris’s shoulder. “You know those bozos didn’t mean anything by it.” Chris snapped that it wasn’t about that, that this was much bigger than them, and I knew he was right. “That’s the problem,” he growled. “Nobody means anything by it, they’re just trying to get clicks on their articles or attention on Twitter or laughs at our expense without stopping to think the kind of shitty strain it puts us through.” Chris slammed the beer he’d grabbed on the countertop hard enough that, if it’d been opened, it would’ve created another mess for us to clean up. He was turning red and I could almost hear the tea kettle coming to a boil in his stomach, the steam ready to burst from his ears. I don’t think I’d ever seen Chris so mad.

I stayed glued to the entryway, holding my own hand behind my back as I rolled from my heels to my toes. I watched Chris nervously, not exactly sure what to do or how to help. Really I was the cause of the problem. How could I possibly offer a solution? And then, as much as I hated myself for even thinking it, the only way to fix this occurred to me.

“We could split up, you know,” I proposed so quietly I hoped that between Chris’s angry ragged breath and Robert’s attempts at rationalizing with him they wouldn’t hear me. But they did. Their eyes snapped to me as Chris’s face fell, his eyebrows furrowed and his mouth hung open, all softened by sadness. RDJ threw up his hands, shooting me a look with wide eyes and tight lips as if to say he already had enough to deal with sans me joining Chris on the ledge he was trying to talk him down from.

“Don’t say stupid things like that,” Chris scolded with a shake of his head. His shoulders sagged from their previous position taught with anger as he slipped into a state of confused heartache. He could deny it all he wanted to, but that was the only way I saw out.

“Well, I certainly don’t want to but...” I bit my lip, searching for the courage to continue with Chris giving me pleading puppy dog eyes worse than Dodger’s. “But this is just too much. All of it, all of the articles and speculation and hurtful things being thrown our way because of our relationship, it’s overwhelming.” Even when he was puffed up with rage before, I felt smaller now. Measly compared to the giant bumbling toward me as he shoved past Downey, wrapping huge arms around me like a shield, though I wasn’t sure who he was trying to protect at this point.

“You’ve got enough on your mind with your career, any relationship is a lot. Let alone one with our age gap. I know how much you hate the things people say. I just... I think we need to quit while we’re ahead and end on good terms before you start hating me, too. And if it’s what’ll make you happy then-” I spoke into his chest though I was sure he could hear me loud and clear, words suddenly snowballing out of me, gaining strength as the momentum grew with every tumbling syllable. I had to spit them out before I couldn’t. Before I changed my mind and picked what was selfish instead of best for Chris’s sake. And then he cut me off.

“Darling, I told you to stop talking nonsense. You make me happier than anything,” Chris was quiet with calm now, his angry energy redirected to dragging me back to earth when I felt so far away from him. “I could never ever even imagine a world where I felt anything less than love for you,” he paused to press a long kiss onto the top of my head before speaking again. “Let alone because of some stupid rumors and the opinions of people who don’t matter to me a fraction as much as you do.”

I melted into Chris, relishing in the way he radiated the excitement of an entire football stadium just when their home team scored the winning touchdown. How he smelled of deodorant I didn’t think anyone else wore and the liberating, fresh air of the mountains when you’re the only one there and something I still couldn’t identify anywhere else that wasn’t in his embrace. It was just Chris. And the way his beard scratched my skin as he nuzzled into the crook of my neck, the fact that I didn’t mind was so uniquely Chris as well. In fact, I’d miss it. He pressed gentle kisses into my collarbone as he rested his forehead on my shoulder, little wishes that I’d take back what I’d said. I was ready to push him away and tell him that this had to be it when it occurred to me just how much I’d miss him, but I couldn’t keep putting Chris through all of this stress just for me.

“I mean it,” I asserted though it was half-hearted, tears buried finally rising to the surface. I knew I had an ocean of them waiting inside of me, tossing and turning with my tumultuous emotions, but I had to stop the tide from rising. At least until Chris wasn’t around anymore. “We need to break-“

“No,” Robert finally cut in, dropping a gentle hand on one of each of our shoulders. “No, you don’t. Don’t say the b-word,” he repeated like he was trying to ease us out of a trance. Pity laced the soft circles he rubbed our backs. I turned to look at him, keeping an ear to Chris’s chest to prolong the comfort I found in the steady thump of his heartbeat. “The second you allow the public eye’s gaze to start changing your relationship is the second you lose yourself to this job. I can’t stand by and allow you two to lose each other too,” Downey continued, though his soft eyes stayed on me.

Then he turned to Chris with a harder look of determination, really trying to drive his point home. “Anyone who knows you at all, Evans, knows that you’ve been looking for something like this for a long time.” I felt Chris’s grip tighten around my waist, not nearly ready to let me go any time soon. I knew Robert was right. Even though I hadn’t known Chris for all that long, we got along better than I did with anyone else before. It was like we’d known each other forever even when it’d only been a few weeks and I figured, with Chris’s age and his eagerness to settle down, he’d been waiting even longer than that. “Don’t let it slip away because of other people’s opinions.” Chris nodded against my shoulder, still holding me close as if I’d run off, which I guess I tried to. “If you can’t follow your heart and tell anyone else who has something to say about it to fuck right off thank you very much, then I don’t know who could,” Robert finished with a confident smile. I thought it was funny, like he was trying to make it rub off on my boyfriend.

Chris nodded, hesitantly at first and then faster with more assuredness as what his friend said sunk in. “Now, get it together and realize that you’ve got a solid foundation with each other. I’ll be damned if you let it crumble over Mackie and Sebastian being dumbasses.” Robert smirked at us, his usual sly spark returning to his eye. “Start thinking with these a little more,” he paused to poke Chris’s chest just above his heart. “And using these a little less,” Robert said as he tapped my temple.

Chris stretched an arm around Downey, pulling both of us right to his side. “Thanks,” he breathed out, almost like a sigh of relief. “Don’t know what we’d do without you,” I told Robert, patting his shoulder with gratitude. “Yeah, yeah,” he brushed us off, pulling away from Chris’s embrace as well. “Tell me how much you love me later.” He took a few steps toward the fridge and started pulling out cans of almost everything under the sun, somehow miraculously remembering what everyone ordered when Chris wasn’t even paying attention despite being the one who asked. “We better get all these drinks out there before there’s a riot,” he said, grabbing as many as he could and sliding the rest to Chris and I. “Or worse,” Robert paused dramatically, shoving the fridge closed with his hip. “More jokes.” With that, he turned and left Chris and I standing alone in the kitchen.

Chris rolled his eyes as he turned to me, reaching for my hand. He played with my fingers for a second, watching our hands as they pressed against each other one digit at a time, before locking them together. “You know I love you a whole lot more than how mad I am at everyone else,” he said with more sincerity than I thought he could muster. It seemed to be all the honesty the world had to offer. I grinned a smile that stretched so far it made my cheeks hurt even more than the blush burned as I nodded and said with just as much integrity, “And I love you even more than that.”

Chris reached to wipe the remainder of my tears with his thumb as he shook his head and drew in a tight breath, feigning contention. “I don’t know about that. It’s like, so much for someone who was about to end things a minute ago,” he joked. Chris gathered so many drinks in his arms there weren’t any left for me to carry.

I stretched to flick his ear anyway, all but stomping my foot in protest. “I love you a hell of a lot, Evans. So much I was about to end things for your own good,” I argued with a pointed look even though it was pointless. He already knew my heart hadn’t been in it, the problem was that I’d been listening to my head just like Downey said.

He jostled the cans so they all sat in one arm before slipping his free hand into the back pocket of my jeans. “Let’s go show the world just how much then,” Chris laughed as he bent down to press a kiss into my temple, happy to still be by each other’s sides as we joined the rest of the Marvel cast.

Tags: @patzammit , @thegetawaywriter , @coffeebooksandfandom , @captainsteveevans , @intrepidandabitcrazy , @super100012

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tothewaterhq · 5 years

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ACCEPTED // DWIGHT HALE

district six → mentor → jeremy renner fc

pronouns: he/him positive traits: witty, adaptable, easy-going negative traits: noncommittal, pessimistic, immature

tw: divorce, alcoholism, death mention, false pregnancy

describe their arena:

The tributes were raised into what felt like another catacomb. There was darkness surrounding them, walls of cracked stone. No natural light. The cornucopia was filled with weapons designed for tunnelling and was in the middle of an underground tunnel system, appearing like some kind of mine. Those believing twelve had an advantage were dead wrong. This was no ordinary underground tunnel system. The walls were alive, the rocks temperamental. One wrong move and a severe cave in could kill you. The tunnels went off in all directions and it was easy for tributes to get lost. The only lights were generator powered and flickering to add to the atmosphere. The water sources were few and far between. Some coming from old leaking pipes. A small stream ran through certain parts but the water had to be boiled and purified. Bodied of the dead were absorbed into the walls.

Above the ground was where the real battle arena lied. Designed for a gory final battle. Grass as far as the eye could see, no cover. It was littered with weapons as far as the eyes could see. Maces, knives, swords, spears. To get to it was no easy feat. Tributes would have to be chiselling away at the surface for days.

bio:

From the moment he was born Dwight Hale’s life was destined to become a roller coaster. His bright blue eyes sat above his squished nose. He had dirty blonde hair and lungs that seemed to want to terrify his mother as they decided to stop working every couple of seconds. Some might say he was born with a mischievous personality. As an infant, growing up in district six was a blessing for Dwight. Apparently being classified as the transportation district caused him to want to get moving quickly. He started climbing out of his crib within a year. As soon as he was taught to walk, he was running. Intelligence didn’t kick in quite as soon so time after time his mother had to stop him running straight into walls or roads. Not that it every seemed to prevent him from doing it again. Often Dwight would wear bumped heads or a bleeding nose. He scuffed his knees more than any child in the district. And he was proud of it. His mother would always patch him up.

Tamora Hale, Dwight’s mother, cared for him deeply. However, there was something she cared for a little bit more. The rebellion. Tamora didn’t trust or agree with anything that capitol did. She’d been whispering in a few peoples ears the same thing. When she got wind of District Thirteen, she knew she had to get there. So, In the middle of the night, she left her five-year-old son alone to embark on the journey. She would never return. Five-year-old Dwight wasn’t sure how long future-changing journey’s took, so he figured she’d be back in three days. But as he sat there running out of fingers to count the days she’d been gone on there was the realization that she wasn’t coming back.

Soon Dwight was removed from his home by some rather heavy-handed peacekeepers attempting to corral him to one of the local orphanages. They’d have to catch him first. He kept to the streets after that, falling in with a group of older street rats who saw him as a great way to get food. He was young and cute. Also, his speed meant he was great at the grab and run. Local market vendors dubbed him ‘sneaky little midget’. The boys became his family, showering him with praise about how great he was. However, their age difference meant they were destined to get older and move on. As each of them reached the full-time work age they left, got jobs, started families. All around turned their lives around. As the penultimate original member of their little gang left, he christened Dwight leader. A notion that made Dwight’s head swell to the size that made him think he didn’t need anyone else.

One morning he decided to steal a pot of soap from the wrong stall. It was a stupid plan. How was an eleven year old supposed to carry an entire pot of boiling liquid down the street. However, Dwight had always been, act first think later. It was no surprise he was caught red handed.

The soup sellers name was Marella Smyth, though as it turned out, everyone called her Ma. There was a reason for that. She was known for taking in stray kids, usually young boys who got themselves into trouble. So naturally she was drawn to Dwight. She gave him a bed to sleep in and an endless supply of soup. Though she wasn’t totally a mother figure, she was a close as most of the boys in her care had ever had. Over the years more boys joined the house and were quickly conned ‘Ma’s boys.’ But Ma wasn’t so good as disciplining her boys. It wasn’t her place, she believed. So, they still ran wild across the district and Dwight, being the first and oldest, was the leader of their gang. Which is pretty much what they were. The group of damaged boys were a catalyst to each other and when together, caused trouble. They picked on people, stole things then ran away. Of course, Dwight was always first to flee the scene with his ‘every man for himself’ mentality. He’d learned that you had to be selfish though. That was how you survived.

Dwight had never given much thought to the games. He had too much to worry about in his own life for that. His first reapings were non-events. He and his group of friends often mocked the kids that were reaped as they died. It was poetic irony that Dwight’s name was called when he was fifteen. He’d tried to get one of his friends standing next to him to volunteer. However, it seemed that his ‘every man for himself’ policy had rubbed off on them.

The capitol tried to sell him as ‘the poor boy from six’ and ‘the simple street urchin’ to get some sympathy. On his mentor’s advice, he played up the angle. Which at first, he didn’t believe was an angle. It wasn’t until he’d gotten into the training room and had been reading over the survival skills that he realised he knew most of this stuff already. His years fending for himself had paid off. Yet he continued to play dumb. He scored a meagre score of three during his private training session. And when interviews came around he pretended not to know what some of the big words Caesar was using were. Okay, that wasn’t all pretend. To this day he struggled to remember ‘trepidation’. Then the big day was upon the twenty-four unlucky souls and Dwight did what he’d always been taught to do. Survive.

The area wasn’t his favourite. The underground tunnels made it hard to see but after a while his eyes adjusted. In the cornucopia he’d gone straight for the big guns, knowing his speed would be an advantage. He managed to get his hands on a backpack and a scythe that he didn’t know how to use. Then he’d fled the scene. Ten people died in the bloodbath. The faces were projected wherever the tributes were sleeping. Which Dwight considered very dumb as it led to them being easily detected. Thankfully the network of tunnels meant that Dwight avoided all tributes for the first two days. On day three he’d done the stupid thing of attempting to chisel his way out of the underground tunnels and caused a mound of dirt and rock to cave in on himself. Not the smartest idea. He’d woken up thinking he was dead. The capitol thought that too at first. He was on his way out. However, like the cockroach he was, he survived. Realising that he could use the arena to his advantage. He managed to track down the careers, at the cornucopia, so predictable. Then during the night, he started slowly chiselling away at some rock nearby, leaving it at a very precarious position. Then, he emerged from underneath it, right in the eyesight of the careers. Three of the four that were still around did exactly as he’d expected, they started chasing him. Then he’d delivered one last blow to the chipped wall and caused rocks and dirt to cave in on all three of them. One had apparently been dealt a blow by a falling rock that killed them instantly. The other two Dwight suffocated with a piece of cloth.

He caused a few more cave ins whilst in the tunnels. Then had focused his attention of trying to break through the layer of dirt on the surface. Dwight had figured that there was something above him considering he hadn’t been killed by a forcefield. So, he kept working. On the final day he was greeted by sunlight and a message from the capitol informing him that there was two people left. For the final battle, the capitol had replenished weapons on the surface. Dwight was already there. Knowing that he couldn’t win a fight against the boy from one, he blocked the exit. Meaning he had twenty four hours to prepare. The capitol had decided to assist the boy from one by causing some rocks to fall and give him a way out. But Dwight was waiting with a knife. He stabbed him in his neck upon his first breath of fresh air. They declared him the winner.

His days were a blur post-victory. Mostly because his vision had been royally screwed by the lack of light in the caves. He ditched his old friends and moved into the victor’s village. He was miserable. Embarrassed about his constant need to wear sunglasses and his misery, he wasn’t the most sociable of people. Becoming rather aloof as far as the capitol was concerned. So, when it was announced that he was getting married at twenty one years old sponsors weekly were all over it. His fiancé Alma was one of the market workers daughter. She’d given him an apple once. Turned out she was one of the only people that still treated him like that naughty kid. Which he appreciated. Alma made him feel like he was good at something. It was a very public wedding. The capitol had made sure of that. People loved seeing Dwight look so smart.

The two became the hottest young couple. However, it didn’t last. Two years into their marriage, the man who’d moved at fifty miles an hour his entire life wasn’t enjoying the slow married life. Alma wanted a child. That was something Dwight wasn’t ready for. Frustration built up inside him and he started to get mean. Not happy with the person he’d become, Dwight’s ego decided to blame Alma for their marriage falling apart, rather publicly as well. Front page of sponsors weekly thanks to a lovely capitol reported called Nessa whom he’d made a deal with. Alma had threatened to cut his balls off. She settled for a divorce.

Nessa had done a good job at making sure he got some positive press post-divorce. She did a good job satisfying him in other areas as well. They were completely casual though, to him anyway. He didn’t realise Nessa had feelings for him until a year after he split from Alma. So, when she threatened to expose him, he started dating her. She was a piece of work. Everything that he’d falsely accused Alma of being. Dwight was twenty-seven when he felt obliged to propose to her. They kept their relationship secret until one year later. Nessa, bored of the marriage she decided to use him as a stepping stone in her career via another public divorce. Only this time, she threw every name under the sun at him and went after his money. Nessa was good at getting what she wanted.

After that Dwight closed the chapter in his life he’d labelled ‘demonic hell beast’ and focused on himself for the first time in a while. Without distractions he was able to get clean and focus on mentoring. Which he wasn’t half bad at when he put his mind to it. He was good at giving the tributes alternate strategies. After all, that was how he’d won. Though every year when one died, he did take it hard. His new persona ‘didn’t like failure.’ He quoted in the double page spread Sponsors weekly had done for him. He seemed to skip his mid-life crisis stage at thirty ( guess life decided he’d had enough of them in his twenties ) Then thirty-seven hit with a bang when Esmerelda Little was hired as the new escort for district six. She was breathtakingly beautiful. Warm and fuzzy. He heard someone behind him say ‘don’t even think about it’ It was too late for that. Dwight’s new personality was a perfect match for Esme. He did make sure that he actually liked her before marrying her this time. He was older though, mature. And it was the perfect publicity —- come to think of it, that was a red flag.

Truth was, he didn’t mean to hurt Esme. But she was a busy woman, even after they were married. He’d returned to the capitol to find Marella had passed away and she wasn’t around to support him. That on top of losing more tributes didn’t bode well for Dwight. Alcohol was there to support him…so were prostitutes.

The sponsors weekly title three months later read, ‘Dwight’s Dodgy Dealings’ and detailed his continued interactions with prostitutes and drinking. Claiming he’d cheated on Elsa with five prostitutes. That was a lie.

It was only three.

Elsa divorced him and once again took money out of his pocket. He was paying of a dozen people that knew secrets about him. His monthly mentoring funds were dwindling. Looking back, he was in no position to agree to another marriage. He needed to do something to recover his image though. It would make a sellable story. So, when a prostitute claimed to be pregnant with his baby his brain said, why not?!

Nine months later he became a four-time-divorcée. The pregnancy nothing but a work of fiction. No baby, no marriage.

Thankfully that tally has remained at four divorces. Unfortunately, his bank account is still paying the price. As is his health. As he’s vowed to not end up in another marriage his outlet for stress is alcohol once again. His light sensitivity constantly pisses him off. And pretending to be smart didn’t work out for him. Smart people are held responsible for their actions. So, the dumb act was switched back on. Sweet naïve Dwight. Tricked into four marriages, unlucky in love. … Maybe he should take a vow of celibacy.

PLAYED BY // JO

#accepted #dwight #// so so sorry for the delay on this!!

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alisamaefawn394 · 4 years

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Honestly this hawkeye and Jeremy Renner hate has gone too far.

I saw one of those tik toks, sing along if you find them attractive marvel addition, but it gets worse as you go along. The last, or ‘worst’ was in fact Jeremy. The girls doing the video started gagging, one of them even changed their username to one that berates Clint Barton.

I’m a huge fan of Hawkeye, comics and MCU. Jeremy does an excellent job with what he’s given, and no, the MCU does not erase hawkeyes disability as he isn’t deaf for all of the comics, please don’t bring your ableist bullshit near me because I’m disabled and disabled folks can speak for themselves, ta. Jeremy can’t help it if his character was written ‘badly’ which for the record I don’t think it is.

Jeremy is one of the oldest actors in the MCU. Downey, Rudd, Cheadle and Ruffalo are the only hero’s older than him, and well if you don’t know then one of those is already out the picture. Jeremy is 49 years old and he’s spent his life working for other people, and not for himself. He does everything for his mumma and his daughter. Everything. He worked as a makeup artist, a renovator, this That and the other until he got his well deserved big break. He amassed enough money to live comfortably, and now only chooses films that he’ll enjoy and that won’t interfere with his time with Ava. He calls this money ‘fuck you money’.

I don’t know if people are aware, but Jeremy, since getting famous, has done a few wonderful things. He’s renovated a home for his mother, built a house for his daughter and himself, and has volunteered with the fire department near him. There are so so many other things but I can’t mention them.

Jeremy used to be a gymnast in his younger years, which can I just say, whew. He does as much as he can with stunts when he’s 49, and I’m not sure if you’re aware, but doing acrobatic type stunts at that age is HARD. He’s also an excellent singer and musician who doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. Believe me, I have a diploma.

While filming and doing press for AoU, he was going through a berating, traumatic divorce where the news was smearing his name left right and centre. But do you all know what? Not one single claim thrown at him by his ex wife - domestic abuse, gun violence, drug abuse, psychological manipulation, sex addiction - none of those claims have stuck or gotten anywhere in court. They were taken, had one trial, and she dropped the legal claim. Sonni has been trying for five years to get sole claim to Ava and has never once managed it. And when she claimed in 2015 that Jeremy held her captive and hid her passport? He was doing that for the welfare of his daughter. It was a green card marriage, except he didn’t know that, and when things went wrong, sonni tried to endanger her child by kidnapping her over the border into Canada. Jeremy has to hide the passport to keep his daughter safe and at home. Do you see the issues here?

Not only towards these abuse statements, but he’s made comments in the industry about different pay between men and women. I agree that they should be paid the same, but is it his issue to go to every single director and producer that he’s ever worked with and demand for more money for each of his female costars? No. You wouldn’t expect chris evans to do that, so don’t expect it from Jeremy. And yes, maybe he has used offensive slurs before , but I cannot even think of a celebrity off the top of my head who hasn’t slipped up at least once and said one, even if they haven’t been caught and ‘cancelled’ yet. Stop creating double standards between actors just because you don’t like one but love the other. It’s not fucking fair or funny, and I’m in pieces right now.

Ok fine, maybe you’re not a huge fan of Hawkeye in the MCU, maybe you don’t find Jeremy attractive, but don’t be so fucking rude and disgraceful about it. That’s not fucking ok. At all. This is a real man with a real life and a real family who has put ten years into the MCU, only to receive hate out of it. Just give it a fucking rest and show some respect, you’d all be hating on him if he got plastic surgery and tried to be more attractive anyway 🤷🏼‍♀️

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poormansspoiler · 5 years

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We have your full rundown of everything Marvel revealed at Comic Con this year, including some details you may have missed!

The biggest event of this year’s San Diego Comic Con was the Marvel Studios Panel which took place last Saturday. Hosted by Jessica Chobot and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, the panel revealed dates and titles for 11 upcoming films and TV shows. The panel began with Feige introducing some of the production team for Marvel, who were all brought on stage and celebrated for their hard work. Feige then announced that within the next few days Avengers: Endgame will surpass Avatar as the highest grossing film worldwide. After that it was time to announce the upcoming projects.

Image via Marvel Studios

The first project up was Eternals. Feige described it as something they hadn’t done before with the MCU, a group of immortals who have lived on earth for 35 thousand years. He stated the film would be full Jack Kirby before introducing director Chloé Zhao (The Rider). She said her draw beyond wanting to make a Marvel film was the idea of exploring what it means to be a human through the eyes of the Eternals. They then brought out the cast. Richard Madden (Rocketman) will portray Ikaris, Kumail Nanjani (Stuber) will portray Kingo, Lauren Ridloff (The Walking Dead) will portray Makkari, Brian Tyree Henry (Atlanta) will portray Phastos, Salma Hayek (Frida) will portray Ajak, Lia McHugh (The Lodge) will portray Sprite, Don Lee (Paboos) will portray Gilgamesh, and finally Angelina Jolie (Maleficent) will portray Thena.

Richard Madden explained that the Eternals are a race of immortal aliens sent to earth by the celestials to protect humankind from the deviants. Lauren Ridloff stated she’s honored to play the first deaf hero in the MCU. Kumail Nanjani stated this was his first time getting into Hall H after eight comic cons, before commenting on the fact that Marvel films are a throwback to older films that had a bit of everything and weren’t just one genre. Brian Tyree Henry was asked how it felt to play a character who is known for his intelligence, that most of the geniuses in the MCU move from their hearts and he thinks Phastos does the same thing. Salma Hayek stated that she approaches leadership (as the Eternals leader) as a family thing. Since the Eternals aren’t supposed to have children, they are each others family. Angelina Jolie said she’s going to work ten times harder than she has on any other action film. Lia McHugh said the whole experience doesn’t feel real as she’s grown up watching these Marvel movies. Don Lee (aka Dong-seok Ma) stated he was excited to show the power of Gilgamesh and that he would win in a fight with the Hulk.

Image via Marvel Studios

The next project up was The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Feige stated that the series will premiere on Disney+ in the fall of 2020, and will show what Falcon and Winter Soldier are up to post Endgame. Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan then came on stage, with Mackie carrying the Captain America shield. They joked about wanting to understand each others’ characters more, and Mackie stated that this is the best job in the world. Feige then led into a video that revealed that Daniel Brühl would be returning as Baron Zemo within the series.

Brühl released the above images of his character from the series earlier this week.

Image via Marvel Studios

Feige then introduced the first film of 2021, Shang-Chi and the Legend of The 10 Rings on February 12th 2021. He went on to detail how the Ten Rings have been around since Iron Man, having kidnapped Tony for Obediah Stane. A video played as he explained their continued influence through helping Whiplash in Iron Man 2, the Mandarin imposter in Iron Man 3, the Ten Rings member in Ant-Man, and finally the Ten Rings coming for the Mandarin imposter in the short film All Hail the King. He stated that the real Mandarin is in this film and Tony Leung (Europe Raiders) is portraying him. Feige revealed that Awkwafina (The Farewell) is in the film as well before introducing director Destin Cretton (Short Term 12).

Cretton came on stage and said that he grew up on such island with a population that was roughly the same size as the amount of people in Hall H, so this experience is a little crazy. He then explained that it’s really special to him that he gets to be part of making the MCU more diverse. Cretton also stated that it’s been amazing to see how much planning has gone into bringing the MCU to this point with the Ten Rings. He went on to say they went through an in depth search to find the right actor to portray Shang-Chi before bringing out Simu Liu. Liu said he screen tested on Sunday and was cast on Tuesday and this whole experience was the craziest dream. He explained that his parents immigrated to Canada from China 25 years ago with the hope of making a good life for their family, and he’s happy he’s not a doctor.

Image via Marvel Studios

Feige then announced that the Disney+ series WandaVision would debut in the spring of 2021 before bringing out Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany. Olsen explained that we will see what makes Wanda Maximoff the Scarlet Witch. Bettany joked that he had no idea how Vision is in the show, but said that as they keep doing Marvel projects the stories get richer, and this is the best yet. Feige then confirmed it take place after Endgame, and that some other MCU characters we know will be in the series before announcing that Teyonah Parris (Point Blank) will portray a grown up version of Monica Rambeau from Captain Marvel. Parris came on stage and said that this is a dream come true, not only to be part of the MCU but to portray Monica.

Image via Marvel Studios

Next up Feige introduced the Disney+ series Loki, which will premiere in the spring of 2021. He explained that the series explores where Loki disappeared to after taking the Tesseract in Endgame. Tom Hiddleston then came on stage to the crowd cheering “Loki, Loki, Loki!” Hiddleston explained that this version of the character is the 2012 Loki who had just been “Hulk Smashed” and that there’s “a lot of psychological evolution” that has yet to happen. He stated that Feige has major plans that he’s incredibly excited to be part of.

Image via Marvel Studios

The next project reveal was Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, set for release on May 7th 2021. Feige introduced director Scott Derrickson. Derrickson stated that he loves that Doctor Strange fights villains from different planets and Universes and that we’ll see that in this film. He said he signed on for the sequel because they’re going into the gothic and horror elements, and that it will be the MCU’s first horror film. They then brought out Benedict Cumberbatch, the entire Hall sang happy birthday to him, as Friday was his birthday. He then stated that he was excited to play into the horror elements and that the story sees things trying to destroy the good Doctor. Feige then revealed that Scarlet Witch would be in the film and brought out Elizabeth Olsen once more. He then stated that WandaVision would lead into the Doctor Strange sequel. Olsen said that she’s excited to help bridge the world of the TV side and the Film side of the MCU.

Image via Marvel Studios

Feige then revealed the first Animated project for the MCU, set for summer of 2021, the Disney+ series What If? Feige confirmed that the majority of the MCU cast members are reprising their roles in the series, before revealing that Jeffrey Wright will voice The Watcher. Wright was then brought on stage where he said he’s excited to be part of the MCU, and joked that his son will now respond to his texts. He compared the MCU to modern myth making, and explained that the Watcher is a being that watches over the entire multiverse and occasionally intervenes. He commented on the fact that the Watcher appeared first in Fantastic Four on the moon, and that they could take this character anywhere.

Image via Marvel Studios

Feige stated that they hadn’t talked about any of the original Avengers before bringing up Jeremy Renner from the audience. They revealed a small video introducing the Disney+ Hawkeye series which is set for release in the fall of 2021, which included images of Kate Bishop who Renner stated was “the best version of Hawkeye.” Renner then explained that he gets to shepherd in an amazing character and teach Kate Bishop how to be a “superhero without superpowers.” As Renner left the stage Feige confirmed that the show will explore more of Clint Barton’s time as Ronin, presumably diving into the five year gap that happens during Endgame.

Image via Marvel Studios

Next up Feige revealed the third film of 2021, set for release on November 5th 2021 would be Thor: Love and Thunder. Feige then brought out director Taika Waititi and stars Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson. Waititi said that “there’s nothing more powerful in the world than love,” to which Hemsworth continued “and Thunder.” Hemsworth confirmed that they haven’t read the script yet. Thompson then stated that the first thing Valkyrie needed to do as King of Asgard is to find her Queen. Then to find refuge for anyone who needs it. Waititi then said that he read the Mighty Thor storyline while filming Ragnarok, and he fell in love with it. He then brought out Natalie Portman, who will be returning to portray Jane Foster as the female Thor. Waititi then handed Portman Mojlnir, who said it felt good to wield the Hammer.

Image via Marvel Studios

Kevin Feige then revealed the next film set for release, May 1st 2020, Black Widow. He then introduced Director Cate Shortland and cast members David Harbour (Stranger Things) who will portray Alexi, Florence Pugh who will portray Yolena Belova, O-T Fagbenle is portraying Mason, Rachel Weisz is portraying Malena, and finally Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow.

Shortland said she was drawn to the fact that Natasha has so many secrets, and this story sees her put the pieces of her self together to come out as a whole person. Johansson stated she couldn’t have played this version of Natasha 10 years ago, and she loves getting to play her as a fully realized person. She also is looking forward to showing the flawed side of her, and “wiping out the red from her ledger.” Harbour was asked if he was excited to expand his fanbase in the MCU, and joked that it’s the worst question ever because of course he was excited. Harbour was wearing a Captain America shirt and when asked about Cap he said in a Russian accent that he “[had] complicated feelings about this man.” Pugh said that her character is a sister figure to Natasha. Fagbenle’s character is a contact from Natasha’s past, he’s a fixer but there’s a bit of a romantic undercurrent. Weisz stated that she was excited to join the mythology of the MCU and loves being part of a story with a female character at the forefront. Scarlett stated they had only been shooting for 30 days before leading into footage for the film.

After the Black Widow footage, they brought everyone back out onto the stage and took a photo of the entire group. Feige then confirmed that they’re making Black Panther 2, Guardians of the Galaxy 3, Captain Marvel 2, and Fantastic Four before teasing that they didn’t even have time to talk about Mutants. He then said that all of that had been rumored but one thing hadn’t been rumored, and introduced Mahershala Ali to the stage. Feige commented that Ali brought his own hat with him, and he placed it on his head to reveal a Blade logo, officially confirming that he would be playing the character in a film for the MCU.

With that the panel concluded. There’s a lot to take in and plenty more news in store concerning each of these projects. Be sure to keep following Poor Man’s Spoiler for updates on every Marvel film and TV series, and our continuing SDCC 2019 coverage.

Image via Marvel Studios

Written by Alex Lancaster (Alex is a life long film fan, and has dedicated his life to watching, making and obsessing over films. His favorite film is Big Fish, and he despises Avatar. He has a 5 year old son. And a bad habit of saying more than he needs to. Follow @alex5348 on Twitter)

Marvel revealed a lot more than just Film titles at this year's SDCC. Check out everything they dropped, including some details that didn't make the headlines. We have your full rundown of everything Marvel revealed at Comic Con this year, including some details you may have missed!

#marvel #sdcc #Black Widow #Chang Chi #Disney #Doctor Strange #Eternals #Falcon #Film #Hawkeye #Loki #MCU #SDCC2019 #streaming #Thor Love and Thunder #Vision #Wanda Maximoff #What If #Winter Soldier

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yournerdside · 5 years

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WE ARE LIVE FROM THE SAN FRANCISCO ADVANCE PREMIERE OF THE GRINCH:

Fonseca talks with Julie Dolan actress and voice over actress – Voicing A Princess And a General In this season of Star Wars Rebels, the original leading lady that started it all made her animated debut, but it wasn’t Carrie Fisher taking the helm, it was actress Julie Dolan. Julie is a Southern California native and has appeared in several shows over the years including The Gilmore Girls and Without a Trace. We wanted to talk to Julie, but not just because of her role on Rebels, but also because of her role as Princess Leia in Star Tours The Adventures Continue as well as General Leia in Disney Infinity 3.0. We were fortunate to have some time to speak to Julie and talk about how she became the latest actress to fill Carrie Fisher’s rather large space shoes!

Fonseca and AMV talk about the AVENGERS 9 rumors and confirm them.

Normally, I wouldn’t put too much stalk into rumors or leaks, but sometimes those rumors and leaks have a kernel of truth to them, and with a movie as big and secretive as Avengers 4, these rumors deserve some attention. The Russo Brothers may be content to leave everyone guessing, but that hasn’t seemingly stopped a few details from slipping through the cracks. Combined with other leaks, these rumors have a pretty good shot at being on the money or at least in the right ballpark, and these are the nine biggest Avengers 4 rumors to watch out for.

There Will Be A Time Jump Into The Future

One of the most prevalent rumors about Avengers 4 is that it’s going to pull a time hop and take place several years after the events in Avengers: Infinity War. The popular idea is that the movie will jump five to 10 years into the future, which would make sense. That way we get to see the full effect of The Snap and whether or not Thanos was actually right that things would be better off. Set photos have shown what appears to be an older Tony Stark in a SHIELD uniform and it’s rumored that actress Emma Fuhrmann will be an older Cassie Lang (Scott Lang’s daughter). A time jump certainly would explain both of those.

Time Travel Plays A Big Part

Thanks to set photos showing off Tony Stark and Scott Lang in what appears to be the Battle of New York (with an Avengers-era Captain America as reference), people believe that time travel is a big part of the film. Some rumors claim the Avengers will travel to multiple points in the past, making the movie something of a love letter to the MCU. Other rumors claim that no one actually time travels and this is just an advanced use of Stark’s holographic BARF technology — which the Russo Brothers have hinted. Still cool either way.

Pepper Potts Suits Up

Some fans have wanted Pepper Potts to suit up in her own armor, for a role which in the comics is called Rescue. One rumor has Pepper flying all the way to Titan to pick up Tony (which is farfetched as hell), but others say she will play a support role on the battlefield. There wasn’t any real basis for this rumor until a leaked photo of Gwyneth Paltrow in some kind of battle suit hit the Internet. The whole costume isn’t in view, but there are some hard Iron Man vibes to what can be seen. Regardless, it looks like Pepper is suiting up for something.

The Quantum Realm Is Needed

The Quantum Realm is the dimension-sized plot device of the Ant-Man franchise, and it might be the key to solving the Avengers’ problem. No rumor quite agrees on what the Quantum Realm will be used for, but the most popular is time travel. People have also drawn comparisons to some leaked matching white outfits for the Avengers and Hank Pym’s Quantum Realm suit. Are the Avengers suiting up to head deep into the Quantum Realm with Pym technology? As long as they are wearing those stylin’ suits, I don’t care what they do.

Hawkeye Will Be Ronin and DARK

His absence in Infinity War drew shouts of frustrations from MCU fans, but while Hawkeye will be in Avengers 4, he may not be the same guy. Rumors have heavily indicated that Clint Barton will change identities (or at least costumes) to become Ronin, a ninja-like hero that Barton became for a time in the comics. Bits and pieces of the Ronin costume have been seen in set photos, and leaked concept art showed the black, hooded outfit. As to why Clint has opted for a new identity, there’s a pretty dark rumor that his whole family was Snapped and he doesn’t take it well. Jeremy Renner himself has hinted that Hawkeye is in for a dark storyline.

Hulk and Bruce Banner Will Unite

Bruce Banner’s main problem in Infinity War — other than the threat of annihilation — was that the Hulk refused to fight after Thanos trounced him. However, Hulk isn’t going to sit out the final battled and leaked concept art showed a new kind of Hulk, one that was something of the halfway point between Hulk and Banner. Banner has always been at odds with the Hulk, so it’s fitting the culmination of their story would be that they finally learn to get along and unify as one identity. Assumedly, this form has the mind of Banner with the strength of Hulk, and hopefully, that can help turn the tide of battle against Thanos.

There’s A Villain Greater Than Thanos

Thanos has been billed as the top dog of villains in the MCU, and he lived up to that in Infinity War after he, well, won. It was assumed that his villainy streak would continue into Avengers 4, but it turns out that he might not be alone. According to a leak from a promotional item for the film, the Avengers have to assemble to battle an “even greater” enemy, implying that someone is trying to upstage Thanos. It’s an interesting wrinkle, and it could lead to an Avengers-Thanos team-up to take down this new baddie. We can only speculate as to what this new threat could be. There are a few different cosmic beings that fit the bill, but one theory claims the villain might be none other than Annihilus, a bug monster overlord from another dimension.

So Many Rumors About The Title

In all of cinema history, has there ever been such a focus on the title of a movie? Fans are obsessed with finding out the true title of Avengers 4, which was deemed too much of a spoiler to reveal before Infinity War released. There have been rumors suggesting the title could be Avengers: End Game, Avengers: Eternity War, and Avengers: Annihilation. None of these have been confirmed yet and likely won’t be until the first trailer drops, but the one that really seems to be picking up steam is Annihilation. It fits right in with the tease of another villain (Annihilus) while tying into the “final chapter” tone for this era of the MCU. With all this build up, there’s a really good chance the title is going to be a letdown no matter what it is, but boy, what a ride it’s been!

Captain America Will Die

To be fair, there are rumors that most major characters will be kicking the bucket by the time the credits roll, but Captain America is by far the most prominent. Due to comic book storylines, fans have been expecting Cap to die for a while now, and it seems almost pre-destined to happen at this point. Chris Evans fueled the fire for this rumor himself after he tweeted an emotional “farewell” tweet about his last day on set. He later came out and said that this tweet didn’t mean he was done with the role forever… but it had some severe goodbye vibes. Maybe Cap doesn’t die and gets to walk off into the sunset; either way, this is likely the last we’ll see of this excellent character for some time

FONSECA TALKS WITH A LEGEND: Robert Henry “Bob” Gurr American amusement ride designer and Imagineer. His most famous work was for Walt Disney’s Disneyland Park, and its subsequent sister parks. Gurr is said to have designed most, if not all, of the ride vehicles of the Disneyland attractions, including Autopia, Haunted Mansion, the Disneyland Monorail, the Submarine Voyage, and the Matterhorn Bobsleds. He was named a Disney Legend in 2004. He also worked on the King Kong Encounter animatronic for Universal Studios Hollywood. He gives us the details and more!

Fonseca and Bob Gurr eating lunch and talking

Bob Gurr and Fonseca

Lets finish the interview

[contact-form] THIS WEEK ON THE SHOW LIVE FROM GRINCH PREMIERE: JULIE DOLAN ACTRESS AND BOB GURR “DISNEY RIDE DESIGNER AND IMAGINEER WE ARE LIVE FROM THE SAN FRANCISCO ADVANCE PREMIERE OF THE GRINCH: Fonseca talks with Julie Dolan actress and voice over actress – Voicing A Princess And a General In this season of Star Wars Rebels, the original leading lady that started it all made her animated debut, but it wasn’t Carrie Fisher taking the helm, it was actress Julie Dolan.

#Aaron fonseca #Bob Gurr #Disney #Fonseca #Fonseca Show #Julie Dolan #tunein

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yamijay357 · 7 years

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Top 10 Movies of 2016

Another year has passed and another Top 10 movie list must follow. I found this year to be a tad weaker than 2015, with many of my picks for this list not coming to theaters until November or December. This year started to show, quality wise at least, the blockbuster fatigue that constant releases in expanded universes (superheroes, especially) can evoke. Fortunately, once I narrowed down my list along with a few honorable mentions, it became very difficult to put them in order, which is usually a sign of some great films. I believe that every movie listed here will be a great addition to one of your movie night queues. So, without further ado...

Honorable Mentions

Deadpool

Superhero movies have flooded our theaters to the point that we’ll soon be getting over half a dozen in a single year. This year they ranged from the painfully mediocre (Batman v. Superman, Doctor Strange) to just bad (Suicide Squad). Deadpool was a nice breath of fresh air as Ryan Reynolds brought the much loved Merc with a Mouth to the screen. Deadpool is funny, lampooning everything from the superhero genre as a whole to the questionable decisions made regarding both previous appearances of Deadpool and the career of Reynolds himself. If only all comic book movies could be this faithful to the spirit of the character.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Another year, another Star Wars movie. This installment was a landmark film for the franchise in that it was the first major release not to focus on the main narrative following the Skywalker family. Instead, we were given the story of how Princess Leia ended up with the Death Star plans she had at the beginning of A New Hope. We get a look at a different side of the universe not particularly focused on magic space wizards but instead on real people fighting the threat of the Empire. Felicity Jones leads a great cast in a solid movie that has one of the best third acts of the franchise. Alan Tudyk stands out as a reprogrammed Imperial droid that is loyal to the Rebellion but throws shade like no other. While not all characters were developed fully, in the end, Rogue One stands as the best blockbuster of 2016.

The Top Ten

10. Manchester by the Sea

Grief is often the hardest thing to sell on screen, so making such a deep theme the focus of your movie is a bit of a risk. However, Kenneth Lonergan deftly writes and directs a unique view of grief for a unique family dynamic. Casey Affleck plays Lee Chandler, a handyman who resides in Boston away from his home of Manchester following a family tragedy. The death of his brother brings him home where he discovers that he is now the guardian of his nephew Patrick, played by Lucas Hedges. The film follows both of the men as they deal with death and all of the complications that come from it. However, their story is both painful and funny, as the movie makes for several reactions that seem all too real to those of us that have lost someone close. While the ending leaves several elements uncertain, Affleck and Hedges give strong performances that give us one of the truest depictions of loss ever set to film.

9. Pete’s Dragon

I hate the original Pete’s Dragon. When I found out a remake was being made the chances of me seeing it were slim. However, when it received several good reviews, I fit it into a four-movie day at the theater, mostly because I was curious. I didn’t expect to walk away with such a satisfied feeling. All of the awkward elements of the original (Animation that stood out in a bad way, sub par musical numbers, and Mickey Rooney) are gone, leaving a wonderful modern fairy tale about an orphaned boy and his invisible dragon friend that hit in all of the right places. Bryce Dallas Howard leads a great cast including Karl Urban, Robert Redford, and promising newcomer Oakes Fegley as Pete. A great story, seamless effects, and an ending that will bring tears to your eyes allows this movie to soar above its predecessor and claim its place on this list.

8. Lion

This movie snuck into theaters near the end of the year and I saw it on New Year’s Eve. It was a pretty great way to end the year. Lion is the true story of Saroo Brierley, an five-year-old Indian boy who, while searching for work with his older brother, gets transported across India to a region that is entirely alien to him, including the language. After Saroo finds his way to an orphanage, he is adopted by a loving Australian couple. 25 years later, Saroo is obsessed with finding out what happened to the family he lost. This may be the most genuine, human film made this year, as the audience feels the panic and fear of a strange new place with young Saroo, and the hope and frustration plaguing his adult counterpart as he searches one of the most populated countries in the world for a single small village. Dev Patel gives his best performance yet as Saroo in a film that will take you on quite the feels trip when both you and Saroo reach the conclusion.

7. Jackie

We all know what happened November 22nd, 1963. But have you ever thought about what the person most affected by that day did in the week that followed? Natalie Portman plays Jackie Kennedy, who is interviewed the week after her husband President Kennedy was assassinated. The movie rests completely on her and she doesn’t disappoint. She completely becomes Kennedy as we see a world that is rocked by loss on both a personal and national level. Kennedy must face everything that comes in the aftermath from being moved out of the White House for the Johnson family to trying to explain to her children why their father won’t come home again. There are times that I forgot I was watching Natalie Portman as I fell into the world captured so perfectly by Pablo Larraín. This film speaks not only to the humanity of Jackie Kennedy, but also to her amazing contribution to the legacy JFK left behind.

6. Arrival

What would happen if we really were visited by alien lifeforms? A history of cheesy and often terrible movies (cough, Independence Day, cough) has built in the assumption that the aliens would be hostile and seek to destroy us. If aliens were to visit, I believe that Arrival shows us the most likely outcome compared to anything else. Amy Adams plays linguistics professor Louise Banks who is called in by the government to try to decipher the communications of alien visitors. Along with a brilliant physicist (Jeremy Renner), Banks must figure out the intentions of the visitors before other countries take hostile actions. This movie does an amazing job of displaying both our actual ignorance of other lifeforms and all of the possible directions we could take with it. In the midst of people not understanding each other, Arrival is a brilliantly made film that speaks to all people.

5. Moonlight

Similar in structure to Steve Jobs, Moonlight consists of three short films focusing on Chiron (aka Little), and his coming of age in a poor neighborhood that has no shortage of drug dealers. As a child, he finds a crack dealer named Juan (Mahershala Ali) who, along with his girlfriend, serve as loving parental figures in the place of his disinterested and drug-addicted mother. Juan helps Chiron trust people, which leads to him sharing an intimate moment with his high school friend Kevin. Circumstances lead to Kevin and Chiron separating but encountering each other as adults, leading to one of the most beautiful ending scenes of the year. Alex Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, and Trevante Rhodes give stellar performances as each stage of Chiron’s life. Such a simple story gives way to profound emotions that will resonate with you well after the film is over.

4. Loving

Speaking of simple, there was probably no more simply put-together movie this year than Loving. And yet, it managed to be one of the most profound films of the year. Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga play Richard and Mildred Loving, a couple whose illegal interracial marriage led to the Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court case that ruled all marriage laws having to do with race unconstitutional. But that is not what the movie is really about. With limited dialogue and politics, Loving focuses almost solely on the relationship of the two main characters and the hardship they have to face from their home state. We learn about their dreams and the lengths they will go to in order to be together. The leads are absolutely fantastic and give you the entire weight of the story while spending only a few minutes of screen time in courtrooms. In a year where several films on this list took my heart, Loving is a true standout.

3. Zootopia

The reason that The Good Dinosaur didn’t succeed as much as everyone thought it would was because it failed to deliver on its premise of a world full of dinosaurs by showing us just a few dinosaurs. Zootopia doesn’t suffer from this problem, as the world of Judy Hopps (Gennifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) is a rich world of animals with different personalities, troubles, and ambitions. This movie would have succeeded as a fun movie on that alone. But Zootopia goes a step further and delivers one of the most profound messages of almost any animated film ever made. It not only highlights the obvious prejudices different groups of people feel toward each other, but also how we may not even be aware of our own unwarranted feelings of distrust and how they can affect people close to us. This was the movie that 2016 needed and that we’ll need for years to come. Also, who wants a full Gazelle album? (Raises hand)

2. La La Land

Earlier this year, when introducing one of my friends to my favorite movie, Singin’ in the Rain, I made the comment that “they don’t make this kind of movie anymore, and it’s sad.” Well, turns out that Damien Chazelle felt the same way and gave us an amazing film that serves as both an homage to the musical genre that preceded it and as a beautiful piece of art that will inspire future artists for years. Emma Stone plays Mia, a girl trying to pursue her acting dreams in LA, along with thousands of other people. She frequently runs into Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), an unemployed jazz musician who dreams of owning his own club. The two chase their dreams together to the tune of the best soundtrack of the year and delightful dance numbers and city backdrops. La La Land succeeds in every technical aspect as Los Angeles is turned into a magical, musical dreamland. Stone and Gosling go beyond their usual charm and give us amazing characters with surprisingly good singing voices that would make Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers proud. And then the ending. Well, if the ending sequence doesn’t fill you with emotion, then you’re probably a robot.

1. Hell or High Water

The biggest surprise of the year for me turned out to be my favorite movie of 2016. Hell or High Water is David Mackenzie’s neo-Western masterpiece that is perhaps the best possible step to take after the Cohen Brothers’ No Country for Old Men. The film shows Chris Pine and Ben Foster playing brothers Toby and Tanner Howard. When their mother dies and Tanner gets out of jail, the bank handling the loan for their mother’s farm seeks to seize the property. In order to pay off the bank that overcharged their mother for years, the brothers begin to pull off small robberies of the local branches. While authorities don’t see it as a priority, the crimes attract the attention of two Texas Rangers (Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham) and a chase across Texas begins. Every performance is incredible in this movie. Chris Pine shows his dramatic chops while giving the best performance of his career (so far) and Jeff Bridges is outstanding beyond even what you would expect. The cinematography shows off the gritty yet beautiful western landscapes yet never loses the scope of how the region has been hit by the advancement of modern times. But the true winner here is the best screenplay of the year as every character is able to draw you into a story that begs questions of morality and loyalty. While La La Land may walk away with all of the awards, Hell or High Water is my pick for Best Film of 2016.

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