--official Paramount statement coming soon--
Meanwhile, as we predicted several months ago, Paramount has made another big Star Trek 50th Anniversary Blu-ray announcement and, just as expected, it’s a massive box set repackaging lots of stuff you already own with the addition of The Animated Series and a new feature-length documentary. Officially called the Star Trek 50th Anniversary TV and Movie Collection, this 30-disc BD set will street on 9/6 (just two days before the official series anniversary). It will include Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series (new to Blu-ray), Star Trek: The Motion Picture, the new Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan Director’s Cut, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. All of these film discs are the same discs already released. It also includes the multi-part, feature-length Star Trek: The Journey to the Silver Screen documentary (which includes The New Frontier: Resurrecting Star Trek, Maiden Voyage: Making Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Genesis Effect: Engineering The Wrath of Khan (note that this segment is also on the Trek II DC Blu-ray), The Dream is Alive: The Continuing Mission, and End of an Era: Charting the Undiscovered Country). The packaging will also include new Juan Ortiz mini-posters for all six films, and a 50th Anniversary Starfleet insignia pin. Note that this set is not yet available for pre-order on Amazon and I can’t imagine the SRP (which has yet to be revealed) is going to be cheap. Nevertheless, here’s what the packaging and contents will look like...
We should add that Star Trek: The Animated Series will likely be available on Blu-ray separately later this year – we’ll update you when we have additional details.
In 4K news today, various European Amazons have leaked details of more upcoming 4K Ultra HD catalog titles expected from Warner Bros Home Entertainment later this year, which include The Town, Argo, and the original Mad Max. (Street date is early September in Europe.) So add these to Pacific Rim, Man of Steel, and others that we know that Warner is working on for release on the format later this year. By the way, for some reason Warner’s 4K versions of Creed, In the Heart of the Sea, and Point Break (which are now available) still aren’t listed on Amazon.com. Not sure why that is. You can get them from Amazon Canada here, here, and here (remember, they’re all-region). Meanwhile, here’s what the cover artwork for the newly revealed titles looks like (we’ll add the US Amazon links as soon as Warner and Amazon get around to creating them)...
In other news today, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has set The Blacklist: The Complete Third Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 8/2. Both versions will include 3 featurettes (Outside the Box: Making The Blacklist Comic Book, All About Aram, and Red’s Gems: Favorite Lines From Season 3). To this, the Blu-ray will exclusively add deleted and extended scenes, episode commentaries, and 2 more featurettes (From the Shadows: Villains of Season 3 and Creating The Stunts: Script to Screen).
Our friends over at Shout! Factory have revealed more details about their highly-anticipated Bill & Ted’s Most Excellent Collection Blu-ray set, which is due on 9/20. The set will include Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, plus Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, and also “an entire disc of bonus features, including new interviews and commentary, deluxe packaging, a “Wyld Stallyns” branded guitar pick, vinyl stickers for both films, and previously released extras including The Original Bill & Ted, The Most Triumphant Making-Of, Air Guitar Tutorial, The Linguistic Stylings of B&T, From Scribble to Script, The Hysterical Personages of B&T, and radio spots.” Not bad! There will also be a limited edition version of the set that comes with phone booth packaging, an exclusive lithograph, and an exclusive action figure of George Carlin’s character Rufus made by NECA (click here to see it). (Note that NECA is also releasing a matching Bill & Ted action figure set in July.) You can see the cover artwork below...
As you can tell, we’re not done with Shout! yet: Their Scream Factory label has also announced the 9/20 Blu-ray release of John Carpenter’s The Thing: Collector’s Edition! The 2-disc set includes a brand new 2K scan of the film supervised by DP Dean Cundey and a new 4.1 audio mix created from the original 70mm six track Dolby Stereo soundtrack. All-new extras created for the set will include an audio commentary with Cundey and 5 interview featurettes (The Men of Outpost 31, Assembling and Assimilation, Behind the Chameleon, Sounds from the Cold, and Between the Lines). Tons of legacy extras will be on board as well, including audio commentary by director John Carpenter and actor Kurt Russell, the John Carpenter’s The Thing: Terror Takes Shape documentary, outtakes, vintage EPK featurettes, 2 additional vintage featurettes (The Making of a Chilling Tale and The Making of The Thing), a vintage product reel, vintage behind-the-scenes footage, the 92-minute Network TV broadcast version of The Thing (in SD), a still gallery, an Annotated Production Archive gallery, radio and TV spots, the teaser trailer, and the US and German theatrical trailer. You can see that cover art above (click to visit the Shout! pre-order pages for each).
Also today, Warner Bros Home Entertainment and Showtime have officially set Shameless: The Complete Sixth Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 9/30. Extras will include 3 featurettes and deleted scenes.
And finally today, we have word that Phase Four and Entertainment One have set Marcus D. Spencer’s Straight Outta Oakland for DVD only release on 7/5. Looks like it’s only available at Walmart at the moment.
Also here at the site today: Our own Russell Hammond has just posted the weekly Release Dates & Artwork update, featuring all the latest Blu-ray and DVD cover artwork with Amazon.com pre-order links. As always, anytime you order or pre-order product from Amazon after clicking to them through our links, you’re helping to support our work here at The Bits and we really do appreciate it.
Finally, a quick note: As I mentioned on Monday, 4K Ultra HD review product from the studios is arriving a little bit late these days – sometimes after street date. For example, we just got our hands on Fox’s ID4 this morning and we’re still waiting on The Martian: Extended Edition (both of which streeted yesterday), along with Paramount’s Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness (which street next Tuesday). I’m going to start on the ID4 review tonight, and as soon as the others come in, I’ll get to them right away. Just so you know – I’ve had a lot of you e-mail and message to ask me about it.
All right, back tomorrow. Stay tuned...
- Bill Hunt (@BillHuntBits)