Say what you like about Disney’s basic play-it-safe attitude when it comes to movie-making, politics, cultural decisions, etc., but they’re still maverick daredevils when it comes to the art of staging a group photo. Don’t believe us? Take a look at this picture snapped after the company’s big live-action showcase at CinemaCon today, and imagine the sheer gall of someone saying “Hey, we should have Jared Leto and Jeremy Strong stand next to each other, since there’s absolutely zero chance they could somehow trip and merge together into the most aggressively method actor to ever live. Also, get Lindsay Lohan in there somehow, too.”
From left to right (deep breath): Jeremy Allen White, Alan Bergman, Co-Chairman, Disney Entertainment, Lindsay Lohan, Jamie Lee Curtis, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Zoe Saldana, Elle Fanning, James L. Brooks, Emma Mackey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Wyatt Russell, Ke Huy Quan, Jeff Bridges, Hannah John-Kamen, Jared Leto, Jeremy Strong and Andrew Cripps, Head of Theatrical Distribution, Disney Entertainment Studios
Leto, for his part, was on hand to promote his latest Disney collaboration, upcoming sci-fi third installment Tron: Ares. He and Jeff Bridges (who seemed to be very impressed that the movie has a Nine Inch Nails soundtrack) showed off a trailer for the film that the rest of us didn’t get to see, but which apparently features Grid fixtures like lightcycles breaking out into the real world. Strong, meanwhile, was once again in “supporting character in a biopic” mode, this time for his co-starring part in Jeremy Allen White Bruce Springsteen movie Deliver Me From Nowhere. Strong plays Springsteen’s long-time manager Jon Landau in the movie, and god, what do you think he and Leto talked about while they were getting everybody perfectly positioned for this shoot? We hope Thunderbolts’ Hannah John-Kamen, situated directly in their line of verbal fire, is okay.
Sorry, sorry. We let ourselves get distracted, imagining what was probably a perfectly pleasant conversation between two actors who constantly look and act like they Need It The Most. Lohan, at least, was way over on the other side of the shot, having made an appearance alongside Jamie Lee Curtis to promote Freakier Friday, which is set for an August 8 release date. (Curtis was also there to prop up Emma Mackey for their new film Ella McCay, written and directed by an also-present James L. Brooks.) And that wasn’t nearly the end of Disney’s cavalcade of content that those of us who aren’t CinemaCon attendees can kick rocks instead of watching: Kevin Feige phoned in to show off footage of Fantastic Four: First Steps (including, reportedly, lots of shots of Julia Garner’s new take on the Silver Surfer), Ke Huy Quan rolled out some Zootopia 2 footage, and James Cameron did a pre-tape message to show off a sneak peek of Avatar: Fire And Ash. It was an incredibly stacked parade of stuff that we just don’t get to see, and it ignites the imagination with all sorts of questions. Like: Do you think Leto and Strong exchanged tips about picking extremely distracting accessories to liven up an outfit? Inquiring minds (who don’t get to watch actual trailers, so they might as well think about this all night) want to know!
