How the director of the new 'Lego Movie' made Batman great again

"The Lego Batman Movie."

Warner Bros.

There's just something about Batman that gets audiences excited.

Whether he's in comic-book form, a playful 1960s TV character, or the focus of a brooding feature-length blockbuster, the Dark Knight is a character we just can't get enough of - even in Lego form.

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That was evident when one of the highlights from the 2014 "The Lego Movie" was the appearance of the Lego Batman, a self-centered hero who did everything on his own terms and was voiced perfectly by Will Arnett. He was so popular, in fact, that once the movie came out it was obvious Warner Bros. should make a spin-off movie dedicated to Batman.

Tasked with pulling that off was Chris McKay. Known within the animation world for directing episodes of the Adult Swim show "Robot Chicken," as well as working on the visual effects and editing side of the show's "Star Wars" movies, McKay was also the editor and codirector on Phil Lord and Christopher Miller's "The Lego Movie." McKay was even in charge of the movie's animation and rendering when Lord and Miller had to go and direct "22 Jump Street."

Swedish nuclear physicist just got the world’s first approved birth control app - as effective as the pill but using only mathematics

Elina Berglund

Margareta Bloom Sandebäck

For over a year Elina Berglund nuclear physicist has been fighting authorities and malicious headlines. Now her app will be the first in the world to be approved as a contraceptive.

“It feels incredibly exciting that there is now an approved alternative to conventional pregnancy prevention methods, and that it’s possible to replace medication with technology,” says a more than satisfied Elina Berglund, who founded Natural Cycles together with her husband Raoul Scherwizl.

The approval comes from the German inspection and certification organization Tüv Süd, which has classified the app in the medicinal category of IIb. That means Natural Cycles officially offers a new, clinically tested alternative to birth control methods such as contraceptive pills, contraceptive implants and condoms.

Graphic: Court remands man for killing and burying his daughter's alleged 22-year-old boyfriend in Cross River State

Cross River State High Court sitting in Calabar, on Friday, February 10th, remanded one Godwin Elewana at the Afokang Prisons for the second time for allegedly killing and burying 22 year old Douglas Ojugbo (pictured) whom he had suspected was having an affair with his daughter.


 In March 2015, Elewana, described as a dangerous man chased the late Douglas upon sighting him from a distance of about a kilometer to the gate of the Cross River Basin Development Authority where he shot him on the leg and arm.

Stadium stampede kills 17 in Angola

At least 17 people have been killed with dozens injured following a stampede at a football match in the northern Angolan city of Uige. The Fans were said to have stormed the stadium gates to gain entry to the first division league match between Santa Rita de Cassia and Recreativo do Libolo on Friday, February 10, 2017.
Witnesses said the pressure of the crowd trying to get access into the stadium caused several people to fall. Some of those who fell became trapped and suffocated at the venue.

Speaking to Reuters news agency, the director general of the local hospital, Ernesto Luis, said: 'Some people had to walk on top of other people. There were 76 casualties, of whom 17 died.'

Angola's President Jose Eduardo dos Santos has however ordered an investigation into the incident.

Britain's youngest EuroMillions winner wants to SUE the Lotto because the jackpot made her life '10 times worse'

Britain's youngest EuroMillions winner has confessed she sometimes wishes she had never bought her winning ticket.

Jane Park was just 17 when she scooped £1million with the first ticket she had ever bought in 2013.

But she has now confessed the huge win has left her incredibly stressed and she is even said to be considering legal action again Camelot. 

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Jane Park won £1million in 2013 and now says the money has made her life 10 times worse and brought stress

Speaking to the Sunday People, Ms Park, who now owns two properties and calls herself a developer, said: 'I thought it would make it ten times better but it’s made it ten times worse. I wish I had no money most days. I say to myself, "My life would be so much easier if I hadn’t won."

'People look at me and think, "I wish I had her lifestyle, I wish I had her money." But they don’t realise the extent of my stress.

'I have material things but apart from that my life is empty. What is my purpose in life?'

Ms Park, from Edinburgh said she believes the age limit of 16 for the lottery is too young, and people shouldn't be able to buy tickets before the age of 18.

She also said she has struggled to find a boyfriend who wasn't after her money, is sick of shopping for designer items, and misses cheap Benidorm holidays.  

Ms Park is reported to be considering suing lottery bosses.  

Prominent Kano state indigine, Rabiu Ali AHmed, killed by unknown persons in Abuja

Unknown persons yesterday killed prominent Kano state indigine, Rabiu Ali Ahmed, as he made his way out of Hilton Hotel Abuja where he had gone to see one Professor. According to Rariya, it is uncertain whether this is a case of armed robbery or murder. Meanwhile his remains will be buried according to Muslim rites at his village in Kano state today February 10th.

More athletes are refusing to visit the White House and it is going to change a great tradition forever

Mark Wilson/Getty Images

One day after the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl, safety Devin McCourty announced that he will not visit the White House with his teammates, saying he wouldn't feel "accepted" in the White House because of President Donald Trump's "many strong opinions and prejudices."

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McCourty is already the second Patriots player to say he is skipping the tradition. Earlier, tight end Martellus Bennett said he would not be making the trip, saying he doesn't support "the guy that's in the House."

While championship teams being invited to the White House is a long-standing tradition, players opting out is becoming an even bigger one and it is going to lead to a big change in how the ceremony is handled.

Here are all the companies that have cut ties with the Trump family

Getty Images / Paul Morigi

Dozens of companies have been thrust to the forefront of the political battle between President Trump's supporters and critics through a series of competing boycotts.

Trump's critics have been urging customers to stop shopping at retailers that sell Trump family brands, including Ivanka Trump's line of women's clothing and accessories.

The anti-Trump boycott movement, launched by Shannon Coulter, has been branded with the hashtag #GrabYourWallet on social media.

Alternatively, Trump's supporters have threatened to stop giving their business to companies that bow to the pressure and drop Trump products.

Here's a list of the companies that have cut ties with the Trump family.

Mob drag female child killer out of cell and throw her into bonfire (photos)

A woman who was being held in a police cell in Brazil for starting a fire that killed a 2-year-old boy was on Tuesday dragged out by a group of about 500 people who overpowered the police then proceeded to throw the woman into a bonfire.


The woman was dragged along the floor by her hair, all the way outside to a burning car and was forced into the fire. Everyone around recorded the incident on their phones and made no move to help her until the police called for reinforcement and a troop of full military police arrived that the woman was rescued.

Tyre of Qatar airline's aircraft burst as plane attempts takeoff at Lagos airport

No fewer than 100 passengers onboard a Qatar airline plane on its way to the United Arab Emirate were rescued after the tyre of the aircraft suddenly burst as it attempted to takeoff at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos yesterday February 9th.

According to some passengers on the aircraft, the pilot was about to takeoff when they heard a loud sound that was later confirmed to be from a burst tyre.

The pilot was able to taxi the aircraft back to the terminal. The affected aircraft was later parked at one of the hangars within the airport for repair while alternative arrangement was made for the passengers.

PHOTONEWS: @officialEFCC Cash haul uncovered at Kaduna bunker of former Group Managing Director of @NNPCgroup Andrew Yakubu

EFCC Cash haul uncovered at Kaduna bunker of former Group Managing Director of @NNPCgroup Andrew Yakubu

Kanye West Deletes all his Team Trump Tweets & Vents on Lack of Communication with President Trump

According to TMZ, even Kanye West cannot stand his favorite President Trump as he deletes his tweets that showed him supporting the new president against the popular vote.

In December, the day he met with Trump in NYC, he wrote,

Married man defrauds lady of N450,000 after fake marriage proposal

A Lagos court has declared wanted a 45-year old man, Raphael Emmanson, for allegedly obtaining N450,000 from a lady, Miss Chinedu Chukwu, under the false pretense of marrying her and procuring visa for both of them to travel abroad as husband and wife.

According to the victim, the wanted man not only defrauded her of the said amount, he also made her lose her fiancé and a job with a pharmaceutical company before fleeing.

It was gathered that Chinedu suffered her fate after she met Emmanson at a park in Abuja where he pretended to be stranded and she decided to assist him.

Emmanson, who is from Okigwe in Imo State, deceived Chinedu by telling her that he came to Abuja to procure visa to travel abroad but was stranded and needed a place to sleep till the next day, when he purportedly had an appointment with an embassy.

Syria hanged 13,000 in Saydnaya prison: Amnesty

As many as 13,000 people were hanged in five years at a notorious Syrian prison near Damascus, Amnesty International has said, accusing the government of a "policy of extermination".

Titled "Human Slaughterhouse: Mass hanging and extermination at Saydnaya prison," Amnesty's damning report, released on Tuesday, is based on interviews with 84 witnesses, including guards, detainees, and judges.

It found that at least once a week between 2011 and 2015, groups of up to 50 people were taken out of their prison cells for arbitrary trials, beaten, then hanged "in the middle of the night and in total secrecy.

"Throughout this process, they remain blindfolded. They do not know when or how they will die until the noose was placed around their necks," the report said.

Most of the victims were civilians believed to be opposed to the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

Manchester United hold memorial service at Old Trafford 59 years on from Munich air disaster

Manchester United held a special service outside Old Trafford on Monday to remember the victims of the 1958 Munich Air Disaster.

Fifty-nine years ago, on February 6, eight Manchester United players were among 23 people who died when a plane carrying the squad crashed on an icy runway when attempting to take off.In tribute to those who were lost, the club hosted a gathering of fans from 2:45pm on Monday, where several poems were recited.

A minute's silence was held at 3:04pm, the time when the crash took place on the third attempt of a British European Airways flight to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Reim Airport.